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NewsDay

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Mugabe’s bravado does not fool anyone

Opinion & Analysis
President Robert Mugabe’s Zanu PF party for the third time in less than two months called for a solidarity meeting with the veteran leader, the clearest indication all is not well in the ruling party, despite the brave face they routinely show.

President Robert Mugabe’s Zanu PF party for the third time in less than two months called for a solidarity meeting with the veteran leader, the clearest indication all is not well in the ruling party, despite the brave face they routinely show.

NewsDay Comment

President Robert Mugabe
President Robert Mugabe

Had everything been well, as Mugabe and Zanu PF would want us to believe, then there would be no need for marches and rallies in solidarity with the clearly beleaguered President.

Mugabe has previously routinely swatted any opposition to him as Western-funded, but now a rebellion is at his door step and that excuse does not wash anymore.

The rallies are meant to be a show of power, but to the contrary, they betray a party that is running scared and is groping at straws in its efforts to hold onto power.

Whether they care to admit it, Mugabe long lost his aura and even his long-time comrades think he is a liability to the country’s future.

If Mugabe was half the leader they want us to believe he is, then he should do the honourable thing and resign or at least name a successor as he begins to wind up his stay in power.

Zanu PF can no longer pretend everything is in order when all and sundry are telling Mugabe it is time to go.

When the war veterans spoke last week, they spoke for many, pointing out no one is willing to invest money to a 92-year-old without a succession plan, as there was no guarantee that the money would be paid back.

This is the conundrum Zimbabwe finds itself in: No one is willing to invest and deal with a country whose future is uncertain.

This is a reality that Zanu PF has to contend with. They may want Mugabe to carry on forever, but it is no longer in the interests of both the party and the country.

Mugabe has run his race and there is nothing nobler than passing the baton at this hour in the interests of Zimbabwe.

So while Zanu PF senior members will resort to parochial back-patting after yesterday’s rally, the honest truth is that the country is and will not be in a better situation.

Zimbabwe is desperate for leadership, but none is forthcoming from the ruling party because they are obsessed with Mugabe’s continued leadership or his lack of a succession plan.

Mugabe needs to do the honourable thing now, as this is the only way Zimbabwe can prosper in future.

All these voices calling for Mugabe to step down are not doing it for selfish reasons, but rather out of realisation that the country is on the wrong path with the President at the helm.