By Takura Zhangazha*
I do not argue about faith or religion with cdes in Zimbabwe.
At least not most of the time.
Mainly because it would be an exercise in futility.
People choose what to believe in. Who to believe in. And where, via location, to believe it.
It's almost an intellectual or even spiritual given.
However, like the Chihwa that I am, I perk my ears up when religion dabbles in our national politics. And our national political economy.
Wherein our national political leaders overdo both their personal political 'power ambitions' in combination with their materialist aspirations.
And this is a very complicated point to make but I will not expand on it for now.
Not as a matter of personal judgement but as a measurement of their own individual understanding of the mechanisms of 'people centered politics'.
A point they generally or deliberately miss despite either their multiple academic degrees or long duree political terms of office as extended by the ruling Zanu Pf's party 2030 non electoral and technically constitutionally established, almost irreversible agenda.
Or when the previous mainstream opposition political party the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) finds a Christian Jesus and God as being fundamental to its political fortunes.
All the while winning parliamentary and local government seats.
But at the same time causing abstract controversy about the meaning and objective purpose of why they are doing what they are doing. Both in central and local government until 2030! At least legally!
Or when we assess the ambigous role of politics, cultural practice and money as evidenced by the emerging role of physical materialism (again 'money') in purchasing national political influence.
Ditto for example, Wicknell Chivayo and his almost omnipresent monetary influence over Zimbabwe's sport, music and philanthrophy culture.
As he has said, at least on his own and other social media platforms, it is his money and he can do what he wants with it anyway!
Even if we were to ask where he got it, again anyway!
And it is something that I personally do not envy in argument.
To each their own values, religion and money!
If it is accepted at least by national law, it cannot be argued otherwise.
But be that as it may we are after all allowed to observe its absurdity (The emperor has no clothes anyone?)
The flaunting of wealth in the fashion that has been occurring is not something that as a Zimbabwean you can casually wish away.
Whereas you could argue that you 'listen, see and don't judge' you are at least allowed to question it.
Not just only about the money that is being reported in the mainstream media as being thrown at churches, politically connected enterprises (tenderpreneurs) and the rest of us trying to make a dollar out of fifteen cents.
All for what would appear to be very political and 'hegemonic' reasons. (Sorry to use a big word... go ahead and google it).
To explain further, you cannot have an individual, no matter how much money they have, wherever they got it from, no matter how legitimate it may or not be, being found in every, quite literally every, aspect of a national cultural consciousness.
Be it structured or abstract.
There are things we see right in front of us. In part out of our naive religious-cum-political nature.
In other parts in our lack of critical objectivity about long established struggles for democracy in Zimbabwe.
Beyond platitudes.
But as Maurice Nyagumbo wrote, 'Some of Us Must Remain To Be With The People'. An autobiography title that is self explanatory.
This write up should have been longer. But as argued above there are things that we see and we cannot over disclose. In consciousness.
Not for secrecy but for fear of sharing a false national consciousness with those that have a different/dogmatic understanding of where our national ideological values should lie. As mixed with religion and an historical pro-democracy activism.
Either way as said by the cdes who revolted against the slave trade and those that led the civil rights movement such as Martin Luther King JR and Marcus Garvey, "We shall overcome" cdes.
In conclusion, at some point, as learnt from our Tanzanian cdes! #Songambele.
*Takura Zhangazha writes here in his personal capacity
