I hear wedding bells...

...and they herald a new political dynasty that could change the face of Southern Africa

Next Saturday Wesley Bongani Ncube and Gugulethu Zuma will celebrate their wedding in Zimbabwe's second city of Bulawayo, and may I be the first to raise a glass to the happy couple and wish them long life and happiness together.

I am toasting the future not only of the bride and groom, but also of what the marriage will doubtless entail - the creationof a new and powerful political dynasty that will stretch across the uneasy borders of this region.

It is in this major new alliance between neighbouring fiefdoms that that there lies the possibility that finally the big player in the game, the Republic of South Africa, will see its way clear to settling the problems of Zimbabwe once and for all.

To understand what this wedding means you must examine the gold embossed invitation card which our country's most privileged and important people - oh yes, including yours truly Moses Moyo - have received during the past few weeks.

There you will find the names of the bride's parents - Jacob Zuma and Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma - and the names of the bridegroom's parents - Welshman Ncube and Ntokozo Mkandla Ncube. And in the world of Southern African politicis, such names don't come much bigger.

Father of the bride Jacob Zuma is, of course, currently President of South Africa's ruling African National Congress (ANC), and if all goes according to plan - his plan - he will be President of the Republic of South Africa after next year's elections.

The mother of the bride, Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, divorced her wayward hubby back in 1998, but that hasn't stopped her own political career. Today she is the Minister of Foreign Affairs in the South Africa government.

Meanwhile the father of the bridegroom is Welshman Ncube. Welshman was the founding Secretary General of Zimbabwe's embattled Movement for Democratic Change (MDC). In 2005 he led the formation of the breakaway MDC splinter group, and as such he may be more amenable to Zanu-PF's power-sharing proposals than Morgan Tsvangirai, the MDC's principal leader. However, Welshman remains firmly in the anti-Mugabe camp.

What does this signify? Just this: Zuma has already indicated that he is no fan of Zimbabwe's current President. As a Zulu he has a natural affinity with the much-persecuted people of Matabeleland. This wedding will tie him even more firmly to the opposition cause.

It is an acknowledged fact that South Africa can bring about the fall of Zimbabwe's tyrannical Zanu-PF regime with one good turn of the screw. When Zuma takes power, his number one foreign relations objective must surely be to help his son-in-law's Dad in his struggle for freedom. European readers should know that family ties still count for much in Africa.

So again I raise my glass to the happy couple (both students at the University of Cape Town and both said to be very bright young people)j. I wish them a fruitful and happy relationship. And I wish exactly the same for the relationship between their respective parents.

Comments

[fillyap]

My friend you are ill informed,we all want Mugabe to go but you are a tribalist. You need to change as well. Post another message, tell your friends to get to grips with reality then you can talk of Zimbabwe not which tribe the leader of Zimbabwe should come from or what language he or she should speak. Wake up friend

[misfillyyap]

I dont understand fillyap he/she must be the tribalist the writer did not mention any tribe but the truth of affiliation it is obvious when envy crops on a shona they fill insulted because they are very very tribalist and we dont care it is a good script for a good relief to some of us.

[silverma]

MUGABE AND NYANHONGO BURNT TO ASH MY SON NYASHA [6YRS] ON 6JUNE 2008 IN HARARE SOUTH CONSTITUENCY FOR NO CRIME,BUT THE WORLD IS DOING NOTHIN ABOUT IT.HE SHOULD FACE,CHARGED WITH THE DOWNFALL OF THE COUNTRY SINCE 1980 UP TO DATE.NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW.