Let’s take advantage of indigenisation programme

reform programme when frustrated land hungry peasants took to the farms and occupied them in a demonstration of their being fed up with the slow pace of resettlement by the Government.
The people made their point known and the people’s Government responded by resettling more than 300 000 households across the country in one of the largest empowerment programmes ever seen in the country, the whole region and indeed the whole world.
It was not all smooth sailing though, as there were many doubting Thomases and those that sought to throw spanners into the works along the way by raising the false alarm that the land reform programme would chase away investors, lead to economic collapse and that it was a political programme.
For the true benefit of the programme, it is better to hear from the beneficiaries who now own tractors and other equipment and are increasing their hectarage and productivity each year.
Having learnt our lessons from the land reform programme, we believe Zimbabweans should be better placed to respond better to the indigenisation programme that is sweeping across the country. Like its predecessor which was the first phase of indigenisation, the programme was preceded by the relevant statutory instruments to give it legal force.
Chronicle yesterday carried an article in which the National Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Board (NIEEB) said it was now moving to establish provincial offices to ensure that the indigenisation programme is as broad-based as possible with people benefiting from the fund established under the indigenisation law.
According to NIEEB chairman, Mr David Chapfika, staff was being recruited to run the regional offices to avail information to everyone so that more people benefit.
We believe this is a commendable move. While the rollout of the programme brings with it job creation, we believe the key goal of indigenisation is to ensure that the majority of this country participate and benefit from the mainstream economic activity following decades of marginalisation.
We should not pay lip service to pursuing a broad-based programme since it would be a futile exercise to replace an economic system with another flawed one that would see one group taking advantage of others. The proposed provincial offices, we believe, should also be answerable to provincial authorities so that they are responsive to the needs of the local population instead of just having a physical presence when all policy direction is from elsewhere.
The establishment of the provincial offices would give form to the programme and confidence to potential beneficiaries who have largely seen indigenisation as a programme espoused by politicians in the media with some parties against it while others have embraced it.
We would like to urge Zimbabweans, especially the youths, who may not realise how privileged they are to have been born into an independent Zimbabwe, to take advantage of the opportunities indigenisation offers and aim to own our natural resources rather than just work for those that control such resources.
Let us not wait for the establishment of the offices to make a move but position ourselves to benefit so that we can collectively buy huge stakes in some of the big companies that control vast resources in this country. That is the whole essence of empowerment, the reason why this country was liberated.