President Mnangagwa lays a wreath at the grave of the late Mr Pheneas Tagwirei in Shurugwi yesterday

From Freedom Mupanedemo in Shurugwi
ZIMBABWE is on track to regain its bread basket for Southern Africa status under Command Agriculture which is proving to be a success and major driver of the country’s economic growth, President Emmerson Mnangagwa  said yesterday.

Speaking during the burial of Mr Pheneas Tagwirei, father to Sakunda Holdings director Mr Kudakwashe Tagwirei at the Tagwirei homestead in Shurugwi, President Mnangagwa said the country kissed goodbye to years of droughts after Government partnered Sakunda Holdings to embark on Command Agriculture which was bearing fruits.

“As the country continues to face persistent years of droughts, we sat as Government and said we are a blessed country tucked between Zambezi and Limpopo rivers so why droughts?

“We then thought of Command Agriculture and together with our partners Sakunda Holdings, the country is doing well in food security,” said the President.

He thanked Mr Tagwirei for assisting Government through funding Command Agriculture which he said had   impacted positively on the economy.

President Mnangagwa said Sakunda Holdings’ contribution to agricultural production was huge hence the Government was mourning together with the company director on his loss following the death of his father.

“He (Mr Tagwirei) is my nephew so is the deceased but we are here as Government mourning the loss because of the contribution that the Tagwirei family is making to our economy. Yes we must mourn and curse death but we must also celebrate life and the good work that this family is doing for the country,” he said.

President Mnangagwa said Zimbabwe was an agrarian economy which was now utilising land — a major resource — to fight drought.

He said Zimbabwe under Command Agriculture has mastered the art of farming and droughts will now be a thing of the past.

“We now know how many hectares of land to plant for us to have enough food to feed the country. We now know how many hectares to be put under irrigation for us to harvest enough and even surplus for export.

“This is all because of the expertise that we gathered under Command Agriculture so we no longer have problems with droughts as was the case in the past,” he said.

The President reiterated the need for unity among Zimbabweans saying unity conquers everything.

He said people should shun hate speech and learn to accommodate each other.

“Every time I get a platform to address a gathering, I preach peace and unity especially in our party Zanu-PF. I have heard some peddling hate speech at their gatherings but I say unto them let that demonic spirit leave them.

“Let there be peace,” said the President.

Consoling the Tagwirei family, Cde Mnangagwa said the bereaved family should find solace in the huge numbers of mourners who attended the burial which he said was testimony of the good work that the Tagwirei family was doing for the country.

“Some people are known for their bad deeds but some like the late Sekuru Tagwirei are known for the good deeds as evidenced by the huge number of people who have come to mourn with you.

“You must find solace in that,” he said.

Speaking at the same gathering, Mr Tagwirei thanked Government and the President for making time to mourn with the Tagwirei family despite the busy schedule.

He reiterated the President’s call for unity saying everything done with common purpose as was the case with Command Agriculture was bound to succeed.

“We have different gifts and we complement each other for us to succeed as what we are doing with Command Agriculture,” he said.