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Zvamaida Murwira Senior Reporter

The Ministry of Welfare Services for War Veterans, War Collaborators, Former Political Detainees and Restrictees will embark on a massive campaign next week to constitute structures as part of a larger effort to unite freedom fighters.The exercise is expected to culminate in the formation of a bigger, but consolidated national association whose leadership will be elected by members at congress.

This was said by the ministry’s Permanent Secretary Retired Brigadier General Asher Walter Tapfumaneyi while addressing journalists in the capital yesterday.

The meeting was also attended by the responsible Minister Retired Colonel Tshinga Dube.

Rtd Brig Gen Tapfumaneyi said the meetings, comprising all stakeholders had been convened in the past months as part of efforts to unite war veterans, as mandated by President Mugabe during the meeting he held with war veterans in April this year.

A report will be tabled at the forthcoming Zanu-PF annual people’s conference in Masvingo Province in December.

Some of the stakeholders that attended the recent meetings included former members of the Zanla and Zipra High Command, rival groups of war veteran associations, war veterans elders, members of the national security, among others.

“In the next week or so, we will make a blitz where we will go and talk to war veterans with one voice. The message will make us united in order for us to be heard. We want a war veteran fraternity that is responsibly led; credibly led; that is in a constructive and symbiotic relationship with the political party that created it. We want war veterans that are disciplined, loyal to the President,” said Rtd Brig Gen Tapfumaneyi.

He said the ministry wanted war veterans themselves to drive the process that would culminate into the congress, but they would assist them in constituting structures at cell, branch, district, provincial and national level.

Rtd Brig Tapfumaneyi slammed both the Christopher Mutsvangwa and Mandi Chimene-led war veteran executives saying, they had not helped the situation in uniting the former freedom fighters in their tussle for membership and power.

He said while the Mutsvangwa-led association had a bigger number than that of Chimene, 77 percent of former freedom fighters did not belong to either association.

Rtd Brig Tapfumaneyi said the Mutsvangwa-led executive could be de-registered both as an association and affiliate of Zanu-PF after failing to follow provisions of their constitution in submitting reports to the Ministry among other several vices, but would not do that in the spirit of unity.

On the other hand, the Chimene-led executive had been moving around convening some meetings where they would create parallel structures, something that did not augur well in uniting the former freedom fighters.

Both camps had agreed to forge ahead in the quest to unite, said Rtd Brig Gen Tapfumaneyi.

He said the welfare situation of former freedom fighters was dire as Treasury was struggling to provide financial resources such school fees for their children.

Rtd Brig Gen Tapfumaneyi said there were some firms such as funeral parlours that were taking advantage of the war veterans’ desperate situation to sow seeds of disunity among them.

Speaking at the same occasion, Minister Dube said divisions in Zanu-PF had also played out among war veterans as they sought to position themselves with individuals, something he said frustrated their efforts to unite former freedom fighters as mandated by President Mugabe.

“I am happy to say we have come much closer than any other time to solve and unite war veterans,” said Minister Dube.