Govt committed to uplifting people’s lives

Rumbidzayi Zinyuke and Chipo Katsidzira in CHIPINGE

Government has reiterated its commitment to uplift the lives of people living in rural areas and to foster unity among its people as it seeks to develop the country in line with Vision 2030.

Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Monica Mutsvangwa said this yesterday at the 87th anniversary celebrations of the St Luke’s Apostolic Ejuwel Jekenisheni Church at Maunganidze in Chipinge, where she stressed the important role played by churches in uniting people.

“No Government can succeed without its people. This is why President Mnangagwa has been emphasising the importance of listening to what the people are saying. Our people had lost trust in the Government, but in the Second Republic, we are working on restoring that. When public trust is waning, it is critical to work hard to bring back the trust,” she said.

There was need, she added, for people to heed the President’s call for unity regardless of political affiliation.

“For the country to prosper, people must unite and work together.

‘‘Let us respect each other and stand strong together so that we can make a greater impact in making the country prosperous.”

She said the President had also extended a hand to MDC leader Nelson Chamisa to play his part in the development of the country, which he has spurned.

Minister Mutsvangwa said nobody should be left behind, hence churches have a big role to play in praying for the country.

Every Zimbabwean needed to play their part for the country to develop.

“Our President has been making efforts to re-engage with the international community to ensure that the country gets support for infrastructural development, as well as coming up with ways of helping his people in this time when many of our people are facing hunger as a result of drought,” she said.

Minister Mutsvanga said Government efforts to stabilise prices of basic commodities and services would continue.

“We understand that the situation with regards prices is bad, people are suffering. But Government will continue to find ways to cushion the people. President Mnangagwa is aware of this and he has put in place the initiative to retool Zupco so that people can have access to cheaper transportation,” she said.

The disbanding of the multi-currency system, Minister Mutsvangwa said, was occasioned by the need to adopt a local currency that enables the country to bring sanity and facilitate economic recovery.

She said Government would also continue to support the Jekenisheni Church and promised to provide technical support to a vocational training centre that the church is expecting to establish in the near future.

The church was recently allocated a 100-hectare farm  and additional land to build a vocational centre where the women’s wing is expected to embark on income-generating projects. Minister Mutsvangwa donated rice and flour, which she said was seed for the women’s bakery and said the women would receive training on how to bake bread, among other critical skills.

Jekenisheni Church Archbishop St Phillip Feredzai-Soko Matarauka expressed gratitude to Government for its continued support to the church.

“As the Jekenisheni, we realise that the relationship we have with Government is solid. We have received all the big things we have asked for, and we should be grateful that Government has never let us down.

“There are events that were prophesied even before they happened and they came to pass.

‘‘We saw it fit to invite Government to be part of our celebrations so that we can also explain what the Holy Spirit has said. Such things should go down in books of history.”