PM threatens another land revolution

PM threatens another land revolution

http://www.herald.co.zw/

Saturday, 17 November 2012 00:19

Takunda Maodza in BUHERA
MDC-T leader Mr Morgan Tsvangirai has threatened another land revolu­tion

unless Govern­ment revises the current land tenure system that distributed 
land from a few white farmers to hun­dreds of thousands of black families.
In his remarks during a tour of the drip irrigation system he installed at 
his homestead in Humanikwa Village in Buhera West yesterday, Mr Tsvangi­rai 
said the challenge in Zim­babwe was not about land shortage, but the tenure 
system.
“We had the land reform. Some peo­ple were injured while others were killed. 
It was a violent programme. The concept (drip irrigation system) here is 
that we can use a very small piece of land and produce enough to feed 
our­selves and even for export.
“We have lots of land in this coun­try. We can even donate some of it to the 
Mozambicans and Zambians.
“The challenge is that we are using ancient methods of farming and the 
current land reform exercise will cause another land revolution unless we 
change the method of land tenure,” he said.

Mr Tsvangirai, whose party is on record promising to return land to white 
former farmers, did not elabo­rate on what he meant by ‘‘another land 
revolution’’.
The land issue was also the basis of a protracted liberation war. The field 
day at Mr Tsvangirai’s homestead drew diplomats from the United States of 
America, Britain and other Euro­pean countries. The Japanese Ambassador was 
also present.
Mr Tsvangirai condemned Govern­ment’s farm input support scheme say­ing it 
was high time com­munal farm­ers sourced their own seed and fer­tiliser.
He said previous efforts by Govern­ment to assist farmers had not 
trans­lated into bumper harvests.
“We gave you inputs before and nothing came out of it. Until when should 
Government continue spoon feeding you?
“We must give you fishing rods, not fish. The challenge we have is not about 
land ownership but productiv­ity,” Mr Tsvangirai said.
Ironically, a few minutes later, Mr Tsvangirai donated 10kg seed maize and 
25kg of fertiliser packs per house­hold to villagers who attended the event.
His remarks contradicted those of his deputy agriculture Minister Seiso Moyo 
who blamed the poor harvest the nation experienced on the effects of climate 
change.
Addressing the same gathering, Deputy Minister Moyo said: “Over the years 
Government has committed more resources to agriculture but it has not been 
matched by increasing yields.
“We are not seeing increased har­vests because of climate change which is 
affecting harvest leading to food insecurity in most households throughout 
the country.”
He said the Ministry of Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation 
Devel­opment was putting in place measures designed to ensure food security 
and these included consideration for drip irrigation.
“Our greatest challenge therefore Mr Prime Minister as a Government is how 
we can promote this system (drip irrigation) to cover the whole country. 
This technology can trans­form the agriculture sector in Zim­babwe,” deputy 
minister Moyo said.
Meanwhile some women in Buhera are up in arms with Mr Tsvangirai whom they 
accused of abusing his powers to exploit defenceless females.
The elderly women in Buhera have voiced their dismay over Mr Tsvangi­rai’s 
bed hopping attitude which has seen him fighting court battles with many 
women whom he dumped after either impregnating them or making false 
promises.
According to ZTV news the Buhera women say women from across the country 
should join hands and dis­own Mr Tsvangirai for his misdeeds.
“Is that democracy when a woman’s dignity is destroyed by Tsvangirai? We are 
tired of the Prime Minister’s antics of humiliating women,” said one 
eld­erly woman in Humanikwa Village where Tsvangirai hails from.
“How can we say we have a Prime Minister when all he does is sleep with any 
woman he can lay his hands on? Women should unite against this male 
chauvinist,” said another villager in the area.
The sentiments by the Buhera women follow Mr Tsvangirai’s sex escapades 
which have seen him dat­ing, impregnating and divorcing sev­eral women since 
the death of his wife Susan in a car accident in 2009