MARONDERA-based Proton Bakery has taken its human resources manager Thomas Rugoho to court on 10 counts of fraud for allegedly fleecing several jobseekers of various amounts of money after promising to secure them employment.
Rugoho (40) and his alleged accomplice Moses Nyarufaro (35) are today expected to appear before Marondera magistrate Tendai Muchini for trial. Rugoho is currently on $100 bail.
The State alleges that sometime between February and November last year, several job seekers paid between $100 and $200 to Rugoho’s alleged middleman Nyarufaro in order to secure employment at the bakery.
It is alleged that Nyarufaro took the money and the job seekers’ academic qualification and contact details to Rugoho and then shared the money.
In one of the incidents, a complainant identified as Innocent Mukomborero was offered a job as a casual worker after paying $150.
Three months later, Nyarufaro allegedly called Mukomborero on his mobile phone and ordered him to pay an additional $50 to get a permanent contract. After paying the money, Mukomborero was allegedly upgraded to a permanent employee.
Using the same modus operandi, the suspects fleeced nine other desperate job seekers, with some securing employment while others failed. The matter came to light after police detectives received a tip-off about the alleged shenanigans at the bakery before launching investigations that led to the suspects’ arrest.

IN A MOVE that could go a long way in pacifying restive opposition forces, the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) says it is now the sole custodian of the country’s electoral processes and has started compiling its new voters’ roll independent of Registrar-General Tobaiwa Mudede’s office.
Zec chairperson Justice Rita Makarau told NewsDay in an interview yesterday that the commission would now use Mudede’s discredited old voters’ roll as a “guideline only”.
“We are registering for each by-election as it comes. We are using the opportunity presented by a by-election in local authorities or constituencies to then register people, but using the 2013 voters’ roll as a baseline. To us, it is an indication of how many people are supposed to register in a particular constituency,” Justice Makarau said.
“For example, for Marondera Central constituency where we will have a by-election in September, we know that we are expecting around 31 000 voters, that number only acts as a guide for us. To us, the 2013 roll will give us an indication of how many people to expect and we will keep that number in mind as we register.”
The old roll has been criticised for containing names of dead people, under-age children as well as a disproportionately high number of centenarians.
“We are going to use the 2013 roll as a baseline, as just a guide. We know there were 6,4 million voters in 2013, so we will work with that figure in mind. We are, therefore, going to have slightly more or slightly less figures than that, but the existing figure will provide us with an indication,” Justice Makarau said.
“If we are going to come up with, say, a million, then we will know that there is a serious problem either with our figure or with those figures. We are aiming to reach round about that figure or slightly below. The figures could have been inflated for some other reason. Some people who had not registered back then might be interested now, but we need that 2013 figure as a control figure just to give us direction.”
Makarau said her commission was working on creating and maintaining the “best roll ever” and would institute regular checks to remove ineligible people, including those who would had died or moved permanently outside the country.
The opposition in Zimbabwe has pointed to the anomalies on the voters’ roll as an indication of the collusion between Zec and Zanu PF. Mudede, before the new Constitution, was for decades in sole charge of elections in Zimbabwe amid accusations he was biased in favour of the ruling party Zanu PF and President Robert Mugabe.
Meanwhile, Bulawayo residents yesterday described Zec as heavily compromised and discredited. The residents made the remarks during a Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Portfolio Committee public hearing on the General Laws Amendment Bill held at a city hotel.
The hearings will run through the week covering Gweru, Masvingo, Mutare and Harare. Participants said Zec lost its credibility after it emerged that its operations were funded and controlled by government. newsday

Robert Mugabe activist Acie Lumumba who was spot-caught buying expensive suits with the President’s entourage in the United States, has been filmed saying he traveled to the US using his own money.
Lumumba who calls himself a Member of Parliament when he is not at all, told TV presenter Zororo Makamba his hands are clean. He features in today’s Tonight With Zororo. FULL VIDEO –

South African based Zimbabwean activist Ngqabutho Nicholas Mabhena was this weekend awarded the Joshua Nkomo leadership award presented by a South African based Zimbabwean cultural organization Matabeleland Arts Association and the Joshua Nkomo Foundation.
Mabhena a member of the Welshman Ncube led MDC’s National Executive Committee and Chairperson of the Zimbabweans Living in South Africa Community was given the award for his role in ensuring that the South African government extended work permits for Zimbabweans in South Africa.

Zimbabweans living in South Africa were given special dispensation permits by the South African government in 2010 which expired in 2014. After the expiry of the permits in 2014, the South African government was no longer kin to retain Zimbabweans in South African employment. Mabhena leading a host of Zimbabwean activists and groups engaged the South African government head on and managed to get the permits extended by another three years to 2017.
Speaking at the awards event which was held in Hillbrow Johannesburg to commemorate the Joshua Nkomo day, Mabhena thanked the organisers of the event for recognising his efforts and also thanked Zimbabweans living in South Africa for working well with their varied organisations and remaining united in the process of sorting out the permits issue. He told the huge crowd which filled the venue that they are still involved in negotiations with the South African government with a view of a further extension on the permits after 2017.
Prominent South African based Zimbabwean actor Ernest Ndlovu was also recognised for his efforts and was awarded the Artist Special Award. Ndlovu who has featured in several South African television programs which include Isidingo could not contain his excitement thanking the organisers for being the first Zimbabwean group to give him an honour for his efforts. The veteran actor is a recipient of several arts award from outside Zimbabwe.
Thousands of Zimbabweans attended the event which saw over twenty Zimbabwean music and cultural groups entertain the gathering. Top of the toast was undoubtedly Mlambos Express Band who are slowly making their way to being the top Zimbabwean contemporary rhumba outfit. Speaking on the sidelines of the event, the band manager Thabani Ndlovu thanked Zimbabweans in South Africa who came in their thousands to make the event a success. His band which was part of the organisers of the event, thanked fellow Matabeleland musicians for volunteering their time to come and show case their talents in honour of Joshua Nkomo the founding Father of Zimbabwe’s liberation. Ndlovu promised for a much bigger event come next year.

BINGA – An bomb explosion was heard at Binga’s Zimpost and TELONE building on Monday morning.
What residents thought was an accident was a violent raid by robbers at around 3am.
An unknown number of men broke the Binga ZIMPOST and TELONE security fence, further broke the burglary bars of the ZIMPOST window and gained access.
Inside they used dynamite to break off the cash safe.
They got away with US$16,400 and left the security guard tied to a tree unhurt.
The premises are at present closed while heavily armed police officers guard it and no arrests have been made. A comment from the police was not possible at the time of writing.

US President Barack Obama has effectively blocked Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe from attending his special meeting at the African Union’s hub. Obama who says: “We did not inherit this land (Africa) from our forefathers, we borrowed it from our children,” has publicly slapped Mugabe, analysts reveal.
African Union (AU) and Sadc chairman President Robert Mugabe will not be among several African leaders scheduled to meet visiting United States President Barack Obama at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, today, his spokesperson George Charamba has said.
Charamba said Mugabe was unmoved by Obama’s visit to the AU headquarters, describing the event as just “a visit by any other visitor”.
“The chairman does not run the AU centre. Obama has come to Ethiopia for an official visit and to address the staff there.
There are many dignitaries who come to the AU headquarters and you can imagine if all come wanting the President’s input,” Charamba said.
“It’s the Head of State of another country. If you are afraid of him, we are not because he is just a Head of State who visits Africa and the AU headquarters by virtue of his ancestry. Madam (Nkosazana) Dhlamini-Zuma (AU Commission chairperson) is big enough to receive him.”
Charamba said when it was said Obama would address the 54-member bloc, Zimbabwe did not represent his audience.
Obama will today address the AU bloc on several issues affecting Africa.
“AU is not an organ run by Zimbabwe. It does not belong to Zimbabwe. If you want to know who is attending, call the AU offices,” he said.
He said Mugabe and other AU leaders would only receive the report of his visit in January at the AU summit.
“There will be a report on the summit in January where we will get a briefing on the visitor who is called Barack Obama ‘who we received and went back home happy’. . . He did not come to visit Mugabe. He went to Ethiopia and asked to visit the HQ. I did not see you writing that Mugabe snubs Obama when he went for the Ebola summit (in New York),” Charamba said.
Political analyst Charles Mangongera said the strained relations between Harare and Washington could have influenced the absence of Mugabe as AU chairman to meet Obama in Ethiopia.
“Obviously the nature of the diplomatic relations between Harare and Washington is such that Obama has carefully avoided Mugabe. If relations between the two were cordial, he could have conferred with the AU chairman but remember, they have a position on Zimbabwe that could have influenced his behaviour,” Mangongera said.-Newsday

Robert Martin Gumbura, the convicted RMG Independent End Time Message leader, will appear in court after a Harare magistrate reopened his case.
This comes a year after the magistrate filed his application for review at the High Court. Gumbura failed to follow up on the application for review. The prosecutor Mrs Kudzayi Chigwedere told the court that the application filed at the High Court was never followed up.
“There is no basis for the trial not to continue if the accused didn’t pursue his application,” she said.
Harare magistrate Mr Fadzai Mtombeni ordered Gumbura’s lawyer Mr Tapson Dzvetero to bring proof that the application was followed up.
However, Mr Dzvetero failed to turn up due to his commitments at the High Court prompting Ms Mtombeni to adjourn the matter to today for trial continuation. The trial was put on hold last year pending a High Court review of proceedings.
Gumbura, who was represented by Advocate Thembinkosi Magwaliba then, wanted the High Court to look into proceedings in which they alleged the magistrate made a gross error by putting him to his defence.
In the matter, Gumbura is jointly charged with his secretary Tendai Ganyani who allegedly assisted him rape a minor he had adopted. Mrs Chigwedere alleged that Gumbura took advantage of the underprivileged girl and raped her with Ganyani’s help.
The girl was one of the vulnerable members of the church who was adopted by Gumbura after an agreement between him and her father. It is alleged that after the adoption, Gumbura was responsible for her school fees and upkeep.
Ganyani allegedly ordered the girl to go into Gumbura’s office and she locked the door from outside. After raping the girl, it is alleged, Gumbura phoned Ganyani to unlock the door.
Both Gumbura and Ganyani deny the charge.

CHITUNGWIZA town clerk Mr George Makunde has come under fire from residents for demanding a new vehicle worth $70 000 at a time when the municipality is struggling to pay workers. Chitungwiza Residents’ Trust spokesperson Mr Marvellous Khumalo said the city fathers should be more sensible and focus on key issues affecting the town.
“It is an issue we have been discussing that council should prioritise service delivery. This shows how greedy and selfish the town clerk is at this hour.
“How can he demand that council buys him a car when it is struggling to pay workers? While we appreciate that he should have a car, it should go in line with the revenue trend,” he said.
An urgent special council meeting set up to iron out outstanding issues that included the town clerk’s car issue was abandoned after Mr Makunde and Chitungwiza Mayor Phillip Mutoti ruled that there was nothing urgent on the agenda that called for such a meeting.
The agenda included the failure by council to pay workers a flat fee of $250, payment of gratuity, the issue of 30 percent from Clyna Trading and debt collection.
Mr Makunde said the vehicle was part of his conditions of service.
“My conditions of service allow me to have another vehicle after three years. The one I am using is a second-hand one which has travelled for about 191 000 km,” he said.
He said he was in dispute with Mrs Vengesayi over the vehicle issue.
“The meeting has been cancelled by the mayor because we have noted that the issues raised were not urgent and out of scope. We asked that the issues should follow the proper order,” he said.
Councillor Mutoti distanced himself from the scuffle, accusing Mrs Vengesayi of trying to use him to settle her scores with Mr Makunde.
“The meeting was called off yesterday by the town clerk after the chamber secretary came advising me to suspended Makunde. She could not tell me why she was lobbying for that and she has no basis of accusing the town clerk,” he said.
Mr Makunde accused Mrs Vengesayi of trying to topple him as the town clerk.
“She has been circulating a document. I think she wants to emulate the situation that took place at Town House in Harare and she is the one who wants my post,” he said.
Mrs Vengesayi denied harbouring any intentions of taking over office.
“I am not trying to topple anyone, but I want everyone to do his or her job. My role is to advice the town clerk, management and council. “When I advised the mayor, he was reluctant to take action,” she said.

…


A BULAWAYO man allegedly raped a married woman after he had gone to her home to demand his $1 owed by her husband in the middle of the night, a court heard.
Tafadzwa Ignatious Kadongo, 29, of Trenance, allegedly raped the woman in the absence of her husband who works in the city centre.
Kadongo appeared yesterday before regional magistrate Mark Dzira facing a rape charge.
He pleaded not guilty and was remanded in custody to today for continuation of trial.
Prosecuting , Tinashe Dzipe told the court that on July 19 this year at around midnight, the woman was alone at her house when Kadongo approached her demanding his outstanding $1 for the fish that he had sold to the woman’s husband.
“She told him that her husband was at work but Kadongo went on to force open the door which was supported by a stone to stop it from opening. He entered the house.
“Kadongo got into the woman’s blankets, removed his trousers and raped her once. She screamed for help but Kadongo threatened to kill her,” Dzipe told the court.
The court heard that after raping the woman, Kadongo took the stone used to hold the door and threw it outside leaving his cap inside the room. Dzipe said the woman told her husband soon after his arrival and a report was made to the police leading to Kadongo’s arrest.
The woman’s husband told the court that they owed Kadongo $1 as they had bought fish from him on credit.
Kadongo, an ex-soldier, said in his defence that he went to the woman’s home in the morning of the same day and forgot his cap which was now being used as an exhibit in court.
“Your worship, my cap fell when I was at the woman’s home and I forgot it but I didn’t rape her. “I’m the one who made a report to the neighbourhood police after hearing rumours that I was being accused of rape. This woman never reported the incident to the police.
“Her husband pleaded with me not to report the matter but solve it out of court but I decided to rope in the police officers as I sought justice,” said Kadongo.
The state seeks to prove that Kadongo is misrepresenting facts to the court. A medical examination was conducted on the woman on July 20 and it will be produced in court as evidence.The trial continues today with a defence witness giving his evidence. Chronicle

A 30-year-old NMB Bank Limited banker was sent to jail for one-and-a-half years after stealing $170 000 from his employer that he blew up on gambling. Alfred Gusha of 13 Rue Close Msasa Park, Harare, was convicted on two counts of theft. Harare regional magistrate Mr Noel Mupeiwa sentenced Gusha to three years in prison before suspending six months on condition of good behaviour.
Another year was suspended on condition that Gusha restitutes the bank. However, he will serve an effective 18 months in jail.
Gusha was the custodian of NMB vault and made cash bundles before sealing them.
In mitigation, Gusha begged for the court’s lenience saying he is a family man.
“I am a first offender who lived the life of a saint up to the time I committed this offence,” said Gusha.
“I am addicted to gambling and did not benefit anything from the offence. I withdrew the money for the last big gamble but it all went into the drain.
“I lost everything including my employment as a result of this offence. It is highly unlikely that I will be able to get employment especially in the banking sector despite my experience as a seasoned banker.”
The complainant was NMB bank represented by its security manager Mr Negion Majahana Moyo. The prosecutor Ms Tinashe Makiya, told the court that on October 2, Gusha stole $36 230, which he was managing and converted it to his own use.
In a bid to conceal the offence, Gusha mixed $1 notes with $100 notes to appear as though all were $100 before putting the money in the vault.
The offence was unearthed on October 14 when Gusha failed to report for work prompting the branch manager to open the vault and discovered the trick.
Gusha then went into hiding after the matter had been reported to the police and later surrendered himself on July 20.

Secretary general of the MDC Renewal, Tendai Biti, has said Zimbabwe is being governed by selfish people who waste their energies on petty issues instead of solving the country’s deepening economic problems.
“These people are driven by malice and subjectivity, without any concern for the people. If Grace and Mugabe could put all the energy they expended on fighting Mujuru over petty gossip, then this country would be a $50 billion economy.
“Unfortunately, we are being governed by very selfish people, incompetent people, greedy people, vindictive and cruel people and it’s sad in a country where unemployment is 90 percent, where four million of our citizens have left the country.
“The country is churning out thousands of graduates every year, only for them to become vendors and I think we are the only country in the world with educated vendors because I discovered when I talked to Harare vendors last week that one in every five is a graduate,” Biti said.
The spokesperson for MDC president Morgan Tsvangirai, Luke Tamborinyoka, described Grace as “a disgrace to the nation who now wanted to unnecessarily divert people’s attention from the real issues affecting the country”.
“Because of her antics, she has become an unnecessary diversion from the real issues afflicting the country. She is vending executive powers she does not formerly have in public places and should therefore be the first vendor to be removed from our streets,” Tamborinyoka said.
Grace has revealed that she ousted Mujuru because of gossip. Grace said revealingly that she used “to hear a lot of things that were taking place in terms of the former vice president”.
What had broken the camel’s back were the disruptions she experienced when she mounted her controversial rallies around the country last year, and as Zanu PF imploded — which she blamed on the former VP.
“The one thing I did not like was that as I was going on the tour last year — the Meet the People Tour — they put together a group of boys, gave them money, bought them beer, got them drunk and sent them to boo me when I was addressing; making noise, beating drums, shouting and I endured that.
“In almost all the provinces, it was like that at every rally. It was happening, but I later said enough was enough. You cannot continue to do this to me. I have been very quiet for a very long time.
“Things have been said, written and gossiped about me. I said enough was enough; if you actually want now to translate it into public fight, let’s go for it. I also have a mouth to talk, I have a brain to think. So, I said this should stop forthwith (laughs). That’s why people talk about “Stop it!” (laughs) because they were dividing the party.
“She (Mujuru) had a faction, which was working against the president and we had only one president elected and only one centre of power. She was now making her own clique with people who were following her and to them, it was a foregone conclusion that she was going to be the president of this country and where they got that from, we didn’t understand.
“This should have come from the party and she could have waited. I loved her so much, I tell you. She disappointed me. I liked her so much. She knew that I liked her, but she was very elusive in her ways. She didn’t even want to communicate with me.
“I think it had more to do with the people who advised her. She chose the wrong people to advise her. Unfortunately, she caused all this that happened. She could have easily listened to advice. I even sent people to talk to her: ‘You are over trusting other people’,” Grace told The Sunday Mail.
“She did not want to take advice from me. I sent people to talk to her, but she thought I was foolish, or I wanted to stop her ambitions. However, I was very genuine about the things I did for her.
“Other women and I campaigned for her to be in that position; she must not forget. The president supported her fully to be in that position, but she started being too ambitious. She could have waited for her time.
“I’m telling you; she had an opportunity, a very good opportunity if she had kept her cool and listened to the advice of others. She would be somewhere today. But she decided to do things the wrong way and she has herself to blame — unfortunately,” she added.

An ex-soldier from Bulawayo raped a married woman after he visited her home to collect his $1 owed by her husband during the night, a court heard.
29 year-old Tafadzwa Ignatious Kadongo, of Trenance, allegedly raped the woman in the absence of her husband who works in the city centre.
Yesterday Kadongo appeared before regional magistrate Mark Dzira facing charges of rape.
He entered a not guilty plea and was remanded in custody to today for continuation of trial.
Prosecuting ,Tinashe Dzipe told the court that on July 19 this year at around midnight, the woman was alone at her house when Kadongo arrived demanding his outstanding $1 for the fish that he had sold to the woman’s husband.
“She told him that her husband was at work but Kadongo forced open the door which was supported by a stone to stop it from opening and entered the house.
He got into the woman’s blankets, removed his trousers and raped her once. When she screamed for help Kadongo threatened to kill her,” Dzipe told the court.
The court heard that after raping the woman, Kadongo took the stone used to hold the door and threw it outside dropping and leaving his cap inside the room. Dzipe said the woman told her husband when he arrived, then they reported the matter to the police who arrested Kadongo.
The woman’s husband told the court that they owed Kadongo $1 as they had bought fish from him on credit.
Defending himself,Kadongo, denied going to their house during the night, instead,said he went to the woman’s home in the morning of the same day and forgot his cap which was now being used as evidence in court.
“Your worship, my cap fell when I was at the woman’s home and I forgot it but I didn’t rape her. I’m the one who made a report to the neighbourhood police after hearing rumours that I was being accused of rape.This woman never reported the incident to the police.
Her husband pleaded with me not to report the matter but solve it out of court but I decided to inform the police officers as I sought justice,” said Kadongo.
The state seeks to prove that Kadongo is misrepresenting facts to the court. The woman was medically examined on July 20 and the results will be presented as evidence in court.
The trial continues today with a defence witness giving his evidence. -State Media

A Harare magistrate today ordered the immediate release of three civil society leaders who were arrested Saturday after finding that the state had violated the constitution.
Combined Harare Residents Association director Mfundo Mlilo, Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition’s programs manager, Nixon Nyikadzino, and deputy national chairperson of the Africa Unity Square pressure group, Dirk Frey, who were arrested outside the magistrates court on Saturday were arraigned before Harare magistrate today facing charges of violating the Public Order and Security Act and the Protected Areas Act.
After the charges were read to the accused by state attorney, Idah Maromo, defense counsel Gift Mtisi challenged the placement of the accused on remand arguing that Mlilo, Nyikadzino and Frey were being held illegally.
Mtisi submitted that the state had violated the national constitution by failing to bring the accused persons to court within 48 hours as stipulated in Zimbabwe’s supreme law.
But the state counsel opposed Mtisi’s application saying the accused persons were brought to court before the 48 hour period had lapsed and were ordered by the prosecution to return to the police station to correct some typographical errors on the charge sheet.
However, Mtisi argued that the trio should be released because they had not been arraigned before a magistrate at the expiry of the stipulated period even though they were brought to court before that time period had expire.
In his ruling, magistrate Tendai Mahwe found that the state had violated a section of the constitution that he said is explicit that accused people should appear before a competent court before the constitutionally-stipulated timeframe had lapsed.
Mtisi welcomed the court’s ruling and urged authorities to adhere to the national governing charter whenever they were dealing with suspects.
Mlilo, Nyikadzino and Frey were arrested on Saturday at the magistrates court where they had gone to hear a case of other civil society members accused of taking pictures at a protected area who were arrested Friday at the Harare Remand Prison where leaders of some non-governmental organizations had visited the jailed leaders of the National Vendors Union of Zimbabwe, Samuel Wadzai and Sten Zviorwadza.
Wadzai and Zvorwadza are facing charges of public violence after they allegedly assaulted Harare municipal police when went to the city council headquarters demanding the release of wares of illegal street traders that had been confiscated by the local authority during a crackdown on illegal vendors.-VOA

ZIMBABWE ELECTION SUPPORT NETWORK

​PRELIMINARY STATEMENT: MUDZI WEST PARLIAMENTARY BY-ELECTION

Harare – 25 July 2015 – The Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN) as part of its watchdog role in electoral processes observed the Mudzi West parliamentary by-election held on the 24^th of July 2015. The parliamentary constituency seat fell vacant following the death of former MP Mrs Aqualinah Katsande who passed away on 28 March 2015.
Observation Methodology
The Network deployed 6 short term observers for the by-election comprising static observers based at some of the Ward and Constituency Collation Centres. In addition 7 mobile observers were deployed and this preliminary statement is informed by their observations. ZESN’s observation efforts conform to the Electoral Laws of Zimbabwe. 
Opening and Setup, Voting and Counting Procedures
In polling stations where ZESN observers were deployed, opening and setup procedures were successfully completed on time. Observers reported that all polling stations had all the required voting materials such as ballot boxes, ballot papers, ZEC official stamp, indelible ink and the voters’ roll at the time of opening. All polling stations covered by ZESN observers had adequate polling personnel with an average of 6 per polling station. ZESN observer reports show that the process was generally, peaceful and smooth with no major incidents reported. 
Counting
At all polling stations where ZESN observed closing of polls and counting, the processes took place according to procedures and results were displayed outside the polling stations. At all the ward collation Centres and the constituency collation centre where ZESN observed, all party agents signed the V11 form thus agreeing that the process had been conducted well.
Assisted voters and turned away voters
ZESN observers indicate that there are significant numbers of voters who have been assisted to vote. By close of polls, ZESN noted that an average of 25 voters was assisted at each polling station visited by mobile observers and the majority were illiterate. Disturbing figures were observed at Tsakare Primary School ward 4 and Chipfuri Primary School ward 5 where our mobile observers reported that 38 and 52 voters had been assisted by 1308hrs and 1542hrs respectively. Furthermore, ZESN noted that some of the reasons for turned away voters were, some voters had no identity documents while some were bringing the wrong identity documents and others were not appearing on the voters’ rolls.  
Voter Education
ZESN noted with concern that voters continue to be turned away in elections, an issue that could have easily been addressed by a comprehensive voter education programme. This observation is of concern given that voter education for the by-election was conducted. This therefore raises questions on the voter education methodologies employed, the reach and the timeframe allotted to the process. 
Political Party Agents
It is regrettable that at most polling stations where ZESN observed only ZANU PF had deployed election agents. ZESN notes that the failure by the other contesting candidate to deploy agents is unfortunate given that the presence of election agents is not only crucial in enhancing the transparency of the electoral process but provides candidates with a basis for informed calls for reforms to electoral processes. The role of party agents is provided for in the Electoral Law therefore political parties are encouraged to take full advantage of the provision. 
 
 
Police presence
ZESN has repeatedly observed that police officers are actively involved in the election process especially in assisting voters. ZESN reiterates its position on police presence and roles inside the polling stations which goes against international best norms and standards. ZESN calls for the role of the police to be limited to maintaining law and order.
 
 
Data disaggregation
ZESN continues to observe the compilation of disaggregated data by age and gender and commends ZEC for collecting such crucial data that can inform voter education programmes and other electoral processes.

Recommendations; 

·         ZESN therefore calls for a continuous rather than the current periodic voter education for by-elections being provided by ZEC and electoral stakeholders to ensure that all potential voters are reached. In addition, ZEC should invest in more comprehensive voter education programmes to improve voters understanding of key electoral requirements. 
·         ZEC should work with civic society organisations to ensure that voter education programmes and voter information content dispel fears of intimidation and retribution that might be one of the major reasons for assisted voters in the elections. 
·         ZEC should avail to relevant stakeholders disaggregated data by age and gender recorded during polling in order to inform their electoral programmes such as voter education and campaigns. 
·         Contesting political parties must ensure comprehensive deployment of political party agents to ensure informed advocacy interventions for electoral reforms.
·         ZESN reiterates previous calls on the role of the police that it should be limited to maintaining law and order within the vicinity of the polling stations.
 
Conclusion 
ZESN continues to note the recurring gaps and inadequacies in the legal framework of elections. The Network therefore reiterates that electoral reforms still remain a priority in promoting credible elections. ZESN implores political parties, government and parliament to speed up the harmonisation of the Electoral Laws to the Constitution and the need for political will to fully implement the electoral provisions as Zimbabwe prepares for the 2018 elections.
 

ZESN is a member of:
§  Global Network of Domestic Election Monitors (GNDEM)
§  Southern African Development Community Election Support Network (SADC-ESN)
§  CIVICUS
§  Observer status with AU African Commission

Opposition leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, has said were it not for the MDC’s unwavering commitment to democratic change in the country, his party could have in the past taken up arms to liberate long-suffering Zimbabweans — a move that would have plunged the country into unprecedented violence and anarchy.
Addressing thousands of his supporters at Matsika Primary School in Makoni West yesterday, Tsvangirai also lauded former Presidential Affairs minister, Didymus Mutasa, for “having seen the light” and finally realising how “cruel” President Robert Mugabe allegedly was.
He said the MDC remained committed to peaceful change in Zimbabwe despite “the massive rigging at the polls” by Zanu PF, and the ruling party’s “proven” unwillingness to cede power to his party after suffering electoral defeats.
Tsvangirai said this was also the reason why his party was insisting on electoral reforms in the country ahead of the eagerly-anticipated 2018 national elections.
“Nyaya inonetsa munyika ino ndeyekuti vanoti nekuti takarwa hondo, power haiendi kuMDC neball point (The problem we have in this country is that Zanu PF says because it participated in the liberation struggle, power can not be transferred to the MDC through the ballot box).
“Let me warn you, isu kubva musi wekutanga takataura kuti we don’t want violence. Tingadai takati nekuti matibira 2000 tavakubatawo pfuti. Chinotitadzisa chii? Asi aizo-suffer ndiani? Tisu vana veZimbabwe (We said from the beginning that we don’t want violence. We could have said because you stole the 2000 elections we are taking up arms. What could have stopped us? But who was going to suffer? It’s us Zimbabweans),” the MDC leader said.
He pointed out that there were few countries that had emerged prosperous from a civil war.
“Hakuna nyika inoita progress iinehondo. Zvinoreva kuti isu takagara takacomitter ourselves to democratic change nekuti tinoziva kuti kana pasina hondo tichaita change (There is no country in a war situation which develops. We always committed ourselves to democratic change because we know that we will achieve change without violence),” Tsvangirai said.
He said once democracy was achieved in Zimbabwe, the country would experience real liberation, with people returning to work and the international community’s confidence being regained and allowing for foreign direct investment.
“Kana democracy yauya nerusununguko vanhu vachaenda kumabasa, vekunze vachaita confidence vakaunza mari.(Once we have democracy we will have true liberation. People will go to work and the international community will have enough confidence to invest in the country),” Tsvangirai said.
He said he had become more resolute and clear about the need for change in the country after enduring many hardships in his protracted battle to dethrone Zanu PF and Mugabe from power.
“We have come a long way in our journey. But there are other people who are now battle-weary, while others are told by Zanu PF to ditch me. But I’m happy that people are always there for me. We have seen a lot,” the former premier in the government of national unity said.
He added that he would not give up “the fight” as his supporters had endured untold suffering for the party and nation’s cause.
He also said the government should consider introducing a universal pension for older persons, regardless of whether they were previously employed or not.
“You see these old people jiving and gyrating here, a government of the people must formulate policies that help those who are now incapable of looking after themselves and those who are wallowing in abject poverty,” he said.
Tsvangirai recounted his “recent persecution by Zanu PF in order to divert his attention from his tour of Manicaland” — a reference to the police disruptions of his meetings, as well as failed attempts by the deputy sheriff to attach his personal property over a pay dispute between his party and its former employees.
“We have seen a lot. I was coming from Honde Valley and I heard that my house had been emptied and I said I won’t go back home because what they are doing is childish,” he said to wild applause.
Speaking about Mutasa, Tsvangirai said he welcomed the fact that he had removed “his blinkers about how cruel Mugabe is”, adding that this vindicated what the MDC had been saying all along.
“Didymus today now knows Mugabe is evil. But someone who is repentant is better. I don’t talk about Biti and Mangoma, they are too small and not worth talking about, it’s a waste of time,” Tsvangirai said.
He said people must not be “mesmerised and seduced by little goodies” such as cups of rice which were being donated by Zanu PF, as hunger continues to decimate families throughout the country. Daily News

It never rains but pours for Zimbabwe’s workers who barely a week ago were told they are no longer entitled to retrenchment pay.
The Supreme Court has made another landmark labour ruling giving employers the right to withdraw employees’ allowances and benefits saying these were not a right or entitlement.
This comes barely 14 days after the same court gave the employer the right to terminate workers’ contracts and offload them at three months’ notice without having to pay retrenchment packages.
In a judgment delivered at the Supreme Court, in a matter involving the National Railways of Zimbabwe against all its employees’ associations who were demanding payment of outstanding housing and educational allowances, the court said the NRZ had no obligation to pay such allowances since issues of allowances were based on collective bargaining agreements.
“The appellant’s (NRZ) position at all times was that it preferred to negotiate on basic salaries and not allowances. In my view both the Labour Court and the Arbitrator ought to have found that the allowances, not having been negotiated by the parties and therefore not forming part of their collective bargaining agreement, were not a right or entitlement for appropriation by the respondents,” the court said.
“They (allowances) cannot be imposed by the arbitrator, or indeed any court, in the same way that a court cannot write a contract for the parties. What occurred in this case was totally improper. The Labour Officer, the Arbitrator and the labour Court all missed the point.”- Newsday

The Marange community was left in shivers after a villager went berserk and brutally murdered his brother in cold blood, sliced his body into pieces before hiding the deceased’s private parts in a beehive following a misunderstanding over meat.
Tonderai Kichini (31) of Machiwanga Village allegedly dragged Tichaona Kichini’s body from the room where he had butchered him and chopped it into several pieces using a knife and axe.
Tonderai went further to pack the deceased’s body parts into two 50kg sacks and threw them into a disused well. He also took Tichaona’s head and private parts and hid them in a beehive.
Manicaland provincial police spokesman, Assistant Inspector Luxson Chananda, confirmed the brutal murder and said on July 15, at around 10am, a neighbour saw one of the dogs eating a piece of meat.
“He became suspicious and monitored his dogs’ movements. He saw some traces of blood which led him to the now deceased’s kitchen hut,” he said.
Last Saturday, Tonderai appeared before Mutare magistrate, Mr Langton Mukwengi, facing murder charges.
He was asked to apply for bail at the High Court since he was facing a Third Schedule offence.
It was the State’s case led by Mr Shepherd Chavarika that Tichaona had asked his brother, Tonderai for keys to their kitchen hut where he wanted to collect some food.
Tichaona refused to hand over the keys and this did not go down well with the accused.
He then drew an iron bar from the fireplace and struck his brother thrice on the head, before he collapsed and died.
“When he realised that he had killed his brother, Kichini took an axe and a knife with which he used to cut his brother into pieces. He cut off the head and private parts before crushing them using mortar and a pestle.
“He later took the chunks and stuffed them in a beehive. He then took the remaining body parts and buried them in a dry disused well.”
The court also learnt that Kichini’s was once convicted of assault. His mental status is also questionable.
He will be back in the dock on July 29.-

Manicapost

ZIMBABWE’S FIRST Lady Grace Mugabe has for the first time revealed that her husband’s party Zanu PF is plotting to dislodge her.
She at the weekend blew into the open standing rumours that bigwigs hoping to succeed President Robert Mugabe are on a bloody campaign fearing that she harboured ambitions to take over the Presidency from her 91-year-old husband.
Mrs Mugabe told the State media during her lavish 50th birthday celebrations at their posh Borrowdale home on Saturday that Zanu PF had been rocked by power struggles centred on succession.
She said some of the smear campaigns were being channelled through the media.
“We hear a lot of things being said about us (First Family), allegations being made that she has presidential ambitions,” Grace said.
“When these people who actually think they are the ones to take over after Mugabe imagine that Mugabe’s wife has those ambitions, they actually start mudslinging. I know some detractors are writing about it, that Mugabe is grooming his wife to become the President after he retires, and it will never stop because there are people who think they are the ones to take over out there,” she said.
“And they think that if Mugabe is really grooming his wife, we must ensure we pull her down and this is what has been happening. It is all about those people who fear they may wake up one morning with Mugabe’s wife as the President.”
Grace, however, ruled herself out of the presidential race or any other political office besides her Women’s League post, but said some Zanu PF hawks were burning the midnight candle at both ends plotting against her to ensure Mugabe did not anoint her successor.
Observers have said Grace’s remarks were aimed at Mugabe’s two deputies, Emmerson Mnangagwa and Phelekezela Mphoko.
Last month, Mugabe publicly accused the two politicians of leading factional groups in the race to succeed him.
Since Grace’s entry into politics as Zanu PF Women’s League boss last year, her influence on Mugabe and Zanu PF has been growing by leaps and bounds with some observers saying she had become the de facto President of the country.
Mugabe himself has admitted Grace’s influence over him and recently, Grace made another more profound revelation that Mnangagwa and Mphoko took instructions from her on how to run government affairs.
Mnangagwa is widely believed to be leading a faction angling to take over from Mugabe, and is now squaring off with the G40, reportedly fronted by political commissar Saviour Kasukuwere and Higher Education minister Jonathan Moyo with the backing of Mphoko.
In her interview, Grace said those angling to take power had been approaching her to find out if she would be running for the Presidency after Mugabe.
She added: “There are people who come to me . . . and I have told them in no uncertain terms: ‘In future, don’t come and ask me that question. Tell whoever has sent you that they must keep it to themselves.’ I don’t have the ambition to run for the Presidency.”
Grace said she was not interested in politics, but women’s issues only.
“I have never — in any way, in any place, at any time — said I would want to be the President of this country.”
The First Lady also all but confirmed her influence on her ageing husband and his ruling Zanu PF party when she said nothing could stand in her way if she wanted to be a Cabinet minister.
“If I had really wanted, if I had been as ambitious as they say, I would have said yes, I want to be a minister. There was nothing to stop me anyway, but I said no because I didn’t want to,” she said.
Grace said former Vice-President Joice Mujuru had a perfect chance of succeeding Mugabe had she maintained her cool and stopped poking at her.
Her Saturday birthday bash — attended by over 2 000 people and beamed live on national television — coincided with her first anniversary in politics.(Newsday/Additional Reporting)

The Zaoga church members in Mucheke surbub  of Masvingo were left shell shocked when their elder a married man, was found dead at one of the sex workers’ houses.
It is alleged that Gifford Mudondo  67 was found dead a few minutes after the two had been intimate.
Acting spokesperson of Masvingo police Assistant Nkululeko Nduna confirmed that the incident took place on Monday. “Gifford Mudondo (67) was found dead in Maida Chin’anga’s bedroom on her bed with his trousers on the floor,” he said. 
The police attended the scene after they were notified about the incident and when they arrived, they collected Mudondo’s body from the woman’s bedroom. This was a shock especially to his family and church members.
An elder has the same status and rank as that of a pastor.
His close relatives believed that Mudondo had gone to the woman’s house to place orders as the woman is a tailor, but could not explain how he ended up dead and naked in her bedroom.
Close sources said Mudondo who works as a driver went to Mucheke Bus Terminus after work and parked his vehicle before proceeding to Chin’anga’s house in the same suburb.
“Mudondo left his vehicle parked at the terminus apparently to avoid being seen by other congregants. The next thing we heard that he is dead and his body was found on the woman’s bed while naked with his trousers on the floor,” said one resident.
He went on to say it was a lie that Mudondo had gone to place orders since the woman is a tailor.
Instead he saidMudondo was Chin’anga’s well-known client and their secret was known and some congregants were fully aware of it.
“What we got pertaining to this incident is that Mudondo and Chin’anga were intimate. The two were seen on several occasions together despite the fact that the man is a church elder at Zaoga and the woman, a known sex worker in the location,” he said.
After the incident, Chin’anga confided in her friends within the same location about what had happened and one of them advised her to alert the police.
The police attended the scene and removed the body from the bedroom .The body was taken to Masvingo General Hospital mortuary for a post-mortem. – State Media

Robert Mugabe’s securocrats have begun approaching the MDC-T seeking for some sort of a reunion in order to fix the economy, highly placed Morgan Tsvangirai sources have claimed.

Mugabe’s security agents who include Service Chiefs are the ones who have for years assisted President Robert Mugabe to “rig” elections and clinch onto power. In March 2008 after Mugabe was beaten in the first round of the Presidential polls by  Morgan Tsvangirai, when the “junta” openly manipulated figures denying Tsvangirai his win.

They held on to the Presidential poll results for over six weeks and only to  announce that Tsvangirai had not garnered enough votes that would allow him to take over  from Mugabe.

“They (top security officers) are making concerted efforts trying to invite the party for talks,” said a senior official in Tsvangirai’s MDC party who cannot be named due to the sensitive nature of the discussions.

They continued, “they are saying we should meet as a party and assist government with ideas of how we could together shape the economy.

“But we are very careful because we do not trust these guys. Remember some of them have publicly declared their patronage to Zanu PF and have vowed to die for Mugabe .So ware treating them with due care”.

President Robert Mugabe’s Spokesman George Charamba was not available for comment at the time of writing as his phone kept ringing without being answered.

Two ZRP cops stationed at Beitbridge Border Post were caught in the act issuing fake receipts at Beitbridge border post.
The incident occurred on the 29th March.
Judgment in the case where the two police officers are charged for making a duplicate receipt book which they used to collect fines from undocumented migrants has been set for August 8.
Tendai Machanzi and Define Ndere ran out of luck when their supervisor picked the anomaly during routine checks. They had already collected fines amounting to R6 200 using the counterfeit receipt book. Illegal migrants who enter the country through the ports of entry are fined $10 or R100 for entry by evasion under the provisions of the Immigration Act.
Through their lawyer, Patrick Tererari of Tererai Legal Practice, the duo denied the allegations when they appeared before Beitbridge resident magistrate Miss Gloria Takundwa.
They were remanded out of custody on $100 bail each.
Prosecuting, Mr Jabulani Mberesi told the court that both the accused persons are deployed at the police post within the border.
He said on March 29, they commenced duty at around 11pm where Machanzi was the officer-in-charge and he received nine Z69 (J) police receipt books during hand over and takeover of office from the previous shift leader.
The accused persons were working at the police post where, among their duties, receipting of deposit fines from offenders was included.

First Lady Grace Mugabe has revealed that she used to climb trees the same way young boys do.
Speaking during her birthday celebrations as she called for gender equality,  Grace indicated she ruled the jungle.
The First Lady who was born in the diaspora in South Africa after her parents migrated in search of greener pastures, said she
“ grew up in a rural background, typical African rural environment.”
She continued, “I grew up a very disciplined girl. I could stand my ground among my peers. I could climb trees, milk cows, fetch firewood and carry a bucket of water on my head.”
Grace called for equality between boys and girls, saying it was good that the new Constitution recognised gender equality.
She said girls should be empowered through education and praised President Mugabe for education policies which encouraged people to go to school.
“I realised early in my life as I grew up the importance of education and the difference it makes to one’s life,” she said.
“Education is the only chance that the girl child has to rise above the cultural customary practices that continue to cast women as inferior to their male counterparts.”

First Lady Grace Mugabe has revealed that her body is under attack from numerous ailments years running culminating to the last one this year which was cancer at the intestines.
Speaking during her birthday celebrations in Harare, Grace indicated she has been slain by numerous attacks the latest one which was cancer.
She told delegates, “I am, therefore, most grateful to you all for accepting the invitation to come here to celebrate with me and my family the precious gift of life which God has given me over these past 50 years.
“They have been 50 years full of illnesses for me. The other day when I returned from Singapore after I had been hospitalised, I had undergone surgery there, and I was trying to narrate to people my medical history.
“I am a very strong person. I don;t think if I wasn’t that strong I would be here today. When we were coming over to this marquee here I was saying to my husband ‘thank you very much for being there for me, I have been very sick and you have been always on my side’ and I went on to say ‘if it wasn’t for you, for that support morally and financially I would be dead by now’. I went on to say to him that ‘I don’t think if I were married to somebody else I would be alive today because I have gone through a lot’.”
Mrs Mugabe said it all started in 1986 when she had her tonsils taken out and 10 years later in 1996 she was under the knife again when her gall bladder was removed because she had developed gall stones.
“And then 10 years after, in 2006, I contracted pneumonia and the doctors started treating me for malaria and then they realised that no it wasn’t malaria, it was pneumonia and the treatment came quite late,” she said.
“I almost lost my life there, but God wanted me to live for a reason, I suppose for the children that I have adopted. By the way, the children are now 90 of them. The 90th one came only two days ago from Masvingo.”
She said a few months ago she went under the knife again to have her appendix removed.
Although she said that the ailment was an appendix infection, close family sources have revealed that she was actually attacked by colon cancer.
She continued, “so, you can imagine, I was talking with people in hospital that you know the doctors, they are giving me anesthesia and then they view my body,” she said. “I have gone under body viewing many times by the doctors inside out.
“But I thank God because I am a very strong person. I do not think a person would have gone through so many operations would be as strong as I am, but I thank God for that.”

STATEMENT OF THE MONTH:

“We haven’t inherited this land from our fore fathers. We have borrowed it from our children,” Barack Obama in Nairobi, Kenya.

Nearly five months after the disappearance of democracy activist Itai Dzamara, Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition (CiZC) spokesman Mfundo Mlilo and programmes manager Nixon Nyikadzino were on Saturday arrested by ZRP cops and harassed for having visited National Vendors Union of Zimbabwe (Navuz) chairman Sten Zvorwadza, his director Samuel Wadzanai and 14 other vendors who are in remand prison after they were denied bail on public violence charges.

Tichaona Danho, the Occupy Africa Unity Square (OAUS) member who was one of the two who accompanied Itai Dzamara when he first handed in the original petition on 17th October 2014 was called in to answer questions about an alleged threat towards a police officer. Mr Danho reported to Harare Central Police Station on Wednesday 22 July 2015 as instructed in company of Advocate Kwaramba from Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR). He was kept in custody over night and released the next day.
Another OAUS member Charles Nyoni was arrested by the Zimbabwe police on Friday 14 July 2015 afternoon. Charles Nyoni, CRISIS in Zimbabwe Coalition Information Officer, Edgar Gweshe and another unnamed activist were detained by the Zimbabwe Prison Services at Harare Remand Prison. The three were part of a group of over 50 Civil Society members who had gone to Harare Remand Prison on a solidarity visit for arrested National Vendors Union of Zimbabwe (NAVUZ) leaders and vendors. Charles was released on bail the next day.
Dirk Frey, the deputy chairperson of OAUS was taken by police on Saturday 25 July 2015 for questioning and is still in custody.
OAUS condemns the continued blitz against its members and leaders of other civic societies. OAUS is urging the government of Zimbabwe to focus attention and redirect their resources to the deteriorating economy of Zimbabwe. The government should not attempt to draw away people’s attention from the houses that are being demolished on another wave of Murambatsvina 2. The government has failed to provide the 2.5 million jobs it promised us and our jobless youths are finding life meaningless as they aimlessly roam the streets of Zimbabwe. Employees are getting fired from work without adequate notice; instead the government is busy persecuting peaceful human rights defenders. We have been reduced to a nation of vendors and beggars. There are more demanding matters of the state than the systematic and brutal persecution of peaceful civil protestors.
OAUS would like to reiterate the call made by the Civil Society of Zimbabwe which demands and call upon;
1. The Government of Zimbabwe to immediately release the civil society leaders and activists.
2. The Government of Zimbabwe to desist from intimidating, harassing and interfering of legitimate operations of civil society in Zimbabwe.
3. The ZPCS and ZRP to exercise professionalism and carry out their duties in non-partisan manner with due diligence and stop harassing and intimidating human rights defenders.
4. The Government of Zimbabwe should create an enabling environment for CSOs in accordance with the Zimbabwean Constitution and the various regional and international norms which Zimbabwe has signed which protects fundamental rights of human rights defenders to exist and be protected by law, to organize associate and carry out peaceful and legitimate activities.
5. The Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) to condemn this act of repression and demand, from the current Chair, guarantees for Zimbabwean CSOs to operate freely.
OAUS would like to stand shoulder to shoulder with all Civic Societies whose leaders and members are being persecuted day and night.
OAUS would like to remind the government of Zimbabwe that under The Universal Declaration of Human Rights:
· Article 3: Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.
· Article 5: No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
· Article 7: All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law. All are entitled to equal protection against any discrimination in violation of this Declaration and against any incitement to such discrimination.
· Article 9: No one should be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.
· Article 10: Everyone is entitled in full equality and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the determination of his rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him or her.
· Article 12: No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honour and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.
· Article 13: Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders of each state.
· Article 19: Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers
· Article 20: (i) Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association. (ii) No one may be compelled to belong to an association.
The above Human Rights Declaration, together with our 10 Golden Rules; which promotes non-violent protest is our flagship and we have the right to uphold them. Our leader, Itai Dzamara, as a citizen of Zimbabwe, had the right to exercise the above rights. We therefore call upon the government of Zimbabwe to pragmatically assist and facilitate the safe return of Itai Dzamara. We also call upon the government of Zimbabwe to stop the persecution, intimidation of our members and the immediate release of all detained civic society leaders.
WE ARE THE PEOPLE. WE ARE THE NUMBERS. LET’S GO!
Occupy Africa Unity Square.
Tendai Kwari.

MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai yesterday stood astute as he was worshiped by his critic Solomon Madzore’s father, party cadres say.
Pictures from the Buhera rally on Saturday show Elder Madzore kneeling at the ground while clasping his hands for Tsvangirai. In the act, the elderly man looked up to Tsvangirai in full view of the crowd. According to rally-commissar Job Sikhala, Elder Madzore dropped to the dusty ground to apologise for the way his sons Solomon and Paul have “sinned” against Tsvangirai.

Sikhala wrote of the pictures saying this is “Paul and Solomon Madzore’s father apologizing to Morgan Tsvangirai at a Rally in Buhera today about what his sons are doing to him,” said Sikhala.
Sikhala’s comments drew a flood of attacks from news readers.
“There is nothing to apologize since his sons have their rights to chose a group or political party of their choice. Kusarudza bato raunoda is not like kudyisa mombe dzako mumunda waTsvangirai,” wrote one contributor on the Zim Policy Dialogue forum.
“Tsvangirai must STOP IT, ” wrote Mugabe supporter Kisnot Mukwazhe.
Added ZimEye columnist Ndaba Nhuku, “does MT have to allow everything that Mugabe does to be part of his own political drama? No! He should have long stopped this nyaya yokupfugamirwa like some Lord!! Seems he loves it yet we always criticise Mugabe’s attack dogs for doing exactly that.”

By Shiellah Sibanda|MDC-T Secretary General Douglas Mwonzora is on his way to the United Kingdom to prepare for 2018 elections.
At at time when Robert Mugabe’s ZANU PF is destroying itself through bitter purges, the MDC-T has firmly set its eyes on the upcoming 2018 elections beginning its first massive fund-raising shows in the United Kingdom.
A team of officials led by Secretary General Douglas Mwonzora are on their way to be in England early in July in preparation for a massive music gala fund-raiser in the posh city of Oxford, ZimEye.com can reveal.
Fund-raising has become vital after the ZANU PF government strangled the MDC parties by failing to release up to $3million of political party funds as allocated by the Constitution.

The trip has been facilitated by the MDC-T party’s most organised branch, Oxford, led by the prolific chairman Chrispen Chamburuka who has outshined many both within and outside Zimbabwe. Oxford has for years financed the MDC party from its cashbook including ensuring that the party retains Thabitha Khumalo’s Bulawayo East constituency.
Accompanying Mwonzora is Treasurer General Theresa Makone, Abednico Bhebhe, and Deputy Spokesperson, Thabitha Khumalo.
The function will be held on the 1st August, at the large Exeter Hall, Oxford, OX5 1AB(picture below)

A Harare man tortured his daughter with hot burning paraffin which he poured onto his daughter’s sensitive lower abdomen.
The man faces jail following charges that he poured paraffin onto his seven-year-old daughter’s private parts.
It is alleged that this was a way to punish the girl for testifying against him in court for a case in which the daughter testified against him.
The police have said the mother of the child recently approached the Civil Court to seek a protection order against the husband, who she accused of both physically and verbally abusing her in the presence of their two daughters .
The woman was granted the order after the daughter testified.
Harare police spokesperson Assistant Inspector Simon Chazovachiyi said after the court process, the father after a drinking session went home and interrogated the daughter on revealing what was happening in the family.
Police say the daughter did not respond and this led the man to pour paraffin on her private parts resulting in the girl developing blisters.
The mother reported the matter to the nearest ZRP office leading to the man’s arrest. He is being held at Mabvuku Police Station and will appear in court this week.

• I even refused to be a Minister – Grace

Grace Mugabe has answered the “X Question” many Zimbabweans have been asking all along, about her future political role.
The First Lady said she has no presidential ambitions at all. “I have never said in any way, in any place at any time I would want to be President of this country,” she said.
Grace said this because she had been asked several times and now has made it clear that she did not want to lead Zimbabwe,a country that her husband has ruled for more than three decades.
Grace went on to say that she has enough on her plate for now especially her charity work, and has even rejected a ministerial post. She said if she was power hungry as some people think she would be a minister right now. The post was available for her but she declined it. “There was nothing to stop me,” said Grace.
During the same time she also verbally attacked Joice Mujuru blaming her for plotting to overthrow her husband from power. ” I loved Joice Mujuru,but what she did was wrong or maybe she was surrounded by wrong people who were advising her that way.” she said.

Friends of abducted activist Itai Dzamara have been arrested.
Mfundo Mlilo, Nixon Nyikadzino and Dirk Friey were pounced on by cops on unclear charges.
The Zimbabwe Informal Sector Organisation, ZISO announced that it  “condemns the arrest of civil society leaders today in Harare. Mfundo Mlilo, Nixon Nyikadzino and Dirk Friey.
“The arrests reflect the escalation of paranoia and repression of the regime,” the NGO said in a statement.
It continued, “this is happening amid acute economic decline and a sharp rise in poverty levels lending unsustainable strain on the informal sector.
“The government is urged to urgently address the root causes of the rising crisis. The state’s heavy handedness continues to dent prospects for meaningful public-private-perrnership to stimulate economic recovery.”
More to follow…

Following a recent court ruling on the dismissal of employees by companies, the Bulawayo’s Old People have suffered a blow as their vegetables were stolen this week by suspected unemployed youths who have been suddenly laid off work.

According to the Luveve Old people’s Community Nutritional Garden secretary, Mrs Betty Sibanda, their rich assortment of vegetables has been wholly uprooted by thieves during the night, leaving them with only about 7 % of their total plot produce.This happened soon after court ruling.
Most of the youths were fired by their employers in the nearby Kelvin and Belmont industrial factories. These youths have since resorted to theft and robbery and have left residents stuck in fear of the attackers now described as “deadly” .
“We have been left with nothing by thieves, who invaded our garden project and stole almost all our intended market produce. We have been forced to replant after this disaster. This all happened after the court ruling on employment, and several people have been retrenched.” she said shaking her head in anger.
Michael Ndlovu, whose section was also left with only three onion plants, blamed the government for allowing such a law to pass, causing the rise of theft and robberies in the once quiet environment of Luveve,” he said.
Pictures taken by ZimEye.com, in the community garden said it all, as the old farmers have been left to restart their season in a sad re-return.
The nutritional gardens have been a successful courtesy of a local trust and Australian partners in their efforts to reduce poverty among the poor urban dwellers.
The labour ruling that was exposed by Movement for Democratic Change legislator, Nelson Chamisa, has been a talk of Zimbabwe, as it has caused chaos in the worker-circles.
Many Zimbabwean companies have resorted to abusing their workers, and threaten them with dismissal if they refuse to receive paltry salaries.

Yesterday in Bulawayo police raided and arrested 16 pupils from four schools for holding a sec party commonly known as “vuzu party” at a house in Cowdray Park where they allegedly abused alcohol while engaging in sexual activities.
Police spokesperson for Bulawayo metropolitan province, Inspector Precious Simango, said the ‘vuzu parties’ were held at a house belonging to two of the pupils whose parents are in the diaspora.
“We’re holding 16 pupils after we caught them hosting a wild party at a house in Cowdray Park. Most of the children were from Northlea High School. Their ages range between 16 and 17. The house at which the party was being held is occupied by two boys whose parents are based in South Africa,” she said.
Insp Simango said police found various alcoholic beverages that included vodkas and wines at the house.

She said umvusankuzi, a concoction that is normally used by elderly men to enhance sexual prowess, was part of the items found at the house. “When police raided the house, they found three bottles of vodka, two wine bottles, condoms, and two crates of soft drinks,” said Insp Simango.

When a Chronicle news crew visited the house yesterday, it was deserted. Insp Simango said the juveniles were still detained at Luveve Police Station. She challenged parents and guardians to monitor their children so as to curb juvenile delinquency.

Insp Simango said parents should reprimand their children and educate them on the dangers of alcohol and drug abuse. “They should conscientise their children on the dangers of getting drunk. The police alone can’t do much if parents don’t monitor their children,” she said.

Insp Simango said members of the public must seek police clearance before holding parties.

Residents told The Chronicle that pupils from Milton High, Northlea, St Columbus and Eveline Girls High were in the habit of holding parties at the Cowdray Park house every Friday.

“The pupils were brought by two kombis yesterday and this isn’t the first time this has happened. They were about 30 but some of them managed to escape when the police raided the house. They jumped over the precast wall,” said a woman who resides in the same area.

The woman said two teenage boys reside at the house alone as their parents are based in South Africa.

“One of them completed his ‘O’ levels last year and the other is in Form Four. We tried to talk to the boys so that they change their ways but our advice fell on deaf ears,” she said.
Another resident expressed concern that the children were not taking their school work seriously.

She said: “These children don’t understand what we go through as parents to raise their fees. They’re busy blowing their lives away. Every Friday these children will be hosting parties. We wonder when they do their school work,” she said.

Last month police arrested 16 pupils from Milton High School, Townsend Girls High and Pace College after they were caught drinking beer and abusing dangerous drugs at Centenary Park.

They were all in school uniforms and were taken to Bulawayo Central Police Station for questioning.

The pupils who were also arrested on a Friday, are suspected to have engaged in sexual intercourse after used condoms were discovered at the scene. Police also recovered bottles of whisky, dagga and a widely abused cough syrup with high alcohol content, Broncleer, popularly known as Bronco following the raid.

In recent weeks police have been carrying out ‘anti-vuzu’ parties campaigns in schools.
It has since emerged that during these parties pupils indulge in group sex while drinking and smoking dagga. -State Media

Cyber war has intensified among the MDC-T senior party officials and has threatened to turn nasty following the recent leaking of WhatsApp chat group messages of senior members trading insults.
Fresh details indicate that party deputy spokesperson Thabitha Khumalo and deputy treasurer Charlton Hwende are accused of leaking the chats to the media.
Hwende was not reachable for comment yesterday while Khumalo said, “I can’t say anything because nothing has been communicated to me.”

The two, according to party insiders, have been targeted by the Thokozani Khupe faction that wants them removed from the party’s Standing Committee.
The faction is reportedly also planning to pass a vote of no confidence on the two when the party’s national executive meets next Thursday.

According to the party’s constitution, only secretaries of organs should sit in the Standing Committee but amendments were made by the national council, the MDC-T’s highest decision making body between congresses, to include deputy secretaries.

The chat groups which include almost all the party’s senior leadership except leader Morgan Tsvangirai fly in the face of the troubled leader who early this year directed that the chat groups be shut down and no one discusses party business in social media networks.

Party insiders told The Chronicle that the Khupe faction want to push for the removal of the two from the Standing Committee for allegedly leaking harsh words exchanged between Hwende and party secretary general Douglas Mwonzora in the party’s group chat named “MDC-T Next Government.”

“There were chats leaked revealing an exchange between Mwonzora and Hwende in a WhatsApp group where Khupe is also a member. After the leaking of the chats, the Khupe faction of which Mwonzora is a member, wants to move a motion that all deputies be removed from the Standing Committee,” said an insider.

“The move, targeted at Khumalo and Hwende, is likely to also affect Mwonzora’s deputy, Paurina Mpariwa who belongs to the Khupe faction. They want to defy a resolution of the party’s national council, typical of their disregard of the constitution and law.”
Efforts to get a comment from Mwonzora were fruitless but party spokesperson Obert Gutu insisted that the party was united.

“Like any family, you’ve arguments but it doesn’t mean that mother and father want to divorce. In any debate, tempers are bound to flare. We believe in robust discussions but it doesn’t mean that the party isn’t united,” he said.

“Whoever leaked those chats has a sinister agenda and I would like to believe isn’t part of us but a Zanu-PF agent. It’s normal that when people discuss, some lose their tempers but that doesn’t make them enemies.”

In the leaked chats, trouble started when Hwende questioned why the party appointed Costa Machingauta as acting organising secretary yet he is not part of the standing committee.

“Is it true that Machingauta was introduced in the Midlands province today as the acting national organiser? Queried Hwende in the group chat on Saturday.
“What happened to the organiser elected by congress? This rumour is getting currency.”
Khupe explained that the organising secretary Abednicho Bhebhe was away on study leave at the Lupane State University and his deputy Thamsanqa Mahlangu was on sick leave.
Hwende argued that it wasn’t constitutional to appoint a person who is not in the standing committee to which Khupe responded, “I’m not sure about that.”

At that point Mwonzora fired at Hwende asking, “Mr Hwende. Why are you in the Standing Committee when Congress said you should not be? The people who had the least votes always say too much.”

Hwende shot back at Mwonzora saying a resolution was made by the party’s national council and reaffirmed by the executive adding, “For a Secretary-General to say that deputies are sitting in the SC illegally that’s very low even for your standard.”

Things turned nasty when Hwende said Mwonzora was an embarrassment and the first party’s secretary-general who failed to pay workers while collecting $4,000 in monthly allowances for himself.

“Those who say $4,000 was taken please post the proof thereof for this group to see. Those who go to the Press to bad mouth their leaders and pretend not to see please stand,” responded Mwonzora.

Hwende insisted that, “senior people must respect the decisions of superior bodies. The National Council made a decision which must be respected. This is a closed chapter we can’t be pushed out. We were elected by congress we don’t have to justify our presence in the SC (Standing Committee) to the SG (secretary general.)”

A day later Mpariwa left the group “with egg on her face” after she allegedly mistakenly posted some members’ names in the group.

“Mpariwa mistakenly sent some names in the group and when pressed who was the intended recipient of the names, she left the group,” said a party insider.
The chat read, “Ndadeleta by mistake but vamwe ndi Robert Dube, Ndawana na Gore.” (I deleted by mistake but the others are Robert Dube, Ndawana and Gore)

After a barrage of questions, Mpariwa left the group and Dube later posted, “Morning leaders. Let it be known to her that we’re not kids and we’re expensive, we can’t be sold. – State Media

THE First Lady, Grace Mugabe, had been scheduled to be in Binga yesterday. But preparations for her lavish birthday bash were a bigger pull. She sent a delegation instead led by Stein Berejena who is a director in her office and Matabeleland North Minister of State for Provincial Affairs, Cain Mathema to meet traditional leaders from Binga district and inform them that she was taking over resuscitation of Bulawayo Kraal Irrigation Scheme in Binga.
She assured the people of Binga of her commitment to spearhead the operationalisation of the scheme as a matter of urgency. Most of the equipment, that include tractors and three disc ploughs is already on site.
Briefing hundreds of people who included traditional leaders and heads of government departments at the Binga Rural District Council offices in the morning, Mathema said Mugabe had assured them that the first crops will be planted next month.
“We’re here with Berejena on behalf of the First Lady who sent us to brief chiefs that we’re now starting work on the 250-hectare scheme and by end of August we want to see the first crop planted.
“She will now be spearheading the project and she will come here on a date to be decided. The First lady has said she is concerned by delays in implementing this project and she wants results,” said Mathema.
The multimillion-dollar irrigation project has since 2004 been failing to take off due to funding challenges. The government has identified the scheme as key to the fulfilment of some of the objectives of its economic blueprint, Zim-Asset.
Bulawayo Kraal Irrigation Scheme is expected to boost food production in Binga.
Mugabe decided to spearhead the project which should cover 15,000 hectares of land, with 250 hectares earmarked for the first phase.
From Binga town, Mathema and Berejena led the team to the site of the irrigation scheme to view implements that have been delivered.
The implements, which include five tractors, three disc ploughs, two rom discs, three planters, three fertiliser spreaders, 75 knapsack sprayer, eight pumps and four pivots, were sourced through the Brazilian input scheme which was launched by President Mugabe a few months ago.
Mathema said three other irrigation schemes in Binga namely Mlibizi, Lungwalala and Nabusenga will receive similar implements under the same facility.
In an interview, Berejena said Mugabe was concerned that Bulawayo Kraal, which requires about $1,8 million for the first phase of irrigating 250 hectares, has faced numerous challenges in the past.
“The First Lady’s target is to have 250 hectares planted

FINANCIALLY-troubled state-owned enterprises and parastatals are being forced to part with between US$35 000 and US$120 000 in contributions to First Lady Grace Mugabe’s 50th birthday fundraising dinner, the Zimbabwe Independent has established.
The soliciting of funds from state entities, most of which are either broke, a perennial drain on the fiscus or technically insolvent, will further worsen their precarious financial position.
Grace will have a fundraising dinner dance at the First Family’s Borrowdale Brooke residence on Saturday.
In an advert, the “Amai Grace Mugabe @50” organising committee invited individuals and organisations to deposit cash donations into a CBZ account under the name “Amai Grace Mugabe Jubilee”.
According to the advert, the sponsors’ package includes advertising space at the event, a five-minute slot on the programme for the major sponsors to profile their organisation, platinum branding for Grace’s table, a seat at Grace’s table and acknowledgement in the programme booklet, among other benefits.
State enterprises and parastatals have not been spared when it comes to contributing to this event, as some were given formal directives to make contributions to the programme. The entities continue to be feeding troughs for corrupt ministers and other senior government officials.
A senior government official who requested anonymity said it was worrying how government expected parastatals to perform when they were forced to fund First Family events like President Robert Mugabe’s birthday celebrations and Zanu PF functions.
“You have parastatals being asked to pay between US$35 000 and US$120 000 depending on how they are rated. In a year, there are many of these requests to the same state entities,” said the official.
According to the source, the funds are drawn from mainly cash-generating parastatals such as Zimbabwe National Roads Administration (Zinara), Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra), Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (Zesa), NetOne and TelOne.
“Parliament should be criticised for turning a blind eye to this. It must be a matter of policy that parastatals are not allowed to fund such private, political party events,” the official said.
During the First Lady’s campaigns and rallies that led to the ouster of former vice-president Joice Mujuru last year, it emerged that Zesa contributed US$40 000 to the Manicaland Zanu PF Women’s League ahead of its congress last year.
It seems corporates in Zimbabwe — including some companies that would want to be seen as brands not hobnobbing with or subsidising dictatorship when they are actually doing just that — have to be in good books with Mugabe’s party, more specifically serve the interests of whichever Zanu PF faction has an upper hand at any particular moment in order to survive and safeguard their main objective — profit.
The situation is not peculiar to Zimbabwe as other countries have their own networks in terms of how business relates to the powerful elite.
Political analyst Stanley Tinarwo said arm-twisting state enterprises to fund Grace’s dinner is indicative of the thin line between party politics and the state.
Tinarwo said: “A birthday is essentially private so there is no need to use state resources to gratify the wife of a serving president. That state-owned enterprises are being ordered to contribute points to the heart of their failure to deliver important public services due to political patronage and contributions to the cult of personalities that bedevils Zimbabwean politics.”
Senior researcher for Zimbabwe and Southern Africa at Human Rights Watch’s Africa Division Dewa Mavhinga said the constitution and all other laws do not provide for state funding of the First Lady’s birthday jamboree.
“There is no basis at law for parastatals to be coerced to fund it (birthday). If state parastatals are being forced to contribute towards Grace Mugabe’s birthday then its criminal and the matter should be reported to the nearest police station for appropriate action,” said Mavhinga. “What is happening is a vain attempt to entrench family cultism through elevating private birthdays to national, state-funded events.”
In February, Zanu PF deputy secretary for Youth Affairs Kudzai Chipanga urged Grace to crack the whip on companies that refused to donate to Mugabe’s lavish birthday bash held in Victoria Falls in February. He singled out Schweppes Zimbabwe Limited, which he alleged refused to donate cash and bottled water as requested by the youths.
Zimbabwe’s largest telecommunications company, Econet Wireless Zimbabwe in July 2014 gave the cash-strapped government a US$30 million facility last year to pay civil servants salaries and other critical bills. Econet is just of the companies that have bailed out government openly over the years. Some do it secretly.
Transparency International Zimbabwe, in its 2014 Annual State of Corruption Report, called for a total overhaul of the regulatory framework in which state enterprises and parastatals operate so as to limit inappropriate political interference and protect them from cronyism, conflict of interest, corruption and nepotism.
A report by the Comptroller and Auditor-General Mildred Chiri has shown that 23 major parastatals posted losses of US$470 million between 2012 and 2014. independent

Former Presidential Affairs Minister Didymus Mutasa accused of looting development funds and assets of two schools in Nyanga and converted the money to personal use, has hired a new lawyer to represent him after his lawyers for many years abandoned him. GN Mlotshwa and Company-led by Mr Gerald Mlotshwa, reportedly abandoned Mutasa, a shareholder in Nyafaru Development Company (NDC), who is being sued by the company at the High Court.
GN Mlotshwa did not even renounce agency in the matter, leaving Mutasa with an option to look for another lawyer. He settled for Antonio and Dzvetero law firm to argue the case for him.
The hearing was supposed to commence on Tuesday before Justice Happias Zhou, but was deferred to a later date to allow a number of procedural issues to be addressed including renunciation and assumption of agency, and filing of heads of argument.
Mr Tapson Dzvetero told Justice Zhou that his firm was now handling the matter and requested for postponement to study the case and do the necessary procedures. NDC lawyer Mr Douglas Mwonzora, did not oppose the postponement.
Nyafaru primary and secondary schools were constructed after independence on land President Mugabe gave the Tangwena people in appreciation for their help when he crossed into Mozambique in 1975 to prosecute the liberation struggle.
Mutasa is the director NDC, which oversees the running of the schools.
He and NDC chair Pearson Kasu are accused of grabbing four vehicles, including an ambulance, donated to the community.
It is further alleged that Mutasa took at least 400 head of cattle from the Tangwena people and has over the years tried to take over their land.
According to the papers submitted at the High Court, the school development committee wants Mutasa and his company barred from interfering further.
NDC, the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education and Mutasa are listed as respondents in the matter.
The Tangwena community claimed in their papers that NDC through its officials have done everything in their power to derail development of the school including vandalising the school property through the thugs that they have been sponsoring.
“Establishing a bar selling alcohol within the premises of the school. In one instance, 72 window panes were broken by one of the agents of the officials of the first respondent (NDC).
“Despite the resolution of September 16, 2004, the first and third (Mutasa) respondents have been trying to disturb the smooth operations of the two schools in various ways.”
Mutasa and Kasu are also alleged to have taken 20 percent of school funds intermittently.
Mr Dzvetero yesterday said the matter was a simple case of land wrangle between a person claiming to have donated the property against a company which is the registered owner of the property and has title deeds to it.
“There is nothing political about it and some names are being dragged to court for political mileage,” he said. He said the community was arguing that the company donated the land to it but was now reneging on the donation. herald

MDC Leader Morgan Tsvangirai’s privacy was laid open on Friday when ZRP cops accompanied by the Deputy Sherrif raided his bedroom impounding various furniture items of Mr. Tsvangirai’s nakedness.

This happened at a time when Tsvangirai’s office was claiming nothing of the sort took place, with party Spokesperson Obert Gutu saying it was just “an attempt”. The statement read:
“The Deputy Sheriff today attempted, yet again, to remove President Morgan Tsvangirai’s personal property at his Highlands home and the party property at Harvest House despite the existence of an urgent chamber application for stay of execution that is still pending at the High Court.
There is also an interpleader application that was filed at the High Court clearly submitting that the 14 former employees were employed by the MDC and not by President Morgan Tsvangirai in his personal capacity. As such, there is absolutely no factual and/or legal basis upon which the Deputy Sheriff could proceed to attach and remove President Tsvangirai’s personal household property.
President Morgan Tsvangirai is not a party to the legal proceedings that are presently pending at the Labour Court in Harare.
Officials from the Deputy Sheriff’s office, again with the State media and armed riot police in tow, forced their way into President Tsvangirai’s Highlands home and started taking office furniture and other private property.
At Harvest House, they almost took away all motor vehicles that were parked outside Harvest House as part of the settlement of money that is allegedly owed to former party workers. The attachment and removal of the party’s assets was however stopped because of the pending legal processes.
On 3 June 2015, the MDC successfully won a stay of execution at the Labour Court. Earlier on this week, President Tsvangirai filed an inter-pleader application that clearly established that his personal property should not be attached and removed in execution of a debt allegedly owed by the MDC.
Indeed, at law, President Morgan Tsvangirai and the MDC are two separate and distinct legal persona.The High Court Registrar will soon be setting down for hearing the application for stay of execution against the party’s property. In the interim, the order for stay of execution that was granted by the Labour Court on June 3, 2015 remains valid and fully operational. The application for review that was filed at the Labour Court is also yet to be set down for hearing.
It is in respect of these legal processes that this second attempt to attach and remove property was stopped.
The MDC believes in the rule of law and respects the judiciary as an important, independent arm of the State. We also laud the Deputy Sherriff’s decision not to proceed with the attachment and removal of property that had become unnecessary in light of the pending legal processes.
Yet again, the MDC strongly condemns the nefarious and malicious attempt to needlessly dramatize the labour dispute, particularly the involvement of armed riot police and the attempt to attach the President’s private property when papers before the court clearly spelt out that he was not party to the dispute between the MDC as an employer and its former employees.

Barely a year after crowning her with a mysterious PhD certificate Zimbabwe’s top university has poured scorn on the First Lady Grace Mugabe.
 
The institution issued what is seen as the most sarcastic birthday messages ever to a human being, just as other academic institutions compete to outdo each other in praising her.
Last year her husband revealed that her doctorate was nothing but an achievement of ignorance “This is really an achievement of ignorance,” Mugabe said.
 
UZ last year conferred Grace with a PHD that raised more questions than congratulations. This time writing in direct reverse language,  the university  poured insults  on Grace Mugabe on commemorating her birthday. The message read:
“Your Excellency, the university admires your tremendous skills of intellectual intelligence, spiritual intelligence and emotional intelligency, including empathy, compassion, love and grace,” the country’s top institution of higher learning gushed out saying.
 
 
 

MDC-T legislators walked out of the National Assembly yesterday in protest over a request by Buhera South lawmaker Joseph Chinotimba (Zanu PF) to play a video recording of former Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai allegedly calling for the imposition of sanctions against the country.

Acting Speaker Melody Dziva ruled that Tsvangirai was allowed under the Constitution to come to Parliament to reply, contrary to protestations by MDC-T MPs.

This was after Kuwadzana East MP Nelson Chamisa had raised a point of order to the effect that Tsvangirai was not a member or present in the House to respond to the video.

“If there is any need for clarification, I will allow for the president of the opposition to come and respond. Opposition leaders are allowed under the country’s Constitution to come to Parliament and respond,” Dziva said to applause from Zanu PF members.

However, Chamisa argued that Parliament had an obligation to first advise Tsvangirai on the matter.

The MDC-T MPs broke into song before walking out after Dziva rejected Chamisa’s point of order.

Zanu PF MPs took advantage of the walkout to view the 2001 video of Tsvangirai on BBC’s Panorama programme. 

In the video, Tsvangirai is heard saying that given the “threats to the elections from the military and (President Robert) Mugabe”, South Africa could impose sanctions on Zimbabwe by cutting fuel or electricity.

Chinotimba said the economic collapse that Zimbabwe had witnessed in the past 15 years was a result of the “sanctions that Tsvangirai called for”.

“It is painful when President Mugabe and Zanu PF are accused by the MDC of destroying the economy when it was Tsvangirai who called for cutting of transport ties as well as electricity,” he said. 

“The British and the Americans did not have it in them to put sanctions, but they realised they had Tsvangirai’s support and here we are. The vendors who have invaded our streets are of Tsvangirai’s making and I am pained by this.” 

Chinotimba accused the MDC-T of “speaking with a forked tongue”.

“Now they are crying foul over the recent (Supreme Court) judgment (that employers can unilaterally terminate workers’ contracts), but they have neglected their own workers to the extent of going to court to block their bid to get their money,” he said.

Mugabe blames the sanctions for the collapse of the economy, but critics point to his mismanagement.  -State Media

3000 workers fired in one week.
AT least 1 000 workers from different companies were fired in one day yesterday with Zimasco reportedly showing 648 of its employees the exit door.
The mass job cuts are part of a scramble by companies to fire workers without benefits as they capitalise on last Friday’s Supreme Court ruling.
The Supreme Court, in a case involving Zuva Petroleum and two former managers, ruled that companies can give three months’ notice to terminate workers’ contracts even without benefits.
The ruling opened floodgates as several companies including Associated Newspapers of Zimbabwe, publishers of The Daily News, and Sakunda Logistics sent workers home.
According to reports, an estimated 3 000 workers have been laid off in one week.
In a statement after yesterday’s Cabinet meeting, Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare minister Prisca Mupfumira said the government had resolved to urgently amend the Labour Act to avoid further job losses.
“Government has resolved to amend the relevant provisions of the Labour Act in the shortest possible time in order to restore equilibrium in the market. Meanwhile, government appeals to employers to exercise maximum restraint in terminating contracts of employment on notice, pursuant to the Supreme Court ruling,” she said.
Sino-Zimbabwe Cotton on Tuesday reportedly fired over 400 workers and used the ruling to justify the drastic action.
Zimasco workers, who spoke to NewsDay, said the chrome mining and smelting company yesterday gave them an option to take the company’s preferred compulsory retrenchment plan or risk getting nothing.
Although a company official, Clara Sadomba, professed ignorance over the development, the affected employees maintained that they had been sacked.
“We were given an option to take their preferred retrenchment package, that of two weeks’ pay multiplied by the number of years that one has served,” one of the employees who requested anonymity said.
“Around the end of 2013, the employer began to cite unviability of business and offered voluntary retrenchment where people were going to be given two weeks’ salary multiplied by the number of years served and less than 100 people took that.”
The Zimasco employees claimed in May and December 2014, the company put up measures to avoid retrenchment whereby employees were supposed to serve for the next 12 months while negotiations for compulsory retrenchments were underway.
“Others before us have been given one month’s salary multiplied by the number of years served and that was what we were pushing for when this Supreme Court ruling was made,” the employee said.
Zimoco has also given a number of its workers notice which will run until October 31.
Mobile phone operator Econet Wireless Private Limited also joined the bandwagon.
Sakunda Logistics employees said they refused to sign the termination of employment contracts because they were reportedly owed about five months’ salary arrears.
President Robert Mugabe has been urged by labour bodies and human rights organisations to act to stop the job losses.

International Socialist Organization leader Munyaradzi Gwisai has charged that Kuwadzana legislator Nelson Chamisa risks losing his political career for standing against workers.
Chamisa was one of the Zuva Petroleum lawyers who last Friday won a court case against workers.
In the case which Chamisa was defending the Supreme Court judge Chief Justice Godfrey Chidyausiku ruled in his (Chamisa client) favour and allowed employers to terminate their workers’ contracts without giving them retrenchment packages.
Gwisai said Chamisa has committed the dreadful mistake of effectively stating that workers are useless. “He is also forgetting that his party which groomed him since 2000 to become what he is today…” he told workers deliberating on action to take against the Judgment on Thursday in Harare.
“He is forgetting that it is the very workers who raised him to become a member of parliament and a minister at a tender age.
“Now he is wearing suits and pushing briefcases and now is in the front of telling the courts that workers are useless”.
Meanwhile Professor Lovemore Madhuku and Caleb Mucheche of Mucheche and Matsikidze legal practitioners on Thursday filed an urgent application with the Constitutional Court seeking for the suspension of the Chidyausiku judgment.

A Morgan Tsvangirai picture sensation on the MDC leader’s so called “loss of weight” ripped through the wires on Thursday as Zimbabweans speculated that Tsvangirai is unwell either mentally or physically.
Footage from the Mutare meeting Tsvangirai had with provincial leaders at the Queens Hall in the eastern town, suggest that the man has lost an incredible amount of weight. In one of the pictures, a shocked Tsvangirai is seen staring at a low turn out.
Some Zimbabweans caricatured the MDC leader as they suggested that he has lost weight. The frenzy however appeared to have all been created from the below photograph.

Exiled Zimbabweans and friends will be holding a party at the Zimbabwe Embassy in London on Saturday 25th July to mark the 50th birthday of Dr Amai Mugabe.
The Zimbabwe Vigil hopes the party will be attended by the spouse of the Zimbabwe Ambassador and the spice of Ambassadors of friendly nations such as China, Russia, Belarus, Syria, Iran, North Korea and Venezuela, as well as African countries.
The party will take place between 2 pm and 6 pm to coincide with a grand celebration at Dr Grace’s Harare home in Borrowdale Brook, the Blue Roof Residence, where guests will enjoy a lavishdinner dance.
The organisers say all food and drink will be on the house ‘including expensive whiskeys and wines’. The Vigil trusts that, given Dr Grace’s tireless charity work, Zimbabwe’s starving people will not be turned away.
We urge the hungry to turn up in force for the free food. Vendors and the unemployed especially welcome.
Details
Venue: Outside the Zimbabwe Embassy, 429 Strand, London WC2R 0JR
Time: 2 – 6 pm
Contact: Fungayi Mabhunu 07907 089 899, Rose Benton 07970 996 003.

A thriller of epic proportions — if the political climate does not turn typically violent and even murderous — is on the cards in the eagerly-anticipated 2018 national elections, after the Zanu PF formation that uses the slogan People First confirmed on Wednesday that former Vice President Joice Mujuru will lead the party.
President Robert Mugabe’s warring party split into two bitterly-opposed formations at the end of last year — at the height of the former liberation movement’s internal ructions and subsequent ruthless purges of its senior officials — with many of its liberation struggle stalwarts moving to reconstitute the “original” Zanu PF that is now taking on the nonagenarian’s faction-ridden post-congress Zanu PF.
Spokesperson for the “original” Zanu PF that uses the slogan People First Rugare Gumbo told the Daily News that after months of dithering and not showing her hand publicly, Mujuru was now ready to come out in the open and lead the party — whose official launch insiders say is imminent.
Were this to happen, it would mean that the popular former VP would be among a stellar cast of candidates, that include indefatigable opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, who will take Mugabe head-on in the 2018 presidential elections — if the nonagenarian will still be the post-congress Zanu PF’s candidate for those polls.
Gumbo said that the group of liberation struggle pioneers, war veterans, security sector bigwigs and “millions of other Zimbabweans” who were involved with the People First movement were all acutely aware that time was not on their side to launch the party to contest the 2018 elections.
“Mai Mujuru is absolutely part of the project. She is actively involved. She is there and determined to see to it that the aspirations of those that liberated this country are realised,” Gumbo said.
Pressed to say why Mujuru had thus far not publicly pronounced on her association with the rival Zanu PF formation, he said the widow of the late and revered liberation struggle icon, General Solomon Mujuru, had “wanted the dust to settle”, in the wake of the chaos that followed her expulsion and that of her perceived allies from the post-congress Zanu PF.
“We also believed that it was not necessary for her to pronounce herself on the issue because the situation was still cloudy. So, we respected the position that she took. She needs to now come out in the open and show direction, and we are sure in a few weeks’ time she will do just that.
“We have a movement that has been looking into the logistics of coming up with the party consulting on how best we can go about it. We think we are moving in the right direction and we have no alternative than to look into that direction of coming up with a party.
“We had to do something because there are a lot of things we are not happy about. For example, we are concerned about the government’s use of force to remove vendors from the streets. While we believe that there is need for order in the way vendors do their business, we are against the idea of chasing them out without providing an alternative.
“Government must understand that the vendors are there out of desperation. They are looking for markets for their wares and it is incumbent upon government to engage them to find an amicable solution, but you cannot push them to the outskirts where there are no markets,” Gumbo said.
Probed further on the launch of the People First movement, he said it had already started building structures at grassroots level, as there were many disgruntled members dotted across the country, who were “itching to start working for the party”.
Analysts and insiders who have spoken to the Daily News have said that the recent splitting of the party into Zanu PF Mugabe and the “original” Zanu PF, amid much acrimony and bloodletting, meant that the prospects of reconciling the two factions any time soon were “slim to non-existent”.
“The die is cast my brother and it’s too late to stop the Rumble in the Jungle that will be the election in 2018 between President Mugabe or his proxy Ngwena (Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa) and Mai Mujuru,” said a top Zanu PF official who requested anonymity.
“The third leg of this titanic battle will, of course, be Tsvangirai who as everyone knows beat Gushungo (Mugabe) cleanly in the 2008 elections and will once again be running,” the official added.
Commenting on Mujuru’s prospects in politics, senior researcher for Southern Africa for Human Rights Watch, Dewa Mavhinga, said recently that the fact that she had been a minister for 24 years and a vice president for 10 years, meant that she had a significant following within Zanu PF and across Zimbabwe generally.
“Most of those fighting and opposing her in Zanu PF are mafikizolos (Johnny-come-latelies) who have no support base in Zanu PF and who rely on smear campaigns, violence and the use of sections of the security forces to bulldoze and impose their will upon Zanu PF structures.
“If Amai Joice Mujuru is given a fair chance in the absence of persecution and harassment, then it can be said with fair certainty that she is a front runner in an open, democratic process.
“But opposition forces are better off coming together to form a grand coalition to push for democratic reforms ahead of 2018,” Mavhinga said.
Joy Mabenge, regional co-ordinator for the Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition, said there was an assumption that Mugabe would be available in 2018 and that he would still be within “the requisite capacities to contest and head the country at 94”.
“That assumption may be a fallacy given the fact that all forces of nature relating to him are now clearly pulling in the opposite direction. There is a real possibility that Mujuru may actually bounce back into Zanu Patriotic Front as its leader before 2018.
“However, if we go by the assumption that Mugabe will still be there and fit for purpose in 2018, then a Mujuru presidential candidacy as a head of a faction of Zanu will most likely be more of a gift to the MDC than it would be to Mugabe, assuming that die-hard MDC supporters and die-hard Zanu PF supporters remain (by numbers) constant and do not swing.
“History has taught us that splinter factions cannot and will not be able to easily create their own social base, but will instead want to tap, first and foremost, from the pond they are splitting from, before they try, with difficulty, to tap from other ponds.
“The reality is that the pool of voters is neither elastic nor expansive and therefore a split of votes is more likely,” Mabenge said.
Gladys Hlatywayo, a civil rights activist and political analyst, said it was difficult to give a prognosis because electoral outcomes in Zimbabwe had less to do with real support on the ground.
“Allegations of rigging and absence of a level playing field make it difficult to point with precision to the outcome of these processes.
“What is clear though is that Zanu PF is now in a serious quandary. The once homogeneous liberation movement is now reduced to a shadow of itself with news of expulsions and suspensions making headlines each day.
“This, coupled with an ageing leader, will be the Achilles heel of Zanu PF. The former vice president is a contender in the race although there is still no empirical evidence to prove her chances.
“Based on lived experiences of previous elections, it might be strategic for all voices against Zanu PF to coalesce and collaborate towards 2018.
“There is a real opportunity for change in 2018 but it depends on what opposition political parties choose to do between now and 2018 and I would argue that working together will be the game changer,” she said. Daily News

Zimbabwe Informal Sector’s Organization expresses concern over the corrupt manner in which the city council is issuing vending cards.
The vending cards have mainly been issued to non-vendors who have strong links with council officials.This has resulted in real vendors who need the vending cards the most being deprived and displaced from their sites.
This might lead to the proliferation of new forms of space barons who will sublet vending sites to vendors at exorbitant costs.
Further ZISO is worried by the mandatory 1.25 a day payment to
council and government. For all intents and purposes this is a
presumptive tax that does not take into account what profit a vendor made and whether or not the vendor utilized the site or not on a stated day.
This is exploitative as vendors may not turn up or utilize the sites on certain days for various reasons.What is further worrying is that council resolved to attach properties of vendors who fail to pay the mandatory fee after a given period of time.
It is noteworthy that council is already using vendors details to trace them. There is therefore no guarantee that vendors details will not be used to intimidate and patronise them in the long run.
ZISO urges the city councilors to ensure that the process of registering and issuing cards to vendors is as transparent and open as possible and that people will not be turned into subjects of a patronage system in order to safeguard their vending cards.
There is need to reform the approach from a presumptive tax. In order to do this effectively vendors need to be given basic training on bookkeeping so that they are able to demonstrate what they sold, the profit or losses they would have made. This will go a long way in informing the taxation mechanism and protecting vendors against paying taxes for profits they did not accrue.

THREE armed robbers wearing police and army uniforms stormed a commercial farm in Mwenezi, handcuffed and flogged the farmer, his wife and workers before stealing $5 000.
Police said the suspects also took a variety of items whose value was yet to be ascertained.
Stolen was a Webbley revolver, 20 rounds of ammunition, 10x9mm rounds, a 12 volt Exide battery, 20 litres petrol, 10kg beef, two Samsung cellphones, one Nokia cellphone, a pair of Nikon binoculars, a sharpening kit, Robertson wine, 14 Pilsener pints, six soft drinks and cash amounting to $4 030 and R10 000.

Assistant Inspector Nkululeko Nduna of Masvingo Police said the suspects disappeared from the scene after committing the crime on Monday at around 6.30pm.
“A manhunt has since been launched and the long arm of the law will catch up with them,” said Asst Insp Nduna.

A witness, Nesbert Chauke, said three men clad in police and military uniforms and travelling in a grey station wagon vehicle arrived at Westenzelhof Farm owned by Jan Kotze (53), under Chief Chikanga’s area.

“The three intercepted Kotze at the farm gate. Two of the suspects were clad in police uniforms while the third one was putting on a Zimbabwe National Army uniform. They all claimed to be on duty. The two in police uniform asked Kotze to produce his fire-arm certificate to which he responded by demanding their identification cards. The suspects failed to produce any identification,” said Nesbert.

He said one of the suspects produced a revolver and pointed it at Kotze threatening to shoot him while the other one handcuffed him from behind.

Nesbert said one of Kotze’s farm workers, Fanuel Musengi (45) went to the gate to investigate and was also handcuffed together with his boss.

Other farm workers, Mapuvire Chigoyi (32) of Musala Ranch and Claudius Chauke (25) of Mahelemu Village, were also ordered to lie on the ground while the robbers were still holding Kotze and Musengi hostage.

“Chigoyi and Chauke had their hands tied with seal straps. The suspects further forced the workers and their employer back to the house where they met Kotze’s wife, Miranda (50). Miranda was outside the house. They handcuffed her to her husband before one of the robbers fired one shot into the air apparently to scare away barking dogs,” said Nesbert.

He said the workers were ordered to lie on the ground while Kotze and his wife were taken into the house by one of the robbers in police uniform and the one in camouflage while the other robber in police uniform remained outside guarding the employees,” he said.
Nesbert said while inside the house, two of the suspects demanded money and FN rifles. They threatened to shoot the couple if they failed to co-operate.

“The two robbers ransacked the couple’s bedroom and took away cash amounting to $4 030 and R10 000. They also took a revolver calibre 4 SS/N 201251 with six live rounds, 20 revolver rounds and 10×9 mm rounds,” he said.

Nesbert said after accomplishing their mission, the suspects escorted the employees who had remained outside into the house.
He said the suspects ordered everyone to lie down before they beat them up.

Dr Dumiso Dabengwa ,ZAPU leader headed to the Supreme Court challenging the Electoral Court’s recent judgment refusing to compel the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission to take charge of voter registration, maintaining voters’ rolls and register in line with the new constitutional dispensation.
 

The Electoral Court ruled two weeks ago that Zec has unfettered discretion to use or not to use the voters’ rolls compiled by the Registrar-General because there is no law compelling the commission to craft a new register.

Dr Dabengwa yesterday filed his notice of appeal at the superior court in a bid to overturn the Electoral Court decision.

Among the grounds of appeal, Dr Dabengwa argued that the lower court erred in finding that the performance of the electoral body’s constitutional and statutory duties was subject to its own unilateral view.

“Appellants pray that the appeal be allowed with costs including the costs in the court a quo (lower court) and that judgment of the Electoral Court set aside,” said Dr Dabengwa in his papers.
In the lower court, Dr Dabengwa wanted various provisions of the Constitution such as those providing for Zec to register voters and to compile the voters roll, to be given effect forthwith.
These included Zec’s immediate take over from the Registrar-General’s Office duties such as registering voters, compiling its own voters’ rolls, keeping and maintaining voters’ rolls and ensuring that the public has access to inspecting the voters’ rolls as provided for in the Constitution.

Dr Dabengwa argued that in the run up to the harmonised elections in 2013, he went through agony trying to obtain a copy of the voters roll from ZEC.

It was also his contention that in the 2013 election, Section 6(2) of Part 3 of the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution gave the Registrar of Voters authority to perform some of the election duties under the supervision of Zec, but the future elections should now be conducted in terms of Section 239(c) of the new Constitution.

Since August 10 2013 when Section 239(c) became operative, Dr Dabengwa argued, Zec had not yet complied with the law. -State Media

Fresh from raiding Morgan Tsvangirai’s house and offices in Harare, ZRP cops today slammed into the MDC leader’s meeting in Mutare where a strong group of eight reportedly said they were “on orders” to spy on him.
Announced Tsvangirai’s spokesperson Luke Tamborinyoka:
“Police disputed an MDC meeting at Queens Hall in Mutare today when they insisted on sitting through the private deliberations of an internal party meeting, contrary to the provisions of the law.
“The party had notified the police of the private meeting by President Tsvangirai  and the party leadership, just as similar private meetings have been held with other provincial leaders in other provinces throughout the country.
“Eight officers came and insisted on sitting through the meeting after one of the officers who had initially sneaked into the meeting was chucked out by alert members of the provincial leadership.
“Even after President Tsvangirai had finished his presentation, the police insisted on coming back to sit through the remainder of the sensitive and private deliberations on election strategy.
“The provincial leadership alerted the police of the provisions of POSA which did not entitle them to attend private meetings that are not rallies but they said their superiors had told them to come and hear what Tsvangirai was planning for the party.
“This left the provincial leadership with no option but to cancel the rest of the deliberations as the police kept insisting on sitting through the private deliberations, contrary to the provisions of the law.
“The police action confirms what has become wrong with our politics.
“The police, who have often acted as appendages of Zanu PF, cannot insist on sitting through private, internal deliberations of a political party in contravention of the very rule of law they are supposed to uphold. Allowing them to sit through the private deliberations would have been the same as inviting the police into the national executive meeting of the MDC.
“Meanwhile, President Tsvangirai will address a rally at Hauna growth point  in Mutasa North  tomorrow before proceeding to address another at Chimbudzi business centre in Buhera Central on Saturday.
“On Sunday, the President will wind up his Manicaland tour with another rally at Matsika business centre in Makoni West.”

Zimbabwe’s legislator for the Welshman Ncube MDC, Priscilla Misihairabwi Mushonga caused a scene in parliament yesterday when she waved a pair of “dirty” used underwear to demonstrate how much poverty has hit local women.
 
Mushonga said Zimbabwe’s is still importing used underwear for sale and allowing them through the borders and airports despite a nationawide social protest against this practice made five years  ago.
 
Mushonga bravely stood up during a televised debate session to parade the under garments in front of embarrassed men and women of the August House. Her protest was filmed on live television via the ZANU PF controlled Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation air-screens.
 
People watching from their homes gazed in amazement as Mushonga was seen waving the human inner cloth-wear.  She began, “I would like to ask the Minister of Finance (Patrick Chinamasa) what is the government policy on the importation of second-hand underwear which have health recantations, but are cheap?
“If you look at the two panties that I have here, this one is a brand new and costs $2 and above, but this one which is a secondhand, costs $1 for two.”
But, Chinamasa said Misiharabwi-Mushonga could have made her point without parading the underwear.
“Before I answer this important question, I believe the honourable member should have not gone that far to make her point,” he said. “Anyway, I will see if I cannot make an intervention during my Mid-term Policy Statement next week.”
Misihairabwi-Mushonga first raised the issue in Parliament last week.
During the heated debate, the MP was ejected from the National Assembly after threatening to beat Gokwe-Nembudziya MP Justice Mayor Wadyajena (Zanu PF) for allegedly using “sexist” words against her.
The fracas began after Chinamasa had answered Misihairabwi-Mushonga’s question. As soon as Chinamasa took to his seat, the outspoken Matabeleland South MP charged towards Wadyajena accusing him of hurling sexually abusive words at her.
She threatened to beat up the Zanu PF MP, but was restrained by her collegues before Parliament security officers intervened and forced her out of the House. However, this invited the ire of opposition MPs who rose in protest accusing Acting Speaker of Parliament, Melody Dziva (Zanu PF) of bias.
Dziva insisted that Misihairabwi-Mushonga had been kicked out because she had crossed the floor and not because of the altercation she had with Wadyajena. She went on to block MDC-T deputy chief whip Dorcas Sibanda from raising a point of order regarding the MP’s treatment. Dziva also stopped further debate on the matter. (Newsday/Additional Reporting)

“The ghost of Cecil John Rhodes has risen from the dead,” – The Zimbabwe Labour centre board member Munyaradzi Gwisai has called for workers to fight in protest in order to be heard. Gwisai said the Chidyausiku Labour Judgement that allows employers to fire workers at any time without severance pay is more colonial than old Rhodesian labour laws.
He has called for mass protests countrywide so that the courts and President Robert Mugabe will listen.

Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa has been shot down on his chances to succeed President Robert Mugabe after new Grace Mugabe fan-T-shirts emerged yesterday.
First Lady Grace Mugabe’s alleged ambitions to succeed President Robert Mugabe are haunting Zanu PF again after a faction linked to her began distributing campaign T-shirts that have become a new source of friction.
The T-Shirts inscribed Vanhu vose kuna Amai (Let’s all rally behind the First Lady) were first distributed early this month at the launch of a Zanu PF housing project in Kadoma where Grace was the guest speaker.
Zanu PF officials against the 50-year-old former secretary’s alleged bid for the top post claimed the message on the T-shirts confirmed that she had joined the race to succeed her 91-year-old husband.
Grace has to contend with Vice-Presidents Emmerson Mnangagwa and Phelekezela Mpoko if she wants to lead Zanu PF in the post-Mugabe era.
Mugabe early this year strenuously denied allegations his wife has presidential ambitions. Zanu PF sources said Grace’s presidential ambitions were confirmed by the call for the country to organise her 50th birthday bash this weekend. She turns 50 today. Mugabe has complained that Zanu PF was now coalescing around Mnangagwa or Mphoko in the battle to succeed him.
The subtle T-shirt campaign that has been blamed for the worsening factionalism across the country in particular Manicaland province has added a new dimension in the fluid race to succeed Zimbabwe’s only ruler since independence.
Zanu PF sources told NewsDay, a faction aligned to Mnangagwa had been unsettled by the campaign.
“If all people go to the First Lady, who will go to President Mugabe,” a party official who declined to be named said.
“Those who support Mnangagwa to take over are not comfortable with the T-shirts and have started mobilising to annihilate the Grace Mugabe faction.
“We will see fresh votes of no-confidence being passed in the next few days against people perceived to be very loyal to the First Lady. Manicaland has already taken the lead.”
Some members of the Zanu PF Manicaland provincial executive on Tuesday passed a vote of no confidence on acting provincial chairman Samuel Undenge.
The Energy minister was accused of fanning factionalism. The sources said the axe was also hanging over Undenge’s wife Letina and central committee member Mandi Chimene. Undenge yesterday rubbished the move describing it as a non-event.
The sources said politburo member and transport secretary Oppah Muchinguri was leading the anti-Grace campaign after she was allegedly angered by the First Lady’s failure to ensure she landed a more influential position in return for her leading role in the onslaught against former Vice-President Joice Mujuru last year.
A Zanu PF source said Muchinguri had since joined Mnangagwa’s camp, home to part of the ruling party’s group of Young Turks commonly known as the G40.
“Letina is being punished for leading the province to attend Grace Mugabe’s Kadoma rally. She is seen as a Grace ally and they want to push her out, including the provincial youths,” the source added.
Muchinguri could not be reached for comment on her mobile phone yesterday. Letina and Gweru businesswoman Smelly Dube, Hurungwe East MP Sarah Mahoka and many others are believed to have played a critical role in organising the Kadoma rally.
The same group was reportedly taking a leading role in organising Grace’s 50th birthday bash.
“Grace openly praised Letina and Dube at a briefing before the Kadoma rally in the presence of (Deputy Information minister) Monica Mutsvangwa. This did not go well with members of the Mnangagwa camp,” the source said.
The same T-shirts are reportedly causing commotion in Masvingo where Provincial Affairs minister Shuvai Mahofa was believed to have reservations on the message Dzimba Kuvanhu (Houses to the people) written at the back of them.
Mahofa yesterday said she was not aware of the existence of the T-shirts.
Last week, Mnangagwa’s wife, Auxillia, was said to have led a delegation to Grace’s orphanage in Mazowe, which spoke disparagingly about Dube.
However, they were reportedly ordered to stop backbiting fellow party members. Grace, who became more influential soon after her entry into politics last year, recently disclosed that Mnangagwa and Mphoko regulary took orders from her.
Zanu PF national spokesperson Simon Khaya Moyo yesterday referred all questions to national political commissar (PC) Saviour Kasukuwere.
“I do not know anything about the T-shirts. I have not seen them. Ask the PC about them,” Khaya Moyo said.
Kasukuwere was yesterday unreachable on his mobile phone. Newsday

Zimbabwe’s Council of Chiefs President, Fortune Charumbira, has threatened president Robert Mugabe’s estate as he called for a new wave of farm invasions on privately owned farms, describing it as way of sharing wealth.
 
President Mugabe who started the farm invasions in the year 2000, has a large pool of hidden wealth resource in the country after discriminately targeting white farmers with small properties while corruptly leaving for instance one white farmer who owns a property larger than the entire country land mass of Belgium within Zimbabwe here. That farmer is a direct descendant of the colonial farm settler Oppenheimer family.
 
In his address during the Zimbabwe International Mine-Entra exhibition yesterday, the chiefs’ boss told the delegates that taking over farms and mines from multiple owners was normal, and that it was long overdue.
 
 
“We asked one white farmer, Erasmus, who owned 21 farms, to give us only six and he ignored us. We again requested him to give answers as to why he could not hand over six of his 21, and again he failed to come up with a response, leading us with no option, but to take 20 and left him with one,” he said while carefully omitting Mugabe’s name and amid a roaring laughter from delegates.
He was referring to a white farmer, one only called Erasmus, from Masvingo province, whose farms were forcibly taken away from them, causing the family to squat in a small area, after losing their hard earned properties.
 
 
Farm invasion has become a hindrance to Zimbabwe’s investment environs, as many possible rescuers to the ailing industry are afraid of the lack of rule of law. Currently, Anglican Missions’ properties have been invaded by war veterans, causing fear amongst the Christian community whose children are being assisted with education.
Charumbira also took a swipe at Bikita Minerals and Renco mine proprietors for failing to implement the community social scheme, as agreed in the contract. He also warned the two Mining companies to honour their promises or faces the wrath of the Chiefs and the community.

In a court case where by Renewal Democrats of Zimbabwe interim president Mr Elton Steers Mangoma was accusing Renewal team activist Believe Tevera of assaulting him over allegations that he snatched his youthful wife ,the case took another turn yesterday after a key witness in the matter refused to testify.
Prosecutor Ms Dora Moyo intended to remand the matter further after Renewal team member Solomon Madzore refused to testify against Tevera.

Ms Dora had only managed to lead evidence from Mangoma, Last Maingehama and a police officer Todd Chirume.

However, Tevera’s lawyer Mr Tawanda Takaindisa made an application of refusal of further remand citing that witnesses were not willing to testify against his client because he has no case to answer.

Harare magistrate Mrs Tildah Mutambanashe granted the application and the case will proceed by way of summons.

Tevera, who is MDC Renewal Team provincial youth leader, was facing assault charges.
The complainant in the matter was Mangoma.

Mangoma is accused of snatching Tevera’s wife, Yemurai Maravanyika (20).
Ms Moyo alleged that on May 26 around 11am Tevera went to number 21 Midlothian Drive, Eastlea in Harare where Mangoma was holding a meeting.
Mangoma was in the company of Solomon Madzore, Shakespeare Maya, Lucia Matevenga and Last Maingehama.

It is alleged that Tevera budged into the meeting and charged towards Mangoma accusing him of having a love affair with his wife, Maravanyika.
Tevera allegedly slapped Mangoma twice and he fell down, hitting his head against the window.

While Mangoma was down Tevera allegedly picked a chair with an intention of striking him but was restrained by Maya. Mangoma sustained head injuries and bled profusely.
He was rushed to hospital and received six stitches on the head. – State Media

Thousands of people in the capital will soon be homeless as Harare City Council has embarked on a massive demolition of illegal structures in 19 undesignated settlements that have been identified.

Harare has been under MDC-T councillors since 2000, and the opposition-dominated council stands accused of fomenting the prevailing chaos manifest in flagrant disregard of city by-laws that has led to the mushrooming of illegal settlements on undesignated land, the kombi and vendor menace in the CBD, among other ills.
Council officials claim the demolitions are meant to bring sanity as some structures were being erected without approval from the responsible city departments.
Owners of the demolished structures will foot labour and other costs incurred in pulling down their illegal houses.
The city’s principal communications officer Mr Michael Chideme yesterday confirmed the development, saying at least 19 illegal settlements dotted around Harare would be razed down.
“We have identified all the areas with illegal structures in Harare and we have informed all the people who are on these areas that they should pull down their structures, failure of which council will do it for them,” he said.
“Council is also going to ensure that people whose houses they demolish meet the necessary labour costs involved given that they have been defying a lawful order.”
The city demolished 25 illegal houses in Warren Park and Westlea yesterday, leaving several families homeless.
The houses were built on land belonging to the City of Harare, which had been invaded by Final Hope Co-operative, Josiah Housing Co-operative and Makomborero Housing Co-operative.
Mr Chideme said the occupants proceeded to build houses even after being warned against doing so.
He said council recently gave the illegal settlers 48 hours to pull down their structures and when they realised their orders had been defied, council officers visited them onsite and verbally informed them to demolish their houses.
He said the occupiers still defied the order, hence the council decision “to assist them to pull down the structures today (yesterday)”.
Of the demolished houses, one had reached roof level and had been tiled, two other houses were at roof level and the rest of the houses were at different stages of construction.
Last week council flattened 11 houses built on undesignated land in Glen Norah, belonging to a bogus housing co-operative.
The houses were at various stages of construction and had been built along Makonye and Kunzekweguta Roads.
Mr Chideme said notices had been sent out to the illegal settlers beforehand ordering them to demolish their homes but they ignored the order prompting council to take action.
He urged home seekers to desist from buying land from individuals or co-operatives without consulting the council for vetting and approval.
Mr Chideme said the demolition was ongoing.
“We are saying that if we allow this to continue, we are breeding a disorderly city so we want order in Harare and we will make sure we have an orderly settlement that adheres to our world class city status by year 2025,” he said. herald

MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai’s house is to be attached by the High Court anytime soon if the goods taken by the Deputy Sheriff are deemed insufficient to cover the debt at stake.
The Deputy Sheriff will proceed within 48 hours (with effect from Tuesday morning) to take all property cited in a writ of execution to offset an award given to 13 former MDC-T workers unfairly dismissed by the opposition party in 2010, a lawyer representing the workers said yesterday.
In an interview, Mr Obert Mawadze of Manase and Manase Legal Practitioners, said contrary to MDC-T’s assertions that the party had obtained a stay of execution from the Labour Court, that position had since been overtaken by events.
“The assertion by the MDC-T that they obtained a stay of execution from the Labour Court is laughable because that move was overtaken by events. First, it must be noted that the registration of the arbitral award was done by the High Court, which is a superior court to the Labour Court. The High Court has its own jurisdiction and rules which govern its own processes,” said Mr Mawadze.
He said it was futile for the MDC-T to base their defence on a stay of execution that the party obtained from the Labour Court way after the award had been given by the High Court.
Mr Mawadze said the party needed to make a fresh application at the High Court. He said it was a criminal offence for party officials to remove any property cited in the writ of execution from premises where it was attached.
Property belonging to MDC-T leader Mr Morgan Tsvangirai was on Tuesday identified by the Messenger of Court for attachment after former employees obtained a writ of execution for unlawful dismissal.
The Messenger of Court descended on Mr Tsvangirai’s house in the company of anti-riot police and identified several vehicles for attachment and execution.
According to the writ of execution, the Deputy Sheriff was required and directed to attach and take into execution movable goods belonging to Mr Tsvangirai at his Highlands house in Kew Drive.
The writ directed that: “If after due inquiry and diligent search you find that the movable goods belonging to the said respondent (Mr Tsvangirai) are insufficient to satisfy the amount due under this writ that you attach, take into possession a certain piece of land situated in the district of Salisbury called Stand 2 Strathaven Township of Strathaven measuring 4 689 square metres held under deed of transfer No. 992/7/200 dated 2 November 2000 and also attach and take into possession certain piece of land situated in the district of Goromonzi measuring 150 square metres called stand 16099 Seki Township held under Deed of transfer No. 10704/2002.”
MDC-T is experiencing serious financial difficulties after it was deserted by its funders in the wake the party’s dismal performance in the July 31, 2013 harmonised elections won by ZANU-PF.
At one stage party officials appealed to members and supporters to donate a dollar each via Ecocash but the funds were reportedly abused. The rival factions have also bickered over party properties. Herald

Patricia Nabanyama, the widow of Patrick Nabanyama, who disappeared more than 15 years ago after being allegedly kidnapped by suspected war veterans, says she is worried about the disappearance of activist, Itayi Dzamara.
Dzamara has been missing for more than four months.
Nabanyama said the alleged abduction of Dzamara brought back sad memories and reminded her and her family that people’s safety is not guaranteed in Zimbabwe.
She said since the abduction of her husband, who was an election agent for former Education Minister David Coltart when the Movement for Democratic Change was still united, her family has been living in abject poverty.
Nabanyama was allegedly abducted at his home in Bulawayo’s Nketa suburb in 2000, in similar circumstances like political activist Dzamara of Occupy Africa Unity Square, who was allegedly snatched from a barber shop in Harare’s Glenview suburb.- VOA

The Constitutional Court on Wednesday postponed judgment on the case in which MISA-Zimbabwe (Media Institute of Southern Africa) is seeking an order for criminal defamation to be declared unconstitutional.
Postponing the judgment indefinitely Chief Justice Godfrey Chidyausiku said the ConCourt needed time to look at the arguments which were raised by both MISA and the State before pronouncing judgment.
Advocate Eric Morris who was being instructed by Chris Mhike of Atherstone and Cook representing MISA –Zimbabwe, argued that the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) is unconstitutional as it does not comply with the new constitution therefore it “should be struck off”.
MISA argues that the continued existence of criminal defamation contradicts with sections of the new constitution which protect the right to freedom of expression, freedom of the media and access to information.
“The postponement has been caused by some preliminary issues which the court raised which counsel could not address. Once these issues have been ventilated, the case will be set down again for hearing,” Mhike told ZimEye.com
In the matter, MISA-Zimbabwe is the first applicant while journalists Nqaba Matshazi, Sydney Saize and Godwin Mangudya, are the second, third and fourth.
The fifth applicant is Roger Deane Stringer, an independent publishing consultant.
The Attorney-General Prince Machaya and the Ministry of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs and Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who are the respondents in the matter, are arguing for the retention thereof.

When Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa smuggled twenty four (24) baby elephants away from their mothers to China this month, he should have known of the horror he is creating – the baby abducting, chasing, throwing of stones, rolling of tyres, and setting dogs on elephants, turned sour in Kariba when a man was gored by a furious elie.
The man whose name was not immediately available, is currently recovering serious body injuries following the attack which occurred on Friday last week.
The development comes after Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa smuggled twenty four (24) baby elephants to China where he went to appease investors two weeks ago, an event animal conservationists warn now endangers human beings since the elephant mothers do not forget.
The Kariba Animal Welfare Trust, KAWFT has warned residents and visitors to the western resort to beware of going into the path of elephants.
They visited the man at Kariba General Hospital and said he is now recovering.
“Thankfully he is alive and well and KAWFT visited him in hospital on the Friday night of the incident and again on the Saturday,” they said.

A Chief in Matebeleland North wants to see every child rapist in Zimbabwe beaten up.
Chief Sikobokobo of Nkayi who was born Michael Nxumalo, told ZimEye.com that the government must give them back their powers to deliver instant justice to community offenders, especially rapists, as this was yesteryear’s solution to curb sexual notoriety.
Listen to the Traditional Leader talking about waiting for response from the central government to revert to the old system of lashing canes on offenders.

FACTIONAL fights that characterised Morgan Tsvangirai’s opposition MDC-T ahead of last October’s elective congress have resurfaced with senior party members exchanging harsh words on social media platforms.
A conversation on a WhatsApp group composed of MDC-T standing committee members leaked to NewsDay shows the party has been embroiled in serious power struggles.
The nasty exchanges were triggered by the appointment of Costa Machingauta as acting national organiser in Gweru last week reportedly by party secretary-general Douglas Mwonzora without the consent of other standing committee members.
He was appointed because national organiser Abednico Bhebhe is on study leave, while his deputy, Thamsanqa Mahlangu, was said to be on sick leave.
The chats started with deputy treasurer-general Charlton Hwende asking why Machingauta’s appointment was done clandestinely.
Hwende queried the constitutionality of appointing Machingauta, who was not in the party’s standing committee. Other members like Sesel Zvidzai joined in the debate, saying Machingauta’s appointment posed a constitutional crisis in the party.
MDC-T vice-president Thokozani Khupe explained that Bhebhe and Mahlangu were on leave.
But all hell broke loose when Mwonzora mocked Hwende’s low votes at last year’s congress saying: “The people who had the least votes always say too much.”
Mwonzora escalated the fight when he said Hwende, as a deputy, was not supposed to be in the standing committee.
Hwende immediately hit back saying: “For a secretary-general to say that deputies are sitting in the SC (standing committee) illegally that’s very low even for your standards. You are an embarrassment, Even if I got one vote . . . and this coming from a lawyer? I am ashamed.”
Another party member interjected: “What has more votes yielded for the people of Zimbabwe who are suffering? You have failed to protect the workers of our party and call yourself numbers.”
Hwende accused Mwonzora of pocketing $4 000 while party workers had gone for months without pay. They also accused Mwonzora of claiming to be powerful when Tsvangirai was the only centre of power.
They said his duty was to implement Tsvangirai’s orders like what he did with the recall of MDC Renewal Team MPs.
Mwonzora fired back saying: “But I certainly don’t bad mouth my own superior. Others do. I win my way into leadership. Other people sponsor rag-tag youths to pass a vote of no confidence in their own superiors.”
He added: “Those who say $4 000 was taken, please post the proof thereof for this group to see. Those who go to the Press to bad mouth their leaders and pretend not to see, please stand!”
The party’s youth leader Happymore Chidziva said the party was in trouble if national leaders were involved in mudslinging and failing to restore order in the party and take power from Zanu PF.
“At our level, we must be busy not even here on WhatsApp. We have a lot of work to do, we need to be serious,” Chidziva said.
Mwonzora yesterday refused to comment over the cyber fights.
“I have nothing personal with anyone. The discussion was not for public consumption and I don’t know who leaked them,” he said.
Hwende said: “I am not allowed to speak to the Press on party business without the permission of the secretary-general. You can contact the party’s official spokesperson Mr Obert Gutu.”
Gutu said the communication was internal and not for public consumption.
He said Tsvangirai used his powers to appoint Machingauta, who was a senior member of the party.
“Thus, there is absolutely nothing amiss and/or untoward about Hon Machingauta’s recent appointment as acting national organising secretary until Bhebhe returns from study leave,” Gutu said.
But insiders said the chats had exposed serious internal fights, which could boomerang if left unchecked.
They alleged that Mwonzora was afraid of losing control to a faction linked to former organising secretary Nelson Chamisa, whom he defeated for the secretary-general’s post last year.
Khupe, Mwonzora and Gutu, the sources said, were fighting in the same corner, while Hwende, Chamisa, Theresa Makone, the party’s treasurer general, were fighting in the other corner.
Machingauta lost to Mahlangu and is believed to be in Mwonzora’s camp.
“In terms of seniority among deputies, Paurina Mpariwa, who is Mwonzora’s deputy is supposed to act. It is a battle to control the structures when Bhebhe is away,” the source added.-Newsday

Following the leaking of an audio recording of notorious strong-woman Oppah Muchinguri gossiping and plotting to destroy party members, Robert Mugabe’s ZANU-PF has taken the extra-ordinary step of shutting down its Mutare office.

ZANU PF Manicaland provincial offices in Mutare have been shut down as staff members fear violent clashes between rival camps supporting senior ruling party officials hailing from the province.
One employee said workers were now working from outside their offices as rival camps were baying for each other’s blood.
“We are temporarily closed. There are issues happening there and we will re-open as soon as those things are settled,” she said.
Some provincial youth executive members told NewsDay that since the aborted provincial coordinating committee meeting on Saturday, the situation had been tense in Manicaland.
The youths were allegedly divided along factional lines with some allegedly loyal to politburo member and Environment minister Oppah Muchinguri while others supported Manicaland Provincial Affairs minister Mandi Chimene and acting chairman Samuel Undenge.
The youths accused each other of trying to destabilise the ruling party by pursuing personal agendas.
“There are youth members who are revolting and destabilise the party. These are the same youths milling around the offices threatening party employees,” said a provincial executive member.
“They were against the decision by Undenge to cancel Saturday’s meeting yet it was apparent to all right minded comrades that unruly elements were going to cause chaos during the meeting and hijack it to fire Undenge and all who are said to be loyal to him.”
The situation in Manicaland deteriorated following the leaking of an audio disc in which Muchinguri was heard discussing with suspended provincial youth chair Kelvin Manyengavana, executive member Getrude Mutandi and others on how to allegedly plot the downfall of others.
However, Manicaland provincial secretary for administration Kenneth Saruchera tried to downplay the temporary closure yesterday saying they deployed their staff outside of Mutare. “I will not say we have closed but it’s just that our employees are working from outside. We deployed them to other assignments in districts outside Mutare,” he said.
When quizzed to explain allegations that hostile party youths forced the closure, Saruchera said, “Problems and challenges will always be there but we cannot close office because of those challenges.”
National youth league leaders headed by secretary for youths Pupurai Togarepi, his deputy Kudzi Chipanga and others descended on Mutare yesterday to try and douse factional flames which have seen several suspensions and counter-suspensions.-Newsday

“The ConCourt said I should form my own party to challenge Mugabe.
“I cannot contest as an independent candidate; I am going to do as they told me to do.
“I am now working towards forming the party so that we can remove Mugabe in the next elections.”
FORMER Masvingo Provincial Affairs minister Kudakwashe Bhasikiti says he decided against contesting the Mwenezi East by-election to avoid exposing villagers to Zanu PF violence.
Ward 13 councillor and Zanu PF candidate Joshua Moyo was declared the new MP for Mwenezi East constituency after he went unchallenged at the close of the nomination court on Monday.
He replaces Bhasikiti who was recalled from Parliament in a ruthless purge targeting party members perceived to belong to former Vice President Joice Mujuru’s faction over allegations of plotting against President Robert Mugabe.
Bhasikiti was expected to contest as an independent candidate after his legal bid to stop Mugabe from firing him from Zanu PF and recalling him from the National Assembly was dismissed by a full Constitutional Court (ConCourt) bench last Friday.
The former minister said he had decided against standing as an independent candidate because he was afraid people would be exposed to violence by Zanu PF.
“I put people first,” Bhasikiti said.
“I just thought if I could contest, my people would be exposed to widespread violence from Zanu PF and I decided, I should now concentrate on national issues than fight for the seat.”
Zanu PF allegedly turned Hurungwe West into a battle zone ahead of the June 10 by-elections contested by former MP, Temba Mliswa who lost the battle to Keith Guzah of the ruling party.
Mliswa had been recalled from Parliament as part of the purge that has so far claimed the scalps of over 140 party stalwarts including Mujuru and former Presidential Affairs minister Didymus Mutasa.
“Government should now use the money it was supposed to spend in the September 9 by-election to compensate the people of Chingwizi who were displaced from Tokwe-Mukosi (by floods). Most of them were not compensated,” Bhasikiti said.
“The ConCourt said I should form my own party to challenge Mugabe.
“I cannot contest as an independent candidate; I am going to do as they told me to do.
“I am now working towards forming the party so that we can remove Mugabe in the next elections.”
Bhasikiti is linked to People First, a party made up of disgruntled party members who were purged from the party over their alleged links Mujuru.
The party was reportedly fronted by Mujuru and is expected to challenge Mugabe in the 2018 general elections.