The Zimbabwe Independent -- a weekly publication under Alpha Media Holdings (AMH) -- has unreservedly apologised to President Mnangagwa, the Ministry of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services and the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) for publishing false allegations concerning the purported disappearance of licence-fee revenues.
In a letter by the publication's editor Faith Zaba, the weekly admitted that its recent story suggesting US$52 million was unaccounted for at the national broadcaster was not supported by verified official findings and contained insinuations that may have improperly questioned the President's integrity.
"On behalf of The Zimbabwe Independent, I write to extend our sincere and unreserved apology to you, the ministry, His Excellency, the President of Zimbabwe, and the leadership of the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) regarding the article published in our recent edition concerning alleged irregularities in licence-fee revenues," wrote Zaba.
"Most importantly, we wish to convey our profound and unequivocal apology to His Excellency, the President of the Republic of Zimbabwe. We deeply regret that our article contained insinuations that may have been interpreted as questioning the integrity of His Excellency or suggesting impropriety in the exercise of his constitutional prerogatives.
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Discover moreMass media insightsNewspaper publishing servicesLocal news alerts"We fully acknowledge that the reassignment of ministers is a lawful and constitutional function of the President, exercised in pursuit of national interests and administrative efficiency.
"It was never our intention to cast aspersions on his leadership, judgment or commitment to good governance, and we sincerely apologise for any offence or reputational harm that may have arisen."
The editor further conceded that the story's central claim was baseless.
"We further acknowledge that the story included claims, particularly the assertion that US$52 million was unaccounted for, which were not supported by verified official audit findings. We accept that there has been no Government audit or forensic audit establishing malpractice in relation to these funds and that internal auditors at ZBC have not flagged such irregularities."
Discover moreNewspaper e-editionsWorld Cup newsZTN television contentThe apology follows a strongly worded statement on Friday by the Ministry of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services, which described the newspaper article as a "poorly executed hatchet job" replete with "unfounded allegations, falsehoods and malicious insinuations".
In its statement, the ministry dismissed the US$52 million figure as "a gross exaggeration and a complete fabrication", emphasising that actual revenue collected from licence fees was "nowhere near the thumb-sucked figure".
"The ministry wishes to state, categorically and unequivocally, that this figure is a gross exaggeration and a complete fabrication. The actual revenue collected from licence fees is nowhere near the thumb-sucked figure of US$52 million," read the statement.
"There has been no Government audit nor a forensic audit on this matter because no evidence of malpractice has ever been presented to warrant one. Furthermore, the internal auditors at ZBC have not flagged any such irregularity. We are therefore left to wonder which phantom audit the newspaper relied on to conjure up these figures. It is a clear case of throwing as much mud as possible in the desperate hope that some of it will stick."
The ministry further slammed the newspaper for ignoring basic journalistic protocols, revealing that the publication had deliberately bypassed official channels despite being explicitly directed to channel inquiries to the Permanent Secretary, Mr Nick Mangwana.
"It is telling that the newspaper deliberately avoided following basic journalistic ethics and protocol. The publication was explicitly directed to channel its inquiries to the Permanent Secretary for comment. This direction was ignored because the intention was never to seek the truth, but to print a pre-determined vindictive story. Furthermore, the claim that the reporter attempted to engage the ZBC CEO (Mr Sugar Chagonda) is a blatant lie. No such engagement took place. The newspaper has no evidence that ZBC exceeded its approved expenditure limits because that evidence simply does not exist."
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Reaffirming its commitment to transparency and public accountability, the ministry announced that ZBC is scheduled to undergo its regular audit in March 2026, with results to be tabled before Parliament.
While expressing outrage at the breach of media ethics, the ministry said it would not be distracted from its mandate, calling upon the public to treat the baseless allegations with the contempt they deserve and urging media houses to adhere to factual and balanced reporting.
