Let's make real money and not 'miracle money'

I recently heard of a new phenomenon in Zimbabwe, a pastor is said to be able to make "miracle money". This money suddenly appears in bank accounts and even inside a handbag, wallet or pocket. Where it comes from or whether it is legal tender printed by some Reserve Bank somewhere is not known.

I am not going to attack or defend what is happening here, or ask whether or not this is a valid miracle. I would like to interrogate this issue at a higher level; namely how can we in a more sustainable manner ensure that people have money in their bank accounts, handbags and pockets?

This is the real issue, and this is the reason people are going in their thousands to such meetings, they want money and it seems this pastor has found a way to just make it come from nothing, ex nihilo in Latin.

I do not know how to make money come from nothing, perhaps others can do that, but I would like to ask the question how it is that we are so poor as to need money to come from nothing?

The truth is that Africans ought to be the richest people in the world. Africa is rich, but Africans are poor, this is the African Enigma.

The whole world comes to Africa to get rich. The Belgian King Leopold convened a conference from 1884-5 at which European nations were apportioned countries in Africa and thereby became rich through the exploitation of resources.

America became rich through African mineral exploitation and the labour of African slaves.

Today China is in Africa because of the vast wealth in the continent.

Many African leaders have taken advantage of privileged positions and become rich through corrupt means, but others through ingenuity have made the most of what we have and become rich through the work of their hands.

It has been encouraging to see a few of our own businessmen and women successfully establish and run businesses that have employed thousands, hundreds or even tens. These business people have put real money in people's hands.

They have created employment, enabled many to have food on their tables, and some to drive cars and to own houses.

Through their creativity they have created wealth from cellphones, the Internet, banking, tourism, trading, running hotels, managing shops and the like.

Our businesspeople are very entrepreneurial, creative and enterprising, making it possible for many to live.  When resources both natural and human are maximised, resource wealth translates into money in the hands of people. People's lives are enriched, they are embellished.

The picture at macro-economic level is not so encouraging. Our mining and farms have not produced what they could have for the population.

Our financial controls and fiscal policies at that level are weak, creating porous national economies that leak money at considerable levels. Our people instead of being helped by those in power are impoverished.

President Mugabe has spoken strongly against corruption, he is to be applauded for that, but it remains to be seen just how much bite there is behind the bark.

It would be good to see some accountability exercised at high levels.  It is not known how much those in high office are benefiting from the kleptocratic situation in our country.

A kleptocracy is a government characterised by rampant greed and corruption, it is the state in which those in power exploit national resources and steal. It is also understood as the rule by a thief or thieves.

Another definition terms it government by those who seek chiefly status and personal gain at the expense of the governed. This kleptocratic situation will make economies dysfunctional; perhaps that is what needs to be fixed in order for the nation to benefit from its resources.

Botswana is an example of an African country that has run its economy well. Botswana has only one product of worth on which the economy is built - diamonds - and yet the country is run like no other in Africa.

It has had the highest average economic growth rate in the world for some years and it is the only African country that not only has no debt, but actually loans money to the IMF.  They have enough in reserve to fund the education of every Tswana child up to university level.

When our farming which was some of the best in Africa collapsed, we discovered the biggest known deposit of diamonds in the world.

If the deposits of diamond, platinum, gold, coal, chrome, iron and possibly uranium, and only God knows what other minerals there are, were well managed we could easily do what Botswana is doing and better.

There is no reason why people in Zimbabwe or even Botswana or most African countries should struggle to the extent of desperately seeking a few dollars to appear in their wallets, bags or accounts. Of course, everyone would like to get an extra dollar, but desperately hoping to see money appear from nowhere is a sad state to be in.

This is the sad story of a prince becoming a pauper.  Today we are paupers when we should be princes. It makes no sense to be a pauper when we daily walk on soil that overflows with mineral wealth.

The reported phenomenon of money appearing from nowhere is indeed remarkable and unique. An unprecedented miracle, the closest equivalent being manna from heaven, no one knew what it was but it fed them for 40 years.

If this miracle money is like manna from heaven, then we need to know that even that was not sustainable. When the children of Israel entered the Promised Land the manna stopped. We are in the land that God has given us, let us not look to manna from heaven; let us make  the most of this land so that it flows with milk and honey.

Let us make real money for everyone so that we can all be turned from paupers into princes as it ought to be.  Let us sing that song once again, "Zimbabwe yakanaka vakomana, Zimbabwe yakanaka vasikana. Ngatifare! Ngatifare muZimbabwe yedu."        

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Dwight Mutonono is the Executive Director at Africa Leadership and Management Academy and can be contacted at mutonono.dwight16@gmail.com