“Biti says military role in Zimbabwe politics cannot be wished away!” screamed the headlines in Bulawayo 24.
"There must be dialogue that takes care of military concerns. In 2008 after the MDC won the elections, the military sent envoys to talk to Morgan Tsvangirai and they raised six key issues, including concerns about transitional justice,” said Biti according to Daily News.
"They wanted to know if a future government would not prosecute them for crimes they had been made to commit in the past, and we gave them assurance on a transparent programme of transitional justice.”
“Politics must lead the gun; the gun must not rule Zimbabwe!” is an adage that Mugabe himself had repeated several time in the early years. It was Mugabe himself who abandoned the adage when he invited the Army, Police and CIO to commit serious human rights violations notably during Gukurahundi and during elections to consolidate Zanu PF’s iron grip on power. As a reward for doing Zanu PF’s dirty work, Mugabe gave the top brass in the security services a share of the looted wealth.
Mugabe formed the now infamous Joint Operation Command (JOC) amassing the top brass in the Army, Police, CIO and Prison Service plus a select few from Zanu PF headed by Mugabe himself with Mnangagwa as his deputy.
The primary purpose of the junta was to keep political power firmly in the hands of Zanu PF, the public face of the junta. JOC would establish various task forces to ruthlessly crash all Zanu PF’s critics and opponents. The junta will also facilitate and coordinate the wholesale looting of the nation’s resources for the benefit of the ruling elite.
JOC has become a Mafia looting and committing all manner of lawlessness to protect the members’ selfish interests. JOC called November 2017 military coup that toppled Mugabe “Operation Restore Legacy!” because the coup consolidate the Junta’s struggle hold on power. “Chinhu chedu!” (Our thing!) is the buzz word among the junta.
It has been impossible to stamp out corruption because the JOC members are the Godfathers of corruption. They sense of entitlement is so strong and pervasive they have ring fence the Marange and Chiadzwa diamond fields and many other lucrative economic activities as “untouchables”.
There is no doubt they would key posts in the civilian government ring fenced for ex- military personal just as an insurance to guarantee their interests. What JOC must understand is the rotten political system is the root cause of the country economic and political mess. And that for the sake of saving the nation from any more tragic human suffering and deaths; the rotten system must be dismantled.
40 years of gross mismanagement, rampant corruption, rank lawlessness and barbaric oppression have left the country in economic ruins and with over 30 000 murdered for political gain alone.
34% of Zimbabweans then, according to a 2019 WB report, were living in extreme poverty; i.e. they could not afford one decent meal a day much less other basic necessities such as education for the children and health care. All the other countries in the region has single digit figures living in extreme poverty.
The corona virus outbreak has made life in Zimbabwe hell on earth because the country economic meltdown and collapse health care meant the country was the least prepared to deal with the pandemic. The disruption of the little economic activity going on means the proportion of Zimbabweans now living in extreme poverty has surged way above 34%.
Zimbabwe’s political and economic status quo of the last 40 years has failed the nation and it must change.
Zimbabwe is not the first country in the world to find itself in a situation where the status quo is unsustainable and with those in power fearful of change because they have looted wealth to guard and, worst of all, many skeletons they do not want uncovered. There are no easy answers.
However, what must be stated clearly here and now is that these fears must not be allowed to stand in the way of change because the status quo is unbearable. Every day change is delayed is one more day of heart breaking hardship, God knows how many more lives lost, the deeper the nation will sink into this morose and the harder it will be get out.
Those tasked to overhaul Zimbabwe’s rotten political system, there is no denying it is rotten to the core, must have the vision and courage to reaffirm the common sense adage that politics and not the gun must rule Zimbabwe. The formation of JOC and thus allowing the gun to rule the country by the back door was a fatal mistake that must now be stamped out once and once for all.
The only reason why the army have played and continue to play the dishonourable role as Zanu PF’s partner in the looting and tyrannical oppression; is because of Zimbabwe’s rotten political system that is forcing them to. The irony is the people risked life and limb to elect Tendai Biti and his MDC friends to implement the democratic reforms designed to break Zanu PF’s struggle hold on the military and other state institutions. It is now clear why Biti and company failed to implement even one reform - they never believed they could change anything!
“Military role in Zimbabwe politics cannot be wished away!” You never believed in democratic change!
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Biti has always paid lip service to democratic change and hence the reason MDC failed to implement even one reform in 5 years of the 2008 GNU. The army does not play any role in politics why should the Zimbabwe Army be any different?
Mutendi also took time to harangue those who have criticised government for blowing billions of taxpayers' money through loans to politicians, clerics and other loyalists to the ruling party.
The cleric was the biggest beneficiary among members of the clergy, with two loans of US$271 000 and US$315,600 for a grand total of US$586,600 during former central bank governor Gideon Gono's controversial farm mechanisation programme back in 2007.
"…They say ‘you did not pay loan for a tractor yekurima sadza (to produce staple food). Keep these people hungry, they will be angry' and who can rule angry people? Who can discipline an angry nation?
"If Mutendi ventures into farming and receives a tractor, he is corrupt. So, what will happen if I don't do the farming?" said the Zion Christian Church (ZCC) leader.
The cleric said the recent placement on the US targeted sanctions list of fuel mogul and Sakunda Holdings director Kudakwashe Tagwirei was an attempt by the enemy to punish the biggest supporter of government's command agriculture programme.
In a country in which the ordinary people have been denied their freedoms and rights including the right to a meaningful vote and even the right to life itself. In 2019, according to a WB report then, 34% of the population in Zimbabwe lived in extreme poverty; meaning they could not afford one decent meal a day much less all the other basic necessities for life such as education for the children and health care.
Corona virus outbreak has made the situation in Zimbabwe much, much worse. Zanu PF’s blundering incompetence in the handling of the virus has only resulted in it spreading far and wide. The disruption in the economic activities has push the number of people living in abject poverty way above the 34%.
We can agree to differ on many things but we cannot deny that Zimbabwe is facing a serious economic and humanitarian crisis and that one of the contributory factor to this crisis is decades of bad governance. Bad governance is a man-made problem and per se it is within our power to put right. We must end the curse of rigged elections and bad governance.
Of course, there are many who have benefited from the 40 years of bad governance who will deny there is a crisis much less bad governance. This is to be expected. We must not allow these selfish individuals slow us down much less stop us in our drive to bring about meaning change and to end the tragic suffering in our country.
Bishop Mutendi is just one of the many people who are blind to the tragic reality around them because they have their snouts in the feeding trough!
Bamu told this publication that the arrest was based on some misunderstanding.
Posting on Twitter Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights said, "We are relieved that ZLHR lawyer @bamujm has now been released & is back at Harare Magistrates Court & has been reunited with his client Hin. JOB Sikhala and ready to represent him in court.”
Or alternatively incitement to participate in a gathering with intent to promote public violence, breaches of peace or bigotry as defined in section 187(1)(a) of the Code as read with section 37(1)(a) of the Code.
Police allege that the Zengeza West MP incited people between May 2020 & 20 July 2020 to participate in public demonstrations that would cause public violence & breach of peace among people in Zimbabwe on 31 July 2020 by posting video clips with inciting messages.
The state is there to serve the people providing those services which the individual cannot such keeping law and order, defence, building roads, etc. In Zimbabwe the state institutions have all been corrupt and their primary function now is to do everything in their power to keep Zanu PF in power at all cost. It is amazing how efficient the Police, Judiciary and the Prison Service are working together in arresting, prosecuting and imprisoning all those considered Zanu PF’s critics and opponents, making their lives as miserable as possible every hour of every day. The same Police, Judges, etc. are as harmless as a puppy when they are asked to arrest corrupt Zanu PF officials.
With all the state resources amassed against us we need to pick our fight against the regime more carefully. The street protests would have been a barking dog to an elephant, irritating but nothing more.
Zanu PF is most vulnerable during elections. To stay in power the party has no choice but to rig elections we have made it all too ease for the regime to rig the elections and get away with it. By participating in flawed and illegal elections the opposition have given credibility to the election process and, by extension, given legitimacy to the the vote rigging Zanu PF regime.
We know why the opposition has been participating in these flawed elections, knowing fully well that by doing so they give legitimacy to Zanu PF - greed. Zanu PF has been giving away a few gravy train seats as bait to entice the opposition to participate in the elections regardless how flawed the process happened to be. It has worked like a charm; the July 2018 elections saw 23 candidates in the presidential race alone!
For all his silver back posturing and grandstanding now, Job Sikhala could not resist but join in the rat race for the bait gravy train seats.
Forget the street protests our battle with Zanu PF is to force the regime to hold free, fair and credible elections; that is one half of the battle. The other half is stop these opportunist opposition politicians from participating in flawed and illegal elections. The later battle is all but won if we can stop the naive and gullible supporters following these sell-out politicians!
Zimbabwe's covid-19 figures are low but only because we are not testing. This is very foolish because the virus does not stop spreading because we refuse to acknowledge it there and spreading. One does not stop the forest fire by burying one's head in the sand!
@ SAPES
The National Transition Authority should just concentrate on implementing the democratic reform necessary for free, fair and credible elections. And since life must go on even during the transition period it should attend to all matters to sustain life in the short term.
The NTA should do everything to stop the looting but must leave matters of amnesty, recovery of looted wealth, etc. to an elected government with a democratic mandate and is accountable.
I totally agree with Zamchiya, the power and influence of Zanu PF and the military is overstated. The reality of the economic meltdown has forced the Zanu PF hardliners to open their eyes. They can see that the situation is not sustainable and accept the need for change.
One of the reasons why there has not been any meaningful democratic change in Zimbabwe is that the people tasked to bring about the change, MDC leaders, have proven to be corrupt and incompetent.
Genocide happens when democracy is absent.
This is very true. In Zimbabwe all our attempts at building a just and democratic nation have all ended in disaster. As soon as Mugabe and his Zanu PF cronies tasted power the first casualty to be thrown out of the window of the Ivory Tower was democracy.
After 20 years of corrupt and tyrannical Zanu PF dictatorship the people risked life and limb to elect Morgan Tsvangirai and his banded mongoose on the ticket they will bring about the democratic changes the nation was dying for. Mugabe offered the mongooses the trappings of high office, ministerial limos, generous salaries, a US$4 million mansion for Tsvangirai, etc. and the mongoose forgot about the reforms. MDC leaders have failed to implement even one reform in 20 years on the political stage.
THE United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) has appealed for US$70,9 million to meet Zimbabwe's increased humanitarian needs as hunger and a collapsing economy take a huge toll on the long-suffering citizenry.
Humanitarian agencies estimate that millions face hunger, with the World Food Programme (WFP) on July 31, putting the figure of food insecure Zimbabweans at 8,6 million.
According to the WFP, the desperate situation faced by many Zimbabweans is exacerbated by the combined effects of drought, economic recession and the COVID-19 pandemic.
The root cause of the food shortage and economic meltdown is the country’s chronic bad governance. 40 years of this corrupt and tyrannical Zanu PF dictatorship have taken a heavy toll on the economy and the nation. Lest we forget, Zimbabwe was once upon a time the bread basket of the region; a far cry from its present position as a basket case of a failed state!
Thanks to UNICEF for launching the appeal. The Zanu PF government is too busy looting, fighting the endless factional wars, seeking out government critics, etc. to notice such things as the people starving!
The people of Zimbabwe must themselves wake-up to the reality that if they want an end to the suffering then they must do something to end the curse of rigged elections and bad governance.
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