EVERYDAY I reflect on what it would take for Zimbabwe to change. Much of what I look at during my daily commute screams: “Change me!” As I reflect on what my surroundings are asking of me, I have changed in many ways.
It is the sight of drivers and passengers throwing all manner of litter out of moving vehicles which makes me mad. All around us rampant illegal garbage dumping has turned cities into filthy dumps and marred the God-given beauty.
A recent drive around Rhodes Nyanga National Park was heart-breaking. One of Zimbabwe’s most scenic areas has been desecrated by littering, posing a threat to wild animals and birds.
Do we need a messiah to tell us that littering is wrong? It would help if political leaders behaved as if they were aware of this littering and reminded their followers that littering is a bad thing.
I once asked President Paul Kagame why it was important for Rwanda to be so clean.
His answer in short: “Because clean surroundings are conducive to a clean mind and are a part of fighting corruption. Corruption is a form of filth that starts in the mind.”
His answer has stuck in my mind ever since. The garbage which is everywhere is an accurate reflection of Zimbabweans’ collective state of mind.
The reckless driving on our roads and complete disregard of good manners and the laws of the land are another reflection of who we have become. Usually those charged with enforcing our laws are nowhere to be found.
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I hate with a passion motorists who use their phones while driving. It is illegal, but almost all drivers — including those of omnibuses and haulage trucks — text while driving.
Touts have become a menace at bus ranks nationwide as they force reluctant commuters to board buses.
These young people bully vulnerable women and the elderly with impunity under everyone’s watch, making us all complicit in the madness.
Poor customer service is the norm at most local and central government offices.
Officials seem to think they’re doing the public a huge favour by attending to their needs.
We complain about corrupt politicians and yet most of us pay big and small bribes daily to get out of trouble and avoid doing the right thing. Bribery has become a cancer in our body politic.
The lack of respect and concern for the welfare of others will not stop when we get a new leader at State House. As long as we think we need a messiah to change, Zimbabwe will have a long wait.
The toxicity in our politics and national discourse is a grave indictment of who we have become. Sadly we have not seen any leadership from any of our politicians in this regard.
I am persuaded, more than ever before, that Zimbabwe will only change when we all realise that change, big and small, starts within each of us. This change starts with a reassessment of our personal values and extending these for the benefit of those around us. To build the Zimbabwe we want we must go back to: “Doing unto others as you would have them do unto you.”
The messiah we are waiting for is in each of us. When we begin to love ourselves, we will be able to extend that love to others. More grace, empathy and compassion are the ingredients desperately lacking in what we are trying to build. Only this way will we build a loving, caring and durable Zimbabwe.
