WE, in the village, are a peace-loving people.
Strife and mayhem distress us and we never want to hear about them.
In the villages across the country, we bore the worst of the liberation struggle and many to date are haunted by the violence unleashed by the Rhodesians as they tried to stem the tide of war.
There is no power without responsibility, neither is there freedom without responsibility — freedom without responsibility breeds anarchy.
Our Government, the Government of the people, has been responsible enough to protect its citizens, has been patient and tolerant in the face of provocation by malcontents within our midst.
And there are some among us who feel they can abuse their freedom and not exercise it responsibly.
If there is one responsibility that we all share, it is that of protecting the national interest.
Anywhere in the world, even in the so-called developed nations, when it comes to the assertion of individual rights, these will always be subordinate to the national interest.
Never should the rights of one or any other interest grouping override those of others.
And rights cease to be rights when they threaten the general well-being of the nation.
When rights threaten peace and stabilit, they are no longer rights but acts of treason and banditry.
Africa has been regarded as a continent that is under-developed and most of its countries fall in the ‘developing’ and ‘least developed’ category.
Western scholars love to postulate that the development in Africa is as a result of the West and those lagging behind do so because they do not want to embrace Western ‘civilisation’ and are barbaric.
Wanton violence has been attributed to under-development of Africa, while ‘corruption’ and ‘poor’ leadership are cited as the major reasons for lagging behind.
The truth that is never told is that the West is the hand behind the mayhem on the continent.
We just have to look at how demonstrations in Libya have panned out for the once blooming nation, a template the rest of developing nations could have followed.
What did the demonstrations in Libya achieve?
Ruin.
Wanton destruction of a once prosperous nation and economy.
Will the country ever recover and return to its once glorious state?
Not likely, the destroyed Libya will not be rebuilt in this lifetime.
Zimbabwe is for Zimbabweans and is to be built by Zimbabweans.
What will a demonstration serve?
What is its purpose?
Demonstrating against what?
What crime, what horror, what abuse, what wrong has been committed in Zimbabwe that warrants a demonstration.
The building of the Great Zimbabwe monument, the pyramids in Egypt, the practice of strong agricultural activities in Ethiopia and the dominance of Islam religion in the Maghreb shows that Africa was developing on its own without the help of Europe.
Africa has never been under-developed, but it is the Europeans who stifled that growth.
In spite of being the producers of raw materials, a number of African States still depend on importing finished products from Europe, made by Africa’s resources.
And Zimbabwe has said no and is being punished for being ‘insolent’.
Talk of demonstrations clearly does not emanate from Zimbabweans but an intrusive force with a very evil agenda.
As a people, as MaDzimbahwe, as Africans, it is important to note that, to make peace among family rivals when it came to things that affect both of them, their well-being, progress and prosperity as a nation, was paramount.
The onus was never, and has never been, on the leader alone when it came to things that mattered, but to all clan members, including rivals.
Likewise, the onus to maintain an environment conducive to peace and development does not rest with the Governing Party, ZANU PF alone, but is a responsibility of everyone.
We need to be wary of, and be aware, that the enemy will get involved in our family disputes and is not interested in solutions being found.
Have you ever noticed that demonstrations in the past have targeted the marginalised indigenous entrepreneurs such as vendors and small-scale business owners.
It is not by coincidence that such destruction aims at destroying the trajectory of this unfolding economic paradigm shift by destroying the foundations of an indigenous economic base.
The composition of the so-called demonstrators comprise a people of little acquaintance with one another and no history of working together whatsoever.
These are people operating with no single accord.
Demonstrations by opposition politicians in the country have followed very specific and well defined routes — wanton destruction of property and provoking law enforcement agents.
We have drawn lessons from Libya, Iraq and other resource-rich countries where internal contentions have been manipulated by external forces to induce anarchy and eventual resource take-over.
We know that multi-national resource imperialism thrives best under chaos.
If we are patriots, if we have sworn to serve and protect the motherland, there must be lines which we cannot cross, for the love of our country, no matter our differences.
Zimbabwe is a beautiful and peaceful country recording notable progress, let us not shoot ourselves in the foot.
