The failure to get MDC to
implement the democratic reforms during the GNU is one of the most frustrating
things SADC Heads of States, notably President Ian Khama of Botswana and
President Jacob Zuma of SA, found about the Zimbabwe crisis. The solution is
staring you in the face just getting Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC friends to
implement it was the bridge too far! MDC leaders had five years to implement
the reforms everyone agreed were necessary for free, fair and credible
elections and yet surprise, surprise they failed to get even one reform
implemented. Not even one “yamatanda nyadzi!”, (for shame’s sake), as one would
say in Shona.
Now history is set to
repeat itself; we will have the 2018 elections and still have not even one
reform implemented.
Whilst the unscrupulous MDC
leaders like Tsvangirai were quick to acknowledge that Mugabe had blatantly
rigged the July 2013 elections; the evidence of the rigging was there for the
entire world to see, even Zanu PF apologists like George Charamba have reminded
Zanu PF big-mouth, Chris Mutsvangwa, the elections were rigged; they have only
grudgingly acknowledged they should have implemented the reformed and, more
significantly, that they should have paid heed to SADC’s warning.
“We failed to secure critical reforms
before participating in the elections,” explained former MDC Minister Samuel
Sipape Nkomo soon after the rigged July 2013. “The whole world advised us not
to get into the elections without reforms, and so in everything that we have
been saying we have failed to acknowledge that we also made a mistake.
“It is common knowledge that Lindiwe Zulu
(President Jacob Zuma’s international relations adviser) advised us. Zuma also
advised us and even the SADC Heads of State meeting in Maputo (Mozambique) also
advised not to participate in the elections without electoral, media and
security sector reforms, among others.”
There is no doubt that MDC leaders did not
implement even one reform because they are corrupt (Mugabe did bribe them with
the gravy train lifestyles plus the $ 4 million Highlands mansion for Tsvangirai)
and incompetent (MDC leaders believed they would win the elections regardless
of Mugabe’s “vote rigging shenanigans”, as Tsvangirai latter admitted).
Since the July 2013 rigged elections
Zimbabwe’s opposition should have focused all their political energy and time
into making sure that the democratic reforms necessary for free, fair and
credible elections are implemented BEFORE the 2018 elections.
Still, full marks to Mugabe for successfully
stopping MDC from implementing any reforms given that SADC leaders were doing
their best to rouse MDC leaders from their comatose sleep. How did he do it?
During the GNU years Mugabe employed PR and
think tank companies to spruce his image and to feed the opposition with false
information, sending the opposition on endless fools’ errands whilst keeping
them away from implementing even one of the all-important critical reforms. Since
the rigged July 2013 elections, Mugabe has employed the same dirty double tactic
of stopping the opposition from implementing the reforms on the mistaken
believe that they can win the elections regardless of Mugabe’s vote rigging
shenanigans. This time he has NKC African Economics
(NKC), a Cape Town based “Think Tank” doing his dirty work.
"The formation of Coalition
of Democrats (Code) is an important development in Zimbabwe party politics, but
the new formation has some way to go yet before it poses a realistic challenge
to Zanu-PF and…Mugabe,” came the dubious NKC advice. Five of Zimbabwe’s small political
parties have been the first to sign on to this coalition after all the time and
energy wasted in this wild goose chase.
"Important to its prospects would be the inclusion of the major opposition groupings such as MDC-T and ZPF, in particular. Without at least one of these, the chances of success come 2018 will fall away.”
NKC is talking nonsense;
MDC-T did not lose the 2008 and 2013 elections because the opposition was not
united but because Mugabe blatantly rig the vote using his unfettered access to
state resources and undemocratic abuse of state institutions like ZEC, the
Police to help him rig the vote.
“We were ill-prepared,” admitted Sipape
Nkomo after the rigged July 2013 elections. “Zanu PF gave its parliamentary
candidates as much as US$15 000 each, a car, tee-shirts and campaign posters.
But we gave our own parliamentary candidates only US$700 each, the councillors
US$100 — all of which simply demonstrated a lack of seriousness. We were also
misled by the numbers that came to our rallies particularly in Bulawayo, and
the cross-over rally in Harare where people were told that (party leader
Morgan) Tsvangirai would be crossing over into State House.”
Two months ago Mugabe admitted that $15
billion of diamond revenue was looted; so far no one has been arrested and,
worse still, it would be naïve to believe that the looting has stopped. Some of
the looted fortune was used to pay NIKUV, the Israeli company’s $ 10 million bill
to tamper with the voters roll; to pay Zanu PF candidates’ their extravagant
elections expenses; etc.
The only to stop Mugabe having all these
unfair and undemocratic electoral advantages is by implementing all the
democratic reforms agreed at the start of the GNU. NKC is telling us getting
more opposition parties to unity will increase their chance of defeating Mugabe
in the next elections and yet they have not said how the coalition will stop
Zanu PF rigging the elections!
“The whole world advised us not to get into
the elections without reforms,” admitted Sipape Nkomo after the rigged July 2013.
That advice was valid before the 2013 elections and it is just as valid for the
2018 elections.
Zimbabwe’s opposition leaders must snap out
of their comatose state, implement all the democratic reforms and stop daydreaming
of can defeating Zanu PF regardless of its vote rigging shenanigans. Besides
the people have a right to free and fair elections and it is irresponsible
these politicians to gamble this right by failing to implement the reforms as
MDC did during the GNU.
MDC did not lose the last elections because they were not united; they lost because Zanu PF rigged the elections. It therefore follows that what the opposition needs is to stop Zanu PF rigging the elections and we know how this can be done - implement the democratic reforms agreed in the 2008 GPA.
ReplyDeleteSADC Heads of State tried their best to get Tsvangirai and friends to implement the reforms throughout the GNU but MDC leaders would not listen. We will know what happened; Zanu PF went on to blatantly rig the 2013 elections. MDC's well attended rallies counted for noth-ing!
Not even one reforms has been implemented and so Zanu PF will, again, blatantly rig the next elections and the opposition's mass support will count for nothing. There is absolutely no basis for NKC's claim that a united opposition will win.
NKC have their own agenda, to encourage the opposition to think they will win the next elec-tions as long as they are united. And so the opposition are putting all their energy into form-ing the coalition and once again ignore implementing the reforms.
It is in Zanu PF's interest that no reforms are implemented before the next elections and the party is known for paying well those who will help it achieve its selfish objective. If NKC is not in Zanu PF's paid employment then it will be richly rewarded one of these fine days!
People at NKC are not interested in seeing free and fair elections in Zimbabwe and good governance because if they were then they would be pushing the opposition to implement the reforms as the top priority.
My view is that suspect Zanu PF agents like NKC are in fact preaching to the converted; none of Zimba-bwe's opposition leaders have shown the vision or courage to take President Mugabe head-on on anything. They are all quite contend to occupy themselves with the trivial issues and are therefore grateful when double agents like NKC praise them and cheer them along.
ReplyDeleteThe opposition cannot confront President Mugabe on implementing the reforms and so they want to create the impression that forming a grand coalition will produce the same desired result of regime change. So NKC saying the coalition is the right thing is a bonus, if the opposition had the cash they too would be sending NKC a generous cheque for saying nothing about implementing the reforms!
You are right, the opposition are more than pleased with such reports as the NKC because the opposition are wasting time on coalition but they nonetheless want the nation to believe forming a coalition is in fact useful and anybody out there supporting coalition is welcome, even if they look suspiciously like Zanu PF sponsored!
DeleteThe opposition have lucky on their side in that the electorate, who are the final arbiters in this, have no idea that building coalition is in fact wasting time and a cheap cop out from doing the real important task of implementing the reforms. The electorate take everything presented to them at face value and therefore will never question NKC’s nonsensical assertion that an opposition coalition is all that is needed to defeat Zanu PF.
It does not matter where we start the answer to meaningful democratic change followed by free and fair elections in Zimbabwe always boils to one thing – we need an informed electorate smart enough to separate the wheat from the chuff and not the naïve and gullible lot we have at present who are so easily fooled they will elect the same corrupt and incompetent idiots again and again without ever learning from the past.
What is the point of being the judge if you have no clue what the subject matter is much less pick the difference. The voters are supposed to remove bad leaders and replace them with competent one but how can they do that when they have no clue what elected leaders are supposed to do!
Mugabe rigged the July 2013 elections, thanks to MDC's failure to implement the necessary democratic reforms. He thought he will rig economic recovery too but that have proven to be a bridge too far.
ReplyDeleteMugabe has cheated and bamboozled his political opponents, rigged elections and even killed thousands of innocent Zimbabweans to remain in power at all cost. But his failure to rig economic recovery is the one thing that is now forcing him to accept regime change. The country is facing serious economic meltdown and the situation is not sustainable and the only way to end it is by holding free and fair elections.
Yes! It is the economy, stupid!