Gukurahundi engagements solidify Unity Accord… Regional development projects testimony of political sincerity

 

Rutendo Nyeve, Sunday News Reporter

 THE Second Republic has made fulsome strides in fostering national unity and inclusivity through engaging communities that were affected by Gukurahundi as it solidifies the Unity Accord with infrastructure development projects that leaves no-one and no place behind, a senior ruling party official has said.

Speaking to Sunday News ahead of the national celebration of the signing of the Unity Day on Thursday, Zanu -PF Secretary for Information and Publicity in the Politburo, Ambassador Christopher Mutsvangwa said President Mnangagwa’s Government had demonstrated an unflinching desire to unite the people of Zimbabwe through a continued process of engagement with Gukurahundi affected communities.

The country on Thursday celebrates 35 years since the signing of the Unity Accord on 22 December 1987.

“The opening of the Gukurahundi historical chapter for deliberations with affected communities at all levels is a major milestone ahead of the Unity Day commemorations.  As we approach this sacred day of 22 December 2022, we are gladdened by the spirited engagement of victims of the sad historical chapter,” he said.

Ambassador Mutsvangwa said it was gratifying that President Mnangagwa and his Second Republic had reached out to both traditional chiefs and grassroots populace of Matabeleland and Midlands that suffered most during the Gukurahundi counter insurgency operations.

He noted that prior to the coming in the Second Republic and for decades, the Gukurahundi issue was treated as a taboo subject.

“Thus, a subject once taboo has been thrown open to debate and candid introspection,” said Ambassador Mutsvangwa.

He said President Mnangagwa was taking from an old adage where unity in a family was the indispensable pillar of welfare, safety and success.

“A nation is an amalgam of numerous families. It is the building block of nationhood. A nation amplifies the virtues alluded as it interacts in the comity of the nations under the ambit of the United Nations.

 

“A well-knit and united nation provides the best opportunities to develop, prosper and all the way to eternal survival and continuity. A divided nation breeds vulnerabilities and unfailingly tempts predatory external powers to prey upon it,” said Ambassador Mutsvangwa.

He says the President Mnangagwa has not only engaged victims of Gukurahundi but we have also seen his governance of the country being heralded by visits to Matabeleland and Midlands as he leads the drive for a fulsome national inclusiveness in fulfilment of the mantra ‘living no one and no place behind.’

He noted that the Southern Region has also benefitted from the Second Republic’s concrete commitment towards official funding of major projects that address inadequacy of enablers of national development.

He highlighted some of these projects that bear testimony of the Second Republic’s inclusivity in development.

“The construction of the Lake Gwayi-Shangani is proceeding with speed. Bulawayo’s perennial water woes will be addressed. Water offtake along the length of the pipeline will spawn a greenbelt of climate change defiant agriculture.

“The Hwange coalfields are leading the rooster in inward foreign direct investment. Giant turbines are set to be commissioned as capital strives to provide the nation with much needed and reliable energy. This is happening as coke oven batteries churn out metallurgy coke from our high-octane coal reserves.

“Tourism has shrugged of two years of Covid-19 to see Victoria Falls airport receive hordes of discerning tourist travelers,” said Ambassador Mutsvangwa.

He added that the newly established Victoria Falls Stock Exchange is graduating to be a player of note in raising capital with a focus on the country’s rich endowment of most sought-after mining ore.

He said the Limpopo Valley was also rapidly expanding with citrus production with an eye set on the lucrative Middle East as well the growing Chinese middle class.

“Clearly and confidently, President Mnangagwa is walking the talk on national reconciliation with palpable deliveries. He is yanking away the tool of divide and rule from foreign detractors and their hare-brained irridentists. With such visionary national leadership Zimbabwe is poised to be the break out nation of the African continent as it seeks its rightful pedestal on the global stage,” said Ambassador Mutsvangwa.

He implored the nation to avoid past missteps as it charts a bright future for posterity. @nyeve14