Opinion / Columnist
Tsvangirai at it again 'wooing army bosses' - reforms are not negotiable, not now not ever
03 Jun 2017 at 22:57hrs | Views
"Tsvangirai woos top army bosses!" read the headline in the Daily News.
The news must have left every thinking Zimbabwean out there sick and it only confirmed that Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC-T friends have learned nothing from the past! Whilst the nation is fighting to implement the democratic reforms to end the corrupt and tyrannical Zanu PF dictatorship, he is doing his uttermost to retain the dictatorship if it accepts him and his friends in the exclusive ruling elite club!
In the last 17 years, Morgan Tsvangirai has had many opportunities to implement the democratic reforms designed to dismantle the Zanu PF dictatorship, the best chance of all was during the GNU. He has wasted every one of these opportunities because he is corrupt and incompetent; so, incompetent he thought he could eat his cake and keep it too. Instead of implementing the reforms designed to break President Mugabe's corrupting and undemocratic control of the Army, Police, CIO, war veterans, etc. during the GNU, he wasted the five years trying to bribe senior officers with assurances they will keep all their privileges if they in turn switched undemocratic allegiance from Mugabe to him. Now he is at it again!
"I have met with the church, political leaders from across the entire spectrum, the army, war veterans, ….. who all agree on the need for a positive trajectory for this country that we love," Tsvangirai said according to 1st June Daily News report.
Does this mean Tsvangirai does not subscribe to the democratic tenet that the Army, Police and all the other security services must be apolitical and per se should never be seen to be entering into any special deals with any politician or political party. Or is it that Tsvangirai's only objection with the present undemocratic cosy relationship between President Mugabe and the top brass in the Army, Police, etc. is that it should be with him and not Mugabe.
It is no secret that the security sector has played a major role in the imposition of the Zanu PF dictatorship. Indeed, it is no exaggeration that the top brass in the security services are an integral part of the Zanu PF dictatorship on equal par with the political leaders Mnangagwa and Mugabe himself. Real political power in Zimbabwe has rested in the Join Operations Command, a Junta, whose actions and decisions not even cabinet and parliament have ever dared to question.
It is no secret too that the top brass in the security sector are among the principle beneficiaries of the wholesale looting and plunder of the country's wealth and riches. When General Douglas Nyikayaramba over stepped the mark and joined in the condemnation of Professor Jonathan Moyo for his misuse of $400 000. The minister silenced Nyikayaramba by reminding him that security sector chefs, including the pompous general him, are earning huge fortunes from their diamond mining activities which they cannot account for.
In the past Tsvangirai has wooed the security sector top brass with promises that they will all keep the positions complete with powerful political influence, their multiple farms seized from white farmers, diamond mining concessions, everything; if they agreed to switch their political allegiance from President Mugabe and Zanu PF to him and his MDC party.
Tsvangirai's policy of appeasement did not just stop with the security services but extended to President Mugabe and his Zanu PF regime itself. Or be it that it was the tyrant who ended up conning Tsvangirai. Tsvangirai failed to implement even one reform to dismantle the Zanu PF dictatorship during the GNU because he thought if he appeased Mugabe by doing nothing to implement the reform, he and his MDC friends would be granted life-time membership into Zimbabwe's exclusive ruling elite.
"Mazivanhu eMDC adzidza kudya anyerere!" (MDC people will not rock the boat because they have succumbed to corrupting influence of the gravy train lifestyle!) Boasted one Zanu PF ruling elite members. He was commenting on worrying reluctance by MDC leaders to implement the democratic reforms as agreed.
The Zanu PF official was one of the Mugabe appointed permanent secretaries, he had held many similar posts in the past, a veteran of the gravy train life. He knew how sweet and intoxicating gravy train life is and how addictive it is, taste it and you will be craving for more. He also knew that the cardinal rule for keeping one's seat on the Mugabe's gravy train seat was a very simple one – you must forget all your do-gooder principles and promises.
After a few months of enjoying the trapping of high office; a farm, formerly owned by a white farmer, for Welshman Ncube; a $4 million Highlands mansion for Tsvangirai; etc. President Mugabe himself must have been pleasantly surprised at how quickly Tsvangirai & co. grasped the gravy train etiquette and rules.
SADC leaders had hope that the reforms would be implemented and thus restore political stability and end the economic meltdown in Zimbabwe. They were very disappointed, naturally, that MDC leaders failed to implement even one democratic reforms in the five years of the GNU. They denounced Tsvangirai & co. for "enjoying themselves in the GNU, they forgot why they were there!"
Tsvangirai's continued attempts to ingratiate himself with the top brass in the security services instead of implementing the democratic reforms designed to end all corrupting political interference of the running of all state institutions including the Army and Police is totally unacceptable. Instead pushing for reforms he still continues to pursue his selfish agenda of keeping these key pillars of the Zanu PF dictatorship in tact as long as they accept him and his MDC friends in the exclusive ruling elite club.
Tsvangirai is determined to contest in next year's elections with not reforms in place to end the corrupt and tyrannical Zanu PF autocracy as long as he is accepted as a member of this corrupt and exclusive ruling elite.
Tsvangirai has had many the golden opportunities to implement the democratic reforms the country has been dying for to end the dictatorship and move on. He has failed to implement even one reform in all his 17 years in politics. He will never ever implement any reforms because he does not believe in reforming the political system but fine tuning it to secure for himself a permanent seat on the gravy train.
For the umpteenth time Mr Tsvangirai, Zimbabwe's political stability and economic prosperity is dependent on the implementation of all the democratic reforms and the holding of free, fair and credible elections. Reforms and free and fair elections are no negotiable, not now not ever!
The news must have left every thinking Zimbabwean out there sick and it only confirmed that Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC-T friends have learned nothing from the past! Whilst the nation is fighting to implement the democratic reforms to end the corrupt and tyrannical Zanu PF dictatorship, he is doing his uttermost to retain the dictatorship if it accepts him and his friends in the exclusive ruling elite club!
In the last 17 years, Morgan Tsvangirai has had many opportunities to implement the democratic reforms designed to dismantle the Zanu PF dictatorship, the best chance of all was during the GNU. He has wasted every one of these opportunities because he is corrupt and incompetent; so, incompetent he thought he could eat his cake and keep it too. Instead of implementing the reforms designed to break President Mugabe's corrupting and undemocratic control of the Army, Police, CIO, war veterans, etc. during the GNU, he wasted the five years trying to bribe senior officers with assurances they will keep all their privileges if they in turn switched undemocratic allegiance from Mugabe to him. Now he is at it again!
"I have met with the church, political leaders from across the entire spectrum, the army, war veterans, ….. who all agree on the need for a positive trajectory for this country that we love," Tsvangirai said according to 1st June Daily News report.
Does this mean Tsvangirai does not subscribe to the democratic tenet that the Army, Police and all the other security services must be apolitical and per se should never be seen to be entering into any special deals with any politician or political party. Or is it that Tsvangirai's only objection with the present undemocratic cosy relationship between President Mugabe and the top brass in the Army, Police, etc. is that it should be with him and not Mugabe.
It is no secret that the security sector has played a major role in the imposition of the Zanu PF dictatorship. Indeed, it is no exaggeration that the top brass in the security services are an integral part of the Zanu PF dictatorship on equal par with the political leaders Mnangagwa and Mugabe himself. Real political power in Zimbabwe has rested in the Join Operations Command, a Junta, whose actions and decisions not even cabinet and parliament have ever dared to question.
It is no secret too that the top brass in the security sector are among the principle beneficiaries of the wholesale looting and plunder of the country's wealth and riches. When General Douglas Nyikayaramba over stepped the mark and joined in the condemnation of Professor Jonathan Moyo for his misuse of $400 000. The minister silenced Nyikayaramba by reminding him that security sector chefs, including the pompous general him, are earning huge fortunes from their diamond mining activities which they cannot account for.
In the past Tsvangirai has wooed the security sector top brass with promises that they will all keep the positions complete with powerful political influence, their multiple farms seized from white farmers, diamond mining concessions, everything; if they agreed to switch their political allegiance from President Mugabe and Zanu PF to him and his MDC party.
Tsvangirai's policy of appeasement did not just stop with the security services but extended to President Mugabe and his Zanu PF regime itself. Or be it that it was the tyrant who ended up conning Tsvangirai. Tsvangirai failed to implement even one reform to dismantle the Zanu PF dictatorship during the GNU because he thought if he appeased Mugabe by doing nothing to implement the reform, he and his MDC friends would be granted life-time membership into Zimbabwe's exclusive ruling elite.
"Mazivanhu eMDC adzidza kudya anyerere!" (MDC people will not rock the boat because they have succumbed to corrupting influence of the gravy train lifestyle!) Boasted one Zanu PF ruling elite members. He was commenting on worrying reluctance by MDC leaders to implement the democratic reforms as agreed.
The Zanu PF official was one of the Mugabe appointed permanent secretaries, he had held many similar posts in the past, a veteran of the gravy train life. He knew how sweet and intoxicating gravy train life is and how addictive it is, taste it and you will be craving for more. He also knew that the cardinal rule for keeping one's seat on the Mugabe's gravy train seat was a very simple one – you must forget all your do-gooder principles and promises.
After a few months of enjoying the trapping of high office; a farm, formerly owned by a white farmer, for Welshman Ncube; a $4 million Highlands mansion for Tsvangirai; etc. President Mugabe himself must have been pleasantly surprised at how quickly Tsvangirai & co. grasped the gravy train etiquette and rules.
SADC leaders had hope that the reforms would be implemented and thus restore political stability and end the economic meltdown in Zimbabwe. They were very disappointed, naturally, that MDC leaders failed to implement even one democratic reforms in the five years of the GNU. They denounced Tsvangirai & co. for "enjoying themselves in the GNU, they forgot why they were there!"
Tsvangirai's continued attempts to ingratiate himself with the top brass in the security services instead of implementing the democratic reforms designed to end all corrupting political interference of the running of all state institutions including the Army and Police is totally unacceptable. Instead pushing for reforms he still continues to pursue his selfish agenda of keeping these key pillars of the Zanu PF dictatorship in tact as long as they accept him and his MDC friends in the exclusive ruling elite club.
Tsvangirai is determined to contest in next year's elections with not reforms in place to end the corrupt and tyrannical Zanu PF autocracy as long as he is accepted as a member of this corrupt and exclusive ruling elite.
Tsvangirai has had many the golden opportunities to implement the democratic reforms the country has been dying for to end the dictatorship and move on. He has failed to implement even one reform in all his 17 years in politics. He will never ever implement any reforms because he does not believe in reforming the political system but fine tuning it to secure for himself a permanent seat on the gravy train.
For the umpteenth time Mr Tsvangirai, Zimbabwe's political stability and economic prosperity is dependent on the implementation of all the democratic reforms and the holding of free, fair and credible elections. Reforms and free and fair elections are no negotiable, not now not ever!
Source - Wilbert Mukori
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