Zimbabweans need Ubuntu

The advent of social media has both been a curse and a blessing. We are able to communicate for less on such platforms as Facebooks, Twitter, Whatsapp, Skype, Linkedin etc and we applaud the technological revolution that has graced our time. But as the saying goes " with every good thing there is a bad side"  and we seem to be living this reality as Zimbabweans cannot longer distinguish fact from fiction from all the information overload that has characterized our newly discovered invention.

Many falsehoods have been peddled and the recent being allegations that the son of the Finance Minister,  Patrick Chinamasa was apprehended trying to smuggle US$7 million using the Beitbridge border post into South Africa. These allegations have since been dismissed as false but the damage to one's reputation is irreparable. I wonder if the concocters of such defamations ever weigh the impact of their malice to individuals or the nation at large. One cannot but wonder if this is the regime change proponents who are try to whip people's emotions to their own ends. Considering people are spending hours on bank queues what better way than to have them turn on their government for being insensitive. If the aim for these peddlers is not political then we have lost our sense of Ubuntu as Zimbabweans.

People are hiding behind the faceless social media platforms to spew unprintable words all in the name of freedom of speech. As much as this is enshrined in our constitution, if this right infringe on national security then that right is not observed. Many have stayed away from social media because of the beastly nature that people attack each other which is devoid of human emotions. Humanity is not something that one sheds of when in different situations, but it seems Zimbabweans have reached that point.  We ignore the good manners we were taught by our parents on social media to our detriment.
 
Video making has also become popular on social media and has made some famous overnight basking in their two minutes of fame. This has become big business, for pastors like Evan Mawarire to draw in congregants who will make him rich overnight and for businessman like the Kadoma-based Edson Matombo, this has become a marketing gimmick to flagging business fortunes. Whilst for the likes of Acie Lumumba it is a way to cover up their own corruption tendencies which have no home in Zanu PF.   Some analysts are arguing that the proliferation of individuals taking on government on social media is symptomatic of a failed opposition. I tend to agree with this view as the opposition in Zimbabwe is in disarray, with recent reports that the newly formed ZimPF is already mired in chaos before even making its first steps. The various forms of the MDCs do not also inspire confidence as fights for positions have taken precedence to any ideological standing than is an alternative to the ruling Zanu PF rule. The opposition has failed dismally.

But whatever our grievances, we really need to find ourselves and what we stand for as Zimbabweans. Disrespect and contempt of our leaders who are working flat out to solve the ailing economy which is under siege by regime change proponents does not bring an iota of solutions.  The ruling Zanu PF government might have erred in some issues but they still have the mandate to rule until 2018 and no amount of noises is going to change that fact. Instead of bickering and competing for who has the most foul mouth on social media, why don't we offer constructive criticism which l am sure the government is not averse to. We are Zimbabweans lets solve our problems in an African way, the Ubuntu way.