Whitlaw Tanyanyiwa Mugwiji

I have been wanting to write a piece on Christianity for a very long time especially after the Makandiwa conference where people had to pay money to hear the word of God and those who could not pay the aforementioned gate fee were barred entrance into the bounty of God`s grace. This is perhaps globalization, but perhaps globalization too far, of course this has been done and it is still being done by churches in the developed West. The most unfortunate thing is that we are like sheep we follow blindly. But let it be known that when it comes to God Africa is way much ahead because by nature we are simply much more spiritual. 

The problem is that the church has become so worldly all they ever preach about is material wealth. Attending church these days is no more than attending a how to get rich seminar. Luckily the principles they teach actually work but that is beside the point, the church should concentrate on what matters the most, saving souls and to take from the words of the Master himself he said “seek ye the kingdom of God first and everything shall be added unto you”. I can hear someone say well the church has to cover the costs and someone has to pay for that, oh please come on, why not ask people to bring whatever they can afford so that everyone has an opportunity to hear the gospel.

A friend of mine wrote on his Facebook wall, that he badly wanted to attend that conference but couldn't because he was so broke. Its however unfortunate that his status was not very different to the many status updates I saw on Facebook when Sean Paul came to Harare, of people failing to go because they didn't have money. Then there must be something wrong there, this should not be taken to mean that he is not a man of God, I personally believe he is but what it simply means is that he is as human as can be and therefore fallible. And when humans err they stand to be corrected and I hope I have done just that. Now is the time for the true Christians to stand up and speak the truth of God without fear or favor 

The church should not be quiet when our leaders in positions of authority like our beloved Prime Minister go about behaving irresponsibly, impregnating two women within a year. John the Baptist was arrested and eventually beheaded when he told King Herod that he was committing adultery sleeping with his brother`s wife. Let people not mistake this as an attack on the MDC, Zanu pf leaders are equally guilty and so is the MDC led by professor Welshmen the whole civic society. No one is clean even the ordinary man on the street is not clean some pastors too but never the less the church should speak out and act as the true vanguard of our moral fibre in our beloved Zimbabwe. 

Arms akimbo, tongues tied, eyes glued to the unfolding Anglican saga, this is the true picture of Christians, as they stood by and watched from the sidelines, well we will give them the benefit of the doubt in that it was difficult to intervene and support a faction that backed homosexuality in the church, or support Bishop Kunonga whose thuggish tactics are taken from the Zanu Pf hymn book. The true church of God should have rose and condemned the issue of homosexuality and also the abuse of the cloth by Kunonga. Honestly where in the love of God have you seen a man of God wanting to close orphanages and schools so that he can only be in control of the properties, God is seated in heaven wondering where his true sons and daughters are hiding? May the true Christians arise and fight evil. For the bible says in the days of John the Baptist the Kingdom of God suffered violence and only violent man can take it back by force.

How did the church become so passive, so weak and so indecisive, I wonder how men and women of the cloth can sleep well at night when all this evil happens in their eyes? In the run up to elections in the fateful June runoff elections, the Zanu PF machinery launched a brutal attack on the ordinary Zimbabwean populace and the church was silent only to hear one or two voices. Zimbabwean history is full of men of God, who played a pivotal role in the liberation of our country. Reverend Ndabaningi Sithole, Leopold Takawira, Bishop Muzorewa are few names that come to mind when think of the liberation struggle.Where are the true Christians of our time, Christians who will be able to stand up look evil in the eye and speak boldly without flinching, telling evil that its days are numbered. We certainly cannot afford a repeat of that shambolic June runoff. May the true Christians in our midst stand up, please stand up!!

Introduction 

I have been fascinated by Julius Malema of late and honestly speaking who hasn’t. Just how he has managed to capture the interest of the world both for the right and the wrong reasons. What has aroused my interest more than anything is the autonomy of the Youth League from the ANC structures, what it means, its advantages and the disadvantages how to manage such a relationship without causing chaos and friction in the party. There is certainly a lesson to be learned from the ANC which is the oldest political party in the continent if I am not mistaken, but if I am I stand to be corrected.

So this Julius Malema issue prompted me to think deeper and ask questions about the political party I not only belong to but also love whole heartedly with all its flaws. Here are some of the questions that came to my mind. Does the youth assembly play the sort of mediating role, merely reproducing the established political views expressed by the mother body or its an active member in the production of politics that is in the sense of creating a new voice.? While the frameworks within the MDC target the youth and strongly recommend the presence of young people, what exactly is the role attributed to them within that process? 

Exactly how much leeway is the Youth Assembly allowed in the production of politics? I answered all these questions in my head of course and you actually thought I was going to spill that out, I though for a moment I was not going to share my honest answers with you but on the other hand it doesn’t hurt to be honest or does it, in any case I hope it doesn’t injure the good relations I have with some of the youth assembly leaders and those in the mother body politic. I will reiterate this my intentions are not only pure but also good. 

So my answers where that: 

The youth assembly merely reproduces established views of the mother body. The role of the youth assembly was just to convey the mother body’s message down its stream Lastly that it did not have much leeway in the production of politics. The next question that comes to mind is how do we address that ? My humble opinion is that by making the YA autonomous from the mother body it will be able to address all the questions asked above.

Why Autonomy of Youth Assembly 

There will be people in the mother body who will accuse the proponents of the autonomy of the YA as trying to completely detach the YA from the general movement, Some will definitely say this out of fear of a powerful and robust YA, self preservation mechanism I would say, but it should be known that the independence of the Youth Assembly will go a long way in the protection of young people’s rights and providing for the needs of the youth. The autonomy of the youth assembly will play a genuine vanguard role in the broader movement safeguarding the tenets of democracy. Only an independent youth assembly, that is, self-governing can develop bold and determined revolutionary fighters and astute organisers in the building of a democratic Zimbabwe. 

At the same time young people should not be encouraged merely to copy or assimilate what is handed over to them. They should do that through an investigative and critical approach. Real education in struggle on the part of the youth cannot be separated from their independent political involvement. A profound appreciation by the youth of the democratic ideals we are fighting for is better consolidated if verified by their independent experience in the struggle. The autonomy of the MDC Youth Assembly and generally young people in all revolutions is elementary to a revolution’s progress and success. Revolutions are by their very nature activities of young people, and marginalising young people merely into a preparatory arrangement within revolutionary movements stifles the political and ideological development of such movements. History proves that almost all if not all national liberation and revolutionary movements that do not have autonomous youth formations degenerate into insignificance with the passage of time, Zanu pf, UNIP of Zambia and MCP of Malawi providing classic examples. Autonomy of the Assembly will offer the opportunity for the realization of the boundless resources of energy, enterprise, initiative and free application of the creative potential of our youth”. 

How the Autonomy should be structured? 

The autonomy of the MDCYA should be modelled on the lines of organisational independence and political subordination of the MDC . Thus the MDC YA should exist as an autonomous structure within the ANC. This means it is able to develop and implement its own programmes, convene congresses and run its administration. This is done within the broad policy direction and political leadership of the MDC. 

The Constitutional relationship of the MDC YA and the MDC. 

Thus the Constitution of the MDC Youth Assembly should categorically state that it is an autonomous body within the overall structure of the MDC of which it shall be an integral part. It shall be based on the political and ideological objectives of the MDC. The MDC`s Constitution should also categorically state the Youth Assembly as an autonomous body within the overall structure of the MDC, of which it will be an integral part, with its own Constitution, rules and regulations, provided that these shall not be in conflict with the Constitution and policies of the MDC. The Constitutions of both the MDC and MDC YA should not only be recited as a form of giving a sense of the autonomous, but not independent relationship between the MDC YA and the MDC, yet the relationship should by no way be a mere Constitutional relationship. 

The autonomy of the MDC Youth Assembly is a vital political relationship, which can never be reduced to a Constitutional relationship and sacrificed in the course of the revolution. Autonomy of the MDC Youth Assembly is not a by the way issue, but a revolutionary organisational practice which if ignored, could undermine the impetus and energy that young people should impact in any radical political, economic and social change of society Autonomy of the Youth Assembly should not just be reduced to organisational autonomy of organising own meetings, but not taking own decisions. It should fundamentally mean the right of the Youth Assembly to formulate independent political, ideological and strategic perspectives in the course of struggle and independent capacity and ability to robustly advocate for such perspectives. 

Conclusion 

The autonomy of the YA should not be reduced into a constitutional matter without politics, it will be a political blunder with massive consequences. That is why the autonomy of the MDC YA to effectively participate in the liberation and democratization of Zimbabwe There is an abundance of scholarly articles providing both theoretical and empirical evidence that the more the youths are active in the production of politics the less likely they are manipulated for small financial rewards, as a means to mitigate this the youths can have a meaningful voice thus becoming true actors in the politics of the country rather than being mere pawns in the broader political discourse that will be able to air its views in the political discourse of the nation without any fear. 

Not having fear should not be taken in its literal sense and never to be used to undermine the mother body. As the legacy of the Arab spring dawns on us and we enter the final stages of our democratic struggle against the autocratic rule of RGM 's legacy, we expect the youth to play a significant part in the search for new principles that will bring about stability in the Zimbabwean political order. In forging the future, the Youth Assembly will have to operate under the MDC, but on terms more fitting of the historical circumstances that lie ahead than those of the past Long Live The MDC

The current humanitarian crisis in Somalia has exposed the West’s hypocrisy while at the same time showing how narrow our modern day pan Africanism is. If one does not believe that the west are hypocritical then one has to simply compare the many billions spend on the Libyan invasion to the millions spend on relief efforts in Somalia where millions are facing starvation and prominently death caused by a severe draught in their country. No reason to celebrate .

Well the pan Africanists should not celebrate when one speaks out loud on the West’s hypocrisy because as far as Somalia’s relief efforts are concerned the West has outdone the Africans. What is even more disappointing, is the silence on Somalia from our African leaders, who never miss an opportunity to grandstand at all big platforms lashing out at imperialism or West in general.

Okay Somalia might be too dangerous to the liking of our leaders to actually visit the affected people but which national leader has even visited the affected Somalis in the safety of the neighboring countries` refugee camps, your guess is as good as mine, none. 

Where Pan Africanists lost the plot. “We spoke and acted as if, given the opportunity for self-government, we could quickly create utopias. Instead injustice even tyranny is rampant everywhere” Stealing from the words of Julius Nyerere (one of Africa’s illustrious sons) this points us exactly where the advocates of modern day pan Africanism lost the plot, when many countries attained self rule the pan Africanists in our leaders adopted a hear no evil and speak no evil policy. It was morally wrong to adopt such a policy in the midst of tyranny and injustice, their silence was profound it unfortunately this is the time Africa needed them the most. Not surprisingly they seemed (and they still do ) only to find their voices when the evil was(is) being perpetrated by the West. 

Somehow modern day pan Africanists and a whole lot of African leaders think that condemning dictatorships, leaders who disregard the rule of law, leaders who are brutal when dealing with their own citizens, leaders who steal elections aids the West in their quest to recolonise Africa. Our leaders always side with each other even when its easy to stand firm on principles, principles that they put signatures to, principles that guarantee peace, stability and a bright future for Africa. The African union has thus reduced itself to nothing more than a social club for presidents to meet each other regularly at the expense of the suffering African taxpayer. 

The few leaders that have decided to speak out against some of Africa’s worst dictators have been castigated and labelled puppets. It is therefore not surprising that many people in Africa have no confidence in the African institutions to provide moral guidance to nations and to provide leadership in times of a crisis. Pan Africanism should not be used as a tool to protect leaders who are no longer wanted by the citizens in their respective countries. Why nations run to West Its by no coincidence that every time the people of Africa are confronted by either a man made or a natural disaster they run to the West, Its for the simple reason that the West acts when called to do so. This doesn’t make their intentions pure, just like any other foreign policy theirs too is driven by selfish interest and Africa has to understand this and the sooner the better. Africa always seem to drag its feet and many times than not only to react when it’s a little too late. 

When the children of Libya rose against Muammar Gaddafi, Africa chose to remain silent rather than taking a proactive stance, they did the same in Ivory Coast only to be overtaken by events later. We have only but ourselves to blame, our inactivity or silence or both have always given opportunities for the West to intervene in Africa. If Africa is to be taken seriously it has to start to take itself serious and I do not see any better starting point than Somalia. Our leaders should not only mobilize financial resources towards this end but also provide moral leadership by visiting the affected people and if its not safe for them to go there then there is also another problem they need to solve. They have to face the challenges head on and take a holistic approach to our common problems as Africa. 

Pan Africanism should be more than a fight against the West it should be about the aspirations of Africans to live peacefully and prosperously in the abundance of their riches. While the objectives of Pan-Africanism have changed over time, the essence of pan Africanism should remain steadfast which in more general terms should be about laying the destiny of Africa in the hands of Africans. It’s true that money buys you influence but unfortunately African countries (say they) don’t have money. Until this power dynamic can be effectively challenged, it is in the interest of African nations to find a way of making existing systems work to their advantage, most importantly to work towards protecting African people and securing a better tomorrow. Save Somalia

“No more important challenge faces us today than how to deal with our differences” this statement by Ury could not be more relevant than to Zimbabwe today. Often than not we try to resolve our differences through coercive force when we could simply talk to one another. Margaret Atwood says “War is what happens when language fails”.

Since the beginning of the year the country has seen a rise in street demonstrations. From formerly silent churches to innocent high school students. People are angered by the government’s inadequate response to their social and economic challenges. Frustration can be heard from the pulpit right through to various social media platforms. Voices are being raised against a government that refuses to listen to its citizenry. As the economy continues to deteriorate, perhaps slide back to the 2008 levels it is important for the government to abandon its arrogant attitude and engage the people in a constructive discourse. Together we can solve some of our challenges if not we can at least clear some of our differences.

Stop insulting citizens, just engage them

Two weeks ago, I read Nathaniel Manheru arguing eloquently in favour of the national pledge in the Herald. Viciously chastising the church and its leaders for questioning and criticising the powers that be. Then a few days later, Joram Nyathi in his wisdom or lack thereof pounded even heavier on the citizens who had remonstrated their displeasure at the government’s recent pronouncements by marching in the streets of Harare. Powerless as these ordinary citizens may presently seem, they have a constitutional right to reject laws and policies they do not want. Even those policies that may actually be good for them. What I find ironical is that people have to demonstrate to demand an ear from their government, the very government that pretends to be of the people and for the people. The two gentlemen could not understand why people reacted in the manner they did. Their arrogance can only be the doing of power. Beyoncé sang drunk in love but I say these gentlemen are drunk in power.

Now looking at the arguments put forward by Manheru and Nyathi in favour of that pledge one could see that they could have easily convinced people to support their policy. But no, they prefer confrontation to consultation, chastising to dialoguing. Manheru being a senior civil servant ought to know that it is the responsibility of the government to explain its policies; to allay people’s fears, to answer questions people may have and above all to rally people behind its programmes. Just after independence a majority of rural schools and clinics were built by their respective communities with the aid of government and donor funding. That was only possible because communities were consulted, educated and thus they took ownership of these government programmes.

The Zanu PF way

Instead of building on these early successes by instituting consensus building mechanisms in their drafting and implementation of their policies they chose confrontation. Looking at a few policy pronouncements recently made by the government, one can see that the executive needs re-education and re-orientation. Dokora of the national pledge fame, not long ago announced the banning of Scripture Union in public schools. Now this does not make sense to my liberal mind. Joining Scripture Union has never been mandatory, its members join voluntarily. If students want to participate in this student organisation they should. They too have a constitutional right to the freedoms of association and of religion.

As if that was not enough an attack on the Christian population in our country, the overzealous minister came up again banning the renting of school properties to churches. This again without having consulted anyone. Without even offering compensation for the lost revenue to the affected schools. When people begin to speak out, to organise themselves to demonstrate against such behaviour from government it is not rebellion but an act of patriotism. There is no need to remind the government it should know that this is our country too. Speaking out on any government issue is our right not a privilege.

However, expecting to be consulted by Zanu PF would be expecting too much. How can they consult relevant stake holders and ordinary citizens when Ministers do not even consult one another? Even on a matter of national importance like the indigenisation policy. A mere junior Minister is found criticising the Finance Minister and the Reserve Bank Governor in public. Why couldn’t they iron out their differences in private and come out in the public with one position. If they could not agree why not consult with their principal and go out in the public with one position. With such high profile contradictions within the government in the public domain, how do they expect the populace and investors alike to have confidence in their government and its policies? In these instances, one gets the feeling that some ministers are more interested to be in the news than to actually achieve any real objectives.

Early debate in parliament over the indigenisation policy proved that with good leadership the nation could have easily come to a consensus. We all agreed on the need for indigenisation we only differed on how it was to be implemented. Simple logic demanded from us not to adopt a blanket policy to cover all the sectors of the economy. But instead of talking to one another Zanu PF chose to talk over everyone else. The indigenisation policy which was supposed to transfer wealth from a few privileged non indigenous people to the native citizenry has only managed to benefit a few privileged, highly corrupt Zanu PF elites.

The Governor of the Reserve, I am told by people who know him that he is well meaning. But his recent behaviour has not done him any favours. His rush to announce the introduction of bond notes was shambolic. What use is it to hold consultations after the policy has been announced. It thus does not come as a shock when credible business leaders say that the RBZ measures are only addressing symptoms rather the real deep macro-economic problems. Why not consult business leaders and representatives of workers in order to find solutions to our monetary challenges? For what it is worth the Governor should already know that no one trusts the Central Bank. Trust can only be cultivated by open engagement with the relevant stakeholders. Talking to one another might not solve all our challenges but I am more than sure as evidenced by the days during our GNU that we can do so much together.

Mugabe has been a bad example for his ministers

The Opposition are not saints in this regard either

If the opposition thinks that this problem is only existent in Zanu PF, then Tsvangirai’s debacle on the expulsion of the Harare Mayor Ben Manyenyeni exposed this folly. The MDC-T executive rushed to make a press announcement without having first consulted the councillors who run the city council affairs. It is not surprising therefore that before nightfall, the party directive had been disobeyed by the acting Mayor. This small incident must be a lesson in the future, to never disregard other key stakeholders that we might regard as less important. 

The failure of MDC Renewal and Ncube’s MDC to unite speaks loudly of this failure to talk to one another. Although supporters from both parties all agreed on the need for unification, without any debate or consultation with the grassroots supporters the unification was called off by the party elites. Neither an apology nor an explanation was offered. As if that was not enough the MDC Renewal then went on to split. The fact that the MDC Renewal was itself a splinter was forgotten. As the saying goes ego is the only requirement to destroy any relationship. Mangoma and Biti could not put aside their own personal egos for the greater good of the movement they had started.

Conclusion

As the saying goes leave two Zimbabweans on the moon and they will form three political parties. There is a real problem in the Zimbabwean body politic that needs urgent addressing. We need to accommodate one another despite our political differences. A contestation of ideas does not make us enemies. We must be able to coexist with our political differences, more so when our political differences are cosmetic rather than fundamental.

 The failure to talk through our differences does not only exist in politics but exists in every fibre of our society. This is why we have high rates of domestic violence, two adults failing to resolve their differences amicably. I only talked of politics because of my own personal interest in politics but as a nation we must improve on how we resolve our differences. When we consult, we must learn to listen not just to listen but to listen to understand the other person’s point of view. We must always strive to build consensus and ensure we implement win-win solutions. This is how national cohesion is build which will in turn provide a platform for national ownership of government programmes. We have politicised many non-political issues for too long making it harder to find common ground. In the end Zimbabwe has been the loser.

But not all hope is lost the youths are beginning to find their voice, speaking truth to power from across political lines. We might be affiliated to different political parties but we are Zimbabweans before we are party members. Cash and food shortages knows no party membership. We must come together as Zimbabweans and solve these our challenges. The opposition parties are beginning to talk to each other. There is a shift happening, people have realised that no one is going to come and save Zimbabwe but ourselves. During the Unity Government, Zanu PF used to blame the opposition for impeding the economic recovery. Now having a majority in parliament they must admit and accept that they have failed to turn things around. As a matter of urgency they must invite other political parties, together we might be able to avert this impending crisis.

But it must be known with or without Zanu PF, the train is moving towards a new and a better Zimbabwe.