THE ruling Zanu PF has failed to deal with Zimbabwe’s
multifaceted crisis as the socio-economic situation continues to deteriorate
since 2018 elections, a survey has shown.
According to a report on citizens’ perceptions and
expectations titled Dancing on the Same Spot by SIVIO Institute, an independent
organisation focused on ensuring that citizens are at the centre of processes
of economic-political-social and policy change, the socio-economic crisis has
worsened with no prospects of a turnaround in the immediate future.
It noted that the opposition MDC Alliance has also failed
to deliver on its promises in local authorities they run, but added that the
opposition party has continuously shifted the blame on Zanu PF, accusing the
governing party of interference.
SIVIO Institute interviewed Zimbabweans between the ages of
18 and 65 and the findings showed that people were “disappointed”.
“In the period leading to the 2018 general elections
Zimbabweans were subjected to a frenzy of promises on how different political
parties, if elected, would change their circumstance. We have been tracking how
the promises made by Zanu PF during the elections have been converted into
policy programmes,” the report read.
The nation-wide survey was carried out in November and
December 2019.
“The findings suggest a general sense of despondency and
disappointment with both local authorities and central government. There is no
single area that one can identify as possible cases of best practice. In the
meantime, the socio-economic conditions have worsened across the country
exacerbated by the poor rains which negatively affected agriculture.
“Politically, the country remains in gridlock since the
July 30, 2018 elections. The main opposition party continues to raise the
illegitimacy of the current President based on claims that the elections were
rigged,” the report further read.
“There continues to be growing country risk factors
associated with perceived and real lack of adherence to human rights standards
required under both domestic constitutional imperatives and State obligations
under international human rights law. Repeated scenes of post-election violent
reprisals to national protests effectively nullify the potency in the narrative
of ‘the new dawn’ as various pockets of the political and civic community have
been on the receiving end of brute force from law enforcement agencies since
August 1, 2018.”
The report said the violent attacks on protesters in August
2018 and January 2019 by the military also negatively affected the government’s
reputation before they had even settled down.
“The failure to account for public resources such as the
debacle around the US$3 billion lost through Command Agriculture has also
served to fuel thinking that nothing has changed in terms of public
accountability. This government still has a lot of work to convince its own
citizens and also the international community that they are actually about
reforms and turning around the fortunes of the countries,” the report read.
“There is no good news coming out of Zimbabwe at the
moment,” the report read, adding that corruption, political instabilit,y among
other issues, remain a challenge in the country.
“The bromance between citizens and the ‘new’ leadership in
Zanu PF seems to have quickly died down and, in its place, we have returned to
high levels of mistrust and a gridlock on how to proceed.
The major parties have defaulted to blame shifting- Zanu PF
seems to be shifting all the blame on sanctions. The MDC Alliance is also not
taking responsibility for the challenges on delivering the smart cities
promise, the mantra has shifted to- ‘it is all because of Zanu meddling’.”
SIVIO Institute added: “There is an old saying, ‘the more
things change the more they remain the same’. Despite all this, citizens still
expect the messiah (government) to come and rescue them and office holders
continue to make promises as if there is an appointed day when all the promises
made will, through some form of magic or miraculous act; turn into tangible
actions for the benefit of citizens. Yet, the multiple forms of the
socio-economic crises continue to deepen, leading others to yearn for the previous
era.”
But Zanu PF information director Tafadzwa Mugwadi said:
“The capacity of Zanu PF and its progress with regards to the implementation of
the imperatives set out in the people’s manifesto of 2018 cannot be evaluated
by bogus organisations, but by our people and leadership together.
“The progress that we have registered thus far is unmatched
compared to the past. The activities on our roads in terms of dualisation,
rehabilitation of industries that had died and the coming in of new ones, the
political and economic reforms currently on-going, the Parliament project that
is nearing completion, the national dialogue process and the relaxation of some
aspects of sanctions shows that indeed, we are on course to fulfil our
manifesto. We, however, take note of the challenges we have faced along the
way, chief among them being sanctions, climate change and a weaponised
opposition grouping that has always been desperate to reverse these significant
gains by way of bastardising the nation’s image globally through spreading
falsehoods.” Newsday
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