By Patrick Guramatunhu- “The United States of America and the European Union have implored authorities to engage the MDC to end the country’s myriad of challenges,” reported a local publication.

“In a joint statement, which was also supported by Scandanavian countries, the EU and USA called on President Mnangagwa to initiate dialogue with the MDC to end the country’s worsening political and economic crises.”

This is just gutter journalism at its worse! Just because Daily News has its fixations with Zanu PF and MDC as the only actors to take the nation out of this hell-on-earth does not mean everyone else does, especially the west!

The joint statement from the EU, USA and other western diplomats called on “all protagonists” to resolve the country’s political paralysis but never mentioned Zanu PF or MDC.

“The Heads of Mission further urge all protagonists to resolve political conflicts through constructive dialogue and remain clear that international re-engagement is contingent on genuine and sustained implementation of political and economic reform,” read the joint statement.

Zanu PF and their political acolytes MDC are certainly NOT the protagonists, as in advocates and champions, of the national cause of implementing the democratic reforms to end the corrupt and tyrannical dictatorship and replace it with a democratic system of government.

Zanu PF are the antagonists in that they are the ones who created the de facto one-party dictatorship and do not want it dismantled because they are benefiting from it. Zanu PF has no intention of implementing meaningful reforms because it will reform itself out of office.

If Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC friends ever wanted to bring about any meaningful democratic changes, as the party’s name implies, they abandoned that as a lost cause during the 2008 to 2013 GNU. Mugabe bribed them with the trappings of high office; ministerial limos, very generous salaries and allowances, a US$4 million mansion for Tsvangirai, etc., etc. And to show their gratitude to the dictator, Tsvangirai and company threw implementing reforms out of the window.

Not even the repeated nagging by SADC leaders failed to get Tsvangirai et al to implement even one token reform in five years. The regional body had arm-twisted Mugabe to sign the Global Political Agreement, agreeing to the implementation of the raft of democratic reforms.

Ever since the 2008 GNU, MDC’s position has been to participate in Zimbabwe’s flawed and illegal elections to win as many of the gravy-train seats Zanu PF has been giving away as bait. Of course, the MDC leaders know that by participating in the rigged elections they give the process some credibility; as David Coltart, a leading MDC leader, has readily admitted.

In his Book, The Struggle Continues 50 years of Tyranny in Zimbabwe, David Coltart, former MDC – Ncube Senator and Minister of Education in the 2008 GNU, gave details of how Zanu PF was flouting the electoral rules in the upcoming 2013 elections. It was clear the elections would not be free, fair and credible.

“The worst aspect for me about the failure to agree a coalition was that both MDCs couldn’t now do the obvious – withdraw from the elections,” wrote Senator Coltart.

“The electoral process was so flawed, so illegal, that the only logical step was to withdraw, which would compel SADC to hold Zanu PF to account. But such was the distrust between the MDC-T and MDC-N that neither could withdraw for fear that the other would remain in the elections, winning seats and giving the process credibility.”

Like it or not MDC leaders will participate in elections regardless how flawed and illegal the process happens as long as there are a few gravy-train seats on offer. They are no longer interested in implementing the reforms to ensure free, fair and credible elections.

“EU and USA called on President Mnangagwa to initiate dialogue with the MDC to end the country’s worsening political and economic crises!” Talk of mental paralysis.

Zimbabwe is in this economic and political mess precisely because the country has been stuck for 40 years and counting with a corrupt, ruthless and vote rigging dictatorship. The dictatorship is the problem! How can it be the solution too?