Opinions of Wednesday, 22 November 2017
Columnist: Charles Yeboah
In Robert Greene's 48 Laws of Power, a story is told of the kites and ravens who were together searching for food. They chanced upon a wounded lion by a hunter's bullet. The two families saw the lion is about to die, so they decided to wait for its death, so they will share its meat. The ravens said they will choose the head of the lion. And the kites chose that of the belly and the legs.
The lion heard the decision of the birds, and with the last strength in its body, the lion opened its mouth and said to the kites: "all that while, I'd thought you kites are wiser than the ravens. Why would you then settle on my belly and legs whilst you let these foolish ravens to take my head that has in it my brains and strength? "
Upon hearing this, the kites changed their decision and said they deserved the head of the lion, not the ravens.
The ravens on the other hand said: "we made the choice first, and you agreed to it " .
To settle on who eats the head of the lion, the kites and the ravens must fight, who wins will have the unchallenged rights to eat the head of the lion - the one with brains and the strength.
Then these birds fought till the last of them died. The lion who was by then hungry and needed some little food to revive its strength crept to the dead birds and ate them one after the other till it regained its strength and moved away to where it got healed of the wounds.
Yesterday, I was listening to the BBC news, around 16:00 hours GMT, and I heard people jubilating, honking horns, shouting, some crying and all that. The reporter said the sound had come from the Zimbabwean parliament, and the streets of Harare.
Why? I asked myself, and the story went that "Robert Mugabe has resigned as a president "
I was not surprised to hear the resignation of president Mugabe though. Because the lead up to that is public knowledge. The sacking of Joyce Mujiru and Emerson Mnangagwa as vice presidents, the rumours that Grace Mugabe is prepared to succeed her 93 year old husband have been seen by students of African politics as what will cause the downfall of once Great Mugabe.
Not just because Robert Mugabe married his first wife Sally from my country Ghana. Or he getting his political awakening from this country he worked as a teacher. But I personally admire president Mugabe. How he prioritised education, making sure Zimbabweans gets the best in tertiary education in Africa is a blueprint for political enthusiasts like myself.
It was this same president Mugabe who saw the need to give back the lands that hitherto had been the preserve of the white minority to the black farmers. Not to talk about the health care system in the country Zimbabwe.
But none of the above good stories in Zimbabwe's history is more told by the foreign media. The foreign media only have interest in demonising president Mugabe so the obvious would be achieved - neocolonisation.
Mugabe's PanAfricanist's stance is painted as a dictator and a tyrant.
The foreign media will never talk about what caused the economic woes of Zimbabwe after independence from white minority rule. They will not talk about the economic sabotage to Zimbabwe, where farm produce from the country are blacklisted because of the indigenisation programme Mugabe enforced for blacks to own farmlands.
They will not talk about the diamond from Zimbabwe that could only be sold on the black market because of economic sanctions.
No, they were only interested in having a puppet at the helm so Africans will forever remain slaves to the whites. And Africans have bought into that.
Today, the only defender of African heritage is pushed aside, and Zimbabweans are jubilating. But they should be reminded of what Libyans did after the demise of Col. Muammar Gaddafi. And today, once a paradise is a pale shadow of itself. Libya is now a failed state. Thanks to those who hated Africa and balkanised our fronts for their parochial interests.
My dear Zimbabweans, now is not the time to jubilate. But the time to weep. I will forever respect comrade Mugabe. Did you see how gracefully he resigned? He loved you, but you failed to see that, because the propaganda has done its worst. We live to see. You will miss Mugabe like Libyans are crying for Gaddafi today.
Comrade Robert Gabriel Mugabe, your name is already etched in gold. And those who know you, admire you, will never leave you in the middle of the sea. Your bullet wounded the lion. The kites and the ravens failed to learn it's a lion they are dealing with. They've now given strength back to the lion. What awaits us now is siphoning of the betters from the blessed land of Zimbabwe, same as the oil from Libya is not accounted for now.
Comrade, my mentor, you'll not go to your maker through violence means. Today, the media says you've lost the fight. Those of us who understand the tactics of war knows you've won the battle, because we believe in the victory of good over evil.
You'll live in peace and return to the pantheon with air of accomplishment.