Public Service, Labor and Social Welfare Minister Sekai Nzenza today refuted social media claims that she had gone into hiding and that she was being investigated by the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC).
There were social media reports at the weekend claiming that the minister was bribed by arrested Tourism Minister Prisca Mupfumira to hold on to a forensic audit report of state pension fund, the National Social Security Authority (NSSA), which implicates the Tourism minister.
Mupfumira is currently in police custody after being arrested by ZACC last Thursday for allegedly abusing US$95 million from NSSA.
When asked at a press conference if she had been bribed, Nzenza categorically refuted the claims.
“That did not happen. That is nonsense. I am not dwelling on nonsensical stories. I have a mandate to deliver to the public to ensure that money entrusted to NSSA is managed properly and within best practice. Those are weekend social media stories that people enjoy, share and circulate,” she said.
The minister said she was not holding on to the forensic audit report but was allowing due processes to be completed before she makes the report public.
The report details gross financial irregularities at NSSA, and reportedly implicates a number of senior government and corporate officials.
Mupfumira became the first cabinet minister to be arrested by the recently constituted ZACC.
She appeared at the magistrates courts on Saturday for routine bail hearing but the magistrate ruled that she be detained for 21 days as there were high chances she could try to conceal evidence.
ZACC has vowed to aggressively fight corruption after President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government has declared a zero tolerance to corruption.
The price of sugar has gone up again, with the latest hike being almost 100 percent with immediate effect.
According to the latest prices from Tongaat Hullett, a 1 kg packet which used to retail for ZWL$5.50 will now be going for $8.61 while a 2kg packet which used to retail for $10.44 will now be going for $17.22
Radical Mthwakazi Cessation proponents operating under the Mthwakazi Republic Party have declared war against MDC National Chairperson Thabitha Khumalo.
In social media statements the grouping warned Khumalo of unspecified action after a video circulating on social media with Khumalo calling on the people of Matabeleland to change the constitution if they do not want to be led by Shona speaking people in Bulawayo.
The group published the following statement against khumalo:
Thabitha Khumalo statement on Saturday that Matabeles must first change the constitution of the country and the Urban Councils Act if they want to fight Shona hegemony in Bulawayo is drunk talk.
This smacks of a person whose body and head are totally covered in a blanket of ignorance, an MP who is out of touch with revolutionary political events happening in Matabeleland particularly in Bulawayo.
As far as this revolution is concerned the constitution of Zimbabwe is declared null and void in Matabeleland. In the prosecution of Matabeleland struggle, we are not going to observe the constitution of the oppressor which is clearly one of his pivotal tools which he uses to suppress our efforts. We shall bulldoze. That piece of paper called the Zimbabwe constitution may look precious to Thabitha but to us it is just like toilet paper, not binding and meaningless.
We cannot be held to ransom because of Ndebele- Shona inter marriages that have been happening since time immemorial. Matabeles have freedom to have sexual relationships with any foreigners, shonas included. However, such sexual relationships must not be used and abused by any foreigner, shonas included, to dominate and oppress Matabeles.
Thabitha Khumalo’ s long inter- marriage lectures are not acceptable in Matabeleland because we know that bush better than her. We advise that she gives those lectures to Shona people who clearly do not have an idea how marriages work. It seems they do not marry Matabeles for love but for the purpose of politically dominating and abusing them.
Thabitha Khumalo and Welshmen should be seen challenging the MDC Alliance tribal tendency that has become it’s culture that the Presidency and all other high positions in the party are a reserve for people of Shona origin, challenge the MDC tribal tendency which has become its culture in the city of Harare and all other cities in Mashonaland that all councillors and mayors should be Shona.
By the way, please tell the world why Thokozani Khupe who was an elected Vice President of MDC T left Mashonaland in a huff last year when Shona youth wanted to burn her inside a thatched hut. Did they not tell her point blank that a Ndebele from Matabeleland cannot be the president of MDC? Why must we allow Shonas to lead us in Matabeleland and our cities whereas we are not allowed leadership positions in Mashonaland let alone in the country?
This shows that Thabitha Khumalo and Welshman Ncube have become political careerists who stand for the Shona supremacist system in Matabeleland and not the people of Matabeleland. They are now a big threat to the survival of Matabele nation.
The battle lines have been drawn. It is only a fool who cannot see that. People of Matabeleland have been pushed too far and cannot take it anymore. Enough is enough!
Who knows what will happen when those angry young men that were carrying knobkerries and axes are given machine guns? It will be foolish to think that they are interested in listening to misplaced marriage lectures by Thabitha or anyone else. It will be equally foolish to think that they are joking or playing games.
Last but not least we warn Matabeles against pinning their hopes on Zanupf to solve disputes between them and MDC Alliance or any other Shona political project. Its like an impala calling a lion to save it when it is being attacked by a hyena. The lion will see easy food.
In the land of Matabele, MDC Alliance and Zanupf are unwanted political predators that must be removed as soon as yesterday. The restoration of Matabeleland statehood is the solution here. It is only Matabeles that will solve their own problems in Matabeleland not Zanupf, not MDC A.
This offensive political posturing by Thabitha Khumalo and Welshman Ncube to publicly promote and protect Shona supremacism at all costs in Matabeleland is evidence enough that MDC Alliance and Zanupf are joined at the hip like siamese twins. They share the same agenda in Matabeleland, this is, to invade, tribally dominate, discriminate and finally destroy Matabele nation.
Thabitha Khumalo and Welshman Ncube should be warned that the bubbles that they see on the water surface mean that there is serious agitation under water. Do not underestimate the anger of the people of Matabeleland.
We say Shonalisation of Matabeleland ends here, enough is enough! We will free ourselves through whatever means possible. If it means taking up Aks to shoot our way to independence, we shall do that without hesitation.
With our AKs and necklaces we shall liberate ourselves!
President Emmerson Mnangagwa chairs his inaugural cabinet meeting as Head of State and Government while flanked Ministers Sithembiso Nyoni, Obert Mpofu, Simon Khaya Moyo and Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet Dr Misheck Sibanda (far right) at Munhumutapa offices in Harare.
Business Times|Zimbabwe’s thermal power stations may soon fail to feed onto the national electricity grid after coal suppliers warned their stockpile lasts for 12 days, plunging the country into colossal power crisis as miners struggle to access diesel to mine the fossil fuel, Business Times heard this week.
The economy is on its knees due to rolling power cuts that can last for 20 years, erratic fuel supplies, runaway inflation and a weakening domestic currency which threatens to drag the economy to the pre-dollarisation era.
Business Times established that the country’s largest coal producers have less than a month’s supply of coal as they are struggling to access the diesel required to run their machines. Despite increasing the fuel price twice this week, supplies remain erratic across the country with long winding queues becoming the order of the day.
Zimbabwe has four coal producers; Makomo Resources, Hwange Colliery Company, Zambezi Gas and Garlpex but only the first three contribute significantly to output.
Makomo Resources director Raymond Mutokonyi told this paper that the situation has reached alarming levels and will soon affect electricity generation. Makomo is the largest coal producer in the country.
“Due to crippling fuel shortages we are now forced to operate four times a week. Most of our machines including excavators require diesel to function. If we have a situation whereby the liquid commodity is in short supply, we cannot continue with operations,” Mutokonyi said.
“All combined coal miners are left with coal stockpile of around 12 days making it difficult to produce more electricity in the coming weeks. If the diesel situation persists we are rushing to stage four of load-shedding,” said Mutokonyi.
He said fuel shortages have seen our production levels going down by 50 percent on quarterly levels. Mutokonyi said the sector is doomed if the central bank does not react swiftly to the urgent situation.
Four out of the country’s five power stations are thermal powered.
These are Hwange, Munyati, Bulawayo and Harare and contributed more than half of the 915 MW that was generated yesterday. The country’s largest thermal power station, Hwange, sources its coal from, Makomo, Hwange Colliery and Zambezi Gas.
Zimbabwe’s sole hydro power station, Kariba, where President Emmerson Mnangagwa last year commissioned two units of 150MW each generated 408MW yesterday against the installed capacity of 1050MW due to low water levels.
Kariba South Hydroelectric Power Station has been supplying the cheapest electricity in the country at a cost of ZWL$0,02 per kilowatt hour (kWh). Thermal power stations Hwange, Bulawayo, Munyati and Harare, produce electricity at a cost of between ZWL$0,08 and ZWL$0,16 per kWh.
Zimbabwe has a daily peak demand of 1500MW but is currently generating less than 1000MW from its five power stations. In the past, Zimbabwe turned to regional power utilities to plug to offset electricity demands. However, failure to settle debts has seen regional power utilities switching off the Southern African nation. ZESA owes about US$75m to regional power utilities.
So dire is the power crisis that President Emmerson Mnangagwa has been forced to set up an inter-ministerial committee amid revelations Energy and Power minister Fortune Chasi is failing to avert the energy crisis, barely three months after taking over the Energy portfolio. This development also comes at a time when the country’s largest labour union is threatening to organise general strikes in protest of the rising cost of living. Zimbabwe’s annual inflation raced to 175.66 percent in June, the highest in 10 years.
The committee which is chaired by Chasi comprises of seven key ministers. These are Mthuli Ncube (Finance and Economic Development), Nqobizita Mangaliso Ndlovu (Industry and Commerce), Prisca Mupfumira (Environment, Tourism and Hospitality Industry), Perrance Shiri (Lands, Agriculture, Water and Rural Resettlement), Winston Chitando (Mines and Mining Development), Kazembe Kazembe (Information and Communications Technology) and Monica Mutsvangwa (Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services). Chasi is currently in South Africa where is expected to negotiate a payment arrangement with the country’s power utility Eskom.
The panic move by Cabinet was disclosed by Mutsvangwa yesterday.
“Cabinet met yesterday (Tuesday and resolved to set up an inter-ministerial Committee to work closely with the Minister of Energy and Power Development in order to facilitate a collective approach in the resolution of the prevailing energy and power supply challenges in the country. It is critical at this point that we putour heads together and this this is why Cabinet resolved to come up with an inter-ministerial Committee,” Mutsvangwa said.
Over the weekend, business almost came to a grinding halt when the country’s largest mobile money platform, EcoCash, went offline due to a technical glitch that was caused by power cuts. EcoCash has helped to increase financial inclusion and is the preferred payment in the wake of the prevailing cash shortages.
Central bank statistics obtained last night show that diesel consumption has shot to the current 3,6 million litres a day from 3 million litres in March as companies turn to diesel-powered generators as an alternative source of energy.
Other than low capacity levels, the power stations are beset by ageing equipment with machinery at the thermal power stations having exceeded its lifespan.
Experts say the power crisis throws Zimbabwe’s plans to attract foreign investors under the banner Zimbabwe is open for business, off track. According to the African Development Bank, Zimbabwe needs US$34 billion to upgrade its key infrastructure which includes energy, transport, ICT and water and sanitation.
“I’ve not been arrested, in fact, I’ve never spoken to anyone from ZACC in my life and they haven’t told me they’re arresting me.
If they’re on their way to arrest me, then I’m waiting for them. I’ve never stolen from anyone and suggestions that I’m corrupt are nonsense; it’s rubbish.
Some desperate people are trying to implicate me in these silly things. I’ve nothing to hide from anyone. I’m concentrating on my life and right now I’m in my office doing party work. All those who believe that I stole from anyone please bring the evidence.
File Picture of Robert Mugabe junior with his father
THERE are fears for the health of former President Robert Mugabe after stark pictures emerged on social media showing the ex-dictator looking weak and frail alongside his favourite son.
Mugabe, 95, who had always dressed impeccably during his 37 years in power as first Prime Minister then President seems to have swapped his sharp suits for tracksuits.
Son Robert Junior is believed to have posted these three photographs of his dad – two of him seated in June and one last Friday in a wheelchair – on his social media accounts.
They have been circulating on Twitter and Instagram and have been published in Zimbabwe and other African countries.
The former hardman who ruled what used to be Rhodesia with a rod of iron from 1980 until he was toppled in a coup in 2017 has been receiving regular hospital care in Singapore.
In the photo of Mugabe in the wheelchair he looks slumped and shrivelled and is sporting a white beard and is wearing a black Adidas tracksuit with matching Adidas trainers.
Son Robert Junior, 27, who plays basketball for Zimbabwe is also wearing a black Adidas t-shirt in the photograph that is thought to have been taken recently while in Singapore.
Photographs he is said to have posted in June show Robert Junior sitting with his father also kitted out in his favourite tracksuit and his second wife Grace who he married in 1996.
Mugabe health fears: Former Zimbabwe dictator looks frail in pictures released by his son.
It is not clear if they were taken in Singapore where he receives medical care or at his lavish mansion in Harare.
A relative was quoted by a Zimbabwe newspaper saying: “Of all Mugabe’s children he is the one who has spent the most time with him.
“He has been a rock to the former president”.
Robert Junior has been taping his father’s memoirs since he was deposed in a coup in 2017 by his long term protégé Emmerson Mnangagwa who is now president.
Mugabe’s health is in question after President Mnangagwa said the ex-leader could no longer walkMugabe health fears: Concern for the Zimbabwean has been sparked following the release of new images.
Mr Mugabe’s last major public appearance was at a press conference in July 2018 on the eve of Zimbabwe’s election in which he vowed he would not vote for the man who ousted him.
However his relationship with President Mnangagwa – known as The Crocodile – has thawed since then and when he won the election Mr Mugabe sent his congratulations.
At a rally at Mugabe’s rural home in November, Mnangagwa said Mugabe was no longer able to walk and was being treated at a hospital in Singapore and was not well.
He said:”He can no longer walk but we will take care of him”.
Following the outage of its service over a week ago, Econet is asking it’s customers to stick with it in the harsh times.
Econet highlighted the sharp increase in the cost of operations due to a disproportionate increase in fuel cost (fuel to power it’s sites) as the primary reason why things are not as smooth as they used to be.
Furthermore, despite the sharp increase in fuel price, Econet still can’t get enough supply of it for it’s 1300 base stations which are being overworked as it is.
As for powering it’s sites with solar power only, Econet says they need $60 million to make that possible. In a full page ad in most media houses, Econet said:
Positives realised by President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s administration following the removal of his predecessor Robert Mugabe have been overshadowed by failure to respect human rights and define the role of the military in governance.
This has been said by the International Republican Institute (IRI)/ National Democratic Institute (NDI) joint observer mission to Zimbabwe’s elections last year.
In its latest report, the Washington based mission, through US Deputy Secretary of State for African Affairs Johnnie Carson, called on Mnangagwa to implement political reforms in order to move the country forward.
“The delegation heard reports of low levels of trust in government institutions due to insufficient public outreach and systematic intimidation of opposition and civil society activists, mismanagement of public funds and poor governance marked by inflation, currency instability and shortages of fuel, food and medicines were also issues that were brought to the attention of the delegation.
“These serious issues overshadowed many of the positive actions taken by the government since the 2018 harmonised elections,” said Carson.
“The delegation strongly urges the government to continue to advance security and legal reforms that guarantee citizens’ constitutional right to freedom of expression, freedom of association and peaceful assembly.”
According to Carson, positives noted include steps to enact a comprehensive legislative agenda by the Justice Ministry, Parliament, Zimbabwe Electoral Commission and Information Ministry.
Mnangagwa has taken steps to repeal the much vilified Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA) and Public Order and Security Act although critics argue government had done no more than change the names of these laws.
Mnangagwa’s administration is struggling to shrug off a pariah State tag left by predecessor Mugabe who ran the country to the ground over three decades characterised by a weak economy and disregard for basic human rights.
Earlier, NDI Regional director for southern and east Africa Dickson Omondi raised concerns over the sustained involvement of the army in civilian matters such as protests.
“The delegation heard multiple concerns about the role of the military in putting down public demonstrations and its expanding influence in government operations.
“Citizen groups expressed deep concern about the violence that transpired on January 14 in which the security forces reportedly used excessive force to break up demonstrations by the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU),” said Omondi.
Omondi questioned government’s sincerity to investigate the perpetrators of the deadly violence in August last year and the implementation of the Motlanthe Commission of Inquiry.
“Though the Motlanthe Commission was a positive step, the failure of the government to take any public or visible action towards the perpetrators of the August 1 shootings reinforces a culture of impunity and overshadows any progress that has been made so far,” he said.
In the aftermath of the killing of six people by the military after protests broke out over delays in announcement of election results, Mnangagwa set up a commission of inquiry headed by former South African President Kgalema Motlanthe to investigate circumstances around the incident.
Motlanthe recommended, among other things dialogue, compensation for victims of the army shootings and criminal charges against perpetrators.
Unconfirmed reports have claimed that one of the robbers who attacked and stole from women in a car in Ballantyne Park on Saturday, have been arrested by the ZRP Criminal Investigations Department’s Theft from Car (TFC) section.
Farai Dziva|The Mwenezi community has been stunned by an incident in which a 24-year-old man sneaked into his sister’s blankets and fondled her private parts.
The incident happened in Nkomati Village under Chief Chitanga in Mwenezi on June 18, 2019.
Felix Zhou(24) bolted out of the room when his sister lit a candle and noticed that her brother was trying to undress her.
Zhou claimed he was feeling cold .
The matter was heard by Mwenezi Resident Magistrate Honesty Musiiwa who convicted Zhou of indecent assault.
He was sentenced to six months in jail although he was given the option of performing community service.
By A Correspondent| The woman could not take her husband’s cheating and decided to take her life and that of her baby.
Details of her identity and how and where she killed herself and the baby were still sketchy by the time of writing but sources privy to the developments said the woman committed suicide over her cheating husband.
Citizens however took to social media to express their shock at the death of the young woman and her minor.
We publish below some of the comments on social media.
I wish everyone who is bashing and judging her would know how depression really affects people. Veduwe depression is very real if not noticed and dealt with these are some of the consequences. May their souls rest in peace.
Tendai Zenda: She had no right to take the child’s life. She is just a vindictive person. The man is a bad person. He obviously was not paying attention to his family. May he be haunted by the little soul that he wasted by complicity.
Plaxedes: Cute baby kuenda asina chaatadza dai akangozvifuudza wega. Mweya wemadzinza unoteera. May their soul rest in peace.
Tendai Salo: Very sad ….women ..its time we take men as bonus..if they cheat on you..and we put all the love to our kids…R.I.P…Little Angel
This is a developing story. More details to follow.
Farai Dziva|Members of the dreaded Central Intelligence Organisation are tormenting teachers for indicating that the tough economic situation is grossly affecting their work.
This was said by Progressive Teachers’ Union of Zimbabwe secretary-general Raymond Majongwe.
Majongwe told a daily publication:
We are advised overzealous DSIs are on the prowl in Chikomba, Chipinge and parts of Matabeleland South, harassing teachers because of incapacitation issues.
We know that several of our leaders have been summons by the President’s Office across the country. A case in point is in Chivhu where several heads were summoned to CIO offices and were instructed to charge teachers.
“Because of this harassment we will be advising the ILO and Education International of the harassment we are going through.
Our demands for a living wage are legitimate and justified. There is nothing political about asking for money for food and rent. The CIO has no business in schools.”
JUSTICE, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi says a report towards implementation of political and electoral reforms will soon be presented to President Mnangagwa and Cabinet for approval.
Government has since established an inter-ministerial taskforce on political and electoral reforms chaired by Minister Ziyambi.
Speaking during a seminar on political and electoral reforms in Kadoma at the weekend, the Minister said Government was committed to implementing political and electoral reforms to enhance democracy.
“I have a team of senior officials (inter-ministerial committee) to look into it (electoral reforms) and come up with important issues arising from elections and this is the work that we are doing which is work in progress.
“At this stage it would be very premature for me to start giving a road map before I even present what we have done so far to the President, then subsequently to Cabinet for approval soon,” he said.
Ziyambi said while Government was eager to carry out political and electoral reforms in the shortest possible time, this cannot be done within two months as has been called for by the Speaker of Parliament Advocate Jacob Mudenda.
This is because the Portfolio Committee on Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs also needs to be accorded an opportunity to produce critical recommendations to be fed into a report that will be presented to President Mnangagwa.
“I understand, Honourable Speaker is saying let’s do it fast within the next two months but we also want the committee to produce a report so that we can have it and see the issues outstanding that are not within our matrix and then we also present and follow the necessary channels.
“But also out of the respect of the work that has been happening, I have said let’s hold on and hear what the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee is doing; we get some of the critical recommendations that come out of that and feed into the report that we will present to His Excellency and subsequently then we come up with a matrix on how to implement going forward,” said Ziyambi.
The Government hopes to amend the Electoral Act by mid next year in sync with recommendations made by observer missions during last year’s harmonised elections.
The electoral reforms are part of the Government’s efforts in transforming the political and economic environments, as it seeks to entrench democratic values and freedoms in line with Vision 2030 of achieving an upper middle income economy.
They are also in line with the Second Republic’s pledge to incorporate views of other players into different laws that affect society and open up the democratic space to enhance good governance.
Ziyambi said the two-day seminar, which ended yesterday was important as it allows the inter-ministerial taskforce to gather relevant information pertaining to the political and electoral reforms.
He said as Government was working towards implementing electoral reforms, it has been acknowledged that there were other issues that could not wait to be tackled.
“A case in point is the Public Order and Security Act (Posa). We agreed that let’s proceed while we are doing the work that we are doing. We are also moving fast to unbundle AIPPA (Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act), Professor (Tafataona) Mahoso is working tirelessly so that we come up with three bills (Freedom of information; Data protection; and Protection of personal information),” he said.
“So we are unbundling, we are freeing up the space, we have the maintenance of peace which is very contentious and some are telling us that the right to demonstrate is very absolute don’t touch a demonstrator; the police must never be involved.”
Ziyambi said recently 10 ambassadors from the most powerful nations came to his office and said police should not be involved in demonstrations.
“I reminded them that in England, if you are in London if you want to demonstrate, you go to the mayor to seek clearance and the mayor of London has got police with arresting powers,” he said.
Farai Dziva|The US Embassy has said Government spokesperson Nick Mangwana’s sentiments on Freedom of Expression lack credibility.
See the U.S. Embassy Tweet:
Sorry @nickmangwana
, you picked the wrong example.
The first amendment of the U.S. constitution protects our freedom of speech and expression. Even offensive speech is protected, except in the case of imminent violence.”
Mangwana cited examples from “first class nations” to elaborate how Zimbabwe is abiding by the universally accepted Freedom of Expression provisions.
By Farai D Hove| Floating rumours that ZANU PF Secretary for Administration Obert Mpofu has been arrested, were dismissed Monday afternoon when the accused himself spoke out.
A ZANU PF Twitter account notorious for rumour mongering had published the claims. They follow allegations that Mpofu has been involved in diamond and gold related corruption activities from the times he was Mines Minister during the Robert Mugabe days.
It was claimed he has been arrested by the Zimbabwe Anti Corruption Commission.
Mpofu has before appeared on mines committee meetings under the same allegations.
But the politburo member told ZimEye, “I am here as you can see.
“Obviously some desperate people are trying to implicate me in these silly things. I have nothing to hide from anyone.
“I’m concentrating on my life and right now I’m in my office doing party work. All those who believe that I stole from anyone please bring the evidence.”
Meanwhile, a ZANU PF Twitter account previously known for giving accurate party updates announced saying:
“Social media has been abuzz that ZANU PF Sec for Admin Dr Obert Moses Mpofu has been picked up for questioning by ZACC, we can, at this time, confirm that the message is FAKE NEWS Dr OM Mpofu has not been arrested as alleged by those who started the social media story.” ZANU PF Patriots said.
It added that Dr Mpofu is currently in Lupane on party business.
“The Admin Secretary is actually ceased with campaigning for the ZANU PF candidate in the upcoming Lupane East by-election. ZANU PF PATRIOTS thrives to give you correct information in real time every time.”
Farai Dziva|Cameroonian legend and former Inter Milan, Barcelona and Chelsea striker Samuel Eto’o believes Real Madrid star Eden Hazard is very close to the level of Argentine superstar Leo Messi.
Eto’o, who played with both Messi and Hazard at Barcelona and Chelsea respectively, heaped praise on the Belgian, whom he also thinks can win the Balon do’r at Real Madrid.
“Hazard has to win the Ballon d’Or,” Eto’o said according to Goal.
“He hasn’t been valued enough but now he’s at one of the best teams in the world all eyes will be on him.
“He’s close to Messi’s level and I hope that he plays Barcelona when he’s not at 100 percent.” added Eto’o.
Dear Customer
Further to our earlier communication, we regret to inform you that the Kwese Play service will no longer be available in Zimbabwe. Econet Media sincerely apologises for this unexpected turn of events and the inconvenience caused.
In recognition of your unwavering support, Econet Media is offering you airtime equivalent to the purchase value of the Kwese Play Roku device you acquired.
You are free to use the airtime for all your voice or data transactions. The airtime shall be valid for thirty (30) days from the date of credit.
To facilitate the credit process, by return email, please supply your purchase receipt number or the serial number of the Kwese play Roku device and the mobile number to be credited with the airtime.
Upon successful verification, we will credit your airtime within 24 hours. Please note the offer for airtime is valid until 15 August 2019.
Should you choose not to keep the obsolete Kwese Play device, please return the device to the nearest Econet Wireless shop for safe disposal.
Farai Dziva| Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale is set to join Chinese Super League club Jiangsu Suning, according to Spanish media reports.
The Welshman, whose future at Los Blancos has been shrouded in uncertainty amid reports that he is not in coach Zidane Zidane’s plans, is reportedly on the verge of a move to China.
Last week, Zidane suggested that he hoped that Bale moves on quicky as it would be “best for everyone” and according to Spanish publication Marca, a move to China is imminent.
The publication further reports that the deal will be a 3-year one which will see the Welshman earning €22 million per season.
Farai Dziva|CAPS United stumbled at home against Ngezi Platinum Stars.
The Green Machine lost 2-1 in a match played at the National Sports Stadium on Sunday.
The Green Machine had a slow start to the game and played second fiddle for the larger part of the first half.
Ngezi delivered a great performance on their side and could have secured a lead as early as in the 7th minute, but Polite Moyo’s header hit the crossbar.
The visitors continued to experience a spell of dominance, and they finally broke the deadlock on minute 22 when Donald Tegeru scored from a close range.
CAPS United’s right flank proved to be the most vulnerable and coach Lloyd Chitembwe was forced to make a tactical change a just after the half-hour when Valentine Musarurwa replaced Carlos Rusere.
The change, however, didn’t bring any effect as Ngezi netted their second goal from that channel through Tichaona Mabvura on the 42nd minute.
Makepekepe pulled one back on the stroke of half-time courtesy of Hardlife Zvirekwi’s grounder.
The goal seemed to have given the hosts some momentum on the middle park, but they were frustrated upfront and never made any threatening raids until the last minutes of the game.
Substitute Kelvin Ndebele was denied by the cross-bar while Method Mwanjali’s shot was saved by Nelson Chadya.
Dominic Chungwa also had an opportunity earlier on, but his effort was superbly denied by the keeper.
The match ended 2-1 in favour of the visiting Ngezi Platinum team.
DEFENCE MINISTER OPPAH MUCHINGURI MUST WITHDRAW HER HARSH AND IRRESPONSIBLE STATEMENT OF TURNING ZIMBABWE INTO A WAR THEATRE , A SECURITY THREAT TO THE ENTIRE SADC REGION.
There is no hope for Zimbabwe until the UN and AU helps us to break the unholy alliance between the corrupt ruling party Zanu PF and the military that protects them.
Or else the people’s revolution will be the best because UN and AU will swiftly intervene by deploying UN and AU Peace-Keepers with a special mandate to protect the civilian population and that move alone will force those who are making threats today to immediately go into exile.
Defence Minister Oppah Muchinguri’s harsh and irresponsible statement is a very clear security threat to the entire SADC region.
PPPZ leader Timothy Chiguvare is very bitter about the harsh and irresponsible statement of Zimbabwe’s Defence Minister Oppah Muchinguri and in his response he said: “the Defence Minister’s threats are a clear sign of desperation from an incompetent administration that has failed the people of Zimbabwe .”
When revolutions are won by those driven by selfish ambition and greed , the oppressor merely changes faces. What Zimbabweans are seeing today is that the democratically elected government of President Robert Mugabe has been replaced by a military government that does not allow protests.
Farai Dziva|An opposition MP has hinted that Emmerson Mnangagwa “can be impeached.”
Addressing a rally in Epworth Constituency, MP Ethrage Kureva said:
“Among the processes we will be using to oust Mnangagwa out of office for his failure to deal with economic problems, which have seen the country go 18 hours without electricity daily, is impeachment and we are working with those in Zanu PF to ensure it’s successful.”
“The impeachment strategy is also on the table and Zanu PF legislators are willing to come on board.
They are also unhappy with the government and sad economic state of affairs.
So as the MDC, we are looking to use the factions in the party to bring pressure on his doorstep,” an MDC official told NewsdayNewsDay.
Farai Dziva|They say when two elephants fight, the grass suffers…
Professor Jonathan Moyo has replied to comments made by Professor Lovemore Madhuku on his stance on the arrest of Tourism Minister Prisca Mupfumira.
Moyo argued that Mupfumira should be granted bail but Professor Lovemore Madhuku told ZimEye.com the former got his facts wrong.
See part Moyo’s response below :
What, in terms of the new Constitution, are the exceptional cases that may necessitate the continued detention of an accused person? Those are the cases where the State manages to show, manages to prove beyond reasonable doubt that an accused person is not entitled to bail!
So, upon the arraignment of an accused person, that person must be admitted to bail, with or without conditions. This does not overlook that the Constitution anticipates that there may be exceptional cases, which may necessitate the continued detention of an accused person!
The accused person simply has to stand up in court & indicate their desire to be admitted to bail. It is for the State to either consent or oppose bail. The State must place before the court the exceptional reasons that justify the continued detention of the accused person!
The right of an accused person to be released with or without conditions sets in upon their arraignment before a court. They must be released. That’s why, in terms of the procedure brought by the new 2013 Constitution, an accused person has no obligation to apply for bail!
Any law inconsistent with the new Constitution is automatically invalid, and invalid from the commencement of the Constitution in 2013. A person who has been arrested & who appears in court for the first time is entitled to their immediate release with or without conditions!
Farai Dziva| Controversial Former MDC-T spokesperson Linda Masarira’s son was last week sentenced for stealing his mother’s mobile.
Kuzivakwashe Muhlanga was convicted of theft last week.
“On July 3 Masarira and her husband left home for a road test for 30 minutes and came back home but did not see Muhlanga at home and her cellphone together with its accessories was missing.
Masarira then reported the case to Malborough Police station, leading to the arrest of Muhlanga.
The Police took Muhlanga to Masarira’s house where the cell phone, valued at $650, charger and earphones were recovered in his room,”the court was told.
Farai Dziva| A Parliamentarian has said Zimbabweans should not accept the proposed Marriage Bill.
The MP described the bill as a “marriage destroyer.”
Dzivarasekwa MP Edwin Mushoriwa said: “This Bill is a marriage destroyer. It should not be allowed to be debated or go through this House before thorough public consultations.”
“What is this hurry for? Zimbabweans have the right to debate more on this Bill than rushing it as the Minister is proposing now.”
However, Mushoriwa was asked to withdraw the “marriage destroyer” part by the Speaker.
Dear Father
In the name of and through the son Lord Jesus Christ,
Thy Kingdom come and your will be done in Zimbabwe as it is in Heaven.
May your will be done on the soil of Zimbabwe,
May Your will be done in the halls and chambers of parliament,
May Your will be done in the halls of justice and courts,including the prisons,
May Your will be done in our homes,
May Your will be done in the cabinet room and all offices of government,
May Your will be done in the Chambers of all the local authorities, urban and rural,
May Your will be done in the house of prayer, the church.
Lord, we are sinful and have purposed to keep your word out of our politics, policies, schools, colleges and universities.
We have endeavored to take the Bible and Ten Commandments out of the hearts and minds of our young ones.
We have departed from your presence in our churches.
We have taken out genuine praise and worship to you from our assemblies of worship to replace it with fleshly deification of fellow mortals and self edification.
We have replaced your true word with the word of the world that tickles our ears and gladdens our flesh.
We fear the mortals and human monsters more than we fear you, the author and government of the universe.
We trust in armies and riot police more than we trust your angels.
We trust in guns and bullets than we trust in prayer and fasting.
Appreciating the sacrifices of our forebears, We however now honour and believe in the blood of departed fellow human beings more than we honour and believe in the blood of your son Jesus Christ, the messiah and messenger of the new covenant.
We have killed and shed blood of the innocent, peace-loving and guiltless.
We have oppressed the orphans, the widows, the weak and the vulnerable.
We have placed faith in man made education, schools and teachers ahead of the teacher of teachers, the Holy Spirit.
We have placed hope in manmade hospitals and clinics ahead of the hospital of hospitals, the Church.
We trust doctors and nurses more than we trust the genuinely sent true priests and true prophets.
We count on and depend on pills and medicine more than we depend on prayer and The Holy Spirit.
We have erected shrines and altars to worship idols and the dead.
We have offended you through our flag, currency and other national symbols.
We forget that you Lord says believe in Your God to be established and we believe your prophets in order to prosper
Hear us, Oh Jehovah
Forgive our manifold sins, ubiquitous iniquities and multiple transgressions.
Accept our confession, contrition and penitence.
Forgive us and our sin Oh Lord and heal our land,
Restore your glory and authority,
Restore the Holy Spirit and your power,
Restore our faith and worship.
May you Restore your WILL in this land,
May you Restore our nation,
May you Restore our economy,
May you Restore our strong society,
May you Restore our families,
May you Restore our peace, our love and our hope and with it our faith,
May you Restore our unity,
May you Restore all citizens and citizenship,
May you Restore our infrastructure,
May you Restore our boom and prosperity,
May you Restore the love of our leaders,
May you Restore good governance
May we be the template of the world in leadership, multiracialism, peace, unity in diversity and love.
May our leaders lead in righteousness, humility and the grace of your love under your divine guidance and counsel.
May all our leaders be filled with the spirit of wisdom, truth, knowledge, understanding and revelation.
Teach us your paths,
Show us your ways,
Lead us in your truth,
That we may dedicate time to you in worship, fasting and praise,
Annually, we shall come before you at the beginning and at the end of the year
There shall be thanksgiving to you, Our Lord God.
This Zimbabwe shall be the blessed land of the free, peace-loving, Happy, prosperous and corruption-free.
We are a nation of warriors but you are the MIGHTY WARRIOR.
Lord, we are called by your name,
We are your people called by your name
You are Our God,
You are our Creator Author and Owner.
Bless us Father Jehovah,for blessed is a nation whose God is the Lord.
Glory Be to God the Almighty,
In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ
By A Correspondent| A 28-year-old pastor has been arrested for the murder of one of his followers allegedly committed in April despite police not being able to locate the body.
Pastor Henny Chabalala of the Liberty PHD Ministries in Siyandhani village in Giyani, Limpopo, was arrested on Thursday for the murder of his friend and neighbour Godfrey Pulasi.
He appeared in the Modimolle magistrate’s court on a charge of motor vehicle theft.
Pulasi, 31, was last seen alive on April 5 when he, Chabalala and two other friends left the village for Maputo in Mozambique to perform rituals for the church, police said.
Col Moatshe Ngoepe said Pulasi’s remains were still missing but the man of the cloth is now facing a murder charge.
“The preliminary police investigations have revealed that the suspect was also in possession of the victim’s cellphone and used it on several occasions.
“Even though the victim has not yet been found, the police have charged the suspect with murder, while the search operation for Pulasi and investigations as to what led to his disappearance are still ongoing,” Ngoepe said.
“It is alleged that on April 5, the suspect and his two friends, joined by the victim, took a journey to Maputo on foot, apparently with the purpose of performing rituals for his church.
“Along the way, the suspect and the deceased got exhausted and decided to return home. Meanwhile, their two companions continued with the journey. The following day, on the 6th, the pastor was arrested at Kruger National Park for trespassing and was detained at Saselamani police station,” Ngoepe said.
He said Chabalala was found in possession of Pulasi’s identity document. Pulasi’s mother refused to speak to Sowetan in detail but said she was still in pain and always cries when talking about her son’s disappearance.
Chabalala’s enraged father, who only identified himself by their surname, vehemently denied that his son had murdered Pulasi.
“You came here to do what? Because my son’s arrest does not concern you. I know the truth, now my son is being arrested in Modimolle. Do you want to pay his bail?” he shouted angrily when Sowetan questioned him on the matter.
He also demanded to know why Sowetan went to Pulasi’s family.
“I saw you going to that family. What were you doing there? If you continue with what you are doing, I will join my son in the police cells. Police will arrest me after I have done something bad to you. Leave my house. My son is innocent,” he said.
According to a resident who asked not to be named, Pulasi and Chabalala were close friends.
Ngoepe said in the trespassing case, Chabalala had paid a R5,000 fine. He is due back in court on August 28 on the theft of a motor vehicle charge.
By Victor Bhoroma| The introduction of the foreign exchange interbank market by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) in February 2019 was a major milestone towards free market economics. Even though there are fears of government manipulation, the foreign exchange market provides the basis upon which currencies can be valued or traded freely by all market players instead of it being an unsubstantiated proclamation as was the case with the Bond Notes to US Dollar rate of 1:1. Zimbabwe has traditionally been an overregulated or command economy with the government playing overstretching roles in key economic sectors such as energy and petroleum, agriculture, mining, banking, media and broadcasting, telecoms, health and transport services among others. It did not matter whether the roles were conflicting or not; from legislation, regulating, business ownership (competitor/supplier), consuming, financing and tax collecting at the same time or in the same industry.
Typical cases of excessive
regulation can be observed on how Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA),
Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC), National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ)
and Grain Marketing Board (GMB) play conflicting roles in their respective
sectors. The services offered by these organizations speak volumes about the
demerits of command policies to the economy. The conflicting roles have
nurtured inefficiency in resource allocation thus creating market shortages,
limited innovation and growth, high levels of unemployment, corruption and limited
private sector investment to the detriment of economic development.
A free market
economy is a system based on supply and demand with minimal or no government
controls. Supply includes goods and services, natural resources, capital and
labour. Demand includes purchases by consumers, businesses and the government. Free
market economics compel corporates to grow and innovate so as to satisfy demand
with a clear motive of attaining economies of scale and profit maximization. A key feature of a
free market is the absence of forced transactions or conditions such as price
controls, property seizures, government threats and dictatorial economic
policies. In essence, production and consumption of
goods and services is voluntary. Individuals are free to acquire, consume or
produce as much as their own needs require. While there are no pure free market
economies in the world (even in first world countries) with most countries
practicing different levels of mixed economics. However, the degree of freedom
in the economy relates positively to growth in private sector investment and
economic prosperity.
A classic
example of how free market policies develop the economy can be found in the
unbundling of an inefficient Postal and Telecommunications Corporation (PTC) in
the year 2000 to form NetOne (mobile telecoms), TelOne (fixed telecoms) and Zimpost
(postal services). The sector was liberalized soon after, resulting in the
licensing of Telecel, Econet, Africom and TeleAccess. A host of other private
sector investors also got operating licenses for Optic-Fibre installations,
internet service provision, mobile financial and technology services. Today
telecommunications in Zimbabwe is a highly competitive, multi-billion dollar
sector which contributes close to 10% of Zimbabwe’s GDP and is highly
integrated with financial services. The sector has churned out innovations in mobile
payments, internet and data services which have improved financial inclusion even
in the remotest parts of the country and creating jobs thereby lifting thousands
out of poverty. Zimbabwe’s payments ecosystem is one of the most digitalized in
Africa, with over 95% of national payments being done through electronic means.
The
telecommunications sector is still regulated to ensure that the consumers are
protected and to prevent unfair business practices but there is no question
about efficiency in the industry. The ongoing efforts to privatize selected
players in the sector will go a long way in unlocking private sector investment
and inducing competition. Free market policies could have happened to
electricity generation, broadcasting services, railway transportation, aviation
and grain marketing thereby unlocking multiplier effects to the whole economy in
terms of enterprise growth, direct and indirect employment creation, tax
revenues and innovation.
Recently the
government enacted Statutory Instrument 145 of 2019 (Grain Marketing Control of
Maize Regulations) which bans the buying and selling of maize among
unauthorized persons in Zimbabwe. The law further prohibits any person or
entity from buying or acquiring maize from producers other than through GMB. The
Statutory Instrument also bars the transportation of bulk maize from one area
to another and limits producers to transporting a maximum of 5 bags not
exceeding 50 Kgs per bag, from one area of the country to the other without any
authorized person or police officer confiscating the maize. Simply put, the
government is legally the sole buyer and seller of maize in Zimbabwe.
This has
massive repercussions to the milling industry as it creates artificial
shortages and price increases for a basic commodity that is key to every
household in Zimbabwe. The country is
facing starvation with a grain shortfall of more than 1 000 000 metric tonnes
this year and requires over $300 million to import maize from the region and
beyond. Such a restrictive laws have affected market maize supply in the past
and will lead to poor production of the staple crop as more farmers divest to less
restricted cash crops.
The economic
growth witnessed in the late 20th century by Asian countries such as
South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong, Indonesia, United Arab Emirates
(UAE), Qatar, China and Malaysia can never be explained without the role of
free market economics in those countries. Free market policies have allowed
these economies to close the gap with yesteryear economic giants such as United
States, Germany, France, Italy and Russia in a space of less than 50 years.
Free market policies have demonstrated that a country can be an economic
powerhouse regardless of its limitations on natural resources, area or
population size.
The biggest
constraint to free market economics in Zimbabwe is political interference on
the operations of State Enterprises and Parastatals (SEPs) especially
regulatory bodies. Political interference leads to short sightedness in policy
formulation or implementation, bureaucracy in the awarding to licenses or
permits to new entrants (blocking competition), lack of transparency,
artificial shortages, mismanagement and inefficient service provision of public
goods and services. Other constraints on the local market include implicit or
explicit threats of force by the government, prohibition of specific exchanges,
strenuous licensing requirements, fixed exchange rates, unsustainable
subsidies and quotas on purchases of goods. Free market policies require strong
institutions such as rule of law, protection of property rights, enforcement of
contracts and an independent judiciary.
Globalization and
the need harness private sector investment has brought to the fore the need for
government to deregulate the economy, provide independence to state entities and
allow market forces to play their part. In addition, the collapse of industry
defining state entities such as Air Zimbabwe, NRZ, ZimGlass, ZBC, Hwange
Colliery, Kingtons, CSC and ZiscoSteel has demonstrated that government cannot
play all economic roles at the same time without creating market
inefficiencies. Over regulating the economy has dented Zimbabwe’s economic
recovery path and there is a cause more than ever to let free market policies
lead in the allocation of national resources instead of government interfering
in every industry. This does not mean the government absolving core
responsibilities of providing a safe and stable business environment, providing
public goods and managing the negative effects of economic growth such as
pollution or environmental degradation among others.
Victor Bhoroma
is economic analyst. He is a marketer by profession and holds an MBA from the
University of Zimbabwe (UZ). For feedback, mail him on [email protected] or alternatively follow him on Twitter @VictorBhoroma1.
Two Chiweshe men, Takemore Mutemaringa (27) and Brian Tembo (30) were jailed three years for stealing their MP’s barbed wire valued at $23 000.
The duo appeared before Guruve magistrate, Artwell Sanyatwe, and pleaded guilty to the charge. Sanyatwe sentenced them to three years and suspended two years on condition that they resituate the $23 000 to the complainant Mazowe Central legislator Sydney Chidamba.
The State, represented by Prosecutor Albert Charehwa, told the court that the duo cut Chidamba’s paddock perimeter fence on July 21.à
1The wire was sold to Phillip Mhlanga who would later assist police with investigations leading to the pair’s arrest.
By A Correspondent| The resignation of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators of Zimbabwe (Icasz) lecturer, Last Mapuranga, has disclosed unpleasant practices at the institution.
Mapuranga, resigned from his job citing illegal awarding of better grades to students who would have failed the examinations. He also indicated that the institution contracted underqualified lecturers.
In his resignation letter dated 3 June, Mapuranga said:
“Chief executive, Sir, I recall I have engaged you more than twice about the structure of the programme to no avail. I think the programme was structured to enrich the pockets of some people and not for the benefit of the candidates.”
The institution could however not stomach the allegations. Resultantly, it has through its lawyers Dube, Manikai and Hwacha, asked Mapuranga to retract his statement which it says is defaming.
ICSAZ also demands that Mapuranga issues a public apology.
Meanwhile, the defiant Mapuranga has maintained his position, insisting that he has evidence of irregularities in the Icsaz exam system.-Newsday
By A Correspondent| Some teachers in Chikomba District are reportedly being harassed by State Security personnel after they declared incapacitation to report for duty.
The teachers are said to have applied for unpaid leave since they can no longer afford to continue reporting for work.
This was revealed by Progressive Teachers’ Union of Zimbabwe secretary-general Raymond Majongwe.
He said:
“We are advised overzealous DSIs are on the prowl in Chikomba, Chipinge and parts of Matabeleland South, harassing teachers because of incapacitation issues.
We know that several of our leaders have been summons by the President’s Office across the country.
Case in point is in Chivhu where several heads were summoned to CIO offices and were instructed to charge teachers.
He added that the PTUZ will approach the International Labour Organisation over the matter.
He said:
Because of this harassment we will be advising the ILO and Education International of the harassment we are going through. Our demands for a living wage are legitimate and justified. There is nothing political about asking for money for food and rent. The CIO has no business in schools.
Teachers constitute a part of several workers whose salaries were eroded by the soaring inflation.
Bankers recently wrote to their management teams proposing a number of solutions to their incapacitation.
They suggested that the banks convert some offices into their bedrooms as they can no longer afford to go to and from work as transport costs have continued to rise.-Newsday
By Own Correspondent| Addressing hundreds of supporters in Lupane over the weekend, opposition leader Nelson Chamisa unveiled President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s “retirement package”.
Said Chamisa:
“I will give him (Mnangagwa), a farm together with (VPs) Chiwenga and Mohadi. I want to say sit and be quiet. I will give you whisky and I’ll give you women. Whatever you want I’ll give you.”
Should Chamisa apologise for his statement?
Click on the link below to vote….
Opposition leader Nelson Chamisa has come under fire over recent statements in Lupane where he reportedly offered President Emmerson Mnangagwa women and whisky as retired package. Should Chamisa apologise for his statement?
State Media|JUSTICE, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi says a report towards implementation of political and electoral reforms will soon be presented to President Mnangagwa and Cabinet for approval.
Government has since established an inter-ministerial taskforce on political and electoral reforms chaired by Minister Ziyambi.
Speaking during a seminar on political and electoral reforms in Kadoma at the weekend, the Minister said Government was committed to implementing political and electoral reforms to enhance democracy.
“I have a team of senior officials (inter-ministerial committee) to look into it (electoral reforms) and come up with important issues arising from elections and this is the work that we are doing which is work in progress.
“At this stage it would be very premature for me to start giving a road map before I even present what we have done so far to the President, then subsequently to Cabinet for approval soon,” he said.
Ziyambi said while Government was eager to carry out political and electoral reforms in the shortest possible time, this cannot be done within two months as has been called for by the Speaker of Parliament Advocate Jacob Mudenda.
This is because the Portfolio Committee on Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs also needs to be accorded an opportunity to produce critical recommendations to be fed into a report that will be presented to President Mnangagwa.
“I understand, Honourable Speaker is saying let’s do it fast within the next two months but we also want the committee to produce a report so that we can have it and see the issues outstanding that are not within our matrix and then we also present and follow the necessary channels.
“But also out of the respect of the work that has been happening, I have said let’s hold on and hear what the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee is doing; we get some of the critical recommendations that come out of that and feed into the report that we will present to His Excellency and subsequently then we come up with a matrix on how to implement going forward,” said Ziyambi.
The Government hopes to amend the Electoral Act by mid next year in sync with recommendations made by observer missions during last year’s harmonised elections.
The electoral reforms are part of the Government’s efforts in transforming the political and economic environments, as it seeks to entrench democratic values and freedoms in line with Vision 2030 of achieving an upper middle income economy.
They are also in line with the Second Republic’s pledge to incorporate views of other players into different laws that affect society and open up the democratic space to enhance good governance.
Ziyambi said the two-day seminar, which ended yesterday was important as it allows the inter-ministerial taskforce to gather relevant information pertaining to the political and electoral reforms.
He said as Government was working towards implementing electoral reforms, it has been acknowledged that there were other issues that could not wait to be tackled.
“A case in point is the Public Order and Security Act (Posa). We agreed that let’s proceed while we are doing the work that we are doing. We are also moving fast to unbundle AIPPA (Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act), Professor (Tafataona) Mahoso is working tirelessly so that we come up with three bills (Freedom of information; Data protection; and Protection of personal information),” he said.
“So we are unbundling, we are freeing up the space, we have the maintenance of peace which is very contentious and some are telling us that the right to demonstrate is very absolute don’t touch a demonstrator; the police must never be involved.”
Ziyambi said recently 10 ambassadors from the most powerful nations came to his office and said police should not be involved in demonstrations.
“I reminded them that in England, if you are in London if you want to demonstrate, you go to the mayor to seek clearance and the mayor of London has got police with arresting powers,” he said.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa chats with Zimbabwe Defence Forces Commander General Philip Valerio Sibanda (file photo).
Positives realised by President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s administration following the removal of his predecessor Robert Mugabe have been overshadowed by failure to respect human rights and define the role of the military in governance.
This has been said by the International Republican Institute (IRI)/ National Democratic Institute (NDI) joint observer mission to Zimbabwe’s elections last year.
In its latest report, the Washington based mission, through US Deputy Secretary of State for African Affairs Johnnie Carson, called on Mnangagwa to implement political reforms in order to move the country forward.
“The delegation heard reports of low levels of trust in government institutions due to insufficient public outreach and systematic intimidation of opposition and civil society activists, mismanagement of public funds and poor governance marked by inflation, currency instability and shortages of fuel, food and medicines were also issues that were brought to the attention of the delegation.
“These serious issues overshadowed many of the positive actions taken by the government since the 2018 harmonised elections,” said Carson.
“The delegation strongly urges the government to continue to advance security and legal reforms that guarantee citizens’ constitutional right to freedom of expression, freedom of association and peaceful assembly.”
According to Carson, positives noted include steps to enact a comprehensive legislative agenda by the Justice Ministry, Parliament, Zimbabwe Electoral Commission and Information Ministry.
Mnangagwa has taken steps to repeal the much vilified Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA) and Public Order and Security Act although critics argue government had done no more than change the names of these laws.
Mnangagwa’s administration is struggling to shrug off a pariah State tag left by predecessor Mugabe who ran the country to the ground over three decades characterised by a weak economy and disregard for basic human rights.
Earlier, NDI Regional director for southern and east Africa Dickson Omondi raised concerns over the sustained involvement of the army in civilian matters such as protests.
“The delegation heard multiple concerns about the role of the military in putting down public demonstrations and its expanding influence in government operations.
“Citizen groups expressed deep concern about the violence that transpired on January 14 in which the security forces reportedly used excessive force to break up demonstrations by the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU),” said Omondi.
Omondi questioned government’s sincerity to investigate the perpetrators of the deadly violence in August last year and the implementation of the Motlanthe Commission of Inquiry.
“Though the Motlanthe Commission was a positive step, the failure of the government to take any public or visible action towards the perpetrators of the August 1 shootings reinforces a culture of impunity and overshadows any progress that has been made so far,” he said.
In the aftermath of the killing of six people by the military after protests broke out over delays in announcement of election results, Mnangagwa set up a commission of inquiry headed by former South African President Kgalema Motlanthe to investigate circumstances around the incident.
Motlanthe recommended, among other things dialogue, compensation for victims of the army shootings and criminal charges against perpetrators.
A lucky 5-year-old cheated death after he fell 12 floors from his family’s flat.
The youngster, who’s from Ho Chi Minh City in southeastern Vietnam, was reportedly left by his mom to play with his toys when he climbed onto the washing machine which is kept near their balcony.
His mother, who said she was distracted at the time with housework, believes he toppled over the edge and plummeted to the ground.
Fortunately, the unnamed boy’s estimated 36m fall was cushioned by a bush before he dropped onto soft soil.
He was immediately rushed to Ho Chi Minh City’s children’s hospital.
The little boy suffered severe injuries ranging from a broken neck and broken right arm and both legs, to internal bleeding as well as damage to his liver and lungs.
Doctors say that against all odds he’s now out of danger.
He’s since been taken off a ventilator and is expected to make a full recovery.—News24.
State Media|A LOCAL anti-corruption watchdog has said rampant corruption among doctors, nurses and other health specialists has led to deaths and is worsening the challenges affecting health service delivery in the country.
In a report published recently entitled ‘Conflict of interest and other forms of corruption affecting health service delivery in Zimbabwe’, the Anti-Corruption Trust Southern Africa said a significant number of health practitioners, especially doctors, pharmacists and nurses run their own pharmacies, clinics, hospitals and surgeries while at the same time being full time employees of the Government, thereby creating conflict of interest.
The report said there has always been concern that these medical practitioners spend more time at their private businesses, even during the time that they are supposed to be physically present at government hospitals.
“As a result of conflict of interest, there are several incidents in which they either refer patients to seek medical attention at their private businesses or treat private patients using government facilities,” reads the report.
“There are several incidents in which medical practitioners spend more time at their private businesses when they are supposed to be attending patients at government hospitals.”
It said some drug shortages were caused by selfish doctors who steal from public health institutions.
The report recommended that policy makers should restore order within the health sector.
“The epidemic nature of corruption in the health sector, particularly in several government clinics and hospitals has been exacerbated by compromised supervisors who also run their own private clinics, hospitals, surgeries and pharmacies, offering similar services that they are supposed to be offering as government employees,” it said.
“The status quo has resulted in the neglect of patients visiting government health institutions for there is less return for them as compared to what they realise from their private business establishments.”
The report made reference to an incident which was reported by our sister paper The Herald where top management officials from Masvingo Provincial Hospital were fired for diverting critical drugs to private pharmacies for resale in foreign currency.
According to the report, donated surgical equipment for male circumcision donated by organisations such as Population Services International reportedly found their way out of the public hospitals to private institutions in some instances.
“The problem is not only rampant at government hospitals but also takes place in the private sector. For instance, four registered nurses from the Zimbabwe National Family Planning Council (ZNFPC) were arrested on allegations of stealing drugs worth over $91 000 from their employer which they in turn diverted to their private clinic in Harare,” read the report.
“In some instances, officials create acute drug shortage of medicines as a strategy to push desperate patients to private pharmacies.”
The report said policy makers should consider paying health practitioners handsome salaries and make decisions to address the issues raised.
Zimbabwe’s central bank, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe has been accused of inconsistencies on its new monetary policy under SI142 which brought back the Zimbabwean dollar.
In the latest inconsistency, a circular released on Wednesday 24 July 2019, the RBZ said that Oil firms, chrome miners, embassies and international organisations in Zimbabwe can use foreign currencies for local transactions.
The government had, through Statutory Instrument 142 of 2019, banned the use of all foreign currencies for domestic transactions. The SI also reintroduced the Zimbabwe dollar and made it the sole legal tender in the country.
In the video below, Tinashe of Equity Axis discusses the issue which some have viewed as confused policy inconsistency.
The cat has finally been let out of the bag with revelations that President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s son, Emmerson Junior, Is the brains behind the activities in the ZANU PF Youth League.
Weekend revelations indicate that some members of the youth league national executive are accusing deputy secretary Lewis Matutu of using his close links to Emmerson Mnangagwa Junior, to make unilateral decisions and personalise the wing.
The sources said Matutu was targeting perceived rivals and making decisions without consulting his boss, Pupurai Togarepi, putting him at odds with other executive members.
“He is now making decisions without informing Togarepi, making himself the league boss. Matutu is now walking around with several bodyguards and travelling in a convoy,” the source said.
“Togarepi is caught in between as it has become hard for him to take sides between the two factions.”
Insiders said last Monday some members of the league tried to force youth league commissar, Godfrey Tsenengamu to retract his statement that Wedza South MP Tinoda Machakaire had been cleared of corruption after he was included on the name-and-shame list.
Addressing party supporters in Wedza at the weekend, Tsenengamu said they had since cleared Machakaire of any wrongdoing.
But the move has reportedly angered Matutu.
“They tried to force Tsenengamu to take back his words, but he stood his ground,” the source said.
“There is disharmony in the league because most members are now turning against Matutu, saying he is now diverting from the usual business of the campaign.”
But Matutu yesterday said the youths had no mandate to clear people of corruption charges and claimed allegations against him were coming from individuals who wanted to divert attention from the ongoing corruption cases.
“There is no factionalism in the youth league. It is lame for anyone to say that there is factionalism,” he said.
“They are trying to divide the youth league with money as bribes to cover up their corrupt activities. We are aware, we are not going to pay attention. We are denouncing corruption.”
“Tsenengamu told me that he did not say Machakaire was cleared.”
Matutu said he was taking orders from Togarepi and had not usurped his role.
A seven-member Zimbabwean parliamentary delegation is in Kigali, Rwanda on a week-long study visit on the operations of the Rwandese One-Stop Shop model which the country is adopting through the envisaged Zimbabwe Investment and Development Agency (ZIDA) state media has reported.
The delegation, which comprises members of the joint Portfolio Committees on Foreign Affairs and International Trade and that of Industry and Commerce, is led by Kindness Paradza, who chairs the Foreign Affairs Portfolio Committee.
The visit to learn from Rwanda comes at a time when the world is begining to realise dents in the Paul Kagame administration which was for sometime believed to be a champion in Africa after a perceived pleasant turn around from a genocide era.
Several members of political groups opposed to President Paul Kagame have gone missing in recent years and never been accounted for after that with most democracies now beginning to trend extremely cautious with the country.
We highlight below a few of the high profile disappearances that Rwandan opposition politicians and activists handed been subjected to which maybe the Zimbabwe foreign affairs office may have ignored but the world is talking about.
Just last week, when Eugene Ndereyimana left home, he didn’t tell his wife where he was going, and she didn’t ask. The less she knew, the better, she thought.
The 29-year-old father of two was traveling from his home in Rwanda’s southeastern Ngoma district to the northeastern town of Nyagatare for a political meeting on July 15.
But the people waiting for Ndereyimana to arrive lost contact with him when he was just five kilometers (3.1 miles) from the venue.
He hasn’t been seen or heard from since.
Ndereyimana is a representative for the FDU-Inkingi, an unregistered coalition of opposition parties against President Paul Kagame, who has been in power since 2000. He is one of at least five FDU members who have gone missing under mysterious circumstances over the last few years in Kagame’s Rwanda.
Opposition politicians and supporting party members say they face intimidation, violence, jail time or the prospect of disappearing for opposing the President and his ruling party, the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF).
For Ndereyimana, that intimidation began last September, when he was arbitrarily detained by military officers at a local police station, his wife Joseline Mwiseneza
“For them he was an enemy,” Mwiseneza said, referring to the local authorities.
She added that Ndereyimana’s political activities created difficulties in his everyday life — from harassment by security forces to the inability to get credit from the local bank.
Now, Mwiseneza says she doesn’t know what to say to their children, who keep on asking where their father is, and fears for her husband’s life. As she waits for answers, others politically aligned with her husband have met violent ends.
In a harrowing case in March, 30 year old Anselme Mutuyimana a close aide to FDU president Victoire Ingabire, was found dead in a forest in the country’s northwest region. Residents who found Mutuyimana said he appeared to have died by strangulation, according to the party.
In another incident last October, jailed FDU Vice President Boniface Twagirimana went missing from a high security prison.
Twagirimana and eight other FDU party members were serving out a sentence following an arrest in 2017 on charges of forming an armed group and seeking to overthrow the government, charges Twagirimana denied. When he went missing, Rwanda’s correctional service said he escaped from prison.
In May 2017, party member Jean Damascene Habarugira disappeared after he was called to meet an official responsible for the security of his locality. Three days later, Habarugira’s family were called to collect his body from a local hospital.
In a statement, the FDU said that Habarugira was “assassinated in cold blood” because of his opposition to the local authority’s agricultural policies and concerns over police brutality.
FDU head Ingabire says that she believes that these events, including the most recent disappearance of Ndereyimana, are a signal that the government isn’t “ready to open up the political space.”
“It is a kind of intimidation, that people will be afraid to be a member of the opposition party.”
Ingabire herself is no stranger to such tactics, she says. In 2010 she returned to Rwanda from the Netherlands, where she was living in exile, to contest the presidential election. But shortly after that she was arrested following comments she made in relation to the country’s 1994 genocide, and accused of collaborating with a “terrorist organization.
In October, Ingabire was released from jail after serving eight years of her 15-year sentence as part of a presidential pardon.
FDU president Victoire Ingabire
Ingabire has long said her sentence was a result of her work as a prominent government critic and that the charges effectively criminalized her freedom of expression.
International organizations, such as Amnesty International, and a 2017 African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights ruling have condemned President Kagame’s repressive government.
Other opposition leaders unaffiliated with Ingabire’s party also allege they have been penalized and threatened for challenging the ruling party’s narrative.
Popular 37 year old Diana Rwigare a human rights activist and the leader of the People Salvation Movement (Itabaza) — an activist group to “encourage Rwandans to hold their government accountable” — had hoped to run for president in 2017. Instead she was disqualified by electoral authorities who said she had falsified signatures needed for her election bid. She was eventually jailed on charges of incitement and fraud, charges her family and supporters say were politically motivated. She spent over a year in jail, until she was acquitted of charges of fraud and inciting insurrection by Kigali’s High Court in December.
Diane Rwigara
Rwigara wrote an open letter to Kagame wrote an open letter to Kagame accusing him of condoning a climate of repression and violence for people who speak out about matters of “justice” and who are “too afraid to stand up to the ruling party.”
She wrote the letter after her friend, a prison guard named Jean Paul Mwiseneza, was killed in June, shortly after speaking to her about unrest at the prison. Rwigara alleges that he was killed at the hands of “security organs.”
“Why are people being executed without trial?” Rwigara wrote.
She ended the letter with a post script that read, “I will probably face grave acts of reprisal for writing this letter. But Your Excellency, please try to understand; life in Rwanda is hard to say the least when one has to constantly worry about the fate of his/her entourage.”
Ingabire — who is unaffiliated with Rwigara’s movement — says while intimidatory measures, including disappearances and harassment, are meant to have a chilling effect, she won’t live her life in fear, and has vowed to “fight for democracy” in her country. Still, the disappearance of Ndereyimana, another voice in that fight, is a fresh and painful incident for Rwanda’s opposition. “It’s like he has vanished,” Ingabire said.
Could Zimbabwe’s President Emmerson Mnangagwa learning more than what we are told from Rwanda?
A Zimbabwean white farming family being evicted by ZANU PF supporters from a farm.
An advisory report on land reform in South Africa has recommended changing the constitution to allow the government to seize land without compensation but only in certain circumstances.
The report by a presidential panel of experts, released yesterday, poured water on wholesale land seizures without payment – as feared by some farmers, investors and foreign governments.
It recommended that expropriation without compensation be applied under specific circumstances, including abandoned land; land held purely for speculative purposes; land already occupied and used by labour tenants and former labour tenants; and inner city buildings with absentee landlords.
Parliament is due to start debates on proposed changes to the land expropriation bill in October.
“It is important that the Bill must specify much more clearly the meaning of instances that would amount to “nil” compensation,” the panel, appointed by President Cyril Ramaphosa, said in the report.
South Africa’s governing African National Congress (ANC) has repeatedly pledged to accelerate land transfers to the black majority denied ownership rights under apartheid’s segregation laws, but progress has been slow.
Ramaphosa appointed the panel of agricultural economists and practitioners last year to advise the government after the opposition Economic Freedom Fighters party started to dominate the land reform debate and tabled a constitutional amendment to allow the government to seize land without compensation.
The report will be key to how the final law will look.
“The clarification that we are seeking in the mandate is to be more specific in terms of addressing this (expropriation without compensation), and we have gone further to highlight and assist with wording for when such (expropriation) can occur,” Vuyokazi Mahlati, chairwoman of the panel, told a press briefing where the report was released to the public.
Demand for land reform has intensified as unemployment and poverty in South Africa have worsened.
The report said land seizure without payment is one of several of land acquisition strategies available to the government.
It also recommended the Land Claims Court be reformed to become the main expropriation body, and be given additional powers to adjudicate on all land related matters, including the calculations of the value of land targeted for appropriation and what rights affected land owners were entitled to.
On Thursday a draft motion likely to be pushed through by the ANC in parliament is set to give a new parliamentary committee until March 2020 to report back on the proposed changes to land reform laws.
The panel, however, proposed the tweaking of the expropriation bill be finalised by the end of 2019.— Reuters
Zimbabwe National Water Authority (ZINWA) has appealed to all water users to use the available water sparingly as the national dam level continues to decline.
The national dam level has continued on a downward trajectory as rivers have ceased flowing while the ongoing winter cropping activities have also added pressure on the dams. The low rains received this year also explain the depressed dam levels.
Statistics show that at July 26, 2019, the national dam level average was 61,9 percent which is 18,6 percent lower than the 80,5 percent recorded in the same week last year.
Gwayi Catchment’s dam level average was 54,2 percent, Manyame Catchment 83,5 percent and Mazowe Catchment 88,5 percent, Mzingwane Catchment 56,4 percent, Runde Catchment 52 percent, Sanyati Catchment 64,5 percent and Save Catchment 76 percent.
Zinwa corporate communications and marketing manager Mrs Marjorie Munyonga said those who abuse water will be prosecuted.
“Water abstraction agreements allow ZINWA to efficiently and sustainably allocate the available water among the diverse interests of water users. “Any use of water from dams outside the requirements of the law constitutes to an offence and offenders are liable to prosecution,” she said.
Under Gwayi Catchment, Insukamini and Exchange dams, which are used for irrigation and water supply are 53,8 percent and 39,7 percent full while lower Mgusa Dam which is used for irrigation is at 68,2 percent. Khami Dam, which is used for irrigation, is 48,2 percent full.
Manyame Catchment’s Chivero Dam, which is used for irrigation and water supply, is 70,3 percent full. Mazvikadei, which is used for irrigation and mining, is at 86,4 perecnt. Manyame Dam, which is used for irrigation and water supply, is 86,4 percent full.
Under Mzingwane Catchment, Insiza and Mtshabezi dams, which are used for water supply and irrigation are 47,8 percent and 66,6 percent full respectively. Upper Ncema Dam that is solely used for water supply is 3,1 percent full.State media
PUBLIC Service, Labour and Social Welfare Minister Dr Sekai Nzenza yesterday dismissed as false social media claims that she was on the run fearing arrest over alleged corruption.
She told The Chronicle that she was in her constituency, Chikomba East in Mashonaland East addressing community-related matters.
Dr Nzenza said she was not on the run and will address a press conference today.
“I am currently in my village. Yesterday (Saturday) I was unreachable while meeting the community at a Save River crossing where crocodiles are threatening people and livestock so I was unaware of all these social media false stories,” she said.State media
GOVERNMENT says the ongoing anti-corruption drive is “not a fluke”, but a sustained operation running until the scourge of corruption is eradicated.
The Government is also urging citizens to be patient with both the reconfigured Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) and the courts.
Further, Government says citizens should not expect everyone arrested to be jailed immediately without being afforded an opportunity to defend themselves in court in line with the Constitution.
In an interview yesterday Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi said all processes should be followed from investigation to arrest and trial.
The interview comes following the high profile arrest of Environment, Tourism and Hospitality Industry Minister Prisca Mupfumira.State media
JUSTICE, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi says a report towards implementation of political and electoral reforms will soon be presented to President Mnangagwa and Cabinet for approval.
Government has since established an inter-ministerial taskforce on political and electoral reforms chaired by Minister Ziyambi.
Speaking during a seminar on political and electoral reforms in Kadoma at the weekend, the Minister said Government was committed to implementing political and electoral reforms to enhance democracy.
“I have a team of senior officials (inter-ministerial committee) to look into it (electoral reforms) and come up with important issues arising from elections and this is the work that we are doing which is work in progress.
“At this stage it would be very premature for me to start giving a road map before I even present what we have done so far to the President, then subsequently to Cabinet for approval soon,” he said.
Ziyambi said while Government was eager to carry out political and electoral reforms in the shortest possible time, this cannot be done within two months as has been called for by the Speaker of Parliament Advocate Jacob Mudenda.State media
SIX people, including a minor, died following a head-on collision involving a Nissan Caravan and a South Africa-registered Honda Jazz near Chachacha Business Centre in Shurugwi yesterday.
National police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi said the accident that killed five on the spot occurred at the 58km peg along the Gweru- Masvingo highway.
He said the crash occurred just about a kilometre after a roadblock at which traffic police had allegedly reprimanded the Honda Jazz driver for speeding and being reckless on the road.
Asst Comm Nyathi said three passengers, two from the Nissan Caravan and one from the Honda Jazz escaped with different degrees of injuries.
“I can confirm that six people died, five on the spot, in a fatal road traffic accident involving a Nissan Caravan and Honda Jazz vehicles. The accident happened at the 58km peg along the Gweru- Masvingo highway near Chachacha Business centre around 10AM,” he said.
“The Nissan Caravan was coming from Masvingo while the Honda Jazz with South African number plates was headed towards Masvingo when the accident happened.”
Asst Comm Nyathi said preliminary investigations indicate that the driver of the Honda Jazz encroached into the lane of the oncoming Nissan Caravan while attempting to overtake another vehicle at a curve.
“The Honda Jazz encroached into the lane of the Nissan Caravan resulting in a head-on collision. Both vehicles veered off the road and landed on their roofs. Two passengers from the Nissan Caravan died on the spot while three people including the driver in the Honda Jazz also died on the spot.
A minor died on admission to Shurugwi District Hospital,” he said. “Two of the injured are admitted to Gweru Provincial Hospital while the other one is at Shurugwi District Hospital.”
Asst Comm Nyathi said it was unfortunate that most accidents were as a result of human error on the part of the drivers.State media
Farai Dziva|With prices of basic commodities escalating with each passing day, the people of Zimbabwe can no longer cope with the biting economic woes.
Many, if not all workers are earning paltry salaries -way below the poverty datum line.
The bottom line is that there has to be a way forward and the big question is: what is the best option for the troubled nation?
According to analysts, there are three possible scenarios -the formation of a Government of National Unity, a transitional authority pending fresh polls or mass demonstrations to force Zanu PF to the negotiating table.
Given the above factors, there is need to analyze the respective options.
GNU
Does Zimbabwe need a GNU at this juncture and is it a safe mode given the level of animosity between Zanu PF and MDC?
Opposition hardliners are skeptical of the success of yet another GNU.
National Transitional Authority
If the main political players opt for a National Transitional Authority without proper electoral reforms who will benefit from such a situation?
Mass protests
Given what happened in August 2018 as well as in January 2019, will mass protests force Zanu PF to yield to public pressure?
In the wake of the deepening crisis MDC leader Nelson Chamisa said:
“We are faced with a terrible situation in our country and we must find a lasting solution.
I know that you are suffering with no fuel, no power, no money, no passports, no jobs and no food. The cost of living has become unbearable.
A lot of us cannot access medical facilities or medication. Children are dropping out of schools. Companies are shutting down.
Our civil servants, our teachers, nurses, patriotic men and women in uniform are struggling and have inadequate salaries.
Our pensioners including our war veterans can hardly survive. Corruption has become a national anthem.
In the rural areas just like the urban areas, life has become unbearable. Food is being abused as a partisan political weapon.
For that reason, I am urging all Zimbabweans from all walks of life and various denominations, in and outside the country to embark on a seven day prayer, fasting and intercession for our beloved country, Zimbabwe before undertaking crucial and decisive next steps.
THE Grain Marketing Board has deployed crack teams to rein in unscrupulous maize dealers violating Statutory Instrument 145 of 2019 which empowers the parastatal to be the sole buyer of the grain.
The Statutory Instrument also outlaws any maize exports. As a result of the adverse weather patterns experienced last season, the country projects that maize deliveries to the GMB will be about 750 000 metric tonnes.
Government has begun importing maize to meet the annual total human and livestock demands of about 2,2 million metric tonnes.
In an interview with The Sunday Mail, GMB chief executive officer Mr Rockie Mutenha said the parastatal will descend hard on third party maize dealers.
“Third party storage warehouses are being monitored to identify illegal storage of maize in contravention of the Statutory Instrument,” said Mr Mutenha
“We re-established the GMB inspectorate that is working with the ZRP (Zimbabwe Republic Police) and AMA (Agricultural Marketing Authority) to enforce the Statutory Instrument.
“GMB inspectorate officers have been deployed to monitor illegal maize buying and selling points and inspectors are armed with seizure certificates in case they find individuals breaking the law.”State media
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Public Consultations on a Petition to Parliament on
Pension and Other Welfare Benefits for War Veterans:
29th July to 2nd August
The Portfolio Committee on Defence, Home Affairs and Security Services will be holding public consultations in response to a petition by Mr B. Kundhlandle on the Pension Benefits and General Welfare of War Veterans from 29th July to 2nd August 1019. The Committee will split into two teams and will cover all the provinces as shown in the following tables:
SOUTHERN TEAM
Date
Place
Venue
Time
Monday 29 July
Gwanda
Juwanda Community Hall
9.30 am to 11.30 am
Bulawayo
Luveve Hall
2.30 pm to 4.30 pm
Tuesday 30 July
Plumtree
TMB Hall
9.30 am to 11.30 am
Bulawayo
Stanley Hall
2.30 pm to 4.30 pm
Wednesday 31 July
Tsholotsho
Roman Catholic Hall
9.30 am to 11.30 am
Lupane
Lupane Council Hall
2.00 pm to 4 .00 pm
Thursday 1 August
Zvishavane
Chiedza Hall
9.30 am to 11.30 am
Kwekwe
Kwekwe Theatre Hall
2.30 pm to 4.30 pm
Friday 2 August
Chegutu
Chegutu Community Hall
10.00 am to 12 noon
Karoi
Chikangwe Hall
2.00 pm to 4 pm
NORTHERN TEAM
Date
Place
Venue
Time
Monday 29 July
Chiredzi
Chitsanga Hall
9.30 am to 11.30 am
Masvingo
Masvingo Civic Centre Hall
2.30 pm to 4.30 pm
Tuesday 30 July
Chipinge
Chipinge, Gaza Hall
10.30 am to 12.30 pm
Mutare
Queens Hall
3.30 pm to 5.30 pm
Wednesday 31 July
Marondera
Mbuyanehanda Hall
9.30 am to 11.30 am
Murehwa
Zihute Hall
2.00 pm to 4 .00 pm
Thursday 1 August
Mt Darwin
Mt Darwin Sports Club
9.30 am to 11.30 am
Bindura
Halla Hall
2.00 pm to 4 .00 pm
Friday 2 August
Harare
Parliament Senate Chamber
9.00 am to11.00 am
Harare
Mai Musodzi Hall, Mbare
2.00 pm to 4.00 pm
All those who will be putting on military uniforms, signs of ranks, flags or badges and political party regalia will not have access to the public hearing.
Farai Dziva|Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane has expressed concern over the growing list of injuries in the Real Madrid camp.
The injuries marred the Spanish giants’ preparations for the upcoming season.
After Marco Asensio’s horror injury which has since been confirmed to keep him out of action for at least 9 months, new acquisition Ferland Mendy also joined the injury list together with Brahim Diaz, much to the uneasiness of the French coach.
“It worries me and above all it bothers me,” Zidane said as stated by Spanish publication Marca.
“Marco’s [injury and then] Ferland’s, which is a minor injury, but he won’t be able to continue working and we don’t know for how long.
“These are things that happen and we will see if he comes back quickly with us,” he added.
Los Blancos face City rivals Atletico Madrid in the early hours of Saturday morning as part of their tour of the US in preparation for their 2019-20 season.
Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare Minister Dr Sekai Nzenza yesterday dismissed as false social media claims that she was on the run fearing arrest over alleged corruption.
She told The Chronicle that she was in her constituency, Chikomba East in Mashonaland East addressing community-related matters.
Dr Nzenza said she was not on the run and will address a press conference today.
“I am currently in my village. Yesterday (Saturday) I was unreachable while meeting the community at a Save River crossing where crocodiles are threatening people and livestock so I was unaware of all these social media false stories,” she said.
Some social media users claimed over the weekend that Dr Nzenza was on the run in connection with a “bribe” she was said to have received from Environment, Tourism and Hospitality Industry Minister Prisca Mupfumira, who was arrested last week and appeared in court for suspected corruption, to cover up her “crimes” at the National Social Security Authority’s (NSSA).
The allegations against Minister Mupfumira involve $95 million and some of the charges emanate from a NSSA audit. Millions of dollars went missing from NSSA when Minister Mupfumira was Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare. More funds were also reportedly lost when she was now Minister of Environment, Tourism and Hospitality Industry.
On Saturday, acting chief magistrate Munamato Mutevedzi placed Minister Mupfumira on custodial remand for 21 days.
Dr Nzenza said the NSSA forensic report was still being simplified by legal experts while corruption matters are being handled by the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC).
“We have to safeguard the interests of pensioners and the forensic report still needs to be unpacked by legal experts. If there are any criminal elements in the forensic, that is covered by ZACC. I have internal corporate governance matters to manage. I will give a press statement tomorrow,” she added.
Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Permanent Secretary Mr Nick Mangwana, through micro blogging site Twitter also said the minister was not on the run.
“Having a lot of media enquiries around the whereabouts of Hon Minister Nzenza. I have spoken to her and she assures the nation that she is in her constituency in Chikomba East and not on the run from anything or anyone and used strong terms to dismiss the circulating rumours,” said Mr Mangwana.
He said the minister is scheduled to hold a press briefing today at the NSSA boardroom at 11AM where she will respond to several issues happening in her ministry.
Last week in Parliament, Dr Nzenza explained why she had delayed to present the NSSA forensic report in the legislative assembly.
The report, which covers the period January 1, 2015 to February 28, 2018 is based on an investigation carried out last year.
Dr Nzenza said the role of the lawyers that they had engaged was to unpack key areas to be looked at in the report.
“They (lawyers) are focusing on one – issues to do with some irregularities under corporate governance; number two – possible irregularities to do with human resources – number three – they are also looking at irregularities to do with investments,” she said.
“Once that is done, I am hoping that this will be done in the next few days. I shall be presenting a ministerial statement and the outcome of the NSSA forensic report.”- state media
A primary school teacher from Kwekwe has appeared in court after he allegedly impregnated a 13-year-old pupil with whom he had an affair with for over a year.
The teacher, Jimmy Phiri (38), reportedly proposed love to the girl who is now in Form 1 while she was still in Grade 7 at Grasslands Primary School in Redcliff where the accused works.
Since then, the two had been having consensual sexual intercourse until the girl fell pregnant. Phiri was released on $100 bail after he appeared before Kwekwe magistrate Miss Vimbai Mtukwa facing charges of having sexual intercourse with a minor.
He was remanded to August 28, 2019.
Prosecuting, Mr Freddy Ndoro told the court that Phiri, who resides at Plot 135A in Grasslands, proposed love to the girl sometime in 2018, when the girl was still in Grade 7 at the school.
After being showered with gifts and presents, the girl accepted the proposal and the two started having sexual intercourse. She reportedly fell pregnant and tried to conceal the pregnancy. The matter, however, came to light when some church members noticed her bulging stomach and quizzed her until she let the cat out of the bag.
Her parents reported the matter to the police leading to the teacher’s arrest and subsequent appearance in court.- state media
Farai Dziva|FC Platinum star
Farai Madhananga has become the latest FC Platinum player to leave the club.
The midfielder has completed his transfer to South African top-flight side Bidvest Wits.
He went for trials there at the start of May but the deal was only signed this week.
Madhananga will play along with fellow Zimbabwean Terrence Dzvukamanja at Wits.
Meanwhile, the reigning champions have lost several players in this mid-season transfer window with defensive pair of Kevin and Elvis Moyo recently joining Chippa United in the Absa Premiership.
Godknows Murwira is now with Dynamos while striker Mkokheli Dube quit football and moved to USA.
Goalkeeper Petros Mhari is being linked with an exit.
However, the Platinum Boys have brought in Congolese midfielder Guyve Mawete Nsiala, Rodwell Chinyengetere on loan from Baroka FC in South Africa among a few signings.
The state media reports that a private company, City Parking, currently mandated to manage parking in the CBD, is considering hiking parking fees.
FULL REPORT: A source within the firm said City Parking management had not yet agreed on a figure.
“For some time now there has been debate on whether parking fees should go up or not because the current charges have been impacting on cost of operations.
“The $2 per hour was hit by inflation and the interbank rate. They are likely to reach an agreement on a new fee by end of next week,” said the source.
A fortnight ago there were rumours circulating on social media that the company had increased parking fees from $2 to $9 per hour which were, however, quashed by officials.
City Parking has been remitting 16 percent of the revenue it collects monthly to council since May this year.
When contacted for comment, City Parking public relations manager Mr Mandaza said he was not at liberty to discuss a matter which was being deliberated on.
“Of course, the company is considering reviewing parking fees but I cannot say anything more because the issue has not been finalised yet,” he said.
Mr Mandaza, however, said currently the company was struggling to meet its operational costs.
“Our current $2 per hour charge translates to about US$0,20, it means that parking in Harare is now the cheapest in the region.
“With such an amount it has now become difficult to meet our statutory obligations and operating costs because the value of that amount was eroded by inflation way back.
“Prices for most goods and services have increased by over 800 percent and for us to remain stagnant it means we will soon be counting our losses and facing closure,” he said.
Mr Mandaza also confirmed that his company had been able to meet its monthly obligation of submitting 16 percent of the revenue they collect monthly to the City of Harare which amounts to about $200 000. This dividend is expected to cushion council and augment its revenue streams.
The proposed hike in parking fees comes at a time motorists are already sweating over the 1 000 percent increase in clamping and towing fees which takes effect on August 1.- state media
Farai Dziva|Dynamos coach Tonderai Ndiraya says his team is slowly picking up after beating Harare City 1-0 on Saturday.
The Glamour Boys who had a slow start to the season moved to fifth position on the log with 23 points.
Speaking after the victory, Ndiraya said: “I think we had become a laughing-stock, we had fallen far, far behind the top teams.
“We are a big team, of course in terms of stature, but obviously in terms of performance we have been way behind but I am slowly seeing that gap being closed.”
Midfielder Archford Gutu scored the only goal of the match with a well taken free-kick in the 34th minute.
The victory was Ndiraya’s fifth since taking over from Lloyd Chigowe in April.
Emmerson Mnangagwa’s Zanu-PF is going to amend its constitution to ensure that it speaks to the vision of its First Secretary and Mnangagwa of transforming the country into an upper middle income economy by 2030, the party’s Secretary for Legal Affairs, Munyaradzi Paul Mangwana, has said.
He said they would soon dispatch teams to elicit people’s views on what they wanted to be included in the constitution.
Mangwana made the remarks while addressing Masvingo 2018 election victory celebrations in Mashava recently.
The party won 25 out of the 26 constituencies in the province in the 2018 elections.
“As Secretary for Legal Affairs, we entered into the New Dispensation using the constitution which was there during the Mugabe era,” said Mangwana.
“We find it befitting to look at the vision that our has and see if it can be achieved using this old constitution. We are in the process of coming up with a new constitution for Zanu-PF which resonates with President Mnangagwa’s vision.
“We call it Copac II, looking at the party constitution to see if it allows us to achieve Vision 2030. We are going to send teams that will ask you what you want to be included in the party’s constitution.
“If the party constitution is strong, even the Government will be strong and through that we can achieve the vision of our . Government officials should come in and find their work cut out through the party constitution. So, the party requires a new constitution that speaks to the vision of our .”
Speaking at the same occasion, Zanu-PF Secretary for Security Lovemore Matuke explained the state of the economy to the people.
“We all had one problem of thinking that after President Mnangagwa assumed office, our lives were going to change overnight,” he said. “I want to tell you that running a country is different from undertaking household chores.
“Running a country is a process. When President Mnangagwa assumed office, Government had a lot of debts accumulated by the previous Government. To move forward, we have to pay those internal and external debts and coming up with policies that bring our economy back on a recovery path.
“We have programmes that were being implemented to plug loopholes to ensure a good take-off.”
Matuke said the economic situation was compounded by some wholesalers and retailers who colluded to hike prices so that people could revolt against the Government.
He said the strategy had failed and actually hardened people to love their country and Government more.
Matuke said Government had introduced Silo shops that were going to sell basic goods at affordable prices.- state media
Farai Dziva| MDC T will not field a candidate in Glen View South As A way of honouring the late founding president of the opposition party, Morgan Tsvangirai.
The seat fell vacant following the death of Tsvangirai’s daughter, Vimbai Tsvangirai-Java in June.
“Nomination Court for Glen View South by-election sat on Friday, July 26, 2019.
MDC-T decided not to field a candidate because we found it unconscionable to field a candidate to contest against Vincent Tsvangirai, son of our late iconic leader, Dr.Morgan Tsvangirai… MHDSRIEP,” Gutu wrote on Twitter.
Police have assured members of the public that they are on high alert to arrest anyone who commits a crime and try to either flee the country or evade arrest.
This comes after the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) has launched a crackdown on prominent figures and individuals fingered in corrupt activities and it is understood that there are over 200 high-profile cases under investigation.
President Mnangagwa a fortnight ago tipped the anti-corruption body to “bite” given its newfound arresting powers.
The guilty are afraid – and may want to make good of their escape before the dragnet comes.
National police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi said, “The police has a constitutional mandate to prevent, investigate and detect crime. It also has a mandate to account for all criminal fugitives.
“Anyone who commits a crime and try to run away will certainly be hunted by the police and arrested.”
On Thursday, ZACC arrested Environment, Tourism and Hospitality Industry Minister Prisca Mupfumira on corruption allegations involving $95 million.
ZACC, which recently got arresting powers, walked the talk on the arrest of bigwigs, with Minister Mupfumira being the first big catch.
She is the first senior Government official to be held by the commission which was overhauled by President Mnangagwa on July 15.-StateMedia
For Melody Nkomo, life became very difficult for her each time she was on her monthly periods.
Nkomo (18), a student at Mahlothova High School in Matabeleland North’s Umguza district, would stop going to school because she feared the linen she used as pads would leak, embarrassing her in front of peers.
“I would cut dirty linen, wash it, dry it directly in the sunlight, and then use the iron to kill germs, fold it into a pad and then use it,” she said.
Nkomo says her life was transformed when she was recruited into a programme by the National Aids Council (NAC), where young girls are given training on sexual reproductive health.
Under the Sista2Sista programme, the girls are also taught how to make reusable pads.
Nkomo said besides being able to attend school throughout the month, she can now participate in her favourite sports activities such as netball and athletics. The reusable pads, which Nkomo is now able to make, have improved her confidence.
“I do netball, jumps and track events and not having proper pads used to affect me a lot, but now the reusable pads have helped me as they do not move at all,” she said.
‘They make me feel comfortable and also in the class, it no longer affects my attendance.”
Nkomo has also been able to teach her schoolmates how to make the pads and has teamed up with four other girls to make pads they give to other girls.
The girls use hand sewing machines to make the pads, using fleece material and brushed cotton.
“We use the sewing machine from the school’s fashion and fabrics department to make the reusable pads,” Nkomo said.
“We wish to make more pads, but getting the material is a challenge as the number of girls in need of the pads keeps going up.”
Matabeleland North provincial guidance and counselling teachers’ chairperson Gabriella Chikara said the majority of parents in Umguza are too poor to afford sanitary pads for their children.
“We receive donations from Camfed, Plan International and the National Aids Council, but they are not sufficient because some learners have heavy flows such that they use more than one pack per cycle,” she said.
Chikara said the schoolgirls end up sharing the donated pads with their older relatives, who cannot afford to buy their own.
“Some learners are not covered by these organisations, so they miss school during their menses and some report that they fail to come to school in fear of spoiling their clothes,” she said.
“They choose to stay at home, dig a hole and sit on it without underwear so that the blood goes into the ground every day until the menstruation days are over.”
Others resort to using unhygienic materials such as tree leaves, newspapers and old rags.
Prominent gynaecologist Solwayo Ngwenya said it was dangerous to use the materials in the long run.
“Unwise and undesirable to use tree leaves, paper and cloth as a substitute for menstrual pads,” he said.
“These may have some substances, which are not known and be absorbed in the valves that may cause problems later on in life.”
Ngwenya said there was also a risk that the girls might suffer from infertility.
Chikara said Nkomo has emerged as a champion for girls in the district struggling to access affordable pads.
The province is organising a workshop where the girl will share her story with her peers to encourage them to follow in her footsteps.
Nkomo has had a tough upbringing after being forced to be head of the family at an early age after her parents deserted them.
“My father went to look for a job when I was in Grade 5 and has never returned, while my mother went to my grandmother’s funeral in Tsholotsho last year, came back for a while before going back, and disappearing for good,” Nkomo said.
Her elder brother works in Hope Fountain and at times sends money to help Nkomo and her two young siblings.
“We get our source of food through farming and my brother helps us at times,” she said.
“We also do part-time jobs at neighbouring farms and from the money we are paid, we buy relish and school uniforms. Plan International pays my school fees.”
Nkomo also plays mother to her younger sister whom she teaches about reproductive health. She has also taught her to make the reusable pads.
Chikara said they hoped to raise funds to assist Nkomo and her siblings with good education and buy her a bicycle.
“We understand hers is a touching story, but we want her to tell it to the whole world through these training programmes,” she said.
“She will be empowering other girls by training them to make the pads while also selling her story.”
Nkomo travels 15km to and from school every day, but is still one of the best performing students at Mahlothova.
“Being a breadwinner and having no source of lighting to use in the evening at home and taking care of her siblings, she can’t perform any miracle,” Chikara said.
“She is a hard worker, but the playing ground is not level. As someone I taught for three years, I believe, all other things being constant, she can do well.”
Thabani Mpofu, a consultant for Gender Links, urged the government to invest in the manufacture of cheaper sanitary wear for girls to improve their quality of life.
“Some issues are not discussed and we see girls missing school,” she said. “This may result in them performing badly at school and that also has got long-term effects.-Standard
One fateful afternoon, then 13-year-old Obedient Dube from Hwange town went bird-hunting with three other boys as they enjoyed the last days of the 2016 August school holiday.
The adventure took the youngsters from Madumabisa compound to the coal ash dump sites near the Area A residential area.
At the time of the incident, the ash dump site wasn’t marked “Danger”.
The boys’ adventure turned tragic when the top surface suddenly gave in partly, swallowing young Dube to knee level and exposing him to burning coal ash.
Dube was burnt on both feet as he frantically moved them up and down hoping to escape from the red-hot coal ash.
When he eventually escaped, his left foot had been seriously burnt and he had to spend more than three months admitted at Hwange Colliery Hospital.
“I wrote my Grade 7 examinations from the hospital bed,” the 17-year-old Wankie Secondary School pupil said as he recounted the traumatic encounter.
Four years later, Dube is still feeling some pain on the left foot and the hallux has been moving backward as the muscle tightens, presumably to heal the internal injuries.
The shift in his hallux, he says, is making it increasingly difficult for him to walk.
“I cannot walk long distances anymore. It takes me about 40 minutes to walk to school [a distance of less than 2km],” he said, adding that he now finds it difficult to wear shoes.
Dube’s mother, Zondiwe Dube, said life has been difficult for her son ever since he got injured.
“He is visibly in pain, but I do not have any money to take him to specialist doctors for attention. I now buy him oversized shoes because of his deformed leg,” she said on the sidelines of the commemoration of women’s struggles against destructive mining, which was organised by the Centre for Natural Resource Governance (CNRG) in conjunction with Greater Hwange Residents Trust.
“We tried to seek help, but we were told that Hwange Colliery Company cannot pay for specialist treatment.”
Zondiwe said the company only put a danger warning sign at the dump site after her son had been burnt.
The place where Dube was injured is not the only coal ash dump site in Hwange. There are several others in the Cinderella and Lwendulu villages.
In 2016, the CNRG documented a horrific case of yet another boy, Simba Mulezu, who was permanently handicapped after falling into the raging Hwange underground fires.
Mulezu was driving away cattle from his mother’s field when the ground gave in under his feet, sinking him into the burning coal underground. He was 10 years old.
The underground fires left the now 17-year-old Mulezu with deformed limbs.
Simba still suffers from the effects of the accident and can’t spend much time outdoors because his cannot cope with the region’s severe weather conditions.
His widowed mother, Susan Mulezu, was seething with anger when she recounted her son’s ordeal.
“For me, my son’s catastrophe shows that coal is a curse to humankind,” she said.
“Since their father passed away, I have been struggling to get my son and his three younger siblings to go to school.
“I want to secure a better future for them, but since my son fell into the coal pit, he cannot do much of what children of his age do.”
These sites are not protected and are prone to fire. The oxidation process of coal, which is the main burning by-product material of the mining operation, leads to spontaneous combustion of coal waste dump sites, often triggering fires that can burn for decades.
CNRG director Farai Maguwu accused Hwange Colliery Company of being careless when dumping coal, which exposed residents to serious risks.
“This is negligence on the part of Hwange Colliery Company,” he said.
“Since these ashes are highly flammable as residents say, there are safety measures to be put in place to protect Hwange residents.
“However, the level of impunity enjoyed by the company is shocking.
“No corporation must be allowed to act irresponsibly, maim people and continue as if nothing has happened.
”I wonder where the Environmental Management Agency is when all of this is happening.-Standard
By A Correspondent| A journalist Patrick Chitongo was yesterday assaulted before being arrested at Green Fuel football arena in Chisumbanje.
According to sources who witnessed the incident, Chitongo ruffled feathers when he was overheard by one senior chef of the company Green Fuel querying why the company was not investing in infrastructure development in the area despite having the monopoly on ethanol production.
Said the source:
“He was assaulted and arrested after being heard by the company’s Human Resource Manager complaining over why the company is not developing infrastructure in the area yet it has monopoly on ethanol production. This did not go down well with the manager who instructed the security personnel to arrest him.”
Watch the video below:
Watch Video- Freelance Journalist Patrick Chitongo being assaulted by security at Green Fuel football arena, Chisumbanje on 27 July 2019.
By A Correspondent- The director of the Dumiso Dabengwa Foundation, Mthulisi Hanana, has reportedly returned to Zimbabwe after escaping to a neighbouring country following threats to his life.
Hanana fled the country citing security concerns after complaining that state security agents were harassing him over his remarks attacking government for human rights violations.
He made the remarks during a memorial service for Dabengwa who passed away in Nairobi, Kenya, on May 23 en route to Zimbabwe after undergoing a month-long treatment in India.
Dabengwa was declared a national hero and was buried at the family grave yard in Ntabazinduna.
At the memorial service, Hanana claimed state operatives wanted to confiscate records that implicate government in the 1980s Gukurahundi killings and pre-independence violence against fellow comrades by some top Zanu PF and Zanla officials.
In a telephone interview yesterday, Hanana said “everything is back to normal”, but emphasised that members of the foundation were still cautious as they start preparing for a week’s event to celebrate the life of Dabengwa.-Standard
By A Correspondent- ABOUT 200 pupils at Lukanyiso Primary School in Bulawayo’s Mpopoma suburb do not have identity documents, a survey has revealed.
The survey was conducted by the Bulawayo Progressive Residents’ Association (BPRA) Mpopoma education sub-committee.
The survey led by Linganiso Nyathi, the BPRA secretary for education in Mpopoma, showed that 156 learners at the school do not have birth certificates.
About 70% of the pupils without identity documents are in Grade 6 and Grade 7, the survey shows.
“Some of these children are talented in sports, but due to lack of birth certificates they cannot compete to the highest level…they may face the fate of failing to get places in high schools and this will greatly affect their careers,” Nyathi said.
“The committee has managed to compile a list of those pupils and has visited the Registrar General’s office in Bulawayo to find out the requirements that may be needed depending on the peculiar reasons why that particular child on the list does not have a birth certificate.
“A similar survey will be conducted in other schools in the area,” Nyathi added.-Standard
Pilots at the national airline Air Zimbabwe are reported to be on strike as flight delays mare the airline.
The AirZim crew didn’t turn up for duty on Friday morning it has emerged.
According to sources the pilots were reportedly demanding their salaries in United States dollars and better equipment.
However, yesterday another Twimbo confirmed the strike story as their flight was delayed.
Writing on Twitter he said:
Air Zimbabwe flight scheduled to leave at 11AM from Bulawayo – Johannesburg LEFT AFTER 9 PM A delay of over 10 hours Reason: It’s alleged that pilots are striking The mismanagement of government parastatals is at an all time low. The Nation is falling apart.
Nyasa Times|United Kingdom (UK) reputable newspaper, The Financial Times, has carried a story about Malawi political crisis where demonstrations continue since May 21 Tripartite Elections and the High Court sitting as Constitution Court is now being asked to scrub out the presidential outcome and order a rerun.
Mutharika re-election earned him the nickname “Tipp-Ex president”
It says the “jibe” is a reference to the correction fluid that the opposition claims was used to alter of results with a vote that gave the 79-year-old former law professor a second term.
Malawi, one of world’s poorest countries, held elections on May 21 and Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) declared Mutharika winner of the presidential race. But in the Constitutional Court, UTM president Saulos Chilima (first petitioner) and Malawi Congress Party (MCP) president Lazarus Chakwera (second petitioner) want results of the election nullified. They are alleging that the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) mismanaged the polls, in which President Peter Mutharika was declared winner, alleging ballot-stuffing and the use of Tipp-Ex correction fluid to change votes.
Mutharika’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has accused opposition leaders of making “wild claims” about a contest that it said was deemed fair by international observers.
The Financial Times report highlights that Malawi has gained a reputation for regular multi-party elections and smooth transitions of power since 1994 when former president Bakili Muluzi ousted Kamuzu Banda who had an iron grip of the country in one party dictatorship.
There have been allegations of fraud before, but nothing on the scale of this year, reads a report in the Financial Times.
The paper focus on post-elections wave of public protests triggred by evidence of widespread irregularities in the May presidential vote.
The Malawi Human Rights Commission (MHRC) has swince urged politicians to show respect and restraint to one another to facilitate a smooth trial of the presidential election case
MHRC commissioner Martha Chizuma, who is also the country’s Ombudsman, in a statement seen by Nyasa Times said when hearing of the case starts, the commission expects that “every person shall respect the rights of others who may wish to witness the court proceedings in support of the party of their choice.”. But currently, as former president Joyce Banda said in quotes reported by the UK paper, “Malawi is burning” and “what is happening is unprecedented.”
Boniface Dulani, professor at the Institute of Public Opinion and Research at the University of Malawi, said an election annulment would build on the Kenyan precedent.
“It would send a strong signal to the continent’s rulers that manipulating elections does not mean automatic passage to state house,” he said as quoted by Financial Times. The UK newspaper also quotes Blessings Chimsinga, associate professor at the University of Malawi, saying the case was “make or break” for a public that had lost faith in the electoral process.
Any rerun, he said, would need comprehensive electoral reforms to be credible. Otherwise, he added, “it would be like putting new wine in old bottles”.
Meanwhile, demand form MEC chairperson Jane Ansah, a judge at Malawi Supreme Court of Appeal to resign, still stands with threats of more protests.
Human Rights Defenders Coalition (HRDC) has vowed to orgnaise more nationwide protests until Ansah resigns.
Defending herself in local media against accusations that election tally sheets were doctored, she said: “Correctional fluid, if you check in the dictionary, corrects errors. Tipp-Ex can be used for positive and negative purposes and that is for the court to find out.”
The crisis, according to the Financial Timeshas sparked volatility in the kwacha, the local currency, and led to the stagnation of an already fragile economy. Malawi has a nominal income per capita of $380, making it one of the world’s poorest countries.
A Kenyan pastor has claimed he has found Jesus according to a twitter user who shared the story. The twitter user claims he took the white man to his church, introduced him to his congregation and his church members are happy Jesus is back and he landed first in Kenya..
A Kenyan pastor claims he has found Jesus Christ walking on the streets of Kenya. Took the whiteman to his church, gave him a warm welcome and now his church followers are happy that Jesus has finally come back!
Evangelist Juanita Bynum has recently taken to her Facebook page to clear the air on the controversy that affected her performance at The Experience Church in Chesapeake, Virginia.
According to Juanita Bynum, she did not perform because the popular pastor of The Experience Church, Pastor John Moore entered her hotel room uninvited and saw her underwear.
In a live video session on Facebook, Dr Bynum said Moore, who was hosting her at a conference in that city, entered her hotel room without her knowledge or consent and “saw her undergarments laid out on her bed.” She said she felt sexually violated by his behaviour.
Juanita Bynum said she was not in the room at the time he entered but was later informed of the incident by her assistant and was confirmed by the front desk.
In the video captioned: “WHY I DIDN’T PREACH IN CHESAPEAKE, VA AT THE Experience Church WITH PASTOR JOHN MOORE”, Bynum laid it down and called it horrific invasion of privacy, which made her cancel her performance.
Prof Lovemore Madhuku interview with ZimEye’s Simba Chikanza. AUDIO BELOW-
1/2 No no no…He may actually be very correct on what he is saying, my comment & what he is saying, we are discussing 2 different things. I never commented on the lawfulness of what had happened. I commented on the legal basis that had been used by the court, in denying her…"
2/2 – However, Prof Madhuku also said, @ProfJNMoyo should go back to finish his law degree. "He (Jonathan Moyo) should just come back and finish his studies and then speak authoritatively," said Prof @ProfMadhuku … FULL INTERVIEW ON https://t.co/C5Rc9huXdw
Opposition MDC Splinter MDC-T party led by Thokozani Khupe says that they will not be contesting the Glenview by election in honour of the late founding President Morgan Tsvangirai.
The party which split from the Nelson Chamisa led mainstream MDC in 2017 after the death of Tsvangirai claims that they will not be contesting the seat because the Chamisa led party fielded Tsvangirai’s son who is also brother to the late Vimbai Tsvangirai who was the MP of the constituency.
Party Vice President Obert Gutu said that fielding a candidate to wrestle the seat from the Tsvangirai family will be very inhumane.
Vincent won the Glenview South primary election to represent MDC in the impending by-elections set for early September.
A South African and a Zimbabwean working for Canadian gold mining firm Banro have been kidnapped in DR Congo’s restive east, an army spokesman said Saturday.
The incident occurred on Friday morning in the province of South Kivu which borders the neighbouring countries of Rwanda and Burundi.
“The Banro officials were ambushed by armed bandits on Friday at 10:30 am (0830 GMT) between Salamabila and Kitindi in the Maniema region,” Captain Dieudonne Kasereka, regional army spokesman, told AFP, adding that it was in an area where rebel militias operated.
CAIRO, EGYPT – JUNE 21: Mohamed Elneny of Egypt looks on during the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations Group A match between Egypt and Zimbabwe at Cairo International Stadium on June 21, 2019 in Cairo, Egypt.
According to Egyptian outlet Al Watan, an unidentified body has been discovered in a villa under construction that belongs to Arsenal midfielder Mohamed Elneny.
The Gunner’s father, Nasser Elneny, reported to the police in the western Egyptian province of Gharbia on Friday.
An investigative team and forces of regular police arrived at the scene to find out whether there were any signs of a crime related to the incident.
The circumstances are yet to be fully revealed, meanwhile, an autopsy and burial of the body have been ordered.
