Source: Zhuwao defends Youth Fund defaulters | The Herald May 19, 2017
Talent Hwari Herald Reporter
Youth Development, Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Minister Patrick Zhuwao has defended youths accused of unprocedurally receiving loans from the Youth Fund launched by Government to help youths start small businesses. Addressing journalists after chairing a young entrepreneurs meeting at Stodart Hall in Mbare on Wednesday, Minister Zhuwao said it was ridiculous for people to accuse the youths of squandering “small funds”, while ignoring big companies that failed to payback Government funds.
“I don’t agree with the reports and allegations that the youths have abused funds,” he said.
“We forget what happened to other large companies which were removed from the Zimbabwe Asset Management Corporation (ZAMCO) due to unpaid debts they had.”
ZAMCO was created by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe as a special purpose vehicle to house the banking sector, non-performing loans (NPL) and uses a combination of strategies to fund NPLs acquisition, including Government Treasury Bills and loans from foreign funders.
Minister Zhuwao said there were Members of Parliament who also had a $3 million unpaid debt who were now accusing youths of having abused the funds, “a small amount of money compared to theirs”.
“There are Members of Parliament who have $3 million debts, who now point fingers at youths who only have $2 000, which is a bad thing,” he said.
“Instead, let us focus on strategies to empower the youths and grow the economy.”
The parliamentary portfolio committee on Youth Development has been on a countrywide tour in the last few days to assess the use of funds obtained from the Youth Fund.
In all the areas the committee visited, it discovered that the funds were abused and in most cases there were no projects being implemented by the beneficiaries.
The Youth Fund was launched by Government in 2011 from a $10 million revolving facility supported by Old Mutual, targeting youth aged between 18 and 35.
Minister Zhuwao is accused of having directed the Zimbabwe Youth Council (ZYC) to pay $18 000 to a company involving the former ZYC board member William Mutumanje alias Acie Lumumba, presumably as consultation fees for organising a workshop to discuss youth empowerment strategies.
COMMENTS
So, in Gushungo-land an offense is no longer any offence as long as one can point fingers to others who have committed what s/he considers to be bigger crimes than themselves, nhayi? Saka, kan Zhuwao akadhakwa mbanje dzake akasarudza kufamba achibhiya vanhu anongonobuda dhisichagi kana akaende kuCourt ka? His argument will be very simple, Zhuwao anongoti: “Ndisiyeyi, ini ndakango bhinya chete (I only raped). Handina munhu wandakauraya. Saka hadina mhiswa becoz muno muZanu pf medu makazara mhondi dzakita saana Mwale, ndinovuraya vanhu dzichitogo kunge mbeva dzisingasungwi”. Guess what? Judge wezanu pf anobva angoiti ishuwa iyoyo – hauna mhosva – go home Mr Zhuwao & continue with your activities. nxaaaaaaa!
Here we have clear cases of ZANU PF youth being given taxpayers hard earned monies for free to start up business enterprises and for reasons best known to them, they have squandered the money…and no doubt are already angling for more.
Now along comes Minister Patrick Zhuwao and for buttering up reasons sides with these youths. He then tries to divert attention away from their criminal waste by pointing his fingers at others who have been given Government money, and perhaps did not make the best use of it.
Where is the sense in that? As he himself said, do two wrongs make a right? He certainly wasn’t wearing his Youth Development hat at that moment. Or perhaps he was sharing a twist of the green weed with them at that very time?
Everyone would have expected a Youth Development, Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Government Minister to have had more sense than that. But he being a ZANU PF Government Minister, and the favourite nephew of the world’s worst waster of State resources, our expectations of him were misplaced.