Colonel (retired) Tshinga Dube (81), a former Cabinet minister and ZANU PF politburo member, defended his most recent appointment to the National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) board yesterday by stating that his mind was still sound and stable enough to contribute to the parastatal.
His latest appointment to the NRZ board by Transport and Infrastructure Development minister Felix Mhona triggered public outcry with some Zimbabweans saying the “struggling” parastatal needed new blood.
Political analyst Rashweat Mukundu is among those who believe Dube should not have been appointed. He told Pindula News that the appointment was testimony that the leadership does not understand what is required to revive NRZ. He told this reporter this Wednesday:
My (Twitter) post was an expression of disappointment over the appointment of an 81-year-old who under normal circumstances must be retired. He was appointed to the board of a struggling state enterprise (NRZ) which obviously needs new thinking, new ideas, of new blood. Zimbabwe has hundreds and hundreds of capable engineers, business managers who can help save the struggling state enterprise. What I see is kleptocracy meant to benefit them from the SOE. I have nothing personal against him (Dube) as a person, but I’m totally against the appointment.
Dube, who holds a Master’s Degree in Electro-Tech from MADI Institute of Technology in Moscow, Russia, told NewsDay that his mind is very sharp and stable. He is quoted as saying:
I was appointed by my President Emmerson Mnangagwa who is the appointing authority. If you have queries, go and ask him. l have committed no sin to be appointed to the NRZ board, after all, l am not the chief executive officer.
I don’t work on my feet, but I use my brains, and my brain is still stable. l have been in the industry for many years, and have sat on over 20 boards worldwide. l have resuscitated many companies and I don’t care what people say since I would not be able to answer to all of them.
The NRZ announced that Dube would join the board for a three-year term.
Dube, a former Minister of Welfare Services for War Veterans, War Collaborators and Former Political Detainees, was born on June 3, 1941.