Interview with Mr Arthur Molife ZAPU Vice Chairman

Mr Arthur Molife is the ZAPU Europe Vice Chairman, who has been given a task of reviving and restructuring, mobilisation and for ZAPU's growth in Europe. Mr Molife and the Mobilisation department in Europe are embarking on programme they have called Revival Gatherings Crusade starting this coming Saturday in Leeds. Thulani Nkala has had an opportunity to interview Mr Molife in order to understand the objectives of the Revival Crusade.

Thulani: Good morning Mr Molife, thank you for accepting to talk to me, I am honoured to have this opportunity to have an important conversation with you.

Molife: Yes kaNkala good morning. It is with honour for me to be given this opportunity to explain to the people the ZAPU Europe Province's Revival Crusade and an important one too.
Now in response to your fittingly searching and valued questions, I will try to be as brief and to the point as I can be.

To begin with, may I please make a slight but an important correction. The First ZAPU Europe's Provincial Revival Gathering will be held next Saturday (01.11.2014) in Leeds. Times: 1pm - 5pm.

Thulani: Thanks for the correction, so ZAPU is embarking on a mobilization exercise, which has been dubbed Revival Gatherings Crusade, starting on the 1st November 2014 in Leeds, could you please explain to us what are the main objectives of the Revival Gatherings?

Molife: Yes, among other important things, ZAPU is facing crucial Elections in 2018, therefore to be an effective Democratic Field Player; preparations must start now rather than later. Hence to that effect, it's true that the Organising & Mobilisation Portfolio of the ZAPU Europe PEC has been tasked to revive the Party Structures and Activities throughout the Diaspora.

Thulani: People are increasingly showing interest in the ZAPU brand, what are ZAPU's unique selling points?

Molife: ZAPU has deep rooted roots right in the inner-most parts of the people of Zimbabwe historically and has a lot to offer in its quest to fix and turn around Zimbabwe to enhance and make better the lives of the people of Zimbabwe. Of course, politically tried and tested ZAPU remains a very capable Party for Government.

Thulani: We are aware that you were recently appointed to the Vice Chair position in Europe province with special mandate to work closely with the mobilisation department, are the Revival Gatherings part of the strategy for re-engagement?

Molife: Indeed they are and are the Key to the whole Exercise. It's an Outreach Exercise. People want to see an active and fully visible ZAPU Party. Then they will know that it's time to come back home. We did it before Independence, during Independence and will again do it post- Independence.

Thulani: From your experience and knowledge what would you say made people to be disillusioned and what will bring them back to ZAPU?

Molife: People thought that when the Leadership joined ZANU to stop the Evil Gukurahundi Genocide in 1987 in fettered so-called "Unity Accord", ZAPU was or had effectively died, the many Political formations that were designed to bury ZAPU sprung all over the four corners of the country and further afield perplexing the peoples' minds and hearts. Despite all these hurdles, ZAPU is indeed alive and kicking. ZAPU will never die. Ingeke ife.

ZAPU is a relationship based organisation; we pride ourselves in creating strong bonds and relationships with the people without any coercion. We are in the process of re-cultivating our relationships with the people and offering people a serious alternative in terms of policies. People are ready to come back to ZAPU, they only need to see a serious and visible ZAPU, which we have already started doing and the results are encouraging.

Thulani: To conclude our brief interview, some people might be interested in knowing you, please tell us about yourself, your background, your passion for ZAPU and vision?

Molife: My name is Arthur Assa Molife, born among the Nkandla Society in Zimbabwe (then Southern Rhodesia). Joined the NDP as a Youth in August, 1959 at the age of 9 and leading to ZAPU to date and I have never looked back.

Secondly I was the lead-instrument in ZAPU's revival in the Diaspora and at home in the build-up from 2002 to 2009's First ZAPU Gathering at Byo's White City Stadium in 2009 after obtaining the Official Go-Ahead from the then ZAPU's Secretary General Elder Welshman Mabhena. I am effectively exiled here in the UK.

So ZAPU is my Political Home and my true passion and I together with my colleagues are working flat out to bring it back to its glory days. We know it is possible, we know we shall achieve our goals. My vision for ZAPU is to see all Zimbabweans from all walks of life enjoy the fruits of the liberation struggle, where all the Youth are fully employed after attaining an empowering education. ZAPU shall usher in a true democratic state not a pseudo democratic state as brought by ZANU PF. My heart bleeds when I see children go without food, without clothes and without an education. This scandal should be stopped and ZAPU shall stop it.

Thulani: Thank you Mr Molife for your time, I hope that you will avail yourself in the near future to discuss more political issues.

Molife: Thank you kaNkala, I will be happy to oblige.

Our next interview with Mr Molife will focus more on his background, political activism and about his passion of educating the masses.