Opinion / Columnist
The Emergence of 5th Columnists in Matebeleland
14 May 2021 at 08:24hrs | Views
Matebeleland has come a long way and still has a long way to go before any realistic arrival at the station of real freedom for its own people. It is a long winding mountainous road to freedom that is teeming with obstacles within and without, where visibility is very poor and where all manner of Matebele mountain bikers need to take extra care so that they and generations to come arrive at the desired destination safely.
Therefore, it is extra-ordinarily important for Matebeleland to introspect or self-examine as the Agenda hots up.
There are issues of concern internally in Matebeleland and the biggest issue of concern is the emergence and rise of Matebeleland's 5th Columnists.
Most of us probably know that the "5th Column" is a term that was coined by the Spanish Civil War General, Emilio Mola Vidal, who had noted in that civil war that there was a group or groups from within their nationalist movement that had become subversive elements to their solidarity and just cause and had sought to undermine or derail their quest for freedom.
The above observation by General Emilio Mola Vidal was spot on in many respects. In many movements or causes, 5th Columnists are bound to emerge and seek to undo great causes of a people.
Any movement must always be prepared to handle and deal with such Columnists for the greater good of a people under bondage and oppression!
I contend that in today's Matebeleland, 5th Columnists have emerged from within Matebeleland with much reckless pomp and show! This, however, is not to say that Matebeleland has never had 5th Columnists. It has always had and will always have but these 5th Columnists of today seek to destroy any form of unity and solidarity in Matebeleland and ensure the destruction of our Nation.
These 5th Columnists fall into several categories or groups.
The Demi-Gods
First and foremost, there is a group of 5th Matebeleland Columnists who have declared themselves as the alpha and omega of Matebeleland. This is a group of individuals that believe that no project or any progress should be done by the Matebele without them "approving" of it or them being involved in it or being acknowledged around it.
This group has individuals who have created and apportioned, among themselves, a demi-god status of Matebeleland for everything that happens in it. Some have used "academics" as a way of apportioning themselves this sorry status and others have used murky history of political activism that they have been involved in the past to try and bolster their demi-god status in Matebeleland.
This group is very dangerous and would not stand anyone who does not kow-tow its self-apportioned demi-god status in Matebeleland. It hates individuals who can do things independently of them. It perpertually seeks to validate any project that emerges in our territory. It sees itself as licence givers of any undertaking in Matebeleland. Many have had foul experiences of this group and are there to tell stories about it. I always jokingly refer to this group to a friend of mine as the "Sintantari Group". They are a hilarious lot but dangerous group and remain prominent in many issues and will cause disruptions in any Matebeleland agenda that they feel they do not "own" or have not "given licence to". They are propagandists of note but the good thing is that the great people of Matebeleland do see through their shenanigans or their self-declared pomp and show stuff!
uTatalagu Hopeists
Last week I wrote about a group that is conflicted, that sees Zanu PF as the only problem in Zimbabwe and yet the problem goes beyond Zanu PF. Some in this group are not intentionally 5th Columnists but become so by default. Their 5th Columnist status is built on self-created Hope of rescue by outsiders and yet the damage being done to Matebeleland based on that hope is far much greater than they will care to admit. I call this group, uTatalagu Group. It is the second 5th Columnist group! There is so much hope for these ones to reach a Damascus moment about our situation and for them to change direction!
Of course, there is another group that deliberately misrepresents Matebeleland issues and causes, undermine and underplay them and declare them non-existent! This is another group married to an illusionary Hope of utatalagu in Zimbabwe….utatalagu is that watery bit you see when driving on a hot sunny day on a tarred road, that keeps shining, like water, from afar but can never be reached! This is another Group of uTatalagu 5th Columnists!
The Nomadic Fulanists
There is also a hijackers group of any progressive project. This group will come into any progressive project, create confusion and disharmony and emerge with some damage to the cause. It takes hardcore revolutionaries to thwart efforts of such individuals. These ones tend to move from organization to organization and are of no fixed revolutionary ideas. One day they are pursuing this idea, the next they are in an organization pursuing a completely different vision and ideology from the one they have been in before. They are vultures and migratory. They have no single station. There is no doubt that these maybe handled by external forces. They are always involved in controversies of any cause and leave when damage is done. Their names are always in any controversial agendas that disrupt any cause in Matebeleland. They are very dangerous counter-revolutionaries! I call this group, the Fulani 5th Columnists after the nomadic Fulani herdsmen of Central Africa!
The Extremist Saboteurs
The 6th group is a far more dangerous and insidious group. This group is composed of Nguni extremists and Kalanga extremists. This group does its activities with much pomp and show in any platform it finds itself in! This group of 5th Columnists has one agenda and that agenda is nothing more than seeking the destruction of our Nation by using the Matebele of Kalanga, Venda, Nambya and Tonga extraction against the Matebele of Nguni extraction and vice versa! They have created their own wars, and some handled by external forces, seeking to undermine our people's solidarity and causes for their own selfish ends. They must be defeated and they will be defeated.
The rights of our people, whether Tonga, Venda, Nambya, Kalanga, Nguni, Xhosa, Sotho, Tswana and all who call Matebeleland their territory and home and who face a deadly agenda from their known external oppressors and colonialists are sacrosanct and more important than the selfish interests of this dangerous 5th Columnist group.
Most of these colummniss fit into many types indicated above depending on prevailing conditions at a given time.
Of 5th Columnists and their deadly Columnists Agenda and the different damages they inflict on Matebeleland causes!
Matebeleland beware!
Thembani Dube, okaSibhalwa, uSibhalwa kaNdabambi,uNdabambi kaTshotshoma, uTshotshoma kaLukhuni….uNtamoyendlondlo!
Therefore, it is extra-ordinarily important for Matebeleland to introspect or self-examine as the Agenda hots up.
There are issues of concern internally in Matebeleland and the biggest issue of concern is the emergence and rise of Matebeleland's 5th Columnists.
Most of us probably know that the "5th Column" is a term that was coined by the Spanish Civil War General, Emilio Mola Vidal, who had noted in that civil war that there was a group or groups from within their nationalist movement that had become subversive elements to their solidarity and just cause and had sought to undermine or derail their quest for freedom.
The above observation by General Emilio Mola Vidal was spot on in many respects. In many movements or causes, 5th Columnists are bound to emerge and seek to undo great causes of a people.
Any movement must always be prepared to handle and deal with such Columnists for the greater good of a people under bondage and oppression!
I contend that in today's Matebeleland, 5th Columnists have emerged from within Matebeleland with much reckless pomp and show! This, however, is not to say that Matebeleland has never had 5th Columnists. It has always had and will always have but these 5th Columnists of today seek to destroy any form of unity and solidarity in Matebeleland and ensure the destruction of our Nation.
These 5th Columnists fall into several categories or groups.
The Demi-Gods
First and foremost, there is a group of 5th Matebeleland Columnists who have declared themselves as the alpha and omega of Matebeleland. This is a group of individuals that believe that no project or any progress should be done by the Matebele without them "approving" of it or them being involved in it or being acknowledged around it.
This group has individuals who have created and apportioned, among themselves, a demi-god status of Matebeleland for everything that happens in it. Some have used "academics" as a way of apportioning themselves this sorry status and others have used murky history of political activism that they have been involved in the past to try and bolster their demi-god status in Matebeleland.
This group is very dangerous and would not stand anyone who does not kow-tow its self-apportioned demi-god status in Matebeleland. It hates individuals who can do things independently of them. It perpertually seeks to validate any project that emerges in our territory. It sees itself as licence givers of any undertaking in Matebeleland. Many have had foul experiences of this group and are there to tell stories about it. I always jokingly refer to this group to a friend of mine as the "Sintantari Group". They are a hilarious lot but dangerous group and remain prominent in many issues and will cause disruptions in any Matebeleland agenda that they feel they do not "own" or have not "given licence to". They are propagandists of note but the good thing is that the great people of Matebeleland do see through their shenanigans or their self-declared pomp and show stuff!
uTatalagu Hopeists
Last week I wrote about a group that is conflicted, that sees Zanu PF as the only problem in Zimbabwe and yet the problem goes beyond Zanu PF. Some in this group are not intentionally 5th Columnists but become so by default. Their 5th Columnist status is built on self-created Hope of rescue by outsiders and yet the damage being done to Matebeleland based on that hope is far much greater than they will care to admit. I call this group, uTatalagu Group. It is the second 5th Columnist group! There is so much hope for these ones to reach a Damascus moment about our situation and for them to change direction!
Of course, there is another group that deliberately misrepresents Matebeleland issues and causes, undermine and underplay them and declare them non-existent! This is another group married to an illusionary Hope of utatalagu in Zimbabwe….utatalagu is that watery bit you see when driving on a hot sunny day on a tarred road, that keeps shining, like water, from afar but can never be reached! This is another Group of uTatalagu 5th Columnists!
The Nomadic Fulanists
There is also a hijackers group of any progressive project. This group will come into any progressive project, create confusion and disharmony and emerge with some damage to the cause. It takes hardcore revolutionaries to thwart efforts of such individuals. These ones tend to move from organization to organization and are of no fixed revolutionary ideas. One day they are pursuing this idea, the next they are in an organization pursuing a completely different vision and ideology from the one they have been in before. They are vultures and migratory. They have no single station. There is no doubt that these maybe handled by external forces. They are always involved in controversies of any cause and leave when damage is done. Their names are always in any controversial agendas that disrupt any cause in Matebeleland. They are very dangerous counter-revolutionaries! I call this group, the Fulani 5th Columnists after the nomadic Fulani herdsmen of Central Africa!
The Extremist Saboteurs
The 6th group is a far more dangerous and insidious group. This group is composed of Nguni extremists and Kalanga extremists. This group does its activities with much pomp and show in any platform it finds itself in! This group of 5th Columnists has one agenda and that agenda is nothing more than seeking the destruction of our Nation by using the Matebele of Kalanga, Venda, Nambya and Tonga extraction against the Matebele of Nguni extraction and vice versa! They have created their own wars, and some handled by external forces, seeking to undermine our people's solidarity and causes for their own selfish ends. They must be defeated and they will be defeated.
The rights of our people, whether Tonga, Venda, Nambya, Kalanga, Nguni, Xhosa, Sotho, Tswana and all who call Matebeleland their territory and home and who face a deadly agenda from their known external oppressors and colonialists are sacrosanct and more important than the selfish interests of this dangerous 5th Columnist group.
Most of these colummniss fit into many types indicated above depending on prevailing conditions at a given time.
Of 5th Columnists and their deadly Columnists Agenda and the different damages they inflict on Matebeleland causes!
Matebeleland beware!
Thembani Dube, okaSibhalwa, uSibhalwa kaNdabambi,uNdabambi kaTshotshoma, uTshotshoma kaLukhuni….uNtamoyendlondlo!
Source - Thembani Dube
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