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ZIMBABWEANS from all walks of life commemorated the Heroes and Defence Forces Days over the past two days by thronging provincial heroes’ acres and the main national shrine in Harare and we commend them for showing solidarity with our fallen heroes and members of the defence forces.

The country enjoys peace and security due to the valiant efforts of our men and women in uniform while independence from colonial bondage was delivered as a result of the sacrifices made by Zanla and Zipra cadres during the war of liberation. The struggle for independence was long and protracted with gallant sons and daughters of the soil paying the ultimate sacrifice to free the country from colonial bondage.

It is apt that as Zimbabweans celebrate these important days, we take stock of the journey that this country has gone through over the past 37 years. We are glad that Zimbabweans have stood by the party of independence by voting for it at successive elections since independence and this has ensured that the gains of Uhuru are safeguarded while neo-colonialists’ covert and overt schemes to worm their way back into power through their Trojan Horses in the opposition have come to naught.

Zimbabwe remains one of the few countries in the Sadc region still ruled by a former liberation movement and we feel it is something that we should cherish. War veterans, both living and fallen, are the stockholders of Zimbabwe’s liberation narrative and their presence in the defence forces in various capacities ensures that the country is protected at all costs from its enemies. Their loyalty to the country is unquestionable and we salute their patriotic service to the nation.

Ruinous sanctions imposed by the West have wreaked havoc with the budget for the defence forces but to their credit, our security structures have remained intact and even been invited on peace keeping missions in other countries due to their excellent track record.

Despite the prevailing peace and tranquility, Zimbabwe still faces a plethora of threats to its security emanating from cyber warfare and we feel it is time our security establishments devised ways of dealing with this threat. As the country prepares for another election next year, we call on the security services to be vigilant and alive to the activities of saboteurs who will once again seek to influence our electoral processes.

The West is still keen on reversing the gains of independence manifested through the land reform programme and the Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment programmes Government has embarked on with amazing results. The feverish moves to stampede the main opposition MDC-T to coalesce with other parties under the banner of a coalition ahead of next year’s polls shows that the same forces that have been trying, without success, to topple President Mugabe and his ruling Zanu-PF party are up to their old tricks.

This calls for unity within the vanguard movement with comrades putting aside their differences and closing ranks to fight the common enemy. Zanu-PF owes it to the thousands of fallen heroes lying in graves in neighbouring countries such as Mozambique and Zambia to safeguard the legacy of the liberation struggle and honour their memories by protecting the country from its erstwhile colonial masters.

We are glad that the country still has a capable leader in President Mugabe whose commitment to the ideals of the struggle remains unshakeable. His unwavering stance on land and the need to empower the majority black population in this country is what has endeared his party to the people. The President also has the interests of war veterans at heart and has always championed their cause by ensuring that the Government caters to their needs.

On Monday, he called for the establishment of a fund to assist liberation war heroes and their dependants and called on Zimbabweans to contribute towards the welfare of veterans of the liberation struggle. Addressing thousands of people who gathered to commemorate Heroes’ Day at the National Heroes’ Acre in Harare, President Mugabe said Government had created the Ministry of Welfare Services for War Veterans, War Collaborators, Former Political Detainees and Restrictees headed by Retired Colonel Tshinga Dube to look at the welfare of former liberation fighters. “War veterans have their organisation and a ministry with Cde Tshinga Dube as Minister. The budgetary allocation to the ministry is small, let us have a very wide programme so that we have a huge fund to complement efforts by Cde [Finance Minister Patrick] Chinamasa whose allocations are small given competing priorities.

“But I know that our people have money to contribute. They are willing to give.  We urge them to continue doing so. We want to have that funding to help families of war veterans, the departed and the surviving ones. So we will see what we can do for the fund to be created,” President Mugabe said.

We hail the envisaged creation of the fund and urge everyone to render support to it.