According to a new report from The Sentry, an investigative and policy organization aimed at dismantling multinational predatory networks benefiting from violent conflict, repression, and kleptocracy, the Forever Associates Zimbabwe (FAZ) trust was established by Asher Walter Tapfumaneyi, deputy director-general of the Central Intelligence Organization (CIO), and his close family members. The trust was formed to support the ruling Zanu PF party in winning the 2023 elections, with a reported expenditure of $23 million during the campaign.
FAZ’s official records show its trustees and founders include Tapfumaneyi’s family and associates, such as Tangisai Tapera, his key ally and business partner in a previous oil deal with Iran. Despite these connections, both Tapfumaneyi and FAZ deny the CIO’s control over the trust.
Furthermore, a CIO officer previously used the main phone number for FAZ, as indicated by several phone apps that reveal the names under which a phone number has been saved by contacts in users’ address books, suggesting agency involvement.
During the campaign, FAZ reportedly spent at least $4 million importing more than 160 Toyota Hilux pickup trucks for Zanu PF candidates, a sum considerably higher than the $500,000 in public party funding received by opposition parties in Zimbabwe since October 2022.
According to the report, FAZ declined to comment on whether its activities intimidated voters or tipped the electoral scales in favor of Zanu PF.
The CIO also significantly increased its spending before the elections, purchasing 780 vehicles for $23 million since January 2022, nearly matching the $25 million spent from 2016 to 2021. In the past, the CIO allegedly used similar vehicles for beating and intimidating opposition supporters.
FAZ was initially established as a youth empowerment project to access business opportunities in 2010, with support from the Ministry of State for Presidential Affairs, formed during the 2009 government of national unity led by then Zanu PF leader, former President Robert Mugabe, and Movement for Democratic Change leader Morgan Tsvangirai, both deceased. FAZ chairperson Kudakwashe Munsaka said the trust was revived in 2022 after being disbanded in 2014.
While FAZ and involved parties deny any misconduct, The Sentry’s report reveals a trail leading back to the CIO, highlighting connections between Tapfumaneyi and FAZ through past roles and relationships.
In response to the findings, The Sentry recommends that the government stop using state resources to favor Zanu PF and calls for updates to the country’s electoral laws to introduce campaign expenditure limits. It also suggests that banks and firms doing business with FAZ conduct enhanced due diligence in line with the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
Source: Newsday
