| President Mugabe’s September UN General Assembly Tradition |
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A Discussion Paper by Cont Mhlanga
President Mugabe has just landed back home from the UN General Assembly promising two key developments to a starving to death nation, ‘..new cabinet by end of week and no policy change despite the GNU agreement...’
Remember it is these policies that have brought the nation to where it is today and there he goes; he is not changing the policies! The agreement?... just forget it. All he is telling the starving nation is that he has hired Mr. Tswangirai as Prime Minister so that he can do for his new look government international PR work to call for the removal of sanctions!
That is President Mugabe for you! Knowing him as we do, he is not joking.
There shall be no policy change for sure and life is going to get worse for ordinary people while he continues to protect those close to him to continue looting national resources as he has done in the past. This policy as he says will not change!
In September 2004 President Mugabe while addressing the UN General Assembly as he has just done this September week, his senior politicians and his police force where pulling down and burning 128 family homes in Mfazimithi section of uMguza District in Matebeleland North because some politician wanted the farm for himself. Old women and little kids of below 2 years spent 5 weeks sleeping on the side of the Airport Road, homeless while President Mugabe slept well in New York!
When he landed he expressed the same sentiments.. ‘ to hell with the British and the Americans, we are moving on with our home grown land policy..’ it did not change and things got worse’. The story of Mfazimithi farm is a sad one but I will not go into that now as this is not the reason for my writing.
This September 2008 President Mugabe was back in New York to shine as usual while his senior politicians and his police force back home were busy stealing maize, seeds, fuel, baccossi all meant for the villagers across the country leaving children and even the critically ill dying of hunger.
Old women and orphans eat roots, leaves, wild berries like giraffes while President Mugabe dined well in New York. It was homeless ness in September 2004 while he was at the UN, remember Murambatswina and its empty stomachs this September while he is back there. Will he ever be at the UN leaving home a celebrating and prospering nation?
Questions What is wrong with President Mugabe’s administrative judgment? Why are his administrators able to take him for a ride and make him a fool among the villagers when he is such a learned genius? Why does President Mugabe take joy in grooming thieves and corrupt public administrators? Why does he protect these selfish chaps some of whom were top class liberators but have now become serpents of the villages and the townships? Why protect them even over young helpless children and old women? Does this point to a secret personal and political weakness that those of us who burn from the decisions of his corrupt bureaucracy from a distance do not know and this makes it impossible for him to control those in his system that know of these crucial secrets that he wants buried for ever so that he can become Africa’s long live the Hero? After being head of state for close to three decades what are his ambitions?
While he dines well this evening back from good dining in America kids in rural districts will feed on grass and roots, yet he comes back with a hero’s smile to say no policy will change. This means including the policy on corruption will remain unchanged with senior leaders and government administrators remaining protected to steal.. Mr. Tswangirai and his team in the new agreement will enjoy these policies too in the new government.
I cannot put my finger on what is wrong with President Mugabe’s administrative judgment, but something is seriously wrong with the President.
Listening I am sure that President Mugabe is the only President in the SADC who listens only to his radio and television channel and of course the international media hunting for what it is saying about him, which explains why he is so defensive about what he is doing in his country every time he opens his mouth to talk. Where else does he listen to his own nation’s voices that are critical to what is going on in the country that he leads? No where. He cannot even choose to do so one evening, sit down and listen to local critical voices discuss critical issues on the electronic media. How can a wise President of all the people listen only to nice voices and opinions of those that are in his system? How can he make good administrative judgments in an ice block conditioned mind? He does not even know what the ordinary people are saying about the just signed political deal! He knows what every one else in the world is saying about it except his own nation. ‘Liberate those airwaves President and get first hand information of what is going on in the minds of the nation and on the ground. It will only make you a better public administrator who will not be proud to breed a corrupt nation.’
Thieves Just last week Minister Chombo a long time serving member of President Mugabe’s government was on the news telling all Zimbabweans that Chiefs who steal from government and from their subjects must not be arrested.
Reasons? Because it is embarrassing to arrest a Chief! He was addressing Chiefs at the National Chief’s Annual Conference in Bulawayo. He even sent a circular to the District Administrators to that effect. What public administration political nonsense from a respected statesman is this?
As I write today villagers at our ward in Matshiya have a serious stand off with the Acting Chief Headman K. Somanyanga Ngwenya for rampant misconduct and theft of maize meant for starving villagers with the support of the District Drought Relief Task Force which ironically is led by the District Police Chief. Two weeks ago he collected money from villagers of ward 14 of Menyezwa in a call he made that he was going to buy them maize for their villages. He went to the Grain Company and purchased the 200 bags and only delivered half to the ward with the rest going to the parallel market in Hwange and Victoria Falls to be sold for South African Rands and US Dollars by the Acting Chiefs connections.
Something is seriously wrong and abnormal with this, but it is exactly what is happening.
This is protection and encouragement of corruption and theft at its highest level by a government Minister. My question to President Mugabe is why is this gentleman still Minister? President Mugabe after getting all these academic degrees has never come across the phrase ‘kicking some ass out of office’? The reason is simple; the President who is supposed to be powerful is powerless in this scenario. He cannot dismiss any one. Look at it this way; the maize company Manager misinforms the Task Force, who intern misinforms the District Administrator who then misinforms the Minister, who then misinforms the President who then rewards every one in the line of public management for a job well done. News papers, radio and Television all of which is government controlled says what the President would like to hear most of which is far removed from the realities on the ground. This is total disempowerment and mental imprisonment of the President.
Petition The villagers have since printed petition papers to collect signatures to get the district task force to be dissolved, the Grain Company district manager to be transferred to some other district and the Acting Chief to be suspended and investigated. They are demanding a transparent system that will afford all villagers to buy the little food that is available fairly.
Guess how these people that are protected by Minister Chombo who in turn is protected by President Mugabe who in turn is protected by his party Zanu PF have responded? They have decided that they will not sell maize to the villagers in this particular ward until they with draw their silly petition. They want to see where they will buy maize and food from. They are starving them to death for calling for an end to corruption and for a transparent food distribution schedule. Children now eat roots and wild dry berries for survival. Grandmothers have been dumped with orphans to feed them on tree barks like squirrels while the politicians and their public administrators spoil themselves to Dr Gono’s elite fattening schemes on behalf of the suffering masses.
It’s always a great pleasure to listen to President Mugabe speak at the UN General Assembly. How ever for the President, speeches are what they are, just speeches to impress his admirers. Action and facts on the ground prove that the President is a wonderful political sport for those close to him and a terrible failure as a public administrator.
What type of Independence did our nationalist fight for? What type of independence and freedom is this that does not benefit the majority of our people but just a few? What kind of a leader is this who is taken for a good sport by those that he appoints and gives responsibility? What kind of a leader is this who is fed with lies and remains unmoved by this betrayal? President Mugabe- what kind of a leader is this? Some things must change. A lot of things must change. It how ever looks like the President has to change first before any thing else can change, polices included!
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