My Six (6) - Point Plan for the Development of Matebeleland

Let's assume that I was currently a political leader in Matebeleland and led some kind of Political Party or Coalition. Here is what I would implement in order to resolve the manifold problems facing Matebeleland and ensure its development; and these are the issues I would like to hear the current political leadership of Matebeleland talk about:

1. TO CAPTURE AND RETAIN POLITICAL POWER IN THE REGION

It is obviously not profitable to continue to mourn about the problems plaguing Matebeleland, for those are already well-known. Just a mere outline will mention limited economic opportunity, marginalization, cultural and linguistic imperialism, injustice arising from the Gukurahundi Genocide, etc. We could go on and on about this.

I believe that the failures of Matebeleland thus far to effectively address these problems arise from one major problem: LACK OF POLITICAL POWER AMONG THE PEOPLE OF MATEBELELAND.

My first solution therefore would be to work towards the capture and retention of power by an un-apologetically Matebeleland focused Regional, Federalist Coalition. I would take it upon myself to approach every single political party, political interest group, civil society group, etc. that has a focus on Matebeleland Issues to negotiate the formation of a formidable Matebeleland Regional Coalition that will focus all its powers on capturing every single Parliamentary and Council Seat from Venda to Victoria Falls.

I would personally approach and negotiate with ANSA, MRP, MDC (Matebeleland), ZAPU (Matebeleland), Umhlahlo, Ibhetshu LikaZulu, etc., approach those Matebeleland Leaders in the MDCT who have a passion for the Region, approach Traditional Leaders, etc., to come together and focus all of our energies on the Region. I would negotiate for tough compromises on our positions from Restoration to Devolution to Federalism, attempting by all means to get most parties coalesce around FEDERALISM.

Yes, I would ensure there is equitable distribution of political positions if that is what it takes to build a Matebeleland Regional Coalition. Of course, I would also set-up a tough, Mossad-like Intelligence Agency to ensure that we keep the bad guys out. And make no mistake, I am not naive to think this can at all ever be easy, it is not, but it can and it must be done.

Secondly, having assembled a formidable Matebeleland Regional Coalition, I would then lead that Coalition into negotiations with those Harare-based parties (primarily those parties led by leaders from or with their predominant support in Maswingo and Manicaland) that support our core positions, supreme among them Federalism. (I strongly believe that to effect and affect policy at country-level, we need broader and larger alliances, hence the need for these alliance partners).

Meanwhile, I would ensure the most formidable political campaign in Matebeleland to ensure that not a single Harare party will have any prospect of obtaining a seat in the region, in the process forcing them into negotiations with us. Again, it won't be easy, but it can, and it must be done.

Having captured regional power and negotiated with a Harare-based party(ies) sharing and agreeing to our positions, among them Federalism, Local Hiring for Local Jobs, Local Processing of Natural Resources or Development of Local Communities as a condition for harvest of the resources, Reparations for Victims of the Gukurahundi Genocide, etc., I would then lead the Coalition into some of the toughest fights of our times.

We would fight in the Courts, in Parliament, in the Schools and Universities, in the Streets, Borders, (staging seat-ins, barricades, blockades, etc.,) to have our demands heard and acted upon. I will lead this Coalition to fight for localization of nearly everything except the Army and Foreign Affairs, which essentially means we will fight for FEDERALISM.

2. CONTROL OF THE REGIONAL ECONOMY

Secondly, because I know that political power on its own is meaningless without economic emancipation (and is really only of instrumental value towards more terminal values of justice, freedom, economic prosperity, etc.), I would lead the Coalition to fight for:

(1) Local Hiring for Local Jobs:  in other words, we will not allow this thing of People being hired in Harare to fill Jobs in Beitbridge, Gwanda, Plumtree, Victoria Falls, Bulawayo, etc. In short, we will fight to truly have local jobs go to locals, else we will shut down companies and departments importing labor from elsewhere. We will actually conduct and act on labor audits to establish who is working where, from where.  

(2) We will fight for Local Resources to primarily benefit locals. No company will be allowed to exploit local resources without plowing back something of significant value: they will be required to hire locals and to fund local infrastructure development, without which they will not be allowed to exploit those natural resources.

And the same applies to the Revenue Authority (ZIMRA): we will not only fight for hiring of locals but that a portion of what is generated directly funds local development: else we blockade the borders and highways through seat-ins, demonstrations, lie-on-roads, etc.

(3) We will fight to ensure that every single Tender is processed at Regional Level, and depending on level of complexity of projects involved, no company from outside the region will take that tender, failure to which the project will simply not take off. We will just blockade any works if it's of a construction nature, whereas if it is supplies and services, we will still fight for locals and blockade whoever is doing the supply from outside the Region.

(4) Land - too much of our Land that had originally been stolen from us by Colonialists was never returned to us, instead was given to elites from Mashonaland. We see no difference between White theft of our Land and this present theft by Mashonaland Elites. As such, we consider that the Land Reform Program is not over, and we will still fight for, if need be, seize our Land from whoever got it illegitimately. We will fight in the Courts, in Parliament and everywhere were it takes to take back this Land and restore it to our People.

3. EDUCATION, LANGUAGES, CULTURE AND THE ARTS

There is no denying that Education, Languages, Culture and the Arts is one of the areas that Matebeleland is prejudiced and suffers a cancerous form of cultural and linguistic imperialism. First things first, I would lead the Coalition to come up with a Regional Language Policy. This policy will demand that every single School, Hospital, Government Department, Police Officer, etc., use our Local Languages: Tshoa, Setswana, TjiKalanga, IsiNdebele, Sesotho, TshiVenda, CiiTonga, ChiNambya and IsiXhosa, depending on the district.

We will demand that not only are these languages taught up to ‘A' Level (where practicable) but that they become one of the 5 passing subjects at ‘O' Level, and they become an entry requirement into any one of our Tertiary Institutions (Colleges, University, Schools of Nursing, etc.). We will fight for and demand that there be a Regional Broadcasting Corporation and Radio Station(s) in our Languages, based in our Region, controlled by us (the Matebeleland People).

Police Recruitment will be strictly monitored to ensure that Locals, who speak Local Languages, are recruited, and the training will be strictly monitored to ensure that training is in our languages. None-compliant Police Officers will have their lives made very difficult in the Region.

In the Schools, we will invest enormously into Teacher Training, ensuring and implementing affirmative action policies to increase the number of Local Teachers and Heads in our Schools. We will ensure that all our Colleges and Universities not only stick to a Regional Quota but use any one of our Regional Languages as entry requirements, and indeed use our Languages for some of their Courses (if people can learn Mandarin Chinese first in order to study at Chinese Universities, they can do the same with our Languages).

We will use our Local Radio Station(s) to promote not only our Languages and Culture, but to promote Unity in Diversity, to open opportunity for all our Peoples to learn and at least understand each other's languages, and very importantly, to push a message for Superior Education in the Region, and promote, in general, a Matebeleland Developmental Agenda.

4. HEALTH AND OTHER INFRASTRUCTURE

Control of the Regional Economy and substantial political power will no doubt give us the means to not only decide developmental priorities but to channel resources to those priorities. We will be able to effectively invest in Local Health Infrastructure in particular and other major 21st Century infrastructure such as Roads, Broadband Lines, Dams, more and better Schools, Irrigation Schemes, Vast Community and Private Farmlands, etc.

We would invest funds into a 21st Century Economy. We would build Public Private Partnerships that work, Industrial Parks to help our aspiring entrepreneurs start up their businesses, invest in training of Businesspeople and Young People and Women, as well as Tradesman with the skills of the 21st Century.

We would thoroughly invest not only in our Schools and Universities but invest strongly in our Technical-Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Colleges to ensure no kid is left behind. We will fund the education of our best and brightest students up to Doctoral Level through a dedicated regional scholarship. We will invest enormous in superior Scientific and Technological Research and Development (R & D).

5. CORRUPTION, RULE OF LAW, HUMAN RIGHTS

I would lead the Matebeleland Regional Coalition to fight for some serious Rule of Law and Human Rights observation and respect. Violators will be instantly arrested and brought before the Courts of Law, and we will fight to ensure that those same Courts abide by the Constitution (flawed as it is at this time). And indeed we will continue to fight for amendments to the Constitution to depend Democracy, Rule of Law, Human Rights and Freedoms. 

We will establish hotlines for People to report Corruption and any extra-legal abuses and action be taken summarily. We will build a Regional Anti-Corruption Commission led by the finest and most brilliant of our own to deal with Corruption in all its forms, without fear or favor. Rights violations, of whatever sort or kind, will be decisively dealt with, and our model and practice will be indeed an example not only to the rest of Zimbabwe but to Africa in general.

But we will not be satisfied only with token Regional Power gained through a Matebeleland Regional Coalition and granted via Devolution as currently enshrined in the Constitution: we will take the fight further. Working will alliance partners in Harare (especially Maswingo, Manicaland and Midlands), we will fight for the FEDERALIZATION OF ZIMBABWE.

Whereas in Devolution the National Government DELEGATES POWER TO THE PROVINCES, we will fight for the opposite: FEDERALISM - a system of government in which the PROVINCES DELEGATE POWER TO THE NATIONAL GOVERNMENT. We will pursue very serious legislative powers as a Region, and fight, with our alliance partners, for Zimbabwe to return to the original 5 Provinces, with 5 Provincial Governments - Matebeleland, Manicaland, Maswingo, Midlands, Mashonaland.

If, for any reason, our fight for Federalism fails (of which there are few such reasons) and there is a tendency to continue to seek to oppress us: using the Regional Power we have from the Matebeleland Regional Coalition and the goodwill that we would have built with our People, then we will put all options on the table and Declare Independence, and that means ALL OPTIONS.

6. TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION COMMISSION

Any mention of Matebeleland struggles without mention of justice for the victims of the Gukurahundi Genocide will not be enough. As such, we will fight with all it takes to ensure the operationalization of the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission (NPRC), the Zimbabwe version of the TRC (Truth and Reconciliation Commission). Any effort to stall this work will only lead us to establish our own Regional TRC not only as a symbolic move, but to gather evidence and information before all the direct victims leave this world.

But not only that, we will fight for Reparations for our People, both in Local and International Courts. We will lead campaigns to thoroughly sanction all involved in the Genocide, we will effect Citizen Arrests if they visit foreign countries, and if need be, even sabotage or seize their ill-acquired properties abroad until some serious justice and reparation is done back home.

(Now, you may ask: are some of the strategies you say you may need to use not illegal? Well, some are: but as Liberation Fighters the world over know: Principle overrides Legality. If a Law is unjust, such a Law has to be violated until it is amended. Will it be easy? Nope. Many will be arrested, possibly tortured, hopefully none murdered, but it still has to be done.)

So, that's just me, and these are the issues i want to hear matebeleland politicians talk about and talk to. Meanwhile, let me complete my Masters of Business Administration (MBA) and my Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) first, and the games will begin. Ndaboka imi nkalanga we bulilima-mangwe.