Zimbabweans should
remain united and focus their energy on building a prosperous nation, President
Emmerson Mnangagwa has said.
The Head of State and Government said oneness and
forgiveness were fundamental to rapid socio-economic transformation.
President Mnangagwa was addressing thousands of Zion
Christian Church congregants at their Easter conference at Mbungo Estates,
Bikita yesterday.
With him were Vice-President Dr Constantino Chiwenga and
senior Government and Zanu-PF officials.
He said, “For this country to develop and prosper, we need
to put God first. The Bible says if you build without involving the Hand of
God, you would have done nothing. Let us build a new Zimbabwe born out of the
recently-ushered new dispensation.
“Let us preach love, peace and forgiveness for God to bless
our nation. Let us build a new Zimbabwe, and I am sure if we are united, we can
build a prosperous and peaceful nation.
“I think you have heard that there is a new dispensation in
the country. It is a new beginning for Zimbabwe and my appeal to every
Zimbabwean and church leaders, in particular, is that they preach unity and
peace.
“If we are to develop and succeed as a nation, let us unite
and live in harmony and that way we will be able to achieve all our goals and
targets.”
President Mnangagwa implored Zimbabweans to include God in
all endeavours.
“We are now in a new dispensation and we have a new
Government, but it is all because of God’s plan for this country. Like Christ,
after His resurrection, we also now have a new life, but it is all God’s
planning. Nobody knows what will happen tomorrow, but God knows everyone’s
future.
“It is God’s plan for me to be President. It was in God’s
plan that I was going to eat poison and survive; become a border-jumper and
survive. It is God’s plan to be where I am here today. We do not know about
tomorrow. It is all God’s planning.”
The President said churches should encourage congregants to
register to vote.
“Churches should be at the forefront of promoting peace and
unity. I will continue spreading the gospel of non-violence, emphasising that
there is no benefit to us if we always fight and engage in conflicts.”
Zimbabwe’s food security, he said, had turned the corner —
thanks to Command Agriculture.
“We introduced Command Agriculture and at the same time God
also blessed us with abundant rains, helping us to produce enough food for our
nation. Now the challenge is lack of storage facilities for the food,”
President Mnangagwa said.
He paid tribute to ZCC for building schools, clinics and
other social infrastructure. ZCC leader Bishop Nehemiah Mutendi said
Zimbabweans should thank God for the peaceful manner in which Operation Restore
Legacy was executed.
“It is clear from what happened during Operation Restore
Legacy leading up to the new dispensation that God’s hand was at work. The
whole process had God’s blessings and it was His plan.
“That is why it happened in the way it did, and that
process will always remain a very important one in the history of our country.
As we are celebrating Easter, we should also be celebrating the new
dispensation in our country and our God-given national leaders.
“We will pray with any leader who is President,
irrespective of political affiliation. Let us pray for President Mnangagwa
because he is in the driving seat of our country. We cannot pray for the bus
(country) and leave out the driver (President Mnangagwa). We have to pray for
both the bus and the driver,” he said.
Bishop Mutendi urged political leaders to work with the
church, and described President Mnangagwa as God-fearing and humble. Sunday Mail
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