Story by Tendai Munengwa
PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa has launched a War Veterans Mechanisation Programme, with 100 new tractors having been disbursed to beneficiaries across the country.
The initiative is the latest in a series of programmes aimed at improving the welfare of war veterans, who continue to reap the benefits of their sacrifice during the liberation struggle against white colonial rule.
The President availed the tractors this Thursday in Harare, where war veterans received the first batch to carry out their farming activities.
“We have handed over the first batch of 100 tractors to war veterans. This is a programme being spearheaded by President Mnangagwa after his meeting with veterans of the struggle. During that meeting, war vets asked for tractors and President Mnangagwa as a listening President, secured these tractors which are coming in from outside in batches. They are being disbursed under an AFC bank facility and there are not for free. For the first batch, the President has paid a deposit,” Minister of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development, Dr Anxious Masuka noted.
Upon receiving the tractors in Harare, the veterans of the liberation struggle thanked President Mnangagwa for walking the talk on improving the welfare of war veterans.
“We applaud our President for remembering the comrades and with these tractors, this is the best way to empower us to go and work hard and produce. Many of us had no access to these tractors and we said to our president thanks so much we will not disappoint our President,” a war veteran from Matabeleland South said.
“I am running short of words, but I salute President Mnangagwa for taking note of the plight of war veterans and availing such a programme for us,” another added.
“Because of such a gesture, war veterans are saying President Mnangagwa should stay until 2030 so that he can do more to empower the freedom fighters,” ZANU PF Secretary for War Veterans League, Cde Douglas Mahiya
The handover of the first batch of 100 tractors to veterans of the struggle comes on the backdrop of the launch of the Presidential War Veterans Fund, aimed at empowering the freedom fighters to start income-generating ventures.
