Black market politics anathema
It is indeed a tragic irony that, renowned as topping the list of most educated people on the African continent, Zimbabweans have failed for nearly 40 years to write the story of their troubled journey through colonial bondage and to freedom and selfdetermination in 1980 and that to serve as a mirror reflecting their dark days of history before the break of a new dawn on April 18, 1980.
WHEN people as a nation lose track of a radar that guided them through the diabolic dark days of their political emasculation and vilification by foreign rulers, the future becomes like a meandering dark hole in the ground into and out of which only snakes manoeuvre, in the latter case to seek survival.
Nearly four decades of independence down the line, life in Zimbabwe today almost resembles the meandering dark hole in the ground with Machiavellian snakes nicodemously wriggling out of their habitat to outsource material and moral support from the black market, and in the process giving Zimbabwe’s external foes unwarranted leeway to dabble in the domestic affairs of another country.
The reason for the blunderers acts of selling out the country to foreigners, especially by power-hungry politicians can be put down to a single anomaly, and this relates to the loss of a revolutionary radar which guided the gallant sons and daughters in wrenching the motherland from the hand of her foreign abductors during the armed revolution.
It is indeed a tragic irony that, renowned as topping the list of most educated people on the African continent, Zimbabweans have failed for nearly 40 years to write the story of their troubled journey through colonial bondage and to freedom and self-determination in 1980 and that to serve as a mirror reflecting their dark days of history before the break of a new dawn on April 18, 1980.
In fact, one would have thought, indeed expected that, in his long reign from1980 to 2017, former president Robert Mugabe would have caused his Government to set up a team of experts to immortalise the freedom struggle in cold print to vivify the revolution as a guide for future generations of Zimbabweans in order for them to eschew any motive for selling the country to foreigners for dirty money to swell their own bellies and pride.
February 21, two days ago, was a public holiday marking the National Youth Day which coincided with the birthday of the former president, Mr Mugabe.
Ideally, the youth of this country ought to have brandished to the outside world the written history of the liberation struggle for Zimbabwe and proudly declared: “we brought freedom and independence to the motherland and we remain ready and prepared to defend these values with our lives, if necessary come, what may.”
However, since the sheet of liberation history remains blank, some Zimbabweans not born during the armed revolution or were toddlers during that period, have nothing to fall back on for their political guidance and are thus wont to sup with contemporary imperialists in the search for material and political support to get into power and power at any cost.
But unknown to these political villains, there is always a price tag attached to the assistance sought by the power-hungry and this is that the foreigners will rule the poor Africans by remote control should the latter accede to power.
In the case of Zimbabwe and in relation to the foregoing, it is hoped at least by this pen that a team of historians will be assembled in the current, second republic to write the history of where this country came from and how this happened.
This is important because as this pen has repeatedly stated in these columns, liberation history has the effect of fertilising knowledge and awareness of the hidden agendas of foreign governments that are approached for support materially and morally by those in smaller nations who are blinded by their craving for power however tenuous that value might be.
But Zimbabweans must of necessity take heed of President Mnangagwa’s recent exhortations for our people to concern themselves more with efforts that help to develop the nation and not vice versa.
His call suggests that Zimbabweans should be proud of being their own saviours by working hard and in unity, peace and tranquillity to increase production at workplaces and exports to earn the much needed foreign currency to help drive the economy currently in virtual doldrums because of inimical Western economic sanctions.
There is no doubt that if the country’s image is face-lifted foreign direct inflows of investment will follow, particularly from countries that supported the freedom struggle and crossed the bridge together with us and have remained as all-weather friends of this nation.