Ndaba Nhuku | Emmerson Mnangagwa has a mountain to climb.
This election is going to be interesting. If in winning, Mnangagwa had a political Mt. Kilimanjaro to climb, this is it. And this is mainly because of his overzelous supporters, and the brand issue. When reading my muzukuru’s Brand thesis l always think of Mugabe, Nkomo and Tsvangirai. The three guys built brands around their names such that their departure from them caused confusion and unsettled most members. And the brand issue is what Mnangagwa is struggling with. Mugabe remains the Zanu brand. Mugabe spent 37 being turned into a brand. One cannot today mention Zanu without linking it to Mugabe, hence the “Pasi naMugabe” is defeatist and awkward.
In rural areas the elderly folks only know Mugabe when you speak of Zanu. Even toddlers know that “Pamberi neZanu” is immediately followed with a “Pamberi navaMugabe!!” This Mugabe brand outshines Mnangagwa whose name is still hard, not only for foreigners, but even for many Zimbabweans to pronounce. Mugabe Brant was built up to a level such that Zanu needed Mugabe and not the other way round.
Come to Mnangagwa’s own brand, his fervent supporters let him down big time. Instead of building a brand they have built an aloof feared man associated with murder! You have most of his supporters praising Gukurahundi. You have most of his supporters throwing celebratory parties after Prof Moyo’s daughter passed on and most talking as if Mnangagwa was responsible as a some sort of revenge.
Contrast that with Mugabe’s Zanu brand. Those who know Mnangagwa were made to fear him as the enforcer and ruthless one in the party l know many journalists who feared even going to interview him as a minister. A brand was never made but a violent enforcer was created. Up to now many see him as such.
His blunder is not learning from his mistakes as well. He should have not allowed his political drama with G40 to blind decision making. After his coup, why did he see it fit to fire everyone known and suspected of being G40? He should have known that after leading the firing of Mujuru and her alleged supporters, she in turn left with a significant membership of the party and its leadership. That acutely reduced members and voters.
And Mujuru went on to form her party because she is apolitcian and could not just sit down and mourn about being fired from Zanu. Mnangagwa should have learned a lesson. Instead he fired half the leadership of the he part and and worse off forcibly retired many in the civil service who today he is harrassing and not paying their entitled pensions. By firing so many he naively created New Patriotic Front (NPF). All the people he fired were not going to sit around wailing about being fired from Zanu.
Most are politicians and live and love for politics and love ZIMBABWE like a lot of us. Mnangagwa could not silence them and hence they went on to form NPF. And this further reducing Zanu membership and making it vulnerable to Opposition parties that are now uniting against it.
Yaah Mnangagwa has a political Mt. Kilimanjaro to climb for him to win the coming elections.