ZANU-PF youth in Bulawayo have put greedy fuel stations and retailers on notice, saying they would soon be moving against businesses that were inflaming public opinion against Government through unethical practices.

Speaking to Sunday News yesterday, the Zanu-PF Bulawayo Central Youth chairperson, Cde Mayibongwe Zvigadza, said they had taken note of businesses that seemed hellbent on tarnishing the image of the Government and would thus be soon moving to rectify the situation.

“The main thrust is that we have been tasked to fight corruption and make sure that every business operates within the bounds of the law and they observe honest business ethics.

“We can’t sit back as the youth and let the President fight corruption on his own because the country is ours too. It is now time to stand up and make sure that the people behind these artificial shortages are dealt with once and for all,” Cde Zvigadza said.

He said they were particularly concerned by actions of major retailers and fuel stations that did not seem interested in doing business in a manner that was above board.

“We have taken on this task because Bulawayo Central is the main part of the province where all of this is happening. We can’t have a situation where 20 000 litres is delivered to a fuel station, yet a person who is number 50 in the queue, a person who has been queuing the whole day, is told that there is no longer any fuel remaining. These are people that are trying to fight Government by frustrating the people.

We have a situation in retail outlets where sugar disappears off the shelves and yet we see people moving out with it through back doors. That is what we want to fight,” he said.

When the youth starts moving against errant retailers, Cde Zvigadza said, even businesspeople hiding behind the party’s banner would not be spared.

“This is why as the youth in the party we are saying we are putting all these fuel stations and big retailers on notice. We are saying this to even those businesspeople that come to the party and try to hide behind it, knowing that they’re unscrupulous.

“We implore the youth everywhere to take charge and not allow corruption to happen in their presence. It is now abundantly clear that these people are doing this deliberately because I can assure you that there is no Government in the world that wants its people to starve,” he said.

With President Mnangagwa fighting the battle against corruption on other fronts, it was a duty of the youth to handle local corruption, Cde Zvigadza said.

-State Media