Opinion / Columnist
Congress must assess the implementation of Zim-Asset
28 Nov 2014 at 06:57hrs | Views
Zanu-PF is holding its crucial 6th Congress from the 2nd to the 7th of December 2014. It is the most crucial congress the party has ever held. The Congress is held against the backdrop of critical political and socio-economic transformations.
The Congress comes 16 months after the thunderous and resounding victory in the watershed 31st July 2013 harmonised elections. No doubt, this is no small feat considering the various enemy machinations aimed at undermining the people's Party and its revolutionary gains.
The battle cry for this historic election was Indigenise, Empower, Develop and Create Employment. As Tendai Biti, the then Secretary General of the MDC-T admitted, indeed, Zanu-PF had an appealing message. It was against this background that the Zanu-PF Government crafted the historic economic blueprint, the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-Economic Transformation (ZIM-ASSET) to fulfil the deafening pledges made during the elections.
Zim-Asset, which itself is based on the theme Towards an Empowered Society and a Growing Economy, is the Party's primary vehicle for delivering accelerated economic growth, wealth creation and development which should improve the livelihoods of the people who gave it a new mandate to govern this country for a five (5) year term.
Sixteen months down the line, the electorate would want to know the extent to which Zanu-PF Government has gone in implementing Zim-Asset. Therefore, this Congress must reaffirm the revolutionary Party's support for Zim-Asset as the primary vehicle for delivering concrete electoral promises of empowerment, indigenisation, sustainable economic growth and employment.
The Congress should provide an opportunity for the Party to reassure the people of Zimbabwe that the electoral promises of growing the economy, for their empowerment and employment, will be fulfilled without failure. Of course, failure is not an option for a tried and tested party like Zanu-PF.
However, the Party's reassurance can only be respected if people see some interventions made so far to grow the economy. The Congress, which runs under the theme Accelerated Implementation of Zim-Asset, will reflect on the achievements made so far in the implementation of Zim-Asset.
The Congress must highlight and celebrate achievements made so far. It must also highlight areas that are lagging behind. The acknowledgement of the achievements at the Congress might motivate the lead institutions to keep up the pace while spurring stragglers to catch up with others.
Zanu-PF must show Zimbabweans what government has already done to implement Zim-Asset. There are mega deals that the country has entered into with China and Russia. These deals should save as proof to the electorate that the economic blue print was never meant to be a talk show.
The Zimbabwe National Road Administration (ZINARA) for instance, has already surpassed the set target of maintaining and rehabilitating rural roads and it is on course to widen major highway linking cities and towns. Although Zim-Asset set the target for ZINARA at 4 000km, the later has already maintained and rehabilitated at least 24 105km of rural roads.
However, the implementation of Zim-Asset has been stalled by the internal political feuds within Zanu-PF. Politicians, most of whom are ministers who must superintend the implementation of Zim-Asset, spent the greater part of the 16 months managing factional interests.
More energy was unnecessarily expended on factional wars that do not bring bread and butter to the tables of the electorate. While the electorate was expecting the politicians to honour their electoral promises of growing the economy, the later were seized with plans to unconstitutionally oust the democratically elected people's choice.
It became difficult to implement Zim-Asset in a ministry where the principals have incompatible interests and ideologies. In a ministry where a minister belonged to a faction different from the one that his deputy or permanent secretary belonged to, efforts to implement Zim-Asset from either part would be sabotaged. A minister would appoint board of directors and chief executive officers for parastatals under his ministry on factional line.
The current efforts by Zanu-PF to rid factionalism are praiseworthy for that will translate to unity of purpose. With a unity of purpose in Zanu-PF, the economic agenda will be easy to pursue.
Zanu-PF should emerge from the congress as a stronger family. There must be one centre of power. President Robert Mugabe told the minister for Masvingo Provincial Affairs, Cde Kudakwashe Bhasikiti that he must be in the correct basket. There is only one basket in Zanu-PF in which every member must be. The carrier of that basket is none other than President Mugabe himself.
It is irrefutable that most of the Zanu-PF members had recklessly thrown themselves into two baskets belonging to Cde Emmerson Mnangagwa and Vice President Joice Mujuru. Only a few prudent cadres remained in President Mugabe's basket. Zanu-PF should leave the congress with the two baskets empty, for they are both wrong baskets.
Zanu-PF should do away with the issue of godfathers where every province has a political godfather or guru. This system created centres of power in every province. Only Provincial chairpersons must be allowed to run provinces without the interference of politburo members.
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John Sigauke can be contacted at johnsigau@gmail.com
The Congress comes 16 months after the thunderous and resounding victory in the watershed 31st July 2013 harmonised elections. No doubt, this is no small feat considering the various enemy machinations aimed at undermining the people's Party and its revolutionary gains.
The battle cry for this historic election was Indigenise, Empower, Develop and Create Employment. As Tendai Biti, the then Secretary General of the MDC-T admitted, indeed, Zanu-PF had an appealing message. It was against this background that the Zanu-PF Government crafted the historic economic blueprint, the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-Economic Transformation (ZIM-ASSET) to fulfil the deafening pledges made during the elections.
Zim-Asset, which itself is based on the theme Towards an Empowered Society and a Growing Economy, is the Party's primary vehicle for delivering accelerated economic growth, wealth creation and development which should improve the livelihoods of the people who gave it a new mandate to govern this country for a five (5) year term.
Sixteen months down the line, the electorate would want to know the extent to which Zanu-PF Government has gone in implementing Zim-Asset. Therefore, this Congress must reaffirm the revolutionary Party's support for Zim-Asset as the primary vehicle for delivering concrete electoral promises of empowerment, indigenisation, sustainable economic growth and employment.
The Congress should provide an opportunity for the Party to reassure the people of Zimbabwe that the electoral promises of growing the economy, for their empowerment and employment, will be fulfilled without failure. Of course, failure is not an option for a tried and tested party like Zanu-PF.
However, the Party's reassurance can only be respected if people see some interventions made so far to grow the economy. The Congress, which runs under the theme Accelerated Implementation of Zim-Asset, will reflect on the achievements made so far in the implementation of Zim-Asset.
The Congress must highlight and celebrate achievements made so far. It must also highlight areas that are lagging behind. The acknowledgement of the achievements at the Congress might motivate the lead institutions to keep up the pace while spurring stragglers to catch up with others.
Zanu-PF must show Zimbabweans what government has already done to implement Zim-Asset. There are mega deals that the country has entered into with China and Russia. These deals should save as proof to the electorate that the economic blue print was never meant to be a talk show.
The Zimbabwe National Road Administration (ZINARA) for instance, has already surpassed the set target of maintaining and rehabilitating rural roads and it is on course to widen major highway linking cities and towns. Although Zim-Asset set the target for ZINARA at 4 000km, the later has already maintained and rehabilitated at least 24 105km of rural roads.
However, the implementation of Zim-Asset has been stalled by the internal political feuds within Zanu-PF. Politicians, most of whom are ministers who must superintend the implementation of Zim-Asset, spent the greater part of the 16 months managing factional interests.
More energy was unnecessarily expended on factional wars that do not bring bread and butter to the tables of the electorate. While the electorate was expecting the politicians to honour their electoral promises of growing the economy, the later were seized with plans to unconstitutionally oust the democratically elected people's choice.
It became difficult to implement Zim-Asset in a ministry where the principals have incompatible interests and ideologies. In a ministry where a minister belonged to a faction different from the one that his deputy or permanent secretary belonged to, efforts to implement Zim-Asset from either part would be sabotaged. A minister would appoint board of directors and chief executive officers for parastatals under his ministry on factional line.
The current efforts by Zanu-PF to rid factionalism are praiseworthy for that will translate to unity of purpose. With a unity of purpose in Zanu-PF, the economic agenda will be easy to pursue.
Zanu-PF should emerge from the congress as a stronger family. There must be one centre of power. President Robert Mugabe told the minister for Masvingo Provincial Affairs, Cde Kudakwashe Bhasikiti that he must be in the correct basket. There is only one basket in Zanu-PF in which every member must be. The carrier of that basket is none other than President Mugabe himself.
It is irrefutable that most of the Zanu-PF members had recklessly thrown themselves into two baskets belonging to Cde Emmerson Mnangagwa and Vice President Joice Mujuru. Only a few prudent cadres remained in President Mugabe's basket. Zanu-PF should leave the congress with the two baskets empty, for they are both wrong baskets.
Zanu-PF should do away with the issue of godfathers where every province has a political godfather or guru. This system created centres of power in every province. Only Provincial chairpersons must be allowed to run provinces without the interference of politburo members.
---------------
John Sigauke can be contacted at johnsigau@gmail.com
Source - John Sigauke
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