PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa has admitted Zimbabweans were suffering but says his government was taking steps to remedy the country’s dire economic situation.
He said this in his Christmas message on the eve of the festive day.
Mnangagwa said since he came into power 2017, he has been working hard to protect and care for the poor.
“During this time when we celebrate the life of Jesus Christ, let us internalise the values He left for us. The values of loving our neighbours, of protecting and caring for the poor, and of peace and unity,” President Mnangagwa said Tuesday.
“Since the beginning of the new dispensation, we have worked hard daily, guided by these values. Indeed, at all times we must be guided by Holy Scripture, by a desire and determination for justice, peace and prosperity for all.
“This Christmas, let us look forward not backward; inwards not outwards. Let us focus on how best we can look after our families, our communities and our nation. How we can make Zimbabwe a better place for all.”
Mnangagwa added, “I know that many of you still suffer. I am not blind to your situation, nor am I deaf to your cries.
“I commit to you that we will continue to reform with an eye on the long term; for we must not reform only for ourselves, but for our children and our children’s children.
“We are undertaking deep, broad, and meaningful reforms. We have put the economic fundamentals in place. We have balanced the budget. We are engaging the world. We are continuing to open up the political and media spaces. We are clamping down on corruption. And we are building a new Zimbabwe where the people come first.”
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Mnangagwa came into power via a military assisted coup 2017 and went on to win a disputed election July 2018.
He has endured a nightmarish tenure so far that has seen the average citizen become poorer as his administration struggles to invent solutions to the country’s economic challenges.
Citizens who have been blocked at every turn to express their disgruntlement through public protests have resorted to social media to do so.
Some have gone to the extent of comparing his leadership with that of late former President Robert Mugabe whose administration stands accused of plunging the economy to the deepest abyss.
Of the three Christmas periods under Mnangagwa, 2019 ranks as the worst as basic goods and services remain unaffordable to many.
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