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Charity Maodza Correspondent
DURING the highly subscribed Presidential-Youth Interface Rally in Mashonaland Central Province on Saturday, President Mugabe gave a rich lecture on the history of tribalism in the country and how it threatened national aspirations. The President graphically described how the scourge of tribalism almost derailed the liberation struggle as some cadres sought to monopolise it by giving it a regional complexion.

He also recalled how the scourge reared its ugly head after independence as some Cabinet ministers heavily stuffed their departments with homeboys and homegirls to the chagrin of the national leadership.

The President further bemoaned the residual tribal sentiments in zanu-pf, which he denounced and warned against.

However, thanks to his astute leadership, the vice of tribalism was resolutely tamed, leading to its failure to derail national aspirations during the liberation struggle and thereafter.

Together with the late Father Zimbabwe, Dr Joshua Nkomo, President Mugabe managed to plug all tribal fault lines and unite the people.

Their efforts saw the two nationalists signing the Unity Accord in 1987, which brought unity to all Zimbabweans.

This unity is celebrated everyday and annually commemorated on December 22.

The pursuit of national unity and development is what separates President Mugabe from the rest of other political players, making him an indispensable glue that unites people from all ethnic backgrounds.

While others are mere politicians, President Mugabe is a nationalist who sees beyond race, ethnicity and religion. However, the same cannot be said of opposition leaders who seem more inclined to piggyback on ethnic fault lines for political capital.

The current tiff between MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai and his deputy, Thokozani Khupe, is panning out to be a tribal matter.

The two opposition leaders are publicly playing the tribal card.

In order to shroud his leadership deficiencies and systematic failure to consult his deputy on coalition dealings, Tsvangirai resorted to publicly accusing Khupe of using ethnic politics in order to safeguard her personal interests in Matabeleland.

Instead of focusing on amicably resolving their political differences over the consummation of the MDC Alliance, the two chose to wrestle in tribal waters.

On her part, Khupe wrote to Tsvangirai, claiming that he erroneously acceded to an alliance agreement that unfairly parcelled out a number of constituencies in her ethnic domain to other alliance partners.

She further claimed that Tsvangirai was making unilateral decisions that undermined contributions reportedly made by people in her region to retain the MDC-T leader’s supposed influence in Matabeleland.

The tribal conflagration between the two incensed many, including other opposition actors such as the Alliance for National Salvation (ANSA) leader Moses Mzila Ndlovu, who openly castigated Tsvangirai for stoking tribal fires.

Speaking to a local paper last week, Ndlovu said Tsvangirai’s tribal charges against Khupe were “recklessly selfish, insensitive and dumb”.

The ANSA leader further noted that the MDC-T leader “lacks the mental capacity to comprehend what accounts for sound tribal and racial relations as a basis for social harmony.”

He further submitted that Tsvangirai has for long used tribal differences for political gain. He said; “Tsvangirai is an unthankful political beneficiary of the tribal discontent in Matabeleland.”

The use of ethnic politics for political benefit is not new in opposition circles.

After breaking away from Tsvangirai, MDC leader Professor Welshman Ncube, played the tribal card by pushing a divisive agenda of federalism and devolution, mainly targeted at the Matabeleland region.

His divisive politics made him so unpopular that even his lieutenants ditched him, leaving him to virtually run a one-man party.

Other fly-by-night opposition tribal outfits include the Mthwakazi Liberation Front that is lobbying for the physical division of the country into two, to create what it calls an independent Mthwakazi State in Matabeleland.

In their selfishness, opposition leaders forget that tribal conflagrations have claimed millions of lives globally, as seen in Rwanda where hundreds of thousands were killed during the 1994 genocide.

The Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission (ZHRC) should be seized with such matters where politicians seek to divide Zimbabweans along tribal lines, which could lead to violence and instability.