Mugabe evokes spirit of Father Zimbabwe

PRESIDENT Mugabe evoked the spirit of his late deputy Joshua Nkomo as he called for unity in the party, saying it was one of the two fundamental principles the veteran nationalist urged him to uphold on his death bed.

Addressing party members at the One Million Man March at the Robert Mugabe Square in Harare recently, President Mugabe said the other principle the late Vice President wanted him to uphold was redistributing land to the landless majority.

He said the country has people of different ethnic backgrounds who should be treated the same and no one should feel superior over others on the basis that they belong to a certain tribe.

President Mugabe said this as he hailed the opening prayer by Bishop Trevor Manhanga centred on the need for party members to unite on the realisation that they're not enemies but members of a collective.

"I'm sure all of us should take heed that united, we always shall stand because the alternative is disastrous. If we're divided then we shall fall," he said.

President Mugabe said unity would always be the guiding principle in the organisation of the party.

"When I visited Nkomo in the days he was ill, he urged me to hold on to two principles which is unity of our people. That there shall not be persons who will say that because we are Zezurus, Manyikas, Karangas, Ndebeles, we must be treated differently. No! All of us are the same.

"We've the Vendas among us, the Tongas among us, and Kalangas among us so no tribe should boast of superiority over others. There is nothing like that, we say down with it. We fought for Zimbabwe for Zimbabweans. Nkomo said remain preaching the gospel of unity," said President Mugabe.

"The second principle was land to the people. The land must be never and never again get out of the control and ownership of our people, so land to the people."

President Mugabe said unity should come from the family set up to the community and regions.

"The government must show as it delivers its services that it's working for the people as a whole, working for a united people but finally as a nation we're united," he said.

President Mugabe acknowledged the calls by the youth to be allocated land, saying the leadership of the country was not opposed to their calls.

He said when the youths bring their resolutions to the party and government, they would be met with a positive response.

President Mugabe, however, noted that not everyone was capable of farming so some youths would be given land for housing.

He said all youths should aspire to have an education and engage in income-generating projects that would create employment.

Mugabe said every Zimbabwean regardless of party affiliation deserved to be given land as no one should be left complaining that they do not have land.

In the same light, President Mugabe said the government was committed to distributing food to cushion Zimbabweans from the effects of drought in a fair manner without regard to their party affiliation.

"We must serve everyone in the country. We don't want to say that because those are in opposition so we won't give them food, where do you think they will get that food?" he said.

President Mugabe said the food farmed in the country and that bought outside in times of drought should be distributed to all the people.