COMMENT: Unless we want the President to lose his voice

13 Dec, 2015 - 00:12 0 Views
COMMENT: Unless we want the President to lose his voice

The Sunday Mail

The Zanu-PF 15th Annual National People’s Conference ended in the resort town of Victoria Falls yesterday and as usual, President Mugabe showed why he is an unequalled revolutionary.
This has been said countless times, but so what? We repeat it again — Zimbabwe is a blessed country to have such a principled visionary as it’s leader. Sadly and unfortunately, some will only know when this great African Statesman is gone.
Those who are dreaming that at 91 the man is getting tired are wasting their time because his body language, the way he articulated topical issues and the smooth flow of his presentation was enough to tell the story of a leader in total control of not only the proceedings in Victoria Falls but in total control of the whole country.
His message on uniting for national development and socio-economic transformation and uniting against corruption will reverberate across the country for a long time. The hope is that delegates to the conference and those who had the opportunity to follow proceedings on radio and television will pass on the message to each and every Zimbabwean.
We also hope that the media, both public and private will play its part in spreading the message by not burying this story of hope under the sensational story of factionalism. Let’s leave those obsessed with factionalism and succession to roast under their dirty machinations.
Yes, President Mugabe spoke at length about factionalism in Zanu-PF, but if we all listened to him carefully, the conference was not about factionalism. The President spoke about factionalism just to warn those party members who were dividing the party and he spoke about factionalism in the context of this cancer hampering the revival of the economy.
For those who may have missed it , the theme to this year’s conference was “Consolidating People’s Power through Zim-Asset.”
Speaking during the Zanu-PF Central Committee meeting, which is part of the conference, President Mugabe said:
“Well, Zim-Asset yes, but Zim-Asset must be propped and I am sure you can see some of the efforts that we have been making to get those of our friends outside Africa with the assistance that could come our way.
“Recently, we had a visit of the Chinese President Xi Jinping. . .I got assurance from him that they will help us as much as possible, provided we proceed to work on projects and programmes that they can accept as deserving that assistance.
“There have been efforts by the leadership of the party and leadership in Government, also to seek more assistance from countries like Brazil, Belarus and Russia etc. So this assistance will be forthcoming, its effect cannot be felt today, but by next year, we hope the change will be felt by our people.
“Let’s remain united, lets remain focussed, purposeful and hardworking . . .”
In his official opening speech in Victoria Falls, the President went a step further talking about the visit by his Chinese counterpart warning some Government officials against engaging in corruption in sealing deals with companies from China.
It’s unfortunate that we are a country obsessed with petty politics, but the President’s message to the Government officials was spot on.
“It might be you or a group of people assigned to negotiate with the other side we want to work with, be it in building a bridge or constructing roads, you then go and demand a cut before the construction is even done.
“They say if the actual cost is $10 million, they peg it at $13 million and tell the Chinese that the project cost has risen yet the $3 million will be theirs for sharing. Ndocorruption iri kuitika kunyanya yerudzi irworwo,” warned the President.
Clearly, the President is now in the know and the days of those who have been tarnishing the image of the country through such corrupt activities are numbered.
But then the President did not end there.
He showed that although Zimbabwe is in need of assistance, it’s not going to compromise on corruption even if its coming from those intending to give the assistance.
Said the President: “Ndakaramba dzimwe company kuna President weChina ndikati handidi dziri corrupt. They do their things clandestinely, giving our people (money) secretly. Ndikati handidi company dzakadaro. Handimbodi!”
Now, what kind of a leader do Zimbabweans want? One war veteran once said: “VaMugabe ava vanhu vachaenda paguva ravo rimwe gore kunochema kuti Gushungo mukai please mutibetsere Zimbabwe iya yopisa uye taitadza.”
In very simple terms, the statement means “you don’t know what you have till it’s gone.” Some Zimbabweans will one day learn the hard way.
The Zanu-PF Conference has come and gone, but the message from President Mugabe will linger in many people’s minds for a very long time.
As the country’s leader, President Mugabe has done his part, unless we want him to lose his voice saying the same thing over and over again.

CARTOON:

1212-2-1-CORRUPTION

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