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Kadoma declaration
CHIPAWO
February 26, 2010

Tonight I have electricity, returned after a cut that lasted from about 3pm yesterday to 11am this morning. But I shall only be cooking a very light meal. I had a wonderful lunch at the Rainbow Towers in Harare.

The story behind the free lunch is the story of the struggle in Zimbabwe to get Government, Employers and Workers round the table, get them to agree and above all get them to implement their agreement. It is a long and depressing one, the story not the lunch. But the formation of the inclusive government created conditions far more conducive for agreement and implementation than ever before.

The parties that make up the inclusive government are now more or less the political expression of economic interests in the country. In other words, the inclusivity at the political level promotes partnership at the economic level. And just as inclusivity at the political level is proving tricky though actually quite miraculous, so the discussions in the town of Kadoma where at the tripartite level the 'social partners' met to try again , assisted by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and other parties.

The partners identified the high Country Risk Factor (CRF) as the focus for their discussions as to how best they can work together to improve the situation in Zimbabwe. The document is amazingly frank, the admissions amazingly self,critical. The Kadoma Declaration is a document that could never have emerged in Zimbabwe until now. It was signed. The parties ratified and today, 26th February, 2010, at the Harare International Conference Centre, in the presence of the President, Robert Mugabe, and the Prime Minister, Morgan Tsvangirai, the Kadoma Declaration was launched.

CHIPAWO was approached around midday on Tuesday with a request to come up with a short play on the theme of 'Unity for Development'. We ransacked the declaration for material, invented a family and a situation and by that evening there was a script. The actors, chosen from the CHIPAWO Youth Programme, convened on the morning of the following day. By the next day, they knew their words. A delegation from the Ministry of Labour came to view it, gave it the thumbs up and Friday morning, this morning, it was presented at the launch to great enthusiasm. These young actors are extraordinary.

I am copying the script below because it probably gives a more readable idea of what the Kadoma Declaration was all about, and the amazing fact! There is no idea (barring greetings, comic business and the like) that is not virtually paraphrased from the document. It might give you a slightly different impression of what is happening in Zimbabwe than you are used to.

CHIPAWO play script come together

CAST Va Phiri, father, employee Amai Ruvimbo, mother, housewife Washington, big brother, university graduate, Ministry of finance Ruvimbo, big sister, university graduate, /businesswoman Runyararo and Psychology, younger children of Va Phiri's deceased brother in the diaspora

Stage is set with table and two chairs up left. Armchair down and slightly in front of table. Sofa centre and armchair centre right. Television set on small table down left. The furniture is stylised, wooden and brightly painted.

1.Theme Song for ILO @ 90, choreography

2. Social dialogue sequence at the end of the dance the worker, the government employee and the businesswoman snap into position , government in the middle centre stage, facing downstage, businesswoman at his shoulder on the left, facing left, worker at his right shoulder, facing right. The dialogue and moves are crisp and machine-like.

Washington: I am the government. Ruvimbo: I am an employer. VaPhiri: I am a worker. Ruvimbo: I am in business to make profit. VaPhiri: I need to earn a living wage. Ruvimbo: The more I pay him, the less my profit. VaPhiri: The more profit he makes, the less he pays us. Washington: I have to govern these two , the employer who wants to make a profit and the worker who wants to earn more money. If I support business, the worker complains. If I support the worker, the employer complains. All three: It's an impossible situation. Amai Ruvimbo: Talk to each other. Work together. Three actors come together in impassioned mimed discussion. Freeze.

Narrator: Social dialogue

3. In the family Ruvimbo and Washington exit. VaPhiri and Amai Ruvimbo go to sit on sofa. Amai Ruvimbo is lounging luxuriously. The two children are sitting at the table upstage doing their homework.

Narrator: The Phiri family at home. Va Phiri , head of the house and employee in a local packaging company. Amai Ruvimbo , his wife and a worker in her own house, in other words, a housewife. Runyararo and Psychology , the children of Va Phiri's younger brother who left for greener pastures in the UK.

VaPhiri: Mai Ruvimbo, the way you are sitting there you would think you were the worker and I was the one who stayed at home all day.

Amai Ruvimbo: But I am the worker. It is not only you men who go off to work every day on your bicycles that are workers. Do you think I spend the whole day here at home sitting on this sofa?

Runyararo (comes up to Va Phiri holding out a card): Babamkuru, look what daddy sent us.

VaPhiri: admires it. Amai Ruvimbo looks the other way.

Amai Ruvimbo (disparagingly): It was empty?

VaPhiri: What do you mean it was empty?

Runyararo: I know, Babamkuru, Amaguru means there was no money with it. There was no money but there was a very nice video game!

The children laugh and celebrate.

Amai Ruvimbo: (getting up and going over to restore order) You two get on with your homework.
(to Va Phiri) I have to see that the children are educated and clothed. I have to see the rent is paid. I have to see that food is on the table. (summons up the courage) I want to try my hand at cross,border trading.

VaPhiri: And get into those big trucks and travel around with those men! Those women are immoral. And in any case if you do, who will look after the children.

Amai Ruvimbo: Then, when will the poverty end?

At that moment her big son, Washington, enters.

Narrator: VaPhiri's son, Washington, university graduate and rising star in the Ministry of Finance.

Greets his parents.

VaPhiri: How's work, my son?

Washington: (resignedly) Well, you know, atata, It's a struggle.

Amai Ruvimbo: When are you going to leave the civil service and get a proper job, one that pay you a decent salary?

Washington: (humouring her) OK, amai, I'll do that someday, don't worry.

Amai Ruvimbo: You better do it soon, son. How can you support a family on those peanuts they give you.

Psychology (leaning forward over his books) Do they give you peanuts, Washie? You know what my friend told me at school, if you pay peanuts you get monkeys. Are you a monkey?

Washington jokingly runs after him.

Amai Ruvimbo: Washington, leave Psychology alone and let him do his work.

There is a noise outside.

VaPhiri: (cocking his head): Someone coming.

Amai Ruvimbo: Must be Vimbi.

Narrator: Ruvimbo, VaPhiri:'s son, university graduate, an ambitious businesswoman.

Amai Ruvimbo gets up and goes to greet her. Ruvimbo is smartly dressed in an executive slack suit. They come in together. They greet. One can see that Ruvimbo is agitated.

Amai Ruvimbo: What's wrong, my child? Are you OK?

Ruvimbo bursts out.

Ruvimbo: No, I'm NOT OK. How CAN I be OK? (quieter but exasperated) Did you read the papers today? This is meant to be an INCLUSIVE government but the one paper is calling the other side THUGS and the other paper is calling other side PUPPETS and even government officials clash with each other. If we don't make this thing work, we will be out of business.

Washington: O, so business is not good?

Ruvimbo: (exasperatedly to Washington) My god, you're a one to ask. How can it with you guys mismanaging the economy the way you do and killing off any chance of a conducive environment for business and investment.

Washington: Well, we are responsible for creating this exclusive government in the first place, aren't we? Look, sisi, I know you will just say it's party political propaganda but do you REALLY think that sanctions have got nothing to do with this?

Ruvimbo: Hell, Washie! there's NO sanctions. You're just using it as an excuse for your bungling.

Washington: NO SANCTIONS! What planet do you live on?

Va Phiri, who has been following this interchange with great attention and eager to get his bit in, eagerly leaps to his feet. As he speaks, his wife, AMAI RUVIMO, expresses her vociferous agreement)

VaPhiri: Mwanagu, please, don't believe that stuff about targeted sanctions. That's rubbish. If the sanctions are targeted, they are targeted at me, at you, at all of us. All of us are suffering from those sanctions. (conceding) I think the government was right doing what it did to try and take the economy away from the whites and bring it into the hands of Zimbabweans BUT (his main point) there are too many people messing everything up with their corruption. Good policies, mwanangu, but not properly er (looks for the word)É

Ruvimbo: Implemented.

VaPhiri: (seizing the word): Eyi, implementing. And too much corruption.

Ruvimbo: No, sorry, atata, BAD policies, BAD implementation. It's all a bloody mess. And when they do have a good policy, they take such a long bloody time to implement that by the time they come up with the inputs the rainy season is over!

Washington: OK, if I say something of what you say is true, will you agree with me about foreign interference and sanctions.

Ruvimbo: Corruption is Zimbabwean sanctions, Washy.

VaPhiri: (not quite happy at being left out) Hey, hey, this is not the University of Zimbabwe! You argue about which it is , sanctions, corruption, poor policy etc etc. Whatever! What are you going to do about it? (to his son and daughter) Chigarai pasi! (Just sit down, you two.) It's long, my children. It's long that we've suffered. While you two talk, there are no jobs, those with jobs are lucky if they get a salary. I am worried, my children, that even me, after thirty six years, even me I can lose my job tomorrow or if I keep the job I work for no salary. At all.

Amai Ruvimbo: There's food but who has the money to buy it.

VaPhiri: No inflation but no money.

Washington: (providing the technical term) Stagflation.

The children have stopped doing their work and now they are standing looking at them in wonder.

Runyararo: And we have teachers but they don't teach.

Runyararo: Yet they are sending our friends away from school because they can't pay fees.

Runyararo: Fees for teachers who don't teach?

Runyararo: Atata, Amama, we don't understand.

Runyararo: We don't understand. Help us.

Runyararo: Help us!

Amai Ruvimbo: You, two, keep out of it. Have you finished your homework. Even if your teachers are not teaching, you still have to do homework.

The children pretend to go back to their homework

(to the others) I don't care what you say. It is all the government's fault. Sorry, my son.

Ruvimbo: You are right, amama. Government is completely dysfunctional.

VaPhiri: Talk Chichewa if you can't talk English.

Ruvimbo: Government doesn't work, atata. Ayigwiri nchito.

Washington: Who can function if they are not being paid?

VaPhiri: It's not like there is no money at all. Some people are getting rich.

Washington: Like sisi here. She says business is bad but you want to see her filling her trolley at that luxury supermarket in Mount Pleasant. Not to mention the metal parked outside.

Runyararo: (mocking her sister and acting our a luxury car) B...MÉW!

Psychology: (adding his bit) Be My Wife!

Ruvimbo: You're just jealous, all of you. There would be money for everyone if you guys got your act together. Just as things are settling down and we are building confidence again one of you people opens his big mouth and we are back to square one.

VaPhiri: She's right. It's funny. They are in the same government but when they open their mouths to speak, each one talks a different language. You don't know who to believe.

Washington: If we were left to ourselves we would be alright but there are too many people out there pulling strings, too much foreign interference and too many puppets.

Ruvimbo: There we go again!

Psychology (desperate to chip in): We have been learning about human rights at school. Maybe that could be a problem.

Runyararo: Especially children's rights, atata , we have a right to education, you know.

Amai Ruvimbo: Hey, imi, I said do your homework! (to the others) So what's the answer? Can't you university graduates come to an agreement and solve the problem. You've been talking for hours.

Runyararo: And I'm hungry. Runyararo: So am I.

Amai Ruvimbo: Homework! (to the others) They're right. What's the problem?

Ruvimbo: It's called the Country Risk Factor (CRF).

Runyararo: Can't resist food.

Ruvimbo: What do you mean?

Runyararo: CRF, can't resist food!

They break up in laughter and Sisi comes round with dish and water to wash hands.

During this sequence each speaker comes down to the audience and speaks, almost like talking to themselves, thinking.

Ruvimbo: How to get them to understand? The CRF is no laughing matter. It's something that's making it almost impossible to revive business. Unless we address it, the economy is going to stay depressed forever. Doing business with the outside world is almost impossible. Money keeps leaving the country and there are no credit lines to fuel production. Look, right now industries have collapsed and those that are operating are producing at low capacity. As atata says, there are no jobs or jobs with no salary. All our best brains are leaving and it's hard to find anyone with the qualifications to do the job these days.

VaPhiri: So that is what they call it , 'Country Risk Factor'. They can call it what they like but it is a fact that more and more ordinary people are becoming paupers while some are getting richer and richer. Look at the way crime is going up. If it's the 'Country Risk Factor' that's doing all this to us, then (as in the revolutionary slogan) 'Pasi nayo!' (Down with it!).

Amai Ruvimbo: Look at the way our girls are earning a living these days. Why sell tomatoes or newspapers when a man can pay you a month's salary for one night on your back! And look at the stories we hear about people trying to visit their families in places like the UK. If they are lucky enough to get a visa, they are treated like animals at the airport when they get there, so they say.

Ruvimbo: I am a businesswoman , quite a successful one at that. I am ready to expand. I want to do business outside my country. Do you have any idea what it is like trying to convince people out there that they can safely do business with a Zimbabwean?

Washington: I still say it's sanctions and foreign interference.

Enter a child, singing.

We are the future We are the children etc.

Other children enter and join in the singing, ending on 'Let's start giving.'

Runyararo: And let's start talking -

Runyararo: and working together.

Runyararo: We are the future.

Runyararo: We are the voice of the future.

Children: And we say -

Runyararo: To our fathers and mothers

Runyararo: To our big brothers and sisters.

Children: Come together.

Runyararo: Let's be as one.

Runyararo: For the sake of your children.

Runyararo: For the sake of -

All: - the future.

The children take the family members, workers (VaPhiri and Amai Ruvimbo), government official, businesswoman, and bring them together.

All: Social dialogue.

Narrator: To reduce our country's risk factor.

Runyararo: And improve its image.

All: The Kadoma Declaration!

Song:
(Shona) Ngatibatanei (Let us come together) Sibemweya mumwe (Let us be as one( Tivake nyika yedu (Let us build our natio) Tifanane nenjiva. (Let us be like doves.)

(Ndebele) Asibambaneni Sibe moyamunye Sakh' isizwe sethu Sifanane namajuba.

Amai Ruvimbo: Hey, you two, have you finished your homework!

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