Zanu PF pushes another motion to enact Patriotic Bill
Zanu PF Chief Whip in the National Assembly Pupurai Togarepi on Tuesday moved a motion urging the government to enact the Patriotic Bill.
This is the second time that a Zanu PF legislator has moved the motion in the National Assembly since the Cabinet adopted the principles of the Bill.
The Bill is targeted at organisations and individuals that speak or publish information that is deemed negative about the country.
Others are of the view that Bill is being muted to barricade Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) leader Nelson Chamisa from contesting in the 2023 general elections.
Chamisa is seen as a threat to President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s intention of remaining in power beyond 2028 when his two terms elapse.
Speaking in the National Assembly, Honourable Togarepi said politicians who speak negatively about the country or invite sanctions should be blocked from elections.
‘’Madam Speaker, it is my strong view that those people who are politicians today, who are leaders of political parties, who are religious leaders; you also see some people who claim to be Pastors are Reverends getting into politics to tarnish the image of the country. When we have characters like that, they should be laws and one of those laws is the Patriotic Act.
‘’People who can go around the world demonising their country then come back to enjoy the same benefits from a country they are trying to destroy must face the music. They will remain citizens of this country, but they cannot hold political offices after the people of Zimbabwe have suffered,’’ he said.
Honourable Togarepi added there are people who have gone around telling donors not to support the country’s ailing health sector which resulted in many people dying.
He said such people cannot be allowed to lead the country as they are bad missionaries.
‘’People have gone around telling donors not to support the health sector of this country and the consequence now is that people are dying in hospitals because of lack of medication because of somebody who has gone around saying do not support the Government of Zimbabwe.
‘’Such characters when they come back to say they want to lead this country, are not good for us because these are missionaries, and we cannot allow them to do this.
‘’Laws must be put in place to defend the people of Zimbabwe from political vampires, those who believe that when they are in politics, everyone else must suffer if they are not voted into office. We have characters that live all their political life dealing with people or trading people’s pain. People are suffering and once people suffer, they are okay with that, they start building that in order for them to receive money from donors.
‘’We are going for an election and the horses have already bolted, the whole game has started and we need just to stop this through enacting of laws.
‘’We need to come up with laws that will defend the people of Zimbabwe so that politics is not used to make people suffer. So, it is my view Mr. Speaker, that a law must be enacted that will defend the people of Zimbabwe, a law that will ensure that when we are dealing with politics, it is a level playing ground, nobody uses the pain of the people of Zimbabwe, and nobody must make us suffer for him to get into political office.
‘’The issue that I am raising is, it is time that we are an orderly society where the politics of lies and the issue of people going around the world lying about their country must come to an end and people who lie about their country must pay for it.
‘’Madam Speaker, it is my view that as Parliament, as the Government of Zimbabwe, it is time that we deal with such political malcontents.
‘’We need to deal with them, and the law must come to protect the people of Zimbabwe against those political missionaries,’’ he said.
Zanu PF under the guidance of President Emmerson Mnangagwa accuses Chamisa, Tendai Biti, and the late Dewa Mavhinga of inviting sanctions on the country. The previous regime of the late Robert Mugabe used to accuse the late Morgan Tsvangirai of inviting sanctions on the country.
–Zanu PF pushes another motion to enact Patriotic Bill
