By Patience Gondo
WHAT began as a celebration of political elevation on Sunday 25th turned into a pointed reflection on marginalisation when Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution for Matabeleland South, Albert Nguluvhe addressed residents in Beitbridge.
Speaking at a gathering held in his honour, Nguluvhe said Matabeleland South was not poor in resources but poor in participation.
“We are marginalising ourselves,” he said.
Nguluvhe said communities in Beitbridge allow people from other provinces to benefit from local opportunities while residents remain on the sidelines.
He pointed to the harvesting of mopane worms, saying outsiders collect and resell them while locals watch.
“We cannot afford to have people from other places coming to take what belongs to us,” he said.
The same pattern exists in mining, he said.
Matabeleland South contributes about 40 percent of Zimbabwe’s gold, yet locals remain poor.
“Others come because they are hardworking,” he said. “You say there are no jobs, but you do not want to work.”
At Tshitaudze Speed Market, Nguluvhe said local people were missing from local trade.
“You hear ‘Huku pano,’ not our own people selling,” he said.
He said urban residents travel all the way to Tshikwalakwala or Chinwavhazwimi to buy chickens for as little as R50, only for them to resell them in town for R120.
“Why can’t you travel and sell your own chickens?” he said.
Nguluvhe said lack of self-esteem around business and farming was deepening self-exclusion.
In remarks that divided opinion on Facebook , he addressed the Venda community directly, saying he did not intend to insult them but wanted to provoke change.
“Wake up and work. Go and farm,” he said.
After laying out what he called economic self-marginalisation Nguluvhe turned to what he described as the root of the problem ,drug and substance abuse.
He said substance abuse was hollowing out families and shrinking productive communities. He warned that it was costing Beitbridge both people and development.
“What future are we building when people are always high?” he said.
Nguluvhe said drug use is no longer limited to unemployed youths.
“Even teachers, doctors and respected people are staying high,” he said.
He also said government funding to provinces is partly based on population size. He said drug abuse was contributing to low population growth, further marginalising Beitbridge.
What time are you going to make babies when you are always high?, he said .
The speech has since sparked debate on Facebook.Some residents say the message was painful but honest.
Others say it ignored poverty and structural barriers.