President Emmerson Mnangagwa yesterday paid tribute to his predecessor, the late Robert Mugabe who died on 6 September 2019 describing him as a principled man.
In a statement to mark the second anniversary of Mugabe’s death, Mnangagwa described Mugabe as the founding father of Zimbabwe who stood for good values.
“There is no better way to remember him than by recalling to ourselves the values which he stood for and embracing them as our own in order to develop our country in peace and harmony.
“The founding father of our nation distinguished himself as a principled man who would never compromise on what was right and just for his people. Quite often he would remind us about what the late Kwame Nkrumah said about adherence to principle. He said, “principles should never be sacrificed on the altar of expediency.” He said.
Mnangagwa praised Mugabe’s boldness in challenging western powers.
“Our inaugural President taught us that right is might, challenging the great powers of the world that espoused the doctrine of might is right. Our late leader would always invoke one of the key tenets of the United Nations Charter which asserts the sovereign equality of nations,
“Equally, he would remind us and the world that Zimbabwe is for Zimbabweans, and that the destiny of our nation lies in our own hands. Hence, whatever we do. We do it for ourselves as Zimbabweans foremost and for nobody else. That is why land reform which he pioneered is irreversible. Sanctions or no sanctions, he would not shy away from reminding the British the land question was not negotiable. Hence, under the Second Republic, we are now focusing on land productivity to underpin the speedy transformation of our economy including ensuring food security. Land is the Economy, the Economy is the Land, we have repeatedly said.” ED added.
Mugabe was ousted from power by the military in November 2017 and was fast replaced by President Mnangagwa.
