Opinion / Columnist
Mugabe never acted like a maniac as Sadc and AU Chair
05 Aug 2024 at 16:56hrs | Views
I am still struggling to wrap my head around this madness. What is it about hosting a SADC heads of state and government meeting in Zimbabwe that can drive the host leader to go off the rails?
What has excited President Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa to act in such a paranoiac and hysterical manner in the face of visiting regional leaders?
Why does he feel the need to brutally crackdown on any perceived opponents and voices of dissent as the world has witnessed in utter shock happening over the past two months?
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What is he so terrified of?
He is behaving as if this is the first time various heads of state have gathered in Zimbabwe.
In fact, with all the illogical, incomprehensible, and quite frankly ridiculous euphoria surrounding the country assuming the SADC chairmanship, one would think this was also the first time Zimbabwe had held this position.
For those who may not be aware or may have forgotten, the country has not only hosted a couple of SADC heads of state and government summits but has subsequently chaired the body.
In August 2004, Zimbabwe hosted the 24th SADC Summit in the capital city of Harare – during which, then president Robert Gabriel Mugabe took over the chairmanship of SADC.
In August 2014, the 34th SADC Summit was held in Victoria Falls, at which Zimbabwe (under Mugabe) assumed the chairmanship.
That is not all.
On 20th November 1981, the second SADCC Summit (the precursor to SADC) was held in Harare.
From 4th to 6th July 1986, Zimbabwe hosted the 6th SADCC Summit, again in Harare.
As can be clearly seen, Zimbabwe is no stranger to hosting these regional heads of state and government meetings.
So why is Mnangagwa behaving as though this was the first time?
Could it be because it is HIS first time, and he is panicking and unsure of his own abilities to host a successful summit?
Let's not forget that the four times that Zimbabwe hosted regional leaders and even chaired the body was during Mugabe's tenure.
Is this all about Mnangagwa's own immaturity, lack of self-confidence, and amateurish view of this regional event?
No wonder his regime is peddling all this shameless narrative that he (Mnangagwa), on 17th August 2024, would be inaugurated as some ‘regional president', by virtue of becoming SADC chairman.
The government and ruling ZANU PF party are not telling the nation that this is purely a rotational position, which is handed over from one SADC member state to another.
No one is being told that it is actually not Mnangagwa, who will be the SADC chairman for the next one year, but the country.
Of course, by virtue of him being the sitting Zimbabwe president, he will be chairing any SADC heads of state and government meeting in the coming twelve months on behalf of the country.
In other words, since it had already been established at the 43rd SADC Summit in Angola in August last year that Zimbabwe would be taking over the chairmanship, whomever would have been the country's president at the time of the 44th SADC Summit would chair the meeting.
As such, if opposition leader Nelson Chamisa, for instance, had been declared the winner of the 2023 Zimbabwe presidential elections, he would have been the one chairing SADC for the next one year.
What I am merely saying is that, contrary to misleading statements by the government and ZANU PF, it was not Mnangagwa who was chosen to chair SADC.
Zimbabwe was the one that was elected – based purely on a rotational basis – to chair the regional body.
As I have written in a previous article, the SADC chairmanship does come with any real authority or power – as some form of ‘regional president'.
No!
Mnangagwa (or, to be more precise, Zimbabwe) is not going to be inaugurated as 'SADC President' on 17th August 2024 – but SADC Chairman.
Zimbabwe's role is quite simple and straightforward.
The Chair is responsible for hosting the Summit and other key meetings and for guiding the agenda of these meetings.
There is not much of a difference with a chairman of any other meeting – even that of a burial society, stokvel, or neighbourhood watch committee – but this time on a regional stage.
That is why, in spite of Zimbabwe chairing SADC (and SADCC) four times before, Mugabe never really had any significant noticeable authority or power over other regional leaders during his tenure.
The same will be happening between 17th August 2024 and the next SADC Summit in 2025.
In actual fact, Mugabe not only chaired the regional body but also the continental organization.
He was the AU (African Union) chairman from 30th January 2015 to 30th January 2016.
As many can already see, Zimbabwe, at this time, was both SADC and AU chair at the same time – since our 2014 SADC chairmanship ended in August 2015.
Therefore, Mugabe outperformed Mnangagwa by chairing both SADC (four times, including SADCC) and the AU.
Yet, in all this – despite him being a ruthless bloodthirsty tyrant – Mugabe never sunk as low as we have witnessed with Mnangagwa's preparation for the 44th SADC Summit.
Under Mugabe, I do not recall any wholesale arrests, abductions, torture and jailing of opposition activists and other perceived opponents as a prelude to hosting SADC (or SADCC) Summits or taking over the AU chairmanship.
There was never any paranoia and hysteria over suspected demonstrations.
Let us not forget that the 24th and 34th SADC Summits were held in a Zimbabwe where poverty, due to an unprecedented economic meltdown, was at its worst, especially in 2004.
This was soon after the controversial and violent land reform program and equally murderous and hotly disputed 2002 presidential elections between Mugabe and opposition MDC's Morgan Richard Tsvangirai.
The situation in Zimbabwe was very tense and volatile, to say the least.
This was at the height of Mugabe's firm belief that there were Western-sponsored regime change machinations against him through foreign-backed puppet opposition parties.
Nonetheless, in all this, Mugabe never reached the paranoiac depths we are witnessing under Mnangagwa in the run-up to hosting international events.
So, again, I ask: Why is Mnangagwa so unsettled and terrified over hosting this particular SADC Summit?
Is there something I am missing here?
Does Mnangagwa know something the rest of us are not aware of?
As a matter of fact, the opposition was a highly formidable force – stronger, more united, and better organized – during Mugabe's hosting of SADC Summits, than is the case today.
So, why is Mnangagwa seemingly more unnerved and given sleepless nights by a disjointed and weak opposition – coupled by a very fearful population that would never dare go onto the streets?
What am I missing here?
Could this paranoia have something to do with ZANU PF's own internal power struggles?
With all these calls for Mnangagwa to defy the country's supreme law by going beyond his constitutional term limit, can there be attempts within his own ZANU PF to rise up against him during the SADC Summit?
This is a man who came to power on the back of a military coup d'état that toppled Mugabe in November 2017 and was never elected to assume the country's presidency.
Is this why people gathering in places far away from the host city of Harare are reportedly also being cracked down upon and arrested for ostensibly ‘unlawful gatherings'?
Is this simply a man who does not have confidence in his own abilities, and who knows that the nation does not genuinely support him – and so, is spooked by nearly everything?
Mnangagwa has dismally failed to win the hearts of ordinary Zimbabweans – as shown by his pathetic performance in the 2018 and 2023 presidential elections, where he attained 50.8% and 52.6% of the popular vote, respectively.
He actually performed worse than his own ZANU PF parliamentary candidates!
This, despite his supposed ‘victory' being marred by electoral fraud, widespread voter intimidation, biased state media, and the flouting of election laws.
Can this explain the unashamed disingenuous attempts by his government and party to portray the upcoming chairmanship of SADC as his own personal electoral victory over fellow regional leaders?
In fact, the ZANU PF mouthpiece and state-controlled broadcaster ZBC is now infested with endless nauseating jingles praising Mnangagwa and his supposed 'visionary leadership'.
One would be excused for thinking there was a presidential election in Zimbabwe coming up very soon.
What is really going on here?
Honestly, I am failing to understand it all.
---------
Tendai Ruben Mbofana is a social justice advocate and writer. Please feel free to WhatsApp or Call: +263715667700 | +263782283975, or email: mbofana.tendairuben73@gmail.com, or visit website: https://mbofanatendairuben.news.blog/
What has excited President Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa to act in such a paranoiac and hysterical manner in the face of visiting regional leaders?
Why does he feel the need to brutally crackdown on any perceived opponents and voices of dissent as the world has witnessed in utter shock happening over the past two months?
Remitly Inside Article Mobile Only Banner – 468 by 390 pixels
What is he so terrified of?
He is behaving as if this is the first time various heads of state have gathered in Zimbabwe.
In fact, with all the illogical, incomprehensible, and quite frankly ridiculous euphoria surrounding the country assuming the SADC chairmanship, one would think this was also the first time Zimbabwe had held this position.
For those who may not be aware or may have forgotten, the country has not only hosted a couple of SADC heads of state and government summits but has subsequently chaired the body.
In August 2004, Zimbabwe hosted the 24th SADC Summit in the capital city of Harare – during which, then president Robert Gabriel Mugabe took over the chairmanship of SADC.
In August 2014, the 34th SADC Summit was held in Victoria Falls, at which Zimbabwe (under Mugabe) assumed the chairmanship.
That is not all.
On 20th November 1981, the second SADCC Summit (the precursor to SADC) was held in Harare.
From 4th to 6th July 1986, Zimbabwe hosted the 6th SADCC Summit, again in Harare.
As can be clearly seen, Zimbabwe is no stranger to hosting these regional heads of state and government meetings.
So why is Mnangagwa behaving as though this was the first time?
Could it be because it is HIS first time, and he is panicking and unsure of his own abilities to host a successful summit?
Let's not forget that the four times that Zimbabwe hosted regional leaders and even chaired the body was during Mugabe's tenure.
Is this all about Mnangagwa's own immaturity, lack of self-confidence, and amateurish view of this regional event?
No wonder his regime is peddling all this shameless narrative that he (Mnangagwa), on 17th August 2024, would be inaugurated as some ‘regional president', by virtue of becoming SADC chairman.
The government and ruling ZANU PF party are not telling the nation that this is purely a rotational position, which is handed over from one SADC member state to another.
No one is being told that it is actually not Mnangagwa, who will be the SADC chairman for the next one year, but the country.
Of course, by virtue of him being the sitting Zimbabwe president, he will be chairing any SADC heads of state and government meeting in the coming twelve months on behalf of the country.
In other words, since it had already been established at the 43rd SADC Summit in Angola in August last year that Zimbabwe would be taking over the chairmanship, whomever would have been the country's president at the time of the 44th SADC Summit would chair the meeting.
As such, if opposition leader Nelson Chamisa, for instance, had been declared the winner of the 2023 Zimbabwe presidential elections, he would have been the one chairing SADC for the next one year.
What I am merely saying is that, contrary to misleading statements by the government and ZANU PF, it was not Mnangagwa who was chosen to chair SADC.
Zimbabwe was the one that was elected – based purely on a rotational basis – to chair the regional body.
As I have written in a previous article, the SADC chairmanship does come with any real authority or power – as some form of ‘regional president'.
No!
Mnangagwa (or, to be more precise, Zimbabwe) is not going to be inaugurated as 'SADC President' on 17th August 2024 – but SADC Chairman.
Zimbabwe's role is quite simple and straightforward.
The Chair is responsible for hosting the Summit and other key meetings and for guiding the agenda of these meetings.
There is not much of a difference with a chairman of any other meeting – even that of a burial society, stokvel, or neighbourhood watch committee – but this time on a regional stage.
That is why, in spite of Zimbabwe chairing SADC (and SADCC) four times before, Mugabe never really had any significant noticeable authority or power over other regional leaders during his tenure.
The same will be happening between 17th August 2024 and the next SADC Summit in 2025.
In actual fact, Mugabe not only chaired the regional body but also the continental organization.
He was the AU (African Union) chairman from 30th January 2015 to 30th January 2016.
As many can already see, Zimbabwe, at this time, was both SADC and AU chair at the same time – since our 2014 SADC chairmanship ended in August 2015.
Therefore, Mugabe outperformed Mnangagwa by chairing both SADC (four times, including SADCC) and the AU.
Yet, in all this – despite him being a ruthless bloodthirsty tyrant – Mugabe never sunk as low as we have witnessed with Mnangagwa's preparation for the 44th SADC Summit.
Under Mugabe, I do not recall any wholesale arrests, abductions, torture and jailing of opposition activists and other perceived opponents as a prelude to hosting SADC (or SADCC) Summits or taking over the AU chairmanship.
There was never any paranoia and hysteria over suspected demonstrations.
Let us not forget that the 24th and 34th SADC Summits were held in a Zimbabwe where poverty, due to an unprecedented economic meltdown, was at its worst, especially in 2004.
This was soon after the controversial and violent land reform program and equally murderous and hotly disputed 2002 presidential elections between Mugabe and opposition MDC's Morgan Richard Tsvangirai.
The situation in Zimbabwe was very tense and volatile, to say the least.
This was at the height of Mugabe's firm belief that there were Western-sponsored regime change machinations against him through foreign-backed puppet opposition parties.
Nonetheless, in all this, Mugabe never reached the paranoiac depths we are witnessing under Mnangagwa in the run-up to hosting international events.
So, again, I ask: Why is Mnangagwa so unsettled and terrified over hosting this particular SADC Summit?
Is there something I am missing here?
Does Mnangagwa know something the rest of us are not aware of?
As a matter of fact, the opposition was a highly formidable force – stronger, more united, and better organized – during Mugabe's hosting of SADC Summits, than is the case today.
So, why is Mnangagwa seemingly more unnerved and given sleepless nights by a disjointed and weak opposition – coupled by a very fearful population that would never dare go onto the streets?
What am I missing here?
Could this paranoia have something to do with ZANU PF's own internal power struggles?
With all these calls for Mnangagwa to defy the country's supreme law by going beyond his constitutional term limit, can there be attempts within his own ZANU PF to rise up against him during the SADC Summit?
This is a man who came to power on the back of a military coup d'état that toppled Mugabe in November 2017 and was never elected to assume the country's presidency.
Is this why people gathering in places far away from the host city of Harare are reportedly also being cracked down upon and arrested for ostensibly ‘unlawful gatherings'?
Is this simply a man who does not have confidence in his own abilities, and who knows that the nation does not genuinely support him – and so, is spooked by nearly everything?
Mnangagwa has dismally failed to win the hearts of ordinary Zimbabweans – as shown by his pathetic performance in the 2018 and 2023 presidential elections, where he attained 50.8% and 52.6% of the popular vote, respectively.
He actually performed worse than his own ZANU PF parliamentary candidates!
This, despite his supposed ‘victory' being marred by electoral fraud, widespread voter intimidation, biased state media, and the flouting of election laws.
Can this explain the unashamed disingenuous attempts by his government and party to portray the upcoming chairmanship of SADC as his own personal electoral victory over fellow regional leaders?
In fact, the ZANU PF mouthpiece and state-controlled broadcaster ZBC is now infested with endless nauseating jingles praising Mnangagwa and his supposed 'visionary leadership'.
One would be excused for thinking there was a presidential election in Zimbabwe coming up very soon.
What is really going on here?
Honestly, I am failing to understand it all.
---------
Tendai Ruben Mbofana is a social justice advocate and writer. Please feel free to WhatsApp or Call: +263715667700 | +263782283975, or email: mbofana.tendairuben73@gmail.com, or visit website: https://mbofanatendairuben.news.blog/
Source - Tendai Ruben Mbofana
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