via It’s the economy, stupid – DailyNews Live 13 August 2014 by John Kachembere
HARARE – Americans have a saying “it’s the economy, stupid” to rein in politicians and leaders of ruling political parties whenever they try to divert people’s attention from real bread and butter issues to other peripheral issues like war, homeland security, attacks on foreign governments as well as other theatrics which show that a ruling party is now clueless when it comes to what really matters to the people.
In case Zanu PF has forgotten its promises to the people of Zimbabwe, we will remind them:
It’s about 2 million jobs; It’s about factories working overtime; It’s about the availability of affordable transport; It’s about law and order; It’s about investment; It’s about adequate and affordable food; It’s about working infrastructure; It’s about working hospitals and schools; It’s about well and timeously paid civil servants: teachers, soldiers, policemen, nurses and game ranchers.
It’s about a well-resourced Parliament, Executive and Judiciary. (We know the Executive caters well for itself judging by the cars they drive and lengths to which they go to borrow money to look after themselves)!
It’s about agricultural and mining productivity;
It’s about indigenisation and empowerment (this needs to be done properly not the one-size-fits-all propagated by Savior Kasukuwere when he was minister of Indigenisation.
It’s about Chinamasa’s 6,1 percent economic growth projections and it’s about governance.
In other words, it’s about the economy, stupid!
It is not about side issues and theatrics about self-engineered kidnappings among the party’s women;
It’s not about midnight meetings by bigwigs buying youth and women’s votes;
It’s not about who will or will not lead youths or women. It’s about bread and butter issues, period. It’s about ZimAsset! Where is it?
It’s not about Impi;
It’s not about Baba or Amai Jukwa. It’s not about WikiLeaks. Nobody eats those things… It’s about the economy, stupid. Sort out the economy and the rest will fall into place.
So Zanu PF, please, deliver on your promises or else you will confirm the accusation of propelling yourselves into power through intentional, deliberate and fraudulent misrepresentation!
Let’s eat bread not conspiracy theories! The same anger and urgency with which we saw President Robert Mugabe attending to the food requirements of the Zanu PF youth league conference is the same anger, energy and swiftness with which Zimbabweans expect him and his ruling party to attend to the widespread economic issues bedevilling the country so that swiftly, people can eat and be happy, the same way the youths were fed!
We are sure that the same mistake (of lack of food) will not be repeated at the women’s conference starting tomorrow. Let’s see the economy receiving the same attention.
Mines minister, Walter Chidhakwa recently reported gold production is down by 26 percent. Diamond mining is in trouble and so is platinum. Agriculture did not do very well except tobacco. Maize, soya, wheat and other cereals were down on required national volumes and we ask the question: is this ZimAsset?
It’s about adequate power, fuel and affordable electricity.
It’s about Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra) boss Gershom Pasi collecting adequate taxes through appropriate and normal means.
It’s not about increasing toll gates and toll fees.
It’s not about fixing each other in dog-eat-dog factional fights… What is there to fight for when there is no economy to talk about?
It’s not about the state of affairs we see at Chingwizi refugee camp.
It’s not about city of Harare buying luxury cars from borrowed money for water and sewage.
It’s not about destroying governance at Chitungwiza Town Council or maybe since its name rhymes with Chingwizi refugee camp. We want to reduce Chitungwiza to Chingwizi for they are soon going to look the same judging by the sewerage disaster there!
We are certain that if our president was to visit Chitungwiza and Chingwizi the same day, those in Cabinet responsible for the suffering and human rights degradation of the people would be asked to go…!
COMMENTS
The problem with the current crop is that for them the war never ended. They remain in war mode. For them it is not about the economy . For them it is about destroying anyone or anything that does not tow the line or agree with you . They walk around with tunnel vision and cannot see what is taking place at their sides. They look in their houses and only see their wealth. I can remember the squatter problem at Bulawayo railway avenue that was left there for years and years. People living in plastic shacks urinating and human excretion all over and they done nothing about it. That was a Zanu council during that time.The place was only cleared up when Mugabe visited the NRZ.
And its all about throwing zpf zanoids to the snake pit to be devoured. Then we will redistribute their I’ll gotten wealth. A shameful legacy from 1979 whore vets for 35 years
The ZANU’s can only talk nonsense. There is zero possibility of them fixing the economy, now or at any time in the future.
As we see in Zimbabwe as in many other countries it is far easier to destroy than build. During the war the vets only knew destruction. We see that in many of the conflicts today. Somalia comes to mind where the women and children are sent to the UN refugee camps while the men run around killing and stealing instead of farming and growing crops. This too was the basis of zanupf running around and killing and destroying. Now they have driven off the producers and builders they have spent 34 years destroying. It is after all all that they know. Soon they will turn on their own as is their nature. The economy was built buy “builders of society” so to speak zanupf have driven them off. You can blame the economy all you like but engrained in the many Zimbabweans now remaining in the country is the psychi of steal destroy and destruction. That is the modes operandi of the green bombers. We will have to swipe the slate clean before Zimbabwe will progress and that isn’t going to happen soon.
Right, so we all accept that ZPF is not capable of fixing the economy, let alone the country. We also all know that we cannot get them out of power through a political process. So how do we proceed? We either accept it or we do something about it – as a collective group of citizens who have had enough. It wont be pretty or easy, but it is now the only way
Yawn….at some stage the talkfest has to stop.
The fate of dictators is always the same don’t these idiots learn
War causes chaos. Peace causes order. There are people who thrive in chaos and as such find it difficult to compete under peaceful conditions. Conversely, there are people who thrive in peaceful conditions, and as such find it difficult to compete under chaotic conditions.
The former, usually are a primitive, unsophisticated and inherently dishonest lot – corruption and violence are second nature to them.
The latter are usually highly educated; hard working; professional and innovative go-getters. Merit, law and order are second nature to them.
So, any wonder; those who thrive in chaos, will always create conditions for war?
After the imperialist Romans left Britain, the country fell apart just as Zimbabwe is doing. It soon split into regions ruled by warlords.
It was several centuries before the economy recovered to what it had been under Roman rule.
Expect the same in Zimbabwe.
But the state is not to provide workplaces or ensure welfare. It must guarantee justice and security. People create welfare not country.
From day one in 1980 this lot made self-serving political decisions that had huge economic implications and it continues to this day. Let’s not expect them to put our interests first because keeping the majority in poverty suits their agenda of keeping the population in subjection. They do not want a thinking middle class who will hold them to account. Unless we act we will just have to wait until they implode.