'Youths far removed from liberation struggle,' says Jonathan Moyo

ZIMBABWE has a strong challenge to make youths, who are far removed from the liberation struggle, to value national ideals and remain patriotic to the country, Professor Jonathan Moyo has said.

Speaking at the Bulawayo Press club last Friday evening, on the differences between successionists and loyalists in Zimbabwean Politics, Prof Moyo once again dismissed notion of G40 as a political faction but a demographic term that identified young people as the country's majority population.

The Tsholotsho North legislator emphasised G40 - Generation 40 was a realisation that posed a challenge to school young people in national values, as espoused in Chapter Two of Zimbabwe's Constitution.

"According to the constitution, you have to be 40 years if you want to contest as president. Zimbabwe is 36 years old and looking at the younger generation, this is the generation who have been five or 10 years when independence was attained.

"Looking at 2012 census and as an academic you have to think of the implications of this - whose majority voters are young and this is the question every political party asks when it comes to electoral processes," he said.

"It is also fact that this group is removed from participating in the experience of the country such as the liberation struggle. The issue is how does this group access that experience because this generation is the one that will take over even if no now wants."

Prof Moyo said preoccupation with G40 should be focused on aligning youth with nationalism ideals instead of focusing on factionalism.

"There is clearly a fixation on factionalism, in fact if you are in Zanu PF, people and the media want to know which faction you belong too.

"If not in Zanu PF, the question if you are politically active is which group are you sympathetic to - G40 or Lacoste. Yet if there is one thing that is utterly meaningless useless and un-informing it is the G40 and Lacoste. These dichotomies are meaningless yet are there in the headlines.

"G40 is represented as a political faction the media writes endlessly about it. It is said it consists of Saviour Kasukuwere and me, occasionally Patrick Zhuwao is included in the mix.

"Two is a duo, three is a trio that is not a faction a faction is serious group think time has come that people demonstrate they are highly educated but this issue betrays us.

"How can a faction consist only of Kasukuwere and Moyo. If anyone has issues against us they should raise those issues, and we will address them, just don't call us a faction," he elaborated.

The cabinet minister noted which is why he had come up with the term
-successionists.

He said successionists explain the concept of succession, that is to succeed the president and these were individuals who wanted power to be handed over to them.

Prof Moyo stated that loyalists were many and outnumbered successionists who sought entitlement.

"Loyalists are loyal to the leader, loyal to the party to the country loyal to the legacy, they make sure the legacy lives. They understand Zimbabwe is unique they see leadership in collective terms.

The Tsholotsho MP said youth had to copy and emulate the legacy left by the country's founding fathers.

"Legacy is something founded from those who fought the liberation struggle."

Prof Moyo stressed the country was stronger united and breaking it up would lead to conflict.