The Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ) has dismissed President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) as an “escapist” move, accusing him of sidestepping critical issues affecting workers, particularly teachers, and the wider peasant population.
In a statement, the union condemned the speech, describing it as an attempt to “sweep salient issues under the carpet.”
“ARTUZ is gravely outraged and seriously concerned by President Mnangagwa’s deliberate stance to avoid tackling real problems affecting workers and the peasants,” the union said.
“Whenever the President tried to speak to detail, he completely lied to the nation or focused on details of peripheral importance.”
The union criticized the speech for failing to address the dire realities faced by Zimbabwean working class and argued that the address avoided confronting key economic challenges and instead offered superficial rhetoric.
“The worst of all is that the SONA, like all previous versions, doesn’t talk to the realities on the ground but glosses over the nonsense happening in our Zimbabwe,” ARTUZ said.
The union asserted that the government’s agenda under the so-called “Second Republic” is more focused on political elites rather than workers.
In response to the current economic hardships, ARTUZ is calling for a 100% salary in U.S. dollars, with a minimum wage of $1,260 for newly recruited teachers.
“Teachers are key in the stability of Zimbabwe and as such deserve a stable currency as their salary,” the statement said.
The union announced its readiness to take action, calling on teachers and workers to organize and demand a living wage. ARTUZ outlined a strategy of workplace sit-ins and a possible full withdrawal of labor until the government meets its demands.
“ARTUZ is inviting all teachers and workers to not wait for the repeat of 2008 but to mobilize and organize each other at their workplaces to demand for a living wage paid in USD—$1,260.”
The union also decried what it called an atmosphere of fear and repression under the Second Republic, accusing the government of relying on arbitrary arrests and abductions to suppress dissent.
“Fear is the Second Republic’s determinant to power. However, it must be known that it is the Second Republic that is in fear,” ARTUZ said, citing an increase in arrests of innocent individuals.
