By Pamenus Tuso

The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) Zimbabwe has mourned the death of businessman Wicknell Chivayo, saying Zimbabweans should never lose their humanity to the extent of celebrating the death of another person simply because they disagree with his politics, business interests or public image.

Chivayo died in a helicopter crash in Marondera on Wednesday, alongside his wife, Lucy Muteke and other three passengers.

His death has triggered an outpouring of grief but has also exposed deep divisions on social media where some people have openly celebrated his death because of their perceptions of his wealth, political connections and public life.

For the EFF, however, death should be a moment for reflection rather than celebration.

EFF president Innocent Ndibali said the party was mourning Chivayo as an African who had lost his life suddenly while extending its condolences to his family and the families of the other victims.

“We may disagree with Wicknell Chivayo. We may question his politics, his business interests or the manner in which he lived his life but none of those disagreements makes his death something to celebrate,” Ndibali said in an interview.

“He was a son, a husband, a family member and above all, a human being. When death comes suddenly, our first response as Africans should be compassion.”

Ndibali said the EFF’s decision to mourn Chivayo was rooted in the party’s Pan-African outlook, which places African dignity and the liberation of Africans at the centre of its politics.

He said economic emancipation should not be understood as hatred of Africans who accumulate wealth but as a struggle to ensure that African wealth and economic opportunities benefit the majority of Africans.

“Our struggle is not a struggle against successful Africans. It is a struggle for an Africa where success is not reserved for a connected few but where millions of Africans have the opportunity to create wealth, own businesses and participate meaningfully in the economy,” he said.

Chivayo’s extravagant lifestyle and his close association with powerful political figures had made him one of Zimbabwe’s most recognisable businessmen. His public persona attracted both admiration and criticism, particularly on social media.

But Ndibali said political and economic disagreements should never strip people of their humanity.

“Pan-Africanism cannot mean loving Africans only when they agree with us. If we genuinely believe in African dignity, then that dignity must apply even when we disagree with another African,” he said.

The EFF leader said the reaction to Chivayo’s death should force Zimbabweans to reflect on the country’s increasingly bitter political and social discourse.

“There is something deeply troubling when the death of a fellow African becomes an occasion for celebration. We must ask ourselves what kind of society we are becoming,” Ndibali said.

“We can challenge privilege. We can demand accountability. We can question the distribution of wealth. We can oppose political decisions. But we must never lose the ability to mourn a human being.”

For the EFF, Chivayo’s death also brings into focus the wider question of economic emancipation in Africa.

Ndibali said Africa’s challenge was not simply the existence of wealthy individuals but the failure to create economies capable of producing broad-based prosperity for ordinary citizens.

“Our vision is an Africa where the young person in lilongwe Bulawayo, Lusaka, Johannesburg or Lagos can dream of becoming a business owner, an industrialist, an engineer or an employer without needing political connections to open doors,” he said.

“That is what economic emancipation means to us — Africans must become owners of their economic destiny.”

He said the tragedy should therefore not be reduced to debates about Chivayo’s wealth or political associations.

“Today we are mourning a life that has been lost. Tomorrow, the political struggle continues. We can debate, disagree and organise differently but we must never allow our political differences to destroy the basic African value of Ubuntu,” Ndibali said.

The EFF extended its condolences to the Chivayo and Muteke families, as well as the families of all those who died in the crash. Ndibali said the party hoped the tragedy would encourage Zimbabweans to rediscover compassion in an increasingly polarised society.

“Let us disagree while people are alive. Let us hold one another accountable while there is still an opportunity to do so. But when death comes, let us remember that before politics, before money and before status, there is the human being,” he added.