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Goodness Gracious Mugabe: The Fall of ‘Gucci’ Grace

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Madhulika Ra Chauhan
New Update

The ungraceful fall of Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe has been attributed to none other than his wife Grace Marufu, who earned the epithet of ‘Gucci Grace’ due to her alleged appetite for extravagant shopping.

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The prospect of globe-trotting Grace positioning herself as the next leader of Zimbabwe scared the leaders of Mugabe’s ZANU-PF party and after making her husband expel the vice-president Emmerson Mnangagwa, a former justice minister who Mrs Mugabe had called "loyal and disciplined", her political ambitions became crystal clear.

No one would have guessed in 1996, when President Robert Mugabe exchanged nuptials with Grace Marufu amid pomp and fanfare in August, that she would after two decades make such a dramatic impact on the country’s political landscape inking her meteoric rise.

A secretary and 40 years her husband’s junior, she could not have been foreseen as a political opponent at that time.

The openly spiteful, brash and condescending Grace, with a penchant for humiliating adults in public thought she had “arrived” and to her it seems she would soon become the country’s second most powerful individual after the president, much to her dismay.

Grace and her acolytes’ plan was progressing well until Zimbabwe Defence Forces Commander General Constantino Chiwenga called Mugabe to order and directed him to stop the purges ahead of the extraordinary congress.

While the fate of the grand old man of Zimbabwe’s politics – Robert Mugabe hung in the hands of his colleagues whose opinion he chose to disregard and became a puppet to his wife, who is not seen as worthy of absolution.

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The one thing which has become clear is that even though there might be a residue of sympathy for Mugabe, but the days of Grace’s brand of politics are certainly over.

Even though the characters in the story appear to be new the story is still what it always has been the ‘absoluteness of power’ which leads to recklessness which invariably turns into rebellion by the oppressed. On such occasions, one is reminded of John Dalberg-Acton’s words — “Absolute power corrupts absolutely”.

What is interesting in such stories which come up from time to time is how the oppressors have always discarded the history thinking “this is what happens to others” and perhaps would not happen to me yet invariably the façade hiding the image breaks and leaves them little room to hide.

What was interesting here was that the one who sought power so brazenly was a woman, bringing me to the thought that corruption of power is not gender specific neither is the virtue? These are qualities which an individual works upon consciously and are not doled out based on gender.

Whatever happens to Zimbabwe under the new leadership would perhaps unfold in the years to come but as of now, it seems the tyrant’s phase is over as of now.

PC: Daily Mail

Also Read: Give ‘her’ the gift she needs most, nutrition says Madhulika Ra Chauhan

Madhulika Ra Chauhan, is an Indian author. She has contributed stories to various anthologies. She writes regular articles for the e-zine. She currently lives in China with her super-curious son and super-busy husband. The views expressed are author’s own.

Zimbabwe Grace Marufu President Robert Mugabe Zimbabwe’s politics
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