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Papers by daglous makumbe

Has Democracy Lost its Aura? Elections, Military Coups, and Human Rights: Selected Cases from Southern Africa, 2024

This chapter dissects the changing democratic patterns that Southern Africa is currently experien... more This chapter dissects the changing democratic patterns that Southern Africa is currently experiencing by utilising qualitative research methodology; document analysis. Selected cases from Southern African states such as Namibia, Madagascar, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Zimbabwe will be utilised to assess how democracy has taken a new trajectory. The role of the regional bloc, the Southern African Development Community, will also be assessed to evaluate its efforts in maintaining and enforcing democratic values in its member states. Democracy seems to be losing its sensation in Southern Africa as some states have seemingly degenerated into authoritarian rule, militarism, and dictatorship. It has transmogrified as many elections in the region have been highly controversial and allegedly manipulated. Southern Africa has also experienced a high incidence of military coups, primarily caused by constitutional and electoral manipulations. Archaic and anachronistic political transitions of the 19th century have resurfaced in Southern Africa, making the region experience different decades but with the same problems. Such undemocratic political transitions, sometimes initiated with modifications but tragic consequences, have caused retrogressive effects on the region's nascent democracy. The conclusion is that democracy has seemingly lost its quality as autocratic tendencies seem to be gaining more prominence unfettered. An introduction constitutes the next section, which briefly discusses the context of the problem. It is followed by the methodology, which outlines the methodological tool(s) adopted to gather information. A literature review forms the subsequent chapter and discusses what other scholars say about the topic. The recommendations and conclusion recapitulate the chapter.

The novel coronavirus has troubled the world, unleashing deaths and a social quagmire. The catast... more The novel coronavirus has troubled the world, unleashing deaths and a social quagmire. The catastrophic implications of the pandemic pushed states to the brink, compelling them to institute country lockdowns in a bid to flatten the curve of infections, avoid new ones and ensure that the health systems are not overwhelmed at any one point in time. Many states went on lockdowns, leading to corrosive effects on their economies. The death toll in Asia and Europe was astronomical. In the United States of America, Brazil and India, it was unprecedented. Except for a few countries in Europe and Africa that did not act homogeneously, the rest of the world ceased to function. Whilst lockdowns were effective in western countries, in the African continent, it was a different case. Although there was a willingness to institute lockdowns in Africa, the context made it almost impossible for many countries to effectively and efficiently implement. These factors which hampered the workability of lockdowns included high informal employment rates, informal settlements, rampant homelessness, porous borders, a high population density, institutions with vulnerable populations as well as conflict settings. This paper discusses in detail the research findings of the author on the efficacy of lockdowns in Africa. The importance of the study is to equip policymakers with better strategies to make lockdowns more effective through the dissection of problems discovered in the research findings. The paper findings are that lockdowns are problematic to adhere to in the African context. Recommendations are that lockdowns should be context-bound and must get buttressed by government efforts and interventions.

Journal of BRICS Studies

The novel coronavirus has rocked the world, unleashing disease, deaths and a social quagmire. The... more The novel coronavirus has rocked the world, unleashing disease, deaths and a social quagmire. The catastrophic implications of the pandemic have pushed states on the brink forcing most of them to institute country lockdowns in a bid to flatten the curve of infections, avoid new ones and ensuring that the health systems are not overwhelmed at any one point in time. More than ninety per cent of states went on lockdowns, leading to corrosive effects on their economies. The death toll in Asia and Europe was astronomical, whilst that of the United States of America, Brazil and India was unprecedented. Except for a few countries in Europe and Africa that did not act homogeneously, the rest of the world ceased to function. Whilst lockdowns were effective in western countries, in the African continent, it was a different case. Although there was a willingness to institute lockdowns in Africa, the context made it almost impossible for many countries to effectively and efficiently do so. Thes...

Journal of BRICS Studies (JBS), 2022

The novel coronavirus has troubled the world, unleashing deaths and a social quagmire. The catast... more The novel coronavirus has troubled the world, unleashing deaths and a social quagmire. The catastrophic
implications of the pandemic pushed states to the brink, compelling them to institute country lockdowns in a
bid to flatten the curve of infections, avoid new ones and ensure that the health systems are not overwhelmed
at any one point in time. Many states went on lockdowns, leading to corrosive effects on their economies.
The death toll in Asia and Europe was astronomical. In the United States of America, Brazil and India, it was
unprecedented. Except for a few countries in Europe and Africa that did not act homogeneously, the rest of
the world ceased to function. Whilst lockdowns were effective in western countries, in the African continent,
it was a different case. Although there was a willingness to institute lockdowns in Africa, the context made it
almost impossible for many countries to effectively and efficiently implement. These factors which hampered
the workability of lockdowns included high informal employment rates, informal settlements, rampant
homelessness, porous borders, a high population density, institutions with vulnerable populations as well as
conflict settings. This paper discusses in detail the research findings of the author on the efficacy of lockdowns
in Africa. The importance of the study is to equip policymakers with better strategies to make lockdowns more
effective through the dissection of problems discovered in the research findings. The paper findings are that
lockdowns are problematic to adhere to in the African context. Recommendations are that lockdowns should
be context-bound and must get buttressed by government efforts and interventions.

The ephemeral legal relationship between Africa and the International Criminal Court has yielded ... more The ephemeral legal relationship between Africa and the International Criminal Court has yielded sour grapes. African states have grown a strong aversion to the court, accusing this institution of last instance of selective justice and an exclusive focus on Africa. The Darfur referral by the Security Council on President Omar Hassan Ahmad al Bashir has finally led to the severance of ties between the African Union and the ICC. With powerful and affluent states such as the United States of America, Russia and China not part to the Rome Statute and hence non-members of the ICC, the absence of African states will further jeopardise the existence of the court. The veto of prosecution which the Permanent Five (P5) possesses has been a bone of contention and a source of disgruntlement amongst many signatories, non-signatories and potential signatories to the Rome

The United States of America, which is a member of the Permanent Five (P5) members of the United ... more The United States of America, which is a member of the Permanent Five (P5) members of the United Nations Security Council, and strictly speaking, which is the Permanent One (P1), has a unique veto of prosecution. This veto power is exclusive to the Permanent Five. The United States of America also has the dominant power and influence of the International Criminal Court yet it is not a state party to the Statute of Rome. The Bilateral Immunity Agreements (BIAs) that the United States of America signed with various states worldwide may justifiably be regarded as not very necessary since the United States of America can veto any decision(s) against its allies or its nationals by the veto of prosecution vested in it. Furthermore, the United States, with its vibrant legal institutions, can utilize the complementarity privilege to outsmart the International Criminal Court by prosecuting its citizens and servicemen for crimes within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court with...

Academia Letters, 2021

The Zimbabwean government proposed amendments to the 2013 constitution by enacting a bill. It was... more The Zimbabwean government proposed amendments to the 2013 constitution by enacting a bill. It was gazetted on 17 January 2020 and signed into law in May 2021. The amendments sparked outrage amongst lawyers, civil society, academics and the public at large. The amendment process got instituted hurriedly, monopolised by the legislature and executive branches without public participation. The method also fell short of adherence to correct legal procedures. This paper dissects the nature of the constitutional amendment and its impact on democracy, separation of powers and the 2023 harmonised elections. The constitutional amendment bill had two flaws. The first was the lack of the correct procedure. The second was the content of the amendments themselves (Linington, 2021). Section 328 1 of the constitution of Zimbabwe stipulates that a bill amending must be made public by the Speaker of Parliament 90 days before the introduction of the Bill into Parliament (Zimbabwe Constitution, 2013). The Zimbabwean Minister of Justice and ZANU PF backbencher legislators proposed amendments after the bill had been introduced into the house of assembly, violating the 90-day requirement as stipulated by Section 328(3). Regrettably, in this bill both the minister and ZANU PF members of the legislature (who have a two-thirds majority) were proposing amendments during the legislative process and while the bill was 1 Amendment of Constitution 3. A Constitutional Bill may not be presented in the Senate or the National Assembly in terms of Section 131 unless the Speaker has given at least ninety days' notice in the Gazette of the precise terms.

Lambert Academic Publishing, 2015

The International Criminal Court came into being as a result of the Rome Statute of 1 July 2002. ... more The International Criminal Court came into being as a result of the Rome Statute of 1 July 2002. It is a Court established to prosecute crimes of high magnitude such as genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity, crimes of aggression and the crimes against the administration of justice. The Court is anchored on its three fundamental cornerstones of complementarity, jurisdiction and admissibility. The Rome Statute is a voluntary treaty whereby willing states can sign and ratify the treaty. Currently, the ICC is experiencing vilification from many African states over what they allege to be selective justice and exclusive focus on Africa. Kenya has broken new ground by being the first state where the Chief Prosecutor used his powers ‘proprio motu’. It is also the first state whereby a sitting president and his vice president are all inductees of the ICC, and also the first state where all the inductees are members of the elite. The objectives of the study are to critically analyse how the complementarity principle has affected the jurisdiction and admissibility of cases submitted to the ICC, to investigate any possible legal landmines that are hindering international legal justice as well as to test the competence of the ICC using the Kenyan cases. In dissecting and analyzing the research topic, the researcher adopted various research methodologies such as documentary research, face to face interviews, in-depth interviews and key informant interviews. The data was presented as tables, pie charts and percentages. The researcher concludes that complementarity, jurisdiction and admissibility have not necessitated international legal to the extent that the world had anticipated. Recommendations are that African leaders should not rush to sign documents, treaties and statutes before reading and understanding them, in order to avoid disappointments. The ICC should also cast its net wide in all continents where egregious crimes are being perpetrated, and the United Nations Security Council’s veto of prosecution should be eradicated since the five permanent members are also potential perpetrators of heinous crimes. This veto of prosecution may be tantamount to obstruction of international legal justice.

African Response to the International Criminal Court: Implications for International Legal Justice, 2015

Daglous Makumbe, 2015

Journal of Public Administration, 2021

A tempestuous economic environment pushed South African Airways to the brink, compelling it to en... more A tempestuous economic environment
pushed South African Airways to the brink,
compelling it to enter into a bankruptcy
protection arrangement with the government.
The situation got exacerbated by the
advent of the novel coronavirus, which forced
the airline to ground all its local, regional
and international flights to retard, contain,
and manage infections as well as flattening
curves of new ones. This inevitable move
culminated in the collapse of ticket sales
income, a shutdown and a possibility of
liquidation, which ultimately threatened
thousands of jobs. Amidst incessant government
efforts over the years to salvage the
airline from total collapse, it has continued
to incur losses. This was due to debt crunch,
over-staffing, an ever-soaring wage bill, as
well as customer fatigue. South African
Airways was last profitable in 2011, and
since there have been relentless rescue
efforts instituted to salvage the airline from
total collapse. These efforts caused a drain
on public resources at a time of stunted economic
growth. The arrival of the COVID-19
pandemic has added woes to the beleaguered
airline, threatening its demise. The article
analyses the extent of the damage caused by
COVID-19 on South African Airways. It also
dissects reasons for loss-making, difficulties
in deregulating, liquidating, starting a new
airline from the ashes, as well as government
financial interventions. It does not seek to
challenge the existing literature on South
African Airways' loss-making over the years
but rather to augment it. It aims to buttress
existing literature through adopting a qualitative
(document analysis) research method.
It should not be read in isolation but be
regarded as complementary to other work
on related issues of public administration,
policy formulation and analysis.

Academia Letters, 2021

E-Learning in Times of a Pandemic: Exposing the Economic Disparities between the 'Haves' and the 'Have-Nots', 2020

The advent of the COVID-19 pandemic ushered in a new era in almost all spheres of life as it chan... more The advent of the COVID-19 pandemic ushered in a new era in almost all spheres of life as it changed the traditional ways people used to operate. The world was compelled to quickly adjust to the challenging and changing times hence putting acid tests to governments’ reactivity, budgets and adaptability. Business, travel, communication, transport, trade and all other spheres of human life were severely affected and the education sector was not spared either. The South African government had to adapt in such a tempestuous environment by shifting from offering the customary educational methods in both basic and higher education to electronic learning methods through the internet. Whilst e-learning was already in operation in some of the South African academic institutions, it was however not homogeneous and compulsory considering the economic disparities among its economically heterogeneous population. As the government was obliged to adapt to the new normal, the technological move severely exposed the economic dichotomy between the rich and the poor and affected the latter. This paper dissects the efficacy of the South African government in providing e-learning services to its learners in basic education in various institutions during the COVID-19 period.

Unmasking the Wounds: Zimbabwe’s Black History in the Post-Colonial Era., 2019

Zimbabwe has had a chequered history since attaining independence from Britain in 1980. This hist... more Zimbabwe has had a chequered history since attaining independence from Britain in 1980. This history was profoundly affected by the eccentricities of one person, its leader Robert Gabriel Mugabe who dominated the country’s domestic and international political landscape
through four major domestic policies; Operation “Gukurahundi” (1980s), Violent Farm Invasions (1999), Operation “Murambatsvina” (2005) and the botched elections of 2008. These four domestic policies had abrasive effects on the country’s foreign relations and set a bad precedence for successive ZANU PF governments. This chapter dissects the four major policy setbacks that affected Zimbabwe from independence to present day and moves that Zimbabwe’s domestic policies negatively affected its foreign policy and became
a harbinger for international isolation.

Unfulfilled Promises: Britain and Zimbabwe in the Post War Era, 2018

Southern Rhodesia had been engulfed by a marauding civil war which had enveloped the country for ... more Southern Rhodesia had been engulfed by a marauding civil war which had enveloped the country for years. The British had to intervene in order to salvage the country from sliding to the brink of the abyss by the advent of the Lancaster House conference which led to the cessation of hostilities between the belligerent parties, hence paving the way for elections and independence. The success of British preventive diplomacy of negotiation and mediation was apparent; ceasefire, election monitoring and peaceful transition. The dexterous ability of the British to cajole the belligerent parties to agree to an independence constitution and to reach a compromise was an acid test that the British government passed. The independence constitution constituted the bedrock for any further negotiations to come. The warring factions had ambivalent views, with the Patriotic Front leaders envisaging a sovereign state which would control the police, army, judiciary and civil service. They also hoped that the British would monitor and supervise the elections hence were willing to exchange the bullet with the ballot. For Muzorewa, this gave him the opportunity to argue that the holding of another election would be tantamount to unnecessary duplication of activities since he had been democratically elected in the Zimbabwe-Rhodesia internal settlement. Ian Smith argued that he had bridged the dichotomy between black and white, with black numerical superiority in the house of assembly. The agreement at Lancaster House had very sound and commendable provisions on constitutional democracy, legislative system, elections, the executive and criminal justice. However, the land issue which was the major bone of contention and the long term cause of the war was not dealt with amicably at the conference. It was supposed to be expedited, were a matter of immediacy and not a matter of prolongation. This procrastination sowed seeds of disgruntlement and betrayal that later gave rise to catastrophic consequences between Zimbabwe and Britain in particular and the International Community in general.

Has Democracy Lost its Aura? Elections, Military Coups, and Human Rights: Selected Cases from Southern Africa, 2024

Journal of BRICS Studies

Journal of BRICS Studies (JBS), 2022

The novel coronavirus has troubled the world, unleashing deaths and a social quagmire. The catast... more The novel coronavirus has troubled the world, unleashing deaths and a social quagmire. The catastrophic
implications of the pandemic pushed states to the brink, compelling them to institute country lockdowns in a
bid to flatten the curve of infections, avoid new ones and ensure that the health systems are not overwhelmed
at any one point in time. Many states went on lockdowns, leading to corrosive effects on their economies.
The death toll in Asia and Europe was astronomical. In the United States of America, Brazil and India, it was
unprecedented. Except for a few countries in Europe and Africa that did not act homogeneously, the rest of
the world ceased to function. Whilst lockdowns were effective in western countries, in the African continent,
it was a different case. Although there was a willingness to institute lockdowns in Africa, the context made it
almost impossible for many countries to effectively and efficiently implement. These factors which hampered
the workability of lockdowns included high informal employment rates, informal settlements, rampant
homelessness, porous borders, a high population density, institutions with vulnerable populations as well as
conflict settings. This paper discusses in detail the research findings of the author on the efficacy of lockdowns
in Africa. The importance of the study is to equip policymakers with better strategies to make lockdowns more
effective through the dissection of problems discovered in the research findings. The paper findings are that
lockdowns are problematic to adhere to in the African context. Recommendations are that lockdowns should
be context-bound and must get buttressed by government efforts and interventions.

Academia Letters, 2021

Lambert Academic Publishing, 2015

African Response to the International Criminal Court: Implications for International Legal Justice, 2015

Daglous Makumbe, 2015

Journal of Public Administration, 2021

Academia Letters, 2021

E-Learning in Times of a Pandemic: Exposing the Economic Disparities between the 'Haves' and the 'Have-Nots', 2020

Unmasking the Wounds: Zimbabwe’s Black History in the Post-Colonial Era., 2019

Unfulfilled Promises: Britain and Zimbabwe in the Post War Era, 2018