Prioritise gospel of love to stop murders: Matinenga

By ALBERT MASAKA

ZIMBABWE needs to urgently prioritise educating the community on the importance of love and life in order to minimise conflicts that have lead people to commit serious crimes such as murder.

Honourable Miriam Matinenga said this recently in a contribution on the Death Penalty Abolishment Bill introduced in the august House by Dzivaresekwa MP Edwin Mushoriwa.

This comes at a time when the  Zimbabwe Republic Police has red-flagged the increasing cases of murder in the country with shocking revelations that at least seven people are killed over trivial issues weekly.

“I support that the death penalty should be abolished, but I would like to add that as Hon. Members we are now obliged that from our families, we teach everyone love and life. Some things that are not being done is not preaching the importance of love and life.

“We should learn to teach, starting from our families, advancing to the villages so that everyone in the country can know about it,” Matinenga said.,

She added that people should live in harmony in order to avoid conflicts which may cause people to kill each other.

“This issue of killing each other will end after the gospel of love and life has been preached.”

Mushoriwa is steering the Death Penalty Abolishment Bill that was brought to Parliament as a private members Bill.

A private member’s Bill is introduced by a private Member of Parliament, that is a member who is not a Vice-President, Minister or Deputy Minister. 

It can deal with all sorts of public issues except imposing or altering taxes or imposing financial obligations on the State.

The Death Penalty Abolishment Bill seeks to amend the laws that allow the option of a death penalty so that when enacted no crime will attract the death penalty.

Zimbabwe is expected to enact a Death Penalty Abolishment Act after President Emmerson Mnangagwa signs it into law this month upon approval in the Senate.