Opinion / Columnist
Zimbabwe: From jewel of Africa to laughing stock
21 Apr 2021 at 07:10hrs | Views
THE Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) on Sunday joined the rest of Zimbabweans in marking 41 years of independence from colonial rule. Indeed, it is an important day of our lives as we salute those who made it possible for Zimbabwe to be free from colonial repression.
We salute the nationalists who fought for the liberation of this country. We salute freedom fighters who sacrificed their lives, some their limbs to free Zimbabwe. We also say thank you to mothers and sisters who risked their lives cooking for the liberation fighters.
We thank boys and girls who assisted our war heroes. Thank you to all countries that gave material and moral support to Zimbabweans at their hour of need. Indeed everyone played a part for Zimbabwe to gain its independence.
As we review the last 41 years, it is sad to note that we missed great opportunities for Zimbabwe to be a great country. Through greed, misgovernance and selfishness, those we entrusted with leading the country led the country in the opposite direction.
Millions of Zimbabweans have left the country in despair and desperate to eke out a living. Some have died in foreign lands as they faced xenophobia. From the jewel of Africa, we have become the laughing stock of the world. It is not late to redeem ourselves yet.
As we celebrate independence, let us reflect and re-rail our policies and minds towards inclusivity and pro-poor development. We only need to change the way we do things, particularly our politics. We must espouse politics of tolerance and deal decisively with corruption and cronyism.
These have been the biggest impediments to development for the past 41 years. If we change the way we manage our economy, Zimbabwe will be a better place to live and work.
Independence Day should be for everyone and non-partisan. There has been a tendency to treat the event as political party function, resulting in many shunning the commemoration.
The invitation to social partners to attend the function should be commended because it is a national event.
Congratulations Zimbabwe for attaining 41 years.
God bless you all.
We salute the nationalists who fought for the liberation of this country. We salute freedom fighters who sacrificed their lives, some their limbs to free Zimbabwe. We also say thank you to mothers and sisters who risked their lives cooking for the liberation fighters.
We thank boys and girls who assisted our war heroes. Thank you to all countries that gave material and moral support to Zimbabweans at their hour of need. Indeed everyone played a part for Zimbabwe to gain its independence.
As we review the last 41 years, it is sad to note that we missed great opportunities for Zimbabwe to be a great country. Through greed, misgovernance and selfishness, those we entrusted with leading the country led the country in the opposite direction.
Millions of Zimbabweans have left the country in despair and desperate to eke out a living. Some have died in foreign lands as they faced xenophobia. From the jewel of Africa, we have become the laughing stock of the world. It is not late to redeem ourselves yet.
As we celebrate independence, let us reflect and re-rail our policies and minds towards inclusivity and pro-poor development. We only need to change the way we do things, particularly our politics. We must espouse politics of tolerance and deal decisively with corruption and cronyism.
These have been the biggest impediments to development for the past 41 years. If we change the way we manage our economy, Zimbabwe will be a better place to live and work.
Independence Day should be for everyone and non-partisan. There has been a tendency to treat the event as political party function, resulting in many shunning the commemoration.
The invitation to social partners to attend the function should be commended because it is a national event.
Congratulations Zimbabwe for attaining 41 years.
God bless you all.
Source - newsday
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