The more things change, the more they remain the same. After the fervour of the march against Mugabe, all the whispers of the junta and grenades, uproar of 2018 elections and hopes of citizens that this time Zanu PF was history, things are pretty much the same.
When one looks at Zimbabwe’s political terrain, there is a feeling that the spark is missing. The spark is missing primarily in the citizens. Siding with the military in removing Mugabe felt good, but what was the long term view to that action?
Even as we lament the junta, we must actually be celebrating that we dodged a bullet. The military could have easily taken over political administration in a very blatant manner and there would be citizens celebrating by the tanks up to today. Thankfully, they did not.
Over and above all other considerations, citizens justified the removal of Mugabe because he had rigged in 2013. We are a nation that largely believes in an eye for an eye. We should really look at those Christian statistics and values again. We must do more to be Christians in the true sense.
That is neither here nor there though, the real worry is lack of a thought-out end-game by citizens. We value emotions and slogans over reason. Having a different view is a crime that is punished by insults and other actions, clouding debate in any topic.
The latest acceptable norm is that everyone must support the opposition without question. Everyone is expected to tear down the regime and where facts are lacking, one must fabricate. None of us are thinking of the net results of our actions to democratic norms we claim to pursue.
If we all congregate around one party, we are running a clear and present danger of creating another dictatorship. Power is corrupt but too much power is a dictatorship. As one dictatorship walks out of government, another will walk in, created and given blessings by us, the people.
The 2018 elections saw a massive rejection of independent candidates as citizens voted for their parties regardless of whether or not they knew the party candidates, let alone what the candidates stood for. After the elections, citizens were calling on Mnangagwa to appoint technocrats to cabinet, even though they had not voted for technocrats.
Almost every citizen knows that party politics has killed communities due to bickering, leading to lack of development. One would therefore expect some citizens to neutralise party politics by voting for independents, who can easily glide between parties to focus on delivering for voters. But no.
More than 80% of urban constituencies are facing the same problem since formation of the MDC. Council and parliament seats are MDC and central government is under Zanu PF, who in this ninth parliament has a super majority. One can almost predict the 2023 election results.
Meanwhile citizens continue to boil the rock expecting it to turn into meat, only to be disappointed after dishing the rock. We will vote again along party lines and retain the same structure that is not delivering results for us. We are experiencing an advanced form of the Stockholm syndrome.
One of the biggest reasons why we are in this cul-de-sac as citizens is because we want instant results. The second reason is that we do not want to think our actions through and take ownership of results. We act, delegate authority and adopt a hands-free approach to issues of governance.
Citizens, another new normal is here. We are celebrating or ridiculing the cabinet, as we have done before. We wish the government to fail and yet want to go to work, as we have done before. We bribe the police while lamenting corruption, as we have done before. The new normal is here.
The only way to have the new that is not normal is to change us first. We must hold our leaders to account. We must stop voting against something but begin to vote for what we desire. We must cherish debate so that we exchange ideas. Let’s love hard work. Last and not least, remember Rome was not built in a day.
Fungai Chiposi contested as an Independent MP for Southerton Constituency during 2018 Elections. He is a Community Development Activist. For further interaction, email; fchiposi@gmail.com
When one looks at Zimbabwe’s political terrain, there is a feeling that the spark is missing. The spark is missing primarily in the citizens. Siding with the military in removing Mugabe felt good, but what was the long term view to that action?
Even as we lament the junta, we must actually be celebrating that we dodged a bullet. The military could have easily taken over political administration in a very blatant manner and there would be citizens celebrating by the tanks up to today. Thankfully, they did not.
Over and above all other considerations, citizens justified the removal of Mugabe because he had rigged in 2013. We are a nation that largely believes in an eye for an eye. We should really look at those Christian statistics and values again. We must do more to be Christians in the true sense.
That is neither here nor there though, the real worry is lack of a thought-out end-game by citizens. We value emotions and slogans over reason. Having a different view is a crime that is punished by insults and other actions, clouding debate in any topic.
The latest acceptable norm is that everyone must support the opposition without question. Everyone is expected to tear down the regime and where facts are lacking, one must fabricate. None of us are thinking of the net results of our actions to democratic norms we claim to pursue.
If we all congregate around one party, we are running a clear and present danger of creating another dictatorship. Power is corrupt but too much power is a dictatorship. As one dictatorship walks out of government, another will walk in, created and given blessings by us, the people.
The 2018 elections saw a massive rejection of independent candidates as citizens voted for their parties regardless of whether or not they knew the party candidates, let alone what the candidates stood for. After the elections, citizens were calling on Mnangagwa to appoint technocrats to cabinet, even though they had not voted for technocrats.
Almost every citizen knows that party politics has killed communities due to bickering, leading to lack of development. One would therefore expect some citizens to neutralise party politics by voting for independents, who can easily glide between parties to focus on delivering for voters. But no.
More than 80% of urban constituencies are facing the same problem since formation of the MDC. Council and parliament seats are MDC and central government is under Zanu PF, who in this ninth parliament has a super majority. One can almost predict the 2023 election results.
Meanwhile citizens continue to boil the rock expecting it to turn into meat, only to be disappointed after dishing the rock. We will vote again along party lines and retain the same structure that is not delivering results for us. We are experiencing an advanced form of the Stockholm syndrome.
One of the biggest reasons why we are in this cul-de-sac as citizens is because we want instant results. The second reason is that we do not want to think our actions through and take ownership of results. We act, delegate authority and adopt a hands-free approach to issues of governance.
Citizens, another new normal is here. We are celebrating or ridiculing the cabinet, as we have done before. We wish the government to fail and yet want to go to work, as we have done before. We bribe the police while lamenting corruption, as we have done before. The new normal is here.
The only way to have the new that is not normal is to change us first. We must hold our leaders to account. We must stop voting against something but begin to vote for what we desire. We must cherish debate so that we exchange ideas. Let’s love hard work. Last and not least, remember Rome was not built in a day.
Fungai Chiposi contested as an Independent MP for Southerton Constituency during 2018 Elections. He is a Community Development Activist. For further interaction, email; fchiposi@gmail.com
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