By A Correspondent- Harare North legislator Allan Markham (CCC) has filed a High Court challenge against the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) seeking to compel it to provide the national voters roll in electronic format.

Zec has been refusing to release the electronic voters roll saying that would compromise the security of its database.

Recently, Zec demanded a staggering US$187 000 from a local independent election watchdog for the release of a hard copy of the voters roll.

In an application filed at the High Court yesterday, Markham cited Zec as respondent.

In his founding affidavit, Markham said during the period February to April 2022, he analysed an electronic copy of the voters roll prepared and released by Zec before the by-elections that took place in March 2022 and noticed several anomalies.

This prompted him to write to Zec drawing its attention to various anomalies on the voters roll, and was advised that the electoral body was in the process of producing an updated version.

 “The electronic form is portable and can be analysed with relative ease, while a hard copy of the national voters roll will be cumbersome to hold (one hundred and eighty-seven thousand pages) and practically impossible to analyse.  In addition, it takes 30 days to print a copy of the hard copy before an applicant who has complied with all the conditions set by the respondent can have it. The choice, therefore, to procure an electronic copy is both borne out of its being more affordable and easier to obtain and analyse,” Markham said.

 “The review of the voters roll also allows citizens to appreciate if any registration potentially violates the principle of one-man one-vote, that is double or duplicate registration. It tells you in combination with other information, such as a census, the general information as to what percentage of eligible people remain unregistered, allows efforts to establish why and how their registration can be facilitated, an important part of the exercise of any citizen’s political rights.”

He said access to the voters roll allowed citizens to exercise their political rights in terms of the Constitution.

 “In order to meaningfully participate in the delimitation exercise, one needs to know the voters roll and where everyone is registered by polling station. Stakeholders cannot be consulted on delimitation if they have no access to a searchable copy of the voters roll so that they can check numbers per polling station and boundaries.

“So the respondent is conducting the delimitation exercise on its own “consulting” with stakeholders who have not seen or accessed the voters roll yet. Put differently, the respondent is purportedly consulting with stakeholders and effecting changes when stakeholders do not have the voters roll. This is meaningless,” Markham said.

He said once a citizen has communicated to Zec and paid the prescribed fee, the electoral management body is obliged to produce the electronic voters roll.

Zec is yet to respond.

By- The looted and bankrupt National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) has temporarily suspended the urban commuter train service.

The Parastatal’s spokesperson Andrew Kunambura said in a statement that the suspension was effective from 28 November 2022. 

He said:

The suspension was occasioned by an unsustainable operating environment arising from huge debts owed to NRZ by ZUPCO.

NRZ was therefore left with no option but to suspend commuter trains from 28 November due to capacity challenges.

Normal services will resume once ZUPCO fulfills its obligations as set in the agreement.

The urban commuter train service was launched in partnership with ZUPCO last year to ease congestion in Bulawayo and Harare at the height of the coronavirus crisis. | CITE

 By A Correspondent- A high powered delegation of military officers led by Air Force of Zimbabwe  (AFZ) Air Vice Marshall Biltim Chingono was in Pakistan this month to inspect modern aircraft and armaments during a defence exhibition where deals worth millions of United States dollars were sealed, the Zimbabwe Independent can reveal.

Chingono, alongside an elite group of AFZ and Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) officers, were in Karachi between November 15 and November 18, 2022, for the world-acclaimed International Defence Exhibition and Seminar (Ideas).

Over 30 contracts were signed during the exhibition held in the Asian country.

The top global military exhibition, which showcases an array of advanced armaments “provides a perfect interactive platform to defence forces and governments to access the best products and technology to meet their security and defence-related needs,” its website states.

Organised by the Pakistan Defence Export Promotion Organisation, the global arms exhibition has evolved since its inception to be regarded as “an established rendezvous for convergence of international defence exhibitors, delegates, security analysts and top-level policy planners”.

Relating to the Zimbabwean crew which attended the premier global military exhibition, Chingono was accompanied by Air Commodore Pio Maketo among other Air Force officers as evidence gleaned by the Independent shows.

The presence of the Zimbabwean high-level delegation in nuclear-armed Pakistan which neighbours India comes a year after Mnangagwa’s official helicopter crash-landed due to a technical problem while some of the military unit’s aircrafts have been involved in accidents.

Broadly, the accidents have been triggered by hostile weather, technical faults and in some cases human error.

Zimbabwe’s Air Force, widely regarded as one of the best in the region had some of its aircraft damaged and destroyed during the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) war from 1998-2002.

Zimbabwe’s costly intervention in the war as part of Operation Sovereign Legitimacy (Osleg) primarily meant to keep at bay Western-sponsored rebels angling to topple the resource-rich country’s leader Laurent Kabila.

During the Karachi defense exhibition, which was attended by 524 arms manufacturers from 44 countries, which also included China, Russia and Belarus, the Chingono-led team inspected a fleet of JF-17 aircraft and drones, among other armaments that were on display raising expectations that Zimbabwe would soon place orders.

Security and defense sources told the Independent last week that Zimbabwe’s presence at the Ideas expo, which returned after a four year Covid-19 induced hiatus indicated that “Harare’s short-term and long-term plans to steadily improve its aircraft and armaments are in line with modern technological advancements”.

During the highly subscribed military exhibition, the Zimbabwean team also held meetings with the Pakistan Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa.

As first revealed by this publication in 2020, Zimbabwe, reeling from Western-imposed sanctions is now predominantly procuring its armaments from Eastern Europe and countries in Asia including Pakistan.

The United States (US) and European Union (EU) have since 2001 maintained sanctions on the Zimbabwe Defence Industries (ZDI), the country’s arms manufacturer.

To understand whether the Southern African country placed orders to buy armaments from the exhibiting manufacturers and the primary objective of the team’s visit, questions sent to the Zimbabwe Defence Forces (ZDF) Public Relations director Lieutenant Colonel Charles Mutes were referred to the Air Force.

Air Force Wing Commander Donovan Muroyiwa said he was “consulting” when the Independent asked him the same questions.

Questions related to the same subject posed to Defence minister Oppah Muchinguri primarily meant to understand whether Zimbabwe was considering strengthening its fleet of aircraft and armaments by acquisitions were not addressed before going to press.

Questions sent to organisers of the Ideas exhibition in Pakistan also drew blanks.

Leveraging on its motto “Alæ Præsidio Patriæ” which translates to: “Our wings are the fortress of the nation,” Zimbabwe’s Air Force has scored major victories in various missions including Mozambique and DRC. Within Zimbabwe’s borders, it has been deployed to carry out life-saving evacuation operations.

The Pakistan exhibition showcased a wide array of military hardware which was classified in nine (9) distinct groups which included (i) weapons, ammunition, turret, (ii) vehicles, aircraft and drones, (iii)battlefield management, (iv)training and simulation, (v)special equipment and engineering services, (vi) industrial and logistic support, (vii)naval ships and submarines, (vii)industry sectors, (ix) services.

Under the arms, weapons and turrets category, exhibiting firms displayed air defence systems, anti-tank wall breaching systems and close defence weapons while the vehicles, aircraft and drone category showcased main battle tank variants, light armoured and un armoured vehicles and vehicle engines and transmission systems.

In 2019, while on an official visit to Belarus where Zimbabwe reportedly finalised deals worth US$350 million spanning across various sectors, Mnangagwa toured the Volat plant, also known as OJSC MZKT, that manufactures a range of military hardware and directly falls under the State Military Industrial Committee.

At that time, Volat indicated that the President was exposed to a wide spectrum of military hardware.

In October this year, the government took delivery of a specialised medical helicopter and ambulance from Russia, in a diplomatic gesture that demonstrated Harare and Moscow’s solid bilateral ties.

The 2020 Sipri report, which offered a rare glimpse into how Zimbabwe has bolstered its arsenal, highlighted that the southern African country shelled US$647 million from 1980 to 2020 in declared arms purchases.

Strikingly, Sipri’s report shows that the US has not exported weapons to Zimbabwe since the country’s independence in 1980.

The security think-tank’s report indicates that in 2000, Harare took delivery of a fleet of six MI-24P combat helicopter gunships from Russia for US$22 million.

Before 2000, when Zimbabwe still enjoyed relatively cordial relations with the West, Sipri’s report shows that the country purchased six (6) SF.260 jet aircraft from Italy in 1998 and 23 units of Almat APC (armoured personnel carriers) from France in 1996 at a cumulative cost of US$15 million.

By- Two ZNA soldiers accused of shooting dead two Mwenezi brothers have been acquitted of murder by Justice Garainesu Mawadze at the High Court in Masvingo.
The soldiers who are based at HQ1 Brigade in Bulawayo and were acquitted on Tuesday are Tapiwanashe Basopo (37) and Collen Ncube (29). They were deployed to Mijingwe Ranch in Mwenezi when the shooting incident happened.
The allegations were that Basopo, Ncube and a third soldier Chrispen Maphosa (30) who is at large were on December 26, 2019 approached by Olman Nyunyana who complained that his brother Ernest had been severely assaulted by three Matarise brothers on Christmas evening.
Basopo, Ncube and Maphosa offered to track and apprehend the accused brothers. Maphosa and Basopo armed themselves with AK 47 rifles and dressed in army regalia. They arrived at Shayamabvudzi Business Centre at around 9 pm and confronted Sifelani who ran home and informed his brothers, Ngonidzashe and Hosiah.
The brothers armed themselves with a knife, machetes, an iron bar, and a screwdriver and went and confronted the soldiers. A misunderstanding arose and the brothers charged towards the soldiers.
Sifelani and Hosiah were then shot dead. Ngonidzashe escaped and filed a Police report. Police teamed up with military Police and arrested the three soldiers.
Four live rounds, three spent cartridges, magazines and two AK47 rifles were recovered.
The State however, said in court that it did not have enough evidence to nail the two and Justice Mawadze cleared them of the charges.
Police are looking for Maphosa after a warrant of arrest was issued by the High Court on March 17, 2022. Justice Mawadze did not clear Maphosa of the charges after noting that the suspect had not reported for work for several months.
Sifelani and Hosiah were shot in the chest and head respectively and they died on the spot.
“The State has indicated that there is not enough evidence to get a verdict and my judgment is as follows. Maphosa remains on warrant of arrest issued on March 17, 2022. Basopo and Ncube are hereby cleared of the murder and any other related charges and are hereby acquitted. The two AK47 rifles being held as exhibits will remain since the State intends to try Maphosa,” said Justice Mawadze.
Justice Mawadze said Basopo and Ncube had religiously attended court hearings and urged them to behave appropriately as members of the uniformed forces.
Emmanuel Mathose prosecuted and Martin Mureri of Matutu Mureri Legal Practitioners appeared for Ncube and Basopo. Masvingo Mirror

By- CCC deputy chairman and Zengeza West MP, Job Sikhala, has written another letter from Chikurubi maximum security prison.

The die-hard politician said he would not be bought by money or be cowed into abandoning the fight for democracy.

Sikhala has been in pre-trial detention at Chikurubi Maximum Security Prison since June this year on allegations of inciting public violence and has been denied bail by the courts more than eight times.
The CCC vice chairman was arrested in the aftermath of violence that rocked the Nyatsime area in June this year following the murder of CCC activist Moreblessing Ali.
In his latest letter from prison shared on social media by his spokesperson, Freddy Michael Masarirevu, Sikhala characterised his imprisonment as persecution.

Reads the letter:
No amount of gold or silver or superlatives will break the solidity of my enduring spirit against all forms of persecution, machinations, plots, and conspiracies against myself. Ask those who know me better.
I urge all of you, dearest compatriots, to also remain resolute and unshaken in light of the vices in our nation. Keep your eyes on the ball.
I find bright spots in my willingness to make sacrifices, even against all forms of adversity. People are not freed by doing nothing but by making selfless sacrifices.
I might be suffering in prison because the precious life of Moreblessing Ali was terminated by those who have arrogated themselves that power, but my ‘persecution’ goes beyond that.
It is, to me, an effort to eliminate me politically and silence us all. Despite the laurel wreath of the present, I am resolute, unmoved, and unshaken here at Chikurubhi Maximum Security Prison.
Great men and women are remembered and counted among the marathon runners of history. The vicissitudes of the present are a test of endurance. I am prepared to run this race to the finish. This, let me emphasize, I am prepared to do.
The great warriors of the world are those not understood by the present but remembered by history in a legacy that will span centuries.
This will be the mark of men and women who are prepared to carry the fight for their ideas and ideals to the end, damn the consequences.
I am embodied by the great observation of the greatest man ever to live. In Africa, the good guys usually lose; they are imprisoned, tormented, tortured, killed, beaten up, or simply beaten down, but they are immortalized by history.
Let them throw me in jail, no matter how insurmountable the situation appears. I see victory all around. We shall be victorious.
May the Gracious Almighty God bless and protect all of you!

A Zimbabwean Teacher has been given a plastic dish for his wonderful performance.

His students achieved 32 As in his Advanced Level Class. pic.twitter.com/YUMJ5m8Zld

— Africa Facts Zone (@AfricaFactsZone) November 25, 2022

By- Police in Mutare have arrested a 31-year-old Mutare man for selling live rounds in the streets.

Kudzanai Zvinoera was found with 11 rounds of live ammunition he was selling at Mhaka Shopping Centre in Yeovil suburb of Mutare.

Zvinoera appeared before Mutare magistrate, Langton Carter, and was charged with contravening Section 4 (1)(2) of the Firearms Act, Chapter 10:09 (Possession or acquisition of ammunition without a certificate).

He pleaded guilty to the offence and was fined ZWL$30 000. However, Zvinoera will spend 30 days in jail if he fails to pay the money by 5 December.

Prosecuting, Thurstone Mubvumbi, said Zvinoera was found in possession of 10 live rounds of ammunition and the other round was found at his place of residence. He said:

On November 14, at Mhaka Shops in Yeovil, Zvinoera was found in unlawful possession of 11 live ammunition without a certificate or licence.

On that day, police received information that Zvinoera was selling live ammunition.

Police reacted to the information and found Zvinoera in possession of 10 live ammunition.

He was arrested and taken to his place of residence where another bullet was found in his room.

Zvinoera was asked to produce a certificate or licence authorising him to possess or acquire the ammunition but he failed to do so.

Upon cross-examination, Zvinoera said the bullets belonged to his late father who was an ex-combatant.

He said the bullets were left behind by his father when he surrendered his gun to law enforcement agents some years back.

Zvinoera also said he was jobless and he was trying to raise money for his own upkeep by selling the ammunition. He said:

I am unemployed and was looking for money for my upkeep. My late father owned the bullets. He was a war veteran.

When he was asked to surrender his firearm some years back, he complied but left the bullets at our house.

The bullets have been in our house for decades. I thought I could sell them to raise money for my upkeep.

The 11 bullets were forfeited to the State. | The Manica Post

?SOLIDARITY: Our Change Champion in Chief, Advocate @nelsonchamisa on Friday visited one of the Great Zimbabwe University injured students who had been admitted at Harare Hospital. He had a successful operation and was discharged last night. pic.twitter.com/cLLOAvwPRZ

— Citizens' Coalition for Change (@CCCZimbabwe) November 26, 2022

and trapping in people.

— ZimEye (@ZimEye) November 26, 2022

A horrific accident happened Friday night in Harare at corner Samora Machel Avenue and Enterprise Road (now named Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa Road, although noone uses that name). Nickson Mpofu reports how a haulage truck and Toyota Fun Cargo car collided, causing extensive damage and trapping in people.

and trapping in people.

— ZimEye (@ZimEye) November 26, 2022

By- Vice President Constantino Chiwenga’s business partner Frank Buyanga Sadiqi, has been attacked in Prison.

Buyanga, recently arrested in South Africa for potential extradition to Zimbabwe, has reportedly been attacked in a Johannesburg remand prison by other inmates and is seeking a transfer to another prison.

He was arrested on allegations of kidnapping his son in Harare in 2020, and on charges of contempt of court in Zimbabwe.

He was remanded in custody to Tuesday next week to allow South African authorities to verify his identity documents after it was found Buyanga’s South African identity documents show he was born in Zimbabwe, yet his Zimbabwean passport says he was born in the United Kingdom.

Last week, the Zimbabwean National Prosecuting Authority applied to the High Court in Harare challenging the cancellation of a warrant of arrest for Buyanga, which had been issued by Harare magistrate, Mrs Judith Taruvinga.

He has since appeared before the Randburg Magistrates Court and was remanded in custody for his bail hearing.

Last Monday, Buyanga had his warrant of arrest cancelled at the Harare Magistrates Court after Mrs Taruvinga said she had erroneously issued the warrant of arrest. But Prosecutor-General Mr Nelson Mutsonziwa immediately applied to the High Court challenging the cancellation and cited Mrs Taruvinga and Buyanga as the first and second respondents.

He wanted the High Court to set aside Mrs Taruvinga’s judgment, arguing that the warrant was cancelled without following due processes.

“The court presided over a matter in which it lacked jurisdiction to cancel a warrant of arrest after it had been executed by law enforcement authorities of the Republic of South Africa under an extradition request made to it by the Republic of Zimbabwe.

“There was a gross irregularity in the proceedings or the decision of the court, in that the court perpetuated contempt of court by (Buyanga) by granting his legal practitioner audience in circumstances where the High Court, Supreme Court and Constitutional Court of Zimbabwe, had previously found him to have dirty hands and consequently denied him an audience,” said Mr Mutsonziwa in the application.

Last week, South African lawyer representing Buyanga, Mr Laurence Hodes, called for a speedy bail hearing for his client.

South African media outlet News 24 reported that Mr Hodes told the Randburg Magistrates Court that the warrant executed by Interpol and used for arresting Buyanga on November 10, had been cancelled in Zimbabwe. Mr Hodes claimed he handed over the documents, including Buyanga’s passport, to the South African National Prosecuting Authority. He said Buyanga owns a property in South Africa, adding the defence had attached his visa permits to their affidavit, which would help show that he is not a flight risk and was entitled to bail.

Tinashe Sambiri|CCC vice president Hon Tendai Biti has described Mr Emmerson Mnangagwa’s State of the Nation Address as empty and void of logic.

Hon Biti accused the Zanu PF leader of destroying the principles and components of nationalism.

Zimbabwe has been reduced to a mere teapot – shaped country without unity, love and freedom, according to Hon Biti.

“Our Change Champion, Hon #BitiTendai has responded to the State of the Nation Address (SONA) by Mr Mnangagwa.

He says it is out of touch with the current situation in Zimbabwe,” CCC said in a brief statement on Thursday.

Watch : Biti rubbishes Mnangagwa SONA:

https://fb.watch/h06RnBtj83/

By-Malawi’s Vice-President Saulos Chilima has been arrested on allegations of accepting a bribe from a government contractor.

According to Malawi’s Anti-Corruption Bureau, Chilima accepted $280 000 (£230 000) from a British businessman “and other items” in exchange for awarding government contracts.

The contracts related to armoured personnel carriers, food rations, and water cannons.

Chilima has appeared in court but has not commented on the charges.

In June, he was stripped of his powers when he was first accused by the Anti-Corruption Bureau.

Chilima faces six charges relating to corruption.

The British businessman, named as Zuneth Sattar, was arrested in the UK in October last year and is now on bail. He denies the allegations.

Sattar is accused of using connections with senior Malawi government officials and politicians to fraudulently obtain contracts to supply goods and services.

Chilima was elected Malawi’s Vice President in 2020 when he was the running mate of President Lazarus Chakwera. | BBC News

As we begin #16DaysOfActivism against #GBV today, we encourage you to learn & share the laws and programs that protect & support girls & women. Ending GBV is not a singular responsibility, it's everyone’s responsibility. How can you prevent GBV in your community? #OrangeTheWorld pic.twitter.com/KeBPahdchq

— Hakainde Hichilema (@HHichilema) November 25, 2022

By-The South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has told Britain to lift sanctions on Zimbabwe.

Ramaphosa said the British monarch and government must facilitate Zimbabwe’s re-admission to the Commonwealth and remove sanctions imposed on the country.

Ramaphosa was in the United Kingdom recently where he met King Charles III and the newly elected Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

The South African leader said it was important for Zimbabwe to be readmitted to the Commonwealth, a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. Said Ramaphosa:

The Zimbabwe issue inevitably always comes out in meetings like these because we are talking here with the country that is like the head of the Commonwealth and we advocate for Zimbabwe to be readmitted to the Commonwealth; it is important.

Zimbabwe withdrew from the Commonwealth under then leader, the late Robert Mugabe in 2003, after it had been suspended from the group over alleged human rights violations.

Since the 2017 military coup that ended Mugabe’s 37-year reign, Zimbabwe has been seeking to rejoin the association.

Recently, a Commonwealth delegation headed by Luis Franceschi was in Harare to assess progress made by the country in readying itself to rejoin the grouping.

Meanwhile, Ramaphosa also reiterated his call for Britain to lift the sanctions it imposed on Zimbabwe saying they are also hurting South Africa. He said:

The sanctions that have been imposed on Zimbabwe have a collateral impact, a negative impact on us as South Africa because the Zimbabwean economy is weakened.

Zimbabweans flow to our own country and exacerbate the challenges that we have regards to unemployment and health services.

Reports suggest that millions of Zimbabweans have migrated to South Africa over the past two decades seeking better economic conditions. | NewZimbabwe.com

By- Coalition for Change (CCC) vice chairman Job Sikhala, is demanding the recusal of Harare Magistrate Tafadzwa Miti, who is presiding over his trial.

Sikhala is accused of inciting public violence that rocked the Nyatsime area in June this year following the murder of CCC activist Moreblessing Ali.
He is jointly charged with Godfrey Sithole, who is out on bail.
Sikhala was on Wednesday denied bail by Miti, who said the Zengeza West MP was arrested 63 times before and was therefore an incorrigible and unrepentant person, without respect for the law.
This is despite the fact that the Sikhala was never convicted on all of his previous arrests.
Sikhala and Sithole’s trial was supposed to start on Thursday, but the former, who is in pre-trial detention at Chikurubi Maximum Prison, raised concerns resulting in the case being rolled over to 7 December for a ruling. Sikhala lawyer, Jeremiah Bamu:
We are aware this matter is scheduled for trial commencement. However, we have instructions to seek recusal of the magistrate from this matter.
This is respectful because of the apprehension that the accused may not receive a fair trial if proceedings were to continue before you.
Bamu said he will submit a detailed written application by Monday next week.
Meanwhile, Sithole said he will abide by the decision of the court as recusal does not affect him.

By- A long-distance coal-laden Botswana-registered haulage truck ploughed into eleven 

herd of cattle and killed nine of them on the spot.

The incident happened near Halfway Hotel along the Bulawayo-Victoria Falls road on Wednesday night.

The truck was going towards Bulawayo and a herd of cattle that was crossing the road in Lupane’s Chimwara resettlement area.

The cattle belonged to four families, and according to Kusile Rural District Councillor for Chimwara Ward 25 Kawulani Muzamba, some of the victims lost all their cattle. Said Muzamba:

There was an accident where some people lost cattle which died following an accident that happened yesterday near Halfway Hotel.

The truck hit 11 cattle and nine died while two are in a bad condition and there is no hope for life for them.

Alois Tshuma lost three beasts and two were injured while Busani Nyathi lost one.

Jeffrey Ncube’s only two beasts died while Joshua Hlabangana had three of his cattle killed by the accident.

The councillor said the owners of the beasts ended up selling the meat and carcasses at giveaway prices to avoid further losses to wildlife scavengers and decomposition.

There were no human injuries or fatalities as a result of the accident. | CITE

Tinashe Sambiri|CCC vice president Hon Tendai Biti has described Mr Emmerson Mnangagwa’s State of the Nation Address as empty and void of logic.

Hon Biti accused the Zanu PF leader of destroying the principles and components of nationalism.

Zimbabwe has been reduced to a mere teapot – shaped country without unity, love and freedom, according to Hon Biti.

“Our Change Champion, Hon #BitiTendai has responded to the State of the Nation Address (SONA) by Mr Mnangagwa.

He says it is out of touch with the current situation in Zimbabwe,” CCC said in a brief statement on Thursday.

Watch : Biti rubbishes Mnangagwa SONA:

https://fb.watch/h06RnBtj83/

By A Correspondent- The Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) has announced the arrest of a suspected serial stock thief leading to the recovery of 15 stolen cattle.

The suspect, Criswell Maponga, was arrested following a tip-off, according to a police report.

Read the report:

On 23/11/22 Police in Zvimba acted on a tip-off and arrested Criswell Maponga (42) in connection with two cases of stock theft in which eight cattle were stolen at Farm 79 Zowa and eight cattle stolen at Mhungu Village.

The arrest led to the recovery of 15 stolen cattle.

While this year recorded fewer cases of stock theft compared to 2021, cases have been rising in the country in recent years.

Police say during the period extending from January to June 2022, the Police received a total of 3214 stock theft cases compared to 4053 cases during the same period in the year 2021.

As of September 2022, the Police had recorded 1644 cases of stock theft involving cattle compared to 2510 cases recorded in the year 2021.

The total number of stolen cattle decreased from 5954 in the year 2021 to 3762 in the year 2022.

Some steal livestock for meat, to add to their herds while some use them for barter trade or selling to butcheries.

Perpetrators of stock theft risk being arrested, fined or jailed.

By A Correspondent- The Government has set aside $76 billion for the 2023 harmonised elections to cover various activities, with $53 billion earmarked for the actual polling.

Presenting the 2023 National Budget yesterday, Finance and Economic Development Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube said other remaining activities related to the elections requiring funds are voter registration and inspection.

“The country will hold harmonised elections in 2023, as enshrined in the Constitution. The preparations have already commenced, which include the delimitation exercise, voter registration and voter’s role inspection. The 2023 National Budget is setting aside resources to cover voter registration ($12 billion), voter inspection $11 billion and actual election conduct $53 billion, among others,” said Prof Ncube.

Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) chief elections officer, Mr Utloile Silaigwana, could not immediately comment last night saying he was still to get through the Budget statement.

Political parties also said they needed time to familiarise with the Budget statement.

Presently, ZEC is finalising the delimitation of electoral boundaries following the conclusion of the population and housing census exercise held in April this year.

Population census results will provide ZEC important information in the delimitation exercise.

From April to end of September, the Central Registry Department ran a blitz under which it issued national identification cards, birth and death certificates, among others, to ensure people that have reached the age of 18, could register to vote.

As part of ensuring the smooth flow of elections, the Government has since gazetted the Electoral Amendment Bill that seeks to relax registration requirements for voters ahead of next year’s harmonised elections.

The Bill will amend several provisions of the main Act for it to conform with the Constitution.

Registration is now easier since potential voters just need to give their address without providing documentary back-up.

When voters were required to produce proof of residence to register to vote, some tenants not paying the primary rates faced challenges in getting the proof of residence from landlords who either did not want to be bothered or simply did not want to admit they had a tenant.

The Bill confirms that a driver’s licence cannot be used as identification; voters have to produce the national ID card or a valid passport.

A driver’s licence is issued by the Central Vehicle Registry while the other two documents are official documents from the Registrar-General and the Civil Registry Offices.

The new law will also provide the timeframe within which national assembly and local authority candidates can withdraw from contesting in an election and also provide for the incorporation of the 30 percent women’s quota and the youth quota.

It is envisaged that once the Bill is enacted into law, it will assist in ensuring that only citizens are able to vote in an election, that proper candidates are allowed to contest in an election, providing clarity on when and how a candidate can withdraw their candidature in an election so as to afford ZEC sufficient time to make changes to the design of the ballot and advising the electorate of any changes to the candidature in an election.

In his State of the National Address on Wednesday during the official opening of the Fifth Session of the Ninth Parliament, President Mnangagwa called for a peaceful election in the forthcoming harmonised election.

By A Correspondent- Finance minister Mthuli Ncube unveiled his 2023 budget on Thursday, raising value added tax (VAT) in a move the main opposition Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) described as “an attack on working people.”

Ncube presented a Z$4.2 trillion (about US$6.5 billion) budget in Zimbabwe dollars, drawing brickbats from critics who say the government is now collecting a large portion of its taxes in foreign currency, hence the budget should have been presented in United States dollars.

Invoking Plato, Ncube said his budget was anchored on “prudence, temperance, fortitude and justice.” In large part, however, he raised taxes and offered few breaks for taxpayers.

Citing a SADC average of 16 percent VAT, Ncube said: “Zimbabwe charges a comparatively lower rate of 14.5 percent. The VAT rate was reduced from 15 percent with effect from January 1, 2020, in order to support households during the peak period of the Covid-19 pandemic… I propose to reinstate the VAT rate to the previous rate of 15 percent with effect from January 1, 2023.”

Consumers pay VAT when they buy food, pay for water, electricity and other services.

Ncube removed the suspension of duty on basic commodities, a blow to low-income families who are victims of unrelenting price increases as the Zimbabwe dollar weakens.

Early this year, the government suspended duty on commodities such as rice, maize meal, bath soap, cooking oil and maize meal amongst others.

Ncube justified the move by stating that prices had gone down following the stabilisation of the local currency.

“The suspension of duty, which expired on November 16, 2022, will not be extended. The government will, however, monitor prices of basic commodities with a view to ensure responsible pricing and affordability, failure of which the suspension will be reinstated,” he told MPs at the new parliament building in Mt Hampden.

In one of a few give-aways, Ncube said he was reducing the Intermediate Money Transfer Tax (IMTT) on domestic foreign currency transfers from 4 percent to 2 percent – but only because “some entities are now preferring to settle transactions in cash instead of electronic transfers.”

Ncube said he was considering a review of the 20 percent surrender requirement for domestic foreign currency transactions, which forces individuals and companies to give up a portion of their money at the government’s discredited exchange rate, which was 646 to the United States dollar this week and as high as 900 on the parallel market.

Former finance minister Tendai Biti, now deputy leader of the CCC, said Ncube’s projection that the economy would grow by 3.8 percent in 2023 was “ambitious and based on unsound assumptions,” arguing it “ignores the shrinkage of the global economy, the effects of the Russia-Ukraine war and the natural freeze of an election year.”

Ncube said the economy was expected to grow by 4 percent in 2022, a further downward revision from the mid-year projection of 4.6 percent. He blamed “global and domestic developments, particularly the impact of high inflation and resultant stabilisation measures” for the revision.

Biti said Zimbabwe was in the middle of a “structural economic crises characterised by poverty, disequilibrium, high inflation, an exchange rate problem and a total collapse of public services” which had plunged the country into its third “self-induced recession in 20 years.”

Fuelling the crisis, Biti said, was “high borrowing costs, relentless inflation and a squeeze on government payments to contractors.”

“The seismic headwinds required boldness, honesty and brinkmanship, Sadly the budget presented today was a banal self-serving ritual in narcissism and power retention excesses months before the 2023 election,” Biti opined.

Ncube offered no specifics on pay increases for restive civil servants, setting the stage for further confrontations with public sector workers in an election year. He, however, said 52.4 percent of the total expenditure for 2023 would be spent on employment costs, rising from 42.3 percent this year.

“An honest budget ought to have been presented in United States dollars,” said Biti. “After all, more than half of government taxes are now being collected in US$. This would then have allowed civil servants to be paid in US$. This would also have required the government to simply dollarise as the exchange control mess, right at the centre of Zimbabwe’s macroeconomic instability must be resolved by dollarisation, floating of the Zimbabwe dollar, scrapping the forex auction and the gold coin.”

Biti warns the “mess of multiple exchange rates” will continue “with consequent pricing distortions.”

According to Biti, the restoration of duties on basic commodities particularly while approaching a festive season is “equally sadistic and bankrupt” and the imposition of mining royalties to be paid partly in actual minerals “is equally zany.”

“Apart from gold, how does one pay chrome, coal or a PMG as a tax?”

Ncube allocated the highest budget – Z$631.2 billion – to the primary and secondary education ministry as he repeated a promise for free education at primary school level. Health pegged second with a Z$473 billion vote followed by lands and agriculture (Z$362.5 billion) and defence (Z$331 billion).

“The underfunding of the health budget (11 percent) and public education is an indictment,” Biti said. “However, the pumping of huge resources into command agriculture betrays that this is an election year and that the 2023 budget is a power retention agenda. Truth is Ncube and Zanu-PF have failed and the 2023 budget is exhibit A of craft incompetence.”

-ZimLive

By A Correspondent- A Harare woman was left bemused yesterday when her husband referred to her as his ex-wife in court.

Peter Sibanda told the court that Felistas Manhamadze was his ex-wife after he applied for a protection order against her.

Peter pleaded with the court to evict Felistas from their matrimonial home, saying she was abusive and wanted to kill his children.

I am being bullied by my ex-wife.

“She verbally abuses me.

“I am emotionally drained by everything that is happening.

“I am of the view that if she wants to move out of the house she can do so, but the kids are not going anywhere,” said Peter.

In her response, Felistas argued that she was not Peter’s ex-wife.

“He is saying that I am his ex-wife, but we have been staying together,” she said.

She said he could be given the protection order because she already had an order against him.

“I have never insulted him. I am surprised that he is saying that I want to kill my children,” said Felistas.

Magistrate Sharon Mashavire granted Peter the protection order, but said the court cannot bar Felistas from her matrimonial home.

“Unfortunately, the court doesn’t have the jurisdiction to evict her from a place she is claiming to be her house,” she said.

By A Correspondent- A 25 year-old h0rny man from Madhibha Village under Headman Chaka in Chief Chirumhanzu’s area has been arraigned before Chivhu Magistrate, Ayah Kagwere for alleged bestiality with a goat of his neighbour.

Anymore Chipara (25) was allegedly caught in the act with his neighbour Haruperi Manjovha (53)’s goat.

He pleaded not guilty.

Prosecutor Flossie Chigudu told the court that on November 18, 2022 at 3:30 am at Mapiye Village, Headman Chaka, Manjovha who was asleep in her bedroom heard her goat making strange noises at the pen.

She went outside to check and was shocked to find Chipara in an act with her female goat.

The complainant tiptoed towards Chipara and grabbed him by the neck. The accused wrestled the complainant and Manjovha shouted for help and villagers came out and apprehended the accused.

Magistrate Kagwere sentenced Chipara to 6 months imprisonment and three months were suspended on condition that he does not commit a similar offence in the next five year.

The accused will effectively serve three months in jail.

— Mirror

By A Correspondent- The comedienne, who has a history of unsuccessful marriages, chose to make fun of Grant Mashasha, who authorities claim is mentally ill.

The 39-year-old is the son of a Chitungwiza lady, Gogo Plaxedes Mashasha, who spent many days with her husband’s body.

Mashasha was discovered lurking in their home’s ceiling.

He is thought to have been trapped in the ceiling for 14 years.

Mai TT, whose last marriage to Tinashe Maphosa lasted only five months, opted to include Grant’s name into her comedy.

She implied that he may be the ideal partner for her while taking another jab at Tinashe.

In her Facebook post, Mai TT said:

“Mondisiirawo murume we muceiling ndouya ndichimuroora.

“I think I found my soul mate asiri wemumastreets asingazive zvakawanda wanda.

“Plus haana madrama emabhebhi aingove reserved ari muceiling hake achitamba nemakonzo,” she said.

Now, that’s SHAMEFUL.

Unlike Tinashe Maphosa, who left Mai TT in debt, she believes Grant will give her a fresh start in relationships.

“Haana zvikwereti plus haabe, haakwenye futi,” she said.

“Tell him to wait for my return,” she said.

She signed off the message referring to herself as “Mrs Ceiling”.

All this could have been funny if Grant was not a victim, who appears to have been driven to his current state by the sins of his mother.

Especially against a background where the police have even classified him as a mental patient.

National police spokesperson, Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi, provided that reference when he revealed what might have happened at the Zengeza House of Horror.

“She (Gogo Mashasha) was going for a church service in Zengeza 2. The husband was paralysed and bed-ridden.

“He suffered a stroke sometime in 1992 and the condition worsened in 2010 and he became paralysed. When the wife returned home on the same day, she found her doors locked from inside. She claimed to have slept outside and later decided to break down the door on November 21 at around 8am.

“She could not locate her mentally ill son Grant and lodged a police report.

“Police attended the scene and after searching the house, they found the mentally ill son in the ceiling.

“They had to break the roof and ceiling in order to retrieve the MENTALLY ILL son,” said Asst Comm Nyathi.

Yesterday, Mai TT felt he was someone she could build her comic empire on.

Wedza Residents Development Initiative Trust (WERDIT), a registered Community Based Organization (CBO) operating in 15 wards of Wedza district joins the rest of the world in commemorating 16 days of Activism Against Gender Based Violence (GBV.) 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence takes place every year between the 25th of November – the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women – and Human Rights Day on the 10th of December.

WERDIT seeks to utilize this commemoration as an organizing platform for it’s stakeholders and duty bearers around the district to call for the prevention and elimination of violence against women and girls. This year’s theme is “UNITE! to end violence against women and girls.”

The theme is quite befitting given the reality that violence against women and girls remains the most pervasive human rights violation in the district and beyond.

Already exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, its prevalence is now being further heightened by the emerging challenges of climate change, global conflict and economic instability.

The case of Chipo Gwese, a woman who lived with a disability who was killed in cold blood on the 20th of March 2022 by a serial killer whom she was hanging with remains very shocking and a testimony of how women are vulnerable to violence.

From tomorrow till the 10th of December 2022, WERDIT is encouraging diverse residents groups in the district to get involved: from raising the voices of survivors and fire-brand women’s activists to supporting women’s initiatives towards their rehabilitation as equal partners with their male counterparts and ultimately their empowerment, reduction and prevention of violence against women and girls, and protection of women’s rights.

Through our Peace Building and Conflict Management project entitled, Building Resilience, Inclusiveness, Social Cohesion and Healing (BRICH) we have done a lot of work with relevant state and non- state actors to identify conflicts in the district with a bias towards GBV.

Targeting the hotspots of GBV WERDIT has conducted a cocktail of activities seeking to eliminate all forms of violence and discrimination against women.

In that regard the WERDIT Peace Structures known as Community Advocacy Teams (CATs) in all the wards has managed to unearth a total of 40 cases of GBV between May and November 2022 and have been brought to the attention of relevant authorities in the district. Utilizing our cordial relation with the Zimbabwe Republic Police(ZRP) and Ministry of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development, council and the District Development Coordinator’s(DDC) Office we have managed to obtain a multiplicity of timely policy interventions as a remedy to the challenges to do with violation of women’s rights, particularly during the Covid 19 era.

Since It’s formation, WERDIT has successfully become a platform for state and non-state actors to deliberate GBV driven challenges and conflicts.

Consequently, these platforms have yielded noble resolutions currently being pursued by the duty bearers including establishment of a one-stop center for GBV in the district and rehabilitation centre for survivors of GBV.

At our platforms, it was also realized that peripheral areas in the district such as Zviyambe are too far from Wedza Police station, hence the call for a police post in that area.

The idea of neighborhood watch in hotspots for GBV also came out from the mentioned engagements, hence advocacy and resources to implement these ideas will continue to be on our agenda as we fight to eliminate all forms of violence against women.

To put end to violence against women in Wedza district and beyond, WERDIT will continue to challenge the attitudes that legitimize and normalize violence, and deny women’s right to safety. Men are generally the perpetrators of GBV. To bring to an end to violence, the attitudes of men need to change.

Shifting these attitudes and behaviors is a process, but gender equality means all of us, and working with all genders is the only way to see total development in this thematic area.

ENDS//

 By A Correspondent- A Zhombe man spent three months behind bars after his 16-year-old daughter lied that he had rap_ed her.

The father was however set free yesterday when the matter was discharged at the close of the State case when his daughter during cross-examination told the court that she had lied about the alleged abuse at the instigation of her mother who wanted to fix him.

This was heard during the appearance of (name withheld to protect the identity of the girl) before Gokwe regional magistrate Mr Lungile Ncube facing one count of rap_e.

The man pleaded not guilty to the charge.

Mr Ncube set him free when the daughter being cross-examined by the prosecutor Mrs Melissa Makombe told the court that she had fabricated the rap_e allegations at the instruction of her mother.

It was the State case as presented by Mrs Makombe that the complainant is from Mnidwa Village, Chief Malisa in Zhombe and she is a form two pupil at a local school.

On July 26 around 11 am at their homestead, the daughter was at home with her father since her mother had gone to the garden.

The accused person called the complainant to his bedroom and upon entering the room the accused person pushed the complainant to the floor and she fell facing upwards.

The court heard that the accused person pressed the complainant to the floor and rap_ed her once.

Her mother suddenly returned home, went to her bedroom and caught the accused person red-handed rap_ing his daughter.

The complainant’s mother reported the matter at the police before the complainant was escorted to the hospital for medical examination.

— Chronicle

By A Correspondent- Zimbabwe’s school examinations system is under siege from cheats who are getting access to question papers prior to the date of writing, prompting authorities to rope in the police to fight the scourge.

Question papers leak almost every examination time in June and November, despite several culprits being arrested and arraigned before the courts of law.

Zimbabwe School Examinations Council (ZIMSEC) spokesperson Nicky Dlamini told Xinhua Monday that the examinations body was concerned about the leakages and would do everything possible to protect the integrity of the school examinations system.

ZIMSEC and school authorities have blamed each other for the leakages, with ZIMSEC insisting that the leakages occur outside its offices and at the schools.

One teachers’ union also attributed leakages to poor conditions of service which led some teachers to engage in corruption in a bid to survive.

More than 100 students and several teachers and members of the public have been arrested on allegations of participating in leakages for the Nov. 22 public examinations for Ordinary Level, with candidates allegedly sharing the questions on social media.

In one of the latest cases taken to court, a deputy headmaster and an English teacher at a school in Tsholotsho District, Matabeleland North Province, pleaded guilty to charges of criminal abuse of duty after they leaked an English examination paper to selected candidates at their school.

Tsholotsho Magistrate Victor Mpofu sentenced the two to three years in jail each, 18 months of which were, however, commuted to community service while the other 18 months were suspended on the condition of good behaviour.

Another teacher also appeared before another magistrate in the same district for allegedly getting the questions of a Mathematics examination through a mobile phone and revising them with his students prior to them sitting for the paper.

In other incidents, school teachers and other members of the public have written examinations on behalf of some candidates.

School administrators and their members of staff are said to be involved in these practices in a bid to boost the pass rates at their institutions, particularly at private colleges seeking to attract more students.

ZIMSEC has said all those who are caught cheating will have their results nullified, while authorities are seeking the amendment of the school examinations law to impose stiffer penalties on perpetrators.

Even at some universities, some examinations have had to be rescheduled after suspicions that question papers could have leaked.

A policeman is currently out on bail after he was allegedly found with a leaked question paper for a Bachelor of Laws examination.

-Xinhua

Tinashe Sambiri| CCC leader President Nelson Chamisa has lashed out at political rival Emmerson Mnangagwa for overdetaining Job Sikhala.

President Chamisa says Sikhala’s bail denial is unacceptable.

Mnangagwa is weaponising the law in a bid to silence dissenting voices, according to President Chamisa.

“BAIL DENIED AGAIN…

Injustice & oppression are tools of the weak & losing…

Hon @JobSikhala1 is innocent,a political prisoner being victimized for politics.

#ANewGreatZimbabwe no citizen shall be persecuted for being politically different.Bail is a constitutional right! #FreeWiwa,” the CCC leader wrote on Twitter.

Tinashe Sambiri| CCC leader President Nelson Chamisa has lashed out at political rival Emmerson Mnangagwa for overdetaining Job Sikhala.

President Chamisa says Sikhala’s bail denial is unacceptable.

Mnangagwa is weaponising the law in a bid to silence dissenting voices, according to President Chamisa.

“BAIL DENIED AGAIN…

Injustice & oppression are tools of the weak & losing…

Hon @JobSikhala1 is innocent,a political prisoner being victimized for politics.

#ANewGreatZimbabwe no citizen shall be persecuted for being politically different.Bail is a constitutional right! #FreeWiwa,” the CCC leader wrote on Twitter.

Tinashe Sambiri| CCC leader President Nelson Chamisa has lashed out at political rival Emmerson Mnangagwa for overdetaining Job Sikhala.

President Chamisa says Sikhala’s bail denial is unacceptable.

Mnangagwa is weaponising the law in a bid to silence dissenting voices, according to President Chamisa.

“BAIL DENIED AGAIN…

Injustice & oppression are tools of the weak & losing…

Hon @JobSikhala1 is innocent,a political prisoner being victimized for politics.

#ANewGreatZimbabwe no citizen shall be persecuted for being politically different.Bail is a constitutional right! #FreeWiwa,” the CCC leader wrote on Twitter.