Recently in Chipinge
HALF a decade ago and a month, the Second Republic was ushered in; conceived in a new approach and dedicated to the proposition that a country is built by its citizens.
Of everything said in Chipinge, at the launch of the ZANU PF election campaign and manifesto, one statement by President Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa said it all: “This is Munhumutapa’s land.”
I dare say in that half a decade Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa has not cared about Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa.
We are products of our own age and can be nothing else, all we can do is hold onto that which we believe to be eternal and believe in our own worth enough to choose values proactively rather than reactively.
We are the house that Munhumutapa built
As he spoke at Mutema High School, with words clearly and loudly coming from the deepest recesses of his heart, it was not Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa speaking or spoken about.
Definitely speaking was Ruka Chivende, Smart Tembo, Trabablas Mabhunu….
Even as a lone voice in the crowd could not and would not stop shouting: “Mnangagwa huchi, muri huchi baba, murume uyu kani”, it was not Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa he referred to.
The lone voice could not find the words to fully describe the man — I can find them.
On the podium at Mutema High School, E.D. took the audience back to the State of Munhumutapa and spoke to the hearts of the gathering.
They say it happened at Bernard Mizeki.
Those that hate the man simply because he is Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa were furious that he had come to ‘their’ shrine to address them.
And when the very same Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa was done speaking, those very same people who ‘hate’ the man, confessed they had been won over.
The words from this one heart seeped into their very hearts.
Their minds and preconceived thoughts were powerless; they could not stop the words emanating from ED’s heart tugging at the threads of their hearts.
ED is not a horse yet to race, he has ably run, becoming the horse to beat, if you can.
Why are the progressive minded and those that love this nation believe in ED.
Simply because Ed has been prepared and willing to compromise but holds strong bedrock convictions from which he will not budge; he may compromise on the solutions but never on the principle: Zimbabwe is for Zimbabweans and will be driven by Zimbabweans.
Possessing great mental toughness and physical stamina, he has not been the leader who stays in the office. The hours he has put in traversing the length and breadth of the country, working, being on the ground checking on every project are staggering.
His work ethic cannot be questioned. He has worked hard. He has assembled good teams and helped bring people of differing ideas and beliefs together to work towards a common goal
As President of the nation, he has had a clear and detailed vision of the way in which he wants the nation to develop and has been able to pursue that vision single-mindedly through difficulties.
Why ED?
The man is not an unknown quantity.
He has delivered.
His cards have been laid on the table and he possesses a good hand compared to those barking at his heels.
While others have made their parties personal properties and consolidation of power their main agenda, ED has set a bold vision for Zimbabweans which says they can, and should, be masters of their destiny. It seemed impossible for a small nation battered by more than two decades of illegal sanctions to go up against the might of the West seeking regime change but ED has persuaded and showed the nation that it can achieve self-sufficiency
It is clear that every leader needs a vision which, by definition, is something that everybody in the country can grasp, a simple answer that can instantly be given to the question: What are we trying to achieve.
Vision 2030
Mnangagwa has not waited for something to happen, for some chance occurrence, for someone else to do something so that the country can become what it should be. That is slave thinking and he has done away with it.
Every nation faces obstacles and limitations and ultimately it is up to the leadership to decide what kind of a nation they want to be and how they are going to be that nation they have envisioned.
And ED has ensured that there is no confusion with regards to where Zimbabwe is headed.
Mnangagwa has successfully escaped the trap of resentment, of both local and foreign detractors, with careful evaluation and calm finesse.
The path for ED has been away from resentment and blame game and towards a higher ideal; away from weakness and towards strength, creating and building a nation thriving on strengths, focused more on what we have rather than what is not there.
He has been concerned primarily by ‘we’ and not ‘they’ — his orientation from day one has not been anti ‘them’ but rather pro ‘us’.
In the last half decade, Ed has not lapsed into blaming or cursing the circumstances he found himself in.
Wary of the trap of resentment and anger, he has avoided it, overcoming challenges through honest self-analysis and constructive advice from all quarters, local and foreign.
In the last five years, ED has been forward-facing. In every scenario, he has looked for opportunities to win and has not been hindered by back-glancing thoughts of defeat or the distracting feelings of hatred. In the face of challenges, he has found a way or made one.
He has responded to all chaos and disorder by dreaming and imposing Zimbabwe’s own vision, becoming a visionary force of order, a starter of a thriving nation.
ED is a man wrestling with the ideas and problems of his own time and is developing solutions to those problems from a Zimbabwean perspective.
Clearly ED has planned for the future. He remembers the past and has learnt from it. He has reacted to the actual and relied on the real.
ED is going forward with a conquering eye! A raptor’s eye, sharp and sweeping, an eye that picks out prey on the most desolate plain. An ascendant eye, undaunted by loss, always looking for the next chance to win. An eye that recognises responsibility – but never lingers on blame. There has been no time for the licking of wounds.
ED is a man who does not want his hand held or wants to be led and coddled and caressed by empty compliments; he has refused the most obvious options (give in to the West and all shall be well).
He has evaluated every conceivable option and selected the ones most likely to work. He has sought the most effective ‘weapons’, the most efficient tools, the most talented and driven people the country has.
Ed’s focus has been on the present, writing a story about how we are going to handle challenges now and in the future.
In the physical and psychical boundaries of nations, ED has been possessed by a strong desire, has found himself unsatisfied with seeking only survival and has chased a higher happiness and state for his people through provision of the fundamentals on which everything is anchored — dams, power and revamped universities.
He has doggedly sought to make Zimbabwe stronger, more courageous, more skillful.
To become stronger, more courageous and more skillful, he has surrounded himself, appointed and tasked the best among us to work for the nation.
ED has chosen hardness over softness.
ED has been a creator driven by our values as a people remaking our nation on the foundation of those who came before us.
The House of Munhumutapa.
Ed has not just wished but has truly believed that we can, that we are capable, that we have the potential to not merely go through the motions of things but to actually do well, to succeed, to do better than we believed we could.
ED has flipped on a switch and allowed everybody to believe that we can; he has challenged us to conquer limiting narratives.
Ed has not been focused on losing but looking forward to the next opportunity to win.
What exactly do we mean by vision
Ed has not just described problems or listed his goals. He has painted a vivid picture of how our country can look if we set our minds to it.
He has envisioned a work culture that is more efficient, he has imagined a country where the indigenes determine their fate.
A leader leads people somewhere else — somewhere that is not here. That is the job. If the nation is staying in one place, they need a manager not a leader. Leadership is all about change and transformation.
And Zimbabwe, like Mnangagwa or hate him, is being transformed.
ED has, from day one, embodied the spirit of Zimbabwe as a whole. He has cast himself in the role of the great advocate who has put the case of Zimbabwe to the world and the destiny of Zimbabwe to Zimbabweans.
One day they shall read him and his name will stand as a symbol of what inspired acts can do.
ED’s ability and energy appears to have been summoned forth by the national perils that face us; he has been equal to dealing with the most arduous tasks.
ED is playing his part wholeheartedly and without scruple, perfectly at ease in his post of guide and leader, being a great champion of a great undertaking.
In ED is a boldness of imagination.
Something hated by Westerners for Africans have no capacity to think, should not think, only the whiteman must think for Africans.
And sadly, imagination and going after the truly great, real and beneficial for us is something not appreciated by our fellow brothers and sisters, who can do nothing but disparage and fail to see their capabilities.
ED’s propensity for work has served to show the people not only who they are but what they can and should be.
ED’s every outing, from day one, has been a ‘we shall never surrender’ statement, exhorting the citizenry to operate at their best level, encouraging the masses to face adversity head on, summoning citizens to rise above themselves
The people expect their President to be free from any prejudice, to think singly of the national good and to rally them to its support. He must push his Cabinet to do what has to be done.
And ED has done it.
His energy and steadfastness and sublime ability to comprehend issues, ability to quickly pick up new concepts and ideas has been nothing short of remarkable.
ED was born into complicated times, with Zimbabwe yearning for its independence and in many ways he was part of the fulcrum of the lever that dislodged the colonialists.
Colonialism made ED determined to work for freedom from servitude and foreign domination. ED did not enter into politics — they brought politics to him.
He has given the nation the vision that it needs at exactly the moment when most people are ready to receive it.
It is very easy to imagine getting a drink with him and discussing anything from politics to fashion, sports to science; he is interested in everything and accessible to anyone and everyone.
Hope to sit down with you soon Mr President, preferably at your farm.
The Zimbabwe of ED’s imagination is much greater than the present reality. Toil and sweat he has offered, he has done away and not enjoyed the comfort of the office and spent his time out there, with the people. He has acknowledged the hard work ahead of us and that it must be carried out with all our strength, united; the sole aim being the creation of a self-sufficient Zimbabwe, however long and hard the road may be.
