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| Zimbabwe's Minister of Education, Hon. Lazarus Dokora |
By Lenin Tinashe Chisaira
Zimbabwe’s Minister of Primary and Secondary Education,
Lazarus Dokora in April 2016 issued a directive halting Scripture Unions from
government schools in the country as was reported in state media. This was followed by moves towards
discouraging churches from renting and worshiping in government school buildings.
The decisions prompted rumours that religious stuff such as ‘The Lord’s Prayer’ were going to be banned
next. In a nation that is highly religious yet poverty-stricken like Zimbabwe,
the directive by the Minister Dokora was a very brave yet commendable move.
Why Religion must be
separated from Education in poor countries
In progressive nations, religion is not part of the national
education system and Zimbabwe should not be an exception. Whilst families do
indeed take responsibility for the spiritual upbringing of their children, this
should not be done with the connivance of public institutions or
taxpayer-funded public spaces like schools.
It is high time religion and education is separated and
churches should only carry out whatever activity they claim to do in their own
private spaces. Religions, especially Christianity’s hold on Zimbabwean society
needs to be interrogated. It is only fair considering that Zimbabwe is not a
Christian nation, yet the Christian faith has taken root in public life, not
because of any mysterious powers but due obviously to the nation’s historical
past of Bible-backed colonialism and capitalism imposed economic poverty. The
latter (poverty) forces people to turn for salvation in supernatural beings and
the hopes of a better after-life instead of fighting for a better world whilst
still on Earth.
History has proven that religion has taken root in the
underdeveloped countries in a way that is almost directly proportional to the
way atheism and agnostics are rampant in more developed and prosperous nations.
A clear example is the Scandinavian countries where most of Zimbabwean aid
comes from. In Sweden, about 7-0-80% of the population is not religious, and yet
the GDP stands at over US$58,898.90 according to World Bank statistics. In comparison, Zimbabwe and Malawi
are among the poorest nations in the world, with mere GDPs of sickening
US$931.20 and US $255.00 respective, yet we have seen an unprecedented rise of
sensational Pentecostal churches in the same countries, giving no benefit to
the populace except making them part with their hard earned money as ‘talents’, ‘seeding’ and ‘tithes’ to cushion the lazy lives of
dubious, semi-illiterate and pro-establishment ‘prophets’ and ‘apostles’.
Likewise, the use of public premises for private religious
activities must be highly discouraged. Public buildings must merely be used for
the purposes they were set up for, lest the nations and tax-payers end up being
disadvantaged by wear and tear on public property as well as the interruption
of students’ weekend study by hymns and the uttering of ‘tongues’.
Children must not be
abused
The consciousness of children is a
delicate manner. As children grow up, society accepts that they cannot be
forced into such things as child labour and political activity as well as the
undertaking of certain intoxicating drugs and alcohols. This protective stance
on children takes cognisance of their early stages of mental growth and
development. However, the same consideration is not extended to ‘spiritual
‘matters, leaving religion and the church with the free reign to manipulate the
developing child’s brain. That is hypocrisy. In as much as society cannot accept
a six or fourteen-year-old girl or boy being part of political parties like
Zanu-Pf, MDCT, ZimPf, PDP, EFF-Zim or NCA, because that child has not reached a
reasonable level of psychological development where the child can make critical
political decisions, such a society, must also know that the same girl or boy
needs time to grow before independently choosing to be faith-based,
non-religious, agnostic or atheist. Public schools must be non-religious and
non-political, unbiased towards any form of spiritualism or nationalism or any
other ‘...isms’.
But he’s wrong on the
national pledge
Whilst the above moves are progressive, it is unfortunate
that the Minister and government have decided to enforce a ‘National Pledge’.
Both the immorality and senseless of the pledge have been well articulated by
some religious groups and trade unions like the Rural Teachers Union of
Zimbabwe (RTUZ). It is obviously ridiculous after banning religious clubs to then
force children to recite a religious-tinted national pledge.
Rather the government should have allowed a time for children
and other targeted pledge-takers to be educated about the themes behind the
pledge, especially on the relevance of such a pledge after nearly four decades
of independence. Finally, the pledge would have been better to be areligious,
or at least to uphold the virtues of a multi-religious-cum-areligious society.
In conclusion, it is part of government mandate to ensure
that children’s’ mental and physical needs are catered for through academic
support, teaching and sporting activities. However spiritual activities, just
like political decisions must not be imposed on a young person, until he
reaches an age where he is expected to make informed decisions about those
things by herself or himself. It’s unfair to think a person who can’t be
allowed to vote or marry can be expected to make religious decisions.
Furthermore, in these times of dictatorship, it is hard to think that blind
patriotism can be a virtue. In short,
religious activities, churches and Scripture Unions at government schools and
prayers during non-religious public functions must fall, likewise the so-called
#NationalPledgeMustFall.
[1] [Lenin Tinashe Chisaira is a lawyer, socialist and
activist. He coordinates AfricaFightNow.org and tweets at @LeninChisaira. This article was first published 20 May 2016 on NehandaRadio]
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