On February 3, 1959, rock and roll musicians Buddy Holly and Ritchie Valens were killed in a plane crash in Iowa in the United States. The event later became known as “The Day the Music Died”, after singer-songwriter Don McLean so referred to it in his song American Pie some 12 years later.
By Conway Tutani
Within the past week, prominent Zimbabwean academics Dr Vimbai Chivaura and Professor Sam Moyo died not together, but in different circumstances, also within days of the passing away of Professor Lindela Ndlovu. Now some Zimbabweans are referring to this as “The Week the Library Burnt Down”. This is not exactly fanciful or far-fetched, because these three were genuine literati. They were truly learned. They did not falsify or fake their degrees. And none, but ourselves have to recognise our own giants.
But this also raised a lot of controversy, specifically in the case of Chivaura, being perceived as an uncritical defender of the regime, not applying and not guided by the high standards of analysis, seeing no evil, hearing no evil, while, on the other, hand, seeing all evil and hearing all evil at the sight and sound of the opposition and the white man. Some people will say I was coming to that, but it needs to be mentioned as a fact.
In the interest of balance, it must also be mentioned that those who knew Chivaura closely —such as some of his students — attested to his humbleness, helpfulness and positive influence in their lives. This private side of him is completely at odds with his public persona or public image. The ideas and opinions that the public has about a person may not be what they are really like. So, it can be said that Chivaura’s public persona didn’t reveal all of his character. Yes, we are all split personalities to various extents and we vacillate between these, but if you are in the public domain, you will ultimately be judged on your public pronouncements.
In that vein, Chivaura was quick to defend the regime no matter what. People are squeezed to the bone, but he elected to see otherwise. It got worse in 2012 when he gave the regime “spiritual validation”, saying President Robert Mugabe is a “svikiro” (spiritual medium) of Zimbabwe, implying he was ordained to rule the country by the ancestral spirits. Was he advocating a theocracy — government by those who are regarded as divinely guided — to replace democracy? That is against the Constitution. And where did he get that from? This offends all academic principles, especially coming from a holder of a PhD.
This was not helped by the fact that he often asked leading questions to the panellists on ZBC-TV programmes; that is, questions phrased in a manner that tends to suggest the desired answer, such as: What do you think of the sellout opposition? In true academic spirit, one would need to first establish that the opposition is indeed made up of sellouts, not as a given, not as a fact. One would further need to posit whether it is possible for a party that won the first round of the presidential election and 50% of the parliamentary seats in 2008 against all odds —including media blackout on ZBC-TV — to be ever remotely considered treacherous. Ordinarily, one would have expected the panellists to strongly disagree now and then, but no. They agreed in every way and all the way. That is why Chivaura’s programmes were brain-deadening to watch.
- 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
I strongly disagreed with Chivaura, but I would not go as far as Zanu PF commissar Saviour Kasukuwere, who said at First Lady Grace Mugabe’s rally in Murehwa last Saturday after denouncing the opposition MDC-T and the faction led by former Vice-President Joice Mujuru: “Dai Mwari avatora (I wish God would take their lives),” clearly wishing them death. I am also appalled by those in opposition ranks who are clearly celebrating Chivaura’s death as having evened the score. They should be told: Beware what you wish for someone else.
But Chivaura certainly damaged his academic standing.
On the other hand, Professor Sam Moyo reached the pinnacle of academia and stayed true to his vocation to the end.
As teenagers, we used to good-humouredly call him Sam ‘Mudzanga’ (because of his new-found love for smoking, “mudzanga” being the Shona word for cigarette) or Sam Kanhunzi (because of the dark mole by his nose which stood out in contrast to his very light complexion, “kanhunzi” being a small housefly or domestic fly). He was born with more than enough charisma, but he remained down-to-earth as he rose higher and higher.
Moyo was neither an Afro-pessimist with a colonial mentality hankering after servitude like a house nigger nor a hopeless optimist as to blind himself to the post-independence failings and evils like oppression and corruption. Moyo’s colleague Professor Ian Scoones encapsulated this in an obituary he wrote this week: “Sam has often been inaccurately pigeonholed as being on ‘one’ side or another . . . Whether inside the State and the party (Zanu PF), among opposition groups or with the World Bank and other donors, no one could ignore what Sam had to say.”
His free academic spirit could not be shackled by ideology and this made him “challenge oppression and exploitation in whatever form”.
Moyo did not erect barriers, but built bridges. He interacted with all sides — from the ruling party to various opposition formations.
Moyo, true to academia, adhered to highest standards of scientific analysis, earning himself a global reputation as an eminent scholar bringing real value to humankind.
What more can I really add except that a whole library has gone?
Rest in peace, Sam Mudzanga.
l Conway Nkumbuzo Tutani is a Harare-based columnist. Email: [email protected]
