Zimbabwean music and its influence on society

By Blessing Vava

 Zimbabwean music has continued playing an important part in the country's cultural history, shaping social discourse in the everyday lives of people. Over the years musical compositions of different genres have been churned providing entertainment, provoking debate, educating society and providing social commentary in our communities and country at large.  Music has acted as a consciousness-raising tool to a nation’s moral, political, economic and social problems. Some scholars argue that  the economic and political meltdown in Zimbabwe over the past decade have given rise to protest songs as artists have become the mouthpiece of a population that is enduring economic hardships.

Zimbabwe's rich music history that dates back in the early fifties, but it was the years before independence from British colonialism in 1980 with music and song being used as a mobilising tool in the war of liberation. Zimbabweans refused to remain silent and in the face of oppression and economic hardships, they have always used music and art to express their anger and sorrow as well as revolutionary aspirations. Musicians are part of society and thus it can be argued that through their artistic expressions sometimes reflect and mirrors the feelings and thinking of the society they come from.

This piece therefore locates the arts and artistic expression and their influence to the recipients, the audience that consumes the artistic products.   Artistes over the years have been a reflection of what societies look like and they have managed to change the minds of people.  Musicians like Thomas Mapfumo, Chinx, ZANLA Choir, Zexxie Manatsa during the war composed music that not only inspired the liberation war, but the messaging had an influence in recruiting more cadres to join the war. Songs like 'tumira vana kuhondo' (send the children to war) acted as catalysts and an important mobilising tool for the young cadres to join the war.  Music provided that inspiration and courage  and removed fear in the people; it encouraged communities to be united and support the war. It gave society hope and the zeal to fight oppression and most of the compositions were in the vernacular language, mainly to create a language barrier with the whites because some of the lyrics were insulting. Music and poetry were tools and forms of social commentary that were used to move the masses to act.

In the period from the early to  mid-1980s after the country attained independence, musicians took a celebratory tone, helping society reflect on the time they had endured the pain of war.  The late 80s recorded a different time, it moved from the celebratory tone to a more critical stance to the bad government policies, corruption that sucked in government ministers. Musicians like Thomas Mapfumo composed songs such as 'Corruption,' Solomon Skuza had songs like love and scandals, the JSCI which were in direct response to the Willowgate scandal, a corruption scam implicating government officials. The government in return banned the song (corruption) as it felt the song was a direct attack on government and by banning the song they were well aware of the power and influence of Mapfumo and the lyrics to the citizens. Mapfumo had been a towering figure during the war through his compositions which are credited with playing an integral part as a mobilising tool. The awareness by such musicians on corruption grew anger and influence on the masses and this led to anti-corruption demonstrations against the Willowvale scandal by University of Zimbabwe students. Mapfumo remained a popular act at most gigs at the campus for years as his conscious lyrics inspired student activism.

 Scholars such as Maurice Vambe argue that through some songs artists continued to respond to the perceived socio-economic crisis that engulfed the country in the late 1990s. More and more compositions which spoke to the daily struggles by Zimbabweans, the economic decline, poverty and bad policies like ESAP became popular hymns and these issues became a rallying point by the masses as evidenced by the food riots that the country witnessed in the late 90s. Songs like mugove (my dues) by Leonard Zhakata, chinyemu by Leonard Dembo became popular tunes at Workers Day rallies and meetings because they spoke to the daily struggles of the working class in the face of an economic collapse and the inequalities that existed between the rich and the poor.  

The influence of music was not only for limited to the political front  or to socio-economic issues affecting the country. Gospel music also played a role in spreading Christianity in Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe's music landscape had been dominated by secular music, mainly traditional music and thus the coming in of gospel music changed the landscape all together. Early gospel musicians such as Jordan Chataika, Mechanic Manyeruke had to compete for audiences in secular dominated landscape but eventually finding a niche and a reflection today is a true exhibit of how gospel music grew and impacted on our society which was mainly dominated by the traditional culture and religion. Scholars such as Chitando (2014) argue that Gospel music is regarded as a strategic device to spread the word of God, providing solace and comfort in an environment where hardships are the norm. The late 90s, going into the new millennium saw a massive growth of gospel musicians, Charles Charamba, Brian Sibalo, Pastor Haisa, Elias Musakwa, Fungisai Zvakavapano, Ivy Kombo to mention a few. Apart from being recording artistes these musicians were part of the emerging Pentecostal movement and today such churches are now commanding a very big following and until today almost all of these churches have musical bands, and thus shows the influence of music.

The present day has witnessed the growth of new music genre called Zimdancehall which has roots in Jamaica.  The genre is known for its hard-hitting lyrics which often encompass social commentary on issues like poverty, unemployment and drug abuse. According to phendula website Zimdancehall has also been credited for raising awareness on everyday issues that affect society like the maladministration of local government. The emergence of Zimdancehall totally changed the country's music landscape, as the young people found solace and an alternative to the traditional chimurenga and sungura music whom most think is outdated and has outlived its existence and purpose thereof. Zimdancehall has grown to be a popular genre and is dominated by youths who live in high density residential suburbs such as Mbare with all night music bashes called passa passa with the youth mainly in attendance. However the genre has been accused of promoting drug abuse, violence, sex because of the lyrics which have had an influence amongst the young people. 

According to NewsDay, a daily newspaper in a snap survey they conducted in 2014, it revealed that the young people have integrated music in their lives from sources they identify with, and in search of their identities they are likely to follow the example portrayed by the artistes.  The survey also established that many teenage boys do affirm allegiance to these Zimdancehall crews become bullies at their respective schools.

Girls as young as 12 can be seen in local bars, displaying deviant behaviour, wearing high heels, skimpy clothes, bright red lipstic whilst gyrating to the sound of Guspy Warrior hit song Seunononga. There is no doubt on how Zimdancehall has influenced the minds of many young people, though this is mostly portrayed in bad light. However I would say that most of these young Zimdancehall artistes have been able to respond to the socio-economic crisis, adding consciousness amongst the Bornfrees with refreshing lyrics, some which have become popular terms to describe the situation in the country.

Music can change and influence the minds of people, tracing back to the days of the liberation struggle were music was used as a mobilising tool and inspiring the masses to fight oppression. The new crop of musicians particularly Zimdancehall artists' violent, sex and drug abuse lyrics have had an impact on the behaviour of the youth today. Other genres like gospel music have contributed to the rise of Pentecostal/evangelical  churches in Zimbabwe  commanding a huge following.

A version of the article was published by here.

Blessing Vava writes from Chipinge and can be contacted on @blevava

Social Media and the complexities of Social movements in Zimbabwe

By Blessing Vava

For the past two months, Zimbabwe has been dominating the regional and international news headlines following a “wave” of protests, mainly in the capital city Harare. Most significant are the events of July 6, which many commentators and some sections of the media are attributing the successes to mobilisation through #hashtags on social media.

However, this article will not delve much into the discussion of who did what during the shutdown/stay away protest events, but if the truth be told without fear or favour, we certainly cannot undermine or downplay the role played by social movements in that regard.

While images of running battles between protesters and the police in Zimbabwe were dominating the virtual networks and the international media, one would have thought that Zimbabwe was degenerating into another Syria or Afghanistan.

Consequently, it is in my humble opinion still that some elements behind the protests in Zimbabwe are rather self-serving individuals who have an appetite for the camera and attention. From whatever angle, one may look at, it is an undeniable reality that the numbers have failed to grow and are not convincing at all to mount pressure on President Robert Mugabe to relinquish power.

The protests have been unable to capture the disenfranchised ordinary man and woman in the streets of Glen View or Dzivaresekwa in building a critical grassroots movement that has a clear political programme of action to fight the Mugabe regime.

We cannot continue lying to ourselves that the protests have been a success and had the police not acted in the barbaric manner they did, it would be a different case altogether. Arrests and detentions should not be a yardstick for measuring success. And this is a call to action to the political parties and the civil society to mobilise the masses in all parts of the country than celebrating false victories.

The challenges our nation will continue to face is the building of “cults” within our democratic movements. Movements should not be built around cults/individuals, but an ideological programme that responds to the needs and aspirations of the masses. The struggle needs selfless leaders, who are not obsessed with front page headlines and selfies, but the conviction.

The revolutionary task at hand is to build grassroots movements that are deeply rooted in the lowest classes of society with a collective plan of action going forward.

Frantz Fanon

Over the years, there has been too much dependency or trust in individuals rather building strong institutions and movements to confront the challenges the citizens are facing.

We put so much belief in our “leaders”, and that has resulted in some of them being permanent figures within our structures and movements because we desperately thought they would lead us to the promised land. Equally, instead of galvanising all the forces to pull from one end, there has been a competition for space, with some individuals wanting to be seen doing something, or rather, being the leading face of some imagined movement.

The events of the previous months have shown us such individuals, who, with the help of the media, became instant heroes by posting selfies on social media. Some have already retreated to safer zones, leaving behind their “followers” in a quandary, who had put so much trust in them. And that is dangerous for any movement that seeks to transform society!

However, it is now a revolutionary’s duty to calibrate and distill peoples’ grievances into its coherent novel form. As Frantz Fanon puts it, the anti-colonial struggle starts as a trade union strike here, a student strike there, a pamphlet there, etc. The revolutionary sharpens it until it becomes an outright eruption.

Tyranny takes time to erode, and it does not happen overnight, as most self-serving leaders are becoming so much impatient to think that they can wage such a struggle portraying false bravado to capture headlines. Real revolutionaries are patient, they prepare and mobilise for it. Clearly, what is missing is to distill the many fractions of the struggle into one cogent force.

The misconception and false claims by the self-serving individuals that they were behind the July 6 shutdown are rather misplaced and unfortunate. The failure of the August 31shutdown is a clear testimony that there is a need for much work on the ground, rather than merely holding Press Conferences and venting anger on social media. Anything can never substitute the masses, and they are the vehicle towards transformation and hence, they need to be mobilised.

The fundamental political and socio-economic realities are far more complex than merely exchanging of WhatsApp messages, and updating timelines on Twitter and Facebook.

Revolutions usually occur when there are necessarily social, political and economic conditions, that include mass poverty, unemployment and also in societies where there is an illegitimate dominance of one political elite or cabal to the exclusion of others. And the current environment is conducive.

The political repression by the political elite that desperately wants to cling to power, keeping power to themselves and close family members, should be the rallying point to mount a mass resistance against the Zanu PF regime. Now, the confluence of these genuine concerns, challenges and problems in Zimbabwe provide ready material conditions for the political revolution to occur.

Therefore, as we witnessed with the success of the July 6 protests, the shutdown was as a result of the reality of repression, unpaid salaries of civil servants, corruption by police officers, banning of imported goods from South Africa, political dissent, growing unemployment and the kleptocracy of the illegitimate political elite that does not want to hand over power to anyone outside its circles.

While the socio-economic conditions are ripe, what is lacking is decisive strategic leadership that taps into or embeds itself into the organic structures of society, not on social media alone. Those pretending to be at the forefront keep themselves divorced and distant from the grassroots because of their obsession with their views of their world. That organic grassroots organising and mobilisation of the people cannot be ignored. There is a clear perception/observation that the current political leadership has done nothing to improve the lives of the people and has utterly failed the people. Claim no easy victories!!!!

Views expressed in this article are entirely the author’s

Blessing Vava is a scribe based in Chipinge. He can be contacted on blessingvava@gmail.com, Twitter: @blevava

Zimbabwe's successive drought ...no lessons learnt?

By Blessing Vava

In  January this year Zimbabwe’s president, Robert Mugabe  declared a state of disaster especially in the rural areas mainly caused by drought which already has killed herds of livestock with people facing food shortages.

Despite declaring the drought a state of disaster, Mugabe seems not to care much, he even  hosted his lavish 92nd birthday in Masvingo last month in the drought stricken area and never dared to even visit those affected, preferring to go AWOL to India.

 Suffice to say the country has been experiencing drought before, but it all seems we are always caught off guard and failed to come up with long term mitigating mechanisms to avert future disasters of this type, which I would be discussing later in the article.  

Agriculture contributes about 19% of the county's GDP and for the past 15 years, Zimbabwe's agricultural output has been decreasing and productivity has been quite low. Zimbabwe mainly depends on maize which is the staple diet in most households.

 A paper published by the Met Department in 2015 posits that the drought experienced during the 1991/1992 season, for example, maize production decreased by almost 75 percent leaving a large percentage of the population in dire need of food aid. The Grain Marketing Board (GMB) domestic maize intake during the 1992 drought year was about 13 000 tonnes - just enough for two days consumption for the nation. Over one million head of cattle died of starvation during the year.

Drought returned in 1993 and 1994 2002, 2004 and 2012 seasons which also affected livelihoods. The severe drought of 1992 compelled the government to declare a “National Disaster” throughout the whole country.

By the end of that year 5 602 568 people were on the drought relief registers. This figure translated to 74% of the rural population.  During the 2002 drought almost 4 million Zimbabweans survived on food aid.

This time the drought has been worsened by the El Niño weather phenomenon which has also  affected South Africa, Malawi and Zambia as well as Zimbabwe, destroying crops and livestock as a result.

In light of this development, the Zimbabwe Vulnerable Assessment Committee had estimated that about 1.5 million people had been affected by El Nino.  However the Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare Prisca Mupfumira, as reported in the state owned Herald newspaper,stated that  instead the number of those in need of food aid has ballooned to 4 million.

The figures are just estimates and the actual numbers of those in vulnerable situations maybe more. As this is happening, the government, some NGOs, politicians mostly from ZANU PF have already started distributing food hand outs to the 'affected' areas, with President Mugabe's wife Grace leading, mainly through her Meet the People rallies.

It is reported (Herald 15 March 2016)  that President Mugabe donated about 60 tonnes in Bikita South and the aid was handed over to villagers by ZANU PF Masvingo Province secretary for the commissariat Mr Jappy Jaboon. Quite intriguing were the words of Jaboon during his address, ''Our president has the people at heart' so let’s continue supporting him...lets continue supporting him because of his impeccable record as a man of the people especially the poor.'' 

This already smacks doom and it is now clear that ZANU PF will use food as a campaign tool. This is despite that the 1996 World Summit on Food Security declared that "food should not be used as an instrument for political and economic pressure"

We need a holistic approach, transparency and honesty in dealing with this drought.  The government has over the years failed to distribute food to the needy in times like these, with some denied food on the basis of political affiliation. According to a report compiled by Human Rights Watch on the2002 drought, ZANU PF was heavily implicated in partisan food distribution and for years, has been abusing government departments concerned with food aid.

This trend is likely going to continue as ZANU PF and the use of traditional leaders in the distribution of aid has made the situation worse. The same traditional leaders are often used  to intimidate and coerce villagers to vote for ZANU PF.  ZANU PF's strategy has always been to starve opponents into submission.  Nothing has really changed despite statements by Minister Mupfumira that food is not being distributed along political affiliation, as reports have already been filtering of the politicisation of food aid.

With the high numbers of Zimbabweans in need of food, there is no guarantee that the food will be fairly distributed and this will only but  aggravate the situation as those in need will likely face starvation. The government alone has proved its ineffectiveness in addressing the plight of those facing starvation, there is a need for an independent taskforce with all stakeholders, including farmers, academics, NGOs, churches and the government in handling food distribution.

 Politicians should be barred in distributing food aid because of the danger it poses in the likelihood of others being excluded. Worse still for food aid distribution at a political rally. This clearly excludes those that do not subscribe to that particular party for example.

Long term mitigation

Overally, the taskforce should also be responsible coordinating the drought related activities of the government (i.e., forecasting, monitoring, impact assessment, response and recovery, and planning).

Equally, the government needs to improve food security in general, going beyond short term responses but rather coming up with long term mechanisms to protect peoples' livelihoods. We need as a country, a more proactive, anticipatory approach to drought management rather than to act while the damage has been done already. 

The independent task force should come up with a national policy with extensive stakeholder and public involvement.  Such a policy should therefore address the issues of risk management, although it cannot ignore the need for government assistance for some sectors during extended periods of severe drought.

Lessons learned from previous drought response attempts need to be documented through post-drought audits and shared with all stakeholders. In support of the national drought policy and plan, it is recommended that a comprehensive, integrated national climate monitoring system be established to provide early warning of drought and other extreme climate events.

Blessing Vuvuzela Vava is a writer based in Chipinge, Zimbabwe. He can be contacted on blessingvava@gmail.com

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#FeesMustFall: Time to deliver

By Blessing Vava

Earlier this year, University of Wits proposed a plan to increase its tuition fees by 10%. For my friend Modisane (not real name), a third year Law student who hails from Mpumalanga, the fee increase would have been a major blow.

EFF's Vuyani Pambo & Former SRC President
Mcebo Dlamini leading the protest at Wits. pic by Blessing Vava

He already struggled to pay for this years’ fees, after failing to secure the NSFAS loan from government. Many students were in the same shoes, failing to raise the existing fees even before the proposed increase.

The previous weeks consequently witnessed sporadic protests by University students across South Africa, demanding that the proposed fee increase for 2016 be scrapped. The protest started the University of Witwatersrand on 14 October, under the hashtag #WitsFeesMustFall, before spreading to other universities. The national campaign adopted the hashtag #feesmustfall.  The movement grew until President Zuma responded to the students demands that the fees must fall, there was 0% increase.But the students’ demands were not just about the zero percent increase, rather they wanted free education.

Government must act

Modisane became part of the protest  at Wits from the day it began. He attended all the meetings and marches; singing, chanting revolutionary songs with the other students. His zeal and determination struck me. He had no choice but to be part of this noble cause in forcing the university to scrap the proposed fee increase, otherwise he was not going to come back to do his final year. ”If at all the time for free education was now inevitable, the government must act” he said to me.

Having had a not so pleasing upbringing in the shacks of Mpumalanga, Modisane’s hopes to continue studying were renewed by the #feesmustfall campaign. As the students of South Africa were claiming their space fighting for their constitutional right, across the Limpopo in Zimbabwe students were watching with envy. YES, the environment in Zimbabwe is repressive and the students union was demobilised, but there is one or two lessons that we can learn.

The 'Blunt'Blade? SA's Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande 

The #feesmustfall campaign united students from diverse political persuasions in speaking with one voice against the fee increase. And as a result, even those students who were not interested in politics became part of the campaign. It remains my wish that the students movement in Zimbabwe rise above political affiliation and fight for academic freedoms. Higher education remains expensive and a preserve for the elite in Zimbabwe, its simply if you are poor you cannot access education. Yet in 1980, the new government preached education for all by the year 2000.

Generational mission

The #feesmustfall campaign was at least a stepping stone that galvanized young South Africans to safeguard their future. I was impressed by how the students mobilized using social media, and the night vigils, marches showed me that yes, indeed this generation is determined to discover its mission.

Modisane’s father perished underground, in a disused gold mine as he was looking for the precious mineral to fend for his family. He told me about how his mother; a helper at a local hospital in Mpumalanga, now the bread winner, struggled to raise his university fees. Since he was an intelligent student, Modisane’s mother sacrificed for her son, and hopes one day he will be a great lawyer. As the eldest son in a family of five, he is expected to also assist in the upkeep of his siblings.

Born Free

Modisane was born at the advent of South Africa’s independence, at the end of apartheid. The racist apartheid laws had favoured the white minority, and good quality health and education delivery had been a preserve for a minority. The election of a black government meant the redressing of these imbalances. The masses had hope. In fact, the ANC promised to fulfil the dreams of the freedom charter which said ”the doors of learning shall be opened for all.”

The students of South Africa are simply fighting against the residual effects of that system of segregation. Twenty one years after the dawn of independence, society is still yearning for better; the thousands of students who are marched for the #feesmustfall campaign are simply asking the authorities why they are still paying high tuition fees. The struggle was fought so that there would be equal opportunities for everyone. And for the students, it was clear that free education comes as part of that package to correct the injustices of apartheid, which for decades excluded the black child from accessing free education.

Economic exclusion

The high fees charged by universities across South Africa have excluded many from accessing higher education. Students have found an opportunity to press the government for free education, but there are a lot of underlying factors. The debate around transformation of educational institutions remains topical. The government has shifted blame on the autonomy enjoyed by universities, whom they accuse of ‘wantonly’ increasing fees. On the other hand, the authorities argue that it is the government that is not giving enough funds to subsidize fees such that students do not bear the burden of paying tuition fees.

Aluta continua

For now, some are celebrating the victory of a zero percent. But for Modisane and thousands of other students, its aluta continua until the struggle for free quality education is achieved in South Africa. For them the fees did not fall; it was just not increased. The government announced that they need at around 25-30 billion to every year to achieve free education, it is yet to be seen how they will fundraise to achieve that goal.

Meanwhile frustrations keep growing not just amongst students but to most of the young people who are also clamouring for employment, as those graduating are waiting to be employed. It is not just about the fees, but signs of a deep rooted crisis waiting to explode if not handled carefully. This is quite a mouthful for the ANC government, and with the way events are unfolding it seems the honeymoon is now over. For the South African government, and other African governments in general, its now time for real delivery.

***Article first appeared on Ilizwi http://ilizwi263.com/2015/feesmustfall-time-to-deliver

Blessing Vava writes from Soweto, Johannersburg. He can be contacted on blessingvava@gmail.com

Samora Machel's legacy lives

By Blessing Vava

It is exactly five years since the Committee of the Peoples Charter  (CPC),  launched the inaugural Samora Machel Public lecture at the New Ambassador Hotel in Harare in 2010 to celebrate and remember the life of Comrade Samora Moises Machel.

Comandete Moises Machel

The inaugural launch drew eminent speakers drawn from various civil society organisation, with the guest of honour being  the Deputy Ambassador of Mozambique First Secretary of the Mozambican Embassy His Excellency Mr Ossisa.

The 19th of October will forever be engraved in our hearts as we remember a great revolutionary, Mozambican President Cde Samora Machel who was killed by the apartheid counter revolutionares together with 34 other comrades on their way from a peace keeping mission in Zambia.

 It is not a secret that this revolutionary belongs to that class of great icons of our struggle, despite efforts from Rhodesian forces who were instrumental in creating and sponsoring  a rebel force RENAMO,  Machel did not succumb, and he indeed offered brotherly solidarity to Zimbabwe.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvj0Feq5vpI

Machel understood that even Mozambique’s political independence could not be complete without the liberation of our brothers and sisters across the borders in the region and the continent, particularly those who were under white minority regimes in the then Rhodesia and South Africa. Years to come he was instrumental in coming up with the ideal of the Frontline States, a SADCC initiative that also sought to assist bring freedom to South Africa.

Samora was not obsessed by divisive tactics but his call was for Zimbabweans to be united. His speech in 1980 was a piece of advise to our leaders when he said;  "To ensure national unity, there must be no Shonas in Zimbabwe, there must be no Ndebeles in Zimbabwe, there must be Zimbabweans. Some people are proud of their tribalism. But we call tribalists reactionary agents of the enemy.''  

 Machel believed in a multi ethnic-cultural approach and his vision for a liberated Zimbabwe whose revolutionary goal was to unite everyone regardless of race, religion, ethnic origin and religious belief.

Therefore, as we celebrate the life of Samora, we pay tribute to the people of Mozambicans who were also victims during of our struggle, thousands of their nationals perished as they assisted Zimbabwe attain her independence from the settler regime.

 Such great sacrifice, should forever be cherished.

As we remember Machel, the youth of this generation should  always be inspired by the works  of this great leader and his desires to see development in the  continent. It is a call to duty to fight for the future of Zimbabwe. Like Che Guevara said: “The revolution is not an apple that falls when it is ripe. You have to make it fall.” The generation of President Machel did not fail, they refused to, for  Samora was a man who attached so much importance to the national liberation of the African people.

His conviction, selflessness, devotion, dedication and commitment to the cause of his people was to him more than just a question of principle: it was a way of life.’

As we commemorate Machel, we should always remember the responsibilities and challenges we face for us not to move away from the solid principles that drove the vision of luminaries like Samora Machel.

However, we continue to ask ourselves if we have been able to  produce cadreship in the calibre of Machel to serve society as we seek not only to undo the legacy of colonisation/greed, corruption and undemocratic tendencies that seek to marginalise the poor but to rebuild a just society in the light of the vision Samora Machel and his generation advanced.

Presidente Castro and Machel

The revolutionary task at hand is enormous, for us to succeed in defeating the dictatorship of Robert Mugabe we need to have a situation that produces self-motivated, disciplined and committed individual cadres who can apply their minds on  defining issues of the day?

Dedicated and fearless leaders in the mould of Machel are needed to lead society.  

However, such leaders do not just sprout, they are nurtured and groomed to be able to lead the struggle for a prosperous Zimbabwe. Political and ideological clarity is a fundamental aspect that gives us proper meaning for the struggle for social democracy.

 Comrades should always read struggle documents in order to answer the questions of ordinary people about the past struggles and what needed to be done to take the struggle forward.

In conclusion I quote one of Samora's famous statements during one address, ''Aluta Continua ! Aluta Continua!   Aluta Continua! contra o que? Against what must the struggle continue? Against Tribalism ! Against  ignorance, Against illiteracy, Against exploitation, Against superstition Against misery, Against hunger, Against lack of lack of clothing.'' That was the great orator, great leader of our struggle, we will always remember.

Blessing Vava writes from Chipinge. He can be contacted on blessingvava@gmail.com, Twitter @blevava