AS the Constitutional Court gave its ruling on Nelson Chamisa’s electoral petition on August 24 2018, there was an overwhelming feeling of unanimity among Zimbabweans that the moment to rebuild the country had finally come.
There too was the feeling, mistaken though, that every citizen of this country would walk the same path; that this country had endured too much for it to continue being blighted by a non-performing economy.
That was not to be.
Just two months on, true colours from various quarters who have thrived on ‘crises’ are slowly coming out in the open.
There are those who prefer progress, while on the other end are those agitating for the total collapse of our economy.
“Actions lead to habits and habits form character,” so goes the saying.
The spate of unjustified, wanton price increases and artificial shortages of goods witnessed in the country in recent weeks do not only point towards mere profiteering, they are confirmation of underhand operations behind the scenes aimed at bringing the country to its knees.
It is foolhardy for anyone to believe that the ordinary citizen is being punished for want of profit.
There are certain realities obtaining on the ground which point towards an attempt to alienate the Government from the people.
For instance, The Sunday Mail this week unravelled a scandal that has been building over the past few months where bakers, despite receiving support from Government, have been planning to increase the price of bread to US$4 per loaf.
How and why they have come to that decision is a mystery that can only be explained by the fact that this is an attempt to create anarchy in the country.
Said the paper: “Some stakeholders in the baking industry have held secret consultations over the past week to unilaterally peg the price of a standard loaf of bread to the prevailing black market rate of the US dollar against the bond note.
The Sunday Mail can reveal that bakers want to start implementing the pricing mechanism this week, raising the cost of bread from US$1,10 to $4-$5 as per last week’s black market rates.
However, some in the baking sector are shocked by this as Government meets the bulk of their input requirements, while other key cost drivers – like labour, water and electricity – have remained constant.
The sector is among those getting priority foreign currency allocations from Government, and the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe has been picking up the tab for wheat imports and facilitating access to fuel for deliveries to millers.
The National Bakers Association of Zimbabwe (NBAZ) has been frantically trying to rope in the Grain Millers Association of Zimbabwe into their scheme without success.”
What has been clearly lacking in this country is the spirit of 1980 where there was unity of purpose.
This is what President Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa as well as Finance and Economic Development Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube have been trying to instil into the economy through numerous interventions they have made in recent weeks.
In 1980 the Government instituted a whole range of new economic policies, introducing a minimum wage and virtually eliminating the right to fire workers.
Total spending on education nearly tripled (from Z$227,6 million to Z$628 million) as did Government spending on healthcare (from Z$66,4 million to Z$188,6 million), between 1979 and 1990.
Speaking at the 17th Bindura University of Science Education (BUSE) graduation ceremony on Friday last week, President Mnangagwa said the economy was under siege from gluttonous businesspeople who wanted to destroy the country.
He warned those peddling falsehoods on social media that the net was closing in on them.
“We also note the wanton peddling of false news through social media to cause despondency and alarm among people,” he said.
“We are now certain and clear of the personalities behind these wicked and criminal activities and the net is closing in on them.
“We will soon name, shame and bring to book these gluttonous individuals and companies.”
Professor Ncube recently launched the Transitional Stabilisation Programme (TSP) that will run through to December 2020.
The programme has secured the backing of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Minister Ncube told The Sunday Mail this week that his policies would start bearing fruit around March 2019.
Said Minister Ncube: “I have only been a minister for one month.
“We need patience, we know what we are doing.
“What I can say to Zimbabweans is that they should give me six months to see the full impact of the changes from the policies that we have pursued.
“Of course, I need a year to make a formal report with things such as the budget, but judge me after six months.
“We would have made very good progress in various fronts, both in terms of arrears clearance agenda and progress on the fiscal front, dealing with the revenue front which we have acted on and cutting Government expenditure.
“There is no regret.
“We are not going to do policy reversals, it’s a very bad idea to reverse policy.
“We need policy consistency. All we want is for Zimbabweans to understand what we are trying to do.
“We have a patient that is bleeding, these policies are the solution, they are not the problem.
“We will run some numbers on how we will do cost-cutting on a monthly basis.
“We will run some numbers on a monthly basis on the expenditure.
“This means after one year, I will be able to report formally on where we are.
“That is why I am saying, if you give me six months, you will see changes, significant changes.”
Zimbabweans must strive to build the country and develop the economy as one people.
We have done it before and we can do it again.