Mliswa says Zimbabwe should not ban NGOs while promoting those that prop ZANU-PF

Independent legislator Temba Mliswa says the government should not ban non-governmental organisations involved in elections while at the same time it is promoting those that prop the Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front. 

He raised the issue as a point of national interest in Parliament yesterday and cited two organisations (FAZ) which stands for Forever Associate Zimbabwe and Zimbabwe Heritage Trust.

Mliswa said the government should issue a ministerial statement on whether FAZ and Heritage are associations or NGOs.

“We need a report for us to know – if it is an NGO, why is it getting involved in the politics of ZANU PF?  ZANU PF has got a Political Commissar whose job is to mobilise for the party.  It has every other department there, but we see them going there,” Mliswa said.  

“We would like an explanation to understand, so what was the point of moving a law to dismiss other NGOs so that FAZ and Heritage could come and participate? We also want to know where FAZ is getting their funding from. 

“They are being paid 700 US dollars per month yet the officers in the CIO are paid 200US and then 320 RTGS which is not 700; could they not use the system.  The State Security is responsible for the protection of this country for the Members of Parliament and for the President.  

“You do not need to set up another PVO, you do not need to set up another CIO. Where the President is involved, it is national security but I must say the national security of this country has become itself a national threat to the people of this country.”

According to its website: FAZ is a private organisation which is duly registered under Zimbabwean law both as a Trust, under Deed of Trust No. MA 124/2010 issued on 9th February 2010, and a Private Limited Company, Registration No. 12173/2022 of 2nd June 2022.

“We live to serve … in answer to our Motherland Zimbabwe’s and ZANU PF’s call to duty in pursuit of national peace, economic development and stability,” it says.

The Zimbabwe Heritage Trust (ZHT)says it is a non-profit-making organisation that was founded by patriotic Zimbabweans and registered as a trust in September 2010.

“As the name implies, the trust focuses on Zimbabwe’s heritage, with special emphasis on the building of a relevant body of knowledge and disseminating it to all interested,” the trust says on its website.

“The rationale behind establishing the organisation was based on the realisation that our history is replete with misinterpretations of the colonial era. Before colonisation, Zimbabwe had achieved a lot in many fields, among them agriculture, mining, medicine, education, art, architecture, governance, trade and international relations, but these achievements were minimised, misrepresented and almost erased for colonial political reasons. Accordingly, by articulating the totality of our heritage, the organisation seeks to project the country’s tangible and intangible heritage and put history in its proper context.”

FAZ was allegedly heavily involved in the recent ZANU-PF primary elections.

Below is Mliswa’s full contribution:

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