African Laughter - Doris May Lessing [75]
Every conversation at once turns to the Unity Accord, between Zapu and Zanu, Matabeleland and Mashonaland, Mugabe and Nkomo, the Accord which has transformed the atmosphere, everyone optimistic, everyone saying, ‘At last Zimbabwe is one country.’ Then they ask, Why didn’t he do it before? If it worked immediately in 1987, then it would have worked earlier. How was it that Mugabe didn’t know the dissidents were so few? Why did the whole country believe that armies of the Ndebele were involved? If Mugabe didn’t know the enemy consisted of a handful of men now described by everyone as Terrorists, then why not? Did he not have spies and informers?
Why does President Mugabe not stop his ministers and officials from being so greedy? The reply to this is that the corrupt ones are those who keep him in power. But no one wants to believe this: at this time all talk of Mugabe is fuelled by idealism, of a kind frightening to some people who remember similar talk about despotic leaders. But Mugabe is not a despot…but Mugabe could easily become one…but now Nkomo is up there with him he won’t allow Mugabe to be a despot…
Where is President Banana? He is no longer President, he is a Professor in the university, and a popular one.
The university is talked about all the time, because the students have just been on strike over corruption, for every day there is a new scandal about ministers and high-ups, involved in every kind of fraud, embezzlement, theft. The students rioted in the name of the Revolution and its ideals, appealing to Mugabe, expecting Mugabe would stand by them. But he did not. The police went into the university and behaved stupidly. They fired tear-gas grenades into rooms where the students were hiding. Many were hurt. But worst of all was the cynicism and disillusion. It is interesting how people talk about Mugabe when they think he has made a mistake; it is in a sorrowful perplexed tone, repeating the same words through an evening, Why did he let them down? How could he have done it? He was himself a revolutionary and he knows how dangerous it is when young people get cynical…he ought to be treating the students as his natural supporters…I can’t help feeling he is badly advised…who is advising him?–why does he let himself be so shut off from everyone, so remote?…he shouldn’t have let them down. Why? What do you think was in his mind?
Parallel to the Why does he? Why doesn’t he? is ‘Mugabe says…’ Nothing is more interesting than what leaders and satraps are supposed to have said, for here speaks the voice of popular mythmaking, voices of hope or of cynicism. It doesn’t matter whether the Leader has actually used the words attributed to him, for the force and effect are the same.
How very attractive is this talk, is the intense personal involvement in Zimbabwe. The spasms of cynicism, and not only about the current corruption scandals, are only the opposite side of the coin. The people in this room include those who, in the Bush War, supported Mugabe, supported Nkomo, supported Bishop Muzorewa, but now they are all speaking in the same way. What way? I swear this isn’t far off being in love. One may be in love with a country or the phase of development of a country as one is with a person. Incredulous, tremulous hope…uncertainty…amazement at the beloved’s perfections and achievements. Exaggerated disappointment at moments of failure. I was listening to people who spoke of corruption scandals with the raging grief appropriate to betrayed love.
For instance, the car scandal. Because Mugabe will not allow cars to be imported into Zimbabwe (or anything else, not spare parts for cars, not farm machinery–nothing, forbidding the necessary with the frivolous) there is a local