ZANU PF political commissar, Victor Matemadanda, said the Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) is not trained to feed porridge to citizens but to use force to crush violent demonstrations.
Matemadanda, who is also the Deputy Defence and War Veterans Affairs Minister, made the chilling remarks in Chinhoyi on Sunday during the ruling party’s Mashonaland West provincial coordinating committee meeting. He said:
Do they allow hooligans to burn shops in Britain? The police will use minimum force and if they don’t succeed in dispersing demonstrators it’s fine.
But at the company (defence ministry) where l work, they are not trained in using minimum force.
Our soldiers are not trained to feed porridge, they defend the country’s territorial integrity.
I urge you to run home when you see them coming.
The Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association (ZNLWVA) Secretary-General also accused Britain and the opposition MDC Alliance of attempting to cause anarchy in Zimbabwe in a bid to effect regime change through sanctions and planned street demonstrations.
Matemadanda made the threats amid reports of planned protests in January next year over the country’s worsening socio-economic and political crisis, and grand corruption allegedly perpetrated by politically exposed persons (PEPs).