I laughed out loud when I read an article on Tuesday that indicated that the security force chiefs are afraid of being murdered by their own people and want weapons to be removed from soldiers when the chiefs review parades.

As I wrote on my main blog, what is a soldier if you remove his weapon?

The situation is one that is serious, but laughable.

Quite some time ago, I read about soldiers and police details being unable to resign unless they had served a minimum of ten years… This caused a rapid and worrying increase in the number of members that deserted the forces for ‘greener pastures’…

Those that have remained are now seen as potential killers of their own leaders.

Mugabe uses the armed forces as an extension of ZANU PF - and, to all intents and purposes, it is - but not all members subscribe to the ethos and policies of that party. The vast majority of senior officers in the security forces are former chimurenga fighters and are well-versed in rural warfare.

But even they have begun to flag with age and sickness.

So they now view their charges with some trepidation.

They have voiced their concern that they are targets for the rank and file. They are worried about the as yet unspoken unspoken threat that they will get taken out by one of their own..

At a recent meeting with their vaunted leader, Constantine Chiwenga, supremo of the security forces, “is said to have pleaded with Mugabe to sort out the welfare of members of the uniformed forces saying: “We are sitting on a time bomb.”

“He told Mugabe that it would not be surprising if one was shot at while reviewing a parade,” said the source.”

Mugabe probably has bigger concerns to contend with, but he knows that if he does not attend to these potential problems, he will swiftly find himself without the support he needs.

Recently we read how the security force chiefs have threatened to go to war against the people if Gideon Gono is unseated as Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe governor.

I do wonder just who they will use to populate their ranks if they are to disarm those who they believe may turn their weapons on the hierarchy.

You see, you may order a man to war, but you have little control over who he may shoot.

And, as we have read in the past, the country is short of live ammunition - unless, the blockaded Chinese ship carrying weapons and ammunition managed to get its deadly cargo into Zimbabwe - and Mugabe and his security force chiefs have to be very careful just who gets live rounds, and how many of these people they can trust.

Even the war veterans, those men who fought in the bush for Mugabe against the Rhodesian security forces, are beginning to age and change their allegiances. Not all of them are bloodthirsty hoodlums - indeed, many of the “veterans” are too young to have fought in the bush war, too young to have done anything - but Mugabe will take the support of anyone as he looks to bolster his support.

Meanwhile, his security force chiefs are afraid of their own shadows and live a life of fear and trepidation.

How the tables have turned.

Robb WJ Ellis
The Bearded Man