President Emmerson Mnangagwa yesterday called on Zimbabwe to preach the gospel of peace so that the country can have free, fair and credible elections.
Zimbabwe is due to hold elections in July or August but incidents of violence have already been witnessed in some areas with the ruling Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front being blamed.
War veterans leader Victor Matemadanda said the party was against violence so party supporters must be on the alert because the violence was being used to discredit Mnangagwa.
Addressing a church gathering of the Zion Christian Church at the National Sports Stadium yesterday Mnangagwa said Zimbabweans must embrace peace and unity as this was the only way to foster fair, transparent and credible elections.
“Love each other and help each other. Let us preach peace during the day and during the night. Let us preach peace wherever we are,” he said.
According to the Herald, Mnangagwa said churches have a critical role to play in the new Zimbabwe.
“Churches have to be ambassadors in this economic transformative agenda by helping to build a society free of crime, which shuns corruption and whose values are anchored on hard work, honesty, diligence and integrity. It is, thus, integral for the church to remain as the beam of hope for the world.
“In church you preach love, you preach peace, you preach unity, you preach forgiveness. We in the political arena, we also preach love. We preach peace. We preach unity and forgiveness. For our nation to prosper, we need to be united. We need to love each other. We need peace and we need to forgive each other.”
He also urged churches to encourage their congregants to register to vote and to vote.
“I exhort churches to encourage their congregants to register to vote and exercise their democratic right. Yes, it is God who places leaders, but it is the right of citizens to choose leaders…
“The flag of Zimbabwe unites us, the national anthem of Zimbabwe unifies us, may God bless the church of Zion, may God bless Zimbabwe,” he said.
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