G40 Could Destroy Lacoste With Mujuru’s Help

Source: G40 Could Destroy Lacoste With Mujuru’s Help | ZimEye

By Ndaba Nhuku| If the G40 formed New Patriotic Front and are working alongside Mujuru’s National People’s Party, then the Lacoste gang has good reason to worry big time. To pretend otherwise would be naïve. The ‘two parties’ are in effect mere two factions from Zanu uniting under a different name.

That leaves Lacoste as a third faction hanging onto the detested liberation name Zanu PF. Zanu destroyed our country and reduced our people into embarrassing beggars and socioeconomic outcasts. Thus Zanu under Lacoste faction finds itself wedged in-between two formidable rivals such as the Mujuru led factions of NPP and NPF, and the Tsvangirai led MDC Alliance. The votes will definitely not be evenly shared. Someone will have to win. At this point MDC Alliance seems to be the dominating one as it has over several years. Mujuru alone has had the misfortune of parting with fellow liberation cadres like Mutasa, Dongo and others. We are yet to see the impact of NPF in the political arena. However no one can doubt that the excitement around it by G40 supporters and sympathisers and the anger by Lacoste attack dogs certainly means it has some effect. The most unexpected game changer was that Mugabe has supported Mujuru and in effect blessed the coalition of Mujuru and NPF against alleged treacherous Lacoste and the ZDF leaders. This has certainly sent shivers to the Lacoste despite the leadership pretending to show lukewarm reception of the news. The coup excitement is dying as Mugabe backed party arises. The much heralded economic prosperity expected to have come with the coup is not coming quick enough. All we hear about it is ’give ED a chance’ Zimbabweans are used to giving their lying leaders a chance only to be disillusioned whilst the leaders and their families, and closest and nosiest allies get wealthy. Many politicians, especially young ones cannot account for their sudden wealth in the midst of our suffering. This therefore makes us frown when asked to give ED a chance.

Mnangagwa faces many daunting challenges. These include his own dry personality which is a political put off. In addition, he has to contend with the G40, tribalism, Gukurahundi, white farmers compensation and land reclamation, Mugabe uniting G4O and Mujuru, MDC Alliance, a restlessly impatient population wanting change overnight, and that the Zanu’s rural supporters are ignorant of who he is. I don’t envy being in his position at all.

What is coming in 2018? The arrival of NPF has changed the game not only for Lacoste team, but for MDC Alliance which had gained disgruntled Zanu members who were not amused with the coup. These have now gone back where they belong; to NFP or Mujuru faction as it has Mugabe’s backing. And what happens to the Lacoste faction? It has continued been ill advised to continue on its in its war path without even blinking in consideration of elections being around the corner. The Lacoste has alienated many of its Zanu cadres by discriminately harassing and arresting G40 members. Being vindictive and firing them from Zanu for merely supporting someone else other than Mnangagwa doesn’t show Zanu has become democratic under him. Instead it is seen as silencing opposition in preference of hero-worshipping stooges and relatives. You cannot fire people from the party because they prefer a different person as leader, you can only demote them to put in place a team that enables you to meet your national agenda. But then this being a military led party, it’s a different story altogether. On the other hand, one has to acknowledge the Lacoste effort of making the right noises on the economic front and re-engagement with the global family. The western countries have shown an interest. But this again becomes hollow as long as the Lacoste has not abandoned violence, and continues to treat rival party members as enemies. Reckless Statements of violence and using the army against Opposition parties by military cadres like Rugeje the New

Lacoste Commissar shows that violence continues to be part of Zanu culture even under Mnangangwa. Mnangagwa’s continued utterances of divisive and violence promoting slogans are cause for concern. We recently saw violence which flaring up. Lacoste also alienated many, especially young people and women by coming up with a military cabinet that completely ignored and excluded the two leagues essential for the growth of any political party. By excluding women and youth, yet increasing the number of military personnel, the Lacoste cabinet effectively became a military cabinet lacking legitimacy. By keeping leading G40 members exiled, Lacoste has in effect naively given them room to expose its scandals from the safety and protection of alien lands. As more and more scandals such as the abduction of Itai Dzamara and Gukurahundi massacres are revealed and pervasively spoken about, many will realise that the coup was all about power for its own sake and not benefitting the nation. Again, replacing G40 members who were fired from Zanu with relatives and friends takes the party has generated anger and anxiety on ambitious individuals not related to the top leadership. This again highlights another division bedevilling the Lacoste team, tribalism. From the moment Mnangagwa was marketed as leader to replace Mugabe, the blunder was asserting the agenda as ‘its the turn of the Karanga to rule’ there was a lot of ‘homeboy’ language which certainly was repulsive and clearly tribalism at its worst. Tribalism even saw Opposition leaders of Karanga origin fighting tooth and nail to ensure that Mnangagwa became president at the expense of their own parties’ leaders. It was an interesting comedy to observe. But then one has to ask, when will it be the turn of SaManyika, maNdau, Ndebele, Kalanga, venda, korekore, Sotho, Budya etc?

Rural people still want their Mugabe. They know more about Mujuru than they do Mnangagwa. Those who know him only fear him as the man associated with Gukurahundi. And his supporters were not ashamed to market him as such and to celebrate Prof Moyo’s child’s death, thus sending wrong detestable perception to the public. Undoing that is going to take long as it was worsened by a Karanga cabinet of civilians and military men originating mainly from Midlands and Masvingo. Mugabe only had one nephew as MP or minister and never had a close relative till Mnangagwa nicodemously dragged Grace into politics. Patrick Zhuwao was appointed a minister recently as factionalism became a do or die issue. For his more than 30 years in power Mugabe had no wife, nephew or brother who was in his cabinet. Sabina was a politician in her own right. On the other had, Lacoste seems to be scrambling for relatives and small houses and kids to be MPs and ministers. Noone knows who is really the leader; Mnangagwa or Chiwenga. Mmnagagwa has not shown the confidence of being the man on the reigns. Wherever he is, Chiwenga or another military man is by his side. He is not inspiring, he is not motivating and he is not articulating any policy save for picking MDC or some other party policies here and there and trying to market them as his because they sound good. Giving back land as a way of compensation the white farmers for the chaotic jambanja land redistribution is seen as a big blunder. Land needed a revisit to account for what was given, and to who. Lacoste members have numerous farms no one is using or speaks of. Whilst applauding that white commercial farmers must be compensated, it is politically suicidal to ignore the seriousness of Gukurahundi victims and need for restorative justice. Compensating one and not the other continues to show lack of sensitivity and value to the ongoing Gukurahundi issue. Daylight lying and propaganda are useless. People are clever and know that Mnangagwa has no legitimacy and needs to have one by winning the next elections.

As the emotional excitement for the coup dissipates, the way forward for Lacoste to gain support is by robustly attending to the economic front of the nation. None of these Lacoste guys is decent and articulate enough to stand in front of people lying about politics when they are all long standing Zanu cadres who effectively kept Mugabe in power for the last three decades. They are all dry and not marketable and none is articulate. We have politicians who look like solemn judges trying to address the court! Most are well known corrupt by international standards. On the political front, they are all rotten to the core to talk about human rights, equality fairness etc. Thus they have to prove on the ground by actually getting the funding and investment from western capitals and ensuring employment and services are availed to the long suffering people of Zimbabwe. Economic solutions will win him the election and not this ‘give us a chance!’ Thus getting water, electricity, health and educational sectors working effectively once more, will for a long time ensure Mnangagwa remains a household name.

He also must urgently appoint a committee that deals with diaspora needs with regard s to investment, returning home etc. Zimbabwe missions/ embassies must be manned by professionals not cronies or homeboys as was once the case in UK.

The Opposition is currently in disarray, MDC Allinace still not yet sorted its issue about seats. Mujuru has seen a numbder of high profile people desert her over same Zanu curse, tribalism and nepotism. Zanu Lacoste is unchallenged and has tentative western support. Violence must be condemened forthrightly and forcefully.

The Opposition can win by uniting and forcefully reminding the electorate that Mnangagwa is Zanu and that there is nothing bad about Mugabe that can not be tied to Mnangagwa. Mnangagwa personally boasted of fifty years of loyalty to the elderly man he now pretends to hate and punishes him by keeping him a prisoner. The Opposition must point at the Mnanagagwa cabinet is effectively from Mugabe people, with a few more violent men like military mafia Rugeje, and also point out that it is a military Command cabinet.