Opinion / Columnist
'Beat up Zanu PF thugs,' says Mugabe - what blood red Moon has he seen rising
22 Jul 2017 at 06:27hrs | Views
President Robert Mugabe arriving at Somhlolo Stadium in in Lupane - ©Byo24News
President Robert Mugabe has urged members of his party's youth league to beat up anyone suspected of causing political violence in the name of his party ZANU PF.
"We hear that there are some people who go about beating people in the name of Zanu PF forcing people to chant slogan," Mugabe said.
"We will not allow thugs to soil our name. If you come across these people, get off the road get hold of them and beat them up. You do not have to wait for the police."
Mugabe said this today while addressing about 20 000 of his party supporters who gathered at Somhlolo Grounds in Lupane Matabeleland North province.
Well, well! I am speechless!
Here is the man who has openly encourage his party thugs to beat, rape and even murder people in the name of "what was accomplished by the bullet cannot be undone by the ballot"! He ordered the Police to release the odd party thug arrested for political violence or pardon the odd one unlucky to be taken to court.
Mugabe had his own nephew, Minister Zhuwao, re start the infamous Border Gazi Youth Training Centres were youths under go the rigorous training to be a party thugs!
The tyrant had over 30 000 innocent Zimbabweans murdered in cold blood to establish and retain his de facto one-party dictatorship.
Today, a total a kind-of confused U turn, he is ordering the same party thugs; he has openly encouraged to beat, rape and even murder his political opponents and critics; to beat up a fellow party thug for doing what he ordered them to do! It is a U turn in that his opponents and critics are not being offered the best protection from Zanu PF thugs one can possible get – have Zanu PF thugs as your protector, they are above the law and even the regular Police fear them. It is a confused U turn in that the tyrant has not renounced violence since the offending thugs are to be the usual Zanu PF lawless justice.
There are four possible explanations why President Mugabe is calling off his party thugs:
1) President Mugabe may be playing one of his favourite but dirties tricks – wave the olive branch of peace and make a big song and dance about it meanwhile tighten his grip on the assassin's dagga under the cloak, ready for action. We have seen him to this again and again and it is shocking how many people have fallen for the same sucker punch!
2) The tyrant is cock sure he has all but won the elections and therefore does not see the need for him to resort to violence. The regime has dragged its feet over voter registration and knows that during the blitzkrieg to follow it will create so much chaos and confusion and use that as cover corrupt the voters roll to suit its evil purpose, for example. The regime had a very sophisticated and well-funded vote rigging scheme in 2013 Mugabe called off the deployment of Jabulani Sibanda and his fellow war veterans who were straining at the leash to be loose. The war veterans were the regime's foot soldiers in the wanton violence of the 2008 presidential run-off and they were itching to prove they were still as loyal as dogs.
3) President Mugabe kept the war veterans on the leash and he never ordered the odd one broke loose and beat the odd MDC supporter to be beaten. It is possible he is genuinely concerned his "soiled image"! He has employed some PR companies, the best money can buy, to spruce up his soiled image – the soiling from 37 years to brutal rule and the blood of over 30 000 murdered innocent victims is hard to wash off. So, President Mugabe may be trying to do his own PR by asking his thugs to beat up Zanu PF thugs involved in violence. Carefully stage managed complete with all the theatricals, he may not fool everyone but will probably fool many!
4) Zanu PF is having its factional wars but serious as the fighting has been the party's problems have nothing compared to the chaos in the opposition camp. Morgan Tsvangirai his minions' love of grandstanding and political posturing have been their greatest undoing. The MDC's failure to get even one democratic reform implemented during the GNU followed by humiliating defeat in the July 2013 elections was a hammer blow from which the opposition has never really recovered from.
The opposition camp made a mountain out of a mole hill of Joice Mujuru teaming up with the opposition only to admit she was not really the game changer when her Zim PF party imploded.
All MDC factions vowed they would not contest any future elections until the electoral reforms necessary for free, fair and credible elections are implemented. "No reform, no elections!" they said. Douglas Mwonzora, MDC-T Secretary even boasted of Zanu PF "kicking and screaming" to implement the reform. Not even one reform was implemented and yet all the MDC factions are united in their desire to contest next year's elections regardless of the certainty Zanu PF will blatantly rig the vote as before.
The opposition has tried to present the formation of the grand coalition as the silver bullet they needed to dislodge Zanu PF but other than sign a few MoU to talk little progress has been made. The grand coalition is just another lead balloon that will never fly!
There is no doubt that the opposition has lost a lot of political credibility and there is no serious political analyst worth his salt who would support the nonsense of Zanu PF rigging the vote but, some how losing the election. Everyone can see the opposition are contesting for the sake of the few gravy train seats Zanu PF gives away.
President Mugabe is smart enough to know if the opposition have lost political credibility he will lose political legitimacy! By making sure there is no reported case of political violence, indeed he is even go the extra mile of giving the opposition protection of the Police and Zanu PF thugs just to be absolute certain of that, he is hoping to earn some legitimacy brownie points.
If I had to say which of the four reasons is the most likely one, I would have to say the last one. The opposition is posing no political threat to Zanu PF and President Mugabe's greatest fear is SADC refusing to endorse his electoral victory is the ominous blood red moon rising in his political horizon.
"We hear that there are some people who go about beating people in the name of Zanu PF forcing people to chant slogan," Mugabe said.
"We will not allow thugs to soil our name. If you come across these people, get off the road get hold of them and beat them up. You do not have to wait for the police."
Mugabe said this today while addressing about 20 000 of his party supporters who gathered at Somhlolo Grounds in Lupane Matabeleland North province.
Well, well! I am speechless!
Here is the man who has openly encourage his party thugs to beat, rape and even murder people in the name of "what was accomplished by the bullet cannot be undone by the ballot"! He ordered the Police to release the odd party thug arrested for political violence or pardon the odd one unlucky to be taken to court.
Mugabe had his own nephew, Minister Zhuwao, re start the infamous Border Gazi Youth Training Centres were youths under go the rigorous training to be a party thugs!
The tyrant had over 30 000 innocent Zimbabweans murdered in cold blood to establish and retain his de facto one-party dictatorship.
Today, a total a kind-of confused U turn, he is ordering the same party thugs; he has openly encouraged to beat, rape and even murder his political opponents and critics; to beat up a fellow party thug for doing what he ordered them to do! It is a U turn in that his opponents and critics are not being offered the best protection from Zanu PF thugs one can possible get – have Zanu PF thugs as your protector, they are above the law and even the regular Police fear them. It is a confused U turn in that the tyrant has not renounced violence since the offending thugs are to be the usual Zanu PF lawless justice.
There are four possible explanations why President Mugabe is calling off his party thugs:
2) The tyrant is cock sure he has all but won the elections and therefore does not see the need for him to resort to violence. The regime has dragged its feet over voter registration and knows that during the blitzkrieg to follow it will create so much chaos and confusion and use that as cover corrupt the voters roll to suit its evil purpose, for example. The regime had a very sophisticated and well-funded vote rigging scheme in 2013 Mugabe called off the deployment of Jabulani Sibanda and his fellow war veterans who were straining at the leash to be loose. The war veterans were the regime's foot soldiers in the wanton violence of the 2008 presidential run-off and they were itching to prove they were still as loyal as dogs.
3) President Mugabe kept the war veterans on the leash and he never ordered the odd one broke loose and beat the odd MDC supporter to be beaten. It is possible he is genuinely concerned his "soiled image"! He has employed some PR companies, the best money can buy, to spruce up his soiled image – the soiling from 37 years to brutal rule and the blood of over 30 000 murdered innocent victims is hard to wash off. So, President Mugabe may be trying to do his own PR by asking his thugs to beat up Zanu PF thugs involved in violence. Carefully stage managed complete with all the theatricals, he may not fool everyone but will probably fool many!
4) Zanu PF is having its factional wars but serious as the fighting has been the party's problems have nothing compared to the chaos in the opposition camp. Morgan Tsvangirai his minions' love of grandstanding and political posturing have been their greatest undoing. The MDC's failure to get even one democratic reform implemented during the GNU followed by humiliating defeat in the July 2013 elections was a hammer blow from which the opposition has never really recovered from.
The opposition camp made a mountain out of a mole hill of Joice Mujuru teaming up with the opposition only to admit she was not really the game changer when her Zim PF party imploded.
All MDC factions vowed they would not contest any future elections until the electoral reforms necessary for free, fair and credible elections are implemented. "No reform, no elections!" they said. Douglas Mwonzora, MDC-T Secretary even boasted of Zanu PF "kicking and screaming" to implement the reform. Not even one reform was implemented and yet all the MDC factions are united in their desire to contest next year's elections regardless of the certainty Zanu PF will blatantly rig the vote as before.
The opposition has tried to present the formation of the grand coalition as the silver bullet they needed to dislodge Zanu PF but other than sign a few MoU to talk little progress has been made. The grand coalition is just another lead balloon that will never fly!
There is no doubt that the opposition has lost a lot of political credibility and there is no serious political analyst worth his salt who would support the nonsense of Zanu PF rigging the vote but, some how losing the election. Everyone can see the opposition are contesting for the sake of the few gravy train seats Zanu PF gives away.
President Mugabe is smart enough to know if the opposition have lost political credibility he will lose political legitimacy! By making sure there is no reported case of political violence, indeed he is even go the extra mile of giving the opposition protection of the Police and Zanu PF thugs just to be absolute certain of that, he is hoping to earn some legitimacy brownie points.
If I had to say which of the four reasons is the most likely one, I would have to say the last one. The opposition is posing no political threat to Zanu PF and President Mugabe's greatest fear is SADC refusing to endorse his electoral victory is the ominous blood red moon rising in his political horizon.
Source - Patrick Guramatunhu
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