by Elijah Chihota
In a love affair between a man and a woman, they live each day seeing themselves as soul mates without thinking anything sinister would happen to their till death do us part vow. The same scenario happens in politics where a person joins a political party of one’s choice without any intention of being chucked out. Like in a love affair, in politics usually there are fallouts for one reason or the other.
This was exactly what happened to Paddington Japajapa and Jimu Kunaka. Owing to their greediness and failure to tow the Party line, the two found themselves in the cold.Last week the two made some dramatic comments about ZANU PF when they appeared before the Kalema Motlanthe led Commission of Inquiry into the August 1 disturbances in what could best be described as a case of sour grapes.
Japajapa in his bid to tarnish the ZANU PF party, alleged that the party was the perpetrator of violence in this country. He incoherently spewed gibberish utterances which were miles away from what the Commission was looking at. He chose to narrate what he thought happened during the liberation struggle blatantly ignoring the glaring terms of reference of the Commission that it was dealing with issues closely linked to the August 1 disturbances.
He is a “political prostitute” who hopes from one party to the other seeking greener pastures. Japajapa blatantly lied that MDC leader, Nelson Chamisa had well attended rallies of up to 40 000 people.Nothing like this ever happened during Chamisa’s provincial rallies.This was simply done to spite ZANU PF in his bid to get recognition by Chamisa in return for his daily bread.
On 2 February 2018 during a rally in Dzivarasekwa Japajapa was fraternising with Dr Joice Mujuru’s National People’s Party (NPP) masquerading as a pastor for that matter. He offered a meaningless and politically laced prayer in a bid to land an influential post, but soon he found himself on slippery ground and nowhere close to that party’s echelons of power.In the Biblical twinkling of an eye, Japajapa is now vouching for the MDC. It is this same Japajapa who left the MDC in a huff in 2013 after the late party leader, Morgan Tsvangirai blocked him from being its representative in 2013. He saw that as trampling on democracy, but today he is coming back to fight in the corner of that same political outfit who could not give him any time of day in the past.
Japajapa is clutching at straw and wants to use anything he could lay his dirty hands on to spite ZANU PF.Kunaka on the other hand after realising that he had been chucked from ZANU PF and his chances of making a living were gone is on revenge path with his former party. Remember Kunaka became a Mbare market baron by asking people to pay him daily tokens so that the vendors would continue to use Harare City Council vending stalls.It is the same Kunaka who blocked businessman, Alex Mashamhanda from constructing a service station in Mbare claiming that the land had been reserved for vendors. Kunaka was actually milking these vendors and was afraid his cash cow was about to be taken from him. During those days, Kunaka accused Mhashamhanda of being aligned to the MDC-T, now who belongs to that same political outfit- none other than Kunaka himself.
How the MDC decided to embrace Kunaka into their fold is something that boggles the mind as from his testimony he persecuted and killed MDC supporters. The MDC hated Kunaka with a passion, but suddenly he is their messiah for purportedly exposing ZANU PF violence. Little does Chamisa and crew knew that the hooligan simply wants to exploit them for his own selfish ends.
Kunaka hobnobs from one political entity to the other. In 2014, he found himself at the receiving end after former president Robert Mugabe found out that his deputy Dr Mujuru was creating another centre of power with the likes of Kunaka as the foot soldiers of the Mujuru faction. Like his boss Dr Mujuru, Kunaka was chucked out into political oblivion.Without batting an eyelid Kunaka was wooed by the G40 cabal, after G40 kingpin; Saviour Kasukuwere dangled him a wad of greenbacks.
When that faction was booted from the revolutionary Party, Kunaka jumped ship and joined National PatrioticFront (NPF), but did not last long after failing to swindle that party and getting an influential post.This time around Kunaka has landed himself in hot soup. When he was hoodwinked by the MDC to testify against ZANU PF during the Commission of Inquiry, he thought he would nail the revolutionary Party, little did he know he was digging a grave for himself. The long arm of the law is finally going to catch up with him as the relatives of the people he claims to have beaten or killed will soon come after him seeking justice.
In short Japajapa and Kunaka are prodigal sons who are singing for their supper and will dance for anyone who pipes for them only to get their two seconds of fame. Any serious thinking person in his or her right mind would not even give these two an ear.
