When greed impersonates need

Bernard Bwoni

Economic inequalities in a resource-abundant country like Zimbabwe are iniquitous and inexcusable and in most if not all instances provide a breeding ground rife for corruption to flourish. There were disparities in the distribution of wealth in Zimbabwe before independence and the imbalance still persist today. Most if not all human beings are inherently self-seeking, self-indulgent and acquisitive by nature, whether acting individually or in groups. In Zimbabwe and Africa as a whole, many due to economic necessity and following their own survival instincts have taken advantage of some of the inadequacies or outright detachment from the electorate by some players within the upper echelons of power to accrue more than they are morally entitled to. When greed impersonates need through unscrupulous means then you know that your moral impulses have betrayed you. The stability of life as we know it then becomes a fallacy. The problem with a money-orientated society is that no matter how rich you are or get, you can always imagine being fathomlessly richer and thus the need to grasp for more is always present. The more your own individual imaginative faculties exceed your economic reality depot the more corrupt you are likely to get and with politicians the more disconnected with the despondent electorate they become. Our society revere power and money and to guard against the decadence people must remain guided by the ideals of integrity, honesty and morality. But is that actually possible in such a rapacious society as the one Zimbabwe has turned into?

 

In Zimbabwe at the moment I find it is impossible to imagine that all those persons entrusted into positions of strategic importance in industry, in government and other critical sectors of the country getting into bed at night and sleep throughout with a clear conscience under the current cataclysmic unravelling. In all fairness heads should be rolling right now and people should be having sleepless nights. There is no way anyone in a position of strategic importance can afford to sit back and wish it all away. This is the final lap in the country’s economic genesis and what is required now is extraordinary moral and mental stamina to see this through to its logical conclusion. This requires hours and hours of hard work and commitment. Those entrusted into positions of influence and positions of strategic importance have to give up on all over-indulgent excesses and embrace that totally altruistic desire to uplift the country and upgrade the lives of the perennially downtrodden citizens. Our great grandchildren will rest on our behalf and that is the legacy. The liberation war heroes presented the nation with independence and the freedom we enjoy today and now is the time to compliment the ideals of the liberation struggle with unparalled commitment to this final push for economic independence. Economic independence is for all and not for the emerging privileged clique of elites. Zimbabwe is in need of mending, for Zimbabweans by Zimbabweans. The fact of the matter is that no knight in shining armour is going to descend from some offshore alien land to do it for the love of Zimbabwe and her off-springs. The duty lies with all Zimbabweans irrespective of political affiliation. President Mugabe’s dedication to the Zimbabwe cause is one of the key benchmarks that can be used. Zimbabwe has the human capital, the right education and an abundance of natural resources but all this is of very little if any use without a definitive corporate strategy. Zimbabwe’s current economic problems will not be wished away but require extraordinary commitment by men and women of virtue.

 

The reality is that institutional dishonesty has become the norm to the extent of being acceptable and embraced without question. There is no way corruption can take place without the knowledge of the state administrators and that is fact. The fact that this can happen thus implicates those who are the representatives of the electorate. The idea that elected representatives of the people can redirect national wealth from public use to personal-private use has the detrimental effect of reducing the legitimacy and trust of the government in the eyes of the people. HE President Mugabe has spoken incessantly against the degeneracy and how that puts the name of the ruling party into disrepute as it creates a cushy culture of corruption where national resources are siphoned from productive and social investment into personal wealth but many have not heeded the calls. Now is the time for men and women of principle to stand up and be counted. There are many upright and committed cadres in the ruling party and it is only the few who put the name of the ruling party into easy access for vilification. There are many ministers who are excelling and credit has to be given where it is due, Joseph Made, Professor Jonathan Moyo, Obert Mpofu, Patrick Chinamasa, Douglas Mombeshora, Walter Mzembi just but to name a few and President Mugabe’s commitment is the glue that binds this nation.

 

There is no denying that politicians are human beings and by virtue of being human they are therefore fallible. Those who find themselves on the wrong side of the moral fence are not necessarily crooked but rather they tread in the murky immoral waters and as humans they give into the alluring wants the corridors of power often presents to them. Most if not all politicians are bound to make trade-offs to reach that happy middle ground but the crux of the politician’s virtue is where they draw the line on what is negotiable and what is not. All politicians are susceptible to actions and behaviours they might end up regretting unless they remain focused on the duty to serve the people.  But then there are those who have no moral limits and they derive political pleasure from unrestrained accumulation. There are many who may have very good intentions but get things confused whether deliberately or not it does not matter.

 

Greed is a paradise island of the disconnected elite whose wants and desire to amass more than they morally deserve takes priority over all else. The simple want for wealth is cupidity rather than greed itself and on its own cupidity is harmless but when fused with immorality and irresponsibility it is catastrophic. Greed and incomprehension are mutually underpinning. Many in Zimbabwe society and some of our politicians have taken more than they morally deserve out of ignorance and others have willingly inflicted economic murder on the degenerate dance-floor. Corruption, ignorance and greed are all mutually exclusive and in most cases it is the greedy politicians who exploit the ignorance of the expectant electorate through corrupt tendencies. It is very simple to make sweeping statements about politicians as corrupt, disconnected and not responsive but the reality is that they are just like all of us and in most cases try to serve those who elected them into office. All politicians pursue political power and when they do acquire that power they find themselves in exceptional settings a lot of people will never in their lifetimes find themselves in. Those who go into politics all have ambition and it would be concerning if they did not. Tsvangirai came into the GNU in 2009 and five years down the line he had upgraded from Strathaven to the Dales of Zimbabwe.

 

The combination of the economic sanctions against the country, the insatiably acquisitive and self-serving practices by an emerging elite minority has created a huge imbalance in the economy and undermined real wealth creation for the underprivileged majority at the bottom of the economic perking order. The chronically unappeasable greed of some within the ranks has only served to condemn the same majority they purport to represent to a lifetime of abject poverty. These are the same grasping politicians who have betrayed the Robert Mugabe vision of economic empowerment of the ordinary men and women on the streets. The former colonisers have a lot to do with some of the deep-rooted problems that continue to afflict Zimbabwe and other African countries but constant repetition of this will not address the challenges we face today. The nation’s priority should be enhancing basic services and building on infrastructural capacity. The country will have to tackle corruption head-on and if unorthodox means such as lie-detector tests on administrative and law enforcement officials, public humiliation or others have to be used then so be it. There is an urgent need to rebuild respect and capacity of the country’s institutions thus dealing directly with the twin evils of corruption and political patronage to make the civil service more professional. The country can start investing in people through pragmatic and prudent economic initiatives backed by genuine principles of selflessness and integrity.

 

It is often said that Zimbabwe is rich in natural resources and that is true but that is not enough to guarantee economic success. All elected representatives of the people have to prioritise representing the people and not their own narrow interests. Many elected officials have made wrong choices not because they did not know of better choices but because the right choices were running parallel to their own personal self-interests. These are the same elected representatives who thrive on telling the electorate what they want to hear not what they need to know. These are the gluttonous inhabitants of the elite paradise called greed who pose a direct threat to the ruling party’s vision of economic emancipation of the ordinary folk in Zimbabwe.

 

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