This
motion picture was so action packed it kept the audience in the theatre on the
edge of their seats. 5 November, 2017, the then First Lady of the Republic of
Zimbabwe, Grace Mugabe rebukes the then Vice President of the Republic of
Zimbabwe, Comrade Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa- “Who is Mnangagwa?” She shouted
while punching her fist in the air. 6 November, 2017, the then President of the
Republic of Zimbabwe, Comrade Robert Gabriel Mugabe, fires VEEP Mnangagwa. 14
November, 2017, General Costantino Chiwenga stages a not–coup ‘coup’. In the
theatre, we lose all decorum – nay all protocol – of watching a movie. We
murmur amongst ourselves: “What will be the next twist in the plot?!” 18
November, 2017, the povo hit the
streets in anti-Mugabe protests. 19 November, 2017, a global audience watches
the breaking news of a resignation that never was. Finally, 21 November, 2017,
Comrade Bob resigns as President of the Republic of Zimbabwe. The end of an
era; 37 years long. Comrade Bob went into office a hero – folks dancing to Bob
Marley’s ‘Zimbabwe’ on 18 April, 1980. On 21 November, 2017, Comrade Bob went
back to ‘Blue Roof’ a villain with folks singing Jah Prezzah’s ‘Mudala Chauya’.
And on 24 November, 2017, Comrade Emmerson was inaugurated as the new President
of the Republic of Zimbabwe.
What
went wrong? It is a problem that is pervasive in Africa. There is a sense of
entitlement that endures among those who deem themselves to have been at the
front line of an independence struggle; a war liberation struggle; or indeed a
popular revolt. In African polities, the twin towers of economic
underdevelopment and poverty fan the ambitions of a beneficent dictator. He –
they have been “He’s” in Africa – behaves as a Philosopher-King. You cross his
path at your peril. This is the influenza that knocked down Comrade Bob – and I
must say others on the African continent. African polities have suffered from
lack of credible and effective institutions of governance. We have been
hypnotized in believing in the “imperial” presidency.
We
have come a long way. In Malawi, for example, Under Malawi’s Republican Constitution of 1966, the Presidency was the
constitution unto itself. Section 9 of the 1966 Constitution provided that ‘Dr.
Hastings Kamuzu Banda shall be the Life President of the Republic of Malawi’.
Life President Banda had extensive power under the body of laws in the country:
the power to hire and fire; emergency constitutional powers; so–called public
security powers; and even the power to declare citizens of the country persona non grata. Hence, for three
decades, between 1964 and 1994, Malawi under Banda was a nation under siege. He
was Number One Everything.
Even
though, the 1994 Constitution is based on a largely liberal democratic order,
we have retained a largely powerful Presidency. It is a situation that may
haunt Malawians if ever we shall get a Presidency with self–serving monarchical
tendencies.
It
is well and good to develop robust, high sounding constitutions. It is equally
important to build – as I earlier point out – credible and effective
institutions of governance. Would Comrade Bob have become the Philosopher-King
he became if there were credible and effective institutions on the ground?
Would we in Malawi have had an Open Term Bill (Yes; it was an Open Term Bill)
presented to Parliament in 2003 if we had credible and effective institutions?
Remember khaki envelopes changed hands and the Bill was only defeated by 3
votes. We were that close to degenerating into a second cycle of blatant
dictatorship.
In
Malawi, we are now moving in a vicious cycle where entrenchment of our
democracy through institutions – strong and effective public service, an
efficient judiciary and an organized national assembly that provides oversight
over the Executive – does not seem to be high on our priorities. The
anti-corruption apparatus has been huffing and puffing. There is a lot of flattering
to deceive.
I
am not sure that I know what it will take us Malawians to be ‘very angry’
against chipwi’kiti in the running of
our country. I hasten a suggestion though: The ‘anger’ the Malawians have had
against LGBTi rights must be vented for public finance mismanagement,
corruption or indeed blatant disregard for clear laws, policies and procedures
in the running of the public service widely construed. The mkwiyo must be vented for hegemonic familial relationships, dubious
characters in dapper suits and shiny shoes. We risk – ahem – state capture. It
should not be taking a not–coup ‘coup’ to sort things out. Institutions must be
in place that tell someone when to enter office and when to leave. And many
other critical matters in the running of the affairs of the State.
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