Abstract
Since the coup of November 2017, Zimbabwe has been faced with the intensification and consolidation of authoritarianism which is actively closing the democratic space, reversing democratic gains and seeking to annihilate the opposition. Simultaneously, the opposition’s own contradictions have deepened and are spiraling out of control to the point of almost rendering the opposition internally dysfunctional.
This think paper seeks to generate dialogue by critically looking at the history of the opposition, how the military preemptively took over after the March 29 2008 elections and created a system to ensure prolonged dominance.
The paper further discusses possible pathways for the opposition and also looks at the ideological ground and the communication strategy of the opposition. Further, the paper also comes as the nation marks two years since the 14 and 15 January 2019 peaceful protests against austerity, fuel hike and general hardships which was violently thwarted b
Jonathan Moyo
The political opposition in Zimbabwe, particularly the MDC, is stuck in the middle: between making news headlines and making reform headways.
This is not new.
Being stuck between making news headlines and making reform headways, has been the bane of opposition politics in Zimbabwe as far back as one cares to remember.
By “making news headlines”, I mean engaging in fleeting issues to politick and pander to the gallery of popular sentiments and political slogans of the day, which are bereft of constitutional or political reforms.
And by “making reform headways”, I mean taking concrete steps to exploit historic moments that, fortuitous circumstance, throw up opportunities that have the potential for major constitutional and political reforms.