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NewsDay

AMH is an independent media house free from political ties or outside influence. We have four newspapers: The Zimbabwe Independent, a business weekly published every Friday, The Standard, a weekly published every Sunday, and Southern and NewsDay, our daily newspapers. Each has an online edition.

AMHVoices: Transitional authority needed urgently

AMH Voices
Many vulnerable families have resorted to selling their assets in order to buy food while over a million children of school-going age have dropped out and are forced to beg for food.

Three years after the 2013 elections, Zimbabwe is going through one of its worst socio-economic challenges characterised by a severe drought, cash shortages, the non-payment of civil servants’ salaries and clueless government ministers.

By Jacob Mafume,PDP National Spokesperson

Since 2013, Finance minister Patrick Chinamasa has failed to alleviate the serious economic challenges facing the country and for the third successive month this year, he has failed to pay civil servants their monthly salaries on time.

University lecturers only received their 2015 annual bonus this month and most pensioners are failing to buy their medical prescriptions as they fail to withdraw their money from the banks.

While the country is in turmoil, President Robert Mugabe is nowhere to show leadership. His government has failed to feed the nation or have a plan to mitigate the ravaging drought and the country seems to be on auto-pilot.

Due to the devastating drought experienced this year, an estimated five million people have no adequate means to meet their food requirements as their crops were a write-off and livestock is dying due to water shortages.

Many vulnerable families have resorted to selling their assets in order to buy food while over a million children of school-going age have dropped out and are forced to beg for food.

There is also a rise in gross abuse of human rights by State security agents with the heavily-armed police brutally assaulting peaceful citizens demonstrating against the worsening economic situation and a strong message on the introduction of bond notes.

Corruption in government and State enterprises is on the rise with no serious attempts to curb it. The country is losing billions of dollars through corruption and the looting machinery of Zanu PF.

Factional fights among Zanu PF ministers over succession continue with the ministers spending most of their time on personal ambitions than serving the interests of the people.

As the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), we also note with concern the continued abuse by the Zanu PF government of the veterans of the liberation war.

The country’s Constitution is clear in that the State and all institutions and agencies of government at every level must accord due respect, honour and recognition to the veterans of the liberation struggle.

However, State institutions such as the courts, police and prisons are being used by Zanu PF to purge war veterans who have sent strong messages against the misgovernance of Mugabe.

This is dereliction of duty by Mugabe and, in our view, his absence in showing sound leadership means he is old and unfit to grasp issues and continue performing his constitutional duties.

The failure by the Mugabe regime to deliver on its 2013 election promises demands that a National Transitional Authority is urgently put in place.