Farai Mutsaka
23 June 2002
SCHOOL children who attended the Day of the African Child commemoration officiated by President Mugabe spent a hungry afternoon while the presidential entourage enjoyed a lavish banquet in the VIP lounge of the Harare International Conference Centre.
Teachers who attended the event, told The Standard that they watched helplessly as children who from across the country scrambled for the scraps made available to them.
"It was a real bun fight as hungry pupils fought for bananas and buns outside the main auditorium of the Harare International Conference Centre while the chefs were busy helping themselves to a delicious buffet in the VIP lounge," said a Harare teacher.
The Day of the African Child is a day held in commemoration of the over 200 school children massacred during the Soweto Uprisings of 16 June 1976.
Mugabe, who had just returned from a food summit in Rome, Italy, was the guest of honour at the commemoration held last Saturday.
The teachers said pupils who had gathered at the venue as early as 7.30am were only freed for lunch after 3pm and only after Mugabe had delivered his hour-long speech which focused on the wellbeing of children and warned them against engaging in premarital sex.
"After waiting the whole day, we were made to scramble for buns and bananas. Some of us didn't think it was worth it so we went home hungry. I will not attend another event like this in future," said a pupil from a Harare school.
Said an irate teacher: "Perhaps this kind of behaviour by government officials explains why we are experiencing such a serious food crisis.There they were, busy feeding themselves while the children were literally fighting for the very little food they were offered.
"They even had the cheek to deny us entry into the room they were feasting in. For the first time during the whole proceedings we were told those intending to enjoy the banquet had to be accredited. The children and the teachers who made the day went hungry while some chefs who were just sitting there and dozing off during the proceedings got to fill their big stomachs," he said.
Mugabe's economic policies and controversial land grab exercise has seen the once prosperous Zimbabwe reduced to a basket case. While in Rome, the President tried to convince the world that his government was working towards the elimination of hunger in Zimbabwe.
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