The Sunday Mail
THERE is always a rebellious streak in people that often ends in unfortunate outcomes.
In February 2017, a local woman had her derrière mauled by a white lion as she posed for pictures while leaning on a fence at some game park in Headlands.
The caged lion was not amused as the woman, oblivious of the lurking danger, twerked, wiggled and twirled as her partner tried to freeze the precious moment in time.
As the couple was engrossed in their stunt, the big cat instinctively pounced.
She was lucky to escape with her disfigured behind and her life.
However, in the same month, a Plumtree man was not so lucky, as he was trampled to death by a raging elephant bull while trying to take a selfie using elephants as a real-life backdrop.
When the beasts charged, two of the man’s nimble-footed companions made good their escape, but unfortunately for him, his determination to save his life was trumped by the elephant bull’s desire to mete out jungle justice.
Both these incidents could have been easily avoided.
However, despite assiduous and grovelling exhortations from authorities to be always wary and extra-careful around wild animals, people always push the envelope.
If human beings can dare menacing beasts of the animal kingdom, how can they possibly be spooked by an invisible virus?
But this is coming at an extortionately huge cost in human lives.
Well, stubbornness is a common human trait since the beginning of time.
Sometimes, people need to be saved from themselves.
This is why the story of Noah in Genesis never grows old, as it continues to be re-enacted in various tragic situations and circumstances.
It reminds Bishop Lazi of Matthew 24: 37-44, which observes: “As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.
“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”
Bitter winter
Over the past two months, death has been visiting our people as a thief in the dead of the night.
Far too many precious lives are being snatched away, sometimes needlessly, as we have become unhelpfully complacent in scrupulously following guidelines that are supposed to keep us and our loved ones safe.
The Bishop will challenge you to pass through Mbudzi Roundabout in Harare to get an appreciation of what the word carelessness means.
The area should just be declared a disaster.
Sadly, it is just a microcosm of pockets of resistance dotted around the country.
July has been particularly unforgiving.
In just 21 days, about 1 020 people had succumbed to the virus compared to 193 in June.
In the same month, Zimbabwe recorded its highest single-day rise in mortalities to 102 on July 16 — about 52 percent of cumulative cases a month earlier.
What is, however, comforting is that the cavalry is on the way as more vaccines are delivered to add impetus and oomph to the ongoing mass inoculation exercise.
Putting vaccines into people’s arms is a sure path out of the woods and a shot in the arm for our critical economic recovery and growth plan.
Quite clearly, our economic fortunes are inextricably linked to vanquishing the coronavirus.
Entrepreneurial zeitgeist
Remember what the Bishop said last week: It is only through controlling our economics that we can control our politics and be in firm control of our destiny.
The coronavirus is just one other hurdle that we must surmount in our determined march towards a prosperous future.
Over the past four years, we have had everything thrown us — Cyclone Idai, two successive drought seasons and now the coronavirus pandemic — but we have nevertheless emerged even stronger despite being encumbered by ill-will and sanctions by the United States, the European Union and Britain.
As will be revealed by Treasury chief Professor Mthuli Ncube on Thursday, our economy is in better-than-expected shape and Government will double down on ramping up the vaccination exercise to add tailwinds to the economy.
Already, there are nascent signs of recovery everywhere, but more still needs to be done.
Exports have been growing, tax revenues have outperformed expectations and industry is slowly regaining its footing.
You might have missed Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI) CEO Sekai Kuvarika’s observation on Twitter on July 20.
She said: “Today one industrialist told me industrial space in Harare, as in small factory shells & other factory space, is running out. Must be some increased industrial activity. I hear even those that are empty have been secured by those whose plans are still in the oven.”
These are green shoots of a healthy new industry and new economy that is on the rise, and thankfully it is being driven by locals.
Sceptics, cynics and unbelievers will pretend that this is not the case.
There is a critical link between what is happening in industry and the sustained investments in capital equipment over the past couple of years.
Last year alone, US$963 million – close to a billion – was spent on machinery and equipment, compared to US$854 million in 2019.
Overall, this amounts to US$1,8 billion in two years.
The trend continued again this year when the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe allocated US$15,8 million and US$16,1 million in January and February, respectively, for the same purpose.
It is a revolution that is hidden in plain sight.
If you are not familiar with the story of China’s economic miracle, you would never understand the importance of this or what it means.
Some time back, Bishop Lazi told you that you could better understand the country’s economic reforms by learning how China transitioned from an economic backwater to the world’s second-biggest economy in 33 years.
The phenomenon that is currently being witnessed in local industry was experienced in China after 1985, seven years after Deng Xiaoping began his far-reaching reforms.
According to Chinese journalist and author Wu Xiaobo, from 1985 to 1987, China imported 115 colour television production lines, 73 refrigerator production lines, 15 copier production lines, 35 aluminium-material fabricating production lines, 22 integrated circuit production lines and six frosted-glass production lines.
The trend did not escape American publication, Newsweek, which later wrote: “A group of engineers, technical people and packaging workers arrived at an industrial town in France and began to work day and night dismantling and packaging a refrigerator factory that had gone bankrupt. They packaged 5 000 tonnes of equipment into boats, planes and trains and shipped them off to Tianjin.
“In Tianjin, a factory took the lot over and reconstructed it into a production line producing 2 000 new refrigerators every single day. The same kind of thing can be seen elsewhere in China.
“Throughout Europe, Chinese delegations can be seen with their hands clutching lists of things they want to buy, looking for second-hand factories and equipment . . .”
As it was in China then, entrepreneurship is now the zeitgeist of the current epoch in Zimbabwe.
Of course, we still have our fair share of laggards who fail to read signs of the times.
They think that selling eggs on street corners is a sign of desperation and not a worthy pursuit.
This line of thought is rank madness and crass naiveté.
If only they knew that Liu Chuanzhi, one the Chinese who was gripped by the entrepreneurial bug that swept across China after 1984 and later established technology giant Lenovo, first began by selling watches, sandals, gym pants and refrigerators.
Lenovo is now a reputable brand around the world.
Also, if only the cynics knew that Zhang Ruimin, another product of this era who came from humble beginnings, later on established the Haier Group, which is known worldwide for its home appliances and consumer electronics products.
They are many more like them who were spawned by this golden era.
In Zimbabwe, the youth are leading the revolution and taking over in agriculture, energy, mining, manufacturing, et cetera, as the vanguard of a new era and a new economy.
Blessed are those who can read signs of the times.
Bishop out!
