Nomusa Garikayi | If you are one of the 90% plus who are unemployed, one of the millions angry that $15 billion in diamond revenue was swindled and no one was ever arrested or one dollar recovered, one of the millions fed up with the all too frequent water and power cuts, the collapsing health and education services, etc., etc.; then this is for you.
The only peaceful way to end Zimbabwe’s current economic meltdown, to end the rampant corruption, to revive the economy, to create the much need employment opportunities, etc., etc.; is by making sure the next elections are free, fair and credible. If you want economic transformation, then you must first secure political transformation.
There is no catch or riddle here; there is a linkage between economic prosperity and good governance, you cannot have the former without the latter. If you started with economic prosperity, it will not last long if you have bad governance as we, in Zimbabwe, can now testify.
Before independence in 1980 and for a while thereafter Zimbabweans were rightly proud that the nation produced enough food to feed all its people with enough left over for export. We were the bread basket of the region. In 2000, Mugabe seized the farms and gave them to his cronies. The agricultural production collapse and the nation economy soon followed. Ever since, millions of our people have relied on imported food aid – the government was too poor to pay for the imported food, medicine, etc.
We live in the age where some nations have harnessed technology and innovation to turn deserts into the Garden of Eden. Zimbabwe has everything it needs to reclaim its cherish bread basket of the region accolade; we lost the accolade because we had bad governance. We are starving in a country which is for all intent and purpose the biblical Garden of Eden – a graphic testimonial to the sheer incompetence of Mugabe and his Zanu PF regime!
When Zimbabwe attained her independence in 1980, life expectancy was 68 years by 2004 it had dropped to 34 years. The only reason why this has happened is, again, bad governance.
Mugabe and his corrupt and tyrannical Zanu PF regime have ruled Zimbabwe ever since the country attained her independence in 1980 not because the people failed to see the regime was incompetent and corrupt; they did. The people could not remove the regime from office because Mugabe rigged the vote. Unless the people demand the implementation of the democratic reforms designed to stop Mugabe rigging elections; then be rest assured, he will rig the 2018 elections as he has rigged all the other past elections.
Most Zimbabweans out there have no clue what these democratic reforms are; if they did then they would have forced MDC leaders to implemented all the reforms during the GNU when the country had it golden opportunity to do so. The reforms themselves are simple and logical, anyone with some common sense will have no trouble understanding them if the individual applied him/herself to the task.
As stated above, Zimbabwe’s serious economic meltdown – high unemployment, corruption, etc., etc. – is a consequence of decades of bad governance the only way to break this vicious cycle is by ending the vote rigging and electing good, competent and democratically accountable government.
If Zanu PF rigs the next elections then you, one of the 90% out of work, etc., etc. will only have yourself to blame for your economic misery and frustration and human suffering and unnecessary loss of human lives because we have all played our part, wittingly or otherwise, in allowing Mugabe to establish and retain this de facto one-party cum one-man dictatorship.
“Seek ye first the political
In Zimbabwe, we are stuck in this economic mess caused by decades of gross mismanagement and rampant corruption precisely because in 1980 and ever since we fail to secure our political freedoms and rights including the right to a meaning vote and the right to life itself. Until we secure our right to free, fair and credible elections we are not going to get out of the economic mess.
Ultimately, people get the government they deserve; after 36 years, we cannot deny that we deserve this corrupt and tyrannical Zanu PF dictatorship complete with its entourage of corrupt and incompetent opposition parties.
President Kwame Nkrumah was one of Africa’s bright stars, at least when he first got into power. He clearly understood the importance of political power and the importance of democratic accountability in the search for good governance.
In Zimbabwe, like in many other third world countries, most people gave up their political power by giving up their right to free and fair elections soon after independence. They thought nothing Zanu PF’s one-party state overtures as long as the tyrant delivered the economic prosperity. He did not deliver the economic prosperity and they had no power to remove him from power.
“Seek ye first the political kingdom and all else will be added to it!” should be one of those themes taught in all our schools and everyone must live by and cherish for life!
You are spot on, if the millions of Zimbabwe out of work are serious about ever getting a job then they must seek first the political transformation. That should be obvious! We live in a country where every facet of life has been heavily politicised; indeed, many area have been over politicised or worse; it should be obvious to everyone that there will never be any meaningful economic recovery without meaningful democratic political transformation first.
Sadly, you and me live in a country in which common sense is a rare commodity and what should otherwise be obvious is a great mystery, a great wonder of wonders.
Do you think our people will ever learn and hold free, fair and credible elections; I wonder!