The looting of farms by Zimbabwe's war veterans took centre-stage during the last elections. But two ex-freedom fighters, who describe themselves as "genuine" war veterans, hope to play a more constructive role in this month's election.
Wilfred Mhanda, 54, and Freedom Nyamubaya, 45, want to remind Robert Mugabe of the ideals they fought for 25 years ago; democracy, human dignity, social justice and peace.
Mhanda and Nyamubaya have distanced themselves from members of the Zimbabwean National Liberation War Veterans Association (ZNLWVA) - many of whom they accuse of being too young to have actually been involved in the "chimurenga" (struggle).
ZNLWVA members were seen invading farms and accused of sjambokking opposition members during the 2000 election.
Mhanda and Nyamubaya are currently in South Africa to share their experiences with former MK and Apla members, after having been to Mozambique to speak to Frelimo and Renamo veterans, to encourage them to make a positive contribution to the governance of the region - a contribution starkly different to the role ZNLWVA played.
The association has not been as visible as it was in the run up to the last election, but some sources believe that Zanu-PF could still persuade the veterans, who are dependent on the party, to work behind the scenes to coerce citizens to support the government as the election campaigning heats up.
"We fought for freedom," says Mhanda, a member of Zanla's high command in the 1970s, "but the government has betrayed our ideals. We think this time the war veterans - the genuine ones - can help remind Mugabe what the struggle was about in the first place."
Mhanda says the country did not transform when Zimbabwe's independence was achieved 25 years ago; instead one elite was substituted by another.
After independence some veterans tried to form an association. "The government did not want our voices to be heard - until it suited its agenda.
"The war veterans, many of whom are destitute, were used by Zanu-PF to invade farms in the last election to deflect attention from the collapse of the economy. It worked. People were caught up with the land issue and forgot about everything else."
The two found that former freedom fighters in Mozambique were grappling with their relationship with the government.
"The war veterans there are not partisan. Some are aligned to particular parties, but as organisations they are independent. The War Veterans Association in our country has been hijacked by Zanu-PF," Mhanda says.
Nyamubaya was involved in setting up ZNLWVA in the early 1990s, but dropped out because she saw it was merely an appendage of the government.
"It was useless. The association had no desire to make a meaningful contribution to society," she says.
A poet and singer who owns a game farm, Nyamubaya points out that she's not a former freedom fighter because she's still fighting for freedom.
She used to fight with a gun, but now, she says, she fights with poetry.
"I joined the war when I was 15. When I came back nobody wanted to know us, the women. We had been vandalised sexually. There were stories about women from the war: that we would beat up men who refused to have sex with us. I met comrades in the street who pretended not to know me because they didn't want their husbands to know we were comrades."
Nyamubaya joined the struggle in 1975, when she was in Standard 8, after her family told her there wasn't any money for her to continue to go to school. I was told to get a job or get married.
"I knew there was something wrong with the society and I grew unhappy with the injustice, so I decided to join a group of 10 men and go across the border into Mozambique to join the war."
She said that when she arrived in a training camp she was detained and accused of being a spy, because she refused to sleep with one of the commanders.
"I was told that I had been sent by Ian Smith. I was raped by the camp's security commander."
When she was released she smuggled weapons, ammunition and explosives into Zimbabwe. She spent 11 months fighting on the front, before becoming a political commissar at various training camps.
"I grew disillusioned with the leadership early on because of the imprisonment and the abuse, but I still believe we freedom fighters can play a meaningful role in our country by helping the government re-focus on the ideals of freedom."
Mhanda took up arms in 1971, eventually becoming a commander in the movement's highest military body.
"I oversaw operations in the north-east of the country and was involved in training. I was also involved in guerrilla warfare. I had many close shaves with death. I remember on one occasion seven of us were en-circled by helicopters and we had to slip out of that.
"We weren't fighting against whites; we were fighting for ideals. Part of my job was to inspire young people to sacrifice themselves for the cause of freedom, that is why I am most hurt.
Because I motivated people to die for their country and we have been betrayed."
In 1981, disillusioned with what he saw as the government's lack of accountability, Mhanda left for Germany, where he studied industrial biotechnology. He returned eight years later to work for manufacturing companies. In 2000, he was one of the founding members of the Zimbabwean Liberators' Platform.
"We are not scared of any reprisals because we know all the leaders in the security forces. In fact, I trained most of them."
The Zimbabwean government could not be reached for comment.