ZANU PF must die but MDC must step up! Part 1

A lot of well meaning people literally thought the sky would fall on the MDC for agreeing to be part of the GNU.Well, whilst a lot of their fears have been confirmed, Zimbabweans have had a bit of some breathing space as compared to the cataclysmic period the nation had plunged in post March 2008.We are now 'celebrating' one year of the GNU.
One thing is certain though, ZANU PF is now rapidly disintegrating into smitherings.With the final collapse of the Unity Accord, the aging of its leaders, the return of Moyo and the fights that have ensured as a result, l am convinced the end is near for the criminals. I submit that the extinction of ZANUPF in its entirety is a sine qua non to Zimbabwe’s recovery process. The revolutionary party has become a threat to the people's sovereignty hence there is a need for a protracted Chimurenga against 'vapambepfumi ve ZANU' so we can reclaim our inheritance! We have to use their language to describe them now. Today Jestina Mukoko is acquitted yet she had been tortured. We have a government that tortures, a President who is a multiple farm owner while the poor he purports to fight for still live in the communal lands where stones grow better than crops. We still have ministers who think it’s cool to invade farms and even invade farms owned by recent new farmers. One year on, we still have governors, Permanent Secretaries and even a cabinet minister who haven’t been sworn in. What l have personally learnt one year on is that ZANU PF should not and cannot be reformed. The party must die and its leaders have to be tried for their crimes against humanity. Those who are calling on the nation to ‘turn over to a new page’ maybe sincere but sincerely wrong. Before we turn the page, let’s read what’s on the page-maybe it might help us to understand the next page. The evidence is awash in a multiplicity of accurately researched reports and the anger in the population is understandable
However, my article is actually more focused on an analysis of the MDC’s perfomance.I see potential in the MDC to improve. A lot of the leaders have shown outstanding fortitude under inexplicable circumstances. The Prime Minister needs mention on this. After losing his dear wife we all felt for him. The manner in which he managed to bounce back within days to continue working proves the fact that he is more deserving to lead this country than President Mugabe. Clearly the breathing space we have as a country is because of the MDC National Council’s decision to participate in this unfairly structured GNU arrangement. A lot more people would have died if the bickering had continued outside the arrangement. A lot more would be jobless and dejected. Practically every national executive member of the party has been tortured but in their minds, the struggle continues unabated. However, beyond the remarkable bravery and obvious international goodwill the MDC enjoys,l have serious concerns with the party that has gallantly fought for the common man since 1999.We have witnessed uncharacteristic selfishness and stubbornness from some of the MDC MPs particularly those that refused to return the Gono allocated vehicles after Biti instructed it to be done. More worrying is the ‘Mercedes Benz mentality’ which so pervades African politics-It is not necessary for many of the ministers on the continent to drive such posh vehicles when the masses starve. It’s even more embarrassing in Zimbabwe’s case to see opposition ministers and MPs continuing the propensity to overspend on packages of public officials when the economy is on its knees. Cheaper vehicles could do. Now we know MDC will maintain the same packages ZANU PF used for patronage. This is important because it shows the mentality that the leaders have. To them it’s payback time for ‘the suffering we went through’. This is exactly what happened at independence when Mugabe’s ministers felt the need to ‘finally be comfortable’ after years in the bushes. What one could conclude is that the more a party struggles to get to power, the more its likely to spend to compensate its leaders when it gets into power.Mwalimu Julius Nyerere taught us selflessness maybe to an extreme. He simply didn’t want the opulence we now see on the continent. For many of the new ministers, the ministers’ Merc is worth more than the value of the other cars in that ministry combined! There is nothing anywhere in the other ministries. As David Coltart once said, it doesn’t make sense to drive around in such cars when the ministry building itself doesn’t even have water or electricity. Where is the logic? Where is the servant hood that we heard so often during the massively attended rallies? Minister Eric Matinenga my homeboy actually said that he was ‘embarrassed’ to accept the Merc.But he still did! When MDC was formed in 1999, the mandate was clear, to liberate the worker from the doldrums of poverty. One hoped for worker centered policies. Now the same party has ministers driving new and expensive cars whilst civil servants get $100 per month. Where is the solidarity? If MDC ministers had refused, that would have thrown egg in the face of ZANU PF .Now they can’t criticize ZANU PF spending without being accused correctly of being hypocrites.
It has been somewhat anti-climatic to just look at the MDC-T‘s list of ministers in itself. I deliberately exclude the Mutambara faction because l think that that party would crumble like a deck of cards if the GNU would collapse or elections are held. They have no mandate essentially. They aren’t going anywhere. The more we talk about them, the more they look important. I don’t see them having any influence on public policy whatsoever in future unless maybe the MDC unites. Folks like Thamsanqa Mahlangu, Paurina Mpariwa among many others make you wonder if that’s the best Zimbabwe has to offer as we all desire impatiently for the dawn of a New Zimbabwe. If there is something that Independence parties or revolutionary parties have been good at has been attracting some of the best minds in the country. Some of the minds are smart though unwise like Prof Moyo but there is no doubt that Mugabe has over the years had some of the best ministers you could think of in the cabinet. Imagine Bernard Chidzero or even the more recent ‘technocratic cabinet’. I have concerns on the quality of Tsvangirai’s picks. I however appreciate that these men and women have labored more than many people. I just wonder if that alone is license to ministerial appointments. When you look at the cabinet ,apart from just a few, you struggle to think of any trend setter in any field amongst the picks.Ideally,as we map out a new Zimbabwe, its best to get the best ,loyal Zimbabweans available and make sure they have proven themselves in that field. Some of the ministers have not excelled in anything except maybe being brave and you then wonder if they can outmaneuver the more experienced, obviously smart ZANU PF gang.ZANU PF has ruthless tacticians like Mnangagwa,Jonathan Moyo,Chinamasa and others and one wonders if MDC being the junior party can stand up to the heat. They are structurally at a disadvantage and l am sure they are constantly outwitted by those ZANU criminals. Giles Mutsekwa was outfoxed by the ZANU machinery.Sekai Holland is constantly outmaneuvered by Nkomo.When you enter such unfair deals, you have to be a supreme tactician yourself.Unfortunately,while l would crown a lot of the MDC ministers world champions for bravery, it remains to be seen if they can excel in a bureaucracy littered with obstacles like Zimbabwe’s. They are set up to fail but they can succeed. Even a perusal of the list of MPs leaves you underwhelmed. I strongly hope Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai is working flat out to get the best possible. The challenge is to get technocrats who have feet on the ground and not the lofty, out of touch and otherwise arrogant type like Mutambara.I believe Zimbabwe is awash with such examples. They don’t have to be politicians; they just have to be able citizens who are effective. The fewer politicians Tsvangirai works with the less difficult he is likely to face in pursuing the new Zimbabwe vision.
I have been disturbed with a tendency to either misinform the public like ZANU PF ministers or to say stuff that is simply blithering nonsense. The other time Deputy Minister Murisi Zwizwai unashamedly denied the callous killings in Chiadzwa diamond fields.However, for him to get away with such behavior is simply incredible. I wouldn’t have been surprised if that had happened with Mugabe’s ministers.Infact, it is always a surprise to hear them say the truth otherwise they have become pathological liars. It is sad our ‘democracy’ does not cut such l ‘leaders’ to size. He denied that ZANU PF is killing people. Who side is he on? What was he trying to prove? The ministers are so desperate to prove that Zimbabwe is now a safe investment destination that they are prepared to lie to achieve that end.
Regrettably, this shallowness of thinking and dubious character is the last thing we would want in our progressive movement. Then came Sekai Holland who simply has become a gaffing machine. She will struggle to regain credibility after her numerous gaffes. Giles Mutsekwa then completed this unholy alliance. He claims that he was cheated by Chanakira into agreeing to the specification of Moxon without hearing the other side of the story. To argue that he trusted Chanakira because he is a Christian is alarming. In fact it’s nonsense and for him to say that is to insult our collective intelligence. Was he simply outfoxed?
Prime Minister Tsvangirai has a huge challenge because for the first time we are now looking at his ministers closely. Gone are the days when we would just clap hands and ululate at rallies just because an opposition leader declared Mugabe a liar. The ministers have to deliver results.Sofar; the nation is waiting and trusting.
Our hearts have been broken by ZANU PF.When MDC came; we thought we were on a mending process. There is still hope. Please do not disappoint…