Zanu-PF urges its youths to remain calm

The Zanu-PF Youth League leadership yesterday urged its membership to remain calm and vigilant in the wake of violent demonstrations by opposition parties last week that left a trail of destruction on property and looting in several shops in Harare.

Addressing thousands of Zanu-PF youth at party headquarters, deputy secretary for Youth Affairs, Kudzai Chipanga urged youths to remain peaceful, but immediately warned rogue elements in the opposition that they should respect a constitutionally-elected Government.

"Opposition parties must stop what they are doing, this madness of destroying property and looting from shops must stop with immediate effect," he said.

"You talk of building the country yet you are destroying it. Why are you looting from a fellow citizen who is selling his/her wares at their market stalls? This is uncalled for and must come to an end."

"Zanu-PF is a peace loving party which abides by the law. That is the reason we are not fighting you. By not retaliating, it does not mean that we are fools. No! We are guided by the law and the principles of the party."

Chipanga added that the opposition parties should wait for the 2018 general elections instead of going on a rampage, destroying property, hoping that it would bring "change."

"If you think you are a strong party and you have a following, why not wait for the 2018 general elections?

"What you are doing is a clear indication that you are just there to disturb peace in the country," he said.

He urged citizens to be on high alert for hooligans saying they should effect citizens' arrests whenever they come across opposition "thugs" breaking the law.

He further urged party supporters to maintain peace in their wards.

"As we go back to our homes, our duty is to preach the gospel of peace in our respective wards.

"We say no to violence.

"Tell them that the country they are destroying is ours."

"You are calling yourselves ‘Tajamuka' but haujamuke uchitorera vendor zvinhu zvake," he said.

Speaking at the same occasion, the revolutionary party's Harare provincial youth chairperson Edson Takataka urged supporters to shun violence.

He denounced the violent protests that rocked the capital last week.

"We do not want violence in this country. The people who are fuelling hooliganism are doing this because they realise that 2018 is now around the corner and have not done anything for the people while Zanu-PF has done a lot on the ground," he said.

"We held our One Million Men march recently but there was never any single incident of violence. We marched around the capital but we did not take anything from anyone. Not even a match stick!"

He added that the MDC-T should find a better way of sourcing funds from their donors without causing havoc in the country.

Harare South MP Shadreck Mashayamombe said people should be allowed to do their day to day businesses peacefully without any disturbances.

He also urged the party supporters to unite and guard the ethos of the revolutionary party.

The Youth League convened yesterday's gathering to do a clean-up exercise of the city but did not proceed for security reasons.