A society devoid of hunhu is dead.
There was a time when a Zimbabwean’s pride was unassailable.
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It did not matter how meager one’s income was or how modest one’s home appeared; personal dignity was non-negotiable. We were raised under the strict, uncompromising tenets of hunhu. A moral framework that taught us that self-worth, integrity, and honest labor were the true measures of a human being. Yet today, as we look across our socio-cultural landscape, we are forced to confront a deeply disturbing question.
What happened to self-respect in our nation? What we are witnessing in contemporary Zimbabwe is a tragic collapse of moral boundaries, replaced by an embarrassing culture of open begging, subservience, and the worship of questionable wealth. Across the spectrum—from high-profile public figures and celebrated artists to ordinary citizens—we see people eager to grovel before flamboyant “tenderpreneurs” like Wicknell Chivayo, desperate to receive handouts of luxury cars and cash.
Social media has become a digital panhandling square where men and women unabashedly sing praises, craft flattering stunts, and shamelessly beg for the crumbs falling from the tables of corruptly enriched benefactors. The true tragedy of accepting these tainted gifts lies in the quiet, automatic compromise it forces upon the recipient. The moment such a gift is accepted, the trap snaps shut. Nothing given by a corrupt benefactor is ever free; it is paid for with the currency of moral independence.
By accepting unearned luxury funded by questionable wealth, respected individuals—whether artists, community figures, or ordinary citizens—allow themselves to be used as props to legitimize the giver. The gift instantly buys their silence, neutralizes their moral authority, and turns them into passive accomplices. Acceptance itself is the act of subservience, signaling to the entire nation that even one’s integrity has a price tag.
This rot has seeped so deeply into our social fabric that it has even invaded the sanctuary of the home. In traditional Zimbabwean culture, it is strictly taboo for a married woman to receive personal gifts from an unrelated man. Such an act is recognized instantly as a direct affront to the husband’s standing and an intrusion into marital boundaries. Yet today, we see men happily permitting their wives to accept lavish gifts from shady characters, even celebrating it publicly. No matter how anyone attempts to rationalize it, a man who tolerates such arrangements forfeits his standing, emasculates himself in the eyes of his family, and loses the respect of the world.
At the same time, the his wife becomes beholden to the giver. As children growing up in Zimbabwe, lack was not an excuse for disgrace. We were taught the severe taboo of kukwata—uninvitedly begging or seeking food at neighbors’ homes. To accept food or gifts elsewhere without permission brought immense shame upon the entire family name, signaling to the world that one’s parents were either incapable or irresponsible.
A child caught begging was guaranteed a thorough disciplinary lesson, because our elders understood a fundamental truth. Once you condition a child to beg, you break their spirit and raise an adult who will always look for handouts instead of standing on their own feet. Somewhere along the way, a culture of greed and opportunism eroded these vital principles.
But greed cannot mask a voluntary surrender of honor. Wealth acquired through shady deals, inflated government tenders, and institutional corruption carries no intrinsic glory. To bow before those who flaunt such wealth—especially for those who already have enough—is to validate the very corruption that keeps millions impoverished.
There is infinitely more dignity in driving an old 2000 Nissan Sunny that was bought through honest, hard work than in cruising around in a flashy, gifted Mercedes-Benz or Rolls-Royce that cost you your independence. The modest car belongs to you; it carries no hidden strings, demands no performative gratitude, and requires no compromise of your principles. True self-respect is knowing that what you have, no matter how small, was built by your own sweat and integrity.
If Zimbabwe is ever to recover its soul, we must urgently restore the culture of self-reliance and moral courage. Material items can be lost, broken, or repossessed, but once a person, a family, or a nation trades away its self-respect, no amount of money or luxury cars can ever buy it back. We must stop celebrating unearned opulence and start honoring honest labor once again.
Tendai Ruben Mbofana is a social justice advocate and writer. Please feel free to contact him on +263715667700 or mbofana.tendairuben73@gmail.com
Source: What happened to self-respect in Zimbabwe: the erosion of dignity in an age of tainted gifts
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