Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa’s dig at United Families International Church founder Emmanuel Makandiwa has torched a storm with some people accusing the minister of seeking to divert the nation’s attention from his failure to turnaround the economy.

The storm follows Chinamasa’s remarks during the Mandel/Gordon Institute of Business Science 2014 Economic Outlook Symposium in Harare on Wednesday where he warned Zimbabweans against banking on miracles performed by Makandiwa for a shift in their economic fortunes.

The NewsDay website and other social media platforms were yesterday flooded with comments, with some readers accusing contemporary preachers of pushing the gospel of miracles at the expense of hard work through which people should accrue wealth.

Donald Muzondo observed that Chinamasa was right in that the Bible encouraged hard work, but some church goers were being “brainwashed into believing there are short cuts to life which is absolutely not true”.

However, Elsara Banda accused Chinamasa of attempting to blame his government’s economic management failures on Makandiwa, whose church he said was not responsible for crafting the country’s National Budget.

Chinamasa, according to Habbakuk Muzezewa, was not best placed to lecture Zimbabweans about hard work.

“The people of Zimbabwe don’t need to be lectured on hard work. It’s in their DNA, but the same cannot be said about the country’s leaders,” he said.

Another reader Better Trinity Maridza said he would rather “follow a man of God than greedy, selfish and proud politicians”.

Prophets, according to Kevin Musekiwa, were raised to bring hope to the country and if the prophets were fraudulent, God would deal with them.

Love Chapfika accused modern–day church leaders of turning themselves into demigods from a different planet.

Enock Nkonde noted that Makandiwa’s church was looking after many orphans and widows, something the government had dismally failed to do.

A reader, who identified himself as Brandon, said Chinamasa should stop blaming pastors because they were not responsible for running the country. “Stop the blaming of pastors because they don’t run the country.

People prefer to go to church to learn about life principles unlike you who go to rallies and learn how to kill, hate and loot,” he fumed.

Alois Mathuthu said the government was to blame because its populist economic policies have led to the closure of companies and factories, leaving thousands of people jobless.

See related reading:

Miracle Money Prophet Angel at it again 

Central Bank Governor praises miracle money prophets