This madness must stop

Robert Mugabe’s God complex is beyond ridiculous. We all know that he believes that he was divinely ordained to rule over Zimbabweans; that his supporters and cronies believe that he is the messiah but this law that forbids us from calling him whatever names we choose is manifestly stupid. A Stalinist law that stops Zimbabweans in a free and independent Zimbabwe from candidly criticising the Head of State of their country has no place in a democratic society. Even the messiah was called names.

In the past year many Zimbabweans from all walks of life have been arrested and charged for insulting Robert Mugabe. Many have languished in police cells for weeks or even months just for sharing their honest opinion of Robert Mugabe. Many opposition activists, MPs and political leaders have been picked up by the police for calling Mugabe names. And yet ZANU PF wonders why Zimbabweans have deserted their party in droves! The people of Zimbabwe have no interest in a leader who has ‘an unshakable belief characterized by consistently inflated feelings of personal ability, privilege, or infallibility’. They do not want a leader who refuses to admit the possibility of error or failure, or who regards their personal opinions as unquestionably correct (Adapted from Wikipedia). They want a human being who accepts that he can fail and that people have right to criticise him.

Why shouldn’t we be able to say ‘Mugabe is old and senile’ or ‘Mugabe must go’ or ‘Mugabe chibva; Mugabe chifa; Mugabe chienda’? Why shouldn’t we wish him dead to avenge our relatives, friends or colleagues who were killed by his supporters for refusing to support him? Is there any justification for a law that protects an individual from criticism when they occupy the highest political office in our land? Mugabe’s hubristic view of himself has created the mess that Zimbabwe faces today and we should be free to call him ‘stupid, deranged, or old’. If we want to pray for his death then so be it. If we want to engender feelings of hostility towards or cause hatred, contempt or ridicule of the person of Robert Mugabe or make abusive, indecent or obscene statements about or concerning him then it is a free country. That is what we fought for. That is why we supported the liberation struggle. We did not participate in the liberation struggle to engender the supremacy of an individual or group of individuals; we participated to create an egalitarian society in which all men (women) are equal.

We have allowed Mugabe to get away with so many things. It is now time to tell him that he is not a god or a messiah; that we will call him whatever we please because Zimbabwe will never be a colony again.