Lessons that men of concrete taught us
The tone of those who used to strut around as if they were latter day demigods, appearing on State media like peacocks, and speaking down to the rest of us mere mortals as if we were worthless, has distinctly changed of late.
Yes, now and again there is the occasional outburst of vitriolic but generally the body language is subdued and the tone even reconcialiatory. Some of the utterances are even reasonable. The winds of change have come, but they will not shake off the dry and withered leaves from the trees in one day.
History teaches us that politicians come and go, but the country, as we all know, as an entity, always remains. It has taken a while for Zimbabwean politicians to realise this. For a long time there was a tendency to cut the nose in order to spite the face by those on either side of the political divide. The ruling party was hell bent on fixing the opposition and the opposition wanted to do the same to their erstwhile rivals. And Zimbabwe suffered in the process.
There was rabid intolerance to accept criticism and censure on both sides, and anyone who pointed out the shortcomings of either camp and highlighted the myopia of their strategies, was instantly labelled as belonging to the other group. The polarisation was rabid. The sense of belonging to Zimbabwe and wanting what was best for the nation was conveniently forgotten in the process.
But the fact of the matter was that none of them had a monopoly ownership of the soul of this nation. This, however did not stop them from behaving as if they did. The populace was taken for granted, treated like serfs. The business community went into a primitive accumulation mode. Government took a bludgeon in a bid to “protect the interests of the people” and ended up doing more harm- most of which it had precipitated in the first place.
It was frustrating for those of us who simply wanted a Zimbabwe that worked and hungered for a socially ameliorating vision that put Zimbabwe first. Now, of course, the politicians have jumped onto the bandwagon and are abusing that refrain, but that is in their nature. However, very few will be fooled by their rhetoric, and only their actions and the outcomes of those actions on the ground will verify their sincerity or lack thereof.
Their greed, their megalomania and insensitivity to our plight has been devastating. I am reminded of Micah’s utterances here: “Woe to those who plan iniquity, to those who plot evil on their beds! At morning’s light they carry it out because it is in their power to do it. They covet fields and seize them, and houses, and take them. They defraud a man of his home, a fellowman of his inheritance. Then they will cry out to the Lord, but he will not answer them. At that time he will hide his face from them because of the evil they have done” (Micah 2: 1-2).
He could very well have been talking about Zimbabwe in the past eight years in particular and 28 years. We have seen quite graphically how power corrupts and once the sordidness sets in it affects the entire social fabric. The social malaise is going to take a while to heal.
I am all for Patriotism, Pan Africanism and Black Power but those who have abused these concepts have also taught me what they are not. In “Literature and Society” (Writers & Politics) Ngugi wa Thiong’o aptly observed: “Black Power…does not mean the glorification of an ossified past. Rather it means the true creative power of African people through the equitable distribution of the product of their sweat to enhance the quality of their lives…a total liberation of the African genius at all levels.”
Men of Concrete, political hawks sought only to distribute wealth among themselves, exploit the sweat of our labours and enrich themselves. The quality of our lives today speaks for itself. Their reign has been marked by extreme apostasy. Their abandonment of commitment and withdrawal of responsibility has been total, the consequences devastating.
However, one thing they have taught me above all else is that they cannot kill our spirit. Out of the ashes of the ruins they have presided over, hope springs eternal. Some of them are on their way out. None will be around forever. But Zimbabwe will remain. Zimbabweans have survived and will survive. A new breed will come…Reconstruction will not be a thing of one day… But between the Zambezi and Limpopo, Zimbabwe will go on.
Related Articles
- Tendai Biti on CNN’s African Voices
- Breaking the kombi rules my teacher taught me
- Hope and lessons for Zim from the Desiderata
- Of politics, politicians and our future
Give me a Random Article
Comments
One Response to “Lessons that men of concrete taught us”
Trackbacks
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
The lessons should be able to make us better people for the future. I like that article on the lessons taught by men of conrete