Opinion / Columnist
The best reply to Mugabe from Dabengwa
23 Dec 2013 at 07:20hrs | Views
Comrade Dabengwa must just compile a bullet point based set of changes that Mugabe must implement before expecting genuine unity to take effect.
Here is how the letter should read;
Dear Mr President,
As you clearly know that our liberation struggle was a National initiative driven by the masses in 1956. I wish to remind you about the expectations of the people who started the liberation struggle and their aspirations. I wish to point out line by line the deviations that the temptation of power has taken over against the original objectives of our struggle.
Mr President Sir, in 1957, the people of Zimbabwe did not have a problem about the colour of the then Prime minister's skin, his language or his payslip against theirs. The problem with the Rhodesian Prime Minister of 1957 was that he had become so big to fit into the poor hut of a poor African widow to see what was inside it for food.
The Rhodesian Prime minister of 1957 fell into temptation of believing that since he had food on his table, so was an old lady in Zvimba or Khezi. The failure to picture the gnashing of teeth of the general public by the Rhodesian Government caused the masses to revolt and hence the liberation struggle. Rhodesian Prime Ministers received poor-man's complaints as terrorism, disobedience, racial hate and all manufactured models which made a well looked after Prime Minister feel clean.
I wish to point out to you Mr President that the Prime Ministers of Rhodesia in 1957 relied on the information they got from those who are paid to deliver only good news to the Prime minister. With that kind of management in place, the Prime ministers mis-diagnosed the Nation they were leading. The general populace of Zimbabwe who happened to be system-marginalised blacks then created solutions where they would appoint a Prime minister of their choice who would correctly diagnose National problems without the aid of close assistants who are paid to deliver only good news to the Prime Minister.
In 1957, the people of Zimbabwe agreed to pave way to create a new people oriented Prime minister who knows the suffering of African widows in Zvimba as well as Kezi and address them head on. The Prime Minister who was there at that moment only went into houses of White people living in White areas and successfully addressed White problems and totally marginalised Blacks.
In 1957, Zimbabweans believed that a black man who hails from a poor African family would NEVER LEAD OUR COUNTRY ON THE BASIS OF ANY KIND OF MARGINALISATION. It is for this reason why in 1959, Zimbabweans in general voted for Joshua Nkomo to lead them into liberating our poor from traces of marginalisation.
The masses expected Joshua Nkomo to rule Rhodesia making sure that no one deserved to starve while others export wealth and invest overseas.
The 1959 black aspirations were that a black Rhodesian leader would not favour between a Kalanga or a Ndau but create a fair field where all had equal opportunity. In 1959, if the White Rhodesian Prime minister of British descent had treated all Rhodesians equally without tribal or racial favour, the people would not have revolted.
The people of Zimbabwe need transparent fair leadership where everyone of every tribe and race within the borders of this country is allowed to unleash their potential profitably and equitably.
These were the original values and aspirations of the meaning of freedom that Zimbabweans took arms to achieve.
I wish to energise your memory Mr President of your own personal aspirations in 1961 when you joined active politics. You felt marginalised; you were not allowed to ascend to certain levels of opportunity according to your natural potential because of the skin colour. I also wish to convey the bad news into your ears that the same feeling of marginalisation is felt in most parts of this Nation which you lead but in a differently formatted and new model.
The people in Mutare and Bulawayo think more infrastructural developments have been done in the Harare Zvimba areas in the past 33 years than has been done in their localities. The people of Lupane think the current margins of tribe make it impossible for Zimbabwe to elect a President who hails from their area. They feel that the same marginalisation boundary lines harnessed by the White marginalising Government of 1957 has transformed into tribe margins. Race margins and Colonialism are now a story of the past in Zimbabwe.
In 1957, it was translated as terrorism to suggest that Whites imposed themselves as superior in Rhodesia. In 2013, it is translated as tribalism and regionalism to suggest that the Zezuru impose themselves as superior in Zimbabwe. Surely in 1957, no one ever dreamt that the issue of tribe would be a marginalising factor within Blacks in a liberated Zimbabwe.
During my term as a Minister in your Government Mr President, I aspired to influence areas within my jurisdiction to deliver equality within our masses. I aspired to work with you to create a non-biased Nation where favour of any taste would be abolished. I aspired to produce results where our people as Zimbabweans would not feel that there is any form of unfair treatment and opportunity that anyone within our boarders felt marginalised. But the inherent nature of Zanu did not permit that sphere of thinking or correction.
The attention of problems of Companies closing in Bulawayo and Gweru because they can't secure loans and there are no reliable water infrastructure contingencies is one example where artificial marginalisation shows face. The neglect factor where everything is done to encourage business viability and job opportunity in Harare and none in Bulawayo is not what Zimbabweans wanted in 1957.
Mr President, I am willing, with the mandate of the people, to re-join your Government if you change the way your Government is currently formatted. I will be willing to join your Government if you allow the abolishment of party politics and create a ten year National Rotational Composite Government which will unite Zimbabweans and induce National pride.
It is my proposal that you invite Welshman Ncube, Simba Makoni, Morgan Tsvangirai, Paul Siwela and myself to sit down and reconstruct a new composite Government where the traces of segregation are impossible.
I will be willing to join a composite Government which will begin its task by apologising for all political disturbances that happened in our country since 1894. I will be willing to join a composite Government where ministers of all tribe and colour are 100% mandated to create change without favour .
I will be willing to join a composite Government where leaders of different tribe are rotated for ten years without election starting with Welshman Ncube. Followed by Simba Makoni after a year, then Morgan Tsvangirai, Dumiso Dabengwa, Emmerson Mnangagwa, Paul Siwela, Reketai Semwayo, Priscilla Misihairambwi, Tendai Biti and lastly Emiliar Mukarakatirwa.
After this composite ten year cycle, we then would start party elections asking the Nation to choose a party they feel has the best model of uniting our country into a composite Nation.
Mr President, I like to end by pointing one by one bullet points that are a poisonous result of the current governance model.
(1) Old women from Matebeleland travel 400 Km to Harare to apply IDs and have to speak in Shona to get them.
(2) The Police in Bulawayo speak in Shona to Ndebele citizens which can't happen for Ndebele Police to speak in Ndebele to Zvimba villagers.
(3) There are no incentives to revive industry and water problems in Gweru and Bulawayo
(4) There is no chance this current Nation can produce a Shangani President in current thinking.
(5) People get food handout by criteria of party affiliation.
(6) Some segments of this Nation's children can't get University education.
(7)Our Police are still as brutal as Rhodesian Police and have no respect for the Nation.
(8) Bank loans are inaccessible to the general public.
(9) Most Zanu members have allocated disproportionate wealth to themselves while the general public are now worse than they were in 1957
(10) Our Nation exports more refugees than commodities since 1980.
(11) There is anger about the failure to apologise formally for irreversible Gukurahundi
(12) Our country needs to resettle the Zimbabwean White Community on proportionate land generally equal to blacks and allow them equitable opportunity free from revenge of the past.
(13) We need to create a credible anti-corruption unit which has no political limit
(14) No one should starve in Zimbabwe.
(15) Let's put back this country to its original 1957 aspirations and fulfil them.
(16) Be the one to call upon this revolution Mr President and enjoy the benefits of corrections.
Yours Dumiso Dabengwa.
Zapu President
Here is how the letter should read;
Dear Mr President,
As you clearly know that our liberation struggle was a National initiative driven by the masses in 1956. I wish to remind you about the expectations of the people who started the liberation struggle and their aspirations. I wish to point out line by line the deviations that the temptation of power has taken over against the original objectives of our struggle.
Mr President Sir, in 1957, the people of Zimbabwe did not have a problem about the colour of the then Prime minister's skin, his language or his payslip against theirs. The problem with the Rhodesian Prime Minister of 1957 was that he had become so big to fit into the poor hut of a poor African widow to see what was inside it for food.
The Rhodesian Prime minister of 1957 fell into temptation of believing that since he had food on his table, so was an old lady in Zvimba or Khezi. The failure to picture the gnashing of teeth of the general public by the Rhodesian Government caused the masses to revolt and hence the liberation struggle. Rhodesian Prime Ministers received poor-man's complaints as terrorism, disobedience, racial hate and all manufactured models which made a well looked after Prime Minister feel clean.
I wish to point out to you Mr President that the Prime Ministers of Rhodesia in 1957 relied on the information they got from those who are paid to deliver only good news to the Prime minister. With that kind of management in place, the Prime ministers mis-diagnosed the Nation they were leading. The general populace of Zimbabwe who happened to be system-marginalised blacks then created solutions where they would appoint a Prime minister of their choice who would correctly diagnose National problems without the aid of close assistants who are paid to deliver only good news to the Prime Minister.
In 1957, the people of Zimbabwe agreed to pave way to create a new people oriented Prime minister who knows the suffering of African widows in Zvimba as well as Kezi and address them head on. The Prime Minister who was there at that moment only went into houses of White people living in White areas and successfully addressed White problems and totally marginalised Blacks.
In 1957, Zimbabweans believed that a black man who hails from a poor African family would NEVER LEAD OUR COUNTRY ON THE BASIS OF ANY KIND OF MARGINALISATION. It is for this reason why in 1959, Zimbabweans in general voted for Joshua Nkomo to lead them into liberating our poor from traces of marginalisation.
The masses expected Joshua Nkomo to rule Rhodesia making sure that no one deserved to starve while others export wealth and invest overseas.
The 1959 black aspirations were that a black Rhodesian leader would not favour between a Kalanga or a Ndau but create a fair field where all had equal opportunity. In 1959, if the White Rhodesian Prime minister of British descent had treated all Rhodesians equally without tribal or racial favour, the people would not have revolted.
The people of Zimbabwe need transparent fair leadership where everyone of every tribe and race within the borders of this country is allowed to unleash their potential profitably and equitably.
These were the original values and aspirations of the meaning of freedom that Zimbabweans took arms to achieve.
I wish to energise your memory Mr President of your own personal aspirations in 1961 when you joined active politics. You felt marginalised; you were not allowed to ascend to certain levels of opportunity according to your natural potential because of the skin colour. I also wish to convey the bad news into your ears that the same feeling of marginalisation is felt in most parts of this Nation which you lead but in a differently formatted and new model.
The people in Mutare and Bulawayo think more infrastructural developments have been done in the Harare Zvimba areas in the past 33 years than has been done in their localities. The people of Lupane think the current margins of tribe make it impossible for Zimbabwe to elect a President who hails from their area. They feel that the same marginalisation boundary lines harnessed by the White marginalising Government of 1957 has transformed into tribe margins. Race margins and Colonialism are now a story of the past in Zimbabwe.
In 1957, it was translated as terrorism to suggest that Whites imposed themselves as superior in Rhodesia. In 2013, it is translated as tribalism and regionalism to suggest that the Zezuru impose themselves as superior in Zimbabwe. Surely in 1957, no one ever dreamt that the issue of tribe would be a marginalising factor within Blacks in a liberated Zimbabwe.
During my term as a Minister in your Government Mr President, I aspired to influence areas within my jurisdiction to deliver equality within our masses. I aspired to work with you to create a non-biased Nation where favour of any taste would be abolished. I aspired to produce results where our people as Zimbabweans would not feel that there is any form of unfair treatment and opportunity that anyone within our boarders felt marginalised. But the inherent nature of Zanu did not permit that sphere of thinking or correction.
The attention of problems of Companies closing in Bulawayo and Gweru because they can't secure loans and there are no reliable water infrastructure contingencies is one example where artificial marginalisation shows face. The neglect factor where everything is done to encourage business viability and job opportunity in Harare and none in Bulawayo is not what Zimbabweans wanted in 1957.
Mr President, I am willing, with the mandate of the people, to re-join your Government if you change the way your Government is currently formatted. I will be willing to join your Government if you allow the abolishment of party politics and create a ten year National Rotational Composite Government which will unite Zimbabweans and induce National pride.
It is my proposal that you invite Welshman Ncube, Simba Makoni, Morgan Tsvangirai, Paul Siwela and myself to sit down and reconstruct a new composite Government where the traces of segregation are impossible.
I will be willing to join a composite Government which will begin its task by apologising for all political disturbances that happened in our country since 1894. I will be willing to join a composite Government where ministers of all tribe and colour are 100% mandated to create change without favour .
After this composite ten year cycle, we then would start party elections asking the Nation to choose a party they feel has the best model of uniting our country into a composite Nation.
Mr President, I like to end by pointing one by one bullet points that are a poisonous result of the current governance model.
(1) Old women from Matebeleland travel 400 Km to Harare to apply IDs and have to speak in Shona to get them.
(2) The Police in Bulawayo speak in Shona to Ndebele citizens which can't happen for Ndebele Police to speak in Ndebele to Zvimba villagers.
(3) There are no incentives to revive industry and water problems in Gweru and Bulawayo
(4) There is no chance this current Nation can produce a Shangani President in current thinking.
(5) People get food handout by criteria of party affiliation.
(6) Some segments of this Nation's children can't get University education.
(7)Our Police are still as brutal as Rhodesian Police and have no respect for the Nation.
(8) Bank loans are inaccessible to the general public.
(9) Most Zanu members have allocated disproportionate wealth to themselves while the general public are now worse than they were in 1957
(10) Our Nation exports more refugees than commodities since 1980.
(11) There is anger about the failure to apologise formally for irreversible Gukurahundi
(12) Our country needs to resettle the Zimbabwean White Community on proportionate land generally equal to blacks and allow them equitable opportunity free from revenge of the past.
(13) We need to create a credible anti-corruption unit which has no political limit
(14) No one should starve in Zimbabwe.
(15) Let's put back this country to its original 1957 aspirations and fulfil them.
(16) Be the one to call upon this revolution Mr President and enjoy the benefits of corrections.
Yours Dumiso Dabengwa.
Zapu President
Source - Ryton Dzimiri
All articles and letters published on Bulawayo24 have been independently written by members of Bulawayo24's community. The views of users published on Bulawayo24 are therefore their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Bulawayo24. Bulawayo24 editors also reserve the right to edit or delete any and all comments received.
