Categories: Stories

Even Mugabe was corrupt, and so was Ian Smith

People must not talk ill about the dead.Tradition says so. But we are not talking about the dead. We are talking about what happened 33 years ago when The Insider published this story. President Robert Mugabe had been in power for only 12 years, the first seven as Prime Minister. He was to stay in power for 25 more years. 

But it was not Mugabe alone. Even former Rhodesian Prime Minister Ian Smith who resisted back rule for 16 years because blacks were not civilised enough was also involved in the deal.

The Insider is updating its website by uploading stories that were published in the print edition before it had its own website.

Other stories added to our archives:

Taxpayers not happy with drought levy

Developers worried about phones

25 filing cabinets of Zipra documents lost

AIDS: Thousands affected but the disease is still not being taken seriously

ESAP, religion or hardship 

Africa being exported to death – economists says

Where does Zimbabwe stand? 

Business interests take upper hand

Corruption is rife in CMED -Committee calls for the entire overhaul of the department 

Diplomatic bungling

 

(464 VIEWS)

This post was last modified on May 3, 2025 9:28 am

Charles Rukuni

The Insider is a political and business bulletin about Zimbabwe, edited by Charles Rukuni. Founded in 1990, it was a printed 12-page subscription only newsletter until 2003 when Zimbabwe's hyper-inflation made it impossible to continue printing.

Recent Posts

Is it true that 4 million Zimbabweans went without food on several occasions last year?

At least four million people in Zimbabwe reported that they had gone without food on…

November 5, 2026

Did you know that four of the world’s largest banks are all in China?

Four of the world’s largest banks are all in China. Assets of the Industrial and…

October 15, 2026

Zimbabwe one of the 27 countries in the world where the richest 0.1% has more wealth than the bottom 80%

Zimbabwe is one of the 27 countries in the world where the richest 0.1% of…

October 2, 2026

Zimbabwe third among the least free countries in SADC

Zimbabwe has been ranked third among the least free countries in Southern Africa but it…

May 24, 2026

Why I had a girlfriend two months after my wife’s death- Take 1

I had always considered it a curse for a wife to die before her husband.…

May 18, 2026

Why I had a girlfriend two months after my wife’s death

This is a true story about the challenges and loneliness I faced when my wife…

May 17, 2026