I hear the outgoing US ambassador to ZIM awarded some scholarships to the shonas on the understanding that the students sample was representative of the entire country. But why did they not chose a representative sample themselves, since when has the US trusted this evil system in harare. How can such foul play happen under OBAMA s adminstratiobn and they dont notice? What do we do, write to their respective embassies wherever we are or what? Ncedani bantu bakithi, ngizwe uAggripa Sibanda eGwanda ngokuthi kambe iMDC ibenzani ngemva kokuyisuppota kangaka lokuthebmbela kuyo. Let us scream loud madoda at this evil stystem. Bring it out to the open. Ongakhaliyo ufela embelekweni.

Uyazi mfowethu kubuhlungu ukubuswa. Kodwa ngaphandle kokuthi sithathe amanyathelo ayikho nje into ezosilungela. Sizobe sicwila njalo nje emgodini ongela mkhawulo. Ngiyavuma, lets use any structures esile access kuzo ukuze silwe nale corruption. Namhla ngamaskolashiphu ase Melika kusasa ngaweseNgilandi etc, kuzofana beqhubeka bebandlulula. Umkhosi kasiwuhlabeni kuma embasi njengoba usitsho lakwezinye inhlanganiso. Ngiphinde ngigcwalisele ngithi laba abale access kumaMP labosomapolitiki beSintwini abaku mdc t/m kabake bafake i formal complaint ngendlela amaNdebele aphathwa butshapha ngayo kuye lutshwangi. Kasichitheke mani lesi sisanasana se GNU!.

Kubuhlungu, kodwa iqiniso siyalazi vele bayasizonda. Noma sizazi ukuthi bayasizonda akumelanga sizithulele nje sithi zwi kumele sibhalele uout-going ambassador, noma sibhalele uObama directly and air our concerns and disgust.
Anyone with McGee or Obama's email addresses???

bafowethu yinsindabaphenduke le ndaba yalezizinto kodwa nxa lathi singavungama ngezwilinye singaphumelela mhlawumbe kubekhona ozwayo.

The paralysis of analysis displayed here beggars belief!!!!!! For a start before the jumping up and down reaches fever pitch a few questions have to be addressed.
How many scholarships have been handed out?
What was the criteria for the award of the scholarships was it patronage or merit?
Would it have been acceptable if all the scholarships had been handed to people with Ndebele sounding names?
In the greater scheme of things what are the implications of the award of the scholarships on tertiary education in Zimbabwe given the parlous state of this sector.
To paraphrase the last question what proportion do the recipients of the scholarships represent out of total population of people who should be in tertiary education?

In the greater scheme of things does this awarding of a few scholarships have any bearing on the life of the average and ordinary Zimbabwean? (Mthwakazian)
Is the life of an average and ordinary Mthwakazian the better or worse of as adirect consequence and result of the awards?

If truth and candour were not inimical to one’s constitution, answers to these questions, by any rational person, would suggest that this is no more than a storm in a teacup, a classic example of not seeing the wood for the trees, a case in point of giving chase to lizards when crocodiles are against you. To elaborate; unemployment is currently stated to be around 94%, levels of poverty not far off this mark, freedom of speech non existent, human rights abuses abound, the education system has all but collapsed, the same applies to the health system and to cap it all the threat of mass starvation hangs over the populace like the sword of Damocles. However, (to paraphrase Martin Luther King) those that have drank from the cup of bitterness would have us believe that the awarding of a few and ultimately meaningless scholarships is an issue that puts in the shade the preceding concerns!
Is this the height of the much vaunted Mthwakazian nationalism?

Sikujwayele lokhu, kunini sibandlululwa, nanko phela lesibakhetha ukuthi bayesimela nxa sebekapula labo bathula bathi zwi ingani asibathumanga ukuyasimela. One day unkulunkulu uzosimela.

Vele uma sebekapula abasasinaki , utsho ukuthi sizohlala simenyengela/gamjela kuze kube nini. Phela basiphatha okwenja ebamba unvundla ebe isiyaphiwa isikhumba lamathambo

Singalingi sivume ukucobodiswa sithule nje sengani yizinvu esilaheni. Lets engage or is it make noise njengamaNdebele, bakhona abazosizwa. Namhlanje yi US, kusasa kuzaba yiCan,UK, Msanzi, Aus etc abetshabi belokhe beqhubeka ngezondo yabo thina kuthiwa akusifaneli. Lets stop allowing them to tell us what is good for ourselves, ngoba kusasa bazosibiza ama illiterate yethi bona bahuquluza wonke amathuba.Amathonsi ayayiwisa indlu, kancane kancane bayaqhubeka ngembidlizo

Ma sithula , zinengi inhlelo ezivela emazweni ezingasiza our poor people kodwa zidayvethelwe ebatshabini kuqhutshwa igrand plan.Asiqhubekeni sibili to register this injustice, if we dont who will? And we must do it in our own way without listening to o devuli laba abasifisela ubugqila njengesizwe.

Asifuni sibili ukuthula, kodwa siyawubanga ngaphi umsindo lapho abazasibheka khona, vele kufana lokugebha idwala ngogodo.

Ezifresh

Walalela abetshabi abangakufiseli okuhle bazokubamba ingqondo bakunqunde amadolo kugcine kusiba mnyama phambili lasemuva. Kudala abetshabi bedlala ligame yezikolaship kanye lezinye inhlelo zoncedo. Mina I experienced ubadlululo emaNdebeleni ngabetshabi kuma British Council scholarships emsebenzini ngama80s,ngahle ngafulathela lowamhlaba sekucacile ukuthi kangila sabelo. Dont be discouraged No action No Results.We mus Act.

Abatshabi laba kukhanya bazimisele ukwenza loba yini esibuyisela emuva, sithini nanku phela abameli bethu nxa sebebhekane labo bavele bathule ingani babona inunu. Yibo abamele bakhulume ukuthi akube lamaquarta system ukuze yonke indawo ikhaveke. Nanku phela iqiniso yikuthi singadabuka amakhanda lenhliziyo enkundleni kodwa singeke senza lutho. Mina ngisola abameli bethu kakhulu, siyabavotela ukuthi baphiwe amabhenzi lokuthi impilo zabo zibe ngcono hatshi ezethu. Munye kuphela umuntu ophese wayimela indawo yakhwabo bahle bavela bamthathisa unyawo masinyane.

Oh!! Enters the Flying-dragon (Flying-jazi) with his paralysis of analysis hypothesis. Jazi should be dismissed for his high sounding sweet-smelly nothings. Jazi is suggesting that our Mthwakazi children are not academically gifted, only a fool would think that in Zimbabwe merit has ever meant anything but tribal supremacy. Only those who are perceived to belong to the right tribe are deemed as worthy. Does Jazi (the flying-jazi) know anything about nepotism??????? i wonder!! You questions are shallow and out of touch with reality, you like theorising too much Mr Jazi. You are living in your own world or you have been in diaspora for too long. Did you come to diaspora in the late or early 70s? Your arguement in unhinged.

Asikeni sifunde ukuyekela ukuthanda ukusola singenzi lutho, Singazenzi inja le ekhonkothayo ungathi futseki ibe isiyathula. Yekelani ubugwala mani lenze intoezabonisa ukuthi for sho isizwe samaNdebele/Khalanga sikhona njalo sisaphila. Iqiniso yikuthi ukusola uhleli eceleni kwe-computer yakho won't help anyone including yourself. Why singakhethi abantu enkundleni (Mthwakazians) beke beyekhula labaphezulu kuHulumende waseZim njalo nabakhulu baseMatebeleland??..ngumbono lo!!!!

Litshone njani
Abanye sesingathi sesi-give up. Lapha asikuthi siphongu khuluma singenzi lutho, hatshi. For one, when I came across it I did not know if others knew about it already or not. Secondly, I had to check with others to see if there is anything we can do something about together. Njengoba omunye etsho nje ukuthi may be singathumela abantu, licebo lelo isnt it? However, personally I think its pointless to talk to the harare system. Rather abantu bengathunyelwa eUS states embassy. We are not even seeking that the US do something about it, but if they do, thanks to them. Our aim is to bring this to the open. Let especially US ebassy know that this is what happened to the allocated resources. Mina I suggest we contact them through their website, by phone , mail, email etc. THIS WILL ENABLE ALL OF US IN DIFFERENT PLACES OF THE GLOBE TO PUT ACROSS OUR GRIEVANCES. In addition we can also use the bbc, cnn etc. The evil done by harare must brought out to the open. Just let us start whatever we decide to do in the next 24hrs.

Linjani bakwethu, sokuyisikhathi eside ngacina ukuloba kuInkundla, kodwa ngithemba liphilile.

Umbuzo engilawo yikuthi amascholarship lawa aphiwa njani, iprocedure yakhona yayinjani. Ma aye advethayiziwe, bangaki abakaMthwakazi abathumela ama application??? Angeke ngimangale ma kungela, why ngisitsho njalo, siyathanda kakhulu ukuzibona as ama victims and then singenzi lutho ngalokho, lokhu ngikutsho ngoba ngomnyaka ka 2008 ngaloba kuleyi Inkundla ngidinga inzalo ka Mthwakazi elama degree or asebeza thola ama degree ikakhulu ama engineering, technical, lama commercial degrees, ukuthi sincedisane ukuze bathole ama graduate positions. Ngaze ngathi olesihlobo sakhe esidinga iposition enjalo angithinte. Bangaki abakwenzayo lokhu? Ngitsho loyedwa. Lokhu kungizwisa ubuhlungu. Asingeke sikhale ngenketha betshabi emazweni.

Lokhu ngukutsho njalo ngokukhangela abantu abalama profession or abase maUniversity abavela kwelikamgodoyi, inengi labo, ngiyaxolisa ma ngiphambanisa kodwa ngingathi 9.5/10 ngabasesitshabini. Njengoba ngake ngatsho kudala, asizikhangeleni thina lapho esilahleka khona singakakhangeli lapho esilahlwa khona.

Inengi likaMthwakazi emazweni bazenzela i carework kumbe emanda, inengi elisema university, of which its a small majority bazenzela inursing, akulanto embi nge nursing kodwa asingeke sibe ngomongikazi sonke.

Asizikhipheni ku mental slavery esizifaka kiyo and explore ama opportunities agcweleyo emhlabeni, singatshona sisizwa ubuhlungu bama decades adlulayo asisoke siphumelele njalo kumele sizibuze ukuthi ozabusa uMthwakazi ngubani ma sesithole uzibuse lo esimfuna kangaka, gone are the days ama leaders aphuma agangeni. VUKA MTHWAKAZI

Mthwentwehlaba,

Okutshoyo ngiyakuzwa kodwa njengoba utshilo this is very pointless and l dont think iUS will do anything about it. Lets get out of our caves and face the world as it is today, stop moaning and encourage abantwana bethu ukuthi bafunde full stop.

Bullet Success.
Your analysis about amaNdebele aseUK ukuthi benza ubongikazi may be true.; angilalwazi ngalokho. Into engithanda ukuyiphakamisa kuwe yikuthi lawo maskolashiphu kawaqondani lamadiaspora la ancitshwa amathuba aze atshiya ikhaya ,njalo asezibona esenza li khewekhi oyitshoyo ephandela ingane .La ngamaskolashiphu esikhalela ukuthi izingane zase Felabusi, Plumtree, Bulawayo Khezi, Tsholotsho,Lupane, Gwanda , Sigodini ETC lazo ziphiwe amathuba. Lezi ezise diaspora angithi ziyawafumana nje we Bullet?

Umkhosi esiwuhlabayo, siwuhlabela labo abangazi le internet connection kumbe uku e-maila. Ngiphinde ngigcwalisele kuMthwente ukuthi this act is an act of principle. We want to register le injustice to those that care to listen. Kusasa kuzangena izinhlelo eg ezokusiza osomabhizimusi abakhasayo , uzamangala yini nxa sebeziqondisa kibo?We dont expect i reversal ku US but senzela ilakusasa. Ngokunjalo as from today and in future lets google ama embassies kanye lezinhlanganiso ezithile sibafonele njalo siba e-mail ele sibaziza ngoncindezelo olubonwa ngabantu basekhaya. Bakhona abazalalela singahlala sibazisa ngezehlakalo ezinje.




Angiyithandi neze li negative energy oza ngayo lapha. Sikhuluma ngesizwe lapha mfowethu!

The source of this evil story is www.zimdiaspora.com It was on 29/06/09. You may find a few more same stories but this particular one specifically mentions that the outgoing Mcgee confirmed the issue of these scholarships in his "leaving do" Actually some people have already contacted the US embassy. Lets just do it. phone them email them, Let them know what is happening behind the scenes. We are not asking them to do anything for us but we want them to know that is what is happening.
Lingethuswa zinyoka lezi ezimbili ezintathu, ngezeNkundleni siyazazi. Kulenyoka etholakala emanzini, njalo kuletholakala ezintabeni. But leNkundleni lakho ziyatholakala. Eyami i email sihambile, kusasa I will follow it up ngefoni.

Yes, we must speak out against this evil system. Lets have lobby groups in every country that will fight for our interests, something like iMbovane eyayokhona kuqala kungasinceda kakhulu.

Madlenya thank you for articulate and erudite response. Thank you magnanimously for labeling my argument as unhinged – coming from you I am minded to take that as compliment.

A rocking chair – a seat which the user seats and rocks. The user is doing something but going no where fast. By extension rocking chair philosophy is the art of doing something but that action does not result in any real nor meaningful change. Zimbabweans including Mthwakazians are past masters in this art as there have been some notable rocking chair moments in their immediate and past history; the Zim Vigil at the Zimbabwe embassy in London, the Gukurakundi protests by some our brothers last year at the same venue, and the campaign to phone Zanu-pf politburo members in the aftermath of the stolen elections of 2008 are all fine examples of this art. This campaign of contacting the US embassy advocated by those that have drunk and supped from the cup of bitterness is yet another fine moment in what is turning out to be an ignominious history of a blighted (real or imagined) people. What precisely is meant to be achieved by phoning and or emailing the US embassy? One idea that has been put forward is that it is to let people “know”. What then happens when people “know”?
Another thing that is missing in this story is who is it that is doling out these scholarships? Is it the US government or groups and organizations that are American but are not an arm or extension of the government? If it is the latter then the question asked above becomes more pressing and warrants repeating- what will emailing/ phoning the US embassy achieve if scholarships are being doled out by organizations are without
the control of the American government?

By all means send your e-mails and make your telephone calls – no doubt that will make you feel good and for one brief moment give one the satisfaction of doing something for the cause. Yet in the cold light of day this rocking moment, like the ones that precede it one will change nothing, improve nothing and achieve nothing. How can it? How can it achieve anything when it does not address the root causes of the problem?

To re-iterate unemployment is high at 94 %, poverty levels are also in the same region, the roads are full of potholes, people are dying premature deaths for lack of medical care as the health system has collapsed, supply of electricity is intermittent , the education system has again all but collapsed and life for the Ndebele as well as the Shona is a daily grind and a struggle just to keep your head above the water. Against this back drop people are supposed to get worked up about not 960 000 but 96 scholarships or however many there are. If the ethnic composition of the 96 recipients of the scholarships is of greater concern than the problems alluded to above then clearly something is wrong or someone is one basket short of a picnic. If these 96 scholarships are evidence of the marginalization that many here are so keen to crow about, then blow me, marginalization sure is much ado about nothing! The 96 scholarships issue is but froth; the real problems are lack of a democratic dispensation ezweni leNja. That there sir is the root cause of the problems facing Ndebele and Shona alike. Who is to be emailed? Who it to be phoned?

Well, well, well, if it isn't the learned dokotela back again and true to his usual form!

All I can say to you dokotela is that without full or even partial knowledge of your own personal 'counter rocking-chair' activities vis-a-vis the state we find ourselves in as a people, it'd be unfair to take your intellectualism seriously lapha enkundleni.

Or mhlawumbe you're just too modest to trumpet your own 'moving-stimela philosophy' (AS OPPOSED TO STATIONARY, ROCKING-CHAIR PHILOSOPHY) achievements?

Kunjalo-nje, ibambe ungay'yeki. Zabalaza!

Mhlahlandlela,

Ungixolele baba ma ubona i encouragement yami as i negative energy, kodwa ngibona angani you are missing the whole point engizama ukuyiveza.

Into engifuna ukukubuza yona yikuthi ubona angani that decision is going to be reversed? I dont think so, so kwenziweni, protest kuma embassy and then what? Inzalo kaMthwakazi will still be in the same position. What l can suggest is that we encourage abantwana bethu to make those applications next year, lowo lalowo ole access to ama sources ama application lawa awa forwade to inzalo kaMthwakazi sibone ukuthi bazawasebenzisa amathuba lawa, yikho ngikuphe i example yalokho engike ngakuzama lapha to encourage i progess, ama positions la are open to anyone regardless ukuthi ukuphi

Kutsho wena lapha Bullet Success.

Bengingekho ngo 2008 .Kahlekahle ungubani Bullet Success?

Ah Bakithi
How simple can it get, 'Mcgee was duped into believing that the sample was a represantative....' Let him know that he was duped. Let him know there was a misappropriation. What he does or does not do thereafter is secondary.

This is an open playing field. If someone has a better idea it is most welcome.

Dont try and silence us. Dont interfere with our plans. Advise us if u so desire but dont make decisions for us.Those of us who want to demontraste for whatever reason it is well within their rights to do so.

Those who want to apply for the next lot of scholarships , that s fine, do that and see what will come out of it. We are not going to stop you doing what you choose to do.

If I personally decide to ride a rocking chair is it not up to me. Those who choose to join me are still well within their rights to do so. Are we not humans like you are. Why are you passing your judgments on us.

Allow us to exercise our choices while you guys sort out the root cause of the problem if that is what u choose to do.

Ngayibona iadvert yakho Bullet. I wondered what came of that.

Mhlahla icebo lakho lalo liright. We are all solving the same problem. It will also make people take us seriously in future. Bazi ukuthi abakwazi ukugada phezu kwethu behle ngale.

Bullet ngiyakubona lapho ovela khona.

1. Ngo 2007 a Bulawayo Engineer in Jozi won one of the 2010 construction tenders. Wathi ngimcendise sidinge amaEngineer lamaTechnicians koMthwakazi eseswele e SA. Sasifuna iaffirmative action ezwayo. Saadveriser kuChronicle, Herald, Valcol Employment Agency,Sunday News, Word of mouth koBulawayo eZesa Railways Colliery etc Of the 20 people we managed to employ in the end, only 2 were Mthwakazians.At least they were Senior Engineers. 18 abetshabi. First of all there were very few respondents from Mthwakazi. Abanye did not submit papers although we were doing permits for them.Babesenza isidensi esizwayo. It was quite frustrating.Abetshabi ku interview would ask us whether we had admin or other posts for their wives and relatives. Unfortunately these were reserved for South Africans as they were not scarce.

2. Emsebenzini in June 2008 we wanted a Senior IT person with a particular speciality.After not getting someone in SA I was given the go ahead to employ a foreign national. We got 50 valid respondents Zim, Kenyaans and Nigerians in SA. One was from a Mthwakazi lady in Bulawayo and the rest abetshabi some of them already in SA. I personally phoned the lady and she said usele labantwana bakasisi wakhe oseUK and she will be available in 3 months time for an interview. Then I phoned a tshabi guy in Norton who told me he will be in Joburg the next day although I was prepared to set up his interview for the following week. Wehla ibus and came straight here emnyama tsu enuka lekhwapha ethwele amacertificates ngnvulupho yekharkhi esquashekileyo. Needless to say he got the job and is one of the best performing employees here.

3. Since we have become beggars in foreign lands, almost every black SA lady has a Zim domestic worker. At work There are 10 such ladies(I counted). Since I am a Zimbo they try to make me their unpaid placement agent. Word around is that Shona domestics are hard workers and dont complain even if they were teachers at home. Ndebele domestics are known for being too proud, having numerous excuses for not coming to work and generally thinking they deserve special treatment.

Lets try to change the way we do things we do!

Mbazothuli, while I am not seeking to make excuses for abaThwa laba othi kabazange batatazelela ithetsho kwi kampani yakho, I'll say this.

Indaba le oyilandisayo kayenzakanga by accident ngalolosuku/lezonyanga udinga abasebenzi. It is a symptom of the very nto esikhala ngayo namhla, yona le eyama skolashiphu aphiwe abetshabi bebodwa. Now, on the basis of this trend since 1980, how many amaNdebele would you have readily found for your kampani? Also, uzwile ukuthi in the 8 years of this USA skolashiphu programme and out of 96 students offered, only 3 were Ndebele.
It is a product of systematic, consistent institutional bias that has killed off abantu bakithi. In your post ngaphezulu, you failed to acknowledge this fact and angazi kumbe you do not know this or you chose to look at inkinga zethu from where you were standing that day udinga abaqhashi.

Yikho why sisthi kasilwisaneni le root cause yendaba le like abo Mhlahlandlela, Mthente1 etc besithi makuliwe, singavumi. Kodwa, if ikampani yakho ibithe ifuna ama apprenticeships, bethatha abo form 6, ubuzabathola ngobuningi abantu bakithi ngoba baphelela ku form 6, amathuba for advancement ayancipha lapho.

Kunjalo-nje, ibambeni lingay'yeki. Zabalaza!

Below is a paper by a gallant sister. Akumina engibhale lokhu, ngiyaphanyeka nje ukuze lizizwele.

Another of my discussions by Maggie Dube 01.07.09


" Too often the strong,silent man is silent only because he does not know what to say and is reputed strong only because he has remained silent but comes a day when silence turns to action, " Winstone Churchill


In the current circulations of media that cover mostly Zimbabwean news and issues there are two issues that have emerged and have been of concern .These are not new issues at all.The culture of Zimbabwean strategies of intervention is so repetitive ,I am sure that this recycling of ideas has been very contributory to the never ending story of continuous useless rhetoric that has brought about nothing but more chaos. A country that has been bedevilled with so much bad publicity needs much more than people taking an armchair approach on national issues , because some of these issues have been known to be the cause of societal fragmentation which has further fuelled intolerance and suspicions amongst the people of Zimbabwe.The two issues of discussion are

The issue of National healing as discussed by the various ministers responsible for these portfolios,one of them being John Nkomo who is the Minister responsible for national healing.He has challenged the Church in Zimbabwe to promote and spearhead the virtues of tolerance ,peace,reconciliation,harmony,integration and he claims all this will bring about national healing.John Nkomo has also informed the media that Mugabe,will as President through a proclamation ,declare a period of three (3) days of national dedication to celebrate newly found peace and unity.I AM SURE THIS GENTLEMAN THEY CALL JOHN NKOMO LIVES IN ANOTHER PLANET.

The second issue is where the media has highlighted that once more the people of the South ie the Matebeleland and Midlands have been sidelined.There has been very disturbing news that in a purportedly peaceful,democratic ,united ,country of Zimbabwe only students belonging to a particular tribe or sector have been awarded scholarships to study in America.Well in Zimbabwean standards this is not new.This type of behaviour has been used to undermine the development of the South in particular Matebeleland .Even the Presidential scholarships, if they are still available ! had been given to people of the north and ironically all these people are being developed to further engage in the development of Zimbabwe's leadership , but how when the said development is pointing only at one direction ?


The role of the post colonial state is examined against the cause of ethnic tensions and violence.While there has been tribal intolerance prior to this period ,what has emerged in this period has been very contributory to the politics of division whose practice has led to non objective strategies even where people would have forged a way forward . The independence of Zimbabwe ushered a new "democratic" process which was accompanied by a surge of mobilisation along ethnic lines.The country was divided and continues to be divided into loyalist factions of ZANU PF mostly characterised by the Shonas of the North ,ZAPU mostly characterised by the Mandebele people of the South .There have been other factions which may still be surviving up to today,but the most influential have been the two mentioned.The nation building strategies after the liberation war were to address state development programmes like ;school construction in all regions of the country of which the government embarked on free education for all for quite some time and even those who paid for their education were not bled for the payment but there were certain subsidies employed to help develop the nation.Hospitals were also constructed and repaired after the damage caused by the war.Roads and bridges were repaired and new dams were constructed for agricultural irrigation and people's welfare to provide drinking water.More jobs became available through the provision of more training institutions of higher learning like teacher training colleges,police training academies and nurse training institutions increased with also more higher learning institutions like poly technical colleges accepting more Africans for trades training of which skills were in particular high demand by both local authorities and government ministries .This was very good national development .As all this unfolded , the ugly face of tribalism emerged because in all these institutions the people who seemed to benefit most came from the North. However much anyone can deny this,Matebeleland has never been given her due recognition it has always been a situation where the people have been made to feel as underdogs in their own country.

It is a pity because the government while aware of what was happening were claiming that this was "social transformation",but as one can deduct this was one of Mugabe's ways to enforce authoritarian rule under the guise of national building .The Matebele people have been very tolerant for a very longtime and they have further been very submissive to all this brutality which even crept into the livelihood of their families.The City of Bulawayo in Matebeleland is known for its once very vibrant manufacturing industries in the SADC region,and this sector provided employment opportunities to the people living in and around Bulawayo,but even this sector has not escaped infiltration from the people of the North.The tolerance of the people from Matebeleland has been attributed to two issues,the Gukurahundi massacres of the early eighties which Mugabe has not acknowledged or apologised for up to today,and the Unity Accord of 22 December 1987 which came in to amalgamate ZANU PF and ZAPU to avoid further genocide on the people of Matebeleland.

If history is anything to go by,the colonial rule was the emergence of nationalist movements which were led by colonial educated elites.It was fitting for the early nationalists to stress the need for a unified effort among the existing African societies of the then Rhodesia because they were fighting a common enemy presumably with a desired common goal.This seemingly novel idea arose out of their shared colonial experiences.There was a continuous dream of attaining independence for a united people,therefore making the purpose of the sacrifice in the liberation war an essential national issue .Emphasis of this unity in an independent Zimbabwe became very diminished especially as there had been a high speculation before and during the voting period that ZAPU in the leadership of The Late Dr. Joshua Nkomo would be the next government after Ian Smith.After the result of the elections of 1980,it emerged that Mugabe was not interested in unity and this manifested in the way he relegated The Late Nkomo to a very junior meaningless portfolio.To some people who will read this article ,attention will be turned to the fact that the writer is a TRIBALIST.Well I am not one to offer apologies unnecessarily and while I am not confirming that I am a tribalist,I will confirm that I definitely belong to a tribe in Matebeleland and the particular tribe happens to be a tributary of what is called AmaNdebele.

The use of the colonialist's language inescapably imprisons the colonised within the colonizer's conceptual paradigms.There is a conceptual view that argues that ; one cannot dismantle the master's house using the master' tools.Interestingly this is true and we actually witness the aspect of divide and rule in Zimbabwe which has led us to a situation where an individual thinks he can be a demi-god and decide on people's lives forever.This process has brewed in the culture of viewing issues alongside ethnicity.Ethnicity is a term that has widely been used to account for human variation in terms of culture,tradition,language,social and language patterns.Ethnicity according to Schermerhorn,1974:2,Societies and Cultures,is a composite of shared values,norms,beliefs,behaviours,experiences.Membership of an ethnic group is so powerful that it cannot be wished away.Political patronage in Zimbabwe has been the cause of the continous emergence on the emphasis of ethnicity.Ethnic violence in Zimbabwe has been felt more because this has encouraged a lot of tribal factions leading to further cementing the politics of tribal stratification a feature that we witness in all instances where Matebeleland is being sidelined particularly on development strategies.The term tribalism has the ability to convey powerful messages and images,but its usage is normally pejorative.


Whatever tactical adjustments and gestures the government is prepared to make towards accommodating for the process of national healing ,the ball must start rolling from state house and this should not be lip service because such actions soon cease without achieving anything.There must be a political will amongst the leaders to engage an all inclusive process,but one wonders how this can be done when a lot of other issues have gone by not necessarily unnoticed but cautiously being observed and waiting for an opportunity like this one hopefully to engage and find a way forward.In Zimbabwe the Dairy Board,now called Dairy Zimbabwe which is the parastatal responsible for distributing dairy productions in the country once upon a time (during the time when I was last home) had one of their milk lines called "chimombe".This type of milk is very rich and Zimbabweans are known for their love of rich tea ! This milk as a national product is sold even in Matebeleland.A cooking powder used to enhance flavour especially for meaty casseroles called " Royco usavi mix"is currently on sale even in the UK,another word which has been carefully crafted into accepted English communication is "sadza",this is how the staple food of Zimbabwe is commonly refereed to even in National Examinations and issues of correspondence.If there ever will be anything called national healing ,perhaps these are some of the issues that some would consider as trivial that need to be addressed.I have no memory of any Ndebele word that has been used to promote a product that would go on sale for the whole nation.If anyone attempted to use such a word there would be an out cry with people claiming that they do not understand the meaning and worse still the relevance of the word! I am sure the manufactures would be inundated with calls to add another name to interpret the said word ! For most of us ,and I am sure I speak for many, the issue of wanting to know what "chimombe"means has not arisen until I started writing this article . ( I still do not know what the word means )A bus ticket for a journey to the heart of komnyama ubambile in Lupane,Maguswini,Tsholotsho is written in two languages why ? Interestingly though such issues will never be visited because,they will be thought of as forgone issues but I wish to emphasise again that if national healing is to succeed and this time without some unity accord or some holiday being declared ,issues of relevance which will lead to further national disintegration will need special attention.There will be no national healing if resources are not being distributed equally .

Do we not owe it to ourselves ,to our children to make sure that all these strategies that are being crafted are cognisant of our concerns even though we are in the diaspora ?I know ZANU PF does not repent but it has been proved that old cultures may break out in the Old World ,which carry their destructive ravages into the New World ,from which ,once they are afoot,the New World can by no means escape !Maybe this is ushering a new world for Zimbabweans (and I take this with a pinch of salt) it would be wonderful if old men like Mugabe would tell us why they have been waiting so long to deal with a situation that has created so much hate amongst Zimbabweans and also in the National healing I hope they will respect to revisit GUKURAHUNDI as there will be no meaning to healing if the subject is not discussed,perhaps this while not bringing back our long gone will at least give us a chance to be appeased in some way.


"Everyone has his day and some days last longer than others."Winstone Churchill,September,1939.

Skuvethe -mehlo madala mntomdala!! The beauty of Inkundla is that akungenwa ngama qualification, akungenwa nge mali, akungenwa ngokunotha (kwemali loba umcabango), akungenwa ngobuyanga, akungenwa ngokwazana, akungenwa ngokuthi ulomhlobophi wemota, kumbe elenkomo enzingaki! Yibo ubuhle benkundla. In that light your reference to me as "the learned dokotela" must be confronted head on and you left with no doubts about its relevance or lack thereof. I have said it once and I will say it again, if and and a very big if nginguye loyo "learned dokotela" ongethesa bona then ngokwami lenkukhu zang'kithi.

I will not be distracted from my self-imposed remit of truth telling kulesisigungu by destructive and vituperative personal attacks!!

Kunjalo-nje uzibambe ungaziyekeleli!!

Dokotela ofunde kakhulu



At least you have now joined ZAPU, that is a good move, but i am not sure that you will rise beyond the position you hold as an elder now. You are too old to understand simple things. You are too abstract and unreal. Tell me whats the relevance of unemployment being at 100% or more? The issue is the imbalance is not a one off thing, but it has gone beyond belief now. Let me tell you this Mr Jazi, the numbers here are totally irrelevant, you can play around them if you want but the symbolism represented by this discrimination counts for many of us. We do not need your statistical rhetoric on this, but we are talking of something which is current and something that you know of very well. If education makes our dokotelas (chemist) so stupid then i better remain uneducated but wise.

Shaap Jazi. Without knowledge of your own activities towards uplifting isizwe sakithi, it's unfair to 'attack' your attacks on those who are sitting on a cushion, soft and warm kwi rocking-chairs zabo(lenkukhu zakubo).

Kunjalo-nje, ibambe ungay'yeki. Zabalaza!