Farai Dziva|In a development that is likely to punctuate the hullabaloo in the Zanu PF camp, the UK has insisted on genuine political reforms.

According to SADC News, the UK has urged the President of Zimbabwe to deliver on “genuine” political and economic reforms in order to ensure a brighter future for the country.

Newly elected Prime Minster of the UK, Boris Johnson, also asked Emmerson Mnangagwa to implement recommendations by the Motlanthe Commission, which was set up after demonstrators were shot and killed in 2018.

Zanu PF sympathisers last week claimed the UK Premier, indicated willingness to discuss diplomatic issues with Mnangagwa.

Farai Dziva|MDC Organising Secretary, Amos Chibaya was yesterday remanded to October 4.

” The MDC Secretary for Organising, Hon. Amos Chibaya, appeared at the Gweru Magistrates court yesterday.

Chibaya, who is already out on bail; was further remanded to the 4th of October 2019.

Hon Chibaya is facing charges of subversion,” the party said in a statement.

Jane Mlambo| Opposition MDC leader Nelson Chamisa has bemoaned the continuous regression of the Zimbabwean economy saying in the past 30 years, other countries have progressed while Zim remained stagnated.

Chamisa said the quality of life in Zimbabwe is painful as it is moving in reverse instead of going forward.

Chamisa posted the message on Twitter. Find it below;

State Media– Environment, Tourism and Hospitality Industry Minister Prisca Mupfumira is a flight risk who holds two passports and has properties in the United Kingdom, a High Court judge heard.

Mupfumira, who was arrested by the recently-constituted Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC), will spend the weekend in remand prison after Justice Erica Ndewere yesterday deferred her bail application to Monday.

Justice Ndewere postponed the matter to allow the State to call the investigating officer to give evidence during the bail application. Mupfumira is facing criminal abuse of public office charges involving US$95 million.

She was detained last week after the State invoked Section 32 of the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act, which allows it to seek the further detention of a suspect up to 21 days to conduct further investigations.

The State led by Mrs Sharon Fero challenged Mupfumira’s bail application at the High Court yesterday, arguing that there was already a certificate which was tendered to the Prosecutor-General that bars any court from entertaining her before the stipulated 21 days lapsed.

“An aggrieved part can only approach this court when an inferior court had made a determination in relation to bail,” said Mrs Fero.

“I submit that the magistrate did not entertain the issue of bail. He was never asked to make a determination. He did not refuse to grant the applicant bail, so, for that reason the appeal ought to be struck off the roll.”

Mrs Fero accused Mupfumira of trying to take her bail application to the High Court through the back door.

“This court has no right to hear a case which is being brought via the back door,” she said.

Mupfumira, through her lawyer Advocate Lewis Uriri, who is acting on the instructions of Mr Charles Chinyama, said they had a right to be heard, arguing that they were rightly before the court.More in Home

Justice Ndewere ruled that the court had jurisdiction to hear Mupfumira’s bail application.

The State then opposed that Mupfumira be granted bail, arguing that investigations into the matter were still in progress.

Mrs Fero said Mupfumira had two passports and properties in the United Kingdom, leaving room for her to abscond trial. She said there was need for the investigating officer to testify to that effect.

Adv Uriri denied that Mupfumira had properties in the United Kingdom, saying being a holder of two passports did not mean that she will not stand trial.

He said Mupfumira had once travelled out of the country late in July and returned with full knowledge of the allegations she is facing.

Justice Ndewere deferred the matter to Monday for continuation of the bail application where the investigating officer is expected to testify before the court.

-State Media

Independent member of parliament for Norton Constituency Temba Mliswa, has showered praises for disgraced Minister of Lands, Agriculture, Water, Climate and Rural Resettlement, Retired Air Chief Marshal Perence Shiri for apologising for his unwarranted slur on opposition members of parliament on Wednesday.

Mliswa shockingly described Shiri as a principled man who stooped too low to apologise for his shocking behaviour.

Mliswa gave his praises in parliament on Thursday ahead of the presentation of the supplementary budget by Minister Mthuli Ncube.

Mr. Speaker Sir, let me also recognise and appreciate Hon. Shiri’s remarks.  It is real magnanimity for him to do that.  It is not many leaders of his level: he was a commander of the liberation struggle, ZANLA in the Tete Province, that he can stand up and make such an apology.  That is something that has humbled me and because of, that I would want to be schooled by him on how to do things.  

I do not know if he can agree to be my mentor, though late but I think that is something I have never thought a man of his stature would stand up to do that.  There is a lot that we can learn from him.

President Emmerson Mnangagwa has acknowledged the downside of the economy, telling Zimbabweans that they should persevere and confront the hardships head-on.

“We have problems, but we must not avoid them. We are supposed to face them head-on. In that process, we have to go through hard times until we surmount those challenges,” he said.

Speaking during his traditional national clean-up exercise in Mount Pleasant, Harare, Mnangagwa said the country did not, as yet, have its own currency despite having banned the use of the multi-currency regime.

“You know that on the aspect of currency, we banned the multi-currency regime and said we want our own money. We are yet to have our own currency, but we banned the other currencies,” he said.

“What we have left is the RTGS and swipe. In the future, money will come that will have our own features of Zimbabwe so that we can hold our heads high.” 

Ncube increased prices of most government services and electricity tariffs, pushed up taxes on alcohol and fuel. 

Before the introduction of the new Zimbabwe notes and coins, the local currency is already taking a beating after Finance minister Mthuli Ncube in his Mid-term budget review on Thursday introduced measures that could trigger inflation.

In anticipation of the looming price hikes, the Zanu PF leader warned business people, saying he could soon introduce laws to arrest those who increase prices of their commodities, but failing to increase salaries of their workers.

“Prices in this country are just going up and going up, but the business owners, who are increasing prices, are not increasing salaries of their workers, who are selling their goods in the shops,” Mnangagwa said.

“What is happening to the money that you are taking from your consumers? Yesterday, the good was $3, today it’s $7, the next day, it’s up to $10. Have you done the same for the worker? No, you have not. Well, it’s good, we will see between me and you who has power. I have the law and I have handcuffs to arrest you. We will see who will arrest the other. We need laws to deal with this.” 

Mnangagwa, facing threats of impeachment and demonstrations from the opposition, said he was doing everything within his power to improve the livelihoods of the general citizenry.

“Your government is doing all it can day in, day out so that we have a better life tomorrow. The journey is difficult, but where we are going, there is hope for good things. I think by the end of the year, we will remove austerity measures because things will be well,” he said.

While thousands of aged National Social Security Authority pension beneficiaries went for months with no pay, the authority’s records show a classic case of a teacher in Wedza whose monthly salary was recorded as $48 000.

The shambles in the NSSA membership records were revealed in the much-awaited forensic audit report which was tabled in Parliament, with Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare Minister Sekai Nzenza saying it will be used to “bring the guilty to book” and recover looted funds.

The report — which was commissioned by Auditor-General Mildred Chiri —covered the period from January 2015 to early 2018.

Parliament is now expected to debate the report and make necessary recommendations to Minister Nzenza arising from the report.

The Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA) has impounded two Kwekwe City Council ambulances for circumventing import tax, as investigations into the tax fraud involving former Director State Residences in the Office of the President and Cabinet Douglas Tapfuma deepen.

The ambulances, which were donated to the local authority by Vongaishe Mpereri during his tenure as a Member of Parliament for Mbizo, were brought in from South Africa, and ZIMRA has queries on clearance of the vehicles upon entry into the country.

Tapfuma was allegedly involved in importing the ambulances together with 81 other vehicles without paying tax.

Mpereri said the ZIMRA officers had some investigations to make regarding the clearance of the vehicles.

“We bought the ambulances in South Africa using the CDF funds, so the officers have questions on the clearance of the vehicles,” he said. “But I am told that the investigations are almost complete and the vehicles will be returned to council in a few days. We are not there to block the authorities from carrying out their duties.”

Contacted for comment, ZIMRA head of corporate communications Mr Francis Chimanda confirmed the probe, but declined to give more details citing secrecy provisions.

“Please note that the query relates to an individual’s clearance and in terms of the secrecy provisions in both the Revenue Authority Section 34A and the Customs and Excise Act, Section 210, we are not in a position to provide a response,” wrote Mr Chimanda in response to e-mailed questions.

Acting Kwekwe Town Clerk Dr Lucia Mnkandla said council officials were in the dark over the seizure of the ambulances.

“I can confirm that ZIMRA took away two of the ambulances that were handed over to council by Mpereri,” she said. “We are, however, not aware of the reasons behind the seizure of the vehicles.”

Dr Mnkandla said the local authority’s ambulance fleet had been left depleted and only one ambulance was functional.

“We have been left in dire straits as we are left with only one ambulance that is up and running,” she said. “Two others are down, so the ambulances had helped to ease the situation in the town.”

State Media|Environment, Tourism and Hospitality Industry Minister Prisca Mupfumira is a flight risk who holds two passports and has properties in the United Kingdom, a High Court judge heard.

Mupfumira, who was arrested by the recently-constituted Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC), will spend the weekend in remand prison after Justice Erica Ndewere yesterday deferred her bail application to Monday.

Justice Ndewere postponed the matter to allow the State to call the investigating officer to give evidence during the bail application. Mupfumira is facing criminal abuse of public office charges involving US$95 million.

She was detained last week after the State invoked Section 32 of the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act, which allows it to seek the further detention of a suspect up to 21 days to conduct further investigations.

The State led by Mrs Sharon Fero challenged Mupfumira’s bail application at the High Court yesterday, arguing that there was already a certificate which was tendered to the Prosecutor-General that bars any court from entertaining her before the stipulated 21 days lapsed.

“An aggrieved part can only approach this court when an inferior court had made a determination in relation to bail,” said Mrs Fero.

“I submit that the magistrate did not entertain the issue of bail. He was never asked to make a determination. He did not refuse to grant the applicant bail, so, for that reason the appeal ought to be struck off the roll.”

Mrs Fero accused Mupfumira of trying to take her bail application to the High Court through the back door.

“This court has no right to hear a case which is being brought via the back door,” she said.

Mupfumira, through her lawyer Advocate Lewis Uriri, who is acting on the instructions of Mr Charles Chinyama, said they had a right to be heard, arguing that they were rightly before the court.

Justice Ndewere ruled that the court had jurisdiction to hear Mupfumira’s bail application.

The State then opposed that Mupfumira be granted bail, arguing that investigations into the matter were still in progress.

Mrs Fero said Mupfumira had two passports and properties in the United Kingdom, leaving room for her to abscond trial. She said there was need for the investigating officer to testify to that effect.

Adv Uriri denied that Mupfumira had properties in the United Kingdom, saying being a holder of two passports did not mean that she will not stand trial.

He said Mupfumira had once travelled out of the country late in July and returned with full knowledge of the allegations she is facing.

Justice Ndewere deferred the matter to Monday for continuation of the bail application where the investigating officer is expected to testify before the court.

GOVERNMENT yesterday summoned the United States Ambassador to Zimbabwe Brian Nichols over the placement on sanctions of Zimbabwe’s Ambassador-designate to Tanzania, Anselem Sanyatwe and his wife, Ms Chido Machona on allegations that the former violated human rights.

Ambassador Sanyatwe is a former Commander of the Presidential Guard.

In a statement yesterday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade spokesperson Mr Shepherd Gwenzi said the Ministry’s permanent secretary Ambassador James Manzou met Ambassador Nichols yesterday.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade on 2 August 2019 summoned the Ambassador of the United States of America to Zimbabwe, His Excellency Brian Nichols. He met the Secretary for Foreign Affairs and International Trade Ambassador James Manzou and the purpose of the summons was to express displeasure of the Government of the Republic of Zimbabwe over the public designation of His Excellency Lieutenant-General (Rtd) Anselem Sanyatwe, currently Zimbabwe’s Ambassador-designate to the United Republic of Tanzania and former commander of the Zimbabwe National Army’s presidential Guard Brigade, by the US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo under section 7031(c) FY 2019, Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programme, Appropriations Act (Div.F.P.I.116.6), allegedly for gross violations of human rights related to the August 1, 2018 post-election incident,” he said.State media

Zimbabwe welcomes foreign investors into the country but will not accept investments that come with conditions attached.

This was said by President Mnangagwa after taking part in the ninth edition of the National Environment Cleaning Day at Ashbrittle Shopping Centre yesterday.
He also said there must be unity and peace among Zimbabweans if the country is to develop.

“We want a better future, we want the next generation to live a better life than ourselves and to do so the current generation should be united as a country, as a people and we must put our heads together and shoulders on the wheel to develop, to modernise, to industrialise our country,” President Mnangagwa said.

“We can do that and achieve that on our own, depending on our resources but alas, the pace at which we develop would be very slow. That’s why we have said ‘Zimbabwe is open for business’ in order to attract foreign direct investment into the country and assist us to develop the various sectors of the economy: agriculture, mining, tourism, manufacturing, infrastructure development and ICTs.

“But when FDIs come into the country, they must come at the dictates of ourselves; no political ties, no conditions. The conditions should only be those which we want and this can only be achieved if we remain united, when we remain peaceful, when each one of us strives to do one’s best in whatever they are doing.”

President Mnangagwa said Government had embarked on the re-engagement process so that the country re-joins the community of nations.State media

A Maphisa woman has shocked villagers in the area after her two male lovers settled to stay with her in the same house for two months since neither of them could let her go.

At first Pretty Mangwende and her two lovers, Simbarashe Mukupe and the other only identified as Oliver seemed to be living peacefully in a section of the growth point, commonly known as Garikai.

However, it is reported that trouble began when Mangwende got a job at Velakuhle Bar. What had seemed to be a mutual arrangement between the two men turned to a battle ground.

Oliver and Mukupe reportedly quarrelled incessantly over who should continue to stay with Mangwende until Oliver decided to go and report at Mangwende’s workplace that she was staying with him and Mukupe and this resulted in Mangwende being fired.

When B-Metro contacted Mangwende she opened up about the issue before dropping the phone.
“Yes, I was dating the two men and I was living with both of them. The thing is they had different rooms but we lived in the same house and so I don’t see anything wrong with that”, raged Mangwende.

She added: “What I can tell you is that at the moment I am no longer living with them because things did not just work out. It is not true that we had any misunderstandings or quarrelling. I was not even fired at work because of that issue. I cannot tell you more because I have never seen you and you have no business asking about my life”.

Efforts to get a comment from Oliver and Mukupe were fruitless. However, residents of the area are still shocked at Mangwende’s guts.

“We just cannot believe that a woman can stay with two men in the same house. It is our first time to hear about it and we do not know how she managed to do that, maybe she used juju ”, said a bewildered man who only identified himself as Sibanda.

A source close to this issue spoke on condition of anonymity: “I used to live close to them and it was just weird to witness Mangwende staying with the two men. I cannot even say they were desperate for shelter because they both work.”

The Maphisa woman’s case comes hot on the heels of another similar case in which a woman from Lupane left her community shocked last month after it emerged she was married to two men and had children with both of them.State media

SOME Hwange residents and villagers have called for the erection of a Marvelous Nakamba statue at his rural home Dinde in Hwange district along Victoria Falls road as an honor of becoming the first player from the district to play in the English Premier League.

Nakamba penned a five year old deal with EPL returnees Aston Villa this week, joining other iconic stars like Bruce Grobbelaar, Peter Ndlovu and Benjan Mwaruwari, ironically all with roots to Bulawayo giants Highlanders.

While Nakamba played organised junior football for Highlanders and later on Bantu Rovers, he was born in the coal mining town of Hwange 25 years ago when his father Anthony, was an assistant goalkeeper to Johannes Tshuma at Hwange FC.

His rural home is Dinde about 35km from Hwange town, under Chief Nekatambe.State media

Farai Dziva |A picture of students at a high school in Masvingo- having tea with boiled dry maize has gone viral on social media.

Commenting on the picture, prominent journalist and filmmaker, Hopewell said :”
This broke my heart. This is … High School.

I went to Fletcher High School in Gweru, a Government school where we had pudding, fruits, tea at 10.

What we are seeing here is a direct result of corruption and theft of public funds by political elites to fund their lifestyles.”

By A Correspondent| A Maphisa woman has shocked villagers in the area after her two male lovers settled to stay with her in the same house for two months since neither of them could let her go.

At first Pretty Mangwende and her two lovers, Simbarashe Mukupe and the other only identified as Oliver seemed to be living peacefully in a section of the growth point, commonly known as Garikai.

However, it is reported that trouble began when Mangwende got a job at Velakuhle Bar. What had seemed to be a mutual arrangement between the two men turned to a battle ground.

Oliver and Mukupe reportedly quarrelled incessantly over who should continue to stay with Mangwende until Oliver decided to go and report at Mangwende’s workplace that she was staying with him and Mukupe and this resulted in Mangwende being fired.

When B-Metro contacted Mangwende she opened up about the issue before dropping the phone.

“Yes, I was dating the two men and I was living with both of them. The thing is they had different rooms but we lived in the same house and so I don’t see anything wrong with that”, raged Mangwende.

She added: “What I can tell you is that at the moment I am no longer living with them because things did not just work out. It is not true that we had any misunderstandings or quarrelling. I was not even fired at work because of that issue. I cannot tell you more because I have never seen you and you have no business asking about my life”.

Efforts to get a comment from Oliver and Mukupe were fruitless. However, residents of the area are still shocked at Mangwende’s guts.

“We just cannot believe that a woman can stay with two men in the same house. It is our first time to hear about it and we do not know how she managed to do that, maybe she used juju”, said a bewildered man who only identified himself as Sibanda.

A source close to this issue spoke on condition of anonymity: “I used to live close to them and it was just weird to witness Mangwende staying with the two men. I cannot even say they were desperate for shelter because they both work.”

The Maphisa woman’s case comes hot on the heels of another similar case in which a woman from Lupane left her community shocked last month after it emerged she was married to two men and had children with both of them.

Ms Siphathisiwe Mkandla (48) of Manansa Village in Malunku ward cohabited with Mr John Mpala (55) and Mr Dolete Mlotshwa for the past three years.

Mr Mpala collapsed and died at their matrimonial home in June after complaining of chest pains and was buried at his uncle’s homestead in Sindombe area in the same ward. Mr Mlotshwa is a gold panner in Inyathi.-BMetro

By A Correspondent| Chatunga Bellarmine Mugabe, son to former President Robert Mugabe, said that he is not the bad guy as some people want to make him appear to be.

Chatunga was recently implicated in a bar brawl with an upcoming female musician. He is accused of having sent assailants to assault Shashl last weekend.

In an interview with Harare tabloid, H-Metro, Chatunga claimed that people are framing him.

He said:

Even if someone says to me ndakauraya munhu its fine. If you go on Internet, I used to spend a day and see nyaya dzinobuda ipapo.

Pane dzimwe nyaya dzinobuda ipapo but I can’t go one by one spending my day, you end up depressed, it’s now a thing I am used to.

You can’t tell everyone, one by one to say no this happened and this didn’t happen.

If people like me, they like me and if they don’t like me, I can’t force them.

I’m not trying to be impressed.

How sad it is. Today, if you were to be my friend, whatever you do you get to be scrutinised, now your family gets scrutinised because you are my friend, that’s a bit unacceptable

That’s is why I got few friends, less than five because no one knows …even if I have a party, they are the only people invited, you can check on the guest list because I don’t have friends.

Those were the only people, I had invited, there were people who were relatives, even if I am in South Africa.

By A Correspondent| The ongoing National Peace and Reconciliation Commission (NPRC) public hearings have been characterised by victims of the Gukurahundi genocide expressing their grief and anger over what they experienced and witnessed.

The NPRC was in Entumbane this week, a suburb that witnessed ferocious fighting between Zimbabwe People’s Revolutionary Army (Zipra) and Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army (Zanla) guerrillas.

The two liberations armies clashed on February 11, 1981, while authorities were in the process of integrating the fighters into the regular army.

Speaking during the NPRC public hearings in Entumbane, this week one of the participants reportedly said:

You are playing and wasting time. For how long must we continue talking about this while you keep on investigating? Is there anyone with doubts that Gukurahundi occurred or anyone who doesn’t know?

The NPRC commissioner responsible for Victim Support, Gender and Diversity, Netty Mushanhu, conceded that people were extremely emotional and angry.

She said:

From our meetings, people have shown that they are extremely emotional and are angry. The meetings taught me that we have left it too long but I think we have an opportunity to engage.

If we don’t do anything about this, we may create a very difficult future for ourselves.

… The stories I heard here are heart-breaking, no one deserves to go through what women went through. A lot of women are afraid to talk about what they have gone through; they fear the unknown and also fear what is known.

I think as a nation; we owe it to our children and ourselves to make sure we have safe spaces for truth-telling. We need to engage with our violent and emotional past.-DailyNews

Health minister Obadiah Moyo’s daughter, Ashleigh, was recently assaulted and left unconscious at a popular Harare night club, Pabloz, by her friend and a South African woman believed to be the girlfriend of former President Robert Mugabe’s son, Chatunga.

The friend, Godfrey Utsiwegota (21), appeared before magistrate Learnmore Mapiye yesterday charged with assault. Utsiwegota’s lawyer, Cathew Manyani, filed a complaint against the court officials and police, saying his client was detained at the holding police cells for no apparent reason.

Manyani said it appeared as if there was interference in the matter after his client was released by court officials on Monday at Harare Magistrates Court, only to be called to come to court. The magistrate released Utsiwegota on free bail and remanded the matter to August 15.

It is the State’s case that on July 26 this year at around 11pm, Ashleigh was at Pabloz Night Club recording her music. After recording, she left the club and walked towards her car, but was allegedly punched by Ovio Mgijima, a South African national.

Utsiwegota allegedly joined in and assaulted Moyo until she fell unconscious. A medical report was obtained and will be produced in court as exhibit.

SOME Hwange residents and villagers have called for the erection of a Marvelous Nakamba statue at his rural home Dinde in Hwange district along Victoria Falls road as an honor of becoming the first player from the district to play in the English Premier League.

Nakamba penned a five year old deal with EPL returnees Aston Villa this week, joining other iconic stars like Bruce Grobbelaar, Peter Ndlovu and Benjan Mwaruwari, ironically all with roots to Bulawayo giants Highlanders.

While Nakamba played organised junior football for Highlanders and later on Bantu Rovers, he was born in the coal mining town of Hwange 25 years ago when his father Anthony, was an assistant goalkeeper to Johannes Tshuma at Hwange FC.

His rural home is Dinde about 35km from Hwange town, under Chief Nekatambe.

More to follow…..

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Friday summoned the Ambassador of the United States of America Brian Nichols to express Zimbabwe’s displeasure over the imposition of sanctions on the country’s Ambassador-designate to the Republic of Tanzania Lt General (Rtd) Anselem Sanyatwe.

In a statement issued on Friday the Ministry said, “The decision by Washington is regrettable as it comes at a time that government is intensifying the implementation of political and economic reforms including the Motlanthe Commission’s recommendations.”

 ‌

Former President Robert Mugabe’s last born son Chatunga Bellarmine Mugabe has opened up lamenting that he receives a lot of hate from people, most of whom, he has never met in person.

Chatunga who has a reputation as a party animal and bad boy said that he had very few friends as a result because people associated with him end up getting a lot of public scrutiny.

In an interview with Takawira “Photovet” Dapi of H-Metro, Chatunga said,

Even if someone says to me ndakauraya munhu its fine. If you go on the internet, I used to spend a whole day and reading nyaya dzinobuda ipapo.

Pane dzimwe nyaya dzinobuda ipapo but I can’t spend my day going through the stories, you end up depressed, it’s now a thing I am used to.

You can’t tell everyone, one by one to say no this happened and this didn’t happen. If people like me, they like me and if they don’t like me, I can’t force them…I’m not trying to impress.

How sad it is. Today, if you were to be my friend, whatever you do you are scrutinised, your family gets scrutinised because you are my friend, that’s a bit unacceptable.

That’s is why I have a few friends, less than five because no one knows…even if I have a party, they are the only people invited. You can check on the guest list because I don’t have friends.

Those were the only people, I had invited. Some people were relatives, even if I am in South Africa.

Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube in USD$ 500 million scam. Finance and Economic Development Minister Mthuli Ncube has been sucked into a U SD$ 500 million scam involving Treasury Bills Professor Jonathan Moyo has alleged.

Zimbabwe welcomes foreign investors into the country but will not accept investments that come with conditions attached.

This was said by President Mnangagwa after taking part in the national clean-up campaign at Ashbrittle Shopping Centre today.

He said there must be unity and peace among Zimbabweans if the country was to develop.

“We want a better future we want the next generation to live a better life than ourselves and to do so the current generation, united as a country as a people we put our heads together and shoulders on the wheel to develop, to modernise, to industrialise our country,” President Mnangagwa said.

“We can do that and achieve that on our own depending on our resources but alas the pace at which we develop would be very slow that’s why we have said Zimbabwe is open for business in order to attract foreign direct investment into the country and assist us to develop the various sectors of the economy agriculture, mining tourism, manufacturing, infrastructure development and ICTs.

“But when FDIs come into the country it must come at the dictates of ourselves no political ties, no conditions. The conditions should only be those which ourselves want and this can only be achieved if we remain united, when we remain peaceful, when each one of us strives to do one’s best in whatever they are doing.”

He said Government had embarked on the re-engagement process so that the country re-joins the community of nations.

More to follow…

Zimbabwe’s finance minister has more than doubled the cost of power.

The country has been facing chronic power shortages since May and daily blackouts last for up to 18 hours in most areas.

In a mid-term budget review, Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube hiked the price of power, from 10 cents per kilowatt hour to 27 cents.

That’s for farmers and ordinary households.

Miners and exporters will have to settle their electricity bills in US dollars, at a rate of between six and nine US cents per kilowatt hour.

The state power company had been pushing for an upward review of its prices to help it remain viable.

The higher power costs will have an impact on shop prices and the wallets of hard-pressed Zimbabweans.

Though it remains to be seen whether the adjustments will do anything to ease severe load shedding.

VIDEO LOADING BELOW…

Speaker of Parliament Jacob Mudenda has ruled that parliament will not pay MDC parliamentarians for Thursday’s seating after they boycotted the presentation of the complementary budget which was attended by President Emmerson Mnangagwa.

Ruling on a submission by ZANU PF parliamentarian Joseph Chinotimba, Mudenda condemned the opposition parliamentarians for continuously resisting Mnangagwa.

Chinotimba’s said:

“My point of privilege is that every time and then when the Zimbabwe President who resoundingly won the election in 2018 is coming into this august House, Members of the opposition walk out or abscond and yet the next day they will come here demanding cars from Parliament of which the money is being availed by the President of the country.”

“So, my point of  privilege is that there is supposed to be an order that says that if a Member of Parliament engages in a mass demonstration which is what they have done right now, it is a mass demonstration not coming into Parliament.  They should not absent themselves when the President is coming.  It does not pay for us to say we have a country and yet we are taking this country for granted.” 

“If they have a problem with the President, they should go to the courts.  When we are in Parliament, we should do our Parliamentary duties.”

Below is Mudenda’s full ruling on the matter:

“It is unfortunate that the Hon. Members of the main opposition party here in Parliament have decided to boycott this session in which His Excellency the President will be in attendance.  There are two issues that we need to put on record.  The first one is that His Excellency the President is Head of State and Government and Commander-In-Chief of the Defence Forces.

Now, there is some lack of understanding when we say the President is Head of State.  The President is Head of State because he is an embodiment of the sovereignty of the people of Zimbabwe without any exclusion or discrimination.  His uncontested position as Head of State has been recognised by the United Nations and the International Community, let alone the African Union.  We have not heard of any country under the sun that has not recognised His Excellency President Mnangagwa.  So therefore, there is misdirection in terms of the opposition in their unwarranted behaviour.

Secondly, in terms of section 116 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe which I shall quote, the Legislature of Zimbabwe consists of Parliament and the President acting in accordance with the Constitution, which means His Excellency the President institutionally is part of this august House and that position has got to be respected and cannot be contested. 

Accordingly, as head of this institution, I rule that the Hon. Members from the opposition shall not be allowed to attend Parliament today, including after his Excellency has gone. Relatedly, their allowances for today shall not be paid accordingly, so I have ruled.

Farai Dziva |A picture of students at a high school in Masvingo- having tea with boiled dry maize has gone viral on social media.

Commenting on the picture, prominent journalist and filmmaker, Hopewell said :”
This broke my heart. This is … High School.

I went to Fletcher High School in Gweru, a Government school where we had pudding, fruits, tea at 10.

What we are seeing here is a direct result of corruption and theft of public funds by political elites to fund their lifestyles.”

The Minister of Lands, Agriculture, Water, Climate and Rural Resettlement, Retired Air Chief Marshal Perence Shiri has issued an apology to parliament for his unbecoming behaviour on Wednesday’s seating.

PShiri called opposition MDC supporters baboons and monkeys in Parliament on Wednesday.

Shiri’s outburst came after Harare West MP, Joanna Mamombe (MDC Alliance) had asked him why the country continues to have food shortages if the government spent so much money on acquiring grain.

Mamombe was referring to the US$3 billion which Shiri said was spent by the government on buying grain from farmers such as wheat, soya etc, and some of the money being used to pay for Presidential Input Scheme, utilities such as electricity.

“Mr. Speaker Sir, I would like to unreservedly apologies for the remarks I made yesterday. I realise they must have caused some injury to the dignity of the Hon. Members. To that extent Mr. Speaker Sir, I would like to withdraw my statement. Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir,” said Shiri in his apology on Thursday.

Farai Dziva|Professor Jonathan Moyo has claimed that Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube illegally issued USD 500 million to buy shares from a local bank.

Moyo further claimed that Emmerson Mnangagwa, Kuda Tagwirei and SB Moyo were involved in the alleged scam.

“According to information from a multilateral; in July @MthuliNcube
illegally issued USD 500m in TBs to buy shares at a bank and ZMDC to benefit himself, @edmnangagwa
@MinisterSBMoyo& Sakunda’s Kuda Tagwirei, the fixer in the scheme assisted by @ReserveBankZIM
. It stinks,”claimed Moyo.

Farai Dziva|MDC councillor, Gilbert Mutubuki has said threats from state security agents will not stop him from fighting for the rights of the majority.

Mutubuki is leading protests against multiple land owners in Chiredzi.

Zanu PF supporters and war veterans are illegally occupying land that should be allocated to Chiredzi residents -for business and residential purposes.

See Mutubuki’s statement:
Greetings to you.We are receiving sad news again that Walter Mangwenzi from section 13 Chitepo Triangle Chiredzi has been arrested by Triangle CID.

They want to arrest the whole Compound.

You can beat us, arrest us, intimidate us and kill us but you will never ever kill the spirit in us.

Land Justice!!

Yours truly!
Cllr G Mutubuki

VICE PRESIDENT Kembo Mohadi on Wednesday said the Development Trust of Zimbabwe (DTZ) which had fallen into slumber over the years has been resuscitated, marking the awakening of an economic and social development giant in the country.

VP Mohadi said the revival follows the dissolving of the old board by President Mnangagwa, who subsequently appointed seasoned business people and experienced professionals, carefully selected from the country’s 10 provinces.

“Today marks a major milestone in the resuscitation of the DTZ since His Excellency, President Mnangagwa appointed me as chairperson,” he said.

“The provincial representation (of board members) is meant to ensure that Zimbabweans from all parts of Zimbabwe have a chance to benefit from work and output of DTZ which is a national asset with great economic and social development potential through its business entities whose flagship is Nuanetsi Ranch limited.

“Nuanetsi Ranch and other DTZ entities have suddenly come alive. I can confidentially inform the Zimbabwean nation that, DTZ which had fallen into slumber into over the years has been resuscitated. The economic and social development giant has awakened,” he said.

VP Mohadi also activated the work committees of the trust and ensured that they shared the trust’s objectives.

“DTZ sub-committees are entrusted in carrying out work of the trust in-between meetings of the trust and work towards achieving the objectives of the DTZ. These objectives will be shared among the three committees that we have set using the mandatory of each committee as reflected in the attached documents entitled implementation and achievement of DTZ objectives as articulated in the trust.

“The rational of sharing the objectives was the key functions of each committee which are executive, finance and human resources, and the business collaboration, legal and marketing functions.

“The executive committee will be chaired by Dr Sibonokhule Ndlovu, finance and human resources committee will be chaired by Mr Henry Nhemaire and business collaboration, legal and marketing functions by Advocate Sobuza Gula-Ndebele.

“The new structure of DTZ is now in place and the turnaround of DTZ and its business entities has commenced and it is all systems go and full throttle ahead,” he said.

VP Mohadi said DTZ has lined up vast life transforming projects.

MDC vice-chairman Job Sikhala, who was allegedly abducted from Harare Central Police Station after his arrest on charges of subverting a constitutionally-elected government, is now suing the police for acting unlawfully and unconstitutionally.

Sikhala, through his lawyers Koto and Company, has initiated a $3 million lawsuit against Home Affairs minister Cain Mathema, Police Commissioner-General Godwin Matanga and Superintendent Daniel Joseph of Harare Law and Order section.

“We write to you at the instance of our client (Sikhala) hereby providing you with notice of intention to institute legal proceedings against yourself, within 60 days from date of this letter as defined in terms of section 5 of the State Liabilities Act,” Sikhala’s lawyers wrote.

The lawyers said after Prosecutor-General Kumbirai Hodzi had granted his consent to have Sikhala appear before a Harare court, the police abducted him and locked his lawyers in police cells, thereby blocking them access to him.

“Despite the consent having been obtained, the police officers, including Superintendent Daniel Joseph, locked the team of lawyers who were in the company of our client, Tendai Biti and Innocent Gonese, inside cells of Harare Central (Police Station) and refused to give them access to our client, when Joseph dragged and smuggled our client out of Harare Central Police Station,” the lawyers said.

Sikhala alleged in his letter that he suffered insults, dehumanising treatment and a sense of shock from the actions of the police while he was blindfolded and suffering unbearable pain.

“Our client was tortured and experienced an aggravated and deliberate form of inhuman or degrading treatment. Severe pain, suffering both physically and
mentally, was intentionally inflicted upon him. He was insulted and threatened, which diminished his human dignity and aroused feelings of fear, anguish or inferiority capable of breaking his morale,” the letter read.

-Newsday

Power cuts have negatively affected operations at Chinhoyi Provincial Hospital to such an extent that critically ill patients are now losing lives as they cannot be attended to expeditiously.

This was revealed by the hospital’s medical superintendent, Collet Mawire, in his 2019 half-year overview report.

Mawire urged the Health Services Board to find a permanent solution to end the power crisis at the Mashonaland West referral hospital.

He said: Currently, the hospital is facing critical problems in this aspect of electricity and water supply.

Chinhoyi Provincial Hospital operations are being hampered to the extent of losing patients as a result of load-shedding by ZESA.

… Power cuts are causing increased risk to lives of such patients and sometimes even loss of life.

Chinhoyi provincial hospital has 422 beds and relies on two standby generators. However, the generators often break down and require 300 litres of diesel daily to run them.

Mawire also revealed that the hospital is understaffed, having 79 nurses out of an ideal complement of 350, while there are five specialist doctors out of a possible 10.

-Newsday

State Media: Government has criticised the placement on sanctions of Zimbabwe’s Ambassador-designate to Tanzania, Anselem Sanyatwe, and his wife Ms Chido Machona, by the United States on allegations that the former violated human rights.

Sanyatwe is a former Commander of the Presidential Guard.

According to Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services, Nick Mangwana, the establishment of the Motlante Commission showed that there was nothing to hide.

“The Motlanthe Commission worked in full of view of the public and had its hearings televised and run on different live platforms as the State showed it had nothing to hide. No one was made immune to its subpoena,” Mr Nick Mangwana, the Secretary for Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services, noted in a statement last night.

“When the report of the Commission came out, President Mnangagwa made it public and constituted a Cabinet Committee on Reform to see through the implementation of the recommendations of the Commission as well as other reforms such as Election Observers Missions’ reports,” reads the statement.

Government says this was done in the interest of transparency and justice.

The process of the hearings at the Commission had an important role as a truth-telling exercise.

“It is no doubt that President Mnangagwa marshalled the country through this tragic but fleeting phase, with long-term benefits of peace that no one today can deny.

“We, therefore, take serious umbrage at the posturing of some foreign powers who have taken it upon themselves to invoke actions that are clearly out of sync with the spirit and letter of the Commission whose work was public and credible,” Mr Mangwana said in reference to the US.

-State Media

Knives are out against Zanu PF Masvingo youth league boss Brian Munyoro who was last week beaten up by a group of local and Harare-based youths who accused him of corruption, sexual abuse and personalising party property.

Zanu PF national youth league political commissar Godfrey Tsenengamu led a group of Zanu PF youths from Harare for an outreach in Masvingo.

The outreach was met with little success after Munyoro reportedly snubbed the meetings in the wards and failed to mobilise party supporters to attend as a way of sabotaging Tsenengamu’s work.

Sources said during one of the meetings at Roger Howman Training Centre, some youths seized Munyoro’s car keys and cell phones while others beat him up.

TellZim News established that the some members of the Masvingo provincial youth league are unhappy with Munyoro’s leadership but no one had the guts to stand up to him until they formed an alliance with the visiting Harare youths to humiliate him.

When contacted for comment, Munyoro said the youths who demonstrated against him were just jealous and are fabricating stories to try and soil his name.

“It all happened in full glare of our leadership and they are all aware of what happened. I now wait to hear from them on the course of action to be taken against the culprits.

“They are just people who are jealous of my life and will do anything to soil my name. I have not done anything wrong but I have remained focused in supporting and building our party even during the time when we were vilified for being Lacoste members,” said Munyoro.

Youths who spoke to TellZim News accused Munyoro of being a sexual predator who abused women under his ranks.

“We want him to go and we will not rest until he is send packing. We want leadership which is exemplary not what we are seeing in Munyoro.

“He has bedded many women under his rank by abusing his powers and the car which the party gave him. Last week in Chiredzi he tried the same tricks on one of the ladies but he was turned down. He then tried to force himself on the lady but he failed.

“He uses the party vehicle as his bedroom and that must stop. The vehicle he drives belongs to the party yet he personalises it. We heard a lot of reports about him and we decided to act because the youth here are afraid of him,” said one youth from Harare.

The youth league accuses Munyoro of stealing over 3 000 litres of fuel which had been donated for party programmes.

“Masvingo got 4 000 litres of fuel to do party programmes and Munyoro converted 3 000 litres to personal use and declared only 1 000 litres,” claims one youth.

Other sources said Munyoro was dictatorial in his leadership approach, accusing him of stripping other league leaders of their powers.

“He does everything himself. He is now the chairperson, the treasurer, the spokesperson and the commissar of the whole province. He personalises power and all other elected members have been rendered irrelevant. He is also abusing his power to sleep with all the girls,” complained a source.

Another youth league member, however, defended Munyoro saying the fight was simply a manifestation of factionalism in the youth league.

“There are bigger divisions in the league and Munyoro is just a victim. They are jealousy of his success and the big car he is driving?” said the member.

Zanu PF national youth league boss Pupurai Togarepi could not be reached for comment as his mobile went unanswered.

-TellZim

A 73-year-old woman died on the spot on Monday near Birchenough Bridge when a bus she was travelling on was involved in an accident.

At least 19 other passengers were injured and rushed to Murambinda Hospital.

Police have identified the deceased as Esiteri Dzingirai of Chikaka Village.

“Esiteri Dzingirai of Chikaka Village died on the spot after Bernard Murozvi (52), the driver of the bus, lost control of the vehicle,” said Manicaland spokesperson Inspector Tavhiringwa Kakohwa.

The bus belonged to Mashoko Travellers Company and was on its way to Birchenough from Murambinda, Buhera.

Murizvo is alleged to have been speeding. “The other 19 passengers were injured and were taken to Murambinda Hospital for treatment and the body of the deceased was taken to Murambinda Hospital mortuary,” said Insp Kakohwa.

Meanwhile, a 24-year-old commuter omnibus driver lost control of his vehicle and fatally struck a herdsman in Nyanga on Monday.  “Fungai Norest Mateta (24) was driving a commuter omnibus with registration numbers ACL 4417 along Nyarukohwa-Nyarubvure Road with seven passengers,” said Insp Kakohwa. “Upon reaching the 35km peg near Nyarukohwa Bridge in Nyanga, Mateta saw a herd of cattle coming his way. He tried to avoid hitting the cattle and lost control of the vehicle and hit the herdsman instead.”

-State Media

Disgruntled parents of children at Goldridge College, an upmarket private college in Kwekwe, are suing the school for allegedly demanding tuition fees and outstanding balances in United State Dollars (USD) despite Government abolishing the use of the multi-currency regime.

In their application to the High Court, the parents Stanley Makunde, Tichafa Chiwanza and Livious Mukwiri, accused the school and its Board of Governors of defying a Government directive by continuing to demand payment in United States dollars.

The college is allegedly asking parents whose children have been offered Form One places next year to pay US$500 in Development levies.

The parents alleged that the children whose parents were defaulting were being sent home by the school authorities.

-State Media

PRESIDENT Mnangagwa will today head for Ashbrittle Shopping Centre in Mt Pleasant for this month’s clean up exercise, as Government intensifies efforts to build sustainable environmental management and waste disposal systems.

The President last year declared the first Friday of each month as the National Environment Cleaning Day when all citizens are supposed to clean their surroundings between 8am and 10am.

Presidential spokesperson Mr George Charamba confirmed the President’s event for today.

“The President is heading for Ashbrittle Shopping Centre in Mt Pleasant tomorrow (today) for this month’s clean-up exercise which will start in the morning,” he said.

Vice President Kembo Mohadi will be in Beitbridge for the same exercise.

Acting Minister of Environment, Tourism and Hospitality Industry Nqobizitha Mangaliso Ndlovu said the clean-up exercise was a noble and brilliant vision by President Mnangagwa.

He called on Zimbabweans from all walks of life to join hands in the initiative.

“I urge the nation to rally behind this brilliant and noble vision by the President of Zimbabwe,” he said.

“We should all embrace it and join hands in this exercise.

“Let us all clean-up our environs wherever we are. A clean environment is a healthy environment for everyone. As you all know, the President launched this brilliant initiative last year in December and this is the 9th month into it and already our country is getting cleaner by each day, this is commendable.”

Launching the campaign on December 5 last year, President Mnangagwa stressed the importance of unity and harmony to keep the environment clean.

“The world we live in is deteriorating rapidly due to the dire consequences of climate change which manifest as floods, heat waves, diseases, water and air pollution, land degradation and desertification, among other challenges,” he  said.

“These developments require us to take bold and decisive action with regards to the management of our environment of ensuring a clean environment. We need to keep our villages, towns and cities clean and hygienic, both for this generation and generations to come.

“We must, therefore, be re-oriented to practice good environmental and waste management through increased advocacy, education, training and awareness. We must do this from a place of pride not just a necessity.”

-State Media

GOVERNMENT has criticised the placement on sanctions of Zimbabwe’s Ambassador-designate to Tanzania, Anselem Sanyatwe, and his wife Ms Chido Machona, by the United States on allegations that the former violated human rights.

Ambassador Sanyatwe is a former Commander of the Presidential Guard.

The US seeks to apportion blame on Government security forces for the death of six people during opposition-instigated violence on August 1 last year, which was orchestrated to delegitimise the outcome of the harmonised elections which President Mnangagwa and the ruling Zanu-PF party won favourably.

The polls had won lots of praise from observer missions and other stakeholders for their peaceful and orderly conduct before opposition MDC-Alliance supporters unleashed mayhem following threats by the party’s leader, Mr Nelson Chamisa, and others that they would not accept defeat.

However, President Mnangagwa instituted an international panel of experts to inquire into the incident and has since been implementing its recommendations, including reform, retraining and upskilling of the police service, the Zimbabwe Republic Police.

Government said while it was pursuing a policy of re-engagement and rapprochement with some members of the international community, this should not be construed as appeasement.

“The Motlanthe Commission worked in full of view of the public and had its hearings televised and run on different live platforms as the State showed it had nothing to hide. No one was made immune to its subpoena,” Mr Nick Mangwana, the Secretary for Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services, noted in a statement last night.

“When the report of the Commission came out, President Mnangagwa made it public and constituted a Cabinet Committee on Reform to see through the implementation of the recommendations of the Commission as well as other reforms such as Election Observers Missions’ reports,” reads the statement.

Government says this was done in the interest of transparency and justice.

The process of the hearings at the Commission had an important role as a truth-telling exercise.

“It is no doubt that President Mnangagwa marshalled the country through this tragic but fleeting phase, with long-term benefits of peace that no one today can deny.

“We, therefore, take serious umbrage at the posturing of some foreign powers who have taken it upon themselves to invoke actions that are clearly out of sync with the spirit and letter of the Commission whose work was public

and credible,” Mr Mangwana said in reference to the US.

“These powers have arrogated themselves power beyond our processes and in this context a Zimbabwean diplomat and his family has been placed under sanctions for ostensibly violating human rights in relation to the events of August 1, 2018,” said Government.

Government says its position is that sanctions imposed on the country are illegal and “any escalation of the same is counterproductive”.

President Mnangagwa has adopted a policy of rapprochement towards countries with whom Zimbabwe has endured bad relations over the past two decades.

However, Government said the rapprochement policy was not “a policy of appeasement”, saying the principles of equality, sovereignty and self-determination in statecraft should be respected.

“We therefore wish to place on record our strong displeasure of actions to undermine Zimbabwe’s sovereignty and condemn posturing meant to fan divisions rather than initiate national healing and understanding,” said Government.

-State Media

JUDGMENT in a case in which MDC Alliance legislators, Settlement Chikwinya (Mbizo) and Lloyd Mukapiko (Redcliff), who are accused of public violence and inciting mayhem during the January fuel price hike protests, was on Wednesday deferred to August 9.

The legislators are on ZWL$300 bail each, which was handed by Bulawayo High Court judge Justice Martin Makonese after Kwekwe magistrate Story Rushambwa denied them their liberty.

Rushambwa was yesterday expected to deliver judgment after both the State, led by prosecutor Yeukai Mugumba and the defence, led by Wellington Davira, closed
their cases last month.

MDC supporters from both Redcliff and Mbizo constituencies had thronged the courts to hear the much-awaited verdict.

“I still need more time to study the submissions by both the State and defence and so the matter is deferred to August 9, 2019,” the magistrate ruled.

MDC vice-chairman Job Sikhala, who was allegedly abducted from Harare Central Police Station after his arrest on charges of subverting a constitutionally-elected government, is now suing the police for acting unlawfully and unconstitutionally.

Sikhala, through his lawyers Koto and Company, has initiated a $3 million lawsuit against Home Affairs minister Cain Mathema, Police Commissioner-General Godwin Matanga and Superintendent Daniel Joseph of Harare Law and Order section.

“We write to you at the instance of our client (Sikhala) hereby providing you with notice of intention to institute legal proceedings against yourself, within 60 days from date of this letter as defined in terms of section 5 of the State Liabilities Act,” Sikhala’s lawyers wrote.

The lawyers said after Prosecutor-General Kumbirai Hodzi had granted his consent to have Sikhala appear before a Harare court, the police abducted him and locked his lawyers in police cells, thereby blocking them access to him.

“Despite the consent having been obtained, the police officers, including Superintendent Daniel Joseph, locked the team of lawyers who were in the company of our client, Tendai Biti and Innocent Gonese, inside cells of Harare Central (Police Station) and refused to give them access to our client, when Joseph dragged and smuggled our client out of Harare Central Police Station,” the lawyers said.

Sikhala alleged in his letter that he suffered insults, dehumanising treatment and a sense of shock from the actions of the police while he was blindfolded and suffering unbearable pain.

“Our client was tortured and experienced an aggravated and deliberate form of inhuman or degrading treatment. Severe pain, suffering both physically and
mentally, was intentionally inflicted upon him. He was insulted and threatened, which diminished his human dignity and aroused feelings of fear, anguish or inferiority capable of breaking his morale,” the letter read.

-Newsday