Opinion / Columnist
Devolution of power can unite Zimbabwe
17 Sep 2016 at 13:26hrs | Views
When will the government of Zimbabwe pay attention to the needs of the people on special case basis? Zimbabwe is rumored to have a population of around 14 million, with natural resources in abundance, but the scale of poverty and distribution of basic goods is appallingly uneven and the government should appreciate when citizens come up with economic solutions that will ease starvation in their respective communities and country as whole. Unfortunately the government of the day lacks conscience apparently by turning a deaf ear to the demands of the people they purportedly serve.
The government is failing to analyse the situation of Zimbabwe, province by province in order to find provincial solutions and dismiss the myth that it is not in touch with reality. A national approach has brought our economy to its knees, as it seems government concentration on areas of development is shockingly one sided. Since independence, there is absolutely no development in Southern Zimbabwe because of the current system of centralisation, had the system been abolished in favour of Devolution of Power the industries that have collapsed could have been prevented. When all industries eventually relocated to Harare, they did not see any problem with that because their concentration is merely on the survival of Harare.
Zimbabwe as whole does not need devolution of power, the evidence lies in provinces that hardly raise the subject or hold any form of protests for the implementation of devolution of power. Thus, they are provinces or regions of Zimbabwe that want Devolution more than others. That is why I mentioned earlier that a government that listens to its citizens would act in accordance with their wishes as long it is meant to improve their livelihoods. Matabeleland needs Devolution of Power and its case should be prioritised and looked at separately from the rest of the country. If Matabeleland does well as a devolved state, other provinces may follow suit provided there are noticeable improvements in terms of job creation and infrastructural development. What harm would it create for the government to implement it in Matabeleland. By the way, the government must be reminded that devolution of power is totally different to decentralisation which is the term they use in the corridors of power to wrongly describe 'devolution of power'.
The majority of the MPs in Zimbabwean Parliament are from areas that do not need devolution, so they would always oppose the implementation of it. However, the entire region of Matabeleland wants devolution desperately such that the hardliners are increasingly pushing for its independence as a way to take charge of their regional affairs. Yet the implementation of devolution will put to rest all such endeavors of separating 'our country'. The disgruntled majority in Matabeleland argue that the national cake is not being shared fairly and equally.
Thabiso Mabhena is the Secretary for Administration (ZAPU Europe Province)
Thaby4life@hotmail.com
The government is failing to analyse the situation of Zimbabwe, province by province in order to find provincial solutions and dismiss the myth that it is not in touch with reality. A national approach has brought our economy to its knees, as it seems government concentration on areas of development is shockingly one sided. Since independence, there is absolutely no development in Southern Zimbabwe because of the current system of centralisation, had the system been abolished in favour of Devolution of Power the industries that have collapsed could have been prevented. When all industries eventually relocated to Harare, they did not see any problem with that because their concentration is merely on the survival of Harare.
Zimbabwe as whole does not need devolution of power, the evidence lies in provinces that hardly raise the subject or hold any form of protests for the implementation of devolution of power. Thus, they are provinces or regions of Zimbabwe that want Devolution more than others. That is why I mentioned earlier that a government that listens to its citizens would act in accordance with their wishes as long it is meant to improve their livelihoods. Matabeleland needs Devolution of Power and its case should be prioritised and looked at separately from the rest of the country. If Matabeleland does well as a devolved state, other provinces may follow suit provided there are noticeable improvements in terms of job creation and infrastructural development. What harm would it create for the government to implement it in Matabeleland. By the way, the government must be reminded that devolution of power is totally different to decentralisation which is the term they use in the corridors of power to wrongly describe 'devolution of power'.
The majority of the MPs in Zimbabwean Parliament are from areas that do not need devolution, so they would always oppose the implementation of it. However, the entire region of Matabeleland wants devolution desperately such that the hardliners are increasingly pushing for its independence as a way to take charge of their regional affairs. Yet the implementation of devolution will put to rest all such endeavors of separating 'our country'. The disgruntled majority in Matabeleland argue that the national cake is not being shared fairly and equally.
Thabiso Mabhena is the Secretary for Administration (ZAPU Europe Province)
Thaby4life@hotmail.com
Source - Thabiso Mabhena
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