President Robert Mugabe has upped his unrelenting attacks on war veterans telling them to shape up and leave the youths to take over from where they left in the history of the country and Zanu PF.
By Tatenda Chitagu
Addressing thousands of bussed party supporters and schoolchildren at Chamisa Primary School in Gutu yesterday, Mugabe said war vets should let the party youths continue with their legacy in the party as the former liberation fighters were getting old and dying
“We applaud war vets, but they should unite the party,” he said.
“War veterans fought for the liberation of the country, but are now among the people and in the party. That is what the party fought for. You cannot say you are outside the party and appear like you are living in isolation. You must strengthen the party and not appear as if you are outside.”
Mugabe said youths should take over the baton and proceed with the legacy created by the war vets.
“Who is going to take over our heritage because there is not going to be another group of war veterans tomorrow?” he said.
“War veterans are getting fewer by the day because of ageing and death, so the youths must be uplifted in Zanu PF.
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They are joining Zanu PF and not outside the party and we want the unity of the party, not divisions. War vets should exercise their right to belong to the party, they have no right to operate outside the party, not at all.”
Mugabe, as if to balance the tongue lashing , reprimanded the youths, saying they should not fight senior party members.
“Youth league must remain youth league and united, not a group which wants to fight elders,” he said.
“There are no factions in Zanu PF. We have one big group which is Zanu PF. We do not know about factions.”
Mugabe, who seemed out of touch with reality, skirted pressing issues of the day, among them the economic decline, unemployment and the biting cash shortages, as he unleashed his usual sanctions and anti-West rhetoric.
Mugabe had gone to see his uncle Chief Gutu, born Edmund Masanganise, to pay his condolences following the death of his predecessor, Anos Kasirai Masanganise, who died in 2013.
