“MDC has cried foul over ZANU PF’s alleged vote-buying ahead of the Cowdray Park local government by-election slated for this Saturday,” reported Daily News.
“This comes when Vice President Kembo Mohadi donated 60 tonnes of maize and 30 tonnes of rice to Cowdray Park residents at a rally last week.
“How can a party just want to give the people of Cowdray Park all that food because there is an election?… We strongly condemn this kind of behaviour by Zanu PF; its clear President (Emmerson) Mnangagwa has not broken with Mugabe’s past,” said Felix Mafa, MDC leader.”
There is no denying that this is blatant vote-buying and MDC are right in condemning it. But, it is a big BUT, it must be said here and now that there is condemning something and meaning it and then there is paying lip-service. One gets the feeling that MDC’s condemnation is just lip-service which is why Zanu PF ignores it!
Zanu PF has long since realised that as long as it offers MDC leaders a few gravy train seats they will forget the call for free, fair and credible elections and participate in the elections no matter how flawed and illegal the process happen to be.
“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 (2013) elections,” confessed Senator David Coltart, MDC leader and Minister in the GNU.
“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 failure to unify the MDC factions was just a feeble excuse to justify MDC’s greed in participating in the 2013 elections. A number of the factions did come together before the 2018 elections and yet they all still participated regardless of all the evidence the elections were just as flawed and illegal as the past elections. ZEC failed to release something as basic as a verified voters’ roll for Pete’s sake and still MDC and the rest of the opposition camp participated regardless.
It was former USA Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Chris Dell, who described Morgan Tsvangirai as a “flawed figure” who was “not readily open to advice, indecisive and questionable judgement in selecting those around him,” according to Wikileak report.
“He is the indispensable element for opposition success, but possibly an albatross around their necks once in power.”
The nearest that the opposition has ever got to power was when they were partners in the 2008 GNU, they sold-out and failed to get even one reform implemented in five years. The opposition’s willingness to participate in flawed and illegal elections has allowed Zanu PF to resist pressure to hold free, fair and credible elections and thus the opposition has become the albatross round the nation’s neck as Ambassador Dell had rightly predicted.
The one reform inter-party dialogue Mnangagwa is hosting will implement is one creating the post of “leader of the opposition” and a number of “shadow cabinet” positions. The positions will be entitled to the generous cabinet salary, limos, etc. Mnangagwa has already set up an inter-ministerial body to do this, just in case the proposed inter-party dialogue does not take place. He is making the gravy train bait even more irresistible!
“Mnangagwa has not broken with Mugabe’s past!” as if he did not know it MDC was giving the flawed and illegal elections the modicum of credibility by participating in the flawed and illegal election process. What a hypocrite!
Zimbabwe is in a real serious economic and political mess because the nation has been stuck with this corrupt and tyrannical Zanu PF dictatorship for the last 38 years and counting.
The dictatorship should have been dismantled a long time ago was it not for the mistake of the nation entrusting this important task to corrupt and incompetent MDC leaders. Mugabe and Zanu PF bribed them and they failed to get even one reform implemented. And, worse still, they are now so obsessed about gravy train goodies they will never ever get even one reform implemented even if there was to be another GNU.
“NeMDC, takatuma bête kumukaka!” (In entrusting MDC to implement the reforms, we had sent the cockroach to fetch milk!) as one would say in Shona.
To get out of the economic and political mess, need to appoint an interim administration that can be trusted implement the democratic reforms to stop Zanu PF rigging elections and guarantee free, fair and credible elections. Zanu PF must be pressured to step down to create the space for the interim administration.
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MDC factions led by party president Nelson Chamisa and secretary-general Douglas Mwonzora clashed at the weekend during ward elections, which were conducted countrywide.
Chamisa's faction, which, according to party insiders, took control of most wards, was accused of imposing candidates.
At least fifteen members of the party were injured in Harare on Sunday during the running battles, which were the latest to hit the MDC as it gears up for the elective congress to be held in May.
MDC members who participated in the ward congresses in Masvingo province also accused Chibaya- who is linked to Chamisa - of imposing candidates for key positions.
"We don't know what is happening here. They are just handpicking people and putting them into positions behind our backs, we are tired of that. They also prefer candidates who can give them money. We are not happy at all," a party member from the province said.
"The whole province is corrupt. We have some party members who openly said they were going to vote Zanu-PF in last year's general election and yet we now see them getting into positions. We don't want that.”
We should not be surprised that MDC Alliance is dogged again and again by stories of undemocratic behaviour. The truth is whilst the party maintains it is a democratic party, it is anything but. One common feature in the MDC, copied from Zanu PF, is to have a veneer of democracy with so many lose ends to be exploited to one’s advantage and still maintain the democratic facade. The funny thing is both sides are trying their uttermost to bend the rules to have the advantage over the opponents and the losing side will complain of undemocratic practices when they meaning is they have been out cheated.
The people of Zimbabwe fund political parties through the political party finance bill, the nation must use this leverage to force party to have watertight democratic constitutions and practices. Only those parties with a clean democratic bill of health will receive public funding.
Global Fund supported staff in the Ministry of health have not been paid their salaries for over 3 months. Aids and TB unit bosses have blamed Standard Chartered Bank for the mishap but nurses are getting allowances from The Global Fund in their respective bank accounts.
Many are asking if this is not abuse of office by AIDS and TB Unit by taking over 3000 employees for granted. Data Capture Clerks, Microscopists and Primary Counsellors form the majority of the unpaid lot.”
Zimbabwe’s health services has all but collapsed.
Ncube said businesses were entitled to ask for payment in foreign currency as the country was still a multi-currency regime, but said they must rate the prices using the obtaining official exchange rates.
“We are still in a multi-currency regime and so businesses are entitled to demand payment in foreign currency. The RTGS dollar is a unit for accounting purposes, but we cannot say that other currencies are disallowed. Maybe what businesses have to do is to be fair and to convert to the official rate of 1:3, but they are allowed to quote in foreign currency,” he said.
If businesses are entitled to ask for payment in foreign currency because the country is a multi-currency regime then why are ordinary people being criminalised for handling foreign currency? The established business people will earn foreign currency and conduct their business activities in foreign currency without being harassed by the authorities. It is the ordinary people who has to trade in RTGS$ and Foreign currency who being forced to sell his foreign currency through the bank but forced to buy on the blackmarket.
There is no excuse for arresting ordinary people selling their foreign currency just because the transaction takes place on the street and not in the ivory tower offices. The authorities would not dare arrest the business people because everyone knows it is not a crime to trade in US$ because this is legal tender!
A Zimbabwean family fled to Cape town to escape the hunger and poverty; all 7 of them including four children just died in a house fire.
The shocking deaths come after president Ramaphosa as it were rallied his killing machines to deal with foreigners. The xenophobic attacks on all foreigners has increased and political parties are using the foreigners as their campaign collateral damage.
ANC is determined to win at all costs. They will paint their victory with the blood of the foreigners
The pressure is on for us to solve Zimbabwe's problems and get our national economy back on track a.s.a.p.!
“I am assuring the party that government is putting in place measures to ensure that the illegal, criminal and divisive elements of January 14 to 16 disguised as protesters will never happen again,” Mnangagwa declared.
“Government will take stern measures against any violence in this country. We will not tolerate any violence at all. Those who want to demonstrate must do it peacefully and that is allowed by the Constitution.”
Mnangagwa is going to use the excuse that the protest will be violent to stop all protests against his regime. Still we can be certain that there will be protests because human being are not sheep that will suffer and die in silence! As the country's economic meltdown gets worse people will be moved to protest their suffering and deaths!
Mnangagwa has tried to win the people support by reviving the economy with his “Zimbabwe is open for business!” and, sadly, that has failed. Now he is resorting to the old tried and tested Zanu PF way - use brute force. We are in for a brutal ride!
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