ZIMBABWE — Following the historic signing of the power sharing agreement, a lot has been said and written. A lot of questions have been asked.

 

A lot of answers have been given. Still a lot of unanswered questions remain.

 

 

There is confusion. There is hope in the confusion. People have suffered. They have suffered enough. They want a respite now. They are now tired of the political bickering by their leaders.

 

They need their lives back. They want their dignity back. They want their sacred rights to be respected, with or without a deal.

 People know ,they know for sure that someone benefited from the power deal. They are yet to see the benefit themselves, if ever that is going to happen. They  all are bound by the same thin thread of hope, a hope for a better future. Hope in a hopeless situation.

 

There seems to be some agreement, some agreement that the deal is one sided. A few will benefit from it.  The epicenter of all these disagreements and confusion is the subject of my analysis. A few have wrote about it. Very few are willing to do so.

 

Many fear they will be branded chronic pessimists. The analysis will be centered on the question central to this. The big question is:  Who needed and benefited from the deal? A few have wrote on this subject. .

 

Whilst not taking anything from Zimbabwean media people, it is unfortunate and equally disturbing that none in the media fraternity took his or her time to analyse the forces behind the three parties to the signing of the September 15 2008.

 

I will take my time to analyse all the parties to the deal and all those who made it possible. With all due respect to the mediator, I will not mince my words on his part, he lost it, both here and home. In match language, he lost home and away.

 

The People Of Zimbabwe

 

They are the biggest losers. After speaking through their ballots in March that they wanted a change of administration. The people’s will was usurped by the military junta after the March 29 elections.

 

The masses were punished left, right and centre for daring to exercise their democratic right of choosing their leaders  They wanted no more of ZANU PF. Enough was enough? They did not want a power sharing deal. A complete and total change of government was what each voter who voted for the MDC wanted.

They got nothing, nothing anywhere near that. They needed not the deal, they did not hope for compromises nor power sharing or an inclusive government whatever you may want to call.

That Mugabe won the runoff (one off) in June and should be recognized is both mischievous, malicious and utter blackmailing and subversion of the will of the masses. The ZANU PF regime won against its people. It won against the masses. They won against hope; they were victors against common and common wish. They scored a political goal against democracy in Zimbabwe.

 

The MDC’s

 

They lost it from day one after the March 29 elections. Facing victory they didn’t know what to do and remained an opposition! Mugabe seized the opportunity with zeal and zest to cling on to power using all means possible, necessary and unnecessary.

While the opposition was gallivanting across the continent and abroad ZANU PF’s killer machine was running amok in the rural areas and towns leaving masses petrified and cowed into voting for the same leader they had vehemently rejected in March..

 

When the leaders of the opposition finally came back from the honeymoon or diplomatic offensive or nonsense whatever they called it, the tables had been turned against them and were heading for a whitewash. They chose to pull out or boycott.

 

It was too little too late. Mugabe then claimed victory, putting himself and is party in a stronger position on the negotiating table. With the economy collapsing, the country facing a possible humanitarian crisis, the regime had no choice but to call the opposition for talks. Insincere though they were.

The opposition got into the negotiations with bruised egos, they negotiated with some semblance of intelligence and purpose. Still they were beaten to it. The SADC and AU pressurized them to agree. It was expected after the Kenya style and that most of those who advocated for the agreement are themselves dictators and despots. Omar Bongo, Eduardo Dos Santos, Gaddafi the list endless.

After talking about talks, agreeing to disagree they finally put pen to paper agreeing to give Mugabe what the people denied him in March, the Presidency, legitimacy and credibility. The people lost. The MDC lost. Mugabe and ZANU PF won three things every part wanted, the Presidency, the Legitimacy and Credibility, all for free. Mbeki won it for them.

 

Mugabe and ZANU PF

 

They needed the deal most. They needed it for political legitimacy and credibility.
After the March 29 election scare, Mugabe and ZANU PF regrouped and fought back for their lives. Resilience and bits of cynics paid off at a later stage.

 

With the state apparatus at their disposal, they instituted a campaign of terror, killed and cowed voters into voting for them during the June drama. The victory was double; they won against themselves and the future. The scars of their reign of terror will certainly take years to dry and they will be harshly judged in the next elections.

However, the ZANU PF regime won everything on offer at the negotiating table. They managed to relegate the opposition into political spectators through cosmetic lease of power. To say that it is a 50-50 power sharing agreement between the parties is being insincere to one’s analytical skills. Mugabe won the power.

 Mugabe needed the agreement to win back the Presidency and all that goes with. Mugabe needed legitimacy and credibility which were tied to this political agreement. He needed the deal more than anyone else, however for his selfish gains. He won.  The people lost.  Whether we want to agree or not, whether we say that we must give the deal some chance, the fact remains, Mugabe won and the people lost.

 

Democracy

A difficult proposition in Africa said Mugabe at the signing ceremony. He meant it. He believes just that. From Kenya down to Zimbabwe lady democracy did not only lose but was raped! Dictators won against democracy. They won against the wills of the people. When democracy loses against any leader, it’s the people of that nation who will feel the pain. Democracy seems to be in a losing streak in Africa, we had our own time here in Zimbabwe.

 

Thabo Mbeki

           
The aloof African renaissance architect won against Zimbabwean people. He wanted to save ZANU PF, he did. He wanted Mugabe to remain in power, it was successful.  The current crisis is not Mugabe’s faulty, he still believes. There is no crisis, he said it.

 

The MDC must not be given any semblance of power, that’s what he planned in the power sharing agreement. He would serve and save Mugabe to death, he lost his office partly because of his handling of the Zimbabwean issue. He won though here but lost at home. The deal, he and Mugabe needed it most. They got it and its benefits. The people of Zimbabwe lost. Africa lost. Democracy is the biggest loser.

 

 

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