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we will fight this little struggle
‘Cause that’s the only way we can overcome our little trouble.
Brother, you’re right, you’re right,
You’re right, you’re right, you’re so right!
We gonna fight, we’ll have to fight,
We gonna fight, fight for our rights!
Set it up in Zimbabwe,
Mash it up-a in-a Zimbabwe
Africans a-liberate Zimbabwe.
No more internal power struggle;
We come together to overcome the little trouble.
Soon we’ll find out who is the real revolutionary,
‘Cause I don’t want my people to be contrary.
These are prophetic lyrics sung by legendary Jamaican musician Bob Marley on the eve of Zimbabwe’s birth on 17 April 1980. These lyrics are still fresh and relevant in Zimbabwe today just as when they were composed 32 years ago.
Today, Zimbabweans from all walks of life celebrate the country’s hard won independence and this is a time to take stock of achievements over the past 32 years of black majority rule.
It is also time to recognize the immense sacrifices made by the gallant sons and daughters of Zimbabwe — the departed and the living — who took up arms to confront the racist, imperial and colonial system that had reduced the black majority to hewers of wood and drawers of water in their own land.
The results are there for everyone to see and it is now the duty of every Zimbabwean to jealously guard this independence.
As we celebrate our 32 years of sovereignty, we need to take stock of the achievements made over the past three decades as we move forward to consolidate the gains made over the years.
At the same time, it must be categorically stated that this independence must never be taken for granted as it never came on a silver platter. Indeed, thousands who took up arms to fight the successive oppressive and racist colonial governments died fighting and their fight was not in vain.
As we reminisce on the years gone by, we note the great strides made in the education sector, which has resulted in millions of Zimbabweans having access to education. The results are there for everyone to see.
Secondary and primary schools have been built in some of the remotest parts of the country, while tertiary institutions that include colleges and universities — both private and State-sponsored — have sprouted over the last decade. The result has been an increase in educated and intellectually advanced Zimbabweans who are an envy of many worldwide.
The same has happened in the health sector, with hospitals and clinics being built at ward, district and provincial levels thereby enhancing access to health services by Zimbabweans.
Major strides have also been made in infrastructural development, with roads being maintained and new ones being built over the years. The country also boasts of a sizeable number of small, medium and large dams, thanks to investment in this sector by the Government.
Electricity has also been made available in the rural areas, thanks to the rural electrification programme.
Looking back over the years, Zimbabwe is one of the few countries on the continent that has made great strides in promoting the advancement of women through its gender policies.
But more is still to be done in the areas of education, health, infrastructural development and we believe this is achievable if we all narrow our differences as Zimbabweans and concentrate on exploiting our God-given resources.
This means those who have called for the imposition of sanctions which have hindered economic development over the past 10 years must call for their removal in toto and do so now. They surely cannot run with the hares and hunt with the hounds.
Zimbabweans decided in 2000 that the land that was stolen back from them during colonialism in the 1890s must be restored to its rightful owners and there is certainly no reason for foreign powers to interfere with that. With land in our hands, the next port of call is ensuring that Zimbabweans are economically empowered.
That is why this year’s celebrations are aptly themed “Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment for Economic Transformation”.
There is no doubt that land reform and indigenisation and economic empowerment remain the biggest achievements by the Government since independence. Land reform has resulted in the resettling of more than 350 000 families across the country while many black businesspeople have emerged over the past few years even in areas which were previously the preserve of whites.
Having won political independence in 1980, the majority black people of this country remained poor as they still did not own the means of production, the land which continued to be in the hands of the former colonial oppressors until the Zanu-PF-led Government guided by the visionary leadership of President Mugabe took a stance in 2000 that Zimbabweans would not be free until they repossess their land.
The gallant comrades did not only fight for the national flag and the national anthem, but for their land and everything on it and beneath it. The new thrust over the control of our natural resources is therefore a fight that must be supported by every progressive Zimbabwean.
As with the land reform programme, this is not going to be a walk in the park as those opposed to the empowerment of the people of Zimbabwe will obviously fight tooth and nail and stop the programme. Already, we have seen discord in the Inclusive Government over this and other programmes aimed at ensuring that the people of Zimbabwe enjoy the fruits of their independence.
But we are glad that the majority of Zimbabweans have seen the light and have embraced the empowerment programme, in the same way that they embraced the land reform programme. That is why elections must be held this year so that there is a government with a clear vision of taking this country forward.
Today, Zimbabweans are enjoying the fruits of the independence and walk with their heads tall wherever they go as they are now proud owners of their land.
There is therefore a need to jealously guard this independence as the country’s detractors have never rested but still seek to meddle in our internal affairs.
As we celebrate our 32nd independence anniversary, we need to jealously guard our freedom and unite in the exploitation of our resources for the benefit of all.
Amhlope, makorokoto, congratulations Zimbabwe!
Online Reporter