THE foreign-owned press based in this country never tires of spreading malicious propaganda against liberation war veterans who are great heroes in this country.
The two newly appointed Vice Presidents of our country comrades, Emmerson Mnangagwa and Phelekezela Mphoko are the latest victims of this diabolic propaganda.
The Independent of December 12 went to town attacking the two Vice Presidents saying they would not be good leaders in their new positions because they are from the military.
Listen to what the Independent said about the two.
“When leaders with military backgrounds and associated values dominate the political process, democracy suffers, gross human rights violation and repression is entrenched, violence is legitimised and freedom of opinions, assembly and expression are curtailed.
“Consequently people are forced to live in a climate of fear.
“Zimbabweans must watch out – this is not fear mongering, but reality.”
This is absolute propaganda nonsense!
Why is it that the foreign-owned press in this country never ever say the above silly things about ex-military people who became civilian administrators in the West and elsewhere, but go out of their way to tarnish the image of our ex-military heroes whenever these heroes become highly placed civilian administrators?
Why?
In this article we are going to show that while the foreign-owned press and their allies enjoy attacking our own ex-military people who are now the country’s leaders saying they don’t make good leaders, the same press, however, heaps lots of honours and praises on Western ex-military leaders.
Furthermore, we also argue that ex-military people who later become civilian political leaders tend to do the job better than ordinary civilian leaders.
To help us with our story we shall draw examples from the USA, the UK and other areas.
Dwight Eeisenhower who was the USA president from 1953 – 1961 was from the military.
When Eeisenhower finished high school he went to the USA’s elite military college called West Point where he graduated in 1915.
Because he graduated in the midst of the First World War, Eeisenhower immediately joined the USA army.
He fought at the home front during the entire war and at the end of that ‘great’ war, he was given a Distinguished Service medal for his work.
After the First World War ended he pursued his military career rising through the ranks starting from the low rank of Lieutenant all the way to a General in the army by the time Second World War broke out in 1939.
With the Second World War on, Eeisenhower was posted to London where at first in 1942 he was made commanding general of the European theatre of war as well as north Africa operations.
In November 1943 he was appointed Supreme Allied Commander in Europe. He is the man who commanded the invasion of Germany via France in an operation called ‘Operation Overload’ or ‘D Day’.
As a matter of fact he commanded British heroes such as one Montgomery. This ‘Operation Overload’ was successful.
After the war, Dwight Eeisenhower was rewarded by being voted as the USA’s President in two successive terms from 1953 – 1961.
Because he was still popular he could have gone to a third term in office. However, a new law was enacted which stopped him from doing so.
President Eeisenhower is heaped with praises.
He is the President who introduced the interstate highways in the entire USA. He was again the first President to receive a lifetime pension, state provided staff and a secret service detail.
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Americans rank Dwight Eeisenhower highly saying out of all the 43 USA presidents he belongs to the top five.
In short President Eeisenhower is ranked a very good President.
It is said of all USA presidents it is him and Ronald Reagan whose programmes were carried out to total completion.
And yet the man was a soldier.
But nobody including our foreign-owned press ever says that because Eeisenhower was from the military he destroyed democracy, human rights, etc, things they say about ex-military heroes here.
All what the Americans do is sing his praises.
This is because Americans came to realise that the army made Eeisenhower a good civilian administrator.
From the USA we cross the Atlantic to the UK where we come face to face with Winston Churchill.
Whenever you mention Winston Churchill’s name, all the British people jump up and down singing his praises to the stars.
A brief look at Churchhill’s life shows that it was because of the man’s military exploits that the British consider him the greatest Briton ever.
He got his military training at the Royal military college Sandhurst.
He then saw action in India, the Sudan – where he took part in the great battle of Omdurman in September 1898.
He fought in the Anglo-Boer war of 1899 – 1902.
During the First World War, he operated in the Western Front as a Lt Colonel commanding the 6th Battalion Royal Scots Fusihers.
His military stardom reached its highest point when as Prime Minister and Commander-in-Chief of the British armed forces he fought the Germans throughout the Second World War.
When the war ended with a German defeat, Churchill was deified.
He is the most decorated British human being ever.
Whenever polls are held in Britain to find out who is the greatest British person ever, Churchill always comes up as the British people’s greatest man that ever lived.
Now nobody ever says Churchill destroyed democracy, violated human rights, suppressed public opinion, etc, because he was an ex-military man.
Every Briton considers Churchill’s leadership the best ever.
But when it comes to ex-military black people in Zimbabwe the foreign-owned press here who by the way always praise people like Churchill and Eisenhower to the sky cry like sick girls, “If you put these ex-military people into leadership positions they will destroy democracy human rights, etc. rather put ‘madzakutsaku’. ‘’
Really?
The owners of the foreign-owned press in this country need to have their heads examined.
Experience over the years has shown that ex-military people who become civilian administrators most of the time do far much better than their civilian counterparts.
The reason why ex-military people succeed in running civilian governments or private sector companies is pretty simple.
Ex-military people are used to confront issues head on without any pussy footing. Ordinary civilian leaders tend to go round and round in circles, flip flopping, taking ages to make a decision.
Furthermore ex-military people are great team players.
In the army, team spirit rules.
Armies execute their functions as teams.
And so ex-military leaders are more likely to lead united people better than their civilian counterparts because they come from environments where the team spirit prevails.
Yes, ex-military leaders quickly identify all the nonsense, cut it out and go straight to the root of the problem.
It is therefore a real bonus that we have been given two Vice Presidents from the military.
They are going to excel in their jobs and it is Zimbabweans who are going to benefit tremendously in the end.