This man joined ZCTU in 1994. Back then he was earning Z$1600 and Morgan’s salary was Z$2200, inclusive of all allowances. ZCTU is a membership-based organisation and therefore relies on subscriptions. The salaries came from union dues.
“When money trickled into our account, we paid our messenger and office orderly first, followed by departmental secretaries and other junior officers then the rest of us. Morgan was always last. When everyone else was paid, I would then take Morgan’s paycheck to him,” said my friend.
He went on to tell another story that further highlights the Prime Minister’s true character.
“One day he and I went to facilitate a union’s congress in Bulawayo. The union had chosen a very cheap venue for obvious financial reasons. Morgan decided that there was no need for us to book a different hotel for ourselves. As long as there were beds, we would sleep where farm workers were also sleeping. There was only one room left when we arrived. It had two single beds which looked like hospital beds.
“I looked at Morgan, expecting him to change his mind and let us check into a better place. He didn’t see anything wrong with the place and we settled down for the night.”
When I hear and read about Tsvangirai today, I ask myself whether people really know the Prime Minister. I have no doubt that there are concerted efforts to portray him in a negative light. The Tsvangirai my friend knows, is not the Tsvangirai Zanu (PF) and the state media are trying to define. – JACOB NKIWANE, by e-mail
Post published in: Letters to the Editor