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Zimbabwe Parliament debate on Operation Murambatsvina - Page 3
Extracted from Hansard Vol. 32, No. 8
Parliament of Zimbabwe
June 30, 2005

View list of 2005 Zimbabwe Parliamentarians

Jump to contributions by:
- MR. ZWIZWAI
- MR. MUBAWU
- MR. SIBINDI
- MR. MKHOSI
- MR. BHEBHE
- MR. MHASHU
- MRS. NYAUCHI
- MR. MOYO
- MR. MDLONGWA
- MR. MATIMBA

MRS. NYAUCHI: I think you might this exercise as political but it is not. Others might think that ZANU PF is doing this because it does not command a majority of seats in towns but that is not the truth as even in my constituency, I was affected but I see this as an improvement that is why I am saying it is not political. In my constituency, the exercise is still going on but I won it. This programme should continue being in place and we need to agree on that. However, that is not to say we should not correct any wrongs that accompany the programme. If the programme was supposed to have been done before elections, let me say that there are elections coming for the rural councils, so this is not a gimmick.

If you go into many areas the country is clean now and you can move about without any fear of pick pockets. The opposition is not happy because they have always been promoting thieves. I was shocked to hear one hon. member saying at the border jumping. I did not think that an hon. member could stand up and say such a thing to us. I want to give you an example, my mother had built a lot of shacks on the front and back of her yard and I told her that she could destroy them before the Operation caught up with her. It is not about one being a member of ZANU PF or MDC and therefore people should not oppose for the sake of opposing.

I think this time the Government has done well. Imagine in Mutare a cow was dressed by tennis shoes, dress and they were saying this is our grand mother, can you imagine. The clean up exercise was helpful. It is important to have an opposition but this is our country. What we should be talking about is that the Government should work hard to build houses in both the urban areas and rural areas. I also want to support my colleague who stood up and said that accommodation should be provided even at farm levels. I am also one of those people who think that people who have no activity in town should go to the rural areas and I want to say it openly in front of everyone - journalists included, that people who do not have anything to do in town should go to the rural areas, whilst those who work, must remain in town.

MR. MOYO: I also want to contribute to this motion, actually I have some questions Madam Speaker, Who caused this dirt and why is it that the question is being addressed now? Madam Speaker, the nation is afraid and is not happy and does not know what is going on and yet no reasons are given. How can we help each other? These questions needs people of intelligence and a Government which is intelligent and sympathetic.

The people of my constituency met and came up with various complaints The demolitions of tuck shops by a Government whose reasons is to cling on to power but has other means of trying to cling to power.

Could we as a nation face troubles from a government with no sympathy, which wants to continue in power forever? Is that correct? What are we going to do about the future? It is true that in the towns, it is now clean. Is it good to keep thieves out of town but good to have them in the rural areas? We should look for solutions to the problems facing Zimbabwe. These are not the problems created by the people. These are not problems created by people with illegal structures. They were created because of your failure to control the economy. You have failed to look at ways of how to handle our economy.

You stop saying that there are a lot of vendors in the streets. This is your failure to govern the people. This is where the problem is.

In 1980, when we had come out of war, ZANU PF had no programmes in place to make progress for the people of Zimbabwe. So, people just looked for their own programmes and you let them do that so that people would not ask about their rights. Then come this time when the MDC came up and you saw that you were going to be out of power and divided, that is when you decided to start this programme to divide the people of Zimbabwe according to their tribes. That is the result of your failure to lead the people. This is why I am saying that this programme of removing the dirt is just a cover up. You are coming up with tricks because you see that we facing large numbers of unemployment, hence these demolitions in order to intimidate the people. Is that a Government which will survive by intimidating the people? History will repeat itself. They say, that which you enjoy to do on the other party when you are in power - life is like a wheel which turns around. Tomorrow, you will also be on the other side. Even though you may say you have this programme, you have harassed the people of Zimbabwe.

MR. MDLONGWA: Thank you for giving me this opportunity, so that I may debate about this problem in Zimbabwe. The nation of Zimbabwe is in problems because they do not have anywhere to stay. As a Member of Parliament for Pumula-Luveve, my people have a lot of problems. As we speak today, they are sitting outside - [AN HON. MEMBER: Inaudible interjections]

THE DEPUTY SPEAKER: May I ask the Hon. member not to call another Hon. member a liar.

MR. MDLONGWA: One day I will take Hon. Nyauchi to see what is happening, as a mother, so that she can sympathise with the plight of my people. What is happening today is that there are people who are blind who were staying in these illegal structures for many years. Some of them were affected at an early age and they have been staying in those structures. These are the people whose structures you have destroyed

Right now, they are just moving around in the streets with nowhere to stay. Some have gone to the councillor's house because they have nowhere to stay. What is happening in Pumula-Luveve, is sad. What kind of Government is not sympathetic to the people who voted for them? What kind of Government can go and harass people who cannot defend themselves?

Part of the speech not recorded due to technical fault.

MR. MATIMBA: (Part of the speech not recorded due to technical fault.)

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