BY KENNETH MUFUKA
Brother Trevor Ncube is the chairperson of Alpha Media Holdings and has just resigned from the presidential advisory council (PAC) of Zimbabwe. In American jargon as a former presidential advisor, he is supposed to be “in the know”.
As such, we must take his words seriously, the more so when the reader may disagree with him.
Go slow on the brother!
In his thoughtful article in NewsDay (12th of April) he expressed a view that many Zimbabweans have entertained [the question] but are afraid to ask. The offending sentence is as follows: “The Nelson Chamisa-led Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) claim to have the answers to all that afflicts Zimbabwe. As things stand, I am far from persuaded that Chamisa has what is required to dig the country out of the Zanu PF created morass.” (Paragraph 6).
A morass is a swamp — cattle and animals sometimes get stuck in the mud. Zimbabwe is that situation.
Brother Ncube is correct, it will take more than the dreams of Mukomana to dig us out of the morass.
On Pindula website, the readers replies cover some 15 pages and most of them are acting out and cutting up, annoyed with Brother Ncube.
- Chamisa under fire over US$120K donation
- Mavhunga puts DeMbare into Chibuku quarterfinals
- Pension funds bet on Cabora Bassa oilfields
- Councils defy govt fire tender directive
Keep Reading
Please go slow on the brother.
To cut a long story short, the question whether Mukomana is ready to govern was answered a long time ago by former British prime minister Harold MacMillan in Ghana in 1964. The chapter in his book is entitled: “The winds of change.” Of course, nobody is ever ready to govern because the opposition does not have the gravitas of office, the hierarchy that comes with power, the experience of hindsight, the Mercedes Benzes, and other paraphernalia. McMillan admitted that mistakes will be made, but there is no other way of learning.
The surprise is that while Mukomana has matured somewhat in four years, Zanu PF has regressed.
The real question is whether it is time for a change and whether the people are ready to see new visions and dream new dreams. Ncube answers that succinctly.
“I too, sense the palpable excitement for the possibility of something new and the desperate desire for change after 42 years of authoritarian rule that has blighted the country’s fortunes.
“There is something in the air that suggests that Zimbabweans want to chart a new future.”
That is the issue, all else is inconsequential. I too had a similar feeling when I visited in April 2021. It is something in the air. The stalwart supporters of government say that they need more time. Yes Siree, they were given 40 years.
They say that they have a history and a stalwart heritage of liberation to defend. Yes Siree, but they have sold the diamonds to China and U$15 billion has disappeared. That is their stalwart heritage of looting.
They say but Mukomana has done nothing for Zimbabwe. Yes Siree. But you have done much damage. Look at the roads; half the automobile accidents are avoidable were it not for the potholes.
They say they will never allow Mukomana to rule. Yes Siree! We know that. The Chironga boys were torched and died a horrible death because they were MDC organisers in 2007. Just for the fluke, their 300 pigs were douched in kerosene and burned as well.
We know everything, the police roadblocks were the brainchild of the chiefs of police, to gouge citizens every 30 kilometres or so.
Church has been captured
It is now common talk that the judiciary is in Zanu’s pocket. The handling of Marry Mubaiwa’s divorce case was clumsy, unconscionable, and ridiculous. Admittedly, the state was in a no-win situation. If it allowed the sister to leave the country for medical treatment, the chances of her returning were less than zero. By refusing her permission, while her husband goes to China for medical treatment as he wishes, the state suffered a case of double standards.
The more serious matter has been the capture of the spiritual leaders. To be fair, I must blame the devil rather than Zanu PF. I have before me, a video chat by a prophet asking 5 000 members to rise to the call of the Holy Spirit and make a love offering of US$1 000 each. The money supports a “lively” (new word I have learned) lifestyle. These prophets, like their brothers in the 400 prophets in the convocation of the Goddess Baal, they are stalwart supporters of status quo. Their tax-exempt status is secure.
Please reader, do not say that Ken told you about the shamelessness of the saints. I am only a door keeper in the Lord’s house. My official title in the Methodist Church is that of Lay Servant.
What I am saying however, is that these brothers in Christ, are in complete tandem with the government, all the way.
I came to understand the depth of corruption a few years ago. I asked my daughter, then a 27-year-old doctoral candidate to review what I thought was police corruption by use of roadblocks. Dr. Rumbi said to me. “Daddy don’t be silly. The police cannot demand bribes by the roadside in full view of the passengers without the acquiescence of the commissioner.”
Please God, it had completely escaped my silly self. The whole scheme, it turned out, had been concocted by the chiefs themselves, to fleece the public with trumped up traffic charges. That commissioner is facing charges of abuse of office, and a lifestyle audit involving US$32 million.
The commissioner is safe in a hide-out in Malawi and will not appear before the court.
The state is in a state of total collapse. The question is no longer whether Mukomana is ready to govern. The correct question is whether Zimbabweans are ready for a new beginning.
Ncube answers that in the affirmative.
Churches are operating in a complete morass, that depth of despair. The more desperate the economic situation becomes, the more these churches flourish. Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. They understand perfectly that the natural state of man is oppression and they have joined the bandwagon of oppression.
Diminishing returns
But oppression reaches a stage of diminishing returns. The victims speak about them on social media and the beatings and death threats have lost their sting.
True, Mukomana is an orator, and those orations bring hope to the masses.
- Ken Mufuka is a Zimbabwean patriot. His book on Life and Times of Robert Mugabe: Dream Betrayed, and other books can be found at Innov Bookshops in Zimbabwe and at kenmufuabooks.com in the wider world.
