O. Vengeyi, The Bible in the Service of Pan-Africanismviews may seem individual, considering the MDC position on the same
matter and the western powers’ interest in seeing regime change in
Zimbabwe, an overhaul rather of the whole system of government to
usher in young MDC leadership,^33 one cannot be wrong to suggest that
these are sponsored ideas by the West to instigate a rebellion among the
youth, (as happened in the Arab world and North Africa) so as to quickly
effect regime change.
It is this Western narrative among others, I will discuss below that Ma-
hoso as a pan-African is responding to by appealing to the Bible. Specifi-
cally Mahoso responded to Tutani’s article; whose views for Mahoso are
just a replica of the Western media, MDC and other African stooges’
transcript, a transcript fraught with contradictions, inconsistencies and
sometimes utter confusion. Mahoso feels that this misrepresentation of
facts is deliberately to confuse Zimbabwean youths, as a ploy by the
West to recolonise Zimbabwe. He thus sets to expose the inconsisten-
cies in the argument by appealing to the Bible and a wide range of his-
torical issues.
Mahoso’s PanAfrican Biblical Exegesis
Mahoso begins the article entitled, ‘Denigration of African Elders’ by
citing the Ndau translation of the Bible (Num.11:16-17; Exo. 4: 29-31).^34
In the article, Mahoso seeks to reveal to the readers (of Zimbabwe), the
foreignness or unAfricanness of the doctrine of interpreting old age,
leadership by old people as something to be ashamed of as a nation, and
as individuals. He argues that to denigrate elders is contrary to the Bible
hence against God’s dictates. For him, it is a Western sponsored phi-
losophy forced into the minds of the African youths so as to further
imperialist/ colonial interests, which interests can only be achieved
through making sure Africans especially youth hate themselves (through
hating their elders; mothers, fathers, grandfathers, grandmothers and
social and political leaders) and love their Western former colonizers,
who by implication are forces against God. The verses as he paraphrased
below, read:
(^33) Cf. US Ambassador Charles Ray’s address to journalists in Bulawayo, Zimeye.org.
‘Mugabe exit no magic bullet: US envoy’. 16 June 2011.
(^34) Mahoso, ‘Denigration of African Elders’. AFRICAN FOCUS: The Sunday Mail. 21 May
2011.