{"id":611,"date":"2018-12-30T13:23:21","date_gmt":"2018-12-30T13:23:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.com\/zimbabwe\/?p=611"},"modified":"2018-12-30T13:24:45","modified_gmt":"2018-12-30T13:24:45","slug":"zanu-pf-youths-utter-vile-threats","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.cc\/zimbabwe\/policy\/zanu-pf-youths-utter-vile-threats","title":{"rendered":"Zanu PF youths utter vile threats"},"content":{"rendered":"
With a few days to go into the new year, the omens don\u2019t look good politically in 2019, following the Zanu PF youth league\u2019s ominous threats this week against the country\u2019s opposition forces, the Daily News can report.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

In shocking remarks which have evoked bad memories of Zimbabwe\u2019s body politic under former president Robert Mugabe\u2019s decades of violent and ruinous rule, the ruling party\u2019s youth league boss, Pupurai Togarepi, \u00a0promised that they would crush all dissenting voices in the new year.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Mugabe, who was toppled from power in November 2017 \u2014 after nearly four decades as Zimbabwe\u2019s supreme leader \u2014 routinely unleashed violent youths, war veterans and law enforcement agents to crush dissent.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

At the height of his power, he even boasted at one time that he and Zanu PF had \u201cdegrees in violence\u201d \u2014 in mortifying comments which shocked the world.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

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Analysts who spoke to the Daily News yesterday said the youth league\u2019s utterances, if acted out, would plunge the country into a bigger political and economic crisis than is currently being experienced.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Zimbabwe is going through its worst economic crises since the horror of a decade ago, as the country battles shortages of fuel, basic consumer goods and medical drugs.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

This has seen President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who narrowly avoided defeat to opposition leader Nelson Chamisa in the hotly-contested July 30 election, increasingly coming under pressure to stem the rot.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

In his remarks, which have been widely condemned, Togarepi warned on social media this week that they would deal ruthlessly with \u201canyone who tries to remove or attack Mnangagwa\u201d in 2019.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cWe have been tolerant \u2026 before and after elections. We won\u2019t take any prisoners in 2019. Any provocation will be confronted head-on. The rules of the game have completely changed.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t insult others if you don\u2019t want to be insulted. If you insult our leaders we will insult you. If you harass us in any way we will respond with equal measure. If you respect the president\u2019s call for peace and unity we\u2019ll respect you,\u201d he said.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cWe have been preaching peace while some insult and call for sanctions. Mnangagwa calls for unity and peace and some insult him and his leadership.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cThe president focuses on economy, others are still in election mode. We can also insult. Your choice will be reciprocated,\u201d Togarepi added in his ill-conceived rant.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

It was not clear yesterday what had triggered Togarepi\u2019s rant, although its timing coincided with widespread disgruntlement by long-suffering Zimbabweans who are enduring one of the worst festive seasons since the country\u2019s independence from Britain in 1980.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

The main MDC said the threats by the Zanu PF youth league were regrettable, but added that they would not stop them from pressuring Mnangagwa\u2019s government into addressing the country\u2019s deepening economic crisis.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cHis (Togarepi\u2019s) statement is criminal and unfortunate. In an era where countries are competing and bragging about innovation, transformation and opportunity creation, it is shocking that a senior member of a political party brags about the violent nature of his organisation.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cTogarepi is a national embarrassment who unfortunately represents the wider violent nature of Zanu PF,\u201d MDC spokesperson Jacob Mafume said.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Togarepi\u2019s threats came as popular dancehall musician Winky D was forced to ditch a show in Kwekwe last week, after rowdy crowds \u2014 said to be Zanu PF sympathisers \u2014 threw missiles at the stage in protest over his presence in the gold mining town.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Winky D is currently riding high with his new offering titled KaSong KeJecha, which has found resonance among MDC supporters who popularised the \u201ckudira jecha\u201d statement when Chamisa approached the Constitutional Court (Con-Court) in August \u2014 after he rejected the July 30 presidential election result.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cKudira jecha\u201d is Shona street lingo which loosely means playing a spoiling game.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n
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Political analysts also told the Daily News yesterday that Togarepi\u2019s statements exposed the culture of \u201cMugabeism\u201d which was still rampant within many sections of Zanu PF when it came to dealing with dissenting voices.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cTogarepi\u2019s statements betray the truth about Zanu PF\u2019s view and approach in dealing with dissenting voices, which is an indication of the continuation of the Mugabe politics.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cThese messages undo the cheap talk that the ED government is about democracy and economic revival since these people are close associates of ED.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cWe can say without doubt that these people\u2019s views represent those of the leadership and in this regard Zimbabwe is in for more years of authoritarianism,\u201d political analyst Rashweat Mukundu said.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Chamisa has been brawling with Mnangagwa ever since he narrowly lost the hotly-disputed July 30 presidential election \u2014 whose result he vigorously challenged at the Con-Court.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

The youthful opposition leader even went to the extent of accusing the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) of manipulating the poll results in favour of the Zanu PF leader.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

But Mnangagwa\u2019s victory was upheld by the Con-Court, which ruled that Chamisa had failed to provide evidence that he had won the election.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Last month, he held a massive demonstration in Harare where he lashed Mnangagwa, exhorting the president to act on the deteriorating political and economic situation
\nin the country.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Meanwhile, church leaders and other influential people have implored both Mnangagwa and Chamisa to end their bickering by holding talks aimed at addressing the deteriorating economic and political situation in the country.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Chamisa recently met with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa as part of his efforts to try and resolve the current crises in the country.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cI told him that there is no confidence (in Zimbabwe) because there is no political stability … the elections were rigged.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cThe elections were rigged because the result of what the people voted for was not the one that was announced. So, there is need to go back to what the source of the problem is,\u201d Chamisa said of his meeting with Ramaphosa in Pretoria.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

South Africa, which is Zimbabwe\u2019s biggest trading partner, is seen as having the greatest potential influence on local national politics, including the mooted dialogue between Chamisa and Mnangagwa.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

In 2008, the neighbouring country\u2019s former president, Thabo Mbeki, was instrumental in brokering talks which led to the formation of a GNU between Mugabe and the late MDC founding leader Morgan Tsvangirai \u2014 following that year\u2019s hotly-disputed elections.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Mbeki\u2019s mediation culminated in the signing of the global political agreement (GPA), which paved the way for the formation of the unity government in February 2009.
\nThe popular Tsvangirai had trounced Mugabe hands down in the disputed 2008 presidential election.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

The results of those elections were withheld for six long weeks by stunned authorities \u2014 amid widespread allegations of ballot tampering and fraud, which were later confirmed by former bigwigs of the ruling party.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

In the ensuing sham presidential run-off, which authorities claimed was needed to determine the winner, Zanu PF apparatchiks engaged in an orgy of violence in which hundreds of Tsvangirai\u2019s supporters were killed \u2014 forcing the former prime minister in the inclusive government to withdraw from the discredited race altogether.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Mugabe went on to stand in a widely-condemned one-man race in which he shamelessly declared himself the winner.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Zimbabwe is currently deep in the throes of a mega economic crisis which has resulted in shortages of basic consumer goods and medicines.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Apart from shortages of drugs and basic goods, the government is also battling acute shortages of foreign currency which have seen the re-emergence of long fuel queues.<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

The government is also struggling to end the doctors\u2019 strike which has crippled services within the country\u2019s failing public health sector.<\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

With a few days to go into the new year, the omens don\u2019t look good politically in 2019, following the Zanu PF youth league\u2019s ominous threats this week against the country\u2019s opposition forces, the Daily News can report.   In shocking remarks which have evoked bad memories of Zimbabwe\u2019s body politic under former president Robert […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":613,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,7,9,11,12],"tags":[38,138,137],"class_list":{"0":"post-611","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-all-news","8":"category-files","9":"category-miscellaneous","10":"category-photo","11":"category-policy","12":"tag-zanu-pf","13":"tag-youths","14":"tag-zanu"},"yoast_head":"\nZanu PF youths utter vile threats - zimbabwe<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/policy\/zanu-pf-youths-utter-vile-threats\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Zanu PF youths utter vile threats\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"With a few days to go into the new year, the omens don\u2019t look good politically in 2019, following the Zanu PF youth league\u2019s ominous threats this week against the country\u2019s opposition forces, the Daily News can report.   In shocking remarks which have evoked bad memories of Zimbabwe\u2019s body politic under former president Robert […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/policy\/zanu-pf-youths-utter-vile-threats\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"zimbabwe\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-12-30T13:23:21+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2018-12-30T13:24:45+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/upload\/sites\/14\/2018\/12\/zanu-pf-youths-utter-vile-threats.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"680\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"380\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/policy\/zanu-pf-youths-utter-vile-threats\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/policy\/zanu-pf-youths-utter-vile-threats\",\"name\":\"Zanu PF youths utter vile threats - 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