FULL STATEMENT BY HOPEWELL CHIN’ONO 30 AUGUST 2024
A South African journalist asked me about the source of the discussion among some opposition supporters who claimed that I attacked Nelson Chamisa.
I explained the whole story to the journalist, and after she asked why that would be a problem, I decided to set the record straight and close this chapter.
Nelson Chamisa is the leading opposition leader in Zimbabwe, and as such, what he says gets people talking or asking more questions.
Two weeks ago, he wrote on Twitter about what was happening in Zimbabwe.
One of his followers responded to the Twitter post, asking, “How do we do that? 🤷🏾♀️ We are literally on our own.
What’s next, President?”
Nelson Chamisa responded, “Wait and see that Our #Godisinit.”
I then replied to his tweet with, “This nonsense is now nauseating!
You can’t keep repeating the same thing for 7 years while children are filling up the jails. It’s either you are meant to lead, or you are not leadership material!”
My response angered some of his supporters and social media followers. Some misrepresented what I actually said, shockingly including a professor who supports him, claiming that I wanted to destroy him.
Some suggested that I wanted to destroy him because I came up with a new initiative, and they teamed up with ZANUPF supporters to attack me because ZANUPF was rattled by the word play of Government in Exile.
This is why it is important to set the record straight.
My response to Nelson Chamisa’s tweet was measured and factual and would not be called an attempt to destroy him by anyone who read it rationally or has lived in a democracy.
Here is why I said what I posted.
I have argued that we need reforms before we can have a credible election to a point where ZANUPF trolls started calling me Mr. Reforms.
In 2008, I covered the post-election violence, becoming the first Zimbabwean journalist to expose the violence to the global community via television.
An MDC parliamentary candidate, Julius Magarangoma drove me to Buhera where houses had been razed to the ground and MDC supporters beaten and some were subsequently killed.
This violence was stopped after three months of bloodshed by, among others, Thabo Mbeki, who facilitated the Government of National Unity (GNU).
Its main purpose was to implement political reforms which included electoral reforms that would lead to a free and fair election.
When this didn’t happen, President Jacob Zuma of South Africa advised Morgan Tsvangirai and his team not to participate in the election.
President Zuma said participation would give credibility to a sham election and its results, and it would be difficult for South Africa or SADC to do anything after participation.
He argued that not participating would create a crisis of legitimacy for ZANUPF and Robert Mugabe.
Morgan Tsvangirai briefed journalists, stating that the MDC was going ahead with participation against President Zuma’s advice.
He told journalists that one of his lieutenants told him that God had told him that they would win the election.
I went to Tsvangirai’s house after the election with my colleague @RohitKachrooITV, who was the ITV News Africa correspondent, while I was the ITV News producer.
Tsvangirai told us that Nelson Chamisa had said God told him that he would win the election.
The evidence of this is attached below on Nelson’s own Twitter timeline.
He has maintained this method of saying God says this or that, and when I saw his response to his follower with the same reply, I responded out of frustration as I did.
My response was fair, measured, and not meant to destroy Chamisa but to critique as a journalist who has covered this story for 24 years and has a memory of what the players have said in the past.
Was I wrong to say what I said, considering that Nelson Chamisa has used #GodIsInIt as a cover to explain irrational decisions like participating in rigged elections on the back of what God supposedly told him?
It is your own choice to draw your own conclusion!
