Equal stakes politics: The future for Zimbabwe

By Courage Shumba and Madock Chivasa

In this piece we interrogate and propose the need to return to the national dialogue on the political choices which are currently available in Zimbabwe. The recent news dominating the media about corruption in state enterprises and parastatals risk becoming a diversion from the important issues at stake.

We have always been conscious to the reality, reports and allegations that we are possibly governed by corrupt and selfish leaders. We must therefore contain the shock within the frame of what we have always suspected, alleged and condemned.

As Zimbabweans we can no longer afford to build the country around name calling and inventing jokes around ‘Cashbert Dube’ and those that made him. Clearly whatever system we have, whatever model of government, we need a genuine regime change.

Anyone who has ever questioned the need for a regime change must find the answers in the absence of effective management of national resources and public institutions. Whatever leadership we have needs to be overhauled and substituted by a team which is conscious to the needs and aspirations of the poor people.

A government that creates ministries that are ignorant of the reasons why they are failing is undeserving of office. Without regime change in the next elections we will continue to be stuck with Zanu pf administration which is ineffective and characterized by selfishness, profligacy and greediness.

The regime change agenda must return to the fore either by negotiation or by force. As Zimbabwe we have learnt that no one is in charge and those that purport to be in charge do not have our interest at heart.

We can no longer afford to twiddle our fingers in the hope that the liars will compensate us with some truth and tell us exactly where we stand in this grand theatre. Zimbabweans must stand up to these thieves and wrestle that which is critical in determining the order of our country.

We must return to people power and speaking truth to power. We do not accept that anyone is being saved from being robbed from. We do not accept that Mr Dube’s and Mr Charamba’s fat accounts have anything to do with championing empowerment of the indigenous people or correcting historical wrongs.

We do not buy that the reinstatement of the town Clerk in Harare has anything to do with defending the gains of our independence from former colonial states. Our layman understanding of politics in Zimbabwe today makes us aware that the country has a serious leadership deficit.

Zimbabwe today is governed in much more a similar model as found in countries characterized by war. We need to reject a government that is clueless as to which route to take for us to solve the economic, social and political crises the country is grappling with.

We need to rethink on the need of building vibrant movements to lead street protests against a system that essentially governs to weaken the majority interest in favour of select clubs and their patrons. A protest against such a system is not adjacent or contrary to the goals of our liberation struggle.

Rejecting a system that makes us poor and that discards free and fair democratic play is in point of fact consistent with the first and second Chimurenga’s which are the only genuine and authentic people driven movements in our entire history.

We believe that all political parties that seek to change the Zanu pf culture should rethink their strategies and goals. The goals should be reflected in the inclusiveness of the language of the struggle. Today the struggle for justice has been turned into a platform for negotiating benefits and packages with Zanu pf.

Today as thousands go without food and basic needs some leaders in other opposition parties are secretly meeting Zanu pf over mansions. We view this as turning the struggle for justice and equality into a cheap cash cow for politicians.

We as members of the NCA party believe that the people have had enough of mediocrity on how they are governed and how their protests and interests have been handled by what has been the only opposition for so long.

We do not seek to argue in any way that we have never followed this once vibrant opposition leadership. We have but we recognized that the power politics has moved away from President Mugabe and his corrupt party to pruning the opposition along the lines of a top -down command hierarchy which like Zanu pf rewards sycophancy, silence and blind loyalty over principle.

We in the NCA are building a party of equals. We are tired of political deities that are too scared to be challenged. That is why as a new opposition party we will continue to build the party from the roots, the foundation not from the roofs or leaves.

We are a party that wants Zimbabwe to be led by able and inspired Zimbabweans. We are calling on Zimbabweans to reject the “big dhara” syndrome so that each one of us gets an equal stake in the future politics of our country.

Courage Shumba and Madock Chivasa are members of the NCA party and the views expressed in this article is their own shared opinion