By Lungile Siziba
From the first Presidential Star Rally in Chipinge, Manicaland Province, thousands of people attended, with estimates suggesting the number was over 60 000.
The second Presidential star rally came, and was held in Bulilima, Matabeleland South Province, and again, the numbers were sky high, estimated at over 65 000.
The third Presidential star rally was held in Magunje, Mashonaland West Province, and over 75 000 people were in attendance to her the President and ZANU PF presidential candidate, Cde Emmerson Mnangagwa articulate his vision for the country for the next five years.
Numbers continued to rise, with the Zaka Presidential star rally attracting over 124 000 people, a staggering number in the history of Zimbabwean politics.
Mashonaland Central Province sought to outdo Masvingo Province and their Presidential star rally equally attracted thousands of people, estimated at over 120 000 people.
From there, President Mnangagwa and his team went to Nkayi, Matabeleland North Province, where another astonishingly huge crowd attended the Presidential star rally.
The next Presidential star rally was set for Bulawayo on August 2, with the other set for Mashonaland East Province over the weekend of August 5 and 6.
Analysts have been stunned by the huge attendance at ZANU PF rallies at a time CCC, thought to be a contender, was struggling to have more people despite buses and lorries at their disposal.
But there has been an admission, even by political analysts who are known to be anti-ZANU PF and thoroughly pro-opposition parties that are Western funded, that the revolutionary party has been honest with voters, after fulfilling most of the promises it made in 2018.
The analysts said it was almost impossible for opposition parties to come anywhere near ZANU PF on August 23 after they dismally failed their voters, mainly in urban areas, with garbage lying uncollected, burst sewer pipes being the new normal, dirty water being served to communities and almost all roads, except those rehabilitated by the Government, in an extremely bad state.
President Mnangagwa believes that ZANU PF will win big in the general harmonised elections set for August 23.
Keeping promises to sway
voters to ZANU PF
President Mnangagwa indicated on November 24, 2017 when he made his inaugural speech as national President that he was introducing a new politics.
Indeed, the President has introduced the politics of tolerance, hard work, fulfilling promises and addressing the biggest challenges faced by the people, never mind their location in the country.
Dams have been constructed to introduce irrigation agriculture and provide clean water to humans and livestock, while world class roads have also been constructed, with the Harare-Beitbridge highway topping the list.
A spellbinding piece of work has been constructed at Beitbridge Border Post, ensuring that Zimbabwe has arguably the best-looking and efficient land border in Southern Africa.
More importantly, the recently concluded and commissioned Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport also competes for beauty with some of the best airports in the world.
Clean water, from taps, yes from taps, in the rural areas is now commonplace, when urbanites can’t just get clean water to drink and cook due to incompetence by opposition parties.
President Mnangagwa sees
beyond Aug 23
In his address at Nkayi Business Centre on July 30, President Mnangagwa said the ruling ZANU PF had party had initiated several infrastructure development projects in Matabeleland North Province, with the most important ones being the construction of Lake Gwayi-Shangani and expansion of Hwange Power Station under a US$1,4 billion funding structure.
Matabeleland North has had 669 infrastructure projects initiated, with 300 completed and others at various stages of implementation.
A number of mining projects such as the coal project being done by a British firm, Contango, in Binga and the ongoing Kamativi Lithium project, were some of the game-changing investments being undertaken by the Second Republic in Matabeleland North.
While in Nkayi, President Mnangagwa said he will commission the Kamativi lithium project sometime next year, an indication that he is seeing beyond this month’s elections.
The lithium subsector is expected to contribute US$500 million to the country’s US$12 billion mining economy by the end of this year.
Even as he addressed Zimbabwean students learning in Russia, President Mnangagwa said ZANU PF had done enough in the last five years to earn another term, and many more to come.
“We believe that the elections that are coming, we are going to win them hands down,” said the President.
“We are in an election season. Currently we are busy campaigning and we are going to have our elections on the 23rd of August next (this) month.
“I am sure if you have access to social media, you see how popular we (ZANU PF) are.
“Most of our rallies draw more than 100 000 people, the only visible party is ZANU PF; the other ones only exist on social media.”
The assessment by President Mnangagwa was spot-on; ZANU PF has stunned its opponents in such a way that opposition candidates are now going around claiming that they will implement projects that are either underway or completed.
Opposition parties have nothing to tell voters, and to their credit, have moved away from telling embarrassing lies as they did in 2018 when they claimed that they had been promised US$15 billion by the United States.
The lie was only exposed on BBC HardTalk when the liar was asked to explain where and when the promise was made, and stammered.
President Mnangagwa’s delivery rate
The President articulated the steps taken by the Second Republic in various sectors such as agriculture to ensure food security for the benefit of all citizens and to save the much-needed foreign currency.
Now, instead of importing wheat and maize, Zimbabwe has started exporting maize to Rwanda, with over 350 000 tonnes required across the continent, as the country takes back its position as the breadbasket of Africa.
Wheat exports would be started after the ongoing cropping season, from which Zimbabwe experts a haul of 425 000 tonnes of wheat.
Last year, the country got 375 000 tonnes of wheat thanks to deliberate policies to support farmers.
This year, wheat has been planted on 86 000 hectares of land, up from 80 000 last year, as the country seeks to increase yields.
The Pfumvudza/ Intwasa farming concept has seen maize yields rising every year, ensuring food security in the country.
In the forthcoming summer cropping season, 3,5 households are expected to benefit from Pfumvudza/Intwasa inputs.
All the measures introduced by the Second Republic are aimed at involving every citizen in nation-building under the mantra, “Nyika inovakwa, nekutongwa, nekunamatigwa nevene vayo/ Ilizwe lakhiwa, libuswe, likhulekelwe ngabanikazi balo”.
President Mnangagwa’s policies have awakened many people, who realise that opposition parties have wasted their time since 2000, with nothing positive coming from their blind loyalty, hence the determination to switch allegiance to ZANU PF.
