By Kingstone Jambawo | Zimbabwe Human Rights Organisation (ZHRO) activists are going to protest against Independence Day celebrations on Thursday – 18 April 2019 – at the Zimbabwe Embassy in London – starting at 11:00 am – We want the world to know that there is no reason to celebrate because we are still under dictatorship.
The diasporas want to show their frustration with Mnangagwa’s dictatorship that is doing nothing other than breeding corruption and incompetence.
At a similar protest last year – dubbed – What Independence – around two dozen activists from across the UK gathered outside the Zimbabwe Embassy criticizing the Coup that brought Mnangagwa to power.
Those who wish to opt out of the festivities again this year can come to the Embassy and make their voices head. After all, anger, emotional fatigue is real, and our political climate is challenging to say the least. But if you cannot make it and your response to current events is to get out and make your voice heard, you can do it at any location on this Independence Day.
The scarf hanging dictator continues to make promises but has totally failed to change the lives of the people. Instead he has made it worse than what Mugabe left behind.
Popular anger has also been stoked by army shootings, basic commodities and fuel price hikes, crackdown on protesters and the recent utterances by the president after cyclone Idai disaster.
ZHRO members are demanding independence from dictatorship-
-Where is the justice for the 1 August victims?
-Why are the killers of 1 August protesters still at large.
-Prosecute the killers and murderers of 1 August protesters
-Stop persecuting journalists and democratic rights activists.
-Where is Itai Dzamara
-Where are the missing people? We need to know what happened to each and every one of them.
Our flag should be flown at half mast and all signs of exultation, parade, and boasting should be studiously suppressed.
The proposed Education Amendment Bill to allow pregnant pupils to continue with their studies has been criticised by Bulawayo residents.
A Mabutweni resident, Ms Lina Mkoma, speaking during public hearings on the Education Amendment Bill at Mabutweni Hall, quoted by the state media, said: “Pregnant girls should not be allowed in schools. Imagine in the initial stages of pregnancy when they are vomiting and all sorts of things, how that child will cope in class.
“They will definitely be a laughing stock from their peers and this might result in miscarriages.
“Abanye bayabe sebelala (other students will fall asleep) because of pregnant classmates. It’s not right. If one decides that they want to be a mother they must stay at home.”
The residents also demanded that teacher training institutions in the Matabeleland regions should prioritise local students to ensure that local schools have more Ndebele teachers.
Below is an excerpt of the protest group, Tajamuka’s statement as it demanded that political prisoners be released( WATCH VIDEO)….
We are communicating with everyone outside the country, they are all well but we are urging them to come back home because there is no role they are playing from outside.
We are making an appeal to the government to stop all those harassments and stop detaining people.
We are not hundred per cent safe in Zimbabwe, we have activists such as (Pastor Evan) Mawarire who are now being asked to report daily to the police and a lot more who were accused of violence during the (January) shutdown.
The Zim government on Monday launched an Electronic Learner’s Licence Testing System and promises this is a way of eradicating corruption at the Vehicle Inspection Department (VID).
The internet based system entails that prospective drivers do not need to bring licence photographs anymore, and marking is now being done automatically upon completion of the test.
The last governments software to be introduced was the Grade 7 to form one application which eventually flopped. ZimEye in this article reveals there are loopholes inherent inside the drivers license system, way before it is not launched.
Speaking while announcing the new system which was developed under the Zimbabwe Integrated Transport Management Information System (ZIMTIS), Transport Minister Joel Biggie Matiza said: “The security features inherent in the ELLTS also guarantees that fake provisional drivers’ licences and drivers’ licences are eliminated.
The system enhances accountability by having added features for audit trails. The testing software has a bank of more than 1 000 questions, which are randomly selected by the computer.
Therefore, students can never predict which questions they are going to receive and the grading is done as soon as a student completes the final question.
This not only cuts down on waiting time but also prevents any kind of corruption between the students and the official on duty, who might accept bribes for passing a student, when they actually failed.”
BUT HOW WILL IT WORK?
The software relies on the internet for it to function and another complication is that of electricity supply which in recent years has been unreliable meaning that the system will make it difficult for there to be continuous testing.
Another problem is that of identification. How does the system prevent students from getting someone else to take their test for them?
ZimEye found that the following is still hanging on the drawing board: a web camera that will take a picture of the student at the beginning of the test and then again every 4 or 5 questions to make sure they don’t swap places with another person.
There is neither a fingerprint scanner which should require the learner to scan their fingerprints every 4 or 5 questions. With these identification features added to the learner’s testing terminals, the system should prove incredibly difficult to cheat, but at present, there is no facility for this.
By Own Correspondent| Grain Millers’ Association of Zimbabwe (GMAZ) led by Tafadzwa Musarara has expressed to the Speaker of Parliament, Jacob Mudenda through their lawyers that they want Justice Mayor Wadyajena removed from both participating and chairing the Portfolio committee on Agriculture, Water and Climate.
The association cited events that happened outside Parliament as symptomatic of a possibility that Wadyajena would not impartially execute his duties either as a memmber or chairperson of the Parliamentary Portifolio Committee.
It is alleged that the friction started after the committee postponed session that was scheduled for the 2nd of April without informing GMAZ.
GMAZ lawyers invited members of the media to whom they displayed their displeasure in the conduct of the Parliamentary Committe. Wadyajena is reported to have criticised GMAZ presser via his twitter handle.
GMAZ is being probed over grain procurement several issues pertaining to wheat and grain importation.-StateMedia
The state owned Chronicle reports saying based on vote rigging concerns, the MDC secretary-general Douglas Mwonzora on Sunday announced that he was backing party president Nelson Chamisa to retain the post at the elective Congress slated for May 22-26 this year.
Mwonzora the state broadsheet says, further revealed that he would seek re-election for the position of secretary-general which he currently holds. He will be challenged by Chalton Hwende who is leading in the nomination process.
Claims of rigging of the nomination process are said to have forced Mwonzora to withdraw his interest in seeking nomination for the presidency.
I an interview on Monday, Mwonzora said that he was withdrawing for the race in order to keep the party unified. He said: “I am no longer able to continue participating in the current Congress. I have raised my concerns to the chairperson of the Independent Electoral Commission, ZCTU led by Mr Japhet Moyo but nothing was done. I, therefore, had to withdraw because I do not wish to see the party divided.”
I cannot continue participating in the Congress under the present circumstances if the concerns I have raised remained unresolved.
Mwonzora did not disclose the concerns that he had raised with the IEC and the ZCTU but referred questions to Moyo.
On his part, Moyo confirmed to the Chronicle that he had received several concerns but was not in a position to get into detail.
A so called party insider who spoke to the Chronicle said one of the factors in Mwonzora’s decision was the disenfranchisement of about seven districts in his home province, Manicaland.
The party insider was quoted as saying: “Other issues were that Congress was being held at night under unsafe circumstances. Another thorny issue raised in the letter was that other candidates were not being allowed to contest.
There was also a lot of violence perpetrated on those perceived to be against Chamisa.
The electoral college kept on changing. People who did not qualify to vote were allowed to do so while some of those qualified were barred from contesting.”
Midlands State University (MSU) has applied for a marijuana farming licence – to grow “weed’ for medicinal purposes.
This was revealed by the Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development Minister Professor Amon Murwira. While addressing students at the University’s Gweru compass, Murwira said: “We were told by our former colonial masters that mbanje is illegal and they even promulgated a law prohibiting the smoking of mbanje. However, it has medicinal properties.
“So our leadership had a closer look and realised that mbanje can be useful and then legalised the growing of mbanje for medicinal purposes. So we have started doing so. MSU itself has applied for a licence for growing mbanje.”
Murwira also called upon local universities to be innovative and use local resources to meet people’s needs rather than always looking to outsiders
The MDC successfully held its Provincial Congress in Manicaland despite a failed attempt to disrupt proceedings by the Zimbabwe Republic Police.
Signs of desperation in Zanu PF and the military Government are now clear. They are running scared of the regeneration and strengthening
agenda of the people’s alternative.
The people of Manicaland’s resolve and determination is however a clear sign that the democratisation agenda cannot and will not be stopped.
It is clear that the structures of the MDC will defend democracy through peaceful means. We commend the structures for exercising restraint
when police invited themselves with the intention to disrupt, influence and corrupt our processes.
The Constitution is clear that the Police Service must not prejudice the interests of another party. Yesterday, they violated the conduct provided
in section 208 of the Constitution.
This is why the MDC continues to demand the establishment of an independent complains mechanism provided in section 210 of the Constitution.
Farai Dziva |A 25-year-old man from Mushumbi Pools has been arrested for allegedly killing his with a hammer.
Clive Jimmy of Bandayi village under Chief Chisunga in Mushumbi Pools allegedly killed his father with a hammer after he accused him of witchcraft, according to the police.
Jimmy was not asked to plead when he appeared before Guruve resident magistrate Shingirai Mutiro, who remanded him in custody to April 24.
The state, alleged that Jimmy was convinced by a Mbire traditional healer that family members had caused his mental sickness and failure to marry.
” The accused took a hammer and smashed his father Idaek Jimmy (59)’s head.
His father was rushed to Parirenyatwa hospital where he died the following day,” the court heard.
Farai Dziva|Outspoken MDC A official Tendai Biti has declared that Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube and RBZ governor John Mangudya have dismally failed to transform the country’s economy because they are using “unorthodox ” in a desperate attempt to avert the impending crisis.
Biti said the regime’s attempt to “rig the economy” has backfired.
“Feb 2019 the regime introduced a new currency called the RTGS $.
Two months later the regime announces an intention to introduce another currency .
A national currency is not a change of clothes De-dollarization has failed & will fail no matter what you call the currency #RankMadness”
By Own Correspondent| Former Vice President who is leading a break away faction of the National Patriotic Front (NPF) Dr Joice Teurairopa Mujuru today celebrated her birthday.
Joice Teurairopa Mujuru
Wrote Dr Mujuru:
“It’s my birthday today. Thank you all for the birthday messages.
Farai Dziva|Zimbabweans have described Linda Masarira’ s new political party as a farce.
Commenting on Twitter true solder said :” I am actually failing to say the name out aloud without an inner gulp for some broken english- any one who can help. Another clown vying for a dialogue table”
My Motherland posted:”
Linda don’t break our ribs with laughter plz.”
@PrinceBafethu said:”
Imagine waking up to find Linda as the Head of State, President of gvt , commander in chief of the ZDF and chancellor of all universities… Not only that being capped by Linda for all your degrees.”
By Own Correspondent| Douglas Mwonzora, MDC Alliance secretary general has cited the unfairness of the nomination process as the reason for his withdrawal from participating in the forthcoming party elective congress, a state media report has claimed.
Mwonzora was highly regarded as one of the contenders for the MDC presidential post before withdrawing to settle for the Secretary General post.
He revealed in an interview that he reported the matter to the relevant authorities who took no action.
He said:
“I am no longer able to continue participating in the current congress. I have raised my concerns to the chairperson of the Independent Electoral Commission, ZCTU led by Mr Japhet Moyo but nothing was done.
I therefore had to withdraw because I do not wish to see the party divided.
I cannot continue participating in the congress under the present circumstances if the concerns I have raised remained unresolved.
The secretary general did not disclose the kind of matters that pushed him to withdraw from the race.
He only said:
There are internal but there are a number of concerns that I raised but were not addressed.- StateMedia
Own Correspondent|National Patriotic Front spokesperson Jealous Mawarire has made sensational claims that President Emmerson Mnangagwa and his government imported a contingent of Zambian witch doctors to sort out Gukurahundi spirits following him and some members of his party and government.
Criticising Mnangagwa for prioritising Gukurahundi victims re-burials over getting to the roots of the killings, Mawarire said Mnangagwa and his crew are attacked by the Gukurahundi spirits every night they go to bed forcing them to bring in the witch doctors.
According to Mawarire Mnagagwa’s failure to see priorities in dealing with the issue is because he is being tormented by the spirits.
Reburials are very important to superstitious Gukurahundists who are afraid of reprisals from avenging spirits. Vanoona zvipoko everytime when they go to sleep thats why last week they jetted N'angas from Zambia. Most of their decisions are N'anga inspired hence not rational. https://t.co/6dPZdQFHK6
Mnangagwa, his Deputy Constantino Chiwenga and his Agriculture Minister Perence Shiri are amongst the top government officials accused of directly being involved in executing the Gukurahundi atrocities that killed over 20 000 people in the Matabeleland region shortly after independence.
Mnangagwa announced recently that the government will assist Gukurahundi victims to get birth certificates and death certificates for their relatives who lost their lives during that era.
Former President Robert Mugabe who presided over the government that executed the atrocities described the period as a moment of madness and blocked any discussions on the issue during his reign.
I drove up the window of the Toll Gate and the man on duty asked me ‘Eddie, where are we going?’ He was not asking what my destination was but where did I think the country was going. Last night my daughter attended a parent meeting at the school her son attends and came home saying what a mess everything was in – they could not agree on changes to the school fees.
Eddie Cross
Certainly I can seldom recall a period when people were so angry about the state of things here. The thing that is upsetting people most is the continued instability in money markets – this past week the informal sector rate has crept up and now shadows 5:1. What officials and Ministers do not seem to appreciate is the massive impact of the seemingly small movements in the exchange rate. 3:1 as compared to 4,5:1 represents a 50 per cent increase in prices.
I have worked in the business sector for 60 years but never appreciated to this extent the issue of what economists call ‘price discovery’. People simply do not know what to charge for goods and services. I walked into a fast food place yesterday and the price on the Board was $2,50 for the item I wanted. When I paid for it I was charged $9.00 – implied exchange rate of 3,6:1. The price on the Board was expressed in US dollars. At 5:1 the same item would be $12.50 – 38 per cent higher.
For the second time in a decade our savings have been wiped out, values turned upside down and markets thrown into chaos with a dramatic decline in net disposable income. If you are on a fixed salary or pension (like me) then you are now earning a quarter of what you earned in real terms just a year ago. But prices do not stay constant – fuel and transport charges are up 3 times, in the retail stores prices are all over the place but on average perhaps 4 to 5 times what they were a year ago. Many people must now be on the edge of destitution.
In Sudan the government was overthrown by a Military Coup after bread prices rose in January. Here people just knuckle down and try to survive – but the anger at these conditions simmers just below the surface and trouble could break out at any time. That is why I have been arguing for the Government to take this issue seriously and convene the Tripartite Negotiating Forum (TNF) attended by the Unions, Employers and the State as soon as possible. I spoke to the President himself last week about this and he said he had asked the Minister of Labour to convene the TNF – but still no action. We play with fire by not attending to this.
But there is more to this than just understanding that we must try to restore peoples buying power, we need to understand that the Government has completely changed the basis of our economy in the past few months.
First priority was to balance the budget – this is done and in the last quarter of 2018 revenues rose 43 per cent and a substantial budget surplus was recorded. We have now been able to retire some domestic debt, raise civil servant’s salaries by 18 to 30 per cent and pay December bonuses without borrowing – quite an achievement which has now been recognised by the IMF who have accepted us back onto a Staff Monitored Program – astonishing short at 9 months meaning that they think we are on track.
But up to June 2018 we had been living beyond our means for the previous 4 years – the result an overvalued local currency and a mountain of local debt. In addition – while we grew our economy on the back of growing domestic consumption (something the Chinese are now trying to do) we taxed our formal sector at over 30 per cent of GDP and in addition took billions of dollars from our exporters in a scam which diverted this wealth to subsidies on fuel, food and other essentials as well as a life of luxury for the connected and the corrupt.
Because we have a form of democracy there are always more consumers than producers in any society and this translated into neglect of the productive sector and massive subsidies for the consumptive sectors of our economy. We grew our GDP – but slowly and on a basis that simply could not be sustained. Many of our industries grew fat and lazy on subsidies and protection.
The new Government has dismantled all of that and in a matter of months, the whole basis of the economy has changed – our exporters are now receiving full value for their earnings, our consumers are slowly waking up to a new reality of just what things cost and it’s not pretty. Many firms and Banks have discovered the completely false basis on which they have been operating and are technically bankrupt. We are struggling to try and deal with this new reality.
Ours is a regime that has struggled with its own contradictions and conflicts since it came to power after the overthrow of Mr. Mugabe in 2017. In this context the reformers in the Government, including the President and the Minister of Finance have struggled to secure agreement to the changes needed to secure the future and have faced opposition on many issues. However, they are slowly gaining the ascendency and we must not, under any circumstances, allow the program of reform and change to be derailed.
We must recognise that we are in the process of shifting the whole basis of growth in our economy from consumption and import substitution to export led growth by the productive sector. Global revenues to the export industries have been increased from $3,5 billion to $15,5 billion, an increase of 4,4 times. They are just waking up to this new reality and are awash with local currency.
One small exporter in the South West of the country asked me ‘what do you think I should be doing with my surplus RTGS?’. A year ago he was struggling with liquidation. I advised him not to buy foreign currency as I am sure that once we can get the crooks out of the game the rate is going to strengthen. He should invest in expanding his exports.
Our largest source of foreign currency is our amazing Diaspora – they pour at least US$3 billion a year into our economy – a year ago that was worth RTGS $4,2 billion – today its worth RTGS$12 billion. That is a growth of inflows greater than the national budget. It will take time for this new buying power to feed through to growth but it is coming and that is why I think the IMF forecast of a 5 per cent decline in our economy this year is nonsense. But because this growth has to come from production and not simply consumer spending – it will take time as there is a lag between the resumption of real earnings by exporters and their capacity to increase output.
Is this the right thing to do? You bet it is! You cannot increase the wealth of a nation by just taking in each other’s washing. You must produce things. The Tiger economies of the Far East have transformed the lives of their people and dragged billions of people out of poverty by exporting to the world.
International Trade has expanded at 15 per cent annum since the Second World War and this has been the engine of growth for the whole world. We have not participated in this rush for growth and it is now our turn to do so. Just look at the astonishing transformation of the economies of Rwanda and Ethiopia, now among the fastest growing economies in the world.
For the first time in our history we have a government that is committed to backing the Zimbabwean population – we are a hardworking and enterprising people who have spent our lives trying to survive bad government.
Now we need to get down to business, stop whingeing and make our own way into the future. I cannot think of another country that offers so much opportunity to a person who wants to ‘give it a go!’
Eddie Cross is a former opposition MDC MP for Bulawayo South.
Elias Mudzuri set to be nominate to stand against Chamisa.
Own Correspondent|The on-going MDC Masvingo Province Congress is set to be the first to produce a major shock nomination and probably end in a chaos.
Highly placed sources at the congress which is currently in process indicate that the meeting is highly volatile with tension that may turn violent as the provincial executive led by James Gumbi intends to nominate Engineer Elias Mudzuri for party President against Nelson Chamisa.
The radical James Gumbi-led executive which has always clashed with Chamisa was nominated by most districts unopposed and returned into office.
The sources claimed that, the executive was ready to nominate Secretary General Douglas Mwonzora who since pulled out of the race leaving the executive to throw in Mudzuri in his place.
Another faction in the party led by Tongai Matutu is understood to have been readying itself to fight Mudzuri’s nomination.
Informed sources said that the risk of violence is very high as youth are being given beer in order to prepare for fights.
Own Correspondent|King of AmaNdebele people in South Africa, King Makhosonke II, has crowned Malawian Prophet Shepherd Bushiri the ‘prince’ of his kingdom as part of honoring the preacher for continuous charity work.
Bushiri crowned princePart of the audience at the eventThe coronation audience
The Amandebele is one the largest kingdom in South Africa ruling over a million people stretched across the rainbow nation.
The king sent a powerful, 60-people delegate to pray with Bushiri at Pretoria Showgrounds on Sunday.
The delegate involved prince and princesses, senior traditional leaders and various members of the ruling council.
Leader of the delegate, Prince Thomas who is second in command, told the ECG gathering that King Makhosonke and entire AmaNdebele kingdom embraces Prophet Bushiri as one of the key personalities in South Africa with regards to changing people’s live both spiritually and physically.
“The king has seen how the Prophet has been giving to the less fortunate in South Africa and also touching people’s lives, through healing and deliverance, in his church,” he said.
He added that because of that, the king has now recognized and made Prophet Bushiri part of the kingdom as one of the prince.
“From today, he shall be called Prince Prophet Bushiri and not only that; even the mother of ECG, Prophetess Mary Bushiri as Princess Prophetess Mary,” he said.
Further, the king even allocated a piece of land in his kingdom to church.
In his words, Prophet Bushiri hailed the King for the gesture and emphasized that the crowning will help him do more in terms of charity.
Recently, Prophet Bushiri donated R400 000 to fire victims in Alexandria. A week later, the Prophet support the charity group, Isikhululeka Isizwe charity organization with R300 000.
Farai Dziva |A 25-year-old man from Mushumbi Pools has been arrested for allegedly killing his with a hammer.
Clive Jimmy of Bandayi village under Chief Chisunga in Mushumbi Pools allegedly killed his father with a hammer after he accused him of witchcraft, according to the police.
Jimmy was not asked to plead when he appeared before Guruve resident magistrate Shingirai Mutiro, who remanded him in custody to April 24.
The state alleged that Jimmy was convinced by a Mbire traditional healer that family members had caused his mental sickness and failure to marry.
” The accused took a hammer and smashed his father Idaek Jimmy (59)’s head.
His father was rushed to Parirenyatwa hospital where he died the following day,” the court heard.
Farai Dziva|
Dynamos coach Lloyd Chigowe says he is feeling the heat following Dembare’ s two defeats in as many games.
The Glamour Boys managed a win in the opening match of the campaign but lost the two games that followed.
Their recent slump was a 2-0 defeat against Chicken Inn at Barbourfields Stadium on Saturday which also saw captain Edward Sadomba receiving a red card.
“Dynamos are a big club and just like other clubs they want results, and if they don’t come, you are under pressure,” Chigowe said.
“If the kitchen becomes too hot, you have to get out but I feel I still have to do something.”
The coach believes the team will regroup as most of the players are still adapting after arriving at the club this year.
“Of the 30 players we had in the squad last year, only four remained, so we are still getting together as a team. I think we have the material to do the job,” he added.
Farai Dziva|Manica Diamonds coach Luke Masomere is unhappy with the 2-2 draw against Triangle FC.
Manica Diamonds conceded two late goals to settle for a draw.
The Gem Boys were two goals up in the last five minutes of the game, but Timothy January and Ralph Kawondera netted to end the match in a 2-2 stalemate.
Tendai Mukono and Ishmael Lawe had given the visitors an advantage earlier.
“We gave them two silly goals, we had no stability in defence after Nelson Tachi went out injured and we were punished. I think it was a balanced affair though,” said Masomere.
Farai Dziva|Outspoken MDC A official Tendai Biti has declared that Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube and RBZ governor John Mangudya have dismally failed to transform the country’s economy because they are using “unorthodox ” in a desperate attempt to avert the impending crisis.
Biti said the regime’s attempt to “rig the economy” has backfired.
“Feb 2019 the regime introduced a new currency called the RTGS $.
Two months later the regime announces an intention to introduce another currency .
A national currency is not a change of clothes De-dollarization has failed & will fail no matter what you call the currency #RankMadness”
By Own Correspondent- A Harare family with the assistance of the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights successfully petitioned government authorities to conduct a post mortem for their relative who last month died a few hours after being released from Remand Prison.
The family, which had since last month been given lame excuses by hospital authorities barring them from conducting the post mortem at government run hospitals successfully conducted the post mortem using an independent pathologist.
The deceased, Witness Mashereni had an autopsy done on April 12 2019 despite that he died on February 14 2019.
This was a few hours after being released from Harare Remand Prison, where he was detained after he was arrested on Thursday 14 February 2019 for alleged criminal trespass.
Said the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) in a statement:
An independent pathologist on Friday 12 April 2019 conducted a post-mortem examination on the body of Witness Mashereni, who died last month under mysterious circumstances after his family’s lawyers successfully petitioned the High Court to be granted access to conduct the autopsy to ascertain the cause of death.
Witness’s father Christopher Mashereni, engaged the services of Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, who through the family lawyer Fiona filed an urgent chamber application in the High Court on Tuesday 9 April 2019 seeking an order allowing authorisation of an independent pathologist to carry out the post-mortem examination on the body of the deceased person.
Witness died some few hours after being released from Harare Remand Prison, where he was detained after he was arrested on Thursday 14 February 2019 for alleged criminal trespass.
For close to three weeks after his death, no post-mortem examination had been conducted to determine the cause of his death with Zimbabwean hospital authorities stating that they have no pathologists available to carry out the autopsy.
While Witness’s family engaged an independent pathologist to carry out the post-mortem, authorities at Chitungwiza Central Hospital failed to provide authorisation for the pathologist to carry out the post-mortem at the state-run hospital or alternatively at Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals.
In her court application, Iliff argued that the post-mortem examination needs to be carried out urgently because Witness’s body was decomposing such that the cause of death would be difficult to determine and his family which was mourning for the loss of their relative was eager to bury him
We met Gogo Mavhuyo in Chipinge. #CycloneIdai destroyed her home. She rescued her grandson & along with others in Manicaland is receiving temporary shelter, kitchen kits, aqua tablets, buckets & sleeping mats from @USAID, @theOFDA, @UNHCR, & @Goal_Gobal as they start to rebuild. pic.twitter.com/SJTbKDBzr1
Farai Dziva|Zimbabweans have described Linda Masarira’ s new political party as a farce.
Commenting on Twitter true solder said :” I am actually failing to say the name out aloud without an inner gulp for some broken english- any one who can help. Another clown vying for a dialogue table”
My Motherland posted:”
Linda don’t break our ribs with laughter plz.”
@PrinceBafethu said:”
Imagine waking up to find Linda as the Head of State, President of gvt , commander in chief of the ZDF and chancellor of all universities… Not only that being capped by Linda for all your degrees.”
MDC Alliance secretary general, Mr Douglas Mwonzora has said he withdrew from the presidential election race because the playing field was not even but tilted in favour of his rival Mr Nelson Chamisa.
He launched a scathing attack on party and the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions for failing to address concerns that he had raised. In an interview today, Mr Mwonzora said he had raised an array of irregularities that he said were rampant in the ongoing provincial congresses but the ZCTU which was superintending over the polls had failed to address them.
This, he said, had seen him withdrawing from the race.
“I am no longer able to continue participating in the current congress. I have raised my concerns to the chairperson of the Independent Electoral Commission, ZCTU led by Mr Japhet Moyo but nothing was done. I therefore had to withdraw because I do not wish to see the party divided,” said Mr Mwonzora.
“I cannot continue participating in the congress under the present circumstances if the concerns I have raised remained unresolved.” Asked why he announced that he would contest the post of the secretary general, Mr Mwonzora said the statement was based on his desire to respect those who had nominated him to that post.
Pressed to divulge the concerns he had raised Mr Mwonzora referred questions to Mr Moyo.
“There are internal but there are a number of concerns that I raised but were not addressed,” he said.
When contacted for comment, Mr Moyo confirmed receiving the letter from Mr Mwonzora but said the committee had not yet sat to deliberate on them.
Farai Dziva|The MDC A has accused Emmerson Mnangagwa of using cheap political manoeuvres to hoodwink the nation.
MDC A spokesperson Jacob Mafume said:”
Mnangagwa set up a commission to investigate the killing of people and before the ink had dried on the report of the commission, his government killed more people. That is inconsistency.
Now he is talking about compensation. Why should the taxpayer pay when no one has owned up for accountability yet? What happened to the officials that committed the killings? What has happened to the officials that committed the other (January) killings?
This does not make sense and only adds salt to injury.
The Motlanthe Commission nailed the army for killings and recommended that the people responsible for killing civilians be identified and punished. That has not been done up to now.”
By Nomusa Garikai- “I now realise that corruption is deep-rooted. I thought that by pronouncing that let’s fight corruption those who are corrupt will fear and stop; it’s not like that. It’s so rooted that you have to fight it from A to Z.” admitted President Mnangagwa in Independence Day interview with ZBC.
In 2016 Mugabe had admitted the country was being “swindled” out of US$15 billion in diamond revenue. He never arrested even one diamond swindler. When Mnangagwa took over from Mugabe following the November 2017 military coup, he had there would be “zero tolerance on corruption”.
We know the loot has continued to this day because the mining is still going
on 24/7 and yet collected government revenue has at “1/6 of expected
revenue”, former Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa told parliament last
time the regime reported on the matter.
So after a year and a half in office, Mnangagwa too, just like Mugabe, has failed to arrest even one swindler. What a feeble excuse for his shocking failure. He is only “NOW realising that corruption is deep-rooted” when corruption has grown and spread these last 39 years from an irritating cough into the killer cancer today. He has a senior member of the Zanu PF regimes that have governed the nation and done nothing to end the corruption. Nothing!
The truth is Mnangagwa will never ever stamp out corruptions because corruption is so deep rooted it includes most, if not all, of the Zanu PF ruling elite including VP Constantino Chiwenga and President Mnangagwa himself. We all know that VP Chiwenga did not build his C&M palatial mansion, his vast business empire, bought his fleet of cars, bought the 45 gold watches, etc., etc. from the Commander’s wages alone!
President Mnangagwa is believed to be one of the richest individuals in Zimbabwe. He is one of the senior Zanu PF leaders named in the UN report as the foreigners behind the wholesale looting of resources in the DRC during the civil war in that country.
It is hard enough for the squeaky clean to stamp out corruption; it is near impossible for those who have profited and continue to profit from corruption to stamp it out! What makes our situation particularly annoying is that Mnangagwa and his Zanu PF cronies have rigged elections to stay in power against the people’s democratic will so they can loot.
Mnangagwa and his Zanu PF junta rigged last year’s elections and surprise,
surprise, the looting has continued. “I now realise that corruption is deep-
rooted!” Yes corrupt is deep-rooted but so too is Zanu PF’s vote-rigging
skills.
So if we are ever going to uprooting Zimbabwe’s deep-root corruption then we must first uproot the Zanu PF dictatorship and cure ourselves of the vote-rigging curse. Zanu PF has no mandate to govern given the party blatantly rigged the July 2018 elections. The party must step down to allow the appointment of an interim administration whose principle task will be to implement the democratic reforms designed to stop Zanu PF rigging elections.
A competent government elected in free, fair and credible elections and freed of the Zanu PF dictatorship baggage will confront and deal with corrupt, mismanagement, lawlessness and all the other economic and political problems that have bedevilled the nation.
“However, I am happy that you find people who support the fight against corruption in all these institutions. In the police, not everybody is corrupt; in prosecution institutions, not everybody is corrupt; in the judiciary, not everybody is corrupt,” continued Mnangagwa.
“So because of that we are gaining traction slowly, not as speedily as I had
expected. As you realise, there are so many cases of corruption now in the
courts.”
Nonsense! There is not one case of a diamond swindler in the court. Not one! And so the country will continue to lose billions of dollars every month in diamond revenue alone!
Zimbabwe is standing right on the edge of the precipice with the country’s economy in total meltdown. ¾ of our people now living on US$30 per month or less, basic services such as supply of clean water and health care have all but collapse, etc. The country is looking for decisive and urgent action to end such man-made problems as corruption and end the economic crisis a.s.a.p. Mnangagwa is not going to end corruption; how can he, when he is the godfather of corruption!
Mnangagwa and his Zanu PF cronies did not rig last year’s elections so they can end vote rigging, corruption, etc. and dismantle the Zanu PF dictatorship the system that has kept them in power all these last 39 years. They rigged the elections to make sure the corruption and the dictatorship remain in place untouched.
The only way to end corrupt, mismanagement, restore good governance is by forcing Mnangagwa and his illegitimate regime to step down. There is no other solution!
The people of Sudan have rejected the removal of Omar Al-Bashir with a military regime led by the former dictator’s cronies. They are demanding a civilian interim administration in which even those opposition politicians who had worked with Al Bashir will have no role. We, in Zimbabwe should have done the same thing following the November 2017 removal of Mugabe!
Mnangagwa has proven beyond all doubt that he is just as corrupt, incompetent and tyrannical as Mugabe. His so called “new dispensation, the Second Republic” are nothing but the flip side of the same Mugabe coin!
Farai Dziva|The Grain Millers Association of Zimbabwe has announced that the price of mealie meal will go up by 70%.
This has been cause by the announcement of new producer prices by government.
“There is going to be an increase, we can’t stomach 70%. Today’s meeting was to discuss the next maize meal prices.
We have agreed on the new prices and when we are going to increase it, but we cannot announce it to you before we inform the government about it.
South America gives us maize. We think South America is going to be our biggest source of maize coming this season. We are not quite sure of how much they will be able to export to us given the disturbances in Venezuela.
However, our first priority is the region so I will be leading a delegation to Zambia and South Africa to see how much maize we can get in the region.
If there is any excess required then we will approach the Southern Americans,” the association told a daily newspaper.
Jane Mlambo| President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s new dispensation is bragging about paying former First Lady Janet Banana, the wife of Zimbabwe’s first President Canaan Banana.
In his Independence speech, Mnangagwa said Banana’s wife is receiving her dues which she had been denied during the former President Robert Mugabe’s era.
We cannot deny that she is our former First Lady — President Mnangagwa said — and she is now receiving her dues which had been denied her in the previous era.
It will also be recalled that President Mnangagwa in 2017 took a similar compassionate stand regarding former opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, securing his pension and house, among other entitlements.
Tongai Matutu arrives for the MDC A Masvingo Provincial Congress.Matutu is vying for the provincial chairmanship and he is battling it out with James Gumbi
By Own Correspondent | More than 10 members of the Mugodhi Apostolic Church at Chitope in Wedza are feared dead after a truck loaded with maize bags veered off the road and ploughed into the congregants, who were at a church session.
The driver of the truck was seriously injured.
Dozens of congregants were reportedly seriously injured in the accident.
This is a developing story. More details to follow…
ADHOC COMPENSATION WORKING GROUP This is the Group dealing with farm improvements compensation issues. It’s comprising of Government officials and representatives of former farm owners. It is the group that will come up with quantum figures to be paid to each former farmer.
— Ministry of Information, Publicity & Broadcasting (@InfoMinZW) April 15, 2019
By Stanley Goreraza| Even if he retains his position as Secretary General, he does so in a lame duck robe.
He will spend the rest of his career brown nosing , if his tongue doesn’t turn black from licking Wambas black shoes. He will spend most of his time working hard to impress Wamba and assure him of his loyalty, even if it’s against his conscience. Wamba has him by the crown jewels between his legs.
Dougie has proved he cannot be relied on for principle and that every decision he makes, Douglas Mwonzora always comes first. Not the party, not principles, not his supporters. It is always about what he himself is going to get out of what he decides.
Dougie isn’t a fighter. He doesn’t fight for what he believes in which means he stands for nothing. His legendary philandering within the MDC makes him an unethical man who uses sexual favours to gain sympathy and support.
It’s probably one of the reasons Gertrude Chuma dumped him. She had hired him to handle her divorce from Baba Tanya when he seduced her. A man of his stature should be discreet but no, he would drive to Rujeko B, park his car by the gate in Rwaivhi street and spend the night there. Gertrude would campaign for him in Masvingo but not after she found out he seeded a younger woman, a member of the MDC like herself.
Loyalty and commitment are not Mwonzora’s strong suits. He will not think twice betraying anyone if he thought it would profit him. To cut a long story short, Douglas Mwonzora isn’t a leader.
It is a known fact that you hate your former party, the MDC to the bone, but to say you would rather share a table with Emmerson Mnangagwa who boasted about the killing of innocent, defenceless civilians, but cannot live in Zimbabwe if it is under the leadership of an MDC leader, then it becomes very obvious that you have been smoking something very dangerous to your health.
Slow down Obert, every other sane Zimbabwean would wish for the quickest removal of Emmerson Mnangagwa and Zanu PF from the throne, yet you judge the MDC worse than Zanu PF.
How many Zimbabweans did Zanu PF kill, including those who were killed in the election that saw you appointed into Government as Deputy Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs of Zimbabwe, let alone those who were killed during Gukurahundi.
Good luck in your glossing over of the atrocities committed by Zanu PF, in which your new friend Emmerson Mnanangwa played a crucial role, and still refuses to apologise for the key role he played in ensuring that thousands of people from Matebeleland were killed.
By Own Correspondent- The National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ)’s revival is ongoing as the parastatal seeks to finalise a deal with South Africa’s Transnet and a consortium of local investors, the Diaspora Infrastructure Development Group, it has emerged.
This was revealed by the company’s general manager Lewis Mukwada who also said that in total, NRZ requires $400 million for recapitalisation.
He said:
“Out of that $400 million (recapitalisation deal), about $120 million or so is going towards the track infrastructure itself, a further $100 million or so is going towards signalling and communication, information communication technology and so on.
Then the balance will go towards new locomotives, new wagons and rehabilitation of the existing locomotives and wagons. So… we looked at our system and then identified the critical areas where we needed to invest. That’s how we came up with that budget of $400 million.
We have just been given another six months to pursue the discussions [with Transnet] further and as we talk, next week we are going to be engaging again with the consortium in further negotiations and further discussions to push the deal.”-Newsday
Jane Mlambo| Zanu PF has never hidden its desire to have MDC Secretary General Douglas Mwonzora take over the party presidency from the youthful Nelson Chamisa.
With Mwonzora having pulled out of the race, Zanu PF is the biggest loser as their leader Emmerson Mnangagwa is definitely going to square off again with Chamisa in the 2023 general elections, something they were hoping to escape through supporting the embattled party Secretary General.
In announcing his pullout from the race, Mwonzora said he is now going for the Secretary General position as he has unfulfilled business.
The news of Mwonzora pullout has also been received with jubilation within the MDC circles as Chamisa will now be uncontested.
It remains to be seen if vice President Elias Mudzuri will bag a single nomination to qualify him to face off Chamisa come the 24th of May.
By Own Correspondent- MDC-T vice president Obert Gutu has threatened to go into exile if MDC leader Nelson Chamisa ever becomes the president of Zimbabwe.
Gutu is said to be a very bitter man since the acrimonious split of the party that was led by the late Morgan Tsvangirai soon after his death in 2018.
Gutu followed Khupe to form a splinter group that failed to win a single contested parliamentary or council seat in the 2018 elections. He is quoted as saying:
“I’m a principled and self-respecting professional and politician and I will never, ever sacrifice my beliefs and principles for hollow populism, fakeness, chicanery, tomfoolery, buffoonery, wanton violence and misguided ambition clothed with rampant corruption.
I can bet you my bottom RTGS dollar that in the very unlikely event that these charlatans manage to cheat their way to State House at No.1 Chancellor Avenue in Harare, I will immediately relocate and go to live outside Zimbabwe. I just can’t stand them.
I have got nothing but utter contempt for their emptiness, fakeness, lack of vision, lack of mission, greed, malice, violence and corruption.
And if you think that my political career is over, then you should closely watch out for events that will be taking place in the next few months. My learned friend, I’m still very much in the mix. Watch the space!”-Zoom Zimbabwe
By Own Correspondent- The Grain Millers Association of Zimbabwe (GMAZ) has said that the price of mealie meal is set rise following the recently effected 70 percent price increases of maize.
The government recently announced new producer prices for grains and other crops.
Addressing the media on the sidelines of a meeting with Southern Region Millers in Bulawayo GMAZ chairman Tafadzwa Musarara said:
“There is going to be an increase, we can’t stomach 70%. Today’s meeting was to discuss the next maize meal prices.
We have agreed on the new prices and when we are going to increase it, but we cannot announce it to you before we inform the government about it.
South America gives us maize. We think South America is going to be our biggest source of maize coming this season. We are not quite sure of how much they will be able to export to us given the disturbances in Venezuela.
However, our first priority is the region so I will be leading a delegation to Zambia and South Africa to see how much maize we can get in the region. If there is any excess required then we will approach the Southern Americans.”-Newsday
By Own Correspondent| A 25-year-old man from Mushumbi Pools who hammered his father to death over witchcraft allegations has been hauled before a Guruve magistrates court on murder allegations.
Clive Jimmy of Bandayi village under Chief Chisunga in Mushumbi Pools allegedly killed his father with a hammer after he was told by a traditional healer that his father had bewitched him.
He was not asked to plead when he appeared before magistrate Shingirai Mutiro, who remanded him in custody to April 24.
Carson Kundiona, representing the state, alleged that Jimmy was convinced by a Mbire traditional healer that family members had caused his mental sickness and failure to marry.
He then took a hammer and smashed his father Idaek Jimmy (59)’s head.
He was rushed to Parirenyatwa hospital where he died the following day.-Newsday
Own Correspondent|First Lady Auxilia Mnangagwa has been kicked out of State House because of her earth quake behaviour on staff members at the country’s number one home leaving her exposed as yet another Grace Mugabe if not worse.
Birds of the safe feather, Grace Mugabe with Auxilia Mnangagwa.
Staff at State House have actually described Auxillia as worse than Grace with one source telling ZimEye, “Amai is doing the opposite of what she is doing in public.
Auxilia with husband Emmerson Mnangagwa
“The difference between Auxillia and Grace is that Amai becomes very physical. Vamwe Amai vaingokutuka parally, vamwe vanotokurova kumba.”
Zimbabweans generally never believed that there could be people worse than both Grace Mugabe and her husband former President Robert, but the Mnangagwas have proven everyone wrong.
Grace and Robert Mugabe
On numerous occasions, Grace was accused of conflating the institution of marriage with that of the presidency.
Known for her unrestricted and stinging attacks, especially at public forums, Grace accused many Zanu PF leaders from politburo members, war veterans, the military bosses, her own colleagues in the women’s league and Mugabe’s close allies of plotting against her 94-year-old husband.
Critics argue Grace’s insatiable desire to meddle in Mugabe’s duties and her penchant for publicly attacking senior party and government officials catalysed the former leader’s removal from power last November.
Mugabe was removed from power in November last year at the height of the interface rallies, where he and his wife took turns to attack their political enemies in Zanu PF, including Mnangagwa.
Besides addressing her own set of rallies, Grace usually became the centre of attraction at Zanu PF gatherings, even those addressed by her husband.
For that, she earned herself the moniker, Dr Stop It!
The investigation showed how female State Residence employees were attacked by Auxillia upon merely smiling at her husband, Emmerson while greeting him. More stench emerged as many were sent home on various spurrious allegations. Auxillia even got to the point of assigning her own brother, Paradzai Kutyauripo who has a criminal conviction, the job of Director.
The Registrar-General’s Office is co-operating with the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission in its inquiries into allegations of delays in the issuance of passports and national identification documents.
The investigations come after members of the public complained that the department was taking time to process passports and identity documents.
In an interview, Registrar-General Mr Clement Masango said he was aware of the inquiries that were being conducted and assured the people that their offices were ready to serve.
“I am aware the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission is carrying out an inquiry following complaints by some members of the public or sections of community that they were getting challenges in accessing our services, especially getting IDs and birth registration for various reasons,” he said.
“However, I want to make it clear that as a department we are available in the manner that we are decentralised and available to serve everyone who calls at our offices. We don’t discriminate, our offices are open because they are public offices.”
Mr Masango said they were taking their services to the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair and also exhibiting at all annual agricultural shows countrywide.
“And when we exhibit we issue birth certificates on the spot and any other services that we can dispense outside the normal office, but obviously we can’t process passports,” he said.
“What we can do is we issue passport forms.
“But, however, in the circumstances I wouldn’t want to comment on what the commission is investigating, but those concerns have been brought to our attention.
“I would rather wait and allow the commission to carry on with its work and hear what they are going to come up with. What we have done is to collaborate with the commission on its inquiry. They visited us and we gave them audience to explain various processes done by the department.”
Mr Masango said the department will continue to discharge its mandate which is primarily to issue national ID documents, register birth and deaths, marriages and processing and issuance of travelling documents, passports and temporary travel documents.
“The department is represented in all provinces, the 10 administrative provinces,” he said.
“We also have offices in 62 administrative districts and we have over 200 sub-offices countrywide. So, in terms of decentralisation I think we are fairly decentralised because we are almost everywhere.
“Of course, we are aware of the need to further decentralise even though we have sub-offices in districts, there are still areas were our people have to travel for more than 30 kilometres to get to the nearest office of the Registrar-General in the district. Government is attending to that.”
South African police said on Sunday they had found 167 rhino horns believed to be destined for Asia and nabbed two suspects in a sting operation in the North West province.
The two were arrested on Saturday following a tip off that there was a car transporting rhino horns some of which are suspected to have been from neighbouring Botswana and Zimbabwe.
It is one of the biggest hauls of rhino horns in the country, according to the Hawks.
“We arrested them on Saturday in the Hartbeespoort dam area. They were driving in a vehicle and they were intercepted,” Hawks spokesperson Brigadier Hangwani Mulaudzi said.
“It was an intelligence-driven operation that led to the arrest of the two. They were found in possession of those 167 rhino horns,” he said, adding “it is one of biggest (hauls)”.
The suspects aged 57 and 61 years are expected to appear in the Brits town magistrate’s court on Monday.
Police said the rhino horns worth a “substantial amount of money” were destined for the Southeast Asian markets.
Demand for rhino horn is primarily fuelled by consumers in China and Vietnam where it is advertised by some traditional medicine practitioners as a wonder ingredient.
In reality rhino horn is a nostrum, comprised of little more than keratin, the same protein that makes human hair and fingernails.
Nonetheless horn can fetch up to $60 000/kg in Asia, stoking lucrative transnational crime networks that have decimated rhino populations in recent decades.
South Africa, which is home to about 80% of the world rhino population, has been hit hardest. In 2018, 769 rhinos were poached in South Africa alone. More than 7 100 animals have been killed over the past decade.
FORMER Zimbabwean commercial farmers have lodged a nearly R2 billion compensation claim against the South African government for presiding over the dissolution of the Sadc Tribunal.
Willie Spies, the legal representative of AfriForum, a South African civil rights initiative, lodged papers in South Africa’s Pretoria High Court this week for a claim of R1,9 billion against the South African government and Presidency.
In a statement, Sadc Tribunal Rights Watch spokesperson Ben Freeth said commercial farmers and farming businesses suffered damages as a result of the dissolution of the Windhoek-based Sadc Tribunal, by the regional Heads of State, including former President Jacob Zuma.
The Heads of State, among them former President Robert Mugabe, in 2014 signed a new protocol that prevented all Sadc citizens from accessing the tribunal for any cause whatsoever.
“Fortunately, they did not manage to get the number of signatures required from other Heads of State to change the Sadc Protocol. As a result, the previous protocol remains in force and the Sadc Tribunal merely requires funding and political will so that it can once again uphold justice and human rights as per the Sadc Treaty,” Freeth said.
He said in the absence of the tribunal judges being enabled to do this, the farmers embarked on a case against Zuma, for being complicit in breaking the Sadc Treaty and denying Sadc citizens the right to justice.
“This case culminated in an excellent judgment in South Africa’s Constitutional Court in December 2018, that declared President Zuma’s actions in closing down the Sadc Tribunal as irrational, unconstitutional and, indeed, unlawful,” Freeth said.
“We hope that this latest case will be a ceremonial raising of the flag for justice within Sadc and will herald the reopening of the Sadc Tribunal for victims of injustice across the region.
“Furthermore, we hope that other victims of injustice will add impetus to this movement by joining with the case within the prescribed time period. A summons must be served within six months of December 11, 2018, that is by June 11, 2019.”
Violent land invasions were initiated in Zimbabwe in 2000, resulting in the mass-scale destruction of property, crops and livestock, as well as brutal attacks on farmers and farm workers countrywide.
“Initially, the Zimbabwean courts upheld the rule of law, but after they themselves were invaded, judges who had stood up to the Mugabe government were forced out of office and many of those who remained became compromised,” Freeth said.
Mike Campbell, a commercial farmer and large-scale mango exporter from Chegutu district, in 2005 lodged a court case in the local courts that protested the lawless and racial nature of the farm invasions.
In 2007, after exhausting all access to legal recourse in Zimbabwe, Campbell’s case was lodged in the Sadc Tribunal which was heard by five judges, and their final and binding judgment was given on November 28, 2008.
“This allowed Mike and the 78 other commercial farmers who had joined the case, together with their workers, to remain in peaceful residence on their farms without interference in their farming operations,” Freeth said.
“Regrettably, President Mugabe openly defied the judgment and all but one of the 78 Sadc Tribunal-protected applicants were subsequently forced off their properties under brutal and lawless conditions.
“After the Zimbabwe government had been held in contempt of court by the Sadc Tribunal, President Mugabe managed to get the tribunal judges suspended from office in 2012.”
TWO women, who were part of a terror gang arrested in connection with a number of armed robbery cases in Marondera and Goromonzi, were on Friday arraigned before Marondera magistrate Arnold Maburo.
The two were facing armed robbery and possession of ammunition charges.
Hazvineyi Masiyakurima (22), wife to the terror gang leader Solomon Nyamukondiwa (32) and Memory Mushonga (26) of Marondera were charged together with their male accomplices.
Masiyakurima, who is heavily pregnant was charged alongside her husband for unlawful possession of a firearm and live ammunition.
They will return to court on April 24 for trial.
On April 8, detectives who were investigating Nyamukondiwa received information that the suspect was residing at House Number 2448 Damofalls in Ruwa.
They raided the house and found Masiyakurima at home. With her consent, they searched the bedroom and recovered a Benard Elly 7x65mm pistol with seven
rounds.
Also recovered from the same room were 2×12 bore rounds, 3x9mm live rounds and 11×7,65mm live rounds.
Upon interrogation, Masiyakurima indicated that the recovered firearm belonged to her husband Nyamukondiwa. Masiyakurima was then made to lure her husband
which she did leading to the arrest of the suspect. The duo failed to produce a firearm licence.
In the other case, on March 14, at around lunch time, Mushonga and her accomplices met at Richflow Shop in Nyameni where she informed them that the complainant Sebastian Matsikiti (35) was keeping large sums of money at his house.
On the same day, the gang pounced on their unsuspecting victim.
Neighbours heard the complainant’s wife screaming and rushed to the scene. Nyamukondiwa allegedly fired two warning shots in the air resulting in the
residents scampering for cover. The gang then force-marched Matsikiti into his house, ransacked it and stole a Nokia Cellphone before getting away in his vehicle which had a black bag containing RTGS$1 200 and US$60.
The later dumped the vehicle at Corner Harare Drive and Arcturus Road after taking four wheel covers and a spare wheel. The police also recovered a 32/7,65
spent cartridge at the complainant’s house which matched with the Benard Elly found in possession of Nyamukondiwa.
The pistol was stolen from former judicial officer Jacqueline Vongai Pratt at her Goromonzi Farm during an armed robbery in February.
Nyamukondiwa and his accomplice Ephraim Alfas (32) are facing five counts of armed robbery and will return to court on May 3 for trial.
MDC leader Nelson Chamisa on Friday afternoon caused a stir at Rudhaka Stadium in Marondera after he unexpectedly appeared at the venue where Mashonaland East Provincial elections were underway.
The process came to a halt as MDC members who were participating in the process ran to see the vibrant youth leader whose visit was described as a move to canvas for support for the presidential position that is also being eyed by secretary general Douglas Mwonzora.
In his four-minute address to the delegates at Rudhaka Stadium, Chamisa said it is high time he take off the late leader Morgan Tsvangirai’s “jacket” and put on his own.
“This is not a rally, but I just said let me pass and see what is happening. Thank you for the non-violence (process), thank you for the peace. I have no doubt that the voting process you have just done reflects your will. Let’s choose a leadership that is capable. I was putting on Tsvangirai’s jacket until the congress. But after that you are going to give me mine,” he said to wild cheers.
The 41-year-old politician also took a swipe at President Emmerson Mnangagwa, accusing him of failing to steer the country as reflected by the increases in prices of basic commodities.
Chamisa was endorsed by the province as their presidential candidate, while Tracy Mutinhiri, Tendai Biti and Morgen Komichi were nominated for the deputy presidency.
The province nominated Thabitha Khumalo as chairperson.
The election process was led by Highfield West legislator Happymore Chidziva.
Justice Priscilla Chigumba cited as first responded
MUTASA Central ward 10 councillor Frank Chitembwe, whose seat was declared vacant following his incarceration for public violence, has filed an urgent High Court application seeking an order to set aside the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec)’s decision to hold a by-election on May 11.
The application comes after the nomination court sat early this month with three candidates successfully filing their papers.
Through his lawyers Chris Ndlovu of Gonese and Ndlovu legal practitioners and David Tandiri, Chitembwe, released on bail pending appeal, cited (Zec) chairperson Priscilla Chigumba as the first respondent, while Mutasa Rural District Council chairperson Tonderai Bandure was cited at the second respondent.
The three candidates Tanyaradzwa Rose Mukodza (MDC) Justice Chirimo (NCA) and Magret Tindika (Zanu PF) were cited as the other respondents.
Chitembwe was slapped with a two-year jail term for public violence during the January 14-16 fuel price hike protests before he successfully applied for
bail pending appeal last week.
In his application at the High Court on Friday he said he is seeking the intervention of the court to nullify Zec’s decision to hold the by-election on May 11.
“The first respondent (Zec) has set in motion the process of a by-election in ward 10 of Mutasa Rural District council. The nomination court has considered and accepted the nominations from prospective candidates,” reads the application.
“Now that I am out of custody and am free to serve my ward and my community, I now seek the honourable court to intervene and set aside the actions of the
Zimbabwe Electoral Commission to hold the by election in ward 10 of Mutasa Rural District council,” the application read.
“In fact, I dare say that at the time the second respondent Mutasa Rural District council notified Zec of a vacancy in ward 10 Mutasa Rural District Council no such vacancy existed.
“I had duly filed my notice of appeal and I had not been convicted of an offense involving dishonesty, breach of trust and physical violence.
“Our wish is that the declaration by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission of a vacant seat for ward 10 in Mutasa Rural District Council is hereby set aside,” reads the application
“The nomination of the third to the fifth respondent as candidates in scheduled by-election of Mutasa Rural District Council Ward 10 be and hereby set aside.”
The investigation showed how female State Residence employees were attacked by Auxillia upon merely smiling at her husband, Emmerson while greeting him. More stench emerged as many were sent home on various spurrious allegations. Auxillia even got to the point of assigning her own brother, Paradzai Kutyauripo who has a criminal conviction, the job of Director.
The latest of the scandal has seen Auxillia being pushed out of State House by her husband. “She is now confined to Zimbabwe House,” an impeccable source told ZimEye.
This update is as at last Friday.
They continued saying, ” She has also been ordered not to interfere with official affairs at State House,” they added.
Former Health and Child Care Minister David Parirenyatwa’s application for review was last week dismissed by a Harare magistrate.
Parirenyatwa is facing criminal abuse of office charges after he replaced National Pharmaceutical Company (NatPharm) managing director Florence Nancy Sifeku with Newman Madzikwa.
Parirenyatwa appeared before magistrate Mr Elijah Makomo seeking leave to approach the High Court for review of the audio recordings because of irregularities in the transcript served by the State.
Parirenyatwa’s lawyers described the audio as inaudible and the transcript was not consistent with the handwritten notes of the court proceedings.
Harare magistrate Mr Elijah Makomo dismissed the application and said it was made for purposes of delaying proceedings.
“What makes the application before this court more tenuous and frivolous is that a full record is available as maintained by the court,” he said. “The only argument is the differences in the use of words or choice of words between the court and the defence.
“It is only guess work at this particular point as to what those differences are.”
Mr Makomo said mere differences in what transpired cannot be a ground for seeking a review.
ONLY 60 percent of Zimbabwean women have the ability to make decisions about contraception and safer sex negotiations, a report from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) 2019 State of World Population shows.
According to the report which was released last Tuesday, a survey across 51 countries where this information is available concluded that an aggregate of 57 percent of women who are married or in a relationship are able to make their own choices on their reproductive health rights.
The UNFPA report published for the first time data on women’s ability to make decisions over three key areas: sexual intercourse with their partner, contraception use and health care. “Only 60 percent of women have decision making ability on sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights. The country however, has a 66 percent prevalence of family planning which is higher than most countries where women still have no access to any method,” read the report.
UNFPA executive director Dr Natalia Kanem said despite some gains, vast numbers of women around the world are not empowered to make fundamental decisions about their own bodies.
“We still have a long way to go before all women and girls have the power and the means to govern their own bodies and make informed decisions about their sexual and reproductive health,” she said.
“The efforts of the reproductive rights movements have dramatically reduced the number of unintended pregnancies and maternal deaths, and have cleared the way for healthier, more productive lives for untold millions”.
The report shows that 200 million women worldwide who want to prevent a pregnancy do not have access to contraceptives.
“Gaps in access to sexual and reproductive health services also disproportionately impact marginalised groups. For example, women and girls with disabilities are often not seen as needing information about sexual and reproductive health. Only 35 percent of young people with disabilities used contraceptives during their first sexual encounter and 63 percent had an unplanned pregnancy,” read the report.
The Electoral Court has dismissed an appeal by a losing Zanu PF candidate to overturn the Chinhoyi ward one results.
Tapera Mutovido, who lost by two votes in the recent elections, petitioned the court, challenging the outcome of results and calling for a recount of the votes.
Mutovido was alleging that MDC Alliance winning candidate Sairos Good won unfairly.
He was also alleging a presiding officer at one of the polling stations unfairly converted spoilt ballots into ballots supposedly cast in favour of Good. But Justice Mushore dismissed the petition saying it was “fatally defective”.
Good welcomed the judgement, saying he could now start having meetings in his ward without any hindrance from Zanu PF members.
IN JANUARY, EMMERSON MNANGAGWA PUBLICLY INDICATED THAT THERE IS INSUBORDINATION IN THE ARMY. WHAT HAS CHANGED SINCE THEN, AND HAS THE SITUATION BECOME BETTER?
By Chris Tongogara| They say those who live by the sword will die by the sword, after being assisted by the army to grab power from his mentor, Robert Mugabe, Emmerson Mnangagwa is now struggling to appease disgruntled military bosses who are pushing for his immediate resignation, it has emerged.
From the White City bombing, whither now? As the nation nears commemorating the first annivesary of the so called “assassination attempt” on Mnangagwa last year in June, the generals appear in a sudden turn. The army bosses, it has emerged, are not happy that Mnangagwa is not maintaining his part of the bargain to relinquish power to his now deputy Constantino Guvheya Chiwenga.
Sources privy to the developments revealed that the army bosses are also not happy that the man who is at the helm of power is demoting by promotion senior army chefs.
Mnangagwa who now faces a war from two fronts, the intelligence and the army, last week spoke saying there are people who do not want him to continue as president.
Recently, Mnangagwa promoted two Brigadier-Generals to the rank of Major-General and one Air Commodore to Air Vice-Marshal in accordance with Section 15(1) (B) (Chapter 11:02) of the Defence Act.
The newly promoted Major-Generals namely Kazirai Tazira, William Dube and Air Vice-Marshal Biltim Chingono join other recently promoted army chefs namely Air Lieutenant General Martin Chedondo, Lieutenant General Douglas Nyikayaramba, Lieutenant General Anselem Sanyatwe and Air Marshal Sheba Shumbayawonda.
“The promotions aims at neutralizing the army by bringing on board new faces,” said the source.
Suggestions that the Chiwenga gunners are standing against Mnangagwa were last week shot down by Mnangagwa’s nephew, Temba Mliswa who described them as “dreaming.”
Mliswa said there are no such factional fights. He also said Mnangagwa and his deputy Constantino Chiwenga are actually “inseparables.”
“Anyone who ever dreams that there are factions in ZANU-PF is a pathetic dreamer. ED and Chiwenga are inseparable.
“To pin any hopes on perceived factions in ZANU-PF is not only retrogressive, it’s folly,” Mliswa said.
But the bloody events running from June 2018 reflect the very opposite of Mliswa’s claims. A sophisticated hand grenade used only by the military was flung towards the presidium at the White Stadium last year. The grenade is the type that kills only two people while injuring the rest, and while some sources allege it was meant to assassinate Mnangagwa, others say it was Chiwenga and his wife who were targeted. The investigation into who did it has somewhat collapsed. Was this grenade meant for members of the presidium, or it was someone else?
ANOTHER SHARP OPPOSITE
Some analysts point to another opposite: They allege that it was infact Mnangagwa faction members who did the White City act in order to freeze up the military threat. They point to how Emmerson Mnangagwa managed to escape the bombing without a speck of dust on his skin. They see this as evidence that he was fully aware of the military attack. This allegation once again does not have any supporting evidence apart from verbal testimonials making the allegation. It is said that the military officers behind the White City bombing were all “sent to sleep,” as alleged.
SO WHAT WILL HAPPEN HEREAFTER?
Emmerson Mmangagwa Mnangagwa on Thursday cautioned young people to be wary of party cadres with unbridled ambitions who may want to cause disunity in the ruling revolutionary organisation, Zanu PF, The Herald reported.
His remarks came while addressing the Zanu-PF National Youth Assembly in Harare where he also disclosed that his leadership will never allow “mafia-style” handling of Zanu-PF issues and urged party members to follow laid down procedures when settling grievances.
“If any members or structures of the party have any grievances, the laid-out rules, regulations and procedures must be followed,” said Mnangagwa.
“I know of some comrades who have been suspended or expelled, but no procedures were followed. That is not proper. When we are dealing with party issues you put aside your personal differences with the persons concerned. You must obey and follow the rules and procedures of the constitution, otherwise you will find yourselves in the wrong. Divisive, opportunistic or mafia-style handing of party affairs will never be accepted. You may feel that you are smart, but let me tell you this party, Zanu-PF, is always smarter.”
Over the past few months, votes of no confidence have been passed against some officials of the party’s national youth league executive recently and reports of similar actions were being initiated in other provinces.
The Zanu-PF Politburo put a stop to the unprocedural acts which had affected the youths’ leader Pupurai Togarepi, Deputy Secretary Lewis Matutu, Administration Secretary Tendai Chirau, Admire Mahachi and Mercy Mugomo.
“As you carry out both your political and development programmes you must be wary of those with brute, unbridled ambition and political gladiators. Be vigilant and alert as they may seek to sow seeds of disunity amongst yourselves, within the party and ultimately in the nation, for their own selfish ends. You must always foster loyalty, respect, honesty and integrity. Guard against silo mentality and self-centred behaviour. Continue to fight against corruption by exposing any suspected acts in every sphere of society,” said Mnangagwa.
Mwonzora has apparently backed Chamisa and declared his candidature for the Secretary-General post of the party instead, where he will still face tough challenge from widely nominated Chalton Hwende.
Sources said that the deal was struck on Satutrday evening at the instigation of the Chamisa camp.
“Party leader (Nelson Chamisa) called Mwonzora to a deal last night. The deal was struck by Tendai Biti and Welshman Ncube in a bid to ensure the party remains intact and that Advocate Chamisa’s imminent victory at the Congress is not dented by accusations of voter manipulation.
“So, as it stands, Advocate Chamisa will cruise uncontested,” said a source close to the Mwonzora camp.
It was proving to be a tall order for Mwonzora, who a few months back has been throwing punches around saying he will contest for any position should he be nominated.
But more than halfway into the provincial nominations, he remained with no single nomination, putting him in a difficult position of leaving the Congress an ordinary card-carrying member.
The MDC holds its Congress on 24 May.
Watch the video below from Manicaland province, Saturday:
PREAMBLE WHEREAS it is recognized that the Constitution has vested the Judicial Authority of Zimbabwe in the Judiciary and has further entrenched the universally accepted norm of Independence of the Judiciary;
AND WHEREAS it is recognized by the Zimbabwean judiciary that a competent, independent and impartial judiciary is an indispensable and essential ingredient for good governance and the maintenance of the rule of law in any modern democratic society. AND WHEREAS it is recognized that public confidence in the judicial system and in the moral authority and integrity of the judiciary is of utmost importance in a democratic society. AND WHEREAS it is essential that judicial officers, individually and collectively, respect and honour the judicial office as a public trust and strive to enhance and maintain confidence in the judicial system;
AND WHEREAS it is recognized that it is primarily the responsibility of the judiciary of Zimbabwe to promote and maintain high standards of judicial conduct;
AND WHEREAS the Constitution provides for the impeachment of a judicial officer, it is recognized that no formal complaints mechanism is provided to deal with complaints about judicial officers falling short of impeachable conduct; AND WHEREAS the judicial officers of the Republic of Zimbabwe adopt, individually and collectively, this Code of Ethics to be the beacon of judicial conduct, now and in the future;
NOW THEREFORE IT is hereby notified that the Minister of Justice and Legal Affairs, in terms of sections 18 and 25 of the Judicial Service Act [Chapter 7:18] (No. 10 of 2006), has approved the following regulations made by the Judicial Service Commission:—
PART I PRELIMINARY Title
These regulations may be cited as the Judicial Service (Code of Ethics) Regulations, 2012 (hereinafter referred to as “this Code”). Interpretation
In this Code “court staff” means the Secretary of the Commission and all other support staff of the Judicial Service; “disciplinary committee” means a disciplinary committee appointed under Part III; “family member”or “associate”, in relation to a judicial officer, means any or all of the following , as may be appropriate to the context (a) any member of the judicial officer’s family, that is, the judicial officer’s spouse, son, daughter, son-in-law or daughter-in-law or any other close relative; (b) any friend of the judicial officer, being a person with whom the judicial officer interacts socially on a regular or frequent basis, or a person to whom the judicial officer is emotionally close, and includes a cohabitant; (c) any person the nature of whose social, business or other association with the judicial officer may, in certain contexts, be regarded by any fair-minded person as promotive of potential conflict between the judicial officer’s private interests and judicial duties; “head of court or division concerned” means any of the following, as may be appropriate (a) the Chief Justice; (b) the Judge President; (c) the Senior President of the Court; (d) the Senior President of the Administrative Court; (e) the judicial officer who is the head of any division of the foregoing courts; “immaterial grounds” in relation to equality provided for in section 9 includes but is not limited to, race, colour, gender, religion, national origin, disability, age, marital status, social and economic status, and other like causes; “judicial officer” means any of the following, whether appointed in a substantive or acting capacity (a) the Chief Justice; (b) the Deputy Chief Justice and other Judges of the Supreme Court; (c) the Judge President and the other Judges of the High Court; (d) the Senior President of the Labour Court and other Presidents of the Labour Court; (e) the Senior President of the Administrative Court and other Presidents of the Administrative Court; Application 3.(1) This Code applies to every judicial officer (2) For the avoidance of doubt it is declared that no minimum standard prescribed in this Code shall be taken to derogate from the highest standards of ethics and propriety expected of judicial officers.
The forensic expert who once exposed massive vote rigging on camera when he was a prison officer, Shepherd Yuda speaks following revelations that an MDC official has approached the courts seeking to halt the upcoming MDC congress. VIDEO LOADING BELOW:
LINDA Masarira, the former MDC-T national spokesperson, has announced the launch of a new political party named Labour, Economists Afrikan Democrats (LEAD).
Linda, who before joining politics worked for the National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) as an assistant train driver as well as a trade unionist from 2006 up to 2012, says she intends to address the pleas of the disenfranchised worker as well as other key interest groups such as former liberation fighters, women, and students among others.
In a preamble to the launch document, the Labour Economists Afrikan Democrats (LEAD) says it “invites all Pan Afrikan Zimbabwean workers, students, farmers, traders, CSOs, Transgender groups, women rights groups, children rights groups, freedom fighters, citizens in diaspora and citizens to join hands in reclaiming the people’s revolution which has been captured, subverted and diverted by agents of neocolonialism. Together we can.”
The party identifies with the Zimbabwean worker, which it says has been ignored by all the existing opposition parties as well as the ruling party ZANU-PF. As a result of such neglect, the party says the Zimbabwean worker has emigrated to foreign lands where they are subjected to unfair labour practices as well as scourges such as xenophobia in the case of South Africa.
Reads the preamble: “The case of the Zimbabwean worker today is a sad story which has seen over 80% of the working class and the generality of people living below the living wage.
“The remainder of Zimbabwean citizens were forced to seek economic refugee in foreign lands where they not only sell their labour cheaply but work under conditions which can be referred to as modern day slavery.
“These gallant sons and daughters of the Zimbabwean soil are riling under xenophobic attacks in countries like South Afrika and Botswana. To make matters worse the agents of imperialism stripped Zimbabwe of its national dignity by taking away its investment power the Zimbabwean dollar. Without a local currency Zimbabwe is not able to create meaningful wealth to cause economic growth.”
LEAD also takes issue with the greed, corruption and nepotism in government, which has reduced civil servants to the laughing stock in the communities they live in. It says agents of neocolonialism have captured key arms of government, rendering it unable to satisfy the needs of the worker.
“Before 1980 we led a political revolution which saw us shackling off the chains of colonialism bringing about the political revolution and freedom we are enjoying today. However because of naivety, greed and corruption we created divisions among our ranks and let our erstwhile enemies creep back in and subvert the revolution.
“As a result all arms of government were captured by agents of capital and neocolonialism and they have through the years systematically undermined the people’s government.
“For them to gain full control they have led on onslaught on wage labour reducing all workers and citizens into destitution.”
Masarira, who herself heroically fought for the rights of workers at the National Railways of Zimbabwe where she worked for a long time, says the fight is to put back dignity of work.
“After we reach our goals, we intend to keep on empowering the masses through policies that put back dignity of work. The Zimbabwean worker has been disenfranchised by both the ruling party and the existing opposition parties.
“Pensioners are getting a pittance from the government and former employers in the private sector, and both the ruling party and the existing opposition parties have been going on for a long time as if everything’s okay. Nothing is alright. We need to reclaim the dignity of both the retired worker, the current worker, and the future worker.”
Ms Linda Masarira
She however insists that LEAD will also be alive to the needs and aspirations of other interest groups that include students, women, former freedom fighters and the diaspora community.”
Says the LEAD document: “We the workers and disadvantaged groups of Zimbabwe also realise the spirit of Pan Afrikanism which fueled the revolutions for political emancipation resulting the formation of the Organization of Afrikan Union has died.
“We therefore take it upon ourselves to work starting in Zimbabwe to rekindle this flame and push fellow workers throughout Afrika to redirect the Afrikan effort towards getting Afrika take her seat at the table of continents on an equal footing.
“In doing so we want to go into the world wielding our formidable resource and labour power which for years has been used to develop Europe and the United States of America. It’s no robbery for Afrikan labourers to demand the humane treatment of the Afrikan and the refusal by Afrika to be referred to as a third world.
“We have developed cultural values and technologies which have contributed immensely to the modernization of the world and demand fair treatment.”
LEAD seems to take its cue from the MDC of 1999 which launched off as a social democratic party, with the worker as its central point of focus. The MDC, however, also had an overbearing critical mass of white commercial farmers.
Speaking in a interview, Masarira says her movement will be all-encompassing. She says the struggle is to reclaim the people’s revolution which has been captured and diverted by agents of neocolonialism in Zimbabwe.
She said: “We, Pan Afrikan Zimbabwean workers, students, farmers, traders, CSOs, Transgender groups, women rights groups, children rights groups, freedom fighters, citizens in diaspora and citizens join hands to reclaiming the people’s revolution which has been captured, subverted and diverted by agents of neocolonialism in the Republic of Zimbabwe.
“We realise that Zimbabwe is our land and hereby commit to take charge of the social, economic, environmental and political processes that enable this country to go forward.”
Masarira says a press conference will be held in the coming week.
Masarira spent close to 90 days locked inside Chikurubi Maximum Security Prison on charges of insulting former Zimbabwean strongman Robert Mugabe during the last years of his rule. This was after she had addressed workers in Mutare and told the gathering that the president (Mugabe) as head of government that is in charge of parastatals was responsible for the decay in parastatals like the NRZ.
Before that, she had been abducted in 2012 for three days in Bulawayo.
“They assaulted me and I have scars from the use of brute force. They wanted to know who was sending me (to demand fair and just treatment of NRZ workers), but I was fighting for workers’ money at the time,” she said.
Farai Dziva|Government spokesperson Nick Mangwana says nobody should dispute the fact that Zimbabwe is under sanctions.
Zanu PF bigwigs are facing restrictive measures as a result of human rights violations.
“There are a lot of things we disagree on as Zimbabweans. It’s understandable we are diverse and hold different views. But can we at least agree on this one reality and we can discuss the wherefore later; Zimbabwe is Under Sanctions.”
“On one hand both the UK and EU say there are no sanctions against Zim, on the other hand the British are grappling on how to continue to impose sanctions on us outside the EU framework and still claim that they are not sanctions. But their legal instruments term them Sanctions,” claimed Mangwana.
Farai Dziva|The Glamour Boys lost 2-0 to Chicken Inn at Barbourfields Stadium on Saturday afternoon and the defeat has triggered mayhem in the Dembare camp.
The hosts set the pace in the early moments of the game and were awarded a penalty in the eleventh minute which was converted by in-form striker Clive Augusto. Innocent Muchaneka followed up on minute 18 with an effort which could have doubled the advantage, but it went straight to hit the woodwork.
Nonetheless, the Gamecocks got their second goal three minutes later through Malvin Gaki who was fantastic throughout the match.
Augusto came back again, searching to complete his brace, but his effort was cleared off the line by Tatenda Muringai moments after half hour
.
Dynamos made a change towards the break, introducing Godfrey Mukambi for Jarison Selemani with a hope of turning around the fate but were dealt another blow in the 42nd minute when Sadomba received his second booking.
The expulsion triggered some crowd trouble from the Dembare stand and the play was temporarily stopped.
The restart to the second period was also affected. Dembare, however, managed to improve but failed to bury home at least an effort inside the regulation time.
The match ended 2-0 in favour of Chicken Inn who are still to lose a game this season.
At Rufaro Stadium, Mark Harrison’s gamble to field junior players paid off when his Harare City got the first win of the campaign at the expense of Highlanders.
The Sunshine Boys came from behind and beat a 10-man Bosso side 3-1.
Prince Dube opened the scoring in the 26th minute to put the visitors ahead. City responded just before the half-hour through Munyaradzi Diro-Nyenye who finished off Milton Ncube’s free-kick from the edge of the box.
Walter Mukanga then completed the turn-around on minute 32 before Tatenda Tumba hit the target early in the second half. Mukanga could have gotten his second goal of the day in the 76th minute but was denied from the spot by Highlanders goalkeeper Ariel Sibanda.
Defender McClive Phiri did not finish the game as he received a red card in the incident that led to a penalty.
The encounter between TelOne and ZPC Kariba ended in a 1-0 result in favour of Kauya Katuru-turu.
Farai Dziva|The MDC A has dismissed claims by the state media that party leader Nelson Chamisa is imposing his will on party members during provincial elections across the country.
Below is a report published by a state run weekly newspaper claiming Chamisa is using his post to tilt election results in favour of his allies:
MDC-ALLIANCE leader Mr Nelson Chamisa who is desperate to shrug off stiff competition from secretary-general Mr Douglas Mwonzora in the forthcoming congress last Wednesday presided over provincial elections in the middle of the night in the Midlands province.
The presence of Mr Chamisa and his ally, Mr Tendai Biti in Gweru was viewed as a ploy to influence the outcome of the elections, and soon after the winners were announced, the new provincial leadership nominated Mr Chamisa for party presidency ahead of the congress where elections for national office bearers will be held.
Mr Chamisa’s long time ally and Gweru Mayor Councillor Josiah Makombe is now the new provincial chairperson for Midlands South Province. Clr Makombe, who was being contested by Mr Davis Shoko garnered 878 votes while his rival got 542. Mr Cleopas Shiri who was also vying for the same post chickened out at the last minute.
Clr Makombe will be deputised by Mr Sydwell Bhepe. Other elected leaders to the main wing include Messrs Lazarus Chacha, Livingstone Chimina, Lloyd Mkapiko and Takavafira Zhou who grabbed the secretary, treasurer, provincial organ and information secretary posts respectively. Ms Cathrine Gosho will chair the provincial women’s league while Ms Sekai Marasha won uncontested to be the youth league chair.
“Party president Nelson Chamisa was there at the elections that were held at midnight on Wednesday. He was accompanied by Tendai Biti. We suspect that they wanted to ensure that the elected members are inclined to them because we are going for an elective congress soon,” said a party member.
Farai Dziva|Emmerson Mnangagwa says he does not have a score to settle against the former First Family because of the humiliation he was subjected to- by Grace Mugabe.
With regards to his humiliation by the First Lady prior to Operation Restore Legacy, Mnangagwa said the events are behind him.
He said at that time he remained unfazed in the face of the public attacks because he knew that the allegations levelled against him were false.
“Meanwhile there is the new Republic, we are seized with the challenges of the country and we are moving forward. What is behind us is behind us.
““To some extent I enjoyed the lies, here was the person attacking you on issues that are false and you cannot get angry when you know that if you can be given a chance to speak, you can destroy every single allegation that is being made, so you can’t get angry because the premises of attack were all false and crafted by individuals who wanted to cause me to be removed.
“ Perhaps I was standing in the way of some ambitious colleagues in the system. So I actually enjoyed the lies. This is why they probably didn’t give me the opportunity to respond in public because they knew they were lying.
Farai Dziva|Expecting Mnangagwa to resolve the Gukurahundi issue is like hoping that a mosquito will treat malaria victims, a ZAPU official has said.
Mnangagwa played a pronounced role in the Gukurahundi atrocities, according to ZAPU.
ZAPU spokesperson Iphuthile Maphosa attacked Mnangagwa for toying around with the sensitive matter.
“Mnangagwa can never be sincere on Gukurahundi because it is on him. How does a mosquito invent a cure for malaria and compensate those it already killed?
That’s why this whole discussion rushes to healing while glossing over acknowledgement, responsibility taking, justice and reparations. It’s all a huge joke and Mnangagwa is simply continuing with his deception as he buys time in as far as facing justice for Gukurahundi is concerned,” Maphosa said .
A 60-year old stand-up comedian has died on stage, with his audience thinking he was pulling a stunt.
British comedian Ian Cognito died in a club in Bicester, in southern England, on Thursday night.
Show organiser Andrew Bird tsaid that when the 60-year-old Cognito sat down and fell silent during his session, “everyone in the crowd, me included, thought he was joking.”
Cognito, whose real name was Paul Barbieri, never achieved wide fame but was highly respected among fellow comedians.
Entertainer Jimmy Carr praised Cognito’s kindness toward him when he was starting out in the business and tweeted, “He died with his boots on.”
“Little Britain” star Matt Lucas tweeted: “He was always kind to me when I started out, and brilliant and provocative and entirely original onstage. What a loss.” — BBC
MDC-T Vice President Obert Gutu says he is a principled and self-respecting politician so much so that he cannot stand the “fakeness, chicanery, tomfoolery, buffoonery and wanton violence” within Nelson Chamisa’s MDC.
Gutu says: “I’m a principled and self-respecting professional and politician and I will never, ever sacrifice my beliefs and principles for hollow populism, fakeness, chicanery, tomfoolery, buffoonery, wanton violence and misguided ambition clothed with rampant corruption.
“I can bet you my bottom RTGS dollar that in the very unlikely event that these charlatans manage to cheat their way to State House at No.1 Chancellor Avenue in Harare, I will immediately relocate and go to live outside Zimbabwe. I just can’t stand them.”
This was after UK-based lawyer and political analyst Brighton Mutebuka had said Gutu’s career as a politician is over unless he re-traced his steps back to work with Chamisa.
Mutebuka had said: “At the height of the MDC-T power struggle to succeed the founding leader, I cautioned that Thokozani Khupe faced a real struggle for political relevance beyond that contestation given the path that she had taken.
“I argued that she could be legally correct but politically wrong, and that history would in time forget her immense contribution to opposition politics. I am afraid that time has arrived. The same fate applies to my respected brother Obert Gutu.
But Gutu begged to differ. He said: “It’s a pity that you’re out there in the UK and you seem not to be aware of the glaring fact that a charade of a “Congress” is apparently taking place elsewhere right now. Watch out for events that will be unfolding in the next few days.
“I have got nothing but utter contempt for their emptiness, fakeness, lack of vision, lack of mission, greed, malice, violence and corruption.
“And if you think that my political career is over, then you should closely watch out for events that will be taking place in the next few months. My learned friend, I’m still very much in the mix. Watch the space!” Gutu thundered.
THE Mashonaland East Province of the Nelson Chamisa-led MDC on Friday nominated former Zanu PF women’s league commissar Tracy Mutinhiri to run for vice president at the May congress.
Mutinhiri was expelled from Zanu-PF in 2011 on murky charges of working with the MDC after she praised opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai and his party during the burial of her brother, Innocent Muzuva, who was a leading MDC activist.
She subsequently joined the MDC in 2012 after her expulsion from the ruling party, where she once served as MP and also occupied the position of women’s league political commissar.
With nominations for national positions completed, the province has settled for Chamisa to remain president, completely rejecting his potential rivals in the MDC vice president Elias Mudzuri and secretary-general Douglas Mwonzora.
MDC spokesperson Jacob Mafume told the Daily News on Sunday yesterday that the province nominated Mutinhiri for VP together with vice president Morgen Komichi and deputy national chairperson Tendai Biti as the other two VPs.
“The process went on well with all the leaders present and in jubilant mood, all of them were well received by the people and there is harmony in the party,” Mafume said.
Mutinhiri has said she has suffered immensely at the hands of Zanu-PF and holds the party responsible for the death of one of her daughters in a mysterious car accident.
Mafume, who was nominated to remain the party’s information tsar along with Luke Tamborinyoka as his second-in-command, also said the party’s MP for Kuwadzana East Charlton Hwende was nominated for the position of secretary-general with Concillia Chinanzvavana as his deputy.
Former Education minister David Coltart was nominated to become party treasurer-general with Epworth MP Etherege Kureva as his deputy.
Lovemore Maiko, in dark suit, is the new Mayor of Chitungwiza
THE Nelson Chamisa-led MDC has embarked on a witch-hunt in Chitungwiza to sniff out councillors who voted for an aspiring mayoral candidate from Zanu-PF during Wednesday elections in the dormitory town.
While the MDC retained the post following the resignation of former mayor Gift Tsverere, along with his deputy Jabulani Mtunzi in February, questions were immediately raised after the Zanu-PF candidate garnered more votes than the number of councillors his party has in the municipality.
The Zanu-PF candidate managed to get seven votes notwithstanding the fact that the ruling party only has four councillors in Chitungwiza.
MDC vice president Morgen Komichi told the Daily News on Sunday that the party was hugely concerned by the apparent disloyalty displayed by its councillors, declaring that heads will certainly roll.
“We would ordinarily expect that Zanu-PF gets what it has so it is worrisome that it got more than it actually has, meaning that there are some of our councillors who voted them, hence an investigation into what transpired will be instituted to weed out the culprits who sold out. It is a sad development really,” Komichi said.
The MDC has 19 councillors in Chitungwiza against the ruling party’s four.
In the elections, MDC ward seven councillor Lovemore Maiko emerged winner after securing 16 votes against the seven polled by Zanu-PF’s Kiven Mutimbanyoka.
Maiko will be deputised by Musa Mukweza who also got 16 votes while Zanu-PF’s John Matiyenga polled five votes, with two others being spoiled ballots.
This is not the first time that the MDC has had to launch a witch-hunt after officials voted with the ruling party.
In 2013, the late MDC founding president Morgan Tsvangirai did the same with Mutare councillors who voted for Zanu-PF’s Collen Mukwada for the position of deputy mayor ahead of the party’s preferred candidate Kudakwashe Chisango.
The MDC Manicaland provincial leadership then recommended the expulsion of four party councillors who were alleged to have sold out.
These included the then newly-elected mayor Tatenda Nhamarare and three other councillors Richard Mupfura, Farai Bhiza and Pamela Mutare.
According to the country’s Constitution, political parties have a right to recall both their Members of Parliament and councillors when it feels they are no longer representing the parties’ mandate.
Prior to the mayoral polls after the 2013 general elections all party councillors had been ordered to elect mayors and deputy mayors from among themselves.
In the case of Mutare, the councillors had been directed to elect Nyamupanedengu as mayor with Chisango as his deputy.
However, Nhamarare allegedly defied the party directive and contested for the mayor’s post which he eventually won.
EGYPT is wary of the threat posed by the Warriors despite Sunday Chidzambga’s men being the lowest ranked team in Group A of the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) which also features DR Congo and Uganda.
The Warriors will square off against the Mohamed Salah-inspired Pharaohs in the opening match of Nations Cup at the Cairo International Stadium on June 21 after being the first team to be picked at the draw, held in Giza on Friday night.
Reacting to the draw, Egypt’s assistant coach Hany Ramzy said the Pharaohs, who will be banking on home support to propel them to their eighth Afcon triumph, were “comfortable” with their pool.
“We are confident, we are here in our land with the supporters behind us, so we have to work hard to reach the final,” Ramzy told BBC Sport after the draw.
However, commenting about the opening game against the Warriors, ranked more than 50 places below them, he acknowledged that the Warriors would still pose a test to the host nation.
The Warriors last faced the Pharaohs at the Afcon finals 15 years ago in their first game at the 2004 edition of the continental showpiece in Tunisia, which they lost 2-1.
“Whoever you play against, the opening game will be tough, but I think we can win the match,”Ramzy said.
“The big difference [in quality] between teams is not really there anymore, like it was 10 years ago in Africa. Now every team has players who play in Europe so they have the experience to play at a high level.
“But when you want to win a big tournament like the Africa Cup, you have to win against small and big teams.”
The reaction by the Pharaohs’ assistant coach comes after the Warriors’ draw for this year’s Afcon tournament was met with optimism in the football fraternity with many backing
Chidzambga’s men to qualify for the knockout stages of the competition for the first time.
Zifa president Felton Kamambo, who attended the draw in Egypt, said he was confident the Warriors would do well at this year’s continental showpiece.
“I think it’s really a fair draw for us, we qualified as the group leaders and that speaks volumes of our pedigree at the moment. We are not going there to make up the numbers,
but to compete. We just have to make sure we prepare thoroughly and I believe it is going to be a very good tournament for us as Zimbabwe. We must beat the best to become one of the best sides on the continent,” Kamambo said.
Warriors team manager Wellington Mpandare, who is also in Egypt, admitted that the opening match against the Pharaohs would be tough, but said he was confident they have a good chance of progressing to the knockout stages.
Zimbabwe will be making their fourth appearance at the Afcon finals, where they have never managed to progress from the group stages.
“I think it’s a fair group, but the only unfortunate thing is we were paired against the host nation. Egypt will be playing at home and their fans will rally behind them for 90 minutes, but we fancy our chances,“ Mpandare said.
“We played two matches against DRC during the qualifiers and we took four points from them, so it’s going to be very difficult. Of course, they (DRC) are scared of us, but it’s going to be difficult because they obviously want to do better against us.”
Mpandare added: “Uganda is a team that is a bit unknown to us, it will be exciting playing against them, so basically it’s going to be tough, but knowing that two teams will qualify from the group and four best third-placed teams will also go through gives us a high chance of progressing and making a bit of history. This time around we want to go beyond the group stages and make history; this is the message from the coach, players and even the Zifa board.”
Draw in full:
Group A: Egypt, DR Congo, Uganda, Zimbabwe
Group B: Nigeria, Guinea, Madagascar, Burundi
Group C: Senegal, Algeria, Kenya, Tanzania
Group D: Morocco, Ivory Coast, South Africa, Namibia
LINDA Masarira, the former MDC-T national spokesperson, has announced the launch of a new political party named Labour, Economists Afrikan Democrats (LEAD).
Linda, who before joining politics worked for the National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) as an assistant train driver as well as a trade unionist from 2006 up to 2012, says she intends to address the pleas of the disenfranchised worker as well as other key interest groups such as former liberation fighters, women, and students among others.
In a preamble to the launch document, the Labour Economists Afrikan Democrats (LEAD) says it “invites all Pan Afrikan Zimbabwean workers, students, farmers, traders, CSOs, Transgender groups, women rights groups, children rights groups, freedom fighters, citizens in diaspora and citizens to join hands in reclaiming the people’s revolution which has been captured, subverted and diverted by agents of neocolonialism. Together we can.”
The party identifies with the Zimbabwean worker, which it says has been ignored by all the existing opposition parties as well as the ruling party ZANU-PF. As a result of such neglect, the party says the Zimbabwean worker has emigrated to foreign lands where they are subjected to unfair labour practices as well as scourges such as xenophobia in the case of South Africa.
Reads the preamble: “The case of the Zimbabwean worker today is a sad story which has seen over 80% of the working class and the generality of people living below the living wage.
“The remainder of Zimbabwean citizens were forced to seek economic refugee in foreign lands where they not only sell their labour cheaply but work under conditions which can be referred to as modern day slavery.
“These gallant sons and daughters of the Zimbabwean soil are riling under xenophobic attacks in countries like South Afrika and Botswana. To make matters worse the agents of imperialism stripped Zimbabwe of its national dignity by taking away its investment power the Zimbabwean dollar. Without a local currency Zimbabwe is not able to create meaningful wealth to cause economic growth.”
LEAD also takes issue with the greed, corruption and nepotism in government, which has reduced civil servants to the laughing stock in the communities they live in. It says agents of neocolonialism have captured key arms of government, rendering it unable to satisfy the needs of the worker.
“Before 1980 we led a political revolution which saw us shackling off the chains of colonialism bringing about the political revolution and freedom we are enjoying today. However because of naivety, greed and corruption we created divisions among our ranks and let our erstwhile enemies creep back in and subvert the revolution.
“As a result all arms of government were captured by agents of capital and neocolonialism and they have through the years systematically undermined the people’s government.
“For them to gain full control they have led on onslaught on wage labour reducing all workers and citizens into destitution.”
Masarira, who herself heroically fought for the rights of workers at the National Railways of Zimbabwe where she worked for a long time, says the fight is to put back dignity of work.
“After we reach our goals, we intend to keep on empowering the masses through policies that put back dignity of work. The Zimbabwean worker has been disenfranchised by both the ruling party and the existing opposition parties.
“Pensioners are getting a pittance from the government and former employers in the private sector, and both the ruling party and the existing opposition parties have been going on for a long time as if everything’s okay. Nothing is alright. We need to reclaim the dignity of both the retired worker, the current worker, and the future worker.”
Ms Linda Masarira
She however insists that LEAD will also be alive to the needs and aspirations of other interest groups that include students, women, former freedom fighters and the diaspora community.”
Says the LEAD document: “We the workers and disadvantaged groups of Zimbabwe also realise the spirit of Pan Afrikanism which fueled the revolutions for political emancipation resulting the formation of the Organization of Afrikan Union has died.
“We therefore take it upon ourselves to work starting in Zimbabwe to rekindle this flame and push fellow workers throughout Afrika to redirect the Afrikan effort towards getting Afrika take her seat at the table of continents on an equal footing.
“In doing so we want to go into the world wielding our formidable resource and labour power which for years has been used to develop Europe and the United States of America. It’s no robbery for Afrikan labourers to demand the humane treatment of the Afrikan and the refusal by Afrika to be referred to as a third world.
“We have developed cultural values and technologies which have contributed immensely to the modernization of the world and demand fair treatment.”
LEAD seems to take its cue from the MDC of 1999 which launched off as a social democratic party, with the worker as its central point of focus. The MDC, however, also had an overbearing critical mass of white commercial farmers.
Speaking in a interview, Masarira says her movement will be all-encompassing. She says the struggle is to reclaim the people’s revolution which has been captured and diverted by agents of neocolonialism in Zimbabwe.
She said: “We, Pan Afrikan Zimbabwean workers, students, farmers, traders, CSOs, Transgender groups, women rights groups, children rights groups, freedom fighters, citizens in diaspora and citizens join hands to reclaiming the people’s revolution which has been captured, subverted and diverted by agents of neocolonialism in the Republic of Zimbabwe.
“We realise that Zimbabwe is our land and hereby commit to take charge of the social, economic, environmental and political processes that enable this country to go forward.”
Masarira says a press conference will be held in the coming week.
Masarira spent close to 90 days locked inside Chikurubi Maximum Security Prison on charges of insulting former Zimbabwean strongman Robert Mugabe during the last years of his rule. This was after she had addressed workers in Mutare and told the gathering that the president (Mugabe) as head of government that is in charge of parastatals was responsible for the decay in parastatals like the NRZ.
Before that, she had been abducted in 2012 for three days in Bulawayo.
“They assaulted me and I have scars from the use of brute force. They wanted to know who was sending me (to demand fair and just treatment of NRZ workers), but I was fighting for workers’ money at the time,” she said.
MDC Secretary-General Douglas Mwonzora appears to have chickened out of challenging party leader Nelson Chamisa, opting instead to retain his post.
Mwonzora has apparently backed Chamisa and declared his candidature for the Secretary-General post of the party instead, where he will still face tough challenge from widely nominated Chalton Hwende.
Sources said that the deal was struck on Satutrday evening at the instigation of the Chamisa camp.
“Party leader (Nelson Chamisa) called Mwonzora to a deal last night. The deal was struck by Tendai Biti and Welshman Ncube in a bid to ensure the party remains intact and that Advocate Chamisa’s imminent victory at the Congress is not dented by accusations of voter manipulation.
“So, as it stands, Advocate Chamisa will cruise uncontested,” said a source close to the Mwonzora camp.
It was proving to be a tall order for Mwonzora, who a few months back has been throwing punches around saying he will contest for any position should he be nominated.
But more than halfway into the provincial nominations, he remained with no single nomination, putting him in a difficult position of leaving the Congress an ordinary card-carrying member.
The MDC holds its Congress on 24 May.
Watch the video below from Manicaland province, Saturday:
By Patrick Guramatunhu| “If any members or structures of the party have any grievances, the laid-out rules, regulations and procedures must be followed,” Mnangagwa told his Zanu PF Youth League members.
“As you carry out both your political and development programmes you must be wary of those with brute, unbridled ambition and political gladiators.”
What “laid-out rules, regulations and procedures” were followed in booting Joice Mujuru and her supporters out of Zanu PF in 2014 to say nothing of the military coup that ousted Robert Mugabe and his G40 faction in 2017?
Chief Justice George Chiweshe judged the November 2017 coup “justified, legal and constitutional”! He opened the Pandora’s box and so the next coup will be justified, legal and constitutional too! So what is there for Mnangagwa to fear from just another legal and justified coup!
“Dindigwe rinofara richizvuva rimwe kana iro rozvuviwa roti avara angu azaravhu.” (The cheetah enjoys dragging others but when it is being dragged it will complain that its spots are being soiled!) as one would say in Shona.
There is rebellion in the air and our cheetah in State House was good reason to be worried. There are political gladiators who are after his job!
“The game is all but over for President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s young presidency, as hardline army generals are reportedly said to have read the riot act to him, over a sheaf of serious issues caused by his leadership seen as compromising national security, resulting in Mnangagwa allegedly offering to step down to avoid a flood of political chaos in the country,” reported Spotlight Zimbabwe.
“Chief among the generals concerns based on military intelligence findings, is Mnangagwa’s failure to fix the economy, which they believe is likely to cause “the mother of all civil revolts” in the country’s history.”
No one can dispute that Zimbabwe’s economy is not in a serious mess. The country’s productive sectors have all but collapsed sending unemployment rates soaring into the stratosphere of 90%. Basic services such as supply of clean water, working sewage systems, health care, etc. have all but completely collapsed. There is no doubt that Zimbabwe’s economic situation is politically, morally and socially unsustainable.
Indeed, it was the fear of “the mother of all civil revolts” and the consequence of Zanu PF losing its iron grip on power that spurred Mnangagwa and his fellow coup plotters to stage the November 2017 coup to ouster Mugabe.
It is now one year and half since the coup and the country’s economy is in a worse state now than it was during Mugabe’s days. Like it or not Mnangagwa’s “Zimbabwe is open for business!” clarion call has failed to bring in the flood of investors, he promised.
His Finance Minister, Professor Mthuli Ncube, with all his rocket science policies, theories and thesis has clearly failed to tame inflation and poverty which are now growing in leaps and bounce.
The fear of civil revolt to protest the worsen economic situation is real and justified.
Still, Mnangagwa or those planning to have him replace must be allowed to remain in power till 2023 for four good reasons:
As far as the Zanu PF hardliners were concerned the primary task of the November 2017 coup was to secure their iron grip on absolute power and with it their privileged lifestyles. This was the essence of “operation restore legacy” as the coup plotters called the coup. Mnangagwa understood that good governance and end corruption were essential in the fight to revive the economy and hence the reason he promised to hold free and fair elections and to end corruption. These were mutually exclusive demands! In the end he blatantly rigged the elections and has done nothing to end the wholesale looting of the nation’s resource. Whoever the generals pick to replace Mnangagwa he/she will be similarly hamstrung by the demands of operation restore legacy!
At the time of the November 2017 coup, the nation had built a head of steam in demanding democratic change and an end to the country’s economic hardships. The coup plotters actively encourage the people to join the street protest. The people were made to feel the coup was going to answer all their demands, this was a fig-leaf as time has shown. The people, much less the international community, are not going to be taken for fools a second time in quick succession.
There will be no meaningful economic recovery as long as Zimbabwe remains a pariah state rule by corrupt and vote rigging thugs. The prospect of the economic hardships of fuel, food, medicine, wheat, etc. shortages lasting another month are frightful. It is unthinkable to have this chaos for four more years!
Zanu PF rigged last year’s elections and therefore the party has no democratic mandate to govern. The party must be forced to step down for rigging the elections and not be rewarded by being allowed to rule. Besides, Zimbabwe must appoint an interim administration that will be tasked to implement the reforms and Zanu PF must step down a.s.a.p. to create the political space. If Zanu PF is still in office in 2023, be it on its own or in a GNU, the party will resist the implementation of the reforms and will go on to rig that year’s elections. It would be unforgivable if that was to happen!
Jane Mlambo|Harare based Sekuru Banda has been selected as the African representative to attend a line-up of conferences on herbal therapy on the continents of Europe, Asia and South America.
The conferences will focus on Chinese, African, European and American medicine with particular interest in herbal therapy.
Sekuru Banda is well known for practising magic like sending baboons to recover stolen property, prescribing concoctions on cheating partners, returning evil spirits to witches and wizards as well as healing different ailments.
This popularity gained him the first spot as the most influential healer in Zimbabwe. From his powers Sekuru Banda attracts to his shrine people from all walks of life and various backgrounds. People visit from countries like United States of America, Europe, Asia and the rest of Africa.
These people bring various gifts in appreciation of his quality services. Because of that, Sekuru Banda is arguably the richest traditional healer in the whole world.
He is expected to come back with a wealth of experience in the use of herbal therapy to treat various ailments and share knowledge with other traditional healers locally and abroad.
Farai Dziva|Government spokesperson Nick Mangwana says nobody should dispute the fact that Zimbabwe is under sanctions.
Zanu PF bigwigs are facing restrictive measures as a result of human rights violations.
“There are a lot of things we disagree on as Zimbabweans. It’s understandable we are diverse and hold different views. But can we at least agree on this one reality and we can discuss the wherefore later; Zimbabwe is Under Sanctions.”
“On one hand both the UK and EU say there are no sanctions against Zim, on the other hand the British are grappling on how to continue to impose sanctions on us outside the EU framework and still claim that they are not sanctions. But their legal instruments term them Sanctions,” claimed Mangwana.
For a whole 3 months running, why did Abigail dodge DNA tests of "own parents" before flying to Zimbabwe? Also why did she demand that 1983 news articles be deleted and have the disgraced Australian journalist who's a well known child abductor, Stephen Rice re-write the story?
By Own Correspondent| In a major embarassing boob, an Australian journalist flew into Zimbabwe to film a money spinning documentary on baby parentage, all based on probative DNA suggestions.
The Australian journo, is well known for making money from creating fake drama and has been fired before following a “baby kidnap” scandal.
The latest development explains how and why there was a total media blackout against Zimbabwean journalists who for several months could broadcast Abigail Prangs’ own living room since 2018, but now at the point of meeting Abi’s “parents,” Australian journalists suddenly perform everything under the cover of darkness- They fly into Zimbabwe and even the national broadcaster, ZBC is not allowed near them. Why, and what is so secretive about a story publicly known in Harare since 1983? Why should foreigners be the ones to report on what they only read?
EARLIER VIDEO ON 9TH APRIL 2019
The man, Stephen Rice intended to make money out of the Abigail Prangs story – the Zimbabwean baby found dumped in 1983 documentary which StarFM and ZimEye have worked on since last year.
The development comes after Abigail had skipped vital stages of the DNA tests. She had even avoided the local Zimbabwean DNA centre fully equipped and which was still in the way to report back on their findings.
Global DNA’s Mr Tinashe Mugabe always insisted on further tests despite an initial sibling test (with an alleged sister, Lorraine Kamonere) yielding a passive 90,8% probability.
This was as Mr Mugabe said at this stage, the supposed parents, remained just alleged parents up until conclusive paternal and maternal tests had been conducted. As at the time when Stephen Rice and his filming crew were flying to Zimbabwe, there were none of these tests, the only one done being a mere half-sibling one.
There was a disturbing twist when Abigail rushed to declare she was now interested in a commercial contract offered for a money spinning documentary by Mr Rice. She reported to ZimEye that she had signed a contract with the disgraced Australian TV producer, Stephen Rice. Abigail even got to the point of ordering that all news articles produced since 1983 be deleted from the public domain and a new story would be published by the Australian TV producer.
The sudden rush to distort evidence was to the point of even ditching the services of the local DNA centre. Correspondence seen by ZimEye.com shows Mr Rice ordering that Mr Mugabe’s services be terminated and a different DNA centre be utilised. In a program on Tuesday, Abi was questioned by ZimEye why she had suddenly disconnected with the Global DNA. She reported back by briefly saying, “I have a lot of respect for Tinashe,” still without revealing any reasons why.
The flight from Australia to Zimbabwe came in the face of serious concerns raised by Mr. Mugabe in an earlier StarFM program when while with Tilda Moyo, he revealed that there was no excitement at all on the supposed parent’s faces when they heard news that Abi is their daughter.
Mr Mugabe said “there was no excitement” which would be expected in such a breakthrough situation. More drama however, emerged when the supposed father was found suspiciously and repeatedly skipping away everytime when the Global DNA staff members descended onto their home. For several months since December last year, Global DNA thrice visited the home in Chitungwiza seeking to complete the investigation.
Now, the 90,8% probability was to suggest that there was a likeliwood of the 2 tested individuals sharing a common parent. It was a half sibling test. However without further tests the sibling one would-be insufficient.
Scientists call the 90,8% as seen in the graph, mere “probative evidence.” It is probative, not conclusive evidence.
[SEE THE GRAPH ABOVE]
An elated Abi who reportedly booked into a local hotel soon after arriving in Zimbabwe was pictured in Unit M in Chitungwiza with her supposed relatives two days after her arrival before she disappeared to an unknown location. She shunned local reporters as she preferred her Australian based journalists despite that the local media houses had publicised her plight ahead of Rice. There was a publicly declared contractual arrangement with Zim media, but she chose to go “for money”, according to a commentator.
On Friday morning Abigail posted a status update revealing she was sad and disappointed. A day before she had publicly wielded a picture with her supposed mother.
That picture with her so called mum has since been removed.
Sources close to her revealed that the latest DNA tests show that she is not at all Edna Kamonere ‘s daughter. Sources close to her revealed that the results came out with a 0% probability (for maternity.)
Efforts to get a direct comment from Abi were fruitless at the time of writing. A direct comment from Mr Mugabe was difficult to obtain at the time of printing.
Mr Rice was reached for a comment between Wednesday and Friday and he had not replied messages at the time of publishing. His Zimbabwe based freelancer, Mr Tomas Brickhill however confirmed the development to ZimEye promising that Rice would be informed. – MORE TO FOLLOW…
We, Pan Afrikan Zimbabwean workers, students, farmers, traders, CSOs, Transgender groups, women rights groups, children rights groups, freedom fighters, citizens in diaspora and citizens join hands to reclaiming the people’s revolution which has been captured, subverted and diverted by agents of neocolonialism in the Republic of Zimbabwe.
We realise that Zimbabwe is our land and here by commit to take charge of the social, economic, environmental and political processes that enable this country to go forward. Before 1980 we led a political revolution which saw us shackling off the chains of colonialism bringing about the political revolution and freedom we are enjoying today.
However because of naivety, greed and corruption we created divisions among our ranks and let our erstwhile enemies creep back in and subvert the revolution.
As a result all arms of government were captured by agents of capital and neocolonialism and they have through the years systematically undermined the people’s government.
For them to gain full control they have led on onslaught on wage labour reducing all workers and citizens into destitution.
The case of the Zimbabwean worker today is a sad story which has seen over 80% of the working class and the generality of people living below the living wage.
The remainder of Zimbabwean citizens were forced to seek economic refugee in foreign lands where they not only sell their labour cheaply but work under conditions which can be referred to as modern day slavery.
These gallant sons and daughters of the Zimbabwean soil are riling under xenophobic attacks in countries like South Afrika and Botswana. To make matters worse the agents of imperialism stripped Zimbabwe of its national dignity by taking away its investment power the Zimbabwean dollar.
Without a local currency Zimbabwe is not able to create meaningful wealth to cause economic growth.
We the workers and disadvantaged groups of Zimbabwe also realise the spirit of Pan Afrikanism which fueled the revolutions for political emancipation resulting the formation of the Organization of Afrikan Union has died.
We therefore take it upon ourselves to work starting in Zimbabwe to rekindle this flame and push fellow workers throughout Afrika to redirect the Afrikan effort towards getting Afrika take her seat at the table of continents on an equal footing.
In doing so we want to go into the world wielding our formidable resource and labour power which for years has been used to develop Europe and the United States of America. It’s no robbery for Afrikan labourers to demand the humane treatment of the Afrikan and the refusal by Afrika to be referred to as a third world.
We have developed cultural values and technologies which have contributed immensely to the modernization of the world and demand fair treatment.
To redirect our efforts to achieve full economic potential with a generational mandate we have decided to regroup under a new banner. In a show of resilience we are reorganizing as Labour, Economists Afrikan Democrats (LEAD).
In this renewed exisistance we want to apply all our efforts towards reclaiming our revolution for the Zimbabweanness. It’s time to LEAD!!!! Together we can!!!!! Labour Economists Afrikan Democrats (LEAD) invites all Pan Afrikan Zimbabwean workers, students, farmers, traders, CSOs, Transgender groups, women rights groups, children rights groups, freedom fighters, citizens in diaspora and citizens to join hands in reclaiming the people’s revolution which has been captured, subverted and diverted by agents of neocolonialism. Together we can.
Former president Jacob Zuma will get more than R200 000 in the eThekwini Municipality for honorarium payments.
Zuma was recently accused of taking possession of $30-million (R418,5-million) belonging to the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.
The eThekwini Municipality has set aside a budget of R1 million to celebrate 25 years of democracy, among which, former president Jacob Zuma will get more than R200 000 in honorarium payments.
The event will take place in April and will also see the city pay Zuma and his co-artists more than R200 000 in honorarium payments. The names of the co-artists were not revealed in the report.
Zuma is set to be tasked with documenting Struggle songs with various artists. The report containing the details of the event was by tabled by eThekwini parks head Thembinkosi Ngcobo before the community service committee on Thursday.
Ngcobo said the month of April represented a lot of pain for many South Africans, as it was the month which saw the arrival of coloniser Jan van Riebeck in 1652 and also followed the assassination of former SACP leader Chris Hani in 1993. He said citizens needed to learn about their local history and the event would do that.
Explaining the event, Ngcobo said it was part of the ‘Liberation Heritage Routes Project’. He said it was started in 2009 when the uMkhonto we Sizwe Military Veterans Association (MKMVA) held a two day symposium in Durban to preserve the liberation heritage history in Durban.
Ngcobo said the former president would be paid directly, but artist who will work with him would also benefit. The names of the artists were not revealed in the report.
The report states that the R200 000 would cover transport, refreshments and the documentation of liberation songs by various artists including Zuma.
The South African government has congratulated the country’s first deaf law graduate Qobo Ningiza.
“The government sends warm congratulations to Eastern Cape-born Qobo Ningiza who will be South Africa’s first deaf law graduate when he graduates with a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree at the University of Cape Town today,” reads a statement issued by Phumla Williams, the Acting Director General of Government Communications and Information Systems (GCIS).
“Ningiza is an inspiration to many of us and serves as proof that if as individuals we focus on our abilities instead of focusing on the obstacles, we can achieve anything in life. Ningiza had to overcome many hurdles in his endeavour to register for a law degree including navigating a study path that relies heavily on verbal teaching and interactions.”
The government also challenged all sectors to join the disability sector of South Africa on a journey towards the full empowerment of people with disabilities.
“Cabinet identified the Presidential Working Group on Disability as one of the fora that are critical to advancing a transformative agenda in a collaborative and inclusive manner.
“The rights of persons with disabilities include implementation of policies and strategies for, among other things, the hiring of persons with disabilities, appropriate training and skills development programmes and ensuring easy access into workplaces and other buildings. The whole of society must contribute towards the realisation of the rights of persons with disabilities,” reads part of the statement.”
ZIMBABWEANS should untiringly fight corruption as it is currently deep-seated in most State institutions such as the police, National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) and the Judiciary, President Emmerson Mnangagwa said yesterday.
Speaking in a special Independence Day interview with ZBC at State House, President Mnangagwa said the various hurdles in successfully uprooting the scourge mean “the fight is so wide and deep”.
“I now realise that corruption is deep-rooted. I thought that by pronouncing that let’s fight corruption those who are corrupt will fear and stop; it’s not like that. It’s so rooted that you have to fight it from A to Z. (In) most systems, structures and institutions, there is an element of corruption,” said President Mnangagwa.
“To fight it, you need the police to unearth, investigate; but also within the police, there is corruption. The next stage, you need prosecution; that is the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) – they need to prosecute the cases, so once the cases pass the corruption in the police, it has to pass the corruption in the NPA, then it must go to the courts and there is an element of corruption in the courts, so the fight is so wide and deep.”
Fighting corruption, he said, was a collective responsibility. The President also said his office would not interfere with judiciary processes.
“However, I am happy that you find people who support the fight against corruption in all these institutions. In the police, not everybody is corrupt; in prosecution institutions, not everybody is corrupt; in the judiciary, not everybody is corrupt.
“So because of that we are gaining traction slowly, not as speedily as I had expected. As you realise, there are so many cases of corruption now in the courts,” he added.
President Mnangagwa expressed frustration at the snails’ pace of some of the cases before the courts. A clean society, he added, would help the country to “develop faster” and lead to satisfactory service delivery. Current and former Harare City Council officials who abused the $144 million loan facility are likely to face the music, said the President.
“We had a loan extended to Harare City Council by the Chinese for sanitation and water reticulation. That money was then used to buy cars and other luxuries. It didn’t address the issues for which the money had been given.
“So when I met my brother and colleague President Xi Jinping (Chinese President) and discussed about this loan, I wasn’t aware that had happened and so I said, ‘Mr President, the loan was fully disbursed’, and he said, ‘my brother, the money was not used for what we had given you for.’ I was not aware people bought cars, some having workshops which had nothing to do with sanitation. Those who spent the money are not in office anymore, but they are likely to be followed.”
President Mnangagwa has committed to fight corruption by strengthening and restructuring key institutions such as the NPA, the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (Zaac) and the Special Anti-Corruption Unit in the Office of the President and Cabinet.
Paul K. Saungweme Former MDC Makoni South Organising Secretary
Dear my President Chamisa,
BALANCING COMPETENCE & POPULISM
The truth is our party nominations have been invaded by people who pretend to love you so they get positions. Yet the real leaders are being labelled names. Pamuchayeuka bako mvura inenge yanaya.
Your supporters are abusing your popularity and denting your chances of a 2023 presidency
My President, you needed to have learned on how our catastrophic primaries were conducted in 2018. Why we lost Matebeleland North and South in 2018. And why Zanu-PF have parliamentary majority.
It’s all a wrong assumption to assume that you will be able to unite us after congress. Judging on the toxic language and the few G40 paid & captured social bloggers like ZimEye etc
Time will tell. Good luck, some of us had wanted to see a team that does it come 2023. Your bootlickers are going to come up with theories and lies just to get nominations. But not anybody other than you, knows very well that competence is better than bootlicking.
In conclusion my President you needed to balance popularity with competence. If rumours are true that a new party is on the horizon then you must blame your toxic comrades for the painful split which is imminent. I am reliably told it’s 85% likely to happen. The onus is on you to urgently sort things out my President.
Come 2023 you are the torch bearer and those who are misleading you will blame you.
Caution: The silence of competent people like Mukoma Doug, Mudzuri, Kore, Ian and Theresa Makone, Murai, Musundire, Nomatter and many others it’s not a sign of stupidity. It’s a sign of maturity and reading along the lines.
These leaders delivered for you only last year and all of a sudden they are now enemies of your divisive factionalist. Cyril Ramaphosa was clever to know how to work with Dhlamini Zuma; Obama worked with Hillary Clinton.
Allow me therefore to regrattably hint at the birth of a third force that will be run by genuine democrats, without being remote-controlled by G40.
The signal will be given soon for those who really love the struggle. Musaore Moyo (Don’t lose heart).
Your supporters will tell you those people have no supporters but the truth is they have and they won’t be as stupid as Khupe was . They are planners, they are leaders; they have managed before and they are champions.
As an advocate president Chamisa needed to have known that empty vessels makes noise but noise disrupts always as they are about to make noise on my post. This 2019 congress proceedings has produced a winner and the winner is Zanu-PF.
I am pained very pained at the thought of seeing our party split again and this time it’s a massive split cause it’s not about leaders wars. It’s about structures that have been kicked off after building the MDC brand for many years.
Your bootlickers always say new blood if it’s about new blood why is it those misleading you are not paving way for new blood. Isn’t it stupid when your followers tell you Matebeleland needs Ncube you agree, but when we tell you Manicaland needs Mwonzora and Kore your same advisors will tell you it’s a lie, isn’t it stupid when they tell you Mashonaland needs Mutinhiri than Theresa Makone and Mpariwa.
Have you forgotten your foot soldiers Hwende and Mutseyami ran away from their constituences of Musikavanhu and Mash west just to be MPS in towns. Will they go back and work in constintuences they abandoned.
United we stand, Divided we have fallen. history will judge us
Yours Paul K. Saungweme Former Makoni South Organising Secretary
VIOLENCE has flared in Donnybrook on the KwaZulu-Natal South Coast where a group of former workers allegedly butchered 17 cows owned by a farmer they accused of employing Zimbabweans.
Charles Anderson, 62, owner of Emerald Dale Farms and Patula Sawmill says he has bolstered security by hiring armed guards after attempts to petrol bomb the home of a Zimbabwean farm manager.
Police spokesperson Captain Nqobile Gwala confirmed that six suspects had been taken in for questioning yesterday.
Charles said despite building a creche for the community, paying teachers’ salaries and donating part of his farm for a soccer field, his farm has been targeted by bitter former employees.
His wife, Luan, said she was heartbroken to see crippled cows with deep wounds gasping for air before dying.
“It is painful when all your animals are lying crippled and can neither move nor walk because they have been butchered,” she said.
She added that 10 cows had to be put down due to the injuries they suffered. Five of the cows were on the mend and two were killed.
Police spokesperson Captain Nqobile Gwala confirmed that six suspects had been taken in for questioning yesterday.
“A case of malicious damage to property is being investigated by Donnybrook SAPS. It is alleged that on Thursday, a wendy house was set alight, two cows were maimed while another 12 sustained injuries,” Gwala said.
She said the motive behind the attack was being investigated.
Anderson said since last year the group had accused him of employing foreigners. He said at a recent meeting attended by ex-employees and unemployed individuals he was told in no uncertain terms to dismiss all his Zimbabwean employees otherwise there would be trouble.
He said he promised he would not employ more Zimbabweans.
There was, however, no compromise and the attitude was simply “we as the Andersons must leave the farm or the Zimbabweans must leave”.
“It is totally unacceptable to dismiss employees who have done nothing wrong but were dedicated to their duties.
“But I will wait for the employees to come up with proposals on how we can move forward. For now, production has been stopped with very little happening on the farm,” he said.
Speaking after a meeting yesterday, community leader Silwanaziphi Jama said locals had begged Anderson not to leave because many families relied on the farm for employment.
“We are happy that he made that sacrifice, but we also commit ourselves to protecting the property. The community is convinced we need the farm to exist,” Jama said.
A qualified harvest manager, who has a diploma from the College of Forestry in Zimbabwe and who asked not to be named, said he left the farm for a safe place until the situation had normalised. He said the attacks were xenophobic because they flared up after foreigners in Durban were attacked three weeks ago.
“These issues regarding their dismissal were supposed to be raised last year, but it waited until attacks flared in Durban townships. They were really taking advantage of the recent attacks.
“I was told by local employees that because I hold a senior position, my life was at stake. When employees get fired for misconduct we, in senior positions, have to carry the blame,” he said.
He said four Zimbabweans, one Angolan and a Malawian had been employed on the farm and all had left.
The attack on Thursday night took place hours after an urgent court interdict was obtained from the Pietermaritzburg High Court.
Anderson said there was a delay in serving the interdict to the attackers because police needed back-up. He said it was only formally issued on Friday.
The interdict prevented employees, former employees and anyone else from gathering or organising protests at any of the farms or public roads allowing access to and from the farms.
The “trouble-causers” have also been ordered not to burn tyres, logs, trees, plantations, building structures or any substance on the farms.
The application was brought on an urgent basis by advocate Chris Snyman, SC, before Judge Piet Koen following protest action that worsened on the farm this week.
Anderson said both farms employed between 350 and 400 people, injecting R2 million monthly into the local economy through the wages that were paid. The Anderson family has worked on the farm for the past century.
He said the hate was perpetrated by a few former employees who were fired for misconduct.
He said although his two sons William and Phillip wanted the family to leave, he was convinced he should stay after local support poured in from traditional leaders and the community.
Project manager at the Institute of Race Relations Terrence Corrigan said there was a strong element of xenophobia which was recklessly stoked up by unscrupulous politicians.
“A lot of frustration regarding the lack of service delivery causes people to be impatient and to blame foreign nationals for their situation. Although there were only a few Zimbabweans employed on the farm, locals found an excuse to use to push for the dismissal of foreign nationals.” — Sunday Tribune
Uganda coach Sebastien Desabre says Zimbabwe have little chances in Group A at June’s 2019 Africa Cup of Nations finals.
Uganda face hosts Egypt, DR Congo and Zimbabwe in their group games.
While acknowledging that Egypt and DR Congo pose a stern challenge to his team, Desabre spoke low of the Zimbabwe Warriors, describing them as the unlucky team of the group.
“Zimbabwe seems the least lucky team of the group but I know their squad and their great qualities. The group is complicated even though Egypt is the favourite to top it and our team will compete for the second place spot,” Desabre told Goal.
“Facing the Egyptian team represents an obstacle although we have prior advantage since we are familiar with their team and previous encounters were difficult yet close with mot much difference separating the two teams.
“We defeated them by one goal at our home stadium and lost in Egypt by a difference of one goal also. Everyone knows that we have an up and coming generation of players that no one should underestimate and it’s going to be a difficult for anyone to defeat us.
“We know Congo very well and their players are special with regard to individual skills, we are facing opponents with high quality and we need to have good preparations for the finals taking into consideration the opponents we are going to face.”
Uganda and Egypt were in the same group at the 2017 Afcon finals, with the Pharaohs beating the Cranes 1-0.
Later on that year, Uganda edged Egypt 1-0 in a 2018 Fifa World Cup qualifier at home, before losing 1-0 away.
Uganda were under now Orlando Pirates coach Milutin Sredojevic at the last Afcon tournament. — Goal
By Kingstone Jambawo | Zimbabwe Human Rights Organisation (ZHRO) activists are going to protest against Independence Day celebrations on Thursday – 18 April 2019 – at the Zimbabwe Embassy in London – starting at 11:00 am – We want the world to know that there is no reason to celebrate because we are still under dictatorship.
