By Everson Mushava
Opposition Build Zimbabwe Alliance leader Noah Manyika says Zimbabweans are suffering because they are tolerating bad leadership, which is failing to deal with their challenges.
Manyika’s statement comes as the country endures a fresh wave of price increases following a hike in fuel prices on Tuesday when government dropped a subsidy on the commodity on Monday.
Commuter omnibus operators responded by hiking fares to as much as $4 per trip, putting more strain on the revived Zimbabwe United Passenger Company (Zupco) that had slashed fares for its urban routes to 50 cents hours before the fuel price hikes were announced.
“Our regression will persist with tragic consequences for our livelihoods if we continue to vote for and tolerate bad leaders simply because they are from our province, our party, our family, our race, or because their buffoonery provides us the most comic relief,” Manyika said.
He said those pinning their hopes on dialogue between President Emmerson Mnangagwa and opposition parties were day dreaming because nothing positive would come out of any talks as long as the country was still under bad leaders.
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“There are those who are pinning a lot of hope on a positive outcome from dialogue with Zanu PF leaders. I am not one of them because what has been demonstrated in the past 39 years is that those who rise to the top of Zanu PF are the most selfish, calculating, vicious and destructive leaders whose singular goal is self-preservation,” Manyika said.
“Because of that, we have seen a reversal of all the gains of the Government of National Unity era, and since (former President Robert) Mugabe’s ouster, the abuse of unprecedented local and international goodwill by those who prevailed in Zanu PF’s internal battles whose only interest was entrenching themselves at everyone else’s expense.”
He said there would never be change in the country until citizens no longer accept that simply being the architect of a coup qualifies anyone to the leadership of the country.
BZA is one of the few opposition parties boycotting the Mnangagwa-initiated dialogue process.