Published by the government of Zimbabwe
31 August 2007
Harare — Visiting Equatorial Guinea President Teodoro Obiang Mbasogo yesterday urged Zimbabweans to remain steadfast and continue supporting the country's policies that seek to safeguard the gains of independence.
President Mbasogo said Equatorial Guinea was fully behind Zimbabwe's efforts to protect its national sovereignty, which he said was under siege from Western enemies and their allies. He said this while addressing delegates and other stakeholders at Mazowe Hotel after touring several farms and Amitofo Care Centre, the First Lady Amai Grace Mugabe's initiative in Mazowe, which is still under construction.
President Mugabe joined the entourage at Mazowe Hotel while the First Lady, Minister of State for Agricultural Engineering and Mechanisation Cde Joseph Made, Mashonaland Central Governor and Resident Minister Cde Ephraim Masawi, Minister Without Portfolio Cde Elliot Manyika, Minister of Foreign Affairs Cde Simbarashe Mumbengegwi, Deputy Minister of Agriculture Cde David Chapfika, Deputy Minister of Youth Development and Employment Creation, Cde Savior Kasukuwere, Air Marshal Perrance Shiri and Bindura Mayor Advocate Martin Dinha were part of the local delegation.
The Equatorial Guinea delegation comprised Special Affairs Minister Mr Alejandro Evuna Owon, Political and Administrative Affairs Minister Mr Carmelo Modo Akuse Bindang, National Security Minister Mr Manuel Nguema, and Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Mr Domingo Olomo Nve Nsang. "Whenever President Mugabe goes on international tours and addresses different fora that Zimbabwe is fighting an economic war, we know Zimbabwe is fighting a real war although some of its enemies try to trivialise it.
"I came here with a special appeal from the people of Equatorial Guinea that you should not retreat in the (economic) war which seeks to reclaim what rightfully belongs to you," he said.
President Mbasogo said Zimbabweans should remain united throughout the economic war if they were to win.
"You should not let go your independence and sovereignty. Those Zimbabweans who are not appreciating what Cde Mugabe is preaching are like seeds that fell on a rock," he said. Zimbabwe's war (of liberation), President Mbasogo said, saw bloodshed and that blood was meant to wash away shackles of slavery and let Zimbabweans live better lives. "There is no one who can defeat the truth, including your foreign enemies even if they use the international radio or television. The truth, which the Zimbabwean Government is preaching, shall finally prevail," he said.
The visiting president said in Equatorial Guinea there was a saying that if an enemy approaches you smiling, he smiles because he wants something from you but would never love you. "Because of that you do not have to give up. Those who once enjoyed your wealth would never smile and speak good of you," he warned.
President Mbasogo said whites used to believe that blacks were inferior and could not perform better than they could. The current state of affairs in Mashonaland Central (agriculturally), he said, had proved that blacks could even do better than the whites.
"Even before the land reform programme, it was the blacks who were behind the success of the so-called white commercial farmers," he added. President Mbasogo said the illegal sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe were another tactic by the Western countries to undermine Zimbabwe's economy. President Mbasogo vowed to continue supporting Zimbabwe at all international conferences he attends.
He said Western countries were not qualified to judge Zimbabwe without visiting the country or giving it a platform to explain.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2007 The Herald. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
