'The past is gone,' says Mnangagwa

Zimbabwe should bury behind its past, move forward and focus on creating a bright future for all and sundry, President Mnangwagwa has said.

Addressing Zanu-PF supporters at Nyamhunga Stadium in Kariba yesterday, President Mnangagwa said Zanu-PF does not live in the past.

"If there is anything we can learn from the past, we will but we say the past is gone. We must live for the future. We must prepare for the future. We want a better future than we lived in the past.

"This is our motto, this is the direction we will take as Zanu-PF.Let us be united and live peacefully.Wherever we have gone be it the AU and other such meetings, they wish us better lives. They wish us to be united," he said.

The President said Zimbabwe was saluted by the whole of Africa for peaceful managing a transition that could have turned nasty.

"I thank you all. I thank our people at home, our people in the urban areas that you managed a transition that could have easily exploded into a huge disastrous conflict but it was a transition with the blessings of the All Mighty, with the blessings of our ancestors," he said.

"And we should say let us remain united. Let us love each other. Let us move forward and I plead all political parties to commit themselves to non-violence. As a result of that I have said our elections are going to be free, transparent and credible because we are united."

President Mnangagwa said Zimbabwe had no reason to bar foreign election observers as the polls will be transparent.

"We know that some people come to Zimbabwe with fixed minds just because they have been spoiled by some renegade people with adverse agenda against their mother country.

"That should not bar us from being correct. We are correct in ourselves to make sure we embrace the international community. We are correct when we keep our friends like China. We are also correct when we take on board new friendships across the board.
We are correct when we say we must again be part of the international community and that is the mantra Zimbabwe is open for business."

President Mnangwagwa said the country had handled foreign direct investments and commitments worth over US$7 billion since last November.

President Mnangagwa arrived in the country yesterday morning from Cote d'Ivoire and immediately flew to Kariba for the commissioning of Kariba South Hydro-power Station Extension Project.

"I arrived this morning (yesterday) from Cote d'Ivoire where I was accompanied by various men and women from industry and commerce. We met representatives of several European and US banks and corporate world.

President Mnangagwa said he had planned meeting all political leaders in Zimbabwe but there are too many.