A Voice of Concern: The Zimbabwe Situation

Reuters photo

By

Learnmore Edwin Zvada

We have been divided by politics. Instead of being a people of one nation, we have been fractioned into the political right and the political left. The leftists are taken to be enemies of the state and most often they suffer the disdain of the rightists who regard themselves as patriots who deserve the manna which the motherland has to offer.

Those in power believe themselves to be the only ones with the right ideas to lead the country, so they throw away any idea that is not of their coinage. Those outside the power-circle crave the throne with such a ravenous appetite of epic dimensions; as such they are predisposed to employing the same weaponry to suppress the ideas of their subjects if they ever get their hold on the tentacles of power. Instead of focusing on being the better option, they succumb to bitterness and hatred and in the end are no better than their rivals in the political space.

We have been divided by politics and have since forgotten that we want the same things. We want to be able to provide for our families, we want better schools for our children, we want affordable healthcare, food, clothing, housing, etc. Although we have different opinions on who we should elect into office, at the end of the day, we share the same grand vision for our nation. But when given the opportunity to choose the vehicle that leads us to that promised land, we rough each other up like disgruntled prostitutes. Brother killing brother. Sons jambokking mother-in-law. Neighbor forcing himself on neighbor’s daughter. What a shame.

Lately, cyberspace has been awash with all form of campaigning ahead of Zimbabwe’s 2018 Harmonized Elections. Good for us, at least we have taken up the know-how on getting ahead in this technological era. But instead of cyberspace being a tool to bring us closer together, to build our country in unity, it’s now a platform where we destroy each other’s images; lies selling faster than Viagra in a sporting house, the masses gobbling it all gullibly. Media houses have mutated into political bazookas, firing missiles of hate-speech onto its readership, all under the banner of politics. Instead of political outfits selling why they are the better choice, they are each hell-bent on soiling the other’s image at all costs; lies and truth alike.

Are we really this shallow? We are human beings, with separate minds and are bound to have antagonizing ideas and opinions at some point. That doesn’t mean we tear each other apart at the first whiff of contrariety. We are all sons and daughters of the soil. Blood flows in all of us; when bruised we bleed, when hit we hurt. Why can’t we be human enough not to lose our humanity over cheap politicking or anything else for that matter? Politics was here way before we were born and will remain long after we are gone. Let’s use politics as a tool to foster humanity, not to submit to politics at the expense of humanity.

I dream of a time when my people can walk together hand in hand to cast their vote even though they are going to vote for different political candidates, husband and wife raising a family together, albeit subscribing to different political ideologies. I dream of a time when ideas are shared and policies implemented irrespective of who or which political party brought them forward. I hope for the running of parastatals and NGOs in a nonpartisan manner, where everyone benefits equally and fairly. I hope someday we will see a collective nation building, a united Zimbabwe working towards making the motherland great again. God bless Zimbabwe and all those who believe in her.

Learnmore Edwin Zvada

Learnmore Edwin Zvada is a poet in the making. He hails from Zimbabwe’s Harare Province where he is currently studying towards a degree in engineering. He fell in love with poetry at a tender age. Some of his poems have appeared in online magazines, namely, The Literary Yard, Tuck Magazine, Duane’s PoeTree, POEBITA Poetry Magazine and Whispers. At the present moment, he is working on his first poetry book. Apart from poetry, Learnmore is an ardent lover of photography and music. For more of his work, you can visit his Facebook page.