Any country’s independence day offers its people an opportunity to reflect on trials and tribulations encountered in founding it.
The day is the nation’s chance to showcase strides taken in enhancing people’s quality of life.
The occasion compels other countries to send flowery congratulatory messages tin pursuance of the unwritten dictates of diplomatic and political etiquette.
On Saturday April 18 Zimbabwe celebrated 35th independence anniversary. The main event turned out to be a Zanu PF session for belittling everybody else who does not subscribe to the party’s philosophy.
It is obvious that the auspicious event did not unite the country. Indubitably, Zimbabweans of various political persuasions felt that the occasion had lost its appeal as a national event.
This feeling was echoed in the diplomatic front as some countries chose to be frugal with congratulatory messages.
Zanu PF milked the occasion to the fullest extent by turning it into a platform to advance its survival agenda.
The party bragged about spearheading the war of liberation which resulted in the absolute annihilation of the enemy in 1980.
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Surprisingly, the party did not have much to say about the country’s falling standard of living and record levels of unemployment.
A lot of preparatory work had been carried out by the party’s propaganda department.
The department produced a cheesy payoff line that went “1980: So far so good”. This punch line made a lot of noise in the media.
The payoff line was cobbled up to psychologically implant the falsehood that Zimbabwe has been achieving all developmental milestones since 1980 in the minds of masses.
The incessant airplay of the payoff line gave away the sole motive which was to bore people into submission.
When a statement is ferociously broadcast, people tend to memorise it out of resentment leading to passive acceptance.
This is typical brainwashing through the wicked use of classical conditioning.
Zimbabwean citizens all over started bleating the payoff line in zombie fashion without caring about meaning and implications.
On Independence Day, gullible Zanu PF supporters honoured the man they have deified instead of honouring the day.
Mugabe’s followers are convinced that he has been enriching their miserable lives since 1980.
As expected, the partisan patriots extended prescribed congratulatory messages to their earthly god through song, dance, prayer and even death.
The fanatical level of approval from the propaganda-intoxicated pseudo-patriots gave Mugabe all the confidence to brag.
He hogged the limelight in characteristic fashion as he bragged about an imaginary impressive record as head of State and government.
He made everything about the 35 years of independence look perfect. The economy was said to be firing on all cylinders, citizens were happy and the few setbacks were receiving attention.
All other problems were attributed to sanctions imposed by Western countries.
Mugabe pledged to find lasting solutions to ills brought by evil sanctions.
Despite Mugabe mentioning sanctions were irksome, he still painted the country as a success story.
Assembled products of Zanu PF brainwashing laboratory pretended that the economy had progressively improved in the 35 years of independence even though it is moribund.
Supporters could not have enough courage to point out that “1980: So far so good” misrepresented reality.
No one within Zanu PF could safely challenge Mugabe on the accuracy of the pay-off line; after all Mugabe is a god and no one in their right senses challenges a god.
So, Mugabe got the cheers and the Finance minister got the jeers.
Mugabe got carried away by the thunderous applause from the crowd. He was the ultimate force in the farce. He was an earthly god who instilled fear on many.
He was sure that the crowd would applaud him if he told it that he single-handedly defeated the colonial establishment while most of his comrades were either cowering in make-shift bunkers scattered in frontline states or having fun in Western cities.
Most genuine patriots could not bother challenging the make-shift patriots whose allegiance is to a mortal as they were busy reflecting on the country’s journey so far.
Their objective analysis obviously refuted Zanu PF’s propagandistic pay-off line.
There was no way Zimbabwe could claim that things were in order when so many Zimbabweans were flocking to foreign countries where they endured humiliation by xenophobes and racists.
Genuine patriots were not amused by the state’s engagement of spin doctors to prescribe a false sense of happiness when it was obvious that the country’s affairs were in a precarious state.
They contended that the state had engaged spin doctors to psychologically poison the people using the Animal Farm approach.
The use of such poison is the state’s way of acknowledging that the country has progressively degenerated into a failed state.
The government has lost control of economic systems and Chinamasa will attest to this.
Things cannot be said to be good when they taste so vile. Zimbabwe has lost the political and economic plot.
The problem is that Zanu PF is not taking responsibility for the rot.
Gushungo has been the common denominator in the 35 years. The payoff line should be: “1980: So far so Gushungo”.
Masola waDabudabu is a social commentator. Warning: There is nothing good to write home about Gushungo.
