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Deputy Prime Minister Mutambara - victim of the law of reaction
Lovemore Rambiyawo
January 20, 2012

Ever since the meteoric rise of Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara from the confines of academia to the hallowed halls of the Presidency, it was a foregone conclusion that this dramatic rise would be followed by an equally dramatic and precipitous fall. It did not take long to happen. But paradoxically, when it happened, it took the Zimbabwean society, and the international community, by surprise. It shouldn-t have - the robotics professor-s dramatic downfall was simply the law of reaction - for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction - claiming its scalp, as it invariably does. The more dramatic and intense the action; the more dramatic and intense the reaction.

With his dramatic fall from grace, Mutambara joins the pantheon of world leaders who rose dramatically to the helm of their governments on a groundswell of popular support and public acclaim only to suffer a dramatic fall from grace that would result in some of them being assassinated or subjected to public hangings. The experiences of Patrice Lumumba, Kwame Nkrumah, Benito Mussolini, Herman Goering and former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown fully vindicate the perception that a meteoric rise inevitably leads to a dramatic fall from grace.

But first, the action- After a hiatus of 15 years from the Zimbabwean political scene, the former University of Zimbabwe student leader, now a robotics professor, was invited from abroad by then MDC Secretary General, professor Welshman Ncube to join the MDC party in 2005. The political rollercoaster had begun. In February 2006, at a congress held by the MDC, Mutambara was elected as President of the party. To cap it off, just two years later, with the formation of the inclusive government, Mutambara was appointed Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Zimbabwe. It was a dramatic and spectacular elevation to the pinnacle of power by any definition. From student politics and the academic pulpit, the robotics professor found himself firmly thrust at centre of politics and power in Zimbabwe, and for the first time, he was speaking ex cathedra, able to give full vent to his academic excellence, charisma and organisational ability gleaned from his years of student activism in shaping the future of the country. It was a dream beyond his wildest expectations. But sadly, his upward swing had reached its highest point, and it was time for the inevitable downswing.

And then, the reaction. In January 2011, DPM Mutambara was dethroned from the MDC presidency at the party-s congress in Harare, and Professor Welshman Ncube took over. For DPM Mutambara, this was to be the beginning of the end. After initially acquiescing, Mutambara then valiantly strove to fight the decision. But the damage had been done, and the downswing had taken on a momentum of its own. From then on, Mutambara vacillated and dithered, and was often accused of double entendre (double speak). The world watched in fascination and awe as the exalted mediagenic professor slid from the rapidly from the radar of international attention and acclaim and inexorably into the penumbra of neglect - neglect by his supporters, fellow politicians, the media and the wider society. The media went into overdrive as careerists of sentimentality and scribes of every description penned, in violet and vitriol, their convictions on DPM Mutambara. Others gave a blow by blow account of the professor-s fall from grace and basked in the resultant glow of the heat as the DPM haemorrhaged calories of virtue from every pore of his body. Others commiserated, but the prognosis was largely gloomy.

With the landmark ruling delivered in Bulawayo on 15 December that interdicted Mutambara from exercising his functions as President of the MDC and as a principal of the inclusive government, DPM Mutambara will either slide further into the penumbra of neglect or he will sink from the penumbra of neglect into the pitch blackness of political oblivion. He is fighting the ruling, of course, but that is a mere flash in the pan. The downswing is now in full swing and the DPM is powerless to stop it except watch and see the downswing play itself out. The effect of the judgment is salutary. The judgment interdicts the DPM from purporting to be MDC president and from interfering with its structures and organs as well as from exercising any function or powers vested in the President of MDC; attending any meeting of whatever description of Principals in the inclusive government of Zimbabwe or of any regional or international body in the capacity of Principal in the inclusive government of Zimbabwe; performing or exercising any and/or principal duties in the Inclusive Government; and being President of the MDC.

He will not be the first to succumb to the law of reaction. Kwame Nkrumah became an international symbol of freedom, as the leader of the first black African country to shake off the chains of colonial rule. Not only did he begin the move to dismantle colonial rule in Africa - he advocated Pan-Africanism, to fight neo-colonialism on the continent, was the architect of the founding of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), and became a symbol of hope and emancipation for Blacks and all oppressed peoples everywhere in the world.

He is perhaps most famous for his speech when, as midnight struck on March 5, 1957 and the Gold Coast became Ghana, he declared:

'We are going to see that we create our own African personality and identity. We again rededicate ourselves in the struggle to emancipate other countries in Africa; for our independence is meaningless unless it is linked up with the total liberation of the African continent.'

When the inevitable downswing came, the bubble did not merely burst, it exploded. The downswing saw Nkrumah increasingly losing popularity amid perceptions that he had become remote and totalitarian. The upshot of the downswing saw many Ghanaians celebrating when their former hero was overthrown by the police and military, while he was on a visit to China in 1966. He died in exile in Romania in 1972.

In a classic case of rapid and dramatic rise to international prominence, followed by an equally precipitous fall, on June 30, 1960, Patrice Lumumba, a self-taught, idealistic, yet pragmatic, young man became, at age 36, the first head of government of a newly independent African state, formerly the Belgian Congo. A postal clerk with an uncanny ability to hold large crowds captive with his oratory, he soon became a powerful force in the Congo-s struggle for independence from Belgium, and his eloquence and courage earned him world renown. Lumumba was not immune to the law of reaction, however - two months later, he was ousted from his powerful position and hunted by government troops until he was captured and brutally murdered along with two aides.

Herman Goering cast a long shadow on the world stage. Billed as one of most capable - and sinister - leading figures of the Third Reich, he soon became Commander-in-Chief of the Luftwaffe, President of the Reichstag, Prime Minister of Prussia and Hitler's designated successor. He fought with distinction in World War 1. He was to play a major role in smoothing Hitler's road to power through helping to secure the support of financiers, industrialists and generals, and as creator of the secret police he showed formidable energy in terrorising and crushing all resistance. Later, as Commander of the Luftwaffe he led the mightiest air force the world had ever seen. But, the law of reaction was to catch up with him. As WWII drew to a close, Goring became a bloated shadow of his former self - an increasingly discredited figure, despised by Hitler and ridiculed by his former fellow henchmen. In the end, it was the arrival of American troops that saved him from assassination at the hands of the SS.

Benito Amilcare Andrea Musolini, who became the 40th Prime Minister of Italy in 1922, held fitful sway over Italy during his reign that ended in 1943, with the official title: 'His Excellency Benito Mussolini, Head of Government, Duce of Fascism, and founder of the empire-. After his creation of fascism, Mussolini influenced, or received commendation from a variety of political figures.

Ironically, when the inevitable turnaround happened it was the Grand Council of Fascism that deposed him. He was eventually summarily executed near Lake Como by Italian partisans and His body taken to Milan where it was hung upside down at a petrol station for public viewing and to provide confirmation of his demise.

For DPM Arthur Mutambara, the law of reaction is definitely not yet run its full course. Just as the dramatic rise had its finale, so will the downswing also have its finale. Will the DPM be able to defy the law of reaction? It-s an arrow shot into the air.

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