"People
no longer have anyone to stand with. They (Zanu PF) bought Tsvangirai.
Tsvangirai joined the money brigade. Here the Americans did not give him money
because of his ways. So whom should the people follow? There is no one who
genuinely stands for the people in Zimbabwe," Thomas Mapfumo, Mukanya,
told Nehanda Radio.
Mukanya
is spot-on, Tsvangirai and his fellow MDC friends sold-out during the GNU there
is a mountain of evidence to prove it.
MDC
were supposed to implement a raft of democratic reforms and draft a new
democratic constitution to ensure the next election, the July 2013 elections,
are free, fair and credible. SADC, the guarantor of the GPA, did their best to
remind MDC to stick to the set task but MDC paid no heed. MDC failed to
implement even one democratic reform in five years of the GNU. The only thing
they did was to draft a new constitution only to make a dog’s breakfast of
that!
"Zimbabwe
also needs a new constitution," wrote Trevor Ncube in a recent article.
"The current document is the outcome of horse-trading between Zanu-PF and
the two MDC factions. It fails to lay a strong foundation of the rule of law,
strong national institutions, transparency and accountability. And, of course,
the sanctity of life and respect for private property must find full
expression."
In the
article, Ncube described the opposition as “pedestrian”.
In fact
Ncube was being very generous here because the horse-trading was actually one
way; Mugabe got all he wanted – absolute power – and MDC got nothing. Mugabe “dictated”
the new constitution the Zanu MP Paul Mangwana boasted. He was the co-chairperson
of the parliamentary committee appointed to draft the constitution.
Instead
of admitting the new constitution was weak and feeble MDC leaders came out in
full force and campaigned for a yes vote in the March 2013 referendum. They
assured the nation the new constitution would deliver the people’s freedoms and
rights including the right to free and fair elections. Tsvangirai even claimed
the new constitution was an “MDC child”!
The people
of Zimbabwe believed the MDC lies and without even having the common sense to take
time off to study the proposed constitution, they approved it with a whopping
95% yes vote. New constitution failed its very first acid test a few months
later as the promised free, fair and credible elections did not materialize.
Mugabe blatantly rigged the elections!
“MDC
vadzidza kudya vanyerera!” was cynical remark from one Zanu PF permanent
secretary during the GNU. (MDC leaders have learnt to enjoy the gravy train
comforts without rocking the boat!) He was comment on why, years into the GNU, MDC
had still done nothing to implement the democratic reforms.
Soon
after the formation of the GNU Mugabe had seen to that Tsvangirai and his MDC friends
were given all the gravy train comforts they could ever wish for; the tyrant threw
in the $4 million Highlands mansion for Tsvangirai. MDC leaders showed their
appreciation of Mugabe’s generosity by kicking the democratic reforms into the
tall grass.
Of
course MDC leaders sold-out; if being bribed with mansions and gravy train
comforts in return for doing nothing about the reforms is not selling-out then
what is!
Thomas
Mapfumo is wrong to say the people have no leader; a number Zimbabweans still
follow Tsvangirai and the other MDC factions, not as many as those followed MDC
before the elections but still a number of people have remained faithful to
Tsvangirai.
Whilst
Mukanya and Ncube can see Tsvangirai as the “sell-out” and “pedestrian”,
respectively, leader he is sadly there are still many Zimbabweans out there who
do not. Even with the benefit of hindsight, there are many Zimbabweans who will
never see Tsvangirai and his MDC friends for the breathtakingly corrupt and
incompetent individuals they are because they are programmed to follow leaders
without ever asking any questions even in the face of a mountain of evidence of
the leader’s incompetency!
Zimbabwe’s
struggle for democratic change, freedom, justice and human dignity has been a
tale of taking one or two steps forward and the nation has a big song and dance
to celebrate meanwhile the nation’s leader “join the money brigade” to indulge
themselves dragging the nation ten or more steps backwards. It is very sad and
tragic that these leaders are dragging the nation backwards but what making the
whole situation a double tragedy is that the people themselves take forever to
notice they are being conned!
It is
bad enough that Zimbabweans risked life and limp to vote for a pedestrian and
sell-out person like Tsvangirai once or twice but to do so a third and fourth
time is sheer folly. People get the government they deserve and we cannot say
we do not deserve this corrupt and incompetent Zanu PF dictatorship compete
with its coterie of equally corrupt and incompetent MDC opposition.
2 comments:
It sounds like the late Kanengoni was doing his bit to brainwash Zimbabweans and the author is just one of those so thoroughly brainwashed, he cannot tell the trees from the grass! Zimbabwe's post independence challenge was how to make independence work for all and not just the few ruling elite; we have failed ourselves in this. So for what nonsense Kanengoni was writing about on "colonialism" I cannot even start to imagine! And only an idiot would praise such nonsense!
@ Mbanje
Trevor Ncube's article was an important contribution to the real debate and search for a way out of the mess Zimba-bwe is in. He described the opposition as "pedestrian" and he is 100% right because that is what they are. He also described the new constitution as weak and gave good reasons for saying so.
The real and honest debate that will get this nation out of this mess demands of us all an open mind to look at the problem from all possible angles, no one has the monopoly of ideas and all are free to criticize what is thrown on the table as long as they give good reasons for the criticism and not just criticize for the sake of it.
I have offered a way forward – we need to get out of our sloth-like mental slumber if we are to get out of the hell-hole Mugabe has landed us. You clearly do not understand the solution but that is not my fault!
I do not agree that the youth are the only ones who will get us out of this mess and I explain why. If you think I am wrong then you are free to say so and explain why. As for me I hold that view and whether I count myself as youth or 100 year old man. It is therefore presumptuous of you to suggest that I am a 100 year old with a grudge against the youth.
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