Leopards ate my face is only negative, and has been more political, typically someone voting to weaponize the government against their peer-level enemies but hypocritically, only to later realize they are not a party to the benefits, only the consequences.

It is really about a perceptual flaw in pre-fascist democratic behavior: people believing themselves to be a part of the protected class because they voted for it.

It seems to apply here because someone profiting from the creation of tools used on others by people with money/power has them used on him by the government.

tldr; it is a subset of you reap what you sow, with more specificity and punch

You know what? Thank you for explaining that!

Too biblical and old-fashioned, probably. I would say that at least half the people who've used "leopards ate my face" don't even know the meaning of reap. The simplicity and visual character of the modern expression make it memier.

That gives positive outcomes.

People vote for "leopards eating face" party because they want leopards to eat other peoples faces. You're relying on that party to do something they didn't say (it's not "leopards eat everyone else's face but not yours" party)

If you vote for a party to build a monument, then they build a monument, that's reaping what you sow.