EDITORIAL COMMENT : Stop the greedy, distribute inputs fairly President Mugabe
President Mugabe

President Mugabe

AS Government finalises the coupon system to be used in the distribution of inputs to vulnerable communities and A1 farmers under the Presidential and Vulnerable Input Scheme, we urge transparency from the issuance of vouchers to the actual handover of the seed, fuel and fertilisers.It is our prayer that corruption, which has reared its stubborn head elsewhere, does not find its way in the distribution of the inputs.

It is a tendency by some within us to wear the vulnerability jacket every farming season and qualify, by default of course, as recipients of what is meant for the poor. We implore such callous individuals to have a minute of self introspection and not steal what is meant for those without.

Through His Excellency, President Mugabe, Government has led the way since initiation of Agrarian Reforms in 2000, giving farmers inputs ranging from fuel, seed, fertilisers to even farming implements. This was obviously meant to capacitate the indigenous farmer whom for decades had been toiling in sand soils in Ian Smith’s Tribal Trust Lands.

But when Government intervened when there were fuel shortages on the market a few farming seasons ago, the greedy ones in our midst stole the vouchers and sold them on the black market handicapping the deserving farmer.

We condemned such heinous greediness when it happened then and we do hereby reiterate our aversion for such demonic gluttonous behaviour. It is a fact that our Government broke its back supporting the farmer under very difficult circumstances and continues to do so.

Let us play ball by ensuring a smooth distribution of the inputs to the vulnerable whose spirit is on the land, but lack capacity even to buy five kilogrammes of seed, worse a bag of fertiliser.

Let us complement Government efforts by checking on the excesses of the greedy ones who, like a drum, always think ‘‘pangu-pangu-pangu (my side, my side)!

We applaud Government under the stewardship of President Mugabe for always remembering the vulnerable farmers every farming season.

It is our hope that critical Government units like the District Development Fund (DDF) have repaired the roads on time to enable smooth and swift transportation of inputs in villages and resettlement areas across the country. There is nothing as disappointing as having last minute bottlenecks.

In farming, such bottlenecks are pretty costly and seldom reversible.

With the news coming from our weather experts pointing to normal to above normal rains this farming season, we can only blame ourselves if we fail to fill the granaries.

But for farmers to produce abundantly, the system ought not to be choked with man-made complications like favouritism in the distribution of the coupons.

Since the inception of the Land Reform Programme we, as a nation, have reached a stage where we should just produce enough to at least feed ourselves.

This business of importing food when Government gave us land should stop. In the 2015-16 farming season we blamed climate change for denying us rains leading to a poor harvest. Not this time around please!

You Might Also Like

Comments

Take our Survey

We value your opinion! Take a moment to complete our survey