Outspoken Ntabazinduna traditional leader, Chief
Nhlanhlayamangwe Ndiweni has stirred new controversy by calling on Zimbabweans
to take advantage of the anti-sanctions march tomorrow to call on President
Emmerson Mnangagwa and his administration to step down for running down the
economy.
Sadc member countries have pledged to rally behind Zimbabwe
tomorrow in a regional campaign for the lifting of sanctions.
Ndiweni, who claimed to have been speaking on behalf of
other traditional leaders in the region said long-suffering Zimbabweans must
take advantage of the anti-sanctions march to call on Mnangagwa to step down.
“Those who wish to join the sanctions march on October 25,
go out, join the marches and call out loudly for Mnangagwa and his
administration to resign because of their failed sanctions strategy,” Ndiweni
told journalists in Bulawayo on Tuesday.
Ndiweni, a known sharp-tongued government critic, accuses
Mnangagwa of rigging his way to victory in the 2018 harmonized elections.
Government has challenged the chief to join the political
terrain, accusing him of being an opposition activist.
Ndiweni is currently out of custody on $500 bail pending
appeal after he was recently jailed for destroying property worth $300 (US$30)
belonging to one of his subject. Ndiweni was serving an 18-month jail term,
while his co-accused 23 other villagers were given a community service sentence
by a lower court.
“Mnangagwa has failed to manage our economy and now wants
us to believe it is because of sanctions. That logic has no credibility. We are
formally asking Mnangagwa to do the honourable thing and resign with his
administration for they have failed the economy, they have failed this nation,
they have failed the people, and they have bankrupted the country,” Ndiweni
said. In September, Foreign Affairs and International Trade minister Sibusiso
Moyo said Zimbabwe has lost over US$70 billion to sanctions imposed by the West
and the European Union.
According to Moyo, Zimbabwe lost over US$42 billion in
revenue over the past 18 years due to sanctions, US$4,5 billion in bilateral
donor support, US$12 billion in loans from the International Monetary Fund, the
World Bank and African Development Bank and a further US$18 billion in
commercial loans.
However, Ndiweni said the sanctions must be maintained to
force government to reform.
“The current targeted international sanctions must not be
removed or relaxed for they are not responsible for the current economic
meltdown and social meltdown in Zimbabwe. As long as reforms are not
implemented, the targeted sanctions must remain. This is the narrative from the
new breed of traditional leaders in Zimbabwe,” Ndiweni said.
“For many years now, the leaders of the Sadc countries have
chosen to listen to only the narrative of this administration in Zimbabwe. That
course of action has not yielded the required results. Perhaps it is now time
that the true narrative of the people of Zimbabwe is given a chance to be
heard.
“Should that be agreeable, then the probability is that the
Zimbabwean problem may finally be resolved. However, should the Sadc leaders
still find issue with the true narrative of the people of Zimbabwe then the
Zimbabwean problem will continue.” Newsday
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