“The influence of the military in Zimbabwean politics is reported to be on the ascendancy in politics, economy and government while the army generals have also been reported to be heavily involved in mining and fuel sectors as they increase their control under President Emmerson Mnangagwa's rule,” reported New Zimbabwe.
“This is an assessment contained in a study titled: "Assessing Continuity and Change After Mugabe", authored by Alexander H. Noyes and released this month by the US-based Rand Corporation.”
This only confirms the reality many of us knew but did not want to admit in the hope it will all go away.
Zimbabwe is a pariah state ruled by corrupt, incompetent, vote rigging and murderous Zanu PF thugs. All promise by Mnangagwa of Zimbabwe turning over a new page following the November 2017 military coup, promise of holding free and fair elections, promise of a new dispensation, etc. was all hot air.
As long as Zimbabwe remains a pariah state there will be no meaningful economic recovery. The worsening economic meltdown is set to continue.
"Even where limited progress has been made, such steps appear to be largely cosmetic, a mere box-ticking exercise. In other words, Mnangagwa is attempting to have his cake and eat it too, paying lip service to reforms in the hope of securing international support but staunchly refusing to implement any measures that might harm his and his closest supporters' political and economic interests," said Noyes in his report.
"To help the country repair from years of mismanagement, corruption, and State violence, international actors – including the United States – would be wise to push the government in a coordinated fashion to implement genuine political, economic, and security," he advised.
The international community can help but Zimbabweans themselves must stand up to the demons amongst us!
Robert Mugabe and his Zanu PF cronies have always viewed Zimbabwe as their own personal property to exploit and dispose of as they wish. In the 40 years of the country’s independence they have enjoyed absolute power and grown addicted to being the top dogs, have lived in extravagant comfort and luxury and, to establish and retain the de facto one party dictatorship they have had to shed many innocent lives.
Giving up power now is simply unthinkable for these Zanu PF thugs; there is their addiction to power, they stand to lose the fabulous loot and then there are all the skeletons from the past bound to be uncovered if they lost power.
The price the nation has paid for Zanu PF rule has been astronomical in terms of looted wealth, lost opportunities and tyrannical oppression. Whatever debt of gratitude the nation owed to Zanu PF leaders for liberating the country from white colonial rule, has been repaid thousands of times over in silver, gold, tears and human lives.
Enough is enough! The madness of Zanu PF rule must now be brought to an end!
It must be noted that ordinary Zimbabweans have risked life and limb to elect the late Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC friends into power on the promise they would help implement the democratic reforms designed to dismantle the Zanu PF dictatorship. MDC has failed to implement even one reform in 20 years including the 5 years in the GNU.
When MDC leaders got into power, the promptly forgot all about implementing the reforms. “Takatuma mapete kumukaka!” (MDC leaders are the fabled cockroach who forgot what he had been tasked after tasting milk!)
If we are ever going to dismantle the Zanu PF autocracy then we must first acknowledge that MDC leaders are not up to the task. Second, we must be more diligent and scrupulous in our selection of leaders in we are to avoid repeating the same mistake of elections thugs and/or sell-out cockroaches!
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EU said, “the existing restrictive measures against four individuals (Grace, Chiwenga, Shiri and Sibanda) are suspended.”
Chiwenga, Shiri and Sibanda had the application of the restrictive measures suspended before – despite remaining on the list. The same now applies for Grace.
According to the Monday statement by EU Council following a meeting Monday, sanctions have been extended for another year on Zimbabwe Defence Industries.
“Taking into account the situation in Zimbabwe, including the yet to be investigated alleged role of the armed and security forces in human rights abuses, the Council today agreed to renew its arms embargo and targeted assets freeze against one company, Zimbabwe Defence Industries, for one year until 20 February 2021,” EU said in a statement Monday.
“The existing restrictive measures against four individuals are suspended.”
“The arms embargo, as well as the asset freeze against Zimbabwe Defence Industries, do not affect the Zimbabwean economy, foreign direct investment, or trade.”
The Council also adopted conclusions on Zimbabwe restating the EU’s continued support for economic and political reforms in the country, as well as for the formal political dialogue, which was resumed in 2019, as a step towards a more constructive EU-Zimbabwe relationship.
“The conclusions note the ongoing acute humanitarian crisis in the country, and renew the EU’s support for the people of Zimbabwe in various sectors, such as economic development, primary health care, resilience building, as well as through humanitarian assistance,” said the statement.
It is a crying shame that the EU decided to lift the targeted sanctions against most of the Zanu PF leaders although the EU Election Observer Mission dismissed the July 2018 elections as a farce. The role played by Zimbabwe’s own sell-out opposition parties in giving the flawed elections credibility is a source of great shame to the nation. Still the EU cannot push the whole nation for the treasonous acts of the few.
Indeed, in the face of the worsening economic and political situation in Zimbabwe, the EU must now serious consider re-instating the targeted sanctions on all those on the sanctions list and must add the MDC leaders on the list, even if this will be largely symbolic!
PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa should reform sooner rather than later or face overthrow by angry citizens who have endured continued abuse under his regime, an international human rights defender has warned.
Paula Garivia, a Colombian human rights expert who left Zimbabwe last week after a week-long visit, told NewZimbabwe.com that it was important for Mnangagwa’s administration to treat citizens humanely to avoid unnecessary loss of lives
Mnangagwa does not have the common sense to see much less admit that Zanu PF dictatorship is doomed. Zimbabwe is heading for a catastrophic crash, death and destruction and as for Mnangagwa and his cronies they only thing they know and understand is a bullet or a hangman's rope!
Many people have admired David Coltart for his hard work and courage in helping to uncover the Gukurahundi massacre. However it is a historic fact that MDC sold-out big time in failing to implement democratic reforms and dismantle the Zanu PF dictatorship with the disastrous consequences we see in Zimbabwe today. David Coltart was a senior member of MDC during the 2008 to 2013 GNU and is still a senior member of the party to this day. He has never admitted to the blatant selling out and has, instead, swept it under the carpet or worse and thus adding insult to injury!
The European Union (EU) has called for "inclusive national dialogue", a clear indicator that it is not taking the Political Actors Dialogue (Polad) seriously and believe dialogue between Mnangagwa and MDC leader, Nelson Chamisa could help extricate Zimbabwe from its socio-economic crisis.
The renewed its arms embargo on Zimbabwe and sanctions on the Zimbabwe Defence Industries (ZDI) for one year and lifted restrictions on four individuals following the Council of the European Union meeting, the latest blow to the President Emmerson Mnangagwa administration, which was hopeful the measures would be lifted.
The fractious block said sound political and economic governance are paramount if the business and investment climate in Zimbabwe is to be improved, and inclusive and sustainable economic growth and development are to be achieved.
You are right, the EU has become a shameless and fractious block. The EU’s own Election Observer Mission dismissed the July 2018 elections in Zimbabwe as a farce and recommended that the targeted sanctions on Zanu PF leaders must remain. Alas, the EU Foreign Ministers decided to lift the sanctions. It is no secret that rogue nations as Belgium, whose contempt for Africans is a matter of historic record, wanted the sanctions lifted and did not care about Zanu PF rigging the elections.
With the economic and political situation getting worse and worse, one can only hope the the EU will see the folly of rewarding Zanu PF for doing the wrong thing and re-instate the sanctions!
Those calling for “inclusive dialogue” must be careful they are not misunderstood and are seen as supporting the National Transition Authority (NTA) of Zanu PF and MDC that Chamisa has been calling for. The 2008 GNU of the two parties failed to implement even one reform; this NTA, itself a watered down version of the 2008 GNU, will not do any better.
Yes the country needs a GNU arrangement to replace the illegitimate and pariah Zanu PF regime and to implement the reforms. We need an independent body and not a Zanu PF regime with a few MDC manikins thrown in!
The prominent lawyer took her threats to micro blogging Twitter soon after the acquittal of their party vice chairperson Job Sikhala recently who was accused of treason by uttering the same words in Masvingo.
"We are going to take the fight to the doorstep of @edmnangagwa. We're going to overthrow him before 2023. That's not a joke," reads Mahere's tweet.
So you participated in flawed and illegal elections, ZEC did not even have something as basic as a verified voters’ roll, giving the vote rigging Zanu PF some modicum credibility and legality so you can overthrow the regime? How frightful stupid!
He (Madhuku) explained further: "Mnangagwa is the President as we speak now; I think everyone knows that. He is running the country. He has opposition; we are part of the opposition and these opposition parties are in different groups. We are an opposition that says, well we can give him ideas and then there is an opposition that says I am not recognising him.”
Just as Abel Muzorewa was Prime Minister of Zimbabwe Rhodesia. He did not have the mandate of the people to govern and so too does Emmerson Mnangagwa.
Mnangagwa denied 3 million Zimbabweans in the diaspora the vote, he has reduced the rural voters to no more than medieval serfs beholden to the whims of the overbearing landlord, ZEC failed to produce something as basic as a verified voters’ roll, etc. Of course, Mnangagwa blatantly rigged the elections, he and his Zanu PF cronies have no mandate to govern, they are illegitimate.
Zimbabwe is a pariah state ruled by corrupt, incompetent and vote rigging thugs. As long as the country remains a pariah state both investors and lenders will shy away and there will be no meaningful economic recovery.
Zimbabwe is facing very serious economic challenges; unemployment is 90%; basic services like education and health care have collapsed; 34% of our people now live in extreme poverty, five times or more than the situation in the neighbouring countries. This is unsustainable!
@ Tawanda Manjoni
Back to Chinamasa's Zanu-PF lies. It's clearly not true that Zanu-PF doesn't have a naming and shaming policy. Wind back to 2017. Remember the military and the Lacoste faction justified the coup against Mugabe on the basis that they were targeting the criminals surrounding the then president. They identified these "criminals", inter alia, as Jonathan Moyo, Saviour Kasukuwere, Patrick Zhuwao, Ignatius Chombo and Shadreck Mashayamombe.
They even took out heavy machine guns and blew up some of these named and shamed corrupt people's residences.
So, whoever sent Tsenengamu and Matutu seems to hate Chiwenga with a passion. That could be big business and its proxies with interests in the fuel sector.
That could also be Chiwenga's political foes in the party. Or both.
It gets particularly bizarre when Chinamasa claims that naming and shaming corrupt people drives away direct foreign investment. For him, and a part of Zanu-PF, exposing the corrupt habits of Rautenbach and Tagwirei will discourage outside investors. That's self-defeating nonsense. One of the reasons why Zimbabwe is failing to attract meaningful investment is the pervasiveness of corruption. No sane investor would want to come into country where tenders are fixed out of habit, contracts can be cancelled any time for any or no reason, some commercial sectors are no-go areas, and people are punished for talking against corruption.
And it's also awkward for him to say naming and shaming people will force those hoodlums flee the country. It was never going to worry us here, because corrupt people don't bring any value to us. It does the opposite, taking away whatever little value was left. But why would Chinamasa and Zanu-PF want to keep corrupt people? Because, as the cliché goes, corruption is to Zanu-PF what water is to fish. That party quakes at the prospect of corrupt people running into exile because nothing would be left of Zanu-PF in the short term.
Another razor sharp and insightful analysis of the mess in Zimbabwe. Thank you.
I never ever imagined that Zimbabwe’s economic mess would ever get to the point where the overwhelming majority of schools in Zimbabwe would fail to achieve a 10% pass rate. We used to boast of being the most literate nation in Africa and now we are the most ILLITERATE nation in Africa.
We have just condemned a whole generation to a life time of ignorance and yet they are going to be tomorrow’s workers, voters and parents!
What is worse, why have we allowed Zanu PF to rid roughshod over our hopes and dreams just as we foolish let the white colonialists do the same!
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