The coincidence of Independence Day and Easter holidays over the weekend was interesting in more ways than one.
NewsDay Editorial
April 18 was Zimbabwe’s national day marking the day 34 years ago the country attained independence from Britain after a protracted armed struggle. It must be the country’s most important day.
But Easter also happens to be the biggest holiday on the Christian calendar after Christmas — and the majority Zimbabweans claim Christianity as their faith of choice. Some argue Easter is even bigger than Christmas because it’s celebrated over four days while Christmas is a one-day affair.
The capital was a hive of activity. There were two big events over the same day and in the same venue. During the day, President Robert Mugabe led the political celebration of Independence at the Nationals Sports Stadium.
In the evening, Evangelist Emmanuel Makandiwa, who multitudes say is a prophet of God, led an even bigger gathering in the same venue, in what was called Judgment Night 2, an all-night vigil of prayer.
The political rituals, marked by the ignition of the Independence Flame and Mugabe’s jejune speech, were not enough to fire the people’s imagination. Over the past 34 years Mugabe’s speeches have failed to bring change to the plight of the majority who are living in poverty.
After that scintillating speech on his return from the war in 1980 at Zimbabwe Grounds in Highfield, Zimbabweans have seen his speeches deteriorate into self-serving monologues that not only lack focus, but also are full of insults of political opponents and some minorities such as gay people.
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The country has been plunged into despair and despondency due to the energy-sapping and intractable nature of the Zimbabwean economic crisis resulting from a failure of leadership.
Many attribute, rightly, that the crowds gracing the independence celebrations are pulled by the highly entertaining free displays by the armed forces and other cultural groups; and, most importantly, the soccer match at the end which invariably involves the country’s most popular team, Dynamos.
The Makandiwa gathering was different, drawing without bribes a record 160 000 crowd of passionate believers in miracles who hoped their lot would be transformed by the man they call Prophet.
But this must have worried the political establishment to bits. Why has the nation put its hopes into the hands of a charismatic preacher ahead of a political leadership that has for 34 years been at the helm of the State?
It is the greatest sign of failure of the political leadership that citizens are looking up to divine intervention rather than to scientific political interventions for solace and salvation. Zimbabwe is a secular State where earthly government should rule. But there is a danger now that people’s frustrations may send them away from the State into the hands of dubious characters that will frustrate them further as the promised miracles fail to materialise.
Government might approve this distraction because, in the short term, it diverts attention from its own failures, but, in the long term, payback time will come.
