It is John Acton who said, “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men.”
In countries like Zimbabwe where the great majority of the people have no clue what is going on it is not surprising that those in positions of power and authority have always enjoyed absolute power and have, in turn, been thoroughly corrupted by it to the point of viewing themselves not just as “great men” but as infallible demigods! Eddie Cross is one such mediocre individual who views himself as a demigod whom we must all listen to or be damned!
“Seeing things in perspective has never been more important in Zimbabwe. If we fail to do so, our view of the current problems we are encountering will be distorted and we may all make decisions we later regret,” wrote former MDC MP, Eddie Cross in Bulawayo 24.
Rich, coming from a senior leader of the party that has failed to implement even one democratic reform in the MDC’s 19 years in power and has never even acknowledge the betrayal much less regret it! In the article, Mr Cross claims that President Mnangagwa’s economic policies, since assuming power in last November’s coup, have already been rewarded by “a sharp reduction in the fiscal deficit and we will be in surplus by Christmas.” All nonsense, of course!
“In March 2017, when approached to consider a national government without an election in 2018, Mnangagwa had responded with the view that Zimbabwe had to hold a reasonably free and fair election if it was to gain international recognition and support,” wrote Cross.
“In my view, he was to hold true to that view and in the process, put his whole political future on the line. He could easily have lost the election and the final margin of just 30 000 votes or 0,6%, was simply too tight to call. Or for comfort. But the gamble paid off.
“Again, perspective was important — what the opposition failed to see was that the international community was fed up with the constant crisis in Zimbabwe and wanted to engage and get the country’s international relations back to normal. What they also failed to see was that the new President was determined to do just that.”
President Mnangagwa failed to keep his promise to hold free, fair and credible elections; the regime failed to produce something as basic as a verified voters’ roll for Pete’s sake. Even the British who had tried to bend over backwards to get the Mnangagwa regime accepted back into the fold of the commune of nations gave up in the end. Ambassador Catriona Laing’s parting shot as outgoing UK ambassador to Zimbabwe was tell the Zanu PF regime the “election playing field was not level”!
So Mnangagwa blatantly rigs the elections and our MDC demigod, in his divinely “perspective”, still insist the election was free, fair and credible!
The foreign investors and lenders, Mnangagwa was wooing with his “Zimbabwe is open for business!” clarion call, have shied away from investing in Zimbabwe. Who would want to invest in a pariah state ruled by corrupt and vote rigging thugs!
“I now hear people saying that the resumption of shortages and fuel queues and the sudden emergence of a parallel market for hard currencies means that we are going back into the conditions we experienced in 2005 to 2008,” Mr Cross maintained.
“Nothing could be further from the truth, our economic fundamentals are sound, exports and the gross domestic product growing rapidly and once the new team in the Finance ministry started to tackle the macro-economic problems of the country, they were immediately rewarded by a sharp reduction in the fiscal deficit and we will be in surplus by Christmas.
“At this pace, we will be in a different country by March 2019. Let’s keep our current problems in perspective — if we do, they will not look so entrenched or formidable.”
As long as Zimbabwe remains a pariah state it is nonsensical to even suggest the country’s “economic fundamentals are sound”! Zimbabwe is not going to get out of the political and economic mess without first implementing the democratic reforms necessary for free, fair and credible elections
7 comments:
When you listen to people like Eddie Cross you have to constantly ask yourself whether he is talking of a totally different Zimbabwe from the real one.
"Once the new team in the Finance ministry started to tackle the macro-economic problems of the country, they were immediately rewarded by a sharp reduction in the fiscal deficit and we will be in surplus by Christmas," said Eddie Cross.
The imposing of the 2c in dollar tax on all electronic transactions over $10.00 will hit hard the 75% of the population living on $1.00 or less a day.
Meanwhile Mnangagwa makes a big song and dance about reducing the size of the cabinet to reduce cost and yet keeps most of the old cabinet and a whole brigade of senior civil servants on pay-ledger complete with their ministerial limos and other perks. They keep their multiple farms and all other looted wealth they amassed over the years. He even assures the old rogues their will keep their privileged positions as long as they keep to their new assigned role of twiddling their thumbs and saying nothing.
What Mnangagwa is doing is taxing the poorest of the poor to pay for the lavish lifestyles of filthy rich, which is exactly what Mugabe has been doing all these years. How anyone can say a country pursuing such flawed policies is sound beggars belief.
@ Silungisn
Freedom of expression is one thing selling out in another.
The people of Zimbabwe risked life and limb to elect Mr Cross and his fellow MDC leaders into power on the understanding their will implement the democratic reforms and thus bring about the democratic changes the nation was dying for. They failed to get even one reform implemented in 19 years of the party time on the political stage. Mr Cross is praising ED for the same reasons he and his MDC friends failed to implement any reforms.
No doubt all the Zanu PF leaders and apologists and Mr Cross himself would want to claim that Mr Cross is exercising his freedom of expression is falsifying the facts in support of ED's vote rigging, corrupt and tyrannical rule. What Mr Cross and the Zanu PF buffoons are told here is that what Mr Cross is saying is nonsense and, better still, why he is saying all these nonsense - he is a sell-out!
“When Mashonaland West announced that they now want Mutsvangwa to be recalled, Mutsvangwa’s wife called me mid-night saying what is your take? I said, I spent five years fighting Mugabe and now I want to work for my family. I don’t want to be dragged into issues of fuel that we are hearing that there are certain people who want to invest in that sector. I have nothing to do with those wars (and) I don’t want to be involved,” said Matemadanda.
Zanu PF is a party of corrupt, incompetent and wasteful thugs; whilst there was loot to be had the party was united. Now that there is not enough loot for everyone; many of the party members are counted amongst the 75% of the population living on US$1.00 or less a day and the tide of poverty creeping up on the rest; it is easy to see why there is a dog-eat-dog fight going on in the party. Zanu PF is imploding and as long as there are more than two members still standing and poverty knocking at their doors the factional war is not over.
Poor Matemadanda, you are a thug, have been all your life, and this is a fight amongst thugs in which there are no rules. You can say you “don’t want to be involved” all you want the reality is you are involved. By refusing to be involve now you have effectively thrown Mutsvangwa under the bus and, guess what, you are next!
A self-declared car aficionado, Ginimbi Kadungure has a narcissistic propensity and loves to flaunt his wealth on social media.
The flashy businessman is said to have been interviewed by Zimra officials on March 2, 2016, during which he indicated that he owns a residential property in Domboshawa valued at $200 000, a Rolls-Royce motor vehicle valued at R4 million, a Bentley valued at $500 000, a Range Rover valued at R1,1 million, a Mercedes Benz valued at R1m.
One of the amazing things about Zimbabwe is that whilst the country’s economy has all but completely collapse and so too have the road services and other basic services such as supply of clean running water and health care. The country is now the poorest nation on earth with 75% of our people living on US$1.00 or less a day. And yet out of this chaos, rot and decay there are a few filthy rich individuals living in mansions surrounded by fleets of cars, with 350 pairs of designer shoes, 45 gold watches, etc.
The link between the filthy poor and the filthy rich goes beyond the immediate fact that they two live in the same country; it is obvious that the millions of dollars soaked up by the one is the root cause of the other’s poverty, directly or indirectly. In Ginimbi’s case, he did not pay tax, in Wicknell Chivayo’s case he looted from ZESA, in Mugabe and other political leaders’ case they looted the nation’s resources, etc.
What is shocking is that people like Rev Andrew Wutawunashe would point to the sanctions as the cause of poverty and yet ignore the more obvious cause - corruption!
The report further claims that
She [Thabi Leoka] flew into the country on Monday and has been meeting officials including those at Finance (ministry) and RBZ. Ramaphosa is ready to help Mnangagwa and really believes Zimbabwe can turn the corner. If Zimbabwe indeed takes off it will ease pressure on South Africa as fewer people will need to go down there seeking opportunities as is the case now.
What is pleasing to note here is that the penny has dropped in Pretoria, President Ramaphosa now realises that Zimbabwe is in deep, deep economic trouble. If SA thinks it can bankroll Zimbabwe’s corrupt and wasteful system then it has a hell lot more to learn! Zimbabwe’s economic recovery will never take place, not until the country does something to remove its corrupt and incompetent leaders who have been rigging elections to stay in power regardless of the democratic wishes of the people.
President Mnangagwa rigged the recent elections, he is illegitimate and must go! In trying to prop up a corrupt and illegitimate regime, President Ramaphosa is trying to square a circle and wasting time and resources!
The Movement Of Democratic Change (MDC) party led by Nelson Chamisa is planning to hold what it calls “the mother of all demonstrations” in the near future. The planned demonstration is meant to express anger with the current economic hardships prevailing in the country.
MDC Alliance is a party of corrupt and incompetent individuals who failed to implement the democratic reforms the nation has been dying for and therefore cannot be trusted. What is the "mother of all demo" for exactly, they are not saying! Zimbabweans must be wary of these ill-defined MDC Alliance activities because the one hidden agenda will be to support Chamisa's claim that he won the recent elections.Of course, he is lying just as Mnangagwa is lying in making the same claim.
The truth is the election process was so flawed and illegal, only corrupt and tyrannical regime like Zanu PF would president over such a treasonous process. Only a corrupt and incompetent opposition politicians would take part in such a shameful process. It would be outrageous to reward either Zanu PF or MDC with victory because both sides have shown their disregard for the ordinary people denied their right to a meaningful say in the governance of the country.
What a narrow minded person you are! So because one has dared to criticise Zanu PF he/she must necessarily be an MDC supporter and if you should dare criticise Zanu PF and MDC then you are damned!
Thank God there are a few Zimbabweans with the intellect to criticise the what is said or done without fear or favour and will see both Zanu PF and MDC leaders for what they are - corrupt, incompetent and, in the former, vote rigging and murderous thugs.
"Freedom of expression which was brought by President Emmerson Mnangagwa government"! How many articles critical of Zanu PF will you see in the Herald? How elected Mnangagwa? You really are a narrow minded person Slug!
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