That First Lady Grace Mugabe could chasten Dickson Chingaira’s (Cde Chinx) second wife, Ntombizodwa is unfortunate and unfathomable given the circumstances that made herself Zimbabwe’s First Lady.
Comment: NewsDay Editor
We hope Grace has learnt a lot in life from these circumstances, but the First Lady must be warned that she must never involve herself in other people’s issues, lest she is humiliated someday.
It is not in doubt that Grace is President Robert Mugabe’s second wife, having dated him when his First wife, Sally was still alive.
We believe Grace should not look at the speck in someone’s eye without noticing the log in her own. It is a question of the pot calling the kettle black.
Ask the public what they would like to see Zimbabwe give up anytime soon, and we have no doubt that top of the list would be Zanu PF politicians and their double-speak.
With the majority of Zimbabweans already disdainful of Zanu PF politicians, one wonders how Grace could continue with her tactic of public obfuscation and diversion.
It is not in doubt that Grace and her family recently defied a High Court order and demolished housing structures for over 200 families at Arnold Farm’s Manzou Game Park in Mazowe to expand their business empire.
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Grace’s antics are not amusing at all, and the poor majority, who have suffered under Mugabe’s hurtful regime for some 37 years, must not be hoodwinked into believing that the First Lady is on their side.
We have no reason to believe that Grace, although she spoke strongly against demolition of structures, meant her word. If indeed she meant it, how could she ignore court orders to stop demolitions at Manzou’s Arnold Farm?
While Zimbabweans would agree with Grace that Zanu PF land barons are retrogressive elements and that demolitions are unfair, she should simply tell the public who authorised Operation Murambatsvina/Clean Up campaign, which, according to United Nations estimates, affected at least 700 000 people directly through loss of their homes or livelihoods and, thus, could have indirectly affected around 2, 4 million people.
There is no doubt that these unjust programmes by her Zanu PF party hurt the generality of Zimbabweans and clearly, the people will not forget their ill-treatment over a long period of time.
It is ironic that while she spoke against land barons, a day before, Zanu PF land barons, Wellington Peyama and Harare South MP Shadreck Mashayamombe, with approval from Local Government minister Saviour Kasukuwere, “donated” State land for the construction of party offices to be named after Grace.
The setting at the handover of a house to Cde Chinx on behalf of presidential photographer, Joseph Nyadzayo would have been ideal for Grace to distance herself from unscrupulous Zanu PF apparatchiks masquerading as her envoys in dodgy deals.
We have every reason to suspect that Grace is politicking and, therefore, placing herself as a sober-minded Zanu PF candidate, given Harare South, which she is reportedly eyeing, is littered with land barons.
Thousands of people have already lost their houses to reasons ranging from non-compliance with by-laws to not supporting Zanu PF programmes. Now that she has rebuked land barons, Mashayamombe can kiss the constituency goodbye.
Seeing through Grace, clearly she is trying to curry favour with the electorate just in time for next year’s election.
Instead of extolling Nyadzayo for a job well done, the First Lady could have soiled the event by venturing into trivialities. We urge Grace to desist from being duplicitous and deceitful, which are now her hallmark.
