By Paul Nyathi

Highlanders Football Club Chairman Kenneth Mhlophe has raised an outcry at senior club members who drink beer at the club house on credit and fail to pay.

In a sensational Facebook post, Mhlophe warned the defaulting members to pay up the debts or risk him naming and shaming them.

“What kind of people are these who drink beer on credit and then fail to pay for it?,” fumed Mhlophe.

“If one does not have money to buy beer, they may as well go home and sleep than come and drink on credit then fail to pay,” fumed Mhlophe.

“If you don’t pay up your debts I am going to name and shame you. This is a public venture which does not belong to individuals” wrote the former Zimbabwe Defence Forces Colonel.

Sources at the sports club who spoke to ZimEye.com in confidence said that the club is owed amounts ranging into thousands of dollars by members who include some members of the current and former executive committees.

Some are reported to be club life members while some are former members of the technical team and former players.

The sources would not be drawn to disclose the names of the accused persons.

“We have submitted the names to the chairman and his executive its up to him to decide what to do with the names,” said the source.

“We are not talking of ordinary people here, most of them are highly respectable people who we can not deny the credit facility when they need it,” added the source.

Some of the amounts involved have been outstanding for over two years and yet the people just keep on drinking. Thats why we had to raise alarm with the executive,” said the source.

On visiting the Club House, ZimEye.com managed to establish popular people such as former Highlanders Chief Executive Officer Ndumiso Gumede, former player and coach Amini Soma Phiri and other senior club members as regular patrons of the club.

Highlanders Football Club owes close to a million dollars in debts. The club was once the richest club in the country affording to acquire varied assets that include the club house, club offices and a camping house.

Efforts to get a comment from Mhlophe failed at the time of writing.

In 2017, Daily Maverick published a series of articles based on Stuart Doran’s monumental history of ZANU-PF and Robert Mugabe, titled ‘Kingdom, Power, Glory’. In this major review of the book, former British Foreign Secretary David Owen reflects on his own intimate dealings with Mugabe during the 1970s, and his efforts to understand the man who would rule Zimbabwe for nearly four decades. Drawing on personal observation and reporting by MI6, Owen was initially attracted by Mugabe’s “high personal standards” and “apparent integrity”. But other, darker strands soon became visible.

Stuart Doran’s book Kingdom, Power, Glory: Mugabe, ZANU and the quest for supremacy 1960-1987is a book of towering importance for the African continent and I cannot recommend it too highly. Pages 646 to the end are of huge importance, and the following three paragraphs deserve quoting in full.

“One social force that has received attention, at least with regard to the period before 1980, is ‘tribe’ or ‘ethnicity’. Scholars of Zimbabwe and, more generally, of African studies, have reacted to stereotypes about ancient tribal animosities by pointing to the complexities that attend conflict and the fact that ethnicity often has little to do with situations popularly categorised as a function of tribe. The history of ZANU’s rivalry with ZAPU bears this out at many points. The leaders of the two parties were initially united under the ZAPU banner and came to blows after the split not because they were different but because they shared the same supremacist ideology. Ethnically, many Shona leaders remained with Nkomo into the 1980s, and ZIPRA also retained an important Shona membership throughout the war. On the ZANU side, ZAPU’s most vocal opponent was a Ndebele speaker, Enos Nkala.

“And yet it will not do to follow another vagary of academic fashion which, prompted by an anxiety to demolish popular colonial shibboleths, has often seen tribe and ethnicity vanish almost completely from the historical narrative. The reality is that the historical participants themselves refer too frequently to tribe and other ethnic divisions for it to be discounted as a motivating factor. It is not enough to simply elucidate the often fluid and arbitrary parameters used by participants (or former colonial authorities) to define tribe. In and of itself, this is an abstraction that can serve to simply discourage the acknowledgement of powerful ethnic forces on political events and movements. ZANU-PF’s characterisation of Ndebele speakers as ‘dissident people’ in 1982 had a political function, as did the deployment of 5 Brigade in 1983, but the intensity of the killings, the hatred that made their obscene nature and vast scale possible, and the constant references to tribe that accompanied them are poorly explained by politics alone.

The dark sides of politics and identity are, ultimately, a reflection of the human condition. Just as politics can mirror base human instincts such as the lust for power and wealth, so too can ethnic or tribal distinctions. Hatred, fear, the pleasure of vengeance and unadorned sadism are also potent and all-too-human impulses. It is unnecessary to look beyond the history of the 20th century to see that where such impulses coalesce, individuals and societies are capable of acts that were not deemed possible by those who knew them. Such a coalescence provides the most credible explanation for what occurred in Matabeleland in 1983-4. ZANU and ZAPU were not only rival political formations whose leaders had long and bitter personal histories; by the 1970s and 1980s their memberships were increasingly polarised along ethnolinguistic lines. Within the parties, political and tribal antagonisms had progressively merged and magnified each other. To be a ZAPU supporter was, increasingly and undeniably, to be a Ndebele speaker. But, in the minds of many ZANU-PF members, this also meant that to hate ZAPU was to hate the Ndebele people. This is one reason why the Gukurahundi killings could be regarded not only as ‘politicide’ but as genocide.”

I first became involved in African politics in 1968-70, when Minister for the Royal Navy and responsible for the Beira patrol, which had been established after UN Resolution 221 in 1966 to check on oil tankers heading for the Mozambique port. Beira acted as the terminus of a pipeline going into what was then Southern Rhodesia. Bulgaria, Mali, Uruguay and the Soviet Union abstained because of the inadequacy of the measures. France also abstained because she did not believe that there was a threat to international peace which the Resolution endorsed.

The Beira Patrol was the closest the UK ever came to having to take on Ian Smith militarily following his unilateral declaration of independence on 11 November 1965. Many criticise the then-Prime Minister, Harold Wilson, for not using force when independence was declared, but he had only been elected with a narrow majority in 1964, and he and Denis Healey felt that to use force would divide the British people. To have landed troops would have necessitated first destroying the Rhodesian air force, and this had been ruled out as it meant extensive bombing of airfields close to civilian housing.

On 1 April 1966, Joanna V was sighted by a Shackleton aircraft flying from Majunga (Madagascar) and intercepted by HMS Plymouth on 4 April but allowed to proceed and actually berthed at Beira in Mozambique on 10 April. On that same day the tanker Manuela was intercepted by HMS Bowick and boarded until the tanker had steamed well south of Beira.

The Portuguese government were refusing to participate in sanctions and refusing to interfere in the transport of any merchandise into Rhodesia. Joanna V was struck off the Greek register, given provisional Panamanian registration and told it would be cancelled if she discharged oil.

On 15 April the Portuguese flew in paratroopers from the port of Lourenco Marques to protect the Beira pipeline, and tension mounted as the world watched to see what the Portuguese would do next. On 16 April Ian Smith announced that, though the oil on the Joanna V was meant for his country, he had decided to forego it in order not to involve other countries in his dispute with the United Kingdom.

Instead the UK decided to rely on sanctions applied to Rhodesia’s major exports and to key imports, particularly oil. It had been a huge shock to those in Africa, which included President Kuanda, who believed that British oil companies, BP and Shell, were not using their oil to supply Rhodesia. In 1977 I was faced by documentary evidence that in 1967 a controversial swap arrangement made with Total ensured that Rhodesia was supplied with oil directly and Total were then compensated by Shell and BP in South Africa. This arrangement operated until 1971.

The fact that this swap arrangement had been revealed in full by the oil companies to the British government in 1968, and the British government had taken no steps at the time to consider prosecution for the breaches in the law, was confirmed by the enquiry which I established under Thomas Bingham QC. His deeply embarrassing report published in 1978 revealed to the wider world the ambivalence of British policy towards Rhodesia and reluctance to use the full weight of sanctions against South Africa. Of course, their reluctance was in part self-interest, but there was also an important strategic element in trying to preserve a strong economy for a post-apartheid South Africa.

Probably the only time the UK might have used force over Rhodesia was when the Portuguese dictatorship was overthrown in April 1974, but again a Labour government had only just been elected and was short of a majority. They saw the main immediate challenge was to ensure that Portugal itself became a stable democracy. The Beira Patrol lasted until 25 June 1975, when Mozambique gained independence from Portugal and assured Britain that it would not allow transship oil to Rhodesia.

Doran’s book does not dwell much on the external pressures put on Ian Smith until independence in 1980; instead it provides a fascinating account of the origins and of the struggle of black Rhodesians for independence – the truly crucial factor.

How Joshua Nkomo was chosen to lead the Southern Rhodesian ANC (African National Congress) which was outlawed in July 1959 when Nkomo was travelling abroad. The continuing problem with Nkomo’s readiness to compromise, and in February 1961 he was publicly condemned for accepting new constitutional proposals which he soon backed off.

The British High Commissioner in Salisbury, Cuthbert Alport, later Lord Alport, wrote,  “Nkomo’s fear of being bumped off… is, of course, absolute nonsense, but indicates his well-known physical cowardice… leading Africans sympathetic to ZAPU [the Zimbabwe African People’s Union having been formed in December 1961] now tend to write Nkomo off and are looking around for someone to replace him.” (Lord Alport telegram, 27 September 1962)

In early 1963, Mugabe was talking about the need to replace Nkomo, and on 8 August, the Revd Sithole announced the establishment of the Zimbabwean African National Union (ZANU).

Mugabe assumed the presidency of ZANU by default, when Sithole was formally deposed in 1973. He held that position until 2017. The rivalry between Nkomo and Mugabe had by the spring of 1977, when I first met them as Foreign Secretary, become painfully obvious and it was simmering in the background throughout the Malta conference in January 1978 to discuss the Anglo-American Plan.

This was also the time when we saw more of the tension between the military figures within the two armies of the Patriot Front and Field Marshal Lord Carver met them with Josiah Tongogara, the person he then believed held the key to a successful integration of the two armies in any pre-electoral period.

Nkomo tried in the summer of 1978 to engineer a place to come in as chairman of the internal settlement’s executive committee at the expense of Robert Mugabe. In a secret meeting with Ian Smith in Lusaka in the presence of President Kaunda and Joe Garba, the personal representative of President Olesegun Obasanjo of Nigeria, probably the most powerful single African figure at that time – the meeting was fully supported by the UK – I had told the US Secretary of State, Cyrus Vance, of the initiative but it was agreed that the US would remain sufficiently distant so that if the meeting failed they would not be damaged.

Mugabe was deliberately not invited, and Kaunda ruled out any involvement of Julius Nyerere and Samora Machel of Mozambique, feeling that the latter would have difficulty managing at a meeting in which at that time he could not speak fluent English. Nkomo called for a second meeting, perhaps sensing that Ian Smith was not fully on board, claiming he wanted to involve Mugabe.  News of the meeting inevitably leaked and Nyerere was deeply hostile to it despite Garba briefing him in Dar es Salaam. The initiative was killed off by the shooting down of a Viscount aircraft with Nkomo claiming responsibility.

Tensions within the Patriotic Front were very visible at the Lancaster House Conference brilliantly chaired by my successor, Peter Carrington, at the end of 1979. Unfortunately Tongogara, the Zanla chief, was killed in a car accident on 26 December 1979. There is conflicting evidence as to whether that was an accident or an assassination, and Stuart Doran describes the background very well:

“It is clear that Tongogara’s meetings with ZIPRA and Nkomo and his inclusive approach, coupled with an open desire to lay down arms – neither of them popular positions within ZANU’s central committee – provided a motive for Tongogara’s elimination. A preference for Nkomo over Mugabe, if the central committee understood that to have been Tongogara’s attitude, supplied yet greater incentive. And Dabengwa also believed that Tongogara was opposed to the plan to use ZANLA to ensure an electoral victory, seeing this as the decisive factor in his death. But concrete evidence that he was assassinated has never emerged.”

There are many different interpretations of what actually happened once the Lancaster House conference was over. Doran describes how, after weeks of relentless pressure during the elections, the British position manifested itself in the approach of Christopher Soames, Carrington’s inspired choice as the last Governor of Southern Rhodesia:

“Slowly, the balance between international and internal considerations that had guided the British approach during Lancaster House began to shift. It had been difficult to reconcile the two when they were so often in conflict; the internal objective of a moderate, multiracial government friendly to the West had, for example, been problematic given that the external goal of achieving wide international support required the backing of countries which supported the PF and its ostensibly radical agenda. The solution had been to accept and sell compromises such as the adoption of Nkomo as a moderate and the notion that limited international recognition for the new government (with some – hopefully temporary – damage to Britain’s international relationships) would suffice. Such considerations continued to be in play, but undoubtedly the weight given to international factors had incrementally begun to increase under Soames, while there had been a decrease in the weight given to Britain’s internal aims.

“This was most clearly seen in the changing attitude to ZANLA’s clear and sustained breach of the ceasefire.”

Mugabe’s victory should have been no surprise to anyone. ZANU politically and ZANLA militarily had been building up strength steadily over the years. Initially Mugabe handled almost every aspect of his Prime Ministership in a spirit of reconciliation that surprised everyone including me. It was, in many respects, an even greater reconciliation than that which followed immediately after Mandela’s walk to freedom in South Africa. But there was one hurdle Mugabe could not personally surmount. Doran writes,

“While overtures to the whites were unambiguous, the signals given to ZAPU and other minority black parties were more equivocal and complex. This was a theatre whose language was poorly understood by Western observers, most of whom were impressed and distracted by Mugabe’s temperance towards the white community and its institutions. After discussions in the ZANU-PF central committee, Nkomo was offered the titular presidency.” It surprised nobody when Nkomo rejected it as it was widely seen as “a symbol of impotence among African liberation movements.”

Mugabe’s fatal decision, which was inherent in his deeply conflicted personality, was when he met with the North Korean leader, Kim Il-sung, at Tito’s funeral in Yugoslavia in May 1980. A meeting which the Korean Vice Premier, who visited Zimbabwe that July, told the Rhodesian Herald had “recorded a new chapter in the history of [bilateral] … relations” and that he had come to have further discussions when under the leadership of Mugabe the Zimbabwean people were “unfolding a dynamic struggle to consolidate their independence”.

Addressing ZANLA ex-combatants in August 1981, Mugabe announced the formation of 5 Brigade to be a “special unit” used to “deal with dissidents and any other trouble in the country”. It was to be trained and equipped by the North Koreans. Mnangagwa, who later in 2017 supplanted Mugabe as President, told the House of Assembly that 106 Korean instructors had arrived in Zimbabwe and would stay for 8-12 months. Zimbabwe’s own military intelligence in December 1981 reported that 5 Brigade was structurally ill-equipped for any serious military role and that “this Brigade to all intents and purposes non-integrated, has become a symbol of the One-Party state”.

Estimates of the total death toll attributed to the 5 Brigade’s operation in Gukurahundi in Matabeleland between 1983 and 1984 vary widely. The most accepted number is 20 000. The term genocide has also often been applied. Doran is careful, as befits his disciplined research, emphasising that “a charge and finding of genocide are dependent not only on extensive expert debate but also on a legal process”. The fact is that the world turned aside from putting its full weight behind a proper international investigation but Doran is clear that it was “motivated by political objectives and ethnopolitical animosity”.

“The depth of the attitudes and emotions that fed such actions were not possible – and nor are they comprehensible – without context of equal measure. In the same way, it was not possible to bring such a mindset to its logical conclusion during the formative years of the post-colonial nation-state without such events leaving an ineradicable mark on perpetrator, victim and nation. Yet the massive violence of the Gukurahundi and its proximity to independence do not on their own explain its defining character. Rather, the nature of the ideology itself was necessary: the vision that fed the Gukurahundi was not a tempestuous and untamed philosophy which impinged itself temporarily if devastatingly on the nation; the killings were instead an expression of a perverse ideal – of what ZANU-PF believed the people and their rulers were meant to be.”

As so often in politics, the personality of leaders is a critical factor and time after time its importance is underrated.

I have written extensively on this in a book called In Sickness and in Power first published in 2008 [David Owen, In Sickness and In Power. Illness in Heads of Government over the last 100 years (Methuen, 2008, updated edition 2016)]. I spent very many hours with Robert Mugabe in 1977 and 1978. Initially I was attracted by his seriousness, his careful use of words and apparent integrity: reluctance to lie, and high personal standards with no evidence of corruption. I had MI6 confirm he was not just a Catholic by name but at that time in Maputo a regular clandestine attender at mass. Yet he was also an open Maoist, something later continuously manifested in government with a close relationship with China.

It became very clear to me by the middle of 1978 that Mugabe was in favour of “re-educating” his people through a one-party state and so for all his personal crookedness and indecision Nkomo would be a better leader initially of Zimbabwe. From 1980-82 I felt embarrassed that I had misjudged Mugabe’s personality, but from 1982 onwards he gave every sign that he was and remains to this day a deeply conflicted zealot, the sort of person who should never be President of any country. That judgement was made after watching another zealot, a Maoist and a Buddhist, wreaking havoc on his people, namely Pol Pot, in Cambodia.

The question for Africa is: how much longer will its parliamentarians allow their leaders to remain in power, not just for one or two terms but for decades? South Africa may now be the country to demonstrate that there is another way forward, not only have they been able to oust President Zuma but he has now been served with very serious criminal charges. One of the interesting facets of South Africa under apartheid was that the courts remained remarkably resistant to successive Afrikaner governments. I first met Cyril Ramaphosa when he was a miners’ leader in 1979. I remember having breakfast with Nelson Mandela in London in 2007, when he confirmed to me that Ramaphosa had been his first choice to succeed him, but that was not the wish of the ANC. It is no exaggeration to say that on President Ramaphosa’s shoulders rests the future of the African continent.

Kingdom, Power, Glory should be at his bedside to dip into from time to time to remind him of the depth of the problems he faces.

Police officer from Mbizo 16, Kwekwe, is in trouble after allegedly breaking out of cells at the Fairbridge detention barracks following his arrest for an undisclosed offence.

Tafadzwa Mpofu (27) denied the charge of escape from lawful custody when he appeared before Bulawayo magistrate Franklin Mkhwananzi on Tuesday. He was remanded in custody to tomorrow.

The court heard that Mpofu was a member of the Zimbabwe Republic Police and on May 27, 2015, at around 7pm he was locked up in a cell at ZRP Fairbridge detention barracks together with other inmates.

Clifford Chimuti a police officer based at ZRP Fairbridge camp and his workmate Abigail Nyathi checked the cells at around 3am and discovered that Mpofu was missing.
It is alleged that Mpofu had broken the main screen door and escaped while other inmates were asleep.

He was later arrested and charged with escaping from lawful custody. Newsday

The MDC-T has accused the police of playing politics on the disappearance of political activist Itai Dzamara, who is believed to have been abducted by State security agents three years ago.

MDC-T secretary-general Douglas Mwonzora said, while the party would want Dzamara to be brought back safe and alive, they were disappointed by police’s seemingly lackadaisical approach to the matter.

“They are not serious, that is political posturing ahead of the elections, because after three years and court interventions they all of a sudden wake up to appeal for public help on a matter that they know about,” he said.

Mwonzora called on police Commissioner-General Godwin Matanga to show more commitment to the matter.

“Where the police and State security agents are involved, you see by the absence of arrests, three years down the line, when all tracks have gone cold there was not even a single arrest of a suspect, even a phoney one,” he said.

This came hard on the heels of a statement by police spokesperson Senior Assistant Commissioner Charity Charamba, where she appealed for public help to put closure to Dzamara’s case.

A former police officer who spoke to NewsDay on condition of anonymity blasted police for pussy footing over the matter, saying if they were committed they would by now have picked up the suspects and vehicle used in the alleged abduction of the activist.

Dzamara’s younger brother, Patson, also said he was angry over police delays in concluding investigations into the issue.

“I was shocked yesterday to learn about the statement by ZRP asking for help to find Itai three years after his abduction. It is over a year since the last time there was an engagement between us and ZRP. How they are trying to trivialise this matter in order to present a reformed face is not only repugnant, it’s preposterous. It’s not only nonsensical but diabolic for the people who abducted my brother to be asking Zimbabweans to assist them with answers,” he said.

Dzamara said he tried to get former President Robert Mugabe and even President Emmerson Mnangagwa for his brother’s release but to no avail.

“From the onset, I never minced my words regarding who abducted Itai. That satanic act was executed by the military intelligence under the oversight of Zanu PF. Not only that, up until now, these are the same people who have egregiously stonewalled me (us) every time I (we) tried to engage them about this issue. We tried to engage Mugabe and his government to no avail. From the time Mnangagwa snatched power from Mugabe, I wrote him two letters seeking for a platform to engage. Not once did I get a response,” he said.

Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition (CiZC) said it has to be noted that since Dzamara’s disappearance, the ZRP has been frustrating efforts by pro-democracy groups in search of the missing human rights activist.

CiZC said as a result, there were a series of arrests and assaults of the concerned individuals by the law enforcement agents.

“To make matters worse, the ZRP went on to defy a High Court order to search for the missing activist and give regular updates to Parliament and former President, Robert Mugabe’s spokesperson, George Charamba event went on to state that the former Head of State was too busy to be occupied with the issue of Dzamara,” the grouping said. Newsday

2 large haulage trucks had a shocking collision yesterday along the Bindura-Mazowe road. One of them was carrying fertilizer and the other large stones. Details with sketchy at the time of writing – this is a developing story . See pictures:

By Paul Nyathi| Is President Emmerson Mnangagwa guaranteed of 4 000 votes already? This could be the question as most of the pardoned prisoners have vowed to rush to go and register as voters and promise to “pay back” Mnangagwa by voting for him.

The President this week granted freedom to over 3 000 prisoners under a special presidential amnesty in a bid to reduce congestion at the country’s prisons.

Elated freed prisoners who talked to the media on their way out of prison mostly indicated that their first point of call will be voter registration centres where they want to go and register as voters and promise to vote for Mnangagwa for giving them unexpected early freedom.

Phephelaphi Gumbo, who was serving a 20-year jail sentence for aggravated indecent assault, could not hide her joy and appreciation for the gesture by President Mnangagwa.

“I was sentenced to 20 years for aggravated indecent assault last year. I came here in August and had completed six months of my sentence.

“I was sentenced for a crime I did not commit but I would like to thank President Mnangagwa for the kind gesture. I would have rotted in prison if it were not for him, I wish the Lord to add more years to his life, he is very kind and as I go out, I will definitely vote for him,” said Ms Gumbo.

Ms Ethel Ncube, who was serving a nine year sentence for stock theft, was jailed while heavily pregnant and gave birth to her in daughter in prison.

“My father got me arrested when I was heavily pregnant, I hoped he would he pardon me but now the President has pardoned me. He is not my father but he has pardoned me, he is a good man and I am definitely going to register and vote for him,” she said.

“I left my children and I was heavily pregnant, now my daughter is one year and one month old,” said Ms Ncube.

One of the happiest women who sang  and danced upon her release was Charmaine Ngwenya (35) who was serving a 30 month sentence for assault.

She said she was grateful and was definitely going to register to vote for Mnangagwa.

“I came here for assault, I came here in December, but what our President has done makes me happy and he deserves my vote. I was not expecting to be out this time of the year.

“I am so happy; I don’t know how I will thank President Mnangagwa. Today I will sleep at home,” she said.

“The President’s decision to pardon us has come as a relief to me,” said a released male convict.

“He deserves all our votes,” he said.

“First and foremost I want to thank prison officials who kept me for 24 years since 1994. I was condemned to face a death penalty but after seven years my sentence was commuted to life and the President saw it fit that I be released to face the world.

“I was facing a murder charge after I mistakenly killed my father with a knife while trying to defend my mother who had been a victim of violent behaviour since we were young. We were arrested and sentenced to death. My mother was released in 2005 under Presidential amnesty. I do not know where to start. I do not even know if I still have a wife and relatives. They stopped visiting me a long time ago including my mother.”

A total of 699 prisoners have been freed from Bulawayo, Hwange, Victoria Falls prisons following the Presidential amnesty.

662 prisoners were released from prisons in Bulawayo while a combined 37 inmates were released from the Hwange and Victoria Falls prisons on Monday and yesterday.

In an interview with state media yesterday soon after the release of inmates at Bulawayo Prison, Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services public relations officer for Bulawayo Metropolitan Province, Principal Correctional Officer Garainashe Moyo said a total of 662 prisoners had been released from Khami and Bulawayo prisons.

Out of the 814 names that have been submitted for pardon, a total of 662 have already been released from Khami and Bulawayo prisons since Monday.

He urged people to accept the former inmates and also pleaded with the inmates to avoid being repeat offenders.

“We are saying to them do not to come back here, society should accept these people so that they feel that they are not misfits, they are an integral part of society, your societies,” said Moyo.

The National Peace and Reconciliation Commission head, Judge Selo Nare will summon and and any perpetrators of violence as according to the body’s powers.

Judge Nare said, “we have been asked as regards what we are doing with the elections. There are Chapter 12 commissions; they’re actually five. We interrelate… we are working on how we can have a peaceful election by putting our heads together.

“As the NPRC, we are trying to write out a paper to have more teeth to ourselves where we can be able to call, say if there is a conflict like that one that happened in Buhera, find out from ( MDC-T Nelson) Chamisa whether they have healed, what is the position. It’s all focused towards peace building. We are having issues of intra party violence so this commission is also mandated to ensure that there is dialogue. We encourage political parties to engage in dialogue and find meaningful solutions as a way of conflict resolution.” – state media

 

By Own Correspondent | Student unions leaders, opposition political parties’ youths wings and social movements leaders have formed a coalition, Generational Consensus Movement which they say would challenge politicians to include youths in all decision making bodies.

One of the movement’s leaders, Makomborero Haruzivishe explains how they are going to move with the organization….

 

The exiled prof Jonathan Moyo has said the 2008 military coup was cured. Below were his tweets:

Terrence Mawawa

The MDC Gutu West Constituency Information Department has lambasted the ruling party Zanu PF for focusing on trivial matters instead of coming up with economic recovery strategies

“Zanu PF believes in the renaming of places.

The airport, the army barracks and universities have been renamed.

When they
rename the places, they boast as if they would have constructed
those facilities from scratch.

On the contrary our leader Nelson Chamisa’s speeches are quite explicit.
The president(Chamisa) has clearly
articulated his short term, medium term and long term
plans.

For sustainability we do not need short
term plans only but long term projections as well,” said the MDC Gutu West Constituency Publicity Department in a statement.

Terrence Mawawa, Masvingo

A Zanu PF legislator is under fire for having close links with former First Lady Grace Mugabe.

Party hawks are pressing for the expulsion of Chivi Central MP Ephraim Gwanongodza who is said to be a member of the G-40 faction.

Party bigwigs in Chivi also want former MP Paul Mangwana to replace Gwanongodza.

“We have solid facts to prove that Gwanongodza is a G-40 member,” said a Zanu PF Provincial Coordinating Committee member.

Gwanongodza dismissed the allegations as utter falsehoods being peddled by his detractors.

 

 

Terrence Mawawa, Masvingo

A mentally challenged Chivi man axed his mother to death following a domestic dispute, according to the police.

The man accused his mother of denying him permission to build his hut at a place he had chosen.

Acting Masvingo Provincial Police Spokesperson, Assistant Inspector Kudakwashe Dehwa said the tragic incident happened on March 22, 2018.

“A mentally challenged man struck his mother, Esther Davirai with an axe following a domestic dispute.

The man also axed his younger brother several times as he tried to restrain him from attacking their mother.

However the younger brother was rushed to hospital,” said Dehwa.

Terrence Mawawa

Hard hitting social media analyst Antony Taruvinga has challenged President Emmerson Mnangagwa to address the real issues that are nagging the people of Zimbabwe.

Taruvinga has described Mnangagwa as a mere “clown” who is clueless about reviving the country’ s waning economy.

Yesterday Taruvinga used a pictorial illustration to lash out at Mnangagwa.

“Ediot is totally clueless about reviving the economy.He is presenting a basket of empty promises to the people of Zimbabwe,” wrote Taruvinga.

However Mnangagwa’ s sympathisers responded by accusing Taruvinga of using derogatory comments to soil the President’ s image.

By Langton Ncube

Marondera pupils have dragged their school head and the Zimbabwe Schools Examination Council (Zimsec) to the High Court were they are seeking an order overturning a decision by their school to cancel their 2017 ‘‘O’’ Level Mathematics Paper 2 examination results on allegations of cheating.
Junior Mavule and 15 others — all former students of Nagle House School said they never cheated.

Revelations of this leak come after Primary and Secondary Education minister Paul Mavima also cancelled the 2017 ‘‘O’’Level English Paper 2, which the High Court ruled was not to be considered.
“On October 24, 2017, the pupils sat for their Mathematics Paper 2 examination at around 8:30 hours at the school. During the examination, … Godfrey Muchenyu who was an invigilator recovered a sheet of paper from one of the pupils, Precious Sanyangore which had answers to the examination questions which were being written.
“When Sanyangore was interrogated by the school authorities she revealed that she had obtained the answers and solutions from Melisa Songore who was also interrogated and she produced a paper with examination answers,” the court heard. The pupils, however, told the court that after finishing writing the examination, they were all summoned for questioning over the issue of cheating by the school headmaster. The pupils denied knowledge of the issue and were subjected to bodily and bag searches.
“The school headmaster called in two officials from Zimsec who made the two write reports. In the reports, the two admitted to have had access to the answers of the paper that was being written and implicated all the other pupils although there was nothing tangible that was found to link all the other pupils to the alleged examination fraud,” the pupils said. After this incident, the court heard, the pupils sat for the other outstanding examinations without any incident.
However, on November 9, last year, the school headmaster only identified in court papers as A. Kurisa took all the pupils to Marondera Criminal Investigations Department in the afternoon for interrogations and they were only released at 8pm.
“. . .The applicant and other pupils were charged for contravening Section 35 (a) of the Zimbabwe School Examinations Act (Chapter 25:18) to which they continued to deny the allegation.
“On the 6th of December 2017, Zimsec wrote to the headmaster of Nagle House School advising of its decision to cancel all the November 2017 examination for all the applicants on the basis of examination malpractice. All the applicants and their guardians only got to know about the cancellation of the results on January 5, 2018,” the court heard.
Following the cancellation of the results, the pupils through their guardians filed an urgent chamber application, seeking to cancel Zimsec’s decision and have the results released. The High Court is yet to make a determination in the matter.

By Talent Gondo

As the watershed elections draw near, Zimbabwe will see yet another coalition, POVO launched this Thursday.

Dubbed the Coalition of Independent Candidates: POVO, the political grouping is set to be launched at the Harare Gardens from 4pm to 6 pm.

According to information availed to ZimEye, POVO has so far drawn the buy in of Independent candidates running for council posts in Harare Metropolitan Province.

Pastor Evan Mawarire of the popular the #ThisFlag is one of the members of the Coalition while Esther Vongai Zimudzi, who will be contesting as a councillor in Hatfield also belongs to POVO.

By Paul Nyathi

Bulawayo High Court judge Justice Nokuthula Moyo has sentenced a Plumtree man to performs 320 hours of community service at Makhulela Clinic over a murder committed eighteen years ago.

Sokana Nkomo (57), a father of four residing at Butshe village in Madlambuzi area, fatally stabbed Gamula Ndlovu (33) for allegedly snatching his girlfriend in an incident which occurred on November 26 in 2000 at Butshe village.

The judge convicted Nkomo of a lesser charge of culpable homicide charge in connection with the death of Ndlovu when self defence was ruled.

In passing the sentence, Justice Moyo said although the deceased was the aggressor, Nkomo exceeded the bounds of self defence by introducing a knife during the fight.

“A life was lost in the most unfortunate circumstances. However, the deceased acted in an unbecoming manner by pushing the man on the edge. What can a man do when pushed violently? Although the courts don’t condone violence, the accused who was under attack, was bound to react as a human being,” said the judge.

She condemned Nkomo’s conduct, saying even provoked people should not take the law into their own hands.

“The courts have to instill confidence in society because if people lose faith in the justice system, they may end up taking the law into their own hands. Sending accused person to jail 18 years down the line for an offence in which the deceased was the aggressor would not be in the interest of justice,” ruled Justice Moyo.

Both Ndlovu and Nkomo had a love relationship with the same lady.

Mr Russell Dzete of Maseko Law Chambers represented Nkomo.

By Paul Nyathi| As the national crisis in the health sector continues to deteriorate with the doctors strike entering day twenty seven, government has finally deployed the army to take charge of the hospitals.

With the authorisation of the Commander In Chief President Emmerson Mnangagwa, Mpilo Central Hospital in Bulawayo will today be the first to get army doctors taking over duties at the hospital.

In addition, 35 newly graduated junior doctors will join the institution by April 1.

Doctors downed tools on March 1 after petitioning the Government to resolve its issues which include provision of medication and equipment in public health institutions.

Mpilo clinical director, Dr Solwayo Ngwenya, yesterday said a number of doctors from the army would join the institution to help the few overwhelmed medical practitioners until the strike ends.

“We will be having members of the Army joining us from tomorrow just to ease the pressure on the few doctors that have been overwhelmed due to the ongoing strike. We are not yet sure about the numbers but I understand that public health institutions in the country will have members of the army to help,” said Dr Ngwenya.

“The Ministry of Health and Child Care has also allocated us 35 recently graduated junior resident medical officers from the National University of Science and Technology and the University of Zimbabwe that will join us from April 1. We are currently working on their applications and we are hopeful this measure will help us deliver quality health care services to members of the public,” he said.

Dr Ngwenya added that although the strike had presented challenges for the hospital, contingency measures had been put in place to continue saving lives while awaiting a solution.

By Paul Nyathi

Opposition MDC-T leader who is also the MDC Alliance Presidential candidate Nelson Chamisa says that he also wants to engage with President Emmerson Mnangagwa who has been touting for a meeting with the opposition young leader.

However, unlike Mnangagwa who wants to meet Chamisa on the road map to the make per break election for both leaders, the confident Chamisa wants to meet Mnangagwa on the modalities of the post election transitional arrangement.

Addressing party supporters at Nzvimbo Growth Point in Mashonaland Central Province over the weekend, Chamisa said he was going to approach President Emmerson Mnangagwa over the transitional issues.

“Some of you are asking how we are going to rule if we win since they say soldiers will not allow us into power, well I was just talking to Professor Welshman Ncube that we are going to talk to Emmerson Mnangagwa that we must have a Government Transitional Act, that clearly explains how transition is done so that we don’t use guesswork.

“A good example is Ghana, they have the Act that actually gives dates on when the election winner should assume office and not wait for the outgoing to determine the process, what if he refuses to go what will you do?

“If he refuses to step down what will you do, there is a comfort that comes with being in power, so we want to fix that and determine the days taken to hand over power to the winner and also set the crimes for those who would have refused to hand over power,” he said.

Chamisa added that the Act will also clearly state the role of soldiers, the police and CIOs during the transitional period to prevent confusion.

“…it is not the police that is being changed during the elections; soldiers are not the ones being changed what is being changed are the head of the state and his associates.

“The soldiers belong to the country, the police belong to the country, CIOs are for the country, Chiefs and Headmen are all for the country, what we are only seeking to do is to change the head, we want a better head,” he said.

Zimbabweans are engulfed in fears that the military will not accept a person with no military background or liberation war history to lead the country even if he or she wins the elections.

The fears were further worsened by some senior members in the military who publicly announced that they will not salute a leader who does not have Second Chimurenga credentials.

These statements and the coup that happened in November last year have cast doubt that the military will willingly hand over power to anyone who would have won the elections.

MDC Alliance has also put forward their 10 demands for a credible election. Previous elections since 2000 have been deemed as unfair as they were marred by political violence, vote buying, manipulation of electoral boundaries and abuse of state institutions by government among many others irregularities.

Since his inception on November 24 last year, President Mnangagwa has been consistent in promising a free and fair election, although nothing much has done in terms of reforms to support his promise.

Open Parly reports.

Six criminals donning fake Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) and Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) uniforms recently robbed a businessman in Harare of $100 000.

The criminals attacked the businessman at his Borrowdale house after getting inside information from his nephew.

Three of the suspects have since appeared before a Harare magistrate charged with robbery.

On February 23, a four-member gang including a 21-year-old woman wearing ZNA uniforms pounced on another businessman Mr Tawanda Zeze at his house in Belvedere, Harare.

The gang vanished with over $21 000. One of the robbers, Mildred Makoto (21) of plot 86, Marwende Road, Snake Park, Harare, yesterday appeared before magistrate Ms Josephine Sande charged with robbery. Her alleged accomplices are still at large.

She was remanded in custody to today for bail application. The prosecutor Ms Linda Gadzikwa alleged that on February 23 at around 8pm, Makoto and her accomplices hatched a plan to rob Mr Zeze.

Two of the gang members wore a complete ZNA uniform and proceeded to Zeze’s house.
When they arrived at the house, they allegedly identified themselves as soldiers before informing Mr Zeze that he was wanted at their barracks for questioning.

They said it was in connection with the operations of his company, More than Conquerors Trust Organisation.

It is the State’s case that they dragged him into his bedroom indicating that they wanted to conduct some searches.

They allegedly ordered him to open his safe and out of fear, Mr Zeze complied.

The gang, the court heard, stole $21 000 which was in the safe and three mobile phones.-state media

By Talent Gondo| The Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) today announced on the National broadcaster ZBC News Hour about missing political activist, Itai Dzamara, appealing to the public to assist with investigations regarding his whereabouts.

The ZRP, has practically ignored clarion calls to investigate and find Dzamara, who went missing 3 years ago under suspicious circumstances.

Back then on the 11th March 2015, the ZRP spokesperson Charity Charamba told ZimEye they were not at all searching for Dzamara,  SEE VIDEO:

https://youtu.be/z0SRPxM7EPM

Dzamara, was allegedly abducted by three unknown men suspected to belong to the military intelligence at the behest of the country’s deposed leader, Robert Mugabe.

Dzamara, known for his solo protests at the Africa Unity Squire in Harare, crossed swords with Mugabe’s government after he made several demands for Mugabe to step down.

Dzamara was allegedly abducted by suspected State security agents near his home in Glen View on March 9, 2015 and has not been seen since.

Government through the Home Affairs ministry has over the years practically ignored calls to institute investigations into Dzamara’s disappearance despite the issue being raised in parliament and the ministry being instructed to find the missing activist by the courts.

The former Minister of Higher Education and Technological Development, Professor Jonathan Moyo mockingly alleged that Dzamara was not abducted but his disappearance was stage managed or he had exited the country using one of the “porous boarder routes”.

However, the self exiled Professor Moyo hit the headlines at the beginning of the year when he back tracked on his statement, alleging that the current Vice President, Retired Army General, Constantino Guvheya Chiwenga had a hand in Dzamara’s disappearance.

Dzamara’s brother, Patson, last year petitioned President Emmerson Mnangagwa to revive investigations regarding his brother’s whereabouts.

In a petition delivered to Mnangagwa following his inauguration, Patson Dzamara  urged Mnangagwa to help his family find closure on his missing brother.

“I am concerned and disturbed by the stance assumed by the former government to which you were a part of as vice-president and minister of Justice,” Dzamara said in a letter delivered to Mnangagwa’s office.

“To date, nothing has been done to assist us as a family to at least come to a place of closure,” he said.

At least 16 inmates sentenced to death have escaped the hangman’s noose when their death penalties were commutated to life when President Mnangagwa pardoned thousands of prisoners across the country in a bid to decongest prisons.

There were 101 inmates on death row countrywide. Speaking at Harare Central Prison yesterday where 173 inmates were being released, Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Elizabeth Banda said some inmates, who had served over 10 years and were on death row had their sentences reduced to life.

“Today among the high profile we are looking at one who was serving a life sentence. He had served over 20 years of his sentence,” she said.

“We have another category of those who were on death penalty whose death sentences have been commuted to life and had served 10 years and above.

“At Harare Central 16 of them had their sentences commuted to life in prison. In the whole country we used to have 101 inmates on death row.”

Asst Comm Banda said at Harare Central Prison at least 534 were expected to be released. “Across the country so far we have released 1 534 of which 199 of them are females and the rest are males.
“One thing to note is that we have not reached 50 percent of our releases hence we will be expecting slightly more than 3 000 to 4 000 after the whole exercise has been completed,” she said.

“The ones who have been released so far are those whose categories which are straight forward, for example, the women since we were looking at women irrespective of the crimes they committed. Those at Conmara Open Prison, it was all of them. The young offenders it was all of them who were below the age of 18 and then we have those who are over the age of 60.”

Meanwhile, there was joy and jubilation as the prisoners were released with some relatives thronging the penitentiary to welcome their loved ones.

Among those released yesterday were Beroti Maxwell Sibanda jailed 1994.
“The President’s decision to pardon us has come as a relief to me. First and foremost I want to thank prison officials who kept me for 24 years since 1994. I was condemned to face a death penalty but after seven years my sentence was commuted to life and the President saw it fit that I be released to face the world,” he said.

“I was facing a murder charge after I mistakenly killed my father with a knife while trying to defend my mother who had been a victim of violent behaviour since we were young. We were arrested and sentenced to death.

“My mother was released in 2005 under Presidential amnesty.”
He said he was happy to be released but was afraid of relatives who might be still angry over the death he caused.

“I do not know where to start. I do not even know if I still have a wife and relatives. They stopped visiting me a long time ago including my mother.”

The executive director of Prison Fellowship Zimbabwe, Mr Peter Mandiyanike said his organisation was working with prisons in rehabilitating prisoners and re-uniting them with their relatives.

“We have some who were released who were collected by their relatives over the weekend. We will also reach to Mr Sibanda’s relatives in Lupane so he can be integrated back into the family,” he said.

Also released was a Proliner bus driver who caused the deaths of several people in Mvuma, Peter Tirivavi.

He thanked President Mnangagwa for giving him a second chance. “I would like to thank the President for pardoning me. He has given me another chance,” said Tirivavi.

Patrick Tawonashe was another prisoner released yesterday. He was mobbed by joyous relatives who included his grandmother Juliana Tawonashe. “We are very excited to be welcoming our son as you can see he is still a young man. He has been given a second chance in life,” she said.-state media

By Farai D Hove| Army medics are being deployed at hospitals beginning from today.

Already a major hospital, Mpilo, has confirmed servicemen are from today turning up for work to help salvage the crisis caused by the ongoing strike.

The hospital’s clinical director, Dr Solwayo Ngwenya, said a number of doctors from the army are coming over.

“We will be having members of the Army joining us from tomorrow just to ease the pressure on the few doctors that have been overwhelmed due to the ongoing strike, he said.

He continued saying, “we are not yet sure about the numbers but I understand that public health institutions in the country will have members of the army to help.”

He also added saying there are also an additional 35 who are fresh from university.
“The Ministry of Health and Child Care has also allocated us 35 recently graduated junior resident medical officers from the National University of Science and Technology and the University of Zimbabwe that will join us from April 1. We are currently working on their applications and we are hopeful this measure will help us deliver quality health care services to members of the public,” he said.

FLOODING RIVER – A lorry driver was swept away when he tried to cross flooding Musukwe River in Chidamoyo under Chief Dandawa. The lorry was carrying fertiliser and the photos show a tractor trying to assist in the rescue operation.It was not clear if there were any casualties at the time of writing.

Terrence Mawawa| Brian Mudumi, a declared Zanu PF sympathiser has blamed the US Government for being biased towards the country’ s main opposition party.

“The US Government has listened to MDC for too
long. They have to respect the government with
which they seek to re-engage.

The conditions they have
put forward must only be viewed in terms of
discussion points – not to posit them as
conditionalities,” Mudumi wrote on Facebook yesterday.

Terrence Mawawa, Masvingo

A senior Zanu PF official has warned party members to be wary of MDC leader, Nelson Chamisa’ s influence in Masvingo Province.

Addressing party members in Masvingo at the weekend, Zanu PF Provincial Chairperson, Ezra Chadzamira stressed the need to strengthen the structures at cell level.

Although Chadzamira spoke in innuendos, he warned party members against complacency and instead emphasised the need for unity and extra stamina ahead of the polls.

“We cannot sit back and fold our arms. Everyone has to work hard.

We all know that some of the opposition leaders are very influential here in Masvingo and that should not be taken lightly,” said Chadzamira.

Chamisa’ s home area is Chiwara in Gutu District, Masvingo Province.

Terrence Mawawa, Masvingo

The coming elections will mark the beginning of a new political era in the country, the MDC has said.

MDC Provincial Spokesperson, Simon Mupindu told a local community radio station at the weekend, the party was ready to take on Zanu PF in the coming elections.

Mupindu lambasted President Emmerson Mnangagwa’ s “attempt to coat a bitter pill with sugar” by presenting a fake list of the so called culprits in the externalisation of funds.

” We respect our late leader Morgan Tsvangirai and we will win the elections in honour of his lengthy battle against tyranny and dictatorship.

We are ready for the polls and this time we will not allow them to tamper with the votes,” said Mupindu.

Terrence Mawawa, Masvingo

MDC activists here have scoffed at claims made by the party’ s former national chairman, Lovemore Moyo, saying the politician blatantly missed the mark.

Moyo told a daily paper at the weekend the late MDC president Morgan Tsvangirai was to blame for the leadership quagmire in the country’ s largest opposition party.

Moyo further accused Tsvangirai of deviating from the party’ s principles.

Responding to Moyo’ s remarks, Masvingo Veteran Activists Association yesterday said the form Speaker of Parliament was” a sinking man who was desperately clutching at reeds in murky waters. ”

“No sane person will pay attention to Moyo’s rants.He has since resigned from the party so who is he to comment on MDC issues?

We wish to state that he must stop denigrating our late iconic leader, Morgan Richard Tsvangirai,” said Philip Mugabe a member of Masvingo Veteran Activists Association.

 

Terrence Mawawa

A clergyman in the Methodist Church in Zimbabwe has hailed President Emmerson Mnangagwa for promoting a culture of peace and tolerance in the country.

Reverend Rodrick Shoko of the Methodist Church in Zimbabwe Mufakose Circuit hailed Mnangagwa’s government for effectively departing from hate speech- thereby promoting peace and tolerance.

“We were fed up with hate language on national television. The new leadership is preaching the gospel of peace,” said Shoko.

“During the past days we could only hear words like ‘Stop It’ or ‘Unopenga’ all the time.

We are glad that all that is now gone.

For the first time, as churches we have been consulted by the Presidium as important stakeholders in the running of the country,” he said.

Terrence Mawawa

A clergyman in the Methodist Church in Zimbabwe has hailed President Emmerson Mnangagwa for promoting a culture of peace and tolerance in the country.

Reverend Rodrick Shoko of the Methodist Church in Zimbabwe Mufakose Circuit hailed Mnangagwa’s government for effectively departing from hate speech- thereby promoting peace and tolerance.

“We were fed up with hate language on national television. The new leadership is preaching the gospel of peace,” said Shoko.

“During the past days we could only hear words like ‘Stop It’ or ‘Unopenga’ all the time.

We are glad that all that is now gone.

For the first time, as churches we have been consulted by the Presidium as important stakeholders in the running of the country,” he said.

Dear Nortonians,

I trust you are well.

Today, Monday the 26th March 2018, I am attending the inaugural *Harare Indaba being held at the Johannesburg Country Club in Auckland Park, Johannesburg under the banner* _*”Zimbabwe is Open for Mining”*_.

The initial event was staged in Johannesburg to compliment the already scheduled Cross-Border Services Indaba set for the 27th & 28th of March 2018 at the same venue in order to gain maximum traction and exposure for next years event.

The Indaba, was facilitated by *Resources for Africa Pty Ltd* to showcase Zimbabwe’s mining industry to potential investors and was graced by the *Minister of Mines, Hon. Winston Chitando, Mr. Kwesu, the CEO of the Chamber of Mines with fellow representatives, Honourable Committee Members of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee for Mines & Energy, Mr. Alex Mhembere, the CEO for Zimplats and other leading Zimbabwean mining houses. People like Mr. Trevor Ncube, Dr. Paul Jourdan and others were also in attendance.*

I was part of the panel discussion with Trevor Ncube and Hon. Chitando and conducted several interviews on the sidelines of the Indaba.

The Indaba is certainly a prominent platform for mining in Zimbabwe and *”Team Zimbabwe”* certainly aroused a wealth of interest and I look forward to the future success of the event.

I look forward to returning on the ground in the constituency upon my return and will be in office on Wednesday.

Below are some picture taken during the Indaba….

Regards,

*Hon. Temba P. Mliswa (MP): Norton Constituency*

Ray Nkosi | Calls for Health and Child Care minister David Parirenyatwa to resign over incompetence in running the health ministry have fallen on deaf ears.

The doctors strike enters its third week with Zimbabwe National Army doctors on standby to rescue the fast deteriorating situation in the country’s hospitals. Striking doctors have refused calls by President Emmerson Mnangagwa to return to work and have instead issued a stinging statement baying for Parirenyatwa’s head.

“Negotiations are being done in bad faith, with gross misrepresentation of facts by the ministry and minister. The reason why we have reached this critical point is that we accepted promises before from the same minister and ministry since 2014 and these continue to be broken.

“The ministry continues to threaten our members in an attempt to coerce them back to work. If they were genuinely working on these issues, why then threaten members,” the statement said.

Parirenyatwa in an interview with the Standard failed to disclose the casualties or the number of patients affected by the doctors strike, he however acknowledged the shortage of drugs in the hospitals and also discloses the shocking ratio of 200 000 people per one doctor.

“We have put that on alert so that we can keep our emergency services running. We have asked some doctors from the uniformed services to be on standby, but it is not a sustainable position.”

“We should be able to have our doctors back at work as a matter of urgency,” said Parirenyatwa.

 

Ray Nkosi | Zanu PF central committee member and former Chinhoyi legislator, Philip Chiyangwa, who is also former President Robert Mugabe’s nephew plans to stand in Zvimba South constituency in the next election.

Chiyangwa who is engrossed in a nasty divorce with his wife Elizabeth Juma, is reported to have abandoned his Chinhoyi constituency to run in Zvimba, Mugabe’s home village.

The local Newsday reports that Chiyangwa, who dismally lost the Chinhoyi race to MDC-T candidate, Peter Matarutse, in the 2013 elections, could neither confirm nor deny reports that he had ditched Chinhoyi.

“I started my political career in Zvimba and there is nothing sinister about that, as the Constitution allows a person from Bulawayo to be voted in Chinhoyi. Ignorance is what kills us” he said.

Walter Chidakwa represented Zvimba South constituency, before he was suspended for aligning himself with the G40. Newsday

A new era has dawned for Zimbabwe and the country is determined to create an open, free and transparent economy.

This was the message relayed by President Emmerson Mnangagwa when he addressed more than 1600 delegates attending the 2018 edition of the Africa CEO Forum underway in Abidjan.

The most influential annual forum for public-private dialogue on the continent, the Africa CEO Forum has opened in Cote d’Ivoire with President Emmerson Mnangagwa, President Nana Akufo-Addo of Ghana, the host President Mr Alassane Ouattara and the President of the Africa CEO Forum Mr Amir Ben Yahmed delivering their speeches.

Addressing business leaders, bankers and global investors from 120 countries, President Mnangagwa says his administration recognises the crucial role that FDI and private investment will play in the country’s economic re-emergence.

“Zimbabwe’s attendance here resonates with our current quest to engage and re-engage with the family of nations following years of isolation due to the illegal economic sanctions imposed on us. This platform provides me and my delegation with an opportunity to network with key decision makers from a broad spectrum of business, industry and commerce, from Africa and beyond guided by our mantra that Zimbabwe is now open for business,” said President Mnangagwa.

President Mnangagwa said his administration seeks to build a new, open and prosperous Zimbabwe by working together with the international community.

Said President Mnangagwa: “My administration’s top priority is the resuscitation and revival of the economy and re-engagement of the international community.”

Source zbc news online

By Langton Ncube|A war of words has erupted between Businessman Energy Mutodi and Goromonzi west MP Beatrice Nyamupinga over the constituency ahead of the forth coming elections.

Mutodi wants to stand as Goromonzi west MP on a Zanu PF ticket in the next elections while Nyamupinga wants to retain her seat.

Mutodi at the weekend told Daily News that Nyamupinga was working with the opposition to denounce him.

He accused the MP of working with the former President Robert Mugabe linked National Patriotic Front, NPF party.

“My rivalry with her is not new. In 2013, I should have become the MP for Goromonzi West but I was blocked by Ray Kaukonde who was working under instruction of the then Vice President Joice Mujuru.

“Mujuru wanted Nyamupinga to win because they are related and they were working on a Gamatox project together. They came up with trumped up charges against me and I was arrested several times only to be acquitted by the courts.”

But Nyamupinga strongly hit back saying she had no time to campaign against “a certain loser”.

“We know that he has been moving around the constituency slaughtering cattle for feasts under the guise that he was holding celebratory parties for President Emmerson Mnangagwa.

“We all know he is misrepresenting the president. In terms of party and government hierarchy, I am the president’s representative here, who is he?” she exploded.

She also denied allegations that she was behind the distribution of the anti-Mutodi fliers in the constituency.

“To start with, I am not very good with computers and so there is no way I could have made those designs. I was never a part to his stands scandal for which people are demanding that he be accountable.

“I am not the only contestant here; there are many others who are eyeing the seat and these fliers could have come from any one of those, why then does he point the suspicion finger at me. I am the current MP for the area and I shall remain an MP,” she said.
“I am a very peaceful person. He should just wait for the primary elections to come so that he loses resoundingly,” said Nyamupinga.

By Langton Ncube| Zanu PF spokesperson Simon Khaya Moyo has announced that his party is mobilising its grassroots structures with the aim of humiliating the oposition MDC-T in the forth coming elections.

According to Daily News SK Moyo said the grassroots mobilisation would officially kick off of the party’s election preparations, which included an audit of its structures, and after which it would embark on the selection of parliamentary candidates.

The party’s national chairperson, Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri — who also leads its elections directorate — said her team would be concluding its election manifesto soon.
“We are seized with the manifesto and it won’t be too long now before we conclude it,” she said.

MDC-T President Nelson Chamisa on the other hand has hit the campaign trail with relish, which is seeing him holding two rallies every weekend.

On Saturday, he told a well-attended party rally in Murewa that the MDC Alliance would also soon unveil its election manifesto.

Chamisa was also on Sunday at Dzvimbo growth point in Chiweshe were he addressed thousands of his party supporters.

More than 107 political parties have registered with the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) to participate in the forthcoming elections, with the presidential plebiscite seen as a two-way tussle between Chamisa and Mnangagwa.

An 18-year-old Epworth woman strangled her two-year-old daughter using a necklace before setting the toddler’s body on fire in a bid to hide the offence.

Talent Kuvimba was not asked to plead to a murder charge when she appeared before Harare magistrate Ms Tilda Mazhande. She was remanded in custody to April 5 for routine remand.

The court advised her to apply for bail at the High Court since she is facing a Third Schedule offence.

The State, led by Ms Ropafadzo Botsh, alleged that on March 10, at around 10pm, Kuvimba allegedly fatally strangled her daughter using her necklace. After killing the baby, she reportedly left the necklace around the minor’s neck. In a bid to conceal the offence and make it appear to be an accident, Kuvimba allegedly left a burning candle on the bed where the lifeless body was lying. When the room caught fire, the deceased body was burnt beyond recognition.

It is the State’s case that Kuvimba later returned home and rushed to the police, where she misrepresented the circumstances surrounding the “accident”. However, a forensic postmortem revealed that death was as a result of strangulation. Also, the necklace which had sunk into the neck of the toddler was retrieved. – state media

Just a day after doctors said that they are confident in president Emmerson Mnangagwa’s efforts to restore normalcy in hospitals, they have turned backs against him citing what they point to and allege is violation by the minister in charge of health. During their protest last Friday, doctors filmed by ZimEye at the main Pari hospital said, their strike “is all because of David Parirenyatwa.”

This time the doctors have claimed that, “Negotiations are being done in bad faith, with misrepresentation of facts by the Ministry and Minister.”

Below was the ZHDA’s latest full statement:

The Zimbabwe Hospital Doctors Association would like to inform members of the press, public and other stakeholders of its stance following the update by the Ministry of Health and Child Care (MOHCC) concerning our strike, which has entered day 25 today.

The Minister of Health has stated that the President of Zimbabwe, His Excellency Cde ED Mnangagwa, has appealed to members to go to work while he looks into our issues. ZHDA has brought this to the attention of members and these are some of the concerns raised:

1. The MOHCC has dragged its feet since the 23rd of January this year to fix our issues, and shown
no lack of urgency even during the strike. They do not value ordinary citizens‘ life (sic) and have lied to the press and public several times

2. Negotiations are being done in bad faith, with misrepresentation of facts by the Ministry
and Minister.

3. The reason why we have reached this critical point is that we accepted promises BEFORE from the
same minister and Ministry, since 2014, and these continue to be broken

4. The ministry continues to threaten our members in an attempt to coerce them back to work. If
they were genuinely working on these issues. why then threaten members?

In view of these issues raised. members would like to thank His Excellency, the President for his
intervention. He is a man of his word and we believe that he will act with the urgency he has always shown.

We would also like to express lack of confidence in the Minister and MOHCC, and as such feel that we will be shortchanged like before, as all communications go through this ministry. Members have therefore resolved to remain on strike until a solution has been tabled on paper and goes through the proper legal channels. We believe a commitment on paper should not take long. We also await action in providing the materials to use In our hospitals.

ZHDA appeals to members of the public to continue praying for our doctors and health care system as we work towards getting full legal documentation of any agreement, to avert further strikes should the
ministry fail to deliver like before.