The Zimbabwe Youth Action Platform has expressed strong dissatisfaction with the current state of the ZANU PF Youth League, accusing its leadership — under Minister Tinoda Machakaire — of failing to represent the interests of young people and prioritising personal gain over youth empowerment.
In a statement delivered at the Media Centre in Harare, ZYAP National President Tonderai Shumba Chidawa said the Youth League had become ineffective in advancing the aspirations of Zimbabwe’s young citizens and had left affiliate organisations to shoulder the work of mobilising support for President Emmerson Mnangagwa ahead of the upcoming party conference.
Chidawa criticised the Youth League’s leadership for “deepening factional divides within the party by leveraging personal wealth,” claiming that money was being distributed to consolidate political influence rather than fund initiatives benefiting the youth.
He said this practice undermined genuine development and had caused growing frustration among young people over the “absence of impactful programmes.”
Related Stories
ZYAP also raised concern over what it described as a lack of tangible empowerment opportunities across the country.
The group said the Youth Empowerment Bank had become largely inactive, failing to fulfil its mandate to uplift young people, especially in rural areas such as Uzumba, Dotito, Chipinge, Plumtree, Hwange, and Mwenezi.
The organisation demanded transparency on how many youths had benefited from empowerment initiatives.
In addition, ZYAP condemned what it called the “disruptive actions” of a figure identified as Geza, accusing him of spreading falsehoods and engaging in “unlawful protests and destabilising activities.”
The statement warned that efforts to undermine national unity and unseat President Mnangagwa would not be tolerated.
“We will expose everyone working with Geza because, as the youth, we will not tolerate anyone who seeks to destabilise our beloved country,” the group declared.
Leave Comments