{"id":492,"date":"2025-11-06T03:08:58","date_gmt":"2025-11-06T03:08:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/?p=492"},"modified":"2025-11-06T03:09:00","modified_gmt":"2025-11-06T03:09:00","slug":"gwandas-revival-highlights-zanu-pfs-decades-of-broken-promises","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/?p=492","title":{"rendered":"Gwanda\u2019s revival highlights ZANU-PF\u2019s decades of broken promises"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

by NQOBANI MATHIBELA<\/em>
GWANDA – AFTER decades of false starts and political promises, Gwanda\u2019s dream of attaining city status by 2026 is finally inching closer to reality.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet, beneath the cranes and new malls, residents say the town\u2019s slow transformation exposes years of neglect and underinvestment by the ZANU-PF government, which has long marginalised the*Matabeleland South province and the broader region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For years, Gwanda\u2014a town founded on gold and asbestos mining\u2014struggled to grow beyond its colonial-era infrastructure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Poor roads, erratic water supplies, and the collapse of the once-vibrant mining sector stalled its bid for city status.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The decline of key industries such as Vumbachikwe Mine and the failure to attract new investors left the town dependent on small-scale miners, cross-border traders, and government handouts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mayor Thulani Moyo said the municipality\u2019s push for modern infrastructure, including new shopping malls, upgraded roads, and improved service delivery, is part of a strategic plan to revive Gwanda\u2019s economic fortunes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe are working hard to meet the requirements for city status. The developments you see\u2014commercial buildings, better waste management, and partnerships with local mines\u2014reflect our collective determination to modernise Gwanda,\u201d said Cllr Moyo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, critics argue that the progress comes too late and credit belongs to private investors, not government policy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cZANU-PF only remembers Gwanda when elections are near,\u201d said local entrepreneur Nkululeko Sibanda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFor years, our industries collapsed while government funds went elsewhere. What you see now is the resilience of locals, not state vision.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Civic activist Nomusa Dube added that the region still lacks meaningful industrial development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have no major factories, no functional rail network, and our youth survive on vending or illegal mining. How do we call this progress?\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While Minister of State for Matabeleland South, Albert Nguluvhe, praised the recent developments as \u201ca symbol of determination,\u201d residents insist the town\u2019s revival will remain incomplete without water security, energy stability, and genuine devolution of power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Gwanda, the construction boom represents both hope and frustration\u2014a glimpse of what could have been if the region had not endured decades of economic and political marginalisation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whether it finally achieves city status may depend less on political slogans and more on sustained, locally driven development.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by NQOBANI MATHIBELAGWANDA – AFTER decades of false starts and political promises, Gwanda\u2019s dream of attaining city status by 2026 is finally inching closer to reality. Yet, beneath the cranes and new malls, residents say the town\u2019s slow transformation exposes years of neglect and underinvestment by the ZANU-PF government, which has long marginalised the*Matabeleland South […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":493,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,8,9,10,11,3,12,41],"tags":[138],"class_list":["post-492","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-hot-topics","category-latest-updates","category-lifestyle","category-must-read","category-news","category-politics","category-politics-news","tag-is-gwanda-rising-or-else-it-is-just-a-political-rhetoric"],"magazineBlocksPostFeaturedMedia":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Gwanda-Pick-n-Pay-150x150.jpg","medium":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Gwanda-Pick-n-Pay-300x179.jpg","medium_large":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Gwanda-Pick-n-Pay.jpg","large":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Gwanda-Pick-n-Pay.jpg","1536x1536":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Gwanda-Pick-n-Pay.jpg","2048x2048":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Gwanda-Pick-n-Pay.jpg","post-thumbnail":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Gwanda-Pick-n-Pay.jpg"},"magazineBlocksPostAuthor":{"name":"administrator","avatar":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a3d5ebfe727f13fb325bd400aaaf5e789d3e2e20898883d9ae8e3d3d42d58cef?s=96&d=mm&r=g"},"magazineBlocksPostCommentsNumber":"0","magazineBlocksPostExcerpt":"by NQOBANI MATHIBELAGWANDA – AFTER decades of false starts and political promises, Gwanda\u2019s dream of attaining city status by 2026 is finally inching closer to reality. Yet, beneath the cranes and new malls, residents say the town\u2019s slow transformation exposes years of neglect and underinvestment by the ZANU-PF government, which has long marginalised the*Matabeleland South […]","magazineBlocksPostCategories":["Featured","Hot Topics","Latest Updates","Lifestyle","Must Read","News","Politics","Politics"],"magazineBlocksPostViewCount":183,"magazineBlocksPostReadTime":2,"magazine_blocks_featured_image_url":{"full":["https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Gwanda-Pick-n-Pay.jpg",590,353,false],"medium":["https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Gwanda-Pick-n-Pay-300x179.jpg",300,179,true],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Gwanda-Pick-n-Pay-150x150.jpg",150,150,true]},"magazine_blocks_author":{"display_name":"administrator","author_link":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/?author=2"},"magazine_blocks_comment":0,"magazine_blocks_author_image":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a3d5ebfe727f13fb325bd400aaaf5e789d3e2e20898883d9ae8e3d3d42d58cef?s=96&d=mm&r=g","magazine_blocks_category":"Featured<\/a> Hot Topics<\/a> Latest Updates<\/a> Lifestyle<\/a> Must Read<\/a> News<\/a> Politics<\/a> Politics<\/a>","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/492","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=492"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/492\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":494,"href":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/492\/revisions\/494"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/493"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=492"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=492"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=492"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}