End of Mugabe Era – Zimbabwe Vigil Diary

LONDON – The fiasco of 91-year-old Robert Mugabe reading the wrong speech at the opening of Parliament cannot be dismissed as ‘a common era’ as the Herald put it (before correcting its spelling error!).

No, the pantomime of the President reading out a speech he had already delivered a month ago – indeed, the State of the Nation Address – without seeming to notice that it was familiar says something about our ruling elite.

Zanu PF MPs clapped sagely during the speech, suggesting that anything Mugabe said is alright with them. It didn’t really matter if it was the same speech he had delivered for the past 35 years . . .

The opposition, which had heckled the State of the Nation Address when it was first delivered, had received death warnings to behave this time so they tried to keep a straight face. They knew what to expect: the predictable threats against the free press the next day when Mugabe realised he had been exposed as a stuffed dummy.

We in the diaspora find it difficult to keep a straight face ourselves when we are asked about the situation in Zimbabwe.

We will be demonstrating at a Mugabe fundraiser in the City of London on Tuesday 22nd September to try to explain the tragi-comedy to any investors naïve enough to attend.

We notice that, since we first announced our intention to demonstrate there, Obert Mpofu, allegedly Zimbabwe’s most corrupt politician, has decided not to attend.

The Zanu PF delegation, led by Minister of Industry and Commerce Mike Bimha, will also be attending a meeting at the Zimbabwe Embassy on Wednesday 23rd September aimed at attracting investment from the diaspora.

We can’t afford the £40 or so he charges people to attend the event but we will be outside looking through the window licking our lips at his prawn sandwiches.