PRESDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa is seeking to
suffocate opposition parties in the country by crafting tough laws that will
regulate their operations.Mnangagwa’s government is also drafting laws to
criminalise campaigning against one’s country after he accused the Nelson
Chamisa-led MDC Alliance of inviting Western sanctions on the country.
Speaking during a post-Cabinet media briefing in Harare
yesterday, Women Affairs, Community, Small andMedium Enterprises minister
Sithembiso Nyoni said Vice-President Kembo Mohadi would soon present
recommendations to Parliament which came from the National Peace and
Reconciliation Commission (NPRC) which seek to regulate political parties.
“Recommendations from the 2018 and 2019 annual reports of
the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission, which were adopted by
Cabinet: The Vice-President will present the recommendations to Parliament in
due course as required by the Constitution,” Nyoni said.
“Highlights of the recommendations include the following,
that legislation and a code of conduct will be put in place to regulate the
operations and conduct of all political parties. That campaigning against one’s
country shall be legislated at law and criminalised.”
Zanu PF has been calling for a law that would make it a
criminal offence for citizens to campaign against the country.Zanu PF party
chief whip Pupurai Togarepi has been lobbying for the law.
Mnangagwa on Tuesday accused the MDC Alliance of being a
terrorist organisation, working with Western countries to remove him from
power.He also defended security forces’ brutal clampdown on protesters on July
31.
Following the launch of a social media
#ZimbabweanLivesMatter campaign over rights abuses in Zimbabwe, Mnangagwa
signalled a more radical approach, threatening to “flush out bad apples”.
Nyoni said the NPRC also called for the strengthening of
laws to ensure unity in Zimbabwe.
“That existing laws shall be strengthened to include
elements that foster tolerance, equality and social cohesion among Zimbabweans
as well as prohibit hate speech by public officials, media houses and citizens
in public spaces and social, print and electronic media platforms,” she said.
Meanwhile, Cabinet has called on nurses and doctors who are
on strike to immediately return to work, saying their grievances would be
addressed while they are working.
“In terms of preparedness, the nation is informed that
Wilkins and United Bulawayo Hospitals are now admitting mild to moderate cases.
The recruitment of nursing staff is already underway. In the same vein, His
Excellency the President has appealed to the striking nursing personnel to
return to work such that loss of lives can be minimised,” Cabinet said. Newsday
0 comments:
Post a Comment