The ManicaPost
Samuel Kadungure Senior Reporter
ZANU-PF will smoke out a clique of war veterans making irresponsible utterances and exuding rascal behaviour about the party and its elected leader, President Mugabe.
Zanu-PF national commissar, Cde Saviour Kasukuwere last Friday warned rogue and over enthusiastic war veterans, among other dissenters calling on President Mugabe to resign that their public statements exceeded legal, constitutional and moral limits and would not be tolerated.
Cde Kasukuwere, who is also the Minister of Local Government, Public Works and Urban Development, made the remarks in Rusape where he launched a housing scheme for youths at the 274-hectare Greywell A of Zimati Kop Farm, with the promise to avail more land for the town’s expansion.
More than 10 000 people from across the political divide attended the launch at Vengere Stadium and hailed Government’s initiative to solve accommodation crisis in urban areas.
“President Mugabe has done his part, giving us the country and wealth. Do not play around with that icon (President Mugabe). For those the Lord wants to destroy, He first makes them lose their minds. Do not lose your mind while still young. Choose your battles carefully. Some of these battles you will never win them, you will never win and we will not let you win any,” warned Cde Kasukuwere.
“It doesn’t matter you went to war, if you mess up with (President) Mugabe we lose respect for you. When (Edgar) Tekere died, we had to look for a way to accommodate him at the national shrine, but he was a big man during the war –and now you small fish, do you think you can discrete our leader while we fold our hands? Be warned, we will finish you off and this is the end of some of them. Worse still, some of them never participated in the war, they are lying.
“We will never be cowed. We will take them head-on. We do not care who you are, we will deal with you as long as you discrete the President. We cannot have nobodies embarrass the President. No. We do not fear them. They may kill Kasukuwere and (Kudzi) Chipanga today, but they won’t finish us because the queue is too long,” he said combatively.
Cde Kasukuwere said the pain caused by the crimes of the tongue such as reckless talk and intentional deceit was destructive.
“It is unthinkable for an unknown (Francis) Nharo (war veterans’ commissar) to castigate President Mugabe, are we being realistic? That is his end. Some war veterans are most of the time careless in their speeches largely because they think going to war gave them the privilege to spew vile and utter garbage. That will not be tolerated. Never,” declared Cde Kasukuwere.
Cde Chipanga, the Zanu-PF deputy secretary for youths, weighed in saying their attention had been drawn to the inciting and unguarded statements and utterances by some war veterans, clerics and politicians calling President Mugabe to step down.
Cde Chipanga said they were aware of a number of meetings involving some war veterans and senior Zanu-PF officials being held in various areas in Harare, where plots and sub-plots were proposed to push out President Mugabe.
“President Mugabe was voted by an elective congress of the party first, and secondly, by the entire nation in 2013. There are some fringe elements who are intentionally hurting the credibility of the party and Government with irresponsible utterances that President Mugabe must go. Go where? Forget it. He is not going anywhere as he still has a constitutional mandate to fulfil.
“The culprits are the bigoted leaders who relish in basking in the limelight of their loathsome innuendos. They think the ambitions and standing in society of their handlers entitle them to spew rubbish. If they foolishly believe President Mugabe has no mandate to lead, then let us go for an extraordinary elective congress and see if their bigoted handlers pitted against the President will glean a single vote from the people.
“These are statements uttered by comrades who have lost the path, they think their ungraded utterances have potential to induce hatred and stoke up chaos. Zimbabweans are not foolish, they cannot be swayed by ill-advised utterances that bordered on gutter politics and lack of good sense,” said Cde Chipanga.
Cde Chipanga said youths would shield President Mugabe against dirty and divisive politics propagated by rogue elements within the party.
“It is wrong and unlike of responsible comrades to speak as though they are high on hard drugs. While they are free to express their views, they are nevertheless required to be circumspect in their utterances,” said Cde Chipanga.
Cde Mandi Chimene, who said she was the interim chairperson of war veterans, also castigated the likes of Mutsvangwa, Nhando, Victor Matemadanda and Douglas Mahiya for making unnecessary inflammatory remarks.
Cde Chimene blasted the five for having been in the news for their provocative statements about the party and Presidency.
“They are lost. I am vindicated. This is what I have been saying all along that Chris (Mutsvangwa) is up to no good. Genuine war veterans do not follow people who are lost. Matemadanda is not a war veteran, he was a taxi driver in Zambia,” said Cde Chimene.
A clique of war veterans was quoted in sections of the private media claiming to have withdrawn their support for President Robert Mugabe, accusing the veteran leader of “declaring war” on them.
They said they would not support President Mugabe in 2018 and declared that the beleaguered Mutsvangwa will remain their leader despite being fired from Cabinet, the ruling party and Parliament.
