Opinion / Columnist
Zimbabweans: has the liberation struggle benefited the country and people?
03 Mar 2016 at 11:21hrs | Views
I make this one confession, stand by it vehemently as one believing, and guided by scriptural injunction. A powerful pleading to people by God in ancient days still applies too to modern time children of God except for the fact that many of us temporarily deluded by the chase for wealth and power make God appear small and nothing. Yet as in years gone by, he instructs still today:
"If my people, who are called by my name, shall humble themselves,and pray and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."( 2 Chronicles 7:14).
The war fought was by all more so since it was a liberation struggle war. Some went to the battlefront, others send in moneys and yet still more defended the presence of comrades in arms from enemy army picking them up from among the bushes where people resided. Believe it or not these were very trying days both for the comrades in arms and the 'povo'(masses) during the tough days of 'Chimurenga'-War of Liberation (1972-1979).
Mao Tse-tung made significant observation contrasting battlefront fighters and the masses using the water and fish comparison. If the fish is out of water, she can only live for a little while. If you put it in water, the fish can slip away swiftly and none will catch it. The liberation war fighters withstood enemy forces because the people bore the brunt of beating and torture from both sides of the enemy and liberation war fighters. The people, however, stood firm for what was right. The collaborative factor between people and the liberation fighters won the order of the war duration due to the conscious unity between them.
Making any party to the liberation war insignificant as Zanu has done is theoretical, practically criminal, and not supported by events that took place on the ground of any guerilla war. It is in this context that I find the after war ideology taught to the army by those who survived from the ranging war but, who necessarily might not have carried arms, strangely not humble invoking injustice before to God. To the extent that Mr. Mugabe for love of power agrees that the army disavows civilians from taking leadership of the country except they were in the armed struggle is greedy, selfish, devoid of the motive behind the liberation struggle, dishonesty and coming from people who neither love nor fear God.
If we agree that the struggle was to make sure that a person is regarded a person irrespective of his/her physical disabilities, standard of education, religion or colour; provided the one man one vote tenet of democratic test was passed to appoint him/her a leader, who then puts additional laws; as in animal farm, causing discord and discrimination? Through the dilution of the armed struggle moral principles; corruption and political decay, like in cancer, has grown bigger than the morality on which the liberation struggle was founded.
The question raised in this debate at the outset begs wise and introspective answers to the struggle. Yes, the liberation struggle made an impact on the sacrifice offered in the collaboration between both the liberation fighters and the masses making struggle a mental cleansing force to accept each other as comrade-in arms even though painful and a horror to go through and survive. However: No, it's spirit of granting individuals freedom has been shamefully compromised by the carelessness from the pride of a few who chose to dictate on people without considering the wishes. No doubt, the liberation struggle has remained only in name since many in quest of money have buried human dignity and respect, constitutional supremacy and the rule of law in exchange of greedy, avarice and vanity. They are no longer comrade-in-arms but have ordained themselves as liberators of the others.
To argue any otherwise is just the overflowing of avarice from the rotting establishment that benefit from displaying the philosophies of a liberation struggle whose spirit is tarnished and forgotten. Apart from the urgent need to revisit the spirit and meaning of the liberation struggle to whom we all owe allegiance, Zanu is like an anti-hill surviving from the echoes of history except for use of excessive force and seclusion to keep corruption hold on the state machinery for her benefit. State machinery is supposed to be a tool for the people and by the people. In Zimbabwe, state-machinery belongs to Mr.Mugabe and not even the Parliament or judiciary could work against Mugabe's Zanu and hope to get away with it. Hence, the reason we have many members of the Judiciary bench left the country into exile.
A careful study of the recent demonstrations by ex-combatant (late February 2016) and the way they were treated by the state-machinery, the police, underlines the manner any dictator regime attend to peaceful demonstration. The dictator regime rarely listens to grievances, instead, they trust in beating, arresting and brutalizing citizens hoping to instil fear and govern using terror. It is sad that the men and women, ex-combatants, who gallantly fought alongside masses for a fair and just government, are today taking sides between the corruptions that make them think that they are special above other citizens. The falsehood of such systems always breaks when a collective human push comes because of its insensitivity to human suggestions.
Zimbabweans need examine if the benefits of the armed struggle philosophy were and/or shared evenly and nationally. Is it possible that the philosophy on which the struggle was born is now a preserve of a few who now watch carefully to distance its benefits away from even distribution? The government run by Zanu hierarchy has failed dismally apart from being grossly insensitive to the voice of the people of any rank or category. Justice, which is and was the cornerstone on which Chimurenga sacrificial was born, is a subject of inequity, exploitation and rendered many people to abuse. Then, the purpose for which Chimurenga saved need obviously deserve revisiting.
Driven from a greedy and selfish portal by a gung of untrustworthy deceptive men and women, Zanu has to be reborn or die because she is not serving a purpose. Least the name Zanu may mistakenly be measured equal to the spirit, aim and objectives of Chimurenga, let the two names, namely Chimurenga and Zanu be divorced so people can move on to claim bigger harvests revolutionary. The answer is not with the army or few in the hierarchy of a broken down Zanu party, but in the people. Zanu needs returning Chimurenga back to the people to redeem its philosophy, spirit, aims and objectives.
People compromised and who were paid to disown Chimurenga by Zanu are many, may be some are unaware. Corruption has grown strong in Zanu pervading every nerve of governance that only change of government will bring about the necessary purge to equip masses for change. Masses will not be a problem to assimilate change; in fact, they will quickly see benefits from change immediately and embrace them. The only disadvantage is that people have suffered trauma in the hands of Zanu that they no longer trust politics to bring change for the better. Meantime and as usual, the beneficiaries of Zanu and some emerging Zanu party appendages will stage a strong resistance hence their making the hierarchies of the army, police, and secret service and Zanu surrogates their strong hold for defence.
When clashes between police and ex-combatant begun advisors to the evil system suggested the meeting between soldiers and ex-combatant ingratiate their loyalty not to the spirit, aims and objectives of Chimurenga but to individuals like Mr. Mugabe and cohorts. Time is running thin for this cruel plot to survive for too long. The aims and objectives of Chimurenga see no hierarchy away from its people and therefore it will not divide people by their wealth status against others the poor. Equality in the eye of the law and treatment of each other partially in day-to-day living is sacrificed to making a few richer at the expense of everybody else in the country. This happens under everyone's watch every day in Zimbabwe today, and the right to question no longer exist in practice.
Is it any wonder that this is the government of Zanu driven by greedy, selfishness, corruption and devoid of what they claim to be, revolutionaries? The land cannot receive blessings from oppressing of others and more so the poorer and the motherless and the dying. Home breaking and leaving the poor poorer contrasts sharply with a president who spends USA$800, 000 in personal edification through a birthday part, when many do not have food to eat. It presents the land with Callousness of wild imagination, unthinkably admissible by any human standard; yet forced down the throats of all Zimbabweans.
This is inhuman, period. No liberation struggle could ever pride in such a fallen rotten degradation of human dignity. Our land remains under a purge of curse until these greedy man hunters account for their range of avarice and are retired from further harm to the nation. We need strong, consistent message pointing on wrongs carried under Mugabe and Zanu's watch to turn the minds and heart strong against the wrongs carried on in government.
It is the duty of freedom fighters under regimes of tyranny to lobby the international justice community watch so the arrested receive justice than abuse and then killing by Zanu notorious regime. This way the spirit, aims and objectives of Chimurenga keep alive. Otherwise, social injustice grows like cancer silently while tyranny flies the flag of executing 'Chimurenga.' This has and will have to stop provided an unwavering commitment to uproot causes of corrupt governance becomes a process to live by to achieve peace for Zimbabwe and the world over. The country and people of Zimbabwe have not benefited from the spirit, aims, and objectives of the war of liberation (Chimurenga). Rather a few individuals continue to musquarand under pretext of 'we fought for the country' putting themselves in classes typically the animal farm style which must be demolished and avoided. Thirty-six years is a long time to endure in vain, as the regime keeps enriching her surrogates.
"If my people, who are called by my name, shall humble themselves,and pray and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."( 2 Chronicles 7:14).
The war fought was by all more so since it was a liberation struggle war. Some went to the battlefront, others send in moneys and yet still more defended the presence of comrades in arms from enemy army picking them up from among the bushes where people resided. Believe it or not these were very trying days both for the comrades in arms and the 'povo'(masses) during the tough days of 'Chimurenga'-War of Liberation (1972-1979).
Mao Tse-tung made significant observation contrasting battlefront fighters and the masses using the water and fish comparison. If the fish is out of water, she can only live for a little while. If you put it in water, the fish can slip away swiftly and none will catch it. The liberation war fighters withstood enemy forces because the people bore the brunt of beating and torture from both sides of the enemy and liberation war fighters. The people, however, stood firm for what was right. The collaborative factor between people and the liberation fighters won the order of the war duration due to the conscious unity between them.
Making any party to the liberation war insignificant as Zanu has done is theoretical, practically criminal, and not supported by events that took place on the ground of any guerilla war. It is in this context that I find the after war ideology taught to the army by those who survived from the ranging war but, who necessarily might not have carried arms, strangely not humble invoking injustice before to God. To the extent that Mr. Mugabe for love of power agrees that the army disavows civilians from taking leadership of the country except they were in the armed struggle is greedy, selfish, devoid of the motive behind the liberation struggle, dishonesty and coming from people who neither love nor fear God.
If we agree that the struggle was to make sure that a person is regarded a person irrespective of his/her physical disabilities, standard of education, religion or colour; provided the one man one vote tenet of democratic test was passed to appoint him/her a leader, who then puts additional laws; as in animal farm, causing discord and discrimination? Through the dilution of the armed struggle moral principles; corruption and political decay, like in cancer, has grown bigger than the morality on which the liberation struggle was founded.
The question raised in this debate at the outset begs wise and introspective answers to the struggle. Yes, the liberation struggle made an impact on the sacrifice offered in the collaboration between both the liberation fighters and the masses making struggle a mental cleansing force to accept each other as comrade-in arms even though painful and a horror to go through and survive. However: No, it's spirit of granting individuals freedom has been shamefully compromised by the carelessness from the pride of a few who chose to dictate on people without considering the wishes. No doubt, the liberation struggle has remained only in name since many in quest of money have buried human dignity and respect, constitutional supremacy and the rule of law in exchange of greedy, avarice and vanity. They are no longer comrade-in-arms but have ordained themselves as liberators of the others.
To argue any otherwise is just the overflowing of avarice from the rotting establishment that benefit from displaying the philosophies of a liberation struggle whose spirit is tarnished and forgotten. Apart from the urgent need to revisit the spirit and meaning of the liberation struggle to whom we all owe allegiance, Zanu is like an anti-hill surviving from the echoes of history except for use of excessive force and seclusion to keep corruption hold on the state machinery for her benefit. State machinery is supposed to be a tool for the people and by the people. In Zimbabwe, state-machinery belongs to Mr.Mugabe and not even the Parliament or judiciary could work against Mugabe's Zanu and hope to get away with it. Hence, the reason we have many members of the Judiciary bench left the country into exile.
Zimbabweans need examine if the benefits of the armed struggle philosophy were and/or shared evenly and nationally. Is it possible that the philosophy on which the struggle was born is now a preserve of a few who now watch carefully to distance its benefits away from even distribution? The government run by Zanu hierarchy has failed dismally apart from being grossly insensitive to the voice of the people of any rank or category. Justice, which is and was the cornerstone on which Chimurenga sacrificial was born, is a subject of inequity, exploitation and rendered many people to abuse. Then, the purpose for which Chimurenga saved need obviously deserve revisiting.
Driven from a greedy and selfish portal by a gung of untrustworthy deceptive men and women, Zanu has to be reborn or die because she is not serving a purpose. Least the name Zanu may mistakenly be measured equal to the spirit, aim and objectives of Chimurenga, let the two names, namely Chimurenga and Zanu be divorced so people can move on to claim bigger harvests revolutionary. The answer is not with the army or few in the hierarchy of a broken down Zanu party, but in the people. Zanu needs returning Chimurenga back to the people to redeem its philosophy, spirit, aims and objectives.
People compromised and who were paid to disown Chimurenga by Zanu are many, may be some are unaware. Corruption has grown strong in Zanu pervading every nerve of governance that only change of government will bring about the necessary purge to equip masses for change. Masses will not be a problem to assimilate change; in fact, they will quickly see benefits from change immediately and embrace them. The only disadvantage is that people have suffered trauma in the hands of Zanu that they no longer trust politics to bring change for the better. Meantime and as usual, the beneficiaries of Zanu and some emerging Zanu party appendages will stage a strong resistance hence their making the hierarchies of the army, police, and secret service and Zanu surrogates their strong hold for defence.
When clashes between police and ex-combatant begun advisors to the evil system suggested the meeting between soldiers and ex-combatant ingratiate their loyalty not to the spirit, aims and objectives of Chimurenga but to individuals like Mr. Mugabe and cohorts. Time is running thin for this cruel plot to survive for too long. The aims and objectives of Chimurenga see no hierarchy away from its people and therefore it will not divide people by their wealth status against others the poor. Equality in the eye of the law and treatment of each other partially in day-to-day living is sacrificed to making a few richer at the expense of everybody else in the country. This happens under everyone's watch every day in Zimbabwe today, and the right to question no longer exist in practice.
Is it any wonder that this is the government of Zanu driven by greedy, selfishness, corruption and devoid of what they claim to be, revolutionaries? The land cannot receive blessings from oppressing of others and more so the poorer and the motherless and the dying. Home breaking and leaving the poor poorer contrasts sharply with a president who spends USA$800, 000 in personal edification through a birthday part, when many do not have food to eat. It presents the land with Callousness of wild imagination, unthinkably admissible by any human standard; yet forced down the throats of all Zimbabweans.
This is inhuman, period. No liberation struggle could ever pride in such a fallen rotten degradation of human dignity. Our land remains under a purge of curse until these greedy man hunters account for their range of avarice and are retired from further harm to the nation. We need strong, consistent message pointing on wrongs carried under Mugabe and Zanu's watch to turn the minds and heart strong against the wrongs carried on in government.
It is the duty of freedom fighters under regimes of tyranny to lobby the international justice community watch so the arrested receive justice than abuse and then killing by Zanu notorious regime. This way the spirit, aims and objectives of Chimurenga keep alive. Otherwise, social injustice grows like cancer silently while tyranny flies the flag of executing 'Chimurenga.' This has and will have to stop provided an unwavering commitment to uproot causes of corrupt governance becomes a process to live by to achieve peace for Zimbabwe and the world over. The country and people of Zimbabwe have not benefited from the spirit, aims, and objectives of the war of liberation (Chimurenga). Rather a few individuals continue to musquarand under pretext of 'we fought for the country' putting themselves in classes typically the animal farm style which must be demolished and avoided. Thirty-six years is a long time to endure in vain, as the regime keeps enriching her surrogates.
Source - Andrew M Manyevere
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