Let us ease Mugabe out of power

The Editor,

I am sure that people who have older parents that required to move to an assisted living facility are familiar with Mugabe's denials, refusals, and resistance to step down as a President. This is common behavior that most people have faced in their lives. My advice to my countryman today is to step back and try to understand our President's fears about aging. We see Mugabe dye his hair, pronounce now and again that he is as fit as a fiddle, that he misses his long gone comrades.

Like any other old person, Mugabe believes he has seen it all, he believes he has been through good and bad times and believes he will just be fine. This is a normal feeling for older people. They do not think we understand them fully. If we want to be spared disaster in the country, we must remain calm. We see Mugabe standing on the podium trying to get words out but cognitive impairment has caught up with him which leads him to be angry and the NO! NO! NO! pronouncements.

As a citizen, we see this and we become frustrated, angry, and helpless. Let us step back and think about how we went through the maiden independence years. We were dealing with a "guerrilla" who had just returned from the bush; he was resolute, energetic and very strict. His word was the final. He left in his path the destruction of major opposition parties, judiciary systems, economic supporting infrastructure, and anything that posed a threat to his power. We were his cheerleaders. We knew what to say to get his attention.

Now I suggest we ease him off calmly. While is too late to discuss certain things with our dear president, it is not too late to be patient. Let us engage our president instead of pretending he is not part of the solution to our problems. I understand none of us look forward to speaking to Mugabe at this point in time because of his advanced age. Our discussions will have to be repetitive and sometimes off topic but what do you expect from someone who blames everyone else except himself.
Our duty is to find out why Mugabe holds on to power; why is he refusing to go. Let us give him a chance to say it and let us listen carefully. Once we know exactly what his fears are, then only will our solution be possible. We have to give Mugabe an assurance, we have to respect his feelings, fears, or wishes. Our solution has to be tailored around his pronouncements.

One problem I see over and over again is that we seem not to have options ourselves. I might sound naïve but I am not comfortable with the options or alternatives that are being thrown at us. This I think is what keeps Mugabe going because even when you see these demonstrations, I cannot point to one thing they try to achieve except to utter the words, "Mugabe must go!" I see some people trying to change the words demo to protest but a protest has a strict point plan that I don't see.

Zimbabweans also think they are the first country in the world to have faced a president who was refusing to go. Many countries have faced similar issues but it seems we are so proud to ask for outside help. Do we know who Mugabe's best friends are? Why can't we ask for help from his best friends? To find a lasting solution to our problems, we need to accept that we have reached our limits. The opposition cannot bring down the Zimbabwean government when they cannot mobilize three thousand people.

Let us take it easy, no useless demos, let us think of better solutions to ease Mugabe out of power. There have been vehicles like the CODESA in South Africa? Can that work in Zimbabwe? We cannot wait for Mugabe to ban demos, we can just restrain ourselves from that. Let us not give him an excuse to abuse people.

Sincerely,
Sam
Wezhira Sam <bondorofi@yahoo.com