In Zaka Central Constituency Ward 8, community members have reported an incident of politicization of Presidential agricultural inputs that happened at Murerekwa Primary School in November 2023. The community members highlighted that the elected ruling party officials presided over the unfair and politicized input distribution process. Their concerns were that the agreed criteria on the selection of the beneficiaries and distribution of aid was abandoned which involves the inclusion of the local committees and the public officials in consultation with the community members. The agreed criteria on the selection and distribution of aid also state that the distribution process should target the intended beneficiaries without political considerations.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, one of the community members said. “We don’t even know which criteria were being used to select the beneficiaries of the inputs since they have abandoned what was agreed by the community members. There was a lack of transparency in the whole exercise and the majority who benefited from the program are ruling party supporters. The majority of the ruling party members who benefited from the inputs, surfaced them on the black market.”
A COTRAD community member said, “I am very disappointed to witness the continued politicization of aid. In January 2022 the same case happened at Gwangwava, so we don’t expect this to happen. After the Gwangwava case, our engagements with the public officials and local development committees agreed and resolved that in the future, the correct procedures should be followed for the intended beneficiaries to benefit”.
There is a need to involve the public officials, local committees, and the general citizenry starting from the selection process up to the distribution point for transparency and accountability purposes. The unfair and partisan distribution of aid and other resources is cancerous to social unity, peace, and development, therefore as (COTRAD) we expect community members and public officials to respect leadership hierarchy and protocols in community development processes. COTRAD also urges community members to peacefully and fearlessly engage their public officials on various community issues and concerns.
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