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NGOs’ ‘catch them young’ drive dangerous

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OVER the past few years, there has been an increasing interest in the non-governmental organisation (NGO) sector on youths.
The phrase ‘catch them young’ has been used over and over again and has become a buzz word for the sector.
The key question is that for whose benefit is this?
Why is there so much interest on catching them while they are young and why above all are the big donors interested in the young?
Young people in Zimbabwe constitute over 50 percent of the population. When I am talking about young people I am looking at those between the ages of 15 to 35.
At first the catch them young approach was only targeted at this group of youths, but now of late they are targeting those from the ages of six to 15.
The so-called thinking behind this approach is to ensure that the minds of children and youths are shaped from a very early age to think in a certain way about certain issues.
The main issues that are being discussed these days are to do with governance and democracy.
NGOs are busy penetrating our schools and working on the minds of our children and youths.
They are busy building ideologies in their minds and brainwashing them for lack of a stronger word.
You see the concept of catching them young has always been used since time immemorial the only difference being the cause.
During the days of Hitler, he started brain washing youths and even created a little red book to instil so-called patriotism.
The young Germans sang and marched for a racist who ended up wiping more than six million Jews.
In Zimbabwe during the liberation struggle, it was mostly the youths who went out to war.
They felt inspired by the message of a revolution.
They felt inspired and empowered and wanted to fight and they went out to fight.
We see their works today as we enjoy over 30 years of independence.
The whole reason of working with youths and targeting them for any cause is because young people and children are impressionable.
If one just buys into the idea, it can easily spread like a wildfire.
Coming now to the programmes that are being conducted by NGOs, one can see an increase in governance and democracy programmes, which are targeting the youths.
They at times disguise to the district administrator the contents of their programme.
Since the district administrators are busy doing their everyday work when the meetings take place, there is therefore no monitoring mechanisms which tracks what exactly is being fed to our children and youths.
Youths are being taught to demand accountability from Government and to demand explanations for things that they at times are not even conversant with.
I do not have any problems with having an empowered youth.
I, however, have a problem when the voice speaking into the lives of our children and youths forces them to forget our history.
Yes our history on which this very nation breathes from and is founded on. Young women have also become the most sought after target and a lot of money is being thrown in by donors to ensure that young women have information about demanding for accountability.
Most of the ways that they are being taught to demand for this are centred on the concept of marches and protests.
The Egyptian style type of revolution.
A revolution which saw thousands upon thousands dead and which has left the country with very little infrastructure and poor health, education and monetary systems.
Who benefits from this catch them young approach?
It is very obvious that as a nation we can never benefit from this.
It will destroy us and if our youths are being taught that violence is the way to get any message across, then I believe that such a programme should be stopped with immediate effect.
Africa is war torn because of this whole demand for accountability business.
In our different Zimbabwean cultures, there are certain things that always stand put and makes us have a lot in common.
We believe in peace and having dialogue and that is what has kept this nation going.
We have a culture which believes in young people who can freely approach their leaders to seek recourse if they are facing any challenges.
These teachings of violent behaviour are not Afrocentric at all and I believe enough is enough!
We ought to ban those donors who are busy funding such programmes and we must also close NGOs that are fuelling and perpetuating this nonsense.
Let our children and youths be taught their history so that they know where we came from as Zimbabweans and the cause for the struggle.
I believe Government needs to do more to monitor NGOs working with the young people bearing in mind that our young people are our today and the future!

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