Simbarashe Namusi-Columnist

We love to complain about the government — it’s our unofficial national pastime.

We’ll moan about corruption, curse politicians, and sigh about the economy until the generator runs out of fuel.

But maybe, just maybe, it’s time to admit: the problem isn’t only them. It’s us.We, the citizens — architects of the very “-cracy” we keep tweeting about.

On paper, we live in a democracy. In practice, we’re running a complainocracy — a country powered by outrage and WhatsApp rants.

We’re experts in diagnosing national problems, but absolute amateurs at solving them. We’ll debate politics like seasoned analysts, then forget to register to vote. We’ll quote the Constitution — usually from memes — and expect angels to implement it.

We say we want accountability, yet the moment someone gives out free T-shirts, we forget our grievances. Our political memory is shorter than a Wi-Fi signal during load-shedding.

When elections come, we line up not to change our future but to feel patriotic for one day. Then, as soon as the ink dries on our thumbs, we go back to waiting for “the next election” like it’s a sequel to a bad movie.

Meanwhile, we outsource our destiny. Politicians decide our future, prophets define our paths, and ancestors are expected to cover the rest. We’ve perfected outsourcocracy — the art of expecting someone else to do something.

We pay tithe more faithfully than we pay tax. We attend all-night prayers but skip community meetings. We pray for jobs instead of demanding policies. We’d rather buy miracle water than ask how the borehole fund was misused. And heaven help the “possessed” person who dares question our prophets. We are a nation where spiritual instruction has replaced civic education.

We also love to say “We are peaceful people,” which usually means “We will complain loudly and endlessly. While doing absolutely nothing to solve our problems.”

We’ll queue for hours for services, and cash, and then clap for the very system that made us queue. We’re patient to the point of paralysis.

Then there’s our hypocrisy index. We condemn corruption yet celebrate anyone who “hustles smart.” We demand transparency, but brag about knowing someone “inside” who can speed things up. We call politicians thieves — while borrowing their language of shortcuts.

Let’s face it: if democracy means self-rule, we’ve turned it into self-fool. A citizenry that prefers miracles to management, slogans to substance, and gossip to governance.

We can laugh at it — and maybe we should — because humour is the only therapy left.

But beneath the laughter lies a truth: no government ever rises above the character of its people.

So maybe the real “-cracy” we live under is us-cracy — a system where citizens create the leaders they deserve.

And if that sounds harsh, remember: a mirror doesn’t lie.

So, dear fellow Zimbabweans, as you scroll, pray, complain, and laugh through another day, ask yourself — not who rules us, but who raised them.

Because sometimes, the real rulers of Zimbabwe aren’t in Parliament or on the pulpit.

They’re sitting at home, sipping tea, saying, “Ko vanhu ava havaoni here?”while doing absolutely nothing.

Simbarashe Namusi is a peace, leadership and governance scholar as well as media expert. He writes in his personal capacity.