Opinion / Columnist
Matebeleland colonialism lessons for Zanu PF from MDC-T
16 Jul 2013 at 12:22hrs | Views
It is a cardinal principle of self-government and self-determination that each people group has to govern itself, and that the governors thereof must at least share the identity of those that they govern. Anything short of that can only be defined in one term: colonialism.
Of all its evil deeds meted out against the people of Matebeleland by the Zanu PF regime of Robert Mugabe since 1980, they had not, till 2018, violated the cardinal principle of self-government and self-determination to the extents that we are about to see in these 2013 General elections. Yes, Zanu PF unleashed a horrendous genocide on the people of Matebeleland (used here with reference to the MatSouth, MatNorth, Bulawayo and Midlands Provinces), but they had not yet gone to the extent of imposing candidates from Mashonaland to rule over or govern the people of Matebeleland as MPs and Councilors, save for Chris Ushewonkunze in the '80s in Bulawayo when it was still part of Matebeleland North Province.
Colonialism Lessons from MDC-T
Fast-forward to 2013, Zanu PF has fielded a long list of Shona Council and Parliamentary candidates not only in Bulawayo, but right across Matebeleland. It would seem that Zanu PF, which leader, Robert Mugabe, had declared Matebeleland "Nkomo country" which they couldn't penetrate even after unleashing a genocide, had still thought that it was impossible for a Shona to stand for elective public office in the region.
It was the advent of the MDC-T which clearly changed the mind of Zanu PF in this regard. MDC-T, in 2008, fielded many Shona council candidates in Bulawayo, Beitbridge, Victoria Falls, and other areas in Matebeleland, in the process convincing Zanu PF that it is possible to field Shona candidates in Matebeleland. As we speak, it is reported that 8 out of 11 MDC-T council candidates in VicFalls are Shona. In 2008 MDC-T fielded Shona candidates in the Beitbridge Town Council, councilors who went on to deny the Venda people housing stands and many other privileges that go with citizenship.
One cannot suggest that Zanu PF is any better than MDC-T when it comes to Matebeleland. What we see in the two parties is a concerted effort to truly colonize the region and turn it into Shona country, forcing all the people of Matebeleland to be Shona through the imposition of Shona Heads of Government Departments, Civil Servants, and now, Councilors and MPs.
A look at the Zanu PF and MDC-T (as well as Makoni's MKD) candidates list, for example, for the Bulawayo Metropolitan Province, reveals that a lot of their Council and Parliamentary Candidates are Shona people, which clearly shows an intention to impose Shona language, culture and way of life on the people of Bulawayo. Inside information in the MDC-T has it that Tsvangirai argues that Bulawayo is now "40% Shona", and as such, "there should be a Zebra System of representation" alternating Ndebele and Shona candidates, although he has not been heard to say the same of Harare.
Zanu PF has a total of 11 Parliamentary and Council Candidates in Bulawayo alone, whilst the MDC-T has its own long list of Shona Parliamentary and Council Candidates.
What a Zanu PF or MDC-T Victory in Bulawayo Means for the City - What's the Fuss?
It a normal democracy where all citizens are treated equally and all languages and cultures respected, fielding of Shona candidates would not have been an issue at all. But knowing the way Zimbabwe has been run in the last 33 years and the Zanu Grand Plan which seeks to turn all of Zimbabwe into Mashonaland, Bulawayo citizens have to ask themselves what an MDC-T or Zanu PF victory will mean for them. Will this be the culmination of the Shona colonial agenda as driven by Zanu PF and MDC-T or what? The million dollar question to the citizens of Bulawayo is: are you willing to sell off your city to 'foreign residents' or you'll vote wisely and avoid the fulfillment of the Zanu PF/MDC-T Matebeleland Colonial Grand Plan?
Source - Silence Gumede
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