Opinion / Columnist
The next President of Zimbabwe's name will start with a 'C'
06 Feb 2022 at 20:04hrs | Views
Who will it be? If you think Chamisa will be the President of Zimbabwe before Chiwenga then you need to get your head examined immediately.
In recent weeks, Chamisa vowed to wrestle power from the military dictatorship in Zimbabwe and expand his rule to make Africa a model of democracy. For now, the military junta has tolerated or completely ignored his outbursts, but in the end they will crack down hard on him. Sadly, the yellow movement will not succeed because the military junta is unwilling to accede to reform. Further, the so-called citizens coalition for change is nothing close to its name because it is not joined by students, teachers, workers, soldiers, nurses, farmers, cattle rangers, citizens, commuters, bus operators, or ZANU PF, lawyers, churches, or traditional leaders. They have no sympathizers in the military. In short, it is a Chamisa personal outfit.
Rather than participating in a flawed election, Chamisa should have demanded a raft of reforms. It takes an institution to fight a military dictatorship, and the Chamisa does not have a single auxiliary institution on his side: Media, Judiciary, Security Forces, Central Bank, Electoral Commission, and Civil Service.
Accordingly, steps should be taken to deprive a future military junta of the following institutions:
Step 1:
- The civil service: Civil servants are required to serve civilian, not military governments. Therefore, no civil servant shall serve a military dictatorship; this should be inserted into the civil service code. Any civil servant who violates this code risks losing their job.
- The judiciary: No judge may swear into office a military coup leader. This should also be enshrined in the bar code. Any judge who violates this injunction will be decertified.
- The media: No media outlet may entertain a military despot. Remember that a free media is the most effective antidote against all dictatorship.
- Academia: No university professor or teacher may support or serve a military dictatorship. Professors who do not understand such elementary concepts as freedom and democracy have no business in a place of higher learning.
And the military itself should enforce its own Military Code, which debars soldiers from political adventurism or intervening in politics or face court-martial.
Alternatively push for a referendum. Ask the people to vote on just three choices:
- Maintain the military as is,
- Cut the military in half, or
- Disband the military altogether.
If the military has served the people well, citizens will vote to retain it, won't they? So who is afraid of a referendum on the military? Chamisa could print this message on a tract and distribute it widely in the country. To forestall or discourage any future coup leaders, the people need to be prepared—how? Always remember it takes an institution to fight the military.
At the end, Chamisa is far from entering the State House, he can't steer the country to his direction on his own or from the support of few handpicked naïve politicians good at badmouthing anyone who raise a finger.
Source - Sam Wezhira
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