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Prof Jonathan Moyo blasts Biti
18 Dec 2013 at 21:26hrs | Views
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INFORMATION, Media and Broadcasting Services Minister Professor Jonathan Moyo has said utterances by MDC-T secretary-general Mr Tendai Biti on the state of the economy were irresponsible and could only come from someone who was bitter that he was no longer in the limelight as Finance Minister.
Mr Biti, in his version of current affairs on Tuesday, said the economy was dead and Government was in de facto shut down due to a lack of revenue.
He told journalists in Harare: "We are hunting and catching a mouse, but feasting as if we have killed an elephant. You must eat what you kill."
However, Prof Moyo yesterday said; "For someone who likes using metaphors of killing and death as shown by his Budget statements which always had the phrase 'eat what you kill', Biti is being hit hard by the fact that he is no longer the Minister of Finance.
"There's a tendency by dead men walking to think that everything around him is dead.
"If he thinks he killed it six months ago, he didn't succeed, it was an attempted murder. He wanted to kill it in the hope that his party handlers would eat it. Instead it's his political party (MDC-T) that died."
Prof Moyo said the resilience of the economy in the face of illegal Western sanctions over the past decade was self-evident.
"Our clear outcome of the machinations against the country has been that you can't kill Zimbabwe, can't kill its economy and you can't kill its key institutions," he said.
The minister said the National Budget statement, to be presented by Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa, today would show Mr Biti how alive the economy was.
"It (the economy) might not be well because of several factors, which include the sanctions, but Government will give it the cure it needs even though it is definitely not a morning picnic."
He said in spite of the challenges being faced by Government what was important was that there was no bickering and self-interest clouding Cabinet as was characteristic of the inclusive Government.
"There is now one policy vision, which is not contaminated or blurred by self-serving politicians. As it is now, those entrusted with polices have no excuses for not implementing them.
"The people spoke in July when they voted overwhelmingly for the current Government."
Mr Biti, in his version of current affairs on Tuesday, said the economy was dead and Government was in de facto shut down due to a lack of revenue.
He told journalists in Harare: "We are hunting and catching a mouse, but feasting as if we have killed an elephant. You must eat what you kill."
However, Prof Moyo yesterday said; "For someone who likes using metaphors of killing and death as shown by his Budget statements which always had the phrase 'eat what you kill', Biti is being hit hard by the fact that he is no longer the Minister of Finance.
"There's a tendency by dead men walking to think that everything around him is dead.
"If he thinks he killed it six months ago, he didn't succeed, it was an attempted murder. He wanted to kill it in the hope that his party handlers would eat it. Instead it's his political party (MDC-T) that died."
"Our clear outcome of the machinations against the country has been that you can't kill Zimbabwe, can't kill its economy and you can't kill its key institutions," he said.
The minister said the National Budget statement, to be presented by Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa, today would show Mr Biti how alive the economy was.
"It (the economy) might not be well because of several factors, which include the sanctions, but Government will give it the cure it needs even though it is definitely not a morning picnic."
He said in spite of the challenges being faced by Government what was important was that there was no bickering and self-interest clouding Cabinet as was characteristic of the inclusive Government.
"There is now one policy vision, which is not contaminated or blurred by self-serving politicians. As it is now, those entrusted with polices have no excuses for not implementing them.
"The people spoke in July when they voted overwhelmingly for the current Government."
Source - Herald
