Financial Gazette (Harare)
Ken Mufuka
3 April 2008
opinion
Harare — ZIMBABWE'S elections are being watched here with the sole unyielding purpose of confirming Mukuru's demise. There is no other result, which will satisfy observers here other than that Mukuru is "comprehensively" (a new word now being used here) defeated at the polls.
In fact, Mukuru has rigged the elections against himself.
Let us start with United States Secretary of State, Sister Condoleezza Rice. She announced yesterday that Mukuru has not only been a disgrace to Zimbabwe, a country which was once the pride of Africa, but to the whole of Africa and the world.
Definitely, she will not countenance any other result other than a comprehensive defeat of Mukuru.
The Los Angeles Times, placed yesterday's date for its lead story. It confirmed that the opposition MDC was at the time leading in early results, with a squeaker, giving exact numbers as 49.4 percent and 41.4 percent in favour of the opposition party. But the paper "alleged" that Mukuru has been known to steal the elections in two previous cases.
This story is also repeated by the New York Times. Although it gave virtually the same percentages as the Los Angeles Times without the decimal points, it also repeated the fear that there was a plot to steal the elections.
The British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, was also interviewed and expressed similar fears at the delay in announcing the votes for president.
The nightmare for Mukuru is that at this point he can do no good. The possibility that he could win the election, even by a squeaker, has already been discounted. It does not exist. There is a suggestion by an "expert" that the delay in announcing the result is to determine who will bell the cat. The person who will tell Mukuru that he is no longer Mukuru will be swallowed by the earth on which he stands, if not by Mukuru's wrath.
The nightmare follows the books to a tee. The army officers have already perjured (a lesser crime than treason) themselves by taking sides in political debates. No matter what they do now, in the event that Mukuru loses the election, there is no future for them. They will be lucky to get away with a pension. Normally, as I suspect, those they have cursed as sellouts may demand payback. Disgrace and impoverishment is the smallest punishment that is possible.
My researchers have reminded me that one service chief brother seized a white man's farm and sold its crops. That white man is in exile here in the US and is breathing fire and brimstone.
To steal elections, after the Kenya scenario is a waste of time. The Thabo Mbeki model (also used in Kenya) is that all results are posted at the point of voting. Pictures of the numbers are then taken on digital cameras and sent all over the world in minutes.
My email box is buzzing with figures and facts, which started one hour after the elections were closed on Saturday.
When Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki adjusted the numbers to suit himself, his numbers did not tally with those displayed on various posted boards.
There are other reasons why the only free and fair result of the election is Mukuru's demise. They have been showing military posses (about 20 riot police) marching in Harare streets with huge sticks and rifles at the ready. I am certain that the same picture is shown over and over again.
There was an announcement that the military supreme council was meeting and that the announcement of the presidential elections had been postponed at their instructions.
All these "highly suspicious developments" are supposed to support the theory of stolen elections.
Then there is the juicy story of Judge Chiweshe, the chairperson of the electoral commission, being chased by reporters after refusing to announce the presidential winner.
At the time of going to Press, brother Morgan Tsvangirai was supposed to be hiding in a safe redoubt somewhere, for fear of an accident happening to him.
All the reports, without exception, repeat what has become accepted facts that inflation runs at more than 150 000 percent, unemployment is at 80 percent, shops display empty shelves while the party goons run rampant carying out beatings, murders, intimidations and other acts of lawlessness.
I am certain that the picture being shown here of a Border Gezi posse is the same picture being run a thousand times. The reporter says that he is reporting from Johannesburg.
But Zimbabweans themselves will kill one with their sense of humour.
Sister Majoni emailed me to say: "I heard that you were looking for me. Sorry, I am with Mai Tsvangirai at State House. We are cleaning windows. Ms Grace left without giving proper instructions."
I fail to appreciate this humor, at such an hour of most need.
Here is a perfect example where an African leader boxes himself into a scenario where he cannot possibly do any good to himself or to his fellows. That is the power of the media in this world. It is a tragedy, which a few of us saw and warned against, but nobody listened to us.
l Ken Mufuka is a professor at Lander University (USA). He can be reached at:
kenmufuka@yahoo.com
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