News / National
No blood should be shed in this election, says Mwonzora
02 Aug 2023 at 01:49hrs | Views
MOVEMENT for Democratic Change (MDC) president Senator Douglas Mwonzora has called on all political parties and citizens to maintain peace in the forthcoming elections, while encouraging tolerance of divergent views as people of one nation.
Political parties have gone on overdrive, campaigning for their candidates with just a few cases of political violence having been reported.
Senator Mwonzora is one of the 11 presidential candidates who are going to contest the election together with Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) leader Advocate Nelson Chamisa and President Mnangagwa who is largely tipped to win the election by a wide margin.
In an interview with the Zimpapers Election Desk, the MDC leader said no blood should be shed in the election urging people not to forget that they are all Zimbabweans.
"It is critical to maintain peace in this election. We must remember that irrespective of our political differences, we are all Zimbabweans," Senator Mwonzora said.
"As a social democratic party, the MDC respects that there are various interest groups in our country. These are equally important. Therefore, we must exercise high levels of tolerance throughout the campaign period. No blood should be shed in this election. I am happy that the MDC has not been involved in any violence in this election. We ask all political parties to follow suit."
He said these elections should be about the people of Zimbabwe and mark the transition from the old to the new.
"From these elections, we should be able to transform the social, economic, and political lives of our people. For the MDC, we are entering this election in order to attain governmental power through peaceful, constitutional, and democratic means, govern differently, and change the lives of the Zimbabwean people for the better. But these elections must be peaceful, free, and fair," he said.
Senator Mwonzora said the MDC as a social democratic party born out of the struggles of the working class is a pro-people and pro-poor party.
He said the agenda of the MDC is to bring free education from Grade One to Form Four for all Zimbabweans.
"For higher education students, it will offer educational support in the form of student loans and grants, bursaries, and scholarships. We also will provide free healthcare, which will include maternity care as we believe that giving birth is national duty.
Our government will promote the inclusion of all our people in the economic life of the nation by providing interest-free loans for people especially the youth and the women who want to start small businesses," he said.
The MDC president said since more than 90 percent of the population are living off agriculture, the MDC wants to reduce the prices for all agricultural inputs including fertiliser so that all people especially the poor can afford them.
"As a labour-backed party, we are worried that the pensions that our pensioners, including war veterans, are getting are paltry. For that reason, we will revise and totally recalibrate the pensions so that our pensioners make a meaningful living out of them," Senator Mwonzora said.
He said his party had high chances of winning the elections if they are conducted in a free and fair manner.
"Zimbabweans now want to vote for ideas, and we have them. Unfortunately, we have had a lot of obstacles put in our way. Through sheer vindictiveness and gross partisanship, the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission has disqualified 87 of our parliamentary candidates.
This has had the effect of delaying our campaign, including the launch of our manifesto. The fate of our 87 candidates is yet to be decided by the courts. Assuming we win, this will give our candidates less than a month to campaign. This is totally unfair," he said.
The veteran lawyer said his party was advocating for an inclusive economy and will be offering interest-free loans for people to start small businesses.
"We will promote agricultural production and, therefore, income generation by subsidising inputs. We will promote inclusion in the mining sector by promoting artisanal miners. In this regard, participation in this sector must be completely depoliticised.
Zimbabwe is rich in mineral wealth, including gold, platinum, diamonds, lithium, and oil. In order to maximise revenue in mining, we will promote beneficiation and value- addition. In the case of lithium, we will insist on end users like battery- manufacturing companies to set up their factories in Zimbabwe. The mining industry is beset with massive corruption. This will be curbed," Senator Mwonzora said.
"We will promote manufacturing by attracting both local and foreign investment into this sector. As a country, Zimbabwe is rich in both flora and fauna as well as other natural endowments. We will actively promote tourism. Because of sanctions, Zimbabwe does not have access to international capital as well as international markets.
We will, therefore, push for the removal of sanctions by promoting democracy, free and fair elections, as well as through promotion of human rights. There are great economic benefits for joining the Commonwealth. We will fulfil the conditionalities for joining the Commonwealth.
Lastly, we need to curb inflation by addressing currency volatility, which is caused by currency speculation by the rich, powerful, and connected. The problem with the Zimbabwean economy is not lack of money per se, but it is the distribution of the national resources."
Turning to land issues, Senator Mwonzora said they were settled by the constitution and the majority of Zimbabweans must have access to the greater portion of the land.
"There will never be a reversal of the land reform programme. Rather, we will make critical interventions to make our new farmers more productive. Among other things, they must have access to credit. We notice that the land reform programme also created multiple farm owners. This will be redressed. Our government will invest in research and development so that the land is more productive."
"The MDC will continue to promote dialogue as a means of resolving national issues. This dialogue must be genuine, inclusive, and unconditional. So far, the party stands vindicated for its consistent calls for national dialogue. Zimbabwe must also fulfil its international obligations. In regard, it will promote regional peace and stability. The war in Cabo Delgado must be brought to a conclusive end."
Political parties have gone on overdrive, campaigning for their candidates with just a few cases of political violence having been reported.
Senator Mwonzora is one of the 11 presidential candidates who are going to contest the election together with Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) leader Advocate Nelson Chamisa and President Mnangagwa who is largely tipped to win the election by a wide margin.
In an interview with the Zimpapers Election Desk, the MDC leader said no blood should be shed in the election urging people not to forget that they are all Zimbabweans.
"It is critical to maintain peace in this election. We must remember that irrespective of our political differences, we are all Zimbabweans," Senator Mwonzora said.
"As a social democratic party, the MDC respects that there are various interest groups in our country. These are equally important. Therefore, we must exercise high levels of tolerance throughout the campaign period. No blood should be shed in this election. I am happy that the MDC has not been involved in any violence in this election. We ask all political parties to follow suit."
He said these elections should be about the people of Zimbabwe and mark the transition from the old to the new.
"From these elections, we should be able to transform the social, economic, and political lives of our people. For the MDC, we are entering this election in order to attain governmental power through peaceful, constitutional, and democratic means, govern differently, and change the lives of the Zimbabwean people for the better. But these elections must be peaceful, free, and fair," he said.
Senator Mwonzora said the MDC as a social democratic party born out of the struggles of the working class is a pro-people and pro-poor party.
He said the agenda of the MDC is to bring free education from Grade One to Form Four for all Zimbabweans.
"For higher education students, it will offer educational support in the form of student loans and grants, bursaries, and scholarships. We also will provide free healthcare, which will include maternity care as we believe that giving birth is national duty.
Our government will promote the inclusion of all our people in the economic life of the nation by providing interest-free loans for people especially the youth and the women who want to start small businesses," he said.
The MDC president said since more than 90 percent of the population are living off agriculture, the MDC wants to reduce the prices for all agricultural inputs including fertiliser so that all people especially the poor can afford them.
"As a labour-backed party, we are worried that the pensions that our pensioners, including war veterans, are getting are paltry. For that reason, we will revise and totally recalibrate the pensions so that our pensioners make a meaningful living out of them," Senator Mwonzora said.
He said his party had high chances of winning the elections if they are conducted in a free and fair manner.
"Zimbabweans now want to vote for ideas, and we have them. Unfortunately, we have had a lot of obstacles put in our way. Through sheer vindictiveness and gross partisanship, the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission has disqualified 87 of our parliamentary candidates.
This has had the effect of delaying our campaign, including the launch of our manifesto. The fate of our 87 candidates is yet to be decided by the courts. Assuming we win, this will give our candidates less than a month to campaign. This is totally unfair," he said.
The veteran lawyer said his party was advocating for an inclusive economy and will be offering interest-free loans for people to start small businesses.
"We will promote agricultural production and, therefore, income generation by subsidising inputs. We will promote inclusion in the mining sector by promoting artisanal miners. In this regard, participation in this sector must be completely depoliticised.
Zimbabwe is rich in mineral wealth, including gold, platinum, diamonds, lithium, and oil. In order to maximise revenue in mining, we will promote beneficiation and value- addition. In the case of lithium, we will insist on end users like battery- manufacturing companies to set up their factories in Zimbabwe. The mining industry is beset with massive corruption. This will be curbed," Senator Mwonzora said.
"We will promote manufacturing by attracting both local and foreign investment into this sector. As a country, Zimbabwe is rich in both flora and fauna as well as other natural endowments. We will actively promote tourism. Because of sanctions, Zimbabwe does not have access to international capital as well as international markets.
We will, therefore, push for the removal of sanctions by promoting democracy, free and fair elections, as well as through promotion of human rights. There are great economic benefits for joining the Commonwealth. We will fulfil the conditionalities for joining the Commonwealth.
Lastly, we need to curb inflation by addressing currency volatility, which is caused by currency speculation by the rich, powerful, and connected. The problem with the Zimbabwean economy is not lack of money per se, but it is the distribution of the national resources."
Turning to land issues, Senator Mwonzora said they were settled by the constitution and the majority of Zimbabweans must have access to the greater portion of the land.
"There will never be a reversal of the land reform programme. Rather, we will make critical interventions to make our new farmers more productive. Among other things, they must have access to credit. We notice that the land reform programme also created multiple farm owners. This will be redressed. Our government will invest in research and development so that the land is more productive."
"The MDC will continue to promote dialogue as a means of resolving national issues. This dialogue must be genuine, inclusive, and unconditional. So far, the party stands vindicated for its consistent calls for national dialogue. Zimbabwe must also fulfil its international obligations. In regard, it will promote regional peace and stability. The war in Cabo Delgado must be brought to a conclusive end."
Source - The Chronicle
