'Try it General Chiwenga the people are waiting to teach you a lesson of your lifetime'

After reading General Constantine Chiwenga's interview in the Sunday Mail dated 7 August 2016 I realized that he is following right in the footsteps of his predecessor General Zvinavashe who said the Presidency is a straight jacket only reserved for Robert Gabriel Mugabe.

I can tell from the words which he was using that he is ready to use the army to intimidate and crush dissent in Zimbabwe especially at this moment when the people are peacefully protesting against President Mugabe's misrule.

I would not want a situation where the General will go to jail at his age like what happened to President Charles Ganky Taylor of Liberia.

Chiwenga has reached a very good retirement age why can't he retire and go to enjoy his pension with that beautiful young model Mary who happens to be his wife than to spoil his whole life trying to protect Mugabe whose exit is now inevitable?

The people have no problem with the General if only he can continue respecting our constitutional rights but if he starts abusing his office to protect Mugabe then we are ready to teach him a lesson of his life.

The duty of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces is to protect the country professionally not to meddle and interfere in it's internal politics. It is very wrong for the army to declare that it is ZANU PF because it is not supposed to be partisan and biased as this will block the flow of democracy in the country.

In his interview Chiwenga said he is ready to defend Mugabe whom he described as the father of this country. 'My foot he is your own father General not the father of this country'.

The ZDF (army) has a bad track record of being used by ZANU PF to beat up and intimidate civilians during elections but not anymore. We are not going to allow that to happen. We (the people) are your bosses, we even pay you with our tax so that you protect this country not the selfish interest of Mugabe and his ZANU PF.

'This time if you deploy your army to beat us for exercising our constitutional rights (supporting a political leader of our choice) we will peacefully march to your  office Chiwenga and do a citizen arrest where we will arrest you for abusing your office and failing to uphold our constitution as per your oath of office. If you open fire on us peaceful protesters ummmm let me not pre-empt how we will respond but I wish Colonel Muammar Al Gaddafi was alive to tell you his story and dangers of such actions.'

I will conclude by advising the army and the police to exercise their duties professionally and not to be an extension of ZANU PF. Those threats of saying you will not salute anyone other than Robert Mugabe are empty threats go and threaten your grandmothers not us anymore.

You don't tell us who you want to salute it is our duty to tell who you must salute through our constitutional right of one man/woman one vote.

We are not going to allow Mugabe to impose himself against the will of the people again, support him at your own peril.

General Chiwenga must be wise enough to exercise his duties professionally rather than stooping so low to bootlick the dictator Robert Gabriel Mugabe whose end is nigh.

Pamberi namauto anotsigira hutongi hwejekerere

Pasi nezvimbwasungata zva Robert Mugabe

(Forward with an army which respects democracy

Down with Robert Mugabe's stooges)

Nkosilathi Emmanuel Moyo (29) is an exiled human rights defender and democracy activist. He is reachable on his whatsapp +263775037579.