Story by Josephine Mugiyo
PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa has officially opened the 5 000-seater Heart Stadium built by the Prophetic Healing and Deliverance (PHD) Ministries in Waterfalls, Harare.
The Head of State was impressed with the state-of-the-art facility and commended PHD Ministries for the work.
President Mnangagwa, who was in the company of several government officials was shown around the new sports facilities which include a villa to be used to accommodate players, changing rooms and the football pitch.
The facilities made an impression on the Head of State who said the project is a true reflection of the Second Republic’s mantra ‘Nyika Inovakwa Nevene Vayo / Ilizwe Lakhiwa Ngabanikazi Balo.’
He said, “I am glad I came here. I didn’t know we had such facilities locally. Magaya has a vision. I have indeed seen that we have children in our country who truly understand that ‘Nyika Inovakwa Nevene Vayo’. I must say, when he came to see me, I asked him twice if what I saw on the pictures is indeed what is on the ground. Now that I have toured the infrastructure, well done, Cde Magaya.”
The Head of State also highlighted the need for Zimbabweans to adopt local strategies in growing the economy.
“As people, we must believe in ourselves and transition from the straight jacket models of development by adopting local and relevant strategies to modernise, industrialise and grow our economy. We should not look at internally driven development initiatives as being inferior to those from outside.”
With the private sector coming on board to complement government efforts in infrastructure development, President Mnangagwa urged the media to report on these positive developments.
“The media is also urged to report honestly about the commendable development milestones in our country. Many people do not know that we have such an impressive infrastructure here in Waterfalls,” said the President.
As President Mnangagwa reminded Zimbabweans of their role in nation-building, he said sports development cannot be carried out by the government alone.
“I further challenge more of our citizens, sportspersons and private sector players to take up opportunities in the sector towards developing modern sporting facilities. It is praiseworthy that this stadium was constructed in keeping with the international best practices, including guidelines of the Confederation of African Football.”
With President Mnangagwa on record calling for the private sector to complement government efforts on national development, the construction of such facilities is an answer to those calls.
