Sometimes people meet their destiny by the route the
chose to avoid it. The Police banned the PDP the other day to avoid the country
sliding into anarchy and civil war.
“Serious threats have been received from various pressure
groups through social media inciting people to declare a full war in Zimbabwe
starting on September 2,” said the officer commanding Bulawayo West district police,
Chief Superintendent Mthokozisi Manzini Moyo in the statement to PDP.
“The law enforcement agency claimed “dissidents” were
planning to destroy all police properties, set roadblock equipment on fire,
blow up all government vehicles and buildings and attack all members of the
prison services as well as release all prisoners from jail,” reported Nehanda
radio.
The regime, with its no-regime-change mantra has
denied the people a meaningful say in the governance of the country; they have
seen the economy sink like a stone in the lake but failed to get Zanu PF to do
something about is because they have no vote.
The economy has sunk so deep 90% of the populous are
out of work and living in poverty, basic services like education and health
have all but collapsed, etc. There is no sign that Zanu PF has even notice the
plight of the people and/or that the ruling elite care, if they have noticed. Given
the tragic human suffering we see all round the country, it is clear that the political
chaos and economic meltdown cannot be allowed to continue; the question is how
can the madness be stop.
By stifling debate, democratic competition, free and
fair elections, peaceful demonstrations and all other peaceful means Zanu PF
has made it impossible for the nation to have peaceful and orderly change.
Since the present situation is not sustainable there is only one other way to
bring about change – street protests or worse – civil war.
So Chief Superintendent Mthokozisi Manzini Moyo, by
banning all peaceful demonstrations, beating protesters and choking them with
tear-gas; you have chosen the route with a predetermined destiny – more
violence and civil war. You cannot have you cake and eat it too, not even a
tyrant can do that!
The quality of the end product is as good as the quality of the raw material used in making it. This is true of the shirt and the cotton but it is even truer of policy and leaders. Zimbabwe would not still be in this hell-hole if we had competent leaders in positions of power and au-thority.
ReplyDeleteChief Superintendent Moyo, Commissioner Chihuri right up to President Mugabe himself will be stepping on the Police brutality convinced they are doing the nation a great favour stopping civil unrest not knowing their actions are making the bad situation even worse. They cannot see the link between the worsen economic situation and the growing civil unrest and that as long as the economic meltdown is allowed to continue then civil unrest is as certain to follow as day follows night.
The tyrannical regime is the one that has resorted to violence to silence the people and it is not surprising that the protests have become increasingly violent - the protesters are speaking to the regime in the only language it understands! If the regime expects the people to suffer in silence to the death, then it is in for a surprise because it was just a matter of time before the violence started and now it has, we can be certain, it will get worse!
Zimbabwe however still has a high trade deficit that has ballooned to $1.6bn during the first seven months of the year, indicating the nation's continued reliance on imports. Gross revenues for the first half-year from state revenue collector Zimra were 6% below the $1.65bn target. This has been attributed to the country's persistently difficult economic environment.
ReplyDeleteWhen President Mugabe rigged the July 2013 national elections, he was cock-sure he will rig economic recovery; that has since proven to be a bridge too far! As people sink deeper and deeper into economic despair it is only natural that they will muster the courage to demand change.
In the end Zanu PF will accept change because the present situation is not socially or politically sustainable.
The only reason why Zimbabweans still follow either Zanu PF or the corrupt and incompetent opposition is because they have been programmed to follow whoever is placed in front of them, no questions asked. Now that it has turned out that both Zanu PF and the opposition have no clue how to get the nation out of this mess the people are having to toss a coin to decide whom to follow.
ReplyDeleteAs a nation we were not ready for self-government when we attained our independence in 1980 and it showed. It is now 36 years after independence and there are some signs that we now have some independent thinkers amongst us, this article being proof of that! One can only hope that there are a lot more others like Violet and Brian out there!
Professor do you really expect Zanu PF to implement democratic reforms that will weaken the party's grip on power because you and your fellow opposition friends ask President Mu-gabe to do so?
ReplyDeleteYou and your MDC friends had five years during the GNU to implement the reforms and failed to do so. Now you want Zanu PF to do in 19 months what you failed to do in 60 months. I never thought I would ever say this but you force me to; you and your opposition friends are really as naive and stupid as you look!
“The repeated disputed electoral outcomes over at least the last decade and a half are as a result of systematic electoral fraud perpetrated by our own earthly version of the Trinity of Electoral Evil (TEE) epitomised by crude machinations of ZANU PF, ZEC and one Tobaiwa Mudede in his capacity of Registrar General of voters. This trio has imperilled electoral democracy for the sole benefit of one man – Robert Gabriel Mugabe,” wrote Professor Ncube.
ReplyDeleteWhat you have said is true but incomplete. You have failed to acknowledge that you and your fellow MDC friends had five years during the GNU to implement the democratic reforms agree in the 2008 GPA designed to end the vote rigging. President Mugabe bribed you lot with the good-life of the gravy train. You, Professor Ncube, were appointed Minister and got all the benefits that goes with that post in Mugabe’s Zimbabwe plus a commercial farm. You accepted the bribes and kicked the reforms into the tall grass.
Now, you are your corrupt and competent friends want us to believe you can get Zanu PF to implement the reforms whose end result is end Zanu PF’s iron grip on power. You are asking Zanu PF to commit political suicide. Now why would Zanu PF or anyone want to do that?
I never thought I would ever say this but you and your opposition friends are really as naive and stupid as you look!
ReplyDeleteExactly! No one in the right mind would serious expect Zanu PF to implement even one meaningful reform given the party knows that doing so will spell their own political demise. So any political leaders to claim that Zanu PF would do this is naive to say the very least.
For the MDC-T and 17 other opposition parties to calling for ZANU PF to implement the reforms goes to show there is no serious debate even among the politicians themselves! As Violet rightly pointed out there is a scramble for power and not for democratic transformation.
Zimbabwe has the human and material resources to be one of Africa's prosperous and stable nations; we are tittering on the brink of economic meltdown and political chaos because we have gone down the wrong route since independence and, worst of all, were helpless to put it right.
ReplyDeleteZimbabwe is a de facto one-party cum one-man a totalitarian dictatorship and the trouble is whatever direction the tyrant decides to take the nation there is no peaceful mechanism to force him/her to change course even in the face of overwhelming evidence the system is not working.
Mugabe has proven to be a corrupt and incompetent leader hence the reason why the national economy is in a mess. He has also turned out to be a murderous tyrant who has denied the people their basic right to meaningful free, fair and credible elections.
At the heart of the street protests is the economic meltdown, at the heart of the economic meltdown is the totalitarian dictatorship and hence ending the dictatorship is at the very heart of the economic recovery. The only reason why the street protests are becoming increasingly violent is that having denied the people the vote and peaceful demonstrations the people have no other channel left for them to use other than violence.
If Zimbabwe's street protest should escalate into serious rioting or worse, then Mugabe and his cronies will be held to account for all the destruction, human misery and/or deaths that may occur. It is their selfish greed for power and wealth that has push the nation into this!