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attended by several high-ranking Government officials, former students and the community around the school.

Kutama Old Boys Association spearheaded the construction of the 86-roomed en-suite hostel at a cost of US$3,8 million.
The First Lady Amai Mugabe accompanied the President.

President Mugabe, a Catholic, castigated some Catholic Bishops for constantly criticising him and Zanu-PF despite good development work done for the country.
Kutama is run by the Catholic Church.

The Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops Conference has on a number of occasions written pastoral letters condemning President Mugabe and Zanu-PF.
“It is criticism-after-criticism and I ask why, why, why. Ukatarisa mapastoral letters avo, most of them are ill-informed. Vanotaura nezve Global (Political) Agreement kuti ngaiitwe fulfilled, vanozivei nezvayo,” he said.

The President said the GPA was entered into after allegations the June 2008 presidential election run-off was marred by violence.
Zanu-PF and the two MDC formations agreed the GPA would lead to an election whose results were uncontested.

He said some of the issues said to be outstanding were the appointments of Attorney General Mr Johannes Tomana and Reserve Bank Governor, Dr Gideon Gono.
“Vanoda kuti vana Tomana vabviswe, vana Gono vabviswe, we cannot fulfil that. The MDC who are they? They were put together by the British, the Conservatives, Labour, Liberal Democrats, the three parties under the Westminster Foundation. They came together to establish an opposition party in Zimbabwe,” he said.

President Mugabe said he has been criticised for taking over land from white commercial farmers for re-distribution to blacks.
He said the British had reneged on their pledge to provide compensation for the land and said illegal sanctions that had brought untold suffering to ordinary people had been imposed because of the land reform programme.

He said the Bishops did not appreciate the land reform programme and the history around it.
“Mabishop, they do not see, vamwe vechichena it’s better kuti kunyaya dzakadai dai vachinyarara zvavo, I believe I have done my best even for my Church, I believe I have done my best for my country, I have made my own sacrifices for my country.

“Harisi basa remari iri ratakaendera kumatunhu, mumasango. We were not doing it for money but for a just cause, kuti vana vedu should be owners of their land, their resources. Ipapo ndipo patakamira kuti twi, ndipo patinofira, ” he said.
He said a lot of ordinary people had suffered during the struggle with some being detained while others were thrown into mine shafts and kept in protected villages.

Earlier on the President narrated the history of Kutama College and his days at the institution in the 1930s.
President Mugabe said during their time their dormitories were round huts that had no floors and they had to bring mats and blankets from home.

He said they also used to produce their own food and were taught many practical subjects to be self-reliant.
“We were producing our own food here, it’s a sorry state that our education has not produced the practical aspect that used to be part of our education,” he said.

President Mugabe said his favourite practical subject was agriculture and had the crowd in laughter when he said when he was a teacher, education inspectors threw away yokes he had made for demonstration because they were not of good quality.

“Zvikei zvandakaveza zvakatorwa nemainspector zvikanzi ndochii chawaita. I have not forgotten how I was disgraced zvikei zvangu zvikaraswa,” he said.
President Mugabe said just after independence, together with other Kutama Old Boys they had embarked on a project to rehabilitate the school after it was damaged during the war.

“After the war we sat down and said inga Kutama yavakunyadzisa, there was no A-Level yet that was were the Prime Minister Robert Mugabe had come from.
“Tikati pagoshaya A-Level ko vana vanoenda sei kuUniversity. Lonrho, Anglo American helped us and we brought A-Level.

“Takazoti ah mazuva ano kwavanedzidzo yemberi and donors helped us with computers and we got the laboratory,” he said.
He acknowledged that teachers were not adequately remunerated and said Government was working to address the issue.

The President said they also built a hospital in memory of the late Irish priest, Father O’hea who was popular in the community because of his deeds.
“He was down to earth. He was Irish and so it is not surprising, the Irish fought the English and are different from other British people so we said basa rake haringarovi ndokuvaka kwatakaita hospital iyoyi,” he said.

President Mugabe said his computerisation programme had helped over 600 schools countrywide as Government thrives to modernise education.
KOBA chairman, Mr Dakarayi Mapuranga, thanked President Mugabe for the vision to build a modern hostel.

He urged other people to develop their former schools for the betterment of education in the country.
“It is also my hope that other schools’ associations would make sacrifices and contribute to the development of their former schools,” he said.

Mr Mapuranga said KOBA’s next mission was to establish a university.
President Mugabe said they had planned to establish a Catholic University before but the project was hijacked by Catholic Bishops who established one in Harare.

The President, however, said it could have been done better if the Church had allowed other church members to lead the initiative.
The District Development Fund was the lead contractor in the project while donations were received from various KOBA members.

KOBA also took out a US$700 000 loan to complete construction of the hostel.
Cabinet ministers in attendance were Defence Minister Emmerson Mnangagwa, Local Government Minister Ignatius Chombo, Agriculture Minister Joseph Made, Deputy Education Minister Lazarus Dokora, State

Enterprises Deputy Minister Walter Chidakwa and RBZ Governor Dr Gideon Gono.
Dr Gono was made an honorary KOBA me-mber for his fundraising initiatives.