Chronicle Editor
Sukulwenkosi Dube-Matutu, [email protected]
THE country will on 14 August be celebrating Heroes Day and youths have said their participation in the harmonised elections which will be held a week later is in honour of the country’s liberation heroes and heroines.
This year’s elections have seen more youths coming up to contest at local authority and parliamentary level.
The youths have said their participation in the upcoming elections is in response to the call by the leadership of the revolutionary party for young people to take a bold stand in defending the gains of the liberation struggle.
Cde Tinashe Mushipe who will be representing the Zanu-PF party under Member of Parliament Matabeleland South youth quota said the month of August is of great significance as the country will be commemorating Heroes and Defence Forces Day as well as holding harmonised elections.
He said the nation will honour the fallen heroes and go on to declare its unwavering support for the revolutionary party through the polls.
“We recognise and appreciate the work of the gallant sons and daughters of Zimbabwe who died protecting the country during the liberation war against British rule. It’s through their work that the country is enjoying liberation gains today.
“The liberation gains have seen us become empowered as youths. The heroes and heroines that we will be celebrating never got the chance to enjoy their youth as they were fighting to liberate the country.
“This year’s Heroes Day is very special because soon after commemorating and celebrating our heroes, we will move on to honour their sacrifice through the polls. As youths, we will do this by ensuring that we vote in numbers. We will also mobilise our peers to vote as well,” he said.
Cde Mushipe said the work which was done by the heroes and heroines to liberate the country will forever be cherished by the youths.
He said this work did not stop there as Government has gone a step further to create programmes and policies to empower the youth.
Cde McNamara Madubeko who will be representing Zanu-PF in Ward 6 under Beitbridge East constituency said he understands and values the sacrifices of the liberation fighters and that is why he wants to take a part in safeguarding the liberation gains.
Cde Madubeko said the country needs a breed of youths that will carry on the baton and continue to protect the nation and its resources.
“The liberation fighters experienced dehumanising segregation during the colonial era and it’s a pity that some people want to take us back to that torturous era.
“Today we are enjoying the fruits of being liberated because of the sweat of our heroes. Today the black youths have businesses, churches, farms, mines, key leadership roles, they’re getting quality education, finances, among other benefits.
“As a youth who understands what the liberation struggle was all about and it’s significance, I want to carry forward the work of the liberation fighters.
“As youths, we are not fighting with firearms like our elders did but we are protecting our country and its resources from going back into the hands of the whites,” he said.
Cde Madubeko said the leadership of the revolutionary party has done a good job on enlightening the youth through the Herbert Chitepo School of Ideology.
He said this will help to preserve the origins and true identity of the revolutionary party. Cde Madubeko said this information will be passed on to generations to come.
He said in the next decades to come, even when those who were involved in the liberation struggle have passed on, their legacy will remain intact and the country will continue to be ruled by the black majority.
Plumtree Town Ward 4 Zanu-PF representative under Mangwe Constituency, Cde Angelrose Mpindiwa said she is inspired by the young women who were equal to the task of liberating the country just like their male comrades.
Cde Mpindiwa said this has given her the courage to take up the task of developing her community and safeguarding the liberation gains.
She said the female liberation fighters have handed over the baton to young women who are now supposed to show bravery.
“As a young woman, there is a lot I have learnt from the experiences of the heroines.
“They displayed great bravery and they remained undeterred. They didn’t allow their gender to stand in their way and they didn’t see themselves as incapable. I marvel at their bravery and this is where I have gathered the courage to stand up as a young woman and defend my country in this era.
“I will not sit down and watch as the country is slowly being sold to the whites by the opposition. In my area, I will ensure that the revolutionary party is the one to represent the people and I will also influence in other areas as well,” she said.
Gwanda North Ward 10 Zanu-PF representative Cde Aldonia Gondo urged fellow youths and the entire nation to honour the country’s liberation heroes by voting for the revolutionary party.
He said the entire nation has to remain focused and not be influenced by detractors.
Cde Gondo urged youths to look around and contemplate how the benefits they were enjoying today had come about. He said it was the duty of youths to protect the nation as they are the future.
Government has made great strides in delivering its promises to empower youths with thousands having benefitted from various programmes.
Many are now successful farmers after benefitting under the land reform programme that the Government embarked on in 2000 while some own large herds of cattle and others are company owners and directors.
Government is still spearheading youth empowerment programmes across the country. In education, there is the Presidential Scholarship where underprivileged deserving youths from all the country’s provinces are given scholarships to study abroad.
The Youth Empowerment Bank and Zimbabwe Women’s Microfinance Bank were also set up after Independence to empower youth and women, regardless of political affiliation, with loans. — @DubeMatutu
Online Reporter