Mugabe's Full Speech: This is our day

This is the speech delivered by President Robert Mugabe at the occasion of signing the new Zimbabwe constitution on Wednesday 22 May 2013.

Vice President Mai Mujuru,
Prime Minister Cde Richard Morgan Tsvangirai,
Deputy Prime Ministers Mutambara and
Madam Khupe,
Speaker of the House of Assembly,
Mai hanzi Chihera nhai?
VaChihera Mai Edna Madzongwe vekuSenate,
Chief Justice Godfrey Chidyausiku,
Honourable Ministers here present,
Our Chiefs, Our Service Chiefs,
Ladies and Gentleman, Comrades and Friends.

For me this event is a happening of joy. Great joy indeed. This is an event done by Zimbabweans for Zimbabweans.

Yesterday, the dos, our constitutional do after protracted discussions that lasted three good months, October to December 1979. We were an armed people. Some called us terrorists, gangsters, but we called ourselves revolutionaries, as we negotiated with the British and the British said yes you can have your land, yes you can be sovereign, yes we will leave you.

We signed a document. It had its own favourable parts, but it also contained unfavourable parts. There was recognition yes of our sovereign nation but within it you had protective measures which the British wanted to serve the settlers here and their interests, naturally.

All the same we accepted the document because it gave political power to our people and as we came back we were jubilant.

We had lost lots of people, commanders, but as on that eve, we assembled on the eve of our independence the 17th of April, midnight, with Prince Charles, Lord Soames, all present.

And we saw colonialism tumble as the flag, British Union Jack, was being pulled down by no other than Prince Charles himself, the first son of the Queen. There was great joy, great joy that it was now the dismissal of colonialism. The dismissal of Britain as ruler of our country and the entry now of our sovereign State, the nation of Zimbabwe.

I hoisted the flag which we still have.

And there, it fluttered where the British flag yesterday was fluttering and telling us we were not sovereign but subjects.

From that moment on we became what we knew we had been, a sovereign people and it was the beginning of what we are today.

What happened from the 18th of April to this day, were actions by a sovereign people. Yes we had these hitches in the Constitution. The settlers were to be protected and that protection by way of seats in Parliament which could not be contested by any other race, but that was also to go.

It was given time in the Constitution and sooner or later we saw that protection go and majority rule became now the order of the day.

Although political power was with us, in practice we did not have economic power. The political power that we had, which is the power we have used now, enabled us to realise fully the meaning and significance of the political power. The meaning and significance of total sovereignty, control of our economy in toto.

That we are owners, not just of ourselves no longer being owned by others, we own ourselves and as we own ourselves we also own our country and as we own our country, we own everything in our country over and beneath our soil.

That is the realisation that was yet to come and I am glad that this document we call our own Constitution now enables us to say, ah, you are truly the makers of your own nation. You have demonstrated that you are one. Divergent opinions yes, variations of culture, yes, different religious affinities, yes, political differences, yes, but remember the common denominator which this document emphasises.

Now in our country, young and old, this religion, that religion, this tribe, that tribe, can't say he or she is superior to others. There is equality, equality, equality, equality, equality.

Zanu-PF yes, that's the jacket I am wearing, MDC, yes that's the jacket and the tie you (Deputy Prime Minister Professor Arthur Mutambara) are wearing, MDC, yes that's the jacket and tie you (Prime Minister Mr Morgan Tsvangirai) are wearing.

But these jackets we take them off, but what are we then? You are truly (to PM Tsvangirai) the son of some Buhera family, me Zvimba yes but where are these and he Chimanimani. We remain Zimbabweans all of us.

And that is the realisation emphasised by this document and that is why we were able to do it ourselves.

And that also bids us now, that is the imperative, to recognise that because we are one, we must defend ourselves.

You are hungry you must not die, your children are thirsting for education they must not go ignorant. All of us have those rights.

Some have decided to write them as human rights, we recognise them as rights belonging to all of us they are national rights we must have.

You must have a home, everyone must have a home. You must live, you must have a resource to enable you to live.

You want to be what? A farmer? You want to be an industrialist, a professional, educationist, engineer, the skills to enable you to live. Our country must offer all that.

Every citizen is entitled to having those skills. The choice is his, but we recognise that we belong to each other.

If outsiders dare attack your village, it is my right and responsibility to come to your defence. We must defend, in other words, the sovereignty that we have must be defended. Our nation to be sovereign, rejects interference and if there is interference, we must repulse it, fight it. No more colonialism, direct or indirect. No more interference with our affairs.

We have done this on our own we have demonstrated we can do it. Some people in Sadc wanted to impose themselves, we said no, we can do it, in fact, we can do it better than others.

Well, we have got the brains, haven't we?

So, who is there to say no, the Zimbabweans require mental skills? Not today, they could have said it perhaps in 1979, but in 2013, ah ipo pano pandiri apa anongova maskills akawanda oga oga.

So, let us use those skills in, one, the direction to repulse interference  from others, but yes welcome complementarity, interaction with others, yes, friendship with others yes, alliance with others yes, neo-colonialism no. Supervision of our system by others, no. We know we can do it. Where we cannot do it and we need technological assistance we will say so and invite friends and allies.

But when they come they should not be our superiors, no. They may have knowledge, yes in some cases we don't have, but politically that does not entitle them to be our masters.

People are hungry, the stomachs need to be fed. I am not talking of today. Today you will have more than you require. But it has been a bad season for us, they need to be fed.

But that's not just all, they are poor, they need to be uplifted in various ways.

Their children need to be educated, those of them who are sick, need to be looked after and facilities, therefore, must be developed. We have, yes, the skills, but let's use the skills wisely.

Tomorrow comes from today, they say. Nhasi ndimangwana. Tinaana vamwe vana Mangwana ndovamwe vacho vakatibatsira muCopac vanongogara vari mangwana chete. Havana zuro, kwete.

We must look into the future that's where we go. Build the country. It doesn't just belong to us you and me. It belongs to those who came yesterday, only yesterday, and to those who are yet to come. They must find us, if we are still there, ready to admit them.

Every year so many children are born, what is their future in our country? And that's what we must work on together, unite on those things that matter.

We are all of us, men and women, we are still there yes, we say of today, but tomorrow will be of yesterday. Gone! What shall we have left our country?

This unity, peace, recognition of each other as a deserving ally of your country, a deserving friend, deserving neighbour.

The principle of equality, good neighbourliness, that's the principle that binds us.

But the way forward, education; way forward, resources; industry, agriculture, good health, social services.

Let us work on these in a very, very progressive way, realising that the country needs our skills, our technology, our sweat, our energies.

I want to say, finally, that as we move forward, there are trying situations all the time, situations that test us, test our sincerity to nationhood, sincerity of the belief of recognition of each other.

Contests come. At various levels we have these contests, sporting: DeMbare, Highlanders, CAPS, yenyu yamuno supporter ndeipi? Muno supporter Dynamos, DeMbare?

The girls are going to play cricket I understand against the South African side. Those are contests at a lower level and they must train our participants to recognise the reality of sport, that sport is sport. It's not war.

We, yes, you are going now to battle it in football, but we don't mean you are going to box each other. I was surprised to read that one footballer anoruma vamwe. Ko, rava game rekurumana here?

He is quite a professional you know, but anosevenzesa mazino. Anyway I was coming to the higher level now of sport.

Zanu-PF versus MDC, apoka, harisi game rezvibhakera. People make a choice. And we are called upon to make choices all the time, you want this, you don't want this, you want this shirt, I don't want it, you want this woman, he, ungandidewo here? Ko akati handikude, yava mhosva? Ndarambirwei? Aaaaah handizvoka, kwete.

So, you choose, you vote for the person of your choice in your constituency, handiti?

But the starting point is how that person who is presenting himself has been chosen. Ndopane nyaya ipapo.

You want to stand, I want to stand in the constituency, you also want to stand in the constituency. Aha, kwete ndeyangu constituency. Iwe wabva nekupi? MuZanu-PF muri kunzarwo imomo umo. Kuti aah, kwete hatidi kumouna uyu and torangana vakomana, mugadzirei.

MuMDC imomo murikunzarwo kuti aiwa uyu haabviswe ava havasungirwe kucontestwa. Vakaita sei ivavo? Untouchables. Saka tinavo kwese mativi ese, ehe nekuZanu-PF kwese. KuZanu-PF now one of our leaders akazoti ah no people need guided democracy.

The leadership wants to protect itself. Aiwa ndizvo zvinounza zvibhakera. Let's not fight it out, let's do it in a peaceful way, peace, peace peace.

It begins with? Me, it begins with you, it begins with all of us.

So, that's what this do of today it telling us. Let's be peaceful, let's recognise we are one, let's recognise that your destiny is my destiny we all want a Zimbabwe that is progressive.

I want to thank our workers veCopac who produced this document. Takambovaitira hasha kuvatumira ma managers, kuti nhai, nhai, vakomana vari kuiteiko ava, nevasikana.

Vakomana nevasikana vari kuiteiko ivava. Copac iyi, aha, hazvisati zvapera, hazvisati zvapera.

It has taken long an arduous task. Kana iri road, meandering, inoenda ichiita meander so, but the destiny tasvika padestination yedu apa.

And also I want to thank management yedu kwakabva ma ideas, the threesome. Mamwe maparty vakambotiwo isu we have not been incorporated and they were right.

But some of them are too small for us to recognise. Saka nekuti the criterion tinotarisaka kuParliamentka kuti vari mu Parliament ndivana ani? Zvino kana usimo muParliament tinoti unonzi ani?

Anyway, we thank them, we thank Parliament and finally I must thank my colleagues.

Ndaimboti uyu muroyi uyu, ungagare naye iyeyu (pointing to PM Tsvangirai), iye achitiwo, aha, mudhara uyu anonzi ah ane twaakabata. Zvino, aiwa takazobvisana huroyi wani.

We really are very free with each other. Kana masadza tinodya tiine mufaro.

We also made our contribution very hard. I want in a special way to recognise our legal people, legal ministers. Vaenda vaMatinenga vanga vachiti vari kuenda kuNew York. VaChinamasa, so tinoda kuvatenda.

We really want to thank participants, this is our own child, our own baby and we must be proud of it.

Zimbabwe that has matured and we can now present this to our people and say this is what we have done and other people outside, even Sadc we will say well we have done our thing we didn't need you for it. Now, elections you may come if you want, we will not prevent you, but we are sure that we are going to look after ourselves during those elections and supervise ourselves as well and ensure that there won't be any violence,  there won't be any rigging, there will be honesty and truth.

Vemapepa journalists, aha, kunongova, isu vaviri ndisu tinongonzi nemi nemi. Herald yakananganawo naTsvangirai, ininiwo my Mugabe papers all the time. They should pay me because they use my name, 'Mugabe this, Mugabe that' so their papers can sell. I am going to acquire those Mugabe papers and demand that they pay me for promoting them, but don't tell lies ka, hatidi.

Our journalism must be journalism of high standard. Ah, filthy journalism. Mavakushorwa zvinotondinyadza. It's as if we are not educated at all.

Anyway let's correct ourselves and perhaps sometimes the levels dzevana vanongoda zviri emotional zvekutukana, zvekudii, nhasi tonyora chii, tichiti chii. That's not it. We want now to build the nation and build the country, develop our resources, ensure there is wealth that is shared by the people.

Our yesterday, it was unsavoury and perhaps unfortunate. We will try to transform it into a tomorrow which is much more enjoyable much more beneficial, much more uplifting. Giving our wealth, distributing and enabling our people to enjoy it by rendering your skills, you give your skills and the benefits come to you and that's what we want to look forward to.

I want to say also to those who prayed for us, the various churches. Tinokutendai. The State, our State does not underestimate the role of the Church. We say we are hand in hand with the Church, the State and the Church are marching hand in hand because we need morals, we need that spiritual input into the child, into the professional, engineer, politician, so that politicians become straight forward, vanhu vanoti tiri corrupt, tiri chii. Corruption, iripoka ehe. It must stop.

Saka church inoramba ichiti musabe, musatore zvisiri zvenyu. Let's look after ourselves also as a nation so we are moral nation and we are not one which is despised by others.

That's why we reject zvinhu zvakaita se homosexuality and things that really undermine, you see, the morality of our nation.

I want to say thank you for your having come. Today is the day that the Lord has made. It's also the day the Zimbabweans have made. Let's be proud of it.

Pamberi ne Zimbabwe!
Nekubatana!
Pasi nevasingade kubatana!