There’s a Jonah on the boat

Teddie Bepete
From the Scriptures, we learn that when the Tarshish-bound sailors realised that their boat was sinking, they began casting their precious cargo into the sea not knowing that the source of their tragedy was Jonah — the preacher who had defied God’s instruction to go to Nineveh.

When Jonah finally revealed himself and was thrown overboard, the storm suddenly subsided and peace came. Zimbabwe cannot descend into civil war simply because of an ill-brained professor and his ill-fated semantics.

It’s up to Prof Jonah to reveal himself and agree to go overboard so that peace returns to the seas. If he does not want to sail with others to the future, then he is free to be left behind and find his place elsewhere.
If the Government, of which he is part, is not satisfying him, then he is free to jump ship.

Zimbabweans can never choose to lose what they obtained after much loss, death and suffering because of the whims of a political gambler, a schemer who leaves a trail of chaos in his wake. We are a peace-loving people governed by the virtues of humanity.

Our people are not up for war against one another, but are categorically at war against poverty through the dignity of their labour and policy interventions such as Command Agriculture, which is a logical part of our vaunted Zim-Asset.

In a headline entitled, ‘’Chiwenga Attack, Prof Moyo Hits Back’’, one media outlet suggested that something grim might befall the country because of the stance taken by General Constantino Chiwenga against Prof Moyo.

The report went as follows: “Opposition parties and ordinary citizens warned that the country was in danger of descending into civil strife in the wake of the public threat against Moyo.” First of all, we would have to reject the idea of a “public threat” against Moyo, and otherwise call it what it is — a reprimand by someone who knows better and has put his life on the line for his country.

The military in every country play a significant role in shaping the destiny of multitudes, especially in critical times. When natural disasters such as floods hit, we beg the military to rescue civilians, showering our soldiers with praise and urging them on.

But when a deviant Cabinet minister is reprimanded by the same military, some begin to talk about the “utility of Constitutional Acts” at the expense of national security. When former Gambian President Yahya Jammeh had to leave power early this year, General Badjie’s army was the number one dialogue partner in the talks throughout the transitional period.

Without a military, there can be no country. People who are talking about civil strife as a result of Prof Moyo’s possible dismissal need considerable scrutiny. One would also ask why the opposition is also ambivalent when it comes to Prof Moyo’s case.

Why do they express some sense of comradeship and remorse for him? That one is another case for study.
What the world should know is that in this country, Prof Moyo’s shrieking, raving and ranting is not influential enough to cause civil war.

Given his turncoat history, very few would be eager to follow him to the sink-hole he is heading to now.
Zimbabwe is not going to cast its precious cargo into the sea because of a Prof Jonah. It should be remembered that the professor became someone in national politics because of Zanu-PF, not the other way around.

His agenda can never exceed the sacred values of Chimurenga, values written in the blood of martyrs who fell in the field of battle for no material gain, but for this treasured freedom and peace that we enjoy today.
Remember, the boat will reach its destination quicker without a Jonah aboard.