By Cde Nhamo Taneta

President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s SADC chairmanship, which the Second Republic and state media celebrated like the coronation of a lifetime kingship last year, is finally coming to an end.

Forget that it was a mere rotational post. 

The Second Republic celebrated Mnangagwa’s chairmanship as if it was a permanent throne.

Established monarchs like Eswatini’s King Mswati must have been left green with envy, watching how Zimbabwean state media went overboard about Ruka Chivende being installed as the “SADC King.”

Unfortunately, there is no ZANU PF 2030 agenda in SADC. 

Neither are there “persuaders” like Daniel Garwe and the Young Women4ED actor Tatenda Matevera to extend Mnangagwa’s term beyond the one-year limit.

As his SADC tenure closes, state media is once again painting Mnangagwa’s chairmanship as a success story. 

The propaganda-in-chief, ZANU PF Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC), has erected a statue of lies about the “achievements” of Ruka Chivende as SADC chair.

According to the “hear no evil, see no evil” doctrine of ZBC  it was Trabablas who “silenced guns” in the troubled Eastern DRC!

What success is that, when it took the Emir of Qatar to bring Felix Tshisekedi and Paul Kagame to the table in Doha to prevent war between DRC and Rwanda?

When you are SADC chair and peace talks about your member state are being held in Washington, USA, in your absence, that is failure personified.

A ‘standout’ achievement for Mnangagwa, however, is how his ZANU PF party meddled in elections of member states.

For the first time in history, a SADC chairman congratulated a presidential candidate before the official announcement of results, as happened in Mozambique. 

Not to mention the people of Namibia and Botswana, who marched against Mnangagwa and ZANU PF interference in their elections.

Zimbabweans like the teacher with disability Ronald Hondongwa, who lost his job after more than 500 days in pre-trial detention, together with the Avondale 78, will have lasting memories of Mnangagwa’s SADC chairmanship. 

Memories of ruined lives each time there was a SADC summit in Harare.

History will remember Mnangagwa as the ‘successful’ chairman whose government splurged millions on palm trees and villas for a summit, while at the same time begging for food aid.

Perhaps the biggest ‘regret’ for 16 million impoverished Zimbabweans is that as Mnangagwa’s SADC chairmanship ends, so too does their brief illusion of being chairmen themselves.