The ruling Zanu -PF has failed to deliver much from its election pledges to citizens while the opposition weakened due to infighting and factions, leaving it unable to set up a formidable shadow cabinet to proffer clear alternative policies, the latest report by Citizens in Action Southern Africa (CIASA) has revealed.
Published this August, CIASA says due to failure to deliver
on promises by these political parties, it was now more important than ever for
citizens to vote for politicians who delivered to the country’s development
considering campaigns for the 2023 national elections were already gathering
momentum.
In delivering this report, CIASA focused on evidence-based
service delivery analysis of the 2018 electoral promises, noting it was important
for citizens to be informed of how political parties have fared as measured by
their own yardstick provided in election manifestos they presented to voters.
“It is clear that the ruling party has not been able to
deliver much with regards to its pledges to the citizens signified by the
discussion provided in this assessment. On the other hand, the opposition is
too weak to enforce any of its promises due to a number of exogenous and
endogenous factors resulting in a paltry performance,” reads the report.
The report discusses how Zanu-PF promised to revamp the
health sector but since 2018, public health systems have been in constant
deterioration coupled with dilapidation of the existing infrastructures, with
most hospitals understaffed and lacking basic medicines and equipment for basic
medical procedures.
“Health workers have also been perennially entering into
industrial action informed of strikes and go slows owing to poor remuneration,
(which is below 50 percent of what their peers in regional countries like South
Africa, Botswana, Zambia and Angola earn) and pathetic conditions of service,”
CIASA said.
Regarding education, CIASA highlighted Zanu-PF promised
free basic education for all including quality and state funded tertiary
education but since 2018, access to basic education became a privilege for the
elites leaving out disadvantaged learners especially those with disabilities
and rural learners.
The report cited how for long periods in the schooling
calendar, since 2018, teachers were on industrial action owing to poor
remuneration and working conditions.
“Teachers are demanding a restoration of their pre-October
2018 salaries which were pegged at US$520 basic salary for the lowest paid
teacher. Currently, the lowest paid teacher is earning an equivalent of about
US$180,which is also below the Total Consumption Poverty Line which is
conservatively estimated at ZWL34,666.00 for a family of six by the
government’s statistical agency,” CIASA said.
Touching on the transport sector, CIASA highlighted that,
again, since 2018, the transport sector has degenerated from bad to worse.
“Banning of private players in the urban transport
ecosystem unless they register with the inefficient and highly corrupt state
owned ZUPCO has resulted in widespread transportation shortages especially in
urban areas,” the report indicated.
The opposition, especially the MDC Alliance was not spared
from criticism by CIASA, who cited the party had several promises in its
Sustainable and Modernisation Agenda for Real Transformation (SMART) election
manifesto.
“Infighting within the opposition has seen mass recalls of
elected officials further hampering any chances that it could effectively
implement its manifesto,” said CIASA.
“Its failure to have significant representation in
parliament as the ruling party had a constitutional majority has made its
ability to push for implementation of its policies through parliament largely
academic.
However, the report noted that failure to fully implement
devolution by the government as set out in Zimbabwe’s constitution made it
difficult for MDC Alliance to effectively implement its policies in the urban
centres where it has a mandate.
CIASA also noted the opposition did try to use the
portfolio committees under its control to push for accountability in
government, citing the Public Accounts Committee which held several hearings on
how the government was using taxpayers’ monies and sought to hold duty bearers
to account.
Given all this, CIASA concluded that the “opposition is
weak, divided and thus is failing to hold the government to account and push
for implementation of some of its promises.”
The assessment adopted a mixed approach where qualitative
analysis of SSD was employed from a social audit perspective and quantitative
analysis of reports produced by various institutions such as sectoral report and
the Zimbabwe Vulnerability Assessment 2020.
Generalised conclusions were made based on findings and
expert opinion from different population groups across Masvingo, Manicaland and
Midlands such as sectors or pillars, who are women, youth, disability, elderly,
students amongst other vulnerable and disenfranchised groups that are normally
left out. Cite.org.zw
0 comments:
Post a Comment