by Tawanda Chiweshe
A letter which MDC Alliance leader, Nelson Chamisa wrote yesterday blaming everyone except himself, likening MDC-T leader, Douglas Mwonzora to the late United African National Council (UANC) leader, Abel Muzorewa, and justifying his anti-old guard stance, has backfired badly.
The letter, which is entitled The fog will clear, was posted on his party’s Twitter handle last night. Instead of endearing the embattled opposition leader to netizens, the document achieved the opposite as it was silent on key issues affecting the people who voted for him and his party such as urban residents that are being rewarded by lack of basic service delivery.
“Jiggies (Chamisa’s nickname) is basically attacking Mwonzora, and celebrating the successes of sanctions and economic sabotage. He is also turning a blind eye on the corrupt MDC-run Councils. The only new thing here is his use of poetry,” commented Jonson Mugadza.
As if responding to the MDC Alliance spokesperson, Fadzai Mahere who normally tweets that “We need a new leadership,” some MDC Alliance supporters’ responses betrayed their frustration with Chamisa’s poor leadership mettle.
“People don't want haughty letters of apologies. People need leadership! We stand absent (of) such and a time will come when those that lead from the sidelines will have to stay out of our way!” fumed one Denis Maisiri.
Other people from the opposition felt that while opposition is necessary for democracy to thrive, it had become a hopeless undertaking to continue supporting Chamisa.
“Chamisa is just naive, following him dzingori shungu hadzo. The confusion in MDC-A is just too much. Kunge mahumbwe. We need real alternatives,” said one Twitter who uses the moniker, ZimbabweanLivesMatter.
South Africa-based Zimbabwean journalist, Percy Zvomuya turned Chamisa’s fog metaphor against him to point out how the MDC Alliance and other local opposition outfits had betrayed their supporters by being greedy at the expense of their own members.
“Zimbabwe opposition parties have lost their way in the fog of greed,” Zvomuya said.
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Chamisa’s letter was also seen as a poor response to ongoing defections of his party members to the Mwonzora-led MDC-T. The latest member to cross the floor was former ZANU PF Politburo member, Kudakwashe Bhasikiti who announced the development yesterday.
“Moment I saw Bhasikiti pull the rug from underneath his feet this morning, I knew immediately (the) dude sprang into action (from) wherever he was to find a way to pacify his shrinking (support) base. My prediction was a statement before midnight. But here we are, a whole letter,” commented one Twitter user who identifies himself as The King in the East.
People such as Eldridge Gambiza questioned Chamisa’s silence on the outgoing US President, Donald Trump’s attempts to stop the confirmation of US President-elect, Joe Biden’s victory by unleashing violent protestors at Capitol Hill on Wednesday, this week. Chamisa and one of his deputies, Tendai Biti visited the US in December 2017, and latter falsely claimed that they had met Trump and were promised a US$15 billion rescue package for Zimbabwe, if he won the 2018 elections.
Apart from the substance of the letter, Chamisa also came under attack for his poor writing style. Some people felt that his letter was overly long. Comparison was made with similar communication from President Emmerson Mnangagwa and the verdict was bad news for the opposition leader.
“When President Emmerson Mnangagwa writes, he goes straight to the point, keeping it short and simple. But when Chamisa writes it’s a whole composition of nothing. This is evidence enough to show that Chamisa is now hopeless and tired. He needs to be helped to remain relevant,” chipped in one Sibve Mdare.
Chamisa made himself a laughing stock of many local political watchers when he gave the address of his party in the letter as 44 Nelson Mandela Avenue. This was in reference to the MDC-T’s national headquarters, the Morgan Tsvangirai House, which the latter party reclaimed in June last year following a 31 March 2020, Supreme Court judgement, which declared that Chamisa’s succession of the late Morgan Tsvangirai in February 2018, was irregular.
One Twitter user, Rudaviro, mocked him for this indiscretion.
“44 Nelson Mandela (Ave) ndepapi chaipo?”
