The Sunday Mail
LIFE for opposition parties in Zimbabwe is short, nasty and brutish.
Dr Obert Moses Mpofu
I cannot seem to remember all the political parties that have come and gone in the history of Zimbabwe, for there are too many.
Chaos, indiscipline and lust for power have swallowed many opposition parties in this country.
Only ZANU PF has remained, and it continues to grow from strength to strength.
My party, ZANU PF, has outlived every other political outfit that has ever tried to deceive the masses.
Discipline and patriotism need to be inculcated in our youths
Since the old days, even before independence, those who tried to oppose the people’s movement have failed.
The people guard jealously that which they value.
The people of Zimbabwe value their independence and self-determination.
Nothing can ever diminish their affection for their country.
There exists an unbreakable bond between the people’s movement and the people themselves.
ZANU PF belongs to the people.
This is why, in our short history as a young democracy, so many opposition political parties have come and gone.
But ZANU PF has endured and stood the test of time.
It cannot be denied that ZANU PF exists in perpetuity.
It is the party that represents what it truly means to be Zimbabwean.
Indeed, being ZANU PF is being Zimbabwean and being Zimbabwean is being ZANU PF.
I cannot definitively give explanations as to why opposition parties have been short-lived, for there are many.
My guess is that Zimbabweans are a smart people who cannot be deceived.
We have one of the highest literacy rates on the continent and we are among the most educated.
Neo-colonialism will never succeed for as long as there are Zimbabweans to guard jealously their beloved land.
So, opposition politics is doomed to fail.
Zimbabwe will not fail.
We have proven this over the past two decades, when conditions were engineered to ensure our demise, but we still stand.
We now even have the fastest-growing economy in the region.
The Second Republic has truly turned the tide in our favour.
There is no other country much like Zimbabwe now.
Our country is so unique that we have become a marvel for the rest of the world.
Great lessons are actually being drawn from us by those in the region and beyond.
Opposing ZANU PF is indeed opposing the people, and this is all but foolish.
The people are our masters.
As President Mnangagwa always says, “the voice of the people is the voice of God”.
Indeed, the people hold all the power.
Without the people, all political movements will shrivel, die and be short-lived.
There is an evident dearth of political understanding among the opposition movements that have come and gone in this country.
Many opposition movements have perished due to their failure to realise and appreciate Zimbabwe’s political fundamentals.
A new age is upon us.
Those who choose to stay in the past and act against their country will be left behind.
Our beloved Zimbabwe is not only full of promise but also prosperity for those who love their country.
There is no space anymore for those who call for sanctions upon Zimbabwe.
We are all now builders of this great nation.
Brick by brick, we are taking it forward.
Contrary to the expectations of our detractors and their puppets, this success we now enjoy as a nation will not be short-lived.
The Zimbabwe we are building will not leave anyone or any place behind.
This calls for all of us to rally behind President Mnangagwa and his Vision 2030 to ensure that we build a successful Zimbabwe cherished by all.
So long as we rally behind our nation and its leadership, Zimbabwe is guaranteed success.
The future is ever so bright.
As we move into the future, young people should also take up a leading role and work towards developing our beloved nation.
True to the words of the late Father Zimbabwe, Cde Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo, for as long as there are young people, our nation will not die, for they will save it.
This is why our youth should be educated and socialised so as to ensure that discipline and love for the country are inculcated in them.
They should be taught not to align with our detractors in destroying their own nation.
Together — united in our common purpose — we are unstoppable.
Dr Obert Moses Mpofu is an academic and the Secretary-General of ZANU PF. He writes in his own capacity.
