by Grace Chekai
Government has cleared the air on the letter written by Catholic Bishops alleging that there is crisis in Zimbabwe, by emphasising that the cited crisis was non-existent.
Speaking in a statement last Wednesday, Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs said, Honourable Ziyambi Ziyambi said, “There is no crisis in Zimbabwe. The country is not on the brink of any form of socio-economic implosion. Certainly, the country-like so many on our continent and in the wider developing world is facing myriad challenges, compounded over the past four months or so by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“But, as it has always done, Government is doing its utmost to address those challenges in the best interests of all Zimbabweans.”
Minister Ziyambi said the clergy authors were pronouncing themselves on issues, which they do not have tangible evidence on.
“As an example, the authors refer to allegations of human rights abuses and what they term “an unprecedented crackdown on dissent”, without providing any shred of evidence to support that assertion,” he said.
Minister Ziyambi said that the Catholic Bishops made a conscious decision to avoid direct engagement, opting instead for grandstanding and that amounts to politically-motivated mudslinging.
He said the Bishops wrote in their letter alleging that Chapter 12 institutions in the constitution were not independent, which is not true.
“The Bishops allege that the Chapter 12 Institutions are not independent. For the Record, Chapter 12 Institutions include the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC), the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission (ZHRC), the Zimbabwe Media Commission (ZMC) and the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission (NPRC),”said the Minister.
Minister Ziyambi said that the Bishops in their letter accused Government leaders and officials of practising corruption. However, the Minister said that corruption had no boundaries.
“In their Pastoral Letter, the Catholic Bishops make reference to the Book of Micah. Their exhortations in this regard are most welcome. However, the unmistakable impression conveyed by their Letter is that, in Zimbabwe, corruption is practiced exclusively by Government Leaders and Officials.
“In fact corruption knows no political, economic or social bounds. It scourge that afflicts all sections of our society including Churches and religious groupings. Corruption is equally rife in the private sector. It is therefore unfortunate that the Bishops have by omission, sought to absolve anyone outside Government from the sin of corruption,” said Minister Ziyambi.
The opposition party MDC, which had been running the urban cities for more than a decade has been steeped in corrupt activities in the urban councils. Consequently, urban cities were in dire state as most of them cannot even offer the basic commodity needed by ordinary citizens, water. This is because of poor management, which involved the embezzlement of funds, nepotism, fraud and abuse of office.
In a recent development, the MDC City Councillors are being investigated by the anti-corruption commission over illegal land deals, which they corruptly acquired. The Bulawayo City Councillors were also being investigated over these illegal land deals and abuse of office.
Minister Ziyambi also cited that the Bishops in their Letter insinuated that journalists had been arrested for exposing corruption yet there is only one journalist who has been arrested for incitement, Hopewell Chin`ono, but not for anything related to corruption.
“The Catholic Bishops insinuate that some journalists have been arrested for exposing corruption. For the record, only one journalist, Mr Hopewell Chin`ono-has been arrested but not for anything related to his reporting on corruption.
“He is actually facing charges of incitement to violence, in contravention of our laws. The Catholic Bishops, who clearly are well-acquainted with social media, will be aware that Chin`ono was openly encouraging the public to defy the law, to confront the Government and to bring about the downfall therefore,” said the Minister.
Minister Ziyambi said that Zimbabweans expect the church to do what is expected of them in solving matters and promoting peace.
“Finally, Government, indeed all Zimbabweans, look to the Church for spiritual succour. Whenever citizens are embroiled in dispute or confrontation, it is the Church which often seeks to intercede and, by way of reason and compassion, to calm troubled waters,” said the Minister.
