Nicola Watson

“That is merely changing the playing field to suit the moment and the strong feeling is that from the participants and from the Committee deliberations, is that the Bill needs to go back to the drawing board with proper consultation of the stakeholders as a whole, the health professionals themselves plus the public”

“So, apart from the fact that it is unconstitutional, it is against ILO, things that we have signed up to, it is against the Labour Act as it stands and amending the Labour Act to suit this particular Bill for a commission seems like, how is that aligning the Constitution”

“It will increase the problems in public health institutions, not decrease them because it does not seek to solve the root cause of the problems in public health institutions in Zimbabwe”

“If I wear yellow, some will think I’m CCC. But this is about creating a platform for democracy”

“CCC as a democratic vehicle has been destroyed by Tshabangu. The Democratic Alternative is still in its early stages, but Zimbabweans deserve true democracy, not autocracy”

“We still face 11 to 18-hour power cuts. ZESA’s problems remain unsolved”

“Gwayi-Shangani has had some progress, but at what cost? Hwange 7 and 8 were funded by massive loans from China. Who knows the interest rates or whether repayments are being made? Our children and grandchildren will shoulder this debt”

“Government is not a business; it’s about serving taxpayers. Right now, neither the government nor the opposition is meeting the people’s needs”

“The visit to Mnangagwa’s farm was the final proof. Tshabangu and Zanu PF played this as a charade to present a false sense of opposition cooperation”

“Nelson Chamisa only distanced himself from CCC when it became clear the party had been manipulated. The recalls happened, and court cases stalled”

“Tshabangu’s legitimacy came from Zanu PF’s support. The CCC had blocked a two-thirds majority, but these recalls gave Zanu PF the leverage they needed to pursue their agenda”

“To be perfectly honest with you, the experience for me from 2013 to 2018, I think what’s different for the PR MPs who went in, in 2018 and have gone through the Parliament to date for the simple reason that the politics was more settled”

“For example, the proportional representation MPs from Bulawayo represent the people of Bulawayo and they are perfectly able to bring issues that apply to Bulawayo to Parliament, as I actually was able to do in 2013 when they sit on their committees, they can represent either women or the issues from the province from which they come”

“I think that for me the problem in Parliament is 270 people. In two and a half to three hours in an afternoon, three afternoons a week somebody’s not going to be heard because it’s just physically not possible. And there’s so much work if you look at an order paper. I think that one day you should do (Twitter) spaces on how Parliament actually works? How does the business of Parliament work”

“You say Oh, they (PR women MPs) don’t want to bring up motions. They’re scared to ask questions, but the questions you ask in Parliament, the motions you bring in Parliament are not supposed to be on a political party basis. They’re supposed to be national”

“I think that there is a misunderstanding of how Parliament works”

“When you are walking by faith you'll see things from a different perspective."”

“Nicola Watson respond "What have you offered to the province as a PR MP?”

“PR MPs don’t have a dedicated budget like the Constituency Development Fund, yet there are numerous social issues in the constituency, including poverty.”

“I come from a family with a strong political background. My mother served as an MP, and in 2000, I entered opposition politics after witnessing the economic decline and feeling driven to make a positive change.”