Of vaunted ambition and halucinations: A case of a chap named Nelson
Nevanji Munyaradzi Chiondegwa
In the past week, I have seen and read the most bizarre and sometimes comical stuff in relation to electricity.
Zimbabwe, like the rest of Southern Africa and when we factor in the geopolitical situation, probably the rest of the world is going through an energy crisis. Zimbabwe, is producing less power that its energy requirements.
While this is an undesirable state, it’s not something anyone can control, the water levels in Kariba have fallen to unsustainable levels owing to among other things climate change and overuse.
The country has been while Unit 7 and 8 at Hwange Thermal Power station have been going through an upgrade, been dependable on Kariba Hydropower Station for electricity needs.
I celebrate the rise in energy needs especially by industry because it means increased production and industrial capacity which in turn leads to jobs, bigger tax band, better salaries, better standard of living and general economic growth.
However, the lack of power may negatively affect this and the government has not been folding its hands, on the contrary, great plans for improved power production are afoot.
The comical was the one attributing the load-shedding to ZESA the electricity supply company to wanting people to go participate in Pfumvudza the flagship hunger busting, climate proofing farming method instead of watching football.
It went, “ZESA inombizvida here zvevanhu vanoda kuona World Cup nguva yePfumvudza? Munhu Kumunda.” I loved it I even posted it on my account on Facebook!
The bizarre included a woman who claimed to be a hustler whose chickens had started to rot because of the load-shedding.
Now, I’m not an emotional person so I don’t fall for the emotional blackmail, I watched and analysed the video.
I realised the chickens hanging from the fence had heads and feet intact and there was a fresh batch of chickens which still had feathers in a plastic drum and there was no fire for hot water to pluck feathers with.
Being a somewhat chicken farmer myself, I know one does not slaughter chickens without a ready market so why were there freshly slaughtered chickens? One also does not slaughter chickens without ready boiling water to soften the feathers for easy plucking and the last thing, you do not leave chicken heads and feet on slaughtered and refrigerated chickens.
So clearly the woman was up to no good or was trying to cover up something. I saw a lot of dogs, which she said the chickens are now going to be dog food.
The cynic in me realised right away that it was a dog and chicken story and the video was to gain sympathy and of course excite foolish followers of the man who fancies himself a boy from Chiwara Village in Gutu.
In the late 70s, a woman from Chiwara village, who was married to a Rhodesian African Rifles soldier with a last name Chamisa (yes, they fought against the freedom fighters) gave birth to a son and named the boy Nelson. Now that boy would by any standard be a man now but he doggedly strives to remain to remain a boy and even celebrates being called one.
Regression is what it is called in psychology circles. It is a popular defense mechanism that some people revert to when things get too difficult and they feel vulnerable. This is their way of self-preservation.
Regression is a return to childlike behavior as a way to avoid adult-like reality and responsibility. And we all know politics is not a child’s game and so to avoid the numerous adult responsibilities that come with it, Chamisa is exhibiting childlike tendencies and in the most spectacular of ways.
How we have missed that his clamour to be called mukomana and saying ‘ndoda majiggies angu’ is a cry for help from a disturbed man is still a surprise. But Nelson Chamisa decided to add his voice and lack of wisdom to the cacophony on the side of the bizarre on the electricity situation.
We all know, his delusions of power( political and electric power generation) are just that, delusions and the ambitions of a dwarf in giant robes, it will never be a giant or do honors to the robes!
But before I dismiss Chamisa, first let me say this; a power station from planning, design, financing, procurement of contractor, design freeze and construction takes a minimum of ten years.
Beyond this power stations are very expensive and Zimbabwe, from its budget cannot fund all projects going on around the country at once.
But Chamisa says he wants to secure funding worth US$4.33 billion to fund electricity production. I do not know where he will secure the funding from or what model he will use to secure the debt. He of course does not expand on that. He simply repeats what is already in the country’s energy policy and plans as his intended policy.
He doesn’t say; the present and current ZANI PF government is already working on it and by 2024 we will be energy secure. He does not acknowledge that most mining and agricultural firms currently operating in Zimbabwe are setting up solar power plants for their own energy needs and sell any excess to ZESA.
Chamisa may need to be told that Kariba which he says may not be used as a base for power production is the only one with capacity to produce such high levels of power. Tugwi-Mukosi can produce only about 15MW, Mutirikwi, 5MW and Gwai-Shangani 6MW.
Now the only source of actual power production is revamping Hwange Units I to 6 to a production capacity of 800MW which is 96% of their previous capacity which is what is happening already.
Units 7 and 8 will produce 600MW combined and this will bring the total capacity of the country plus Kariba to 2400MW which is enough for the country’s needs.
May I educate Nelson further and say, ten hectares of land are needed to set up a solar power plant that is enough to produce 1MW of power. These are equivalent to five football pitches.
This means to produce 5MW you need 50ha and for 10MW you need 100ha. Maybe we should bring to Nelson’s attention that our economy is agro-based and that land is not finite.
We cannot be setting aside a thousand hectares that is nearly 2500 acres of land merely to set up a solar power plant to produce 100MW which are hardly enough to power Harare’s energy needs.
The competing use for land alone will defeat his plan for clean and renewable energy. We then go to other forms of energy like wind and to talk of wind energy in Zimbabwe is a joke which must not be entertained even by clowns and children under two years of age.
CCC council in Harare is busy clamouring and fighting to have the Pomona Dumpsite converted to Power deal cancelled and yet Chamisa wants to talk of biogas and bagasse?
I do not know what the man who suffers from regression and fancies himself a boy smokes but whatever it is, its highly legal and toxic and illegal! He turns around everything and acts like he has solutions and yet we already know that Government is working on solutions to power.
He makes outlandish suggestions that border on the delusional. It is good to sound like you have a plan as an aspiring leader but it is not good to like Steve Shuckur of BBC told him during HardTalk, sell Alice in Wonderland tales and nonsense!
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