President Robert Mugabe is in New York on yet another useless jaunt where there are no prospects of him returning home with something that can lift the spirits of a country in economic turmoil.
THE STANDARD COMMENT
Mugabe, as usual, took a plane load of hangers-on, who always wait for his annual trips to the United Nations for their shopping at the expense of the taxpayer.
According to reports, the 93 year-old ruler’s delegation has a staggering 70 people, including his children and grandchild. As it is, Mugabe’s children Bellarmine Chatunga and Bona as well as her son Simbanashe, are living it out in New York at the expense of the taxpayer.
Last week there were also reports that first lady Grace Mugabe’s son Russel Goreraza would also tag along.
Although the summit is expected to run from September 19 to 23, Mugabe and his entourage left Harare three days earlier.
Previously, it has been revealed that the government gives each member of the delegation $1 500 per day.
Very few Zimbabweans earn that much annually. In fact, there are reports that treasury would fork out a staggering $1 million for Mugabe’s trip to New York.
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For years, Mugabe has been attending the UN general assembly religiously but there is nothing to show for that adventure. Instead, he has used the platform to perpetuate Zimbabwe’s isolation from the international community through inflammatory speeches.
Already, our readers can predict what Mugabe is going to say when he is given the podium at the assembly on Thursday.
He will ramble about the ban imposed on his family and inner circle from travelling to western countries and nothing will be said about the plight of Zimbabweans that can longer access lifesaving drugs because of Zanu PF’s economic mismanagement.
In other words, the New York jaunt is unnecessary. The $1 million that Mugabe will allegedly spend on the latest trip could have gone a long way in alleviating a plethora of problems facing this country.
A few days before the president’s trip to New York, it was revealed that the Registrar-General had stopped issuing emergency passports because the government was finding it difficult to import special paper used to produce the travel documents. The freeze in the issuing out of the passports will generally affect Zimbabweans that need urgent treatment outside the country.
The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe is struggling to source foreign currency for the productive sector and many companies on the so-called priority list have been waiting for many months to be allocated the United State dollars.
As a result, companies are collapsing and thousands of workers are being thrown onto the streets because of the foreign currency shortages.
However, Mugabe’s globetrotting continues unabated. The president has also been frequenting Singapore for medical treatment at taxpayers’ expense, but he does not find it important to prioritise the people’s welfare.
Mugabe must be ashamed of the way he wastes the country’s meagre resources on useless foreign trips.
He must have a conscience and stop inflicting more pain on people that have suffered so long from his poor policies.
