Opinion / Columnist
'Wilbert, you are a disruptor with no solutions,' says Paradza - and still call yourself' learned Judge
08 Jun 2017 at 20:19hrs | Views
Let is not be said that Wilbert Mukori does not listen; I do listen to what you, Benjamin Paradza, and many others are saying. What you have failed to do is convince me that you KNOW what you are talking about!
"Wilbert Mukori some of us discuss ideas and solutions. We don't just attack and blame without providing solutions," commented Paradza.
"You have sung this tune of blaming the GNU component of the MDC that had no power to implement anything. You blame Tsvangiral more than you blame Mugabe.
"What are you Wilbert? We are beginning to see through you now. You are just a disruptor with one thing to say and no solutions. We agree fully on the need for electoral reforms but for goodness sake don't judge others who are tirelessly trying to come up with ideas and suggestions.
"Zunde joining the gravy train!!! My foot!! You are being ridiculous. Zunde is far better than you think. Other than criticise and attacking Tsvangirai what is your contribution? Zero!!!"
Well, I will take you on and reply to each point.
"Wilbert Mukori some of us discuss ideas and solutions. We don't just attack and blame without providing solutions," commented Paradza.
Each nation, each generation has its challenges that it must perform and how the nation progress and prosper depends on how well or badly the generation has performed. In my humble opinion, the greatest challenge of our generation since 18 April 1980 was and still is to this day: Are we capable of self-government?
Mugabe and his Zanu PF thugs' answer was to create a de facto one-party state cum one-man dictatorship whose principle purpose was to grant themselves absolute political power so that they can enjoy the influence and economic benefits power brings.
The create the dictatorship Mugabe has had to ride roughshod over the people's freedoms and basic human rights including the right to free and meaningful elections and even violating the sanctity of human life.
Zimbabwe is the POOREST country in Africa. We used to be the bread basket of the region and now, almost every year of the last 17 years, millions of our people have relied on imported food aid (aid because we are too poor to pay for it). We are starving in a country which for all intent and purpose is the Garden of Eden. There is the testimonial of failed leadership.
In the 37 years of our independence, over 30 000 innocent Zimbabweans have already been murdered in cold blood to establish and retain the de facto dictatorship. We have elections coming up next year and the political temperature is creeping up already; more innocent blood will be shed.
There is no doubt that so far, we have completely failed to govern ourselves.
There two solutions being put forward here; one is to contest next year's elections and hope for the best. I have dismissed this as madness because it is; contesting an election you know will be rig and hope against hope that this time Zanu PF will rig the vote but, somehow, lose the election; that has not happen yet in 37 years of rigged elections; to keep on trying is insane. Period!
The solution to Zimbabwe's problem of rig elections is staring us in the face – implement the democratic reforms designed to stop Zanu PF rigging the elections.
"You have sung this tune of blaming the GNU component of the MDC that had no power to implement anything. You blame Tsvangiral more than you blame Mugabe.
The raft of democratic reforms the GNU was task to implement were to stop Zanu PF rigging the vote using the multitude of dirty tactics as happened in the 2008 elections. Read this again to yourself so it is clear what the reforms are and what they are there to accomplish.
Now, my learned friend (you are after all a Judge and who can be more learned than JUDGE, for Pete's sake!) which of the two sides in the GNU would you expect to implement the reforms. MDC, who were the victims of the 2008 vote rigging, or Zanu PF who were the criminals who carried out the blatant vote rigging and wanton violence?
Tsvangirai and his MDC friends had five years to implement the reforms but failed to get even one reform implemented.
SADC leaders advised MDC not to contest the 2013 elections with no reforms in place and Tsvangirai and company ignored the advice.
"In 2013 the Maputo Summit, in June 2013, before the elections, the Maputo Summit was all about having the elections postponed – the SADC summit. I went there," Dr Ibbo Mandaza told Violet Gonda recently.
"I was there at the Summit and Mugabe pretended to agree to a postponement of the elections. If you recall, the postponement was based on the need to reform at least electoral laws, and after that Summit, Morgan Tsvangirai, Tendai Biti, Welshman Ncube, all of them were called to a separate meeting by the Heads of State of SADC in the absence of Mugabe, that same evening. And they were told; I was sitting there outside the room with Mac Maharaj; they were told ‘if you go into elections next month, you are going to lose; the elections are done'."
I know you Judges like witnesses, there is a witness for you!
Here is one more witness for you Judge to testify that MDC leaders know the 2013 elections were going to be rigged and that boycotting the elections was the "obvious" thing to have done.
"The worst aspect for me about the failure to agree a coalition was that both MDCs couldn't now do the obvious – withdraw from the elections," explained Senator Coltart.
"The electoral process was so flawed, so illegal, that the only logical step was to withdraw, which would compel SADC to hold Zanu PF to account. But such was the distrust between the MDC-T and MDC-N that neither could withdraw for fear that the other would remain in the elections, winning seats and giving the process credibility."
There evidence is there and it speaks for itself that MDC leaders had the golden opportunity to implement the democratic reforms but failed to do so because they are corrupt and incompetent. They sold-out for selfish gain.
Now, I must remind you, Judge, that we are searching for leaders who would implement the democratic reforms and thus answer our problem of bad governance. I say individuals who have already proven beyond all reasonable doubt that they are corrupt, incompetent and sell-outs are definitely not the people we should elect to implement the reforms – the very task they have already failed to carry out!
Your suggestion, Judge, that I should blame Mugabe more than I blame Tsvangirai is dumb, to say the least. We are searching for someone who will end Mugabe's tyrannical rule, so whether Mugabe is a worse tyrant than Tsvangirai is irrelevant. We are not running a beauty contest of tyrants; we are looking for someone who will implement the reforms and turn the country from a dictatorship to a democracy. We want someone who will not be so easily bamboozled into doing nothing by the cunning fox, Mugabe.
"What are you Wilbert? We are beginning to see through you now. You are just a disruptor with one thing to say and no solutions. We agree fully on the need for electoral reforms but for goodness sake don't judge others who are tirelessly trying to come up with ideas and suggestions.
I will ignore the first bit, I have answered it above.
I have heard a lot said about these "electoral reforms" but have yet to hear details of ever one electoral reform. Please educate me; tell one example of the electoral reform you are talking about.
As far as I know there has not been even one reform (electoral or whatever) that has been implemented – correct me if I am wrong – and yet everyone in the opposition camp is gearing to contest next year's elections.
Let me repeat this so there is no misunderstanding: contesting next year's elections with no reforms to stop Zanu PF rigging the vote is insane. INSANE!
If building coalition, vote mobilisation, new BVR kits, etc. are the "ideas and suggestions" that you have been working "tirelessly" on then forget it. These are all lead balloons that will never fly. We must implement reforms designed to stop vote rigging and none of these ideas will do anything to stop Zanu PF thugs frog marching villagers to attend rallies and to vote for Mugabe.
"Zunde joining the gravy train!!! My foot!! You are being ridiculous. Zunde is far better than you think. Other than criticise and attacking Tsvangirai what is your contribution? Zero!!!"
Since the fiasco of the 2008 elections in which Mugabe was forced to lose face and go into the GNU sin bin; the tyrant has since learnt that he can still rig elections and get away with it as long as he allowed the opposition to win some seats. There are over 50 political parties in Zimbabwe, ZUNDE is just one of them, all fighting over the give-away seats. Zanu PF will never have to worry about the opposition boycotting elections, as long as there bait gravy train seats, there will be opposition parties who will contest the election regardless how flawed or illegal the whole process becomes.
Tsvangirai and his MDC friends forgot about implementing the reforms, good governance, etc. as soon as they got into power. Zanu PF members did the same in 1980.
Mugabe would have never built the dictatorship, murdered all the over 30 000, etc. without the fervent dedication and help of his ministers, security chefs, civil servants, right down to the village heads cum party political commissars frog marching povo to party rallies. You were not too far away from the centre of Zanu PF power yourself, Judge Paradza, you must know how different the world looks from the comfort of tinted glass limo!
Of course, ZUNDE is pining for a gravy train seat, why otherwise would the party be josling the others to contest flawed elections which are not just the very antithesis of what free, fair and credible elections should be but, by contesting, perpetuate the dictatorship itself!
My greatest contribution here is to expose the hypocrisy of people masquerading as democrats and yet continue to contest flawed elections for selfish person gain. For all their learning and worldly experiences, they pretend not to know what constitutes free, fair and credible elections.
We are failing to govern ourselves, we have been going in the wrong direction for 37 years now. Surely, we must know what constitute good governance in this day and age and not be arguing about such grade one stuff, especially with one still calling himself a "learned" Judge!
"Wilbert Mukori some of us discuss ideas and solutions. We don't just attack and blame without providing solutions," commented Paradza.
"You have sung this tune of blaming the GNU component of the MDC that had no power to implement anything. You blame Tsvangiral more than you blame Mugabe.
"What are you Wilbert? We are beginning to see through you now. You are just a disruptor with one thing to say and no solutions. We agree fully on the need for electoral reforms but for goodness sake don't judge others who are tirelessly trying to come up with ideas and suggestions.
"Zunde joining the gravy train!!! My foot!! You are being ridiculous. Zunde is far better than you think. Other than criticise and attacking Tsvangirai what is your contribution? Zero!!!"
Well, I will take you on and reply to each point.
"Wilbert Mukori some of us discuss ideas and solutions. We don't just attack and blame without providing solutions," commented Paradza.
Each nation, each generation has its challenges that it must perform and how the nation progress and prosper depends on how well or badly the generation has performed. In my humble opinion, the greatest challenge of our generation since 18 April 1980 was and still is to this day: Are we capable of self-government?
Mugabe and his Zanu PF thugs' answer was to create a de facto one-party state cum one-man dictatorship whose principle purpose was to grant themselves absolute political power so that they can enjoy the influence and economic benefits power brings.
The create the dictatorship Mugabe has had to ride roughshod over the people's freedoms and basic human rights including the right to free and meaningful elections and even violating the sanctity of human life.
Zimbabwe is the POOREST country in Africa. We used to be the bread basket of the region and now, almost every year of the last 17 years, millions of our people have relied on imported food aid (aid because we are too poor to pay for it). We are starving in a country which for all intent and purpose is the Garden of Eden. There is the testimonial of failed leadership.
In the 37 years of our independence, over 30 000 innocent Zimbabweans have already been murdered in cold blood to establish and retain the de facto dictatorship. We have elections coming up next year and the political temperature is creeping up already; more innocent blood will be shed.
There is no doubt that so far, we have completely failed to govern ourselves.
There two solutions being put forward here; one is to contest next year's elections and hope for the best. I have dismissed this as madness because it is; contesting an election you know will be rig and hope against hope that this time Zanu PF will rig the vote but, somehow, lose the election; that has not happen yet in 37 years of rigged elections; to keep on trying is insane. Period!
The solution to Zimbabwe's problem of rig elections is staring us in the face – implement the democratic reforms designed to stop Zanu PF rigging the elections.
"You have sung this tune of blaming the GNU component of the MDC that had no power to implement anything. You blame Tsvangiral more than you blame Mugabe.
The raft of democratic reforms the GNU was task to implement were to stop Zanu PF rigging the vote using the multitude of dirty tactics as happened in the 2008 elections. Read this again to yourself so it is clear what the reforms are and what they are there to accomplish.
Now, my learned friend (you are after all a Judge and who can be more learned than JUDGE, for Pete's sake!) which of the two sides in the GNU would you expect to implement the reforms. MDC, who were the victims of the 2008 vote rigging, or Zanu PF who were the criminals who carried out the blatant vote rigging and wanton violence?
Tsvangirai and his MDC friends had five years to implement the reforms but failed to get even one reform implemented.
SADC leaders advised MDC not to contest the 2013 elections with no reforms in place and Tsvangirai and company ignored the advice.
"I was there at the Summit and Mugabe pretended to agree to a postponement of the elections. If you recall, the postponement was based on the need to reform at least electoral laws, and after that Summit, Morgan Tsvangirai, Tendai Biti, Welshman Ncube, all of them were called to a separate meeting by the Heads of State of SADC in the absence of Mugabe, that same evening. And they were told; I was sitting there outside the room with Mac Maharaj; they were told ‘if you go into elections next month, you are going to lose; the elections are done'."
I know you Judges like witnesses, there is a witness for you!
Here is one more witness for you Judge to testify that MDC leaders know the 2013 elections were going to be rigged and that boycotting the elections was the "obvious" thing to have done.
"The worst aspect for me about the failure to agree a coalition was that both MDCs couldn't now do the obvious – withdraw from the elections," explained Senator Coltart.
"The electoral process was so flawed, so illegal, that the only logical step was to withdraw, which would compel SADC to hold Zanu PF to account. But such was the distrust between the MDC-T and MDC-N that neither could withdraw for fear that the other would remain in the elections, winning seats and giving the process credibility."
There evidence is there and it speaks for itself that MDC leaders had the golden opportunity to implement the democratic reforms but failed to do so because they are corrupt and incompetent. They sold-out for selfish gain.
Now, I must remind you, Judge, that we are searching for leaders who would implement the democratic reforms and thus answer our problem of bad governance. I say individuals who have already proven beyond all reasonable doubt that they are corrupt, incompetent and sell-outs are definitely not the people we should elect to implement the reforms – the very task they have already failed to carry out!
Your suggestion, Judge, that I should blame Mugabe more than I blame Tsvangirai is dumb, to say the least. We are searching for someone who will end Mugabe's tyrannical rule, so whether Mugabe is a worse tyrant than Tsvangirai is irrelevant. We are not running a beauty contest of tyrants; we are looking for someone who will implement the reforms and turn the country from a dictatorship to a democracy. We want someone who will not be so easily bamboozled into doing nothing by the cunning fox, Mugabe.
"What are you Wilbert? We are beginning to see through you now. You are just a disruptor with one thing to say and no solutions. We agree fully on the need for electoral reforms but for goodness sake don't judge others who are tirelessly trying to come up with ideas and suggestions.
I will ignore the first bit, I have answered it above.
I have heard a lot said about these "electoral reforms" but have yet to hear details of ever one electoral reform. Please educate me; tell one example of the electoral reform you are talking about.
As far as I know there has not been even one reform (electoral or whatever) that has been implemented – correct me if I am wrong – and yet everyone in the opposition camp is gearing to contest next year's elections.
Let me repeat this so there is no misunderstanding: contesting next year's elections with no reforms to stop Zanu PF rigging the vote is insane. INSANE!
If building coalition, vote mobilisation, new BVR kits, etc. are the "ideas and suggestions" that you have been working "tirelessly" on then forget it. These are all lead balloons that will never fly. We must implement reforms designed to stop vote rigging and none of these ideas will do anything to stop Zanu PF thugs frog marching villagers to attend rallies and to vote for Mugabe.
"Zunde joining the gravy train!!! My foot!! You are being ridiculous. Zunde is far better than you think. Other than criticise and attacking Tsvangirai what is your contribution? Zero!!!"
Since the fiasco of the 2008 elections in which Mugabe was forced to lose face and go into the GNU sin bin; the tyrant has since learnt that he can still rig elections and get away with it as long as he allowed the opposition to win some seats. There are over 50 political parties in Zimbabwe, ZUNDE is just one of them, all fighting over the give-away seats. Zanu PF will never have to worry about the opposition boycotting elections, as long as there bait gravy train seats, there will be opposition parties who will contest the election regardless how flawed or illegal the whole process becomes.
Tsvangirai and his MDC friends forgot about implementing the reforms, good governance, etc. as soon as they got into power. Zanu PF members did the same in 1980.
Mugabe would have never built the dictatorship, murdered all the over 30 000, etc. without the fervent dedication and help of his ministers, security chefs, civil servants, right down to the village heads cum party political commissars frog marching povo to party rallies. You were not too far away from the centre of Zanu PF power yourself, Judge Paradza, you must know how different the world looks from the comfort of tinted glass limo!
Of course, ZUNDE is pining for a gravy train seat, why otherwise would the party be josling the others to contest flawed elections which are not just the very antithesis of what free, fair and credible elections should be but, by contesting, perpetuate the dictatorship itself!
My greatest contribution here is to expose the hypocrisy of people masquerading as democrats and yet continue to contest flawed elections for selfish person gain. For all their learning and worldly experiences, they pretend not to know what constitutes free, fair and credible elections.
We are failing to govern ourselves, we have been going in the wrong direction for 37 years now. Surely, we must know what constitute good governance in this day and age and not be arguing about such grade one stuff, especially with one still calling himself a "learned" Judge!
Source - Wilbert Mukori
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