Source: ‘Civil servants need national pledge’ | The Herald May 6, 2016
Herald Reporters
A programme similar to the recently introduced national pledge in schools should be developed for civil servants so that they become patriotic and service oriented, Home Affairs Deputy Minister Cde Obedingwa Mguni said yesterday.
He said the mindset of some civil servants had been poisoned by the 2008 economic hardships and needed to be socially re-engineered.
“After that 2008 saga we see that some people within the Government sector — their mindset — is no longer on serving, but on how much they get from a transaction. Patriotism is gone,” he said.
“It must be revived. Maybe something like what the children are reciting needs to be designed. The national pledge should not only be a song, but should infuse a sense of patriotism among our people.”
He said national pledge was also a corruption fighting tool as it would start moulding people from the grassroots.
“The national pledge like the national youth service, is a corruption fighting tool that also builds patriotism. There are some people who perpetuate corruption to render the country ungovernable,” he said.
He said developed countries anchored their success on a patriotic citizenry that appreciated the value of service to one’s country.
Cde Mguni said some civil servants were creating red tape to coerce people into paying for a service that should offered for free.
“National pledge is done to show that you pledge loyalty to your country and that you are committed to offer quality service to the citizenry,” he said.
A teacher at Chemagamba High School in Chinhoyi, said the national pledge was good as it infused discipline and focus on children.
“Some people oppose an idea for the sake of it but in my view there is nothing wrong at all with the national pledge because it will give us people who are prepared to work for their country in future,” said the teacher who preferred anonymity for professional reasons.
However, others said sections of the national pledge violated their religious beliefs and opposed the idea of saluting the flag.
Government introduced national pledge in schools this term and was launched in learning institutions nationwide.
Teachers in Beitbridge also expressed mixed feeling feelings over the introductions of the national pledge in schools.
A teacher at Vhembe High School in the border town said the national pledge would help enlighten children who were future leaders on the ethos and values of being a true and patriotic Zimbabwean.
“We started implementing the pledge in the first term this year and I don’t see anything wrong with encouraging children about the founding values of Zimbabwe and to be proud of their identity. Actually its (national pledge) introduction was long overdue,” said the teacher.
Another teacher at St Mary’s Secondary said the pledge would instil a sense of pride in the children.
A teacher at a school in Masvingo who declined to be named said some teachers, parents and guardians who made noise on the national pledge needed counselling.
“Why are they complaining about this pledge, children memorise and recite poems, songs, prayers as part of learning. They will make better choices when they grow up.”
Some teachers in Mutare said the current noise being raised against the recently launched national pledge was a direct result of the failure by the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education to consult all stakeholders.
The Zimbabwe Rural Teachers Union president, Mr Martin Chaburumunda, said although they were in full support of the pledge, they differed and opposed the way it was introduced.
“Right now most teachers are not well versed with the pledge and you appear a fool in front of the pupils you are supposed to lead in the recitation. If they had consulted other stakeholders, there will be no noise.
“As a union, we feel that it was not proper to introduce the national pledge to the people via a Press conference. When we changed our National Anthem from Ishe Komborerai Africa to the current one every Zimbabwean was given an opportunity to compose his or her own and it was so exciting and up to now everyone is proud of that anthem.”
COMMENTS
RUBbish stupid insane
Cde Mguni said: “….. developed countries anchored their success on a patriotic citizenry that appreciated the value of service to one’s country. ….”
Big question is: Why didn’t this clowning Mguni tell us whether or not the leadership of his so-called “developed countries ” associate themself with Mafia gangsters, looters, externalization of national resources, unaccounted expenditure of State resources, shunning of their own countries’ socio-economic facilities (such as hospitals, schools, toilets, etc …) to an extent that they don’t only find it fit to go and have a normal birth in some exotic destination but even better still for them to go and urinate and puff in those countries, and many other unpatriotic antics as always demonstrated by Zim leadership ?
Mugabe, his family, and cronies can not even peee in Zimbabwe. They take a plane (at national expense, of course) simply to go urinate & pee in Dubai, Singapore,. Chaina, etc.
Is the First Family really not the one that needs this newly invented, endocrinating, and clownish national anthem or whatever it’s stupid name
If you guys don’t have good ideas to revive the economy, get out of politics. Even if people were to recite the pledge whar is there to be put on the table. I hear more paper money is coming in, IS is pro[posing to build schools, Christianity is at the brink of being abolished, 90% of companies have been closed. , 90 % of roads have pot-holes, the railway system is functioning at about 30% capacity. I can go on and on and here is somebody talking about reciting a pledge. Give me a break and come up with some ideas please. We have better brains than that. Under Smith we had better stuff although we did not have equal rights. Now we are supposed to be independent, but are not the same. A real Animal Farm.
WHAT UTTER RUBBISH!
What a load of bull!
Imagine this generation of thieves teaching youths and teachers moral standards, what a joke!
I, Shona teacher by the grace of Grace, do solemnly pledge:
* to allow theft if the victims are not Shona.
* to vote for Mugarbage
* to allow ZANU to plunder and abuse
* not to let common decency hamper black racism.
* to use mugabonds as toilet paper in the near future, may God and Gono be my witness.