Land of tragedy

I was born the year Rhodesia (Zimbabwe pre-1980) exited from the British Commonwealth, a move instigated by the then PM, Ian Smith. I was 15 years old when white minority rule was ended, and the hero of the revolution, Robert Mugabe, returned from years in exile to replace Mr. Smith.

It has taken this man and his fellow culprits less than three decades to transform bounty into bust, to bring the former bread-basket of Africa to the brink of collapse. A deadly combination of a marred political vision, and Mr. Mugabe's narcissistic perception of himself as the country's Messiah, has left this promising vanguard of post-colonial Africa in a state of dereliction.

And if the talks between Zanu-PF and the opposition stall for good, what is there to stop Zimbabwe from becoming yet another Afghanistan, yet another irreparably failed nation?

When Robert Mugabe's reign of terror finally ceases and the unscrupulous villain dies, perhaps even his cronies will shake their heads and mourn a wasted life. Robert Mugabe: Destroyer of Zimbabwe, Worthy Inductee into the Hall of Absolute Infamy. You blew it. You inherited Eden and turned it into Sahara. Good riddance. Good night.