Former Zipra collaborators demand overdue payments from government

TAKUDZWA HILLARY CHIWANZA

Former Zipra liberation war collaborators are growing impatient with the government's failure to pay them their monthly allowances, despite being vetted in 2021 for their role in the country's independence struggle.

The non-combatant cadres, who provided logistical information and other assistance to armed liberation war fighters battling former Rhodesian Prime Minister Ian Smith's regime, have not received any monthly pay-outs unlike their counterparts who were armed.

They accuse the government of making false promises to secure their votes in the 2023 elections and then ignoring them afterwards.

"The situation is really worrying because now we don't know what to do. The government made false promises because they wanted our votes and now that we are in the post-election period, they have gone quiet, they are not communicating with us and that is not good," said a disgruntled non-combatant who refused to be named.

Petros Sibanda, the secretary-general of the Zipra Veterans Association, confirmed that a number of non-combatant cadres were yet to receive their payments.

"The government has not honoured the promises that it made. We were hoping now that we are done with the elections something would happen, but we have not seen anything, people still haven't received their dues," Sibanda said.

He added that it was not only non-combatants that were affected, but also war collaborators and detainees who still had not received their dues.

The War Veterans ministry could not be reached for comment.

In 1997, war veterans were given lump sums of ZWL$50 000 each after they protested against lack of pensions. This was despite that they had benefitted from yet another lump sum soon after independence in 1980.