Absconding teachers contributing to poor pass rate in Lupane

Local government and public works Minister, July Moyo, has said that absconding teachers are a major source of poor examination results and has urged the Lupane community to report those who do not report for duty.

Matabeleland North is one of the provinces in Zimbabwe that continues to produce poor results in public examinations, a situation that activists say requires immediate attention from authorities and resources to be directed toward priority areas.

"Don't hesitate to complain and report those teachers and headmasters who are not working so that you can produce good results in your area," said the local government minister to the crowd that had gathered for the installation of Chief Menyezwa in Dongamuzi Ward 1 last Thursday.

In the same breath, the minister acknowledged that poor infrastructure is a contributing factor to poor performance and stated that the government was on a mission to build boarding schools in Matabeleland.

"In this province, there were few boarding schools and the government, directed by the president (Emmerson Mnangagwa), told former education minister, Cain Mathema, to build more schools in Matabeleland. Mathema was told, ‘don't just build them but build high schools that are boarding schools so that our children have somewhere where they can go and learn,'" he said.

"There was no boarding school in Binga and Chief Siansali knows that the president has directed that there should be boarding schools there and there must be boarding schools in Lupane."

The local government minister also urged residents to report government employees who fail to perform their duties properly.

"Don't hesitate to report anybody from AGRITEX not helping people of your area to do intwasa (a farming method) the proper way in order to make sure there is agricultural production in your area. Don't hesitate to report those from social welfare, who instead of giving food to 130 000 people who have been selected in this district, are now using it for their own ends,"  Moyo said.

The minister also used the occasion to promise that the government was working to improve public services in Lupane.

He claimed ‘boreholes would be drilled, waiting shelters for expecting mothers would be built so that they would not have to travel too far to give birth, and irrigation schemes would be rehabilitated in order to transform the province into Zimbabwe's bread basket.'

The minister also stated he was aware that the Lupane Rural District Council was building clinics.

"In 1969 the Rhodesian government did provincialisation and they made Lupane the capital of communal Matabeleland North but the commercial farming area where there were whites was excluded from being headquartered here in Lupane. This government led by Mnangagwa is prepared to build Lupane as the capital of every inch of soil here in Matabeleland North," he said.

"Because of that there is a government complex which is being built. There is Lupane hospital which is one of the largest hospitals ever to be built in this country and the Magistrates Court which will be upgraded in order for Lupane to be the true headquarters of Matabeleland North."

The local government minister also called on the chiefs to do their work dutifully and collaborate with their headmen and village heads.

"To do that the command structure must be clear and loyalty to the chief must be underpinned by the chief having loyalty from his juniors. Everyone in the government in the province is under the chief's leadership. We no longer have chiefs who go with their heads under armpits to salute the District Development Committee (DDC). Chiefs know that the DDC is here to coordinate the development of every inch of Lupane district," Moyo said.