Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely!
This is a common sense observation noted in every human society and goes back to the very beginning of human civilisation. Indeed, the measure of how civilised a given society is, is but a measure of how well that society distributed and managed power and thus stop its abuse and promote peace, justice and order!
Having attained power; by honest means or foul, it does not matter; the temptation to hang on to power by means honest and foul is as in us all - as primeval and forceful as Charles Darwin’s survival of the fittest. Even those nations with robust laws and institutions designed to stop those in positions of power and authority abusing are not completely safe as every now and again a corrupt individual has sneaked through the net.
The essence of the Watergate Scandal is that President Richard Milhous Nixon used dirty tricks to secure his election victory in the November 1972 US Presidential Elections.
After months of denying that he and his team had done anything wrong, in April 1973 President Nixon announced the resignation of a number of his administration staff named in the Watergate Scandal.
“Whatever may appear to have been the case before, whatever improper activities may yet be discovered in connection with this whole sordid affair, I want the American people, I want you to know beyond the shadow of a doubt that during my term as President, justice will be pursued fairly, fully, and impartially, no matter who is involved. This office is a sacred trust and I am determined to be worthy of that trust,” President Nixon announced.
“There can be no whitewash at the White House!”
The whole speech, often dubbed “I am not a crook!”, was clearly a criminal attempt to whitewash the White House to hide his role in the sordid affair as the follow up investigations revealed.
When Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa succeed Robert Gabriel Mugabe as the President of Zimbabwe following the November 2017 military coup, Mnangagwa went to great lengths to assure the world his administration was poles apart from that of Mugabe.
Whereas Mugabe’s Zimbabwe was a failed state, pariah state, ruled by corrupt, incompetent, vote rigging and murderous thugs. Mnangagwa promised zero tolerance to corruption, promised to hold free and fair elections, etc. Mnangagwa’s Zimbabwe was “a new democratic dispensation, a Second Republic, open for business!”
Where President Nixon sort to assure everyone that he was “not a crook”; Mnangagwa has sort to assure everyone he is “not a dictator, like Mugabe, but a democrat!”
It has been two years since the November 2017 military coup and Mnangagwa has failed to end the scourge of corruption. He has refused to implement even one democratic reform to ensure free, fair and credible elections; etc.
Zimbabwe is still very much a pariah state and, not surprisingly, the country’s economic meltdown, inherited from Mugabe days, has failed to register any meaningful recovery. It is very difficult to do business in a pariah state and so investors have continued to shy away.
Richard Nixon was forced to resigned on 8 August 1974, barely one and half years after his “I am not a crook!” speech. The mountain of evidence proving he was indeed a crook was overwhelming and it was untenable for him to continued as president.
There is a mountain of evidence proving Mnangagwa is a corrupt, incompetent and murderous dictator, just like his mentor Robert Mugabe. Worse still, there is a mountain of evidence showing the Zimbabwe economic meltdown is in total decline with tragic consequences. The country’s public health care services, on which 3/4 of the population now living in abject poverty depend, has all but collapse; there are no doctors, nurses and no medicine. All this will have no effect in forcing Mnangagwa to resign.
Indeed, Mnangagwa knows the people are going to protest the country’s worsening economic hardships and he beefed up the Police, Army and CIO to ruthless crush all dissent. He has corral the cattle, goats and chicken and batten down the hatchets.
Richard Nixon’s power was limited; he was lucky to successful rig the presidential elections but it very quickly ran out; he did not get away with it.
Mnangagwa has absolute power not only to do as he please; to allow corruption to continue unchecked, to blatantly rig the elections, etc., etc.; but, most important of all, to have know with the certainty only a dictatorship can provide that he will get away with it!
Absolute power corrupts absolutely! If we in Zimbabwe are serious about end the scourge of poverty, hopelessness and despair that now hangs over the whole country like a suffocating cloud chlorine; then we must grasp the nettle and deal with the curse of absolute power and rigged elections the root causes of bad governance.
Zanu PF rigged last year's elections, the EU's own Election Observer Mission condemned the elections, and yet the EU went on to lift the targeted sanctions for selfish reasons. Of course Zanu PF know that the EU lifted the sanctions for selfish reasons and the regime is playing along promising to implement reforms but without ever doing so.
ReplyDeleteDr Gata who has previously saved as both Chief Executive and Executive Chairman of the power utility and many have seen his reappointment at a time Zesa is faced with a myriad of challenges that have resulted in crippling power outages as a step backwards.
ReplyDeleteBut in an interview on the sidelines of his inaugural meeting with the 10 member board, Minister Chasi lept to Dr Gata's defence describing him as the best man for the job.
"What has informed my decision is that I need somebody who has a very clear and thorough understanding of the workings of ZESA and I found that in Dr Gata," said Minister Chasi.
The rot in ZESA started with the appointment of Gata it therefore beggars belief that anyone, which less the Minister who understanding of ZESA past and present is vital in mapping the way forward, should be so shallow thick and slow as to consider Gata someone with “a clear and thorough understand of the working of ZESA”. If Gata was competent, then why did ZESA go to the dogs under his leadership?
Chiwenga spent his time in China plotting a coup!
ReplyDeleteThe military coup in November 2017 has failed to produce neither the economic recovery nor the democratic changes. Anyone who thinks that another coup will do any better is naive and the world has lost all patience with such naive nincompoops!
Telecoms tycoon Strive Masiyiwa will seek to break a three-month strike by Zimbabwean doctors by offering them an extra ZWL$5,000 (US$310) monthly, his foundation announced.
ReplyDeleteThis is a generous offer but given the extend of Zimbabwe’s economic problems this is at best squeezing the balloon. Who is going to pay the poorly paid nurses, for example. Doctors need nurses to deliver a quality service.
We need a complete and workable solution to Zimbabwe’s economic and political meltdown.
The country's poverty datum line for an average of five persons stood at $3, 159.52 in October, an increase of 44.2% from September's $2 191.62. The increase is in tandem with the sharp rise in the monthly inflation figures of 38.75%.
ReplyDeleteAccording to Zimstat, the PDL for a person stood at $631.90 or (US$1.30 at the interbank rate at the end of the period). This is below the World's Bank international Poverty Line of US$1.90 a day and still significantly below the US$3.20 standard for middle income countries and US$5.50 for upper middle income countries.
Compared to $3, 159.52 the average cost for the basic requirements for a family of five for the whole country, the figure for Harare is $3,201.06, for Bulawayo $3,234.62, for Masvingo $3,138.19 and for Manicaland $3 169.41. The highest figure for the country is Matebeleland North at $3 359.28, followed by Matebeleland South at $3 305.44 and the lowest is Mashonaland Central $2,904.11.
The poor are sinking deeper and deeper below the PDL and, given the government has given up hope of reviving the economy, there is nothing to suggest their fortune is going to change for the better any time soon. None!
@ Sipuka
ReplyDelete“In this regard, I humbly propose that we establish a multi-party forum to look into the crisis in Zimbabwe, with a view of providing sustainable solutions that will enable Zimbabwe to stand on its feet and regain its status as an equal partner. I understand and partially agree with Minister Naledi Pandor that South Africa cannot intervene unless we have been "invited", but is the illegal influx of Zimbabwean immigrants and the dire economic situation not an "invitation on its own”?” you argue.
“History will judge us harshly if we become indifferent bystanders while millions of people continue to suffer.
“It is my hypothesis that South Africa's and the region's economic growth will never reach our desired expectations when Zimbabwe further collapses. When all is said and done, ordinary Zimbabweans will remember not the words of their "enemies" but the silence of their friends.”
As a Zimbabwean, I am touched with you concern and you desire to see Zimbabwe back on her feet again. Still, we must ask ourselves what useful role role can President Ramaphosa and SADC play, given they have sold their souls to the devil by endorsing Zanu PF’s victory in last year’s rigged elections.
The root cause of Zimbabwe’s economic and political crisis is the country’s failure to hold free, fair and credible elections. Zimbabwe is a pariah state ruled by corrupt, incompetent and murderous thugs who has managed to stay in power by rigging elections.
The nearest Zimbabwe ever got to ending the curse of rigged elections was during the 2008 to 2013 GNU when SADC got Mugabe to agree to the implementation of a raft of democratic reforms. Sadly, Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC friends sold-out and failed to get even one reform implemented in five years.
We need the democratic reforms implemented, nothing of any substance will ever be accomplished until we cure ourselves of this curse of rigged elections. We need Zanu PF to step down to create the political space for a competent body to implement the reforms. It is hard to see how President Ramaphosa can tell Mnangagwa he is illegitimate and must step down when he is the one who endorsed the rigged elections.
Zimbabwe needs a solution to move forward and not yet another fudged solution that will keep Zanu PF in power and accomplish nothing!
Mr Eddie Cross has peddled the lie that the GNU was about reviving the economy. This is just a deliberate lie! The primary purpose of the GNU was to implement the democratic reforms designed to stop Zanu PF rigging elections. MDC leaders failed to get even one reform implemented in five years. Not one!
ReplyDeleteMr Cross has this fixation that Zimbabwe can still achieve economic prosperity even if the country remains a pariah state ruled by corrupt, incompetent and murderous thugs who are in power only because they rig elections. This is just a nonsense. As long as Zimbabwe remains a pariah state there will be no meaningful economic recovery!
Eddie Cross has remained Mnangagwa's most faithful cheer leader ever since the November coup; he has predicted economic recovery and again and again he has been proven wrong!
What Zimbabwe needs is to implement the reforms and end the curse of rigged elections and pariah state. It is infuriating that people like Cross are the ones who not only failed to implement the reforms but are the ones propping up the Zanu PF dictatorship by giving the regime legitimacy!
@ Silungisani Ndlovu
ReplyDelete“Wilbert Mukori ...3 million pontenial voters were denied the vote by WHO?....they are CHAMISA'S STUPIDS.....A party full of Lawyers and intellecuals crying that they were cheated by the Oldies in ZANU-PF ...How can old people cheats the young with fresh brain?....that clearly that the are dull young ones ...it is clear they are telling lies....ZANU-PF is still the people's Party even under harsh illegal Sanctions...Educated people in MDC-Alliance all Young Stupid Leaders.....like Wilbert Mukori you are a fool you believe on lies too much....why you like to listen to Propaganda everyday Wilbert?.....you are the one spreading a lot of Propaganda in the International Media.....don't bury your head in the sand Mukori you are foolish educated person who denies that illegal Sanctions affects the good flow of scarce resorces to the Zimbabwe Economy…..”
Zimbabwe is facing serious, serious economic challenges with the economy in total meltdown and the fall out has cause tragic human suffering and deaths. The country cannot afford to ignore these problems. Let me say it again, the root cause of Zimbabwe economic and social problems is the country’s failure to hold free, fair and credible elections; Zanu PF rigged last year’s elections. And the solution to the economic and social problems is to end the curse of rigged elections. I am determined to do this!
You do agree that 3 million Zimbabweans in the diaspora were denied the vote last year. Mnangagwa is on record saying government will see to it that they are given the opportunity to do so next time. This does not answer why they were denied the vote last year, given this issue has been on the national agenda for donkey years?
You will never ever hear me judge anyone, anyone at all, on the basis of their age, gender, tribe, etc. because none of these things have any bearing on one’s intellectual ability or lack thereof. Zanu PF leaders like Mugabe, Mnangagwa, Chiwenga, etc. were “young with fresh brains” 40 years ago but that did not stop they destroying the Zimbabwe economic and, worse still, commit the Gukurahundi massacre. They were corrupt, incompetent and ruthless thugs in the youth and they are corrupt, incompetent and ruthless thugs in their old age!
Morgan Tsvangirai, Nelson Chamisa, Tendai Biti and the rest of the MDC leaders were even younger that they are today ten years ago and yet they failed to get even one meaningful reform implemented in five years of the GNU. They will never get any reforms implemented even if we gave them a lifetime. Why? Because they were, are today and will remain to their dying days breathtakingly corrupt, incompetent and sell-outs.
Both Zanu PF and MDC dragged the nation into this mess, Zimbabwe’s economic and social problems are MAN-MADE and they are the corrupt, incompetent thugs/sell-outs who made the problems. If we are serious about getting out of this mess, then we must know thugs and sell-outs will only keeps us stuck in this hell-on-earth!