The Strive Masiyiwa Story: Something Spiritual, Then Monopoly Is Struck Down (Part 7)
By Strive Masiyiwa
The court papers had been ready to file for two whole weeks, and yet I had not authorised their filing. People who knew thought I had got cold feet….. I kept praying. Those were days,when I was still young in The Lord, and I was still learning like the young Samuel, how to hear His voice:
One Sunday morning, as I left a church service, I heard someone calling me. It was the wife of a dear friend and business colleague, Nigel Chanakira. He was following closely behind his wife. They were both excited, and fighting to catch their breath:
“This morning, The Lord spoke to me twice, saying tell Strive he can now go ahead. It was such an amazing experience! I am still totally shaken!”
His wife chimed in, equally excited, “I was right there, when he woke up twice, saying he has had this amazing dream about you!”
Then he asked, “do you know what it is, He wants you to proceed with?”
Although we were to become very close friends later; at that time, we were just beginning to know each other, and he knew NOTHING about the court papers,waiting to be filed.
“Thank you, my brother. I shall proceed, immediately.”
We filed the following day.
Jesus said, “…my sheep know, my voice.”
I believe in God, therefore, I believe in miracles. When I pray, I ALWAYS get an answer; sometimes like in this case it can be quite dramatic, but usually it is whilst, I am “meditating” on a scriptures.
After the filing, it would be 18 months of waiting, until the highest court in the land, delivered its judgment. During those 18 months I went about my business. My company continued to do very well. We had become the biggest in our industry, employing over 1000 people nationwide. I had no difficulty paying the legal fees. The court hearing was a titanic duel of legal minds, before a full bench of judges, called the Constitutional Court.
Perhaps the nicest compliment I got that day, came from the Attorney General, who led the government team. He came over and shook my hand firmly, when it was all over:
“Don’t let anyone tell you, that you are fighting the government; why else would we have a constitution, if you the young Zimbabweans would not come, and fight for it? By your challenge, you have strengthened our constitution. Then he added, “it does not matter what happens here, you are going to go far. One day you will be richer than some governments.”
On 18th December 1995, two and half years after we had first gone to court, the Constitutional Court of Zimbabwe, struck down the monopoly in telecommunications.
To be continued…
