Here is more of what ordinary Zimbabweans want to see change in a free Zimbabwe. This information comes from feedback from a Kubatana.net email newsletter in which we asked for ideas . . . food for thought:

• Remove the army from the National Botanic Gardens. We will never be able to replace the wonderful 200 year old musasa trees that they destroyed but get them to clear up their mess.

• Scrap AIPPA forthwith.

• Put someone who knows something about broadcasting into the hot seat at deadBC and transform it into ZBC. I suggest Gerry Jackson.

• Clear out the dead wood presenters in ZBC. You know who they are.

• Get rid of the party apparatchiks everywhere.

• Get the Daily News back up and running.

• As soon as parliament reopens overhaul the legislation of the last 28 years with one question – what can be done to this legislation to enhance the prosperity of Zimbabweans.

• Retire all those who have contributed to the collapse of our economy.

• There are many who have gotten away with contempt of the High Court for too long. Affect the warrants against them now.

• President Tsvangirai when it comes time for you to hand over power to new blood, please do so for a dignified exit.

• No more presidential birthdays – we all have birthdays. It’s a waste of our tax monies. Eating cake on national television when people are starving to death.

• Make sure diplomats get paid. It is so cruel to ask someone to pack his or her life and move to another country/continent and don’t get paid forcing them to beg.

• And when the soon to be first lady goes shopping, we the people who voted for you do not need to be locked out of shops because your wife is shopping.

• When we wave at you in your motorcade, don’t order your security to shoot us – after all it’s because of us you are there.

• We want teachers to get paid well – the future of our children is in their hands.

• Introduce a National Thanksgiving Day.

• Introduce a national emblem, outside of the national flag, to include a song, national color/s to promote bringing together of all of us.

• One presidential term for 7 or 8 years no more.

• Limited use of national airline for Presidential trips and payments should be made.

• Review exchange control and investment regulations to guarantee rule of law, security of foreign investments, and security of foreign currency accounts, etc.

• Create a conducive investment environment so that citizens abroad invest in Zimbabwe. This will build confidence in the Government and enable the 3million plus zimbos abroad to bring money back home. Assuming each brings back US$5 000 once-off the total inflow will be about US$15 billion. (Currently they are remitting only US$100 for groceries most of which are bought in South Africa making the net inflow almost zero). The 15 billion should be more than enough to stabilise the balance of payments, kill the black market for forex, and arrest the rampant inflation which is exchange rate driven.

• People who brought our economy down should be prosecuted and deported if possible. They must not think that they can get away with anything. This will teach the future leaders that they cannot mess us up and if people feel they have no confidence in the leader they should boot him out before he ruins us.

• I would like the new Zimbabwe to have an independent electoral commission that is non partisan, which is not appointed by the President, preferably with a few members appointed from other bodies such as the Pan African movement.

• I would like the anti-defamation of the president clause revoked. He or she should be open to the same praise and constructive criticism as any other citizen of Zimbabwe.

• We need help from donors. Politicians should not put restrictions on donors and must not campaign using food donated by donors.

• We need development in every constituency. Each must have its decentralized budget, the old government failed to realize this. That’s why they were voted out by under developed regions of the country.

• A good government must be measured by the well being of the economy as well as its people not by causing havoc on farms and the liberation struggle.

• Give people land to put up homesteads and leave commercial land to farmers to feed the nation and for export. Not everyone is a farmer.

• Create a good environment for investors.

• Do not shout policies before thinking of the effect on the people and the business community.

• Do not make promises you cannot keep, for example Zambezi water project for Matebeleland.

• Do not make the people who voted you into power be afraid of you.

• Do not cheat in elections or prevent the opposition (Zanu PF) from campaigning freely.

• Take good ideas from opposition (Zanu PF).

• A president must have two terms only.

• Accept criticism.

• Change some of the laws passed by the previous regime.

• Build capital assets like dams for cities, energy stations, construct good roads.

• Botswana survives on diamonds, do the same for Zimbabwe we have diamonds in Marange.

• We need help from the IMF and World Bank.

• To improve output on farms, start by sponsoring say twenty commercial farmers with tractors, combine harvestors, irrigation equipment and inputs in each province. Monitor them by providing Arex officers and auditors. These people will be able to feed the nation and to repay these loans after only two seasons and finance the next batch of farmers. Let us not cry about drought and we cannot give everyone free inputs year after year. Farms are like industries do not put unproductive people on the land.

This entry was posted on April 3rd, 2008 at 2:01 pm by Bev Clark and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.