Opinion / Columnist
MDC, are you on the side of the Zimbabwean people?
12 Aug 2018 at 21:56hrs | Views
In this turmoil of devastating news, one item stood out lately as I went through my twitter feed. It was probably not the one you are thinking about, as it didn't dominate the feed. But trust me on this, it is the one with the most long-term consequences for all of us, no matter who you voted for.
I speak, of course, about the signing of the amended version of the Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act (ZIDERA) into law. This step by US President Donald Trump ensures that the Zimbabwean people will suffer for many years to come, that it will be harder to reengage with the world, and that our economic woes will persist. Furthermore, instead of Western investment, the main investors in our country will remain Chinese business interests, who we know do not care about Zimbabwe at all. They don't care for development and equal trading opportunities, they only care for the exploitation of natural resources. And they aren't exactly beacons of Human Rights.
Now, who called for the renewal of this evil act? Who invited sanctions even after the new dispensation, fully aware of all the consequences listed above? Who begged for Donald Trump (of all people!) to deal another blow to the Zimbabwean economy, which is still on the ground following Mugabe's failed policies of isolationism?
Well, the answer is obvious, but it is necessary for the historical record to spell it out: Nelson Chamisa, Tendai Biti, Charlton Hwende, David Coultart … in short: the Who's Who of the MDC-Alliance. The leadership of the Worker's party making sure that factories stay closed! The leadership of the people's party not only promising to make the country ungovernable, but outright unrecognisable!
Maybe this is because their backers sit in the capitals of the West, and they know that their children won't have to suffer; they will study abroad, at the best universities of the world. That way it is easy to call for sanctions that will hit the poorest hardest. The heaps of destruction the MDC-Alliance is ready to stride over on their way to power is not only dangerously cynical, it is an outright catastrophe.
I speak, of course, about the signing of the amended version of the Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act (ZIDERA) into law. This step by US President Donald Trump ensures that the Zimbabwean people will suffer for many years to come, that it will be harder to reengage with the world, and that our economic woes will persist. Furthermore, instead of Western investment, the main investors in our country will remain Chinese business interests, who we know do not care about Zimbabwe at all. They don't care for development and equal trading opportunities, they only care for the exploitation of natural resources. And they aren't exactly beacons of Human Rights.
Now, who called for the renewal of this evil act? Who invited sanctions even after the new dispensation, fully aware of all the consequences listed above? Who begged for Donald Trump (of all people!) to deal another blow to the Zimbabwean economy, which is still on the ground following Mugabe's failed policies of isolationism?
Well, the answer is obvious, but it is necessary for the historical record to spell it out: Nelson Chamisa, Tendai Biti, Charlton Hwende, David Coultart … in short: the Who's Who of the MDC-Alliance. The leadership of the Worker's party making sure that factories stay closed! The leadership of the people's party not only promising to make the country ungovernable, but outright unrecognisable!
Maybe this is because their backers sit in the capitals of the West, and they know that their children won't have to suffer; they will study abroad, at the best universities of the world. That way it is easy to call for sanctions that will hit the poorest hardest. The heaps of destruction the MDC-Alliance is ready to stride over on their way to power is not only dangerously cynical, it is an outright catastrophe.
Source - Anthony Mkondo
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