Pius Ncube – I will not be silenced

Pius Ncube

I could use some good news for a change, and seeing this article overwhelmed me with a rush of emotion. Pius Ncube is quoted in this piece as saying he’s “now being viewed with another eye by the public” but I don’t know what he thinks the public think of him. To me, he is still one of Zimbabwe’s bravest men and makes all other leaders look like moral lightweights. When Zanu PF knocked him down it really broke my heart – not because Pius ‘failed Zimbabwean people’, which is what I fear he might have thought, but because such a brave decent good man could be put in a position of crippling self-doubt by a bunch of immoral cretins and thugs.

I have to nail my colours to the mast with this one: Pius will always be my hero, and I say that as a person who is not easily impressed by public figures. He is my hero not because he’s a Catholic priest, but because he’s an ordinary flawed humble human-being just like all of us. But unlike the majority of us, he has the guts to do the right thing and stand by those who are brutalised and have nothing. He reminds me of that Tianamen Square image – the one of  a slight defiant figure in front of a phenomenal crushing tank of injustice . His bravery and humility in the face of the Zanu PF machine of viciousness has never failed to inspire and impress me, and I think his words in this article are among the bravest I’ve ever heard him utter. Here he is challenging not just injustice in Zimbabwe, but standing up to the Vatican as well. As far as I  am concerned these are the words and actions of a man doing God’s work at the highest level. I’ve missed his voice in the struggle, and am so glad to hear he’s back. The article is  via NewsDay:

Former archbishop of the Roman Catholic Church in Bulawayo, Pius Ncube, has crawled out of his shell. Ncube, who had been hibernating since 2007 said he would not be silenced by his superiors in Rome and vowed to continue speaking out against misrule.

Ncube has been unusually quiet since his fall from grace after he was caught in a compromising position with a follower from his church.

The disgraced Ncube was ultimately censored from talking to the press by the Vatican after the embarrassing incident.

Ncube was videotaped indulging in sex with a woman, in an expose he believes was a sting operation against him by the state. The two are said to have become involved when the woman was working at the Roman Catholic Church’s headquarters in Bulawayo.

Following the scandal, Ncube — a fierce critic of President Robert Mugabe’s style of governance — retreated into his shell.

But last Saturday, Ncube made a rare public appearance since the sex scandal pitching up at a belated commemoration of the 11th anniversary of the death of Father Zimbabwe, Joshua Nkomo, at Amakhosi Township Square in Bulawayo.

Speaking to this newspaper, a defiant Ncube said he may be down but was not yet out.

He said the experience had made him stronger.

“There are people who are trying to use other means to get me to stop criticising this (inclusive) government for what it is,” Ncube said.

“This goes to even a point where those at the Vatican have requested me not to speak out about these injustices. I would like to point out that I am not finished yet. I will not be silenced and very soon, I will show the world that I am still the person who speaks his mind and criticises bad things happening in government.”

Ncube said after his ordeal, he was invited to Rome, Italy, where the Pope’s “lieutenants” pleaded with him not to be too critical of President Mugabe and his previous government.

“I did not agree to their proposal,” Ncube claimed. “I told them I was working with the people and acceding to their (Vatican’s) request would be betraying the people.

I will not keep quiet when people are subjected to injustices. I will speak out against all the evil things that I see because that is what I believe I should do.”

The formerly outspoken church leader said he was even offered accommodation in Italy and Australia where he was expected to stay and the offer included moving his family there.

“I told them that I am looking after my mother.

I told them my family is here (in Zimbabwe) and moving to Italy would mean I am away from my family. I want to remain here,” said Ncube.

The request by Vatican leaders, Ncube said, gave him time to reflect on his past. He said given that he was now being viewed with another eye by the public, he would pray to be guided accordingly.

“I will talk to my master, who is God, to ask for his guidance. I will talk to him to plead with him to give me the power to face all my persecutors as well as take on those that have messed up the lives of the people,” Ncube said.

“I know God will bear with me since I believe I am on a mission that he set for me to try and save the people of Zimbabwe from this regime.

At one time, I nearly gave up hope that I was going to recover from this thing. But I believe that I am firm and I gathered all the guts.” He said he was willing to face the consequences of his actions.

This entry was posted by Hope on Tuesday, July 6th, 2010 at 1:52 pm. You can follow any comments on this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a comment, or trackback from your own site.