Has MDC Alliance Made Complaining a Political Strategy?

By Correspondent

This week the MDC Alliance Secretary for Local Government Sesel Zvidzai released a statement in which he lamented about the plight of the party through its Councillors at Town House.

It was a thorough litany of lamentations and accusations against ZANU PF and MDC-T, how they have combined to make the functions of the City Council difficult through recalls, delays and executive orders.

According to Zvidzai, a “disaster of unprecedented proportions”, is thus, “looming at the capital city of the country, Harare.

“The effects of the collapse will be felt by the whole country for a long time to come”.

This same week a Town House power structure was doing the rounds on social media showing how the MDC Alliance Councillors are way down the hierarchy and don’t have much power.

These two, together with the economic problem, are summations of the position the opposition has decided to take with regards to the problems with service delivery in the capital which it purportedly controlled.

For the MDC Alliance service delivery will only improve when three things are dealt with: ZANU PF, MDC-T and the economy.

Up until that happens expect no improvement.

There is logic to the argument since ZANU PF has been running the country down for decades and its removal can be a solution in itself.

However, as with simply complaining and removing Mugabe wasn’t sufficient, there are severe limitations to a party reducing its strategy to the mere removal of one party.

And seeking to do so by lamenting and complaining isn’t going to work.

It’s a purely fatalistic position by the party which has caused people to begin to question the logic of the party contesting for positions which they later allege to be of no relevance.

“If you can make no difference to service delivery after winning the posts for Councilors why then are you contesting for them?

A Faulty Political Strategy

The party has created an image of itself as a persecuted lamb and instead of working to win people over through political enterprise has chosen to swindle empathy from the electorate by constantly lamenting and accusing opponents of underhand tactics.

It’s a hard political sell because over time the electorate has become inured to such whining and has started scoffing at the seeming weakness and strategic ineptitude of the Chamisa party.

What has previously been sold as silent enterprise and scheming has begun sounding and seeming as the dead stares of a stupefied party which no longer has an idea of how to fight back.

To its credit it has found itself fighting on two fronts against both a ruling party and another fellow opposition party created solely to fight them.

It’s an unenviable position where their very existence hangs precariously and any offensive overtures have become leisure.

For now to merely continue to operate as a party is a positive for the Chamisa party as they are buffeted on both ends.

That however is no justification for fatalistic approaches which are hinged on selling the party as a perpetual victim and have no strategies to reverse the situation.

As the country is moving towards 2023 the call for reforms which will create a level playing field has been deafeningly silent.

It’s not even clear what position the party will take if elections are to be held with the same environment as before.

What is obvious is that someone will be complaining after.