Young people must stop fighting political battles and focus on empowering themselves with skills that will help them to have a secure future.

These were the words of Archbishop Mureri, leader of the United African Apostolic Church, during the church's national youth conference at Muratho Primary School in Tshiulungoma village on Sunday afternoon.

In his farewell speech to the more than 3 000 youths who came from different parts of the country, Mureri said young people must stop talking about war. He urged them to rather focus on education.

"I hear young people talking about war. Let me warn you that it sound easy to talk about war, but if you start it, you will regret it. I witnessed the war situation in Zimbabwe when I visited there in 1979 on a church mission. From what I saw at that time, I can tell you that war is deadly," warned Mureri.

He also warned that war would not only destroy lives, but it would also destroy the future of many people, including young children as he had witnessed in Zimbabwe.

Mureri urged the youth from his church of over 1,5 million members to listen to their leaders. "In this church, we respect and listen to our leaders. If you want to involve yourselves in politics, do that outside the church. The Bible says we must respect our political leaders as they are chosen by God,” he added.

He told the youth to stop destroying property while involved in protest marches. "If you have problems, speak to your elders and they will listen to you," said Mureri, while adding that matric pupils should attend winter schools in order to be better prepared in their final exams later this year.

Cllr Lucas Manyuha, the aActing mayor for Vhembe District, hailed Mureri as a “leader who assists government to overcome the multitude of challenges facing our community."