Nhema challenges Mzembi, Mavhaire

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YOUTH, Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment minister Francis Nhema on Friday challenged senior Zanu PF members in Masvingo, particularly Tourism minister Walter Mzembi and Energy minister Dzikamai Mavhaire, to do more to help youths in their province.

YOUTH, Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment minister Francis Nhema on Friday challenged senior Zanu PF members in Masvingo, particularly Tourism minister Walter Mzembi and Energy minister Dzikamai Mavhaire, to do more to help youths in their province.

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Speaking at a Zanu PF youth league inter-district conference at the Masvingo Polytechnic College, a candid Nhema urged the two, who were present at the gathering, to also help their own.

“Mzembi, how many albums have you launched in Harare? How many have you launched from youths from Masvingo province?

“If minister Mavhaire goes to Mutare, he will be saluted and he gets so over excited he gives all the oil there.

“You said I should say the truth, so I will say so. This is my place, I also want to see it develop,” he said.

Nhema was responding to allegations by party youths that their seniors in the province were doing nothing to help them.

He urged the party’s Masvingo leaders to also stand up for some of their own.

The minister asked: “If minister Mzembi or minister Mavhaire will not stand up for Masvingo, who will stand up for Masvingo so that its issues are put to the fore?”

Nhema, however, urged the youths to work with their leaders and not try to pull them down if they were to benefit.

“As youths, do not fight your leaders. If you pull them down and someone from another province replaces them, it will be worse,” he said.

“You should be thankful if you have ministers from your province. Work well with them.

“If you think they are not doing enough, summon them and iron out your issues amicably than to fight them.”

He also accused Masvingo youths of underutilising the youth fund saying out of $1 million allocated to the province in 2013, only $280 000 had been used.

He said the youths did not make presentable and convincing project proposals, which they sometimes recycled, leaving banks with no option but to shut them out.

Zanu PF Masvingo provincial youth chairperson Oliver Huruva said the youths were tired of being used by party bigwigs who were looting while they just sloganeered and continued to live in poverty.

“We are tired of sloganeering with nothing to eat. We want to say, ‘pamberi ne (forward with) Zanu PF’ on full stomachs, not to keep on sloganeering till we drop of hunger,” he said.

“When you go to the top of the fruit tree, make sure you drop some of the fruits for us at the ground, not to eat alone at the top.

“If you want Zanu PF to win the next elections, give us money for youth projects as well as empowerment.

“If we vote you into power, learn to come back to us and remember us.”