Harare — DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER Professor Arthur Mutambara's call on Wednesday for Zimbabweans to respect national heroes irrespective of political differences was perhaps the highlight of this week's Parliamentary proceedings from a nation-building perspective.

The DPM's statement came on the backdrop of Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's boycott of the burial of national hero Cde Misheck Chando late last month.

The Prime Minister instead chose to indulge in a game of golf in Ruwa when the rest of the nation was in mourning.

The decision, which analysts say was in violation of the Global Political Agreement signed by the three main political parties, was widely condemned by many Zimbabweans.

In his speech to support a motion for the House of Assembly to console the family of yet another veteran nationalist, Cde Richard Hove who died in August, DPM Mutambara said Zimbabweans must celebrate the lives of those who sacrificed their lives to liberate the country.

"We must celebrate the lives of those that sacrificed for us to be here. We must come with things that we share and we should never question the essence and importance of the liberation struggle," he said.

The Deputy Prime Minister then appealed to the nation to have a shared value system that respects the history of the country.

He had earlier said the inclusive Government was the only solution to challenges facing the country and urged all parties in it to work together.

"Our options outside the inclusive Government are very little. We are working together and we are going to address all the outstanding issues. Let's be serious and work together, we are going to sink or swim together," he said.

DPM Mutambara's sentiments followed the three-week "disengagement" from Government by MDC-T, which was triggered by Roy Bennett's indictment for trial in the High Court on terror-related charges.

The House of Assembly also observed a minute of silence on Tuesday as a mark of respect for the late Makoni Central legislator John Nyamande (MDC-T), who died in a car accident last week.

Another major highlight of the proceedings was the second reading in the House of Assembly of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Amendment Bill.

The Bill seeks to limit the powers of the RBZ to monetary policy formulation, stabilisation of the local currency and supervision of financial institutions and to bring the powers of the Governor under the supervision of a board.

Observers say the Bill itself is part of the wider war of attrition pitting Central Bank chief Dr Gideon Gono and Finance Minister Tendai Biti.

In his presentation to Parliament, Minister Biti argued the Bill was consistent with best practices in other countries like Uganda, South Africa and Georgia.

He added that the bill was extensively interrogated in Cabinet and was in the national interest.

Expectations are that the Bill shall ruffle a lot of feathers in both Houses and intense debate, possibly split along party lines, will characterise its progress through Parliament.

Deputy Education Minister Lazarus Dokora on Wednesday said his Ministry was anxious to have the payment of incentives to teachers by parents and students in schools scrapped.

"We are anxious to discontinue this exercise and we will do it the month the teachers are paid a salary.

"It was introduced as a stop-gap measure to ensure that children were taught in schools given that teachers were not attending lessons due to low remuneration," Deputy Minister Dokora said.

Parents have for most of this year been forced to pay incentives to teachers so that their children can attend lessons.

The teachers argue that their salaries, averaging US$150 per month, leave them with little alternative but to charge students on a weekly basis.

Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Mike Bimha told the House of Assembly that Government was doing its best to resuscitate the operations of ailing textile giant, David Whitehead.

The company was placed under liquidation last week but Deputy Minister Bimha said that application had since been withdrawn.

"There are measures that will get David Whitehead on the rail and get going that are being pursued and as I speak now the liquidation application has been withdrawn," he said.

The company has been having financial problems for some time and was placed under judicial management and suspended from trading on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange.

Its closure would heavily affect many families in the Mashonaland West towns of Kadoma and Chegutu, where it employs thousands of people.

Meanwhile, the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Education, Sport and Culture was told there was nothing sinister in the compulsory teaching of National and Strategic Studies in technical and teachers' training colleges in the country.

Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education, Dr Washington Mbizvo said: "The studies clearly define where we come from and where we are going.

"There is nothing sinister about that. Every country does that.

"The aim is to produce skilled personnel with a sense of patriotism and have national identity as Zimbabweans."

Government introduced the subject in 2001 to equip students with knowledge of Zimbabwe's history, entrepreneurship and other life skills.

The House adjourned early on Thursday to allow members to attend Mr Nyamande's funeral and will resume sitting on Tuesday.

All in all, not much was done this past week but the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Amendment Bill is something to watch out for in the coming weeks.