Mugabe speaks on soldiers, cops skirmishes

President Mugabe has said the beating up of police officers by rogue soldiers in Harare's central business district last week was regrettable, as the uniformed forces were supposed to work harmoniously.

President Mugabe said this at the National Heroes' Acre during yesterday's Heroes' Day celebrations. The soldiers were armed with sjamboks, logs and sticks and indiscriminately attacked any police officer they came across.

"That incident or incidents when a few soldiers took to the streets to beat up police is regrettable," said President Mugabe. "l discussed it with the commanders and asked that they talk about it and try to prevent its recurrence. "If soldiers and police are at cross purposes and they go for each other, how will they prevent people who are at cross purposes from doing the same."

Addressing a joint Press conference last week, both the Zimbabwe Republic Police and the Zimbabwe Defence Forces condemned the attack and said a team had be set up to investigate the incident.

The soldiers attacked police officers a week and half after they were allegedly angered by the use of spikes. President Mugabe thanked the defence forces for maintaining peace and security, as the country moves towards next year's harmonised elections.

He called for peace to continue prevailing ahead of the elections. "The days towards our harmonised elections are drawing closer and closer," he said. "Takuzosvika zvino kune mumwe mutambo muno munyika. Taakugadzirira maelection edu.

"Tirikuti the election exercise will be done in peace, in peace within our party and other parties. We need national peace in our country. Peace and calm in our land, an environment in which whether we are farmers, engineers, peasants, we can do our tasks and our jobs freely. "We need that peace, so l want to thank you, thank our nation for the peace we have had and thank our forces for the security that they have given us."

During the Presidential Youth Interface Rally in Gwanda, Matabeleland South, on Saturday, President Mugabe commended security forces for ensuring that peace prevailed in the country.

He chronicled how former British Prime Minister Tony Blair enlisted the services of his ally and former US President George Bush to try and invade Zimbabwe after the Iraq invasion by the two, and said Zimbabwe's security forces stood ready to defend the country.

"This is a warning: moziva kuti tine mbavha dzakadaro dzinoti idzo tisu tinoziva kutonga zvepasi pano," said President Mugabe. "Ndokusaka tiine masanctions atinawo aya. Chionayi uyu Blair uyu. Akatsamwa nekutora kwatakaita nyika yedu tichibvisa mumaoko emaBritish colonialists.

"Hezvo, zvaakaenda achibatsira sahwira wake kuIraq kuti azoti ah, ndirikudawo kuti tiite action yekutora Zimbabwe. Akaenda kunyika dzatakatarisana nadzo, akasvika Zambia, Mozambique, South Africa neNamibia achiti ndoda kuita invade nyika yeZimbabwe nemauto angu.

"Vaye vakati aiwa. Vakati, "Saka tibvumirei?" Tiwane nzvimbo dzatinomhara, dzatinombogara kuti tichibva ikoko, masoja edu anoyambukira kunorwisa Zimbabwe."

President Mugabe said Zimbabwe's neighbours who had been approached to act as springboard for the invasion all refused to be used.