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Nduduzo Tshuma Political Editor
ACTING President Phelekezela Mphoko yesterday commended Zimbabweans for shunning calls for a two day stayaway by regime change agents saying such enemies of the State were pursuing a meaningless cause. Speaking on the sidelines of a tour of the Mtshabezi-Umzingwane pipeline project in Umzingwane District, Acting President Mphoko called on the country to remain vigilant and not be swayed by negative forces.
“That was a meaningless campaign. The majority of our people are involved in the informal sector. If you demand that they stay at home and not trade their wares, where do you expect them to get money to fend for their families?
“Even those who are employed, how will they be paid if they don’t report to work? It was a meaningless campaign that was not beneficial to the people and not even to the campaigners of that thing,” said the Acting President.
Earlier, addressing villagers in Mtshabezi, he said only the ruling Zanu-PF had the solutions to the plight of the people. “Don’t allow yourselves to be swayed by these people who come to you with fake promises. When the elections come in 2018, remember to rally behind the ruling party and don’t allow people to come and misdirect you,” he said.
His sentiments come following the spectacular flop of a stayaway engineered by regime change agents in the form of #ThisFlag fronted by Pastor Evan Mawarire.
The stayaway dubbed “Shutdown Zimbabwe” was organised through social media by Pastor Mawarire who called on Zimbabweans to remain at home on Wednesday and Thursday. People and businesses ignored him as they conducted their business normally over the two days.
Commenting on the tour, Acting President Mphoko said it was to have an appreciation of how the people are benefitting from the Mtshabezi-Umzingwane pipeline project.
He said the government was making frantic efforts to raise $260,000 to connect seven irrigation schemes along the pipeline with water so that villagers can grow different crops to sustain their livelihoods.
“This is a top priority project which must be done immediately. President Mugabe is passionate about agriculture and empowerment of the people and such a project will boost food security in the area,” said Acting President Mphoko who was accompanied by Matabeleland South Provincial Affairs Minister Cde Abedinico Ncube.
The Acting President took some time to interact with members of the Zenzeleni Irrigation Scheme along the pipeline where he urged them to increase their designated land for farming from 10 hectares.
He also pledged to assist the scheme with five rolls of fence and the women in the community with two incubators and accompanying solar panels for hatching of road runner chicken eggs.
“The world over, road runner chickens are more in demand than these broiler chickens and if you divide yourselves into groups, you can make money from the business of selling road runner chickens,” he said.
He also toured a bridge built by villagers where he commended their efforts saying communities needed to play a leading role in the development of their respective areas. Meanwhile, during a briefing in Esigodini, Zanu-PF Umzingwane legislator Cde William Dewa called for speedy construction of a district hospital as Umzingwane was the only district in Matabeleland South without such a facility.
He said the district is using an old clinic built by white farmers before Independence but land had already been identified for the construction of the hospital.
In response Acting President Mphoko called on the department of planning in the province to service the land and make all the necessary designs and then the government would engage stakeholders for the construction of the hospital.
Online Reporter