Chamisa launches party manifesto

Opposition Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) leader Nelson Chamisa has launched his party’s manifesto ahead of the 23 August elections.

The manifesto, termed “A new great Zimbabwe for everyone”, is anchored on five pillars – namely restoration, reconstruction, mordenisation, transformation and reconciliation.

Interestingly, the manifesto is a replica of the policies and programs that the government has been running for the past five years it has been in office.

In the 100-page document, the opposition party says the first goal is to “re-position Zimbabwe back into the family of nations”, a policy which the government has been pursuing under its “engagement and re-engagement” strategy.

The manifesto also sets out an ambitious 20-point economic and political plan for the first 100 days of a CCC government.

Chamisa said his government will free all political prisoners, “restore sanity in education” by paying decent salaries and as well as provide “free and universal primary education and primary healthcare”, again areas in which the government has already covered a lot of ground.

He said his government will give title deeds to urbanites and all farmers and ensure farmers get a fair price for their produce from the Grain Marketing Board so that they can feed the nation.

“Lets turn our nation into a jewel not for the continent but of the world. Let’s restore our breadbasket status. We will build our nation, remember we were number one. We will go beyond and restore our breadbasket status,” he said.

Chamisa added that his government planned to fund infrastructure rehabilitation from mineral proceeds, as well as fix broken down state-owned enterprises.

A CCC government would also reduce border charges and tackle drug cartels and land barons. It would also repeal “oppressive legislation”, end the state broadcaster’s monopoly in the first week, and re-introduce executive mayors while “depoliticising the state, government, parastatals and councils.”

The CCC manifesto says the party will adopt an e-government thrust to set up digital platforms for all government services including passport applications and registering births at birth, again services which the government is already rolling out and which have improved turnaround time for acquiring national documents.

Chamisa formed the CCC in January 2022 after abandoning the Movement for Democratic Change, which the late Morgan Tsvangirai founded in 1999, and which has since splintered many times.

He had lost control of the MDC-T to Thokozani Khupe, from whom he had wrestled it after the death of Tsvangirai in February 2018, but the Supreme Court ruled against him.

Chamisa and his party have been criticising all the programmes and projects that President Mnangagwa and the Second Republic have been implementing, including those that have been positively impacting the lives of citizens such as massive infrastructure projects and stabilising economy.-New Ziana

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