By
Bernard Bwoni
Zimbabwe
is an ideologically-congealed haven and harbour of heroes, bonafide heroes to
be precise. Here are the men and women who gallantly fought on the side of
righteousness and triumphed. These are the many men and women who shimmered in the face of the dark cloud of
colonialism and the racially-induced adversity. The most breathtaking feats of valor and
heroism performed by these honorable men and women during the protracted moments of a mixture unmatched
despair and ultimate transcendent fulfilment. And these men
and women with backbone live in our era, they live among us, do their work
unceremoniously, unnoticed and sometimes deriving contempt from some corners, but
they have defined and continue to define this country, a true embodiment of
Zimbabwe.
These are the magnanimous ones who perform and have performed extraordinary
deeds for the greater good of Zimbabwe. These are men and women who were and are
still willing to do for others, the cause and their determination lives on for
others to follow. The glory lies not in the achievement, but in the sacrifice
and that totally altruistic commitment for the greater good of Zimbabwe. These
are the great sons and daughters of Zimbabwe who only serve to remind us of the
higher purpose of self and society.
There
are some men of mettle who just hover beneath the radar, largely go unnoticed
as they get on with defining and reshaping this nation. They are not household
names, they are not on the conference main stage yet they give and have given
of themselves for the love of Zimbabwe. Their lives inspired, continue to
inspire and yet we deliberately forget to acknowledge the selfless sacrifices
they made. The men and women who put their lives on hold to fully commit themselves
to liberating this country from the darkest depth of despair and despondency
derived from colonialism towards the respectable summit of the liberties and
freedoms we enjoy and take for granted today. These are the men and women who
have been through the mud and mire, enduring unimaginable distress and
humiliation for the love of their country. There many such men and women in
Zimbabwe and they all deserve our respect, recognition and reverence, precisely
because they did not ask for it, they earned in ways we can only imagine. And
on this occasion this is about one of the many who proved themselves during the
bitter liberation war.
Emmerson
Mnangagwa is a liberation war icon who shapes the definition of a Zimbabwean
hero. A man from that school of thought which puts emphasis on cascading real
power down to the people, a fervid understudy of the visionary Robert Mugabe
who has continuously advocated for policies that focus on deconstructing the
previously deliberately skewed structures that continue to render Africans permanently
indebted to those who have economically exploited the continent for centuries. He
is the embodiment of bravery, loyalty and endowed with an indelible sense of
righteousness and the Zimbabwe agenda permanently and stubbornly etched to his whole
being. He like other heroes of the liberation struggle symbolises the practical
definition of honor, duty and
nationhood. He is a rare uncelebrated liberation war giant who risked
his life again and again to liberate this country from a draconian and racist
system. Mnangagwa’s early involvement is testimony to the tenacity and steel
that defines this legendary son of Zimbabwe. The daring operations they carried
out within ‘’Rhodesia’’ as a member of the ‘Crocodile Gang’ which led to his
eventual arrest and detention, the unswerving, lifelong and ingrained
ideological engrossment to the Zimbabwe cause and continuous journey epitomise
this liberation war icon. He is a man who has served his country with honour, continued
to serve his country past the liberation struggle to this day.
In many ways our heroes are just like us. They have
their flaws, but generally try to do the right thing and do things right whenever
possible. They are that unique brand with no pretenses, no false modesty but just
down to earth, straight from the shoulder dedication to national trajectory and
definition.
Deliberate
obscurity and hushed heads are an embodiment of real power focusing on action
instead of words, and having the ability to encourage ownership and develop
loyalty in unique ways. The big idea is earning
the respect and Mnangagwa earned that during his heroics during the liberation
war. A young boy who believed in a cause, fought for that cause displaying unparalleled
conviction, but not complacency. A young boy who got arrested for a cause but
never faltered and saw the liberation struggle to its unimaginable bitterness
and victorious conclusion. Silence is golden and certainly easier for those that already have the
analytical and introverted behaviors already in place. Mnangagwa’s illustrious
and effective war credentials clearly highlight the quiet introvert who
meticulously prepared, was present, properly planned and practiced as they did
with the locomotive incident in Masvingo (Fort Victoria). This is
a man who grew up on the values of the liberation of this country, confident
but not over-confident with that ability to think laterally,
not hierarchically. As Zimbabweans we should define our heroes and relate to
them, imagine what drove them to put their lives on hold to get out there and
liberate this country. I am deeply indebted to all heroes like Mnangagwa who
have the country-defining values a part of their DNA and the values still ineradicably etched to this day.
Any nation
not build on any values has no foundation and is no nation at all. For one to
believe in themselves they have to have some values to subscribe to. A country
with no values lacks vision and with dearth of vision the future offers very
little in terms progress or growth. From that tender age through to this day
Mnangagwa has unstintingly continued to sacrifice for the total economic
emancipation of Zimbabwe. Any ideology that focuses on improving the lives of African
people inherently threatens the irreversibly colonial and neo-colonial
establishment and as such forever ridiculed and suffocated. A true son of
Zimbabwe beckons.
This is an individual hero
introductory part of my ‘Liberation War Chronicles’ work in progress which
details the war path of each and every liberation war hero in Zimbabwe.
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