ZimPF will not run the whole race

Several headlines in various papers asked if Joice Mujuru's Zimbabwe People First (ZimPF) party would last the distance. It was a difficult question to answer until recent developments within that party. The answer now is a plain big NO.

It was difficult to gauge ZimPF's endurance to last the distance because it had not convened any rally. The pomp and fanfare that characterized the launch of the ZimPF party at the swish five star Meikles hotel on the 1st of March 2016 is fast petering out. It is missing at all the rallies that the party has held so far, making it easy to respond to the question of its stamina to last the distance.

ZimPF is failing to harvest significant crowds at its rallies across the country with the biggest pack so far being a plus or minus 500 who gathered at Warren Park rally. The trend with all opposition political parties that emerged in Zimbabwe has been the same. They attract huge numbers in their infancy with some threatening to drive out Zanu PF from power. The MDC for instance, gave Zanu PF a good run for its money in the 2000 elections, just a year after its formation.

ZimPF has defied the odds. It seems people do not have confidence in the new kid on the block. It appears ZimPF has realized that it is not with the people in their journey to mars. They are like an athletic that, after sprinting for some meters, looks back and sees that everybody is still on the starting line. What an embarrassment!

ZimPF is in a lone race. It has commenced the political race on a false start. It would be wise for them to go back to the starting line and start all over again. Instead, Mujuru and her colleagues have decided to save their faces by apportioning blame to Zanu PF for the low turn outs characterizing their rallies. They allege that their supporters are being persecuted, beaten and threatened with food denial and other unspecified actions if they attend their rallies. Latterly they said that "Zanu PF spies have infiltrated our party."

The latest rally held in Victoria Falls, Matabeleland North must have worked up ZimPF. The Matebeleland regions are usually viewed as hotbeds of opposition politics. MDC owes its survival to those regions. Mujuru thought she could receive the same political benevolence, more so after trying to pose as their savior. She raked up reminiscence of the Gukurahundi, promising them that she would give a fresh look into the issue once she is in power.

Imagine after promising people to deal with what you think is their innermost concern, and then the same people rebuff you. It must have been a painful experience for Mujuru to realize that a mere 100 people attended her party's rally in Matebeleland North. We are told, as fire fighting reaction of course, that people could not attend the rally for fear of reprisal from Zanu PF. This is a pathetic excuse. Were the 100 who attended the rally attacked or even threatened? One of the alleged supporters, Cornelius Nyoni was quoted as saying that they feared Zanu PF youths would come and torture them after the meeting.

It is doubtful this Nyoni exists at all. If his was a genuine fear, why did he disclose his name? Didn't it cross his mind that the disclosure of his name will make it easy for the said Zanu PF youths to track and torture him. This is a wretched piece of propaganda that exposes ZimPF big time. And ZimPF has hopes of winning an election when people follow proceedings of their rallies from their homes. This is a new and strange strategy.

What could be the problem really? There are plenty of reasons for this development and ZimPF does not even need a think tank or researcher to come up with reasons why the party is not attracting followers. However, all that ZimPF sees is the shadow of Zanu PF in its party. It recently alleged that Zanu PF spies had infiltrated it. Another preposterous excuse!

A political analyst, Alexander Rusero proffered an interesting analysis when he said ZimPF could be mistaking membership for infiltration. "Its one thing for the CIO (Central Intelligence Organisation) to infiltrate a political party and another for employees of CIO to be members of the People First. So the danger is, we may mistake membership for infiltration," Rusero was quoted by Newsday as having said.

Zanu PF has never send spies to ZimPF or any other opposition political party. Here is a generous advice that ZimFirst can freely take if ever it needs to survive at least up to 2018. If ever there are such members of CIO or Zanu PF attending their rallies, ZimPF should accommodate them as their members. They could be of great service if they report these members to their respective employers. By misreading them as infiltrators, ZimPF could be spurning the much needed and hard to come by supporters.

In any case, ZimPF knows the truth that it the one that has spies in Zanu PF. The Mujuru cabal had members who are still in Zanu PF and these could be spying on behalf of ZimPF.