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Independence
Day message: Reclaiming the legacy of the liberation war
Arthur Mutambara
April 18, 2007
Introduction
Fellow Zimbabweans,
18th April 1980 is an important day that marked the end of colonial
and imperialist rule in our country. As we observe this great day
in our national calendar, let us take this as an opportunity to
reflect on the state of our nation and the challenges we face. It
is important that as Zimbabweans we come together and find solutions
that can build our country into a peaceful, democratic and prosperous
nation. We must proffer redemptive political and economic solutions
in order to improve the quality of life for all Zimbabweans on a
sustained and sustainable basis. At twenty seven years of age our
country could do with some innovative and robust state crafting.
Setting
the Record Straight
The starting
point of any effective reflective process is clarity about the past.
A page of history is worth ten volumes of logic. The people of Zimbabwe
freed themselves from the yoke of colonialism. Zimbabwean sons and
daughters constituted the gallant ZIPRA and ZANLA fighters who,
together with ordinary citizens, ushered in our independence. It
was a revolution that bound worker and peasant, young and old, guerilla
and collaborator, and urban and rural folks in the fight for national
self-determination.
No single individual
delivered us from bondage. It was a collective effort. Across the
length and breath of this country and in neighbouring countries
such as Zambia, Mozambique and Tanzania, our sons and daughters
came together, with a single purpose- to free Zimbabwe. For the
record; Yes, Robert Mugabe was part of the liberation war effort.
He was involved in the nationalist struggle. However, in that war
he was a spineless coward who could not even fire a pistol. To this
day he does not even know how to return a soldier's salute. Those
who fought in that war can attest to this characterization. He was
the lucky coward of the liberation war. As a matter of principle
we have no problem with spineless wimps, neither do we fault lucky
cowards. What becomes problematic is when such shameless morons
then appropriate the entire liberation war legacy as theirs, to
the exclusion of those who actually fought in that struggle. That
is what offends us as Zimbabweans. We take strong exception to that.
We fought for our country as a people and freed ourselves as a united
collective. We want to put it on record today, on our Independence
Day, that the people of Zimbabwe do not owe Robert Mugabe anything.
We owe ourselves as a people. We were masters of our own destiny.
Furthermore,
let us reflect on the basis and foundation of the liberation struggle.
The war of liberation was an all-inclusive, anti-imperialist and
anti-colonialist protracted armed struggle. The principles and values
of that struggle included democracy, freedom, liberty, equality,
universal suffrage, justice, equity, socio-economic justice, and
prosperity. When we look at the state of our nation today, the question
is: Have we achieved these aspirations? The unequivocal response
is NO.
Twenty seven
years after independence, the people of Zimbabwe are not experiencing
freedom, liberation or independence. Instead, starvation, unemployment,
deplorable working conditions, unmitigated suffering, and unprecedented
hopelessness now define our national psyche. We live in an undeclared
state of emergency where our basic freedoms and liberties of assembly,
speech, movement, and association are heavily curtailed by repressive
legislation. Political rallies, marches and demonstrations are banned.
Political activists and even ordinary citizens are abducted, tortured
and killed with impunity. As we reflect on the meaning of our Independence
Day, Gift Tandare, Itai Manyeruke and Edmore Chikomba join the list
of courageous freedom fighters murdered by this evil Mugabe regime.
The transformation of the police into a criminal sadistic brutal
force is worse than anything we ever saw under the Smith regime.
Zimbabweans live in a state of collective fear of violence, hunger,
destitution, diseases and arrest. Basic and essential commodities
are either unavailable or unaffordable. School fees, property rates,
rentals and agricultural inputs are beyond reach. The crippling
fuel crisis, erratic and inadequate power supply, destruction of
commercial agriculture, food shortages, and lack of housing are
devastating the population. Inflation has soared to record levels
of over 2000%, unemployment is above 85%, while poverty levels are
above 90%. Life expectancy is 34 years for women and 37 years for
men. This cannot be the liberation, freedom or independence that
Zimbabweans fought and died for.
We are the ZIPRA
and ZANLA Fighters
The conclusion
is pure and simple. Robert Mugabe and ZANU(PF) have failed the people
of Zimbabwe. They have become a negation of the principles and values
of the liberation war. Consequently, not only was Mugabe a mindless
but lucky coward, he has become a despot running out of luck. The
people of Zimbabwe are fed up. They cannot take it any more. On
our Independence Day we refuse to be patronized by a sick old man
who has become a negation of the liberation struggle. This man has
become a sellout. He has soiled and desecrated his claim to liberation
hero and land revolutionary status.
Mugabe is now
neither a freedom fighter nor a champion of African rights. He is
now just an unimaginative dictator who brutalizes Africans and denies
them basic human rights and economic opportunities. He now stands
against everything that Herbert Chitepo, Jason Moyo, Josiah Tongogara,
Nikita Mangena, Sheiba Tavarwisa and Jane Lungile Ngwenya ever stood
for. Our true heroes have been betrayed. They must be turning in
their graves. However, their spirits are with us in our opposition
to this dictatorship. We are with them as we fight against tyranny,
political oppression and economic subjugation. We are following
in the tradition of the great freedom fighters of our liberation
war.
We are the ZIPRA
and ZANLA fighters!
A new vision
and a redemptive strategy are required for our country. These are
revolutionary times that demand soldiers and cadres. Zimbabwe must
become the leading democracy in Africa characterized by people-centered
social development and economic growth. Our GDP and per capita income
should be in the top three in Africa. We want a society where human
rights, individual freedoms, property rights, women's rights, workers'
rights and economic rights are cherished and respected. We want
a nation of prosperity, economic opportunities, affordable high
quality public services, social justice, equity, and gender justice.
We want a country of business growth, productive commercial agriculture,
innovative entrepreneurship, creative managers, and productive workers
who are well paid.
The
Case for State Crafters
Zimbabwe is
at the crossroads where to advance forward requires nation builders,
visionaries, statesmen and stateswomen; those skilled in the art
of crafting states. Statecraft speaks to the expertise and wisdom
in the effective management of public affairs. We refer here to
leaders in the genre of Lee Quan Yew of Singapore, Mahathir Mohamad
of Malaysia, Nelson Mandela of South Africa, Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana,
Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf of Liberia, Indira Gandhi of India, Angela
Merkel of Germany, Ernesto Che Guevara in Cuba, George Washington,
Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt. These
were (are) men and women of immense talent, resolve, vision, and
strategy. More importantly they were (are) masters of the art of
execution and implementation.
Nation builders
are able to unite and mobilize people for a national cause. They
channel national energy and synergy towards the growth and development
of a country. Unfortunately, Robert Mugabe does not belong to this
group of nation builders. Great and significant leaders go beyond
the limited scope of Maslow's hierarchy of needs that ends with
self-actualization. They thrive to self-transcend, go beyond self
and leave a legacy. Presumably, Mugabe's favorite political text
is that classic by Machiavelli, The Prince, where it is argued that
the prince (leader) must pursue, obtain, and maintain power at any
cost. However, Machiavelli also wrote a second book; The Discourses,
where it is explained that the prince (leader) must also care about
his legacy and judgment by history. This means the prince (leader)
must be a state crafter. I guess our learned President has not read
this insightful text, or if he did come across it, he never understood
its import. What a shame.
The skills required
for nation building are very different from those required to fight
colonialism and imperialism. A new generation of leaders is required
to take our country to the next level. The time has come to pass
the baton from liberation struggle leaders to globalization savvy
nation builders. The issues of technocratic capacity and technical
solutions have never been more critical. Zimbabwe needs accomplished
business practitioners, business thought leaders, management and
economic thinkers, financial engineers, public policy thinkers,
master entrepreneurs, technologists and scientists to drive our
economy. Zimbabwe must become a globally competitive economy that
rivals such nations like Singapore, Malaysia and Japan. We need
creative dreamers and parallel thinkers who do not fear globalization,
but rather thrive on chaos and uncertainty. Only freedom can allow
our citizens to attain their full potential and take our nation
forward.
Conclusion
When all is
said and done, Zimbabwe's future will be determined by Zimbabweans.
External players can assist and facilitate, but the buck stops with
us. We cannot outsource our emancipation to foreigners. We shall
be our own liberators. We shall be masters of our own destiny and
complete the unfinished business of the liberation struggle.
All the progressive
and democratic forces in the country must close ranks in pursuit
of the collective national interest. Let us spurn ZANU(PF)'s divide
and rule tactics. A united front inspired by a single candidate
principle is a categorical imperative in every election (Presidential,
Parliament, Senate, Council). Every vote must count against ZANU(PF).
While this framework will energize the generality of our people,
it will also have strategic national appeal to multitudes of progressive
ZANU(PF) members and supporters. Let us continue with the spirit
of cooperation in pursuit of a new constitutional and electoral
law framework to ensure that our next elections are measurably free
and fair. With a legitimate government (whose election victory is
not disputed) in place we can then embark on an economic journey
to a peaceful, democratic and prosperous Zimbabwe.
Together we
shall achieve the second coming of our independence, liberation
and freedom.
There will be
no Compromise, Retreat or Surrender. We Shall Overcome. The Struggle
Continues Unabated
Arthur G.O.
Mutambara
MDC President
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