Opinion / Columnist
Where Is the Independence? - The Response.
15 Oct 2016 at 20:43hrs | Views
Where is the independence? That is a profound question to ask Cde Farai Kuveya. In my own view though I don't think we really got our independence as a nation but it was a smoke screen halting of outright arms struggle to allow an onset of the persecutions and pillaging by the new elite.
The war of liberation may have ended in 1980 and you claim that Mugabe was a good darling then. He never was. Maybe you never experienced it hence you would run to watch him on TV, well in other areas people experienced it and they would run away from him even on TV.
To try and respond to you Cde, Zimbabwe never got its independence and Mugabe never brought any good economic changes. ZANU got independence and not Zimbabwe. Iam reminded of Dr J Nkomo's statement when he said it's possible for a country to gain independence yet its people remain in bondage.
Mugabe inherited a Smith system that was controlled by non-corruption tolerance that system was unfortunately cut off from the rest of the world. When Zimbabwe opened its doors to the world, there was a flood of donor aid to build schools and other destroyed infrastructure. Donors built all the infrastructure. So what was ZANU doing? Stealing and persecuting people, period.
Our reserves were enough to sustain us, the white farmers continued to farm on large scale. We even had electric gadgets and car assembly companies. These were all inherited systems. Mugabe just inherited a plane on autopilot and he sat there symbolically but forgot to maintain the momentum. Instead he decided to start stealing the first thing he could see ahead of him from the controller to the passengers seats. The plane lost momentum and altitude. It's now rackling like an old metal and is descending faster than it can be controlled.
On issues of classes in Rhodesia, let me hasten to say there is no classless society even under maxism, communism or capitalism or whichever philosophy of governance you want to use. Even in our churches there is always a superior language, race or way of dressing. That is how society functions. We can never be equal. The best we can do is to harmonise the classes and make sure they coexist.
Smith regime for example had a funny way of voting system. Only a certain class was allowed to vote, you had to have acquired certain property or earning certain amount of pay for one to be a voter. This did not only apply to blacks only but all races, including the very whites. This kept the society under check and it arrested corruption to some level, though it took voting rights from rest of the people.
But today in Zimbabwe, if one fails to make it in life they just need to campaign for public office, and all will be well. No declaration of asserts, so no audit. Funny. What can you expect from a person who has failed to run their own lives? To think they will be able to run a constituency or province, that's a little too much.
Classes like stated above, define a society stratification. Society is a survival of the fittest. Even in the bible we had Levites and Jews, those were their own stratifications. Jesus had his 12 close lieutenants who formed a "ruling class" around the figure Jesus. Martin Luther king had to have a dream to see America being ruled by blacks. In Zimbabwe you only need Zanupf golden card for doors to open, in South African you need the Guptalised connections for doors to open, list is endless. Once more, there is no classless society, be it by race, tribe or merit.
How and when did we go wrong? That's another good question one can ask themselves. The answer is simple. The very first day JM Nkomo gave pulpit to R Mugabe in 1960 on his visit from Ghana was the birth of our problems. They never saw it but the early signs came in 1961, then finally in 1963 8 August, but still no one took notice.
I would not mention other events as I may end up speculating. We made the mistake once more in 1980 when we "elected" ZANU into office. ZANU not being the problem here but the leader being the problem. Fish start to rot from the head. They stated stealing right from 1980, check the list below.
Let's pick the notable outstanding scandals Cdes: Paweni scandal (1982), National Railways Housing Scandal (1986), Air Zimbabwe Fokker Plane Scandal worth $100 million (1987), Zisco Steel blast Furnace Scandal (1987), Willowgate Scandal (1988), ZRP Santana Scandal (1989), War Victims Compensation Scandal (1994), GMB Grain Scandal (1995), VIP Housing Scandal (1996), ZESA YTL Soltran Scandal (1998), Housing Loan Scandal (1999), Noczim Scandal (1999), DRC timber and diamond UN reported scandals (1999), Harare Airport Scandal (2001), Ziscosteel (2005-8), Chiadzwa (2006-present), Airport Road Scandal (2008-2014), Salarygate (2014).
I could have continued but Iam afraid I may end up being corrupt just by listing these corruption scandals. My main idea for the list above is in two areas: First is for you to see that scandals started as early as 1980, only coming out months later. Mugabe was in helm already as the prime minister. The second point was to ask for one to research on how many of those scandals were investigated and people brought to book. Mugabe has never been great, at least for the good reasons that is.
I only listed ECONOMIC scandals. I avoided genocides and other forms of political violence. It becomes too much to look at in one go and besides Iam afraid of ending up being a statistic. While some one was stealing money from reserves someone was killing thousands of people under guise of moment of madness.
I would call it multi-tasking, but its the horror type of multitasking where on one hand its spear and on the other hand you are pickpocketing. How did you do that ZANU people? You deserve a slot in the Zimbabwe's Got Talent Show.
You stated that 65% of population are youths, and that the 65% can never be defeated. I beg to differ. They can be defeated and they will be defeated. That 65% population is basing on the 2012 census. Those figures are very correct conceptually. Practically they do not hold water though. Those young people (working class or some call it youths, except if you are in zanupf then we call you "YOUTHIES") most of them are not in the country any more.
We are the most economic active group hence we get restless when we have nothing to do. The fortunate ones have been co-opted into teaching, army and ZRP amongst other still existing equal employers. The unfortunate ones have been out casted by the system and have sought refuge in neighbouring countries. Some have been defeated psychologically and have resigned from ever voting. This reduces the 65% young adults group.
Just take a simple survey on how many general people voted for our constitution in the referendum. The answer will shock you. It's hard to defend something whose use was not enough for you to vote for. Zimbabweans we need rehabilitation and mental re orientation as far as voting and voting processes are concerned. Anyway that's and aside, I didn't want to be political here, I wanted to remain Mugabelical.
In Zimbabwe, Evil is Evil as long as it doesn't share my political school of thought. Once the Evil shares my school of thought, then I defend it in and out, it becomes the next holiness. It's a ZANU inherited cancer that is now affecting all Zimbabweans.
In reality the same moral standards should be equally applied to all men, political and religious leaders included, with no sacred cows. I like how EFF Malema does it in South Africa. He calls a spade a spade, hope when he gets into power he will not tenderpreneur himself to richness like before.
You reminded me Cde of the passage in the letter where Lord Acton writes to Bishop Creighton entitled "Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely" (1887). Lord Acton stated that he cannot accept a canon to judge Pope and King unlike other men, with a favourable presumption that they did no wrong. That is how Zimbabwean politics work.
If I may ask you Cde, can you freely and openly call a spade a spade in your own political party, at church, work and Zimbabwe at large? Frankly answer those questions and check if you differ from ZanuPF's praise-and-worship-see-hear-say-no-evil mentality in anyway.
The war of liberation may have ended in 1980 and you claim that Mugabe was a good darling then. He never was. Maybe you never experienced it hence you would run to watch him on TV, well in other areas people experienced it and they would run away from him even on TV.
To try and respond to you Cde, Zimbabwe never got its independence and Mugabe never brought any good economic changes. ZANU got independence and not Zimbabwe. Iam reminded of Dr J Nkomo's statement when he said it's possible for a country to gain independence yet its people remain in bondage.
Mugabe inherited a Smith system that was controlled by non-corruption tolerance that system was unfortunately cut off from the rest of the world. When Zimbabwe opened its doors to the world, there was a flood of donor aid to build schools and other destroyed infrastructure. Donors built all the infrastructure. So what was ZANU doing? Stealing and persecuting people, period.
Our reserves were enough to sustain us, the white farmers continued to farm on large scale. We even had electric gadgets and car assembly companies. These were all inherited systems. Mugabe just inherited a plane on autopilot and he sat there symbolically but forgot to maintain the momentum. Instead he decided to start stealing the first thing he could see ahead of him from the controller to the passengers seats. The plane lost momentum and altitude. It's now rackling like an old metal and is descending faster than it can be controlled.
On issues of classes in Rhodesia, let me hasten to say there is no classless society even under maxism, communism or capitalism or whichever philosophy of governance you want to use. Even in our churches there is always a superior language, race or way of dressing. That is how society functions. We can never be equal. The best we can do is to harmonise the classes and make sure they coexist.
Smith regime for example had a funny way of voting system. Only a certain class was allowed to vote, you had to have acquired certain property or earning certain amount of pay for one to be a voter. This did not only apply to blacks only but all races, including the very whites. This kept the society under check and it arrested corruption to some level, though it took voting rights from rest of the people.
But today in Zimbabwe, if one fails to make it in life they just need to campaign for public office, and all will be well. No declaration of asserts, so no audit. Funny. What can you expect from a person who has failed to run their own lives? To think they will be able to run a constituency or province, that's a little too much.
Classes like stated above, define a society stratification. Society is a survival of the fittest. Even in the bible we had Levites and Jews, those were their own stratifications. Jesus had his 12 close lieutenants who formed a "ruling class" around the figure Jesus. Martin Luther king had to have a dream to see America being ruled by blacks. In Zimbabwe you only need Zanupf golden card for doors to open, in South African you need the Guptalised connections for doors to open, list is endless. Once more, there is no classless society, be it by race, tribe or merit.
How and when did we go wrong? That's another good question one can ask themselves. The answer is simple. The very first day JM Nkomo gave pulpit to R Mugabe in 1960 on his visit from Ghana was the birth of our problems. They never saw it but the early signs came in 1961, then finally in 1963 8 August, but still no one took notice.
I would not mention other events as I may end up speculating. We made the mistake once more in 1980 when we "elected" ZANU into office. ZANU not being the problem here but the leader being the problem. Fish start to rot from the head. They stated stealing right from 1980, check the list below.
Let's pick the notable outstanding scandals Cdes: Paweni scandal (1982), National Railways Housing Scandal (1986), Air Zimbabwe Fokker Plane Scandal worth $100 million (1987), Zisco Steel blast Furnace Scandal (1987), Willowgate Scandal (1988), ZRP Santana Scandal (1989), War Victims Compensation Scandal (1994), GMB Grain Scandal (1995), VIP Housing Scandal (1996), ZESA YTL Soltran Scandal (1998), Housing Loan Scandal (1999), Noczim Scandal (1999), DRC timber and diamond UN reported scandals (1999), Harare Airport Scandal (2001), Ziscosteel (2005-8), Chiadzwa (2006-present), Airport Road Scandal (2008-2014), Salarygate (2014).
I could have continued but Iam afraid I may end up being corrupt just by listing these corruption scandals. My main idea for the list above is in two areas: First is for you to see that scandals started as early as 1980, only coming out months later. Mugabe was in helm already as the prime minister. The second point was to ask for one to research on how many of those scandals were investigated and people brought to book. Mugabe has never been great, at least for the good reasons that is.
I only listed ECONOMIC scandals. I avoided genocides and other forms of political violence. It becomes too much to look at in one go and besides Iam afraid of ending up being a statistic. While some one was stealing money from reserves someone was killing thousands of people under guise of moment of madness.
I would call it multi-tasking, but its the horror type of multitasking where on one hand its spear and on the other hand you are pickpocketing. How did you do that ZANU people? You deserve a slot in the Zimbabwe's Got Talent Show.
You stated that 65% of population are youths, and that the 65% can never be defeated. I beg to differ. They can be defeated and they will be defeated. That 65% population is basing on the 2012 census. Those figures are very correct conceptually. Practically they do not hold water though. Those young people (working class or some call it youths, except if you are in zanupf then we call you "YOUTHIES") most of them are not in the country any more.
We are the most economic active group hence we get restless when we have nothing to do. The fortunate ones have been co-opted into teaching, army and ZRP amongst other still existing equal employers. The unfortunate ones have been out casted by the system and have sought refuge in neighbouring countries. Some have been defeated psychologically and have resigned from ever voting. This reduces the 65% young adults group.
Just take a simple survey on how many general people voted for our constitution in the referendum. The answer will shock you. It's hard to defend something whose use was not enough for you to vote for. Zimbabweans we need rehabilitation and mental re orientation as far as voting and voting processes are concerned. Anyway that's and aside, I didn't want to be political here, I wanted to remain Mugabelical.
In Zimbabwe, Evil is Evil as long as it doesn't share my political school of thought. Once the Evil shares my school of thought, then I defend it in and out, it becomes the next holiness. It's a ZANU inherited cancer that is now affecting all Zimbabweans.
In reality the same moral standards should be equally applied to all men, political and religious leaders included, with no sacred cows. I like how EFF Malema does it in South Africa. He calls a spade a spade, hope when he gets into power he will not tenderpreneur himself to richness like before.
You reminded me Cde of the passage in the letter where Lord Acton writes to Bishop Creighton entitled "Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely" (1887). Lord Acton stated that he cannot accept a canon to judge Pope and King unlike other men, with a favourable presumption that they did no wrong. That is how Zimbabwean politics work.
If I may ask you Cde, can you freely and openly call a spade a spade in your own political party, at church, work and Zimbabwe at large? Frankly answer those questions and check if you differ from ZanuPF's praise-and-worship-see-hear-say-no-evil mentality in anyway.
Source - Mangosuthu MJ Mbele
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