Opinion / Columnist
Sorry Chamisa, development has already taken off!
28 Jul 2023 at 01:42hrs | Views
No one would want to be in the situation which CCC leader Nelson Chamisa finds himself at the moment — being faced with an election for which you know your opponent has already addressed most of the developmental concerns in constituencies.
In short, Chamisa's message on development has been constrained to an attempt to fit into the whole developmental agenda being spearheaded by President Mnangagwa and Zanu-PF.
He does not have an appealing message when it comes to development, except to regurgitate what has already been done or cast a blind eye to the progress, but at his own peril.
In terms of development, President Mnangagwa and Zanu-PF are far much ahead, and the developmental projects in all parts of the country speak for themselves.
What promise on development can Chamisa bring the electorate without pointing to what has already been done by President Mnangagwa?
Everywhere Chamisa goes, he soon discovers there is nothing anymore to talk about on development. This has put the opposition leader in a tight corner, making his message on development very thin and unappealing to the electorate.
Tracking Chamisa's campaign tail so far, it becomes evident that he does not have a message, and as he pushes hard to try and impress voters, he ends up criticising developmental projects implemented by President Mnangagwa that are already benefiting the same people he will be talking to.
He ends up appearing lost, especially when he goes out there and starts telling the voters that he will solve the power shortages problem, when the voters knows too well the work done by in the last few years to end this problem.
In fact, in 2018, President Mnangagwa commissioned works on Hwange 7 and 8 units at the Hwange Thermal Power Station, which today are up and running, contributing electricity to the national grid that has resulted in the end to load shedding.
The other units at the power station are being refurbished to ensure they operate at their maximum. In 2018, President Mnangagwa commissioned and switched on the U$533 million Kariba South Power Station Extension Project which added another 300 megawatts to the national grid.
A number of solar projects operators have been given licences to install solar panels that will add more power to the national grid.
President Mnangagwa has since said his aim is to ensure the country becomes a net exporter of power and this is being realised.
When Chamisa stands on the podium and tells voters he will work on the provision of electricity, an area that has already been solved, he surely appears out-of-touch with reality and thus becomes someone who cannot be relied upon.
It also happened that Chamisa goes to Masvingo for one of his rallies in November last year using the newly reconstructed Harare-Masvingo Highway, obviously appreciating the new driving experience.
The reconstruction of the road stretches from Masvingo to the Beitbridge border post, and only about 100 kilometres are left to complete the work on the nearly 600km road.
To show Chamisa has no message for the people of Masvingo and that he feels under pressure to say something, he ends up telling voter kindergarten staff.
He told those who cared to attend the rally that if they vote for him he would construct eight lanes each side of the road, making it a 16-lane highway.
"Ukabuda muroad unenge uri muroad, ukabuda muroad unenge uri muroad, ukabuda muroad unenge uri muroad," he said as an emphasis on the numerous lanes he said he would construct.
As if the Masvingo rally utterance on the new road was not enough embarrassment, Chamisa repeated the same claim at his Beitbridge rally last week. The highway has been expanded from seven metres to 12 metres, while every 10-kilometre stretch on either side of towns along the way are being dualised.
If the 16-lane road promise was meant to be a joke, then it was in bad taste, with its import being to show Chamisa's contempt for the people. Apart from the reconstruction of Harare-Masvingo-Beitbridge Road, President Mnangagwa initiated the Emergency Road Rehabilitation Programme (ERRP) that has seen many roads across the country being —rehabilitated.
Of course, the mammoth task cannot be carried out in one day or in a week.
While the ERRP is moving to the next roads, the mischievous ones take pictures of these roads not yet done for their own propaganda purposes to try and discredit the programme.
But the people, who are the voters, were briefed and they are well aware of how the programme works.
Then while in Beitbridge last week, perhaps after visiting and being impressed by the progress on the modernisation of the Beitbridge Border Post, Chamisa sought to discredit the excellent work that, ironically, everyone in Beitbridge has been appreciating.
Beitbridge Boarder post is now rated among the best in terms of aesthetics and efficiency. This has completely changed the face of the border town from a rag-tag outpost to a town with modern facilities and amenities. And the voters in this part of the world know too well what they are deriving from the new-look border post and no outside can convince them otherwise.
As if Chamisa is not aware of the massive dam construction programme that President Mnangagwa has initiated in all provinces, he goes around telling the electorate that he will embark on dam construction.
Speaking in Matebeleland recently, Chamisa pretended as if he had never heard of projects like Lake Gwayi-Shangani and Tuli-Manyange Dam.
He paid a blind to eye to Kunzvi Dam in Mashonaland East, Ziminya Dam in Nkayi in Matebeleland North, Vungu Dam in Midlands, Silverstroom, Dande, Bindura and Semwa dams in Mashonaland Central, Chivhu Dam in Mashonaland East, Muchekeranwa Dam, which lies on the border of Manicaland and Mashonaland East provinces and Marovanyati Dam in Manicaland.
All these are a result of the work of the President Mnangagwa and the Second Republic, with some of them already completed, while others are at various stages of completion.
Many more dams have been proposed for construction as the Second Republic strives to ensure that no one and no place is left behind, as directed by President Mnangagwa.
With the construction of Tuli-Manyange in Gwanda District, life for people in Matebeleland South will be transformed.
The massive Lake Gwayi-Shangani project is not only about the lake itself, it is part of the Matebeleland Zambezi Water Project for which a nearly 250km long pipe is already being laid to carry water to Bulawayo City.
There will be irrigation schemes around the lake and along the pipeline, completely changing the food status for the region that receives little rain. To pretend that people are not aware of such projects and to promise them exactly the same projects is undermining their intelligence.
Chamisa has also been telling people at his rallies about value addition and beneficiation for minerals, despite a clear policy being implemented by President Mnangagwa and Zanu-PF in that regard.
A statutory instrument was put in place last year banning the export of raw lithium, and the results have been amazing.
Just early this month, President Mnangagwa was at Prospect Lithium in Goromonzi District where he commissioned a US$300 million lithium processing plant that has already started value addition and beneficiation of the mineral.
Prospect employs 3 000 people and the processing plant has an annual capacity to produce 4,5 million of lithium concentrate.
One of China's biggest companies specialising in battery recycling, Shengxiang Investments (Pvt) Limited, is building a US$40 million modern lithium processing plant in Goromonzi, which nears completion.
Premier African Minerals in Matebeleland last month started a trial run for its lithium production plant.
Platinum producer, Zimplats, recently commissioned its third processing plant, while many other mining companies have already established their processing plants or are in the process of doing so.
For Chamisa to then pretend to be offering something new in value addition and beneficiation of minerals, a strategy long adopted by President Mnangagwa and Zanu-PF, is just a waste of time for the electorate.
With so many developmental programmes in communities, it is increasingly become clear even to the doubting Thomases that Chamisa and his CCC have no message to the electorate, except to regurgitate what President Mnangagwa and Zanu-PF are already implementing.
In short, Chamisa's message on development has been constrained to an attempt to fit into the whole developmental agenda being spearheaded by President Mnangagwa and Zanu-PF.
He does not have an appealing message when it comes to development, except to regurgitate what has already been done or cast a blind eye to the progress, but at his own peril.
In terms of development, President Mnangagwa and Zanu-PF are far much ahead, and the developmental projects in all parts of the country speak for themselves.
What promise on development can Chamisa bring the electorate without pointing to what has already been done by President Mnangagwa?
Everywhere Chamisa goes, he soon discovers there is nothing anymore to talk about on development. This has put the opposition leader in a tight corner, making his message on development very thin and unappealing to the electorate.
Tracking Chamisa's campaign tail so far, it becomes evident that he does not have a message, and as he pushes hard to try and impress voters, he ends up criticising developmental projects implemented by President Mnangagwa that are already benefiting the same people he will be talking to.
He ends up appearing lost, especially when he goes out there and starts telling the voters that he will solve the power shortages problem, when the voters knows too well the work done by in the last few years to end this problem.
In fact, in 2018, President Mnangagwa commissioned works on Hwange 7 and 8 units at the Hwange Thermal Power Station, which today are up and running, contributing electricity to the national grid that has resulted in the end to load shedding.
The other units at the power station are being refurbished to ensure they operate at their maximum. In 2018, President Mnangagwa commissioned and switched on the U$533 million Kariba South Power Station Extension Project which added another 300 megawatts to the national grid.
A number of solar projects operators have been given licences to install solar panels that will add more power to the national grid.
President Mnangagwa has since said his aim is to ensure the country becomes a net exporter of power and this is being realised.
When Chamisa stands on the podium and tells voters he will work on the provision of electricity, an area that has already been solved, he surely appears out-of-touch with reality and thus becomes someone who cannot be relied upon.
It also happened that Chamisa goes to Masvingo for one of his rallies in November last year using the newly reconstructed Harare-Masvingo Highway, obviously appreciating the new driving experience.
The reconstruction of the road stretches from Masvingo to the Beitbridge border post, and only about 100 kilometres are left to complete the work on the nearly 600km road.
To show Chamisa has no message for the people of Masvingo and that he feels under pressure to say something, he ends up telling voter kindergarten staff.
He told those who cared to attend the rally that if they vote for him he would construct eight lanes each side of the road, making it a 16-lane highway.
"Ukabuda muroad unenge uri muroad, ukabuda muroad unenge uri muroad, ukabuda muroad unenge uri muroad," he said as an emphasis on the numerous lanes he said he would construct.
As if the Masvingo rally utterance on the new road was not enough embarrassment, Chamisa repeated the same claim at his Beitbridge rally last week. The highway has been expanded from seven metres to 12 metres, while every 10-kilometre stretch on either side of towns along the way are being dualised.
If the 16-lane road promise was meant to be a joke, then it was in bad taste, with its import being to show Chamisa's contempt for the people. Apart from the reconstruction of Harare-Masvingo-Beitbridge Road, President Mnangagwa initiated the Emergency Road Rehabilitation Programme (ERRP) that has seen many roads across the country being —rehabilitated.
Of course, the mammoth task cannot be carried out in one day or in a week.
While the ERRP is moving to the next roads, the mischievous ones take pictures of these roads not yet done for their own propaganda purposes to try and discredit the programme.
But the people, who are the voters, were briefed and they are well aware of how the programme works.
Then while in Beitbridge last week, perhaps after visiting and being impressed by the progress on the modernisation of the Beitbridge Border Post, Chamisa sought to discredit the excellent work that, ironically, everyone in Beitbridge has been appreciating.
Beitbridge Boarder post is now rated among the best in terms of aesthetics and efficiency. This has completely changed the face of the border town from a rag-tag outpost to a town with modern facilities and amenities. And the voters in this part of the world know too well what they are deriving from the new-look border post and no outside can convince them otherwise.
As if Chamisa is not aware of the massive dam construction programme that President Mnangagwa has initiated in all provinces, he goes around telling the electorate that he will embark on dam construction.
Speaking in Matebeleland recently, Chamisa pretended as if he had never heard of projects like Lake Gwayi-Shangani and Tuli-Manyange Dam.
He paid a blind to eye to Kunzvi Dam in Mashonaland East, Ziminya Dam in Nkayi in Matebeleland North, Vungu Dam in Midlands, Silverstroom, Dande, Bindura and Semwa dams in Mashonaland Central, Chivhu Dam in Mashonaland East, Muchekeranwa Dam, which lies on the border of Manicaland and Mashonaland East provinces and Marovanyati Dam in Manicaland.
All these are a result of the work of the President Mnangagwa and the Second Republic, with some of them already completed, while others are at various stages of completion.
Many more dams have been proposed for construction as the Second Republic strives to ensure that no one and no place is left behind, as directed by President Mnangagwa.
With the construction of Tuli-Manyange in Gwanda District, life for people in Matebeleland South will be transformed.
The massive Lake Gwayi-Shangani project is not only about the lake itself, it is part of the Matebeleland Zambezi Water Project for which a nearly 250km long pipe is already being laid to carry water to Bulawayo City.
There will be irrigation schemes around the lake and along the pipeline, completely changing the food status for the region that receives little rain. To pretend that people are not aware of such projects and to promise them exactly the same projects is undermining their intelligence.
Chamisa has also been telling people at his rallies about value addition and beneficiation for minerals, despite a clear policy being implemented by President Mnangagwa and Zanu-PF in that regard.
A statutory instrument was put in place last year banning the export of raw lithium, and the results have been amazing.
Just early this month, President Mnangagwa was at Prospect Lithium in Goromonzi District where he commissioned a US$300 million lithium processing plant that has already started value addition and beneficiation of the mineral.
Prospect employs 3 000 people and the processing plant has an annual capacity to produce 4,5 million of lithium concentrate.
One of China's biggest companies specialising in battery recycling, Shengxiang Investments (Pvt) Limited, is building a US$40 million modern lithium processing plant in Goromonzi, which nears completion.
Premier African Minerals in Matebeleland last month started a trial run for its lithium production plant.
Platinum producer, Zimplats, recently commissioned its third processing plant, while many other mining companies have already established their processing plants or are in the process of doing so.
For Chamisa to then pretend to be offering something new in value addition and beneficiation of minerals, a strategy long adopted by President Mnangagwa and Zanu-PF, is just a waste of time for the electorate.
With so many developmental programmes in communities, it is increasingly become clear even to the doubting Thomases that Chamisa and his CCC have no message to the electorate, except to regurgitate what President Mnangagwa and Zanu-PF are already implementing.
Source - The Herald
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