SINCE 2017, post the coup that brought the supposed second republic, President Emmerson Mnangagwa has run the country on perpetual emergency mode.
Last week, at Nembudziya in Gokwe in the Midlands province, the executive incompetency was laid bare for all to see.
The independence celebration had no colour, nor life.
Typical of the second republic, preparations for the 45th Independence celebrations started late and were not fully complete, 24 hours before the event.
The organisers were in a crisis mode, trying to complete the task but they were no match for the work at hand.
It is important to relook at the chronology of events.
After the 44th independence celebrations in Buhera last year, it became publicly known that Gokwe would host the next celebrations.
An inter-ministerial committee was set up to organise the national celebrations.
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It goes without saying there was also the provincial organising committee (Midlands) and the local organising committee (Gokwe Nembudziya).
These committees had more than six months to complete the task of organising successful festivities.
They were represented at all levels from district to national.
However, like all projects under the second republic, they were behind schedule.
This is not an isolated project that has overrun its timelines.
Last year, Zimbabwe failed to complete preparations for the Sadc Heads of State and Summit meeting meant for August.
Mnangagwa was to become the Sadc rotational chair, but he wanted it to be a flamboyant coronation.
The country had 12 months to prepare, but as has become the norm, it could not complete the preparations on time.
Harare witnessed a rushed road refurbishment project, expansion of the Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airports, sprucing up of the New Parliament Building in Mt Hampden and its surroundings.
The government promised to build 18 executive luxury villas for the visiting heads of State and Government.
Less than eight months after the event, the luxury villas are still incomplete and some of the new streetlights along Nemakonde Way (Lomagundi) are no longer working.
The section of Lorraine Drive, from Westgate to Harare Drive in Bluffhill, is being reworked.
The same mistakes made during the Sadc meeting have been replicated at the Gokwe Independence celebrations.
Roads were incomplete, no water ways were complete at the venue and the grandstands at the new stadium could not stand the weight and in some parts collapsed.
There was no pavement at the venue.
The uniformed forces had to do their ceremonial drill in puddles of water.
It was a sorry sight. Even the traditional soccer match to cap the festivities was more or less water polo.
Questions arise on whether this is sheer incompetence or a well-orchestrated plan to plunder public finances?
I’m afraid the answer is yes to both questions.
Standards in public service have dropped.
Either we have lazy people or workers who just happened to be employed because they knew someone up the political ladder.
How on earth do three layers of supervising committees (district, provincial and the interministerial committee) fail to supervise such a project?
They fail because their failure is rewarded and their cronies get to pick up government contracts without going to tender.
It is now a public secret that there are four or five companies linked to politically-exposed persons that always get projects without going through public tender processes.
The emergencies in these projects that are known before-hand are man-made.
The executive takes advantage of the public procurement laws that allow — in an emergency — to procure without going to tender.
Zimbabweans have seen how one company got to run the million-dollar waste management in Harare without going to tender.
They have also witnessed a company getting a contract to build prefabricated villas without going to tender and Fossil Contracting, the civil engineering company contracted to rehabilitate Lorraine Drive ahead of the Sadc meeting, made a mess.
The enduring thread in all the above listed contracts is that the companies are owned by politically-connected individuals.
Furthermore, they are paid in advance to deliver on the emergency projects and invariably, they fail.
The Gokwe Independence celebrations, like the Sadc conference, were a money-spinning venture for the politically-connected.
They reap public funds and leave the projects incomplete.
They are never sanctioned for that, but are always certain to get more projects in man-made emergency situations.
The blame lies squarely on the dormant and compromised Parliament that never asks pertinent questions on public finance.
Even where corruption stinks to the high heavens, parliamentarians take their time to haul members of the executive to appear before committees to answer for their actions.
It is important that Parliament should know how much was used for the independence celebrations.
Which companies were hired to provide services and did they deliver?
What will happen to those that failed to deliver?
What action will be taken against the public servants who were in charge of the projects?
The same applies to the Sadc meeting.
It is coming to light that some funds were misappropriated, some diverted, with greedy contractors smiling all the way to the bank.
Yet, the public has nothing to show for the huge expenditure at these functions.
Mnangagwa has to take the blame too.
How does he allow his ministers to lie to him at Cabinet meetings that all things are on schedule, but come the day, nothing is complete?
Why does he not take action against the ministers?
Mnangagwa and his Cabinet should show competence.
They should move away from crisis mode, but show the people their plan and timelines for completion.
Emergencies are caused by natural disasters. They are not man-made.
Creating emergencies to hide the well-orchestrated pilfering of public funds should be brought to an immediate end.
The chaos and mismanagement at Gokwe, just like the Sadc meeting, should be investigated and appropriate action taken against those responsible.
I guess Gokwe is the last emergency independence celebration.
This is an annual event and planning at central level should be top-notch.
No excuse for lazy bums to continue wasting public resources for the enrichment of their friends.
