REUTERS Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe and his wife Grace officially open the ruling party Zanu-PF's elective congress in Harare earlier this week. Picture: Philimon BulawayoThe ascendancy of Grace Mugabe could be a curse or a solution, writes Thami ka Plaatjie.
The politics of dynasty has fast come into vogue, with its resurgence evident in recent years in Africa and the world over. The resurgence has been prompted by varying reasons, among other things, the quest to restore and retain family legacies and to transfer power to those most trusted.
Much has been penned and said about the Zanu-PF congress this week. That Grace Mugabe is in the running for the position of leader of Zanu-PF is a serious reflection of a quest to install dynastic rule.
The return of dynastic politics does not occur in a political and socio-economic void.
It is not set in motion by chance and historical inevitability, but arises out of a battery of political considerations that have far- reaching economic and security considerations.
George Bush sr was followed as US president after an interval of eight years by his son George, whose tenure was less illustrious.
The rise of the Bush dynasty was thanks to the Texas political oligarchy and entrenched interests.
Economic sustenance, political factors, including security considerations for members of the oligarchy, are also uppermost in the struggle to reinstall dynastic rule.
Maria Eva Duarte de Peron, the second wife of Argentinian president Juan Peron, was Argentina’s first lady from 1946 until her death in 1952, casting a huge shadow over the affairs of that country.
The Jawaharlal Nehru dynasty dominated politics for a long time in India. Nehru’s daughter, Indira Gandhi, and Gandhi’s son, Rajiv, and later her Italian-born daughter-in-law, Sonia, held sway in politics.
In North Korea, Kim Il-sung has been succeeded by his son, Kim Jong-il, in a move derided by the West. In Pakistan, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was followed, after an interval of more than 10 years, by his daughter, Benazir Bhutto.
In Syria, Hafez al-Assad and now his son, Bashar, dominated politics.
In the past, dynastic politics was a preserve of royalty, with its desire to restrict rule to pure bloodlines.
This in some instances has manifested in cases of incest, rather than allowing the bloodline to be contaminated by marriage to members of lesser classes.
The obsession with title, station and class far surpasses ability and heroic deeds.
The historic disdain of royalty for lesser classes has been evident in their frowning at marriages or liaisons between royalty and members of the nobility, let alone with those of the so-called Third Estate.
It is a curious fact that there has been a resurgence in dynastic politics in Africa.
A recent example was the return in Kenya to political domination by the Kenyatta family through Uhuru Kenyatta, the son of Jomo, the first prime minister after independence. Uhuru’s political ascendancy occurred against the backdrop of civil war.
Jomo Kenyatta, considered the founding father of independent Kenya, fought a heroic war in the Mau Mau uprising.
The return of a Kenyatta mainly exemplifies the nation’s quest to return to the golden days at a time when there is a great deficit of hope. This desire helps to rekindle patriotism and a sense of nationhood.
In other cases, the masses exhibit an unquestioning faith in the political dynasty, seeing it as understanding their lot and a regime that can best be trusted under the circumstances.
Graça Machel represents another type of dynasty, cutting across two nations, first as the wife of Mozambican president Samora Machel and then of Nelson Mandela.
In yet another twist in dynastic politics, Laurent Kabila was succeeded after his assassination by his son Joseph Kabila in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
In the case of Zanu-PF it can be said that the emergence of dynastic politics may be viewed as the organisation’s determination to resolve the succession race outside the normal inner-party structures and congress mechanisms.
A looming and precarious succession race could have been a political juggernaut with far-reaching consequences for Zimbabwe’s neighbours and the region.
The piloting of Grace from virtually outside political structures could be viewed as a curse or a solution.
It could be a curse because it could be seen as frowning in the face of democratic principles and the elbowing out of trusted cadres who held the fort in difficult times.
It could also be viewed as a solution in that it might allay the fears of Mugabe by allowing for the transfer of power with the assurance that there would be no recriminations after his tenure.
Africa does not have an illustrious record in handling the plight and vulnerability of past presidents.
Even serving presidents are summoned before the International Criminal Court, whereas the same is not the case with European leaders. Hosni Mubarak of Egypt and Uhuru Kenyatta are cases in point.
Fears of reprisals after the end of tenure are real, but a different set of rules applies to the West.
For example, George Bush jr attacked Iraq, in the absence of a UN resolution,and no consequences have come his way.
It might well be Mugabe’s wish that his wife succeeds him, however, it is also at the behest of the inner circles of Zanu-PF who desire fulfilment.
Mugabe’s hold on power in Zimbabwe is with the ostensible support of his party’s inner circle.
His power is mediated by his trusted comrades and structures in the security and political bureaus and in intelligence.
Put bluntly, the orchestration of the ascendancy of Grace might well have been instigated by Zanu-PF’s inner circle and core.
On the one hand, the intention could be to placate Mugabe.
On the other it could be cleverly to loosen his grip on power without a fuss, leading to a peaceful transition where the inner core will continue to wield power and influence.
The mistake people often make is to assume, erroneously, that Mugabe alone dictates and holds sway in directing the affairs of this great country.
His power is mitigated and his actions are circumscribed by the inner core and inner circle who wield real power in Zanu-PF and its machinations.
Mujuru’s failure to understand such vital political nuances proved her undoing.
* Thami Ka Plaatjie is adviser to Minister of Human Settlements Lindiwe Sisulu and head of ANC Research.
** The views expressed here are not necessarilt those of Independent Media.
Sunday Independent
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