There are reports of infighting in MDC.
The complete lack of democratic values and accountability is at the very heart of PM Tsvangirai and MDC's poor performance and failure to bring about any meaningful change in Zimbabwe. Democracy was a very important subject of discussion in MDC one Violet Gonda, SW Radio Africa tried to bring up in Hot Seat with guest, Professor Makumbe. Sadly the Professor, did not do justice to it. Whilst he has certainly mellowed; he was critical of the PM and MDC this time, in the past he had nothing but praise for the man and party. Still he criticised in one breathe and gave the excuse for none performance in the next.
There were so many erroneous things said about PM Tsvangirai and MDC; it is important to set the record right.
1) In this last interview Professor Makumbe and other have repeatedly failed to point out that MDC had their tramp card after the June sham elections; no one would accept Mugabe as the legitimate president of Zimbabwe. By signing the power sharing agreement MDC got Mugabe off the hook.
2) Just before MDC jointed the GNU the party assured the world, they will end the arrangement if it did not work out. It certainly has not worked out, no one would deny that. Instead of ending the arrangement the party now talked of the GNU as “the only game in town”. Nonsense, MDC did not have a plan B and should admit it.
3) Not only did MDC make the mistake of ignoring Mugabe’s arrogance and sweeping the GNU’s serious short coming under carpet, PM Tsvangirai wanted the rest of the world to do the same. What an insult.
4) After all the farce by MDC to have control of Home Affairs, the party compromised and agreed to joint control. But worse still, what difference has the MDC made to policing in Zimbabwe? None!
5) Professor Makumbe and PM have talked of MDC soldiering on in GNU till the new constitution is written. This task was supposed to be completed in 18 months according to the GPA, we are four months away to the end date. Where is the new constitution? The truth is Mugabe has kicked this and many other democratic reform issues into the tall grass. If he should ever relent on this, then the best the nation can expect is an air-brushed Kariba Draft. Are we to wait another five years for that!
6) The prospect of the same violence of 2008 being repeated in Zimbabwe’s next elections, whenever Mugabe should decide to hold them, is real. MDC have done nothing, absolutely nothing, to ensure the political violence of 2008 will never happen again. Nothing. This is certainly PM Tsvangirai and MDC’s greatest failure and betrayal of the people of Zimbabwe.
7) Zimbabwe economic recovery is on hold because this GNU has failed to carryout the necessary internal reforms, like stop the farm invasions, stop political interference in the mining sector, etc. and thus get Zimbabwe working again. Outsiders have been disappointed to note that the GNU was nothing but Mugabe dictatorship by another name; they have refused to give the country the much needed foreign aid.
8) Zimbabwe is stuck with Mugabe and PM Tsvangirai and MDC have no idea what to do next. If there was real democratic debate within the MDC then the party will have learnt form their past blunders and figured an alternative to “doing nothing”. Whist Prof Makumbe is right in saying there is no alternative to MDC in “the horizon” still that should not mean Zimbabwe should not see MDC for the failed party it is.
The in fighting in MDC is to be expected in any party or organisation wandering aimlessly with no sense of direction or purpose and the opportunity to air different points of view are routinely stifled. If the in fighting produces a significant change then it is worth it. Even if it results in the further fracture of MDC, it will hopeful be the wake-up call Zimbabwe need to start looking beyond MDC for the men and women to lead them out of this mess. Like it or not Tsvangirai will never do that, not even in a thousand years..
No comments:
Post a Comment