Zimbabwe: Government attempts to paint a brighter picture of itself
- From: "Zvakanaka" <lalapansi@xxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 4 Jun 2007 06:17:23 +0200
Zimbabwe: Government attempts to paint a brighter picture of itself
African Path
Ntandoyenkosi Ncube
June 01, 2007 10:15 AM
IN an extraordinary display of indifference to what the world thinks
of Zimbabwe's political and economic woes, the ruling party, Zanu-PF has
began a series of embedded and cheque-book journalism to unleash the highest
level of propaganda to all corners of the world.
This was marked by the recent seventy-seven
(77) paged sponsored supplement published in one of world's leading
magazine, NewAfrica on behalf of Zimbabwe government.
Zanu-PF which is now venturing on grim "party public relations
campaign" following the 11 March barbaric attacks by police on innocent
civilians, opposition party and civic leaders, through the ministry of
Information and Publicity hired veteran journalist and NewAfrica editor
Baffour Ankomah to lift the government and party's face.
Ankomah whose was on an all expenses paid trip was hosted for a week
at Harare's plush Rainbow Towers Hotel, formerly Harare Sheraton. "I went to
Zimbabwe at the invitation of the Zimbabwean government, because it wanted
to tell its side of the story", Ankomah said in his report.
Zimbabwe's 11 March moment of madness was described by the
international community as a "barbaric act not even belonging to the 20
first century" and as a "shame and embarrassment to Africa" according to
African Union and Ghana President, John Kufour.
Subsequent to the March events Zambian president, Levy Mwanawasa
described Zimbabwe as "A sinking titanic".
Ankomah carried interviews with President Robert Mugabe, the police
and featured articles authored by Zanu-PF gurus and its political
sympathizers which political activists dismissed "not only as the highest
level of propaganda but a complete falsity and an exercise of treachery
never to be expected in the media".
"I have gone through the supplement several times. It's nothing but
highest level of propaganda, falsity and treachery not to be expected in any
form of media", political activist Simbarashe Mutangadura in Johannesburg
said.
He added: "Zanu PF was now resorting to using paid supplements as a
last resort to improve its battered image as the international media was
very critical of its mismanagement and the suffering of the people in
Zimbabwe".
Sources with direct information to what happened said reserve bank
governor Gideon Gono paid approximately US$ I,6 million to a UK based IC
Publications which publishes NewAfrica.
The amount can feed starving Zimbabweans for period of more than two
months.
Efforts to obtain a comment on the issue from IC Publications were
fruitless as Ankomah and publication marketing and advertising department
did not respond to questions posted to them by the time of going to press.
During the 2002 presidential election the government introduced
several radio and television campaign strategies, apart from recording music
albums, government had other ideas for television and radio. It began to
record and release a series of Chave Chimurenga (its now war) music campaign
jingles.
By September 2004, there were several music jingle titles dominating
the airwaves and they included Kwedu Kumachembere, Sisonke, Our Future,
Siyalima, Mombe Mbiri Nemadhongi Mashanu, Uya Uone Kutapira Kunoita Kurima,
Rambai Makashinga, Sendekera Mwana Wevhu and Zesa Yauya neMagetsi. Save for
Zesa Yauya neMagetsi which centers on the rural electrification programme,
the rest of the music jingles promote farming and the land redistribution
programme.
An estimate made in 2003 for one Chave Chimurenga music jingle titled
Rambai Makashinga showed that for radio (four stations) it was being played
approximately 288 times a day, which amounts to 8 640 times per month. On
television the advert was flighted approximately 72 times a day, which
amounts to 2 160 times a month.
Below are some annotations, extractions and citations made by the
president during his exclusive interview with Baffour Ankomah:
"THEY WILL GET MORE TSVANGIRAIS BEATEN UP".
"If a person challenges the police, breaches law and order, and thinks
the police would just look at him and shake hands with him, and say "you've
done a good thing by tossing and pushing us around", well, he is quite
mistaken. The police are there to maintain law and order. And it doesn't
matter who, if you threaten them with force, they will answer back with
force.
We may regret that in doing their work, they might have exceeded the
punishment they gave them. But these things happen.
It happens in war, it happens everywhere. If you challenge the police,
don't think they are going to be merciful with you at all. The opposition
can do another 11 March incident, certainly if they do a repeat, and if they
dare challenge the police, they will get more Tsvangirais beaten up", The
president said.
"AMBASSADORS WILL CERTAINLY BE KICKED OUT".
"We have read them the riot act, and if they continue to do that, we
will certainly kick them out of the country. It doesn't matter who it is. If
America wants a man like Christopher Dell [their ambassador] to remain here,
then he's got to behave because we will not brook further nonsense from
him.", Mugabe said.
"THE OPPOSITION IS AN EXTESSION OF IMPERIALIM".
"The opposition is an extension of imperialism, they are agents of
imperialism; they are not home-grown opposition people, they were put
together as an opposing package by the British, the three parties in
Britain - the Labour Party, Conservative Party and the Liberal Democrats -
established the Westminster Foundation Fund, and it was on the strength of
that fund that the MDC was formed. They chose the leaders, and they had to
come from the labour movement. Tsvangirai became the president of the new
movement, and they took Welshman Ncube from the university to become
secretary-general. But now they have split into two, and we think they can
even split into four, and like the amoeba go on multiplying until they come
to nothing", said Zimbabwe president.
"IT IS THE PREROGATIVE OF THE PRESIDENT TO CALL ELECTIONS".
"Ready or not ready, we will have elections next year. Mind you, it is
the prerogative of the president to call elections any time. But in this
particular case, a presidential election is constitutionally due in March or
soon after March, because the current presidential term ends in March. So we
must go to elections then. If they are not quite ready, well, hard luck.
They must get ready. In politics you must stay ready. So if you are not
ready and you think in politics we should wait for you, to enable you to
take your time? It is when we judge that you are not ready, and we can take
advantage of your being unprepared, that we perform best, isn't it? These
are tricks of electioneering and it's done all over. But anyway in this
particular case, they knew that the presidential election was due in March
next year - they have had six years to prepare, surely they must be able to
do something", President Mugabe told Ankomah.
WHO ARE YOU TO TALK ABOUT THE CONSTITUTION?
"Buy you don't just conceive a constitution, who are you? The majority
of the people support the ruling party, that's why we are ruling, and the
majority of the people have not demanded a new constitution. However, the
government is prepared to offer amendments if the opposition want amendments
to the constitution. We will discuss them in the context of what we
ourselves are proffering", He said
A NEW CONSTITUTION IS OUT OF QUESTION.
"Out of the question, certainly! Our current constitution has
undergone various amendments and there is no way a fresh constitution can be
written between now and March. The opposition must have a mandate from the
people for that kind of thing to happen, and they haven't got it. They are a
minority party and they can't call the tune".
MY PARTY HAS NOT FOUND A SUCCESSOR.
"Well, for as long as I can go and for as long as the party wishes me
to go. That's the combination. And if the party says stand, it means the
party has not found a successor. We will find a successor in due course",
the president said
.
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