Sadly, nobody will be surprised by the word association of basket case and contagion with Africa. Moreover, I am acutely aware that bailout fatigue to save the American economy makes pleas to bail out any African economy seem foolhardy.
Not to mention reports that a record number of Americans (31.5 million) now rely on food stamps. Astoundingly, some Americans now endure poverty that rivals what countless Africans have long suffered.
Zimbabwe, a basket case and contagion
Yet, I feel compelled to help sound another plaintive alarm for urgent humanitarian aid to Zimbabwe. Plagues — both natural and man-made — have besieged this godforsaken country for decades. Now, it’s facing a cholera epidemic.
According to the American Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, cholera is an acute diarrheal illness caused by an intestinal infection with the bacterium vibrio cholera. You catch it by ingesting contaminated food and water. Without treatment, death can occur within hours.
It speaks volumes about Zimbabwe’s decline that no developed nation has seen a cholera outbreak in over a century.
Zimbabwe’s failed leadership
I have written many commentaries on Robert Mugabe’s 30-year kakistocratic and kleptocratic dictatorship. Years into his rule, Zimbabwe plummeted from having 4,000 White-owned productive farms to 400 Black-owned unproductive ones.
Arguably, the state of affairs in Zimbabwe is the kernel of truth in claims that Blacks fared better under colonial rule.
That’s why I titled my first commentary on this malaise “Zimbabweans Pray for Liberation from Their Liberator – Robert Mugabe” on March 29, 2005. But I also lamented, presciently it now seems, that it would take plagues of biblical proportions to match the damage Mugabe is doing to Zimbabwe. I refer you to “Mugabe Makes a Dictator’s Pitch for Reelection” on March 29, 2008.
Simply put, Mugabe is the architect of Zimbabwe’s post-colonial ruin.
Help the people of Zimbabwe
My abiding affection for the longsuffering people of Zimbabwe far surpasses my contempt for Mugabe. But I fully appreciate the bailout fatigue I mentioned above.
That’s why I’m only urging you to contact your political leaders. Ask them to provide as much aid as possible to help relief agencies like the World Health Organization (WHO) deal with this latest plague.
Blackball Mugabe
I have criticized African leaders over the years for coddling Mugabe. But they are finally becoming disaffected with his leadership. Mugabe would rather see all Zimbabweans starve than relinquish his iron-fisted rule. That all-too-belated realization explains their disaffection.
But I suspect Mugabe left them no choice when he refused to cede power after losing a presidential election earlier this year. He then made a mockery of their diplomatic intercession when he refused to honor the Kenyan-style power-sharing agreement they brokered.
Admittedly, the cholera outbreak might be the straw breaking the camel’s back. That might be why African leaders are effectively quarantining Mugabe.
But even Mugabe was sensible enough to dispatch his “health minister” this week to call for international help. And, despite Mugabe, I pray the world will heed his minister’s call.
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