While the whole region is watching developments in Malawi over the May disputed elections, rogue Zimbabwean Businessman Wicknell Chivayo has visited the Malawian President Peter Mutharika and congratulated him on his “tipex” victory.
Posting on his social media page, Chivhayo declared impending relations with the disputed head of state.
Wrote Chivayo:
HAUPARARE HU MAMBO NDE HWEROPA…I spent the last 5 days in Malawi on a business trip and more importantly had to pass by and congratulate HIS EXCELLENCY THE PRESIDENT OF THE THE REPUBLIC OF MALAWI PROF ARTHUR PETER MUTHARIKA on his victory on the recent elections…He is indeed a wonderful FATHER FIGURE to us all AFRICANS…As a long time supporter of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) i commend his tireless efforts to grow the economy and redevelop MALAWI to improve lives of the ordinary citizens…I’m proud to be part of his vision…??? DPP###PROSPERITY###JUSTICE### SECURITY###
A TOUT from Bulawayo allegedly beat his cousin to death with an iron bar and made a false police report that he had found him dead.
Makhosi Ncube (33) is suspected to have killed Keith Ramjis (40), whom he lived with at a family house in Thorngrove suburb between Saturday and Sunday morning.
On Sunday night, a panicky Ncube allegedly told neighbours that he had stumbled on Ramjis’ bloodied body in the house and they advised him to report to the police.
Police investigations linked him to the brutal killing and he was arrested on the same night.
Bulawayo acting police spokesperson Inspector Abednico Ncube yesterday confirmed the murder case and said police were yet to establish a motive for the killing.
He said Ncube was assisting cops with investigations.
“We are investigating a suspected murder case where 40-year-old man was found dead at his home in Thorngrove suburb. The deceased and the informant shared a room,” said Insp Ncube.
“Investigating officers observed that the deceased had a deep cut on his forehead. His head was swollen and he had another cut on his back. The officers also discovered a wooden piece of broom stick and an iron bar which were hidden under the deceased’s bed.”
The officers, Insp Ncube said, also discovered that Ramjis’s blood stained blankets had been placed on a washing line together with the Ncube’s bloodied jeans.
“This led to the police connecting the informant with the murder and he is now assisting them with investigations,” he said.
He said prior to Ramjis’s death, the two had attended a party in Mahatshula suburb on Saturday. “It is alleged that on Saturday the two of them attended a party in Mahatshula suburb before returning home at 8PM.
“The two shared a room in the house belonging to the deceased’s mother who is based in the United Kingdom.
The informant claimed that he left the following morning and went to Harare Road where he operates as a tout. He claimed that on his return at about 8PM on Sunday he stumbled on the deceased’s body and reported the matter to their neighbours who encouraged him to report the case to the police who attended the scene,” he said.
A Chronicle news crew visited the family’s residence yesterday where relatives said they were not sure what led the cousins to have the fatal scuffle.
Family spokesperson Mrs Siqondeni Chitsiga said: “We don’t know what transpired. What we know is that they fought.
“They are cousins. We also have not accessed him (Ncube) since he was picked by the police to ask him what really transpired,” said Mrs Chitsiga.
Opposition activist Michèle Ndoki has been imprisoned in Yaoundé’s main prison since February 2019.
Sentenced to six months in prison for taking part in a banned demonstration, lawyer and activist Michèle Ndoki of the opposition Mouvement pour la Renaissance du Cameroun (MRC) faces the death penalty in other cases.
Aboard the black Toyota Prado, which is driving her to the Nigerian border on February 26, Michèle Ndoki is taking every precaution to leave the country in complete discretion. Her companion, who remains her only intermediary with the rest of the world, does the same by turning off his phone, after briefly answering a few phone calls.
The lawyer has felt in danger since she was shot three times in the thigh on the sidelines of an MRC demonstration. For nearly a month, she lived as a recluse in her residence in Limbe. Tired of this situation, she is counting on this journey to make herself safe.
But the journey will be short. Although wearing a long loincloth dress and a large scarf almost covering her face, the officials at the Ekok border crossing have no difficulty in recognizing the person who has just distinguished herself, through her advocacy, as the star of the post-election hearings.
The arresting officer does not have an arrest warrant, he presents her with a “list of political activists banned from leaving the territory” on which her name appears. The lawyer protests, even though she knows she won’t be able to make him see reason.
On the same day, she was transferred to Yaoundé and then incarcerated some time later in the main prison of Kondengui.
The news of Michèle Ndoki’s arrestcaused a shock wave across the public sphere.
Condemnation and support arrive from all sides. Civil society organizations denounce an “arbitrary arrest”, the national bar association calls for her “immediate release”, the economist Célestin Monga salutes her “courage”… An improbable fate for the woman who was unknown in Cameroon’s political sphere two years ago – despite years of activism.
Beginnings in the business community
Far from the political arena, it was to the business community that the young lawyer turned when she returned to Cameroon in 1997.
Michèle Ndoki had just graduated in law with a specialization in business law from the University of Reims. In the same year, she joined the law firm Ngwe & Associés of the famous lawyer Marie-Andrée Ngwe, as a lawyer in consulting and corporate law.
Her former colleagues describe a “hard worker”, “passionate about law”. She left Ngwe & Associés five years after joining it, to embark on a career as an independent consultant.
This choice led her to work in several multinationals as a legal manager. From 2006 to 2012, her journey takes her through telecoms giant Orange, the Diageo Group (owner of the Guinness brand), Sanofi Laboratories and Gicam respectively.
Her career is dazzling, but the call of the bar is even more so. “She always wanted to be a lawyer. But when she returned to Cameroon, she felt that the judicial system was very inefficient and that it was difficult to defend clients in such a context,” confided one of her relatives.
In 2014, Michèle Ndoki is working to return to the law by successfully passing the internship access exam. The following year, she won the French-speaking advocacy contest against the death penalty, organized by the collective Ensemble contre la peine de mort (ECPM).
From homosexual rights to human rights
During this competition, the trainee lawyer recounts the murder committed by Jacques Dubuisson of his wife Marie-Thérèse Ngo Badjeck, ‘adopting’ the guise of their 11-year-old son, a witness to the facts.
The case, which dates back to 2011, had made a lot of noise in Cameroon. Michèle Ndoki’s work does not go unnoticed. Alice Kom, the first woman admitted to the Cameroonian Bar and a pioneer in the defence of homosexual rights, is impressed.
She contacted her and offered to put her talent at the service of civil society. Michèle Ndoki is “thirsty for the challenge”, she doesn’t ask for anything.
She is seen alongside Alice Kom in the activities of the Association for the Defence of Homosexual Rights (Adefho), or even in the interior of the country on behalf of Freedom Generation, an association for the defence of freedoms and human rights of which she is the co-founder.
Her ideals bring her closer to lawyers Emmanuel Simh, Christopher Ndong and Désiré Sikati, who wish to bring her into the ranks of the MRC. They are not the first to do so. In July 2013, the opponent Maurice Kamto, leader of the party, offered her a job.
Political commitment
At that time, the MRC was accused of being a party composed solely of the Bamilékés (the ethnic group of Maurice Kamto) and it wanted to diversify the sociological composition of its cadres.
With a brief stint at Garga Haman Adji’s Alliance for Democracy and Development (ADD), and two years of activism in Edith Kah Walla’s Cameroon’s people party (CPP), Michèle Ndoki’s profile is compelling.
The daughter of the former deputy mayor CPDM of Douala 1st district, Michèle Ndoki, wants to get involved at the local level, and seeks to have her project supported by a credible political party.
The political calculation is done, the marriage with the MRC takes place in December 2016. “The passion with which he[Maurice Kamto] spoke about his vision for our beautiful country touched my heart,” she explained on that occasion.
But beyond the speech, Michèle Ndoki mainly obtains the assurance of being invested by the MRC as a candidate to be a member of parliament.
Maurice Kamto trusted her. Michèle Ndoki is now everywhere: She became the departmental head of the MRC in the Douala 1st constituency, then first national vice-president of women of the party.
For the presidential election of October 2018, the MRC candidate appoints her to the pool in charge of his communication. Ndoki initiated the merger between Maurice Kamto and Akere Muna, who were to form a coalition on the eve of the election.
She is also the one who defends the request for partial annulment of the election during the historical post-electoral litigation hearing.
On that day, Michèle Ndoki carried out an exegesis of the electoral code and concluded that the results held by the Constitutional Council were not reliable.
The audience is broadcast live on all local television channels. And even if neither her arguments, nor those of her colleagues in Maurice Kamto’s defence, succeed in convincing the eleven members of the council, Cameroonians on all sides are won over and welcome this commitment, which is rarely seen among the country’s women politicians.
Almost five months after her incarceration, Michèle Ndoki still bears the traces of her political struggles. The scars of the bullets received on 26 January, and the baton blows received during the march of 27 October 2018 in Douala.
From the cell she shares with eight other detainees, the one who had previously refused French nationality is considering contributing to the resolution of the conflict in the English-speaking area.
“It is time to fight to make our nation shine again,” she announced on social networks through her collaborators.
Also accused of “group rebellion”, “hostility against the homeland”, “illegal immigration” and “incitement to insurrection”, she now faces the death penalty.
THE Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) has launched a manhunt for former Vice President Phelekezela Mphoko, who reportedly dramatically escaped from ZACC investigators on Monday afternoon.
ZACC, in collaboration with other law enforcement agents, has literally “sealed” the country’s borders to ensure the politician does not flee to other countries.
Mphoko faces arrest over criminal abuse of office charges.
Said ZACC spokesperson Commissioner John Makamure: “The position remains the same and Mr Mphoko’s whereabouts are still not known. Our officers are still on the ground looking for him.
“We are working closely with other law enforcement agents on the case and we have since alerted all the border posts to prevent his escape.”
On Monday Mphoko had agreed to surrender himself to ZACC officers at a Bulawayo police station, but he beat a hasty retreat and sped off movie-style, leaving the investigating officers shell-shocked.
He is being accused of criminal abuse of office after he unlawfully instructed junior police officers to release from cells, former Zimbabwe National Road Administration (ZINARA) acting chief executive Moses Juma.
Juma was being charged with criminal abuse of office.
Mphoko allegedly committed the offence when he was still Vice President of Zimbabwe.
Mphoko, who reportedly resisted arrest on Saturday at his home, on Monday agreed to meet ZACC officers at a police station in Bulawayo.
His lawyers had gone to ZACC offices to submit his statement, but the investigators demanded his appearance before them.
That is when they agreed to meet at a neutral venue, being a police station in Bulawayo.
Mphoko then indicated that he was on his way to the police station for the recording of his warned and cautioned statement.
Upon arrival at the station, Mphoko drove off at high speed.
By A Correspondent| A newborn fell to his death at Mamelodi Hospital, east of Pretoria, after nurses allegedly refused to help his mother, who gave birth standing up.
Theresa Ngwendu, 30, the Zimbabwean mother, told Sowetan that she was rushed to the hospital a week ago as she was about to go into labour.
She said a nurse at the hospital refused to help her on arrival and told her “this is not Zimbabwe”.
Her water broke inside the maternity ward around 6am.
“My baby came out while I was standing after the nurse refused to assist me. I was in pain while also bleeding,” Ngwendu said.
She said her baby fell head first on to the hospital floor and was immediately declared dead by the nursing staff.
The hospital’s CEO, Dr Terrence Makhudu, said he viewed the allegations in a serious light and had launched an investigation.-Sowetan
Let’s come in our numbers in Solidarity with Mr P Chigaba our PA he will be at the magistrate Court 8am. Our legal team will also challenge the prohibition order at the same Court today.
President Mnangagwa has appointed five new judges to the High Court bench in an effort to solidify the judicial organ and ensure expeditious justice delivery.
The judges comprising four men and one woman are expected to take oath of office before Chief Justice Luke Malaba, when the final term of 2019 legal year opens next month.
Veteran lawyer, Advocate Webster Chinamora, prominent Bulawayo-based lawyer Christopher Dube-Banda, Labour Court judge Evengelista Kabasa, Zimra head legal department Siyabona Msithu and Sunsley Zisengwe, who boasts of shining legal accolades after he obtained first-class law degrees at both undergraduate and master’s levels, are the latest to join the High Court bench.
They were among the cast of 18 candidates nominated to contest for eight vacancies of the High Court bench last month.
Judicial Service Commission acting secretary Mr Walter Chikwanha yesterday confirmed the appointment of the five.
“His Excellency the President has made the appointments of the five to the High Court bench,” he said, adding, “The Chief Justice (Luke Malaba) will preside over the swearing in ceremony of the five on September 4.”
The judges were appointed following public interviews held by the JSC last month, which seeks to increase transparency and enhance good governance.
The five were among the list of top performers, whose names were recommended for appointment by the JSC.
After the interviews, the JSC sent a list of “qualified persons as nominees” for the available posts.
The appointment of the five judges is expected to ease the workload that had reached breaking point, affecting the bench’s capacity to timeously dispense with cases requiring determination.
In one of the judgments, in February this year, Justice Tawanda Chitapi bemoaned the immense pressure the higher court operated under due to increased workload.
He made the remarks while delivering judgment in a dispute over a residential stand in Goromonzi involving Blessing Mureyani and Ms Maggie Genti.
Judgment in the case had delayed for almost three years. Justice Chitapi’s sentiments resonated with Chief Justice Malaba’s remarks during the official opening of the 2019 Legal Year in January.
In his keynote address, the Chief Justice noted the workload of the High Court judges. He said the judges worked under extremely difficult conditions.
“It is anticipated that in 2019 what remains clear is that the judges of that court are overworked,” he said adding, “More Judges are required to lessen the burden on the judges’ shoulders.”
President Mokgweetsi Masisi has once again reiterated that he would like to see former President, Ian Khama, back at the ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP).
Speaking over the weekend during the launch of his party’s parliamentary candidate for Gaborone Bonnington North, Annah Mokgethi, Masisi said Khama should return home.
This was the second time that Masisi has expressed his desire for Khama to return to the BDP.
Khama, who is now a patron of newly formed Botswana Patriotic Front (BPF), has however remained mum on the invitation by the president.
He left the BDP in May this year and announced his resignation during a Kgotla meeting in Serowe after the much publicised fall-out between the two former allies.
But on Sunday, Masisi said he was serious about seeing the former president back into the BDP fold.
“I am serious, I want him back and he should not assume that I am joking, he should not be going around with UDC criminals, people who are full of crocodile tears,” said Masisi, adding that the UDC was crying in 2014 accusing Khama of killing Motswaledi.
Masisi said during that period, he defended Khama, noting that even now he can stand to say Khama never killed Motswaledi.
“I can tell you that they are not associating with him in good faith, and those who near him, tell him that what you said in 2014 still stands, tell him that you still have at heart what you told him during the 2011 strike. I was there, we are not kids and we’re not here to play,” said Masisi.
BULAWAYO Deputy Mayor Councillor Tinashe Kambarami and Ward Four Councillor Silas Chigora who were jointly accused of assaulting the Town Clerk, Mr Christopher Dube, were yesterday discharged at the close of the State case.
Clrs Kambarami and Chigora were alleged to have assaulted Mr Dube while serving him with a letter of suspension last month. They both pleaded not guilty to the charges, arguing that they were fabricated.
Bulawayo magistrate, Mr Tinashe Tashaya, acquitted the two councillors of assault charges following an application for discharge by their lawyer Mr Maqhawe Mpofu of Samp Mlaudzi and Partners.
Mr Tashaya said the complainant’s testimony could not be relied upon as it was not credible and truthful.
“In his evidence, the complainant narrated to the court how he was assaulted and the accused persons denied the charge, saying they only served him with a suspension letter. It is clear and not disputed that the evidence by the two State witnesses was damaging to the State case as they contradicted the complainant’s version. Clearly, their testimonies did not corroborate with the evidence of the complainant, which in itself was not credible and reliable,” he said.
The magistrate said the State failed to prove a prima facie case against Kambarami and Chigora.
“In light of the above, the State has failed to prove a prima facie case against the accused persons and I hereby retain a verdict of not guilty and accordingly, they are acquitted,” ruled Mr Tashaya.
In his testimony, Mr Dube alleged Clr Kambarami and Clr Chigora stormed into his office “movie-style,” slapped, punched and kicked him.
He said a senior security officer, Mr Tobias Dube and Makhosi Tshalebwa came to his rescue before Clrs Kambarami and Chigora sought reinforcements from fellow councillors.
In cross-examining Mr Dube, Mr Mpofu challenged the authenticity of his testimony, arguing that it differed from an account given by Messrs Tobias Dube and Tshalebwa in their statements.
Mr Mpofu also challenged the inconsistencies between the statement the complainant gave to the police and his evidence in court.
Prosecuting, Mr Leonard Chile said on July 11 at around 2.30PM, the accused persons went to Mr Dube’s office at the City Hall with intentions of giving him a suspension letter.
“The two councillors were in the company of other councillors namely Felix Maka, Clayton Zana, Tawanda Ruzive, Pilate Moyo, Lillian Mlilo, Batirayi Dube and Jabangwe.
As they handed over the suspension letter to the Town Clerk, an argument broke out between them as the Town Clerk refused to abide by the suspension letter,” Mr Chile said.
The court heard that the argument resulted in Clr Kambarami and Clr Chigora teaming up and assaulting Mr Dube all over the body.
The other councillors who were present assisted in shoving the complainant out of office.
The prosecutor said the complainant sustained injuries due to the assault and was referred to hospital where a medical report was compiled.
State Media|President Mnangagwa will soon meet and assign terms of reference to a 10-member commission of inquiry appointed by Zanu-PF to investigate allegations of corruption levelled against senior party members, secretary for administration Dr Obert Mpofu has said.
The appointment of the commission of inquiry is in line with party’s quest to intensify the fight against corruption in the country.
In an interview with state media yesterday, Dr Mpofu said the team would meet President Mnangagwa soon in order to be given their terms of reference before they start work.
Dr Mpofu said Harare province has seconded Jacob Masuku Mawombera to the commission of inquiry.
“As you are aware, the party was waiting for Harare province to submit the name of their preferred Central Committee member to be part of the commission of inquiry. They have finally submitted their preferred candidate, Cde Mawombera.
“Harare province has submitted their name and very soon the President will announce the board chair. The other nine provinces submitted their names earlier. The Politburo has already announced the names from other provinces.
“The commission of inquiry team will meet with the President for terms of reference at a date to be announced. President Mnangagwa will then appoint the chair who will lead the team during their line of duty, so that they hit the ground running.
“The President will give direction to the teams on what needs to be done,” said Dr Mpofu.
The commission include William Mutomba (Manicaland), Sheilla Mabasa, (Mashonaland West), Hillary Masaiti Mombeshora (Mashonaland Central), Max Zvidzai (Midlands), Tshinga Dube (Bulawayo), Rodwell Zinyemba (Mashonaland East), Sibangumuzi Khumalo (Matabeleland North), Patrick Hove (Matabeleland South) and Clemence Makwarimba (Masvingo).
The move follows the decision by the Zanu-PF Youth League to name and shame people accused of corruption in the country. Mpofu’s name was put up top on the list together with already arrested Priscah Mupfumira.
President Mnangagwa recently directed all provinces to nominate Central Committee members to the commission of inquiry to investigate the party bigwigs allegedly involved in corrupt activities.
It is with great surprise that I have seen a report in the Chronicle suggesting that the provisional order in the High Court Application made of the Confederated Retailers Association and others v The MDC Alliance and the Officer Commanding and another was granted.
This is a shameless lie by the Government machine. The order was not granted and was dismissed.
Event though the wording of the order made by the judge in chambers yesterday in the High Court order is vague erroneous what is reported by the Chronicle is a outright false.
The court order itself does not reflect the what was conceded by the Applicants ; that their application was without merit and must be dismissed since it was not within the powers of the High Court to grant such an order and the police had in any event made and served a prohibition order.
In fact, the issue related to costs was debated precisely because the MDC Alliance ,through me , had requested that since the application was so palpably bad in its conception and even in terms of drafting that it should be dismissed with costs.
That the wording of the judgment is so jumbled up has been taken up by the ZANU PF spin machine to shamessly give the impression that the demonstration set for today has been blocked by the High Court.
This is a big lie that misreads the badly drafted order and is the opposite of what the court really ordered.
I would urge the public, on behalf of my client , to disregard the reports suggesting that the demonstration has been blocked by a court order as this could not be further from the truth.
The people of Zimbabwe are suffering big time: The past year has seen exorbitant fuel hikes, bloated food prices and rolling electrical blackouts lasting for 18 hours a day. The country is in turmoil, and when troubled South African power company Eskom is seen as your “get out of jail” route it can only mean the situation is dire.
As it stands, the daily “peak power demand” in Zimbabwe is 1 800 Megawatts (MW). But a total of less than 1 000 MW is being generated by local power producers.
Kariba Dam latest: Why Zimbabwe is facing further power cuts
Well, things are about to get much worse for Zimbabwe. The Kariba Dam, which straddles the borders of Zambia and Zimbabwe on the Zambezi, has fallen to a dangerously low level in August Now it’s just a few weeks from being shutdown.
That’s because the river servicing this enormous facility has been hit hard by the drought in the region. The current water level in Kariba is too low to produce any energy, as it now sits below the “water intake” pipes. The reserve has been left with just the “dead water”, which doesn’t sit high enough to generate power.
The Zimbabwe Power Company (ZPC) have revealed that the dam will be shutdown in September, and won’t be switched back on until the next forecast season of rain. This loss of a major power source is set to plunge the country even further into darkness, and it could have a severe knock-on effect in South Africa.
How Eskom could be roped into the power crisis
Last week, the South African government went cap-in-hand to the free-spending Eskom. The way they have managed their own electricity output in Mzansi has left a lot to be desired. However, the power utility were in a charitable mood, and agreed to supply 400MW to Zimbabwe, in exchange for weekly payments of $890 000 / R13.7 million.
Although the firm could express reluctance over any further deals, Eskom – and South Africa – are usually the first to be approached by the Zimbabwean government. And this may not be a great time for the electricity supplier.
Multiple industry experts fear that load shedding – currently gripping Zimbabwe – will soon return to SA. The grid has had a wobble or two recently, and even South Africa Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan suggested that power cuts could only be staved-off “until the end of August”.
The Kariba Dam shutdown could have consequences across the border. Reality is that sooner than later, ESKOM will pull out of Zimbabwe and spell disaster for President Emmerson Mnangagwa and his government.
War veterans have recommended the Government to pronounce the anti-sanctions day slated for October 25 a public holiday after Sadc countries declared the day a solidarity day against illegal sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe adding that modalities for the anti-sanctions day will be discussed at the Former Liberation Movements’ summit to be held in Victoria Falls next month.
Zanu-PF’s secretary for Welfare Services for War Veterans, War Collaborators, Ex-political prisoners, Detainees and Restrictees, Douglas Mahiya commended Sadc resolution and said this is an important day for the country.
“It would be very good for day to be declared a holiday. If the President says that day is a holiday it means that industry, farmers, doctors and everyone must be supportive of that day.
“The day is very important, this is a day Zimbabweans should demonstrate how progressive they are because here is a whole region supporting Zimbabwe,” said Mahiya.
He described opposition MDC Alliance and its leaders as misguided elements who are bent on causing disharmony in a peaceful country.
“They are a clique of misdirected, politically immature people who still give the white man support to suppress the black Zimbabweans,” said Mahiya.
He also added that sanctions are not only a threat to Zimbabwe but the region at large.State media
Veteran journalist Godfrey Majonga, alleged to have been forced by President Emmerson Mnangagwa to jump from a high rise building in 1987 during a clash over a woman, has died.
In post on its Twitter page on Tuesday, the Zimbabwe information ministry said, “We have learnt with sorrow and sadness the passing on of veteran broadcaster Mr Godfrey Majonga. Mr Majonga made immense contributions to the broadcasting industry as a broadcaster and later as the chairperson of the Zimbabwe Media Commission (ZMC). May his soul rest in eternal peace.”
Addressing a Zanu-PF interface rally in Mashonaland Central in 2017, then President Robert Mugabe revealed that he had been told by Professor Jonathan Moyo, then Higher Education Minister, how Mnangagwa made Majonga jump from a high rise building.
Mugabe said when Mnangagwa found Majonga at the woman’s flat, he forced Majonga to choose between sitting on a red hot stove or jumping to his death from the third floor of a high rise building in Harare.
The former President said Majonga went for the “easy route” of jumping through the window of the flat.
In 2017, Majonga declined to comment on the incident referring journalists to the generators of the allegations.
GWANDA residents have called for heavy police presence as some gold panners operating in the area have been terrorising members of the public.
Speaking recently during a Gwanda Local Peace Committee (LPC) meeting, Ward Five councillor, Mr Ernest Ncube, said the rowdy gold panners who were sometimes armed with machetes were a menace to residents from his area.
He said the gang was destroying property, fighting in public and threatening residents.
“We have a serious problem in Ward Five. There are two business centres namely Njanji Shopping Centre and Red Cross Business Centre which have become hotspots.
“At Njanji Shopping Centre there is a nightclub where gangs comprising mostly gold panners gather. When the nightclub closes at 4AM these gangs regroup and start gambling outside.
“Their gambling results in altercations and these fights move to residential areas and in the process people are affected. Their property is destroyed and all of these violent activities have left residents unsettled as they fear for their lives,” he said.State media
HARARE City have sacked Mark Mathe and Tichaona Diya to pave way for the backroom staff brought in by new coach, Lloyd Chitembwe.
The former Caps United coach started work at the capital club yesterday following his appointment on Monday.
Mathe had been in charge of the team on an interim basis since Englishman Mark Harrison left in June.
But, he failed to assert himself and managed a paltry three points out of a possible 18 during his short stint.
He, together with goalkeepers’ coach Tichaona Diya, were shown the exit yesterday as Chitembwe decided to bring with him virtually the entire backroom staff he worked with at Caps United.
Nelson Matongorere, who was Chitembwe’s technical director at the Green Machine, will assist the former midfielder at his new club. Zwanai Kawadza and Fungai Kwashi are also coming in as part of the backroom staff.
Ironically, Mathe, who spent over a season understudying Chitembwe at Makepekepe, had to be axed for dumping his former boss when he chose to work with Harrison.State media
The Zimbabwe Republic Police is an independent arm of the State which exercised its discretion upon assessing the security situation in the country before it issued a prohibition order against the MDC-Alliance’s intended demonstration last week, a Cabinet Minister said.
Foreign Affairs and International Trade Minister, Dr Sibusiso Moyo, said the police’s decision barring the planned demonstration was subjected to a legal test when the MDC Alliance challenged it in the High Court but lost the bid to have it prohibition order nullified.
Minister Moyo said this yesterday while responding to questions from journalists during a post-Cabinet briefing which was held in Harare yesterday.
He had been asked to comment on a statement issued by some European Union countries condemning the police action during an attempt by supporters of the MDC Alliance to stage an illegal demonstration in Harare.
“To try and bring the issue of the police reaction is not fair. The police is an independent organ of the State, which makes its own assessment and which deals with the situation as they assess and they made a legal position and they presented it.
It was challenged and unfortunately the challenge was not successful, but thereafter they proceeded with the demonstration which was fundamentally an illegal demonstration in terms of the law,” said Minister Moyo.
Sibusiso Moyo
“Whether the police used excessive force or not, we will always desire as Government, that police use commensurate force when responding to demonstrations. It is a subjective matter to say at what point. When the protestors wanted to enter Munhumutapa here, what would have police done except to throw smoke. We must be clear about the circumstances.”State media
POSSESSING offensive weapons has proved costly for a Harare trio that was slapped with a two-month jail term.
Evidence Ncube (28) of Gokwe, Masimba Jemwa (41) and James Pfundira (27) were recently arrested for the offence before they were convicted and jailed.
The three were arrested at a police roadblock while travelling in an unregistered Nissan Hardbody vehicle during last week’s MDC-Alliance demonstration.
Police searched them at a roadblock near Dzivaresekwa turn-off along the Bulawayo-Harare Highway. Ncube was found in possession of a satchel containing a machete and a knife while Pfundira had a machete. Ncube was in possession of a machete, knife, hammer and a small axe.
Police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi confirmed the development saying the offence was serious and that people must desist from illegally possessing weapons.
He said the three were found with machetes and other dangerous weapons.
“Police in Harare have arrested Evidence Ncube, James Pfundira and Masimba Jemwa for contravening section 14(4) of POSA after they were found in possession of offensive weapons against a provisional order banning the carrying of such weapons in Harare,” he said. The trio appeared before magistrate Mr Stanford Mambanje who sentenced them to two months in jail on Saturday.State media
Flamboyant businessman Ginimbi has promised fireworks when he reopens his popular club Sankayi which will be operating under a new name, Dreams.
Ginimbi said party lovers were in for a treat as Dreams, like its name suggests, will be a lifestyle club.
With Sankayi being his first nightspot, Ginimbi said he had learnt a lot and learnt from past mistakes. As such, he is confident that he will change the entertainment scene, not only in Harare, but in Southern Africa with this new club.
In an interview yesterday , Ginimbi said he shut down Sankayi after he noticed he had made mistakes because he was a novice in the entertainment scene.
Dressing, Ginimbi said was of high importance at this club. He urged people to dress up when going to club there in order to avoid the embarrassment of being sent away by bouncers.
“When I opened the nightclub in May last year, it was my first time to run one. I realised all the mistakes that I had made from the setting up of the club and for us to fix all those mistakes, we needed to close the club and rebrand.
“We also decided to drop the Sankayi name because we didn’t want anything to do with it. The owner is the same, but the name has changed,” said Ginimbi.IHarare News
Claiming there are ongoing illegal sanctions, ZANU PF aligned War veterans have asked Government to pronounce the October 25 so called anti-sanctions day a public holiday after Sadc countries declared the day a solidarity event against sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe adding that modalities for the anti-sanctions day will be discussed at the Former Liberation Movements summit to be held in Victoria Falls next month.
Zanu-PF’s secretary for Welfare Services for War Veterans, War Collaborators, Ex-political prisoners, Detainees and Restrictees, Douglas Mahiya commended the SADC resolution and said this is an important day for the country.
“It would be very good for the day to be declared a holiday. If the President says that day is a holiday it means that industry, farmers, doctors and everyone must be supportive of that day.
“The day is very important, this is a day Zimbabweans should demonstrate how progressive they are because here is a whole region supporting Zimbabwe,” said Mahiya.
He described the opposition MDC-Alliance and its leaders as misguided elements who are bent on causing disharmony in a peaceful country.
“They are a clique of misdirected, politically immature people who still give the white man support to suppress the black Zimbabweans,” said Mahiya.
He also added that sanctions are not only a threat to Zimbabwe, but the region at large.
“Let’s talk about trade for example, Zimbabwe does not consume everything it produces and the same applies for the other regional countries, they produce surplus and that surplus has to be sold to other countries hence countries require a trade congruent where they meet and trade and sanctions have actually affected the region in that respect.
“We are pleased that at the end of the day the region is now satisfied that the fight against sanctions is real and affects everybody. Sanctions are a weapon of mass destruction and they are corrosive as said by the President before.
“Sanctions are meant to punish a nation in order for imperialism to take charge of the economy of that particular country,” he said.
Mahiya also highlighted that modalities for the anti-sanctions day will be discussed at the Former Liberation Movements summit to be held in Victoria Falls next month.
Zanu-PF’s Zaka East by-election candidate, Clemence Chiduwa, has said he is optimistic that the party will romp to victory in the poll slated for September 21.
Chiduwa who recently won the primary election will battle it out with Masvingo-based lawyer, Mr Derick Charamba (MDC Alliance), Mr Clemence Chavarika (NCA) and Mr Lazarus Mubango (FreeZim Congress).
The Zaka parliamentary seat fell vacant following the death of the incumbent Zanu-PF MP, Caston Gumbwanda, in June.
In an interview, Chiduwa said he was going to emerge victorious as Zanu-PF is the only people-centred party among those contesting. “People always want a political party which is people-oriented and it is only our party, Zanu-PF which has those qualities. Zaka East has always been our stronghold and that will not change.
“I am very optimistic that I am going to be the next MP for this constituency and I promise members that I will not fail them in doing my duties,” said Chiduwa.
He said the party had a major campaign rally over the weekend. “As a barometer, we had a campaign rally over the weekend which attracted
a bumper crowd. This obviously sent shock waves to other contestants, especially from MDC Alliance. “In actual fact, there is no room for opposition politics in Zaka and the whole province of Masvingo,” he said. Zanu-PF Masvingo provincial information and publicity secretary, Ronald Ndaba, said it is a foregone conclusion that the party would retain the Zaka East seat as it is a formidable political force.
“Holding the by-election is just a formality as the result will be obvious. No party will stand against Zanu-PF and that is the reason why you see the party winning seats, originally held by the opposition,” said Ndaba.
“We are sure that we will give MDC Alliance and two other contesting parties a drubbing, come September 21. That is our seat and we are going to retain it without any problem.”State media
By Tawanda S Dzvokora | In a press conference at the Zanu-PF Headquarters on August 19, 2019, Pupurai Togarepi, the 55-year-old Secretary of Youth in the Zanu-PF government accused US Ambassador, Mr. Brian Nichols, of meddling in Zimbabwe’s politics, encouraging demonstrations, sponsoring terrorists and aiding do called “violent” protests by MDC-A.
Tawanda S Dzvokora
These mischievous statements also come after State Media had accused the US ambassador to Zimbabwe of actively encouraging MDC officials to go ahead with Friday’s demonstrations and assuring MDC that the US would impose punitive measures should the government arrest or assault the protestors. The Zanu-PF government’s state media also alleges that there are three hands, US embassy officials, the MDC and civic society organizations that are engaged in planning to oust president Mnangagwa.
Firstly, Togarepi Pupurai at age 55 you are no longer a youth. In a normal party like the MDC after age 35 one is no longer a youth. However, we would understand, knowing that your party, Zanu-PF, is well known for geriatric leaders.
There is no second or third hand behind the peaceful demonstrations by the citizens of Zimbabwe. For over 3 decades your party has been digging its own grave and it is now almost done. If you refer to the Zimbabwe Constitution, Chapter 4, Part 2, Section 59, it says: *Every person has the right to demonstrate and to present petitions, but these rights must be exercised peacefully*. The people of Zimbabwe have been peacefully using demos to let the government know of their misery, torture from the government, hunger, no jobs, no running water, no electricity, no education, no money, no basic needs met, the collapse of industries and infrastructure. Zimbabweans are asking for political and economic reform. However, your illegitimate government has captured the armed forces and hapless real youths to react ruthlessly with live ammunition and baton sticks, killing and maiming citizens who are demanding their rights.
Your colleague, Home Affairs Minister, Cain Mathema, has warned NGOs to disclose their sources of funding or they will be deemed spy organizations and forced to close their offices. Disgusting. The people of Zimbabwe are grateful to NGOs because it is difficult to fathom what condition the country would be like without the NGOs.
Zanu-pf is the axis of evil, perpetuating suffering through plundering of the nation’s wealth, police and military brutality, abuse of citizens, including your relatives Pupurai, and denying them of their fundamental rights. The world has for decades watched your party strip Zimbabwean citizens of their fundamental rights, beat them up, maim, kill and destroy their property. It is necessary and important that the world knows that Mnangagwa and his ZANU-PF government including you Pupurai, are evil terrorists, lawless thugs, thieves, murders and a very selfish lot.
All the killings and injustices you pretend to be blind to will continue to set back and isolate the country in the eyes of the international community, Zanu-Pf’s own doing not by anyone’s hand. The USA you barked at in your statement is part of the international community your president Mnangagwa has been courting and wooing through lobbyists. What a confused contradiction!
Meanwhile, Zimbabweans are eagerly calling for and anticipating intervention by the international bodies in accordance with internationally agreed procedures of international responsibility to protect world citizens.
To use your words Pupurai, we know just as the sun will rise tomorrow that we shall soon be free from the heartless Zanu-PF government, including yourself.
MDC Youth Assembly notes with concern and aghast at the futile blame shifting attempts by one Pupurai Togarepi to shoulder peace loving citizens and MDC leadership blame while absolving ZANU PF youths, green bombers and the police on the violence that engulfed the streets of Harare last Friday.
In a long incoherent monologue, the 57 year old ZANU PF Youth leader, Togarepi exhibited quantums of ideological dissonance and mental deficiency by trying to sanitize a ZANU PF hand on the violence that was unleashed on innocent civilians by the ‘police’.
Togarepi’s reckless utterances mirrors a sore picture of the death and dearth of leadership in ZANU PF and the ripple effects of such has deleterious consequences on citizens.
It is quite regrettable that Zimbabweans have been robbed of quality leadership by an illegitimate looting conspiracy that tries so hard to force themselves on the people after stealing an election.
While Togarepi and cabal are now busy enjoying the loot that comes with illegitimacy, Zimbabweans from all walks of life including ZANU PF supporters are forced to bear the brunt that emanates from leadership failure of this fascist clique.
Maybe it is also important to unpack who is Pupurai before further debunking his lies and reckless utterances.
Here is a 57 year old grandfather who is also forcing himself on ZANU PF youths hence it is understandable that the only language he understands is violence.
As we alluded to earlier, Togarepi exhibits clear signs of mental deficiency, dissonance, incoherence and inconsistence!
This is the very same man who threatened a big pro-people political movement, MDC with extinction if the party was to go ahead with its plan to hold a peaceful demonstration on that fateful Friday.
True to his word, the world witnessed scenes of violence that has never been seen before as ZANU PF youths clad in police attire terrorized and brutalized unarmed and defenceless citizens on the streets of Harare.
Now one wonders has Pupurai quickly forgot his word that he made on the eve of demonstrations?
If so, then our problems as a people might be bigger than what meets the eye especially if this clique continue to impose themselves on us.
With such kind of rigid, rabid, dishonest, knavish scoundrels at the helms of power then it becomes easier for the common man to see why the economy is on a free fall!
Ancient Chinese wisdom has it that before hitting a dog sometimes it is important to look for its owner first.
It is not far fetched and mendacious for ordinary citizens to view Togarepi’s utterances as a reflection of Emmerson Mnangagwa’s deficiencies too!
There is a clear common denominator of pretence and falsehood that underlines the character of Mnangagwa and Togarepi.
From ‘New Dispensation’, ‘soft as wool’, ‘third hand to violence’ to ‘the economy is on a recovery path’ it is lies galore in Mnangagwa and Togarepi’s worlds.
Stephen Sarkozy Chuma MDC Youth Assembly National Spokesperson
Farai Dziva|Violence is not the solution to the political crisis in the country, Tatenda Maposa the director of Girl Child Empowerment of Zimbabwe has said.
Maposa called for political tolerance and castigated violence against women.
See Maposa’s statement:
PEACE BEGINS WITH YOU: NO TO POLITICAL VIOLENCE AND ABUSE OF WOMEN
As Masvingo residents we are saying no to politically motivated violence, no to looting and no to hate-
speech.
As Masvingo residents, we wish to reiterate that violence is not the solution to political problems.
Apart from leading to injury and infrastructure destruction,
violence breaks social cohesion and peace of the nation.
As Zimbabwe is currently faced by a huge economic turmoil and disagreements between
political parties, Zimbabweans must never allow political discourse to turn poisonous instead we
should all seek dialogue. We also believe that peace must begin with you and is extended to the next
person.
Politically motivated violence disturbs the lives of peace loving citizens and also endangers
the lives of those who have nothing to do with politics.
As Masvingo residents and Zimbabwean
citizens we urge all political party leaders to continue preaching the gospel of dialogue and peace to
their supporters. Political leaders must take lead in denouncing violence in any part of the nation.
Party
supporters must also take a leaf from unity which must be shown by their leaders. Violence itself, in
whatever form is not the best way forward and one can never use violence to advance one’s political
agenda.
Political differences mighty be there but, we are kindly pleading with all political parties to
swallow their pride, put the nation first and at heart and help each other to rebuild the nation. We do
not believe that politically motivated violence is the solution, we must desist from a situation whereby
young people are used as political weapons towards fueling political violence. As a province we are
eager to breed a peace loving generation which believes in peace and nation building. It is high time
our politics should be taken to the next level, where supporters of the victor and loser would be able
to sit down and share ideas, not exchange blows.
Our country has seen so much violence over the
past decades and it is high time political leaders should promote national peace, healing and tolerance.
At the centre of non-violence stands the principle of love.
As Masvingo residents, we believe that returning
violence for violence multiplies violence, adding the deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars.
Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that.
Farai Dziva|MDC-T vice president has said Zimbabwe is not a puppet nation such that external forces should not not interfere with the country’s internal affairs.
Gutu accused the United States of America of allegedly interfering in Zimbabwe’s domestic affairs.
“We respect the United States of America as a superpower and a global political force, but at the same time, the Americans and indeed, all other foreigners for that matter, should simply leave us to decide and determine our own destiny.
Just look at the havoc that American political interference has brought about in Venezuela. Zimbabwe might be a small country, but all the same, we are a sovereign and independent State and we don’t deserve to be treated like some satellite puppet state of the United States,” Gutu told a state run daily paper.
CAPS United have appointed Darlington Dodo as their new coach following the departure of Lloyd Chitembwe.
Makepekepe made the announcement on Tuesday and went on to post on their Twitter handle.
“Caps President, Mr Farai Jere said: At the moment coach Dodo is going to be responsible for the technical team. He is a qualified guy, he has got all the papers and it’s all about the the support.”
Dodo was assistant to Chitembwe who left to join Harare City.H-Metro
The Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) notes with concern the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Communique on the just ended 39th SADC Summit of Heads of State and Government in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
In particular, the SADC Summit turned a blind eye to the deteriorating socio-economic situation, ongoing human rights violations, persecution of human rights defenders, suspension of the Constitution of the land and lethargy on comprehensive reforms.
The MDC is perturbed by the statement on Zimbabwe in the 36-paragraph SADC Communique issued Sunday following the regional body’s 39th summit of Heads of State and Government that ran from 17 to 18 August 2019 in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The SADC Communique is gravely concerning not just about what it said but also about what it did not say about Zimbabwe.
On paragraph 14 of their Communique, SADC leaders report that “Summit noted the adverse impact on the economy of Zimbabwe and expressed solidarity with Zimbabwe and called for the immediate lifting of the sanctions to facilitate socio-economic recovery in the country”.
Other than paragraph 6 of the Communique that congratulates “Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa, the President of the Republic of Zimbabwe as Chairperson of the Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation”, nothing else is said about Zimbabwe.
It is disconcerting that SADC could congratulate Mr. Mnangagwa as the new head of the regional body’s organ on Defence and security at a time when Zimbabweans are suffering insecurity and defenselessness from the regime in power in Harare.
While SADC leaders are well within their rights to pronounce themselves on the sanctions issue, it is disappointing that they have a frozen and opportunistic narrative on the matter. There’s no difference between what they have been saying since 2001 and what they said yesterday, like a record stuck in a groove.
For SADC leaders, it is enough to make the news headlines by “expressing solidarity with Zimbabwe” and “calling for the immediate lifting of the sanctions to facilitate socio-economic recovery in the country”. This 18-year old stock-narrative no longer has an audience besides the SADC leaders themselves.
On sanctions, SADC leaders must speak through actions, not through convenient but hollow words for the media. Contextualizing sanctions over a year ago, in January 2018, Mnangagwa himself said, “Yes, sanctions are there, but we should not continue talking about them. We must have solutions and already we have solutions in agriculture, and this should cascade to all sectors”.
Given Mnangagwa’s position, SADC’s call “for the immediate lifting of the sanctions to facilitate socio-economic recovery in the country” is odd and out of step with the reality in Zimbabwe.
Zimbabweans have come to know that when SADC leaders want to ignore or distort the tricky crisis of illegitimacy in Zimbabwe, they wax lyrical about sanctions and express “solidarity with Zimbabwe”, while saying and doing nothing about the worsening plight of Zimbabweans.
Yet there can be no Zimbabwe without Zimbabweans.
Before its 38th summit in August 2018, SADC was confronted by military and police atrocities committed in Harare on 1 August 2018, in which six Zimbabweans were killed in cold blood and 35 others were critically injured by the Army and the Police. This was confirmed by the Kaglema Motlanthe Commission, an international body whose appointment SADC supported.
It is incredulous that the 2019 SADC summit was dead silent about the findings of the Motlanthe Commission and the failure and the unwillingness, by Mnangagwa’s administration to hold to account the army and police officers who killed six and injured 35 Zimbabweans on 1 August 2018.
Even worse, between 14 to 28 January 2019, at least 17 Zimbabweans were killed, hundreds tortured, some raped, by elements in the army, police, CIO and Zanu PF militia with thousands were displaced internally and externally in an unprecedented orgy of State violence that affected all major cities across Zimbabwe.
As in the case of the atrocities committed on 1 August 2018, in fact worse than in that case, no process of enquiry has been undertaken; and the State culprits are once again getting away scot free with impunity.
The January 2019 scenario was another major clampdown on citizens and was carried out resulting in 17 extra-judicial killings, 17 cases of rape and other violations of a sexual nature, 26 abductions, 61 displacements, 81 assaults consistent with gunshot attacks, at least 586 assaults, torture, inhuman and degrading treatment (including dog bites), and 954 arrests and detention (including dragnet detentions). Further, a record breaking 22 MDC and Civil Society leaders including parliamentarians and labor leaders face trumped up charges of treason and subversion.
On 16 July 2019, labor leaders received anonymous letters with bullets in a clear move meant to intimidate the labor movement against exercising their right to peacefully demonstrate and petition.
Where is SADC’s responsibility to protect? When will SADC, just for once, stand with the people of Zimbabwe and express solidarity not with Zimbabwe but with Zimbabweans?
Yes. Zimbabweans have had enough of a SADC that is always congratulating the President of Zimbabwe and expressing solidarity with the State but never addressing itself to the plight of the ordinary people brutalized by the State.
As SADC leaders were meeting in Dar es Salaam over the weekend, Zimbabwean State agents were busy abducting civil society and political activists; while the police and army were issuing illegal prohibition orders like confetti to deny citizens from holding peaceful demonstrations against the worsening economic hardships induced not by sanctions but by unprecedented corruption through rent-seeking schemes like command agriculture, fuel cartels and abuse of treasury bills by the ruling elite.
On the back of Zimbabwe’s crisis of illegitimacy, these hardships induced by corruption coupled with incompetence are causing multitudes of Zimbabweans to cross the borders into neighbouring SADC countries, notably but not only South Africa, Mozambique, Malawi and Zambia. The consequences of the emigration influx on regional economies are too ghastly to contemplate, yet SADC leaders continue to bury their heads in the sand like ostriches, only to raise the heads when they want to pontificate about 18-year old sanctions while doing nothing about them in real economic terms.
The MDC reiterates that the root cause of Zimbabwe’s problems is political, being a crisis of governance. A legitimacy crisis.
The July 2018 elections further entrenched the legitimacy crisis through a fundamentally flawed electoral process that did not guarantee the will of the people. The 2018 plebiscite did not conform to the provisions of the SADC Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections and the African Union (AU) Declaration on the Principles Governing Democratic Elections.
The electoral process was marred by irregularities including a highly partisan and captured Zimbabwe Electoral Commission, lack of transparency in the electoral process including on the printing and storage of ballot papers and poor stakeholder engagement by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission, a party-state-military complex, partisan conduct of traditional leaders, partisan distribution of food aid, widespread Intimidation, abuse of State resources, biased State media, an Electoral Law that is not aligned to the Constitution of Zimbabwe including the disfranchisement of diasporans and post-election violence. Such a flawed electoral process perpetuated the legitimacy crisis and is manifesting in the current socio-economic crisis, deteriorating human rights situation and lethargy.
Moreover, there was an outright fudging of the figures as demonstrated by the fact that the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission revised downwards its own figures a record three times in a plebiscite SADC still held as credible.
The MDC urges SADC to urgently take note of the worsening situation in Zimbabwe as a threat to peace and security in the region and to recognize its responsibility to protect. We urge SADC to take the following specific actions:
Urgently be seized of the matter of Zimbabwe in order to address the multifaceted crisis and prevent further deterioration of the situation.
Urgently find a lasting solution to the Zimbabwean crisis anchored on facilitated and credible national dialogue.
Farai Dziva|The MDC has bemoaned the suppression of the will of the people by Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government.
In the statement MDC deputy spokesperson Luke Tamborinyoka argues that the “Zanu PF regime will not suppress the will of the people forever.”
State effects a de facto ban on civilian politics
In light of the continued proscription of the people’s sacred right to freedom of assembly and expression, Zimbabweans are disheartened that all democratic space in the country has virtually been closed.
Rights have been taken away and democratic space has shrunk. As a people, in light of the national grievances affecting the nation, we have followed the law to the letter and spirit so as to allow ourselves to demonstrate peacefully.
Alas, there has been no appetite on the other side to allow citizens the full enjoyment of their democratic rights. In fact, there has been a de facto ban on the MDC and on civilian politics in the country. State-sponsored violence against innocent citizens has become the regime’s default setting.
The people are being subjected to State-sponsored terrorism while the State continues to foment acrimony between citizens and the law enforcement agents as characterized by the cat-and-mouse games between the citizens and those in authority in the various cities and towns. The sight in Gweru today of soldiers doing public drills in the town where a peaceful and constitutional march was supposed to take place is a case in point.
In the past few days, there has not just been a ban on civilian politics, but a de facto state of emergency. It is tragic that political gatherings and free expression, which have virtually been banned in Zimbabwe, are the very oxygen of politics. The proscription of the people’s fundamental rights is therefore a crude form of political asphyxiation.
Zimbabweans are suffering and have braved myriad national grievances that range from power outages, unemployment, fuel shortages, spiraling cost of living and a steep hike in basic education and health costs, among other issues. It is the view of ordinary Zimbabweans that the final and ultimate solution to the multi-layered crisis afflicting the country is a legitimate people’s government that can begin to address the concerns of the people.
We have seen in the past few days that POSA remains a problem while its successor, the Maintenance of Public Order Act, has dismally failed to enhance the people’s democratic rights. If anything, MOPA has been plucked from apartheid statutes and marks a major regression on the democratic agenda.
Put simply, MOPA is just but another POSA in a scarf!
It must be made clear that the prohibition orders that are being used to stifle and throttle democratic space are in themselves unconstitutional as they brazenly take away sacred constitutional rights and freedoms. As a people, we are sticklers to Constitutionalism and the rule of law.
Sadly, the people have gone to court but have received no remedy. Put simply, the people have found the remedies not available at the courts.
Ultimately, it must be understood that the people reserve their right to organize and express themselves. We have the people and we have the right.
MDC: Change that delivers.
Luke Tamborinyoka
Deputy National Spokesperson
Movement for Democratic Change
By A Correspondent- Figures released by the police show that no case of corruption has been recorded against cops in Manicaland since the beginning of the year.
Officer Commanding Manicaland Police, Commissioner Dr Wikleaf Makamache, made a stunning revelation that no corruption case had been recorded against his officers in the province so far this year.
He, however, quickly pointed out that this does to necessarily mean that everyone in the force was clean as some cases might go unreported.
Comm Makamache said the reduction in corruption cases was a result of the work being done by anti-corruption commission committee, regular checks and balances during deployments, close supervision by commanders and life style audits.
“It is not in doubt that corruption has wrecked havoc among individuals and institutions in this country and the ZRP has not been an exception,” he said.
“Probably as one of the most conspicuous arms of Government and in view of our key role in crime prevention and management, corruption included, we have endeared ourselves to ensure we lead by example.
“That our members have been cause of concern and cited in cases of corruption is no secret.
“As such, we commit ourselves to continue with and intensify the house cleansing in the same manner as we re-position ourselves to bring the scourge to a screeching halt amongst our people.”
He said in significantly reducing corruption the police was swiftly dealing with reported cases.
“We have taken a step further to decisively deal with any manifestations of the crime, once its occurrence is brought to our attention.
“Let me announce that we do not have any cases recorded so far in the province for the year 2019.
“Pleasing as this might be we remember that the cancerous effect of corruption among our officers is always lurking somewhere and as such we will keep our eyes wide open and nose on the ground for any unwarranted development. Over the years particular attention has been paid to areas that used to be hotspots and breeding ground of the scourge among our members.
“These included points of deployment like mobile and static roadblocks . . . we are of the opinion that measures employed in line with the zero tolerance to corruption stance have paid dividends.”-ManicaPost
By A Correspondent- A Malawi haulage truck driver was on Sunday night attacked by eight robbers in Headlands, Manicaland province, after his vehicle had developed a mechanical fault at night.
He said Mwiza Mukandawire (32), an employee of Almedia Transport Logistics, which is based in Lilongwe, Malawi, lost mobile phones, clothes and US$70, among other items.
Chananda said Mukandawire’s haulage truck, which was heading to Malawi, developed a mechanical fault at Eagle’s Nest shopping centre.
While he was attending to the fault, eight robbers armed with knives and hammers approached him.
They ransacked the vehicle and took most of his belongings and fled into the darkness.
Mukandiwire made a report at Headlands Police Station.- Newsday
By A Correspondent- Incarcerated traditional leader, Chief Nhlanhla Ndiweni has filed an appeal application against both his conviction and sentence at the High Court.
In a related development, Ndiweni’s 23 subjects whom he is jointly accused with of having vandalised property belonging to one of his subjects are also appealing against their 525 hours of community service sentence.
Ndiweni said that the court failed to recognise that he was empowered by law to banish subjects who would have violated customary law.
In his application, the traditional leader said:
“The court a quo erred in failing to appreciate that whatever the first appellant (Ndiweni) did was in the terms of which he subjectively believed was within his powers to do.
The court a quo erred in failing to appreciate that the Ndebele culture and customary law empower the first appellant to banish out of his jurisdiction any subject convicted of a customary offence. The court a quo erred in failing to appreciate that first appellant had a defence of a claim of right as provided for in terms of Section 236 and 237 of the Criminal Codification and Reform Act.
The Chief also contended that the punishment he was getting was rather not commensurate with the alleged crime considering that the damaged property was worth $300.
He wants the court to set the initial ruling to be set aside and be substituted with 24 months imprisonment of which six months will be suspended for five years and the remaining 18 months to be suspended on condition that he pays a fine of $20.-Newsday
By A Correspondent- Addressing the media in the capital Harare Tuesday, Foreign Affairs minister Sibusiso Moyo said the police was an independent organ of the state which dealt with situations using their own independent analysis.
He was responding to a question on government’s position regarding the recent statement by the EU diplomatic missions in Zimbabwe urging government to recognise and stop violating its citizens’ human rights including the right to peaceful protest.
This followed the brutal attack of peaceful protesters in Harare last Friday by the police which left scores nursing injuries
Said Moyo:
“Yes, i have just heard about it. But it is their independent position…. Sanctions are outdated as SADC, AU has said.
The police is an independent organ of the state which deals with situations as they would have accessed. Whether the ZRP used excessive force or commensurate force is always an issue that can be debated.. it is really a subjective matter.
By A Correspondent- A six year Nyazura child drowned in Mucheke River after slipping from a rock while playing with her friend on Friday last week.
Manicaland deputy police spokesperson, Assistant Inspector Luxon Chananda confirmed the incident to NewsDay yesterday.
He identified the deceased as Lorraine Mudyiradima (6).
Police said the minor had been instructed by her mother Janet Hariwu to collect a pair of shoes she had left earlier at the river, when tragedy struck.
Chananda urged parents and guardians not to allow children to play alone near large water bodies.-Newsday
By A Correspondent- Epworth residents have revealed that they are being charged RTGS$8 for 40 litres of water which is not enough especially for those with infants.
The residents have taken to doing their laundry in discarded holes with dirt infested stagnant water.
PRESS RELEASE: RESPONSE TO WESTERN MISSIONS’ JOINT LOCAL STATEMENT ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY
The Government of Zimbabwe has taken note of the Joint Local Statement issued on August 20, 2019, by the Heads of Delegation of the European Union, France, Germany, Greece, Netherlands, Romania, Sweden, and the United Kingdom together with Heads of Mission of the United States, Canada and Australia (Missions) on human rights and freedom of assembly in Zimbabwe following illegal demonstrations staged by sections of the Zimbabwean opposition on 16 August, 2019.
The Government of Zimbabwe is taken aback by the judgmental attitude displayed by the Missions and the shocking partisanship informing the joint statement with respect to the situation in Zimbabwe.
The statement by the Missions fails to acknowledge that the High Court made a well-considered judgment on the legality of the demonstrations by the opposition MDC-Alliance after the Zimbabwe Republic Police- as the Regulatory Authority – proscribed the intended actions on August 16, through a Prohibition Order.
The effect of both the Prohibition Order and the High Court decision that upheld it was to render any and all activities associated with the planned demonstrations by MDC-Alliance on August 16, 2019 illegal,
We, therefore, note with concern that the Missions’ statement appears not to acknowledge this position of the law.
A disturbing suggestion from the statement is that our Courts should not have made the judgment and that illegalities were supposed to manifest and left unchecked.
We find it quite strange and bewildering and an offence on the principle of the rule of law that countries represented by the Missions want so much to preach about.
It is disappointing that we are presented with a statement that ignores the importance of upholding both the Constitution of Zimbabwe and the rule of law.
Our Judiciary sits as the arbiter in situations of conflict, and in this case mediating between a Regulatory Authority and constitutional freedoms of citizens in the face of a potentially violent and destabilizing demonstration.
A decision was made, which ought to have been respected by all. It is instructive to note that up to the point of the Missions’ statement being issued the Police were not in contempt of any court order regarding the issue of protests and demonstrations, neither had a suit of such nature brought forward.
For the foreign Missions to totally ignore the fact that the Zimbabwean Courts had spoken on this matter suggests a contemptuous attitude towards our institutions, including the Judiciary.
Government of Zimbabwe expects those countries committed to supporting the freedom of expression, association and assembly politically stable, economic stable and prosperous Zimbabwe to exercise impartiality and not to unduly interfere in the internal affairs of Zimbabwe in a way that promotes unrest and public disorder unless they harbor an ulterior motive. seen as facets for a politically stable and prosperous Zimbabwe- to exercise impartiality and not to duly interfere in the internal affairs of Zimbabwe in a way that promotes unrest and public disorder unless they harbour an ulterior motive.
Zimbabwe remains committed to carrying out reforms necessary for addressing the political, social and economic challenges in the country. In this vein, Government is open to engaging its partners in the international community on best ways of implementing the reforms.
However, Government believes that re-engagement and dialogue should be conducted in the spirit of mutual respect and should not be in any way prescriptive, coercive or manipulative.
Regarding national dialogue, the door remains open to all political players to converge in the national interest and this process is currently underway under the aegis of the Political Players Dialogue (POLAD).
This is a platform that remains open for the people of Zimbabwe to exchange ideas and craft a new inclusive political dispensation.
Issued by N. Mangwana Secretary for Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services
By A Correspondent- Finance Minister, Professor Mthuli Ncube, has said that the government projects to have finished making major decisions by December this year so as to start focusing on other issues such as employment creation.
Speaking during an exclusive interview with Bloomberg News recently, Ncube said:
“What people are feeling is really wage compression and not hyperinflation. Prices adjusted instantly to the exchange rate, but wages have been too slow to catch up with the adjustment. The issue is about wage adjustment and I am a big champion of wage adjustment.
The big macro-economic decisions should be complete by year-end. In December, everything stops in terms of the big decisions. Beyond that, we focus more on jobs, growth, productivity and development.”
Ncube’s remarks come when the nation is in pain due to austerity measures which the government has put in place.
They also come when the ruling ZANU PF has been criticised for failing to fulfil electoral promises in its manifesto.
In his inaugural speech, President Mnangagwa promised the creation of “jobs, jobs, jobs” and “resuscitation of industry”, a pledge that was received by ululations and whistles from thousands of attendees.
The past twenty-four months have however recorded a sharp contrast to Mnangagwa’s promises as some major companies have been retrenching or closing.
The country is submerged in a myriad of challenges including power deficit that make it unconducive for business.
Therefore laying off of workers or closure of business has been one of the preferred options.-StateMedia
By A Correspondent- Bureaux de Change are reportedly becoming popular among residents of Bulawayo causing illegal foreign currency dealers to lose on business.
A survey by the Chronicle in the city on Monday revealed that some members of the transacting public prefer bureaux de change as they are safer than transacting on the black market.
A Bulawayo resident, Nobukhosi Moyo who spoke to the publication is quoted as saying that changing money at bureaux de changes is more discreet and safer. She said:
It is more discreet and safer. There is privacy and I have no fear that there could be someone following me.
I used to change on the streets but the problem with that is you could never trust the person you are dealing with.
Sometimes forex dealers connive with robbers and you can be robbed of your money soon after changing.
Despite the safety of bureaux de changes, some residents complained that service was slow. One Farai Makuvaza said:
I know that at the banks and bureaux de changes it is safer but the service is very slow. Too much paperwork for me to just change my money. In the streets it is swift and I do not need to wait until it’s my turn.
An illegal foreign currency dealer told the Chronicle that business has become less lucrative as competition from bureaux de changes has become stiffer. He said:
It makes it difficult to operate because we have to offer deals that are just as competitive but it is unsustainable. Our major business now is selling cash.
If someone wants bond notes in exchange for bank transfer or zipit, we offer the deals at a premium. The average rate is 30 per cent but it can go higher or lower depending on demand.
On Monday, some of the designated forex outlets were offering ZWL$10,4 and ZWL$7,4 per US$1 for electronic transfers and cash transactions respectively while on the streets, US$1 was being traded for ZWL$10,60 for electronic transactions and ZWL$7,5 for cash.
By A Correspondent| Zanu PF central committee member, Moses Gutu, is reported to have survived a suspected politically motivated attack by unknown assailants at his Mufaro farm in Nyanga.
While Gutu is said to have escaped unharmed, his wife Primrose Manyetu sustained deep cuts and a fractured hand with his son Kudakwashe also sustaining injuries.
The alleged attack is reported to have occurred 10:30 pm when a group of unknown people holding an axe, stones and petrol among other weapons wanted to kill him and family members as they tried to petrol bomb his house before breaking in.
Speaking after he had escaped from the attack,
Gutu said:
People holding axes threatened to kill me before I escaped using another door. I failed to identify the perpetrators of violence but I am traumatised by the attack. I strongly suspect the attack is politically motivated.
Reports suggest that the assailants attacked Gutu’s wife upon realising that Gutu had escaped using another door. Gutu’s wife confirmed the attack saying that the eight assailants seemed to have come for Gutu.
She also revealed that four of them entered the house while the others remained outside destroying windows.
Primrose also revealed that those who entered the house were the ones who attacked her and Kudakwashe before rushing away fearing that they will be caught in action.
Police are said to be already seized with the matter.-StateMedia
Veteran journalist Godfrey Majonga, alleged to have been forced by President Emmerson Mnangagwa to jump from a high rise building in 1987 during a clash over a woman, has died.
In post on its Twitter page on Tuesday, the Zimbabwe information ministry said, “We have learnt with sorrow and sadness the passing on of veteran broadcaster Mr Godfrey Majonga. Mr Majonga made immense contributions to the broadcasting industry as a broadcaster and later as the chairperson of the Zimbabwe Media Commission (ZMC). May his soul rest in eternal peace.”
Addressing a Zanu-PF interface rally in Mashonaland Central in 2017, then President Robert Mogabe revealed that he had been told by Professor Jonathan Moyo, then Higher Education Minister, how Mnangagwa made Majonga jump from a high rise building.
Mugabe said when Mnangagwa found Majonga at the woman’s flat, he forced Majonga to choose between sitting on a red hot stove or jumping to his death from the third floor of a high rise building in Harare.
The former President said Majonga went for the “easy route” of jumping through the window of the flat.
In 2017, Majonga declined to comment on the incident referring journalists to the generators of the allegations.
By A Correspondent| Posters bearing the image of President Emmerson Mnangagwa plastered on the eve of Heroes and Defences Forces holidays in Marondera have been vandalised.
The posters were erected by ZANU PF youths to show solidarity with their party leader whose rein so far has been blighted by economic hardships that have driven the nation to despair and despondency.
Efforts to get a comment from the party’s leadership were however futile by the time of publishing.
A party youth who refused to be identified however told a local publication that he was not worried as the poster had served their purpose.
He said:
“The posters were erected during the Heroes holidays as we joined the President in celebrating the lives of the fallen heroes as well as the Defence Forces Day. The posters have served their purpose, hence some are now torn.”
By A Correspondent| A health hazard is looming in Ruwa with the Ruwa Local Board admitting that it is discharging raw sewage into Ruwa River due to a shortage of land dedicated for treatment of sewage.
Ruwa Local Board secretary Kumbirai Madanhi said that there is an urgent need for more land to avoid a health disaster. He said:
We have a challenge on sewer reticulation, it is flowing into the Ruwa River and we are having a geographical challenge.
It is a potential risk area which needs to be addressed, but unfortunately, we do not have land to use for that purpose.
… We have been putting pressure on the Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing, as well as the Ministry of Lands on the issue.-Newsday
AllAfrica.com|One Bilkis Banu Ismail has slapped a top Egyptian diplomat Ms Rania with a $1, 5 million lawsuit claiming she has used her position to destroy her marriage to Mahmoud Eid Ahmed Eid.
Ismail has approached the High Court with the summons after her husband of twelve years dumped her for the diplomat.
Her husband is now staying with Rania causing extreme tension in her family.
“The basis of the plaintiff’s (Ismail) claim is that the defendant is having an adulterous relationship with the plaintiff’s husband since 2018.
“The plaintiff has now lost the affection and companionship of her beloved husband as a result of the defendant’s (Rania) actions.
“The plaintiff because of the actions of the defendant is being deprived of her conjugal rights that used to be her preserve as the husband has actually moved in to stay with the defendant,” reads part of the summons.
Ismail also told court that she has suffered economic deprivation because of her husband’s divided attention since Rania is enjoying and benefitting from the couple’s sweat.
“The defendant is abusing her position as a senior diplomat to conduct the illicit liaison with plaintiff’s husband.
“The plaintiff believes that the marriage union is sacrosanct particularly in the Zimbabwean context as it is entrenched deeply in the country’s culture, tradition and religion,” wrote Mutatu, Mahuni legal practitioners representing Ismail.
Ismail also claimed that her standing in the community has been irreparably damaged because of Rania’s actions which have had the effect of humiliating and embarrassing her.
She claimed $1 million adultery damages and a further half a million dollars for loss of consortium and contumelia.
By A Correspondent| Analyst Pedzisai Ruhanya has accused President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s administration of selectively using the law to persecute political rivals.
His comments come after revelations by the Zimbabwe Anti Corruption Commission (ZACC) that the former Vice President Phelekezela Mphoko was on the run to evade arrest.
However Ruhanya described the current persecution of the opposition and imminent arrest of Mphoko as reflective that there was the selective application of the law.
He said:
“The current crackdown on opposition and attempts to arrest VP Mphoko. Two things: selective application of the law and the party/state/security complex = Animal Farm!”
FIRST LADY, Auxillia Mnangagwa has warned bakery owners against sabotaging the government’s economic turn-around initiatives by operating nicodimously and raising prices willy-nilly.
Speaking during the official opening of a women bakery project in Kwekwe on Sunday afternoon, the First Lady urged bakery companies to operate transparently and stop promoting black-market operations.
“I have heard a lot of grumbling with regards to bread prices, the bakery companies just charge some exorbitant prices, sometimes when I travel at night I see those big bakeries’ motor vehicles trading in some bushy roads and areas.
“Business should be done transparently in broad day night not nicodimously. That is highly unacceptable and it is against the government’s will,” said the First Lady.
The bakery project was established for women to gain knowledge and skills under the mentorship of Douglas Kwenda, who operates DCK Bakeries in Midlands.
“This bakery is run by Mr DCK but it is a project for women. They are the ones, who are supposed to gain knowledge and skills. I have also urged Mr DCK to employ local people.
“We realized that if there is no competition in business people tend to charge high prices but if there are competition products may be readily available at affordable prices,” the First Lady said.
First lady urged women and the young people to take a leading role in starting their own businesses and boost production which results in competition and lowering of prices.
During the same event Kwenda) pledged to work with the women and young people in the bakery industry and he urged local people to work on production to flood the market with affordable commodities.
“We have managed to increase competition in the bakery industry and people no longer buy bread on the black market because we have flooded the market with our special affordable bread.
“Let us continue to support each other and increase production so that prices of bread and other basic commodities may be affordable,” said Kwenda.
By A Correspondent- Addressing the media in the capital Harare Tuesday, Foreign Affairs minister Sibusiso Moyo said the police was an independent organ of the state which dealt with situations using their own independent analysis.
He was responding to a question on government’s position regarding the recent statement by the EU diplomatic missions in Zimbabwe urging government to recognise and stop violating its citizens’ human rights including the right to peaceful protest.
This followed the brutal attack of peaceful protesters in Harare last Friday by the police which left scores nursing injuries
Said Moyo:
“Yes, i have just heard about it. But it is their independent position…. Sanctions are outdated as SADC, AU has said.
The police is an independent organ of the state which deals with situations as they would have accessed. Whether the ZRP used excessive force or commensurate force is always an issue that can be debated.. it is really a subjective matter.
By A Correspondent- Following a brutal crackdown on MDC demonstrations by the police in Harare last Friday, the Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ) recently announced that it had shelved plans to picket at Finance minister Mthuli Ncube’s offices over their poor salaries.
The teachers last month announced that they would engage in collective action dubbed Pay Day Funerals as a way of putting pressure on the government to review their salaries.
in December last year, the teachers marched 275 kilometers from Mutare to Harare on foot protesting their poor salaries. They were harassed by the police and some of them detained before their arrival in Harare where they started picketing at the Finance ministry offices to present their grievances.
The latest action however saw the rural teachers resolving to start picketing at Ncube’s offices on pay days to push for interbank rate-pegged salaries and the protests were scheduled to begin yesterday.
During the Pay Day Funerals, the teachers in a statement said they would wear black as a sign of mourning their poor salaries and the death of the purchasing power of their incomes.
However, ARTUZ president, Obert Masaraure revealed in a statement that they had shelved the protests and rescheduled it to August 23.
The organisation attributed this to the recent relentless brutal crackdown of innocent men and women and the youths by the regime following the August 16 protests.
Said the ARTUZ in a statement:
The ARTUZ has resolved to postpone our Pay Day Funeral from 19 August to 23 August 2019.
This is in the wake of the Zimbabwe regime’s relentless brutal crackdown of innocent men, women and the youth of our beloved motherland – before, during and after the 16 August 2019 demonstrations – whose only ‘crime’ was a peaceful and constitutional desire for prosperity and freedom.
Such a shameful and brazenly callous response by the regime to the genuine cries and aspirations by the suffering masses of Zimbabwe, further exposes the heartless nature of those who are supposed to be our leaders and employers, thereby highlighting the urgent need for us all not to falter in our struggle for a better life, but instead to put on the whole armour of boldness and fearlessness in our quest for a dignified livelihood worthy of any human being.
The PayDay Funeral is just but one of the peaceful and constitutional instruments in our vast toolbox of options that ARTUZ has seen appropriate in urging our employers (the government of Zimbabwe) to finally award the plight of the long-suffering teachers the seriousness it deserves.
It is with shame that we have to resort to pressure our government to consider teachers as an integral part of any vision to develop the living standards of the people of Zimbabwe – as there can never be any knowledge without the teacher, and there can never be any economic prosperity without knowledge. Something that should have seemed obvious to any government with genuine intent on improving the livelihood of the people.
However, we find ourselves having to engage in never-ending struggles for teachers to finally receive recognition and appreciation that they deserve – and we urge all peace-loving progressive and caring Zimbabweans to unite in solidarity on 23 August 2019 as we mourn our meagre salaries, as our government further exposes its wanton disregard for our welfare and the survival of our families – thereby, betraying its general contempt for the people of this country.
Teachers merely demand a living wage in this age of of the ever-escalating cost of living.
A nation without a teacher is a nation without a future!
File picture of ZANU PF Members fighting each other
ZANU-PF Manicaland provincial committee member, Moses Gutu was on Sunday evening attacked at his farm in Nyanga by suspected fellow party members as intra-party violence continues to rear its ugly head in the province.
Gutu confirmed the attack, saying his wife and 14-year-old son were seriously injured and are currently admitted at Nyanga District Hospital.
“I am very sure that these are Zanu-PF members who attacked me and my family, not the MDC. They wanted to torch my house, they were pouring petrol around it and when I woke up they started destroying property,” Gutu said.
“My wife and child were attacked with an axe and sustained deep cuts and they were admitted at Nyanga District Hospital.”
Property destroyed has an estimated value of $5 000.
It is believed Gutu angered his fellow party members due to his outspokenness on under-utilised land and abuse of government farm inputs.
Gutu has been calling for the redistribution of idle land in the province. He says he believes if the land is given to people with resources and a passion for farming, they would utilise it fully and help turn around Zimbabwe’s fortunes.
He has also called for accountability in government-funded agriculture projects including command agriculture where inputs are reported to have been misappropriated.
Zanu-PF Manicaland provincial chairperson and Home Affairs deputy minister Mike Madiro, said the law would take its course.
“Gutu is an innocent soul. He is a citizen like any other with the right to life. Whoever has issues, there are amicable ways of settling (them) than to attack him and his family,” Madiro said.
“If they are Zanu-PF members, let me warn those perpetrators of violence, that this diabolic behaviour is unacceptable. The police are investigating the matter; once caught, the party is going to take drastic measures against them.”
Efforts to get a comment from Nyanga police were fruitless as their phones went unanswered.
An officer who spoke on condition of anonymity confirmed that senior police officers had visited Gutu’s farm and had begun investigations.
Bloomberg|Zimbabwe will issue new notes and coins soon to replace the country’s quasi currency that was introduced three years ago in a failed attempt to counter a crippling shortage of cash and that’s pushed inflation to the highest rate since 2008.
The return to a fully fledged local currency exchangeable outside the country’s borders will be backed by an undisclosed amount of foreign-exchange reserves, gold and loans, Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube said in an interview on Aug. 15 in the capital, Harare.
A Treasury spokesman on Monday said it first needed to compile data on the country’s reserves before commenting on how much foreign exchange would be used to back the new currency.
“We already have our own local currency, but this will be the first Zimbabwe dollar notes which will trade at parity to the bond notes,” Ncube said.
The southern African nation abandoned the Zimbabwe dollar in 2009, after a bout of hyperinflation, in favor of a basket of currencies including the U.S. dollar and the rand. In a bid to deal with the subsequent cash shortages it introduced so-called bond notes, and RTGS$ in their electronic form, which aren’t accepted outside the country.
Ncube reintroduced the Zimbabwe dollar in June, accompanied by a ban on the use of foreign currencies. This led to a rapid erosion of spending power with the local dollar trading at almost 10 to the greenback. Bond notes were officially said to be at parity as recently as February.
By A Correspondent- Bureaux de Change are reportedly becoming popular among residents of Bulawayo causing illegal foreign currency dealers to lose on business.
A report by the state media claimed that some members of the transacting public prefer bureaux de change as they are safer than transacting on the black market.
A Bulawayo resident, Nobukhosi Moyo who spoke to the publication is quoted as saying that changing money at bureaux de changes is more discreet and safer.
She said:
“It is more discreet and safer. There is privacy and I have no fear that there could be someone following me.
I used to change on the streets but the problem with that is you could never trust the person you are dealing with.
Sometimes forex dealers connive with robbers and you can be robbed of your money soon after changing.”
Despite the safety of bureaux de changes, some residents complained that service was slow.
One Farai Makuvaza said:
“I know that at the banks and bureaux de changes it is safer but the service is very slow. Too much paperwork for me to just change my money. In the streets it is swift and I do not need to wait until it’s my turn.”
An illegal foreign currency dealer confirmed this and said that business was slower as competition from bureaux de changes had become stiffer.
He said:
“It makes it difficult to operate because we have to offer deals that are just as competitive but it is unsustainable. Our major business now is selling cash.
If someone wants bond notes in exchange for bank transfer or zipit, we offer the deals at a premium. The average rate is 30 per cent but it can go higher or lower depending on demand.
On Monday, some of the designated forex outlets were offering ZWL$10,4 and ZWL$7,4 per US$1 for electronic transfers and cash transactions respectively while on the streets, US$1 was being traded for ZWL$10,60 for electronic transactions and ZWL$7,5 for cash.
Farai Dziva|MDC-T vice president has said Zimbabwe is not a puppet nation such that external forces should not not interfere with the country’s internal affairs.
Gutu accused the United States of America of allegedly interfering in Zimbabwe’s domestic affairs.
“We respect the United States of America as a superpower and a global political force, but at the same time, the Americans and indeed, all other foreigners for that matter, should simply leave us to decide and determine our own destiny.
Just look at the havoc that American political interference has brought about in Venezuela. Zimbabwe might be a small country, but all the same, we are a sovereign and independent State and we don’t deserve to be treated like some satellite puppet state of the United States,” Gutu told a state run daily paper.
CAPS United have appointed Darlington Dodo as their new coach following the departure of Lloyd Chitembwe.
Makepekepe made the announcement on Tuesday and went on to post on their Twitter handle.
“Caps President, Mr Farai Jere said: At the moment coach Dodo is going to be responsible for the technical team. He is a qualified guy, he has got all the papers and it’s all about the the support.”
Dodo was assistant to Chitembwe who left to join Harare City.H-Metro
By A Correspondent| Opposition MDC Vice Chairperson Job Sikhala has raised the flag over the harassment and clampdown of party stalwarts in St Mary’s Chitungwiza by members of the ZRP PISI Department.
Sikhala said the security details, led by one Javangwe are terrorising party supporters as they are hunting them in a door to door operation.
He said:
The members of the ZRP PISI Department under the leadership of one Jabangwe are currently terrorizing members of the MDC in St. Marys.
Jabangwe is moving from house to house in St. Marys looking for our party members for no apparent reason or any logical explanation.
At the present moment, they have arrested Elizabeth Maengahama, wife to the MDC District Vice Chairman Big Chitengu.
She is currently detained at St. Marys Police Station enroute to the Law and Order.
The Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights have swiftly and effectively responded to this gross human rights abuse by deploying lawyer Fred Michael Masarirevu to deal with the matter.
I urge all our party members to remain strong and vigilant during this time of attack by the enemy.
As your leadership we are here to be with you at all material and given time.
We strongly condemn the perpetration of terror against our membership in St. Mary’s, by the enemies of our people.
Farai Dziva|The MDC has bemoaned the suppression of the will of the people by Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government.
In the statement MDC deputy spokesperson Luke Tamborinyoka argues that the “Zanu PF regime will not suppress the will of the people forever.”
State effects a de facto ban on civilian politics
In light of the continued proscription of the people’s sacred right to freedom of assembly and expression, Zimbabweans are disheartened that all democratic space in the country has virtually been closed.
Rights have been taken away and democratic space has shrunk. As a people, in light of the national grievances affecting the nation, we have followed the law to the letter and spirit so as to allow ourselves to demonstrate peacefully.
Alas, there has been no appetite on the other side to allow citizens the full enjoyment of their democratic rights. In fact, there has been a de facto ban on the MDC and on civilian politics in the country. State-sponsored violence against innocent citizens has become the regime’s default setting.
The people are being subjected to State-sponsored terrorism while the State continues to foment acrimony between citizens and the law enforcement agents as characterized by the cat-and-mouse games between the citizens and those in authority in the various cities and towns. The sight in Gweru today of soldiers doing public drills in the town where a peaceful and constitutional march was supposed to take place is a case in point.
In the past few days, there has not just been a ban on civilian politics, but a de facto state of emergency. It is tragic that political gatherings and free expression, which have virtually been banned in Zimbabwe, are the very oxygen of politics. The proscription of the people’s fundamental rights is therefore a crude form of political asphyxiation.
Zimbabweans are suffering and have braved myriad national grievances that range from power outages, unemployment, fuel shortages, spiraling cost of living and a steep hike in basic education and health costs, among other issues. It is the view of ordinary Zimbabweans that the final and ultimate solution to the multi-layered crisis afflicting the country is a legitimate people’s government that can begin to address the concerns of the people.
We have seen in the past few days that POSA remains a problem while its successor, the Maintenance of Public Order Act, has dismally failed to enhance the people’s democratic rights. If anything, MOPA has been plucked from apartheid statutes and marks a major regression on the democratic agenda.
Put simply, MOPA is just but another POSA in a scarf!
It must be made clear that the prohibition orders that are being used to stifle and throttle democratic space are in themselves unconstitutional as they brazenly take away sacred constitutional rights and freedoms. As a people, we are sticklers to Constitutionalism and the rule of law.
Sadly, the people have gone to court but have received no remedy. Put simply, the people have found the remedies not available at the courts.
Ultimately, it must be understood that the people reserve their right to organize and express themselves. We have the people and we have the right.
MDC: Change that delivers.
Luke Tamborinyoka
Deputy National Spokesperson
Movement for Democratic Change
The Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) notes with concern the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Communique on the just ended 39th SADC Summit of Heads of State and Government in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
In particular, the SADC Summit turned a blind eye to the deteriorating socio-economic situation, ongoing human rights violations, persecution of human rights defenders, suspension of the Constitution of the land and lethargy on comprehensive reforms.
The MDC is perturbed by the statement on Zimbabwe in the 36-paragraph SADC Communique issued Sunday following the regional body’s 39th summit of Heads of State and Government that ran from 17 to 18 August 2019 in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The SADC Communique is gravely concerning not just about what it said but also about what it did not say about Zimbabwe.
On paragraph 14 of their Communique, SADC leaders report that “Summit noted the adverse impact on the economy of Zimbabwe and expressed solidarity with Zimbabwe and called for the immediate lifting of the sanctions to facilitate socio-economic recovery in the country”.
Other than paragraph 6 of the Communique that congratulates “Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa, the President of the Republic of Zimbabwe as Chairperson of the Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation”, nothing else is said about Zimbabwe.
It is disconcerting that SADC could congratulate Mr. Mnangagwa as the new head of the regional body’s organ on Defence and security at a time when Zimbabweans are suffering insecurity and defenselessness from the regime in power in Harare.
While SADC leaders are well within their rights to pronounce themselves on the sanctions issue, it is disappointing that they have a frozen and opportunistic narrative on the matter. There’s no difference between what they have been saying since 2001 and what they said yesterday, like a record stuck in a groove.
For SADC leaders, it is enough to make the news headlines by “expressing solidarity with Zimbabwe” and “calling for the immediate lifting of the sanctions to facilitate socio-economic recovery in the country”. This 18-year old stock-narrative no longer has an audience besides the SADC leaders themselves.
On sanctions, SADC leaders must speak through actions, not through convenient but hollow words for the media. Contextualizing sanctions over a year ago, in January 2018, Mnangagwa himself said, “Yes, sanctions are there, but we should not continue talking about them. We must have solutions and already we have solutions in agriculture, and this should cascade to all sectors”.
Given Mnangagwa’s position, SADC’s call “for the immediate lifting of the sanctions to facilitate socio-economic recovery in the country” is odd and out of step with the reality in Zimbabwe.
Zimbabweans have come to know that when SADC leaders want to ignore or distort the tricky crisis of illegitimacy in Zimbabwe, they wax lyrical about sanctions and express “solidarity with Zimbabwe”, while saying and doing nothing about the worsening plight of Zimbabweans.
Yet there can be no Zimbabwe without Zimbabweans.
Before its 38th summit in August 2018, SADC was confronted by military and police atrocities committed in Harare on 1 August 2018, in which six Zimbabweans were killed in cold blood and 35 others were critically injured by the Army and the Police. This was confirmed by the Kaglema Motlanthe Commission, an international body whose appointment SADC supported.
It is incredulous that the 2019 SADC summit was dead silent about the findings of the Motlanthe Commission and the failure and the unwillingness, by Mnangagwa’s administration to hold to account the army and police officers who killed six and injured 35 Zimbabweans on 1 August 2018.
Even worse, between 14 to 28 January 2019, at least 17 Zimbabweans were killed, hundreds tortured, some raped, by elements in the army, police, CIO and Zanu PF militia with thousands were displaced internally and externally in an unprecedented orgy of State violence that affected all major cities across Zimbabwe.
As in the case of the atrocities committed on 1 August 2018, in fact worse than in that case, no process of enquiry has been undertaken; and the State culprits are once again getting away scot free with impunity.
The January 2019 scenario was another major clampdown on citizens and was carried out resulting in 17 extra-judicial killings, 17 cases of rape and other violations of a sexual nature, 26 abductions, 61 displacements, 81 assaults consistent with gunshot attacks, at least 586 assaults, torture, inhuman and degrading treatment (including dog bites), and 954 arrests and detention (including dragnet detentions). Further, a record breaking 22 MDC and Civil Society leaders including parliamentarians and labor leaders face trumped up charges of treason and subversion.
On 16 July 2019, labor leaders received anonymous letters with bullets in a clear move meant to intimidate the labor movement against exercising their right to peacefully demonstrate and petition.
Where is SADC’s responsibility to protect? When will SADC, just for once, stand with the people of Zimbabwe and express solidarity not with Zimbabwe but with Zimbabweans?
Yes. Zimbabweans have had enough of a SADC that is always congratulating the President of Zimbabwe and expressing solidarity with the State but never addressing itself to the plight of the ordinary people brutalized by the State.
As SADC leaders were meeting in Dar es Salaam over the weekend, Zimbabwean State agents were busy abducting civil society and political activists; while the police and army were issuing illegal prohibition orders like confetti to deny citizens from holding peaceful demonstrations against the worsening economic hardships induced not by sanctions but by unprecedented corruption through rent-seeking schemes like command agriculture, fuel cartels and abuse of treasury bills by the ruling elite.
On the back of Zimbabwe’s crisis of illegitimacy, these hardships induced by corruption coupled with incompetence are causing multitudes of Zimbabweans to cross the borders into neighbouring SADC countries, notably but not only South Africa, Mozambique, Malawi and Zambia. The consequences of the emigration influx on regional economies are too ghastly to contemplate, yet SADC leaders continue to bury their heads in the sand like ostriches, only to raise the heads when they want to pontificate about 18-year old sanctions while doing nothing about them in real economic terms.
The MDC reiterates that the root cause of Zimbabwe’s problems is political, being a crisis of governance. A legitimacy crisis.
The July 2018 elections further entrenched the legitimacy crisis through a fundamentally flawed electoral process that did not guarantee the will of the people. The 2018 plebiscite did not conform to the provisions of the SADC Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections and the African Union (AU) Declaration on the Principles Governing Democratic Elections.
The electoral process was marred by irregularities including a highly partisan and captured Zimbabwe Electoral Commission, lack of transparency in the electoral process including on the printing and storage of ballot papers and poor stakeholder engagement by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission, a party-state-military complex, partisan conduct of traditional leaders, partisan distribution of food aid, widespread Intimidation, abuse of State resources, biased State media, an Electoral Law that is not aligned to the Constitution of Zimbabwe including the disfranchisement of diasporans and post-election violence. Such a flawed electoral process perpetuated the legitimacy crisis and is manifesting in the current socio-economic crisis, deteriorating human rights situation and lethargy.
Moreover, there was an outright fudging of the figures as demonstrated by the fact that the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission revised downwards its own figures a record three times in a plebiscite SADC still held as credible.
The MDC urges SADC to urgently take note of the worsening situation in Zimbabwe as a threat to peace and security in the region and to recognize its responsibility to protect. We urge SADC to take the following specific actions:
Urgently be seized of the matter of Zimbabwe in order to address the multifaceted crisis and prevent further deterioration of the situation.
Urgently find a lasting solution to the Zimbabwean crisis anchored on facilitated and credible national dialogue.
READ: Joint Statement by Diplomatic Missions in #Zimbabwe, including the UK
"Only by addressing concretely & rapidly these human rights violations will the Government of Zimbabwe give credibility to its commitments to address longstanding governance challenges"#ActiononReformpic.twitter.com/SWD4bGNn81
Opposition MDC has suggested that President Emmerson Mnangagwa must be taken to the International Criminal Court (ICC) over human rights violations. Do you think Mnangagwa must be taken to the ICC?
Farai Dziva|Owing to the crippling economic problems, the Zimbabwe Football Association has revealed that it has taken some measures aimed at reducing spending.
The local football body, which is facing financial challenges says the measures, will affect all national teams where players will have to travel by road for some games.
“The Association is currently implementing austerity measures, and national teams will travel by road when and where the trip doesn’t affect team performance.”
The women’s national teams that were taking part at the Cosafa tournaments in South Africa early this month were the first to be affected after travelling more 1000km from Port Elizabeth to Jorbug on their way home.
Farai Dziva| Spanish giants Real Madrid have reportedly made a £150 million offer to buy want-away Brazilian star Neymar from PSG.
The 27-year-old is in the midst of a battle between Los Blancos and Barcelona with both giants wanting to sign him and according to Spanish publication AS, the former have made a final £150 million plus James Rodriguez offer in exchange for the Brazlilian.
Barcelona are also pushing for Neymar’s return to Camp Nou to reunite with Leo Messi and Luis Suarez and have reportedly had a bid rejected by the French champions.
Farai Dziva|Knowledge Musona’s coach at Anderlecht Vincent Kompany has left the Warriors skipper in the cold.
Kompany, 33, who is also doubling as a player rejoined the Belgian giants at the start of the campaign and has picked just two points from their opening four games. He failed to beat modest opposition in Oostende, Mouscron, Mechelen and more recently to Kortrijk.
Ex-Anderlecht, Belgium and Sheffield Wednesday striker Marc Degryse is now accusing the former Manchester City captain of “thinking he is God”.
“Kompany is only human, besides being a good footballer – but I feel he thinks he is God,” said Degryse, according to The Sun newspaper.
“In the coming international break, a coach would normally have two weeks to work intensively with his squad.
“But Kompany will be off with Belgium to play San Marino and Scotland – before having his testimonial game in Manchester.
“Some people like to be busy, but they can become too preoccupied.
“Kompany should think about this. There are limits to everything.
“If another centre-back had made the mistakes he made he’d have been criticised – and Kompany would have dropped him for the next game.
“Of course Kompany shouldn’t retire from playing – but he has to make sure something like this doesn’t happen again.”
Meanwhile, Musona had hoped to find his place in the Anderlecht squad following the appointment of Kompany, but the Zimbabwean forward remains out in the cold.
MDC Youth Assembly notes with concern and aghast at the futile blame shifting attempts by one Pupurai Togarepi to shoulder peace loving citizens and MDC leadership blame while absolving ZANU PF youths, green bombers and the police on the violence that engulfed the streets of Harare last Friday.
In a long incoherent monologue, the 57 year old ZANU PF Youth leader, Togarepi exhibited quantums of ideological dissonance and mental deficiency by trying to sanitize a ZANU PF hand on the violence that was unleashed on innocent civilians by the ‘police’.
Togarepi’s reckless utterances mirrors a sore picture of the death and dearth of leadership in ZANU PF and the ripple effects of such has deleterious consequences on citizens.
It is quite regrettable that Zimbabweans have been robbed of quality leadership by an illegitimate looting conspiracy that tries so hard to force themselves on the people after stealing an election.
While Togarepi and cabal are now busy enjoying the loot that comes with illegitimacy, Zimbabweans from all walks of life including ZANU PF supporters are forced to bear the brunt that emanates from leadership failure of this fascist clique.
Maybe it is also important to unpack who is Pupurai before further debunking his lies and reckless utterances.
Here is a 57 year old grandfather that is also forcing himself on ZANU PF youths hence it is understandable that the only language he understands is violence.
As we alluded to earlier, Togarepi exhibits clear signs of mental deficiency, dissonance, incoherence and inconsistence!
This is the very same man who threatened a big pro-people political movement, MDC with extinction if the party was to go ahead with its plan to hold a peaceful demonstration on that fateful Friday.
True to his word, the world witnessed scenes of violence that has never been seen before as ZANU PF youths clad in police attire terrorized and brutalized unarmed and defenceless citizens on the streets of Harare.
Now one wonders has Pupurai quickly forgot his word that he made on the eve of demonstrations?
If so, then our problems as a people might be bigger than what meets the eye especially if this clique continue to impose themselves on us.
With such kind of rigid, rabid, dishonest, knavish scoundrels at the helms of power then it becomes easier for the common man to see why the economy is on a free fall!
Ancient Chinese wisdom has it that before hitting a dog sometimes it is important to look for its owner first.
It is not far fetched and mendacious for ordinary citizens to view Togarepi’s utterances as a reflection of Emmerson Mnangagwa’s deficiencies too!
There is a clear common denominator of pretence and falsehood that underlines the character of Mnangagwa and Togarepi.
From ‘New Dispensation’, ‘soft as wool’, ‘third hand to violence’ to ‘the economy is on a recovery path’ it is lies galore in Mnangagwa and Togarepi’s worlds.
Stephen Sarkozy Chuma MDC Youth Assembly National Spokesperson
Farai Dziva|Violence is not the solution to the political crisis in the country, Tatenda Maposa the director of Girl Child Empowerment of Zimbabwe has said.
Maposa called for political tolerance and castigated violence against women.
See Maposa’s statement:
PEACE BEGINS WITH YOU: NO TO POLITICAL VIOLENCE AND ABUSE OF WOMEN
As Masvingo residents we are saying no to politically motivated violence, no to looting and no to hate-
speech.
As Masvingo residents, we wish to reiterate that violence is not the solution to political problems.
Apart from leading to injury and infrastructure destruction,
violence breaks social cohesion and peace of the nation.
As Zimbabwe is currently faced by a huge economic turmoil and disagreements between
political parties, Zimbabweans must never allow political discourse to turn poisonous instead we
should all seek dialogue. We also believe that peace must begin with you and is extended to the next
person.
Politically motivated violence disturbs the lives of peace loving citizens and also endangers
the lives of those who have nothing to do with politics.
As Masvingo residents and Zimbabwean
citizens we urge all political party leaders to continue preaching the gospel of dialogue and peace to
their supporters. Political leaders must take lead in denouncing violence in any part of the nation.
Party
supporters must also take a leaf from unity which must be shown by their leaders. Violence itself, in
whatever form is not the best way forward and one can never use violence to advance one’s political
agenda.
Political differences mighty be there but, we are kindly pleading with all political parties to
swallow their pride, put the nation first and at heart and help each other to rebuild the nation. We do
not believe that politically motivated violence is the solution, we must desist from a situation whereby
young people are used as political weapons towards fueling political violence. As a province we are
eager to breed a peace loving generation which believes in peace and nation building. It is high time
our politics should be taken to the next level, where supporters of the victor and loser would be able
to sit down and share ideas, not exchange blows.
Our country has seen so much violence over the
past decades and it is high time political leaders should promote national peace, healing and tolerance.
At the centre of non-violence stands the principle of love.
As Masvingo residents, we believe that returning
violence for violence multiplies violence, adding the deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars.
Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that.
The Zimbabwe National Army Bomb disposal Squad and police were on Monday called to Bulawayo’s Emganwini Island suburb after residents stumbled on a bomb.
Police had to clear the mob as residents jostled to catch a glimpse of the explosive.
Bulawayo Police have since confirmed the development.
By A Correspondent- Following a brutal crackdown on MDC demonstrations by the police in Harare last Friday, the Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ) has revealed that the organisation has shelved plans to picket at Finance minister Mthuli Ncube’s offices to pressure government to review their salaries.
A fortnight ago, the rural teachers resolved to start picketing at Ncube’s offices on pay days to push for interbank rate-pegged salaries.
Dubbed Pay Day Funerals, the protests were scheduled to begin Monday with teachers urged to wear black as a sign of mourning their poor salaries and the death of the purchasing power of their incomes.
ARTUZ however said that they had set a new date for the protests.
Said ARTUZ leader Obert Masaraure:
“Due to the current instability in the capital, the proposed salary funeral (demonstration) at Mthuli Ncube’s offices has been shifted from August 19 (yesterday) to Friday August 23.
Masaraure reiterated that the postponement was a strategic decision taken by the rural teachers after last week’s ruthless crackdown on MDC protesters by riot police.
“It (postponement) was a strategic decision to remobilise and rebuild the momentum that has been destroyed by the cowardly violence perpetrated by the State against innocent citizens last Friday.”
Last year when ARTUZ camped at the Finance ministry’s offices making similar demands, the police rounded up the union’s leaders and locked them up.
However, Masaraure indicated there is no fear among teachers due to the previous actions by the police.
“Out of courtesy we notified the police and they guaranteed the safety of all protesters. At law we are exempted by the Public Order and Security Act in such a protest because it is an internal event. It will be ridiculous to find the police meddling in a labour dispute between an employer and employees,” the ARTUZ president said.
Last month, government gave a once-off $400 cushion allowance to all civil servants and expectations were that the amount would automatically be effected on this month’s salaries. However, the civil servants did not get the allowance, effectively pushing them deeper into poverty as the local currency continues to tumble against the United States dollar.
Masaraure said currently teachers were earning the equivalent of US$30.
Joint Local Statement On Respect For Human Rights And Freedom Of Assembly
The Heads of Mission of the Delegation of the European
Union, France, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, Romania, Sweden and the United
Kingdom and the Heads of Mission of Australia, Canada and the United States of
America issue the following statement in Zimbabwe:
Intimidation, harassment and physical attacks on human
rights defenders, trade union and civil society representatives, and opposition
politicians – Prior to, during and following the demonstration in Harare on 16
August – are cause for great concern.
The Zimbabwean Constitution guarantees the right to personal
security from violence and prohibits physical or psychological torture. The
Heads of Mission urge the authorities to respect these fundamental rights, and
to hold perpetrators of violence legally responsible.
The Heads of Mission call on the authorities to respect the
constitutional rights to freedom of assembly, association and expression as
well as to peaceful protest, and urge all political party leaders and
supporters to abstain from threats and incitement to violence as well as acts
of violence or vandalism. The security forces must adhere to their
Constitutional mandate and exercise restraint and proportionality while
maintaining public order.
Only by addressing concretely and rapidly these human rights
violations will the Government of Zimbabwe give credibility to its commitments
to address longstanding governance challenges. The Heads of Mission reiterate
their calls for the implementation of the government’s political and economic
reform agenda, underpinned by inclusive national dialogue and increased efforts
to address the severe social situation.
By A Correspondent- A senior Egyptian diplomat seconded to Harare, one Ms Raina, has been taken to court by a local woman Bilkis Banu Ismail, who is seeking $1,5 million compensation in adultery damages after the former allegedly snatched her husband.
Through her lawyers, Laita and Partners of Marondera, Ismail recently issued summons against Raina citing her business address as the Embassy of Egypt situated at number 7 Aberdeen Road, Avondale in Harare.
In her declaration, Ismail said she has been married to Mahmoud Eid Ahmed Eid for more than 12 years. She accused Raina of having an adulterous relationship with her husband since 2018.
“The basis of the plaintiff (Ismail)’s claim is that the defendant (Raina) is having an adulterous relationship with the plaintiff’s husband since 2018. The plaintiff has now lost the affection and companionship of her beloved husband as a result of the defendant’s actions,” Ishmael said through her lawyers.
“The plaintiff, because of the actions of the defendant, is being deprived of her conjugal rights that used to be her preserve as the husband has actually moved in to stay with the defendant. The plaintiff believes that adultery is an act of sexual incontinence and the deliberate intrusion into her marriage by the defendant is an attack on her dignity as she is just an innocent party.”
Ismail also said, as a result of Raina’s interference in her marriage, she has suffered economic deprivation because her husband now has divided attention more so that Rania is enjoying and benefitting from the couple’s sweat.
“The defendant is abusing her position as a senior diplomat to conduct the illicit liaison with plaintiff’s husband. The plaintiff believes that the marriage union is sacrosanct, particularly in the Zimbabwean context as it is entrenched deeply in the country’s culture, tradition and religion,” the lawyers said.
Ismail further said her standing in the community has been irreparably damaged because of Rania’s actions, which have had the effect of humiliating and embarrassing her.
“The plaintiff has no other recourse except to approach this honourable court for expiation. Wherefore, the plaintiff’s claim against the defendant is $1 000 000 adultery damages and $500 000 for loss of consortium and contumelia, plus cost of suit,” the lawyers said.
By Own Correspondent- Bulawayo deputy mayor, Cllr Tinashe Kambarami’s photo after he was reportedly abducted and tortured has surfaced.
Tinashe Kambarami
His abductors reportedly used glass to shave his dreadlocks.
Kambarami was reportedly abducted ahead of the MDC Bulawayo demonstration that was scheduled to start at 1000 hours on Monday.
The demonstration was however blocked by the police.Cite@citezw quoted Councillor Arnold Batirai and posted:
MDC Provincial Youth Chairperson Cllr Tinashe Kambarami was allegedly abducted on Saturday night outside his residence. According to Cllr Arnold Batirai, Cllr Kambarami’s dreadlocks were shaved off using glass. He is receiving medical attention.
Compare with his old looks below.
Kambarami was in the news recently over the suspension of Bulawayo Town Clerk, Christopher Dube.
The deputy mayor suspended the Clerk citing the Clerk’s failure to address the water crisis bedevilling the city and also maladministration of public funds.
The suspension was however reversed 24 hours later by the Mayor, Solomon Mguni who argued that the suspension would cause despondency in the council.
Some commentators have since argued that the crisis in the city was tribal in nature.
Both the government and the opposition MDC have instituted investigations into the matter.-CITE
HARARE – Zimbabwe police deployed in force in the city of
Gweru on Tuesday, witnesses said, as authorities sought to keep a lid on
dissent after banning the third anti-government protest that the main
opposition party has sought to organise inside five days.
The Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) planned
rolling mass demonstrations in different cities starting last Friday. It
accuses President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government of mishandling the
economy, which is facing its worst crisis in a decade, and repression.
The MDC said it would challenge the ban in court on Tuesday.
The party failed to overturn two previous bans on marches in Harare and
Bulawayo.
In Gweru, a central city, police patrolled on foot and in
lorries and also cordoned off a university, a local journalist told Reuters.
“There is a determined effort by the regime to ensure
that there is no more democratic space,” MDC national spokesman Daniel
Molokele said.
“They are also deploying a lot of military and police
in the streets… It clearly shows that the new government is even worse than that
of Robert Mugabe.”
The demonstrations are viewed as a test of Mnangagwa’s
willingness to tolerate dissent in a country tainted by a long history of
repression under his predecessor Mugabe.
But authorities are jittery following violent fuel protests in January that triggered an army crackdown that killed more than a dozen people.
Jane Mlambo| The Ministry of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services has confirmed the death of former journalist and television personality Godfrey Majonga.
News of Majonga’s death began circulating on social media this morning.
According to the Information ministry, Majonga was a commissioner in the Zimbabwe Media Commission.
“We have learnt with sorrow & sadness the passing on of veteran broadcaster Mr Godfrey Majonga. Mr Majonga made immense contribution to the broadcasting industry as a broadcaster & later as the Chairperson of the Zimbabwe Media Commission (ZMC). May his soul eternal peace,” noted the information ministry on Twitter this morning.
By A Correspondent- The Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company (ZETDC) has effected a new tariff system to encourage domestic consumers to make optimal use of electricity within a calendar month.
The system is designed to encourage conservation of power by ensuring heavy domestic power users pay more.
ZESA public relations manager Mr Fullard Gwasira said the move was in line with recently approved electricity tariffs.
“The Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company would like to advise its valued customers that it has now started implementing the stepped prepayment tariff for domestic consumers to replace the flat tariff of 14c/KWh which was previously in use for domestic customers.
“The flat rate tariff afforded customers of electricity a standard tariff for purchase despite the units purchased and the number of times customers bought electricity in the same month and thus wasteful and expensive for low poor users,” said Mr Gwasira in a statement. The stepped tariff is with effect from August 1.
“The prepayment tariff is designed to encourage practices, of conserving electricity to consumers, given the current power supply situation.
“The stepped domestic tariff electricity encourages consumers to use electricity more sparingly and efficiently and rewards them with a low tariff with heavy domestic power users having to pay more for higher consumption,” Mr Gwasira said.
He consumers to buy electricity units sufficient for their monthly consumption.
“Customers are thus advised to buy electricity units that are sufficient for their monthly consumption as any excess units would be charged at the higher tariff,” said Mr Gwasira.
In every calendar month customers, Mr Gwasira said, are afforded a lifeline tariff rate of ($0,06) $6,00 for the first 50kwh, which is enough electricity to power a two plate stove and five lights for a calendar month for a single-household with the next 150 KWh (51 to 200 KWh) in the same calendar month being charged at $0,30 ($30,00).
“The first 250 KWh are enough for the majority of domestic households. Any additional purchases in excess of 200 KWh with in the same calendar month, is thus charged at a higher rate of $0,40 ($40,00),” he explained.
He said that the lifeline tariff is enjoyed at point of the first purchases during any calendar month to cushion less privileged consumers.
“The reduced amount of electricity in kWh is due to the fact that the second purchase within the same calendar month is cumulative, and thus the customer would have exhausted the lifeline benefit for that particular month.
“In order to assist customer, prepayment vouchers will indicate how the units purchased are charged and the brands to which they belong, in compliance with the provisions as set by the regulator,” he said.
In addition, Mr Gwasira said the stepped tariff takes cognisance of the depressed power supply situation emanating from the law water levels at Lake Kariba and the need to conserve the available power and reduce imports.-StateMedia
There was much news and momentum when Prisca Mupfumira was arrested. After this, why have things gone dead quiet now? No more arrests by ZACC. Apart from a visit to Emmerson Mnangagwa’s nemesis, an obvious political enemy of the ZANU PF leader, Phelekezela Mphoko there is nothing else zilch!
Why, why?
We will know ZACC is serious when Obert Mpofu, Walter Magaya and others are arrested. Why is ZimEye not reporting on the deathly hush from ZACC and calling for more arrests?
Jane Mlambo|Former journalist and director of sports and Danhiko Godfrey Majonga has died.
While full details of his death are still sketchy, a local publication reported that Majonga died last night at 11pm.
Majonga became paralysed after allegedly took a jump through the window of the flat in Harare which led to injuries to his nervous system and spinal cord from blunt force trauma after landing on hard concrete.
