Zanu-PF youths stand by the party

ZANU-PF youths in Mashonaland East will defend their vote and the gains of the country's independence through their unwavering support for the revolutionary party, provincial youth chairperson Kelvin Mutsvairo has said.

Mutsvairo made the remarks here over the weekend during a Zanu-PF Provincial Coordinating Committee end of year party where he was honoured with a silver trophy in recognition of his hard work during the 2018 July harmonized elections.

Provincial party commissar Hebert Shumbamhini scooped the first prize and walked away with a golden trophy while Nyarai Tsvuura, the provincial Women's League chairperson, took the third prize and was honored with a bronze trophy.

The award ceremony was sponsored by the party's provincial chairman Joel Biggie Matiza to honor his colleagues for the hard work which led to the victory of the party during the July 2018 harmonised elections.

In an interview with The Herald on the sidelines of the ceremony, Mutsvairo commended and welcomed the gesture from the provincial leadership.

"This is one of a kind gesture which I believe is the first to be held in our country, we had never heard of such and I am really humbled and honored to be recoignised by our Chairman Matiza," Mutsvairo said.

"It came as a surprise and I am rejuvenated; this is motivational and I would like to applaud my leader for coming up with this noble idea.

"We worked hard during the harmonized elections as youths, and we will work hard to defend our votes, our independence and we will continue supporting our revolutionary party through thick and thin."

Mutsvairo paid tribute to his colleagues, the youths, saying he could have not made it without their support.

"Today I won a silver trophy in recognition of what the youths have done, and let me say: 'thank you to all the youth in this province, this trophy is not mine alone, I could have not made it without you'.

"Let us remain united as future leaders of this great province and nation, let us work even harder and contribute in achieving our President's 2030 vision. Let us not allow anything to divide us, we are stronger together," he said. Provincial party commissar Shumbamhini applauded the gesture by provincial chairman saying scooping the first prize came as a surprise.

"I was not even aware that I was going to win the first prize. I am grateful to Matiza for the gesture, we truly worked hard during the elections and we are being motivated by these gestures, we will even work harder to protect our party.

"Let me also urge our provincial leadership to remain as one and focus on improving people's lives. Let us love one another," he said.

Seke Legislator Munyaradzi Kashambe, who is also the provincial finance secretary, scooped a medal for his outstanding contribution at district level. Kashambe commended the recognition by Matiza saying he is motivated.

"This is a humble gesture and I feel motivated, this shows that our chairman is a man of the people who emphasizes unity all the time.

"We worked as a team and the team scooped the second place at national level during the harmonized elections, all because our chairman is a focused leader. We could have not made it to where we are as a province without his unifying character," he said.

In his remarks, Matiza said it is important to appreciate good work.

"These awards are a symbol of our appreciation as leadership and it is very important to honor and appreciate good work. We cannot ignore that people worked very hard. We did not just win the elections, we could not have won in 21 constituencies had it not been for the dedication from our people here," he said.

Matiza urged the provincial leadership to remain focused and united, and even work harder to safeguard the revolutionary party.