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That the man has a checkered past is undeniable! The manner in which President Mnangagwa got into power is rather curious, having been thrust into leadership through the now infamous military intervention, which was for all intents and purposes, a coup. His role during Gukurahundi, as President Mugabe`s security minister and head of the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO), is something that will haunt him for as long as he lives, try as he might, to project himself in a new light, as a humane individual.
Many of those people, especially in the Matabeleland region – then described by Mr Mnangagwa as “cockroaches,” for siding with dissidents – who bore the brunt of the Gukurahundi massacres will find it hard to forget President Mnangagwa`s words at a rally in 1983. “Blessed are they who follow the path of the government laws, for their days on earth shall be increased. But woe unto those who will choose the path of collaboration with dissidents, for we will certainly shorten their stay on earth,” he was quoted as saying.
Many of those people, especially in the Matabeleland region – then described by Mr Mnangagwa as “cockroaches,” for siding with dissidents – who bore the brunt of the Gukurahundi massacres will find it hard to forget President Mnangagwa`s words at a rally in 1983. “Blessed are they who follow the path of the government laws, for their days on earth shall be increased. But woe unto those who will choose the path of collaboration with dissidents, for we will certainly shorten their stay on earth,” he was quoted as saying.
Over the years, Emmerson Mnangagwa, long touted as President Robert Mugabe`s likely successor began, a carefully calculated campaign to delineate himself from the “brutal, hard-hearted” persona that had become synonymous with him. A case in point is his dogged resistance to the death penalty in Zimbabwe. His crusade to alter public perception of him did not just stop there, as he took it up a notch further, shielding white commercial dairy farmers in his hometown of Kwekwe from forced land repossessions during Zimbabwe`s fast track land reform program.
“Here in Midlands we stood our ground to avoid disruptions of the dairy industry and convinced the party leadership. As a result, Midlands is now the number one dairy producing province in the country,” said Mnangagwa in 2014 while attending a funeral of a dairy farmer in the area.
“Here in Midlands we stood our ground to avoid disruptions of the dairy industry and convinced the party leadership. As a result, Midlands is now the number one dairy producing province in the country,” said Mnangagwa in 2014 while attending a funeral of a dairy farmer in the area.
Having long operated in President Magabe`s shadows, the man has got plenty to prove to Zimbabweans. To some, his ascendancy to power is bittersweet in that, while Mugabe`s exit has been widely welcomed, Mnangagwa hardly seems to represent any departure from his erstwhile boss` modus operandi. After all, the man was Mugabe`s trusted lieutenant for decades.
Judging by his pronouncements however, President Mnangagwa has cast himself as a man eager to make things happen. With just a few months left until the elections, he has every incentive to try and bolt together the disjointed nuts of Zimbabwe`s economy apace. If his words since assuming national leadership are anything to go by, then the crocodile means business:
Judging by his pronouncements however, President Mnangagwa has cast himself as a man eager to make things happen. With just a few months left until the elections, he has every incentive to try and bolt together the disjointed nuts of Zimbabwe`s economy apace. If his words since assuming national leadership are anything to go by, then the crocodile means business:
“The voice of the people is the voice of God”
This has become synonymous with President Mnangagwa`s reign so far. Derived from Latin, “Vox Populi, Vox Dei, “the voice of the people is the voice of God, is the mantra by which President Mnangagwa intends to lead the nation. The country first heard him use this phrase as he made remarks to a crowd that had congregated outside the Zanu PF headquarters on the 22nd of November 2017 upon his return from a brief exile in South Africa.
Interestingly however, Alexander Hamilton one of the founding fathers of American democracy said, “The voice of the people has been said to be the voice of God; and, however generally this maxim has been quoted and believed, it is not true to fact. The people are turbulent and changing, they seldom judge or determine right.”
Interestingly however, Alexander Hamilton one of the founding fathers of American democracy said, “The voice of the people has been said to be the voice of God; and, however generally this maxim has been quoted and believed, it is not true to fact. The people are turbulent and changing, they seldom judge or determine right.”
“Do not sing songs about me, but sing revolutionary songs from the liberation struggle and our national anthem. I will be content and overjoyed”
In a party that has a history entrenched with hero-worshiping and a 'cult of personality' phenomenon, this would be a massive break with Zanu PF`s traditions. President Mnangagwa mentioned this at his party`s extraordinary congress in Harare, meant to endorse him as party leader. Long before Zanu`s former youth league secretary, Kudzai Chipanga`s, “Mugabe is the Angel Gabriel” rant, there was one Tony Gara, a former mayor who in the 1990s, likened Mugabe to Jesus Christ.
Then there was Webster Shamhu who said Mugabe is like Cremora – a non-dairy formula for creaming coffee. Not to be outdone was Obert Mpofu, who reportedly signed off all his correspondences to President Mugabe with “Your obedient son.” Clearly, this illustrates how deep-rooted the culture of boot-licking in Zanu PF is, and how it will take a tour de force to do away with this misnomer.
Then there was Webster Shamhu who said Mugabe is like Cremora – a non-dairy formula for creaming coffee. Not to be outdone was Obert Mpofu, who reportedly signed off all his correspondences to President Mugabe with “Your obedient son.” Clearly, this illustrates how deep-rooted the culture of boot-licking in Zanu PF is, and how it will take a tour de force to do away with this misnomer.
“Jobs, jobs, jobs”
In a country where unemployment has shot through the roof, it goes without saying that this is a critical deliverable for President Mnangagwa`s presidency, and he stressed as much during his inauguration speech. While it is largely held to be a self-evident truth, that the first way to effectively deal with a problem is to frankly admit that there is one in the first place, many people would have been left with a sour taste in their mouths, as President Mugabe`s administration repeatedly refuted claims that unemployment had reached stratospheric levels.
Ministers would come on record saying the economic landscape was changing, and many people were now employed in the informal market, thus the assertion of unemployment hovering around 90% was a fallacy. So for Mnangagwa to come out and talk about job creation, all but admitting to the low employment levels prevalent in Zimbabwe`s labour market is rather welcome.
Ministers would come on record saying the economic landscape was changing, and many people were now employed in the informal market, thus the assertion of unemployment hovering around 90% was a fallacy. So for Mnangagwa to come out and talk about job creation, all but admitting to the low employment levels prevalent in Zimbabwe`s labour market is rather welcome.
“Key choices will have to be made to attract foreign direct investment to tackle high levels of unemployment, while transforming our economy”
Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) was never that much liked by President Mnangagwa`s predecessor. In fact, Mr Mugabe`s nephew Patrick Zhuwao at one point described FDI as “ungodly,” being something Zimbabwe could do without. To prove the Mugabe administration`s ambivalence toward FDI, one need only look at the FDI figures for Zimbabwe and compare them to those of regional peers. In 2016 for instance, Zimbabwe received a total of $316 million in FDI inflows, while Mozambique registered inflows of $3 billion.
President Mnangagwa will have to walk away from the isolationist policy pursued by his predecessor which saw Zimbabwe often siding with global pariahs, who could do little by way of financial assistance even as the country became economically beleaguered. Needless to say, Zimbabwe will have to be more open and accommodating to foreign capital, and the relaxation of the indigenisation law is one such way. In a 2014 interview with a Chinese broadcaster, Mr Mnangagwa said, “We have to see how we can create an investment environment which will attract the flow of capital. We must know that investment can only go where it makes a return so we must make sure we create an environment where investors are happy to put their money because there is a return.”
President Mnangagwa will have to walk away from the isolationist policy pursued by his predecessor which saw Zimbabwe often siding with global pariahs, who could do little by way of financial assistance even as the country became economically beleaguered. Needless to say, Zimbabwe will have to be more open and accommodating to foreign capital, and the relaxation of the indigenisation law is one such way. In a 2014 interview with a Chinese broadcaster, Mr Mnangagwa said, “We have to see how we can create an investment environment which will attract the flow of capital. We must know that investment can only go where it makes a return so we must make sure we create an environment where investors are happy to put their money because there is a return.”
“Acts of corruption must stop forthwith, where these occur, swift justice must be served to show each and all that crime and other acts of economic sabotage can only guarantee ruin to perpetrators”
Zimbabweans have had to sit by and watch while brazen acts of graft were committed by government officials over the years with little action if any, being taken. Jonathan Moyo admitted to misappropriating government funds, going so far as to label himself a modern day “Robin Hood” after he used funds from the Zimbabwe Manpower Development Fund (Zimdef) to buy bicycles and computers for his Tsholotsho constituency. It appeared President Mugabe himself was prepared to look the other way when it came to corruption by his officials.
“Have you ever asked them (Zimbabweans) who the big fish (government officials) are and what the corruption they accuse them of is? What is that corruption?... I will investigate but I don’t want just political attacks as it were,” said Mugabe in an interview in February 2017. Similarly, damning reports from the Auditor General citing malfeasance in government entities were ignored, and as one might expect, corruption and graft continued unabated. According to Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index, Zimbabwe ranks 154 out of 176 nations, so clearly, President Mnangagwa has his work cut out for him in this regard.
“Have you ever asked them (Zimbabweans) who the big fish (government officials) are and what the corruption they accuse them of is? What is that corruption?... I will investigate but I don’t want just political attacks as it were,” said Mugabe in an interview in February 2017. Similarly, damning reports from the Auditor General citing malfeasance in government entities were ignored, and as one might expect, corruption and graft continued unabated. According to Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index, Zimbabwe ranks 154 out of 176 nations, so clearly, President Mnangagwa has his work cut out for him in this regard.
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