Zim: A flower growing from concrete

Gibson Nyikadzino

Correspondent

THE Bible story of prophet Nehemiah and his mission to rebuild Jerusalem makes a sad reading for those that wished him failure and wanted to harm him. 

Characters like Tobiah and Sanballat were keen to harm Nehemiah and stop his mission by sowing discord and commotion among the people of Israel. 

With all that opposition, Nehemiah managed to organise the people and started to rebuild Jerusalem “brick upon brick” while coming from exile. 

Jerusalem was in ruins, but because of determination, organisation and unity, every effort was fruitful. Nehemiah prioritised action over cheap talk. The case of rebuilding Zimbabwe is the same. The rebuilding mission is no easy task. The Tobiahs of this modern State have ganged up with their friends, the Sanballats, to tear every line of progress that Zimbabwe is making. Their efforts to pull Zimbabwe down have been sychronised with fervent religiosity and sow divisions like what was done in Jerusalem back then. 

Similarly, Zimbabwe’s rebuilding initiative, just like that of Jerusalem, is facing tense and angry opposition. This manifest anger is not only local, but some is visibly foreign sponsored. It is not easy to rebuild and Zimbabwe is doing so under strenuous conditions. 

For all the reasons, if there is one thing that has become familiar with President Mnangagwa’s development specimen for Zimbabwe is his preference of pragmatism to populism and rhetoric. 

The economic fundamentals that his administration addressed since November 2017, the job opportunities in the infrastructure sector, the desire to see a food secure nation, the establishment of more schools and health centres in rural areas under the devolution initiative are platforms of growth towards Vision 2030. 

A new look and outlook of Zimbabwe is being evidenced by the “brick upon brick” philosophy evoked by President Mnangagwa as an example of what the country truly needs. 

The reconfiguration of the economy from the Transitional Stabilisation Programme (TSP) to the National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1) has been a painful exercise coupled with austerity measures and a tightening of seat belts, yet worth it. Before President Mnangagwa’s ascension, a lot of rhetoric and populism characterised the nation’s politics without any systematic forms of development that resembled Zimbabwe’s greatness. 

Ruinous populist policies that drove the nation into neo-colonial squalor had become the order of the day, and others cheered to that in ignorance.

 The immense natural and human resources were previously left to waste as people focused more on the populist rhetoric of the old order. 

Many were drunk with power and the proximity to power that they had forgotten there were serious tasks ahead that needed to be dealt with. But taking over a nation that was in the doldrums, economically, President Mnangagwa has unlocked a great conundrum in the quest of Zimbabwe’s development.

A young, but determined state, has managed to resist the vagaries of animosity that have come through economic sanctions and denied access to financial markets. 

The degree of dishonest employed by the west in trying to label Zimbabwe a pariah state remains a script that has been choreographed, however, disjointedly. 

During the George Floyd protests under the Black Lives Matter movement, the USA administration singled out Zimbabwe as an African nation that was instigating chaos in USA capitals through social media platforms. 

Locally, a ‘Zimbabwe Lives Matter movement’ was also coordinated, sponsored by the embassies of some powerful nations that poured money into the ‘movement’ through the use of civic organisations and some ‘church’ organisations. The embassies trained leaders of protests in ‘strategy’ in order to destabilise the state in the name of democracy, upholding human rights and enabling fundamental freedoms. 

Western diplomats stationed in Zimbabwe broke protocol and expansively found pleasure in using the opposition as pawns as a pretext to wage a psychological warfare against Zimbabwe. The non-African church on the other hand was at the fore of advocacy for imperial domination without a clear understanding of statecraft. The labour market had been politicised by former Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) president Peter Mutasa, the medical profession had also been politicised by the circumstances created by one medical ‘doctor’ Peter Magombeyi, who today is said to have received a scholarship because of his ‘bravery’ in soiling Zimbabwe. 

Under the claim that they are law-abiding citizens, the opposition youth like Obey Sithole have skipped the country’s borders while yet to be cleared of public disorder charges and made way to European countries for scholarship opportunities. They disregard the law and use the ‘struggle’ rhetoric for selfish motives and not for their professed love of Zimbabwe. 

Under the Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ) group led by one Obert Masaraure, there is incontrovertible evidence that this congregation is not about the teachers, but a way to get ‘funding’ and personal enrichment. 

The middle-men of neo-imperialists who Karl Marx termed the “comprador bourgeoise” have since the inception of the Second Republic continued to make incessant prayers for the downfall of Zimbabwe, prayers which have gone unanswered, and will never be answered. 

These supplications have been made in endless adoration of the neo-imperialist order by opposition leaders that continue to wrestle the nation’s values, ethos and history just to sell the state’s foundations for a mere thirty pieces of silver. Even when such prayers wish to push Zimbabwe to a cul-de-sac, the gigantic strides Zimbabwe continues to make under the Second Republic exhibit a great resolve to fight and defend the one nation available to us.

While it is a citizen’s right to have a political choice of their own, there are some choices that are a danger on the doorstep of the nation. 

While the Zanu PF Government is fighting hard to nurture the “do it yourself” mentality in rebuilding the country, the opposition has made choices to prepare the nation for an imperialist takeover. 

Where Zanu PF has invited and initiated dialogue among political leaders, the opposition have advocated for rebellion. 

Where it has used every platform to try and re-engage the world, the opposition has urged the world to turn down Zimbabwe’s aspirations. These are the same ‘leaders’ who claim to be loving Zimbabwe more than others, yet driven by such premonition. 

Their claim is no one can rebuild Zimbabwe better than them. That is only rhetoric. The task ahead cannot be completed through rhetoric, populism and celebrity politics. 

Zanu PF’s task is not only to rebuild the country, but also to rejuvenate and recalibrate the minds of the people to see the idea behind the “do it yourself” exercise.

 It is a progressive acquisition of African consciousness that will see the country mature and develop in a healthy way. 

Development is happening and is being managed under very difficult conditions, including the burden of sanctions. 

The energy development projects, food security initiatives, the devolution agenda, the liberalisation of airwaves and the democratisation of the country’s institutions are all feasible targets only when there is great mobilisation and unity against the Tobiahs and Sanballats in our presence. While we cannot wish away the presence of economic sanctions, President Mnangagwa has indicated that some strides can be made under difficult conditions. 

More schools and health care facilities are being built while the recruitment of teachers and medical staff continues. 

This can only be done “brick upon brick” as it was for the rebuilding of Jerusalem. 

Even if Zimbabwe cannot, at the moment, fly, run or crawl to success, it is undeniable that the nation is going forward. We shall overcome.

Zimbabweans, remember we are one! 

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