Zimbabwe army to step in

Defence minister Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri gave a chilling warning over the weekend, saying the army stands ready to crush any protests that threaten national security.

This follows threats of mass protests by the main MDC opposition party and several trade unions, disenchanted with the precipitous decline in the country's economy.

Government will go ahead with implementing its developmental projects despite spirited attempts by the opposition MDC Alliance to destabilise the country Muchinguri-Kashiri has said.

In an exclusive interview with The Sunday Mail the Defence Minister said the country cannot afford to perpetually remain in an election mode.

Minister Muchinguri Kashiri said antics by the MDC-A were meant to unnecessarily draw the international spot light on Zimbabwe.

"I do not read too much into threats of violence by the opposition political outfits and their allies," she said.

"My view is that threats are aimed at disrupting Government programmes and drawing international attention in order to maintain political relevance in the country's political life away from elections.

"Government should, therefore, not be distracted from its programmes and developmental activities by attention seekers trying to keep our country in a perpetual election mode until the next general election, in 2023.

"The state of the country's situation is therefore peaceful in spite of the isolated cases of politically motivated violence and social media driven threats."

Minister Muchinguri-Kashiri said the country's uniformed forces were prepared to face, head on, any threats to national security and stability

She said emerging threats will be assessed and dealt with appropriately.

"The Zimbabwe Defence Forces (ZDF) posture on national defence and security is defensive in nature hence the organisation trains to meet both internal and external security threats.

"As the security situation evolves, the ZDF trains to ensure that they are ready to deal with any emerging threats."

The Nelson Chamisa MDC-A has, since losing last year's general elections, been threatening to cause chaos through violent street protests.

Mr Chamisa is on record threatening to make the country ungovernable if he is not handed State power.

Minister Muchinguri-Kashiri said despite efforts to besmirch the military through falsehoods, the Zimbabwe Defence Forces will continue to discharge their Constitutional mandate in terms of the country's laws.

The ZDF, said the minister, will continue making efforts to maintain good civil-military relations with all Zimbabweans.

"Judging from the negative private press reports, including adverse social media reports, it is true that frantic efforts are being made by opposition political parties, supported by some non-governmental organisations, to tarnish the good image of the ZDF," she said.

"Despite these detractions, the ZDF have continued to discharge their mandate internally and internationally very well.

"They are doing everything in their power to maintain a good image through improving the civil-military relations as they engage in a number of community related projects throughout the year.

"Some of these are; ZDF Day celebrations, participation in schools career days, provincial and national shows, countrywide assistance projects and programmes."

The ZDF are involved in a plenty of civil assistance programmes that includes building schools, clinics and other public infrastructure.

The ZDF was also at the forefront in response to the Cyclone Idai disaster that affected part of Manicaland and Masvingo provinces earlier this year.