"Economy on path to recovery" says Chiwenga - nonsense, not whilst a pariah state N Garikai

Zimbabwe is in serious, serious economic trouble. Unemployment has soared to dizzying height of 90% and has been 80% plus for the last 15 years already. There millions of Zimbabweans out there who have yet to get a steady well-paid job. I was out of work for 5 months and to say I was miserable and destitute at the end of that period is an understatement. My heart bleeds for all those millions of Zimbabweans who have been out of work for 15 years.

As many as 10 million Zimbabwean have been out of work for the last 15 years. This means 150 million man-years wasted. Is it any wonder Zimbabwe is now the poorest nation on the poorest continent on earth!

My blood boils at the heartless indifference of the men and women whose corrupt and tyrannical rule has landed this nation into this hell-on-earth.

“Our nation is going through a difficult patch. Our children need jobs. Government is doing its best to turnaround the fortunes of our nation. We are confident that our economy is on the path to recovery,” said acting President, VP C Chiwenga.

Zimbabwe’s descent into this hell-hole started soon after independence when Zanu PF rigged those first elections to impose itself on the nation. The economic decline has got progressively worse and worse as the gross mismanagement, rampant corruption and lawlessness exemplified by the seizure of the white owned farms to give to Zanu PF crones got worse and worse. Although the people were aware of the adverse effect of Zanu PF misrule they have been helpless to stop it because the party rigged elections.

38 years of criminal waste of the nation’s material and human resources! And here is one of the Zanu PF ruling elite dismissing it as a “difficult patch”!

Worse still, VP Chiwenga maintains “government is doing its best to turnaround the fortunes of our nations.” This is utter nonsense.

In 2016 the then President Robert Mugabe admitted the nation was “swindled of $15 billion of diamond revenue”. No nation on earth can afford this kind of haemorrhage much less a country like Zimbabwe whose GDP is a mere $10 billion! Mugabe failed to arrest even one of the swindlers up to the time he was booted out of office in the November 2017 military coup.

President Mnangagwa and VP Chiwenga, who took over power from Mugabe, promised to stamp out corruption. After over a year in power, they too have yet to arrest even one of the diamond swindlers and recover even one dollar.

The wholesale looting of diamonds and other resources is still going full steam ahead as government revenue has not improved and yet the mining has continued. How does government expect the economic to recover with all this criminal waste of resources still taking place?

“You die even for that which is yours. Our nation still continues to be punished for recovering that which rightfully belongs to it,” continued Chiwenga.

Zanu PF has blamed the targeted economic sanctions imposed by the west on some party leaders for the nation’s economic decline. The VP was no doubt referring to the USA’s refusal to lift the sanctions following the party’s failure to hold free, fair and credible 30 July 2018 elections. The regime is adding insult to injury.

The Americans went the extra mile to explain what Zanu PF needed to do this year to get the sanctions lifted. Make sure Zimbabweans in the diaspora were allowed to vote, the public media was accessible to all political contestants and not just Zanu PF, make sure the process was verifiable, transparent and traceable, etc., etc. Zanu PF blatantly ignored all these things and blatantly rigged the elections.

Many people had hoped the country had finally turned over a new leaf with the removal of Mugabe in last November’s coup. When this so called “new dispensation” promised to hold free, fair and credible elections; the people had dared to believe only to be let down, yet again.

Zanu PF feared the people would protest against yet another rigged elections and so gave the 1 st August order of “shoot to kill” order resulting in the death of six civilians. In the 38 years of Zanu PF tyrannical rule the regime has murdered over 30 000 innocent Zimbabweans to establish and retain its de facto one party dictatorship.  

“You die even for that which is yours” Yes, over 30 000 Zimbabweans have been murdered for the sole purpose of denying them their freedoms and basic human rights including the right to free and fair elections and the right to life itself!

VP Chiwenga gave his insulting comments at the 2018/19 “National Thanksgiving and Dedication Service” organised by Faith of the Nation Campaign in Bulawayo. The theme of service was “It’s Time to Pray and Work for Unity, Peace and Prosperity.”

What a mockery; how can there ever be peace and prosperity in country in which those in power have licence to ride roughshod over the ordinary people, denying them their freedoms, rights, hopes and dreams; and with contemptuous disregard for the law, common justice, suffering and even deaths of others! There will never be peace and economic prosperity in Zimbabwe as long as the country remains a pariah state ruled by corrupt and vote rigging thugs!

After 38 years of corrupt and tyrannical rule and with millions of ordinary Zimbabweans living in grinding poverty and hopelessness we must stand up as a nation and say “Enough is enough! Zanu PF rigged the recent elections and the party must step down!” It would be unforgivable if we should allow ourselves to be bamboozled by those who landed us in the mess and have a selfish in retaining the corrupt and tyrannical system into believe Zimbabwe has changed when we can see it has not changed one bit! 

VIDEO: Mnangagwa is #failure itself says Biti

 

"Mnangagwa is #failure itself" said Biti - true so is you, hence why must all step down

 Starts 28 December 2018 at 01:55 (GMT)

VIDEO: Ramaphosa asked to pressure Mnangagwa on new GNU

 

Chamisa ask Ramaphosa to pressure Mnangagwa to form new GNU

 Starts 29 December 2018 at 20:47 (GMT)

VIDEO: MDC stil blame SADC for 2008 GNU failures

 

MDC still blame SADC for 2008 GNU failures - some partner for change

 Starts 29 December 2018 at 21:08 (GMT)

Ramaphosa asked to facilitate new GNU - but who will be in the new GNU P Guramatunhu

“A few days ago I had a fruitful meeting in Pretoria with my distinguished brother and fountain of wisdom the president of the republic of South Africa His Excellency Cyril Ramaphosa on a wide range of urgent and important issues regarding the well being of the people of Zim,” tweeted Chamisa.

Flattery, flattery! President Ramaphosa, a “fountain of wisdom” even he must have blushed at the clumsy attempt to flatter him!

SA and the rest of SADC nations were warned by Kofi Annan and his group of elders of the need to resolve Zimbabwe’s unending political crisis. Sadly the regional grouping has failed to take decisive action. The Zanu PF dictatorship, at the very heart of the crisis, has been allowed to continue thrive. 

Zanu PF rigged the 2013 elections and rewarded with absolute power. Instead of party then addressing the nation’s worsening economic situation the party has been engrossed in its internal factional fighting. The factional war climaxed in the firing of then VP Mnangagwa who took his revenge by staging the November 2017 military coup to ouster Robert Mugabe a few senior leaders. SADC leaders said nothing to show their displeasure. 

To win over SADC leaders’ support following the coup, Mnangagwa promised to hold free, fair and credible elections. SADC leaders should have stepped up their demands for Zimbabwe to implement the democratic reforms designed to stop Zanu PF rigging elections. They did not. 

Mnangagwa went on to blatantly rig the 30 July 2018 elections. The SADC election monitoring team’s report concentrated on how peaceful the election period had been as if that was all they dared to look at. Other election teams did notice that the whole process was flawed and illegal and thus condemned the elections. 

Rigging the elections was the easy bit for Zanu PF, rigging economic recovery has proven a bridge too far. Before the rigged elections Zimbabwe’s unemployment level was already a nauseating 90%, basic services such as supply of clean water and health care had all but collapsed, etc. 

By rigging the elections Zanu PF confirmed that Zimbabwe was still a pariah state ruled by corrupt and vote rigging thugs. This killed off all hope of meaningful economic recovery as no investors, local and foreign, likes to do business in a pariah state. 

The economic consequences of rigging the elections were felt immediately as the country was hit by shortages of cash, foreign currency, fuel, food, etc.. The worsening economic situations is causing heart-breaking economic hardships making Zimbabwe socially and politically unstable. It is the human suffering and the instability everyone including SADC leaders is now worried about. 

If SADC leaders had taken decisive action to ensure Zimbabwe had free, fair and credible elections; there would be nothing for everyone to worry about in Zimbabwe. 

“The economic and political crisis in Zimbabwe is worsening and what is important is that this affects our neighbouring countries, particularly South Africa. We feel that Zimbabwe is becoming a regional security threat because of the failure by Mnangagwa’s government to solve the political stalemate over his illegitimacy,” explained Jacob Mafume, MDC Alliance party spokesperson.

“The economic crisis has the effect of causing a burden to South Africa owing to the exodus of people that are fleeing the worsening economy. Mnangagwa has refused to listen to our concerns, so we felt it was better for us to meet President Ramaphosa to listen to our concerns and also to relay our message to Mnangagwa.

“The people of Zimbabwe continue to suffer, and as a party that was voted for by millions of people we will do what we can to offer solutions.”

One does not need to be a “fountain of wisdom” to know that it was MDC leaders’ failure to implement even one meaningful democratic reform during the 2008 to 2013 GNU that has led to this mess. SADC leaders have warned MDC leaders not to take part in the elections without first implementing the reforms but were ignored. 

One only hopes that President Ramaphosa will now appreciate the seriousness of Zimbabwe’s economic meltdown and, together with his fellow SADC leaders, finally take decisive actions to end the Zimbabwe crisis before it is too late. 

We, the people of Zimbabwe, now admit that it was a foolish thing to have allowed Zanu PF to rig elections and then to get away with it. We have paid dearly for it and have resolved never to make the same mistake ever again. 

There is overwhelming evidence to show Zanu PF blatantly rigged the recent elections. Instead of rewarding the party as before, we are demanding that the party must step down. 

The recent elections were flawed and illegal and would have never taken place if MDC leaders had implement the democratic reforms when they had the golden opportunities to do so. We are not going to reward MDC leaders for betraying the nation. We demand that Chamisa and his friends step aside.

To end the political crisis and the curse of rigged elections we propose the appointment of an interim administration tasked to implement the democratic reforms and to hold the  country’s first ever free, fair and credible elections. We would like SADC leaders to help us make this happen.

"Mnangagwa is #failure itself" tweeted Biti - true, but so are you, hence why all must step down now N Garikai

Here is the thing, MDC Alliance members went into the 2018 elections knowing that Zanu PF would rig the elections; they did not mind that as long as they won a few gravy train seats. They did win a few seats but have since realised that they could use the country’s worsening economic situation to demand more of the spoils of power from Zanu PF. 

They want the country to have a new GNU in which MDC Alliance will hold ministerial posts.  

“MDC has stringent measures to stop Zanu PF rigging elections!” Nelson Chamisa said repeatedly. He was dismissing those calling for reforms to be implemented before the 2018 elections. 

MDC Alliance participated in the elections even when ZEC failed to release a verified voters’s roll, a legal and a common-sense basic requirement -proof of their resolve to take part in the elections regardless how flawed and illegal the process. David Coltart admitted of this blind greedy stopping the MDC leaders doing the obvious thing! 

In his Book, The Struggle Continues 50 years of tyranny in Zimbabwe,former MDC – Ncube Senator and Minister of Education in the GNU, David Coltart, admitted that Zanu PF was flouting the electoral rules and it clear the upcoming 2013 elections would not be free and fair. He agreed that boycott the elections was the logical thing to do but the two MDC factions ended up participating because they could not trust each other to do the right thing.

“The worst aspect for me about the failure to agree a coalition was that both MDCs couldn’t now do the obvious – withdraw from the elections,” explained Senator Coltart.

“The electoral process was so flawed, so illegal, that the only logical step was to withdraw, which would compel SADC to hold Zanu PF to account. But such was the distrust between the MDC-T and MDC-N that neither could withdraw for fear that the other would remain in the elections, winning seats and giving the process credibility.”

The main MDC factions did come together to form the MDC Alliance before the 2018 elections and still they participated in the elections regardless of the flaws and illegalities. 

Beside to boycott the elections in such a case will have to be out of principles and MDC leaders are not a principled lot. 

Tendai Biti is one of the MDC Alliance who did win some of the gravy train seats Zanu PF gave away as bait. He should be happy but he is not. 

Tendai Biti is one MDC Alliance who is taking full advantage of the country’s worsen economic situation to push Mnangagwa to form a GNU and thus secure for himself a ministerial position. 

“Thanks to Emmerson and that terrible iniquity known as #ZANU this year’ s Christmas is stolen and hijacked. The citizen has no cash, no fuel, no basic commodities, not even sodas or cordials.Things were terrible under #Mugabe but Emmerson has redefined#StateFailure .He is #failure itself,” tweeted Biti.

I am sure a few Zimbabweans will remember 2008 when there was nothing in the shops and commerce and industry had ground to a halt as the country reeled under 500 billion per cent hyperinflation, price controls, etc. 

Being asked to say which year was worse is like being asked which is worse a broken hand or a broken leg. Why should we ever have to suffer!  

Comparing Mugabe and Mnangagwa is yet another meaningless nonsense. Zimbabwe’s economic collapse started far back in 1980 and been a stead but relentless decline for the last 38 years. Of course things were “better” last year, 2017, than they are this year, 2018 just as they were better in 2016 than in 2017. This is as one would expect in an economic trajectory of stead decline. 

Robert Mugabe inherited from Ian Smith a prosperous nation with a robust economy, with a good industrial infrastructure, a very productive agricultural sector, etc. Zimbabwe had the potential to be the South Korea of Africa. But after 20 years or so of gross mismanagement, rampant corruption and lawlessness the country fell from its prised perch of being the breadbasket of the region to become the basket case of a failed state. We are starving in a country which is for all practical purposes the Garden of Eden! 

Whilst Mugabe inherited from Smith the seven fat cows and the seven fat ears of grain and loads of other riches beside. Mnangagwa inherited one thin cow that was all skin and bones. Tendai Biti is calling Mnangagwa “#failure itself” but praised Mugabe to the high heaven. He called the tyrant “unflappable father of the nation and fountain of all wisdom”. Why? 

Tendai Biti is desperate to secure a ministerial seat and is stopping at nothing to pressure Mnangagwa to form a new GNU!

The truth of the matter is the last GNU served Biti and his fellow MDC friends well. They secured ministerial posts complete with the generous salaries, limos, a $4 million Highlands mansion for Tsvangirai, a farm formerly owned by a white farmer for Welshman Ncube, etc. 

The GNU was a total failure for the ordinary Zimbabweans in that not even one of the raft of democratic reforms agreed at the onset were implemented hence the reason the 2013 elections were not free, fair and credible - the principle task the GNU was supposed to resolve. 

The new GNU Tendai Biti, Nelson Chamisa and the rest in the MDC Alliance are gunning for will not implement any of the democratic reforms to ensure the next elections are free, fair and credible. If they failed to get any reforms implemented last time, when SADC had Zanu PF’s hands tied behind their back after Mugabe was forced to sign the Global Political Agreement, what hope is there now when Zanu PF is calling all the shots. 

The nation needs the raft of reforms implemented to progress out of this political and economic mess. What is clear is that the nation must appoint a new team, excludes both Zanu PF and MDC leaders involved in the last GNU, to implement the reforms. 

Mnangagwa is “#failure itself” true but so was Mugabe and you too Mr Biti and Nelson Chamisa, etc. Hence the reason none of you can be in the new GNU to implement the democratic reforms necessary for free, fair and credible elections in 2023 and beyond.

"Mnangagwa is sincere about change" - why then did he rig the elections P Guramatunhu

“What kind of leaders would the armed struggle throw up?” Was the rhetorical question Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of independent India, and the other leaders asked themselves. 

“And are those the men and women we would want to rule India?” 

India did not wage an armed struggle to end British rule and when the country finally gained her independence the nation ripped its reward - it had competent men and women humble enough to accept that they are fallible mortals. 

Nehru and others embraced the democratic ethos that every citizen has right to a meaningful say in who governed the country. And, more significant, embraced the possibility that armed struggle leaders would be tempted to impose their will on the unarmed civilians. 

Zimbabwe’s armed struggle forced the white colonialists to give up power but only to for the liberators to set themselves up as the new oppressors. “Zanu PF yakashungunura nyika akashungirira vanhu!” (Zanu PF liberated the country but not the people!) as my late mother would say. 

Our war of independence did throw up leaders who believe that they have the divine right to rule Zimbabwe as they saw fit.

“We are the stockholders of Zimbabwe and everyone else is a stakeholder!” said Victor Matemadanda. He was expressing a view passionately held by Zanu PF members and the war veterans. As stockholders, they have the veto, exemplified by Zanu PF’s dictatorial powers to rig elections to guarantee no regime change. We, ordinary people, the stakeholders, have the meaningless vote as elections were routinely rigged to deliver Zanu PF landslide victories. 

The root cause of Zimbabwe’s economic and political problems is the country’s failure to remove Zanu PF from office even when there was overwhelming evidence the party’s leaders were corrupt and incompetent. 

The corollary is equally true; the only solution to Zimbabwe’s economic and political problems is stopping Zanu PF rigging elections to ensure free, fair and credible election. 

In other words, the one change the nation has been dying for these last 38 years is to have democratic reforms designed to stop Zanu PF rigging elections implemented. Without free and fair elections all hope of a just and peaceful political system and economic recovery and prosperity will remain a pipedream!

“I am aware that many will have a difficult Christmas,” Mnangagwa acknowledge in his Christmas message to the nation. “I encourage all of us to be patient, resilient and to work harder in collective unity, as we create a better, democratic and prosperous Zimbabwe for all.”

This is all wishful thinking of course Mnangagwa has just rigged the recent elections and thus failed to deliver on the one change without which there will never be any meaningful political and economic change.

For the last 38 years, Zanu PF has promised the nation a better life and yet years after year the situation has got worse and worse. Mnangagwa is asking the nation to be patient. Patient for five more years of heart-breaking human misery whilst Zanu PF blundering from pillar to post! 

And worst of all, Mnangagwa is asking the people of Zimbabwe to be patient and let him remain in office until 2023. If Zanu PF remained in power until 2023 we can be 100% certain the party will rig those elections to extend its rule by yet another five years! 

The people of Zimbabwe should have never allowed Zanu PF thugs to deny them their birth-right to a meaningful vote. We have allowed the thugs to ride roughshod over our freedoms and rights and have paid dearly for our folly and after 38 years, with the nation in a real economic and political mess the cry to end the madness of appeasing Zanu PF thugs is deafening. Sadly there a few who still want to appease Zanu PF thugs!

“I get attacked for having faith in President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s sincerity in changing Zimbabwe,” twittered Trevor Ncube, CEO and owner of NewsDay, The Standard and Zimbabwe Independent newspapers.

“I perfectly understand why some people are angry with me. I have met the man and am convinced he is committed to durable change. In any case I can’t see anybody else with potential to deliver change.” 

No Mr Ncube, you think you understand what is going on here but actually you have no clue. Let us just consider three key points: 

1.   Your faith in Mnangagwa’s commitment to deliver durable change is clearly misplaced. The only durable change in Zimbabwe has to start with implementing the democratic reforms and holding free, fair and credible elections. Mnangagwa has stubbornly refused to implement even one reform since taking over from Mugabe and then blatantly rig the 2018 elections. He did not stop there, he went on even further to shoot dead six civilians, just to underline that he would shed even more innocent blood in his resolve to hang on to power at all cost. 

Lest we forget, Mnangagwa and his junta staged a military coup for the sole purpose of wrestling power from Mugabe and the the G40 faction. And before the coup it was Mnangagwa and his junta who had played the major role in creating and retaining the Zanu PF dictatorship. Mnangagwa has no intention of dismantling the dictatorship and the commitment to change, Mr Ncube is talking about is delusion.

2.   “I can’t see anybody else with potential to deliver change!” Of all the feeble excuses that takes the biscuit. So because Ncube cannot see anyone else capable of delivering change he going to support a corrupt and murderous tyrant whose has already proven beyond all doubt that he does not want change!

3.   The political environment in Zimbabwe is like a lifeless sewage pond and hence the reason there are no quality leaders on either side of the political divide. 

The way forward is for country to appoint an interim administration whose number one task will be to implement the raft of democratic reforms agreed at the onset of the 2008 GNU. The reforms will free state institutions like ZEC, Police and Judiciary to play their part in delivering free, fair and credible elections. The reforms will also end the present culture of stifle debated and democratic competition, this will air the pond to allow life to return and thrive.

Mnangagwa and his Zanu PF junta rigged the recent elections. They have no mandate to govern. They are illegitimate. They must step down.

  

Fighting in the liberations war is no excuse for Zanu PF thugs to grant unto themselves the dictatorial powers to deny the ordinary Zimbabweans their birth-right to a meaningful say in the governance of the country. It is tragic that this tyrannical mentality was ever allowed to take root in Zimbabwe and to last all these last 38 years. It must be stamped out immediately! 

What Zimbabwe needs right now is man, men, woman or women who will stand-up and look Mnangagwa and his junta straight in the eyes and tell them in no uncertain terms that they are illegitimate and must step down! 

“All right, I'll go in there for Dorothy. Wicked Witch or no Wicked Witch, guards or no guards, I'll tear them apart!” said the cowardly lion in Wizard of Oz. Next line he was asking everyone “Talk me out of it!”

We are looking for a courageous lion and we got someone worse that the cowardly lion! 

“I have faith in Mnangagwa’s sincerity to deliver change!” says Trevor Ncube. Zimbabwe’s dandy-lion has not only talked himself out of standing up to ED but is now talking us all to follow his cowardly and foolish example!

After 38 years of appeasing Zanu PF thugs at the cost of dragging the whole nation right up to the very edge of the abyss; it is time to say enough is enough. It is time for this nation to deal with its thorny problems and end the heart breaking human suffering and deaths brought on by our failure to accept that our war of independence did throw up corrupt, incompetent and tyrannical leaders whom we have foolishly rewarded with absolute power. 

Mnangagwa and his junta are illegitimate and they must step down; this is not negotiable!

"People in Mbare have no totems" mocked Mugabe - is that why you denied them the vote, life P Guramatunhu

“I remember Mugabe sometime when he said people living in Mbare do not have a totem. He is damn right,” said Eddie Cross in one one of his recent blubbering.

The irony of that statement from Mugabe is glaring and only a heartless tyrant and his upstart acolyte like Eddie Cross would fail to see it. Here is the tyrant who has striped Zimbabweans, not just in Mbabre but all over the country of the democratic freedoms and rights including the right to a meaningful vote and even the right to life itself. Mugabe destroyed the country’s once booming economy forcing unemployment to soar to dizzying heights of 90%. 75% of our people now live on US$1.00 or less a day. The tyrant murdered over 30 000 innocent Zimbabweans for the love of absolute power, the influence and the looted wealth to brought him and his cronies. 

He denies the whole nation its humanity, pride and even the sanctity of life itself and the tyrant even has the chutzpah to mock his victims about having no totem. Is that the reason why you have abused and terrorised the nation? 

As for Eddie Cross, many Zimbabweans have risked life and limb to elect him and his MDC friends into power on the promise they would bring about the democratic changes the nations was dying for to end the Zanu PF dictatorship. MDC leaders sold-out and failed to bring about even one democratic change in 19 years even when they had the golden opportunity to do so during the GNU. 

Eddie Cross and his MDC friends have never apologised for selling-out on reforms. Never.

Indeed, instead of apologising for his part in landing us in this economic and political mess Eddie is so presumptuous as to lecture us on how we should speak as if that is more important than being unemployed and the grime certainty the economic meltdown will get worse now Zanu PF has rigged the recent elections! 

The greatest mistake Zimbabweans have ever made was to ever trust a tyrant like Mugabe and idiots like Eddie Cross with political power! We have paid dearly for our folly. 

The present economic situation of 90% unemployed, basic services such as health care and clean running water all but collapsed, etc. is socially, politically and morally unsustainable.  Totem! Who cares about the blood totem when the nation’s very survival is now hanging by the thread. 

"Tsvangirai will be an albatross round your neck", Dell was right - now it is ED and Chamisa W Mukori

“Morgan Tsvangirai a flawed figure, not readily open to advice, indecisive and with questionable judgment,” wrote then USA Ambassador to Zimbabwe 2004 to 2007, Chris Dell in a leaked cable.

"He is an indispensable element for opposition success … but possibly an albatross around their necks once in power. In short … Zimbabwe needs him, but should not rely on his executive abilities to lead the country's recovery.”

What Ambassador Dell said of Tsvangirai is equally true of all the other Zimbabwean leaders; Nelson Chamisa, Tendai Biti, Robert Mugabe, Emmerson Mnangagwa, etc. They all have one thing in common; they are individuals of little intellect with bloated egos. 

Put them into positions of power and their egos swell to the size of hot air balloon. The more power they have the more they want and once they have absolute power their ego swells to the size of the Zeppelin Airship full of flammable hydrogen. Their fall from power is dramatic and deadly just like the Hindenburg Zeppelin.

Someone who is “not readily open to advice, indecisive and with questionable judgement” also has no clue what they are doing, where they are, where they are going and how to get there! They just blunder from pillar to post. They will never admit they do not know what they are doing much less admit their failures, even in the face of a mountain of evidence to prove it. Their ballooning egos get in the way.

It is painful to have to listen to these brain-dead individuals blubbering on and on, often repeating themselves like a scratched vinyl record.

“Opposition MDC leader Nelson Chamisa has vowed to increase pressure on President Emmerson Mnangagwa in the New Year, revealing that 2019 is the year to implement the transformation agenda and resolve the country’s legitimacy crisis,” reported the Standard.

“We have to put a full stop to tyranny, dictatorship and be on the path to reform, nation building and peace building. It will be a turnaround year,” said Chamisa.

“It is a take-off year, remedying the ailment affecting our country.”

Mr Chamisa, the issue of legitimacy is a very important one but one you have clearly failed to understand.

“The electoral commission lacked full independence and appeared to not always act in an impartial manner,” reported EU Zimbabwe Election Mission in its final report. 

“The final results as announced by the Electoral Commission contained numerous errors and lacked adequate traceability, transparency and verifiability. Finally, the restrictions on political freedoms, the excessive use of force by security forces and abuses of human rights in the post-election period undermined the corresponding positive aspects during the pre-election campaign. As such, many aspects of the 2018 elections in Zimbabwe failed to meet international standards.” 

There can be no question that Mnangagwa and his junta blatantly rigged the recent elections and therefore have no mandate to rule Zimbabwe. Zanu PF is illegitimate, period. 

Your suggestion, Mr Chamisa, that Zanu PF and MDC should form the GNU as a way to resolve the illegitimacy problem shows you still do not understand the concept of the people’s mandate as the only basis of legitimacy.

“The will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government; this will, shall be expressed in periodic and genuine elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret vote or by equivalent free voting procedures.” to quote the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Zimbabwe’s recent elections were a mockery to what free, fair and credible elections should be. Zanu PF deliberately set out to subvert the democratic will of the people. The suggestion that MDC and Zanu PF should just come to some amicable political arrangement and legitimise the blatant vote rigging and usurping of the people’s inalienable right to a meaningful vote is not just absurd, it will resolve nothing!

It should be restated here, that you, Mr Chamisa, and your fellow MDC Alliance and the rest of the opposition parties and candidates who contested in the recent elections were warned NOT to participate in these elections without first implementing the reforms. You all paid no heed to the warning. 

“MDC has stringent measures to stop Zanu PF rigging the elections!” you, Chamisa boasted.

The opposition KNEW with no reforms in place Zanu PF would rig the elections and yet they still participated for the sake of the few gravy train seats they knew Zanu PF was giving away as David Coltart readily admitted in his book.

In his Book, The Struggle Continues 50 years of tyranny in Zimbabwe, former MDC – Ncube Senator and Minister of Education in the GNU, David Coltart, gave details of how Zanu PF was flouted the electoral rules and that it was clear the upcoming 2013 elections would not be free and fair. He admitted that talks to unite the two MDC factions to fight the elections as one were going nowhere.

“The worst aspect for me about the failure to agree a coalition was that both MDCs couldn’t now do the obvious – withdraw from the elections,” wrote Senator Coltart.

“The electoral process was so flawed, so illegal, that the only logical step was to withdraw, which would compel SADC to hold Zanu PF to account. But such was the distrust between the MDC-T and MDC-N that neither could withdraw for fear that the other would remain in the elections, winning seats and giving the process credibility.”

Coltart was talking about the 2013 elections. The main MDC factions did unite to form the MDC Alliance for this year’s elections and yet they still participated!

So the Zanu PF and MDC Alliance GNU would be to reward the illegitimate Zanu PF for blatantly rigging the elections and MDC Alliance for failing to “do the obvious - withdraw from the elections”. How anyone can ever argue that will produce a legitimate regime beggars belief! 

One of the greatest mistakes this nation has ever made was that Zanu PF rigged the 1980 elections and the nation allowed the party to get away with it. (It is no secret that Zanu PF did not withdraw all its freedom fighters to assembly points as agreed, for example. The fighters were then deployed to intimidate the people, forcing them to vote for the party.) Once in power Zanu PF used its position to erode the people’s democratic freedoms and rights to deny them their right to a meaningful vote and even the right to life. 

Zimbabwe is in this economic and political mess because for the last 38 years the nation has been ruled by a regime that has repeatedly rigged elections to stay in power. The economic situation in the country is now dire with unemployment soaring to dizzying heights of 90%, 75% of the people now live on US$1.00 a day and the economic meltdown is getting worse with the unending shortages of fuel, medicine, etc. The country needs a real solution, not a gimmick, to get out of this mess.

Zanu PF is illegitimate, the party must step down. The suggestion to “legitimising” the regime by forming the GNU is a dangerous gimmick designed to extend the country’s brain-dead politicians’ stay in power to message their misplaced egos!

Chamisa and Mnangagwa are the albatross round the nation’s neck just as Tsvangirai and Mugabe were a year or so ago!

The 2019 New Year resolution for the people of Zimbabwe: “We demand free, fair and credible elections as a birth-right and not a privilege. And all those who rig elections or are complacent in flawed elections must be punished and never ever again be rewarded with high office!”

The day this nation secures the right to free, fair and credible elections will be the day the nation moved from the darkness of tyranny, fear, ignorance and misery into the daylight of free, justice, knowledge and prosperity. That will be the day the people were liberated. 18 April 1980 is the day Zanu PF thugs liberated the land to make themselves its new tyrannical masters!

The people of Zimbabwe must commemorate the day the nation holds its first ever free, fair and credible elections, much the same way the Jews commemorate Passover;  to remind themselves of the heavy price this nation has paid for allowing these illegitimate Zanu PF thugs and their sell-outs oppositions acolytes to rule this nation!