“8”:The Cursed Zimbabwean Number

Just like how Friday the 13th is associated with all things bad , so is any year that ends with an “8” in Zimbabwe.I was just about to start junior school and remember close to nothing but I hear the year 1998 was somewhat similar to the year 2008.

In the year 2008 I remember we had the most frequent power cuts, there were fuel shortages, there was nothing on the shelves in the supermarkets, the teachers from our schools were striking, there was hyper inflation which made the news everywhere.

The cherry on top was how the Zimbabwean currency  depreciated in value every single day. Where after receiving your salary after  queueing the whole day to get it,  you could find out it can only afford you a loaf of bread.

As if people hadn’t had enough a decade later the country held presidential  elections . “The harmonised elections” had 21 presidential candidates, the highest number in Zimbabwean history.

Elections were tagged “harmonised” then there was violence on the 1st of August which claimed 6 lives.In 2008 the elections were questioned and not said to be free and fair. This then led to an inclusive government and I am sure many people are also praying for one in 2018. The opposition party felt the votes were tempered with and the case was taken to the Constitutional court.

Zimbabwe’s opposition argued in the country’s top court on Wednesday that the presidential election results must be thrown out, alleging that only “massive doctoring” of the vote had kept Emmerson Mnangagwa in office. report from News 24.

Elections aside then there was the shocker. “Cholera Outbreak In Harare”.I mean honestly how did we get here , cholera in 2018.

Now I had this picture in my head of something artificially made in the laboratory. A scene from the movies where sabotage is the agenda and someone creates a virus seeking some ransom or control and somehow infects a number of people and it spreads.

I found it hilarious as the blame game was being played on social media.Public gatherings were stopped and sadly some lives were lost. Then we woke up one day and a bottle of cooking oil was over $10. The next day it had a  different price and apparently there was a limit to the amount of things you could buy even if you could afford it.

Nowadays shops can just randomly close and you get the “closed for stock take” notice when the truth is they are probably repricing their goods.Back to the number “8” What really is wrong with any  year that ends with it. 1998 was bad , so was 2008 and so is the end of 2018.

2008 had elections and so much violence , so is the case with 2018. One could then claim that the years that end with the number “8” are not only characterised with elections and violence but also socio economic problems.And that one thing that shouldn’t haven’t happened in the 21st century did. Cholera. So maybe after all the bull happening in the country the Nehandas and Kaguvis and Chaminukas are turning in their saying “what the hell”. So maybe the country needs a reset button and we start all over again because haai the “8” Oman is not friendly.

©Scotch_royalty 👑