We continue to receive disturbing reports from around the country of Zanu (PF) youths, war veterans and, in some cases, soldiers, harassing people in the rural areas forcing them to support the party in a variety of ways. (Pictured:Zanu Pf militial on the move)Teachers, in particular, have been targeted, as have MDC activists and party officials, who have been told that certain areas of the country are no-go areas for them.
Elsewhere in this issue we carry a report of a senior policeman ordering the destruction of dockets concerning the Zanu (PF)-instigated violence that terrorised thousands of voters before, during and after the March and June 2008 elections.
We cannot believe that his bosses and other senior policemen are unaware of what is going on. Such corruption in the force should not be tolerated. If the police are ever going to re-gain the respect of the general populace, this kind of thing should be stamped upon the minute it becomes public knowledge.
Likewise, the police are surely not unaware of mobs of Zanu (PF) youths gathering around the country with malicious intent. They are normally very quick to arrest MDC supporters if they assemble without police permission, using the POSA legislation. But it appears Zanu (PF) members can still roam the country and cause havoc with impunity. This has got to stop.
This is the sort of thing that does not help Zimbabwes battered international image. Neither does it help Zanu (PF)s frantic appeals for the lifting of targeted measures against its hierarchy.
We remind the police that they have a constitutional mandate to uphold the rule of law in our country. If they have any sense of duty left in them, they must do everything possible to nip this looming violence in the bud. We believe that, despite the pressure on them from their politically tainted superiors, who are thoroughly entrenched in the Zanu (PF) gravy train, individual officers can make a difference if they really want to.
After more than a decade of Zanu (PF) horror, surely the people deserve peace now – so that they can begin to rebuild their shattered lives?
Post published in: Editor: Wilf Mbanga