Itai Dzamara resorts to the Madhuku strategy for survival?

Some adults strive for attention and pay any price just to get it. Those attention seeking adults may do inappropriate things like lying just to get attention. Attention seeking behavior (ASB) can be described as Munchausen Syndrome.  Munchausen Syndrome is an attention-seeking personality disorder which is very common especially in the so called pro-democracy forces in Zimbabwe. Munchausen Syndrome, named after a German soldier renowned for exaggerated tales, is a predominantly female disorder in which an emotionally immature person with narcissistic tendencies, low self-esteem and a fragile ego has an overwhelming need to draw attention to her and to be the centre of attention. Unfortunately this has now manifested in most men in the civil society. Closer home this syndrome can be described as the "Madhuku Strategy/ syndrome."

If as a child, the person did not receive much attention from his parents or his peers then he may grow up feeling neglected. Those feelings will then be the main drive behind the person's attention seeking behavior. In Munchausen Syndrome, this is achieved by capitalizing on, exploiting, exaggerating or feigning illness or injury or personal misfortune. The opportunities for being centre of attention can be increased if feigning victimhood through alleged victimization, isolation, exclusion or persecution is added to the equation; the Munchausen person can then depict another person (in our case the government, CIO or Zanu-PF) as a victimizer or persecutor and herself as the victim. Presenting him/herself as a false victim is also a Munchausen trait.

Itai Dzamara was not as popular as he is today some three or so days ago. Now because of his ASB, he went viral on the social media and some of us now know this name and even the picture of the man. Itai Dzamara is an unemployed and unemployable journalist who is heading an organization called Occupy Africa Unity Square in hope that the President R. G Mugabe will resign. In his wisdom or lack of it he hopes the president will listen to a nonentity like him and leave office. The president was given a five year mandate on July 31 2013 and voters expect him to deliver on the elections promise and do not need the likes of Dzamara to disturb him.

Itai suffers from Munchausen syndrome as exhibited by the stunt he and his colleagues have pulled, going to the extent of faking his death on social media. Any person who suffers from this syndrome can do anything just to have attention on them. Again the story of a body being found at the Goromonzi turnoff has proved to be false and malicious though Itai has enjoyed his small time in fame. The so called independent media went to town with the story and even Tsvangirai in a bid to seek relevance hastily called for a press conference to blast the CIO and the government without any shadow of evidence on what really happened to Dzamara.

It is a well know fact that Itai tried to launch a newspaper called "the News Leader" and he dismally failed to do it. He has now resorted to the Madhuku strategy for survival first with the occupy movement and now this. It is also a fact that Itai is an MDCT cadre who typical of his party, he thrives on lies to stay relevant and gain sympathy especially from donors.

The failure to launch his newspaper and the subsequent lack of funds in his pockets Dzamara seeks relevance and hence the attention seeking behaviour (ASB) traits now being exhibited. This current stunt by Dzamara is nothing but an effort to gain relevance and media coverage of his failing organization.

What is interesting is how the so called kidnappers or the unknown assailants turned up to be Zanu-PF members of CIO agents and how Tsvangirai blamed it on Zanu-PF without giving evidence to back up his claims is anyone's guess. But then again Dzamara was at the MDCT rally in Highfields over the weekend where calls for demonstrations were called and Dzamara gave a solidarity message.

This is just an effort to provoke the emotions of the people and mobilize the people to illegal demonstration. Tsvangirai and Dzamara have been calling for mass protest for some time now and the message was repeated at the weekend in Zimbabwe grounds and Dzamara's supposed assassination is supposed to make people react and go to the street. These two political charlatans have failed in mobilizing people and now have resorted to faking the death of Dzamara to stir people's emotions.

It is unfortunate that the people of Zimbabwe especially those using the social media can easily be hoodwinked by these political failures. If there are people who know what happened to Dzamara why not go to the police with the information. The so called Occupy group went to the extent of publishing the registration number of the "assailants'" vehicle and the make why not take the information to the Central Vehicle registry through the police and let the ownership of the vehicle be proven.

Making unsubstantiated claims is characteristic of the MDCT and it's off shots the so-called pro democracy forces. They always cry wolf to attract media attention and to use to beg monies from donors. This attention seeking behavior must just stop. Why not allow the police to do their work without interference. A person is reported missing after 48 hours but here Tsvangirai calls for a press conference in less than 24 hours.

The people suffering from Munchausen syndrome like Dzamara and Tsvangirai must not take Zimbabweans for fools.

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Dalla Bill can be contacted at dallabill84@gmail.com