BY MUFARO JONASI
“I grew up in a happy home my parents worked really hard to provide for us. They tried their best to shield and protect us from perilous evils of the outside world and so I didn’t question much about what was going on in the country.
“As I was growing up I could see the strain on my mother’s face and the tired look on my father’s shoulders something was going on and the weight of whatever they were doing was weighing them down heavily, they could not protect us forever at this time the burden my parents were carrying began to manifest and show evidently in my own life,” said Mufaro Jonasi as he introduced his book.
He goes on to say he began to see and notice people around experiencing hardships of all sorts from food shortages to joblessness, began to see for himself how slowly the country was being reduced to a shambles.
I became a young adult with dreams natured by my ambitious parents in my childhood, I left my parents safe haven and began to experience for myself the tragedy that confronts many young people in Zimbabwe today.
The battle against unemployment, the desire to leave the country for greener pastures, the struggle against hunger, poverty and homelessness and ultimately the hunt for opportunities to live a better life. These problems I faced bred anxiety which led to frustration and anger; an anger that stirred up whirlwind of questions deep within my conscience.
This led me to be part for the search of the soul of my country, by sharing my thoughts in this book about the problems of I vii Zimbabwe through my own unique way as a citizen who desires to see the future of his country transformed.
Why is that ordinary citizens especially young people continue to endure hardships to no resolve? I haven’t found the answers to my questions but my conclusion is that the soul of our country is broken and needs resuscitation. Many young people have given up on their dreams as the system continues to corrode everything in its path as rightly put by
Nigerian Nobel Prize Laureate Wole Sonyika: “African dreams of peace and prosperity have been shuttered by the greedy, corrupt and unscrupulous rule of African strongmen. The dream has evaporated because of the treachery and betrayal of leaders with their pursuit of power and wealth.
One would be content with just a modest cleaning up of the environment, development of opportunities, health services, education, and eradication of poverty. But unfortunately even these modest goals are thwarted by a power crazed and rapacious leadership who can obtain their egotistical goals by oppressing the rest of us.”
I believe this paints an accurate picture of the tragedy of our beautiful country where there is a horrific difference between the ruling elites and the ordinary young person. I am not in this tragedy by myself, this is the reality that confronts the majority of the young people of Zimbabwe, young people feel betrayed that the leaders have forgotten about them and life is a continuous struggle.
viii Do we continue to be onlookers or become accessories aiding and abetting the destruction of our dreams and the soul of our country or we actively begin to take part in creating the country we all dream of. Nothing comes in a silver platter, rights and whatever entitlement we deserve as young citizens will never appear in a wrapped Christmas box; we have to create, demand, ask and get what rightfully belongs to us.
This book is a representation of how I make sense of the problems that young people face in Zimbabwe many believe our generation will never realize their true potential, I refuse to accept that because of the love, faith and pride I have in my country. Even though our will may be crushed we must not let our dreams be eroded.
I hope this book will inspire young people in Zimbabwe to never give up, that this book inspires young people never to settle for less, to continue asking burning questions that reveal the truth we seek a quest to enjoy opportunities in our motherland and to love their country and get involved in progressive ways of bringing about the right environment for their dreams to grow and thrive.
It is possible! ix Introduction his book is a comparative analysis of the lives the older generation those who saw the liberation war and the independence of our country and for a time enjoyed the fruits of the liberation struggle. And the lives of the younger generation, ‘today`s young men’ those who are confronted by the current socioeconomic tragedy in Zimbabwe.
This book analyses the lives of the older generation through the experiences of my father who like many in his generation followed through the steps of the system and made it as a successful Mechanical Engineer.
My father becomes a contextual reference for the older generation of Zimbabwe who relatively rose from poor backgrounds and made it through hard work and merit. I reflect upon those experiences of my father and compare them to the experiences of today’s young people in Zimbabwe.
Although this book is not a work of fiction it is by no means a formal read as in some parts it reads as a narrative, references have been placed where my analysis and points are derived from the work of other writers.
The book carries on metaphorical chapter titles to paint a vivid and graphic description of the subject that I talk about in the chapter. In some chapters I have carried out informal case studies with young people as T x they narrate their experiences to me, I have changed their names to protect their identities due to the sensitive nature of some their narrations.
Chapter 1: The Keys to the Door In this chapter I talk about how education in particular university education has failed to create opportunities for young people in Zimbabwe.
Chapter 2: The Grass Isn’t Always Greener on the Other Side In this chapter I talk about the struggles young Zimbabwean people face in foreign countries they migrate to in trying to find better opportunities.
Chapter 3: Fool’s Gold In this chapter I focus on how the Zimbabwean currency and the economy has been a source for many socioeconomic challenges for young people. Chapter 4: The Brown Money This chapter dwells on the land in Zimbabwe and how young people have struggled to access land, its opportunities and the fruits that comes from the land.
Chapter 5: “The Street Is Ours !” In this chapter I talk about the challenges young people in the informal sector mostly as street vendors and small scale business owners.
Chapter 6: The Masquerade Ball xi In this chapter I look at how the government and political leaders have broken their promises and failed to keep their word betraying the hopes of the younger generation.
Chapter 7: The Wheel Is Meant To Turn In this Chapter I conclude the book giving my views on how young people can become a part of the solution to the challenges that confront our beautiful country.
