Zimbabwe is a giant that is now awake and ready to take its pride of place among the fast-developing countries, regardless of the sanctions imposed by the West, President Mnangagwa has said.
Addressing thousands of Gospel of God Church International
pilgrims at their annual gathering at the Gandanzara shrine in Makoni district,
Manicaland province, yesterday, President Mnangagwa said the country would not
capitulate to external pressure.
“Zimbabwe will continue developing, whether our detractors
want or not. We are an enemy to none, but a friend to all,” said President
Mnangagwa, who became the first Head of State and Government since independence
to visit the Gandanzara shrine.
“I was in the United States of America recently for the
United Nations General Assembly and I told them in their own language that with
or without sanctions, Zimbabwe will continue developing.
“Zimbabwe is a giant which is now awake and ready to take
its position among the fast-developing nations.”
He hailed African countries for unequivocally calling for
the removal of sanctions against Zimbabwe, at the recent 77th Session of the
United Nations General Assembly. The two-decades-old unilateral coercive
measures, he added, “will not break our spirit of working hard”.
“Zimbabwe has been under sanctions for 21 years now, but
they will not break our spirit of working hard. After we embarked on the land
reform, the whites decided to punish us with the sanctions, thinking that we
would go down on our knees and beg them to come back and repossess the land,” He
said.
“This is now history! We now own the land. Whether it is
cold or hot, whether we have poor harvests or surpluses, we will not succumb to
Western pressure. Nyika inovakwa nevene vayo, and we will not relent on that
resolve.
“I want to express my sincere gratitude for the solidarity
we received from most African Heads of State during the United Nations General
Assembly. The Heads of State all spoke strongly against the sanctions.”
President Mnangagwa said the country will leverage its
bountiful resources to grow the economy.
“We are equipping our youths with requisite skills for them
to fully exploit the vast resources in the country, especially minerals. Our
minerals should benefit everyone and facilitate economic growth.”
On land utilisation, President Mnangagwa said Government
will not hesitate to repossess unproductive land in order to ensure food
security.
“They should be prepared to go back to the reserves and
pave the way for those who can produce and feed the nation. We should work hard
to produce enough food. No sweat, no gain. You cannot expect a fruit to walk to
your table without producing it and you cannot expect a fish to find its way
into your plate without fishing it. Idya cheziya!
“If you slumber, you will lose everything. You cannot
develop the country in your sleep,” he added.
He praised Gospel of God Church International’s stance of
encouraging self-employment among its members.
“The founder of this church, Baba Johane, encouraged you to
be innovative and self-reliant. This is the spirit that we want. Let us
continue working hard in whatever we will be doing.
“I am happy to note that your church has embraced the land
reform programme. We will support you in this regard. We will provide inputs
and centre pivots for your farms so that they become mechanised. This will
ensure more output and many people will benefit from their farming ventures.”
Government will also construct two schools for the church
and will soon send a team to assess their needs “so that these projects start
in earnest”.
The Gospel of God Church International was founded by Baba
Johane Masowe in 1932 and has since spread its tentacles globally. Sunday News
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