Davison Marenga
09 Feb 2017 – MURAMBINDA – Food hand-outs which are distributed by the government and various Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) are promoting laziness and disharmony in communities, Chief Makumbe, born Steward Hwata has said.
Chief Makumbe was speaking in Matsveru village during the burial of Gideon Bwanya, one the many villagers who have died ‘mysteriously’ in the recent past presumably as a result of witchcraft following disputes over the distributed maize.
Chief Makumbe was furious at the way people have come to rely on government and NGOs for basic commodities, saying the hand-outs have bred laziness with some people not even bothering to till their land despite the abundant rains.
Buhera has numerous cases of people who have either died or ‘gone mad’ after quarreling with other villagers over how the food aid should be sahred, with Bwanya being one of them.
“This is not the first time to experience such incidences; years ago, a family was wiped out all because of these hand-outs. Now we are burying a father – a breadwinner simply because someone thinks they deserve all that is being shared,” said Chief Makumbe.
“We really appreciate the efforts that government and NGOs are making to ensure everyone is well-fed but it’s turning out to be problematic because people don’t want to till their land now. I think the food aid must be stopped a bit,” Chief Makumbe said.news
