News / Regional
'Matabeleland people proud citizens'
18 Apr 2016 at 07:15hrs | Views
PEOPLE from Matabeleland region are not "cry-babies" but a generation of proud citizens, the Minister of State for Bulawayo Provincial Affairs, Nomthandazo Eunice Moyo, has said.
In a wide ranging interview ahead of today's independence celebrations, Moyo, a liberation war stalwart and Zanu-PF deputy secretary for women's affairs, said the behaviour of people in Matabeleland in relation to developmental issues was informed by their cultural values.
"Let me say to you I don't want to call them cry-babies. I'll say they're proud people who sometimes don't want to accept things that come easily," she said. "They'll always ask why? That's the type of people that Ndebeles are. They're always suspicious of little things that happen to them even if it's a good thing."
Moyo said the early 1980s political disturbances affected the development of the region and contributed to people's suspicious tendencies. "Sometimes you've to look at a lot of scenarios…the background of a people. Added to it is the civil strife which left some of our people with little hope and sometimes they've an 'I don't care' attitude," she said.
Moyo, however, urged people from Matabeleland to move forward and work towards improving the lives of their children. Opinion leaders and civic society groups from the region have consistently pointed to the slow pace of development evidenced by several key projects that have stalled for years due to lack of funding.
Prominent projects include the National Matabeleland Zambezi Water Project and the delayed re-opening of Ekusileni Medical Centre, a brain child of the late Father Zimbabwe Joshua Nkomo.
The region has also sought prioritisation of key infrastructure projects such as the upgrading of deplorable major roads such as the Bulawayo-Nkayi, Bulawayo-Tsholotsho and Bulawayo-Kezi Roads which have been neglected for nearly two decades.
Lack of such infrastructure has been blamed for road accidents and failure to attract investors who need a good communication network.
Other projects include delays in the completion of government projects in Lupane, the provincial capital of Matabeleland North province. While it has been granted town status, Lupane still does not have a provincial hospital and the government complex is yet to be completed. Civil servants accommodation is also not sufficient.
There have also been concerns on lack of adequate education facilities and personnel as evidenced by the poor performance of schools in the region.
In a wide ranging interview ahead of today's independence celebrations, Moyo, a liberation war stalwart and Zanu-PF deputy secretary for women's affairs, said the behaviour of people in Matabeleland in relation to developmental issues was informed by their cultural values.
"Let me say to you I don't want to call them cry-babies. I'll say they're proud people who sometimes don't want to accept things that come easily," she said. "They'll always ask why? That's the type of people that Ndebeles are. They're always suspicious of little things that happen to them even if it's a good thing."
Moyo said the early 1980s political disturbances affected the development of the region and contributed to people's suspicious tendencies. "Sometimes you've to look at a lot of scenarios…the background of a people. Added to it is the civil strife which left some of our people with little hope and sometimes they've an 'I don't care' attitude," she said.
Moyo, however, urged people from Matabeleland to move forward and work towards improving the lives of their children. Opinion leaders and civic society groups from the region have consistently pointed to the slow pace of development evidenced by several key projects that have stalled for years due to lack of funding.
Prominent projects include the National Matabeleland Zambezi Water Project and the delayed re-opening of Ekusileni Medical Centre, a brain child of the late Father Zimbabwe Joshua Nkomo.
The region has also sought prioritisation of key infrastructure projects such as the upgrading of deplorable major roads such as the Bulawayo-Nkayi, Bulawayo-Tsholotsho and Bulawayo-Kezi Roads which have been neglected for nearly two decades.
Lack of such infrastructure has been blamed for road accidents and failure to attract investors who need a good communication network.
Other projects include delays in the completion of government projects in Lupane, the provincial capital of Matabeleland North province. While it has been granted town status, Lupane still does not have a provincial hospital and the government complex is yet to be completed. Civil servants accommodation is also not sufficient.
There have also been concerns on lack of adequate education facilities and personnel as evidenced by the poor performance of schools in the region.
Source - chronicle
