Tendai Ruben Mbofana
Nonetheless, just out of interest’s sake – having ignored them for quite a while now, and with a bit of free time on my hands – I decided to entertain myself by going through one or two spam emails…for a well-needed laugh.
I opened one that was ostensibly from a ‘widow’, who was ‘dying’ from a debilitating cancer – whose ‘husband’ had left her a ‘million dollars’, which she wanted to deposit in my bank account, so that I could use it to help the needy, whilst keeping a sizeable sum for myself!
After a well-deserved hearty and rib-cracking laugh – I started wondering why there were so many such spam emails, sent at an alarmingly maddening frequency?
Was it because there were actually gullible people out there, who shockingly believed such ridiculous and foolish schemes and lies?
Of course, there had to be – otherwise, how else could one explain the seemingly endless stream of such emails?
There had to be some naive and desperate simpleton out there, who would gladly respond, in the foolish hope of securing some easy millions (regardless, of not even knowing the sender) – yet, at the end, being the one scammed.
This got me wondering what manner of a person would be so simple-minded and unenlightened as to fall for what any normal person could easily tell was a huge big hoax and scam.
Then, it dawned on me that it was not too far-fetched to come across those who would readily fall (hook, line, and sinker) for blatant unashamed lies.
Did we not have those who flocked, in their droves, to naively vote for the ruling ZANU PF in 2013 – after being promised a ludicrous 2.2 million formal jobs in five years?
However, we have only witnessed more and more youths – especially, the thousands being churned out of our universities each and every year, as if some form of mass production line – merely joining the already overflowing rank of the unemployed.
Did we not see multitudes of gullible Zimbabweans celebrating the so-called New Dispensation’s laughable pledges of building 1.5 million houses before 2023 – at the incredulous rate of 821 units per day?
Would those in power please indulge us – by telling us how many have been built so far – considering we are already in 2023!
Today, as I was going through Twitter, I came across a post of an excited Nick Ndavaningi Mangwana (information ministry permanent secretary) – repeating, for the umpteenth time, the promise that the fallen state-owned iron and steel maker ZISCOSTEEL was on the verge of resuscitation.
In reading the tweet, I could not help being filled with indignation – as I recalled how the people of my small town of Redcliff have had their hopes raised, for the return of their life-line – which was looted and mismanaged into oblivion by the political elite and their cronies.
Nonetheless, at the end, these hopes have always been cruelly dashed – in spite of numerous assurances that, investors had already been secured, deals signed, and work on revival the enormous plant about to commence.
Then, there are the promises – seemingly made on an annual basis – for the reintroduction of free education for all Zimbabweans!
Well, we all know what has always become of this one!
Not only have schools opened and closed each year with nothing happening – whilst, children who could have benefited when the pledge was first made, possibly now already adults having their own children – but, the Zimbabwe government has the shameful audacity to repeat this yarn!
How many economically unsound policies have been promulgated by the Zimbabwe regime – with all manner of unreasonable and nonsensical ‘castles in the air’ promises of ‘heaven on Earth’, and Utopia – yet, life for ordinary citizens has actually worsened, as they became poorer, hungrier, and sicker?
As much as politicians, by and large, have never been known for their honesty – who appear to have an inherent strong aversion to the truth – nonetheless, there are some lies that are just too outlandish to even give a second glance.
Yet, we do have those that seriously believed such untruths of unprecedented proportions.
After these thoughts – it became clear to me why these spam emails were so incessant and insistent, because there were those who would definitely fall for these scamming tricks, and end up being the losers themselves.
It is so heart-rending just having those thoughts – as to how people could be gullible as to be so easily deceived…even by their own political leaders.
© Tendai Ruben Mbofana is a social justice activist, writer, author, and social commentator. Please feel free to WhatsApp/Call: +263715667700 | +263782283975, or email: mbofana.tendairuben73@gmail.com
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