Opinion / Columnist
MDC Alliance primary elections: bottled smoke
11 May 2018 at 11:20hrs | Views
African politics appears simple, yet it is a delicate balancing act. The most savage part of it is that those involved never tell each other the truth of what they think of each other, but what the other side wants to hear.
This explains why some of the seasoned mature members in the MDC-T such as Elias Mudzuri and company are quiet and never advise properly their new president, Nelson "Wamba" Chamisa. This is African politics.
As this year's general elections draw closer with each nightfall, action on the political landscape is increasing. More political parties, more independent candidates are coming on stream and more donations to the electorate on the ground as each player seeks to gain a competitive edge over opponents. Such is the election season, which someone has aptly described as the silly season. Silly season indeed if the exclamations and promises of some opposition players are anything to go by.
This time of year is some form of a winnowing basket separating the life-sustaining grain from the chaff. It is the time when the chaff stuffed in the brain cavities of some designer suit-wearing so-called politicians is exposed.
Everywhere around the globe, it is the time to separate political boys from political men and political girls from women. It has been a season that has adequately demonstrated the political truism that statesmen think of future generations while stunt puny politicians think of winning the next election.
Interestingly, over 120 political parties have shown their intent to participate in the impending 2018 elections; most people would agree that when everything has been said and done, the polls are mostly between two main political players, ZANU-PF and the MDC Alliance, which is essentially the MDC-T. It is a gruelling clash between President Emmerson Mnangagwa and the MDC Alliance/MDC-T presidential election candidate, Nelson Chamisa.
The actions and statements of the two politicians have so far demonstrated which candidate is a statesman and who the puny politician is.
Fly-by-night politicians think of things they presume will please the people so much that they would vote for them, while statesmen place more value in addressing the people's anxieties and concerns through investing in solutions that last for generations. I have been following the events in the MDC Alliance and l was left pondering why after 19 years did the MDC Alliance which in fact turned out to be MDC-T decided to expose their undemocratic nature. Is it because of fly-by night power hungry politicians such as Chamisa who has dragged the party in a nasty power struggle with Dr Thokozani Khupe.
The MDC-T has been riven by intercine fights since the death of its founding leader Morgan Tsvangirai and interestingly, Chamisa seized power through a hastily arranged national council meeting which was convened even before Tsvangirai's burial. Shockingly, for a politician who comes from a rural set up in Gutu, Masvingo, he should have known that it was a taboo to do what he did before burial of the body. It appears; he celebrated the death and couldn't wait and give members time to mourn their founding leader.
That put aside, Chamisa has been going around the country making addresses without any meaningful substance except for imaginary village airports, bullet trains and hotel-like hospitals. While any Zimbabwean would welcome such developments, no right- thinking citizen would embrace such hare-brained plans before their basic daily challenges such as jobs, shelter and access to healthcare, among others, are addressed.
Chamisa's chimerical rhetoric promises exposed him to severe scrutiny from the public. A lot has been happening in the party he violently snatched before going to congress.
After the wake of the Zanu PF primary elections which were democratically conducted but were marred with a lot of different interpretations, attention shifted to MDC-T. Chamisa in his rallies announced that his party would hold democratic primary elections and prove to be a party of excellence. Well, fair enough, Wamba invited a lot of scrutiny prior to the MDC-T/ MDC Alliance primary elections.
Alas! Only about two months to go the big day in any given election period, it is time for Zimbabweans to seriously assess different political parties and politicians as well as their promises. The country wake up baffled to the news that Chamisa had postponed primary elections by one week. The reason for the postponement was the most confusing of them all. Chamisa said that he needed to give more time to candidates to agree on who will stand representing the Alliance in the harmonised elections so as to minimise the number of primary elections to be conducted. I was gobsmacked.
What happened to the voters' will to choose their rightful and favourite candidates instead of the party which purports to be the party of excellence impose candidates on the electorate. Put differently, President Mnangagwa introduced a laissez faire approach in 37 years to how Zanu PF primary elections are being conducted and the opposition was the first to discredit them as shameful and shambolic.
However, I was left perplexed because of candidate imposition done by Chamisa who is presenting himself as the democratic leader. But alas, MDC Alliance sold us bottled air. They are failing to hold their own primary elections because they are afraid to expose their undemocratic nature and unleash their hidden yet so in the open, violent nature.
Interestingly, MDC-T terror group (Vanguard) leader Shakespeare Mukiyo is vying for Kuwadzana East Member of Parliament post under the tutelage of his commander, Chamisa. Such is the bottled smoke Chamisa and his lieutenants are selling the Zimbabwean electorate in trying to masquerade as a part of excellence yet they are not.
In trade principle, it states that the buyer alone is responsible for checking the quality and suitability of goods before making a purchase. It is in the same manner that the electorate should be on the lookout for politicians who are slick of speech but are dangerously lacking in their appreciation of leading and serving the people.
This explains why some of the seasoned mature members in the MDC-T such as Elias Mudzuri and company are quiet and never advise properly their new president, Nelson "Wamba" Chamisa. This is African politics.
As this year's general elections draw closer with each nightfall, action on the political landscape is increasing. More political parties, more independent candidates are coming on stream and more donations to the electorate on the ground as each player seeks to gain a competitive edge over opponents. Such is the election season, which someone has aptly described as the silly season. Silly season indeed if the exclamations and promises of some opposition players are anything to go by.
This time of year is some form of a winnowing basket separating the life-sustaining grain from the chaff. It is the time when the chaff stuffed in the brain cavities of some designer suit-wearing so-called politicians is exposed.
Everywhere around the globe, it is the time to separate political boys from political men and political girls from women. It has been a season that has adequately demonstrated the political truism that statesmen think of future generations while stunt puny politicians think of winning the next election.
Interestingly, over 120 political parties have shown their intent to participate in the impending 2018 elections; most people would agree that when everything has been said and done, the polls are mostly between two main political players, ZANU-PF and the MDC Alliance, which is essentially the MDC-T. It is a gruelling clash between President Emmerson Mnangagwa and the MDC Alliance/MDC-T presidential election candidate, Nelson Chamisa.
The actions and statements of the two politicians have so far demonstrated which candidate is a statesman and who the puny politician is.
Fly-by-night politicians think of things they presume will please the people so much that they would vote for them, while statesmen place more value in addressing the people's anxieties and concerns through investing in solutions that last for generations. I have been following the events in the MDC Alliance and l was left pondering why after 19 years did the MDC Alliance which in fact turned out to be MDC-T decided to expose their undemocratic nature. Is it because of fly-by night power hungry politicians such as Chamisa who has dragged the party in a nasty power struggle with Dr Thokozani Khupe.
The MDC-T has been riven by intercine fights since the death of its founding leader Morgan Tsvangirai and interestingly, Chamisa seized power through a hastily arranged national council meeting which was convened even before Tsvangirai's burial. Shockingly, for a politician who comes from a rural set up in Gutu, Masvingo, he should have known that it was a taboo to do what he did before burial of the body. It appears; he celebrated the death and couldn't wait and give members time to mourn their founding leader.
That put aside, Chamisa has been going around the country making addresses without any meaningful substance except for imaginary village airports, bullet trains and hotel-like hospitals. While any Zimbabwean would welcome such developments, no right- thinking citizen would embrace such hare-brained plans before their basic daily challenges such as jobs, shelter and access to healthcare, among others, are addressed.
Chamisa's chimerical rhetoric promises exposed him to severe scrutiny from the public. A lot has been happening in the party he violently snatched before going to congress.
After the wake of the Zanu PF primary elections which were democratically conducted but were marred with a lot of different interpretations, attention shifted to MDC-T. Chamisa in his rallies announced that his party would hold democratic primary elections and prove to be a party of excellence. Well, fair enough, Wamba invited a lot of scrutiny prior to the MDC-T/ MDC Alliance primary elections.
Alas! Only about two months to go the big day in any given election period, it is time for Zimbabweans to seriously assess different political parties and politicians as well as their promises. The country wake up baffled to the news that Chamisa had postponed primary elections by one week. The reason for the postponement was the most confusing of them all. Chamisa said that he needed to give more time to candidates to agree on who will stand representing the Alliance in the harmonised elections so as to minimise the number of primary elections to be conducted. I was gobsmacked.
What happened to the voters' will to choose their rightful and favourite candidates instead of the party which purports to be the party of excellence impose candidates on the electorate. Put differently, President Mnangagwa introduced a laissez faire approach in 37 years to how Zanu PF primary elections are being conducted and the opposition was the first to discredit them as shameful and shambolic.
However, I was left perplexed because of candidate imposition done by Chamisa who is presenting himself as the democratic leader. But alas, MDC Alliance sold us bottled air. They are failing to hold their own primary elections because they are afraid to expose their undemocratic nature and unleash their hidden yet so in the open, violent nature.
Interestingly, MDC-T terror group (Vanguard) leader Shakespeare Mukiyo is vying for Kuwadzana East Member of Parliament post under the tutelage of his commander, Chamisa. Such is the bottled smoke Chamisa and his lieutenants are selling the Zimbabwean electorate in trying to masquerade as a part of excellence yet they are not.
In trade principle, it states that the buyer alone is responsible for checking the quality and suitability of goods before making a purchase. It is in the same manner that the electorate should be on the lookout for politicians who are slick of speech but are dangerously lacking in their appreciation of leading and serving the people.
Source - Bruce Zvandasara
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