Addressing party supporters in Seke on Tuesday, Garwe said
the ruling party will do anything to ensure President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s
re-election next year.
His address was captured on video and the clip has gone
viral.
“Courts, military and police belong to Zanu PF; even health
workers belong to Zanu PF. Actually we
own almost everything,” Garwe said.
“President [Emmerson] Mnangagwa said the country does not
tolerate violence but if they (opposition) provoke us, definitely we are going
to fight them and deal with them accordingly.
“We are preparing a whip for all those who insult Mnangagwa
as we are preparing for our 2023 elections. Don’t keep quiet if someone insults
your President, we have to fight back and defend him.”
Yesterday, Garwe demanded questions to be sent to him in
writing, but had not responded to them at the time of going to print.
His remarks came as
the country has registered a spike in cases of politically-motivated violence across
all provinces ahead of next year’s polls.
Two months ago, former State Security minister Owen Ncube made similar
threats at a Zanu PF campaign rally in Mberengwa, Midlands province.
National police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul
Nyathi yesterday said he had not had sight of Garwe’s video clip.
“I’m not aware of
the video. I’m currently travelling,” Nyathi said.
Zimbabwe Election Advocacy Trust (ZEAT) executive director
Ignatious Sadziwa said Garwe must be must censored over the inflammatory
remarks.
“It’s sad that we have political party rogue elements that
fan violence with impunity. This is what we have been saying that we can't have
free and fair elections amid such violence and squalor. Violence has no place
in a constitutional democracy like Zimbabwe,” Sadziwa said.
Election Resource Centre (ERC) director Barbra Bhebe said
Section 67 of the Constitution guarantees the right to campaign freely and
peacefully.
“As the country prepares for the 2023 elections, the ERC
urges political parties and all stakeholders to abstain from violence, practice
restraint, and campaign peacefully. Political parties must refrain from
confrontational behaviour and from encouraging their supporters to use
violence,” Bhehe said.
On Thursday, civic society organisations (CSOs) expressed
concern over organised violence ahead of the 2023 elections during a Zoom
meeting.
Contributing to the discussion, Zimbabwe Peace Project
director Jestina Mukoko said “signs on the ground do not point to free and fair
elections.”
“Of greatest concern is the importation of violence by the
ruling party. The ruling party is finding it difficult to cut through, hence
they will have to use force against citizens,” Mukoko said.
But Zanu PF information director Tafadzwa Mugwadi accused
opposition parties and CSOs of cooking up stories on political violence.
“This should be the last time that we should be asked for a
comment on the basis of stories cooked by the opposition. Repeatedly, we have
advised those who care to listen that CCC (Citizens Coalition for Change) has
no tangible solutions or campaign programmes besides hiding on theories of
human rights and faking victimhood to solicit undeserved sympathies. That has
been them since 1999 to date,” Mugwadi said.Newsday
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