They have recently insulted the whole country by endorsing Robert Mugabe as their candidate for impending presidential elections. It is of course an insult to our collective intelligence to believe that Mugabe is still capable of performing his duties effectively. I fail to see any leadership qualities in Mugabe that deserve to be potted for the good of the nation. This entrenched fidelity and support of the dictator by Zanu (PF) is national gobbledygook.
This explains why Welshman Ncube is of the opinion that all those who are still supporting Mugabe are in dire need of psychosomatic help. The time has come for all peace-loving Zimbabweans to take a stand against what Mugabe represents. He is a dictator and we all have to bury him once and for all.
We are all guilty
It might be our fault that we have permitted Mugabe to dominate and determine the fate of our country. He sees himself as bulletproof, as if he was bathed in the sunshine of omnipotence, or baptised in the waters of omniscience. Perhaps this explains why the late Professor MasipulaSithole had this to say:
“In this we are all guilty, particularly those who have surrounded him singing praises and getting angry on his behalf for all these years”.
The fate of our country depends on all of us and we all have a responsibility to save our country from the crisis it is now in. Zimbabwe is looking for men and women who are wise about democracy, but innocent when it comes to dictatorship. In a democracy, leaders will come and go, but Zimbabwe will exist forever. I, therefore, agree with Professor Sithole who suggested that there was need for us to get angry on behalf of our country.
Derailed
Mugabe isn’t at all interested in our welfare and has provided the greatest injury to us. For this reason, the train of life has derailed and is hurtling out of control. Mugabe is an old and broken reed, ready to fall at any time. At 88, Mugabe must be suffering from mental aberration. It is my fervent belief that the Zanu (PF) president remains obsolete and a national liability.
Mugabe has nothing more to offer. Our critical concern, therefore, is that we can no longer endure the present hardships. Mugabe lacks unparalleled leadership qualities that may need to be preserved for the good of the nation. He has done more harm than good. As I argued elsewhere, his behaviour is a complete negation and betrayal of what the liberation struggle was all about. Mugabe betrayed the struggle for independence. It is incandescently clear that we were removed from a hard world only to be dumped into a far worse one. Mugabe’s endorsement, therefore, is inimical to progress in that he is primarily interested in safeguarding the narrow interests of the ruling elite, their ill-gotten wealth at the expense of the whole nation!
Godless leadership
Mugabe has become godless as a result of the merciless onslaught of materialism. He has become a real danger, not only to society but also to himself. Oppression remains oppression no matter what skincolour or ethnicity the oppressor has. It doesn’t become more palatable simply because one recognises their tongue or skin in the dictator.
I, therefore, dismiss as utter rubbish the myth (largely advanced by his followers) that Mugabe still has some unfinished business to accomplish. There is nothing inherently superior or unique about Mugabe. He is just performing a role because somebody has to do it. You don’t have to be exceptional to be a president of a country, just plain ordinary. This is why exceptional rulers are rare in history.
Gentle and fair
This then explains why we, the suffering and oppressed people of Zimbabwe, value character more than intellect in governmental affairs. We are a little distrustful of intellectual subtlety or cleverness unless assured that character underlies it. Morgan Tsvangirai has impressed me in this regard. He is as gentle as a feather. He is also a gentleman from humble origins. There is no better man, no fairer and squarer than he for miles and miles. I positively support his pragmatic approach to our national contemporary issues. He is indeed an example to humanity and a statesman for history to remember.
Honesty, deep seriousness, a firm sense of principle, candour and resolution define Tsvangirai’s personality. His reputation of honesty is universal, and his affections seem so publicly guided, that no corrupt or private ends can bias them. In Tsvangirai I see the courage of an intelligent, far-sighted and reasonable man anxious to hold the ship of state to its true course.
Finally, to Prime Minister Tsvangirai I wish to say: there may be some who want to go another way, but when you took to the cross, you recogniseits meaning. It isn’t something that you merely put your hands on, it is something that you bear and ultimately die on. The cross may mean the death of your popularity. It may mean the death of your bridge to the State House. It may cut your budget down a little, but take up your cross and just bear it.
“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of convenience, but where he stands in moments of challenge, moments of great crisis and controversy” (Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr).
Post published in: News