Tendai Ruben Mbofana
It is often said that the last refuge of a politician in distress is the pulpit.
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In Zimbabwe, this has become a wearying tradition.
When the levers of state power and the mechanics of propaganda fail to silence internal discord or manufacture consent, our leaders turn to the Bible, twisting its verses into a shield for their personal ambitions.
The recent pronouncements by the ZANU-PF Mashonaland East Provincial Chairman and Minister of Local Government, Daniel Garwe, are a textbook example of this theological malpractice.
Garwe’s call for the nation to pray for our leaders’ “long life” was not a spontaneous burst of Christian piety.
It was a calculated, albeit clumsy, counter-strike in an ongoing proxy war within the ruling establishment.
It was a direct response to Vice President Constantino Chiwenga’s recent sermon regarding King Hezekiah.
Chiwenga’s invocation of the biblical king—who begged for an extra fifteen years of life only for those years to be marked by disastrous pride and the ultimate ruin of his legacy—was a masterclass in political shade.
It was widely interpreted as a warning against the “ED2030” agenda and the push to extend President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s tenure from five to seven years.
However, beyond the factional bickering of ZANU-PF, Garwe’s assertion carries a more dangerous infection: the deliberate misrepresentation of the Word of God to justify authoritarianism.
As a devout Christian and a citizen who believes in the sanctity of both the faith and the constitution, I must set the record right.
Minister Garwe, nowhere in the Holy Scriptures does God urge or command the faithful to pray specifically for a leader’s long life.
The primary biblical mandate for praying for those in authority is found in 1 Timothy 2:1-2.
The Apostle Paul urges that petitions and intercessions be made for kings and all those in authority, but he is very specific about the objective.
We pray for them so “that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.”
The goal is the welfare of the people and the stability of the society, not the personal longevity or the perpetual incumbency of the ruler.
To pray for a leader’s long life, especially when that life is dedicated to the subversion of justice and the impoverishment of the masses, is to pray for the extension of a nation’s agony.
This flawed teaching has found a comfortable home in many Zimbabwean church organizations that have essentially become appendages of the ruling party.
These “religious” leaders have traded their prophetic voice for the crumbs of patronage, turning their congregations into voting blocs for the status quo.
They preach a perverted “theology of longevity” that equates a long reign with divine favor.
If we are to look for a biblical precedent for what a leader should desire, let us look at Solomon.
When God offered him anything he wanted, Solomon did not ask for a long life or the death of his enemies.
He asked for “an understanding heart to judge Your people, that I may discern between good and evil” (1 Kings 3:9).
God was so pleased with this request for wisdom and justice that He granted it.
God specifically noted that Solomon had not asked for a long life or riches.
If God did not prioritize a leader’s longevity over their capacity for justice, why should the Zimbabwean people be expected to?
The Bible is replete with warnings against leaders who seek only to entrench themselves.
In Proverbs 28:16, the scripture is blunt: “A tyrannical ruler practices extortion, but one who hates ill-gotten gain will enjoy a long reign.”
Longevity is framed here as a conditional byproduct of justice and integrity, not a standard demand we must make of the Creator regardless of the leader’s conduct.
When a leader presides over a system where the judiciary is compromised, where human rights defenders are persecuted, and where the nation’s wealth is looted by a predatory elite, praying for that leader’s “long life” is an insult to the victims of their misrule.
The irony of Minister Garwe’s demand is that it highlights the very desperation it seeks to hide.
Why is longevity suddenly the most pressing prayer point in Mashonaland East?
It is because the ruling elite is terrified of the natural end of their political cycles.
They want to turn the presidency into a life sentence for the Zimbabwean people.
They want to use the name of God to bypass the constitutional limits that they themselves swore to uphold.
As Christians, we are called to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world.
We are called to “seek justice, encourage the oppressed, and defend the cause of the fatherless” (Isaiah 1:17).
We are not called to be the PR agents for a political faction.
When we pray for our leaders, we should pray that they are struck by a spirit of repentance.
We should pray that they are granted the wisdom to know when their time is up and the courage to leave gracefully.
We should pray that they are held accountable for the blood and the tears of the citizens they have failed.
Minister Garwe, the church is not a wing of ZANU-PF.
The Bible is not a campaign manual for term extensions.
God is interested in the quality of a leader’s heart and the justice of their scales, not the number of years they spend in a palace.
If you want us to pray, we will pray—but we will pray for a Zimbabwe where justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream.
We will pray for the end of corruption and the restoration of our dignity.
If that prayer shortens the political life of those who stand in the way of justice, then let it be so.
That is the only prayer that truly honors God.
- Tendai Ruben Mbofana is a social justice advocate and writer. To directly receive his articles please join his WhatsApp Channel on: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaqprWCIyPtRnKpkHe08
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