Zanu-PF points fingers elsewhere in the face of failure

ZANU-PF'S 2013 election campaign manifesto which focuses on indigenisation and empowerment was launched on Friday but the theme appears to centre on the same old issues at the core of the party's campaigns in the past few elections.

The manifesto also outlines several threats which it says stand in the way of achieving its 22 goals.

These include Western sanctions which the party says are a threat to national security. The party claims that sanctions have cost the country US$42 billion.

"The cost of sanctions in terms of their negative contribution to political tensions and polarisation of views in the country, economic decline, the deterioration of physical and social infrastructure, poverty and unemployment are incalculable," the document says.

Zanu-PF also identifies what it calls "treachery" by over 3 000 non-governmental organisations and religious groups which regularly organise peace prayer meetings,  accusing them of embarking on a "Regime Change" agenda.

"Particularly egregious in this regard is the fact that over the last four years during the life of the GPA government, some US$2,6 billion has been poured into these NGOs to support nefarious activities that have been camouflaged by sanitised language of humanitarian and development assistance to cover up sinister regime change intentions," reads the manifesto.

"The US$2,6 billion has been disbursed via opaque parallel budgeted channels that are not accountable and which have been used to damage national accounts and Treasury process."

Zanu-PF also identifies donor support to the education and health sectors as a threat to its goals. It accuses donors of pouring funds to the Ministry of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture and that of Health and Child Welfare headed by Henry Madzorera because they were controlled by former opposition officials.

The party accused Education minister, David Coltart of running a parallel structure called the Education Transition Fund (ETF) which it says has received over US$200 million since 2009.

The manifesto says the ETF has been used to bribe and corrupt headmasters, teachers, and provincial and district education officials, some of whom it claims, were now hostile to Zanu-PF and openly supporting MDC.

But despite the claims, evidence on the ground shows that both the health and education sectors stabilised under the leadership of Madzorera and Coltart respectively. Since they took over after the near-collapse of the health and education sectors, hospitals have been restocked with drugs, equipment and qualified staff, while schools now have teachers, books and children have gone back to school.

The Zanu-PF manifesto says for the past four years, the country witnessed a sharp and worrisome rise of reports and incidents of corruption in the public, private, professionals, NGO's and religious sectors, including local authorities.

But the document does not mention allegations of rampant corruption by Zanu-PF officials which prompted the Zimbabwe Anti-corruption Commission to investigate some bigwigs and certain government departments.

The anti-corruption watchdog was blocked by Zanu-PF from arresting suspects and making further investigations.

Even President Robert Mugabe at Zanu-PF's annual national people's conference held in Gweru last year admitted that some from his inner circles, including cabinet ministers, were corrupt to the core, warning that they faced arrest.

However, no action has been taken against them over six months after the threat.