Opinion / Columnist
The Zimbabwe army regiments are now led by warlords
04 Aug 2017 at 21:23hrs | Views
Zimbabwe is in state of a political crisis and decay. The political authority, influence, responsibility and control has debilitated and collapsed. The central power holder is now shrunken and malfunctioning exhibiting diminished administrative capacities to run the government. The police spike the army and the army shoot back with a vengeance.
Zimbabwe is beginning to experience an emergence of military apparatus aligned to competing constituencies within the ZANU PF factions in the battle to succeed the ailing war provoking president. The country has sprung from autocracy (suppression) into a state of laisseez-faire (free for all) signalling the beginning of a state in a wave of self-destruction.
This represents conditions for the emergence of warlords' politics, private militia entrepreneurs and renegade groups of patronage holders that invest in armed militias to seek political dominance and control of state resources. The Harare military aggression towards the police in a fit rage and revenge for the police spike that deflated the tyres of one of the army officers should no doubt signal the emergence of political warlords. The actions of the military operation of terror clearly show that it was executed peripheral of the main stream military rules of the command structures and procedures of engagement.
The competing succession constituencies in ZANU PF are beginning to engage in military gambits and skirmishes to frighten and supress contestant factional constituencies to prelude a looming political action of power grab. The behaviour of the army attacking the police without resorting to due processes of the law was an open public declaration of one of the ZANU PF factional constituencies drawing lines of confrontation and demonstrating their coercive mighty. It was a military drill to show case the presence of a military offshoot that is commanded independent of the traditional and existing military structures. It was a show case of who is who within the corridors of ZANU PF factional battles.
Mugabe wants to be a leader who dies and be remembered to have left this country in the ravages of war. The people of Zimbabwe are in a state of anxiety wondering who has the bravery to command a unit of the army to go out in a public space and attack undeterred another arm of the security services. The minister of defence Sekeramayi professed to have no knowledge how a unity of military men would come out of the barrack and attack members of the police force when he was asked questions in parliament. Commander Chiwenga remained tight lipped giving no assurance to the public about the behaviour of his men until four days later. He is usually quick to defend command agriculture but not in this instance. The President (commander in chief), joint operation command and vice presidents have all elected not to comment about the incident; no condemnation of act those military men and no apology, nothing. The issue of the security of the country has become a less agent matter if this was really a rogue group of solders acting on their accord. Minister Sekeramayi can you please inform the public what those soldiers were doing beating up the police details in a public space? This incident should be a cause of concern for government more than it is a concern when opposition parties' conduct peaceful protests demanding a change in the way they are governed.
The ZANU PF succession battles are a fight for control of state resources and political influence. Egocentrism and lack of flexibility in the ZANU PF leadership and succession wars provide for social and political conditions that generate divisions, camps, cliques and factions. Each ZANU PF faction has attracted followers aligned to it ranging from the security services, judiciary, the executive and the general public. The preconditions for warlord politics is rooted in a government like ZANU PF that has a progressive desire for violation of human rights and freedoms, collapse of the rule of law, personalisation of government departments and agencies, impoverishing the general population and destroying the economy nerve of the country. Police commissioner and minister Chombo should stop forthwith the use of unethical and dangerous spikes as a ways of policing motorists. The use of spikes on motorists shows a police force that lacks intuition and creativity in policing strategies that are effective and humane.
Zimbabwe is beginning to experience an emergence of military apparatus aligned to competing constituencies within the ZANU PF factions in the battle to succeed the ailing war provoking president. The country has sprung from autocracy (suppression) into a state of laisseez-faire (free for all) signalling the beginning of a state in a wave of self-destruction.
This represents conditions for the emergence of warlords' politics, private militia entrepreneurs and renegade groups of patronage holders that invest in armed militias to seek political dominance and control of state resources. The Harare military aggression towards the police in a fit rage and revenge for the police spike that deflated the tyres of one of the army officers should no doubt signal the emergence of political warlords. The actions of the military operation of terror clearly show that it was executed peripheral of the main stream military rules of the command structures and procedures of engagement.
The competing succession constituencies in ZANU PF are beginning to engage in military gambits and skirmishes to frighten and supress contestant factional constituencies to prelude a looming political action of power grab. The behaviour of the army attacking the police without resorting to due processes of the law was an open public declaration of one of the ZANU PF factional constituencies drawing lines of confrontation and demonstrating their coercive mighty. It was a military drill to show case the presence of a military offshoot that is commanded independent of the traditional and existing military structures. It was a show case of who is who within the corridors of ZANU PF factional battles.
Mugabe wants to be a leader who dies and be remembered to have left this country in the ravages of war. The people of Zimbabwe are in a state of anxiety wondering who has the bravery to command a unit of the army to go out in a public space and attack undeterred another arm of the security services. The minister of defence Sekeramayi professed to have no knowledge how a unity of military men would come out of the barrack and attack members of the police force when he was asked questions in parliament. Commander Chiwenga remained tight lipped giving no assurance to the public about the behaviour of his men until four days later. He is usually quick to defend command agriculture but not in this instance. The President (commander in chief), joint operation command and vice presidents have all elected not to comment about the incident; no condemnation of act those military men and no apology, nothing. The issue of the security of the country has become a less agent matter if this was really a rogue group of solders acting on their accord. Minister Sekeramayi can you please inform the public what those soldiers were doing beating up the police details in a public space? This incident should be a cause of concern for government more than it is a concern when opposition parties' conduct peaceful protests demanding a change in the way they are governed.
The ZANU PF succession battles are a fight for control of state resources and political influence. Egocentrism and lack of flexibility in the ZANU PF leadership and succession wars provide for social and political conditions that generate divisions, camps, cliques and factions. Each ZANU PF faction has attracted followers aligned to it ranging from the security services, judiciary, the executive and the general public. The preconditions for warlord politics is rooted in a government like ZANU PF that has a progressive desire for violation of human rights and freedoms, collapse of the rule of law, personalisation of government departments and agencies, impoverishing the general population and destroying the economy nerve of the country. Police commissioner and minister Chombo should stop forthwith the use of unethical and dangerous spikes as a ways of policing motorists. The use of spikes on motorists shows a police force that lacks intuition and creativity in policing strategies that are effective and humane.
Source - Themba Mthethwa
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