Biti seeking political relevance through shadow councillors

While ZANU PF is getting down in business preparing for the 2018 harmonised elections through coming up with tangible projects that are being implemented throughout the country for the benefit of the electorate, the Tendai Biti-led opposition People's Democratic Party (PDP) thinks that its appointment of some so called shadow councillors in some few selected provinces would make it visible to the electorate.

Tendai Biti and his party thinks that the move to appoint shadow councillors will help them to penetrate the electorate but the truth of the matter is that only those who are active in the public would get support. The PDP should be aware that the electorate do need to see political parties who come up with saleable manifestoes that could be implemented well but shadow activities would bring nothing. Actually the country cannot be run on shadow activities but clear cut policies could be the order of the day.

May be in its lack of knowledge, the PDP is failing to appreciate that the appointment of some shadow councillors without coming up with some tangible projects that can be of the benefit to the electorate is just a waste of time which would never bear any fruits for the PDP`s existence. The PDP should take the electorate seriously and make sure that it comes up with projects that are of benefit to the electorate so that it does not lose relevance in the political environment around the country. Tendai Biti and company should know that politics is a game of numbers and one who accumulates more supports win the game. For that reason the PDP cannot win the electorate by having shadow councillors doing nothing for the people.

The PDP should realise that the appointment of shadow councillors who would chew out its coffers without coming up with vibrant projects that are of benefit to the electorate is nothing but just confusion that would come to backfire come 2018 harmonised elections. Actually the PDP which is not yet known nationally must go around the country meeting its supporters as a way of making it known by the electorate. Shadow councillors would only make the PDP fool themselves into believing that they are getting grassroots support yet the time would be running out for them to reach out to the public.

 Jacob Mafume the PDP`s spokesperson who said that the concept of having shadow councillors would help his party to be visible in the public  eye should be aware that appointing them without duties to do is a waste of time. It is naïve for Mafume and company to believe that such a concept would work when they have no grassroots support around the country. For the PDP to be visible in the public domain, they should not rely on the appointment of some shadow councillors as a solution to its popularity but they should create political structures that would mobilise the people for their party.

 Actually the concept of having shadow councillors in the country has no merit as even  having shadow parliamentarians and cabinet ministers failed to fulfil that concept when it was put in place by the MDC-T some few years ago. The MDC which was then the only powerful opposition political party with parliamentarians in the House of Assemble went on to appoint some shadow ministers but the concept failed to be recognised by the public as nothing tangible happened to show the cause why it was put in place. Actually the concept became a laughing stalk of the public as it exposed the MDC shadow ministers as stooges doing nothing.

While the MDC and its supporters thought such a move as a noble one but the appointment of some shadow ministers by the MDC only helped those appointed to feel great thinking that they were real ministers not knowing that they were doing nothing for the country. As such the PDP`s appointment of some shadow councillors would die a natural death similar to what happened when there was the appointment of shadow ministers by the MDC when Tendai Biti was still part and parcel of that party.

So it is wise for the Tendai Biti-led-PDP to realise that appointment of shadow councillors in the country is useless and then try to go around the country seeking support. They should not fool themselves by thinking that their shadow councillors would make their party become visible in the eyes of the electorate. Biti should know that for his party to become popular he should go around the country addressing his supporters and do away with this concept of appointing shadow councillors.

For that reason the electorate should not take the appointment of some shadow councillors by the PDP seriously but the concept should be dismissed with the contempt that it deserves.