President Robert Mugabe’s nephew and Youth minister Patrick Zhuwao has directed Zanu PF Mashonaland East provincial leadership to submit names of pro- People First youth officers.
Youth officers, also referred to as Border Gezi graduates, were recruited on partisan lines by Zhuwao’s predecessor Saviour Kasukuwere and have been blasted for bloating the government’s payroll as most of them were ghost workers.
The late Gezi introduced the concept of national youth training during his tenure as Youth minister to ostensibly inculcate a sense of patriotism among youths and use them to carry out Zanu PF orientation programmes in their areas of jurisdiction.
At a  youth league rally  which was held in Marondera last Zanu PF  provincial executive members asked Youth and Indigenisation minister Patrick Zhuwao,  to fire all the pro- former vice president Joice Mujuru  youth officers.
Youth officers to be affected were mainly from Mudzi and Goromonzi who were reportedly hobnobbing with ex-Zanu PF Mashonaland East chairperson Ray Kaukonde.
Zanu PF fired Kaukonde as provincial chairperson and Marondera Central MP on allegations of supporting Mujuru.
 
“We have youths officers who have been infiltrated by Kaukonde, especially in Mudzi, and we need you honourable minister (Zhuwao) to remove them from the system for they do not belong to us,” provincial secretary for administration Lawrence Katsiru said during a brief meeting before the rally.
There are reportedly over 10 000 youth officers deployed in the country’s 1 200 wards.
“I have heard all that was said concerning some youth officers. Just compile the list of all who are accused of dealing with the enemy and then we will see what we can do with them,” Zhuwao said.
Newsday/Staff repoter