After spending over $2 million on food for its just ended Conference, ZANU-PF has donated left over groceries from the Conference held at Mzingwane High School to hospitals in Matabeleland South province.

Speaking at the handover of the groceries to Gwanda Provincial Hospital yesterday, Matabeleland South Provincial Affairs Minister, Abednico Ncube said the groceries will be distributed to all hospitals in the seven districts of the province as well as Gwanda Old People’s Home.

“I have been sent by Zanu-PF party to donate this food to Gwanda Provincial Hospital.

“As you all know the party held its annual National People’s Conference here and these groceries were left after the conference” he said.

Ncube said President Mnangagwa instructed the province to give the food to the people.

“We sat down as a province and decided to donate the groceries to health institutions in all our seven districts and as such all our hospitals are going to benefit,” said Ncube.

Gwanda Provincial Hospital received mealie meal, cooking oil, sugar and rice and other hospitals are going to receive a similar assortment of foodstuffs.

State Media

FORMER Luveve-Cowdray Park Member of Parliament, Ntandoyenkosi Mlilo, has approached the High Court seeking the dissolution of his marriage to his wife of 11 years for allegedly denying him conjugal rights for more than 12 months.

The former legislator and his wife, Miriam Mlilo (nee Nerwande) wedded on April 29, 2005 under Chapter 5:11 of the Marriages Act.

The couple has been on separation since 2007.

Mlilo wants the custody of their two children aged seven and 16 years to be granted to his wife on condition that he gets access to them.

Mlilo, who is a self actor, filed an application for a decree of divorce at the Bulawayo High Court on December 11 citing irreconcilable differences with his wife.

In papers before the court, the former MP said his marriage had irretrievably broken down such that there were no prospects of restoring it.

“The parties were legally married to each other in terms of the Marriages Act (5:11) in Bulawayo on April 29, 2005 and the marriage still subsists. The marriage relationship between the parties has irretrievably broken down to such an extent that there are no reasonable prospects of restoration, more particularly in that the parties have developed irreconcilable differences, which go to the very root of the matrimonial contract and their relationship ,” said Mlilo.

He said they have not shared conjugal rights for 12 months.

“The plaintiff and defendant have not lived as husband and wife since December 2007 being a continuous period in excess of 12 months. The parties have not shared conjugal rights for a period in excess of 12 months and as a result I have lost love and affection for the defendant and do not wish to remain married to her,” he stated in his summons.

“It shall be in the best interests of the two minor children if the court orders that their custody upon divorce be awarded to the defendant subject to my right of reasonable access to them.”

During the subsistence of the marriage, the couple did not acquire any property.

State Media

A COMMUTER omnibus driver based in Harare allegedly hit a pedestrian in the central business district and took away the body under the pretext that he was taking him to hospital before dumping it in the bush in Kambuzuma 2.

Tirivangani Madzokere (30) appeared before magistrate Rumbidzai Mugwagwa on Saturday facing murder charges. He was remanded in custody to December 27 pending indictment to the High Court.

Allegations are that on November 17, Madzokere was driving along Chinhoyi Street and hit the now deceased Christopher Muzawazi at the intersection of Chinhoyi Street and Bute Street.

Madzokere, his conductor and a friend took the now deceased into their vehicle under the pretext that they were taking him to the hospital since he was still alive.

The State alleges instead of taking him to hospital, Madzokere drove to an open space between Kambuzuma 2 and Rugare suburbs where they dumped Muzawazi’s body.

Informant Maria Sunday, who was coming from her field in between Kambuzuma and Rugare suburbs, discovered the deceased’s body and made a police report.

A post-mortem was conducted and established that the death was due to skull bone fracture and head injuries. Investigations revealed that Muzawazi was hit by Madzokere’s kombi.

Idah Maromo appeared for the State.

NewsDay

President Emmerson Mnangagwa will meet with teachers representatives under the banner of
Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ) this Friday.
Mnangagwa is expected to hear teachers’ grievances ranging from poor salaries and demand to be paid is foreign currency. In a letter addressed to the PTUZ Secretary General, Raymond Majongwe, Permanent Secretary to the president Wilson Gwatiringa advised the union
that Mnangagwa had agreed to meet with the teachers. The letter reads:
Thank you for your letter of 5 December 2018 requesting Progressive Teacher’s Union of Zimbabwe to meet His Excellency, the President. Kindly be advised that His Excellency, the President has accepted to meet the Union at State House 21 December 2018 t 10: am.
Rural teachers under the Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ) are marching from Mutare to Harare. The teachers
are calling on government to immediately pay them in US dollars.state media

THERE was drama in Lower Gweru when relatives of an artisanal miner who was killed in suspected amakorokoza battles dumped the body at the alleged assailant’s
homestead demanding compensation.
The incident occurred on Sunday evening at Dimbamhiwa Business Centre.
Cephas Sifelani (37) of Phakama village allegedly killed Obert Tshuma (30) of Veto village under Chief Sogwala in Lower Gweru following a misunderstanding.
A police source said at around 4 PM, Obert was drinking beer at Dimbamhiwa Business Centre with his younger brother Admire and a friend, Godfrey Moyo.
“Sifelani and his friend Bhekimpilo Mlilo arrived at the business centre. Mlilo slapped Obert several times on the face for no apparent reason. A heated argument ensued between the two,” said the source.
The source said Tshuma’s brother, Admire, tried to restrain the two.
“Sifelani charged towards them and he stabbed Admire once on the back with an Okapi knife. Sensing danger, Obert ran away and Sifelani chased him until he slipped and fell on his back.
“Sifelani stabbed Obert once on the right chest and once on the right thigh with the same Okapi knife he used to stab Admire,” said the source.
Obert, said the source, bled profusely and was rushed to a nearby Nyama Clinic where he was pronounced dead on arrival.Chronicle

The union has since applauded Mnangagwa for affording them an opportunity to meet him.

Mnangagwa’s Office advised the union through a letter to PTUZ president Mr Ray Majongwe that he had agreed to meet them at State House in Harare.

The union requested for a meeting with President Mnangangwa early this month.

“Thank you for your letter of 5 December 2018 requesting Progressive Teacher’s Union of Zimbabwe to meet His Excellency the President. Kindly be advised that His Excellency, the President has accepted to meet the Union at State House on Friday December 21 at 10AM,” reads the letter.

In an interview yesterday, Mr Majongwe said they were impressed by Mnangagwa’s prompt response and were positive about the meeting.

“We wrote the first letter in July but we wrote another one just before schools closed on the 5th of December. We discovered that there were several issues so we went back and said we handed you a letter but we have these other issues from that letter we initially wrote,” he said.

“He has responded to us alone and we are more than happy, we would like to meet the President as PTUZ without being swallowed or drowned by other people with different agendas.

“So we are happy to meet the President as the PTUZ leadership, we are going to articulate our issues to the President and we hope our issues will be taken on board.”

Mr Majongwe said the meeting was meant to address teachers’ welfare issues.

“The issues that we are raising are the same ones, issues of our salary, issues of teacher-pupil ratio, infrastructure, issues of work load, condition of service and many others.

“We are going to meet the President to deliver the message from our members,” he said.

Mr Majongwe said they had in the past tried to meet former President Mugabe but failed.

“We have never met the President. We requested to meet President Mugabe a record 45 times and we were not given a single opportunity,” he said.

Zimbabwe Teachers’ Association (Zimta) chief executive officer Mr Sifiso Ndlovu said they were not aware of the meeting.

Teachers constitute the highest number of civil servants in the country and have for years bemoaned poor salaries and working conditions.

The education sector received the highest allocation of $1,5 billion in the 2019 National Budget with the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education receiving the lion’s share of $1,132 billion and it is hoped that some of the teachers’ challenges will be addressed.

Former Luveve-Cowdray Park Member of Parliament, Ntandoyenkosi Mlilo, has approached the High Court seeking the dissolution of his marriage to his wife of 11 years for allegedly denying him conjugal rights for more than 12 months.

The former legislator and his wife, Miriam Mlilo (nee Nerwande) wedded on April 29, 2005 under Chapter 5:11 of the Marriages Act.

The couple has been on separation since 2007.

Mlilo wants the custody of their two children aged seven and 16 years to be granted to his wife on condition that he gets access to them.

Mlilo, who is a self actor, filed an application for a decree of divorce at the Bulawayo High Court on December 11 citing irreconcilable differences with his wife.

In papers before the court, the former MP said his marriage had irretrievably broken down such that there were no prospects of restoring it.

“The parties were legally married to each other in terms of the Marriages Act (5:11) in Bulawayo on April 29, 2005 and the marriage still subsists. The marriage relationship between the parties has irretrievably broken down to such an extent that there are no reasonable prospects of restoration, more particularly in that the parties have developed irreconcilable differences, which go to the very root of the matrimonial contract and their relationship ,” said Mlilo.

He said they have not shared conjugal rights for 12 months.

“The plaintiff and defendant have not lived as husband and wife since December 2007 being a continuous period in excess of 12 months. The parties have not shared conjugal rights for a period in excess of 12 months and as a result I have lost love and affection for the defendant and do not wish to remain married to her,” he stated in his summons.

“It shall be in the best interests of the two minor children if the court orders that their custody upon divorce be awarded to the defendant subject to my right of reasonable access to them.”

During the subsistence of the marriage, the couple did not acquire any property.-state media

FORMER Vice President Phelekezela Mphoko’s son, Siqokoqela, has been freed from remand prison after successfully challenging the revocation of his bail by a Bulawayo magistrate at the High Court.

His lawyer, Professor Welshman Ncube successfully filed an appeal at the Bulawayo High Court challenging the revocation of bail pending trial.

Siqokoqela (40), who is facing 170 counts of fraud and theft, had his bail revoked by Ms Gladmore Mushove about two weeks ago for violating bail conditions by harassing State witnesses.

He had been locked up at Bulawayo Prisons for 10 days.

Mphoko had his $200 bail revoked last week for allegedly interfering with state witnesses in violation of his bail conditions.

Between July last year and June this year, Mphoko allegedly went to various Choppies supermarkets to demand varying amounts of cash, goods and services from employees without approval from the board.

He is accused of collecting cash, groceries and some building material and later ordering the chain store’s finance department to deduct the money from his salary.

Although he was not supposed to be directly involved in the day-to-day operations of Choppies, Mphoko allegedly masqueraded as the owner of the company in Zimbabwe and even allegedly threatened to either dismiss or deport employees of Indian origin for defying his orders.

Former VP Mphoko and his son on one hand are battling for control of the chain store after partners within the Botswana registered retail giant have insisted the family owned just seven percent shares in the company while the Mphokos claim they own the majority stake with 51% of the business.

The wrangle has spilled into the courts.

PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa has led “the most failed first 100 days of any president,” analysts have said, citing the worsening plight of the long-suffering majority of Zimbabweans.

Mnangagwa was installed president on August 26, after the Constitutional Court confirmed his disputed July 30 election victory, dismissing an opposition challenge that had held up his inauguration.

He was inaugurated president for the second time in nine months in a country recently jubilant over the fall of long-time ruler Robert Mugabe in a soft coup.

Upon officially occupying the top job in August, the former long-time Mugabe ally promised to do things differently from his 94-year-old predecessor — blamed for ruining Zimbabwe’s once-prosperous economy during his 37-year long barren rule.

In an inauguration speech — punctuated with promises of facilitating investment and business growth, re-engaging the international community and job creation — Mnangagwa gave himself 100 days to start working his “magic” in fixing Zimbabwe’s broken economy.

The 100 days lapsed last month.

While Mnangagwa has rated his period in office as a huge success, political analysts canvassed by the Daily News on Sunday had different views.

They said his first 100 days has been marked by economic ruin that have marred his otherwise positive trajectory.

“His first 100 days, is a period of economic chaos stemming from experiments done mainly by his Finance minister and central bank governor. Their poorly phased monetary and fiscal policy statements took us more than 100 days backwards as they fuelled speculative behaviour that had boomerang effects on the volatile financial sector and wreaked havoc on supplies of basic commodities and fuel,” political analyst, Maxwell Saungweme said.

The country is facing serious inflation levels that have been pushed further up by a controversial tax regime on poor Zimbabweans. The recently announced 2019 National Budget by the Finance minister Mthuli Ncube was also not pro-poor.

Saungweme said: “We have also seen increased regime repression of dissenting voices and shrinking of civic space despite failed attempts to paint a picture of reform to the outside world. What we have seen in 100 days is a reversal of the little gains made after the coup in terms of freedoms and a confirmation that coups lead to more dictatorial administrations.”

Zimbabwe is currently facing serious economic challenges, which include shortages of foreign currency, fuel and a huge increase in the prices of basic commodities. Over the last few months, the country has been dogged with problems, ranging from a cholera epidemic to high levels of poverty, as prices have gone out of reach for many people.

Another political analyst Admire Mare, said there was need for the government to urgently address the currency issue, revive the manufacturing and productive sectors and arrest revenue leakages.

“Zimbabwe seems to be still caught up in a vicious cycle of currency woes, queues have resurfaced and the price inflation has shot up.

“Whilst the president has appointed a celebrity Finance minister whom most people see as capable of turning around the situation, the political and economics dynamics seem to be conniving against the governing party,” Mare said.

Another analyst Rashweat Mukundu, said Mnangagwa has generally struggled to put the country back on track economically and politically, as the society is hugely divided along political lines.

“There is no indication at all that the political leadership that is Mnangagwa and his team are prepared to engage the broad society on political reforms and especially on issues around the post-election crisis. We are seeing continued fuel crisis, long lines, we are seeing an increase in the prices of basic commodities, essentially Zimbabwe is far worse than it was in November when Mnangagwa took over, when the coup was initiated by the military.

“So, for me, this has been 100 days of failure, 100 days that have been wasted, much more on unnecessary economic and political grandstanding instead of focusing on the key issues that are affecting this society. So far, we may need the president to reflect more on his strategies. We need him to engage more with the broader civil society and political actors, we need his economic policies to be more realistic. Right now, the insistence that the bond note is at par with the US dollar, is to say the least not true and hence the unsustainable, unavailability of fuel because essentially the government is subsidising the purchase of fuel which in real terms is being bought for 40 cents per litre,” Mukundu said.

— DailyNews

PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa’s Zanu PF party has rejected a proposal from its affiliate, the Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association (ZNLWVA), to raise the age limit for presidential aspirants to 52 years.

War veterans, with support from the women’s league, wanted Zanu PF to use its two-thirds majority in Parliament to amend the national Constitution in what critics have argued is a move to block 40-year-old opposition MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa from contesting the 2023 presidential poll.

Chamisa came close to upsetting Mnangagwa in a bruising election battle early this year, only to lose the closely fought presidential poll after polling 44,3% against the Zanu PF leader’s 50,8%. The MDC leader, however, disputed the election result and brought a petition before the Constitutional Court in a bid to overturn Mnangagwa’s victory which was, however, thrown out for lack of evidence.

Zanu PF spokesperson Simon Khaya Moyo yesterday said the ruling party had not received any official communication from war veterans on the issue. Resolutions passed at the end of the ruling party’s 17th annual conference held in Esigodini, Matabeleland South, last week did not include the contentious proposal.

“As far as I am aware, we have not received any communication regarding the proposed amendment to the Constitution. If it was discussed at the conference, it may have been at the committees’ stage, but it was never brought to the final list for adoption,” Khaya Moyo said.

Insiders said the proposal had found resistance from the youth league, in particular.

“Except for some within the leadership, the entire youth league was opposed to the amendment. It makes very little sense and flies in the face of our new found call to open up the democratic space. It’s like replaying the old record from which the President (Mnangagwa) is trying to walk away,” said a source.

Zanu PF secretary for youth Pupurai Togarepi could not be reached for comment after he was involved in an accident on his way to the conference, while his deputy, Lewis Matutu’s mobile phone went unanswered.

War veterans leader Victor Matemadanda, who has been the most vocal proponent of the resolution, was unwilling to discuss the issue yesterday.

“I am travelling. Can I talk to you later in the day,” he said.

When NewsDay told Matemadanda that the party’s spokesperson had essentially professed ignorance of the proposal, the war veterans secretary-general, who doubles as Deputy Minister for Defence, suggested there could have been an error.

“If he said that, then I would have to discuss with him first before I come back to you,” he said.

Khaya Moyo added that thematic committees bring “numerous resolutions” and most are rejected.

“We have many thematic committees at conference that bring as many as 20 resolutions each. The party cannot adopt everything that is brought before it. It’s impossible,” he said.

Douglas Mahiya, the ZNLWVA spokesperson, however, was more pragmatic and accepted the party’s decision to reject the proposal.

“There was a list of resolutions passed and adopted by conference at the end. It (proposal for age limit) was not there, because the party has a prerogative to fine tune issues as they are brought before it. Zanu PF produces political material to suit a particular environment, and what was communicated to everyone, is what the party adopted,” Mahiya said.

Asked what feedback the war veterans leadership would give to its membership regarding the proposed amendment, Mahiya said: “We will tell them that we put the proposal before the party, it was processed along with other issues and what has been communicated is the outcome of such discussions.”

He said it was up to the membership of the former fighters to seek other ways of presenting their argument.

“It is up to them. But we will not, as an association, seek to present a counter narrative to that of the party,” Mahiya said.

Khaya Moyo said the Zanu PF politburo and central committee were also yet to discuss the issue.

“The proposal has also not been brought before the party’s organs such as the politburo and central committee. But we are a democratic party and people can continue to discuss these issues until such time they have exhausted all channels,” he said.

After the war veterans, the women’s league as well as a number of provincial structures of Zanu PF jumped onto the bandwagon and supported the proposal. However, the party’s Mashonaland Central structure was the first to publicly reject it, following a provincial conference last week.

— NewsDay

South African police early today arrested the driver of an Intercape bus which killed nine Zimbabweans, among them a toddler, in a road accident near Polokwane on Friday last week.

The bus was travelling from Harare to Johannesburg. Limpopo police spokesperson Colonel Moatshe Ngoepe said the man disappeared from a hospital in Polokwane at the weekend but was intercepted at Beitbridge border post by alert police officers.

He said the man had been charged with nine counts of culpable homicide and would appear before a Polokwane magistrate on Tuesday.

Col Ngoepe withheld the suspect’s name pending his court appearance and said they were still working on identifying the nine victims.

“The Police in Westenburg outside Polokwane have arrested the driver of the bus involved in this horrific accident. He tried to cross the border to Zimbabwe after he was taken to hospital with other 51 injured passengers for medical treatment,” he said.

“As the process of intensive investigations by the Police was unfolding, especially on the possible cause of that accident, he then disappeared following his discharge from hospital and fled towards the Beitbridge port of entry. Police were tipped-off, and swiftly responded and subsequently, the driver was caught hidding inside goods trailer of a truck trying to illegally cross the border into Zimbabwe,” he said.

-State Media

Zanu PF and MDC Alliance legislators will move a motion to introduce an electoral promises tracking system meant to ensure that they deliver on the pledges they make to the electorate during campaigning.

In a development that is likely to bring a smile on the faces of the electorate, if implemented through, legislators from the two major political parties in parliament say they will bring to parliament a motion to introduce an electoral promises tracking system.

ActionAid Zimbabwe Head of Programmes and Policy Toendepi Kamusewu said the major areas of concern where little has been done by politicians to fulfill their electoral promises is gender and health service delivery.

Head of the Zimbabwean delegation to the meeting with Zambian legislators in Livingstone, Zambia, Advocate Fortune Chasi said the legislators also agreed to stop squabbling which has cost a lot of valuable time for serious discussions in the parliament.

Politicians have a reputation for making unfulfilled promises to warm their way into positions of power and influence, often forgetting or ignoring those promises once they are elected into office.

-State Media

Zimbabwe’s annual rate of inflation increased by 10,16 percentage points to 31,01 percent in the month of November from 20.85 percent in October as speculative price increases took their toll on the economy.

The year on year inflation rate (annual percentage change) for the month of November 2018 as measured by the all items Consumer Price Index (CPI) stood at 31.01 percent, gaining 10,16 percentage points on the October 2018 rate of 20,85 percent, highlighted latest figures from the Zimbabwe National Statistical Agency (ZimStats).

The year on year Food and Non Alcoholic beverages inflation, prone to transitory shocks, stood at 42,71 percent whilst the Non-food inflation rate was 25,40 percent.

And on a monthly basis, prices increased by 9,2 percent last month compared to 16,44 percent in October.

The month on month Food and Non Alcoholic Beverages inflation rate stood at 14,53 percent in November 2018, shedding 5,59 percentage points on the October 2018 rate of 20,12 percent. The month on month non-food inflation rate stood at 6,50 percent, shedding 8,16 percentage points on the October 2018 rate of 14,66 percent.

Speculative and profiteering tendencies in the past few months have continued to exert pressures on the country’s inflation.

Observers have also attributed the quickening inflation to the continuance of the parallel currency market.

More to follow…

The fate of MDC Alliance vice president Eng Elias Mudzuri will now be decided by opposition leader Mr Nelson Chamisa after the national council referred disciplinary issues against the former Harare mayor to the party’s presidium.

The MDC Alliance presidium consists of Chamisa (president), Professor Welshman Ncube, Eng Mudzuri, Morgen Komichi (vice presidents) and Thabitha Khumalo as chair, according to spokesman Jacob Mafume.

The MDC Alliance national council met on Saturday last week at the party’s headquarters in Harare.

Mr Mafume confirmed the latest developments on Eng Mudzuri in a statement yesterday.

“The meeting noted the allegations against vice president Mudzuri’s conduct and resolved that the matter be dealt with by the presidium,” said Mr Mafume.

Eng Mudzuri, who reportedly wants to challenge Mr Chamisa for the party presidency at next year’s congress, was recently taken to task by party officials for being part of a parliamentary delegation of presiding officers that paid a courtesy call on President Mnangagwa at State House.

A video of him being quizzed by senior members of the party for his attendance went viral on various social media platforms.

The MDC Alliance has refused to acknowledge President Mnangagwa’s electoral victory in the July 30 harmonised elections although its electoral petition at the Constitutional Court was thrown out for lack of merit. The party doesn’t want its officials to acknowledge President Mnangagwa.

The MDC Alliance congress was initially scheduled for February next year but Mr Chamisa and his allies now want it in October to give him time to purge the party of potential challengers.

Eng Mudzuri and the party’s secretary-general, Mr Douglas Mwonzora, are expected to contest Mr Chamisa for the party’s presidency.

Eng Mudzuri has not been attending MDC Alliance meetings at Harvest House of late.

Party insiders say EngMudzuri is afraid those in Mr Chamisa’s camp might unleash violence on him if he visits the party headquarters.

A number of senior party officials have been assaulted at the MDC Alliance headquarters before, including Mr Elton Mangoma, for harbouring leadership ambitions.

Also at its meeting on Saturday, the MDC Alliance national council resolved to carry out a post-mortem of its parliamentary candidates selection criteria after it performed dismally in the July 30 elections.

“In respect of the party’s parliamentary campaign in the 2018 elections, the party resolved to set up an inquiry to review candidate selection and make recommendations for future elections.

“The meeting reviewed progress made in the integration process and resolved that the process be completed in the shortest possible time,” added Mr Mafume.

Zanu-PF won the parliamentary elections with a two-thirds majority.

-State Media

Zanu PF and MDC Alliance legislators will move a motion to introduce an electoral promises tracking system meant to ensure that they deliver on the pledges they make to the electorate during campaigning.

In a development that is likely to bring a smile on the faces of the electorate, if implemented through, legislators from the two major political parties in parliament say they will bring to parliament a motion to introduce an electoral promises tracking system.

ActionAid Zimbabwe Head of Programmes and Policy Toendepi Kamusewu said the major areas of concern where little has been done by politicians to fulfill their electoral promises is gender and health service delivery.

Head of the Zimbabwean delegation to the meeting with Zambian legislators in Livingstone, Zambia, Advocate Fortune Chasi said the legislators also agreed to stop squabbling which has cost a lot of valuable time for serious discussions in the parliament.

Politicians have a reputation for making unfulfilled promises to warm their way into positions of power and influence, often forgetting or ignoring those promises once they are elected into office.

-State Media

Terrence Mawawa|The MDC Alliance has urged the new ZIFA leadership to utilise the popularity of the ” beautiful game ” to unite the fragmented nation.

See the MDC A statement below:
The MDC has been following the ZIFA Elections with interest given that soccer is a national sport of
interest and significance.

We hope the new leadership will promote nationwide grassroots soccer development.Soccer can be a contributor to the entertainment
industry in Zimbabwe and has suffered through years of lack of leadership and manipulation by
those who used the game for personal aggrandizement.

If this industry is managed properly, it can generate significant employment and opportunities for capable young people who only need a chance to pursue the best in themselves.

The youths of this country need
a chance to use their skills to earn a living.Soccer can unite the nation and contribute to the broader Nation Building Agenda.

The MDC congratulates the new executive lead by Felton Kamambo as president and Gift Banda as
vice president. We expect both leaders- in particular, Gift Banda to restore the pride of Zimbabwe and restoration of our powerhouse status.
We wish them well in their quest to transform football. A lot needs to be done including grassroots and junior football development, infrastructure
attention and more importantly ensuring professionalism and transparency in order to have
corporate buy in and general endorsement of the sport.

The MDC smart councils have begun to move towards the building of state of the art stadiums that meet international standards, with Harare leading in that regard. We believe in sport, as much as we believe in
Zimbabwe’s capacity to be a powerhouse globally as long as those who lead the nation follow the will of the people.Behold the New. Change that Delivers!
Jacob Mafume

MDC National Spokesperson

THE Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (Potraz) has urged minors to report anyone who sends explicit and abusive messages on their cellphones, to either the State regulator or the police.

Addressing thousands of Southlea Park residents who braved the rains to attend a road show in Harare yesterday, Potraz official George Manyaya said it was illegal for anyone to send abusive messages or pictures to anyone, more so children.

Manyaya said although the country should embrace technology, sending abusive and explicit messages is banned and anyone caught doing so is liable for prosecution.

“As parents, let us not ignore signs of bad behaviour that we would have noted in our children. To you children, if you see something that bothers you, discuss it with your parents or someone you trust,” Manyaya said.

Abuse of social media and the internet has been on the rise among youths, with the viewership of pornographic material said to be on the rise.

Potraz, in partnership with State broadcaster, Radio Zimbabwe, has been to Mutoko, Nyanga, Gokwe, Chiredzi and Lupane, among other areas, educating people on their rights and what they should do when they feel shortchanged by telecommunication companies.

Manyaya said children have been lured by pedophiles through the internet and parents should report such cases to the police.

“The internet is also used by people who do not always have good intentions, but who intend to harm, harass or bully other people,” he said.

Potraz said children have the right to make use of technologies to develop their personalities and increase capabilities. “Children have a right to protect their identity, a right to participate, have fun and access age-appropriate information,” Manyaya said.

Manyaya said Potraz would continue to ensure that subscribers access quality service and that their concerns are addressed by service providers.

In the past, consumers have complained about poor services with no recourse from service providers.

NewsDay

By Farai D Hove| While the Motlanthe Commission report remains undisclosed, ZANU PF leader Emmerson Mnangagwa has promoted the military commander who lied under oath that 1 Aug soldiers shot at civilians at a 45 degree angle.

Mnangagwa has promoted two Brigadier Generals Sanyatwe and Thomas Moyo to the rank of Major General.

The two promoted are Major General Thomas Moyo and Major General Anselem Sanyatwe. The promotions are in terms of section 15(1)(b) Paragraph 2 of the Defence Act.

Zimbabwe Defence Forces Commander General Phillip Valerio Sibanda conferred ranks to the newly promoted senior officers and encouraged them to continue working hard in their new responsibilities.

“You need to do more than you did before because rank comes with responsibilities,” said Sibanda while conferring the new ranks.

In his acceptance speech, Major General Moyo commended his superiors for showing confidence in their work.

The conferment of the ranks was witnessed by the Commander Zimbabwe National Army, Lieutenant General Edzayi Chimonyo and several senior officers.

SEE PICTURES BELOW…

President Mnangagwa has promoted two Brigadier Generals Sanyatwe and Thomas Moyo to the rank of Major General. Conferring the new ranks, #CDF Valerio Sibanda said "You need to do more than you did before because rank comes with responsibilities" #Zimbabwe pic.twitter.com/2OdiQ7xlBU

— Sharon (@sharontawuya1) December 17, 2018

Terrence Mawawa|Prominent MDC A activist, Dred Field Marshall Reckless has said the tired Zanu PF functionaries who literally spent the conference snoring do not have the capacity to turnaround the country’ s dwindling economy.

Dred Field Marshall Reckless of the Nhare Mbozha fame described the Zanu PF Annual People’s Conference as the “Bedroom Conference” of snoring ruling party honchos.

“OK, OK, I see. So they were fighting for the bedroom with Mugabe? I thought they had brilliant

ideas…”posted Dred Reckless on Facebook.

A MEMBER of the Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) recently appeared before Guruve magistrate facing allegations of shooting a Guruve man before robbing him of a Toyota Quantum vehicle, $6 000 in bond notes and US$200.

Wayne Masaiti (26) pleaded not guilty to armed robbery before magistrate Shingirai Mutiro, who remanded him in custody to December 24.

Public prosecutor Albert Mazhindu alleges Masaiti and his three accomplices, who are still at large, broke into Peter Munatsa’s house at Dzvukamanja shops in Guruve on December 2, around 10pm and demanded cash. Munatsa resisted and was shot on the right knee. Masaiti and his accomplice then allegedly took money and the vehicle, which they later dumped along the Guruve-Rafingora Road. He was later picked by police for questioning in connection with the case, and he was positively identified by Munatsa as the shooter.

The State opposed bail, saying Masaiti was likely to commit similar offences because the weapons used to commit the offence had not been recovered.

NewsDay

MEMBERS of the Amalgamated Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (Artuz) have vowed to proceed with the salary caravan march today, despite their leaders being arrested and hauled before the courts.

Nine Artuz members were on Saturday arrested in Macheke during the march before being taken to Marondera Central Police Station where they were charged with criminal nuisance. They were released into the custody of their lawyer, Timomuda Shoko from the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights. They will appear at Marondera Magistrates’ Courts today.

Speaking to NewsDay in Marondera yesterday, Artuz boss Obert Masaraure said they would continue with the march today after court proceedings.

“The arrest was an act of banditry by the State against its own citizens. It was barbaric to say the least. Unarmed teachers were confronted by heavily armed police officers and thrown in custody without a charge. Charges were only preferred seven hours after the arrest,” he said.

Meanwhile, Zimbabwe Teachers Association has strongly condemned the detention and arrest of the protesting teachers, and threatened that its members would down tools next term if government did not address their demands.

NewsDay

A 2018 gender audit on elections by the Women in Politics Support Unit (WiPSU), released on Thursday, has revealed that female candidates in the July 30 polls suffered a lot of hate speech and violence, which in turn impaired their political participation.

WiPSU director Sakhile Sifelani Ngoma, in her opening remarks at the launch of the report in Harare, described the 2018 plebiscite as “a very difficult election for women”, adding that it is now time to rethink strategies that can protect women in politics ahead of the 2023 elections.

Buhlebenkosi Tshabangu-Moyo, who presented the WiPSU gender audit report, said the 2018 election was a highly digital election, resulting in increased use of social media hate speech, with a record 2 470 candidates using social and electronic media to reach out to citizens.

“The many faces of violence attack undermine and deter women’s participation in public political affairs and in the electoral cycle,” Tshabangu-Moyo said.

“A record of 1 822 women contested for seats in the 2018 elections, an increase of over 900 women since the 2013 elections,” she said.

Rumbi Katedza, who presented the WiPSU report on hate speech, said in their tracking from the month of January 2017 to November 30 2018 (23 months), it was revealed that 3 122 incidents of hate speech, with 57% of the perpetrators being male and 43% being female, were exposed.

“A total of 1 699 women candidates were targets of hate speech, while 949 males were victims of hate speech. It becomes clear that women contesting in elections are subjected to the abusiveness of hate speech twice more than their male counterparts, raising the issue of discriminatory practices within the political context, undermining women rights to equal opportunities,” Katedza said.

She said there was also hate speech churned out by members of the public (60%) during the elections, which shows that there is need for voter education which speaks to the code of conduct.

“All presidential candidates were subjected to hate speech. Women presidential candidates were subject to double the hate speech that their male counterparts received.

Four hundred and twenty one incidents of hate speech against women presidential candidates were recorded, compared to 256 incidents targeted on male presidential candidates,” Katedza said.

NewsDay

South African police early today arrested the driver of an Intercape bus which killed nine Zimbabweans, among them a toddler, in a road accident near Polokwane on Friday last week.

The bus was travelling from Harare to Johannesburg. Limpopo police spokesperson Colonel Moatshe Ngoepe said the man disappeared from a hospital in Polokwane at the weekend but was intercepted at Beitbridge border post by alert police officers.

He said the man had been charged with nine counts of culpable homicide and would appear before a Polokwane magistrate on Tuesday.

Col Ngoepe withheld the suspect’s name pending his court appearance and said they were still working on identifying the nine victims.

“The Police in Westenburg outside Polokwane have arrested the driver of the bus involved in this horrific accident. He tried to cross the border to Zimbabwe after he was taken to hospital with other 51 injured passengers for medical treatment,” he said.

“As the process of intensive investigations by the Police was unfolding, especially on the possible cause of that accident, he then disappeared following his discharge from hospital and fled towards the Beitbridge port of entry. Police were tipped-off, and swiftly responded and subsequently, the driver was caught hidding inside goods trailer of a truck trying to illegally cross the border into Zimbabwe,” he said.

State Media

South African police early today arrested the driver of an Intercape bus which killed nine Zimbabweans, among them a toddler, in a road accident near Polokwane on Friday last week.

The bus was travelling from Harare to Johannesburg.

Limpopo police spokesperson Colonel Moatshe Ngoepe said the man disappeared from a hospital in Polokwane at the weekend but was intercepted at Beitbridge border post by alert police officers.

He said the man had been charged with nine counts of culpable homicide and would appear before a Polokwane magistrate on Tuesday.

Col Ngoepe withheld the suspect’s name pending his court appearance and said they were still working on identifying the nine victims.

“The Police in Westenburg outside Polokwane have arrested the driver of the bus involved in this horrific accident. He tried to cross the border to Zimbabwe after he was taken to hospital with other 51

injured passengers for medical treatment,” he said.

“As the process of intensive investigations by the Police was unfolding, especially on the possible cause of that accident, he then disappeared following his discharge from hospital and fled towards the Beitbridge port of entry. Police were tipped-off, and swiftly responded and subsequently, the driver was caught hidding inside goods trailer of a truck trying to illegally cross the border into Zimbabwe,” he said.

The 30th of July elections in Zimbabwe almost painted and sold a superficial and dummy picturesque of a changed regime to the world and hearts of many. Had the lingering demons of untamed violence and State brutality not manifested on the 1st of August, the devil could have comfortably found his way into the temple!

The events of the 1st of August were bloodcurdling and heartrending, to say the least. Innocent civilians, most of who were not even taking part, directly or indirectly, in acts of insurgency, were butchered in cold blood.

The right to demonstrate in Zimbabwe is constitutional, and citizens have the right to do so, as provided for by Section 59 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe (Amendment No. 20 of 2013). However, despite this inalienable right, we recognise that the enjoyment of this right should and must not prejudice the rights of others, as such, any unlawful activities should have been dealt with in a proper way by the police.

It is unfortunate that despite the usual ranting and raving by the police, accusing and blaming the opposition for the 1st of August violence – and even the unfortunate murders of at least six people – not even a single arrest has been made to date in connection with the violence, except the blatant and veiled attempt to arrest the 22 MDC Alliance members who were seized with parallel vote tabulation at the party’s national headquarters, the Morgan Tsvangirai House. The 22 members have since been released after the State failed to prove a case against them.

The sanctity of human life

The killing of at least six innocent people on the 1st of August has no justification whatsoever, howsoever, and by whomsoever, even in Hades. The right to life is codified in Chapter 4 Section 48 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe. Section 48 emphasises on the right to life of every Zimbabwean, whether delinquent or not. Whatever crime the protesters were committing, or alleged to have been committing, could not have warranted the wanton murder of unarmed civilians by the uniformed forces – according to the pictorial and video evidence we have so far.

These murders, purely criminal in nature, were against the laws of Zimbabwe, and they must be given the condemnation they deserve, and must be prosecuted befittingly in a competent court of law, without fear or favour. Only the prosecution of the murderers and truth, will give a proper purgation and catharsis to the August 1st events.

The Motlanthe Commission – A post-mortem analysis

On the 19th of August 2018, Emmerson Mnangagwa appointed Kgalema Motlanthe as the chairman of a commission to inquire into the post-election violence of 1st August. The commission was composed of seven commissioners whose selection was a sole prerogative of the President. In light of natural justice principles, particularly at this point, the nemo judex in sua cosa (literally meaning; no man can be a judge in his own case), President Mnangagwa was never the right person to appoint a commission to investigate a case in which he is an accomplice.

The most honourable thing he could have done was to recuse himself and let independent establishments to appoint commissioners whose integrity to the task was unquestionable, and commissioners that are undefiled and acceptable to all. It is a common principle of logic and justice that a criminal cannot choose a judge to hear case in which he/she is being convicted of. The decision by Emmerson Mnangagwa to appoint a commission was not only faulty at law, but also mischievous.

The terms of reference for the commission were grossly insipid and a deliberately unscrupulous attempt by the presidium to sway the focus of the commission from the crux of the issues at stake. The terms of reference were merely pre-emptive of a desired outcome and were disingenuously designed not to find out the truth, but to shift the blame.

The preoccupation of the terms of reference on placing the blame on demonstrators and their alleged leaders was simply disturbing and un-strategic by whosoever designed them. The indispensable need to find out who deployed, ordered, and murdered innocent civilians on the 1st of August was a loud and conspicuous deliberate omission on the terms of reference.

The President of the Republic of Zimbabwe, in accordance with Section 213 of the Constitution, is responsible for deploying the Defence Forces. And as the Commander-in-Chief of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces, and the only authority with an exclusive right to deploy the army, was, in all essence, supposed to have been the first witness to be summoned before the Motlanthe commission to explain how he deployed the army into the streets of Harare without Parliament and Cabinet approval. The procedures that the police and the army followed were inconsistent with the current Constitution, thereby invalid and illegal.

It was very worrying and disheartening when a whole convocation of army and police generals came to the commission to exhibit their shameful mathematical deficiencies and lack of logical consistency as they were narrating their uninspiring and conspicuously fabricated cacophony of lies.

Their testimonies were a devious concoction of lies, deceit and malice. “The soldier was shooting into the air at an angle of 45˚,” said Anselem Sanyatwe, the National Reaction Team Commander. My foot! This military formula of 45˚ is so outlandish, scathing and laughable, it defies all logic. The pictorial and video evidence of a crouching soldier firing a salvo into the running crowd is a monumental justification and answer to the who killed who question.

The composition of the commission, the kind of factual dishonesty that some of the witnesses unashamedly exhibited under oath, and the prejudice against some witnesses leaves a lot to be envied about the commission. The crouching soldier was supposed to be invited to explain his behaviour and give a mathematical formula as to how his automatic AK47 assault rifle, as it appeared on the video that went viral of social media, was shooting at 45˚ angle.

Our leaders in Zimbabwe must learn that sometimes there are benefits that can be accrued by owning-up. We hope, as a nation, that the Motlanthe commission, despite all its shortcomings and the misgivings that were levelled against it by the people of Zimbabwe, was guided by principles of truth, objectivity and fairness, otherwise the whole three months they’ve been roaming around in Zimbabwe, gobbling the taxpayers’ money, will amount to nothing.

Solutions Tower

A Zanu PF activist from Nyabira has been sentenced to two months in jail after threatening to shoot a villager he found setting up a goat pen.

Chinhoyi magistrate Letwin Rwodzi was last week told that on November 27, Brighton Matikiti (47) found Peter Imbayago of Umvukwe Farm building a goat pen and ordered him to stop, saying the farm belonged to him.

Imbayago told Matikiti that he had been instructed to build the pen by his employer who owned the land and the Zanu PF activist drew out a pistol from his pocket and pointed it at the complainant.

He threatened to kill Imbayago if he did not comply with his orders. The matter was reported to the police, leading to Matikiti’s arrest.

Imbayago told the court that Matikiti had boasted that he was untouchable because he was a Zanu PF member.

Matikiti pleaded guilty and was sentenced to two months in prison or pay a $200 fine.

There was drama in Mt Darwin when a top police officer allegedly bashed a junior cop for failing to buy him beer.

Wesley Zimbonja (41) of Mt Darwin Police Station reportedly went to a night club in Mt Darwin on Tuesday evening and demanded beer from Clever Makara.

Makara only managed to buy two Castle Lite pints before running out of money.

Zimbonja allegedly slapped Makara twice on the cheek after the junior officer told him he had run out of money.

Makara reported the matter at Madziva Police Station under CR number 40/12/18.

Mashonaland Central acting police spokesperson Sergeant Tonny Nyandoro said he was yet to get the report.

– Standard

WATCH VIDEO BELOW…

A Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) member recently appeared before Guruve magistrate facing allegations of shooting a Guruve man before robbing him of a Toyota Quantum vehicle, $6 000 in bond notes and US$200.

Wayne Masaiti (26) pleaded not guilty to armed robbery before magistrate Shingirai Mutiro, who remanded him in custody to December 24.

Public prosecutor Albert Mazhindu alleges Masaiti and his three accomplices, who are still at large, broke into Peter Munatsa’s house at Dzvukamanja shops in Guruve on December 2, around 10pm and demanded cash. Munatsa resisted and was shot on the right knee. Masaiti and his accomplice then allegedly took money and the vehicle, which they later dumped along the Guruve-Rafingora Road. He was later picked by police for questioning in connection with the case, and he was positively identified by Munatsa as the shooter.

The State opposed bail, saying Masaiti was likely to commit similar offences because the weapons used to commit the offence had not been recovered.

State Media

President Emmerson Mnangagwa is reportedly mulling a cabinet reshuffle that will see minister of foreign affairs Sibusiso Busi Moyo retiring from the ministry of Foreign Affairs and taking up full time position at the ZANU PF Headquarters.

A source from the Office of the President revealed to us several alleged changes that are being considered.

“There is a discussion among the President and his advisors several changes in the party and in government. The ones that seems to be agreed upon so far are that Cde Victor Matemadanda should become the National Chairperson of the Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association and be deployed full time at the party headquarters.” The source said.

“You are also likely to see minister Sibusiso Moyo being retired from government politics and being redeployed to party HQ to replace Cde Obert Mpofu who is retiring from active politics.

“Another interesting one is that Amai (Monica) Mutsvangwa may be moved to replace SB Moyo and you are likely going to see the razzmatazz deputy minister Energy Mutodi being elevated to become substantive minister of media, information and broadcasting services.

“Also another big one is that Cde Lovemore Matuke is being touted for the ministry of state presidential affairs.” This will be the first cabinet reshuffle since Mnangagwa won the 2018 harmonised elections.

-Zimetro

Jane Mlambo| A Beitbridge bound Smart Express bus has been attacked by armed robbers resulting in the death of one person while three were injured.

Beitbridge based Journalist, Mhlomuli Ncube reported the attack today.

@ZBCNewsonline 1 person was killed. 3 injured after Smart bus they were travelling in was attacked by two armed robbers 10km before Beitbridge town on Monday morning.

— Mhlomuli Ncube (@Mhlozbc) December 17, 2018

More details to follow

Jane Mlambo| Daughter of self-exiled former Manicaland Provincial Affairs Minister Mandi Chimene died on Friday and this could force the watermouth politician to resurface since her disappearance in November last after being targeted by the then Lacoste element of the ruling Zanu PF party.

Chimene’s daughter, Ellen Zimondi (35) had been admitted at Murambi Gardens Clinic in Mutare suffering from an undisclosed ailment.

With the mother in an unknown location, Chimene will be forced to make a public appearance to attend her daughter’s burial.

Other former Zanu PF members including Savior Kasukuwere were arrested of corruption and abuse of office soon after coming out in the public from their hideouts.

Representatives of Zanu-PF, MDC-Alliance, MDC-T and the National Constitutional Assembly will battle it out in the Chitungwiza Ward 24 by-elections set for January 26 next year after successfully filing their papers on Friday at the Nomination Court sitting at the Chitungwiza Municipality head office.

The seat fell vacant after the death of Councillor Alice Chihambakwe of MDC-Alliance on October 30.

The ruling Zanu-PF will be represented by Ms Mercy Guvamombe, the MDC- Alliance by Mr Yotam Chagwada, MDC-T by Ms Jane Makovere and the National Constitutional Assembly by Mr Anderson Tsakeni.

Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) nomination officer Mr Jairos Machona announced the final list of contestants after the sitting

“We are happy that the nomination process was very calm and all the four duly nominated candidates that came through had their papers in order. There are two ladies and two gentlemen.

“Since more than one candidate has been duly nominated in Ward 24 a poll shall take place on Saturday 26 January 2019, in accordance with Section 125 Subsection 4(b)of the Electoral Act (Chapter 2:13),” he said.

Chitungwiza has 25 councillors, 21 from the MDC-Alliance and four from Zanu-PF.

State Media

Zanu-PF and MDC-Alliance will share $8 million allocated to political parties by Treasury under the Political Parties Finance Act.

Finance and Economic Development Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube set aside the $8 million in the 2019 National Budget he presented in Parliament in November.

The figure is higher than last year’s allocation of $6 million.

Zanu-PF will get the lion’s share of the money after it secured more than two-thirds of parliamentary seats as it trounced MDC-Alliance in the July 30 watershed elections, which were widely given a clean bill by local, regional and international observers. A rough calculation shows that the revolutionary party is set to pocket almost $6 million with MDC- Alliance taking home about $2 million, given its paltry seats in the National Assembly.

Zanu-PF won 145 of the 210 seats in the National Assembly against MDC-Alliance’s 63. The remaining two seats were won by the National Patriotic Front’s Masango “Blackman” Matambanadzo (Kwekwe Central) and independent candidate Mr Temba Mliswa (Norton).

Secretary for Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Mrs Virginia Mabiza confirmed the allocation yesterday.

“Yes, political parties were allocated $8 million in the Blue Book. It is under the Ministry of Justice Legal and Parliamentary Affairs,” said Mrs Mabiza.

Under the Political Parties Finance Act, only a political party that secures 5 percent of the total votes cast can benefit from the fiscus.

Small political parties have in the past asked Government to extend financing to them but their pleas hit a brick wall when the Constitutional Court dismissed their application.

The Zimbabwe Development Party, led by Mr Kisinoti Mukwazhi, approached the Constitutional Court in January 2013 seeking an order to compel Treasury to release funding to all political parties participating in national elections but the application was dismissed for lack of merit.

In its ruling, the Constitutional Court said it would be “irresponsible and dangerous for Government if all political parties were to be funded” from the fiscus as that would mean even fly-by-night parties would be funded.

Government enacted the Political Parties Finance Act in 2002 after it emerged that some political parties were getting funding from hostile foreign governments and non-governmental organisations.

Some parties have tried to circumvent the law by using NGOs based in Zimbabwe as conduits for getting funds from foreign entities.

Many countries, for example the United States, do not allow political parties to receive foreign funding.

-State Media

Despite assurances by President Emmerson Mnangagwa that he will ensure devolution is implemented, ZAPU leader, Dumiso Dabengwa is not convinced power will be decentralised as per the wish of citizens.

Zapu secretary for policy and strategy, Sakhile Sibanda said the inclusion of devolution in the constitution gave people hope that power will be distributed to all provinces but as a party they are sceptical of the Zanu PF leader’s sincerity.

“The results of the Constitutional Parliamentary committee (COPAC) public consultation confirmed the popularity of devolution. The inclusion of Devolution in the 2013 Constitution Chapter 14 gave many people hope of transferring power from the centralised and corrupt system of government to the people to manage their own affairs in their localities,” she said.

She said  after five years of Zanu PF government’s dithering  and even threats to scrap devolution provision by amending the constitution, President Emmerson Mnangagwa took advantage of devolution sentiments in his 2018 election campaign trail promising to enact legislation to establish and operationalise Constitutional provisions if he won the elections.

“Mnangagwa’s government is quickly moving to fulfill their promise by introducing the Devolution Bill in Parliament. There has been mixed reactions to the Bill and confusion about the final shape of the proposed devolution,” she said in  a statement.

“The public seems to be taken in by the rhetoric of “Power to the People” and the dream of having communities take control over their local affairs and resources.”

They said Mthuli won’t do certain things because ZANU PF won’t allow him to. Some of us said we have to wait and see. Mthuli announced job cuts for Youth Officers, who were not making economic contributions through their posts.. They said it won’t happen. Today here we are:#TSP pic.twitter.com/vZzYdDehJ9

— Soko Mukanya ?? (@PTChimusoro) December 16, 2018

Negotiations meant to end the nearly 2-week-long strike by junior doctors have suffered a blow after hitches in the payment of the doctors’ December salaries.

The junior doctors were supposed to resume normal duties soon after Friday’s bipartite negotiations, pending more dialogue with their employer, but it is no longer the case after they were apparently struck off the payroll.

Friday’s negotiations had provided a breakthrough to end junior doctors’ industrial action and restore normalcy in the country’s public hospitals.

There has however been no progress since then with the junior doctors alleging their employer; the government, has struck them off the payroll.

Zimbabwe Hospital Doctors Association (ZHDA) Secretary General, Dr Anele Mthabisi Bhebhe alleged that their accounts were credited with what seemed to be slashed salaries for December but two hours later, the transactions were reversed.

A letter dated 14 December 2018 and signed by the Acting Permanent Secretary for Health and Child Care, Dr Robert Mudyiradima indicated that the salaries confusion was caused by some excess deductions on the employees’ pay as you earn (PAYE), adding that the deductions have since been reversed and the monies will be credited into the affected members’ accounts.

However, Health Services Board (HSB) Chairperson, Dr Paulinas Sikhosana told the ZBC News that the doctors who had withdrawn their services are already off the payroll after their industrial action had gone for over 14 days.

The doctors’ strike started on the 1st of December and according to current health sector regulations, any health worker who fails to report for duty for 14 consecutive days is struck off the payroll.

-State Media

Jane Mlambo| New ZIFA President Felton Kamambo who earned praises from football stakeholders after fighting controversial businessman Phillip Chiyangwa, has since joined Twitter to “be in touch with the people” as well as accepting ideas to improve football administration.

Writing on Twitter yesterday, Kamambo thanked Zimbabwe for electing him saying he will work hard to improve the country’s sport.

https://twitter.com/FeltonKamambo/status/1074381852499050496

Following his trouncing by rival Felton Kamambo, flamboyant businessman and Zanu PF politician, Phillip Chiyangwa said his decision to withdraw from the race was to show that he is not power hungry.

Ironically, Chiyangwa and his deputy Omega Sibanda had gone all systems out to block their challengers in a style typical of a power hungry duo.

Posting on Twitter soon after the ZIFA polls, Chiyangwa said;

https://twitter.com/MPChiyangwa/status/1074314461769543681

ELEVEN people died on spot and several others were seriously injured yesterday when two commuter omnibuses collided head-on along the Harare-Nyamapanda highway, marking a bloody start to the festive season which runs from December 15 to January 15, 2019.

The accident occurred at the 49km peg late in the afternoon.

National police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi confirmed the accident last night.

Police said the accident happened when one of the commuter omnibuses burst a tyre and encroached onto the lane of the other driving in the opposite direction, resulting in the head-on collision which killed 10 adults and a child.

Police had not released the names of the deceased by last night.

Asst Comm Nyathi said details of the accident were still sketchy as police were attending the scene in the Murehwa area.

The bodies of the deceased were taken to Murehwa Hospital mortuary while the injured were rushed to Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals in Harare.

“One of the commuter omnibuses had a tyre burst and encroached onto the lane of an oncoming omnibus, resulting in the head-on collision,” said Asst Comm Nyathi.

“Police officers at the scene are still establishing the number of passengers who were on board each kombi,” he said.

“We are yet to establish the number of the injured passengers. The bodies of the deceased were taken to Murehwa Hospital’s mortuary and the injured were ferried to Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals,” said Asst Comm Nyathi.

He urged motorists to ensure their vehicles were fit before travelling to avoid accidents.

Asst Comm Nyathi also said drivers must always observe traffic regulations.

“Motorists should always check the tyres of their vehicles to see if they are fit to be on the road. They should also remember that it is imperative for everyone to take extra caution in order to curb or continue reducing the number of accidents. We implore motorists to observe all traffic laws as they travel to different destinations,” he said.

The country has of late been experiencing a spate of road fatalities.

Last week 12 people died on the spot near Checheche Growth Point in Chipinge when a Green Fuel haulage truck collided with a commuter omnibus.

Last month 47 people — 45 adults and two children — were killed, while 70 others were injured when two buses collided head-on at the 166-kilometre peg along the Harare-Mutare Highway.

The accident involved Bolt Cutter and Smart Express buses.

On November 25, four people lost their lives, three of them on the spot, when a Toyota Allion they were travelling in hit the pillars of Mupfure bridge near Chegutu and landed under the bridge.

Also mid last month, 30 people were killed near West Nicholson in Matabelaland South when a gas cylinder exploded in a bus resulting in an inferno which burnt some of the passengers beyond recognition. DNA tests were carried out to identify some of them.

In September, five people died in two separate accidents along the Shurugwi-Zvishavane and Gweru-Kwekwe roads.

Four people died on the spot at Boterekwa when a maize-laden T35 truck they were travelling in overturned.

-State Media

The fate of MDC Alliance vice president Eng Elias Mudzuri will now be decided by opposition leader Mr Nelson Chamisa after the national council referred disciplinary issues against the former Harare mayor to the party’s presidium.

The MDC Alliance presidium consists of Chamisa (president), Professor Welshman Ncube, Eng Mudzuri, Morgen Komichi (vice presidents) and Thabitha Khumalo as chair, according to spokesman Jacob Mafume.

The MDC Alliance national council met on Saturday last week at the party’s headquarters in Harare.

Mr Mafume confirmed the latest developments on Eng Mudzuri in a statement yesterday.

“The meeting noted the allegations against vice president Mudzuri’s conduct and resolved that the matter be dealt with by the presidium,” said Mr Mafume.

Eng Mudzuri, who reportedly wants to challenge Mr Chamisa for the party presidency at next year’s congress, was recently taken to task by party officials for being part of a parliamentary delegation of presiding officers that paid a courtesy call on President Mnangagwa at State House.

A video of him being quizzed by senior members of the party for his attendance went viral on various social media platforms.

The MDC Alliance has refused to acknowledge President Mnangagwa’s electoral victory in the July 30 harmonised elections although its electoral petition at the Constitutional Court was thrown out for lack of merit. The party doesn’t want its officials to acknowledge President Mnangagwa.

The MDC Alliance congress was initially scheduled for February next year but Mr Chamisa and his allies now want it in October to give him time to purge the party of potential challengers.

Eng Mudzuri and the party’s secretary-general, Mr Douglas Mwonzora, are expected to contest Mr Chamisa for the party’s presidency.

Eng Mudzuri has not been attending MDC Alliance meetings at Harvest House of late.

Party insiders say EngMudzuri is afraid those in Mr Chamisa’s camp might unleash violence on him if he visits the party headquarters.

A number of senior party officials have been assaulted at the MDC Alliance headquarters before, including Mr Elton Mangoma, for harbouring leadership ambitions.

Also at its meeting on Saturday, the MDC Alliance national council resolved to carry out a post-mortem of its parliamentary candidates selection criteria after it performed dismally in the July 30 elections.

“In respect of the party’s parliamentary campaign in the 2018 elections, the party resolved to set up an inquiry to review candidate selection and make recommendations for future elections.

“The meeting reviewed progress made in the integration process and resolved that the process be completed in the shortest possible time,” added Mr Mafume.

Zanu-PF won the parliamentary elections with a two-thirds majority.

-State Media

Own Correspondent|THE state media has labelled MDC leader Nelson Chamisa as a small fly, a waste of time, and in need of psychiatric help to get out of the elections he lost on 30 July.

The media makes these sentiments while the leader of ZANU PF President Emmerson Mnangagwa and his party are having sleepless nights scheming against Chamisa.

The entire party leadership over the weekend endorsed a resolution calling on parliament to increase the minimum age for one to contest as President to fifty just to try and eliminate Chamisa from contesting against Mnangagwa.

In an opinion piece, The Herald Assistant Editor Isdore Guvamombe said: ” (Chamisa’s) biggest mistake is ego. For example, there was no need for him to go to the Constitutional Court after the elections claiming to have “overwhelming” evidence of rigging yet he totally had nothing.

“The Government exposed him badly by screening live the hearing for all and sundry to see. It exposed him as that politician who just wants to cause problems even where it is not necessary.

“He simply abused the democratic space and wasted everyone’s time. In normal and mature democracies Chamisa would have apologised to the nation for time wasting. But he did not.

“Well, this is the criticism most of the gullible MDC Alliance supporters do not want to hear. This is a departure from self-serving fanaticism. It hits below the belt. It hits the dangling bits until they retreat into the abdomen. But it is realistic. It moves the country forward.

“When he violently grabbed power in February 2017, many people in MDC and beyond got very excited but the mature ones urged caution. Instead of uniting the party, he divided and split it much faster than anticipated. Aided by the party’s rogue wing of youth known as the Vanguard, Chamisa became the epitome of violence.

“Soon his violent nature spread like a veld fire and spilled over from his party to the nation at large. As the 2018 harmonised elections took a steady shape on a new trajectory of non-violence, thanks to the New Dispensation, Chamisa stuck to violent and foul-mouthed politics. He declared that no one except him should win the election. Any other result was unacceptable.

“In the run-up to the elections, he violated his own party aspiring candidates by ordering them to delivering multitudes of supporters, by hook or crook to his roadshows, causing them to neglect their own constituencies. It was supposed to be him and him alone. It was a cavalcade whose plummage he looked at and thought it all provided votes. No!

“Declaration that he should be the only winner, failure of which he would render this country ungovernable, even before voting day, was not only stupid but dangerous politics that has no place in a democracy like ours. One would think a leader of a political party named Movement for Democractic Change would know what democracy is. But, alas, as we now have all learnt from Chamisa, what is in a name?

“Suffice to say, the election season is over and Zimbabwe needs to move forward but Chamisa is still in election mode, five months after the elections. For as long as he remains in that mode, he is a problem not only to the country, but to himself and his party.

“For starters, after losing the election, then the election challenge at the Constitutional Court, after failing to get Sadc’s and African Union’s endorsement for his election challenge, if he was normal, he would have seen that there is no longer any other reasonable channel to follow but to accept defeat.

“At first it was understandable that the huge defeat his MDC Alliance and himself suffered in the July 30 elections could have unhinged his brain and numbed his skull but by now he should have gotten over it. It seems he now needs psychiatric help to get out of it.

“His propensity for political showboating through demonstrations is not only childish but self-serving especially when dealing with a mature democracy like Zimbabwe’s under Zanu-PF. Yes, they will allow him to demonstrate on the streets and yet at the end of the day, it is much ado about nothing, full of sound and fury, but signifying nothing. Nothing!

“Besides showboating, spending the day on the streets, the demonstrations of that type prove nothing. It is a waste of time by any standards.

“It defies logic — assuming Chamisa still has some semblance of it — that he wants to have talks with President Mnangagwa, yet he does not recognise him as the Head of State. What nonsense!

“Chamisa’s MPS go into Parliament and he says elections were not free and fair yet the voting process and system was the same. It was done simultaneously. His party is demanding that ministers in President Mnangagwa’s Government go to Parliament to answer questions but does not recognise their appointing authority — the President. What tomfoolery!

“If Chamisa wants to be taken seriously in the matrix of governance he should change his attitude, his language, his politicking and get real. What he has been doing since the elections does not make him a serious contender even for talks with the President. No President will stoop that low to talk to a mean person who does not seem to understand that opposition politics is not hate politics. That opposition politics should be national in its interest and value system and indeed in it is everything.

“Nelson Chamisa is a failure practising archaic politics, the sort of politics that is informed by extreme arrogance bereft of tactic and vision. The country has moved on and he has been left behind.

“Nelson Chamisa is no longer a factor in solving Zimbabwe’s problems and neither is he worthy talking to over governance. He is a waste of time.

“For President Mnangagwa to dialogue with Chamisa at the moment would be stooping to a record low. A whole State President entering talks with a small fly that does not recognise him, when the international community and its leaders do recognise him? No, Nelson, no!

“Over the months Chamisa has proved to be a big part of the problem himself that, in fact, needs a solution. Naturally, a problem does not provide a solution to itself. It remains a problem.

Chamisa has largely become an epitome of poor politicking, emotional instability and brazen dislike for order and a propensity to abuse the existing democratic space.

“It is clear Chamisa’s biggest mistake was overrating his stake in Zimbabwe’s political space and with time he is slowly discovering his diminishing returns.

“Since taking over power from MDC founding president Morgan Tsvangirai, Chamisa has distinguished himself as a problem that enjoys selfishly abusing the democratic space at the expense of the general populace and the development of the country.”