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When his son repeated the statement, he went mad with anger.
He took a stick and began beating his son. It was only when his wife intervened that he stopped beating the child.

Amidst the tears the young boy remarked, “ko munodini kurova vana vemurungu wenyu pavanokudaidzai nezita renyu? (Why did you not beat the white man’s children when they call you by name?). He was short for words and stormed into the house.

On his old small and worn out radio a song was being played, “Baba vaboy maita seiko, kuuya nehalf yepay, tuchipisi tuchingwa twasiwa nevarungu, inhamo!”
A month later he disappeared.

That was how he joined the liberation struggle and later to meet Chairman Chitepo, Josiah Magama Tongogara, Cde Robert Mugabe, and Edgar Tekere among other comrades.

Iron rusts, wood decays and all this is a result of a struggle.
A long time ago before his untimely death and before he had even joined the struggle Herbert Chitepo wrote an epic poem, “Soko risina Musoro’’ translated to mean A Tale Without A Head.

It was an epic poem of a wanderer.
In the poem, Cde Herbert Chitepo was very much committed to African nationalism and the African cause.

It was this desire for freedom that compelled  Chitepo to get involved in politics not as a passive observer but as a participant to further the African cause.
He played a very significant role in executing and transforming the nationalist struggle into the revolutionary vanguard it is today.

This is why we contend that after having attained independence the spirits of Herbert Chitepo and other fallen heroes and heroines must be allowed to rest in eternal peace but this can only be done after the fulfilment of all the goals of the liberation struggle.

It is because of this that we find it befitting to write a “flip” side of Chitepo’s A Tale Without A Head, as a reminder to fellow Zimbabweans to vote wisely in the forth-coming harmonised elections.

As Zimbabwe countdown to the watershed harmonised elections the Zanu-PF leadership must be aware that for a struggle to be successful it must be executed and organised by a vanguard leadership just as the leadership that spearheaded the Chimurenga wars so that Zimbabweans would become free.

Neither must they be distracted nor allow themselves to lose sight of the goals of the liberation struggle.
It is quite apparent that the Western sponsored puppets will always be looking for excuses so that they can argue that the elections would not be free and fair.

This can not be ruled out given Morgan Tsvangirai and Simba Makoni’s utterances after the 33rd Independence day celebrations in Harare.
Zanu-PF party came into existence so that the people would have more than just flag independence and this is the reason why the majority of Zimbabweans supported the land reform programme and are also supporting the indigenisation and empowerment exercise.

The disturbances that have rocked the Zanu-PF party in Manicaland are uncalled for and are in fact a mockery of the dedication by fallen heroes like Chitepo, Nyagumbo and many others be they from Manicaland or other Zimbabwean provinces.

We contend that these challenges are going to be quickly resolved so that the party will be able to reclaim the parliamentary seats that they lost to the opposition in the province.

What the Zimbabwean electorate want are leaders who are not divisive but dedicated cadres who carry out faithfully tasks given to them by the party to serve the people.
Leaders of a party must therefore be servants of the people though in their own fashion.

Chairman Chitepo and other fallen heroes and some who are still alive did that.
Progressive Zimbabweans cannot afford another “bhora musango” in Manicaland or any other province this time.

President Mugabe has been on the forefront, giving everything to see to it that Zimbabweans benefit from their God-given resources.
The saying goes, you can take a horse to the river but you cannot force it to drink.

It is beyond doubt that most of the people in Manicaland support Zanu-PF policies but what they do not want are impositions on who to represent them.
We still want to see a parliamentary leadership that is committed, leaders whom the people understand, and leaders who will never tire until the ultimate battle is won.

Zimbabweans must try to reflect on what President Mugabe means when he says “Zimbabwe will never be a colony again!, this fist is never a fist against the people but for the people. Peace begins with me, peace begins with you and peace begins with all of us.”

How did these slogans come to be?
One cannot be far from the truth if one argues that these slogans came in light of Zimbabwe’s specific conditions, on the basis of the recognition that various kinds of contradictions still exist in this country.

These slogans are firmly fixed in the Chimurenga. They are a response to the country’s urgent need to speed up the land reform and the indigenisation and empowerment exercise.
Zimbabwe must not be allowed to be at the bidding of any foreign nation.

It is because of the blood that was shed the tears that were shed because of the pains endured during the liberation struggle and the tears of joy that were shed when the Union Jack flag was lowered in 1980.

Zimbabweans can defend the gains of the liberation struggle by voting wisely and it is through the ballot box that they can show the world that they do not want foreign interference.

Zimbabwe is a heritage handed down to us by our ancestors. All progressive Zimbabweans must not succumb to the temptations of being assimilates to neo-colonialism.
The party should continue teaching the ‘youngsters’, the youth to understand party programmes and prepare them for the future so that they will be selfless dedicated cadres in the character of the Parirenyatwas, J.Z Moyos, Joshua Nkomos etc.

They must be committed not only to their ideas but to the ideas of the party and must exude evidence of having absorbed the party ideas.
In developing a patriotic youth the party will be developing the productive forces who will work for the elimination of poverty raising the people’s standard of living otherwise they might fail to discern why they must triumph against neo-colonialism.

The first decade of the 21st century has been used well by the Zanu-PF party to prepare for the second because it is the one that is now determining policies that must be followed and protected by future generations. The people’s enthusiasm has been aroused and must not be allowed to fizzle away.

They are already masters of their own destinies and are kings in the economic making.
This is why we are worried about the so-called divisions in the party.

Divisions impede progress, and this why we strongly opine that the party must be made up of people who have exemplary moral conduct to be worthy members of the revolutionary Zanu-PF party.

The party’s objective must be to ensure progress and happiness for the people and this can only happen when Zanu-PF supporters go to vote and give the party a resounding victory.

The party must, therefore, be on guard against opportunists or spoilers.
These are the people who are not able to articulate party policies or to even make a clear report of what is happening in the areas where they come from, leaders who are strangers to their own constituencies.

The Third Chimurenga has given power to the people and there is no other thing but their vote that will cement what they have already gained. Time has now come for the different party leaders and parliamentarians to reap what they have sown. If they sowed wind then they are aware of what they are going to reap.

It is not a secret that Zanu-PF has done commendable work and they must continue to do so.
The party leadership must continue to show its unwavering commitment for the betterment of the lives of the common men and women in the street.

We support President Mugabe the freedom fighter, the pan-Africanist, the father and voice of the oppressed for continually fighting for the rights of the Zimbabwean people and total economic emancipation to which we express our wishes for continual success. The land reform and the indigenisation and empowerment programmes are indeed the much needed ‘miracle’ for Zimbabwe’s development.

The vanguard of the Zimbabwean revolution must continually mobilise’ organise and politically educate the people about national interests, what affects their lives so that they can participate in burying once and for all the GNU monster.

This is the tale that we decided to tell Zimbabweans as we celebrate our 33rd independence; “Makorokoto, Amhlope, congratulations!”

Darlington N. Mahuku & Bowden B. C. Mbanje are lecturers in international relations, and peace and governance at Bindura University of Science Education