Power to the People – #ThisFlag

Out of timber so crooked as that from which man is made nothing entirely straight can be carved. – Immanuel Kant.

By Vince Musewe

As I stood right next to what looked like a policewoman brandishing an AK47 at Evan Mawarire’s court hearing yesterday afternoon, the 13th Of July 2016, I could not help but wonder what was going on in her mind.

She certainly looked eerie with her blood shot eyes and she was all kitted up in camouflage. Does she have children I wondered? Is she happily married and would she head home tonight and have a good night’s sleep?

Would she hug her children tonight and tell them she loves them? Oh how wretched she must be, I thought, for it is intolerable to even begin to imagine who she truly is and what she really felt inside at that moment when our eyes crossed.

Next to her, were some mean looking youths, who looked more like soldiers to me than policemen or anything else. Someone pointed out to me that they looked more like army recruits trained to kill for Mugabe pretending to be riot police.

I could both feel and see their somewhat concealed anxiety, impatience and fear as they looked directly at us as the crowd sang-“We want to go out of this Egypt”.

Whose sons could they be, I wondered, and what are their hopes and dreams? Poor souls, for they must now defend the indefensible. They must defend the interests of a dictator who cares little of their fate, their aspirations and even their lives. How sad.

It was exciting, electric and exhilarating to be part of a crowd of Zimbabweans of all shades, shapes and sizes as we knelt down to pray for Evans release outside the court.

Well, God must have looked down upon us with His unfathomable grace yesterday, because he granted our wish. In one moment of time and in one brief moment of history, Zimbabweans of all races, gender, political and religious affiliation, stood together united for one cause-justice. It was truly an indescribable and magical once-in-a-lifetime experience.

The release of Evan must surely now spur us on to go to the next level in our fight for freedom. We just have to drop the meaningless political, religious and racial labels we have adopted and, for once, be human beings who happen to be Zimbabwean. We must now all unite for one cause, fight together and look out for each other’s interests as thousands did for Evan because that is the only way we can topple this evil empire.

We cannot and must not ever underestimate the fact that we have a crooked regime, which is in a corner as it continues to dig a deeper hole for itself with each action it takes to try to prolong its hegemony whose inevitable end is near. We must ensure that they do not drag us with them into the grave which they have dug for themselves thinking that they are being clever.

It is also imperative that we see new politics underpinned by new inclusive paradigm. We can no longer afford to follow the old politics of personalities, divisions and unnecessary competition for attention and power. Those politics are no longer relevant nor are they interesting anymore, especially to our youths.

I have a good feeling that we have entered a new dawn and change is coming. Those who are unwilling to change will be made irrelevant by its momentum which is solely centred on the interests of the people of Zimbabwe and nothing else. We cannot negotiate for our freedom with the dictator any longer, we have to demand it and, if necessary, fight for it as happened today at the courts.

Thank you Lord for today’s victory but we must never be deceived or be naive. ZANU (PF) has no morals, no ethics, and no scruples, is corrupt and will do everything in its power to resist change. Our battle has therefore only begun, but let the message be clear- enough is enough.

If there is anything we must learn from this event, it is the fact that we all need each other in these times, for the battle is not for one man or one woman. It is our collective responsibility to attain the dreams of our fathers of total emancipation, justice and prosperity for all.

Thank you Zimbabwe, the struggle continues!

Vince Musewe is an economist and author based in Harare. He is also the Secretary for Finance and Economic Affairs for PDP. You may contact him on [email protected]