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Zimbabwe should give Makoni a chance but demand a new constitution first
Maxwell Saungweme
February 13, 2008

Watching from far the political drama in my country facing imminent elections which are inevitably going to be stolen by the incumbent, President Robert Mugabe, I thought I should add my voice to the multitudes of voices of others. I am one of the hundreds of thousands of young Zimbabweans who were forced to seek greener pastures abroad in the face of an economic decline of un-apparelled levels in my country, which used to boast of being one of the strongest economies not only in Africa but within the Third World at large.

Having worked as a humanitarian worker in Sudan for the past two years I have seen how countries become ungovernable because of political strife and war. I have also seen how politicians may be so selfish to the extent of putting themselves ahead of all else, causing multi-dimensional humanitarian crises that become very intricate by each ending day, leaving the vulnerable women , children and men who are impoverished by political selfishness, without any glimmer of hope in sight.

In my flirtation in Sudan I have also worked closely with many Kenyans and have visited Kenya a countless times. Just last year, before December the 27th, Kenya used to boast as the most peaceful country in East and Northern Africa and hosted a huge population of nationals from various countries and international organisations both for-profit and non-profit that are working in and around East and Northern Africa. However, because of the egoistic tendencies of our African leadership to subvert the will of the people through unscrupulous election machinations Kenya lost all that to the dogs. Today Kenya can arguably be considered to be as dangerous in some parts as Darfur, where I have stayed, or some places in Chad, Central African Republic and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

But looking at the Kenyan scenario, sometimes back when the country was riling under Moi, Kenyans managed to place their political differences aside and all opposition groups came together and fielded Mwai Kibaki as presidential candidate and the power of the people carried the day. However as we all know power is sweet, the major problem of the Kenyans was to go to a long honeymoon and forgot that Kibaki was just a human being and a democratic Constitution and democratic institutions ought to be in place to prevent Kibaki to be another Moi. Because of this slumber Kenya is what it is today.

Coming back home, it is apparent that Zimbabwe needs a new democratic Constitution made through a people -driven process, first before holding any meaningful elections that will reflect the will of the masses. It is also equally true that Mugabe will not allow that process to happen as he has always been the major stumbling block towards any calls for change towards democracy in Zimbabwe.

It is very true that without a proper and democratic Constitution and in the absence of proper democratic institutions any Zimbabwean who is given the presidency whether from the opposition or from the ruling party will be like Mugabe if not worse.

However, progressive Zimbabweans represented by groupings like the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) have remained steadfast in pressing for a democratic Constitution in the face of all odds. Notable progress may have been made in their endeavours, but the fact remains that Zimbabwe is yet to get a new Constitution and the President continues to use the ZANU PF dominated parliament to amend the Constitution to suit his selfish motives.

On the political side the opposition MDC has tried to participate many a times in elections but failed partly because of the defective Constitution in Zimbabwe and the lack of democratic institutions. Its is also true that the MDC is at its weakest point with two splinter groups trying to field separate candidates for they cannot agree on any issues of national significance.

It is therefore, foolproof that if the two weak formations of the MDC go to the elections in their current form and under the current tainted Constitution, they will not only betray the masses by losing dismally but by legitimising the perpetuation of the tyrannical Mugabe to continue to hold fort.

Now with the advent of Dr Simba Makoni as a breakaway from ZANU PF people really need to look closely at how Zimbabwe may move forward. It-s true that Makoni is ZANU PF at heart and has been in the chief decision making body of the party for a long time. It is true that Makoni was in the same ZANU PF that has presided over the current economic and humanitarian crisis in Zimbabwe. It is true that by association Makoni has been part of a regime that has denied Zimbabwean a long deserved democratic Constitution.

Nevertheless, Makoni has his own illustrious History and has presented himself as courageous person whom Zimbabweans and others elsewhere may place their trust in. He has done what most Zimbabweans will not dare do-challenging a monster at its own door-steps.

Given that Makoni may present to Zimbabweans as a compromise and as a leader who can appeal to many people in different ways in both the opposition and the ruling party, Zimbabweans ought to try to come together and rally behind him. It is true that the masses have lost faith in Mugabe and ZANU P.F under his leadership because of the misery in their faces. Its also true that the masses have lost hope in a divided MDC that has failed to deliver and has since gone beyond its "best before date". Even if Makoni may not have the grassroots support yet, he presents at least a new dimension into the political discourse that had been dominated by the divided MDC and Mugabe-s ZANU P.F. He can be seen capable of propelling masses towards democracy if people shelve their selfish differences and come together as a united force to confront Mugabe.

What Zimbabwe needs is to get out of the current crises through having a proper Constitution and democratic elections that are done under the provisions of a democratic Constitution. Thus, instead of the opposition leaders to just say they have "fundamental differences" with Makoni because he is ZANU P.F and they will not eat from the same plate they ought to look also at how they have also betrayed Zimbabweans and measure the faith Zimbabweans still have in them.

It will be prudent for all forces , the MDC included, to rally behind Makoni and clearly make it apparent to him that Zimbabwe needs a new Constitution and democratic institutions first. Progressive forces should put Makoni in the forefront and clearly demand for a new Constitution as the basis on which their support to him is hinged and the elections should be carried out. Mugabe will definitely be more frightened by the prospect a strong Makoni with the backing of the masses demanding a new Constitution and proper elections than just the opposition fielding candidates to participate in bogus elections, that will only serve to legitimise Mugabe-s permanent stay in power.

The opposition should learn that the ordinary people no longer care much about ZANU PF or MDC but about food, shelter, education, jobs, health, clean water and so forth. These are the cross-cutting issues we face at the hands of bad governance than just MDC or ZANU PF. These needs can only be fulfilled not merely by an MDC or ZANU PF President but a President and government that come through democratic means within a framework of a democratic Constitution and run the affairs of the country guided by the same Constitution. But for a democratic Constitution to be there there is need for both civic leadership (which has been given by groupings like the NCA) and political leadership (which both MDC and ZANU PF have failed to provide). Thus, an option of a compromise powerful political leader should seriously be looked at while people make it their song to the political leadership that what is needed foremost is a democratic Constitution.

*Maxwell Saungweme is a Social Scientist and a Zimbabwean Humanitarian worker based in Sudan. The views expressed in this article are truly personal views.

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