Zanu PF regime has over 74 ministers, Zimbabwe needs around 16 ministers

MDC-T spokesperson Obert Gutu has said Zanu PF government has not less than 74 ministers in a small country that needs only not more than 16 ministers.

He said a new, democratic and progressive Zimbabwe Government should have a lean and efficient administration.

"The Zanu PF regime has no less than 74 Ministers but I'm pretty convinced that a country the size of Zimbabwe doesn't need a Cabinet of more than 16 Ministers. Government should be about public service and not personal enrichment and aggrandizement," Gutu said.

"There's also an urgent need to cut down on the size of our diplomatic missions. We currently have about 42 diplomatic missions but I strongly believe that this number is too huge and economically unsustainable to maintain. A new, democratic Zimbabwe Gvt should swiftly streamline and rationalize our diplomatic missions. Only those missions that are politically strategic and economically justifiable should remain open.The rest should simply be closed down."

He said currently, there are about 104 State - owned enterprises in Zimbabwe the majority of which are technically insolvent and poorly managed.

"We need to promptly undertake a thorough due diligence and shed off those parastatals that are a drain on the public fiscus. Of course, we should keep those State - owned enterprises that are strategic in ensuring the provision of affordable and easily accessible public utilities such as water and electricity. However, the management of these enterprises should be results based and meritocracy as opposed to patronage should be the guiding principle," he said.

"On land, a new, democratic Zimbabwe Gvt should capacitate resettled farmers by providing training facilities and easy access to funding. Multiple farm ownership should be thwarted and a land audit should flash out cellphone farmers and insist on equitable and sustainable land redistribution. We should deliberately and strictly enforce the "one person one farm" policy."

"We should also devise strategies for value addition for our agricultural and mineral products.Coupled with this should be the thrust to encourage and stimulate both domestic and foreign direct investment by formulating and implementing progressive and investor - friendly policies."

He said on this particular note, the indigenization laws have to be overhauled in order to provide for sustainable and meaningful interaction between local and foreign business ventures.