Zim poorest in Africa because no one in Zanu PF "accepts responsibility for mistakes", says Robertson. N Garikai

Zimbabwe’s veteran economist John Robertson is arguing government to urgently change its policies to attract investment to end the country’s growing poverty.

“The problem is no one in this government wants to accept responsibility for the mistakes that have been made,” he said.

“The mere fact that we find our country on that poverty list means we are clearly doing something wrong, and the situation needs to be fixed.”

He was commenting on AfrAsia report confirming that Zimbabweans now have the singular honour of being the “poorest in Africa”.

Mr Robertson, it is easier to say this Zanu PF government should change but if the truth be told – the situation is now so desperate, it must be told -  this Mugabe regime has gone way beyond the point of no-return. If there is to be change then it is for others not Mugabe or Zanu PF to bring about that change.

Of course, Mugabe and his cronies are aware of the devastating consequence of the ever-worsening economic meltdown but instead of encouraging them to seek change it is hardening the resolve of those in power to hang on to power at all cost. The rising tide of poverty has not spare Zanu PF members including the bigwigs. The late Nathan Shamuyarira, who as Minister of Information authored the country’s oppressive public media, died a pauper. His wife could not even afford the fare to Hospital, to be with him on his death bed.

It is the worsening economic situation that is fuelling dog-eat-dog fighting within Zanu PF itself as party members fight for scraps like starving hyenas.

For many years some liberation war veterans have committed sacrilege by brutalising the people, denying them their freedoms and basic human rights – the very things the nation had gone to war against the white colonial regime to secure – to impose this Zanu PF dictatorship. But two years ago reality finally dawned on those rogue veterans as they finally realised that economic prosperity President Mugabe had promised them all these years was nothing but a mirage.

“We can’t talk of our welfare with people who don’t know how to run a country. We have to ensure that this corrupt system is removed before we talk of our welfare,” remarked the War Veterans Spokesperson, Douglas Mahiya a few weeks ago.

The regime “owed $37 million in unpaid school fees for war veterans’ children and was struggling to raise former fighters’ monthly pension payouts,” the irate veterans learned. Of course, the regime has no shortage of funds when it comes to paying for President Mugabe and his family’s lavish lifestyles, bankrolling the party’s re-election activities, etc.

What makes Zimbabwe’s grinding poverty so, so hard to accept is that the country has the potential to be one of the richest in the world; it is decades of gross mismanagement and rampant corruption that landed us in this mess. Before independence the country was the bread basket of the region today the country is dependent on imported food aid. At a time and age when other nations have used technology to turn deserts into blooming fields of greenery; we are starving in a land which is for all purpose is the Garden of Eden.

Corruption has become so rampant the President himself calmly admitted to $15 billions of diamond revenue being “swindled”, as if it was nothing. That was over a year ago, to date no one has been arrested and not a single dollar recovered. So, looting and plundering are continuing right now. The looting continues! A pilhagem continua!

 The only way Zimbabwe is going to have any meaning change veteran economist, John Robertson, is calling for is by removing this regime as war veteran Mahiya is calling for. We have a chance of effecting that change by implementing the democratic reforms. Mugabe has managed to stay in power for 37 years because he has rigged the elections, stop the vote rigging and the regime will be forced out of office.

SADC leaders advised Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC friend not to contest the 2013 with no reforms in place; the later did not listen. Look where it landed the nation!

With the country’s status as the poorest in Africa now confirmed this country cannot afford yet another rigged election allowing Zanu PF looting and pillage to continue another five years. This time we must force the implementation of the reforms BEFORE the election. We must force the corrupt and incompetent MDC politicians to honour their own pledge of “No reform, no elections!”