Ed's promises don't mean a thing

As the weeks slowly tick by more and more Zimbabweans are becoming disillusioned by Emmerson Mnangagwa and his promise of 'the culture of government changing and changing now'. To the common people on the ground nothing has fundamentally changed between how Robert Mugabe was running the country to how Ed is now running things. The same problems of unemployment, cash shortages, a severe lack of drugs in hospitals and a lack of an end to the corruption in government still permeate.

Time and time again our Zimbabwean leaders have failed us. They have made promises but have failed to deliver on those promises and yet they expect to remain in power indefinitely. In releasing the list for all the people who externalised funds from Zimbabwe there was a glaring omission of some of Ed's buddies like Obert Mpofu from that list. It looks like corruption is still very much alive in this 'new government.'

It's been 25 days since the doctors started striking and yet the government has not prioritised resolving their grievances in order to get them back to work. People are dying in the government run hospitals and the only ones affected are the common man who cannot afford to go to the private hospitals or fly out of Zimbabwe for medical treatment. Ed and his government ministers are not affected by the strike because they and their loved ones have the money to receive medical care elsewhere....To everyone looking at the current situation in Zimbabwe without the benefit of rose tinted glasses there is nothing new about this current government from that which Robert Mugabe ran except the face of the person now running the show.

Is this the better Zimbabwe that you promised ED?

People celebrated you when you seized power from Robert Mugabe. We all held our breath and hoped that this was the dawning of a better Zimbabwe that we had all been praying for...a 100 days on and we are sadly realising that not much has changed, at least not for the common man.

 In your inauguration speech you said that all citizens must feel secure but how can citizens feel secure when the police are free to shoot and kill innocent unarmed civilians. I can't understand how a ban on commuters was lifted but the people who were enforcing that ban were not aware of this new development. This shows a great level of incompetence in both the management and the training of the police and the Police Commissioner General Godwin Matanga has to be held accountable for his officers' incompetence.  It has been over a week since the shootings but there have been no arrests other than an apology to the families who lost their loved ones. That apology means nothing if there is no justice.

This is not the Zimbabwe that we want Ed, where people who are fending for themselves trying to feed their families are killed in what the Police Commissioner described as a 'very unfortunate and regrettable incident.....this could have been avoided and we demand justice!!!

Mugabe might not still be in power but his intimidation tactics are very much alive under President Mnangagwa

In his address to Parliament over the fiscal budget for 2018, Patrick Chinamasa, who is the Minister of Finance said, ' As we focus on recovery of our economy we must shed misbehaviours and acts of indiscipline which have characterised the past.' In his budget with regards to the purchase of vehicles for the village chiefs he also indicated that this was not a critical capital expenditure and that the government could not sustain such demands if they were to achieve the objectives towards a new economic order. It is therefore very surprising that in one of his first acts in power President Mnangagwa authorised the purchase of 226 vehicles for the village chiefs...why was it a priority for these chiefs to have these cars?

Mnangagwa and his government have been singing the free and fair elections song ever since he placed himself in power but the reality is that this government has no intentions of these elections being free and fair as is evidenced by the intimidation tactics that the traditional chiefs are exercising towards their constituents. Community Tolerance Reconciliation and Development (COTRAD) voter educators in Gutu district have revealed that former Chief Serima now the Gutu West Zanu PF chairman for ward 5, Martin Nhamoinesu and John Paradzai , the aspiring Member of Parliament for Gutu West constituency declared during a rice distribution meeting that anyone from the opposition parties would not receive aid from the government...really? It appears as if the 'bribery' in the form of cars have worked wonders in motivating these traditional chiefs to campaign for Zanu PF.

Emmerson Mnangagwa in his inauguration speech spoke about being the president to all citizens of Zimbabwe but I guess what he meant was that he was the president to only those who are aligned with ZANU PF. So much for a new day dawning in Zimbabwe under the leadership of Mnangagwa...

How does Mnangagwa measure up to the anicipated change that the 14th of November 2017 ignited in the hearts of the Zimbabwean people

Now that the euphoria of 'our father Ed' rescuing Zimbabwe has died down, the illusion that was created by the 'coup d'état' of a new day in Zimbabwe with Mnangagwa confidently seating in the seat of power is also dying. On the 24th of November 2017 in his inauguration speech President Mnangagwa boldly stated that the 'culture of government must change and change now' but this is turning out to be just another lip service paid to a desperate and hopeful people.

Mnangagwa had the opportunity to cement his place in the Zimbabwean people's hearts by firstly allowing there to be a coalition government representing the major political parties in the country to transition towards the elections but instead he chose many of the very same people who were responsible for Zimbabwe's current position to continue being ministers. Its ironic that only those ministers who were loyal to President Mugabe are being accused of corruption and yet many of those that Mnangagwa chose were also part of the same government that crippled Zimbabwe.

By choosing Constantino Chiwenga as his vice president Mnangagwa removed the autonomy that the government had and it now seems that the army is part and parcel of the government. On the 31st of December 2017, 10 members of the Mthwakazi Republic Youths were arrested and beaten by the Zimbabwe Republic Police and the Zimbabwe National Army because of their protest against Mnangagwa's involvement in the Gukurahundi genocide that killed at least 20 000 of the Mthwakazi people. This was a clear violation of their constitutional rights and also marked Mnangagwa as a liar when he declared in his inauguration speech that, ' ...all citizens must feel secure and enjoy a sense of belonging in their land...'. 

Maybe I'm just cynical but the photo opps that President Mnangagwa and his wife have been taking over the past few weeks have left me baffled. Auxillia Mnangagwa made it a point to visit the major hospitals in Zimbabwe highlighting the inefficiencies of staff at these hospitals. My question is where was she all this time?...she was the vice president's wife since December 2014, before her husband's coup, and was well positioned to visit these hospitals and help if she wanted to but she didn't...until now. In my eyes this is just another publicity stunt and is no different to her husband visiting the ailing MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai and parading his visit to the whole world. I for one am sick and tired of this window dressing type of leadership and if we want to see real change in Zimbabwe we need to make sure that the people with Zimbabwe's best interests at heart are the ones that are voted for and elected into power in the upcoming general elections....

A huge payout and Immunity against prosecution for the Mugabes...a slap on the faces of the Zimbabwean people

Mugabe's leadership left Zimbabwe crippled with debt and the vast majority of the population living in abject poverty and yet he is being rewarded for his shoddy work. The Zimbabwean government is failing to provide essentials like medication in the hospitals and yet they can afford to pay Mugabe a staggering $10m....seriously? This is the kind of culture that allows those in government to get away with murder because we are not holding them to account for all the wrongs that they have committed but are instead paying them for their disservice.

For years Mugabe and his government committed crimes against the Zimbabwean people and for immunity to be included in his resignation deal, this indicates that he was well aware that his actions against the Zimbabwean people were wrong. This is the second time this year that Grace  Mugabe has been granted immunity against prosecution and this is sending a clear message to people like the Mugabes that they are above the law. There are families who have lost children, siblings, mothers and fathers at the hands of the Zimbabwean government and the message that is being sent to them is that their loved ones don't matter. Why do we as the Zimbabwean people stand by and watch whilst these things happen and yet hope for a better Zimbabwe?

For any real change to be effected in our beloved country, all those in Government and those in places of influence who have in the past been protected against prosecution have to be brought to account. We cannot cherry pick between those we deem to be 'bad' criminals and have them prosecuted whilst leaving the 'good' criminals to roam free...a criminal is a criminal and must be brought to justice.

To have Emmerson Mnangagwa in power or not...that is the question!

If Emmerson Mnangagwa orchestrated the coup d'état I applaud him for that, however I do not excuse the part that he played in bringing Zimbabwe to its current state of economic chaos and instability.

Emmerson Mnangagwa was complicit in the suffering of Zimbabwean citizens by not standing up to fight against the human rights violations that have prevailed under the rule of President Mugabe's government. When hundreds of people were made homeless by Grace Mugabe after their unlawful eviction from Arnold farm he did not voice his concern, when activists were brutalised, tortured and some even murdered, he was silent, when hundreds of women were raped as a result of their affiliation to parties other than ZANU PF, he never got them any justice and when US$15billion of diamond revenue went missing, he was part of the band of robbers who caused the money to disappear into thin air...why is he now all of a sudden our beloved father Ed.

We should not be disillusioned by this new face of Mnangagwa. Some are hailing him as the hero in this story and yet he was one of the people who caused the chaos. As President Mugabe's right hand man all this  chaos happened during his watch. If this man is allowed to lead the country then we cannot expect anything different to what we have already experienced over these past 37 years. The current prevailing government is rotten to the core and if we are to have any positive change, development and growth in the country we need to have a complete overhaul of the government and start afresh with new people.

May I remind everyone that this is the same Emmerson Mnangagwa who was accused of murder and terrorism affiliation only a few weeks ago...even after this coup d'état, he is still that same Emmerson Mnangagwa.

Double standards by Zimbabwean government....what hypocrites!

Yesterday Emerson Mnangangwa was the golden boy of ZANU PF and Vice President of Zimbabwe but today he is a fugitive, linked to a local terrorist group and is being investigated on four counts of murder.

What puzzles me is that some of the crimes that he is being accused of having committed occurred years ago and yet no one in government did anything to bring charges against him. Surely this information of his many crimes did not miraculously come to light after his being fired from government? This brings to question how President Robert Mugabe leads his government. His recent actions seem to suggest that it's acceptable for someone to commit heinous crimes against the citizenry of Zimbabwe and still hold powerful positions in government as long as it suits the leadership. My question is...if a person who was chosen to be Vice President by Robert Mugabe himself and yet had a dossier which included at least four murders but was found worthy of the position...how many others in this current Zimbabwean government are criminals but are under the protection of the President as a result of their loyalty to him?

As long as the Zimbabwean government continues to appoint criminals and murderers to positions of power and harbour them against prosecution...Zimbabwe will sadly not be the beautiful, thriving and safe country that we once knew and loved.