Sound Bite
This is a detailed analysis of Zimbabwe (the former Rhodesia)'s struggle to become a viable independent state, with a focus on the tumultuous events under President Robert Mugabe.
About the Author
Jacob Chikuhwa was born and raised in Zimbabwe. After having been detained by the white minority Rhodesian Front regime between 1964 and 1965, Jacob Chikuhwa escaped into Zambia, in 1966, from where he secured an Afro-Asian scholarship to study in the former Soviet Union. In 1972, upon completion of his studies, Chikuhwa moved to Sweden.
Dr Jacob Chikuhwa holds degrees in economics and international relations from Ukraine's Kiev Institute of National Economy and the University of Stockholm in Sweden. A Zimbabwean national, Chikuhwa has lectured on economics, finance, and administration both in Zimbabwe and Sweden. In April 2005, he lectured at The New School Graduate Program in International Affairs, New School University, in New York City.
He was an economics professional for 26 years, then turned to writing full time. His books include A Short Tour of Zimbabwe and Zimbabwe: The Rise to Nationhood. He was editor of the ZANU monthly journal in Scandinavia, Zimbabwe Chimurenga, Impi ye Nkululeko (1974-1976) and founded A Quarterly Abstract of PTC Statistics in 1983. He is currently working on Venturing into the Unknown (Kumaziwandadzoka), a film on HIV/AIDS in Zimbabwe, and another title called The Pendulum. Chikuhwa has three further titles pending publication.
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About the Book
Written by an internationally-trained African economic analyst, A Crisis of Governance is a detailed study of Zimbabwean socio-economic history and development since the nation achieved independence from Great Britain in April 1980, with a focus...
Written by an internationally-trained African economic analyst, A Crisis of Governance is a detailed study of Zimbabwean socio-economic history and development since the nation achieved independence from Great Britain in April 1980, with a focus on recent events under President Robert Mugabe and the ZANU (Patriotic Front).
Problems range from the need for constitutional reform to political patronage and a de facto one-party democracy and the need for transparency in land reform, privatization, and economic liberalization.
It is one thing to break free of colonial tutelage; it is quite another to recover from the legacy of colonialism and implement the macroeconomic changes that would lay the basis for a self-sustaining economy. The crisis of governance in Zimbabwe (formerly known as Rhodesia) began with the occupation of Mashonaland by the British South Africa Company (BSAC) in 1890. Self-rule and the subsequent British-sponsored constitutions did not much improve the situation, and the 1965 Unilateral Declaration of Independence only aggravated it.
Jacob Chikuhwa provides many specific examples of the steps forward — and the steps back, documented by personal interviews, news sources and others,
Bibliography, Index, Footnotes.
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PART I. CONSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER 1. SOCIO-POLITICAL SYSTEMS
Pre-Historic Social Structures
Pre-Colonial Political Systems
Colonial Incursions and the Early Constitutions
The Chimurenga War
T
PART I. CONSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER 1. SOCIO-POLITICAL SYSTEMS
Pre-Historic Social Structures
Pre-Colonial Political Systems
Colonial Incursions and the Early Constitutions
The Chimurenga War
The 1923 Constitution
The 1961 Constitution
The Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI)
The 1965 Constitution
The 1969 Constitution
CHAPTER 2. THE NEED FOR CONSTITUTIONAL CHANGE
Settlement Talks
The 1979 Constitution
The Lusaka Accord and the Lancaster House Constitution
Countless Amendments to the Lancaster House Constitution
Retention of Colonial Laws
Cultural Expression and Repression
Special Legislation and Rights Infringements
The Clamor for a Homegrown Constitution
Mugabe's Constitutional Commission
The Commission's Draft versus the Popular Will
Ramming It Through
CHAPTER 3. THE FOLLY IN A DE FACTO ONE-PARTY DEMOCRACY
Harassment of the Opposition
Growing Discontent
Cracks within the Ruling Party
The Roots of Corruption
One-party political systems
Allocation of Resources to the Less-privileged
Aid Programs
Centralized Allocation of Assets and Projects
Commodity Shortages and National Disasters
PART II. ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT
CHAPTER 4. THE INDIGENIZATION POLICY
Prerequisites for Indigenous Investment
The Economic Empowerment Lobby
Political Patronage
CHAPTER 5. ECONOMIC REFORMS
The Land-Reform Program
Economic Liberalization
Parastatal Privatization
Industry and Export Promotion
What Lies Ahead
APPENDIX I. THE PRESIDENCY AND MINISTERS' SALARIES
APPENDIX II. GOVERNMENT COMPOSITION
BIBLIOGRAPHY
INDEX
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CHOICE Magazine, January 2005 | More »
CHOICE Magazine, January 2005
Chikuhwa presents a thorough, hard-hitting and fair account of the decline of popular government and economic promise in Zimbabwe since the establishment of the ZANU (PF) regime in 1980. The coverage is empirical and divided into two unequal parts: a legalistic description of "constitutional development" and a less structured description of "economic empowerment" failures. All can be explained by the ruthless determination of Mugabe and his cynical inner circle to stay in power and to enrich themselves at state expense. The economic programs fail because government lacks the political will and rejects the basics of democratic ethics. Chikuhwa is best in treating the repression of the media, constitutional amendments, electoral fraud, and growing dissent within the ruling party.... Summing Up: RECOMMENDED. Upper-division undergraduates and above.
Minerva Press
This is a wide-ranging examination of the history of Zimbabwe. [C]oncentrating chiefly on the politico-economic aspects of history, this ambitious work ... is perceptive, fact-based and readable.
Publishers Weekly June 2004 | More »
Publishers Weekly June 2004
Chikuhwa chronicles Zimbabwe's bleak history since the nation (then Rhodesia) achieved independence from Great Britain in 1980. Born and raised in Zimbabwe, Chikuhwa devotes the first part of his analysis to his nation's vexed constitutional history. After outlining constitutions set up under British rule and then under a white minority government, the author focuses in detail on the 1979 "Lancaster House Constitution" of the Republic of Zimbabwe and how the new government, dominated by the Zimbabwe African National Union Patriotic Front, or ZANU (PF), and headed by President Robert Mugabe, enacted radical constitutional amendments that gave Mugabe far-reaching presidential powers.
Chikuhwa shows how Mugabe's government quickly adopted a Marxist-Leninist style of authoritarianism, and documents widespread corruption, government intolerance of criticism, coercive tactics regarding voting, and the irresponsible manipulation of land redistribution. As many have done, he accuses Mugabe's government of nepotism, corruption and "blatant disregard for accepted ethical commercial practice."
The second part of Chikuhwa's study focuses on how corruption and a lack of transparency and accountability in Zimbabwe's governance have intensified social problems, crime and poverty, and have alienated the IMF and World Bank as well as potential foreign investors. Chikuhwa analyzes this "quagmire" industry by industry, making recommendations for economic improvements. Chikuhwa's study, rich in statistical data and heartfelt commentary, will serve as a useful introduction to Zimbabwe's society, economics and recent history.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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Pages 368
Year: 2004
LC Classification: JQ2925.C47
Dewey code: 320.96891'dc22
BISAC: POL016000
BISAC: HIS001000
Soft Cover
ISBN: 978-0-87586-284-2
Price: USD 28.95
Hard Cover
ISBN: 978-0-87586-285-9
Price: USD 35.95
eBook
ISBN: 978-0-87586-286-6
Price: USD 15.00
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