ZANU-PF should learn to move with the times and stop persecuting the late former president Robert Mugabe’s family.
Mugabe – who ruled Zimbabwe from 1980 until November 2017 when he was removed through a soft coup – died in Singapore last month.
Following the repatriation of his body, a standoff over the former president’s final resting place ensued between his family and the government.
After almost three weeks of negotiations, Mugabe was finally buried at his rural home in Zvimba on Saturday last week instead of the National Heroes Acre.
Zanu-PF wanted Mugabe’s remains interred at the national shrine. Just a few days after his burial in Zvimba, there are indications that government may evict Mugabe’s widow, Grace, from the various properties the family occupies.
Grace risks losing farms in Mazowe where she has built a business empire that includes Gushungo Dairy and the Amai Grace Mugabe School.
The government has indicated that it intends to re-allocate the farms under her control to miners who were displaced from the area during her late husband’s tenure in power.
The Mugabes’ farms, including Manzou, Smithfield, Arnold and Foyle Estate, could now be parcelled out to miners. Grace also faces the prospect of losing the multi-million-dollar Blue Roof mansion in Borrowdale.
Zanu-PF claims Mugabe did not have title deeds to the grand house — which has 25 bedrooms — and was built using the finest Italian marble as well as crystal.
The ruling party is also claiming ownership of the Mt Pleasant house that Mugabe had given as a gift to his daughter Bona at her wedding to Simba Chikore.
The government and Zanu-PF should have claimed all these properties while Mugabe was still alive.
The irony of these latest moves by the government and Zanu-PF is that they come at a time when there are calls to protect the property rights of widows.
First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa is on a nationwide tour to enlighten women on their rights when it comes to wealth redistribution when their spouses pass on.
Whether you like her or not, at this juncture Grace is a vulnerable widow, who needs to be protected from the vultures circling around Mugabe’s wealth.
If a rich and influential woman like Grace stands to lose all her wealth after her husband’s death, what hope will a widow in Rushinga or Dotito have?
1.The Marange Community head last night said over 10 people have been shot and he says he personally witnessed 4 being shot at close range, 3 rounds of bullets one after the other at the fields. Then there are the magwejas and also women who are used by soldiers for cheap labour.
By Own Correspondent| The Marange community were on the 3rd October outraged against the Zimbabwe government which has denied that there is ongoing forced labour which “has continued” at the diamond fields.
The government spokesman, Nick Mangwana rushed to pull a side comment from a US embassy employee hoping to discredit a library of video footage at the fields running for several years since 2008, showing brutalities that have continued even into the last 3 months.
Mangwana has denied that there are complaints from the Marange community in recent years and in a discussion with ZimEye yesterday, he said these abuses ended during the Robert Mugabe days.
The Zim government is fighting to get Marange stones reinstated as clean diamonds by US authorities following a ban earlier this week.
A top aide of Chief Marange’s who is also the Marange Diamond Community Trust leader, Moses Mukwada, saying the government spokesman is not being truthful, however narrated the opposite saying that forced labour as well as torture by soldiers, are on the rise in the last 3 months at the Marange Diamond Fields.
He also confirmed ZimEye video footage from a November 2018 visit which shows a man brutally bitten by guard dogs at the fields.
Speaking to ZimEye via phone Thursday evening, Moses Mukwada said in comparison to the November 2018 days, the latest alleged military brutalities “have worsened and in the last 3 months alone, there have been several shootings.”
In deeply disturbing graphic detail, Mr Mukwada described one of the attacks saying an officer would consciously load 3 bullets one after the other into a victim’ body.
He also spoke concerning a group of local miners known as Mangwejas he said are being coerced into forced labour by the military and then poorly remuerated.
“Things haven’t changed, they have actually worsened,’ said Mukwadi.
He continued saying,
” at one time it was just the dogs being used on people, this time this year we have a lot of people numbering up to 10 who have been shot with guns by security guards. We with our own eyes witnessed about 4 of them who were shot and killed.
“Direct shooting to the extent that the gun will be firing 3 rounds of bullets, one after the other into one person.
“There is another one who came out on studio 7 who had a lot of bullets in his body,” he added.
He also described the issue of forced labour saying that soldiers usually target a group of young men from the local area who bear the title magwejas. He said this group after being found digging for diamonds are captuured by soldiers and forced into working for the military officers and the paid in kind.
He said, ” when we look at the case of the magwejas, these magwejas go on their own into the fields to pick up what they can. At that point they are captured by the soldiers and then they take them away.
” I witnessed one such incident 2 months ago, the people were being dropped into a bowser of water (sic) [likely for cleaning the stones]. And then when the diamond is sold off, they are paid only an appreciation; everything else they (soldiers) take.
“We could never say that things have improved. Things have actually gone worse,” he said. [timeline 3:50 to 4:30].
Mukwada also said some of the forced labour involves local residents who originate from other parts of the country but are now part of community as a result of of consequences such as marriage. He alleged that even married women if found to have identity cards that show that they were not born in the local area, they are immediately seized by the soldiers and taken away for forced labour to do worn such as closing up open cast mines left open by yhe magwejas. (LISTEN TO THE FULL INTERVIEW IN THE 2 LIVE AUDIOS BELOW)
"When @edmnangagwa flew to SA for the @wef (a function the local Zim envoy could have rep'd him), he flew with 140 close security staff. Each was paid USD10,000 allowance per person." – The Source
IN what is a painful reality faced by Zimbabwean sports personalities, female karateka Grace Chirumanzu has failed to travel to Russia for the Sixth Kyokushin World Cup.
Chirumanzu, who is also the reigning Zimbabwe Sportswoman of the Year, was supposed to fight in the Under-65 kg category.
According to the draw released on Thursday, she was supposed to fight Anara Suyundukova from Khazakstan.
“The tatami has been laid in Russia for the 6th Kyokushin World Cup. The draw for the women’s U-65kg has been drawn with Zimbabwe‘s Sportswoman of the year set to face a fighter from Khazakstan. But Grace Chirumanzu is in Harare having failed to travel due to lack of funding,” Chirumanzu wrote on her Twitter account.
“Dream of becoming the first woman from Africa to be crowned World Champion have faced the sad reality that it’s not happening. Not because l gave a good fight & got defeated. But because l never showed up. Please get well soon Zimbabwe.”State media
Former Finance minister Tendai Biti has taken Duly’s Motors (Pvt) Ltd, to the High Court demanding a US$60 000 refund and a $400 000 compensation after the company allegedly sold him a defective Ford Ranger.
Biti, who is also MDC vice-president and Harare East MP, recently filed summons against Duly’s Motors saying all his efforts to seek redress from the firm have failed to yield any positive results.
In his declaration Biti said he bought a Ford Ranger Limited Edition from the firm sometime in February 2013 and there was an express term of the agreement between the parties that the vehicle, being brand new, would be free of latent defects and fit for use on any public roads.
“At the time of the sale and unbeknown to the plaintiff (Biti), the motor vehicle suffered from the following defects; the challenge of overheating with the temperature gauge not reflecting the details and challenges in the gearbox, resulting in the vehicle stalling and not moving,” Biti said in his declaration.
“On various occasions between 2015 and 2016, the vehicle had engine seizures arising from overheating, resulting in the defendant (Duly’s Motors), replacing on two occasions and supplying new motor vehicle engines.”
Biti further said despite the company replacing the engines, the vehicle continued developing the same challenge of overheating with the result that in 2017, the company ended up replacing the vehicle with a totally new one, but the problem persisted.
“Despite the replacement of the vehicle and despite the fact that the new vehicle has clocked less than 80 000km, the same continues to suffer from the same latent defects of overheating with the temperature gauge not reflecting the changes in temperatures in the engine,” he said.
Biti said his new Ford Ranger vehicle has broken down on more than four occasions while the firm has failed to permanently rectify the problem.
“The defects on the vehicle are of such a nature that the vehicle can no longer be used on a public road. Had plaintiff known of the defects, he would not have purchased the vehicle at all….over the years the vehicle constantly broke down while the plaintiff was driving the same, in faraway places like Murewa, Mutare, Harare central business district, sometimes in the middle of the night, thereby causing plaintiff humiliation, pain, shock and suffering mental and physical abuse and injuria,” Biti said in his claim for US$60 000 and $400 000 respectively.
ROME. — Antonio Conte warned Inter Milan were angry at their defeat to Barcelona and ready to fight to maintain their Italian Serie A football supremacy against his former club Juventus in this weekend’s top-of-the-table clash at the San Siro.
Italian Serie A Fixtures
Today: SPAL v Parma (3pm); Verona v Sampdoria (6pm); Genoa v AC Milan; Sassuolo v Atalanta (both 8:45pm).
Tomorrow: Fiorentina v Udinese (12:30pm); Atalanta v Lecce; Bologna v Lazio; AS Roma v Cagliari (3pm); Torino v Napoli (6pm); Inter Milan v Juventus (8:45pm). — AFP.
Zimbabwe War Vets deputy minister Victor Matemadanda was last week left embarrassed after a female Masvingo resident told him straight to his face that she had no under_wear ear as she could no longer afford it.
Matemadanda was in Masvingo to assess the consumer situation in face of rising prices fueled by high inflation.
Matemadanda embarked on a walk-about, talking to ordinary members of the public about their situation and asking them to tell him what they wanted him to report to President Emmerson Mnangagwa.
At Pick n Pay Supermarket, Matemadanda met his worst embarrassment when a woman told him she had no under_wear as it had become an unaffordable luxury for her.
“I am a domestic worker and I earn RTGS$100 which cannot buy me enough of the most basics of life. Prices of sugar and cooking oil have risen beyond my reach. Right now I don’t even have under_wear because I cannot afford it,” the woman
NEWBOYS Mushowani, who are unbeaten at their home ground this year, have dared giants CAPS United to brace for a big test tomorrow.
The two clash in a Castle Lager Premiership match at Trojan. Makepekepe opened a three-point lead at the top of the table during the midweek following the vital win over Triangle.
Their new coach Darlington Dodo has silenced Doubting Thomases since he was elevated to replace Lloyd Chitembwe.
Dodo has so far added 10 points from a possible 15 in their fight for the championship.
And the wins in their last two league outings against Harare City and Triangle, who are led by former CAPS United coaches Chitembwe and Taurai Mangwiro, should have boosted confidence in the Green Machine family.
Players like Ronald Chitiyo are also beginning to get into the groove at this important juncture of the season. However, Mushowani, who are unbeaten at home in six games, are looking to give the 2016 champions a good run for their money.
The hosts’ team manager, Takunda Mutandiri, believes the newboys have benefited from an army of home supporters drawn from across Mashonaland Central.
“The mood here is brilliant. Our supporters have been starved of Premiership football for a long time and the fact that it’s CAPS United who are coming has gotten everyone excited.
“These are some of the big teams which they usually don’t get the opportunity to watch, so we are expecting a good crowd. They are enjoying it.
“We haven’t lost a match at our home ground and I believe we are not going to lose one this season,” said Mutandiri.State media
Dr. Noah Manyika| The recent banning and unbanning of Ecocash cash-in and cash-out by the Reserve Bank has renewed the discussion about Econet being a monopoly. What is lost in that debate is that an environment of bad governance and corruption creates oligarchies, monopolies and the lethal distortions that threaten the very survival of our nation.
As I wrote in an earlier post, no change will come to Zimbabwe until we understand that continued Zanu(PF) rule poses an existential threat.
Bad governance and corruption increase the cost of doing business, giving an unfair advantage to people with significant access to capital (regardless of the source of that capital or how it is obtained), and pushing the average and legitimate player out of business.
Take licensing fees for instance.
The reality is that because our government has failed to create a healthy economy from which it can draw reasonable tax revenue, it levies extortionate operating fees on whoever is strong enough to still remain in business.
A few years ago, I did some consultancy work for a business which required a fuel license. Within a year, the fee for a fuel license was doubled. There is a reason why in the last decade, the monsters that have remained in that business are the Sakundas of this world who have access to capital others don’t have. In the case of Sakunda and the Queen Bee connection and the criminal arbitrage with Treasury Bills and Command Agriculture, we know where that capital comes from, and what their unfair advantage has done to anyone else who plays by the rules.
Having Econet as something of a monopoly they can milk, and a dominant Sakunda as an instrument for their corrupt activities suits Zanu(PF) fine.
It’s not possible for job-killing bad governance to produce more jobs or to attract legitimate investment that powers a healthy and sustainable economy. We are paying a high price today for ignoring the fact that from the beginning of our journey as an independent nation, Zanu(PF) created a parasitic government which could only be stronger at the expense of the health of the economy.
The term “parasite” sounds benign until one understands what a parasite is and how it survives. It is “an organism that lives in or on an organism of another species (its host) and benefits by deriving nutrients at the other’s expense.”
Parasites have no conscience. They are not concerned about the health of the host. They won’t stop drawing nutrients from the host simply because the host is dying.
Zanu(PF) is, in addition to being a parasite, also a monopoly. From the beginning of his rule, Robert Mugabe made his intention to create a One Party State known to everyone. The swallowing up of ZAPU in 1987 was an important step towards that goal. It was supposed to be followed by the outlawing of all other political parties to create de jure single party rule.
What Mugabe failed to accomplish by legislation, he still accomplished by other means, including making sure that Zanu(PF) essentially became the State, and that no other party could legally wrest power from it.
What we have in Zimbabwe is a political monopoly, a de facto One Party State which is no different for all practical purposes from a legislated one.
Zanu(PF) reaps inordinate political and economic capital from being a monopoly. It has absolutely no incentive to level the political and economic playing field for everyone. A healthy economy not dominated by the oligarchies and monopolies beholden to them would nourish alternative ideas (or what they like calling “The Third Force”) which would lead to “regime change.” Young people in good jobs would pay membership fees to other political formations that would challenge Zanu(PF)s political dominance.
In other words, real jobs for these young people would pose a threat to Zanu(PF)’s power and rule.
Ironically the other thing besides a thriving economy that would pose a threat to Zanu(PF) is the complete death of the economy, which is why we have a president and his team who will do everything in their power to keep it in intensive care and on life-support. They congratulate themselves daily for “keeping the patient alive” and expect us all to join them in their condemnation of the “evil sanctions” that they claim put the patient there.
Let me spell it out clearly: Zanu(PF) has no interest in dealing with 95% unemployment because more employed people would support alternative ideas. They would once again swell the ranks of the labor movement which is more difficult to deal with than vendors in the informal economy.
Zanu(PF) has no interest in getting 72% of the population (mainly rural) out of poverty because then the people would not be beholden to Command Agriculture which they use as an effective weapon of political control, and as a means for stealing money from the State.
Zanu(PF) is not interested in restoring critical services to urban communities because in Mnangagwa’s own words, the people in the cities vote for opposition parties.
Zanu(PF) has no interest in stopping the plunder of Chiadzwa by companies associated with the military, or the incredible environmental degradation caused by unregulated informal miners who have become a critical support base for them.
All this has dire consequences for the state of our hospitals, our ability to pay for our medical treatment, our schools and ability to pay our children’s school fees, our energy generation capacity, our roads, our pension system, availability of fuel, our water treatment facilities, the value of our currency and our very survival as a people.
I get the question: “What then shall we do?” from many Zimbabweans. I want to suggest to you that there is nothing significant we can do unless we first agree on what the problem is and who is responsible for creating and sustaining it.
There is a reason Zanu(PF) is as focused as it is on recruiting agents of disinformation even from among the ranks of the opposition. They know that the right knowledge is power, and that the right diagnoses is the first critical step towards decisive action.
They recruit people of faith because they hope we are more inclined to accept what they say without question.
They recruit educated people who they hope will confuse us enough with high-sounding economic theories not to see the corruption, the plunder, the incompetence.
They want us to believe that sanctions pose a greater threat to our freedom and well-being than Zanu(PF) does so that we can spend all our energy on futile protests against Trump instead of focusing on those terrorizing us daily with their repressive rule and the poverty they have created.
They want us to blame an imaginary “Third Force” instead of the destroyers that friends, advisors and relatives of the president and Zanu(PF) itself are.
They want us to forget that it’s no one in the opposition who is given freshly-printed bond-notes every morning to use to trade on the black market.
It’s not anyone in the opposition who has received billions of dollars for cashing in Treasury Bills at a rate multiples of times higher than anyone else.
They want us to believe that our primary patriotic and pan-African duty is to defend their right to rule and life of privilege instead of demanding the complete emancipation that is our right, and the well-being every citizen must be guaranteed by those who govern.
Abu Hamed al Ghazali could not have put it any better: “Knowledge without action is vanity, and action without knowledge is insanity.” Act indeed we must, but before we do, we must know what the problem is and who we are dealing with.
By Terence Rusirevi| Sitting on the fence is an idiom which describes a person’s neutrality. In life, most people like to be neutral to avoid controversy or trouble and I don’t blame them for that. It’s also true that in politics, people sometimes say they are neutral because the options which are on the table are simply hopeless. But in terms of the situation in Zimbabwe, there is a certain kind of political fence sitting that is ostentatious and dishonest. Here I’m referring to people who claim to be apolitical or neutral but are effectively pro Zanu. In my view, there are two types of this virulent strain of ‘neutrality’ and these are low and top end fence sitters.
Low end fence sitters These are people who don’t do a good job of faking their political neutrality which is why they are the less sophisticated of the fence sitters. They say they do not belong to Zanu pf but are closely associated with the party and its leader. We see them fraternising with the leadership at Zanu events, in presidential advisory roles, getting their pictures taken with the president, laughing at his probably crap jokes and sometimes doing the whole gambit while carrying a Bible. These fence sitters are devoid of much sophistication that could almost qualify as knuckle draggers themselves. From time to time they regurgitate propaganda and Zanu pieties similar to the drivel churned out by war vet mongers or the Ministry of Information. They say they do what they do because of patriotism like the scoundrels they are (check Samuel Johnson’s famous quote about patriotism).
High end fence sitters At the top end are the most sophisticated of the fence sitters who include a few scribes in the political commentary fraternity. Now this lot are quite skilful in their fence sitting. They will criticise both Zanu and the MDC but will do so perspicaciously. When they criticise Zanu they skate around the issues and will not blame the real culprits of the regime. They will make vague lamentations about the existence of corruption in Zimbabwe and from time to time will name and shame unscrupulous low level Zanu politicians or cronies – but they will fall short of fingering the big boys! But when the MDC make an innocuous misstep, the sophisticated fence sitters are quick to throw the kitchen sink at it and even quicker to liken them to Zanu pf which they follow up with exasperated generalisations that all Zimbabwean politicians are corrupt. The trouble with that is when one says that all Zimbabwean politicians are crooks or corrupt, then essentially none of them really are crooks or corrupt. Bear with me here. Saying that all politicians are crooks is a stance sometimes used by elitist intellectuals in order to absolve the really bad people with power i.e the ones right at the top of society. In the Zimbabwean context, it’s a position that benefits Zanu.
Other times, the sophisticated fence sitter will hide behind the mask of patriotism and make impassioned calls for unity. Inevitably, to the reader who is non the wiser, these fence sitters are ‘rational’ or ‘balanced’ observers of Zimbabwean politics who command a lot of respect and have impressive CVs to boot which as we know goes a long way in enthusing the meritocratic pedestrian consumer of political news. But it’s all a ruse, it’s a facade, a con job, juti chaiwo in Shona. These people are not neutral. They have a dog in this race and it’s a filthy dog that wins by cheating. It’s a filthy dog they secretly back but will refuse to let it lick their faces in public because that will put their hygiene into question. They would like the dog to change its habits which is why they will make general statements about dog hygiene.
The sophisticated fence sitters are crafty sorts. Another one of their tactics is their ‘patriotic’ call for the lifting of western ‘sanctions’. We know these sanctions are targeted at the regime but the sophisticated fence sitter will purposefully not elucidate on that crucial bit of detail. The regime wants these sanctions to be lifted because that would remove the tag of rogue state which rightfully shames it. As the designated cheerleaders of the regime, the fence sitters sophisticated or not, want the regime to be appropriated by the west and will continue to call for the lifting of ‘sanctions’.
Fence sitters are dangerous The trouble with fence sitters is that they are agents of Zanu. I don’t mean agents in the sense of CIO spooks or violent sorts of that nature, but agents as in manufacturers of confusion and futility in the drive for radical political changes needed to bring democracy, justice and functionality in Zimbabwe. Fence sitters confuse and obfuscate matters, when they identify faults they ignore the elephant in the room. They narrow down the political debate to issues which do not bring the change that is needed. They are like oncologists who knowingly prescribe paracetamol to patients who need chemotherapy. They are dangerous people. Of course, they have the right to do what they do within the confines of the law and like Voltaire said I will defend that right even though I don’t agree with them. But they are dangerous people. I wish people on the progressive side of politics did not indulge these agents of confusion and futility. I think it was Desmond Tutu who said that if you are neutral in situations of injustice then you have chosen the side of the oppressor. Fence sitters see the suffering in the country but still knowingly go on to do things which perpetuate the Zanu hegemony which is the source of the suffering. They have impaired empathy. Psychiatry describes such persons as psychopaths. Fence sitters are dangerous. ,
Statement by the Minister of Health and child care on the withdrawal of labour by doctors On 4 October 2019, all parties to the Health Service Bipartite Negotiating Panel (HSBNP, agreed to a 60% increase on Health Sector Specific Allowances.
The new allowance covers:-Night Duty Allowance, Nurse Managers Allowance, On-call allowance, Special Health Allowance and a Standby / Callout Allowance.
The parties to the meeting also agreed on the Locum rates for Nurses and Paramedics to be reviewed from the current $4-$16 p/day hour; & from $6 to $24 per night hour.Locum rates for Drs were also reviewed from the current $7 to $28 per day hour; and from $10-$40 per night hr.
The following were also reviewed in the manner prescribed below:-
•Initial Uniform Grant reviewed from $75 to $300. Uniform Maintenance Allowance reviewed from $75 to $300.
•Psychiatric Allowance reviewed from $20 to $100 per month.
•Out of Residence Allowance reviewed from $250 to $500 per month.
•Post basic Allowance reviewed from $70 to $150 per month, whilst Additional Post Basic Allowance would be increased from $10 to $25 per month for the first additional qualification.
Government has shown its sincerity by continuously engaging the health workers to address their challenges including implementing programmes that ensure they have the needed medicines and equipment to deliver medical care.
Their remuneration packages have been reviewed consistently in the context of the obtaining economic climate. Government is therefore appalled that doctors have walked out from the negotiating table and from their patients who are in dire need of their care.
However the doctors’ representatives walked out of the negotiations as they preferred a higher percentage. The 60% increase was an improvement on the previous offer by Government of 30% which was rejected by the Health Apex Council.
Government is grateful to those doctors who remained on their post of duty delivering care, saving lives and alleviating suffering. For sake of saving lives of the patients we now call on all doctors (Ministry of Health and University Consultants) to report to their posts of duty at 0800 hours on Monday the 7th of October, 2019. Those who fail to do so are reminded that they are in breach of their contracts of employment and will face disciplinary action.
Jane Mlambo| Government has given all public sector doctors an ultimatum to report for duty at 8.00hrs on Monday 7 October 2019.
Addressing a press conference this Saturday, Health Minister Dr Moyo that those who do not comply will be in breach of their contracts of employment and will face disciplinary action.
Jane Mlambo| Opposition legislator Job Sikhala has mocked those who participated in the November 2017 military inspired transition that dethroned the late former President Robert Mugabe saying they did not have eyes to see that they were being trapped.
Speaking at a public discussion on Thursday, Sikhala said each time the military take a leading role in changing governments, it does not lead to a democratic change.
“Exclude me, I did not participate in that nonsense. Firstly, being a scholar of history not as a lawyer alone, knowing well that where the military has taken a leading role in the changing of government, nowhere in Africa have soldiers led a democratic change.
“We knew we were going through a military coup and a military coup would only be supported by those people who did not have the eyes to see that we are being taken into a trap of a worse dictatorship,” said Sikhala.
Nwankwo Kanu has told the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) to move on from the disappointment of losing Chelsea stars Tammy Abraham and Fikayo Tomori to England.
The duo was named in the squad for the Euro 2020 qualifiers against the Czech Republic and Bulgaria later this month.
Kanu told AFP that Nigeria should “move on” and still had enough top players to cope with missing out on the two Premier League stars.
“That’s football and I think we have enough quality and we can win matches without them,” said the former Super Eagles skipper.
“We can’t continue to beg one player to play for us. Nigeria cannot beg, players have to beg Nigeria.”
The NFF had made efforts to lure Abraham to play for the Super Eagles. The 22-year-old is eligible through his Nigerian father.
In the past, Nigeria have convinced players like Victor Moses and Sone Aluko, who played for England at youth level, to represent the West African nation.Soccer24
Zimbabwe War Vets deputy minister Victor Matemadanda was last week left embarrassed after a female Masvingo resident told him straight to his face that she had no under_wear ear as she could no longer afford it.
Matemadanda was in Masvingo to assess the consumer situation in face of rising prices fueled by high inflation.
Matemadanda embarked on a walk-about, talking to ordinary members of the public about their situation and asking them to tell him what they wanted him to report to President Emmerson Mnangagwa.
At Pick n Pay Supermarket, Matemadanda met his worst embarrassment when a woman told him she had no under_wear as it had become an unaffordable luxury for her.
“I am a domestic worker and I earn RTGS$100 which cannot buy me enough of the most basics of life. Prices of sugar and cooking oil have risen beyond my reach. Right now I don’t even have under_wear because I cannot afford it,” the woman said.
In a leaked circular to its branches, FBC bank has halted the withdrawal of United States dollars by employees of companies and organisations who were still receiving their salaries in foreign currency.
The bank said nostro account holders can receive their salaries in forex but will not be able to withdraw the money, a move believed to be targeting trading of foreign currency on the black market.
Government workers have once again threatened to go on industrial action as the government is failing to meet their salary demands.
Junior doctors on Friday announced that they had rejected the government’s 60% allowance increment offer saying it was insignificant given the inflationary nature of the economy.
The announcement came at a time when senior doctors had also announced incapacitation and intention to join junior doctors in industrial action they embarked on over a month ago.
Teachers, on the other hand, have said that negotiating for salaries with the authorities was time-wasting as the soaring inflation erodes the salaries the day an agreement is made.
Teachers Unions including ZIMTA, PTUZ and ARTUZ said the rejection of the 76% salary increment in August is now justified by the inflation rate.
They demand salaries pegged in United States dollars but paid in the local currency using the interbank rate of the day.
Workers are saying that they are now incapacitated to execute their duties and responsibilities whilst those still reporting for work have entered into huge and unsustainable debts
By A Correspondent| A number of miners have reportedly repossessed farms owned by the family of the late former President of Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe.
The development follows a memorandum that was sent by the Ministry of Mines last month inviting miners to reclaim the lands which had been taken by the former first family.
Speaking to the Daily News on Friday, one of the miners, Bright Maunga said they were willing to co-exist with the former first lady on the farms, even though she had grabbed them violently from the prospectors. Maunga said:
My claim is not in the fields, but inside Smithfield. We are happy to be back on our claims.
Meanwhile, representatives of the former first lady were said to be making efforts to engage the minister of Mines, Winston Chitando, about the developments.
The farms which are said to be rich in gold deposits are located in Mazowe where Grace has a school, an orphanage and a dairy business.
Daily News|FORMER first lady Grace Mugabe is feeling the heat after artisanal miners moved onto her properties in Mazowe, following the recent move by authorities in Mashonaland Central to allow people she had dispossessed of their land to claim it back, the Daily News reports.
This means that the once untouchable wife of the late former president Robert Mugabe is now perilously close to losing all her properties in the area including her famed Gushungo dairy operations and top-notch school there after the miners got the nod to resume their activities on the farms from where they were displaced when the Mugabes were in power.
All this comes barely a week after Mugabe’s burial in Kutama Village, following his death in Singapore on September 6 subsequent to which there was so much drama and controversy about the late nonagenarian’s funeral arrangements.
Yesterday, some miners confirmed to the Daily News that they had already set up camp at some of Grace’s farms, which are rich in gold deposits, while representatives of the former first lady were said to be making frantic efforts to engage the minister of Mines, Winston Chitando, about the developments.
However, one of the miners Bright Maunga said they were willing to co-exist with the former first lady on the farms, even though she had grabbed them violently from the prospectors.
“I am on the ground now and on Mon- day I will go and assess my other claims. Over 30 of us were chased away by the former first family, but I hear many of them are now on their way back.
“My claim is not in the fields, but inside Smithfield. We are happy to be back on our claims,” Maunga said.
In a surprise development last month, provincial authorities invited all artisanal miners who had been displaced by the then first family, to come forward and assert their rights including claims on farms currently occupied by the Mugabes.
According to a memorandum dated September 18, 2019, and which was issued by Mashonaland Central mining director Tariro Ndhlovu, these mining claims included those on Manzou Farm, Surtic, Smithfield, Arnold, Yarrowdale, Foyle Estate, Brecon, Bandari, Brundret, Maggiesdale and Glenbervile farms.
“All miners who used to hold mining titles (claims) on the above named farms are invited to report to the Mashonaland provincial mining office in Bindura and re-inspect them as soon as possible.
“We are extending this grace period for a period of 60 days with effect from 19 September 2019, beyond which we will assume all those who hold such interests would have restored them,” Ndhlovu said.
Grace and her family have interests in a number of the farms mentioned, including Manzou, Smithfield, Arnold and Foyle Estate all of which are located in Mazowe where Grace has a school, an orphanage and a dairy business.
One of the claim holders, Tafadzwa Ralph Mutopo, has already written to the Amai Grace Mugabe School advising it of his intention to move back to his mine at Iron Mask Estate.
Yesterday, he declined to comment whether he had moved back to one of the Mugabe properties.
“I cannot talk about that now,” he said. But in his letter to Grace’s schools, Mutopo gave notice that he would start mining there with immediate effect.
“I write this to notify you and your office that I will be returning back to my gold mines, which are the Iron Mask claims.
“In terms of the Mines and Minerals Act (Chapter 21:05) of 1996, I am the sole owner/holder of the 4 x 10 hectare gold reef blocks in Iron Mask Estate, Mazowe area,” he said.
He said he was simply making a notification “out of respect for Amai, and not for any other thing”.
The much-debated decision by the government to allow the claim holders back has opened up floodgates, as artisanal miners who were all along waiting in the wings have started pouring onto their lands, threatening the Mugabe’s businesses in the area.
As a result, there are fears that the massive Mugabe family empire, that came into being at the height of their power, will soon start to crumble as those who once feared them gather the courage to come back onto the farms, buoyed by the death of the former president.
Yesterday, Chitando said he was not aware that his ministry had held talks with representatives of Grace.
However, sources said Grace was also considering taking legal action against the government, as well as suing those who had set camp on the affected farms.
“There are people who have been there for a long time in defiance of police orders. Those people are now back and are already mining as we speak.
“We are weighing what course of action to take before we make our next move. But we have engaged officials from the ministry of Mines to resolve the is- sue,” a Mugabe family member said.
The death of Mugabe at a top-notch Singaporean hospital last month, as well as the subsequent ugly tussling with the government over where he was to be buried, has put question marks over the future of his widow and children.
At the height of Zanu-PF’s deadly tribal, factional and succession wars, Grace was a central figure in the high-stakes brawling between President Emmerson Mnangagwa who was then vice president and the Generation 40 camp which was rabidly opposed to him suc- ceeding Mugabe.
Mnangagwa was subsequently expelled from both the government and Zanu-PF on November 6, 2017, a day after Grace had said he was “a snake whose head has to be crushed” on a dramatic weekend which had seen the then powerful first lady being booed at a rally at White City Stadium in Bulawayo.
Earlier this week, the rumour-mill was also in overdrive that Grace would lose her Harare mansion, after Zanu-PF secretary for administration, Obert Mpofu, suggested that the Blue Roof should be turned into a museum.
However, he recanted the proposal after the government distanced itself from his views.
Zanu-PF bought the land housing this property before donating it to Mugabe in 1999 who later bought five adjacent properties, including one with a dam, stables, tennis court and swimming pool, thereby substantially increasing the size of the Borrowdale estate where the Blue Roof is built.
Ominously, Mnangagwa said last year that his government was grappling with multiple farm owners, before naming Grace among the culprits.
“The main issue we have identified is … of multiple farm ownership, especially among people in high offices. For example, I know of one lady who has 16 farms Dr Stop It,” Mnangagwa said then.
Grace was christened “Dr Stop It” at the height of Zanu-PF’s factionalism when she used rallies to admonish Mugabe’s deputies Joice Mujuru in 2014 and Mnangagwa in 2017.
During Mugabe’s era in power, the first family was accused of amassing huge tracts of land and wealth, as well as evict- ing miners, peasants and farm owners in Mazowe. – dailynews
By Wilbert Mukori|There is one thing we can say with absolute certainty; President Mnangagwa and his fellow Joint Operation Command (JOC) junta members, comprising the top brass in the country’s security services and a select Zanu PF party leaders, have no intention of giving up absolute power. They risked their looted wealth, life and limb, everything in the all-or-nothing November 2017 military coup to wrestle power from their erstwhile JOC colleagues and leader Robert Mugabe. They clearly have no intention of losing all that now.
Zimbabwe’s worsening economic situation is putting Mnangagwa and his regime under ever increasing pressure; their continued hold on power is now dependent on the regime reviving the “dead economy”, as Mnangagwa himself admitted the other day.
It is no surprise then that President Mnangagwa has taken concrete steps to try replicate what President Paul Kagame has done in Rwanda; revive the economic fortune and still keep an iron grip on power!
“PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa is trying to emulate his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame’s economic development model, which blends authoritarian practices and homegrown solutions with international best practices, as he hired yet another public relations (PR) firm in a desperate bid to spruce up the country’s battered international image,” reported the Independent.
This model is, at best, a short term solution in that it will deliver economic success but for a short period. We can be 100% certain that authoritarian monster will awaken and reassert itself with disastrous consequence. The awakening may happen during Paul Kagame’s time, no one can be certain when exactly; the point is the monster is there already.
If anyone still doubts that Rwanda’s economic success is doomed to fail, they need only look at China. The country descended into new depths of depravity, poverty and despair under Chair Mao. His successors had the wisdom to open up China and, for the last four decades, China has enjoyed unparalleled economic and social transformation. But other than introduce the fixed ten year term for the presidency, they have retained the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) authoritarian system.
China’s authoritarian dragon was reared it ugly head once again. President Xi Jinping, China’s current president, has since scrapped the fixed ten year presidential term; has carolled millions of China’s Muslim minority into detention camps, euphemistically calling them “education camp”; he is clawing back the democratic rights of the people in Hong Kong, they are putting up a fight to stop him; etc.
If China’s economic boom was to falter, for whatever reasons, the CCP will revert back to its default setting of using brute force to retain its iron grip on power.
A country’s economic success under an authoritarian system will not last; it is a house built on clay, it will stand as long as the ground remains dry. The foundation will sink in the wet and soft clay causing in innumerable and irreparable structural problems.
As much as Mnangagwa would wish to emulate Paul Kagame’s success, he will never do so. First and foremost, Mnangagwa is a seasoned corrupt, incompetent, vote rigging and murderous tyrant forsaking these dirty habits has already proven mission impossible. After the November 2017 military coup, he promised to end corruption, hold free elections, etc. but has failed to deliver or blatantly broke his promises.
“BTP, the PR company hired by Mnangagwa successfully led a campaign to exonerate Kagame from the 1994 genocide. A 2009 report from the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative acknowledged that the BTP’s “excellent public relations machinery” had succeeded in hiding “the exclusionary and repressive nature of the regime” in Kigali,” said the Independent.
BTP had its work cut-out trying to hide Mnangagwa’s role in the corruption, vote-rigging and murderous tyranny during Mugabe’s days given he was the dictator’s chief enforcer throughout the 37 years. Even if the company did succeed; how is it going to hide the reality of the continuing corruption, vote rigging, killings, economic collapse, etc. of the last two years and going on as we speak!
How can BTP sell Mnangagwa as a changed man when everything confirms that Zimbabwe is still a pariah state and he has not change one bit!
As long as Zimbabwe remains a pariah state, there will be no meaningful economic recovery. It is impossible to do business is a pariah state given all the economic chaos and lawlessness.
BTP will never make a Paul Kagame out of Emmerson, it will be making a silk purse out of a sower’s ear. Mnangagwa is just wasting the nation’s money and time.
Mnangagwa and his illegitimate Zanu PF regime; they rigged the elections, they have never had the legal mandate to govern; must step down. Zimbabwe needs the political space to implement the democratic reforms and lay the foundation, on sold rock, for a democratic system of government.
Nelson Chamisa|Today I had occasion to exchange views on the Future of Africa with women leaders in politics from Mozambique, Botswana, S. Africa and Zimbabwe hosted by WAFA. Women leaders play a pivotal role in attaining stability, prosperity and transformation of societies. #smartwomen4Change
Yesterday President Nelson Chamisa @nelsonchamisa listened to female leaders from the region and shared his vision for achieving total equality. Here the President of the Botswana Congress for Democracy congratulates the President for providing the best ideas on the matter pic.twitter.com/neUhBuJi6x
— Citizen Nkululeko Sibanda zw (@DrNkuSibanda) October 5, 2019
1/2 A few days ago a video showing a woman dragging a child by his hand for some distance while the child was crying & visibly in pain went viral on social media platforms. The woman has since been arrested in Kadoma and is being charged for contravening a section
— Zimbabwe Republic Police (@PoliceZimbabwe) October 5, 2019
By A Correspondent|Silver Diamond who sang a dedication song about the late former president Robert Mugabe was reportedly awarded a Range Rover by a Mugabe supporter.
The song titled Baba Bona was sung by Silver Diamond after the former leader’s death. He however could not reveal the name of the person who gave him the vehicle.
He said:
I grew up supporting him (Mugabe). I loved him even when others criticised him. I never saw anything bad in him. This is the reason I got into studio to record the song. It is in honour of some- one I loved and cherished.
I wish I could reveal the name of the person who gave me the car but he said I should not. I’m happy that I was rewarded for someone I loved. It is my wish that his family gets to hear the song.”
Mugabe died a month ago in Singapore and was buried at his homestead in Zvimba.
State Media|A 69-YEAR-OLD man from Gwanda has been arrested for allegedly raping his 13-year-old granddaughter on two separate occasions while under his custody.
The man from Kafusi area, who cannot be named for ethical reasons, was not asked to plead when he appeared before Gwanda magistrate, Mrs Nomagugu Sibanda.
He was remanded in custody to October 14.
Prosecuting, Miss Ethel Mahachi said the old man raped his granddaughter last month.
Her grandmother left her and her two siblings aged eight and 10 years under the custody of their grandfather while she attended a funeral.
“On September 10, the complainant’s grandmother went to attend a funeral and left the complainant and her two brothers aged eight and 10 years under the custody of their grandfather.
“On a date unknown to the prosecutor but during the same month the complainant and her siblings were playing outside when the accused person called her. He tasked her to go and sweep in his bedroom hut while he ordered the two boys to remain outside playing,” she said.
“The accused person followed the complainant into the bedroom hut and instructed her to stop sweeping and sit on the bed and she complied. He started touching her and ordered her to remove her clothes. The complainant refused and attempted to exit the bedroom hut but the accused person closed the door. He grabbed her, placed her on the bed and raped her once. The complainant tried to scream for help but failed as her grandfather had covered her mouth with his hand.”
Miss Mahachi said the accused person warned the complainant against reporting the matter to anyone and she remained quiet. She said on a later date during the same month the complainant and her siblings were sitting in the kitchen hut when the accused person walked in.
She said the accused person instructed the boys to go and fetch firewood in the bush and told the complainant to remain behind and prepare supper.
Miss Mahachi said when the other children were gone, the accused person grabbed the complainant while in the kitchen hut and raped her and warned her against reporting the matter.
“Upon the return of her grandmother on September 18, the juvenile complained of pain in her private parts. Her grandmother inspected her and questioned her on what had happened after noticing some bruises. The complainant revealed what her grandfather had done to her,” she said.
The matter was reported to the police resulting in the accused person’s arrest.
NORTON Member of Parliament Temba Mliswa on Friday appealed to businessman Wicknell Chivayo to give back to one of Norton’s primary schools.
The MP, who is well known in his constituency for working with local schools, could not hide his concern for Dudley Hall Primary School, appealing for assistance to the businessman on behalf of his constituency.
“I came across this picture of Wicknell Chivayo at his former primary school, Dudley Hall. All things aside, my appeal to you is that you put something back into the school. Let’s meet together with the school head and talk about it,” wrote Mliswa on his microblog Twitter handle.
Flamboyant businessman and Intratrek Zimbabwe managing director Chivayo, is an alumni of Dudley Hall Primary School, a former group A school which is now dilapidated due to the current economic hardships in the country.
Regarded as one of the best performing legislators in the country, Mliswa is known for using his networks to develop his constituency, a strategy that most MPs in both Zanu PF and MDC have failed to emulate.
Chivayo could not be reached for comment at the time of writing , but he has been involved in several philanthropic projects including donations to Angel of Hope Foundation for the ‘green project’ and Intratrek has been involved in a lot of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities.
By A Correspondent| The government of Zimbabwe has set conditions for farmers who want to access Command Agriculture inputs.
The conditions were revealed by Agriculture Minister who said the government had partnered with Agribank, Stanbic, CBZ and Empowerbank to disburse the funds.
Said Minister Shiri:
These banks shall support A1, A2 and other large-scale farmers into soya bean and maize production. Interested farmers both new and old with a proven track record should approach their local district Agritex offices for registration, vetting and contracting for production
Collateral is not required as the verification would have been done by the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Water, Climate and Rural Resettlement. The tenure of the loan is 270 days at an interest rate of 10,5 percent per annum and an upfront fee of 2,25 percent.
The programme will avail inputs through an electronic voucher system administered through the bank and inputs will be provided at district level through suppliers, stockists and agents as will be advised by the bank during the contracting process
Command Agriculture program is seeing its 3rd season since its inception in 2017.
Paul Nyathi|Intending migrants to the United States will not be granted visas if they cannot afford to pay their medical bills.
The proclamation was signed on Friday by President Donald Trump.
The proclamation, which will be effective from November 3, states that immigrants will be barred from entering except they get health insurance within 30 days of arrival or show that they are financially capable of paying their medical bills.
The affected category are people seeking immigrant visas. It does not affect lawful permanent residents and offers an exemption to asylum seekers, refugees and children.
It will also apply to spouses and parents of US citizens.
The average cost of buying an annual premium medical insurance is $4,300.
In a statement announcing the development, the White House said too many non-citizens were taking advantage of the country’s “generous public health programs,” and immigrants contribute to the problem of uncompensated health care costs.
The executive order does not state the procedures for determining if an immigrant meets these criteria meaning that it would be left to consular officers who evaluate visa applications and the State Department.
Earlier in 2019, the Trump administration introduced regulations that immigrants would not get green cards if they use public assistance.
By Own Correspondent| A Mutare businessman and his colleague survived death by a whisker after angry villagers in Chitakatira village under Chief Zimunya detained and later severely assaulted them on accusations they were masterminding ritual murders that have dogged the community in recent weeks.
Gift Mukaronda was at pains to explain the horror he experienced at the hands of the furious villagers.
“I had accompanied my colleague to Chitakatira Growth Point to look for a premise to either buy or rent for a business project and while we were parked by one of the shops, a group of people came to our car saying that they were looking for someone in the car,” he said.
“In no time the numbers swelled and they started shouting saying they were looking for a certain woman called Sharon. Suddenly, they began assaulting us.”
Mukaronda and his colleague were only whisked to safety by a Good Samaritan with the assistance of the police. When The Weekender arrived at the scene more than 200 villagers had circled Mukaronda’s Mercedes Benz demanding to see the woman who was in the car.
The businessman and his colleague produced their identity documents but that did not stop the irate villagers from giving them a thorough hiding.
Police officers who tried to calm down the situation were overpowered and the crowd started to smash up the vehicle.
They deflated all the tyres, smashed the wind and the back screens.
A villager who tried to defend the businessman and his colleague, Wellington Muzarewetu, was hit with a knobkerrie by a fellow villager.
He lost consciousness and was only resuscitated moments later via first aid.
A police officer, Constable Chibvura, was also assaulted in the ensuing melee.
A witness to the whole saga, Wellington Muzarewetu said: “We interviewed the businessman and his colleague with the assistance of the police and we discovered that they meant no harm to anyone.
“When we gave feedback to fellow villagers about our findings that’s when all hell broke loose. They started attacking me claiming that I had been bribed.”
Village Head Taurai Nehwangura had no kind words for his subjects who took the law into their own hands.
“I heard about this disturbance and I want to tell you that I do not condone such rowdy behaviour especially against visitors in my village. If people have issues they must follow proper channels and not take the law into their own hands. They could have killed people for no reason.”
‘I would make a successful president because I am young and a very successful business person’
South Africa based prophet Shepherd Bushiri has said he has a constitutional right to stand as a presidential candidate in Malawi and that he can not be barred by anyone.
Presidential material? President Bushiri and the first lady Mary Bushiri
The Malawian born prophet who is also known as Major 1 revealed during a press briefing that he convened on Wednesday in South Africa at his Sparkling Waters Hotel that he cannot be stopped from standing as a presidential candidate.
Prophet Bushiri said that it would even be good for the country for him to stand as a presidential candidate considering that he a young person.
“I have every right as a Malawian to stand as a presidential candidate. There is nothing that can stop me from standing. It would even be a good thing for the country considering that I am a young person and I know problems that young people across the country face.
“Secondly, I would make a better president because God has already blessed me as a successful business person. Someone with a capitalist mindset is exactly what Malawi currently needs as a head of state to move the country forward”
He was responding to a question by Zodiak’s journo, Mallick Mnela who wanted to know if the Enlightened Christian Gathering founder and pastor holds political ambitions to stand for the presidency.
He then compared himself to civil rights activist, Martin Luther King Junior and Reverend John Chilembwe, who respectively fought for human rights and freedom of black people in the United States and Malawi.
“John Chilembwe, who was also a man of God as I am, was considered as a political threat for standing up for social justice. In the same regard, I am also saying that I love the nation and I would not allow, in strongest terms, my fellow Malawians to go through such a turmoil.
“But when I come out like that, just like John Chilembwe, I am considered a political threat to the extent that each time I come to do charity in Malawi, I am always hindered. I am not even allowed to donate some Maize in some regions. At some point, this was so bad that I began to fear for my own life. I have faced a lot of political resistance across the country for my humanitarian works” he said.
In what sounded like pitching his candidacy to both Malawi Congress Party and UTM, Bushiri urged leaders of the opposition parties to speak to him due to the experience he commands in charity works.
“By now, the leaders of opposition should be talking to people like myself who love the country and who donate. There are so many people and organisation who are doing great for the country who must be approached by leaders of the opposition and even the government for their works. But I know there are even politicians who are scared to talk to me. Yet they are looking for help in their constituency but are scared to talk to me” said Major 1.
He however maintained that despite having the right to compete, he does not have any plan to stand, saying it is easy to confuse people doing humanitarian works for a politician.
“Malawians are tired of politics and the country’s problems are not political. Our biggest problems are hunger and poverty not politics. I am here to preach peace not politics because I am not a politician and I would never be a politician as I have said many times” said Bushiri who is currently fighting money laundering and fraud charges in South Africa together with his wife, Prophetess Mary Bushiri.
Nonetheless, the controversial prophet who is unable to leave South Africa without seeking prior permission from the HAWKs, South Africa’s Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation who have confiscated his travelling documents said if he ever wishes to stand as a president, he would not start from the position of a politician but as a humanitarian.
“If I would come to stand as a president, I would not stand as a politician. Rather, I would stand from a humanitarian point of view to help the country not as a politician. So, if I am asked whether I would stand and help as a humanitarian, then my answer would be yes” Bushiri said.
Meanwhile, another South African based Malawian pastor, Hastings Salanje has already expressed his interest to stand on presidential ticket albeit not mentioning the political party that he will represent.
By A Correspondent| A number of miners have reportedly repossessed farms owned by the family of the late former President of Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe.
The development follows a memorandum that was sent by the Ministry of Mines last month inviting miners to reclaim the lands which had been taken by the former first family.
Speaking to the Daily News on Friday, one of the miners, Bright Maunga said they were willing to co-exist with the former first lady on the farms, even though she had grabbed them violently from the prospectors. Maunga said:
My claim is not in the fields, but inside Smithfield. We are happy to be back on our claims.
Meanwhile, representatives of the former first lady were said to be making efforts to engage the minister of Mines, Winston Chitando, about the developments.
The farms which are said to be rich in gold deposits are located in Mazowe where Grace has a school, an orphanage and a dairy business.
Traditionalists said that they believed that the receding of water at the Kariba DAM is because the Nyaminyami Tonga god is still upset with the people for messing up his resting place. Should rituals be conducted to restore order and save the nation power deficiencies?
Imagine if teachers deliberately chose to misinform. What would become of the world? World Teachers' Day at a time when our profession is under threat. Our Teachers are resigning and morale is low coz of underpayment. Lets pay a living wage to our teachers. @nelsonchamisapic.twitter.com/ivIDVdA8YL
— Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe,ARTUZ (@ARTUZ_teachers) October 5, 2019
Statement By Nelson Chamisa|Today is world teachers day…Teachers are a special source of enlightenment and a life foundation to us all.Good or bad leaders come through the hands of teachers.Teachers strive to drive all ignorance out of our minds.In some cases they struggle. We must all restore glitter and glamour of teaching as an honourable and rewarding profession. More money to our teachers. Greater dignity to these classroom practitioners. Happy teachers day to our life heroes!!!
Ministry of National Guidance and Religious Affairs Godfridah Sumaili at a press briefing flanked by PR Girl Media partners Chishimba Nyambe and Monde Nyambe
Paul Nyathi|Zambian National Guidance and Religious Affairs Minister Godfridah Sumaili has said that she is disappointed by reports that some traditional leaders from a neighbouring Zimbabwe plan to carry out spiritual rituals at Kariba dam ahead of the rainy season.
Reverend Sumaili said that Zambia is a Christian nation and it is important that the country looks to God to provide the rains.
She said that people must not rely on the water spirit known as Nyami -Nyami which is believed to be found at Kariba dam.
Reverend Sumaili noted that the country should not embrace the Nyami -Nyami because it is an idol but should instead trust God for the rains.
Reverend Sumaili said this in an interview with ZNBC in Lusaka. She said she will engage the traditional leaders and the church in southern province over the matter.
Reverend Sumaili said the clergy should organize themselves to offer prayers.
Zimbabwean Traditionalists said that they believed that the receding of water at the Kariba DAM Hydro-electricity scheme is because the Nyaminyami Tonga god is still upset with the people for messing up his resting place. Should rituals be conducted to restore order and save the nation power deficiencies.
According to legend and local myths, the Tonga tribe in the Zambezi valley is protected by an ancestral spirit, locally known as Nyaminyami the river god.
Last year Chiefs from both sides of the Lake Kariba held special prayers, to plead with ‘Nyaminyami’ the river god not to harm construction workers during the Dam wall rehabilitation project.
Traditionalists feared that the Tonga god, believed to have been separated from his wife, during the initial construction of Lake Kariba in the 1950s could strike again, as the noise from blasting and lorries during the excavation works at the construction site may remind him of his spouse who is believed to be in the lower Zambezi river.
By Own Correspondent- MDC MP for Harare West Joanna Mamombe has been named as one of Africa’s 100 Most Influencial Young Africans for 2019 by the AU Youth Special Envoy.
Said Mamombe:
Ooh Mama look @ your Daughter! The Lord has been great to us mummy Kudzayi Chiwanza, I owe it to you Mama. I have been listed together with the AU Youth Special Envoy, Aya Chebbi
It’s no longer in doubt that even we ordinary people through hard work and grace can achieve greatness.
As noted by respected American Politician Rahm Emmanuael for every small success pose a little and celebrate hard work.
Today, I would like to thank #AfricaYouthAwards for recognizing the the work that I have done in support of democracy and good governance in Zimbabwe and Africa.
It is an award dedicated to the people of #HarareWestConstituency who placed their confidence in me to be their representative.
Thank u President Nelson Chamisa for the guidance & mentorship to us the young people in MDC…
To all the young people: It is possible and a new Africa is possible in our lifetime! I am grateful for the Recognition & award.
Malawi Nation|The Constitutional Court sitting in Lilongwe will on Monday rule on two applications in the ongoing elections petition case.
In his application, the second petitioner Lazarus Chakwera is asking the court to allow two of his witnesses to insert documents reportedly omitted and make some alterations to their sworn statements.
Mvalo: It’s not new evidence
The other ruling of the court will be on an application by first respondent President Peter Mutharika, whose lawyers want to cross-examine one of Chakwera’s witnesses, Richard Chapweteka, on a document in possession of second respondent, Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) which he referred to.
The five-judge panel heard the applications yesterday morning and chair, Justice Healey Potani, announced before the court adjourned at noon that the rulings would be delivered on Monday.
Both respondents—Mutharika and MEC—are objecting to the application by Chakwera to allow his two witnesses insert the documents and make some alterations in their sworn statements, arguing that, that would be equal to bringing new evidence in the case.
Representing Mutharika: Mbeta
On the other hand, the first petitioner UTM presidential hopeful Saulos Chilima also opposed to the application by Mutharika’s lawyers to allow them cross-examine Chapweteka on the document in possession of MEC, being a checklist of electoral materials printed in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
On the document in question, Chakwera’s legal team took a soft stance, with lawyer Modecai Msisha confirming what one of the lawyers representing the President, Frank Mbeta, said, to the effect that they had no problems to have them refer to the document and cross-examine their witness on that.
MEC also allowed Mutharika’s legal team to refer to the document, but vigorously argued, through lead lawyer Tamando Chokotho, against Chakwera’s application to have his two witnesses—Peter Lackson and Anthony Bendulo—insert some documents in their sworn statements and make some changes in the statements.
After presentations of arguments and counter arguments, the court adjourned for next week, to focus on the applications made and arguments provided in reference to the law, and come Monday, October 7, the court has to deliver its rulings.
But who will carry the day?
It is an undisputable fact that any ruling within trial/hearing, if it goes in one’s favour, helps to build confidence to the winning party and it becomes a setback to the losing party as it means certain wishes are rejected and may in one way or the other affect the game-plan.
Mbeta, lead lawyer for Mutharika, briefed the court earlier yesterday that Chakwera had no problems to have his team refer to the document in possession of MEC, to which Msisha confirmed.
However, lawyer Marshall Chilenga, representing Chilima, said the document that was being sought was subject for disclosure as goods received by MEC.
“We dealt with this matter on 27th June [2019], and that time, the document was not there. This request failed that time,” he said.
Chilenga said entertaining the issue now would mean going back to what was dealt with when the document in question was not there.
But Mbeta argued that the document would help to show the ballot papers that were received, their safety as they were being transported from Dubai to Malawi and if boxes were sealed.
Mbeta argued the document would not prejudice the first petitioner’s case as none of Chilima’s witnesses made reference to that document, except Chapweteka.
But Chilenga argued they indeed did not talk about this document up until the time they closed their case because it was not there, insisting bringing it now would prejudice their case.
On their application to allow insertion of some documents and alterations of sworn statements, Titus Mvalo, one of the lawyers for Chakwera, argued that the law allows a party to alter statements and insert documents if the request is intended to provide to court better facts.
“These documents being requested are not bringing new evidence…these are documents that are already in court, but just making some additions. And we just want to correct what was not there,” he said, making reference to some pieces of the law.
He said a party has a right to reconstruct statements in the manner they want to present their case in court.
Mvalo said it was up to the court to consider how evidence is presented, not to banish them.
Pempho Likongwe, another lawyer for Chakwera, said the application is meant to include what was omitted, but the narration remains the same.
But Mada Mmeta, another lawyer for Mutharika, argued that any change in the statements would mean changing evidence.
In reference to some pieces of the law, he said a sworn statement can be amended through another sworn statement, which did not happen in the current matter.
Mmeta said allowing insertion of some document would mean allowing the party to amplify its evidence, which the court disallowed in its September 18 2019 ruling.
Chokotho agreed with Mmeta that the accepted procedure for correcting errors is by filing fresh sworn statements, setting facts correctly. He urged the court not to allow the amendment.
Chakwera and Chilima claim that results for the May 21 2019 presidential election were marred with irregularities and fraud and want them nullified. The two are also seeking a court’s order for a re-run.
MEC declared Mutharika as winner. The electoral petition case started on August 8 2019.
Paul Nyathi|A Nigerian couple who served as page boy and little bride at a wedding has ended up becoming husband and wife.
The bride shared the photos on her Instagram page writing;
”My #flashbackfriday puts forth the story of my life…. who would have known that this would happen. From being little bride and groom, from being just family friends, from being the only older person I knew to help me with the kids that would bully me in primary school, we’re now husband and wife.
My parents and hubby’s were friends long before I existed this had nothing to do with an arranged marriage, because we became an item officially 2 years ago because I and my family relocated and we lost contact till 2013, thanks to FB and BBM. Just look at my dad carrying my husband in his arms not knowing he’d become his son inlaw 27 years l8r. Jehovah was definitely involved and were indeed grateful”.
Poverty and starvation on Silobela blamed for rise in young girls prostitution
Starvation in Silobela has reportedly caused families to force young girls into prostitution as hunger continues to torment some parts of the country.
This was revealed by Silobela Ward 30 Councillor Idirashe Dongo while addressing the 50-50 Campaign.
Cllr Dongo said families had resorted to forcing underage girls into child marriages and prostitution.
“We have noted with concern that many girls in the area are being forced by their guardians to get into relationships with amakorokoza (gold panners) in exchange for money.
“We urge parents to desist from such behaviour as they are putting children at risk of contacting sexually transmitted diseases,” she said.
Cllr Dongo also bemoaned the upsurge in school dropout cases saying in most cases, girls were the victims.
“This new and bad culture that has been adopted by guardians has resulted in a sharp increase of school dropout cases. In most cases, it is the girl child that drops out of school as they have to either get married at a young age or venture into prostitution so that the family can survive,” she said.
Cllr Dongo castigated parents saying they should never prioritise food at the expense of their children’s health.
“It is heart breaking and devastating to think a parent or guardian can actually prioritise food and not the health of their children. Such parents have no shame and such doings should never be tolerated,” she said.
During the same campaign, Cllr Dongo also bemoaned the rise in domestic violence in her area saying some males were also victims of domestic violence.
The 50-50 campaign is a campaign to achieve gender equality between men and women in all spheres of society.
September 12 2019. Julius Malema addressing a memorial service of the late Robert Mugabe that the EFF arranged in Soweto.
Jerry Matebesi|The legacy of former Zimbabwe President Robert Gabriel Mugabe remains a contested terrain and it ought to be understood within the context of colonialism and neo-colonialism. The deconstruction of the political space inhabited by the former president of Zimbabwe is also littered with empirical and non-empirical suppositions. There is also a pattern of structural racism invoked by those who attempt to give a subjective interpretation on the role played by President Robert Mugabe in the politics of Zimbabwe and the African continent in general.
Let’s start with the colonial perspective and how it seeks to give meaning to the role played by Mugabe in the liberation politics of former Rhodesia. Colonialism demonised Mugabe from the on-set by putting all measures in place to reject him as a political leader. Not only was he branded a terrorist by the colonial government of Ian Smith, but he was equally jailed for ten years and his basic human rights were denied.
Colonialism emasculated itself of any shred of humanity when it refused to release Mugabe for the burial of his only son with his first wife, Sally Hayfron. During the 1979 Lancaster House Conference, Britain as the coloniser agreed on everything else i.e. universal suffrage, recognition of majority rule and reconciliation, but could not commit on terms demanded by leaders of liberation movements on the question of land. The land debate lasted for over three weeks without any progress.
While the Lancaster House Conference was in session, the colonial administration of Smith and the racist government of South Africa attacked military bases of Zimbabwe’s African National Union (Zanu) and its rival Zimbabwe’s African People’s Union (Zapu) which were all operating from Mozambique, Zambia and Tanzania. In its own calculations, colonialism wanted to exert pressure on Samora Machel, Kenneth Kaunda and Julius Nyerere who supported both Zanu and Zapu.
The colonists’ strategy worked and the latter leaders, fearing the continuous destabilisation campaign in their country’s accompanied by loss of life and damage to infrastructure, gave both Joshua Nkomo of Zapu and Mugabe of Zanu an ultimatum to agree on the question of land.
In a telephonic call to Mugabe in Britain, Nyerere is said to have appealed to him to sign the Lancaster House Agreement and resolve to use the constitution after elections to deal with the question of land.
The Lancaster House Agreement was signed with few principles i.e. that radical land reform in Zimbabwe would be halted for the next ten years after multiparty elections, that Britain would foot the bill for the land redistribution programme and that the principle of willing buyer, willing seller will be implemented.
The agreement gave Africans in Zimbabwe political power and left economic power in the hands of white people. It simply meant that arable and productive land would remain in the hands of white people irrespective of the outcome of elections. Britain paid a pittance towards land reform in the early 1980s after Mugabe assumed power, but the Labour government under Tony Blair refused to continue to fund land reform in Zimbabwe.
Having beaten the Conservative Party (Tories) in the elections of 1997, the administration of Blair argued that it was not party to agreements which took place during the colonial period. On the other hand, the neo-colonial perspective equally rejected the persona of Mugabe as a liberator of his people in post-colonial Zimbabwe.
Like the colonial perspective, the neo-colonial school of thought also interpreted Mugabe’s political disposition out of the realm of hardcore politics which is dominated by the doctrine of realpolitik. The latter is characterised by sub-texts such as ‘power struggle’, ‘political calculation’, ‘elimination of enemies’ and ‘rewards for allies’.
It is the unfortunate mass slaughter of the Ndebele people in the early 80s (Gukurahundi) which is accentuated by forces of neo-colonialism to depict Mugabe as a savage and demean his standing as a political actor that made use of sub-texts mentioned above to achieve political ends.
Gukurahundi, which in Shona language means ‘the sweeping away of rubbish’, has become a useful device by forces sympathetic to the neo-colonial perspective. Empirical data on human development indicators obliterates the parochial anti-Mugabe narrative that seek to propagate the view that he never developed Zimbabwe.
For an example, records indicate that educational opportunities were extended to many Zimbabwean people in the early years of independence. Enrolments for high school improved from 2% at the time of independence to about 70% by 1990. In the same period, Zimbabwe’s literacy levels improved from 45% to 80%.
As a token of reconciliation, the Mugabe government extended an olive branch and persuaded close to 200,000 white people not to leave Zimbabwe at the time of independence. Over 4,500 commercial farmers were also allowed to continue to trade.
Structural racism as a third component used to complement the colonial and neo-colonial attacks on Mugabe is signaled by how authors such as Heidi Holland portray him as a weak leader with and ‘inferiority complex’. However, such analysis is spared on racists and colonists like Smith.
Mugabe is further caricatured in the book titled Dinner with Mugabe with epithets such as “The freedom fighter who became a tyrant.” Racist comments on the pigmentation of Mugabe’s ‘black’ skin are made in the same book to de-humanise him as a person.
Racist and subjective views that Mugabe was jealous of President Nelson Mandela are promoted with gusto. Holland’s book mentioned above has become a potent weapon of propaganda which continues to justify economic sanctions against Zimbabwe.
The seizure of land in Zimbabwe remains an important lesson to South Africa which is still debating modalities on how the land question can be resolved.
The two remaining forces of neo-colonialism and imperialism will definitely treat South Africa the same way Zimbabwe was treated when Mugabe attempted to implement the resolutions of the Lancaster House Agreement on the question of land.
Mugabe was a human being and my final conclusion on his legacy is that he was 90% correct and 10% wrong.
EFF North West spokesperson Jerry Matebesi is based in Mahikeng and writes in his personal capacity.
AN inmate who is serving jail time for armed robbery left a trail of destruction at the Kwekwe magistrates’ courts after he vandalised property demanding that he be set free as he was not the one behind the crimes that he was convicted of.
Business temporarily came to a halt at the courts as armed police details had to be called in to rein in Tichaona Chacha (34), a popular bouncer who was sentenced to four years in prison for a spate of armed robberies around the mining town, who threatened to reduce the court building to a heap of rubble.
ZPCS and ZRP officers who tried to apprehend him had a torrid time as they were thrown against the walls by the highly charged bouncer.
Chacha was in August slapped with a combined 54 months in jail for a spate of robberies he committed in cahoots with three other accomplices.
Twelve months were, however, set aside by the magistrate on condition that he restitutes a total of $61 020 to the said complainants before 30 September, which he failed to do. He was therefore dragged to the court to answer to failure to restitute charges.
All hell broke loose when magistrate Storey Rushambwa effected the 12 months that were set aside.The bouncer tore the booth into pieces leaving court attendees scampering for cover.
Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services (ZPCS) officers had a torrid time as they tried in vain to handcuff the charged Chacha who threw anything at anyone.
Court officials also left in a huff adjourning the court proceedings immediately as they ran for dear life.
When this news crew arrived at the scene, entry points to the court were locked and armed ZPCS officers and Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) manned the gates while some were trying calm the situation while inside.
Chacha was still inside the court room where he was still destroying property and shouting at the top of his voice demanding that he be released.
“I did not commit any crime, I want to be released.
Why is it you never questioned the people we purportedly robbed where they got such amounts of money. They are part of the cabal that is destroying the economy, I want justice and I want to be released. I am not going to stop until I am released,” he yelled.
It was after about an hour of negotiating that composed ZRP and ZPCS officers managed to handcuff the bouncer who seemed to have run out of steam before he was whisked away to the police to face fresh charges.
Paul Nyathi|RISING afro-jazz musician Silver Diamond, real name Kudzai Savanhu, said he received a top-of -the-range car from a bona fide ruling party’s supporter following the release of his song “Baba Bona” dedicated to former President Robert Mugabe.
Silver Diamond, in his song, showered praises on the former President for his contribution during the liberation struggle.
Although Silver Diamond could not be drawn into revealing the name of the politician, who gave him the Range Rover Sport, he said he was grateful over the recognition.
“I was surprised to get a call from this very popular ZANU-PF bigwig asking for a meeting.
“Young as I am, both in age and musically, I was really shocked that at some point I thought it was a prank, but went for the meeting anyway,” he said.
“It was a great shock when I met the revered chef, who took me to lunch and narrated how he was touched by my song.
Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Information, Communication and Technology Chairperson, Chalton Hwende, has made a successful application for the temporary release of his passport by the courts to enable him to travel to Kenya on government business.
A Harare magistrate on Friday granted the application by the Kuwadzana East MDC legislator, who is set to attend an ICT workshop in Kenya from October 6 to 10. The legislator is facing charges of inciting violence.
Allegations against the legislator are that, during the period extending from December 28 to 31, in 2018, Hwende posted on his Twitter handle messages that in their nature had the effect of inciting the people to revolt against the Government both in his personal capacity and as a Movement for Democratic Change-Alliance legislator for Kuwadzana East constituency.
Hwende’s Twitter posts allegedly incited the public to overthrow the constitutionally elected Government of Zimbabwe by engaging in mass protests characterised by violence.
Paul Nyathi|Patrick Zhuwao, the nephew of the late former president of Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe has written a letter to Julius Sello Malema, the leader of South Africa’s Economic Freedom Fighters apologising on behalf of President Mnangagwa on the way in which Malema was treated when he came Zimbabwe to give his condolences to the Mugabe family on the death of former President Robert Mugabe.
Paul Nyathi|MDC deputy national chair Job Sikhala has asked to be excluded from taking responsibility for the widespread celebrations that the country experienced at the removal of former President Robert Mugabe from power blaming all those who did for the current military run state the country is faced with.
Sikhala was responding to questions during Thursday’s Media Centre organised Town House public discussion on the State of the Nation address.
“Exclude me, I did not participate in that nonsense. Firstly, being a scholar of history not as a lawyer alone, knowing well that where the military has taken a leading role in the changing of government, nowhere in Africa have soldiers led a democratic change.
“We knew we were going through a military coup and a military coup would only be supported by those people who did not have the eyes to see that we are being taken into a trap of a worse dictatorship,” said Sikhala.
MDC founding leader Morgan Tsvangirai, who passed away on Valentine’s Day last year, endorsed then Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s rise to power following the coup, with both Tsvangirai and his successor Nelson Chamisa attending the new Zanu PF leader’s first inauguration in Harare December 2017.
Tsvangirai and his party’s leadership attended the coup’s main rally at Zimbabwe Grounds in Highfields while thousands also took part in the march demanding Mugabe “should go.”
Sikhala explained why he thought Zimbabweans marched.
“Zimbabweans were tired of lies, for example that poverty is because of sanctions. Secondly, they had a chance to get rid of a stubborn and murderous Mugabe who killed thousands in Matabeleland in what was (one of) Africa’s first genocides.”
Electrical power lines hang from a transmission pylon in Pretoria, South Africa, on Tuesday, July 17, 2018. Photographer: Waldo Swiegers/Bloomberg
State Media|TWENTY NINE households in Mazwi village on the outskirts of Bulawayo will be relocated to pave way for the erection of a 335km long overhead power line from a proposed Hwange Substation to Insukamini Electricity Substation by the Zimbabwe Power Company (ZPC).
The proposed overhead power line is part of the Hwange Power Station Expansion Project which will add an additional 600MW of power to the national grid upon completion in 2022.
To enable transmission of additional power from Hwange, there is need to construct new power lines from Hwange to Insukamini and Sherwood.
According to the latest council minutes, ZPC wrote to Bulawayo City Council (BCC) seeking authority to relocate the residents.
“The proposed generation expansion works at Hwange Thermal Power Station includes construction of additional transmission infrastructure which includes the construction of 335km long overhead power line from the proposed Hwange Substation to Insukamini Electricity Substation. The route of the power line runs through Mazwi Township. This will result in the need to relocate twenty-nine households,” said ZPC in a statement to BCC.
In the minutes, BCC did not raise any objections to the proposed relocation.
It however said ZPC must provide alternative accommodation before Mazwi homesteads are demolished to pave way for the project.
“A proposed residential layout has therefore been prepared to cater for the affected families,
However, it shall be noted the movement of displaced persons to the new properties is a process that ought to be done prior to destruction of the existing properties. There is a sequence of activities that are ought to be carried out to make the new homesteads available,” said BCC in response.
“The stands are to be departmentally surveyed for cadastral data, the developments on each existing property have to be taken note of and replacements have to done on the new property.
“The roads have to be constructed to the specification of the Director of Engineering Services. Communal water mains extensions have to be put in place and construction of houses to duplicate the existing structures to de done in accordance with the Council approved plans and the relevant by-laws.”
The city council said ZPC will pay for all the costs of the project which BCC will supervise.
“All costs related to the entire project are to be borne by the Zimbabwe Power Company. Thereafter permission is sought from council for processes that are to be carried out to effect the relocation to start in earnest. All works related to this project to be done under the supervision of council,” said the statement.
"When @edmnangagwa flew to SA for the @wef (a function the local Zim envoy could have rep'd him), he flew with 140 close security staff. Each was paid USD10,000 allowance per person." – The Source
A Red Cross official collects data from a family in Zimbabwe
State Media|TWENTY Zimbabweans, who lived in South Africa without contact with their families for periods of up to 40 years, have been reunited with their kith and kin back home.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) tracked down the 20 — some of whom had changed names and started a new life and families in South Africa without notifying relatives — using its “Trace the Family” programme based on data and pictures provided by relatives.
Most families had given up searching for the migrants, assuming they had died on the other side of the Limpopo.
In an interview on the sidelines of a recent Zimbabwe Red Cross Society (ZRCS) media engagement workshop in Gweru, ICRC representative Mr Hilton Zvidzayi said they started a pilot project called the “Missing and Deceased Migrants Project” that helps migrants reconnect with their families.
The pilot project, he said, started in Gwanda and Zaka districts recently and has seen 20 Zimbabwean migrants in South Africa being successfully reunited with their families back home.
“We are running a pilot project to understand the needs and challenges in terms of reuniting missing and deceased people with their families. So we had 67 cases reported in Gwanda and 33 cases reported in Zaka.
Of these cases, we managed to solve 20 which have been closed successfully with our intervention after we managed to collect data in Zimbabwe and take it to South Africa and managed to reunite these 20 people with their families back home,” said Mr Zvidzayi.
He said eight cases were solved and the migrants returned to their homes in Gwanda and Zaka after having been away without communication for decades.
“So right now, we have 72 pending cases where we haven’t been able to identify the people because we are still to go to South Africa with the data we collected. But our tracing officer will go to South Africa soon with the hope of completing these cases as a matter of urgency,” he said.
“We are encouraging people to come to the Red Cross for this new programme and leave details to be put into the database for us to use in tracing their missing relatives. This is a fairly new programme in this country. Globally, however, there are 16 000 cases ICRC and its partners are working on and we are confident of reuniting families,” he said.
This comes at a time when South Africa recently started compensating ex-Wenela employees. These two seemingly unconnected events have opened a new chapter of an untold patch story of Zimbabwe’s history.
It is a story that needs to be told in its fullest as others had changed names and identities but somewhere in one corner of their minds, they were haunted by that sense of belonging to their original families.
Driven by the ancient vision of life to always identify with their ancestral lineage they found themselves coming back home after 40 years.
As to whether they will fit into their new lives only time will for tell, for 40 years is never a joke, it is a generation.
South African gold producers have asked Zimbabweans who used to work there as mine workers in the 1970s and contracted the fatal lung diseases silicosis and tuberculosis to come forward and benefit from a $400 million compensation fund.
This comes after the settlement of a far-reaching class action in South Africa that follows a long legal battle by miners to win compensation for illnesses, they say they contracted over decades because of negligence in health and safety.
The mine workers were not provided with adequate protection during and after apartheid rule ended in 1994, and include Zimbabweans who back home were said to have gone to “Wenera.”
Representatives of Southern African Miners Association (Sama) in Zimbabwe have said close to 4 000 ex-Wenela workers have registered for terminal benefits.
Wenela, acronym for Witwatersrand Native Labour Association in South Africa, closed in the early 1980s and thousands of locals who once worked there are poised to receive a windfall once pension talks are concluded.
Xulu Attorneys of South Africa have been engaged to represent the former workers, drawn from Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe, among others.
The ex-workers will at a later stage be expected to go for X-rays so that they get compensated if they contracted lung diseases such as silicosis during their period of employment, a process which will be funded by the World Bank, according to Sama Zimbabwe representative Mr Lungelwe Mkwananzi.
Wenera was the Shona version of the acronym, WNLA, which stands for the Witwatersrand Native Labour Association — the recruiting body of the South African Chamber of Mines.
The companies involved are Harmony Gold, Gold Fields, African Rainbow Minerals, Sibanye-Stillwater, AngloGold Ashanti and Anglo-American South Africa.
State Media|Trading in any currency, which is not the Zimbabwe dollar, now attracts a fixed $6 000 fine and failure to pay the fine will result in the person involved being jailed.
The new rules, gazetted yesterday, empower the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) to arrest and fine people and businesses that continue charging for their goods and services in any currency other than the Zimdollar.
Under the new regulations, the central bank can charge an extra fine of $100 per day for delays in payment of the $6 000 initial fine but when one defaults for more than 90 days, the person will be jailed.
This comes as Government amended the Exchange Control Act to include provisions of Exclusive Use of the Zimbabwe Dollar Regulations, associated civil penalty orders as well as the schedule for enforcement of the civil penalty orders.
Civil penalties for the use of the United States dollar (or any other foreign currency) for local transactions, which was banned earlier in June, was promulgated under Statutory Instrument 212 of 2019 last month.
The amendment, which was done through the Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures), amends Section 2 of the principal Act by insertion of paragraph d and Section 5.
The amendment, which was done under SI-213 of 2019, also effects offences and penalties that come with flouting the regulations.
In terms of the amendment to the Exchange Control Act, the RBZ has been empowered to issue civil penalty orders and categories thereof.
The Act now also lists the variation of specific penalties, as well as matters relating to the enforcement of the civil penalties.
According to SI-213 of 2019 Government has stipulated a $6 000 fine for anyone found pricing goods and services in foreign currency, with a view to stopping the price madness on the market where some traders continue to wilfully violate national regulations to price their goods and services in local currency.
According to the regulations, failure to pay the prescribed fine will attract an extra $100 daily, for each day in default.
The extra charge will run for 90 days before the accused is committed to civil imprisonment.
However, for crimes deemed more serious, defaulters will be fined a cumulative fee of $1 200 per day over 90 days. This is over and above the $6000 fixed fine in the event they fail to comply with the law giving a maximum possible fine of $114 000 before one gets imprisoned with the court having the prerogative to give both sentences.
President Mnangagwa being conferred with an honorary Doctor of Philosophy Engineering, Sciences and Technology Degree by Chinhoyi University of Technology Registrar Dr Thomas Bhebhe in Chinhoyi
Paul Nyathi|President Emmerson Mnangagwa yesterday capped 2 243 graduates at Chinhoyi University of Technology (CUT) where he was also conferred with an honorary Doctorate Degree in Engineering, Sciences and Technology.
At the rate Mnangagwa is getting honorary degrees he appears to be in a quick race to try and attain the number of degrees that his predecessor late Robert Mugabe had. At his death last month, Mugabe was arguably the most capped former Head of State in Africa with 18 degrees: 7 academic, 11 honorary with 3 revoked.
In his acceptance speech, Mnangagwa who had so far received honorary degrees at almost all of the country’s State Universities he has been to and another from Zambia, said science and technology fields had the potential to create jobs and improve people’s livelihoods.
“As I receive this prestigious award, allow me to acknowledge that engineering, sciences and technology are key in the developmental trajectory, modernisation and industrialisation of our great country.
“The transformation of these fields and associated milestones will undoubtedly have a profound effect on the achievement of sustainable economic development. Altering the types of jobs, the way people live, connect, communicate and transact,” President Mnangagwa said.
He urged institutions of higher learning to enhance capacities and competences in engineering, science, technology and innovation in line with the country’s development thrust.
“The CUT is one of those institutions in our country with the mandate to advance the development, design and utilisation of technologies.
“I recognise the strides that the institution continues to make in this regard. I am aware that some alumni of this university have gone on to develop ICT and engineering solutions which are now being used by various public entities,” he said.
The President said the Government will continue supporting the education model that emphasises innovation.
“My Government continues to support the new aggressive, Education 5.0 model, which seeks to expand the core business of universities to include innovation and industrialisation.
“To date I have commissioned innovation hubs at the Midlands State University (MSU) and the University of Zimbabwe (UZ). I am also informed that the CUT innovation hub is also ready for commissioning. Hubs must not be an end in itself.
“It is our expectation that remarkable and paradigm shifting breakthroughs will be developed at these hubs. The development of prototypes, registration of patents and commercialisation of finished, usable and transformative products must be the ultimate objective.”
He added that research and innovations must be a catalyst for economic growth. He bemoaned the country’s continued dependence on imports for its equipment and medical needs.
“Institutions of higher learning must also harness contemporary engineering practices to accelerate the creation of rural industry systems and the modernisation of infrastructure in both urban and rural areas.
“Similarly the negative impact of climate change and the opportunities in the energy sector must inspire the relevant schools of engineering, towards innovative research and product development in fuels and renewable energy,” President Mnangagwa said.
The President later on capped 2 243 students who graduated at the varsity.
The ceremony was the 15th since the establishment of the institution.
In his address, CUT Vice Chancellor Professor David Simbi said the institution was playing its part in helping the country achieve its development goals.
“CUT is continuing in its search for relevance to the nation in the current academic discourse as it seeks to better define a doctrine that so elegantly articulates our subscription to the nation’s vision for the establishment of innovation and industrialisation in the education system and a culture and heritage education architecture that should direct us towards the exploitation of our country’s natural resources,” Professor Simbi said.
He added that they were now focused on producing graduates that contributed to job creation.
The student enrolment has been growing steadily and now stands at 10 800, of whom 9 500 are undergraduates and 1 300 post-graduates.
Prof Simbi, however, bemoaned the low enrolment in science and technology programmes.
“The reason for the low Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) enrolment is associated with insufficient number of high school leavers who successfully complete their Advanced Level in sciences,” he said.
“This has a negative impact in the enrolment for innovation, technology and engineering programmes that rely on science and technology subject sects required to progress the industrialisation and modernisation agenda.
THE City of Harare could be losing thousands of dollars in potential revenue to illegal parking cartels involving rogue parking marshals and MDC-Alliance thugs who have grabbed parking space, investigations by this paper have revealed.
It was also established that the parking lots on the streets have now been turned into vehicle showrooms where unregistered ex-Japanese cars for sale are parked dangerously, obstructing other traffic and blocking roads.
Car dealers have moved from the peripheries of the city into the central business district where they have somehow found their way with the parking marshals and occupy the parking bays throughout the day.
These closely-knit groups have taken over parking spaces in the central business district, rendering City Parking officials irrelevant.
They at times bully the parking marshals, threatening them not to operate in “their areas”.
In terms of the Urban Councils Act and Municipal Traffic Laws Enforcement Act, local authorities are the only ones mandated with enforcement of Traffic By-laws which include parking management, clamping vehicles, towing and impounding vehicles that have violated the Traffic By-laws.State media
THE MTN8 final today is set to be a grand festival of celebration of the huge impact Zimbabwe has had on South African football, with seven Warriors having a direct interest in its outcome at the Orlando Stadium in Soweto.
It’s an historic occasion — the decider being held in South Africa’s biggest and historic township in the year the iconic Orlando Stadium celebrates the 60th anniversary since its gates were first opened.
It’s also the 45th final of this knock-out tournament reserved for the clubs which would have finished in Super Diski’s top eight the previous season since the first one was held in 1972. Orlando Pirates, the giants who use the Orlando Stadium as their home, were the debut winners back when the tournament was still called the BP Top8.
Since then, the tournament — just like the stadium itself — has undergone a lot of transformation, with South African Airways once coming on board as sponsors before MTN took over in 2008.
It was also the same year the Orlando Stadium underwent a major R280 million facelift to convert it as a training ground for teams ahead of the 2010 World Cup finals held in South Africa.
It’s a place that holds a special place in South African history as it was central to the landmark events of June 16, 1976, when thousands of black students marched to the Orlando Stadium in protest over being ordered to learn Afrikaans language.
That march sparked the Soweto Uprising, a key phase in the Rainbow Nation’s battle against apartheid. Today’s battle for silverware, and the R8 million prize that comes with winning the trophy will have a distinct Zimbabwean flavour in yet another advertisement of the influence local football has had on Super Diski.
Kaitano Tembo could become the first Zimbabwean coach to win the tournament should SuperSport United triumph, and in the process, cast away the demons of their failure at the same stage last year.
The 49-year-old gaffer picked a losers’ medal back then at the Moses Mabidha Stadium after his men froze in the penalty shootout and were beaten by Cape Town City in the lottery, with the match having ended in a 1-1 draw.
Kaitano’s SuperSport United team has a strong Zimbabwean influence, with goalkeeper Washington Arubi, defender Onismor Bhasera, midfielder Kuda Mahachi and striker Evans Rusike being part of the team’s squad.
Their opponents, Highlands Park, also have a Zimbabwean influence with veteran goalkeeper Tapuwa Kapini and striker Tendai Ndoro being part of their squad.
Kapini has just returned from injury, while Ndoro is being praised by his coach Owen Da Gama.
A victory for SuperSport United could see Kaitano all but securing a contract extension as coach of Matsatsansa after club chief executive Stan Matthews said the Zimbabwean gaffer has to win a knockout tournament and at least finish in the top four to retain his job.State media
ZESA Holdings has embarked on a nationwide blitz on defaulters, including high-profile businesspeople, farmers and politicians, and has blacklisted them so that they cannot open new accounts using different addresses.
ZESA spokesman Mr Fullard Gwasira said the power utility had embarked on a cocktail of measures to recover its money, including disconnections, litigation and blocking defaulters from “taking their bad practice elsewhere”.
The power utility is owed over $1 billion by domestic, mining, industrial and other users.
“The power utility is taking various measures that include blacklisting, installation of prepayment meters for domestic consumers and small institutions, installation of smart meters for medium and large power users that consume 100 amps and above.
“We are also resorting to disconnections and litigation against such defaulters to recover the revenue that is locked with them,” he said.
On blacklisting, Mr Gwasira said: “Blacklisting is part of credit control options in use by all businesses in an attempt to flag out customers with a deviant behaviour from taking their bad practice of not honouring debts by opening accounts elsewhere. It is not a preserve of ZESA.”
Mr Gwasira said the blitz excludes critical service providers that offer basic service delivery, including local authorities.
“Disconnections are not affecting critical service providers like defaulting municipalities, but we are engaging them on the legal front to ensure that they pay for their consumption of electricity,” he said.State media
By Own Correspondent| Below are the estimated statistics from some hospitals following the ongoing doctors strike which began in September. ZimEye has queried why the figures are rounded off. The only plausible explanation given was that the hospitals do not have a systematic method of capturing the number of the deaths categorised under the (primary database key) factor of an incident such as a doctors strike. These numbers were collated from estimates using mortuary space calculations, hence their being presented in rounded off format. Readers are notified that by Sunday we should have more reliable numbers.
REPORTED DEATHS IN METROPOLITAN HOSPITALS. ——————————————
These deaths are only of those who died in hospital. Thousands have been discharged. Many are dying at home the statistics for those dying at home will never be known.
The tough ghetto life taught Zimbabwe international Marshall Munetsi some priceless lessons about love and giving back to the less privileged members of the society.
The France-based midfielder, whose fledgling Marshall Munetsi Foundation has taken on board over 60 children under its wings, has been hailed in Mabvuku for his decision to pay school fees for the kids.
Munetsi has been running the foundation with the assistance of his close friend Munya Wayne Tembo, who has been doing all the work on the ground.
“Growing up in Avondale and Mabvuku helped me realise a lot of things and how hard it is, especially living in the ghetto where there are less privileged people,’’ said Munetsi.
“It’s a challenge for kids to get a better education when they can’t go to school because of (lack of) finances. “So, the idea has always been there, but I was waiting for the right time to start it.
“I’m glad it has been possible with the help of a friend and a brother Munya Tembo.” The foundation paid school fees for 30 primary school children in Mabvuku.State media
A group of expelled Zanu-PF members under the G40 faction have embarked on a campaign to market former Minister Saviour Kasukuwere as the next President of Zimbabwe.
Jason Zhuwao
In a Twitter thread, one of the late President Robert Mugabe’s nephews, Jason Zhuwawo said Kasukuwere has all the characteristics to lead the country and Zanu-PF.
“I make the above nomination prospectively in the circumstances of a political reorganization within the ZANU PF party for the continuity of its victory and rule.
Given the background of the legitimacy of its founding president RGM as a principled Pan African visionary, ZANU PF housed loyal stakeholders whom have been voting it into power.
“Therefore, Zanu-PF must bank on the legitimacy of its founding veteran nationalist to shape the trajectory of its stay in power. My brother Richard Mahomva pens that President Mugabe was the “charismatic face” of ZANU PF’s popularity and that indeed his fight against western sponsored arsenal, emerging as the victor consolidated it’s stay in power,” said Zhuwawo.
“There will never be another Mugabe. A phrase often used by many. His charismatic stature, eloquence and principles are not easily equated with anyone. His successor has not done level justice to his standing. Speeches not inspiring hope, intellectual humour, like (Barack) Obama and (Jacob) Zuma. Therefore if ZANU PF is to win a fair election against @nelsonchamisa who is fairly charismatic himself, it would need strategically position someone more presidential than he is. @Hon_Kasukuwere
“@Hon_Kasukuwere is not only charismatic, charming and built in a frame that commands authority. (Ideal charismatic face of the party’s popularity) He is a great statesman with the ability to strengthen the party and unite its divided structures.
“His background as a principled leader still holds weight, even after his explosion from the party, he never joined active opposition politics but rather called for self-reflecting conversations with the new political order for the unification of its elements. ZANU PF needs to bank on his popularity and legitimacy to consolidate its stay in power. I therefore call for #talksbetween principles, not only to unite our divided nation but overally shape the trajectory of its stay in power.”
National People First spokesperson Jealousy Mawarire also posted a picture of Kasukuwere on his Twitter account with the caption, “Zimbabwe is crying out loud for a Saviour! #TatambaZvakwana.
President Mnangagwa yesterday capped 2 243 graduates at Chinhoyi University of Technology (CUT) where he was also conferred with an honorary Doctorate Degree in Engineering, Sciences and Technology in recognition of his efforts to promote science and technology as key enablers of development.
In his acceptance speech, the President said science and technology fields had the potential to create jobs and improve people’s livelihoods.
“As I receive this prestigious award, allow me to acknowledge that engineering, sciences and technology are key in the developmental trajectory, modernisation and industrialisation of our great country.
“The transformation of these fields and associated milestones will undoubtedly have a profound effect on the achievement of sustainable economic development. Altering the types of jobs, the way people live, connect, communicate and transact,” President Mnangagwa said.
He urged institutions of higher learning to enhance capacities and competences in engineering, science, technology and innovation in line with the country’s development thrust.
“The CUT is one of those institutions in our country with the mandate to advance the development, design and utilisation of technologies. “I recognise the strides that the institution continues to make in this regard. I am aware that some alumni of this university have gone on to develop ICT and engineering solutions which are now being used by various public entities,” he said.
The President said the Government will continue supporting the education model that emphasises innovation.State media
Trading in any currency, which is not the Zimbabwe dollar, now attracts a fixed $6 000 fine and failure to pay the fine will result in the person involved being jailed.
The new rules, gazetted yesterday, empower the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) to arrest and fine people and businesses that continue charging for their goods and services in any currency other than the Zimdollar.
Under the new regulations, the central bank can charge an extra fine of $100 per day for delays in payment of the $6 000 initial fine but when one defaults for more than 90 days, the person will be jailed.
This comes as Government amended the Exchange Control Act to include provisions of Exclusive Use of the Zimbabwe Dollar Regulations, associated civil penalty orders as well as the schedule for enforcement of the civil penalty orders.
Civil penalties for the use of the United States dollar (or any other foreign currency) for local transactions, which was banned earlier in June, was promulgated under Statutory Instrument 212 of 2019 last month.
The amendment, which was done through the Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures), amends Section 2 of the principal Act by insertion of paragraph d and Section 5.
The amendment, which was done under SI-213 of 2019, also effects offences and penalties that come with flouting the regulations. In terms of the amendment to the Exchange Control Act, the RBZ has been empowered to issue civil penalty orders and categories thereof.
The Act now also lists the variation of specific penalties, as well as matters relating to the enforcement of the civil penalties.
According to SI-213 of 2019 Government has stipulated a $6 000 fine for anyone found pricing goods and services in foreign currency, with a view to stopping the price madness on the market where some traders continue to wilfully violate national regulations to price their goods and services in local currency.State media
Below are comments after Voice Of America journalist Blessing Zulu ordered victims of Emmerson Mnangagwa’ violence to title him Head Of State.
Said Zulu, “even if we do not agree with each other on this one, vaMnangagwa is the Head Of State.
No one here is allowed to say “Mnangagwa” that’s disrespectful,” he added.
VIDEO LOADING BELOW
VOA Journalist Blessing Zulu orders people to label Mnangagwa "Head Of State" and Chamisa just "Advicate" | WILL YOU LISTEN TO HIM? pic.twitter.com/LmpCo7ntFp
Buhera Ward 25 councillor John Mangezi suffered swollen testicles after a village head pulled his manhood for allegedly discriminating against MDC Alliance supporters in food aid distribution.
Mangezi reported the matter and village head Liberty Masvingise has since appeared in court charged with assault.
Magistrate Gylmax Kuhudzai was told that on July 10, 2019 Masvingise approached Mangezi who was distributing social welfare food and told him that the allocation for his village was not enough. He accused the councillor of abusing his political power and sidelining people that he perceived to be opposition by either giving them little or no food at all.
The agitated Masvingise then got hold of the complainant’s trousers buckle, sneaked one of his hands beneath the underpants and pulled the contents in front of villagers who had gathered to get their food allocations at Matsetsa DDF Camp under Chief Nyashanu.
The complainant was saved by villagers who ran to his rescue. The court was told that Mangezi suffered a swollen right scrotal. The councillor is said to be in the habit of sidelining villagers who are not ZANU PF supporters.
Masvingise who is under Chief Nyashanu denied the allegations and said instead it was Mangezi who bit his hands. He said Mangezi bit him after he pestered him over food.
The village head told the court that the councillor accused him of being an MDC Alliance supporter before biting his hands.
The two briefly haggled over food distribution books before the situation turned nasty.
Witness Hamudi who represented the State said on July 10 at around 10am the complainant was doing his routine duty of allocating maize to villagers. While he was doing that the village head approached him and complained that his village’s allocation was not enough and the allocations were unfair.
The complainant tried to explain that the allocations had not beenincreased but the accused did not listen. The accused then got hold of the complainant’s trousers buckle and attacked him.
The matter was postponed to September 30, 2019 for continuation of trial.-Masvingo Mirror
CONFIDENTE newspaper senior journalist Patience Nyangove died this morning after suffering from kidney failure.
She was 38. Patience Nyangove The Zimbabwean-born journalist died at around 04h00 this morning after being hospitalised over three weeks at a Windhoek hospital.
Nyangove, who joined Confidente in 2011, was a senior reporter with over 16 years’ working experience in the print industry.
Confirming her death this morning, Confidente founding editor Max Hamata in a statement described Nyangove as a hard working and passionate investigative journalist who covered several reporting beats with particular interest in politics and health.
“Her investigative work included several criminal enterprises, stemming from [the] GIPF multi-million dollar fraud saga, investigation into racketeering illegal abortions by several doctors and Chinese government scholarships.
“We have lost one of our own and we can only honour her legacy by building on the foundation that she left with us. Certainly journalism is poorer without her and we offer our deepest condolences to her family,” said Hamata. THE NAMIBIAN
Marvellous Nakamba’s market has risen sharply since joining Aston Villa in the pre-season.
The midfielder made a high-profile transfer from Belgian giants Club Brugge worth €12 million to become the most expensive Zimbabwean player in history.
His market value, however, had dropped to around €7 million at the time the deal was completed, according to TransferMarkt website. This was probably due to his limited game at Afcon after picking up an injury and failure to break into Brugge team towards the end of the 2018/19 season.
And that drop was the reason his arrival at Villa dragged slowly as the EPL side was reluctant to part away with anything far much above the value.
After making four appearances across all competitions, Nakamba’s current value has been put at €8 million and is poised to surpass that mark if he gets more game time.
Centre-back Teenage Hadebe and midfielder Marshall Munetsi have also maintained a steady rise in value since moving to Europe in the pre-season.
Munetsi who has a tag of €550 000 joined Ligue 1 side Stade de Reims from Orlando Pirates for an undisclosed fee.
Hadebe made a switch to the Turkish top-flight side Yeni Malatyaspor from Kaizer Chiefs and currently has a market value of €350 000.
However, it’s a different story for Warriors captain Knowledge Musona whose value has marginally dropped since joining Anderlecht last year.
The forward struggled to break into the team and is yet to feature a game this season. His dismal performance at Afcon also had an impact.
Musona currently values at €1 million, a slide from the €2,5 million price tag which he had during his time at KV Oostende in 2017.
South Africa-based winger Khama Billiat hit his highest market value – €2 million – early this year and has managed to maintain it, thanks to his outstanding contribution at Afcon.
He is currently the most valued Warriors player based in Africa and is tied with Tinotenda Kadewere who plays in the French Ligue 2 for AC Le Havre.
Nottingham Forest defender Tendayi Darikwa has also maintained his value – €1,5 million despite some injuries which had affected him this year while Alec Mudimu who plays in the modest Welsh Premier League is priced way below at €150 000.
Other Warriors stars based in South Africa have values not exceeding €600 000 with goalkeeper George Chigova, Talent Chawapiwa, Divine Lunga, Ronald Pfumbidzai and Danny Phiri the highest priced players.Soccer 24
A 69-YEAR-OLD man from Gwanda has been arrested for allegedly raping his 13-year-old granddaughter on two separate occasions while under his custody.
The man from Kafusi area, who cannot be named for ethical reasons, was not asked to plead when he appeared before Gwanda magistrate, Mrs Nomagugu Sibanda.
He was remanded in custody to October 14. Prosecuting, Miss Ethel Mahachi said the old man raped his granddaughter last month.
Her grandmother left her and her two siblings aged eight and 10 years under the custody of their grandfather while she attended a funeral.
“On September 10, the complainant’s grandmother went to attend a funeral and left the complainant and her two brothers aged eight and 10 years under the custody of their grandfather.
“On a date unknown to the prosecutor but during the same month the complainant and her siblings were playing outside when the accused person called her. He tasked her to go and sweep in his bedroom hut while he ordered the two boys to remain outside playing,” she said.
“The accused person followed the complainant into the bedroom hut and instructed her to stop sweeping and sit on the bed and she complied. He started touching her and ordered her to remove her clothes. The complainant refused and attempted to exit the bedroom hut but the accused person closed the door. He grabbed her, placed her on the bed and raped her once. The complainant tried to scream for help but failed as her grandfather had covered her mouth with his hand.”
Miss Mahachi said the accused person warned the complainant against reporting the matter to anyone and she remained quiet. She said on a later date during the same month the complainant and her siblings were sitting in the kitchen hut when the accused person walked in.
She said the accused person instructed the boys to go and fetch firewood in the bush and told the complainant to remain behind and prepare supper.
Miss Mahachi said when the other children were gone, the accused person grabbed the complainant while in the kitchen hut and raped her and warned her against reporting the matter.
“Upon the return of her grandmother on September 18, the juvenile complained of pain in her private parts. Her grandmother inspected her and questioned her on what had happened after noticing some bruises. The complainant revealed what her grandfather had done to her,” she said.
The matter was reported to the police resulting in the accused person’s arrest.- state media
Farai Dziva|Emmerson Mnangagwa must address the legitimacy crisis in Zimbabwe instead of presenting cheap political rhetoric to the suffering people of Zimbabwe.
See below the opposition party’s full statement: The Zimbabwean economy is in a deep crisis as manifested by a proliferation of unresolved deepening monetary, fiscal, social and political headaches which the illegitimate regime has clearly failed to arrest.
The problem in Zimbabwe is a Confidence-cum-Legitimacy crisis.
The recent SONA and the preceding RBZ ban on cash-in, cash-back and cash-out platforms are desperate attempts to provide white wash and token solutions based on manifested symptoms of a sick economy.
The business as usual SONA must be roundly condemned by all right thinking Zimbabweans for the SONA failed to provide answers to the suffering Zimbabweans.
Indeed, the SONA failed to provide answers or solutions to the following:
An unprecedented energy crisis (fuel and electricity shortage)
Record price increases and inflationary pressures (hyperinflation)
The collapse of Social Services especially the Health Sector
The Exchange rate crisis
The Currency Crisis
Low Productivity
The Inflation tax on Wages and Salaries that has resulted in Incomes erosion
Unemployment that is now estimated at 90%
Sluggish economic growth estimated by the IMF to decline by minus 6% in 2019
A crippling debt crisis
Policy Reversals and Policy Ambiguity
Failure to sterilize TBs
No firm measures to curb corruption and state capture.
Further, there are glaring policy gaps in the SONA. One could go on and on pointing out many omissions and commissions.
What is the alternative?
The country is at a cross roads.and one year after the stolen election the illegitimate regime has driven the economy on the cliff edge and plunged the country into a socio-economic Armageddon.
The regime remains unrelenting in its quest to inflict suffering on the people by clearly committing an economic genocide.
The MDC has the solutions to reverse the current economic catastrophe.
We propose the following:
The first order of business is to address the confidence and legitimacy question through a genuine process of all-inclusive national dialogue, followed by a national transitional mechanism, comprehensive reforms and a free and fair election.
On the currency and exchange rate crisis the MDC is very clear. The Zim Dollar is a debauched currency which is not backed by anything. The market has already dollarized on its own. An MDC government will officially redollarize the economy with immediate effect.
The MDC will make the economy to work again by investing in production and boosting social spending on Health by allocating at least 15% of the budget towards health in line with the Abuja Declaration.
The MDC will stop irresponsible borrowing by completely putting an end to the issuance of Treasury Bills which are feeding and driving up parallel market rates.
The MDC will stop command and economic dirigism in all its dimensions, including Command Agriculture which is feeding trough for Zanu PF.
The MDC will stop state capture and corruption by the removal of partisan state funding by individuals and focusing on domestic revenue generation and investment. The Queen Bees will no longer exist.
We will re-engage civil society, labour and business and construct a genuine Social Contract.
The MDC will address the current infrastructure deficit through syndicated loans and infrastructure bonds. On the fuel crisis, the MDC will liberalize the oil industry and allow more players with free funds to import fuel. On Electricity the MDC will pursue clean energy and the implementation of IPPs which have been stalled by corruption.
On food shortage, the MDC has an Agrarian Reform Program which links land tenure to agricultural financing and productivity including addressing the whole agricultural value chain pricing distortions.
Confidence boosting measures will be implemented through devolution, rule of law, constitutionalism, and political, economic, institutional, legal and electoral reforms including the protection of property rights.
Fellow Zimbabweans, the Zanu PF regime is a bunch of clueless politicians. The country is being milked and the future of our posterity is already being auctioned. Under Zanu PF rule the situation can only get worse.
Zimbabwe is going to see more and more policy inconsistencies such as banning and unbanning; freezing and unfreezing etc. The country is now being run by a mafia which does not care. Mthuli Ncube is doing his experiments with the economy with disastrous consequences. His neo-liberal agenda has brought pain and suffering to the poor. Yet this implosion can only be addressed by the return to legitimacy. Clearly there is no method in the madness.
The Zimbabwean economy is in a deep crisis as manifested by a proliferation of unresolved deepening monetary, fiscal, social and political headaches which the illegitimate regime has clearly failed to arrest.
The problem in Zimbabwe is a Confidence-cum-Legitimacy crisis.
The recent SONA and the preceding RBZ ban on cash-in, cash-back and cash-out platforms are desperate attempts to provide white wash and token solutions based on manifested symptoms of a sick economy.
The business as usual SONA must be roundly condemned by all right thinking Zimbabweans for the SONA failed to provide answers to the suffering Zimbabweans.
Indeed, the SONA failed to provide answers or solutions to the following:
An unprecedented energy crisis (fuel and electricity shortage)
Record price increases and inflationary pressures (hyperinflation)
The collapse of Social Services especially the Health Sector
The Exchange rate crisis
The Currency Crisis
Low Productivity
The Inflation tax on Wages and Salaries that has resulted in Incomes erosion
Unemployment that is now estimated at 90%
Sluggish economic growth estimated by the IMF to decline by minus 6% in 2019
A crippling debt crisis
Policy Reversals and Policy Ambiguity
Failure to sterilize TBs
No firm measures to curb corruption and state capture.
Further, there are glaring policy gaps in the SONA. One could go on and on pointing out many omissions and commissions.
What is the alternative?
The country is at a cross roads.and one year after the stolen election the illegitimate regime has driven the economy on the cliff edge and plunged the country into a socio-economic Armageddon.
The regime remains unrelenting in its quest to inflict suffering on the people by clearly committing an economic genocide.
The MDC has the solutions to reverse the current economic catastrophe.
We propose the following:
The first order of business is to address the confidence and legitimacy question through a genuine process of all-inclusive national dialogue, followed by a national transitional mechanism, comprehensive reforms and a free and fair election.
On the currency and exchange rate crisis the MDC is very clear. The Zim Dollar is a debauched currency which is not backed by anything. The market has already dollarized on its own. An MDC government will officially redollarize the economy with immediate effect.
The MDC will make the economy to work again by investing in production and boosting social spending on Health by allocating at least 15% of the budget towards health in line with the Abuja Declaration.
The MDC will stop irresponsible borrowing by completely putting an end to the issuance of Treasury Bills which are feeding and driving up parallel market rates.
The MDC will stop command and economic dirigism in all its dimensions, including Command Agriculture which is feeding trough for Zanu PF.
The MDC will stop state capture and corruption by the removal of partisan state funding by individuals and focusing on domestic revenue generation and investment. The Queen Bees will no longer exist.
We will re-engage civil society, labour and business and construct a genuine Social Contract.
The MDC will address the current infrastructure deficit through syndicated loans and infrastructure bonds. On the fuel crisis, the MDC will liberalize the oil industry and allow more players with free funds to import fuel. On Electricity the MDC will pursue clean energy and the implementation of IPPs which have been stalled by corruption.
On food shortage, the MDC has an Agrarian Reform Program which links land tenure to agricultural financing and productivity including addressing the whole agricultural value chain pricing distortions.
Confidence boosting measures will be implemented through devolution, rule of law, constitutionalism, and political, economic, institutional, legal and electoral reforms including the protection of property rights.
Fellow Zimbabweans, the Zanu PF regime is a bunch of clueless politicians. The country is being milked and the future of our posterity is already being auctioned. Under Zanu PF rule the situation can only get worse.
Zimbabwe is going to see more and more policy inconsistencies such as banning and unbanning; freezing and unfreezing etc. The country is now being run by a mafia which does not care. Mthuli Ncube is doing his experiments with the economy with disastrous consequences. His neo-liberal agenda has brought pain and suffering to the poor. Yet this implosion can only be addressed by the return to legitimacy. Clearly there is no method in the madness.
Farai Dziva| Highlanders legend Madinda Ndlovu has been discharged from hospital.
“Awesome, Madinda Khathazile Ndlovu, Zimbabwe and Highlanders legend has been discharged from the hospital in Botswana.
He had a blood clot which led to a stroke and has been in hospital for a couple of weeks. We thank the almighty God, Doctors and good hearted people who prayed for his recovery. He is gone home for rehab and will be back up and running soon. We love you Shacky,” said Ezra Tshisa Sibanda.
By A Correspondent- The Apex Council, the civil servants representative body on Friday requested the government to urgently convene a salaries negotiations meeting.
In a letter addressed to Dr Sekai Nzenza, the Minister of Labour and Social Welfare, Apex Council chairperson Cecilia Alexander said:
As the above matter refers, Apex Council hereby requests your August office to convene an urgent NJNC meeting on or before the 9th of October 2019 to map way forward on continuous escalating cost of living.
The council also wishes to bring to your attention that it maintains its demand of salaries payment be indexed to interbank rate basing on the salary scale of October 2018.
The call is made when workers including doctors have argued that the soaring inflation has over the months eroded their salaries to the extent that they are now incapacitated to perform their duties and responsibilities.
National Joint Negotiating Council (NJNC), which combines the workers and government, last met in July this year.
By A Correspondent- MDC leader President Nelson Chamisa says he is praying for President Emmerson Mnangagwa to have his heart softened so that he may work towards the upliftment of the livelihoods of the people of Zimbabwe.
Said Chamisa, “I am praying for my Bro Pfee to have his eyes opened and heart softened, for him to appreciate that hardness of the heart profiteth no man. Heartlessness, at the end of it all, only adds more sorrow and deeper grief!”
By A Correspondent- A 33-year-old sex worker from Gweru’s Mkoba suburb has been slapped with a six-month imprisonment term after she stole money and cellphone from her client.
The self confessed thigh vendor, Constance Mhango pleaded guilty to theft when she appeared before Gweru magistrate Mrs Phathekile Msipha.
Mhango stole $600 and a Samsung S6 cellphone from her client, Philemon Muzenda, who had hired her for an all-night sex service.
In her plea, Mhango told the court that she wanted to use the money to pay school fees for her two children.
“Your Worship, I admit that l stole from my client. I desperately needed the money to pay school fees for my children. I deeply regret what l did, and may this honourable court be lenient towards me as l still need to fend for my children since l am a single mother,” she said.
Mrs Msipha dismissed Mhango’s plea saying she was only sorry because she had been caught.
She sentenced Mhango to six months in prison and two months were suspended on condition that Mhango restitutes Muzenda $600 and his cellphone.
It is the State’s case that on August 8, Muzenda asked to spend a night with Mhango and he was charged $20.
The two went to a lodge and Mhango was paid for her services upfront. The accused, however, took advantage of Muzenda who was drunk and stole from him, before fleeing from the scene.
Muzenda reported the matter to the police leading to Mhango’s arrest.
By A Correspondent- A 47-year-old teacher from Pumula South suburb allegedly raped a 12-year-old pupil that he was providing English extra lessons.
Shadreck Kantsholo is alleged to have gone to the minor’s place under the guise of providing extra lessons and reportedly fondled her.
“He taught her the English subject and during the lesson he went behind minor’s back, stretched his arms and fondled her breasts, and pressed them against the table,” said State prosecutor Kenneth Shava at the Western Commonage magistrates courts when Kantsholo appeared in court.
The court heard that after fondling the pupil he undressed and also ordered the minor to take off her clothes. He allegedly went on to remove his clothes and also ordered the minor to remove her clothes. The minor complied. He allegedly raped her but stopped midway after noticing that the door was open. The minor then bolted through the front door and alerted neighbours, leading to the arrest of Kantsholo, the court heard.
Kantsholo pleaded not guilty before magistrate Gladmore Mushove and was remanded in custody to 10 October for trial.
I write to you with a profound sense of shame proffering my most sincere apologies for the deplorable manner in which your kind gesture of honouring the legacy of the late revolutionary icon, President Robert Gabriel Mugabe has been maligned and abused by Emmerson Mnangagwa’s regime. As a Zimbabwean, I feel obligated to apologise and take responsibility for the bad behaviour of Mnangagwa and his band since they are my compatriots.
The objective of the abuse and disparagement is to deflect attention from how Mnangagwa’s regime and its associated entities hounded and tormented President Mugabe into his death in exile. Mnangagwa has tried to bully and threaten President Mugabe’s family into burying him at Heroes Acre. He failed. After failing, Mnangagwa continues on a programme of retribution against President Mugabe’s widow and family. They have set illegal panners onto the family farm.
It is appalling that the Mnangagwa government owned and controlled Sunday Mail newspaper has been consistently abusing you for honouring the memory of President Mugabe. Mnangagwa’s media is pushing a blatantly false narrative that President Mugabe anointed Honourable Saviour Kasukuwere for president in a bid to downplay President Mugabe’s respect for democratically electing leaders. These narratives are then taken on by state-run social media ghost accounts that seek to further undermine President Mugabe by stoking tribalism.
It is also unfortunate that some individuals have also given hostage to fortune by injudiciously seeking to publicise the so-called Zimbabwe Generation 40 political party as being associated with some of us who are labelled as G40 stalwarts. Whilst I acknowledge that individuals have a right to harbouring and furthering their own personal political ambitions, I also have a right to dissociate myself from such ambitions as I hereby do. Apart from which, I am still mourning and grieving for my uncle, President Robert Gabriel Mugabe, to engage myself in such political shenanigans.
Asante Sana. Iwe Neni Tine Basa. Umsebenzi lo Umkhulu.
By A Correspondent- A woman from Entumbane in Bulawayo has claimed that her brother was forcing her out of the family house saying she had no right to stay there but should get married.
On the other hand, the brother also hit back saying he spent most of his time in the rural areas and the sister barred him from the house saying he did not pay rent.
“My brother is chasing me from the house. He says I am supposed to be married,” said Happiness.
Happiness also complained that her brother’s conduct was robbing her of her happiness as he also did not respect her as he used to have sexual intercourse with his wife in her presence.
“He always insults me, disturbing my peace and also has sexual intercourse with his wife in my presence because we share the same room,” said Happiness Mpofu.
Happiness accused his brother, Nkosikhona, of abusing her and her daughter. At one point, she said, Nkosilathi bashed her and insulted her about her disability.
“He once bashed me and emotionally abused my four-year-old child. He further insulted me about my disability and threatened to bash me again,” said Happiness.
Nkosikhona, however, dismissed the allegations raised by his sister. He said his sister always barred him from the family home whenever he visited from the rural areas.
“She always bars me when I come from the rural area and says that I don’t pay rent. The house does not even belong to her because it is our late grandfather’s house,” said Nkosikhona.
This dispute between siblings came to light at the Western Commonage magistrates’ courts when Happiness sought a protection order against Nkosikhona. The magistrate granted Happiness a protection order and told Nkosikhona not to interfere with her. He also told them to both leave the house for the sake of peace.
By Nomusa Garikai_ Professor Lovemore Madhuku, one of Zimbabwe’s opposition party leaders, said President Mnangagwa’s speech to mark the opening of parliament proffered no solutions to the country’s myriad of economic, social and political problem.
“They are worse than (the late former President Robert) Mugabe, especially the level of indecision. I read a useful article which said Mnangagwa, through his Sona last year, set an ambitious target that has not been achieved. It does not begin to even address the basic issues affecting the people of Zimbabwe,” he said.
Madhuku said his party was only participating in the Political Actors Dialogue (POLAD) with the hope that it would bring positive change to Zimbabwe and also to ensure that the Zanu PF government does not collapse.
Madhuku is 100% correct Mnangagwa’s speech “did not proffer any solutions” to the myriad of problems the nation facing. But that comes as no a surprise; the man is corrupt, incompetent and utterly useless, taking over the leadership of Zanu PF was not going to change that reality.
As much as Mnangagwa has tried to distance himself from Zimbabwe’s economic meltdown and political tyranny of the 37 years Mugabe as the Zanu PF top dog; he cannot. He was a senior member of Mugabe’s government throughout the 37 years. Why did he not resign if he disapproved with the regime’s policies.
Indeed, Mnangagwa was Mugabe’s Chief enforcer and henchman. If was none other than Mnangagwa himself who went so far as to orchestrate the blatant “cooking up” of the March 2008 election result to deny Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC party the victory.
He went on to direct Zanu PF operatives, war veterans and security services personal to harass, intimidate, beat, rape and even to murder of over 500 innocent civilians in cold blood for the purpose of punishing the people for rejecting Zanu PF and forcing them to vote for Mugabe in the run-off.
Of course, Mnangagwa must bear his share of the blame blame for all the economic mess, corruption and the innocent blood that was shed during the Mugabe days. He stifled debate and democratic competition and even killed to keep Mugabe and Zanu PF in power!
Even if we gave Mnangagwa the benefit of the doubt and absolved him from all responsibility for the failures, chaos, etc. during Mugabe’s days. He has failed to accomplish anything in the last two years he has been in power.
He promised to end mismanagement and corruption; there are still rampant. He promised to hold free, fair and credible elections; he blatantly rig the elections. The silence all dissent against the rigged elections he ordered the soldiers to shoot to kill. 17 civilians were killed.
Zanu PF under Mnangagwa, is still a party of corrupt, incompetent, vote rigging and murderous thugs; same as under Mugabe. Nothing has change!
Of course, the opposition parties including MDC and Professor Madhuku’s NCA all participated in last year’s elections knowing fully well that Zanu PF had not change and will rig the elections. The opposition knew Zanu PF would give away a few gravy train seats and a share of the Political Party Finance (Act) payout for all who get 5% or more of the vote. It was this bait that the opposition are after; they did not care how flawed and illegal the election process was.
By participating in last year’s elections the opposition gave the flawed and illegal process some modicum of respectability and, by the same token, gave the illegitimate Zanu PF regime some modicum of legitimacy.
So Professor Lovemore Madhuku admits Mnangagwa is corrupt and incompetent; after 39 years of Zanu PF blundering from pillar to post, that is obvious. And yet, surprise, surprise he also admits to keeping Zanu PF from collapsing! How stupid is that!
Since President Mnangagwa has no clue how to get Zimbabwe out of this economic mess; “he did not proffer any solutions,” as Madhuku rightly put it; Zimbabwe is going to sink deeper and into the economic mess.
What is frustrating is unless we have free, fair and credible elections, we are well and truly stuck with this Zanu PF regime. And it is none other than Madhuku, Chamisa and the rest of the opposition village idiots whose participation in rigged elections are helping to keep Zanu PF in power!
Zimbabwe is in a real mess because the country has been stuck with a corrupt, incompetent and tyrannical de facto one-party Zanu PF dictatorship for 39 years and counting. The country has been desperate for change for decades and the very people, the opposition, who should be delivering the change are the ones stopping change!
By A Correspondent- Murewa’s Chief Mangwende has descended on his headmen after they invited witch-hunters who allegedly ripped off villagers, taking their cattle and other valuables on the pretext of cleansing their homesteads without his consent.
The headmen were summoned to Murewa Centre last week before the traditional leader, real name Taaziva Gatsi, went around villages to investigate further.
“You are being summoned to attend Chief Mangwende’s meeting to be held in the DA’s boardroom on the 16th of May 2019, at 10am regarding the illegal operations of the tsikamutandas in your area of jurisdiction,” the summons to the headmen seen by NewsDay read.
A villager in Chizanga confirmed the presence of the witch-hunters popularly known as tsikamutandas and said some of the accused headmen were ordered to pay a $60 fine each.
“There are witch-hunters, who were in the area recently in most parts of Murewa West constituency. Currently, they are now in Murewa North around the Chemapango area. So they were asking for beasts after ‘exorcising’ some homesteads. The interesting thing is that the people were going through the headmen and other traditional leaders. So the Chief (Mangwende) indeed sent summons to the other traditional leaders and ordered them to pay a fine of $60,” the villager said.
In an interview yesterday, Chief Mangwende confirmed the issue saying he was investigating the matter.
“It is true, some headmen invited witch-hunters and we summoned them to Murewa Centre. They paid $60 for what we call in Shona Dare. This money is used for logistical purposes like travelling to the affected areas. We have since travelled to the areas so that we get first-hand information. However, we are yet to conclude on the matter,” he said.
Witch-hunters have besieged most rural areas misrepresenting to villagers that they can cleanse their homesteads by removing goblins and other things tormenting families. They, however, charge a minimum of a beast for the exorcism exercise. According to section 97 of the Criminal Law Codification Reform Acts Chapter 9:23, it is an offence for one to “accuse a person of witchcraft”. In 2016, government, through a Cabinet resolution, banned all tsikamutandas from extorting villagers of their hard-earned wealth.
When MDC MP legislator Job ‘Wiwa’ Sikhala wore a tight fitting waist coat inside his suit he had no idea that his fashion mishap would be the brainchild of many memes, adverts and the punchline of many jokes apparently.
However Mambo’s Chicken, well known for their witty banter swooped in to save the day…. after joking on his behalf of course.
Sikhala did some promotional work for them this afternoon under the #Wiwa hashtag.
When the Mambo’s Experience hits you, everything fits well!
By A Correspondent- A privately-owned Falcon College in Esigodini, Matabeleland South province, is suing a parent for failing to pay fees amounting to over $14 700.
The college filed summons at the Bulawayo High Court, citing the child’s parent as the defendant.
Southern Eye has withheld the name of the parent to protect the child in question, who is a minor.
“The plaintiff’s claim against you is for payment of $14 742,19 being monies overdue and outstanding for school fees and levies in respect of your child whom you enrolled at the plaintiff’s school. Interest on the sum of $14 742,19 at the prescribed rate of 5% per annum from August 23 to date of full payment,” the summons read in part.
“The period for the amount above is for the term beginning May 2018 and ending July 2018. The above amount is still owing and accruing interest at the prescribed rate. Despite demand the defendant has failed, neglected, denied or delayed to pay the said amount,” the college submitted.
The school said the parent abused court process by forcing it to approach the court and thereby putting the college out of pocket in a straight forward matter.
“The conduct warrants a punitive order of costs on the legal practitioner and client scale. Wherefore plaintiff prays for judgment against the defendant for payment of $14 742,19 together with interest thereon at the prescribed rate of 5% per annum from August 23 2018 to date of full payment,” the college submitted.
1/3 In yet another armed robbery, 5 armed men broke into a house in Waterfalls, Harare and threatened to shoot complainant and his wife. They tied the victims with shoe laces and ransacked the house and stole US$5 170- 00, ZWL$705, 00, 8 cellphones and a 3mm Rossi pistol before
— Zimbabwe Republic Police (@PoliceZimbabwe) October 4, 2019
2/3 they drove away in complaint’s navy blue Mercedes Benz ML 320 vehicle. It is not safe to keep large sums of money at home or business premises. We urge the public to improve their security systems to avoid intruders.
— Zimbabwe Republic Police (@PoliceZimbabwe) October 4, 2019
By A Correspondent- Finance and Economic Development minister Mthuli Ncube faces a daunting task of structuring the 2020 National Budget in the wake of spiralling inflation now reportedly the highest in the world.
Felix Mhona, the chairperson of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Budget and Finance told NewsDay yesterday that his committee will next Monday meet Ncube and his staff to hear how their 2020 Budget position paper would be structured.
Mhona said the committee will be keen to hear how the Finance minister will rein in inflation which continues to soar, and given that the budget will be announced in local currency. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) recently said Zimbabwe’s inflation was around 300%, which means that the economy is experiencing major contraction. The local statistical office, Zimstats was ordered not to release inflation figures by Ncube.
On Tuesday, Ncube moved for the establishment of a committee of supply, to begin considering and voting the ordinary expenditure for the year as the pre-budget preparations for 2020 begin.
“The Budget and Finance Portfolio Committee will be meeting Ncube and his team on Monday so that they give us their position paper on the 2020 Budget,” Mhona said.
“The Finance minister has promised that inflation will stabilise and we are waiting for those variables — and we want him to explain when it (inflation) is going to stabilise, and how he will administer the budget given that it will be a Zimbabwe dollar budget.”
Mhona said given the soaring inflation figures, and the ever-rising intermarket bank rates against the United States dollar, the committee was eager to know how the 2020 Zimbabwe dollar budget would look like.
“Given the interbank rates that keep going up, we are worried that Ncube’s 2020 Budget in Zimbabwe dollars might not be sufficient. It might only cover the first quarter of the year if he does not manage to deal with inflation and to manage the exchange rate issues,” he said.
Mhona expressed fear that if inflation continues to soar, Ncube might be forced to come back to Parliament with a supplementary budget earlier than anticipated.
During the recent public hearings on the 2020 Budget, Mhona said the topical issues in rural and urban areas were calls by people that Ncube must deal with massive profiteering by EcoCash agents and ensure that they get cash through proper banking channels.
“That issue kept recurring, but we are glad that the Finance ministry and the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe are already dealing with it,” Mhona said.
In rural areas, Mhona said people were crying foul over the distorted pricing systems in the country, and they demanded that they should also be cushioned from escalating prices.
He also noted that urbanites wanted provision of adequate electricity and fuel, and promotion of industrialisation and infrastructural growth in terms of good road networks.
By A Correspondent- A 29 year old Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra) official accused of defrauding his employer of US$433 000 and $1,5 million while stationed at Plumtree Border Post was yesterday denied bail by a Bulawayo magistrate on the grounds that he was a flight risk.
Norest Ushe, who faces charges of facilitating passage of smuggled vehicles into the country, yesterday appeared before magistrate Shepherd Mjanja for ruling on his application for bail pending trial.
The State, represented by Rufaro Mageza, opposed bail on the grounds that Ushe was a flight risk since he was not married.
Ushe filed the application for bail on Monday during his initial appearance, indicating that he would abide by the bail conditions set by the court.
Ushe is charged with fraud as defined in Section 136 (a) of the Criminal Law Codification and Reform) Act Chapter 9:23 (50 counts) and Criminal Abuse of Duty as a public official as defined in Section 174 (1) (a) of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act Chapter 9: 23.
He allegedly committed the offence while working at the private imports section at Plumtree Border Post where he was responsible for clearance of private goods before he was transferred to the scanning section where he was responsible for scanning goods.
“As from May 2019 to September 24, 2019, the accused person clandestinely captured into Zimra system information of 50 motor vehicles smuggled into the country…,” the State alleges.
“As from July 1, 2019, the accused was redeployed as a scanner where he was not supposed to continue to capture data into system, but he continued capturing data of the smuggled vehicles and facilitated their registration until September 26, 2019 when his SAP profile password was deactivated.”
As a result, Zimra was prejudiced of unpaid duty totalling US$432 767,54 for 39 vehicles and $1 469 791,58 for another 11 vehicles.
Paul Kagame, Nelson Chamisa and others in a discussion on ICT
Rwandan President Paul Kagame
By Wilbert Mukori| There is one thing we can say with absolute certainty; President Mnangagwa and his fellow Joint Operation Command (JOC) junta members, comprising the top brass in the country’s security services and a select Zanu PF party leaders, have no intention of giving up absolute power. They risked their looted wealth, life and limb, everything in the all-or-nothing November 2017 military coup to wrestle power from their erstwhile JOC colleagues and leader Robert Mugabe. They clearly have no intention of losing all that now.
indepth…Wilbert Mukori
Zimbabwe’s worsening economic situation is putting Mnangagwa and his regime under ever increasing pressure; their continued hold on power is now dependent on the regime reviving the “dead economy”, as Mnangagwa himself admitted the other day.
It is no surprise then that President Mnangagwa has taken concrete steps to try replicate what President Paul Kagame has done in Rwanda; revive the economic fortune and still keep an iron grip on power!
“PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa is trying to emulate his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame’s economic development model, which blends authoritarian practices and homegrown solutions with international best practices, as he hired yet another public relations (PR) firm in a desperate bid to spruce up the country’s battered international image,” reported the Independent.
This model is, at best, a short term solution in that it will deliver economic success but for a short period. We can be 100% certain that authoritarian monster will awaken and reassert itself with disastrous consequence. The awakening may happen during Paul Kagame’s time, no one can be certain when exactly; the point is the monster is there already.
If anyone still doubts that Rwanda’s economic success is doomed to fail, they need only look at China. The country descended into new depths of depravity, poverty and despair under Chair Mao. His successors had the wisdom to open up China and, for the last four decades, China has enjoyed unparalleled economic and social transformation. But other than introduce the fixed ten year term for the presidency, they have retained the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) authoritarian system.
China’s authoritarian dragon was reared it ugly head once again. President Xi Jinping, China’s current president, has since scrapped the fixed ten year presidential term; has carolled millions of China’s Muslim minority into detention camps, euphemistically calling them “education camp”; he is clawing back the democratic rights of the people in Hong Kong, they are putting up a fight to stop him; etc.
If China’s economic boom was to falter, for whatever reasons, the CCP will revert back to its default setting of using brute force to retain its iron grip on power.
A country’s economic success under an authoritarian system will not last; it is a house built on clay, it will stand as long as the ground remains dry. The foundation will sink in the wet and soft clay causing in innumerable and irreparable structural problems.
As much as Mnangagwa would wish to emulate Paul Kagame’s success, he will never do so. First and foremost, Mnangagwa is a seasoned corrupt, incompetent, vote rigging and murderous tyrant forsaking these dirty habits has already proven mission impossible. After the November 2017 military coup, he promised to end corruption, hold free elections, etc. but has failed to deliver or blatantly broke his promises.
“BTP, the PR company hired by Mnangagwa successfully led a campaign to exonerate Kagame from the 1994 genocide. A 2009 report from the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative acknowledged that the BTP’s “excellent public relations machinery” had succeeded in hiding “the exclusionary and repressive nature of the regime” in Kigali,” said the Independent.
BTP had its work cut-out trying to hide Mnangagwa’s role in the corruption, vote-rigging and murderous tyranny during Mugabe’s days given he was the dictator’s chief enforcer throughout the 37 years. Even if the company did succeed; how is it going to hide the reality of the continuing corruption, vote rigging, killings, economic collapse, etc. of the last two years and going on as we speak!
How can BTP sell Mnangagwa as a changed man when everything confirms that Zimbabwe is still a pariah state and he has not change one bit!
As long as Zimbabwe remains a pariah state, there will be no meaningful economic recovery. It is impossible to do business is a pariah state given all the economic chaos and lawlessness.
BTP will never make a Paul Kagame out of Emmerson, it will be making a silk purse out of a sower’s ear. Mnangagwa is just wasting the nation’s money and time.
Mnangagwa and his illegitimate Zanu PF regime; they rigged the elections, they have never had the legal mandate to govern; must step down. Zimbabwe needs the political space to implement the democratic reforms and lay the foundation, on sold rock, for a democratic system of government. – SOURCE: zsdemocrats.blogspot.com
By A Correspondent- Government has come up with more pieces of anti-corruption legislation, in addition to the Money Laundering and Proceeds of Crime Amendment Bill, which Justice minister Ziyambi Ziyambi last week said would be speeded up in order to “deal with corrupt people”.
This comes as President Emmerson Mnangagwa on Tuesday talked tough on corruption while officially opening the Second Session of the Ninth Parliament.
The Money Laundering and Proceeds of Crime Amendment Bill is currently in the Second Reading Stage in the National Assembly.
Mnangagwa announced that more laws will be crafted, such as the Securities and Exchange Commission Bill, which he said will strengthen the anti-money laundering legislation, as well as amendments to the Public Finance Management Act in order to align it with the Constitution.
In the National Assembly last Wednesday, Ziyambi urged MPs to speed up speed up passage of the laws to deal with corruption.
“I brought in the Money Laundering and Proceeds of Crime Amendment Bill to deal with issues of unexplained wealth and we feel that it is the easiest way to target people who would have acquired wealth corruptly whereby unexplained orders are issued and you have to explain,” Ziyambi said.
“The Bill will be discussed in Parliament, and MPs must debate it very fast and improve it so that we can deal with corrupt people,” he said.
The Money Laundering and Proceeds of Crime Act was first enacted in November 2018 through Statutory Instrument (SI) 246 of 2018 under the Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) Act.
Legal think-tank Veritas yesterday said SI 246 of 2018 expired three months ago.
“It is, therefore, surprising that passage of the Bill has been so delayed because the objective is enhancement of the legal weapons to fight corruption, money laundering, terrorist financing and tax evasion.
Once it is law, the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission, Zimra and the police will be enabled, under judicial supervision, to demand explanations from persons who exhibit great wealth without having any apparent lawful means of obtaining it – and, if no satisfactory explanations are given, ill-gotten gains will be forfeited,” Veritas said.
Auditor-General Mildred Chiri has every year exposed massive corruption at government institutions, but few arrests have been made to date.
By A Correspondent- Zimbabwe Power Company (ZPC) has withdrawn its court case against Intratek Zimbabwe Pvt Ltd owned by businessman Wicknell Chivhayo.
ZPC was appealing a High Court order that stated that a contract they entered into with Chivhayo’s company in 2015 was still valid.
The ZESA subsidiary was arguing that Intratek had violated the agreement, therefore, should not continue with the Gwanda Solar Power Project which ZPC intended to give to another contractor.
Justice Chitapi, however, ruled in June this year that ZPC and Intratek had to find each other since the project was of much significance to the country. Chitapi said:
It has already been observed that the subject matter of the contract is of immense national importance.
It is of public interest. The public wants electricity for use at home and in industries. The public is not interest in bickering for self-interest and egos.
The development comes when the country is having a huge power deficit manifest in long power cuts schedules.
By A Correspondent- Woes mount for president Emmerson Mnangagwa as doctors at public hospitals yesterday downed tools as they declared incapacitation.
The doctors, join their junior counterparts who have been protesting for over a month, in another blow to an already stuttering public health sector.
The latest development is set to plunge the health delivery system further into chaos with patients bearing the brunt of the deadlock between the doctors and their employer.
A senior doctor at Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals told NewsDay that they could no longer perform their duties due to incapacitation caused by erosion of their meagre salaries.
“Since there has been no communication from the Health ministry following our communication on Tuesday which warned of this, we are withdrawing our services,” the doctor, who requested anonymity for professional reasons, said.
The source, however, said they were more than ready to meet with their employer for further negotiations.
“We are awaiting the formal communication from the ministry, then as senior doctors, we will meet to discuss,” the doctor added.
Yesterday, the situation at public health institutions such as Parirenyatwa and Harare Central hospitals was dire as patients milled around with no one to attend to them. Some who had come as early as 8am were still to be attended to by mid-day.
The casualty department was full to capacity with some patients having spent days coming to the facility.
At Chitungwiza Central Hospital, only emergency cases were being attended to. “The only cases being attended to are the emergency ones,” said a source.
Commenting on the situation, Parirenyatwa Hospital spokesperson Linos Dhire appealed to the negotiating parties to resolve the sticking issues without delay.
“The situation on the ground requires some urgent compromise. We believe that the common denominator in the negotiations should be the best interests of the patient,” he said.
Health Services Board (HSB) chairperson Paulinas Sikhosana said efforts had been made to engage doctors together with the rest of the other health workers’ associations in collective bargaining for cost of living adjustment (Cola).
“Doctors are part of the bipartite negotiations which took place in September with regards to Cola and an agreement was made, which the doctors later disowned after the signing of the same agreement,” he said.
“One of the key issues of the Cola agreement was that engagements would continue on health specific allowances.”
Government, later in another meeting, offered a review of all the health specific allowances, but the workers immediately rejected it.
The same meeting then agreed to establish a technical committee mandated to further work on an alternative framework of reviewing all health specific allowances, a framework which is now under consideration by government.
Sikhosana said the HSB has an open door policy for dialogue outside the negotiation forum and that the senior doctors were welcome.
“We had an informal meeting to discuss issues on Cola and its payment. The health workers demanded a review of the health specific allowances. The HSB is presently seized with this matter and has engaged Treasury,” he said.
Contacted for comment, Health ministry secretary Agnes Mahomva said she was in a meeting and had not responded to question sent to her by the time of going to print.
Government recently warned that it would withdraw salaries for the striking doctors, but the latter laughed off the threat.
By A Correspondent- A section of Zimbabweans has launched an online petition to the Canadian government to deport one of ZANU PF’s internet propaganda team (Varakashi) Jones Musara over supporting a party that is alleged to be abusing human rights in Zimbabwe.
The petition which is on Change.org says, “We believe Zanu PF has employed some supporters in the diaspora to terrorize and intimidate other Zimbabweans who oppose their views. These Zanu PF supporters falsified asylum applications to get documentation in Canada. They have been prominent on Whatsapp, Twitter and Facebook intimidating other Zimbabweans mainly MDC supporters who do not support their new dispensation. We therefore suggest that anyone supporting the regime by terrorizing other Zimbabweans must relocate to Zimbabwe to enjoy the purported new dispensation.”
Musara said he was not moved by the petition and he will be landing in Canada on Saturday.
“Like any other human being I have the right to freedom of movement. I go back and forth to Zimbabwe and Canada whenever I want and will continue to do so for as long I want. I have the right to freedom of movement just like any other human being.” Musara said. “From Zimbabwe, I will be in Canada by midday this Saturday. Toda kuwedzera kurakasha mhandu tirimo imomo muNorth America and West at large for now..belly of the beast.”
Activist Thandekile Moyo said she is supporting the petition against Musara.
“Now that’s a petition I would sign over and over again. Why should someone be praising a Government that’s oppressing us from the comforts of another country. He must come and experience what we’re experiencing. These backers of the regime must be held accountable for their roles.”
