President Emmerson Mnangagwa is back in Davos, Switzerland at
the World Economic Forum for the express purpose of relaunching his 2018 “Zimbabwe
is open for business!” mantra.
“President Mnangagwa and his delegation arrived here this
morning for this year's World Economic Forum, where he is expected to network
with other world leaders in line with the country's engagement and
re-engagement policy thrust,” reported the Zanu PF mouthpiece, The Herald.
Like all Zanu PF re-engagement policy thrusts, no expense
will be spared. We can be 110% certain that this thrust will be no exception.
The country is failing to pay for even the most basic needs such as pain
killers, chemicals for drinking water, etc.; the nation will spend millions of dollars
(US$ not Z$) on transport, accommodation and per diem for the President and his
high-powered delegation.
President Mnangagwa’s 2018 “Zimbabwe is open for business!” mantra
was premised on the ethos that Zimbabwe’s November 2017 military coup (Mnangagwa
insisted on calling it a “military assisted transition” just as Russia’s Vladimir Putin is insisting on
calling his war of invasion of Ukraine a “special military operation”) had transformed
Zimbabwe from closed pariah state into a democracy “open” for business.
The military coup was just the climax of an internal power
struggle within the party. The party remained a ruthless dictatorship and the
country remained a pariah state, or be it under new management. No one,
particularly the shrewd and savvy investors, were not fooled by the musical
chair and kept away from doing business in Zimbabwe.
“Zimbabwe is open for business!” was a lead balloon that
never took off back in 2018 and, as long as Zimbabwe remains a pariah state,
will never take off. So, what is Mnangagwa and company doing back in Davos to launch
the lead balloon!
It was American comedian W C Fields who famously said, “If
you can't dazzle them with brilliance, baffle them with bullshit.”
President Mnangagwa, just like Robert Mugabe before him, has
all but given up on dazzling anyone with brilliance; baffling with bullshit, is
his forte. Hectic activity suggests productive and creative and the greater the
expense the greater the deceit.
Still, trying to relaunch “Zimbabwe is open for business!”
lead balloon takes the biscuit! These savvy Davos investors were not fooled the
first time back in 2018, they know a lead balloon will never fly!
Mnangagwa wasting time and resources stalking WEF investors who
are wary of doing business in a pariah state like Zimbabwe. “Mnangagwa arikunyangira
yavona!” as one would say in Shona.
"It's an opportunity for our delegation to meet with investors and sell the Zimbabwean story. It is an opportunity for the government to go beyond the rhetoric of the forum and continue with implementing the right kind of institutional and micro-economic reforms that will inspire greater confidence in investors," economist Prosper Chitambara said.
ReplyDelete"Zimbabwe is competing with a lot of countries for investors and capital inflow. It needs to engage, but it's also important to put in place the right institutions and reforms to deal with corruption. Those are the kind of reforms investors are really looking out for," he added.
Political analyst Rejoice Ngwenya, however, begged to differ.
"Millions of United States dollars have been spent in travel costs across the globe in pursuit of countless business agreements. There is nothing to show for it other than poverty, a valueless local currency and unemployment. Davos is for serious leaders with impeccable records of business acumen. No sane investor will come to a country that ignores both property and human rights," said Ngwenya.
When Mnangagwa proclaimed from the rooftop that “Zimbabwe is open for business!” back in 2018; many dismissed it as nonsense because the country was still a pariah state or be it under a new dictator. The investors Mnangagwa was trying to woo voted with their feet, they stayed away.
The events of the last four years have cemented Zimbabwe’s position as a pariah state sinking deeper and deeper into the abyss. It is really foolish to still believe the “Zimbabwe is open for business!” lead balloon can fly!
"Zimbabwe is open for business!" did not fly back in 2018 because the 2017 coup did not transform Zimbabwe, the country remained a pariah state or be it under a new dictator. It is foolish that the regime is once again trying to fly the same lead balloon!
ReplyDeleteZANU PF secretary for Finance, Patrick Chinamasa, recently warned Zimbabweans that voting for CCC in next year’s harmonised elections will bring war and instability to the country. He said:
ReplyDeleteThose who parrot support for quislings ought to be reminded that given Zimbabwe’s illustrious liberation history mooting a US Africom Military base in Zimbabwe as is proposed in Zambia will destabilise Zimbabwe and inevitably trigger a quick befitting counter-revolutionary response.
One reality no Zimbabwean should ever ignore is that Zanu PF has the power to destabilise the country by virtue of its corrupting influence in the Army, Police, CIO and Prison Services. This is why the democratic reforms must be implemented BEFORE elections. What MDC/CCC is doing by agreeing to hold elections without reforms is putting the cart before the horse
@ Barf!
ReplyDelete"I really don't care anymore whether zpf rig or not. I've had all I can take of zpf ruin and murderous behaviour, stupid sods who, instead of making an effort to reduce rigging, simply bleat about their not being allocated a seat, and those who participate, but do sod all to ensure the vote IS NOT RIGGED! Rural or other, if opposition can't ensure rigging doesn't and can't occur, they're probably as useless as zpf! Roll on 7 June, 2022! No more zpf, no more vote rigging to worry about, I'll be in a country where things work, stupidity doesn't get a front-row seat, and no worries about what's going to go horribly wrong next!"
Glad to hear you have the option to leave Zimbabwe and escape the chaos, there are many who are stuck there! The infuriating thing for me is there is a way out of this mess we are just refusing to open our eyes and see it! We are participating in flawed elections to give Zanu PF legitimacy - how foolish is that!
@ Dr Stain Christensen
ReplyDeleteOPPOSITION leader Mr Nelson Chamisa and his surrogates yesterday attended a dinner hosted by the Norwegian embassy in Pretoria South Africa where they discussed how the European country can assist CCC ahead of next year's elections.
Norway is not a member state of the European Union (EU). However, it is associated with the Union through its membership of the European Economic Area (EEA), signed in 1992 and established in 1994. As a well established democratic nation one would expect Norway to KNOW what constitutes free, fair and credible elections and therefore to be familiar with the political mess in Zimbabwe.
Two days ago, Elmar Brok, a former member of the European Union Parliament and chief observer of the EU Election Observer Mission to the 2018 general elections, reported that not even one democratic reform recommendations in the EU report was implemented. Not one. And with no reforms Zanu PF is set to rig the 2023 elections just as readily it rigged the 2018 elections.
One of the reasons why Zanu PF has ignored calls to implement reforms is because the party knows that even with no reforms implemented, the opposition will participate giving the process credibility and Zanu PF legitimacy. The obvious question that must now be asked is Why is CCC and others participating in the flawed elections?
Well, CCC and the other opposition opportunists will participate in the flawed elections giving Zanu PF legitimacy as long as there is some one willing to bankroll their political activities. Why is Norway bankrolling a political process everyone knows is flawed and only serves to give Zanu PF legitimacy?
Norway is not helping Zimbabwe get over its curse of rigged elections by encouraging the nation to accept rigged elections as the norm. We know Zimbabwe’s elections are not free and fair and please stop patronising us and pretend that is the best we should aspire to!