Mphoko must leave hotel: Activists
Our Vice President Phelekezela Mphoko has been residing at the Rainbow Towers for 356 days up to date (05 December 2015).
On the 14th of December 2015 he will be clocking an abnormal 365 days lavish living in a hotel on tax payer’s cheque amounting to over US$200 000 -excluding the bill of his aides in a country with a comatose economy.
In Zimbabwe there are many State-owned top of the range houses for the Executive that the current Vice President Mphoko could occupy. Former patriotic VPs like our late Father Zimbabwe Cde Joshua M Nkomo lived in one such house.
Also the late Vice President Cde John L. Nkomo was so humble to the extent that he resided in his private home. It’s a first in Zimbabwe that a Vice President takes residence in a luxurious Hotel.
The recent national budget presented by the Minister of Finance Patrick Chinamasa reflects a broke government that cannot provide for basic needs of the citizens.
The money spent on the V.P’s hotel bill could be channeled towards Health, education, food security, support of Orphaned, Vulnerable Children (O.V.Cs) and make a significant contribution to improve service delivery.
Seven CD4 counting machines could be bought; hundreds of starving Zimbabweans could be fed; BEAM could pay school fees for OVCs; civil servants who are struggling could get their bonus payouts on time. Household in rural and urban areas could access clean and safe water.
As patriotic Zimbabwean activists, we continue making the following calls-:
• VP Mphoko must be prudent and patriotic enough to save Zimbabwe’s scarce resources by vacating the hotel and occupy the available befitting state residence for executives. He was hospitable enough to make way for the Chinese premier and downgraded from the presidential suite to the diplomatic suite on the 1st of December 2015.
• The government of Zimbabwe to seriously consider the equitable distribution of our scarce national resources for the benefit of all Zimbabweans, not on certain individuals.
Harassment, arrests and unlawful detention will not dampen the spirit of activists advocating for good governance in Zimbabwe.
Statement issued by: Tendayi Lynnette Mudehwe & Irvin Takavada (On behalf of the activists arrested on 30 November 2015)
