HIGHLY-DECORATED liberation war cadre, Cde Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa has made history as Zimbabwe’s second Executive President.
His inauguration on November 24 2017 comes a day after the 40th Anniversary of the Chimoio massacre.
Cde Robert Mugabe resigned as the country’s president on November 21 2017.
It is important to note that Cde Mnangagwa’s inauguration comes as memories of the Chimoio genocide are still fresh, especially to those who survived the brutal encounter.
Just like Cde Mnangagwa’s inauguration, the Chimoio massacre stands out as a turning point in the war.
It was a game-changer.
It has been 40 years since daughters and sons of the soil were slaughtered at Chimoio Camp in Mozambique in a huge air force operation codenamed ‘Operation Dingo’.
On the morning of Wednesday November 23 1977, the Chimoio Camp woke up to the horror of relentless bombings and shootings by the Rhodesian colonial regime’s special army forces.
It was a period of horror, pain, death and suffering
Dr J.R.T. Wood, a master on the subject of the Rhodesian ‘Bush War’, notes that estimates of the losses inflicted vary wildly, but a ‘figure exceeding 6 000 casualties is realistic’.
The Rhodesians by contrast recorded two deaths, eight wounded and lost one aircraft (its pilot being one fatality).
Dr Wood says in a short epilogue Dingo was ‘an extraordinary joint services’ operation.
The first attack was by Rhodesian jets, followed by helicopter gunships.
There were 40 helicopters that were used solely to carry members of the Rhodesian Light Infantry, to the target, a further 10 armed helicopters with 20mm cannons which were used in the actual fighting itself, 10 hunter fighter bombers, six vampire fighter bombers, four Canberra bombers, Dakotas and other aircraft.
A Douglas DC-8 airliner was flown over the Chimoio camps, 10 minutes before the airstrike as part of a deception plan in which the freedom fighters were dispersed in a false air raid alert. So when the aircraft participating in the actual airstrike approached, they did not cause alarm, the assembled ZANLA forces as planned, did not take cover again as they assumed it was the DC-8 belonging to the Mozambican governor’s plane.
First to bomb were the Canberra bombers, hunters and vampire jets.
Then when those freedom fighters who had survived were running for their lives, “helicopter gunships engaged opportunistic target that together inflicted the majority of the casualties.”
The paratroopers and heliborne troops were deployed on three sides of the (camp) into various stop groups and sweep lines, killing large numbers.
For two days bombs could be seen exploding in the area of the guerilla base camp 18 miles outside town.
The Rhodesian troops would move through the base, taking documents, some prisoners, arms and destroying the rest.
They would be extracted by helicopter (including 10 South African Air Force-crewed Alouette III’s) before sunset and return to Rhodesia to reset for another attack the next day – eyebrow-raising in itself.
As it was, resistance and the size of the base forced the commandos to stay overnight and withdraw the next day.
The surprise attack instead of breaking the spirit of the guerillas, became the humus that fed and spurred on the guerillas.
The Chimoio massacre did not deter, but increased the determination to gain independence from the brutal Ian Smith regime in 1980.
After Chimoio, the guerillas could have given up, but they did not.
They were resilient, guided by the ideology and principles on why they had gone to war in the first place.
The quest for freedom, ownership of land, access to better education, health, and equal opportunities among others had to be achieved.
And as the country prepares to go for the polls in 2018, the incoming President and ZANU PF have a treble to deal with: Winning elections, saving the economy and eradicating corruption.
Zimbabwe faces a wide range of economic challenges such as liquidity crisis, price hikes, unemployment, corruption, incompetence by government officials among others.
The economy is in bad shape.
But the population has extremely high hopes for a quick economic turn-around strategy.
This means the 14 million or so Zimbabweans are now waiting for Cde Mnangagwa to take them to the promised land.
They want liquidity crisis and price hikes addressed urgently.
At the same time corruption, incompetence and lethargy that had paralysed most parastatals and Government departments, must be dealt with accordingly.
In fact, the new President must introduce economic reforms that will turn around the economy.
Of course, it will not be a walk in the park.
Carrying such a heavy load of a nation’s expectations is never easy.
Certain challenges will arise, but resilience is essential as the economic turn-around will not come on a silver platter.
Zimbabwe has not been able to borrow from international lenders since 1999 and has US$1,75 billion in foreign arrears.
And the country should resolve arrears to the World Bank, African Development Bank and the European Investment Bank, among other reforms, for the international lenders to consider future financing requests.
Illegal sanctions imposed by the West have also had a huge impact on the country’s economy.
The country has lost 17 years of development with the industry running on obsolete machinery that needs recapitalisation and retooling.
And just like Chester Crocker said: ‘The economy screamed’.
Hyperinflation, shortages of basic commodities and industries closing shop became the order of the day.
It is said the country lost about US$42 billion in potential revenue.
Against this background, it is important to note it will not be an easy road for Cde Mnangagwa.
Hard decisions and reforms have to be made.
It is incumbent on Cde Mnangagwa to strategise for economic development and re-engage the international community.
As much as thousands of lives were lost at Chimoio, there was no lamentation, but enthusiasm to remove the imperialists from the seat of power.
Training was intensified; security measures and vigilance were upped.
That the guerillas got much better and became a superior force after Chimoio would be seen in 1978.
A strategic base, Grand Reef, a Rhodesian Air Force Forward Air Field known as FAF 8, in Manicaland, was destroyed by guerillas.
In the same year, freedom fighters hit the BP Shell fuel tanks in Southerton, Salisbury (Harare).
Smith described the destruction as a great disaster and ‘one of our biggest setbacks since the war started’.
The fire was only contained when a Johannesburg City Fire Department fire engine was flown in to help spray protein foam imported from South Africa.
Under this intense pressure and thrashing, Rhodesians sought a repeat of Chimoio at Mavonde.
The Mavonde Battle, also known as Monte Cassino Battle, was fought in September 1979 during the Lancaster House talks that were ongoing in London.
The Rhodies gathered their elite soldiers and the best of weapons as well as planes and wanted to repeat a Chimoio-like genocide to weaken the Patriotic Front’s bargaining power at the talks.
But Chimoio had been an important lesson; never again would the Rhodesians have their way.
As Cde Mnangagwa courts investors and opens the country to international capital and community, what is Zimbabwe willing to give and take?
The West should never have its way always.
Some aid will come with terms and conditions.
There is a possibility of infiltration and external interference because the West, without success, has been trying to smuggle homosexuality into the country, and infiltrate the political landscape.
Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) such as Gays and Lesbians Association of Zimbabwe (GALZ), Sexual Rights Centre and Hivos, among others have been making frantic efforts to have homosexuality legalised.
In May 2015 when Zimbabwe opened its doors to re-engage the Western bloc, European Union (EU) Ambassador, Phillipe Van Damme gave pre-conditions for the aid.
Speaking at a sexual and reproductive health workshop hosted by the Southern Africa HIV and Aids Information Dissemination Service (SAfAIDS), Van Damme said there was need to accept homosexuality, claiming that culture was dynamic.
“We should actually conscientise people to accept these homosexuals and let them know that people have different sexualities,” said Van Damme.
This was not the first time that an EU Ambassador openly supported gays in the country.
In August 2012, the EU pledged and gave legal support to the vilified GALZ.
The ZRP had charged GALZ for operating without a licence.
Over the past few years, Britain and the US have been vocal in their support for gays with aid being used to sway African countries to accept the practice.
Malawi is a typical example.
They (US and Britain) have been trying to meddle in Zimbabwe’s internal affairs, elections, Constitution making process and other political processes.
The incoming leader should signal limits to how far the Zimbabwe Government is prepared to go to satisfy the international community.
There surely is no doubt, youths and middle-aged are optimistic of employment.
This is what the children at Chindunduma Educational Base and school at Chimoio Camp, who could have been with us today, were yearning for.
There were so many children who had joined the liberation war and ages ranged from as young as six years.
Some of these had gone to the war with their parents, while some had been born within the war itself from cadres who had joined the war already pregnant, and from those who were married during the armed struggle.
Upon returning home on Wednesday, the incoming leader vowed to create jobs in a country where some estimates say 90 percent of people are unemployed.
“We want to grow our economy, we want peace, we want jobs, jobs, jobs,” he said while addressing thousands at the ZANU PF Headquarters in Harare.
The incoming leader said the country is witnessing a ‘new and unfolding democracy’.
In an interview with Chinese TV Channel, CCTV in 2015, the then Vice-President said Zimbabwe had lost 15-20 years of development.
Said Cde Mnangagwa: “You cannot say there are areas of our economy which we are happy with, infrastructure we are behind by 15-16 years, agricultural development the same, manufacturing; in fact capacity utilisation in some areas of our industry is down to 20 percent, so again, we have to retool by acquiring new machinery, technology and machinery so that we are competitive.”
Zimbabwe, he said, had a lot to learn from China, which dragged itself from an Asian backwater-per capita GDP was below Zimbabwe’s in 1980 – to a global economic superpower, by making hard reforms.
“So we are looking at the reform measures that China has gone through to help us move forward,” said Cde Mnangwagwa.
As Cde Mnangagwa assumes office he must take the bull by the horns, addressing pertinent issues without fear or favour.