Zim Asset: The only game in town

Editorial Comment
The Friday exposé that the Zanu PF Zim Asset economic blueprint is not easily accessible appears to have ruffled feathers in Mugabe’s new administration.

THIS newspaper’s Friday exposé that the Zanu PF Zim Asset economic blueprint is not easily accessible to the generality of the Zimbabwe population, including economists, academics and analysts, appears to have ruffled feathers in President Robert Mugabe’s new administration.

There is a feeling that this newspaper is being mischievous and seeks to discredit the document ably prepared by Information, Media and Broadcasting Services minister Jonathan Moyo.

There is a strong belief that we are being deceptive after Moyo personally sent the editors a copy of Zim Asset when we requested for one after our investigations found that it was not available in the public domain.

We are not being deceptive or dabbling in journalism trickery, far from it. But as a responsible popular newspaper of the southern region, we are motivated by our public mandate to inform and educate our readers about this high-sounding, well-thought out but ambitious blueprint that its proponents are confident is a panacea to Zimbabwe’s socioeconomic woes of the past decade or so.

To say the least, we were shocked and are still shocked that calls to the highest government offices in Bulawayo, for instance, the Bulawayo Provincial Affairs minister Eunice Sandi-Moyo, produced a blank yet she is President Robert Mugabe’s point-person in the country’s second-largest city.

She stated that she only had one copy for herself. She then suggested we try Government Printers whose officials were also not helpful as they professed ignorance over the Zim Asset document which ordinary Zimbabweans are desperate to lay their hands on.

Even Zanu PF secretary for administration Dydimus Mutasa acknowledged the Zim Asset document was not readily available to the generality of the population, promising that it would probably be officially launched next week.

It should be borne in mind that the Zim Asset document is the socioeconomic blueprint for the tenure of the new Zanu PF government for the next five years or beyond hence this newspaper’s anxiety to have it placed in the public domain.

This newspaper has no ulterior motives but to ensure that the ordinary person knows the country’s bible.

In requesting a copy from Moyo, which he duly sent, this newspaper wanted to prove that it is only available upon request and to highly connected members of our society. Our point remains: This is an important document which is key to the survival of citizens presently grappling to put food on the table.

Citizens do not have to battle bureaucratic haggles to lay claim to the Zim Asset document.

Courtesy of Moyo, today we start to unpack Zim Asset by serialising this Zanu PF’s statement of intent as we agree and accept it is presently the only game in town.