Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace in Zimbabwe said ZANU (PF) is preaching its party slogans to rural people more than the church would teach the wisdom of God.
The Catholic Bishops said they witnessed this ‘sad’ development when they were observing the weekend’s Chirumanzu –Zibagwe Mount and Darwin West parliamentary by-elections.
ZANU (PF) candidates, Auxilia Mnangagwa wife of the Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa, and Barnwel Seremwe won the two by elections against the National Constitutional Assembly Party candidates.
“We noted that political slogans are known more than the Ten Commandments, more than the Social teachings of the church and more than the Constitutional rights”, Bishop Alexio Muchabaiwa the chairperson of the Catholic church grouping told reporters in Harare.
He said the Church and civil society were letting down Zimbabweans living in the remote parts of the country where ZANU (PF) continues to trample upon their rights.
“Faith based institutions and the civil society organizations should move beyond urban and peri-urban areas to the periphery and the tertiary institutions and high schools to provide rigorous civic education because “My people perish from lack of knowledge”(Hosea 4:6)”,Bishop Muchabaiwa suggested.
The Bishops said they were also shocked by cases of intimidation in these areas where voters where threatened with evictions if they vote otherwise.
“The people we talked to in these areas said we have become too vulnerable to politicians”.
ZANU (PF) is synonymous with political violence, vote rigging and intimidations during election times.
ZANU(PF) Forcing Villagers To Recite Slogans-Bishops
31 March 2015