ZANU PF Secretary for War Veterans, Douglas Mahiya, has described opposition parties like Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) as “puppet” political parties, which foreign countries like the United States are using to push for a regime change agenda.
Mahiya said this last week Friday when he addressed journalists on a workshop organized by Citizens Against Economic Sanctions (CAES), an organization aligned to the ruling Zanu Pf party.
The workshop’s intention was to “educate journalists on the burden of sanctions and encourage them to report factually” when they cover issues to do with sanctions.
Addressing journalists at the workshop, Mahiya equated Chamisa to Nyathi, a notorius liberation war sellout whose activites resulted in the massacres at Chomoio and Nyadzonya.
“People like the main opposition party led by Nelson Chamisa are the same with Traitors we met during the liberation war. During that time, we had a traitor called Nyathi who betrayed us. The moment you say land will be given back to the whites, we will treat you the same as we did to Nyathi back then” said Mahiya.
The War Veterans leader pleaded with the media to “report objectively” on the issue of sanctions.
“I know how this happens, journalists sometimes report biased stories because they want to be given brown envelopes. This incident I heard it when I visited Kadoma. We will know if journalists report biased news that they have received brown envelopes,” he said.
He heeped praises on President Emmerson Mnangagwa urging citizens to appreciate what he described as “basic economic infrastructure development.”
He rebuked the targeted sanctions imposed by the United States, describing them as “weapons of mass destruction.”
“Let’s give credit, the president has tried to put in place the basic economic infrastructure, but still no credit for him. The United States sanctions must be removed forthwith, because Zimbabweans are suffering. The sanctions are a weapon of mass destruction,” he said.
Contrary to Mahiya’s sentiments, Chamisa told his supporters during the March by-election campaigns that the land reform program was irreversible and his party wouldn’t reverse it, should it win the 2023 elections.
Meanwhile, the United States has maintained its stance on sanctions, insisting they are only targeted on Zanu PF leadership, which they say continue to violate human rights in Zimbabwe.
James O’Brien, the U.S. State Department’s sanctions coordinator, told an online briefing on October 19 that U.S. sanctions are not hurting Zimbabwe’s economy, as they do not affect banks, blaming corruption and mismanagement instead.