Idiocy, the scourge  our country!

Idiocy, the scourge  our country!

Nevanji Munyaradzi Chiondegwa

An idiot is described as a stupid person or a person of low intelligence in the more archaic form of the word. It is this more archaic form of the word which I am more interested in as it delves into the very psyche that drives our people to excessive foolishness.

The need to pen this opinion piece is driven by the recently passed Bill by both Parliament and Senate Patriotic Bill. Firstly, I am happy that finally we have this bill which I certainly hope President Mnangagwa will sign into law as is. I am one person who has strongly advocated for the law for the past eight years or so. Note; I did not push for it or instigate for it with any malicious intent or to disadvantage certain individuals but merely to protect the only country I can call mine and its people from self-seeking national wreckers.

Now as the bill was being debated, idiocy sprung to the fore. The extreme stupid behaviour of many of our netizens, especially those with opposition leaning was made glaringly bare as they all were led by the nose in protesting the bill. Many falsehoods of what was contained in the bill were spread including that you cannot criticise ZANU PF, Government, the Zimbabwean currency, President Mnangagwa and much more lunacy. The fact that the bill was online and available for perusal did little to deter the panic-mongers from spreading the malicious and false contents of the bill.

So effective were their actions that supposedly intelligent and highly regarded members of the UK House of Lords, a supposed gathering of British upper crust society, debated the Bill. Worse they debated it basing on the very falsehoods spread by the panic-mongers in Zimbabwe including the perennial trouble causers in the Civic society.

Patriotism is devotion to and vigorous support for one’s country. Expanded, it is the feeling of love, devotion, attachment to one’s country. Now this is exactly the sought pf feeling or attachment that this Bill is saying have and if you lack it, then close your mouth when in the company of agents of foreign nations, especially those hostile to Zimbabwe. These are known and can simply be avoided.

But oh no, not for the idiots. An idiot is one whose self-centeredness undermines his or her citizen identity, whose sole purpose is private gain and to hell with the country. An idiot is suicidal in a certain way, definitely self-defeating, for the idiot does not know that privacy and individual autonomy are entirely dependent on the community. So to them, this proposed law infringes their rights that is the right to go meet foreign agents and speak ill about Zimbabwe thus affecting its prospects of reintegrating into the wide community.

The bill seeks to prevent citizens from saying or doing things or forming alliances with people and countries that could threaten the sovereignty of our nation.

Perhaps let me us an analogy. If one is sharing a home with a partner or wife and constantly badmouths them to anyone who will lend an ear including to partners relatives, friends and enemies, what would be the result? Suppose your partner is deficient in some way and you weaponise your knowledge of the shortfall, what would be the outcome? Say, you took advice from partner’s enemy that led to the destruction or made life a living hell for the partner, would the short term bragging rights be worth it when your children and family are affected?

So this is what the Patriotic Bill seeks to prevent and somehow the lunatic fringe especially the yellow wearing side of it finds wrong. How is it wrong to seek to prevent the destruction pof the nation for selfish gain? It is simply seeking to reduce the destructive nature of negative self-talk and self-sabotage.