Sheryleen Masuku
POLITICAL satirist, Comrade Fatso said President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government has not made meaningful changes to turn the fortunes of the arts and entertainment industry.
Cde Fatso, who is part of the Magamba said this on a Youtube livestream show on Tuesday.
The show was organised by The Resistance Bureau under “The Art of Resistance.”
Fatso said artists have been through horrendous situations under President Mnangagwa.
“Artists have seen the abductions of political artists, of Zim dancehall artists who dare to speak to the government,” he said.
“This is something we didn’t see under Mugabe regime.”
The artist cum political activist gave an example of Zimbabwean comedian Samantha Kureya, known by her stage name as “Gonyeti” of Bus Stop TV who was abducted and forced to drink sewage in 2019 as a result of being critical of the police and state security agents.
Other panellists included South African poet Lebogang Mashile, Nigerian musician DJ Switch, and television producer Godfrey Mwampembwa popularly known as Gado.
Fatso’s remarks were made shortly after the arrest of another young political activist Makomborero Haruzivishe on allegations of inciting public violence.
Responding to questions on the relevance of political satire in Africa, Gado the creator of a popular political satire program in Kenya said it was important for political satirists to continue to find ways of using political satire and to guard against the gains that satires have made in the past.
The four panelists echoed the need for artists to use creative content as a tool in advocacy, speaking truth to power and finding ways to claim their space in important policy making decisions.
