The government has fired 211 doctors after they were found guilty of abstention from duty without leave or reasonable cause.

This was revealed by Health Services Board (HSB) chairperson Dr Paulinus Sikhosana in a statement. Said Dr Sikhosana:

To date, 279 doctors have been served with charge letters, 213 hearings completed and 211 doctors found guilty of absenting themselves from duty without leave or reasonable cause for days ranging from five or more.

The 211 doctors found guilty have been discharged from the health service. Three (3) doctors appeared in person before the disciplinary tribunals and two (2) doctors had their determinations reserved pending verification of their cases.

Dr Sikhosana added that 516 out of 1,601 medical doctors employed in the public sector are expected to appear before the disciplinary tribunals.

Earlier this week, the government fired 77 doctors who had been on strike for over two months as they demanded better pay and improved working conditions.

Independent|IN the famous television series MacGyver, played by Richard Dean Anderson, the main character had a knack for mysteriously engineering daring escapes from danger and saving the day.

With Finance minister Mthuli Ncube set to present his 2020 fiscal statement next week, the troubled Southern African country may be in need of its own MacGyver. In Ncube, Zimbabwean felt they had found the man who could fix the country’s economy like the amazing television character.

And this is going to be no mean task.Traditionally, the two most powerful tools government and the central banks use to steer the economy in the right direction are fiscal and monetary policy. When used correctly, the two can stimulate the economy and achieve set economic objectives.

Until Ncube showed up last year, the relationship between fiscal and monetary policy was disconnected. Government used the central bank to create money to finance fiscal deficits, a situation that triggered high inflation.

Under Ncube’s care, he has tried to rein in money supply growth in the economy. Fiscal and monetary tools help in stimulating the economy and slowing it down when it heats up.

Zimbabwe is currently experiencing low aggregate demand and Ncube is in a quandary as to how to stimulate the economy. The prevailing debate is: which one is the better tool?

Generally, government uses its spending and taxation powers to bring about changes in the economy such as aggregate demand.

The combination and interaction of government expenditure and revenue collection is a delicate balance that requires good timing and a little bit of luck to get it right.

The direct and indirect effects of fiscal policy can influence personal spending, capital expenditure, exchange rates, deficit levels, and even interest rates, which are usually associated with monetary policy.

In his pre-budget consultative meeting, Ncube realises the task at hand is near-herculean.“Mr Speaker Sir, I have noted the huge resource requirements being demanded by all ministries. As you are all aware, the capacity of the budget to finance expenditures is dependent on the capacity of the economy to generate revenues. From our deliberations, you will agree with me that revenue generation capacity is still low due to a number of challenges,” he says.

“The budget ceilings that have been given by Treasury, are therefore derived from the anticipated resources envelope from taxes and what we can borrow from the market without destabilising the economy. We also need to be mindful that unrestrained expenditures financed through unsustainable means are the major source of economic instability we are battling today.”

Ncube says an analysis of only eight bids submitted by different ministries show funding requirements of ZW$112 billion, a figure that by far exceeded the total resource envelope for the 2020 Budget.

Economic analyst Victor Bhoroma says the solution to Zimbabwe’s economic problems need more than just fiscal policy.“The solution lies with implementing the necessary reforms in governance, reining in on government expenditure, supply side intervention to grow production, strengthening institutions (rule of law, property rights and policy consistency) and confidence building. The only worry about a local currency is excessive money printing by the central bank which makes multiple currencies dearer options when forced to choose,” he says.

Bhoroma says government needs to limit expenditures.“Limiting government expenditure to tax revenues. Incentives to the productive sectors of the economy (mining and manufacturing, among others) to export and improve capacity utilisation, restoring institutional credibility (rule of law, property rights, policy consistency, central bank independence, judicial independence and title deeds for land holders to boost production,” he says. “Inclusive governance and dialogue to build domestic and international confidence.Transparent and accountable economic management (dealing with corruption decisively)”Against such an uphill task, Ncube has a daunting task ahead of him.

Among the highlights of the 2019 US$8,2 billion budget was a gross domestic product (GDP) annual growth projection of 3,1%, the privatisation of five parastatals to generate US$350 million, 5% salary cuts for senior government officials with the declaration that the multi-currency regime remains in place.

However, a year later, the reality on the ground depicts a totally different picture to what had been envisaged by Ncube in his fiscal statement last year.

The devastating impact of the power cuts, which last up to 18 hours daily, the drought and the catastrophic Cyclone Idai in the eastern parts of the country, among other challenges, have rendered government’s 3,1% growth projection way off the mark.

The International Monetary Fund has projected that the economy will instead contract by 7,2% this year.The multi-currency regime has since been banned through Statutory Instrument 142 of 2019 issued on June 24 this year, making the Zimbabwean dollar the sole legal tender.

However, economist John Robertson said the 2020 budget is likely to be much ado about nothing.“I expect a lot of waffle that adds up to promises that, again, will not be kept and the government ends up looking for someone to blame,” Robertson said.

“The best we can hope for is a stable exchange rate, but there is not much to show that will happen.”

He pointed out that lack of reforms will render most proposals in the budget futile.“I do not think there is nothing to look forward to. I just hope next year will not be worse. They are always talking about reforms, but I cannot see any evidence of it,” Robertson said.

Business consultant Simon Kayereka said the Treasury boss should address a number of issues, among them the 2% tax on electronic transactions and money supply.

“Issues that should be addressed include removing the 2% tax, which is punitive. He should reduce money supply which is stoking inflation, as well as putting measures to ensure currency stabilisation,” he said.

Ncube sees the country’s GPD shrinking by 6,5% owing to a drought and power outages in the current financial year.Ncube needs plenty of luck — or to be a financial MacGyver. Unlike MacGyver, the last scene may be one where Ncube, Zimbabwe’s poor version of the television hero, kills the once pretty girl — Zimbabwe — he once promised to rescue.

Watch video of Mthuli Ncube just after being sworn in.

FINANCE minister Mthuli Ncube says it will take at least two years for the Zimbabwean dollar — which was demonitised in 2009 before being re-introduced in June — to operate as a stable currency.

The local unit has been losing value against the United States dollar and other currencies. The US dollar was trading at 1:15 against the local currency on the interbank market this week.

Speaking to editors on Wednesday ahead of the 2020 National Budget statement scheduled for next week, Ncube said: “I think (it will take) a minimum of two years (to stabilise) because we have to make sure that the domestic currency can retain value. It is about to make sure that the domestic currency is very stable and retain value and build confidence on it and then the pricing moves away from US dollar pricing.

“It is about building confidence in domestic currency and usually that takes two years or so and that is okay and I have no issue with that as long as the domestic currency is retaining value in the process. If we allow it to depreciate faster, people will return to (the) US dollar.”

The introduction of a local currency was criticised by financial experts who argued that the country did not have solid economic fundamentals to shore up the Zimdollar.

The fundamentals include low and stable inflation, high levels of productive capacity, increased exports, foreign currency reserves, political and economic stability, reduction of high debt ratios and attaining substantial gross domestic product growth rate of at least 7%.

Ncube, however, says the currency is undervalued and there is need for the government to restore confidence in order to stabilise the Zimbabwean dollar.

“Absolutely, our currency is undervalued. There is no question about it. The study that we did, the Reserve Bank did their own independent study and we both confirmed each other’s result, working out from the equilibrium exchange market rate is giving us an exchange rate of no higher than seven so the rest is confidence, premium, and political stability,” he said.

Ncube said the transitional structures in place are aimed at achieving a tallying ratio between the dollar and the electronic transfer which is normally between 15 % and 75%.

“If you look at the cash in circulation for the rand, 15% is in circulation, 75% is electronic so we want to get to that part. That is where we are headed. But we cannot get there in one year, that’s why you see we have these transitional structures,” he said.

Meanwhile, permanent secretary in the Finance ministry George Guvamatanga said some companies, including food outlets and restaurants transacting US dollars, had been formally registered as tourist entities.

“Statutory Instrument (SI) 142, which is actually the law, is very clear and anything outside that is illegal. But I think some of the shops were very smart because they went through the back door and went to the Ministry of Tourism and registered.

“So we had two options: either to issue a SI to correct that and I have that SI and that is not an option because we don’t want to be throwing around SIs. The other option was to talk to and understand what they were trying to do. So, before I left the office I had done a letter to the Ministry of Tourism and that’s all I can say,” Guvamatanga said.

Upon introduction of the Zimbabwean dollar as the sole legal tender, government made an exception for companies in the tourism sector to continue transacting in US dollars.

Independent

A local bishop claims the prophetic movement in Southern Africa was wrongly introduced and there are no true prophets in Zimbabwe at the moment.

Bishop CB Matondo of Grace Fellowship Ministries Church blames the young generation of prophets for valuing celebrity status, fame and fortune, which is not of God.

Matondo, says the Prophetic Movement in Southern Africa was founded on a wrong foundation and principles.

Bishop CB Matondo
“The younger generation of prophets who are between 30 to 45-year age group are valuing the gift of prophecy more than the office of prophecy, functions and character of a true prophet.

“The new wave of the Prophetic Movement which focused mainly on a celebrity status, fame and fortune was wrong and not of God.

“True prophets are humble and bear fruits of the spirit not just an ability to tell people their ID numbers and names,” he said.
Matondo said there are no true prophets locally.

“The new wave of prophets who had gone to find prophetic power sources in West Africa had ruined the Prophetic Movement.

“Some people were hurt by these prophets, others lost money to them and some had lost faith in Christianity because of these prophets.

“Character is the only genuine sign that one is a genuine man of God and at the moment true prophets do not exist in Zimbabwe.

“Prophetic gift does not qualify one to be called a prophet as there are several other factors which need to be considered before one can label themselves as a prophet,” he added.

Bishop Motondo said that one cannot start as a pastor and then change office to become a prophet. “It is clearly not possible and demonstrate a misunderstanding of the 5 fold ministry and the offices thereof.
“I had been sent to restore the Prophetic Movement and make right what was wrong with the Prophetic Movement in Southern Africa,” he said.

Farai Dziva|Finance Minister, Mthuli Ncube has literally conceded failure to solve the nagging economic crisis in Zimbabwe.

Mthuli Ncube told a daily publication the stabilisation of the Zimbabwe dollar would take two years.

“I think (it will take) a minimum of two years (to stabilise) because we have to make sure that the domestic currency can retain value.

It is about to make sure that the domestic currency is very stable and retain value and build confidence on it and then the pricing moves away from US dollar pricing,” said Mthuli Ncube.

Zimbabwe outlawed the use of all foreign currencies for domestic transactions on the 24th of June this year at the same time reintroducing the Zimbabwe dollar, putting an end to the multicurrency regime the country adopted a decade ago.

THERE is growing disquiet within the rank and file of the military over the rising cost of living, poor salaries and difficult working conditions, with government now desperate for solutions to avert a security crisis.

Senior and middle-level officers, some of whom are directly involved in civil-military relations and intelligence, revealed widespread unease over the deteriorating economic situation in the country, underpinned by skyrocketing prices, high cost of living and hyperinflation, which has rendered salaries worthless.

The development has alarmed government, now frantically looking for resources to placate the army. Finance minister Mthuli Ncube told editors on Wednesday that he was alive to the prospects of instability and pledged to avail more resources to the military.

“On the security cluster, let me tell you, if you do not have peace, you will have (instability). There is need to get them a decent three meals a day; a decent uniform and then there is housing. I know the issues well. I am well briefed on their issues. We want to deal with that,” Ncube said.

Army officers who spoke to the Zimbabwe Independent revealed disgruntlement was at an all-time high in the armed service, particularly within the junior ranks.

They said junior officers are unhappy about the unfulfilled promises made by the authorities in the aftermath of the military coup which toppled the late former president Robert Mugabe in November 2017.

Some senior Zanu PF officials have also openly expressed fear that the party could lose future elections if economic solutions are not found.

Military sources said troops are also disappointed by the scrapping of certain privileges and trappings of comfort they briefly enjoyed soon after the coup.

The army, soon after the toppling of Mugabe, had become extremely powerful, taking over some of the roles previously reserved for the civilian intelligence service and the police. For instance, sources said, in the first few months after the coup, soldiers took over the presidential close security tasks from the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO), while the Zimbabwe Republic Police were relegated to peripheral roles.

However, after Mnangagwa secured a razor-thin victory in last year’s disputed general election, he went on a purging spree, removing some influential generals from the military and reconfiguring other sections as he solidified his grip on power. The CIO is now back in charge of Mnangagwa’s close security and the spy agency has seen the privileges it enjoyed under the old Mugabe order being restored.

Mnangagwa’s mistrust of the military grew exponentially when his second-in-command, Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga, made indications that he planned to take over power in 2023. Chiwenga was the commander of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces when Mugabe was ousted.

“There is widespread disgruntlement in the army mainly over the terrible state of the economy. If you read the weekly situation reports submitted to the Office of the President and Cabinet by various army departments, you will be shocked by the level of frankness with which these issues are articulated. The biggest complaint among soldiers is that they have not been spared the economic crisis and their families are going hungry like everyone else. They also have rentals and bills to pay,” a military source said.

A senior army official also said frequent meetings are being held involving high-ranking officers from various departments and regiments where open and frank conversations about the state of affairs in the country are discussed and reports are produced. However, sources said, commanders — who are accused of enjoying higher perks than their juniors — have developed a habit of watering down the reports to conceal the level of restlessness in the rank and file.

“To tell you the truth, the bosses are edgy. There are fears that if the grievances raised by the restive soldiers are not urgently addressed, the situation could have grave consequences. In fact, in one of the meetings recently held, one of the senior officers stated that the economic mismanagement by government was equivalent to Zanu PF people digging their political graves using a table spoon. Someone then joked that, in fact, they were now digging with a proper shovel. It’s a very delicate situation,” the source said.

Sources further said the army’s Directorate of Signals has been receiving alarming situation reports (or sitreps as they are called in military parlance), as reported by the Independent in February. The reports have continued to flow in.

“The signals gauge the morale of the army sent by the Directorate of Signals to each army unit. Of late, they have been very worrying, particularly since January when things started going bad,” an officer said.

“Basically, sitreps serve the purpose of gauging and determining the morale levels within the army. What I can say is that morale is at its lowest ever.”

The developments also come at a time government is battling a huge rebellion from the rest of its employees, who on Wednesday protested over the same grievances but were restricted by police.

This week, government announced it had fired 77 doctors who have not been reporting for duty for the past two months, citing incapacitation and was investigating more of its workers. The strike has paralysed the health sector. In terms of the constitution, however, the security forces are prohibited from going on strike.

Government, battling to mobilise foreign currency to finance key budgetary priorities, has said it cannot afford to meet the salary demands of its workforce, having already seen its paltry 70% increment rejected. On average, low-ranking civil servants earn around ZW$700 per month, an equivalent of US$42, according to the prevailing parallel market exchange rate.

Conditions within the barracks, military sources said, have deteriorated, as Zimbabwe reels from the devastating impact of a multifaceted economic crisis.

Contacted for comment, Zimbabwe National Army spokesperson Colonel Overson Mugwisi yesterday said after he consulted his superiors, the army decided it would only respond to the Independent’s inquiries into the conditions of service within the military today.

— Zimbabwe Independent

The Mberengwa duo comprising of twins Tafadzwa and Tanaka of the Musandu family, Mposi Village under headman Guta, Chief Mataga are on the run.

This follows a defiance of a cultural initiation ceremony where they were expected to inherit artefacts which include witchcraft from their late father’s estate.

In Zimbabwe, witchcraft can be inherited from one’s mother or some maternal ancestor who was her-self a witch or possession by an alien spirit or acquired through medicines provided by another witch.

Similarly, men can also become heir to witchcraft from their ancestors and may acquire it through means such as those already alluded to in relation to women.A neighbor of the twins who spoke to this publication on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals from the immediate family confirmed the occultic happenings surrounding the Musandu family.

“Twins a male and a female are actually on the run after a ceremony where they were set to be initiated in the dark operations of witchcraft had to be abandoned midway,” said the neighbor.

“The process was already underway, where the duo was expected to assume ownership of all their father’s estate including the traditional artefacts and the presiding traditional officer was already undertaking the initiation process when they eloped”.

“They are assumed to have skipped out of the country and the process needs to be completed for their father’s spirit to rest or else they would know no peace,” said the villager.

Under local cultural values, the twins have to come back to complete the initiation process.

What makes the matter complex is that the law enforcement agencies cannot have their hand in the matter since there is no law which criminalizes witchcraft in the country.

Such cases are often regarded as family issues and the law heavily subscribes to the local culture which values families.

Witchcraft is a manifestation of mystical forces which may be in-born in a person, inherited, or acquired and the commonly used methods of detecting witches in Zimbabwe include divination either by spirit possession or the throwing of bones which is undertaken by a traditional healer.

The belief in occult forces is deeply-rooted in Zimbabwe, regardless of the levels of education, religion and social class.

Zimbabweans generally tend to believe that a realm of the occult exists and regularly interacts with the physical sphere of existence.

By A Correspondent- A teacher at a Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) church-run primary school in Bulawayo has been convicted for hitting a Grade Three pupil against a desk resulting in the child losing a tooth and two other lower frontal teeth becoming loose after he reportedly failed to solve a Maths problem.

Sanele Khumalo (57) who was a teacher at Queen Elizabeth Adventist Primary School pleaded not guilty to assault but was convicted by Western Commonage magistrate Gladmore Mushove.

Meanwhile, Khumalo will be handed his jail package on 5 December after his lawyer pleaded with the court to give him time to pay the boy’s medical bills so that he can receive a “lighter sentence”.

According to a medical report, following the brutal attack, the pupil suffered permanent damage to his front tooth.

Khumalo was convicted after a full trial with a number of witnesses testifying, including three doctors who examined the boy roundly confirming that from their observation it was clear that considerable force was used for the tooth to break.

In her judgment, Mushove ruled that there was overwhelming evidence that the accused indeed committed the “heinous” crime.

“Looking at the flow of the evidence from the complainant to the mother and the doctors the court was satisfied that the accused indeed assaulted the complainant,” she said.

According to court papers, on 11 October 2017 and at around 8 am the boy was in class when accused who was his teacher at that time flew into a rage after he reportedly failed to solve a long division sum.

The enraged Khumalo, the court heard, severely hit the complainant’s head against the table once which resulted in him losing his tooth with the other two becoming loose.

A medical report was produced in court as an exhibit amid fears that the pupil suffered a permanent disability as a result of the attack.

In his defence, Khumalo said on the day in question he was monitoring the pupils and when he got to the complainant’s desk, he just gave him a little pat on the shoulder but the boy reacted by accidentally hitting his head on the desk.

His lawyer also submitted that the there was no evidence that the accused committed an offence adding that the evidence which was led by the complainant was at variance with that of his mother, the dentists and teacher-in-charge and also with the statements given to the State one-and-a-half years later.

Meanwhile, in September a deputy head at Nyamandlovu Primary School was found guilty of committing a “serious breach of trust” when she brutally assaulted a Grade Seven Pupil several times on the head with a mopane switch as punishment for making noise.

Victoria Vambe (52) was arrested after the 12-year-old pupil’s father learnt of the crime and notified the police.

This was after the boy, who sustained bruises on the scalp and swollen eyes, also developed signs of post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of the assault.

-StateMedia

By A Correspondent- Zanu PF supporters, who were bussed to the mining indaba in Gweru to beef up numbers ahead of President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s address on Wednesday, caused a raucous at feeding points as they threatened to run away with the delegates’ food if they continued to be denied access to lunch.

Anti-riot police had to called in to quell the restive crowd.

In a bid to avoid the embarrassment of addressing empty chairs at crucial events like what happened at previous events in Harare and Mashonaland Central, the Zanu PF Midlands provincial leadership took a decision to bus its supporters from all districts to fill up the Gweru Convention Centre, where Mnangagwa was guest speaker.

Midlands State University students, college students and mothers with babies on their backs as well as the elderly were also bussed to the venue that was supposed to be purely a formal business meeting of mine owners and government officials, among other stakeholders.

The situation degenerated into chaos as the Zanu PF supporters occupied front seats with delegates, who had paid for the two-day event and those accredited, failing to get comfortable places inside the venue.

During lunch time, the Zanu PF supporters clogged VIP delegates’ feeding points and riot police had to be called in to crush the restive activists who were clad in party regalia.

However, Dosman Mangisi, the Zimbabwe Mining Federation spokesperson said there was nothing wrong with what Zanu PF did at the event.

“Zanu PF has strong grassroots in rural areas, as people in the rural mining district are bonafide members of ruling party, they felt it necessary to be in solidarity with it since it champions empowerment programmes. It was not a party event at all. The issues articulated were all mining related,” he said.

Mangisi confirmed witnessing the fracas that saw riot police being called in.

“I did see that happening because I was part of the security. One big thing to note is that the small-scale miners were excited to interface with the Head of State and government, the chief principal of the mining sector. It was an inaugural event. The event has already been placed on the annual calendar,” he said.

Mangisi denied reports by miners that they had failed to get food as the organisers had to feed Zanu PF supporters.

“Delegates were well fed. It’s only that the event finished a bit late, and people had to go.

Delegate cards were less in terms of the numbers,” he said.

Asked on whether the organisers expected the large numbers that turned up at the meeting causing confusion in the process, Mangisi said: “We were expecting the figures, Midlands has 20 associations and each association was supposed to bring 200 miners.

“We had people from Mt Darwin, Plumtree, Mutare and Makuti, which are far from Midlands. Each province was supposed to bring 2 000 miners as targets. And there are about 1,5 million miners in the country. The conference hall has an 8 000 sitting capacity.”

However, miners, who spoke to a local publication expressed disappointment, saying they never anticipated the event to become a political gathering. 

-Newsday

By A Correspondent- Zimbabwe’s health system has been plunged deeper into crisis after the country’s Health Service Board discharged an additional 134 doctors for absenting themselves from duty without leave or reasonable cause for days ranging from five or more.

The doctors downed tools over two months ago demanding the pegging of their salaries to the prevailing interbank rate as a precondition for their return to work.

The doctors are also demanding that government capacitates hospitals with basic health services to enable them to save lives.

A total 516 out of 1,601 medical doctors employed in the public sector are expected to appear before the disciplinary tribunals.

In a statement Friday afternoon, HSB said 211 doctors “found guilty have been discharged from the health service”. Three (3) doctors appeared in person before the disciplinary tribunals and two (2) doctors had their determinations reserved pending verification of their cases,” HSB said.

“Cognizant of the need for continuous dialogue with its employees, on 10 October 2019, the Health Service Board met with both the Senior and Junior doctors.

“On 29 October 2019, the HSB again met the Zimbabwe Hospital Doctor’s Association (ZHDA) in the presence of the Executive Director for the Community Working Group on Health (CWGH) where the ZHDA presented a position paper,” HSB said.

“Again, the ZHDA demanded the pegging of their salaries to the prevailing interbank rate as a precondition for their return to work.

“In line with section 4 of the Labour Act (National Employment Code of Conduct), the disciplinary hearings continue, whereby 516 out of 1,601 medical doctors employed in the public sector are expected to appear before the disciplinary tribunals,” the board added.

Doctors have said they want to go back to work, but were without the means to do so.

“On September 3, 2019, doctors nationwide made it clear that they were not embarking on a strike but that they had become incapacitated. The will and desire is there, but the means to execute their duties does not exist,” ZHDA is on record as saying.

-ZimMorningPost

By A Correspondent- A top Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) official has been fingered in a well-orchestrated police corruption scam by a subordinate who has since been granted protection by the High Court after exposing the alleged dirty deals.

Assistant Commissioner Clever Macheka’s alleged shenanigans were exposed when Assistant Inspector Mutindi approached the High Court challenging his unlawful transfer after denouncing the habit of extorting suspects at police stations for the top cop’s benefit.

Mutindi dragged the chief staff officer human resources (PGHQ) and police Commissioner-General Godwin Matanga to court after he was unceremoniously transferred from Hatfield Police Station to four other stations within a 13-month period.

“My question is how many I/C Crimes are being abused, but are silent for fear of victimisation and how are we going to curb corruption when senior officers are sending members to get money for their benefit? This is typical of the old dispensation,” Mutindi said.

“Surely even if Assistant Commissioner Macheka would want to extort money from members can someone transfer a member to four stations within 13 months?

“It is glaringly clear that he is abusing his office for selfish reasons and if left unchallenged, he would abuse more and corruption would be perpetrated infinitely.”

Mutindi’s matter was on Wednesday brought before High Court judge Justice Benjamin Chikowero, who ruled in his favour and slapped the chief staff officer human resources (PGHQ) with costs.

Mutindi had submitted through his lawyer, Norman Mugiya, that his transfers were meant to induce him to resign because he had refused to be part of a corrupt police force.

“The four transfers of the applicant (Mutindi) at the instance of the first respondent (chief staff officer human resources (PGHQ)) be and are hereby declared to be unlawful and wrongful and accordingly set aside,” Justice Chikowero ruled.

“The first respondent is ordered to allow the applicant to remain stationed at ZRP Chitungwiza until and unless a transfer is to be initiated in terms of the law and a proper notice and the provision of all payable allowances is made. The first respondent is ordered to pay costs.”

According to court papers, Mutindi was initially stationed at Hatfield Police Station, transferred to St Mary’s and hardly four months later, was moved to ZRP Chitungwiza and later to Waterfalls Police Station without any reasons.

“What I discovered is that these harassing transfers were doctored by Assistant Commissioner Clever Macheka after I refused to be pressured to comply to his unlawful demands of extorting accused persons at ZRP St Mary’s and give him cash in order to buy favour with him,” Mutindi said.

“When I refused to co-operate with the said Assistant Commissioner Macheka he told me that I would pay for it and he would not rest until I am transferred to a fixing station or to be frustrated until I leave the organisation. I refused to budge, hence the reason why I am now suffering.”

Mutindi added: “When I refused to do what is clearly unlawful he then decided to use his influence to fix me as he is now doing. Consistent with his promise to fix me, I was transferred from ZRP St Mary’s to ZRP Chitungwiza administration within two weeks and he told Chief Inspector Mutabvuka never to allow me anywhere near the crime division”. 

-Newsday

Correspondent|The ruling Zanu-PF seems to be on a roll when it comes to finding new ways of empowering its supporters across the country.

A few months after launching “bush bakeries” equipped with the most rudimentary equipment across the country, the party has now launched a fish farming project at the Zanu-PF Headquarters, in Harare’s central business district.

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State Media|Zimbabwe People’s Front political party president Owen Kuchata who is serving nine years in jail for attempting to petrol-bomb the former first family’s Alpha Omega Dairy farm in Mazowe has made a u-turn claiming he was not advised of his right to legal representation at trial.

Kuchata who was sentenced in 2016 opined that his plea of guilty was not made freely and voluntarily. He is applying at the High Court for review of proceedings made by Harare magistrate Mr Hoseah Mujaya. In a handwritten application from his prison cell, Kuchata wants the High Court to nullify Mr Mujaya’s decision or procedure on February 9, 2016 of not advising him of his right to legal representation.

MDC Treasurer General David Coltart says the circulating judgment purportedly being the full Chamisa vs Mnangagwa election petition judgment is poor and riddled with inconsistencies.

Chamisa lost the election petition against Mnangagwa in August 2018 and the court was yet to issue the full judgment.

Said Coltart, “It is hard to believe that trained, experienced, judicial officers could have written this judgment. For now, I will wait confirmation that this is the official judgment and will give the above named Judges the benefit of the doubt until then.”

Read the full statement below:

I have just had a quick read of a document which purports to be the judgment handed down by Chief Justice Malaba in the case Chamisa versus Mnangagwa, some 14 months after the application was dismissed.

The document I have read concludes as follows:

CONCLUSION

In the final analysis, the Court found that the applicant failed to place before it clear, sufficient, direct and credible evidence to prove the irregularities he levelled against the Commission. He also failed to prove the allegation of electoral malpractices he levelled against the first respondent. The applicant did not prove the alleged irregularities as a matter of fact. It would be unnecessary in the circumstances to ask and answer the question whether the alleged irregularities affected the result of the Presidential election.

It is an internationally accepted principle of election disputes that an election is not set aside merely on the basis that an irregularity occurred. There is a presumption of validity of an election. This is so because as long as the election was conducted substantially in terms of the constitution and all laws governing the conduct of the elections it would have reflected the will of the people. An election can only be set aside if it is proved on a balance of probabilities that the irregularities shown by clear and credible evidence to have been committed by officers of the body charged with the duty to conduct the election in accordance with the law of elections affected the result. It is not for a court to decide elections; it is the people who do so. It is the duty of the courts to strive in the public interest to sustain that which the people have expressed as their will.

GWAUNZA, DCJ: I agree
GARWE, JCC: I agree
MAKARAU, JCC: I agree
HLATSHWAYO, JCC: I agree
PATEL, JCC: I agree
BHUNU, JCC: I agree
UCHENA, JCC: I agree
MAKONI, JCC: I agree”

If this is the official judgment it is an exceptionally poor judgment riddled with inconsistencies and faults. To give but one example the superficial manner in which the Court dismisses the allegations regarding the non compliance by the ZBC and other State owned media of section 61(4) of the Constitution is simply shocking. It is hard to believe that trained, experienced, judicial officers could have written this judgment. For now I will wait confirmation that this is the official judgment and will give the above named Judges the benefit of the doubt until then.

OPPOSITION MDC leader Nelson Chamisa has chided President Emmerson Mnangagwa for putting the country into a de facto state of emergency and his reliance on the police to stifle dissenting voices against his “failed leadership.”

By Everson Mushava

Chamisa made the remarks yesterday after the police on Wednesday blocked civil servants from marching and presenting petitions to the ministries of Labour and Finance over poor salaries.

“It is no longer an MDC issue; it is a people’s issue, a national survival issue,” Chamisa said.

“The country is now threatened by those in authority. We are in de facto state of emergency; a de facto police State. Everyone has become a criminal. We cannot have the police everyday fighting with the people on the street.”

On Wednesday, police blocked a handful of government workers from marching to government offices with a petition demanding better salaries, reneging on an earlier pledge to allow the demonstration to go ahead.

The protest was largely seen by many observers as an acid test for Mnangagwa’s willingness to tolerate dissent after banning protests by the MDC and worker unions.

Huge police deployments have stopped the opposition party from protesting against the deteriorating economic situation in the country, apart from using law enforcement agents to outlaw the protest.

In August, police banned MDC rallies that were supposed to spread to all cities across the country over the deteriorating economic situation in the country.

The police also banned yet another MDC protest planned for October 24, a day before the Mnangagwa’s Sadc solidarity anti-sanctions march and also blocked another one by the vendors last month after trying in vain to block another one by the doctors in September. Several protests by labour unions were also blocked by the police since August.

In January this year, police together with the military launched a violent crackdown against fuel protests called by the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions and social movements, resulting in the death of at least 17 people at the hands of security agents.More in Home

Police have also on several occasions blocked teachers from protesting against poor working conditions and last week locked down the Harare CBD to prevent vendors from demonstrating against the death of their colleague in remand prison days after he was brutally assaulted by police officers.

“Mnangagwa’s days are numbered. Terror and tyranny are not sustainable instruments of leadership. The two are perishable instruments of power. He should simply give people the right to express themselves,” Chamisa said.

“Relying on violence is a sign of weak leadership. This only shows that his days are numbered. One cannot unleash violence on the people who work for him.

“Why should he look at civil servants as evil serpents? Why block their march, why fire doctors, is it because they are treated outside the country? Why punish doctors, look at the investment in training them? Why do you fire what you have in short supply? How does that work, victimising people demanding decent wages.”

Government this week fired 77 doctors who had been on strike for over 60 days demanding salaries indexed on the US dollar interbank rate. The decision by government not to resolve its impasse with the doctors has been widely criticised for destroying the country’s public health sector.

But Information deputy minister Energy Mutodi denied that the civil servants were denied the right to march.

“No one was blocked from marching. The civil servants marched but police blocked the offices of the Labour minister and that of the Finance minister as a precautionary measure as well as to guarantee the security of the ministers,” Mutodi said, this despite that the marchers were restricted to only a 100 metre radius at the Public Service Association House.

“Chamisa is trying to capitalise on demonstrations as he hopes to attain power through the back door. That will not happen. We are a democratic country and we follow the Constitution. Government is aware of the plight of its workers and will be addressing the concerns they have raised including an upward adjustment of their salaries.”

But Chamisa said Mnangagwa was hypocritical for blocking others from protesting at a time he allowed his own protests to go ahead.

“The irony is you prohibit Zimbabweans to demonstrate when they want to do so in their large numbers but you allow yourself to demonstrate when people don’t want to join you, like what you did at the anti-sanctions march,” Chamisa said.

“People boycotted because they don’t believe in your leadership. In leadership, when you don’t have followers, you are just walking. The anti-sanctions march showed that the President was just walking.”

The opposition leader said government can’t tell its workers that it was broke and unable to hike their salaries when Mnangagwa spent millions hiring a private luxury jet, receive treatment in foreign lands and children of his top administration study abroad.

The youthful leader said corruption in public institutions was the biggest vice denying diligent workers living wages.

Heavy police presence, Chamisa said, will not deter his party from taking “available legal remedies to enforce restoration of rule of law.”

“We believe in peace. We still have the Constitution as our instrument and it is the duty of the people to create new circumstances within the confines of the law. The new circumstances are decided by the people of Zimbabwe and the power is in our hands,” Chamisa said, without elaborating.

He, however, admitted that dialogue was important, but said consensus was indispensable. “Dialogue is important but it is generational consensus that is important. When people fought the liberation struggle, there was generational consensus. The liberation struggle succeeded because there was consensus. Now, we need a democratisation and transformation consensus. Dialogue can only be predicated on consensus, when there is a uniform definition of the problem as well as the solution,” Chamisa said.

He said Zimbabwe’s problems were mainly political.

“Our politics must be fixed in order to fix the economy. Solve the political problems first and the economy will follow. Good politics breeds good economics,” he said.

-Newsday

By A Correspondent- Opposition leader Nelson Chamisa has said heavy police presence, will not deter his party from taking “available legal remedies to enforce restoration of rule of law.”

In an interview with a local publication, Chamisa said:

“We believe in peace. We still have the Constitution as our instrument and it is the duty of the people to create new circumstances within the confines of the law. The new circumstances are decided by the people of Zimbabwe and the power is in our hands.

Dialogue is important but it is generational consensus that is important. When people fought the liberation struggle, there was generational consensus. The liberation struggle succeeded because there was consensus. Now, we need a democratisation and transformation consensus. Dialogue can only be predicated on consensus, when there is a uniform definition of the problem as well as the solution.”

He said Zimbabwe’s problems were mainly political.

“Our politics must be fixed in order to fix the economy. Solve the political problems first and the economy will follow. Good politics breeds good economics,” he said.

-Newsday

The current bank exchange rates for the ZWL$ today are as follows:

USD = ZWL$15.8573
ZWL$ = RAND0.9300
Data according to the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe

Black Market Rates:

USD = ZWL$21.30 zimrates
USD = ZWL$21.5 zwl365
USD = ZWL$20.80 bluemari [07 November 2019]
USD = BOND14.80 bluemari [07 November 2019]

– Marketwatch

THERE is growing disquiet within the rank and file of the military over the rising cost of living, poor salaries and difficult working conditions, with government now desperate for solutions to avert a security crisis.

Senior and middle-level officers, some of whom are directly involved in civil-military relations and intelligence, revealed widespread unease over the deteriorating economic situation in the country, underpinned by skyrocketing prices, high cost of living and hyperinflation, which has rendered salaries worthless.

The development has alarmed government, now frantically looking for resources to placate the army. Finance minister Mthuli Ncube told editors on Wednesday that he was alive to the prospects of instability and pledged to avail more resources to the military.

“On the security cluster, let me tell you, if you do not have peace, you will have (instability). There is need to get them a decent three meals a day; a decent uniform and then there is housing. I know the issues well. I am well briefed on their issues. We want to deal with that,” Ncube said.

Army officers who spoke to the Zimbabwe Independent revealed disgruntlement was at an all-time high in the armed service, particularly within the junior ranks.

They said junior officers are unhappy about the unfulfilled promises made by the authorities in the aftermath of the military coup which toppled the late former president Robert Mugabe in November 2017.

Some senior Zanu PF officials have also openly expressed fear that the party could lose future elections if economic solutions are not found.

Military sources said troops are also disappointed by the scrapping of certain privileges and trappings of comfort they briefly enjoyed soon after the coup.

The army, soon after the toppling of Mugabe, had become extremely powerful, taking over some of the roles previously reserved for the civilian intelligence service and the police. For instance, sources said, in the first few months after the coup, soldiers took over the presidential close security tasks from the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO), while the Zimbabwe Republic Police were relegated to peripheral roles.

However, after Mnangagwa secured a razor-thin victory in last year’s disputed general election, he went on a purging spree, removing some influential generals from the military and reconfiguring other sections as he solidified his grip on power. The CIO is now back in charge of Mnangagwa’s close security and the spy agency has seen the privileges it enjoyed under the old Mugabe order being restored.

Mnangagwa’s mistrust of the military grew exponentially when his second-in-command, Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga, made indications that he planned to take over power in 2023. Chiwenga was the commander of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces when Mugabe was ousted.

“There is widespread disgruntlement in the army mainly over the terrible state of the economy. If you read the weekly situation reports submitted to the Office of the President and Cabinet by various army departments, you will be shocked by the level of frankness with which these issues are articulated. The biggest complaint among soldiers is that they have not been spared the economic crisis and their families are going hungry like everyone else. They also have rentals and bills to pay,” a military source said.

A senior army official also said frequent meetings are being held involving high-ranking officers from various departments and regiments where open and frank conversations about the state of affairs in the country are discussed and reports are produced. However, sources said, commanders — who are accused of enjoying higher perks than their juniors — have developed a habit of watering down the reports to conceal the level of restlessness in the rank and file.

“To tell you the truth, the bosses are edgy. There are fears that if the grievances raised by the restive soldiers are not urgently addressed, the situation could have grave consequences. In fact, in one of the meetings recently held, one of the senior officers stated that the economic mismanagement by government was equivalent to Zanu PF people digging their political graves using a table spoon. Someone then joked that, in fact, they were now digging with a proper shovel. It’s a very delicate situation,” the source said.

Sources further said the army’s Directorate of Signals has been receiving alarming situation reports (or sitreps as they are called in military parlance), as reported by the Independent in February. The reports have continued to flow in.

“The signals gauge the morale of the army sent by the Directorate of Signals to each army unit. Of late, they have been very worrying, particularly since January when things started going bad,” an officer said.

“Basically, sitreps serve the purpose of gauging and determining the morale levels within the army. What I can say is that morale is at its lowest ever.”

The developments also come at a time government is battling a huge rebellion from the rest of its employees, who on Wednesday protested over the same grievances but were restricted by police.

This week, government announced it had fired 77 doctors who have not been reporting for duty for the past two months, citing incapacitation and was investigating more of its workers. The strike has paralysed the health sector. In terms of the constitution, however, the security forces are prohibited from going on strike.

Government, battling to mobilise foreign currency to finance key budgetary priorities, has said it cannot afford to meet the salary demands of its workforce, having already seen its paltry 70% increment rejected. On average, low-ranking civil servants earn around ZW$700 per month, an equivalent of US$42, according to the prevailing parallel market exchange rate.

Conditions within the barracks, military sources said, have deteriorated, as Zimbabwe reels from the devastating impact of a multifaceted economic crisis.

Contacted for comment, Zimbabwe National Army spokesperson Colonel Overson Mugwisi yesterday said after he consulted his superiors, the army decided it would only respond to the Independent’s inquiries into the conditions of service within the military today.

— Zimbabwe Independent

VICE-PRESIDENT Constantino Chiwenga, who was airlifted to China from South Africa in July amid poisoning fears, is preparing to return home after making a remarkable recovery at a top hospital in Beijing, where he underwent two life-saving operations.

The vice-president is expected back in Zimbabwe either at the end of the month or at the beginning of December. A sickly and emaciated Chiwenga was rushed to Beijing at a time many government and family members had lost hope that he would recover, prompting a scramble for his position among senior Zanu PF and government officials.

Family, government, military officials and an official resident in Beijing told the Zimbabwe Independent that the former army general is now fit enough to fly back home although he has not fully recovered.

“He is now in very good shape. Remember, when he was airlifted to China he was in a terrible state and was severely emancipated. He was weighing 55 kilogrammes and could not eat, but he is now weighing about 90kgs,” an official said.

“We cannot say he is 100% fit because he is still receiving medical care in hospital. But the progress has been quite amazing.

“When he went to China, he could not eat because his oesophagus was blocked, but now he is able to eat on his own. He can even eat meat now. His voice is also now sharp and loud, but when he went to China, his words were hardly audible
.
“If all goes well, he will be coming at the end of this month or at the beginning of December.”

Chiwenga underwent two delicate operations to clear part of his oesophagus which was blocked. The oesophagus is a muscular tube which connects the mouth to the stomach. When swallowing food, the walls of the oesophagus contract, enabling food to move down to the stomach.

Because of the blockage, officials revealed, Chiwenga was unable to eat, resulting in him becoming emaciated due to illness and lack of food.

He was flown to Beijing in bad condition and was rushed to hospital on landing. Chiwenga was admitted to the intensive care unit of a state-of-the-art hospital in a high security area before being moved to a private ward, where he is still admitted.

After intensive tests, doctors determined Chiwenga should undergo a critical operation. He was, however, deemed too weak for the procedure, prompting doctors to put him on intensive intravenous feeding — to nourish his body through the veins.

Officials revealed the former military commander could not undergo the entire procedure because of his condition, hence the decision to ensure that he gets time to recover before being subjected to another operation.

“Both operations went very well and he and those around him are pleased with the Chinese medical team as well as the care and hospitality he has been receiving. Although he is in hospital, the Chinese have made sure that he is very comfortable and has everything that he needs in a very private suite. His aides are also very well-catered for,” a Beijing-based official said.

Chiwenga’s close associates say he was poisoned by his political rivals, although the vice-president has not revealed the cause of his ailment.

However, in May last year, while speaking at the burial of his sister Margaret Machekabuwe in Marondera, Chiwenga said he fell ill during Operation Restore Legacy — the coup which ousted Robert Mugabe.

Operation Restore Legacy was the code name for the military coup which toppled Mugabe in November 2017, resulting in President Emmerson Mnangagwa rising to the presidency. In its initial stages, the illness caused Chiwenga’s skin to turn lighter in complexion, resulting in speculation that he was using skin-lightening creams and might have skin cancer.

Chiwenga, however, said his new light complexion was the result of a rare disease that afflicted him.“Let me say this since the media are here. During Operation Restore Legacy, I was with General (Phillip Valerio) Sibanda (Zimbabwe Defence Forces commander), he is a great man as you see him, I also called (Police Commissioner-General Godwin) Matanga (to the meeting). Unfortunately, I fell very sick, while in their company,” he said.

“This is what caused my sickness to the extent of having a light skin. I was affected all over the body, and the papers said I am applying a skin-lightening cream.”

Chiwenga was flown to China after similar trips to India and South Africa failed to yield results. The Chinese government is regularly updating the government of Zimbabwe through direct communication between President Xi Jinping and President Mnangagwa as well as through the Chinese embassy.

Chiwenga’s health woes had ignited frenzied jostling for his seat, with Zanu PF national chairperson Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri emerging as the front-runner.

Some Zanu PF heavyweights were also pushing for Chiwenga’s ouster using Section 97 of the constitution which provides for the removal of a vice-president on incapacitation grounds. Muchinguri-Kashiri appeared to be the overwhelming favourite for the position as she enjoyed support from Mnangagwa.

Mnangagwa wanted to appoint Muchinguri-Kashiri as one of his deputies soon after the coup, which ended former president Robert Mugabe’s 37-year rule, but the military demanded that the position be given to Chiwenga who, at the time, insisted on being in charge of the influential Defence and War Veterans portfolios.

However, Muchinguri-Kashiri was facing fierce competition from Information minister Monica Mutsvangwa, who was propped up by her belligerent husband, Chris. Mutsvangwa also boasts similar liberation war credentials as Muchinguri-Kashiri and fits perfectly into the emerging gender narrative.

Before her arrest on corruption allegations, former tourism minister Prisca Mupfumira was also in the race. ZDF commander Lieutenant-General Sibanda’s name was also mentioned, although he was considered a rank outsider.

His biggest challenge is that he has Zapu/Zipra roots along with the other Vice-President Kembo Mohadi. Sibanda’s other challenge, according to senior Zanu PF officials, is that he comes from the Midlands province like Mnangagwa, and his appointment would thus upset the delicate ethnic balancing imperative, a big factor in Zanu PF politics.

-Zimbabwe Independent

This article is extracted without editing from Spotlight Zimbabwe.

PARIS/CAPE TOWN– President Emmerson Mnangagwa, has allegedly been told by China to either resign or retire from office as Zimbabwe leader, and handover power to Vice President, Rtd General Constantino Chiwenga, or risk facing unspecified political action from Beijing, Spotlight Zimbabwe, has gathered.

 
It was not apparent last night, what course of action the Asian political and economic giant was going to take if Mnangagwa refuses to go, with speculation that VP Chiwenga, who is in China and is expected home before the end of next month to act as president during Mnangagwa’s annual Christmas leave, could be coming home to push out Mnangagwa for good, for failing to resolve the country’s economic situation and more seriously, for reportedly cunningly overturning former President Robert Mugabe’s “Look East Policy”, thus placing China’s economic interests in Zimbabwe under grave threat.

 
Spotlight Zimbabwe, last month reported that, hardline securocrats in Chiwenga’s camp, now want him to be the country’s president, and that he steps in to finish off Mnangagwa’s term between 2020-2023, before making way to a successor of his choice, who will contest the next presidential plebiscite on a ruling Zanu-PF ticket as a civilian leader, with the alleged blessing and orchestration of China.

Current Zimbabwe Defence Forces (ZDF) Commander, General Philip Valerio Sibanda, is hotly tipped to become Chiwenga’s first vice president, should he ascend to the highest office in the land.

 
Sibanda and Chiwenga are believed to have made a secret pact, to hand Zimbabwe power to each other in the aftermath of Mnangagwa’s downfall.

 
According to a former intelligence minister and high level sources in the Office of the President and Cabinet (OPC), the writing is now on the wall for Mnangagwa, because he is said to have angered China’s leader, Xi Jinping, by deceitfully slowly doing away with Mugabe’s “Look East Policy” under his “new dispensation” and “Zimbabwe is open for business” mantra.

The former intelligence minister has also revealed for the first time, that China was the brains behind Mnangagwa’s promotion to vice president in 2014, after lobbying Mugabe on his behalf, with the view of maintaining and expanding the “Look East Policy”, which favoured economic ties and trade with China, together with other Asian nations ahead of the West.

 
“There is a serious political battle for the heart and soul of this country pitting China and the West,” said the one time Mugabe minister.

 
“What Zimbabweans don’t know is that China is the brains behind Mnangagwa’s promotion to the office of vice president in December 2014, after lobbying Mugabe to elevate him with the understanding that, Mnangagwa was going to consolidate the country’s Look East Policy, which promotes and protects China’s enormous economic interests in Zimbabwe. However that is all under threat, as Mnangagwa is now seeking re-engagement with the West and doing business with Eurasia, upon advice from finance ministry officials.”

 
The former minister said he will not be surprised if China is going to remove Mnangagwa because: “They put him there, when we had clearly initially opposed his VP appointment and Mugabe was aware of our position.Without China, he was not going to be vice president and subsequently the president. We know that a hidden Chinese hand was played in November 2017 to make Mnangagwa the president.”

 
Apart from Mnangagwa’s economic policy changes, OPC sources said China had recently told Mnangagwa through emissaries in Chiwenga’s office to “resign or retire” gracefully as Zimbabwe president, or risk facing unspecified political action from Beijing.
“Yes the possibilities of another coup to topple him (Mnangagwa) are very high. The whole government and even our office is divided over him and Chiwenga,” OPC sources said.

 
“However the reason China wants him out is because he has made them angry by reneging on a number of deals he made with Beijing in 2015, a few months after becoming vice president when he took a controversial trip there, which ended up angering Mugabe because it was linked to his succession. Some of the deals included offering China Railway, the contract to refurbish and reconstruct a new national railway network for Zimbabwe worth billions, but it now appears that a Western powerhouse (name supplied) is in negotiation to take over the massive project from the Chinese. Mnangagwa also undertook to give China exclusive diamonds and platinum claims in the country, but they have lost to Russia on that front. Emissaries from Chiwenga’s office in Harare have relayed the message that China wants him to resign or retire gracefully to make way for the VP, otherwise action is going to be taken against him.”

 
Spotlight Zimbabwe, can also exclusively report today according to senior staffers at the Zimbabwe Embassy in China that, Mnangagwa was also supposed to appoint former Zimbabwe Ambassador to China, Christopher Mutsvangwa, as his first vice president when he became president in November 2017 after toppling Mugabe in a coup, but deviated from an agreed plan with the Chinese.

 
Mutsvangwa played a pivotal role during the grand scheme to remove Mugabe coordinating intelligence and communications between then ZDF boss Chiwenga and Beijing from the capital and a command center in South Africa, from where he was operating after Mnangagwa was briefly fired from government by Mugabe.

 
It is also coming to light, from new information provided at hand, that had Mnangagwa honoured the original Chinese plan, Chiwenga was going to remain in charge of the military and only handover to General Sibanda, after Mutsvangwa succeeded Mnangagwa and appoints Chiwenga as first VP in his successor administration, which could have seen the formation of another government of national unity, to rope in opposition elements.

 
Mutsvangwa’s efforts to negotiate a coalition government with former prime minister, Morgan Tsvangirai, after the November 2017 military putsch, was in vain as Mnangagwa refused to share power with the MDC-T.

 
“Mnangagwa had ideas of his own and ended up being forced to appoint Mutsvangwa as his special presidential adviser, so he could remain the eyes and ears of China in the presidency. To ease tension and further mistrust Mnangagwa went on to appoint Mutsvangwa’s wife Monica to the influential post of information minister after his 2018 controversial re-election. That is the other untold story about the coup, but Mnangagwa’s time is up, because of his political disobediance of China,” the Embassy staffers said.

 
China has rejected claims it had a hand in Mugabe’s coup ouster, accusing Beijing’s critics of attempts to sully its reputation and derail China-Africa relations.

Chiwenga has been in China for medical treatment since July this year, and his security is now a close guarded secret of the Chinese government and an elite unit of the country’s military intelligence.

 
China has invested in at least 128 projects in Zimbabwe from 2000 to 2012, according to The Diplomat, a current affairs magazine for the Asia-Pacific region.

 
“Zimbabwe is among the top three Chinese investment destinations in Africa, attracting a total FDI of more than $600 million in 2013. Moreover, China was Zimbabwe’s largest trading partner in 2015, buying 27.8 percent of the country’s exports. Chinese companies have also been actively engaged in contractor services in telecommunication, construction, irrigation, and power,” notes the magazine.

The current bank exchange rates for the ZWL$ today are as follows:

USD = ZWL$15.8573
ZWL$ = RAND0.9300
Data according to the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe

Black Market Rates:

USD = ZWL$21.30 zimrates
USD = ZWL$21.5 zwl365
USD = ZWL$20.80 bluemari [07 November 2019]
USD = BOND14.80 bluemari [07 November 2019]

– Marketwatch

NewsDay|ZANU PF supporters, who were bussed to the mining indaba in Gweru to beef up numbers ahead of President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s address on Wednesday, caused a raucous at feeding points as they threatened to run away with the delegates’ food if they continued to be denied access to lunch.

Anti-riot police had to called in to quell the restive crowd.

In a bid to avoid the embarrassment of addressing empty chairs at crucial events like what happened at previous events in Harare and Mashonaland Central, the Zanu PF Midlands provincial leadership took a decision to bus its supporters from all districts to fill up the Gweru Convention Centre, where Mnangagwa was guest speaker.

Midlands State University students, college students and mothers with babies on their backs as well as the elderly were also bussed to the venue that was supposed to be purely a formal business meeting of mine owners and government officials, among other stakeholders.

The situation degenerated into chaos as the Zanu PF supporters occupied front seats with delegates, who had paid for the two-day event and those accredited, failing to get comfortable places inside the venue.

During lunch time, the Zanu PF supporters clogged VIP delegates’ feeding points and riot police had to be called in to crush the restive activists who were clad in party regalia.

However, Dosman Mangisi, the Zimbabwe Mining Federation spokesperson said there was nothing wrong with what Zanu PF did at the event.

“Zanu PF has strong grassroots in rural areas, as people in the rural mining district are bonafide members of ruling party, they felt it necessary to be in solidarity with it since it champions empowerment programmes. It was not a party event at all. The issues articulated were all mining related,” he said.

Mangisi confirmed witnessing the fracas that saw riot police being called in.

“I did see that happening because I was part of the security. One big thing to note is that the small-scale miners were excited to interface with the Head of State and government, the chief principal of the mining sector. It was an inaugural event. The event has already been placed on the annual calendar,” he said.

Mangisi denied reports by miners that they had failed to get food as the organisers had to feed Zanu PF supporters.

“Delegates were well fed. It’s only that the event finished a bit late, and people had to go.

Delegate cards were less in terms of the numbers,” he said.

Asked on whether the organisers expected the large numbers that turned up at the meeting causing confusion in the process, Mangisi said: “We were expecting the figures, Midlands has 20 associations and each association was supposed to bring 200 miners. We had people from Mt Darwin, Plumtree, Mutare and Makuti, which are far from Midlands. Each province was supposed to bring 2 000 miners as targets. And there are about 1,5 million miners in the country. The conference hall has an 8 000 sitting capacity.”

However, miners, who spoke to Southern Eye expressed disappointment, saying they never anticipated the event to become a political gathering.

Correspondent|The Ministry of Finance and Economic Development announced on Thursday night the dates it will pay civil servants their annual bonus.

In a statement, the treasury said that civil servants, security forces included, would get the bonus “computed based on basic salary, housing and transport allowances”.

The Ministry revealed that the health caregivers and the security sector which comprises of members of the Zimbabwe National Army, Air Force of Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe Prison and Correctional Services, Zimbabwe Republic Police would be the first to be paid on November 15.

Education sector workers would be paid on December 17, while the rest of the civil servants will get theirs on December 20.

Previously, bonuses would be staggered to the following year with the government arguing that it had insufficient funds.

Finance Minister, Professor Mthuli Ncube has attributed the ability to pay bonuses in the designated year to austerity measures which the government embarked on.

State Media|Austerity measures under the Transitional Stabilisation Programme (TSP) are now being relaxed as they have largely achieved their purpose, with the economy now poised for growth driven by increased production and exports, President Mnangagwa has said. The 2020 Budget, to be presented next week, will be anchored on productivity, economic growth and job creation, he said.

The robust engagement and re-engagement policy, together with an improved investment climate on the back of ease of doing business reforms, will result in new industries being opened and boost capacity utilisation.

President Mnangagwa said this while opening the Economic Development and Financial Indaba in Harare, which ran under the theme, “Driving towards a 2030 economy anchored on production and exports”.

“This indaba comes at a time when my Government has put in place clear frameworks to transform, industrialise and modernise our economy towards the speedy attainment of an upper middle income status by 2030,” said President Mnangagwa.

“The transition to this goal is painful. We had to institute austerity measures which we are now relaxing since the purpose of those austerity measures has been achieved in the main, with regards to the issue of currency as well as economic fundamentals.

“Our next Budget is anchored on productivity and economic growth and job creation.”

President Mnangagwa said the ongoing retooling in the manufacturing sector will spur capacity utilisation, resuscitation of ailing industries and help establish new ones as Zimbabwe leverages on the robust engagement and re-engagement policy framework.

The President said as efforts to boost capacity utilisation pace up, Government was now implementing the Zimbabwe National Industrial Development Policy (ZNIDP 2019-2023), which seeks to facilitate industrial growth and development anchored on innovation, investment and exports.

He said the theme of yesterday’s indaba was appropriate as it brought to the fore, the centrality of production, productivity and a strong export base “in our desire to accelerate our economic growth”.

To achieve Vision 2030, Government introduced TSP, which set a solid foundation to bring about financial discipline, inclusive economic growth and sustainable socio-economic development.

The President said there was need to make concerted efforts to sustain a national economic growth rate averaging 7 percent a year.

Recently, the President launched the roadmap for a US$12 billion mining industry to be achieved in 2023, which represents a threefold rise in output from the US$2,7 billion achieved in 2017.

As the growth in mineral output and revenues unfolds, linkages were expected with the manufacturing sector, agriculture, services and other economic sectors, which will in turn, have a multiplier effect on overall economic growth performance.

Efforts to increase power generation are also “progressing well”, with Government committing to ensure the right energy mix to guarantee constant supplies.

Presently, key economic sectors are groaning under long hours of power cuts occasioned mainly by low water levels in Kariba Dam and obsolete equipment at thermal power stations, resulting in intermittent breakdowns.

The availability of water was key to economic growth, and the President visited Morton Jaffray Waterworks in Harare to have a first-hand appreciation of the challenges.

But Bulawayo, which has severe shortages of raw water, also needed urgent attention.

As an industrial hub, it was critical to attend to that city’s water challenges.

“Guided by national interest, councils must work with Government with unity of purpose and for the good of all our people, to holistically attend to the perennial water problems in our urban areas.

“In line with the ongoing devolution programmes, economic development must be anchored at the local level. Hence, all of us must shift our mind-sets and promote investment and industry systems at that level, harnessing the resource endowments in the respective communities,” said President Mnangagwa.

The National Trade Policy (2019-2023) and the National Export Strategy (2019-2023), launched by the President in Bulawayo last month, will drive growth in various economic sectors.

The President rallied stakeholders in various economic sectors to diversify and increase their export market base.

Government is committed to ensuring efficiency in bureaucratic procedures during the processing of exports, a move that will help local companies to also benefit from the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which presents a market of 1,2 billion people and a combined GDP of US$2,5 trillion.

President Mnangagwa added that productive sectors will continue to be supported to grow the economy and improve exports.

Government is also open for dialogue with the business community and investors in the quest to revive and grow the economy.

By Paul Nyathi|The Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe have decided to take their pleas for a better wage a step higher by opting to engage wife to Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube to speak for them with the Minister.

The union made the revelation in a Twitter post on Friday asking for anyone who could help them with the Minister’s wife contact details.

Mthuli Ncube is married to an Engineer with whom they have 4 children. He has however kept a very low profile in terms of his private life and has hardly appeared in public with his wife.

The Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) Thursday pushed back against Presidential Affairs minister Joram Gumbo, insisting he is the accused in a criminal investigation contrary to media reports.

Gumbo’s lawyer, Selby Hwacha, misled journalists Wednesday claiming the minister had merely been invited to assist ZACC with information as a potential State witness.

Hwacha’s media pushback came after Gumbo was released under unclear circumstances Tuesday, despite having been scheduled to appear in court on corruption charges.

“He is an accused person not a witness,” ZACC chairperson Justice Loice Matanda-Moyo told journalists, directly contradicting Hwacha.

Gumbo on Monday became the second sitting minister to be snared by ZACC officers after he was arrested in connection with a US$1 million payment made to a relative’s bank account during his time as Transport minister.

Former Tourism minister Prisca Mupfumira has since lost her Cabinet position and is due to appear in court on corruption charges after her July arrest.

Gumbo’s inexplicable release triggered an outcry, with accusations that he is being protected by President Emmerson Mnangagwa with whom he enjoys a close friendship.

Sources close to developments at ZACC said Gumbo would appear in court.

“There is an agreement among the commissioners that their credibility is on the line so the issue is far from over. Matanda-Moyo is obviously under serious political pressure but it is not just about her; the other commissioners will not stand for any backpedalling on the charges. Gumbo will appear in court one way or another,” the source said.

Paul Nyathi|The City of Bulawayo is set for cheap bread boom as more than 100 ZANU PF women in the city have been trained to make bread as part of an initiative to empower them to run community bakeries.

The women’s bakeries come just a week after Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association (ZNLWVA) announced plans to embark on the ambitious project to produce “affordable” bread for Bulawayo residents who cannot afford the commodity.

The expected cheap bread has since been nicknamed ZUPCO Bread by expectant residents a name derived from the below cost fare charged by government run ZUPCO buses.

ZNLWVA Bulawayo spokesperson Christopher Sibanda said the bread-making project was aimed at alleviating the plight of residents who are failing to purchase the commodity.

“We cannot disclose the prices of the bread yet, but what we can assure residents is that our prices will be reasonable and affordable in comparison with other local prices,” Sibanda said.

The price of bread, like other basic commodities and services, has been skyrocketing as producers cite inflation and a harsh operating environment.

It was only last week when Bakers Inn reduced the price of the commodity from $15 to between $14.

Bulawayo Provincial Affairs Minister Judith Ncube witnessed the launch of the women’s bakery in Entumbane suburb on Tuesday.

Ncube said more than 100 women in Bulawayo have so far been trained to make bread using Dutch ovens.

She commended female war veterans in Bulawayo for embracing Government’s empowerment programmes.

Ncube said the bakeries create employment opportunities and empower people.

She said the community bakery is set to bring relief to Entumbane residents who can now buy cheap bread.

“It is an honour for me to launch the community bakery. I am happy that these women have come together to start this bakery which is going to produce cheap bread for residents. This project empowers women war veterans while at the same time providing relief to residents who are subjected to incessant prices increases by established bakeries,” she said.

Minister Ncube said community bakeries were meant to provide an alternative source of bread to residents who can no longer afford the prices of bread on the market.

The use of Dutch ovens will reduce the cost of producing the bread as compared to using electricity.

Ncube urged women who have already undergone training in bread making to impart knowledge and skills to others in their wards, saying their active participation will contribute to development of their communities.

Addressing guests during the launch, the ZNLWVA Bulawayo provincial chairperson Cephas Ncube said the local community is set to benefit from the bread making project.

“What we are witnessing today is a combination of big brains. We started with a Heroes’ Golf Tournament which we held this year in August and we raised sufficient funds to drill a borehole. The money raised from baking will be channelled to other development projects such as building of a hall and establishment of a greenhouse. The gardening activities and the bakery will be the primary income generating projects for the war vets,” he said.

Ncube said residents will therefore benefit from the borehole, garden, bakery and hall.

NewsDay|A TOP Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) official has been fingered in a well-orchestrated police corruption scam by a subordinate who has since been granted protection by the High Court after exposing the alleged dirty deals.

Assistant Commissioner Clever Macheka’s alleged shenanigans were exposed when Assistant Inspector Mutindi approached the High Court challenging his unlawful transfer after denouncing the habit of extorting suspects at police stations for the top cop’s benefit.

Mutindi dragged the chief staff officer human resources (PGHQ) and police Commissioner-General Godwin Matanga to court after he was unceremoniously transferred from Hatfield Police Station to four other stations within a 13-month period.

“My question is how many I/C Crimes are being abused, but are silent for fear of victimisation and how are we going to curb corruption when senior officers are sending members to get money for their benefit? This is typical of the old dispensation,” Mutindi said.

“Surely even if Assistant Commissioner Macheka would want to extort money from members can someone transfer a member to four stations within 13 months? It is glaringly clear that he is abusing his office for selfish reasons and if left unchallenged, he would abuse more and corruption would be perpetrated infinitely.”

Mutindi’s matter was on Wednesday brought before High Court judge Justice Benjamin Chikowero, who ruled in his favour and slapped the chief staff officer human resources (PGHQ) with costs. Mutindi had submitted through his lawyer, Norman Mugiya, that his transfers were meant to induce him to resign because he had refused to be part of a corrupt police force.

“The four transfers of the applicant (Mutindi) at the instance of the first respondent (chief staff officer human resources (PGHQ)) be and are hereby declared to be unlawful and wrongful and accordingly set aside,” Justice Chikowero ruled.

“The first respondent is ordered to allow the applicant to remain stationed at ZRP Chitungwiza until and unless a transfer is to be initiated in terms of the law and a proper notice and the provision of all payable allowances is made. The first respondent is ordered to pay costs.”

According to court papers, Mutindi was initially stationed at Hatfield Police Station, transferred to St Mary’s and hardly four months later, was moved to ZRP Chitungwiza and later to Waterfalls Police Station without any reasons.

“What I discovered is that these harassing transfers were doctored by Assistant Commissioner Clever Macheka after I refused to be pressured to comply to his unlawful demands of extorting accused persons at ZRP St Mary’s and give him cash in order to buy favour with him,” Mutindi said.

“When I refused to co-operate with the said Assistant Commissioner Macheka he told me that I would pay for it and he would not rest until I am transferred to a fixing station or to be frustrated until I leave the organisation. I refused to budge, hence the reason why I am now suffering.”

Mutindi added: “When I refused to do what is clearly unlawful he then decided to use his influence to fix me as he is now doing. Consistent with his promise to fix me, I was transferred from ZRP St Mary’s to ZRP Chitungwiza administration within two weeks and he told Chief Inspector Mutabvuka never to allow me anywhere near the crime division”.

State Media|THE Constitutional Court (Concourt) has dismissed Dr Thokozani Khupe’s application challenging her expulsion from Parliament in April last year.

Dr Khupe, who was an MDC-T Proportional Representation Member of Parliament, was expelled from the august House after Mr Nelson Chamisa wrote to National Assembly Speaker Advocate Jacob Mudenda claiming that she no longer represented the opposition party’s interests.

Subsequently, Dr Khupe approached the Concourt challenging the recall saying it was unprocedural and that she was still a Member of Parliament for Bulawayo Metropolitan Province.

On Wednesday, a full bench of the Con- court judges led by Chief Justice Luke Malaba dismissed Dr Khupe’s application with no order to costs.

Dr Khupe and MDC were the applicants in the matter, while Parliament of Zimbabwe, Adv Mudenda and MDC deputy national chairperson, Morgen Komichi, were cited as respondents.

Dr Khupe told the court that having been elected MDC vice president at the party’s congress in 2006 and 2014, she was the rightful leader of the party, following the death of its founding leader, Mr Morgan Tsvangirai, on February 14, last year.

“Regrettably, the passing on of our president triggered a vicious power struggle in our party. Many of my senior colleagues in our top administrative committee known as the Standing Committee, provided for in terms of Article 6.4.4, chose not to follow our constitution, preferring to position themselves to their greatest advantage in the succession race,” she said.

Through her lawyer, Lovemore Madhuku, Dr Khupe said she was not aware that a letter had been written to the Speaker of Parliament recalling her.

She also said her recall came after she had written a letter to the Speaker highlighting the leadership wrangles within the party.

However, ruling on this application was previously postponed indefinitely after parties agreed to allow the High Court to first decide on who, between Mr Nelson Chamisa and Dr Khupe, was the legitimate successor of MDC-T late president Mr Morgan Tsvangirai.

In May this year the High Court ruled that Chamisa was illegitimately acting as the MDC leader and he appealed to the Supreme Court.

The case of legitimacy was recently heard in the Supreme Court and judgment in the matter was reserved.

Watch video downloading below:

Correspondent|There was drama at the Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo International Airport in Bulawayo on Thursday after a woman believed to be a Zanu-PF supporter tried to hand President Emmerson Mnangagwa a note as he arrived in the city.

Mnangagwa jetted in Bulawayo on Thursday evening to preside over the National University of Science and Technology graduation ceremony on Friday.

On the same day, Mnangagwa will also commission an innovation hub at the institution and Zupco buses.

After landing at the airport, Mnangagwa, as per tradition, briefly interacted with party supporters who had come to welcome him.

It was at that moment that a heavily built woman handed a note to Mnangagwa which was quickly taken away by one of his security aides.

Mnangagwa continued with the interaction before he was whisked away to the Bulawayo State House where he put up for the night.

The woman was swooped by dozens of security agents who, by the time Mnangagwa left, had formed a circle around her.

The contents of the note could not be established at the time of going to print.

Security around Mnangagwa was heightened after a bombing incident at White City Stadium in 2018 which left senior Zanu-PF members including Vice President Kembo Mohadi and chairperson Oppah Muchinguri injured.

Watch video downloading below:

A teacher at a Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) church-run primary school in Bulawayo has been convicted for hitting a Grade Three pupil against a desk resulting in the child losing a tooth and two other lower frontal teeth becoming loose after he reportedly failed to solve a Maths problem.

Sanele Khumalo (57) who was a teacher at Queen Elizabeth Adventist Primary School pleaded not guilty to assault but was convicted by Western Commonage magistrate Gladmore Mushove.

Meanwhile, Khumalo will be handed his jail package on 5 December after his lawyer pleaded with the court to give him time to pay the boy’s medical bills so that he can receive a “lighter sentence”.

According to a medical report, following the brutal attack, the pupil suffered permanent damage to his front tooth.

Khumalo was convicted after a full trial with a number of witnesses testifying, including three doctors who examined the boy roundly confirming that from their observation it was clear that considerable force was used for the tooth to break.

In her judgment, Mushove ruled that there was overwhelming evidence that the accused indeed committed the “heinous” crime.

“Looking at the flow of the evidence from the complainant to the mother and the doctors the court was satisfied that the accused indeed assaulted the complainant,” she said.

According to court papers, on 11 October 2017 and at around 8 am the boy was in class when accused who was his teacher at that time flew into a rage after he reportedly failed to solve a long division sum.

The enraged Khumalo, the court heard, severely hit the complainant’s head against the table once which resulted in him losing his tooth with the other two becoming loose.B-Metro

A devastated woman shared shocking details of her 21-year-old son’s sexual fantasies and odd feelings claiming he was supposedly “sexually attracted” to her as evidenced by his “lustful” compliments on her appearance.

Sikhangezile Mlotshwa from Bulawayo’s Nketa 9 suburb revealed that she was “confused” about her son Samuel Mlotshwa’s feelings towards her as he was always complimenting her appearance while calling her “yellow-bone”.

So nasty is the two’s relationship as a result of the “creepy” compliments that the distressed mother didn’t want to stay with her son fearing that he might sexually abuse her.

Sikhangezile, who apparently loves her son and wants their relationship to be nothing more than a mother-son bond, last week approached the Bulawayo Civil Court seeking protection against his (Samuel)’s inappropriate behaviour.

“I don’t want him in the house as he is always drunk. He always admires me saying I am a “yellow bone” and I fear that he might rape me.

It is a taboo in our culture that a son is sexually attracted to his mother,” bitterly complained Sikhangezile.

She said she was living in fear of her son’s behaviour which she described as “completely inappropriate” adding that Samuel had over the years exhibited violent behaviour towards her.

“On 23 October he came to my house where he was welcomed by his younger brothers aged 16 and 18. When I later arrived, he told me that he was not going anywhere while declaring that he was going to forcibly stay with me.

“He started insulting me with unprintable words saying I hate him because he was dark in complexion. He even threatened to beat me up. As a result of his violent behaviour I don’t want him to come to my house as he is also into drugs,” declared Sikhangezile.

To corroborate her claims, she produced a letter which was once served to her son as a last warning when he was still at school. The letter indicated that Samuel was abusing drugs and bringing dangerous weapons to school.

In response, Samuel blamed his uncouth behaviour on his family’s church.

“We used to go to a church called End Time Messages and at that church we were restricted from watching television and I was always confined in the house with nothing to do and I think that caused me to be unruly.
“She is my biological mother but she has been harsh to me. I have never abused her as she has claimed. Whenever we had a misunderstanding, I would be telling her the truth that she hates me.

“I once moved out to stay on my now but now life is difficult for me that’s why I decided to come back home. I had nowhere to go since my mother was always restraining me from visiting our relatives,” responded Samuel.

Responding to his mother’s suggestion that he can go and stay with his father, Samuel said: “I can’t go and stay with him because currently he is in Botswana”.

In his ruling the presiding magistrate Lesigo Ngwenya ordered Samuel to vacate his mother’s place and not to verbally and physically abuse her.B-Metro

Minister of Public Enterprises Pravin Gordhan has said that debt-laden power utility Eskom is owed a combined R632 million by three neighbouring countries for providing electricity.

Gordhan, in written reply to a question from Democratic Alliance MP Denis Joseph, said the debtors were Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (Zesa) of Zimbabwe — which owes R322 million; Zesco of Zambia — which owes R221 million; and Electricidade de Mocambique (EDM) — which owes R89 million.

Eskom, which has a total debt burden of R450 billion, has for years experienced difficulties in collecting money owed to it electricity it has already provided. It is owed about R25 billion by South African municipalities, many of which are financial trouble.

Gordhan said none of the funds owed to Eskom by the power utilities of neighbouring countries were in dispute. “Eskom’s clients acknowledge their debt and attribute economic challenges as well as financial constraints as the cause of their delays in settling the outstanding debt,” Gordhan said.Fin24

Zimbabwe National Army director of public relations Lieutenant Alphios Makotore has condemned an army officer who shot and killed his wife and injured his mother-in-law in the same incident.

Aaron Taurai Mlambo visited his now-deceased wife and mother-in-law around midnight last weekend in Chitungwiza where he opened fire on the duo and later on committed suicide using his service pistol. In a statement, Lt Col Makotore said:

The Zimbabwe National Army categorically condemns the actions of the member and violence associated with the incident.

The Commander Zimbabwe National Army, Lieutenant General Edzai Absalom Chanyuka Chimonyo, generals and senior officers, officers, men and women of the Zimbabwe National Army regret this unfortunate incident and would like to offer heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family and wish a speedy recovery to the injured mother-in-law.

Mlambo was attached at Kaguvi Barracks (formerly Old Cranborne Barracks) but based in Masvingo.

He had visited his wife Evelyn Madawo (24) at her 41-year-old mother Nomari Madawo when the tragic incident occurred.State media

Farai Dziva|Emmerson Mnangagwa has blamed western countries for “engineering economic hardships in the country.”

Below is an article published by a state run publication -in which – Mnangagwa vowed to block “western detractors” from plundering Zimbabwe’s natural resources:

Zimbabwe is being punished in various ways, including the imposition of sanctions by its Western detractors, for having a huge mineral resource base, President Mnangagwa has said.

The President said this while addressing delegates at the inaugural Artisanal and Small-Scale Miners Conference organised by the Zimbabwe Miners’ Federation (ZMF) in Gweru.

He said the current economic hardships were engineered by Western detractors keen on exploiting the over 40 different minerals in the country.

“This country, which is between Zambezi and Limpopo rivers, is so blessed. We are rich in minerals; we have a number of minerals including rare earth minerals,” he said.

“Only China is the second country to have rare earth minerals. But being rich in these minerals is the reason why we are in serious trouble with our detractors.”State media

By A Correspondent- The Cabinet and the Attorney-General have approved plans to extend indefinitely the women’s quota clause in order to empower women politically.

Legal, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, Ziyambi Ziyambi, said that the principles have been approved and are now waiting to be gazetted and debated in Parliament.

The principles have already been approved by Cabinet and the Attorney-General.

We are now awaiting gazetting so that they can be debated in Parliament.

Clause 124 of the Constitution which deals with the women’s quota, was set to expire at the end of the current parliamentary term in 2023.

The Constitution provides for the equal representation of women in the Legislature through the appointment of 60 non-constituency Members of Parliament.

-StateMedia

By A Correspondent- A distressed Bulawayo woman’s strategy to drown her marital sorrows in liquor backfired after she was savagely assaulted with a tyre lever by her husband when he found her imbibing.

A Local publication reports that there was fracas when Jacob Moyo, an engineer at a mining firm, found his wife, Patience Ncube,  drinking alcohol.

The drama ensued after Ncube told Moyo that their marital problems were the reason why she was drinking. This did not go down well with Moyo who then left and returned with a tyre lever before attacking her. Moyo reportedly struck his wife several times in the head and ribs with the tyre lever and head-butted her in the face.

He then allegedly kicked her several times in the face. Ncube sustained injuries and was taken to hospital for medical examination.

The matter came to light when Moyo appeared before Bulawayo regional magistrate Mafios Moyo facing an attempted murder charge. He was not asked to plead.

-DailyNews

He was remanded out of custody to November 25 for trial.

A medical report detailing Ncube’s injuries had been compiled and would be produced in court as an exhibit.

Simbarashe Manyiwa prosecuted the case

Full Judgement Sheds No Light on the ConCourt’s Decision – Raises New Questions About Judicial Independence.

The MDC and President Chamisa’s supporters note with grave concern and rejects today’s evidently lazily produced final decision of the Constitutional Court to endorse a patently sham election. The decision simply sought to entrench an illegitimate regime.

https://youtu.be/zDJF69sv-v4

While we should respect the Court, we still cannot accept its manifestly unjust decision.
On objective grounds, the judgement was against the 2.6m people who voted for President Nelson Chamisa and in favour of an illegitimate regime, whose leader clearly lost the presidential election, beyond reasonable doubt. The response of the economy and all investors are a testimony that no one believes in the clear fraud that this court imposed on Zimbabwe.

The shoddy 137-page judgement produced over 15 months proves what we have known all along, that our judiciary and our chapter 12 institutions are not fit for purpose. They are not independent, not impartial and not transparent. The poor nature of such a shockingly short and detail-starved judgement, prove that that Chief Justice Luke Malaba had no interest in affording our President, Advocate Nelson Chamisa, a fair hearing. Chief Justice Malaba’s approach was to find any excuse to declare Emmerson Mnangagwa President while trampling on justice, in the judgement he still fails to explain why:
1. He refused our ZEC server subpoena without considering it and without any legal basis. No reasons were given for denying us access to this critical primary evidence.

2. He directed the Registrar to reject our bundles which contained additional evidence.
3. He harassed our legal representative, interjecting over a dozen times, while he allowed the legal representatives of the 1st and 23rd respondents to present their arguments without interruption.

In the circumstances, the national question before us is clear: can an entire generation be cheated out of its constitutional rights, out of happiness and opportunity by a handful of corrupt men who are way past their sell-by date? The answer is invariably no. We will not congratulate criminals, nor will we accept that they have won anything. The truth cannot be set aside for the purposes of the convenience of power grabbers.
Our message to Mr. Mnangagwa is clear: You can rig the elections. You can capture ZEC. You can capture judiciary. But you will never capture the people or the economy. Their will shall prevail. The people shall govern!

By A Correspondent- South Africa’s power utility, Eskom, is owed R632m in outstanding payments by Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (Zesa Holdings), Electricidade de Moçambique (EDM) and Zambian state-owned power company Zesco.

This was revealed by South Africa’s public enterprises minister Pravin Gordhan in response to a question posed by Democratic Alliance chief whip Natasha Mazzone in Parliament.

Here is how much the three regional state-owned power utilities owe Eskom each:

• ZESA – R322m
• EDM – R221m
• ZESCO – R89m

ZIMBABWE NURSES ASSOCIATION

ATT: NATIONAL EXECUTIVE

07 November 2019

RE: VOTE OF NO CONFIDENCE IN ZIMBABWE NURSES ASSOCIATION PRESIDENT ENOCK DONGO

The Mashonaland East Chapter of the Zimbabwe Nurses Association has with immediate effect passed a Vote of No Confidence in ZINA President Mr Enock Dongo.

The majority of ZINA members in Mashonaland East feel that the current ZINA President has failed in his mandate to represent their interests. Mr Dongo has also failed to unite Nurses as is demanded by his role and has been seen running the association as a personal business.

During Mr Dongo’s tenure, the association has failed to release First and Second Quarter consolidated financial reports as required by the Public Finance Act.

Our Provincial Chairman Mr Mudzingwa has been caught in the web and working closely with Mr Dongo to scuttle decisions made by members for action by the association, several press statements attributed to the ZINA President have not reflected the views and aspirations of Nurses in the Province.

Given the above, the general members of the association in the Province has thus passed a Vote of No Confidence in Mr Enock Dongo and would want him to be relieved of his duties in the association with immediate effect.

Thank You

ZINA MASHONALAND EAST MEMBERS

Cc: Enock Dongo
Cc: Mash East members
Cc: ZINA Trustees

By A Correspondent- When Pasi William Sachiti (33) sat for his Ordinary Level examinations in 2002, he performed dismally, only managing to pass three subjects.

In fact, for Mathematics, he was ungraded, which meant he scored a “U”.

In Zimbabwe, where a minimum five “O” Level passes are expected, such an academic performance condemns one to the unrewarding world of blue-collar employment, that is if one is lucky to get a job.

But, unbeknown to him, fate was actually chaperoning Sachiti to a tech world full of limitless possibilities.

“You might not believe this, but I recall passing only three ‘O’ Levels, I totally sucked in school,” he told the state media in e-mailed responses.

“I went to Greystone Park Primary School in (Borrowdale) Zimbabwe, then to Oriel Boys’ High in Chisipite and then NIIT-Computer Education Training Centre in Avondale.

“It wasn’t until I was an adult that I realised that I was very dyslexic (a learning disorder), a word I have never heard mentioned in the Zimbabwean education system.”

Sachiti, however, discovered that the technical world much easier.

He actually got his Higher National Diploma (HND) in computer science at the age of 16, before leaving for Britian.

Geek credentials

From a “U” in Maths, Sachiti is now able to write algorithms that are changing the world as we know it.

Sachiti and his team recently invented an electric self-driving vehicle called Kar-go. It sorts and delivers goods and parcels to people’s homes.

“Twelve years after selling my larger company, I realised that in order to build a self-driving car company, I would need to up my geek credentials.

“So, I enrolled at Aberystwyth University in Wales, where I studied Artificial Intelligence and Robotics.

“I had to take courses in Maths at the same time and shockingly, I got over 90 percent, despite my ‘U’ at ‘O’ Level. I guess I needed the correct motivation and understanding. This means I changed the way I studied.”

Kar-go was recently hosted at two glamorous events in the UK.

It was part of the Duke of Richmond’s Festivals of Speed, a prestigious event which hosts car fanatics from around the world who are interested in concept cars and classics.

Foreign Affairs and International Trade Minister Dr Sibusiso Moyo also graced one of the events during his recent trip to the UK.

What is unique about Kar-go is that the unmanned vehicle can actually navigate unmarked and rugged terrain without the aid of a Global Positioning System (GPS).

Most revealingly, the vehicle uses cutting-edge evolutionary artificial neural networks – which mimics nature and biology – to learn from events in the past and apply this knowledge to the new situations it faces.

Kar-go can reach a top speed of 100 kilometres per hour and can go for 200 kilometres before being charged.

According to Sachiti, the process of last-mile delivery is a £200 billion problem worldwide.

“Imagine, you could have bread, milk and anything delivered to your house for a cost of next to nothing. A letter or any product can be sent or received within minutes at the cost of a dollar,” he said.

Successful start-ups

“Today, I spend all my time on Kar-go. My previous start-ups include MyCityVenue, an experience platform that reached 1,6 million users before being acquired by UK holiday company Secret Escapes, which is now valued at nearly a billion pounds,” he said.

“Before that, I had a digital advertising start-up which put digital advertising on screens placed on street furniture. Most people know this as the company I took to BBC’s Dragon’s Den (a TV series that allows entrepreneurs to pitch their ideas).

“The company was called Clever Bins, which was licensed in six countries before being acquired.”

Sachiti currently runs one company and is a shareholder in three other companies, which include a UK airline, an e-commerce business and Academy of Robotics, which makes Kar-go.

Problem solver

Zimbabwe has often been criticised by experts for having an education system that emphasises rote learning (concentrating on memorisation techniques), which does not encourage problem-solving and practical application.

But, there is now a push to encourage a system that not only engenders solutions for contemporary challenges, but also helps the country achieve its aspirations.

Sachiti said: “We as entrepreneurs exist to solve problems.

“Once we have solved a problem, we sell or exit a start-up and then move on to the next big challenge.

“I already have three start-ups that were acquired by some of the largest companies in the world.

“So, I really felt the need to use the skills that I had acquired to try and solve a very big problem that has mass impact.”

Try, fail and fail again

Sachiti believes Zimbabwe’s culture is different from that of the Western world, where “you are encouraged to try and fail and fail again”.

“In Zimbabwe, you are self-reliant, you have to adapt and evolve constantly.

“This means that when you pursue something, you have to be dead sure and try not make mistakes because there are no safety nets. Therefore, you develop a habit of checking and rechecking, and having back-up plans to your back-up plans. You end up procrastinating.

“An entrepreneur creates or seeks opportunities regardless of what resources, advantages or disadvantages they have. When starting something, do so to solve local problems then watch the money rolling in.

“Most people make the mistake of thinking about the money first. If you do that, you may make some money in the beginning, but it will quickly stop, then you will have to change what you are doing.”

-StateMedia