By Masimba Mukichi
Pabva bango pasekesa( When the corner pole of the fence is removed, the fence becomes loose) there goes the adage of our forefathers when an elder of the clan succumbs to death.Today the esteemed lion has slept and the nation of Zimbabwe is mourning one of their own, the gallant son of the soil, Robert Mugabe. May his soul rest in eternal freedom.
People have different opinions on Robert Mugabe, the freedom fighter cum the ruthless dictator. Like all human beings Robert Mugabe had his fair share of strengths and weaknesses. It is only fair to highlight some of his strengths and weaknesses as a balanced and fitting tribute to his legacy.lts beyond doubt that Robert Mugabe was one of the most learned and eloquent speakers on the planet. No-one can take this from him, he could command authority and woo the audience with his charismatic speeches. He could call a spade, a spade. As a person Robert Mugabe was a very smart individual he adored the British type of dressing and he didn’t hide his respect for the British monarch. This earned him knighthood from the queen which was in later years revoked when he fall from grace.
It was through Robert Mugabe’s educational and health policies in 1980 that saw Zimbabwe’s literacy rate balooning to 99%. After independence Robert Mugabe introduced free education for all primary school children.War collaborators who were older and had missed the chance to get an education during the war were also enrolled in primary schools despite being old enough to be of primary school going age.
The expansion of primary schools also gave rise to the formation of secondary schools, code named ‘upper tops.’ This boosted the literacy rate and the human capital. In the health sector Mugabe embraced the vision health for all by the year 2000.A lot of clinics were built soon after independence. The communities were involved in building of schools and clinics by providing bricks and at times labour.
Robert Mugabe also preached reconciliation soon after independence.This is evidenced in his 1980 independence speech on 4 March 1980: ‘Let us deepen our sense of belonging and engender a common interest that knows no race , colour or creed. Let us become Zimbabweans with single loyalty. Long live our freedom.’ Indeed Robert Mugabe emphasised reconciliation as evidenced by his willingness to let Ian Smith his former tormentor to continue living at his farm and also receiving a government pension.To consolidate his reconciliation efforts he unscripted General Peter Walls into the Zimbabwean army.General Peter Walls was formerly a general in the Rhodesian army.
As years go by Mugabe’s grip on power began to overshadow his strengths. He ruled Zimbabwe for 37 years without relinquishing power. From being the darling of the people he became autocratic and a despot. Press freedom began to be suppressed. Opposition leaders were often beaten and incarcerated in uninhabitable prison cells. His greatest weakness was when he send the North Korean trained fifth brigade to go and kill about 20000 civilians in Matabeleland labelling them as dissidents.
His greatest failure was destroying the once vibrant economy of Zimbabwe by his sporadic, chaotic, misplanned and mismanaged land reform. The economy went into free fall in 2008. This impoverished the once, bread basket of Africa and led the citizens of Zimbabwe to scatter across the planet as a asylum seekers and economic migrants. The once proud and hardworking citizens are now second class citizens in South Africa where they are facing xenophobic attacks because of Mugabe’s misrule and egocentrism. His grip on power, full of l know made Zimbabwe a nation of beggars and squatters in lands afar from home.
The spirit of Ubuntu is the only compelling reason to conclude by saying rest in peace comrade, may our maker decide your eternal rest, it’s not for the naked eye to give a final verdict on matters of eternity.
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