Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa

Nduduzo Tshuma Political Editor—
THE maize bought from Zambia for distribution to different parts of the country affected by drought, has been delivered to Bulawayo, Acting President Emmerson Mnangagwa said yesterday. Speaking at a briefing with government officials from various departments, service chiefs and traditional leaders at Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo Polytechnic College in Gwanda where he had come for a constitutional advocacy meeting, acting President Mnangagwa reiterated President Mugabe’s assurance that no one will starve. The constitutional advocacy meeting in Matabeleland South yesterday was the sixth after similar meetings were held in Mashonaland West, East, Manicaland, Masvingo and Matabeleland North.

Cde Mangangwa was accompanied by the Minister of State in his office, Cde Clifford Sibanda, Minister of Presidential Affairs, Policy Co-ordination and Promotion of Socio-economic Ventures in the Office of the President, Cde Simon Khaya Moyo, Minister of Rural Development Preservation and Promotion of Culture and Heritage Cde Abednicho Ncube and permanent secretary in the Ministry of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs, Virginia Mabhiza, among other senior government officials.

The acting President said the government would distribute the maize according to demand. “The President himself has said as a party and as a government, we shall not allow anyone to die from hunger but the burden of identifying families or areas that are hard hit, families which should be given priority to receive food cannot be known by me at headquarters,” he said.

“We’ve structures at the ground level from the government side, we’ve village committees, ward, district, province, that chain should send information.” Cde Mnangagwa said the ruling Zanu-PF party also has established structures to relay the information while churches and civic society could also assist with the required information.

“For instance I’m aware and I think my colleague here Cde SK Moyo knows that all the maize that we bought in Zambia is in Bulawayo, it has all come but it will require the leadership in Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South and Bulawayo to identify critical areas that have been affected by drought.

“We also have strategic grain reserves and again we need information on food requirements,” he said. Cde Mangangwa said some provinces registered good harvests and some of the grain from these provinces should be moved to needy areas. Turning to the vacant post in Matabeleland South, Cde Mnangagwa said a new minister for Provincial Affairs to replace Cde Ncube will be announced soon. He said the new minister’s immediate task will be to finish the process of acquiring farms to provide land for the people.

Cde Mnanagwa said the government’s position was that the process of acquiring land in the province was not complete. He said Agriculture Mechanisation and Irrigation Development Minister Joseph Made was in Brazil to make sure that the remainder of the first phase of the tractors secured by President Mugabe in a $98 million facility with that country, are delivered to the country for distribution to communal and A1 farms.

He said there would be a second and third phase of distribution to ensure all farmers are empowered. “We must empower our people in agriculture because the first task is to make sure that we have adequate food in the country. “We don’t need to import but instead spend money on paying our own farmers,” said Cde Mnangagwa. To empower our farmers besides equipment for farming and irrigation, we need equipment for construction of numerous dams of various sizes. It was for that reason that I was sent to Belarus. We’re bringing equipment so that every rural district has enough equipment to construct dams in each district.”

In addition, Acting President Mnangagwa said, the mega deals signed between Zimbabwe and China covering infrastructural development, energy and agriculture among other key economic drivers were expected to start showing fruition in the next 18 to 24 months. Acting President Mnangagwa, who chairs the resource mobilisation committee critical in the growth and recovery of the economy, said the committee has been split into two, one in charge of external resource mobilisation chaired by Cde Khaya Moyo and external resource mobilisation chaired by Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa.

He said Cde Khaya Moyo’s identifies three levels of foreign direct investment in the country, namely short, medium and long term while Cde Chinamasa’s deals with measures to grow the country’s institutions. “There has been lethargy in the systems so we’re weeding out corruption, we don’t have mercy there. Down with corruption because this affects all machinery of government as well as the private sector,” he said.