October is a big month for Zimbabwe, as SADC saw it fit to dedicate October 25 of every year to calling for the unequivocal removal of unilateral sanctions imposed on the country by Western countries.
If Wednesday’s 6pm to 6am Anti-Sanctions Musical Concert held in Dotito, Mashonaland Central province, is anything to go by, the call for the unconditional removal of the sanctions was loud and lucid.
Thousands of Zimbabweans from various parts of Mashonaland Central including Glendale, Mazowe, Bindura, Chiweshe, and Muzarabani thronged Dotito Primary School to join the nation in calling for the removal of the punitive measures through song and dance.
Oh, what a sight it was!
In 2019, SADC Heads of State and Government set aside October 25 as Anti-Sanctions Day to protest against the imposition of illegal sanctions by the United States and its Western allies including Britain and the European Union.
This year’s Anti-Sanctions Day was held under the theme “Harnessing the Youth for Accelerated Socio-Economic Development in the Fight Against Sanctions,” and they surely roared in loud voices, agreeing with the theme.
According to Dotito residents, this was one of the biggest crowd-pullers to have ever been hosted there as people of all ages braved the heat and mosquitoes to join the rest of the nation in calling for the unequivocal removal of the embargo.
Senior Government officials including Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Permanent Secretary Mr Nick Mangwana and Zanu PF Politburo Member Senator James Makamba were in attendance.
Artistes on the line-up to perform on Wednesday evening running into yesterday morning were in top-drawer form, with musicians from various genres including sungura, gospel, Zimdancehall, and traditional among others, constituted the programme.
Chief Hwenje and Beverly Sibanda, popularly known as Bev, put on a wowing joint performance.
As usual, Hwenje was hot with the mic, while Bev was hotter with the dancing skills.
Zimdancehall singer Jah Master equally put on a spirited and arguably the most energetic performance of the night as he rolled out hit after hit. Not to be outdone was Zimbabwe’s queen of dance, Sandra Ndebele, who put on a peppy performance together with her backup dancers. She had a good day in the office.
Bulawayo-based Iyasa was another group which simply did not come to play, but to sing and dance, in a performance that captivated the crowd.
Dendera singer Sulumani Chimbetu, gospel songstress Dorcas Moyo, and sungura sensation Mark Ngwazi were also among those who put on memorable performances in Dotito.
Jah Signal was, however, the one to undeniably steal the show as even those who had fallen fast asleep, woke up when they heard him performing on stage in the wee hours of yesterday morning, it was truly one for the books.
A performance Dotito natives will surely never forget.
In separate interviews after their performances, various artistes lambasted the continued imposition of sanctions as they are affecting their livelihoods.
Award winner gospel star Dorcas Moyo said the removal of sanctions would see Zimbabwean artistes realising their full potential.
“Our prayer as artistes is that sanctions are removed because there a lot of platforms that we are being short-changed including on Facebook when you are in Zimbabwe,” she said.
“If we continue standing united as African countries in calling for the removal of sanctions, we will surely prevail.”
Sandra Ndebele said sanctions were a stumbling block for Zimbabweans.
“It was my first time in Dotito and I was happy to see how the crowd was so jovial,” she said. “At the same time we are so sad because of sanctions and it is affecting us as artistes, but we are so grateful to our Government. As artistes we say, “sanctions must go.”
Mark Ngwazi said: “Sanctions should be removed! As an artiste I am very happy for the support we got from the fans here in Dotito.”
Dotito resident, Mr Fullman Nikayi, who attended the gala, said he wanted the sanctions “gone”.
“Wangu (my friend) these things do not help us but only serve to harm us, we want these things gone mhani,” he charged.
Herald
