Own Correspondent|Minister of Industry and Commerce Nqobizitha Mangaliso Ndlovu has expressed shock at the ravaging drought in parts of Plumtree his home area after he visited his fields this weekend in the area and found his crops in a serious wilting and drying state.

Matabeleland South has throughout this year’s farming season battled with very low rainfall that has seen most of the crop being written off pointing towards another draught.

Most areas particularly in Plumtree wrote of their crop as early as mid December last year.

Ndlovu who is also a legislator for Bulilima East said the situation was not promising in the area considering the state of crops.

“I took a walk this morning to my field and came back depressed. This is the situation right through my Constituency in Plumtree and it’s a complete disaster. We hoped to recover from the effects of the El Niño induced drought we experienced last year but this year looks like will be worse. We lost a lot of livestock particularly cattle and we can’t afford to lose more,” he said.

“Time for urgent mitigation measures; this years drought seriously threatens our basic rural livelihoods.”

Questions are raised how the Minister who is also the MP in the area only came to realise the drought effects now when people in his constituency have been appealing for drought power assistance from government since November last year. It had to be his field that succumbs to drought for him to begin realising the ravaging effects of the drought in the area.

Source: State Media