As we face a worldwide health emergency, the Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (Zanu PF) finds itself in a peculiarly fortunate position. This global catastrophe has presented the party with an effective guise for suppressing opposition under the banner of public safety.
The crisis has provided Zanu PF with a plausible reason for halting by-elections – a significant platform through which opposition parties could have introduced fresh, innovative leaders, thus challenging the consolidated power of Zanu PF. It’s not just the halting of democratic processes; the party has manipulated the crisis to legitimise the increased use of force by politicised police, often reminiscent of the Gestapo, particularly against opposition parties conducting peaceful activities.
One should not mistake the Zanu PF’s arbitrary arrests of opposition members, citing health emergency violations, as concern for the public welfare. Far from it. The resilient opposition, continuously victimised through selective law enforcement and authoritarian rule, is not the only party vulnerable to the pandemic while the current government, surprisingly, seems impervious.
The arrests and subsequent detentions, perpetrated by the now dubious National Prosecuting Authority, now rebranded as Zanu PF Instructed Political Prosecution, are not just unlawful but unconstitutional, violating the rights of not only opposition activists but all Zimbabweans living in fear of authoritarian rule. Indeed, an attack on one is an attack on us all!
Take, for instance, the case of twelve Mashonaland West opposition officials, arbitrarily arrested for merely holding a meeting at the party offices in Chinhoyi in early February. This is just one example of how the opposition is terrorised by the ironically incapacitated state, which Zanu PF would rather see collapse as long as they remain in power and can continue to exploit national resources.
And yet, while the opposition is silenced, the ailing criminals of Zanu PF continue to meet without reprisal. Their immunity is broadcast for all to see, often on the formerly state-run television now controlled by Zanu PF officials. This is the epitome of selective law enforcement and autocratic rule at work.
A reformed police service, serving the people rather than the state, could have been a reality if Nelson Chamisa’s popular mandate hadn’t been thwarted. The corrupt organisation that is Zanu PF, responsible for the citizens’ marginalisation and alienation, especially following Chinese displacement of native communities, remains immune to its own legal manipulations.
Zanu PF has made itself effectively above the law. They assault, mutilate, and devalue the supreme law of the land. With the indefinite suspension of by-elections and manipulation of the electoral commission, Zanu PF has replaced constitutional rule with draconian legislation, undermining citizens’ fundamental rights. The path towards a one-party state, unanswerable to anyone like the Chinese Communist Party, seems increasingly clear.
As we witness the eroding of democracy under the guise of emergency powers, as evidenced in the Nduna case, we must be wary. The gradual suspension of the supreme law and the impending threat to the constitution are clear signs of a looming one-party state. This crisis, as exploited by Zanu PF, is a chilling reminder that we must be ever vigilant in the face of power that threatens to overshadow the rule of law.