When democratic movementsdon’tchange
itself, I wonder. In their camp, they decided to make him the face of the party and the party became him. He assumed ownership of a struggle such that his absence insinuates the oblivion of the challenge they imagined. They clung to him to create looting spaces of influence for themselves whenever a chunk was expelled. Such is a trait of many of them and they still do not see it. Hypocritically, they deny the existence of democracy even in its minute strains but they still call themselves democrats, someone help, what is the new definition of democracy? What is the true meaning of accountability and what do we mean by democratic change?
Airlifted or flown, who cares? A little over a week the president of the opposition was “airlifted” to South Africa on life support. A few hours later, news broke out that he was dead. The panic, confusion and insults transacted in groups, threads and inboxes were a classical symbol of how MDC-T supporters now worship the man. MDC-T supporters have been champions of creating and believing death news whenever His Excellency travels abroad. I remember in 2016 alone the President was unofficially reported dead more than six times until the wise man parodied about it. This time the tides shifted and it was their president reported dead, you should have seen how puzzled many of his faithful were and worse off when it was discovered that it was a hoax.
Insults were hurled at everyone who had believed the hoax, shared it and passed condolence messages. This was a show of how people shift positions when they are in the same situation they created. From merry jingling about His Excellency’s “death” to them being on the receiving end of a hoax and feeling the scuffle which millions of Zanu-PF legions experience every time a hoax was peddled.
Heightening the comedy is how his spokesman is desperate to control the narrative disputing that his boss was “airlifted” but instead, was “flown” to South Africa. Luke Tamborinyoka knew the effects of “airlifted” even if true, that it gave the impression that Tsvangirai was helpless and could not be counted on so his best shot was to rearrange the words to a subtler verb-past participle “flown”. That is the desperation which fawned the camp to the extent of challenging registers in desperation of calming a possible factional clinch.
With the man being airlifted to South Africa on a stretcher bed, one would think he would be silent for a while, possibly “undemocratically” pass the button as he is used to, alas! He never comments on his health but tells the world that MDC-T/ Alliance should I say, is ready for next year’s plebiscite with him as the presidential candidate.
This is a terminally ill man, who has lost three elections and counting, not sure about his health a few hours later let alone next year, “airlifted” or “flown” to South Africa declaring that he will run again next year, someone point me to the day and time he was democratically mandated to preside over his faithful. I know for a fact that many of them are scared of challenging him, should their democratic character land them as an opposition of an opposition. Democracy for age or ignorance for
terminal illness? My question is, how does MDC-T find it normal to dispute the democracy in Zanu-PF of choosing a 93-yearold candidate because they believe his possession of acute and mesmerising wisdom and physical staunchness yet they are ruled by a man who is terminally ill? My understanding is that a terminally ill person becomes a national burden because there is little guarantee in him finishing a term and much of his time is spent in a nursing home than in office. Moreover, mentally, the person is in constant fear of his ailment and a definite gasp halt. If I am to favour, terminally ill would not be a wise choice, in fact I would immediately detach myself from it. Instead, Tsvangirai should rest and anyone who refuses that has a big problem.
Little Tsvangirai up next With Tsvangirai not well, a new narrative of replacing him with Nelson Chamisa is emerging. The marvel of Chamisa taking over is hinged on age, eloquence and his ethnic background. Analysts have argued that he is a fresh face in politics and that’s what Zimbabwe needs, but another million-dollar question is, who groomed Chamisa?
Is it not Morgan, the one you deprecated as the worst choice Zimbabweans can ever make? Nelson is a little Tsvangirai, from his heydays in college to the day he lost elections to Douglas and Tsvangirai embraced him to dilute Thokozani Khupe, he has become an A++ student of Morgan studies. You are what groomed you.