Mugabe urge Zanu-PF candidate for Nkulumane to campaign vigorously

PRESIDENT Robert Mugabe yesterday urged the Zanu-PF candidate for Nkulumane constituency Killian Sibanda to campaign vigorously in order to win the seat. Sibanda is representing the party in a by election set for December 19.

The President made the remarks soon after landing at the Joshua Mqabuko International Airport on his way to confer degrees at the National University of Science and Technology (Nust) graduation ceremony in Bulawayo.

After greeting senior government officials who included Bulawayo provincial affairs minister Eunice Nomthandazo Moyo, Economic Planning and Investment Promotion minister Simon Khaya Moyo, deputy minister for War Veterans, War Collaborators and Detainees Retired Colonel Tshinga Dube, President Mugabe was introduced to Sibanda.

"The President encouraged me to win the constituency and add another seat for our party," said Sibanda.

"This is a morale booster for me and the entire party in the province. We're going to work very hard to make sure that the party wins the seat."

In an interview on Thursday, Sibanda said Bulawayo province has been "orphaned" for the past 15 years.

The seat fell vacant following the death of MDC-T legislator Thamsanqa Mahlangu last month and Sibanda, who is confident of winning the seat, said Bulawayo residents have suffered from lack of proper representation for the past decade and a half.

If Sibanda wins the Nkulumane constituency the party will end the MDC-T's stranglehold of the province since 2000.

The party won five constituencies in the June 10 by-elections after MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai caused the expulsion of 21 rebel members of Parliament.

"Bulawayo has lagged behind in terms of development because of the opposition. All they did was going to Parliament with an opposition mentality and oppose everything being discussed there to the disadvantage of Bulawayo," Sibanda who is in the Zanu-PF Central Committee said on Thursday.

"These have been 15 wasted years and the people of Bulawayo have realised that they were being taken for a ride by the opposition. Now the opposition is in shambles after the Western regime change agenda they were fronting failed dismally."

The 58-year-old Sibanda said if he wins, he would work with the other five Zanu-PF legislators to raise the critical issues that the city's representatives have failed to for too long.

"Some of the most critical things affecting Bulawayo are de-industrialisation, water shortages and the long housing backlog among others. We'll work with the party, people and experts in coming up with solutions to problems affecting the city of Bulawayo and Matabeleland at large," he said.

"The ruling party led by President Mugabe cares about its people and now it will be easy to send issues affecting the people of Bulawayo because they will be represented by Zanu-PF the very party that forms the government. The MDC-T was there to serve a selfish agenda and never to carry the aspirations of the people."

Sibanda has a long political history. He was voted a PF- Zapu councillor in Redcliff Kwekwe after independence before moving to Bulawayo where he held a number of positions in the provincial executive including acting provincial chairperson and substantive chairperson.

He said the party has started campaigning in the constituency and expected large numbers to turn out on the day of the poll.

"We've set up a series of meetings, interacting with the people and encouraging them to go and vote. We will also address a number of rallies assisted by the senior leadership of the party," said Sibanda.

He said the party would then work hard to ensure delivery so that the party wins back the remaining four constituencies still in the hands of the MDC-T.

"Our performance between now and the 2018 elections will convince the rest of Bulawayo to come back to Zanu-PF. The people are tired of lagging behind in terms of development because they had placed their future in the wrong hands of the opposition."