"What reforms do we need to stop Zanu PF rigging elections?" How easily and readily some people forget! W Mukori

 In his book, Animal Farm, George Orwell, describes how Boxer, the horse, took as long to learn the first four letters of the alphabet as others took to learn all the 26 letters. Worse still, it took him as long as again to learn the next four letters and, worst of all, by then he had forgotten the first four letters!

A powerful metaphor for stagnation! 

Talk of stagnation; Zimbabwe is a failed state and all because we have failed to govern ourselves. We are stuck with a corrupt, incompetent and tyrannical Zanu PF regime; the party has remained in power to do as it damn well pleased these last 43 years and counting because it has blatantly rigged and got away with it scot-free! 

The solution to Zimbabwe’s double curse of rigged elections and bad governance is obvious: implement the democratic reforms to stop Zanu PF rigging elections. I have called for reforms incessantly some people have started calling me “Mr Reforms.” Worst of all, they are adamant that nothing, including implementing the reforms, can be done to NOT stop Zanu PF rigging the elections. Nothing!  

“You have not addressed the how to implement the democratic reforms. Remember Zanu PF’s arrogance and intransigence. Mnangagwa is on record boating that Zanu PF owns the judiciary, the police ,the army, the law makers, the decision makers and everything you can think of and indeed they do. Tell us how to untie the Gordian knot,” said one critic.

“For starters, what do you suggest that we need to do in order to stop Zanu PF from rigging elections?” asked the second.

“Which reforms will stop all this madness?” commented the third. 

“We have asked several times to give us a list of reforms.

“It seems the people calling for reforms do not know what reforms will end the lawlessness - just like the villagers in Gutu.

“I think we should stop using the plain word REFORMS without substance!”

By the late 1990s it was clear Zimbabwe was is serious economic and political trouble because the party that had ruled the country since independence in 1980 was corrupt, incompetent and murderous thugs. The people realised that as long as Zanu PF retained its carte blanche tyrannical powers including the dictatorial powers to rig elections there will be no end to our troubles. The nation reached a consensus; we needed democratic changes, reforms, to stop Zanu PF rigging elections.

Morgan Tsvangirai and his friends launched their party, Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) in 1999 in response to the nations political consensus. For decades the party supporters have chanted “Change! Chinja! Guqula!”

So after 23 years of chanting “Change!” “Reform!” to be asking what are changes/reforms is nothing short of metaphoric Boxer, the horse, forgetting the first four letters of the alphabet. It would be futile to address the question of what reforms and other related questions above just as it was futile to teach Boxer the alphabet in a never ending cycle! 

  

If I have answered the question what reforms and many like it once, I have answered the question a thousand times! I am not interested in answering these questions again, on the contrary I am as keen as mustard to find the answers to the parallel questions born out of the political stagnation.

Why is it that 43 years after independence, 2 500 years after the Greeks bequeathed mankind the gift of democracy, we still have Zanu PF blatantly rigging elections and getting away with it scot-free? 

Why is it that we have failed to understand what constitute free, fair and credible elections? 

We are not being asked to reinvent the wheel, democracy, but to adopt it for our own benefit. Why is it that we are failing to embrace the rule of law, justice and liberty? Why are we failing to govern ourselves for our own good?

Why is it that even now, 2 500 years after the ancient Greeks, we see but fail to perceive; we hear but never understand? 

Bless are these who see and perceive, who hear and understand. 

We have all the information we need to end this nightmare of rigged elections and bad governance, it is not rocket science. All we need to do is open our eyes and minds.

“What do you suggest that we need to do in order to stop Zanu PF from rigging elections?” Yeah right! No wonder Zimbabwe is a failed state, how can we ever make any progress on anything when the same thing must be repeated over and over again because we have such short memories we cannot remember what happened yesterday. 

We have learned nothing because we easily and readily forget.  “Kukanganwa chazuro nehope!” as one would say in Shona!