Stephen Mpofu, Perspective
ELECTORAL losses in the August 23 harmonised elections must of necessity catalyse greater initiatives — and not bury — opposition political parties as victory for the love of, and contributions to the growth, of our motherland, might see them trying their luck next time.
This motivational discourse is based on the fact that Zimbabweans and other nations, in spite of their diverse tribal and customary traditions make contributions to the development of the space in which they exist unlike falcons and doves which exist for nothing.
(A dictionary says of falcons “any bird of the genus Falco, all of which are birds of prey” and describes a dove as “a pigeon, especially one smaller in size”.)
Unlike Zimbabweans, and human beings in general, a falcon hunting for food high up in space bears down hard at the sight of a dove innocently scouting around for food, seizes and throttles the victim for a meal as the bird eats bird’s flesh in their natural way of survival.
Flesh eating in human beings is known as cannibalism, a dictionary description of which is: “an organism which eats others of its own species or kind, especially a human who eats human flesh”.
As Zimbabweans or other human beings in our global village know, a cannibal is regarded as being anathema in any civilised society.
Therefore, Zimbabwean society as any other known society on this earth abhors the cannibalism of human beings as it does the flesh-eat-flesh for survival practice of falcons and doves, the latter as losers all their lives.
But in Zimbabwe as elsewhere around the globe ruling political parties are not falcons with those that lose elections losers of all times, like doves to falcons.
Which is why this pen says above in this discourse that to lose an election should be motivational for the luckless to work even harder in order to stand a chance of turning the tables come next election or elections.
It is therefore in light of the general and common practices in contexts in which people take part that there must be winners and losers with the tables turned on the basis of harder work next time around because winners are not falcons and losers not doves in those birds-eat-flesh culture.
This communicologist humbly believes that a call by Vice-President and Minister of Health and Child Care Dr Constantino Chiwenga, that members of opposition political parties that lost in last month’s elections should bury their differences with Zanu-PF electoral victors, unite under a constitutional order brought about by the country’s maturing democracy and focus on developing the economy is the motivational stuff that our nation must heed in order for the spirit of the revolution that re-united us with our land to continue to inspire our nation to move forward into a brave new future with no let or hindrance.
After all, the gallant sons and daughters of the soil who sacrificed their precious lives for the liberation of our motherland should never, ever be made to turn in their graves by selfish interests that kowtow to imperialists who, for instance, impose sanctions after the revolution won over imperialism, and are still hell-bent on regime change in order to turn Zimbabwe into a neo-colonial state.
In any case Zimbabweans uphold and must continue to tout free, fair, transparent and therefore democratic polls as last month’s which international observer missions resoundingly applauded and, in the process making all peace-loving Zimbabweans walk with our heads raised high.
That is because we people are not, and should never ever be like birds which reap where they did not sow.