President Mugabe, a man of unity

December 22 marks a very important day in the history and future of the Republic of Zimbabwe.

Two revolutionary parties that had differed in the approach of executing the war of liberation but remained glued on principles, decided to bury the hatchet.

The unity of-PF Zapu and Zanu-PF in December 1987 tells a rich story about the calibre of the protagonists in the Unity Accord.

The unity was forged by selfless men who looked beyond their individual interests for the sake of the nation and posterity.

They subordinated their self-interests to that of the nation.

Such are the rare qualities found in President Robert Mugabe that were also shared by the late Vice-President Joshua Nkomo.

President Mugabe is a man who can forgive and forget.

The Unity Day is now on the horizon. As we commemorate it, we should look beyond the unity between-PF Zapu and Zanu-PF. President Mugabe is a man of unity. He has been aggrieved time and again and many a time, he forgave and forgot.

Despite murdering thousands of innocent Zimbabwean refugees at various camps in Mozambique, Zambia and other neighbouring countries during the war of liberation, Ian Smith and other Rhodesian remnants were forgiven in 1980.

The Rhodesians committed heinous brutality against the sons and daughters of this country who were fighting white injustice in this nation.

In his statement on the 62nd session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York in 2007, President Mugabe said, "I lost eleven precious years of my life in the jail of a white man whose freedom and well-being I have assured from the first day of Zimbabwe's independence."

Imagine forgiving such people, let alone incorporating some of them in his democratic government.

Joice Mujuru and his allies should have taken advantage of this exceptional gift of forgiving embedded in President Mugabe. It was a matter of choice.

Surely, the President could have forgiven them if they had chosen to be pardoned. It only needed humility and compunction from Mujuru and her group. She chose to remain in denial in the hope of salvaging their political fortunes. It was a grave political slip up.

During the Meet the People Tour, the First Lady Dr Grace Mugabe advised the group, Mujuru in particular, to ask for forgiveness from the President. That was a priceless and motherly advice that the Mujuru group should have heeded. They should have gone to the President with their caps in hand. Precedents abound where President Mugabe let off some people whose sins were as red as blood.

It is not the first time that Dzikamai Mavhaire was thrown into the political darkness. He was expelled in 1998 after he called on the President to step down. Forgiving as he is, President Mugabe allowed his re-admission in 2005. At least Mavhaire must have been the most cautious of the lot. Unfortunately, he did not learn from his previous political miscarriage.

Rugare Gumbo fell out with the external leadership during the war after he attempted a bloody coup. According to historians, the God-fearing President spared Gumbo and his group from the gallows.

Gumbo was fished out of the political mud in the 1990s and went on to occupy a very powerful portfolio in the politburo, all this at the pleasure of the forgiving President.

It should have crossed his mind that he had a tainted history. A prudent person would never throw stones when he is in a glass house. Gumbo just did that.

Professor Jonathan Moyo is one of the politicians who can testify the forgiving character of President Mugabe. He was censured in 2005 after he stood as an independent candidate in Tsholotsho following a concerted mudslinging that linked him to an alleged coup. He was re-admitted into the party in 2009.

We have people like Edgar Tekere who, after being expelled went on to form a political party. Nevertheless, they died peacefully after having been forgiven by President Mugabe.

Tekere and Enos Nkala even received the highest honour of being interred at the national shrine.

As we commemorate Unity day, the people of Zimbabwe must reflect on the unifying attributes of President Mugabe. The people of Zimbabwe should pluck a leaf from the president of this nation. After a successful congress characterised by the cleansing of bad apples, it's now time to embrace each other and rally behind the new leadership.

It's undisputable that some people supported Mujuru. Some rallied behind her on the basis that she was a leader whom President Mugabe appointed.

Most of them never had an inkling of the coup and assassination plots.  They were not offside in supporting a presidential appointee unless they were part of the plot to unconstitutionally oust the president. These people should be given the benefit of doubt and be absolved. There is no need to purge such unfortunate followers.

However, those who followed Mujuru should repent now. They must accept the party's decision for it is supreme. They must realise that there is no sacred cow in Zanu-PF and nobody is bigger than the party.

What took place in Zanu-PF sent a strong message to politicians and ministers who had grown big heads.

Those who were in the comfort of wrong beliefs that they were untouchable gods must reconsider their belief.

Some ministers have been roped in corrupt and nefarious activities while the President was mum.

He takes time to act in the hope that one would change. People had misconstrued such silence as a loss of control of the ship. They wrongly thought the president no longer had teeth. The recent bite is a reminder that he still has the teeth that can bite even the strongest bone.

The people of Zimbabwe expect the president to land heavily on corrupt ministers.

At times, we do not need the verdict of the courts to deal with a political matter.

Once a minister is accused of corruption, whether the courts find him guilty or not, he must be suspended or fired.

There is no smoke without fire. In this way, government will be able to implement ZimAsset within the stipulated period.