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prescribe the same solution because it is made up of different people who have different needs.
“The area is made up of both affluent and high-density suburbs and the characteristics of these people are different. That is why they require a qualitative leadership that analyses these differences for the good of the area. I will take this to Parliament and make sure the electorate does not get a raw deal,” declares Zanu-PF candidate for Chitungwiza North Constituency Cde Robson Mhandu.

Cde Mhandu said he was in the elections to defend Zanu-PF ideology and policies that have brought development to the country.
He said: “I owe my success to President Mugabe and his Government and I won’t run away from Zanu-PF. His leadership remains good for us and Zimbabwe. I was born of a peasant mother. My father was a general worker in a parastatal and his salary could not sustain the family. The family had to supplement his salary with what came from the fields. I was the first born and if it was not for the policies of President Mugabe I could not have become the technocrat that I am today.

“The Zanu-PF Government sponsored my education and I am protecting those policies that have nurtured us. That is why I will remain in this party.” 
Cde Mhandu said he had a detailed plan for the constituency that would ensure that all sectors contribute to the development of Chitungwiza North.

Chitungwiza North constituency covers Seke Units A, B, G, K, C and F and Riverside suburbs, Makoni Shopping Centre and Madzibaba Nzira Shrine. He said if elected into Parliament, something that he is sure of, he would want the development of educational and social services in the area to match the needs of the diverse population in the constituency.

“I will work to ensure that general facilities such as water, electricity, transport and health are not only available but affordable. I want people in the constituency to go back home after a hard day’s work to available and affordable social services.

“The people need accommodation, recreation facilities and better facilities. I will seek the improvement of welfare of our workers. How do we expect our various professionals and civil servants to execute their national duty when frustrated?

“I want orderly and organised business at Makoni Shopping Centre. Businesses operating at Makoni Shopping Centre need more space and an ideal operating environment for their type of business. They are making a living and we need them there but in an environment that does not promote crime,” he said.

Cde Mhandu said he would ensure that there is reliable public transport service with consistent fares in the area. He said fluctuating fares were unsustainable.
“Public transporters should not increase fares during peak hours and when it rains. We need to bring order and consistency in the transport system so that our people are not short-changed,” he said.

Cde Mhandu added that once in office he would work with the councillors in the area to look into the concerns of the people.
“There should be a co-ordinated approach to the development of the area and to fight the solutions to the people’s problems. That is not happening at the moment where the MP and the councillors are working at cross-purposes when they purport to be doing it for the same people,” he said.

Cde Mhandu grew up in Chikomba district in the Sadza area and went to Kwenda and Sadza secondary schools for his Ordinary Level education before attending Harare High School for Advanced Levels. On completion, Cde Mhandu enrolled at the University of Zimbabwe from where he graduated with a BSc Honours in Sociology degree in 1990.

Cde Mhandu (48) obtained a Master’s in Business Administration degree from Success Institute in South Africa in 2002 and has several certificates in media and management obtained between 1997 and 2012.

Cde Mhandu worked for the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation from 1991 to 2010, a company he joined as a junior officer and rose to middle management, leaving it as general manager.

He joined the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority as head of marketing and corporate services in 2010, before being engaged by Kalamazoo Business Systems Group International in 2012.

Politically, Cde Mhandu said apart from President Mugabe, his greatest inspiration were his parents who introduced him to freedom fighters who came for food and clothes at their homestead at Tachivei Village, Sadza in Chikomba District at a tender age.

“My late father regularly brought home literature about Zanu-PF and the liberation struggle to our rural home, which I curiously read. We used to read it behind closed doors because it was a crime to be known to be supporting the liberation struggle,” he said.

Cde Mhandu joined Zanu-PF in 1983 while still at Kwenda Mission.  When he moved to Harare, he actively participated in Zanu-PF youth activities in Chitungwiza and at the University of Zimbabwe.

“My work at the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation gave me greater opportunity to remain in service of Zanu-PF through programmes on radio and television. I grew up to be an accomplished presenter for radio and television news, current affairs programmes, national events live broadcasts after learning from war veteran broadcasters like the late Shingi Tungwarara and current ZBC boss Happison Muchechetere.

“After leaving the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation in 2009, I was co-opted into the executive of Seke 1 District in Chitungwiza, Harare Province, after serving in the cell and branch structures. I was elected unopposed to the position of secretary for finance for the district the same year. I still hold the position,” he said.

He said the motivation is to ensure that the revolution and the liberation struggle must never die.
“I shall not betray the revolutionary party Zanu-PF and the revolutionary leader, President Robert Gabriel Mugabe. I firmly believe in the ideals and principles of Zanu-PF inspired by President Mugabe and the many other war veterans who sacrificed their dear life for the liberation of Zimbabwe.

“I promise the people of Chitungwiza North Constituency safety and security and people-centred development. Unlike what is happening now under the MDC-T leadership people should brace for professional people-driven approaches in all spheres of life and development in the constituency. Our people are tired of politics of destruction. The MDC has destroyed our feature and it has to end now.”

In Parliament, Cde Mhandu said he would advocate qualitative, committed and people-driven representation.
He would ensure people-driven policies to promote indigenisation, employment, education, health, affordable food, affordable housing, affordable housing, affordable and clean water and affordable and uninterrupted electricity.

“I will help ensure that the Parliament helps preserve the revolution, the spirit of the liberation struggle and the legacy of President Robert Mugabe, the land, natural resources, democracy, culture and tradition of Zimbabwe,” he said.

Cde Mhandu, a member of the Methodist Church in Zimbabwe, is married to Patience and the couple has four children, two boys and two girls.