A prominent Zimbabwean researcher has warned that a new form of power rooted in gangsterism is threatening governance systems and democracy across Africa and beyond.
In his March 2025 report, Gangsterism: A New Form of Power, Tendai Murisa argues that society is increasingly ruled by “a greedy and violent cabal” that operates above the law and is united by “one vision, grand accumulation.”
“They will not allow anything or anyone, including basic laws of decency, to stand in their way,” Murisa writes. “There is only one way to describe the situation we are in, the end of decency and widespread acceptance of greed. We are in trouble”.
The report, published by the SIVIO Institute, describes a world where traditional criminal mafias, corrupt elites, and authoritarian governments employ similar tactics to capture power, ranging from violence and intimidation to systemic corruption.
“The Albanian mafia, we are told, will shoot if one dares to disagree with them. Other cabals run governments and use prisons as a way of silencing anyone who would dare to criticise them. Some are so popular they steal in the name of the people,” he adds.
Murisa links this growing disorder to structural economic decline, particularly in Africa, where a lack of industrialisation and low productivity in agriculture have left the state as the only viable site of wealth accumulation.
“For us in Africa, it is a challenge of the lack of industrialisation and the weakening of commodity prices… The only site of accumulation is within the state,” he notes. “Political power has come to mean economic power”.
He warns that when private actors rely on state contracts, “a US$450.00 laptop might as well just cost US$4,500.00,” reflecting the distorted economics of state capture and elite profiteering.
Even in the Global North, Murisa observes a shift toward more aggressive, self-serving behaviour. He describes the United States’ recent trade and geopolitical manoeuvres as driven by “bullying and gangsterism,” adding: “They reflect both deep-seated desperation and a very clear misunderstanding of how the world has changed”.
Murisa takes particular aim at the performance of electoral democracies on the African continent. While 15 African countries held elections in 2024, he argues that “there is no tangible evidence so far that all these elections have led to better lives.”
“The elections-dominated democracy paradigm has reduced citizens into voters without an adequate appreciation of what the current moment requires—a new form of active engagement with the state,” he writes.
Even where citizens are allowed to vote, many governments remain unaccountable to their populations. “Elites within and outside of the state have coalesced to diminish the redistribution capabilities of the state. Instead, it continues to serve a tiny minority”.
To challenge this decline, Murisa calls for a revitalised accountability movement, led by citizens, not just institutions.
“We hold to the belief that those holding public office and power must be held to a higher standard of accountability,” he writes. “Only when officeholders are held accountable… shall we see improvements in how governments function and ensure effective delivery”.
He advocates for engagement that goes beyond voting: “Effective governments, where they once existed, rarely governed alone; they did so in partnership with active citizens in various associational platforms”.
The report highlights promising examples of citizen-led initiatives already holding governments accountable across the continent.
In Zimbabwe, the African Citizens Watch platform tracks whether ruling parties implement the promises made in their manifestos.
“African politics is transitioning towards an issues-driven approach… The era of blind loyalty to a political party is slowly coming to an end,” Murisa writes.
In Nigeria, the civic tech group BudgIT and its platform Tracka empower citizens to monitor local development projects.
According to the report, this model “encourages active citizen involvement and direct monitoring,” helping communities demand tangible results from elected officials.
Meanwhile, the Mining Revenue Monitoring Index (MRMI), piloted in Zimbabwe by the SIVIO Institute, tracks financial flows and tax contributions from mining companies. It aims to “enhance transparency and policy effectiveness, supporting better community and national development outcomes”.
Murisa ends on a sobering note. “The taming or disciplining of officeholders who have resorted to gangsterism will require more than elections,” he writes. “There is an urgent need for progressive forces to re-group, re-consider tools and sharpen what works to restore confidence in public processes and create hope for equitable transformation”.