The Zimbabwe National Liberation War Collaborators’ Association (Ziliwaco) has described as “dubious” a shadowy group of former war collaborators currently conducting a countrywide vetting exercise to enable its members to receive compensation from government.
In a statement released yesterday, Ziliwaco national chairman Pupurai Togarepi said the vetting programme was unsanctioned by his association and Zanu PF. Togarepi said the alleged shadowy group, led by Josphat Chinake and some members of the Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans’ Association, was demanding a fee of between $2,50 and $7 for each former collaborator wishing to be vetted.
“Vetting shall come, transparently and when that happens, war collaborators will be notified,” said Togarepi.
“The association wishes to advise its membership not to be involved in the suspicious exercise until a clear position by the authority that vetted and compensated other freedom fighters has been made public,” he said.
Togarepi said what was shocking was that the process was not public that they are to be compensated and that these war veterans were asking war collaborators to pay a fee ranging from $2,50 to $7 which he said war veterans did not pay.
“Ziliwaco is disturbed that those spearheading the suspicious vetting exercise are demanding payments despite that when other freedom fighters were vetted they paid nothing.”
Zanu PF national commissar Webster Shamu has previously distanced his party from the group.
“The department of commissariat has not sanctioned any vetting exercise of war collaborators,” said Shamu in a letter dated April 29, 2010.
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The alleged group has reportedly advised its provincial leaders to meet at an undisclosed venue in Harare this weekend.
War collaborators have been pressing government to financially compensate them for the role they played during the country’s liberation struggle.
