To someone who did not know what was taking place, the protest march could have been mistaken for a guard of honour inspection or a stroll in the park. Police details stood at attention, minus a salute.
Moses Tsimukeni Mahlangu
What made the said protest march proceed without any incident? This article will hazard possible scenarios.
Was the march stage managed with the connivance of Zanu PF and if so, what would be the reasons behind the suspicious conspiracy? Alternatively, could it be that security agents are now fed up with defending the undefendable? Inquisitively, the conspiracy could be informed by the maxim, “better the devil you know”.
Back to scenario one, maybe Zanu PF is uneasy with former vice-president Joice Mujuru-led Zimbabwe People First (ZimPF) outfit, hence the strategy to rope in the former prime minister, who President Robert Mugabe once remarked, “we are done with him, when he sees beautiful women he forgets his people”.
It would be a treasonous act if security agents turned a blind eye to the march. By now the axe would have fallen on many. The conspiracy could be a damage control measure on the part of Zanu PF. MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai failed to claim its rightful position then, rendering it vulnerable. Ex-Presidential Affairs minister Didymus Mutasa once remarked “if Tsvangirai had marched to State House in 2008, nobody would have stopped him”. Maybe it was and still is, because he has no liberation credentials. Should someone with war credentials make it in 2018, nothing can stop him/her from marching to State House according to Mutasa.
The plot is further complicated by a sudden U-turn by MDC-T. All along the cry was loud and clear, inviting opposition fraternity to come under the big tent. The problem with the big tent, as former Finance minister Tendai Biti put it, was that it was leaking. Not long ago, most of the opposition parties called for the formation of transitional structure that would guide the nation towards a general election. Whatever name you gave this structure, it was going to be a coalition. Surprisingly, MDC-T would rather go into bed with its enemy rather than close ranks with other opposition parties. The question nagging for an answer is, do opposition really pose a serious threat to the current government or it is simply buying time? Is opposition glued in narcism of yesteryear glory? It was mind boggling to see MDC-T recall the Biti camp from Parliament, thereby giving the seats to Zanu PF on a silver platter. The motion to recall was moved by a Zanu PF MP, of all the people. Whose tent and whose terms matter most is not the issue, but the emancipation of Zimbabweans.
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It would appear there is currently no political will within opposition to come together. ZimPF is also talking with a forked tongue when it comes to coalition. One thing is clear, former inclusive government partners desperately miss the gravy train. Supposing Zanu PF would wake up one day calling for a government of national unity, there would be a stampede from the opposition camp towards inclusivity.
The underlying factor is all about the gravy train and position power, nothing else. How does one explain a situation where somebody is still occupying a government residence, nearly three years after the inclusive government collapsed? On the other hand cheap politicking is doing rounds over Vice-President Phelekezela Mphoko’s stay in a hotel. The nation is urged to put its priorities right. A wrong is a wrong regardless of who commits it.
Conspiracies and counter conspiracies will hatch snakes that will bite those who brood over eggs of deception. NewsDay (April 26, 2016) reported Tsvangirai declaring that he would go it alone. One of trade union maxims is “united we stand and divided we fall”. Has the man forgotten this rallying point of workers and politicians? Positions are the greatest undoing of Zimbabwe’s politics. People would rather stick to their cocoon than crack them open to see the light of the sun.
The MDC-T protest march has generated a lot of both adverse and positive interest. Adversely, as it has sired a false impression that individualism is a virtue. Positively, in that is has revealed the true natures which were otherwise hidden under the cloak of opposition politics. Beware of wolves in sheep skins
● Moses Tsimukeni Mahlangu writes in his own capacity and can be reached on [email protected] for comments
