‘Zanu PF Regime’s Delay In Declaring National Disaster And Appealing To (WFP) Is Evil’

The delay by the government in declaring a national disaster and making an appeal to the World Food Programme (WFP) for food assistance in order to feed millions of starving Zimbabweans due to the poor harvests of the 2015 season and the impending El Nino driven drought is a true reflection of Zanu PF’s heartlessness and selfishness.

It is now clear that Zimbabwe will have biggest humanitarian crisis worse than the 1981/82 and 1992/93 periods but nothing is being done by the government of the day to avert the looming severe food shortages.

By denying import licences to commercial milling companies, the Zanu PF government is creating a national security crisis as some provinces like Matabeleland North and South; and Bulawayo reported to have only a week’s supply of grain in stock.

The number of people in desperate need of food aid is rising every day as the country has received only three quarters of its expected rainfall since the start of the summer farming season in November.

Meanwhile, as this is happening, it is shocking that President Robert Mugabe and his family are enjoying a luxurious holiday in the Far East while three quarters of his Cabinet ministers are still on holiday.

The Acting Vice President, Phelekezela Mphoko is asleep at a five star hotel at a cost of US$300 000 at a time when the state is failing to pay its civil servants.

Considering that Zimbabwe used to be the breadbasket of Africa, the country is now facing a major disaster considering that in 2015 the country produced 600 000 metric tonnes of maize a decline by 51 percent.

The same government was in 2015 forced to import 1, 7 million tonnes from its neighbouring countries in order to meet the country’s food requirements.

However, the importation of grain from the country’s traditional suppliers, South Africa, Zambia and Malawi will not be possible as they also face severe grain shortages due to the current drought.

The nearest countries to purchase the grain will be in Ukraine, Brazil and the USA yet the government does not have the resources to get the grain and is reluctant to make an appeal to the WFP for assistance or in issuing out import permits to private maize traders.

By concentrating on its factional fights and delaying in making appeals for aid from the WFP and other multinational bodies, Zanu PF vindicates how we have always argued that it is heartless and selfish when it comes to responding to the welfare of the citizens.

Through its Holistic Programme for Economic Transformation (HOPE), the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has a solution to the erratic rainy seasons, collapsed agriculture output and the absence of alternative agricultural water sources.

The full recovery of the agriculture sector requires the implementation of strategies aimed at restoring the basic elements of the agricultural production system.

The current El Nino is one of the strongest in the history of southern Africa and its impact on food security illustrates the urgent need to increase investment in disaster risk reduction, early warning, climate change adaptation and resilience building.

• The PDP, therefore, gives priority to the following policy issues;
• Financing agricultural infrastructure
• Agricultural markets and enhancing research and extension
• Investment in equipment and harnessing water resources for agriculture
• Irrigation expansion and livestock development
• Climate change mitigation and adaptation.

Source: Jacob Mafume, PDP National Spokesperson

photo-zimdaily-Jacob Mafume, PDP National Spokesperson