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It is a great pleasure for me to present this Central Committee Report at the 14th People’s Conference, which is our first opportunity to come together in this manner following our thunderous and resounding victory in the watershed 31 July 2013 harmonised elections. The 14th National People’s Conference affords us an opportunity to review the work that our revolutionary party has been carrying out through its departments since the 13th National People’s Conference hosted by the Midlands Province, in Gweru, from 5-9 December 2012.
The fact that the conference is going to take place in Chinhoyi is no mere coincidence for we shall barely be five kilometres from the place across the Manyame River, which has become the Mashonaland West Provincial Heroes Acre, where the first recorded battle of our Second Chimurenga was fought on the 28th of April 1966. That epic battle ignited our protracted armed struggle which culminated in the attainment of our Independence on 18 April 1980. We are, indeed, inspired and emboldened by this historic milestone that Chinhoyi betrothed to our struggle for total emancipation.
As an expression of the hopes and aspirations of all Zimbabweans, and the thousands more who lie in disused mineshafts, marked and unmarked graves within and without the country, the theme of our Annual People’s Conference this year is “Zim Asset: Growing the Economy for Empowerment and Employment.” This theme seeks to deliver, first and foremost, the loud promises we made to the people of Zimbabwe during the campaign for the harmonised elections held on 31 July 2013. Indeed, our battle cry campaign for this election was “Indigenise, Empower, Develop and Create Employment.” The people of Zimbabwe voted overwhelmingly for our party, thus handing us a new mandate as the sole ruling party. No doubt, this is our greatest achievement in the context of various enemy machinations to undermine the party and its revolutionary gains.
Our Government, with the ruling party’s direction and approval, has crafted the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-Economic Transformation (Zim Asset), which is itself based on the theme “Towards an Empowered Society and a Growing Economy.”
Zim Asset is our primary vehicle for delivering accelerated economic growth, wealth creation and development, and thus improving the livelihoods of our people in fulfillment of their hopes, dreams and aspirations.
The conference must reaffirm the ruling party’s ownership of and support for Zim Asset as the primary vehicle for delivering, in concrete terms, indigenisation, empowerment, sustainable economic growth and employment. In its deliberations, the conference must delve into the Zim Asset clusters and economic empowerment programme which anchored our electoral victory. We have repeatedly stated that the time had now come for us to fully assert, without any apology or ambivalence, our dominion over our land and all God-given resources and endowments.
Our indigenisation and economic empowerment programme is a set policy, and is our chosen path to full sovereignty. We must have a controlling stake in all ventures that exploit our non-renewable natural resources. This is the essence and basis of our 51:49 percent shareholding principle, which genuine partners should find acceptable.
By the same token, and in the interests of natural justice, we totally reject the skewed economic model which puts foreign capital, technology or expertise above the values of our natural resources.
Our country continues to suffer unwarranted animosity, from the west, led and orchestrated by the British. This is in spite of our just-ended elections having been adjudged peaceful, free, fair, and credible and a true expression of the people of Zimbabwe by Sadc, Comesa, the AU, the UN and many other well-meaning observers and commentators. The British and their allies have, without any basis whatsoever, shamefully decided to reject the results of the election, thus impugning the legitimacy of our Government. Their illegal, vile and heinous sanctions against our people remain in place and continue to exert negative pressure, on our economy.
The party must remain united. Unity, like faith, moves mountains. It won us, once again, these last harmonised elections. It is, indeed, the only assured way of sustainability defending our sovereignty and liberation war ethos.
The current review period has witnessed a disturbing resurgence of such divisive tendencies as factionalism and disunity, which continue to rear their ugly head amongst us. As a result membership data automation programme which we started during this review period is proceeding at an unjustifiably slow pace.
Also largely for the same reasons, both our primary elections ahead of the 2013 harmonised elections and of late provincial elections, were marred by some irregularities. We need to look very seriously at the possibility of establishing professional party elections directorate mandated to conduct the party’s internal elections so that they are more transparent and credible. We need to deepen our democratic culture within the party. A conference resolution to create it would first have to be passed.
Our conference must act as the rallying point for all its members to put their heads, hands and shoulders firmly behind Zim Asset. Let us assure the people of Zimbabwe that Zanu-PF, their party choice, will deliver on its promise to grow the economy for their empowerment and employment, and indeed for the country and nation.
Long live our national sovereignty
Long live our freedom
Long live Zanu-PF
Long live our unity
Long live our ownership and control of our God-given natural resources.
Online Reporter