Brian Rungano Temba
If you don’t know Terrence “Prince Machiavelli” Maphosa by now, you probably don’t own an account on Twitter.
Maphosa went viral last night after overshadowing the leaked Njuzu nude photos with congratulatory messages coming from all sides of the usually polarised streets of Zimbabwean Twitter.
The reason for excitement was that Maphosa had finally received his land offer letter from Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Resettlement.
It was the highlight of his journey that began with him posting content of his poultry project on Twitter.
Three years later the project has grown into the company Prince Machiavelli Chickens which has five employees.
Land Offer letter for Terrence Maphosa
When TateguruTV contacted Maphosa for a comment he said he did not do anything out of the ordinary to get the land, but he owed it mostly to the impact his content made online.
“I don’t know how it happened,
The content I was posting caught the attention of many people and things blew up.
People who followed the journey from day one especially on Twitter are the ones who appreciate the strides I have been making since day one,” said Maphosa.
Maphosa said he never went knocking on doors for favours or used any political influence.
His genuine passion for poultry business brought the right people his way.
It was not until the first lockdown that Maphosa noticed people were tagging the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water & Rural Resettlement, John Basera to his tweets, advocating for him to get land to carry out his project.
“Remember the screenshot I posted yesterday with Permanent Secretary Basera saying I want to help you?
Who would, in their rightful sense, say no when the Permanent Secretary is knocking at your door?
He said he wanted a coffee meeting with me, to which I accepted. He offered the land and I took the land with both hands.Who would say no to that?” said Maphosa.
He said he will not forgo opportunities that can potentially change his life.
“Anything positive that comes along my way I will grab it. If a government scheme, which is in my field like the one for fertilizer, comes along why should I not grab it,” he asked.
Terrence Maphosa meeting Perm Sec Basera, over coffee
Maphosa holds a degree in Political Science with distinction, but decided to move to his mother’s rural home to begin his chicken project.
During his journey Maphosa has utilized twitter and other market penetration methods such as giving free chicks to market his brand and it made him a point of reference for youths in Agriculture.
He tagged a lot of influential people to his posts as well.
Permanent Secretary Basera who was nominated for 40 most influential people under 40 was at that time moving with the agro-renaissance mantra #ZimYouthCan when Maphosa’s content started trending on Twitter.
“I am very grateful for the opportunity to own land and I am very optimistic about the future. I will not leave the land I had first in the rural area since it is where it all began, I also invested in the water supply so I will continue to operate from here while I prepare the new land for use.
My heart is with the people and if I was able to given away 101 total strangers free chicks and I can also open the space for anyone who want to learn. Be they farmers, media or individuals from any side of the political spectrum,” said Maphosa
Maphosa has also been victim to the toxic side of Twitter, accused of pulling political strings to access land.
He rubbished all these allegations saying it is a sign of pubescent politics.
“The land belongs to Zimbabweans. If the Government of the day gives you land why not use it? Whether you are aligned to any party or not, if you show signs of production Government will surely assist. Government policies are there but people we give attention to negatives rather than appreciating the positive things,” Maphosa said.
Maphosa said being a Political Science graduate he understands politics more than most of the people trying to lecture him, but he is now focusing on productivity.
“Ndakaita politics kudhara dzese dzpabook nedze paground but I have left that degree, and I am now focusing on my farming,” said Maphosa.
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