Rising out of the mud and the thorns

May 6, 2009 by ruzvidzo mupfudza ·
Filed under: I was just thinking, Politics

A few years ago, working as a journo for a paper that is now truly dead and buried, I wrote an article, “Who will Rescue us From the Mud and Thorns”. I quoted the following: “Imi veririsechi, muri vana vedu. Ndimi maziso edu. Ndimi nzeve dzedu Naizvozvo tinotarisa kwamuri kuti mutibvise mumadhaka matiri nemunzira dzine minzwa umo tiri kufamba. Tinodaira kuti kana muchida munogona kutibatsira,” a village head said to [Claude] Mararike during a discussion with villagers, padare, a community circle that represents the continuity of life and the links that bind the individual to the community, and the community to the individual.

Translated, the village head said,

“You researchers, are our sons. You are, therefore, our ears and eyes. We expect you to rescue us from the mud in which we are stuck and pull us out of the roads which are full of thorns. We believe that if you want you can help us out of these problems.”

Today, after rereading this article I realise that the people responsible for our woes are the every same people we looked up to to provide solutions. Too much faith in others dispossess us of our own power over events, it would seem.

While everyone is talking about a new dispensation, it is important to realise that two wrongs don’t make a right. Defending the indefensible, spewing out self- serving mantras where substance and form are divorced from each other will not solve our problems. Idiotic behaviour while we want to recover from 10 years of self- destruction will not help us in any way.

Defending the indfensible is a non- starter. Chaos anywhere, in parliament, on farms, etc cannot be healthy for us. Remember: Musakurudzira benzi nomupururu (Never encourage a fool by ululation).

We are not out of the woods yet, and woe unto anyone who thinks we can act with impunity and then expect to transcend ten year old chaos just like that ! Usavaka danga pasina mombe (Never build a cattle kraal where there are no cattle).

Only an imbecile uses a penknife to chirp away the branch he sitting on to while away time while waiting for the lion below to tire and walk away- chirps away at it where it joins the tree- trunk.

We are our own worst enemies, so it follows we can be our own true saviours!