President Emmerson Mnangagwa State of the Nation Address

December 20, 2017
Emmerson Mnangagwa | Report Focus News
Emmerson Mnangagwa,

Harare – Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa is on Wednesday set to deliver his inaugural State of the Nation Address (SONA), reports say.

According to the state-owned Herald newspaper, Mnangagwa was expected – during the SONA – to “give his reflection on the country’s performance for the year”.

The announcement was made by Speaker of the National Assembly Jacob Mudenda on Tuesday.

NewsDay report said that Mnangagwa’s address to the nation came at a time when there were high expectations in the southern African country that the president would “tackle the skyrocketing prices of basic commodities and bring to an end the current cash crisis ahead of the festive season”.

Mnangagwa became Zimbabwe’s president last month after long-time ruler former president Robert Mugabe stepped down following military intervention.

NewsDay said that Mnangagwa was under pressure to “urgently introduce a raft of measures to stabilise the economy currently on a tailspin and restore public confidence in his administration”.

In his first speech as president after his inauguration on November 24, Mnangagwa emphasised his and Zanu-PF’s new commitment to growing the economy and creating jobs.

“As we focus on recovering our economy, we must shed misbehaviours and acts of indiscipline which have characterised the past. Acts of corruption must stop forthwith,” Mnangagwa was quoted as saying at the time.