Mugabe rules by diversion

Mugabe rules by diversion

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By Tamuka C. Chirimambowa

IN 2000 when the Zimbabwe crisis reached the crescendo, it was the white commercial farmers in cahoots with the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) that were undermining the economy through calling for sanctions and fighting land redistribution.

Posters and press campaigns of the ruling Zanu PF parroted the same message monotonously. ‘Zimbabwe will never be a colony again’, ‘The land is the economy, the economy is land’ and ‘Reclaiming our sovereignty and territorial integrity’; were some of the messages that Zanu PF invented to divert the attention of Zimbabwe from the real issues affecting the economy. Thus people were made to believe that through land invasions, they were going to be made farm owners and automatically become prosperous.

Many Zimbabweans were misled, and right until today, there is chaos and bleak hope on the farms. This article seeks to make a contribution to recent developments that have been happening in Zimbabwe, arguing diversion has become Mugabe’s tactic of ruling.

Mugabe has so far successfully managed to divert attention from the Zanu PF birthed economic malaise and political quagmire that has been nagging the country for the past decade. There is need for Zimbabweans to remain focused and give Zanu PF a retrenchment package in the forthcoming 2008 elections.

In 2000 it was the Bureau de Changes that were claimed to be causing the massive devaluation of the Zimbabwe currency on the parallel market. The government alleged that Bureau de Changes were engaged in clandestine deals outside their normal activities and fuelling the parallel market. The result was a closure of Bureau de Changes, and strict controls of foreign currency. There was a temporary drop of the rate of the parallel market and suddenly after a few days the exchange rate skyrocketed again.

For a few days a lot of people lived in fools’ paradise, forgetting that mismanagement of the economy had resulted in the crushing of the Zimbabwe dollar. There was no-one who was willing to go to the official market since our currency was overvalued. It is common sense that people will always go to the bidder who is willing to pay the real value for their product, and following that logic, no-one would have gone to the official market.

Nevertheless to Mugabe and his sycophants, it was the bureaus’ fault. Seven years later, the exchange rate continues to plummet and foreign currency is still scarce.

Gideon Gono’s crackdown on the financial sector was the other point of diversion. People were made to believe that the hyperinflation being experienced by the country was as a result of the financial sector being involved in illicit deals and speculation on the parallel market. This led to a closure of banks and the prosecution of several businesses. These measures, like the ones before them, failed to address the economic ills affecting the country.

Zanu PF termed the 2005 parliamentary elections ‘Anti-Blair’. This time the major problem was argued to be Tony Blair, despite that this was a head of state of another country who was not even eligible to contest. One wondered how Blair would become an electoral issue in a country in which he holds no citizenship. Thus people were not to discuss bread and butter issues, but Blair (Alas!). By the way Blair resigned from office, but we still have problems.

The year 2005 saw another antic from Zanu PF, when there was a crackdown on informal traders. It was argued that Flea Markets and Tuck Shops were hoarding and channeling products to the parallel market. The measure was a closure of flea markets and tuck shops despite a lot of people losing their livelihoods. This was expanded further to include backyard cottages and even legitimate building structures in the name of Operation Murambatsvina.

What the authorities forgot was that it is them who have become filthy to the country and thus need to be discarded. This daylight robbery of ordinary people’s livelihoods was argued to be supposed to eradicate shortages of basic commodities, but this was not the case.

The most recent has been Operation Dzikisa (Lower Prices), which has been targeting business across all sectors. The logic of the government’s argument has been that business is colluding with Britain to increase prices to topple it. Such a siege mentality is very frightening; from a government that is digging its own grave.

Zanu PF is like the proverbial fool that cuts the branch of the tree that it is sitting on. Mugabe forgets that the printing of money and buying foreign currency on the parallel market by the Reserve Bank has been causing the crushing of the Zimbabwe dollar on the parallel market. Even Mugabe publicly admitted on television printing money to pay the IMF. There seems to be amnesia in government that their voodoo economics is the one destroying the economy not business.

The latest attempt to divert the people’s attention has been the case of the Archbishop Pius Ncube. The story lacks any factual coherence and substance in it to vindicate the allegations made. It is one of the typical poorly directed ZBC dramas such as the Cain Nkala murder case. Zanu PF’s main attempt is to divert the attention of the people from the shortages in the shops, since the honeymoon is over, to this alleged case of adultery. The major question is how would the committing of adultery by an archbishop solve our imminent economic and political collapse?

All along Mugabe has perfected the art of diversion, which would lead us to losing focus lest we are not careful. There is need to be constantly vigilant and fight Mugabe’s dictatorship until it becomes history. We are approaching the 2008 elections and Mugabe will keep on trying to delude us from focusing on the real issues.

There is need from Zimbabweans from all walks of life to avoid falling victim to Zanu PF’s tomfoolery. We cannot keep on being diverted from the real issues forever. The banning of cross-border trading in foodstuffs is another attempt at diverting the people’s energies to forget about the elections. There is need to be extra careful, and to ‘Seek the political kingdom first’ as Kwame Nkrumah once remarked.

The Struggle Continues.

Tamuka Charles Chirimambowa writes from the University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
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