Posted on 12/14/2002 3:52:15 PM PST by Clive
VETERAN nationalist and former secretary-general of the ruling Zanu PF party, Edgar Tekere, says parents should not permit their children to undergo the discredited national youth service because they may end up thinking like President Mugabe.
Tekere, the pioneer of opposition politics after independence, was unequivocal in expressing his disgust over the national youth service programme which is being run under the ministry of youth, gender and employment creation .
"Although it is an accepted idea internationally, in our case one Border Gezi (the late minister for gender and employment creation) thought of seizing the opportunity to brainwash youths into blindly adoring and praising Zanu PF and Mugabe. It is all meant to Mugabelise all the youths," said Tekere in an interview with The Standard.
The veteran nationalist, who resides in the eastern border town of Mutare, said the whole nation had to fearlessly reject the national youth service, with parents taking the lead by denying their children permission to go for the six-month training.
Said Tekere: "The talk of youths being trained to be patriotic is utter nonsense. What patriotism is there when the militia are going around beating innocent old people in the villages. I will never allow my child to be part of that obnoxious plan. I urge all parents to defy and denounce this farcical project."
The national youth service was made compulsory by government after the setting up of the first Border Gezi National Youth Service Training centre in Mount Darwin. More training centres have since been established in all provinces, which are churning out products wrecking havoc in society.
Clad in green camouflage uniform which has earned them the tag, 'the Green Bombers', the Zanu PF youths are being used by the ruling party in its terror campaigns against opposition supporters, as well as other voices of dissent.
The idea of the compulsory youth service has not go down well with the majority of Zimbabweans, but the stubborn Mugabe regime has gone ahead with it, wasting taxpayers' money on nefarious training activities at a time when over six million people are threatened with starvation.
Tekere, who helped Mugabe cross the Mozambican border to wage a bitter struggle against the settler regime of Ian Smith, and formed the Zimbabwe Unity Movement which fiercely opposed Mugabe's attempts to impose a one party state, does not hide his disappointment at the way the president has destroyed the once promising nation.
"Even the rains will not fall as long as Mugabe is in charge of this country," he said. "He is directionless and has brought numerous curses on the nation. Even nature wouldn't be pleased by this madness. We are going down like a whirlwind and it will continue until we reach the bottom. There is no end in sight unless we get rid of this wayward Mugabe regime."
Despite the hardships facing the country, Mugabe believes that he has to hold on to the country so that "Zimbabwe will never be a colony again".
He also believes Zimbabwe's economy starts and ends with the land which has been seized from productive white Zimbabwean commercial farmers, and given to mostly chefs, war veterans and Zanu PF officials and supporters.
Unfortunately, brave men like him, usually end up getting their medals, posthumously.
... or Brown-shirts.
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