“I hope I am wrong in this but when you look at what is happening, or not happening, in the manufacturing sector, we may well be going into a situation where maybe 2006 and 2007 were better.”
Matinenga said he was concerned at the unprecedented number of institutions, firms and industrial businesses closing down.
“There is no money. People used to think that maybe Zanu (PF) had a diamond chest set aside somewhere but again, if there is, it is benefiting a few individuals not the whole country,” he added
Matinenga, who served as the minister of constitutional and parliamentary affairs in the previous government, retired from active politics at the end of his term. He said he would always make himself available to the people of Buhera West.
“I am still a member of the party. I still subscribe to its vision. I still support what it does but that does not mean that I agree with everything that it does,” Matinenga explained.
He said it was wrong to give people false expectations.
“It is critical that not only the members of the MDC but all parliamentarians don’t make false promises. People should explain out there to the people what a parliamentarian can and cannot do,” he said.
“I discovered that people think that the moment that a person becomes a member of parliament then the MP’s pockets become full of money. If you then become a minister, that is even worse and we have unfortunately perpetuated this culture that an MP will do everything for you.”
Matinenga said there was also a false assumption that only the well-to-do could become MPs.
“The role of an MP is to articulate the views and concerns of their constituents so that central government is then able to address those issues,” he said. “People need sustainable projects not hand-outs.”
He believes that under these circumstances Zanu (PF) cannot meet the aspirations of the people and will not be able to continue hiding behind sanctions. He said he did not believe that the sanctions were still serving any purpose, but explained that they were a bilateral issue.
“They (sanctions) should be purely an immigration issue and not extended to economic considerations such as state corporations. We should be able to distinguish between real people and economic entities,” he said.
He said that the MDC was the only broad-based and genuine party in looking after the people’s interests. He said he was concerned about hunger in Buhera even though his former constituency was the least affected in the area.
Post published in: News
Poor Eric…wake-up///this is how the sanctions works,,,you and your Party MDC-T always say to the public that there are sanctions in Zimbabwe…why is industry going to close? cause is that sanctions are still active in all arms of the ZANU-PF government…please you and your Party MDC-T remove them as you are the one you invited them…what crisis are you talking about Mr Eri Matinenga? that is your sanctions against your followers….
Ndlovu, does it mean the Essar deal cant take off because zpf is also imposing sanctions of its own? What about the unaccounted for diamond, they were swallowed by sanctions too? The refusal to audit the land reform, is it not contributing to poverty, because one powerful man has 15 very big farsms he cant utilise?
Who actually should have their head examined here Ndlovu?
I love indigenisation but done in a logical manner.
Some of these whites must not cry foul for they also contributed to the current fracas by wanting to be supremacist as exhibited by a roddie at Natfoods Byo, who thinks white are here to lead blacks.
Ndlovu, does it mean the Essar deal cant take off because zpf is also imposing sanctions of its own? What about the unaccounted for diamond, they were swallowed by sanctions too? The refusal to audit the land reform, is it not contributing to poverty, because one powerful man has 15 very big farsms he cant utilise?
Who actually should have their head examined here Ndlovu?
I love indigenisation but done in a logical manner.
Some of these whites must not cry foul for they also contributed to the current fracas by wanting to be supremacist as exhibited by a roddie at Natfoods Byo, who thinks white are here to lead blacks.