The opposition's US craze
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Credit: @nelsonchamisa Official twitter account https://twitter.com/nelsonchamisa |
AS Zimbabwe approaches a month since the
infamous November 15 Coup ‘d’état, I can’t help but share my disgust and dismay
at the actions of the MDC -T and the opposition team that travelled to the US this
week.
Nelson Chamisa’s official twitter account stated that they were on a
vital global advocacy and diplomatic outreach and their focus was repositioning
opposition and global coalition for free and fair elections in 2018. It is
rather naïve and insincere for Tendai Biti, Dewa Mavhinga and Nelson Chamisa to
travel to the US to lobby for free and fair elections in Zimbabwe as condition
to receiving assistance for debt relief in the country. It would have been more
reasonable if these opposition figures had consulted with the regime in power before
rushing to the US. It is high time Zimbabweans chose their own political path
without relying on the US or UK intervention. Did we not rejoice when
Zimbabweans and the military united on one path to remove Mugabe? Why is it
then that we fail to unite over another cause – restoring Zimbabwe to its rightful
place. The move by the opposition raises questions to why these individuals are
eager for reform from the new regime instead of consulting the new government
about reforming. Is it because they were sidelined in the new cabinet that they
have gone on the US trip to advocate reform before elections?
US Senate official Stephanie Sullivan stated
that Zimbabwe’s military needs to go back to the barracks and state
institutions be demilitarized. As much as her opinion is valid it did not need
Zimbabwean opposition leaders to travel to the States to be validated. The same
opinion should instead be expressed by these very same opposition leaders in
Zimbabwe to the people if they are to win support in next year’s election.
Asking for the US to guarantee credible elections on foreign soil is a bit too
imaginative and not realistic. The opposition in Zimbabwe seems rather
desperate having witnessed that the new government will reform in certain sectors
and win the grassroots support.
As for the electoral system our opposition
leaders should have rather consulted the new regime about electoral reform
instead of running to the US. Its sad that when the coup took place it was
these same opposition leaders that gave SADC the middle finger and could not
even go to SADC to consult about free and fair elections in Zimbabwe. The
opposition parties really scored an own goal by consulting the US about
elections, if at all that was the only reason for the trip. It just goes to
show how short sighted their decision was in relation to restoring the
Zimbabwean legacy. It is these very same short-sighted decisions that has seen
them remain as opposition over the years. The credibility of their patriotism
is in question and being opposition does not mean they hold the right to speak
on behalf of most Zimbabweans. I guess the true democrats that want to see political
change in Zimbabwe are yet to be born. Signing out GenerationX18
They are trying hard to be relevant
ReplyDeleteEngaging Zanu on electoral reforms is like a cow going to reason with a hungry lion not to eat its calf. The same people who have denied us free and fair election are still the ones in charge, and therefor lets not expect them to impliment electoral reforms without a push from the opposition. I woud like to believe that E.D can move the country forward, but i am not sosure about the people that surrounds him. They 're power hungry and thieves, who can do anything to protect themselves.
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