By- CCC President Nelson Chamisa said the Emerson Mnangagwa led government should pack its bags and prepare to leave the statehouse.

Chamisa said after July next year, Mnangagwa and his Zanu PF would be the opposition.

Chamisa made the remarks in Kwekwe while addressing thousands of CCC supporters at the weekend.

He said this would be so because Zanu PF will not win the coming polls despite attempts to rig the outcome of the plebiscite.
“What I want to tell you today is that Zanu PF is gone, Mr Mnangagwa is gone. Come 2023, we will be the ruling party while ZANU PF will be the opposition.
Everywhere we are going in the country, people are speaking about change.
We will defeat Mr Mnangagwa and his Zanu PF party in 2023.
Change is on the horizon and the country is ready for change.
All citizens are saying I must take the reigns of power. The students, ordinary citizens, and the army are saying the same.
The army is prepared to ditch Mnangagwa in the coming elections.
If we are to have an election today, I will have more support from the army than Mnangagwa.
We are preparing for the next government,” said President Chamisa.

By- The High Court this week interdicted Local Government Minister July Moyo from suspending the Harare Mayor Jacob Mafume.

This means that Mafume, who is senior member of the Nelson Chamisa led CCC should return and take charge of the Town House.

Justice Joseph Mafusire made the order Tuesday when he said Local Government and Public Works Minister July Moyo should forthwith stop interfering with Mafume’s work at Town House.

Moyo has suspended Mafume several times as a councillor on allegations of gross misconduct, gross incompetence, and willful violation of the law.

He has also, on several occasions, replaced Mafume with Stewart Mutizwa of the Douglas Mwonzora led MDC-T.

According to the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, Justice Mafusire has ordered Moyo not to suspend Mafume again on the same or similar allegations as in his letters of suspension of December 2020, January 2021, September 2021, and December 2021.
The judge also ruled that the decision to suspend Mafume is a nullity and set it aside.
Mafume was represented by Tonderai Bhatasara of ZLHR, who in January filed an application for review of Moyo’s decision to suspend him as Ward 17 Councillor.

By- A South African pilot was killed at Harare’s Charles Prince Airport.

The accident occurred on Tuesday evening during an aerobatics display known as “Formation Aerobatics”.

In a statement on Tuesday, Nils Flaatten of the Marksmen Aerobatic Team named the deceased pilot as Mark Sampson. Read the statement:
It is with great sadness and a profound sense of loss that today, the MARKSMEN AEROBATIC TEAM can confirm that Mark Sampson, outstanding aviator, honoured team member, trusted number-4 and loyal friend, perished in a flying incident in Harare, Zimbabwe.
The MARKSMEN AEROBATIC TEAM were on the return leg of a roundabout trip from Cape Town to Nairobi, where the team had performed a successful aerobatic formation display at the Kenyan Défense Force (KDF) Museum Airshow, held in conjunction with the Aero Club of East Africa.
The MARKSMEN AEROBATIC TEAM is devastated and we are currently working with the Zimbabwean authorities.

By- The opposition CCC leader Nelson Chamisa claims that the army is prepared to dump President Emmerson Mnangagwa and support him if he wins the 2023 presidential election.

Chamisa made the remarks while addressing CCC supporters during a thank you rally for CCC Kwekwe MP Judith Tobaiwa, on Sunday. He said:

What I want to tell you today is that Mnangagwa is gone. Come 2023, we will be the ruling party while ZANU PF will be the opposition.

Everywhere we are going in the country, people are speaking about change.

Change is on the horizon and the country is ready for change.

Civil servants are saying I must take the reigns of power. The students, ordinary citizens, and the army are saying the same.
The army is prepared to ditch Mnangagwa in the coming elections.
If we are to have an election today, I will have more support from the army than Mnangagwa.
We are preparing for the next government.
In November 2017, the military seized power from then-President Robert Mugabe and handed over the reins to Mnangagwa whom he had fired a few weeks before the coup.

-NewZimbabwe

Tinashe Sambiri|CCC is ready to form the next government, President Nelson Chamisa has said.

President Chamisa made the remarks in Kwekwe while addressing thousands of CCC supporters at the weekend.

According to President Chamisa, Mr Mnangagwa’s Zanu PF will not win the coming polls despite attempts to rig the outcome of the plebiscite.

“What I want to tell you today is that Zanu PF is gone, Mr Mnangagwa is gone. Come 2023, we will be the ruling party while ZANU PF will be the opposition.

Everywhere we are going in the country, people are speaking about change.

We will defeat Mr Mnangagwa and his Zanu PF party in 2023.

Change is on the horizon and the country is ready for change.

All citizens are saying I must take the reigns of power. The students, ordinary citizens, and the army are saying the same.

The army is prepared to ditch Mnangagwa in the coming elections.

If we are to have an election today, I will have more support from the army than Mnangagwa.
We are preparing for the next government,” said President Chamisa.

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1323811225118750&id=100063518628752

Tinashe Sambiri|CCC is ready to form the next government, President Nelson Chamisa has said.

President Chamisa made the remarks in Kwekwe while addressing thousands of CCC supporters at the weekend.

According to President Chamisa, Mr Mnangagwa’s Zanu PF will not win the coming polls despite attempts to rig the outcome of the plebiscite.

“What I want to tell you today is that Zanu PF is gone, Mr Mnangagwa is gone. Come 2023, we will be the ruling party while ZANU PF will be the opposition.

Everywhere we are going in the country, people are speaking about change.

We will defeat Mr Mnangagwa and his Zanu PF party in 2023.

Change is on the horizon and the country is ready for change.

All citizens are saying I must take the reigns of power. The students, ordinary citizens, and the army are saying the same.

The army is prepared to ditch Mnangagwa in the coming elections.

If we are to have an election today, I will have more support from the army than Mnangagwa.
We are preparing for the next government,” said President Chamisa.

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1323811225118750&id=100063518628752

By A Correspondent- Citizen Coalition for Change (CCC) president Nelson Chamisa told his supporters that he is now targeting ZANU PF strongest province Mashonaland Central  as change is imminent.

Addressing party supporters in Kwekwe on Sunday Chamisa said people in other provinces like Matebeleland and Manicaland they are calling for change and focus is now on Mashonaland Central province. 

“We are preparing for the next government, ZANU PF no longer stands a chance  in provinces like Matebeleland and Manicaland,our focus is now in Mashonaland Central,” Chamisa said.

“Change is imminent , change is coming!”

CCC vice President  Tendai Biti was recently in Mashonaland Central  meeting  their supporters and urging them to preach the message of change.

However, ZANU PF Mazowe Disttrict hijacked a memorial service of the late Shelton  Zongoro which both parties claim to be theirs.

Chamisa who was scheduled to be a guest of honour had to cancel his visit afterr ZANU PF Mazowe District Coordinating Committee leadership took over the event.

By A Correspondent- The Grain Marketing Board (GMB) has warned farmers and producers of controlled grain such as maize, soybeans, wheat and barley that selling their produce to any buyer other than GMB is an offence.

In a statement on Wednesday, 1 June 2022, GMB chief executive officer Rockie Mutenha said all farmers or producers of controlled grains are required to deliver products to any nearest GMB depot. He said:

Farmers/producers who intend to retain a portion of the product for farm feed or another commercial usage shall apply for exemption from GMB.

No one is allowed to sell or buy maize and any controlled product other than through GMB unless one is a bona fide contractor registered with the Agricultural Marketing Authority of Zimbabwe (AMA).

Mutenha also said that all farmers, producers and contractors are required to apply for a movement permit if they want to move their grain from one area to another. Said Mutenha:

Trading in controlled products (buying or selling) without the authority of the GMB is an offence.

All stores, millers, stock feeders and any other users of controlled products are required to register with the GMB before engaging in such business

By A Correspondent- The Grain Marketing Board (GMB), the custodian of the country’s grain reserves, indefinitely suspended grain allocations to millers for unclear reasons, reported NewsDay.

The publication quoted players in the grain industry on Tuesday as saying GMB reduced maize allocations to millers from 100% to 75% in February and further cut them to 50% last month.

A miller who wanted to remain anonymous was quoted as saying:

We have gone for more than six weeks without an allocation. We are getting supplies every four weeks.

We used to apply and get allocations each month, then submit returns around mid-month. We started getting 75% three months ago, then last month, it went down to 50%.

On Friday last week, we made payments and waited for allocations, but everything just stopped.

They didn’t give us any reasons, but we are told by people at GMB that they want to increase the maize producer price in order to attract deliveries because the $75 000 is now very low.

We are also told stocks are running out and it’s obviously true and that’s why they allowed us to import freely.

A top executive with one of the country’s major millers who preferred anonymity said:

Things were normal and I can confirm the allocations were just stopped and we don’t really know why. I wouldn’t want to lie, but we can only speculate.

Another senior official with a top milling firm told NewsDay that authorities should allow millers to access foreign currency at the RBZ auction. Said the official:

The question for us major millers is that we move huge volumes and our shareholders will be worried about this scenario, where you import maize in US dollars and then you don’t know if you are allowed to sell in US dollars to recover your money without having to then go to the black market and risk huge exchange rate losses.

It would be better if they allowed us to go on the auction like what oil expressers are doing.

Grain is in short supply due to inadequate rainfall in the 2021/22 season as well as the withholding of produce by farmers who want more cash for their harvest.

GMB increased the maize producer by 50% to $75 000 per tonne and the government said it would be paying 30% in US dollars and the rest in local currency.

However, farmers immediately demanded a 50% US dollar payment for their grain.

By A Correspondent- Traditional healers have urged Zimbabweans to work hard rather than resort to bizarre rituals such as selling their toes to get rich.

This follows social media reports that people are selling their toes to ritualists for thousands of United States dollars.zaz

A well-known n’anga (sangoma), Sekuru Banda, said the consequences of sacrificing one’s body parts are dire. He said:

Yes, it’s possible but these are ritual sacrifices which we don’t encourage.

Even if one is assured to get the cash instantly, after selling their toe, the danger in this is what follows.

In my many years of practice, I have met people who were offering their body parts as sacrifices, but I declined because I know the consequences.

Our people must learn to work with their hands and God will bless their sweat.

They should go to school, get skills and earn a good living rather than believing in short-cuts.

Another traditional healer, Sekuru Kafera, concurred with Sekuru Banda and urged people to avoid ritual sacrifices. He said:

Our law of practice doesn’t allow us to accept anything in exchange for such sacrifices, this is pure witchcraft and blood will be spilt.

Anyone who is encouraging people to either offer their toes or buy the toes must be arrested because if they are left doing this openly, they will even demand human sacrifices.

The Government should act on such people who are openly granting such sacrifices to members of the public.

Another traditional healer who chose to remain anonymous claimed sacrifices may give one wealth for some time but the occult will keep demanding more and more from the beneficiary. Said the traditional healer:

No one affords the demands of a sacrifice because once you accept the cash, it means you are connected to the cult.

More money will come, but as you enjoy it, the cult will ask for more until you lose your loved ones.-BMetro

By A Correspondent- Chief Nhalanhlayamangwe Felix Ndiweni has lamented a captured judiciary which he said is now more of a political player in Zimbabwean politics because of its conduct against political opponents.

In a tweet Wednesday, Chief Ndiweni accused the magistrates courts of meddling in politics by detaining MRP members in custody for defending their party leader despite the High Court granting them bail.

He said:

“The magistrates courts have been and are political. There are Nine members of MRP in jail this morning for defending their party Leader Mqondisi Moyo. Yet these nine had been given bail by the High Court before for this matter. Now a Magistrate remands them into custody.

The magistrates courts have been and are political. There are Nine members of MRP in jail this morning for defending their party Leader Mqondisi Moyo. Yet these nine had been given bail by the High Court before for this matter. Now a Magistrate remands them into custody.

— Nhlanhlayamangwe Felix Ndiweni (@FelixNdiweni) June 1, 2022

1/2 Police in Harare are investigating a case of rape which occurred on 30/05/22 at around 2100 hours along Highglen road near Marimba New Stands.

— Zimbabwe Republic Police (@PoliceZimbabwe) June 1, 2022

2/2 The suspect raped the complainant in a Toyota Hilux twin cab vehicle after giving her a lift from Mutare to Harare. Anyone with information to contact any nearest Police Station. #notorape.

— Zimbabwe Republic Police (@PoliceZimbabwe) June 1, 2022

By A Correspondent- A newly born baby was found dead, with a part of the leg missing, at a Glen View dumpsite, giving residents a huge scare.

The corpse, which was in a decomposing state, was found near Mataure Shopping Centre.

Harare provincial police spokesperson, Inspector Luckson Chakanza, confirmed the case.

“Police are investigating a case of a baby, who was found in a decomposing state at a dumping site, in Glen View 1.

“Circumstances are that a newly-born baby was found, wrapped in plastic, by a boy who was disposing of waste at that same dumpsite.

He then reported the matter to the police who then took the corpse to Harare Hospital for postmortem,” said Insp Chakanza.

The police have urged the public to report any leads to the case.

Glen View residents said they were still in shock following the incident.

“It’s so sad that God gave someone a child and then she decided to throw him/her away in that manner while others are going through a lot to get one,” said one resident, only identified as Mai Mumu.

“Garbage is not being collected so it is easier for someone to dumb anything, especially a child, like that.” H Metro

https://twitter.com/ZinasuM/status/1531900631383957506?s=20&t=ZkMLAdY7XPcNZzLundvNDw

It’s a Citizen Movement…It’s organic. This cyclist says it all! pic.twitter.com/9VQXyhHEpS

— nelson chamisa (@nelsonchamisa) June 1, 2022

The Zimbabwe Republic Police has instituted investigations after a video of a police officer eating something like yoghurt that had spilled onto the ground went viral.

ZRP says it hopes to identify the culprit and take appropriate action.

ZRP says:

The ZRP has noted with concern a video of a person dressed in police uniform circulating on the social media.

The person is seen squatting on the road while eating a white substance that has fallen to the ground.

The person later stands up and staggers around with yet to be identified member of the public recording and passing comments.

The person is appearing to be drunk.

The Police are conducting investigations into the matter with a view of identifying the culprit & taking action.

1/2 On 31/05/22, Police in Chiredzi arrested Albert Sibanda (24) for theft of a Honda Fit vehicle.

— Zimbabwe Republic Police (@PoliceZimbabwe) June 1, 2022

2/2 The suspect who was a passenger in the vehicle, drove away the complainant’s vehicle, after the complainant had stopped to pick two females at Village 10 Chipimbi bus stop in Chiredzi. The complainant had left the key on the ignition.

— Zimbabwe Republic Police (@PoliceZimbabwe) June 1, 2022

A South African pilot was killed at Harare’s Charles Prince Airport on Tuesday evening during an aerobatics display known as “Formation Aerobatics”.

In a statement on Tuesday, Nils Flaatten of the Marksmen Aerobatic Team named the deceased pilot as Mark Sampson.

Read the statement:

It is with great sadness and a profound sense of loss that today, the MARKSMEN AEROBATIC TEAM can confirm that Mark Sampson, outstanding aviator, honoured team member, trusted number-4 and loyal friend, perished in a flying incident in Harare, Zimbabwe.

The MARKSMEN AEROBATIC TEAM were on the return leg of a roundabout trip from Cape Town to Nairobi, where the team had performed a successful aerobatic formation display at the Kenyan Défense Force (KDF) Museum Airshow, held in conjunction with the Aero Club of East Africa.

The MARKSMEN AEROBATIC TEAM is devastated and we are currently working with the Zimbabwean authorities.

According to eyewitnesses who spoke to ZimLive, the plane spun several times and then veered out of control when the pilot levelled up and tried to make a climb.

It then crashed nose-first in front of spectators who initially assumed it was all part of the show. Said a witness:

They were virtually at the end of their display when the tragic accident happened, killing the pilot.

By A Correspondent- High Court judge Justice Joseph Mafusire has dismissed an application by lawyer and writer Petina Gappah, who is seeking further particulars in a case she is facing a US$1 million defamation lawsuit.

Opposition politician Fadzayi Mahere is suing Gappah for defamation of character.

In her declaration, Mahere said Gappah published a series of tweets on her handle @VascoDaGappah accusing her of corruptly enrolling at the University of Zimbabwe and the Cambridge University and also attempting to seduce Gappah’s boyfriend at some point.

But Gappah filed a High Court application seeking some documents which she said were critical to support her case.

Gappah wanted proof of her communication with Mahere in September 2009 on Facebook Messenger in which the latter allegedly sought help with her application to Cambridge University.

She also wants communication on the same platform in which Mahere allegedly asked intrusive questions about the status of her relationship with her son’s father.

She demanded the release of Mahere’s official documents pertaining to her employment in The Hague in 2009, their communication in August 2016 in which she turned down an offer to meet for lunch.

She also demanded Mahere’s curriculum vitae she circulated as part of her Yellow Campaign in 2018 in which she claimed to have worked for an international trade consultancy in Geneva, Switzerland.

But Mafusire dismissed her request saying the trial should proceed.

“In essence, her lengthy document seems to be a hybrid, constituting a notice of exception, heads of argument and closing submissions, particularly as it seeks, in some portions, to comment on the evidence to be led at the trial. This is manifestly irregular,” Justice Mafusire ruled.

“The conduct of the defendant in mounting the application to compel further discovery and in filing a lengthy, but baseless objection cannot be justified … the application under HC 3178/21 to compel further discovery is hereby dismissed with costs,” the judge added.-Newsday

 By A Correspondent- A 46 year old Harare man has appeared in court after he allegedly robbed a school in Waterfalls of US$120 000.

The suspect, Goodwell Mapininga, appeared before magistrate Yeukai Dzuda charged with robbery and money laundering.

He allegedly attacked a security guard who was manning the school premises before breaking into the cash office.

Mapininga was investigated after he started living a lavish lifestyle. He went on a spending spree, buying motor vehicles allegedly from the proceeds of crime.

In another armed robbery case, three suspects allegedly pounced on a Chitungwiza family and got away with US$44 000.

Rashid Adam Chipanga (29), Joseph Makoni (27) and 34-year-old Tawanda Gau appeared in court on Tuesday and were remanded in custody.

They were advised to apply for bail at the High Court.

Meanwhile, police in Marondera are investigating a robbery case which occurred on 30 May 2022 at Ruvimbo location, Marondera, the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) posted on Twitter.

Police said the complainant (44) was using a Honda Fit vehicle, AEG 3554 as a taxi and was hired from Marondera Bus terminus to Ruvimbo location by one of the suspects.

Upon arrival at Ruvimbo, two other suspects joined the first suspect and attacked the complainant with iron bars before putting him in the boot.

The suspects stole the vehicle, clothes, cellphone and US$100 cash before dumping the complainant at March Farm in Marondera.

By- The opposition CCC leader Nelson Chamisa claims that the army is prepared to dump President Emmerson Mnangagwa and support him if he wins the 2023 presidential election.

Chamisa made the remarks while addressing CCC supporters during a thank you rally for CCC Kwekwe MP Judith Tobaiwa, on Sunday. He said:

What I want to tell you today is that Mnangagwa is gone. Come 2023, we will be the ruling party while ZANU PF will be the opposition.

Everywhere we are going in the country, people are speaking about change.

Change is on the horizon and the country is ready for change.

Civil servants are saying I must take the reigns of power. The students, ordinary citizens, and the army are saying the same.
The army is prepared to ditch Mnangagwa in the coming elections.
If we are to have an election today, I will have more support from the army than Mnangagwa.
We are preparing for the next government.
In November 2017, the military seized power from then-President Robert Mugabe and handed over the reins to Mnangagwa whom he had fired a few weeks before the coup.
Meanwhile, Chamisa said his party will force ZANU PF to implement electoral reforms to ensure that there is no rigging in the 2023 elections.

-NewZimbabwe

By- A South African pilot was killed at Harare’s Charles Prince Airport on Tuesday evening during an aerobatics display known as “Formation Aerobatics”.

In a statement on Tuesday, Nils Flaatten of the Marksmen Aerobatic Team named the deceased pilot as Mark Sampson. Read the statement:
It is with great sadness and a profound sense of loss that today, the MARKSMEN AEROBATIC TEAM can confirm that Mark Sampson, outstanding aviator, honoured team member, trusted number-4 and loyal friend, perished in a flying incident in Harare, Zimbabwe.
The MARKSMEN AEROBATIC TEAM were on the return leg of a roundabout trip from Cape Town to Nairobi, where the team had performed a successful aerobatic formation display at the Kenyan Défense Force (KDF) Museum Airshow, held in conjunction with the Aero Club of East Africa.
The MARKSMEN AEROBATIC TEAM is devastated and we are currently working with the Zimbabwean authorities.

By- An AFM pastor has resisted eviction and rushed to pitch a tent at the church.

Reverend Alexio Gomani of the Cossam Chiangwa Apostolic Faith Mission ofZimbabwe (AFM) pitched a tent attached to Nyaure Apostolic Faith in Zimbabwe Assembly.

Gomani is protesting the Supreme Court ruling granted last year, in favour of the Amon Madawo-led reformist faction of the AFM church.

A villager from Shumba Village who spoke to H-Metro said they expect men of the cloth to be exemplary. He said:

We are not happy with what Reverend Gomani is trying to teach our community.

He was evicted, according to law, but he went on to erect a tent attached to the church building, from where he was ordered to vacate sometime last year.

Conducting church services at the premises, where other people will be inside for another service, is wrong.

Whatever he will be teaching, or sharing in the name of God, is discord to us.

We are appealing to Reverend Chiangwa to address or guide Rev Gomani accordingly.

As a community, we expect church members to fight crime, and preach peace and true leadership for community development.

Meanwhile, another Chiyangwa-linked pastor, Reverend Albert Chabvuta was recently ordered by the High Court to vacate the Tynwald AFM Assembly premises.

Chabvuta allegedly clashed with the assembly caretaker following the ruling. The matter is pending at Harare Magistrates’ Court.

More: H-Metro

By A Correspondent- President of a newly launched political party Parere Kunyenzura has told President Emmerson Mnangagwa that his days are numbered and his reign was coming to an end.

Kunyenzura said because God had put Mnangagwa on a measuring scale and found him wanting, he was ending his reign as the leader of Zimbabwe and ushering in a new leadership.

Addressing the media at the launch of his political party in Harare, Kunyenzura said Mnangagwa’s kingdom had been given to his neighbour just like in the days of Saul when the kingdom of Israel was given to his neighbour David.

We publish below the full text of the statement by Kunyenzura:

26 May 2022 Press Conference

Who we are

We are a newly formed political party called the Zimbabwe Transformative Party. We are not a puppet of the West, as some would like to accuse others of, neither are we of the East, to whom the accusers would like to incline, but we are a puppet of God, and in God we do believe.

Our slogan

Baba: Ndimi muchatimiririra kupinda mu Canaan. Asi chivimbiso chatitambudza.

Nkosi: Nguwe ozasimela ekungeneni kwethu e Canaan. Kodwa isithembiso sakho sesisihlupha.

Kanda vote yako: Pamuchinjikwa ipapo. Pamupostori ipapo. Pagemenzi ipapo.

Phosa i vote yakho: Esiphambanweni khonapho. Kumpostoli khonapho. Kugemesi khonapho. 

What we stand for

• A leadership in Government that is driven by the fear of the Lord.
• A commitment to economic recovery and the betterment of the living standards of Zimbabwe’s citizenry.
• Accountability of the Government about its revenue and expenditure, including, but not limited to, mineral revenue.
• General accountability of the Government to the electorate.
• Observation of the rule of law by the Government.
• Observation of property rights by the Government.
• A commitment to the upholding of human rights as enshrined in sections 44 to 87 of our Constitution.
• Taming corruption in deed and in word.
• Political tolerance to divergent views and constructive criticism and being open to reason, knowing quite well that correct ideas come from the people and that no one has a monopoly of knowledge.
• Depolarization of Zimbabwe’s citizenry and her political landscape.
• Infrastructural development, both soft and hard infrastructure; that includes the rehabilitation of our road networks.
• Improving the country’s health delivery system.
• Improving and steadying the country’s supply of energy.
• Improving the country’s education system.
• In summary, we are here to implement transformative or life-changing approaches to the system of governance. Changes that are lasting; changes that are marked; changes that eventually lead to individual, social, religious and economic systems to re-vision and introspect themselves.

Problem definition

If a problem is wrongly defined, there is a tendency to proffer wrong solutions to that particular problem. For example, when Mugabe was forced to resign, behind the scenes, through a military coup, every Zimbabwean was fooled and mobilised into believing that Mugabe was the problem.

The solution to that “problem” was the ascendancy of Mr Mnangagwa. But look, we have more and deeper problems now than we had with Mugabe, and there are more criminals surrounding the President now than there were surrounding Mugabe. Do not forget that teachers and the generality of civil servants were earning around US$540 per month when Mugabe was there, and what are they earning now?

What about the War Veterans pensions; and all pensions in general? What are civil servants getting in retirement packages and gratuities? So, Mugabe was not the problem, but the whole system of political governance, of which he was party to. If he alone was the problem, then by removing him, we could definitely have solved the problem, and by now we should have been flying on planet Mars! Alas; we are now in the abyss—and a self-inflicted one for that matter!

So, what then is our problem as Zimbabweans? The problem that Zimbabwe as a country faces today is that of a leadership that does not fear God. This type of leadership only pays lip service to their allegiance to the Almighty. In typical Pharisaic behaviour, they proclaim at the top of their voices that they are God-fearing; and even go on to attend worship assemblies and crusades by the day, yet under the cover of darkness they violate God’s moral law with impunity. Some of them have the temerity or audacity to violate God’s laws even during the daytime. If their assertion is true that they are God-fearing, then Zimbabweans pause to ask:

• What became of Herbert Wiltshire Chitepo who perished on 18 March 1975?
• What became of Josiah Magama Tongogara who perished on 26 December 1979?
• What became of over 20,000 people who perished in the Midlands and Matabeleland provinces between 3 January 1983 and 22 December 1987 during the Gukurahundi era? Is hatred a trademark of being Godly? Isn’t ethnicity [whether Ndebele, Tonga, Shona or Venda]; only tongue deep, in much the same way as colour [whether black or white]; is only skin deep?
• Are we not all descendants of one ancestral couple; Adam and Eve? Isn’t the whole universe full of descendants of the eight people who came out of Noah’s Ark— Noah, his three sons Shem, Japheth and Ham and their four wives? So where is this hatred coming from? Are we not all one people?
• Are we not all relatives of one another? Do we not share one ancestry? Will God not be happy in seeing the perpetrators of such heinous, monstrous, iniquitous and callous acts repenting of their sins? Shall not every one of us one day stand before the judgement seat of God, in order that each one of us receives what is due for what one would have done in the body, whether good or evil? [2 Cor. 5:10].
• Shall not each one of us give an account of himself to God? [Rom. 14:12]. Shall not each one of us be judged, whether great or small, in accordance with what one would have done on earth when one was still alive? [Rev. 20:12-13].
• Other questions which Zimbabweans pause to ask are: What became of Tonderai Ndira who perished between 13 and 22 May 2008 during the bloody election runoff?
• What became of Solomon Mujuru who was burnt beyond recognition on that fateful night of 15 August 2011, a hero dying immediately after celebrating Heroes and Defence Forces days?
• What became of Itai Dzamara who was abducted on the morning of 9 March 2015 and disappeared outright; who then was campaigning that the failed Mugabe must step down?
• Is a revolution that eats its own people; including eating those who are party to the revolution, a Godly revolution?
• If God’s sixth commandment says, “You shall not murder” [Exod. 20:13: ESV]; do leaders who are God-fearing go on and shed blood?Were not people killed like insects on the streets of Harare by the army on 1 August 2018, when they were agitated by the delay in the announcement of the presidential election results, as they were demanding the immediate release of the same; following the 30 July 2018 harmonised elections?
• Were Zimbabweans not killed again in mid January 2019 when they were protesting about the 150% increase in the price of fuel, along with the increasing levels of poverty, the poor state of the economy and the general decline in the standards of living?  
• Can our dear President of the Republic of Zimbabwe purport not to know what exactly transpired on these events that led to the death of civilians on the street of Harare? Does not section 213, subsections 1 and 2, of our Constitution, state that only the President, as Commander-in-Chief of the Defence Forces, has the power to authorise the deployment of the Defence Forces and to determine the operational use of the same? Then if anything goes amiss in this deployment, is he not answerable to the citizenry for the outcome of the deployment?
• Were our Parliamentarians not equally culpable, for according to section 214 of the Constitution, when the Defence Forces are deployed in Zimbabwe to assist in the maintenance of public order; the President must cause Parliament to be informed, promptly and in appropriate detail, of the reasons for their deployment as well as informing Parliament of the place where they are deployed?
• So if Parliament was not informed by the President, then what did the Parliamentarians do? Sit and watch?  Shouldn’t they have resigned en masse if their conscience is clear, and if their parliamentary authority was undermined with impunity by the head of state and government? Ladies and gentlemen,
• God shall one day ask questions, by which he will demand answers! It is never too late at this juncture to come in the open and repent! God is eagerly looking forward to seeing this repentance.

Thus given the foregoing, our problem in Zimbabwe today is entrusting in positions of authority political leaders who do not fear the Lord. They are a god unto themselves. This set of a leadership does not know God.

They are a leadership that is insensitive to the plight of the generality of Zimbabweans; a leadership that is indifferent to the needs of the people, a leadership that is inward-looking, a leadership that is self aggrandising and a leadership that lacks empathy.

This type of leadership is sinful. Lest we forget, if anyone knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, is sin [James 4:17]. So a good number of our leaders are sinful today in that they know that people are starving due to the meagre wages they earn; they know that people are dying due to lack of medication and proper staffing levels in public hospitals; they know that many basics like transport, food, shelter and education are beyond the reach of many Zimbabweans, but they fail to redress or remedy the situation. Therefore, if leaders know the right thing that needs to be done, but they ignore or fail to do it; they are definitely sinning against God.

Thus given our definition of the problem at hand, the following are, therefore, not the problems, but they are mere symptoms of the problem. They are the results of a problem. They flow naturally from the problem. They are the economy’s direct response to the problem.

Symptoms of the problem

• High levels of unemployment that hovers at over 90%, including university and college graduates who have never known formal employment; with some having graduated almost 20 years ago. Venturing into informal sector or entrepreneurship should be an option, and not mandatorily induced by circumstances.
• A meltdown of economic activity.
• High interest rates and the cost of borrowing.
• Hyperinflationary environment. According to Steve Hanke, a professor of applied economics at John Hopkins University, Zimbabwe has the highest rate of inflation in the world which is pegged at 244% followed by Lebanon’s official rate of inflation which is pegged at 208.13%. This makes our currency a worthless currency. Its highest denomination cannot even buy a half loaf of bread as of now, yet according to the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency [ZimStat], the country’s year-on-year inflation was 96.4% as of April 2022.
• Acute foreign currency shortages in spite of the three-tier exchange rates [i.e. interbank rate, auction rate and parallel market rate].
• High government expenditure, with a huge appetite for borrowing; resulting in high levels of both domestic and external debt. Zimbabwe’s external debt, at US$10.5 billion in 2020, stood at 86% of Gross Domestic Product according to the IMF. This debt is owed to the international financial institutions including the Paris Club, African Development Bank, and the World Bank.
• Deteriorating living standards; with over 80% of the population living below the national poverty datum line, making Zimbabwe the 22^nd poorest country in the world [World Bank]. The majority of Zimbabweans are living on less than US$1.90 per day, which is the international poverty rate according to the UN Human Development Index.
• Low life expectancy. The average life expectancy was as follows in 2021: Zimbabwe 61.63 years; South Africa 64.62; Egypt 72.22 years; Botswana 69.55 years; Namibia 64.12 and Zambia 64.12 years. [World Bank 2019].
• Failure to observe the rule of law.
• Failure to observe property rights.
• A poor operating environment for business; despite professing the ease with which business is done in Zimbabwe.
• Wages which are tantamount to slavery earnings; especially for government workers.
• A proliferation of roads that are riddled with potholes, or should I say “dish” holes.
• A poor health delivery system where basics like bandages and painkillers are hardly available; with health professionals miserably remunerated. In SA, a junior doctor earns an average salary of about R48 000; which is the equivalent of about US $3 402 per month. In other regional countries, the figures are: Namibia US3 120. Botswana     US1 518. Lesotho US $1 500. Swaziland US$1 500. In Zimbabwe, they earn peanuts; that’s why they are behaving like monkeys, for the old adage goes, “Pay them peanuts, and they will behave like monkeys”. They are constantly and rightfully making noises about adjusting their remuneration levels in line with the cost of living.
• A nation living under incessant power outages.
• A nation that is highly polarized.
• A politically intolerant system of governance; and the labelling of any dissenting voice as sell-outs.
• A political environment that is characterised by political violence and blood-letting, with lip profession to the upholding of the sanctity of life.
• Massive looting and plundering of state resources.
• Exponential levels of corruption that go unchecked; with lip profession to taming it.
• A miscarriage of justice, especially for opposition political players.
• High crime rate, some of which is precipitated by poor conditions of service, especially for government employees.
• Regular resurgence of medieval diseases such as cholera and typhoid, mainly due to contaminated water and the general unhygienic living conditions.
• Uncollected garbage, yet most residents religiously pay their bills monthly, and having urban settlements that go for almost 10 years without tape water—Mabvuku and Tafara come to mind, under the nose of a Local Government Minister; which central government so often shifts the blame to the opposition.
• An average teacher-pupil ratio of 1:60; in this day and age. I was in grade 1 in 1981 and 1:60 was the ratio then, soon after the war. Now about 42 years down the line, it is still the same; if not worse in some public schools.
• A country flooded with land barons most of whom, if not all of them, are politically connected; depriving innocent citizens of their hard earned cash.
• Repressive media laws such as the pending Patriotic Bill and the Private Voluntary Organisation Amendment Bill [PVO]. The Patriotic Bill seeks to criminalise acts that campaign against Zimbabwe, including, but not limited to, advocacy for the imposition of sanctions on Zimbabwe, private correspondence with foreign governments or any officer or agent thereof. A patriot cannot be created by legislation, but rather patriotism ought to be an intrinsic feeling of appreciation of the good socio-economic welfare of the country, and not as a result of a mandatory and repressive legislation. The PVO Bill that was subjected to community-based public hearings across the country; exposes the intention of the Zimbabwean government to provide itself with a legal tool to control and eventually silence civil society. If enacted, it will be a threat to the freedom of association, in sharp contrast to what is enshrined in section 58 of the Constitution.
• In fact, the list is inexhaustible.

Thus given the above plethora of symptoms, Zimbabweans need a new page; a new beginning and a new approach to governance. Leaders should morph up into new creatures that are fearful of the Lord God. They need to undergo transformation. Leaders should be good stewards of God’s people.

True wisdom begins when people begin to fear the Lord. The psalmist hammered the point home when he said, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practise it have a good understanding. [Ps.111:10; ESV]. Solomon adds, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.” [Prov.1:7; ESV].

Again he says, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.” [Prov. 9:10; ESV]. Thus the quest for wisdom begins when a man begins to fear God.  Consequently, intellectualism outside of God is being non-intellectual. What then does it mean to fear God? To fear God is not to be afraid of him. To fear God is to obey him, to respect him, and to live in accordance with the dictates of his commandments.

submission to the Lord is critical to the attainment of real understanding. Thus wise counsel comes from the Lord Jesus Christ; for he is the Wonderful Counsellor [Isaiah 9:6]. If one disobeys him, one will never know real peace. All things will fall apart under one’s nose if one disobeys God.

Thus leaders need the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and fear of the LORD [Isaiah 11:2]; all of which are the hallmarks of our Lord Jesus Christ. The book of James caps it all when it says , “…the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.” [James 3:17-18; ESV].

So wisdom from God is pure, peace-loving, not violent [gentle], willing to listen to sensible or logical thinking, willing to forgive those towards whom one has the power to punish or harm, full of good produce, unbiased and  free from pretence or deceit.

Can anyone deliver Zimbabweans from bondage except God?

Now given our current problem and its corresponding symptoms, where can Zimbabweans turn to? Who can save them? Is it the West? Not really! Can it be the East? Not really too. Nobody can save Zimbabweans from their predicament altogether.Absolutely no one, except the Lord Almighty! God is the only one hope remaining. He is that one hope that has never failed to save humanity in its entire history.

Under such trying times, Zimbabweans have never ceased crying to God their Maker. We would like to salute all Zimbabweans for their resilience and tenacity under these very difficult circumstances. Everyone has suffered including even most veterans of the armed struggle. No one has been spared.

They have suffered in the hands of their taskmasters. They have suffered in the hands of those in positions of political leadership. Is God deaf and dumb? By no means! God does not keep quiet when his creation is being tormented. God will fight in his people’s corner. He will fight on behalf of the Zimbabweans.

As a reminder, no single Zimbabwean has title deeds to the land of Zimbabwe. The whole universe is God’s creation. So no one has entitlement to Zimbabwe, including those in ZANU PF. It is God who created and allocated the various geographical regions to people upon which to live.[Acts17:26]. Therefore, every Zimbabwean is a stakeholder to the motherland called Zimbabwe.

Now, we would like to assure our fellow country men and women, that the true God towards whom you directed your prayers day and night, is not dump and deaf, neither does he sleep. God does not enter into the voice mail mode. Thus, this true God has sent us, to deliver Zimbabweans from the jaws of a monster, and this monster, unequivocally, is the ZANU PF political leadership and its administration.

We are not delusional; nor are we suffering from any hallucination. We are simply putting on record what is in the mind of God. For the avoidance of doubt, this is not our project, but God’s, in much the same way as the deliverance of Israel from the Egyptian bondage was not Moses’ or Aaron’s project, but God’s.

We are not hiding from anyone the fact that God has truly heard the prayers of Zimbabwe’s citizenry and has thus sent us as executors of his plan. We are his vessels who are ready to execute this plan on his behalf. He is the author of this project.

When God called Moses, he said to him, “I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey,……

And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?”  God said, “But I will be with you…” [Exod. 3:7-12: ESV].

Even if God is omnipresent, that is, even if he is available at all places at the same time, for he is in heaven, his dwelling place, as he is on earth, he “descended” from heaven in a special way to deliver his people from the Egyptian bondage.

Zimbabwe today is comparable to the Egypt of yesteryear. Zimbabwe’s citizens are living in the yesteryear “land of Goshen in Egypt”; where oppression was the order of the day. Zimbabweans can no longer breathe. Democratic space has been squeezed by an authoritarian, totalitarian, autocratic, despotic and tyrannical political system of the ruling elite.

Her citizens have been oppressed and abused left, right and centre. Her political leaders were supposed to be good stewards and shepherds of God’s people. However, to our surprise, today’s political leaders have cannibalized God’s people and consequently, they have scattered them. Cannibalized them?

Yes, because as of now, a lot of Zimbabweans have perished in the hands of those who are supposed to look after and care for them. Some have been abducted and disappeared outright. There has been continued and systematic subjugation of the will of the people.

Scatter them? Yes, because over four million Zimbabweans are now livingin the diaspora, some as political refugees fleeing from political persecution, while others have fled the country as economic refugees looking for greener pastures because political leaders have committed economic genocide of exponential proportions.

Thus Zimbabweans have been crying for a very long period of time, and God has heard their cry, and has responded due to his abundant grace. Therefore, we have been sent by God as the Moses of today.

Political hurdles will stand in our way, but God will prevail

In directing us to take this political route, God is not oblivious to the fact that this journey will not be a stroll in the park. We have no illusions whatsoever about the troubles that are lurking ahead of us. God did not promise us that the journey will be trouble-free. Far be it. However, what he promised us is that even under trying times; he will not leave us alone as orphans.

He will always be with us; just as he promised his disciples that he would be with them always right up to the end of age [Matt. 28:20]. God is quite cognisant of the bumpy political road that lies ahead of us, and of the political hurdles that besiege this racing track. We are, therefore, fully aware of the political terrain on which we have now begun to tread. Notwithstanding these challenges, let us hasten to say that we are tempted to remind people that we have never seen or heard of a man or woman, in the entire history of mankind, who has waged a war against the Almighty and prevailed.

Absolutely no one! Just as God promised Moses that he will be with him, he indeed promised us that he will not leave us alone in this project. When a man’s actions are in conflict with God’s commandments, we will endeavour not to please man, the creature, but to please God, the Creator. As ambassadors of the Gospel of Christ, we do not trust in chariots and horses of war, but in the name of the Lord [Ps. 20:7].

Even if some of us may perish along the way, the resolve within us will not be extinguished; for we are prepared to endure on this route, and we will endure up to the end [Heb. 3:14]. We will suffer together with Christ in this project, in order that we may also be glorified with him when he returns [Rom. 8:17].

Our position on other main political parties

We acknowledge the role played by the MDC group and their mutable variants, especially from the days of its founding and iconic president, Morgan Richard Tsvangirai; for the democratic struggle that they have undertaken for almost 23 years now. Their efforts are quite cherished.

However, they have been in the dugout, they have been in the trenches for far too long. In fact, their struggle has been longer than the ZANU PF’s struggle itself of 17 years [1963-1980]. Zimbabweans are tired and desperate. Tired? Yes; because they have fought this war for over two decades now. Desperate?

Yes; because they are not quite sure if ever their landslide voting patterns will ever translate into them getting the power they so vigorously have been fighting for. Mugabe, by his own admission, said in one of their meetings that Morgan Tsvangirai had clobbered ZANU PF in the then Presidential election by winning 74% of the votes, only to be “corrected” by those in attendance to the effect that it was 47% of the votes and not 74. I hadn’t heard Mugabe as truthful as this before—a very honest statement from the geriatric! Very truthful indeed! So one is tempted to conclude that the MDC have been winning since the 2002 Presidential elections, but they have not been ruling.

On the contrary, we are here, in the name of God, to wrap up this struggle. We are here, in the name of God, to bring this chapter to its closure. We are here, in the name of God to bring it to its logical conclusion.

We also acknowledge the role played by the original and true cadres of the armed struggle, both in ZANU PF and PF ZAPU. They put up a brave and bitter armed struggle that culminated in the attainment of our independence that was epitomized by the raising of our Zimbabwean flag on 18 April 1980, ending a colonial system that officially had stretched from the midnight of 12/13 September 1890 when the Union Jack was raised on our soil; in the then Salisbury.

This legacy by the veterans of the armed struggle cannot be underestimated, neither can we downplay it. Their cause was, is and will still continue to be a well cherished cause. As Zimbabweans, we do not deny our indebtedness to this worthy cause, for which a lot of blood was shed. We salute all the gallant fighters of the armed struggle—both living and departed. However, this rich legacy has gradually been eroded by the shenanigans of the ZANU PF political actors, on whom they had bestowed the trust to lead Zimbabwe’s citizenry.

This rich legacy has wrongly been used as a license to maim people, as a licence to butcher and kill people; as a licence to pay a blind eye to the rule of law, as a licence to disrespect property rights, as a licence to pay a blind eye to revenue accountability and the general accountability of those in Government to the electorate,  as a licence to loot and plunder national resources with impunity, as a licence to pay a blind eye to the violation of human rights, as a licence to suffocate media and journalistic space,  as a licence to squash democratic space; as a licence to embark on political intolerance, and as a licence to violate the Constitution willy-nilly and to the whims and caprices of the ruling elite.

God forbid! All these vices are quite in sharp contrast to the ethos, values, cause and ideological thrust of the armed struggle. Today’s political actors in the ruling party have abused the trust and power which was vested in them by the stalwarts of the armed struggle. Not surprisingly, everyone is crying, including these stalwarts of the armed struggle because of the self-centredness of those upon whom they entrusted the stewardship of the country.

Our position on land

One of the key triggers of nationalism in Zimbabwe that subsequently led to the taking up of arms was the unjustifiable dispossession of the natives of their land and other resources without compensation. Section 72 of the 2013 Constitution; subsection 7; paragraphs (a) and (b); is quite explicit about this fact. Hence, according to section 72, subsection 3, paragraphs (a) and (b); and section 295, subsection 3, subject to section 295 subsections 1 and 2 of the same Constitution, no compensation is payable in respect of its acquisition, except compensation for improvements effected on the land before its acquisition, and no court may entertain any such application, for according to section 72 subsection 3 paragraph (c) of the Constitution, the acquisition may not be challenged on the ground that it was discriminatory in contravention of section 56 of the Constitution.

Thus Statutory Instrument 62 of 2020 was also promulgated with the same spirit of compensating such farmers only for improvements effected on their farms. Note that all “agricultural land” as defined by section 72  subsection 4; paragraphs (a) and (b) of the Constitution continues to be vested in the State, and no compensation is payable in respect of its acquisition except for improvements effected on it before its acquisition.

Historically, successive segregationist pieces of legislation were enacted that paved the way for inequalities in land ownership in Zimbabwe between whites and blacks. This philosophy of moving blacks off their land began immediately after the 1893 War of Dispossession which saw the defeat of the Ndebele. It continued for the next 84 years through to 1977.

It was a dual process of alienation [taking land from the original and rightful owners] and moving the original Zimbabwean inhabitants to less fertile and less well-watered Tribal Trust Lands or Native Reserves. From 1893 to 1977, there were seven Land Commissions that were set up by the settler authority to deal specifically with the land question, for example, the 1894 Land Commission, the 1902 Land Commission, the 1914 Land Commission and the 1925-26 Morris-Brown or the Carter Commission.

Thus the first land commission was set up in 1894 which specifically dealt with the aftermath of the defeat of the Ndebele. As a result of this defeat; the British South African Company [BSAC] claimed ownership of all land occupied by the Ndebele. Since the Ndebele, by right of conquest, had dominated most parts of Zimbabwe, this means that the white settlers, by extension, resultantly claimed the ownership of all land in Zimbabwe.

The 1894 Commission recommended the creation of “reservations/reserve areas” for the displaced Ndebele; and in 1895, two reserves namely Gwai and Shangani were established in a dry, semi-arid region hundreds of miles north of the centre of the Ndebele kingdom. In making such evictions, the Land Commission was not concerned about the economic and social well-being of the displaced people.

No wonder why the forced removal of the Ndebele to Gwai and Shangani as well as the hardships of living in that harsh environment, were among the primary causes of the 1896 Ndebele rebellion that culminated into the 1896-7 First Chimurenga/Umvekela, that became a national war.

The Carter Commission of 1926 recommended the segregation of all land on a virtually permanent basis between Blacks and Whites. The attitude of the Carter Commission is summarised in the following quote from their Report, “Until the Native [Black person] has advanced very much further on the path of civilisation, it is better that the points of contact between the two races should be reduced.”

Therefore, based on the Carter Commission’s Report, the need to divide the land between Blacks and Whites brought about the Land Apportionment Act of 1930. Hence, the division of the land as a result of the Land Apportionment Act produced the following outcomes in land ownership: Whites 51% of the land; Native Reserves 22%; Native Purchase Areas 7.8%; Forest Area 0.6%; Undetermined land 0.1%; Unassigned land 18.5%. Due to the Land Apportionment Act, about 1.5% of the population [whites], owned 51% of the land, while 98.5% of the population [blacks]; owned only 29.8% of the land.

As a consequence of this and subsequent Acts, the best land, for example along the Highveld was allocated to whites. Along the Highveld, temperatures were good and the rainfall pattern good too. On the other hand; the Native Reserves where ecologically fragile. These Reserves had poor agricultural soils, had erratic rainfall patterns and unfavourable climatic conditions.

They were also not quite suitable even for grazing. They were also “buffer zones” for wild animals like pigs, baboons and monkeys which fed on and destroyed their field crops, not forgetting lions and hyenas that preyed on their livestock. Note that the Land Apportionment Act made it illegal for Africans to purchase land outside of the established Native Purchase Areas.

Then there was the Native Land Husbandry Act of 1951, which was amended in 1969; which was enacted to achieve the following: regulate conservation measures; ensure good farming practices; relate the stocking levels of each area to its carrying capacity; allocate grazing rights to individuals; redistribute arable land into compact and economic units; and to register each individual’s holding of the land.

Do not forget that by this time, blacks were already overcrowded in what was called the Native Reserves or the Tribal Trust Land as a result of earlier pieces of legislation such as the Land Apportionment Act. This made the native areas become high population density homelands.

Then the Land Tenure Act No. 54/69, as amended in 1977; was another segregationist law that superseded the Land Apportionment Act. Its purpose was to ensure that each race would have its own area. Thus the interests of each race was to be paramount in its area and no race could own or occupy land in the area of the other race, except by permit, which permit was issued or refused by a Minister of Government, who was white. So these two Acts, namely the Land Apportionment Act and the Land Tenure Act; were not different in intention or effect. They were practically the same.

Let us not forget that by 1891, before Southern Rhodesia was established as a territory [Responsible Government was in 1923]; there were about 1,500 whites residing in the country. This number grew phenomenally especially after the Second World War which ended on 2 September 1945.

This number grew to about 75,000 by the end of 1945. In the decade 1945 to 1955, the white population doubled to 150, 000. So, in bid to cater for this ever growing population due to immigration, during this decade, over 100,000 farming black people had to be forcibly evicted and resettled away from the farmland that had been designated by whites, for white ownership. The white population in Zimbabwe continued to grow and it reached a peak of 300,000 in 1975-6; representing about 8% of the population.

Note that after the war in 1980, the land ownership imbalances where such that about 70% of arable land was in the hands of about 220 000 white people [with about 4 500 farmers amongst them]; while about 7.2 million black Zimbabweans [with close to 800 000 farmers amongst them]; directly or indirectly shared and depended on the remaining 30% of arable land. This imbalance was despite the fact that even by the early 1970s, total blacks outnumbered total whites by a ratio of 22:1.

Not surprisingly, due to the imbalances in land ownership that was engineered by successive pieces of segregationist legislation, the land question was the bedrock upon which a bitter and protracted armed struggle was premised. Land was the prime goal of King Lobengula’s War of dispossession as he fought the British encroachment in his dwelling area in 1893-4. Land was the principal grievance for the Ndebele and Shona uprising in the period 1896-7.

Land was also the overriding grievance that triggered the Second Chimurenga. Land was the fundamental grievance too that caused the Third Chimurenga. In all these wars, the objective of the wars was to right a historical wrong. Thus the land question was a primary cause of each and every Chimurenga/umvekela that was fought in Zimbabwe.

Given the foregoing, it would, therefore, be quite myopic for anyone to wish that blacks would once again be “moved off” their land, from which land they were originally evicted by colonial settlers without compensation. Never lose sight also of the fact that even well before the segregationist pieces of legislation were enacted, blacks were systematically being marginalised by the colonial settlers.

Thus in an effort to correct the historical wrong or the land ownership imbalances, there came the 1985 Land Acquisition Act. It gave a policy framework for land redistribution exercise by identifying and assessing farming areas that were not being efficiently utilized; determining the fair price for compensating the current owners of the underutilized land, which owners were primarily Europeans, and selecting rural dwellers that would be provided farming areas in the resettlement zones.

Then soon after the expiration of the 1980-1990 willing buyer-willing seller clause of the Lancaster House Agreement, came the 1992 Compulsory Land Acquisition Act. It sought to compulsorily acquire land. This Act was amended in 2000 [Fast Track Land Reform]; and further amended in 2005 to put all non-urban and non-communal land under state ownership.

The land redistribution exercise was meant to give back to the blacks their God-given inheritance; the land. Do not lose sight of the fact that the mainstay of the Zimbabwean economy has been and is land, upon which agriculture is based.

Notwithstanding the above facts, we do not condone the violent manner in which whites were removed from the land. We also do not condone a system of greed whereby the ruling elite eventually became multiple farm owners. In this regard, a rationalization of the land is needed and will be carried out. Zimbabwe should stick to the principle of one man one farm, in much the same way the veterans of the armed struggle advocated for a one man one vote.

Non-productive farms should be downsized and reallocated to those with competency in farming, because farming is and should be viewed as a business. White farmers who are still willing to cohabitate, farm and live symbiotically with black Zimbabweans should also not be left out in the rationalization exercise. They should also be allocated a piece of land on which to farm and earn a living, for land is a vital factor of production; that was given to humanity by God.

Our position on sanctions

Sanctions are a resultant child of ZANU PF’s maladministration. They are an illegitimate child born by ZANU PF from their shenanigans out of wedlock. Notwithstanding this fact, sanctions are not good for our people. They hurt the ordinary man on the street the most. They hit hardest the less privileged members of our society. It is true that they were enacted as targeted sanctions, for they were meant to target certain individuals and organisations with associations to such individuals.

However, when the assets of such targeted individuals were frozen, some of these individuals, if not all, entered into the mode of wrong compensatory behaviour. They wrongly responded by increasing their marginal propensity to loot and plunder national resources. To illustrate my point, for example, when a person’s US$1 billion was frozen; the person in question would loot first US$1 billion to cover the gap.

Then, he would also loot an additional US$1 billion as a “safety net” or as an “insurance sum”; ‘just in case’. The net effect is that the national assets are cleaned up. Therefore, it would not be surprising to find that there are no drugs in hospitals, let alone basics like bandages and painkillers. Given this background, the net loser was not the targeted politician, but the net loser became the ordinary man on the street who was meant to benefit from the embezzled national resources. No wonder why even if a loaf of bread costs US$100, these targeted individuals are so filthy rich that they can afford to buy several loaves of bread per day for the rest of their lives. Thus the response by the West of imposing sanctions on Zimbabwe was off the mark, it missed the target because it ended up hitting hardest the unintended target.

Please note that the “sanctions mantra” has been used rhetorically by the ruling party as a scapegoat for poor economic performance. Sanctions should never be used as a cover up for maladministration. The “sanctions mantra” is simply empty rhetoric and it is hyperbolic. People should not lose sight of the fact that as soon as Ian Douglas Smith announced a Unilateral Declaration of Independence on 11 November 1965, Southern Rhodesia was immediately slapped with an economic embargo by virtually all countries, save for apartheid South Africa and until 1974, Portugal.

The sanctions stretched for 14 solid years up to their revocation in December 1979 during the ceasefire period, when Southern Rhodesia had reverted to become a British Colony during the Lancaster House Talks. Please take note that despite the fact that Smith was fighting a bitter war to repel the gallantly ZANLA and ZIPRA combatants; Southern Rhodesia went on to post some budget surpluses in some of the years in the 1970s. As if that was not enough, sanctions gave the Rhodesian manufacturing sector a major stimulus. These sanctions obliged Rhodesian industries to diversify and create many import substitution undertakings to compensate for the loss of traditional sources of imports. The processing of local raw materials also increased rapidly.

Major growth industries included steel and steel products, heavy equipment, transportation equipment, ferrochrome, textiles and food processing. Thus the economy of Southern Rhodesian sustained international sanctions for over a decade following UDI under a very tough guerrilla war situation. As if that was not enough, in 1980, when the Union Jack was lowered and the Zimbabwean flag was moved in the opposite direction, the cross rate of the British Pound to the Rhodesian Pound was almost 1:1.The Unites States dollar, now the envy of many Zimbabweans was a pale shadow in strength to the Rhodesian dollar. The rand and the pula, we did not even look at them.

Hence, Smith was operating under a worse economic embargo than we are witnessing today, yet his economy grew phenomenally. From the aforesaid, we can authoritatively conclude that the current administration is merely using sanctions as a cover up for poor economic performance and deteriorating living standards. Sanctions have been used as a scapegoat for poor economic performance in much the same way as the Russo-Ukrainian war is now blamed for a spate of price increases in Zimbabwe, even if we know quite well that Russia illegally invaded Ukraine on 24 February 2022, and by then, we were already in a hyperinflationary environment.

We are not denying the fact that exogenous factors like the war in Ukraine is contributing to the death of a child called Zimbabwe. They are playing a part. However, this child was already in the intensive care unit well before 24 February 2022. Therefore, the harm was triggered by endogenous factors, whilst the exogenous factors are merely finishing off the child.

Is funding Zimbabwe’s major handicap? Why is it that some of the richest nations in terms of natural resource endowment rank among the poorest?

Funding is not Zimbabwe’s major setback, but political will is. Political will, which is the determination of political actors to say and do things that will produce a desired outcome, is the main handicap. Put differently, in our context, political will is the extent to which key political decision-makers are committed to supporting a particular policy solution to a particular problem.

Thus political will exists when a sufficient set of decision-makers with a common understanding of a particular problem on the formal agenda, is committed to supporting a commonly perceived, potentially effective policy solution. If political will is non-existent, it does not follow suit that richer countries in terms of natural resource endowment automatically become richer countries economically. Look at Zimbabwe as an example. She is home to over 60 minerals, only 10 of which are actively being mined.

Zimbabwe has also the second highest grade of chromium ore in the world after South Africa, amounting to about 12 billion tonnes, which is about 12% of the global total. As if that is not enough, Zimbabwe has also the third largest deposits of platinum ore after South Africa and Russia, amounting to 6.83% of the global total. The Great Dyke is home to vast mineral resources, yet Zimbabwe is the 22^nd poorest nation in the world. Lest we forget, in Chiadzwa, one simply needed a pick and a shovel, unlike the diamond mines in Kimberley; South Africa; where one needs to dig 20 km deep in order to get these gems. Who benefited from the discovery of these gems in Chiadzwa? Did the Chiadzwa diamonds benefit the generality of Zimbabweans? The answer is in the negative.

Let us also look at the case of the Democratic Republic of Congo. It is the richest country in the world in terms of natural resource endowment. It has over 1,000 minerals, and has a surface area equivalent to that of Western Europe, and the second largest rainforest in the world; with untapped deposits of raw materials amounting to US$24 trillion; yet the DRC is the 17^th poorest country in the world according to the United Nations Human Development Index [2019 Report].

According to the World Bank, DRC has the 3^rd largest population of poor people globally. In 2018, it was estimated that 73% of the Congolese population, equalling about 60 million people, lived on less than US$1.90 a day, which US$1.90 is the international poverty rate. Therefore, almost 14% or one out of seven people living in extreme poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa lives in DRC.

Let us contrast the above with Japan, for example. Japan, one of the most highly developed countries in the world, has virtually no natural resources like gas, oil, gold, coal, copper and iron. It largely depends on imported raw materials and energy. Do not forget that its nuclear power plants were closed some years ago due to incessant earth quakes and tsunamis. Japan is the largest importer of liquefied natural gas and coal, and the second largest importer of oil in the world, yet she ranks as one of the most developed economies.

Other than agricultural land, of which only 20% of total land is suitable for cultivation, and its fisheries; Japan has negligible mineral resources under her seabed. Note also that 40% of her total forests are planted forests. Despite all these setbacks, Japan ranks among the highly developed countries on planet earth. So to have or not to have natural resources is not the main determinant of economic prosperity/wealth/funding, neither is it the main determinant of poverty/human welfare.

So it is not simply a question of funding or of having a lot of assets or natural resources that triggers a country towards economic prosperity and economic independence. It is more to do with the political will to harness and appropriate the resources in question for the betterment of everyone’s living standards. Why, for example, is it that a good number of billionaires in the world today rise up like islands in a sea of poverty in poor third world countries? We should look no further than the unchecked access to the looting and plundering of state resources for our answer!

Hence, our problem in the developing world is not to do with funding or resources, but the mismanagement of the funds or resources is symptomatic of the problem. Leaders who do not fear God are the problem. How can we explain why Japan, which does not have a significant mineral resource, is an advanced economy? Human capital is not the only factor, for this can be acquired by Africa too, for example, through partnerships and knowledge transfers.

The answer is greed political leaders who are not made to account for their actions. These political leaders craft agreements with foreign investors, not for the benefit of their counties, but for the betterment of their families at the expense of their nation. This obviously shrouds the political will to advance their economies, since national benefits or resources become like private fiefdoms, which are meant to feed their families and friends at the expense of the rest of the populace.

No wonder why as Africans, we are always holding a begging bowl in our hands, yet Africa has a rich endowment in natural resources. These leaders do not exploit and appropriate the resources for the advancement of everyone’s living standards, but for their personal gain largely.

By failing to honour God, Belshazzar engineered his own downfall

When Belshazzar, son and successor to King Nebuchadnezzar was feasting and celebrating, he ordered that the utensils that his father had taken from the Temple in Jerusalem during his conquest of the same, be brought in before him at the party. He and his lords, his wives and his concubines put wine in them and drank the wine; and he praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which do not see or hear or know, but he did not honour the true God in whose hand was his breadth. Then as he drank the wine, a hand that came from the presence of God wrote on the wall in front of him. The inscription read: MENE MENE TEKEL and PARSIN. The interpretation, as revealed by God to Daniel was that:

• MENE: God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it to an end.
• TEKEL: You have been weighed in the balance and found wanting.
• PARSIN/PERES: Your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.

This scenario is analogous to our Zimbabwean situation today. We have a similar message to the political leadership of the ruling party in government, that is, the administration of His Excellency, the President of the Republic of Zimbabwe, the Head of State and Government and Commander in Chief of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces, Cde ED Mnangagwa. The message is that:

• God has numbered the days of your rule and brought it to an end.
• You have been put on a measuring scale by God and found wanting.
• Consequently, your kingdom has been given to your neighbour by God. Like in the days of Saul, God did not hide from Saul the fact that he had given the kingdom of Israel to his neighbour, David [1 Sam.28:17]. The reason why God rejected Saul was that Saul was the first to reject God. Reciprocally, God too rejected Saul. Hence, God told King Saul through the prophet Samuel, “…For you have rejected the word of the LORD, and the LORD has rejected you from being king over Israel” [1 Sam. 15:26]. Similarly, even today, God has also not hidden the fact that he has given the kingdom of Zimbabwe to your neighbour; a David. This fate has been sealed. This fate is irrevocable. This fate is un-appealable, for God’s case has no appeal. God is a Supreme Court in himself.

To avoid ambiguity, this David is not coming from the MDC group, with their various mutations that encompass the CCC brand, just in case some fanatics in this division may start to prematurely celebrate; neither is this successor David coming from within the ZANU PF stable. What I am saying is the mind of God; and it will happen irrespective of the amount of resistance or opposing force. Should I hide the fact that God has appointed me the David? By no means! Certainly not! If I do, I would be a liar like most of them, which is sin. God did not even hide this fact from King Saul.

Last but not least, I urge my sisters, brothers, mothers and fathers in the Security Services of Zimbabwe [the Defence Forces, the Police Service, the Intelligence Services and the Prisons and Correctional Service]; that they should remain apolitical as per section 208 subsections 2 and 3 of our Constitution. This is purely a political contest; and politics should be left to civilian rule.

A better Zimbabwe will be better for everyone, including you too. Lest I be misquoted and be charged with either treason or subversive speech; let me put it on record that we do not seek to overthrow the government through undemocratic and unconstitutional means. That is not Godly, and more so, we do not subscribe to that sort of philosophy. Our hands cannot kill even a cockroach. Our overriding principle is that we will get into power through the ballot box, democratically.

Like a dove, I come in peace and in peace I sign off.

AMEN.

PARERE KUNYENZURA

PRESIDENT: ZIMBABWE TRANSFORMATIVE PARTY.         

By- CCC deputy chairman Job Sikhala has been angered by a police statement issued following the abduction of his party member.

Police Tuesday issued a statement absolving a Zanu PF activist, Pius Jambo, who abducted CCC supporter Moreblessing Ali in Beatrice.

Below is what Sikhala posted in response to the ZRP statement:

This is complete bull crap Paul Nyathi. Pius Jamba is a well known ZANU PF thug here in Chitungwiza. He is half brother to Simba Chisango and they have been working for hand in glove to terrorise innocent citizens in Nyatsime. There are several pending reports and cases before the

This is complete bull crap Paul Nyathi. Pius Jamba is a well known ZANU PF thug here in Chitungwiza. He is half brother to Simba Chisango and they have been working hand in gloves to terrorise innocent citizens in Nyatsime. There are several pending reports and cases before the pic.twitter.com/kamPGaUmSH

— HON Job Wiwa Sikhala (@JobSikhala1) May 30, 2022

By- Two armed robbers have pounced on a local Bulawayo shop and got away with over US$13 000 and R8 000.

The robbers hit Hamara fruit and vegetable supermarket located along Fife street between 3rd and 4th avenue in Bulawayo.

The incident occurred around 9 AM on Monday, 30 May 2022.

According to the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP), the total value of cash taken was US$ 13 242, R8 892, and ZWL$5 840.
ZRP spokesperson in Bulawayo Metropolitan Province, Inspector Abednico Ncube, said the two suspects entered the supermarket armed with pistols and ordered everyone to lie down on the ground.
He said the suspects grabbed an employee and pointed a gun at his head and demanded money.

The employee led the suspects to an office where they kept the money and ordered the safe to be opened. Said Inspector Ncube:
The complainant two complied and gave them cash amounting to over US$11000 plus over R6000 and over ZW$5000.
They proceeded to another office where there was a safe and ordered complainant two to open the safe and she complied and took US$210.
Insp Ncube said the suspects started kicking another employee on his belly, demanding keys to the manager’s safe.
Another employee was forced to open the safe but it was empty. Added Inspector Ncube:
The accused persons then went back to the tills where they collected more cash from the three tills amounting to US$1 150 and R2 000 and left the scene.
The employees later filed a report at ZRP, Bulawayo Central, and the police attended the scene.
Meanwhile, Inspector Ncube exhorted businesses not to keep large sums of money on their premises.

He also commended the four employees for complying with the armed robbers’ instructions as this prevented the loss of lives.
CITE

By Farai D Hove  | Govt Permanent Secretary Ndabaningi Mangwana yesterday alleged that the missing CCC activist, Moreblessing
Ali was kidnapped by a lover.

The suspected kidnapper is more than 20 years younger than the victim. Pius Jamba is 24, and the victim is 46 years old.

Mangwana tweeted saying that Ali’s disappearance was a case of domestic violence.

“So, some bitter jilted boyfriend drags his girlfriend into some dark alley in a clear case of domestic violence. Shouldn’t our campaign be about domestic violence rather than political violence or politically-motivated abductions where they actually don’t exist?” he posted.

Moreblessing’s brother,
Washington scoffed at the suggestion, saying there is no way his cousin would have affair with someone who is the age of her own son. He, speaking with ZimEye, also questioned how the police only published a statement following a ZimEye interview with the co accused, Simba Chisango, who is a top ZANUPF official for the Nyatsime area.

Further commenting, the Zimbabwe Human Rights Association (ZimRights) said it had dispatched its own team to investigate the matter.

“The cases of enforced disappearance are serious issues,” ZimRights national director, Dzikamai Bere said.

By- President Emerson Mnangagwa has responded to calls by the Parliament pushing him to replace the fired former Vice President, Kembo Mohadi.

Mnangagwa’s spokesperson George Charamba has said such Members of Parliament were “ignorant”.

Charamba told NewsDay that Mnangagwa would make the appointment in his own time. Said Charamba:
It is a prerogative of the President to decide when to appoint a minister or a Vice-President.
Do you think you can force us to do something we don’t want to do? At what point does Parliament make decisions for the Executive?
How does the Legislature force the hand of the Executive? On what basis?

Parliament is out of order; they have no reason compelling appointments which are a prerogative of the President.
It is not their duty and they must keep off and know their terms. It’s straightforward, they are ignorant.
Last month, Magwegwe MP Anele Ndebele (MDC Alliance) raised a matter of privilege in the National Assembly, requesting to know when a second Vice President would be appointed in the spirit of the 1987 Unity Accord.
The Unity Accord created two Vice President posts one from the former PF ZAPU party which was led by the late Vice President Joshua Nkomo and the other from ZANU PF.

Former ZANU PF Mashonaland West provincial chairman, Temba Mliswa, who is Norton MP (Independent) has also called for the appointment of a second VP, saying the people of Matabeleland were being deprived of representation.
The post has been vacant since February last year when Kembo Mohadi resigned amid revelations that he was involved in a love affair with a married female staffer in his office.

Tinashe Sambiri| Hard-hitting CCC deputy chairperson Hon Job Sikhala has blasted ZRP boss Paul Nyathi for protecting Zanu PF hooligans who abducted Moreblessing Ali.

Sikhala has described Paul Nyathi’s statement as “bull crap.”

The fearless politician wrote on his Twitter blog saying:

Paul Nyathi your crap statement absolving Simba Chisango from the violence that happened to Moreblessing Ali shld be informed by the report right on your desk by 1 of his victims.

My case number CR 73/05/22. The attack was on 15/05/22. Reported on 16/05/22. Jeche Precious is my name…

This is complete bull crap Paul Nyathi. Pius Jamba is a well known ZANU PF thug here in Chitungwiza. He is half brother to Simba Chisango and they have been working hand in gloves to terrorise innocent citizens in Nyatsime.

This is embarrassing and a clear demonstration that u protect perpetrators of violence. It is a pathetic lie to suggest that it was a love affair conflict when it was clear political violence. We live and stay here in Chitungwiza. Hatiudzirwe. Don’t lie to the nation.

Apprehend the culprits and let them show us where Mobby is. This statement should be known to the world that the Zimbabwe police trivialize the violence perpetrated against opposition figures and protect the warlords of ZANU PF.

This is the picture of Pius Jambo, half brother to Simba Chisango who is alleged to be behind the attack of Moreblessing Ali and responsible for her disappearance.

He is said to be currently hiding in Hurungwe.

By- An AFM pastor has been evicted and pitched a tent at the church.

Reverend Alexio Gomani of the Cossam Chiangwa Apostolic Faith Mission ofZimbabwe (AFM) pitched a tent attached to Nyaure Apostolic Faith in Zimbabwe Assembly.

Gomani is protesting the Supreme Court ruling granted last year, in favour of the Amon Madawo-led reformist faction of the AFM church.

A villager from Shumba Village who spoke to H-Metro said they expect men of the cloth to be exemplary. He said:

We are not happy with what Reverend Gomani is trying to teach our community.

He was evicted, according to law, but he went on to erect a tent attached to the church building, from where he was ordered to vacate sometime last year.

Conducting church services at the premises, where other people will be inside for another service, is wrong.

Whatever he will be teaching, or sharing in the name of God, is discord to us.

We are appealing to Reverend Chiangwa to address or guide Rev Gomani accordingly.

As a community, we expect church members to fight crime, and preach peace and true leadership for community development.

Meanwhile, another Chiyangwa-linked pastor, Reverend Albert Chabvuta was recently ordered by the High Court to vacate the Tynwald AFM Assembly premises.

Chabvuta allegedly clashed with the assembly caretaker following the ruling. The matter is pending at Harare Magistrates’ Court.

More: H-Metro

By-Watch Auxillia Mnangagwa video live on www.zimeye.com

https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Ftwitter.com%2FZimEye%2Fstatus%2F1531722674702929920%3Ft%3Dsk6qhoHFJKDyCBViCtwoLA%26s%3D19%26fbclid%3DIwAR28rDFzRYNji0yc0yUNhPe11oo6xDxMo6jI6KFgGCj322KtnXZC6OGzzHk&h=AT2QwMWKd33qjxDOqVSO3LkLtRBjnZL38SBTJjf07tcXJc_9wBLs9cG2KYP_hJsHCs7iuju5KtsOV9pHT-JTCHmzQtdUoOKEcegLwsPwBl5DrExIEdj2g6BHvS9c2POj9170bSv0Dy8

https://youtu.be/_8nUFr0Kl1E

Simba

By- CCC deputy chairman Job Sikhala has been angered by a police statement issued following the abduction of his party member.

Police Tuesday issued a statement absolving a Zanu PF activist, Pius Jambo, who abducted CCC supporter Moreblessing Ali in Beatrice.

Below is what Sikhala posted in response to the ZRP statement:

This is complete bull crap Paul Nyathi. Pius Jamba is a well known ZANU PF thug here in Chitungwiza. He is half brother to Simba Chisango and they have been working for hand in glove to terrorise innocent citizens in Nyatsime. There are several pending reports and cases before the

This is complete bull crap Paul Nyathi. Pius Jamba is a well known ZANU PF thug here in Chitungwiza. He is half brother to Simba Chisango and they have been working hand in gloves to terrorise innocent citizens in Nyatsime. There are several pending reports and cases before the pic.twitter.com/kamPGaUmSH

— HON Job Wiwa Sikhala (@JobSikhala1) May 30, 2022

By-The two first ladies rose to prominence after working as government secretaries and marrying powerful men.

Grace had a 41-year age difference with Mugabe, while Auxillia has a 21-year age difference with Mnangagwa.

?The two first ladies rose to prominence after working as government secretaries and marrying powerful men. Grace had a 41-year age difference with Mugabe while Auxillia has a 21-year age difference with @edmnangagwa .https://t.co/bb2ZSHPQnS @wisdomdzungairi pic.twitter.com/sK8XGhCuNt

— NewsDay Zimbabwe (@NewsDayZimbabwe) May 31, 2022

By- The High Court has interdicted Local Government Minister July Moyo from suspending the Harare Mayor Jacob Mafume.

Justice Joseph Mafusire on Tuesday ordered Local Government and Public Works Minister July Moyo not to interfere with Mafume’s work at Town House.

Moyo has suspended Mafume several times as a councillor on allegations of gross misconduct, gross incompetence, and willful violation of the law.
According to the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, Justice Mafusire has ordered Moyo not to suspend Mafume again on the same or similar allegations as in his letters of suspension of December 2020, January 2021, September 2021, and December 2021.
The judge also ruled that the decision to suspend Mafume is a nullity and set it aside.
Mafume was represented by Tonderai Bhatasara of ZLHR, who in January filed an application for review of Moyo’s decision to suspend him as Ward 17 Councillor.

By- The High Court has interdicted Local Government Minister July Moyo from suspending the Harare Mayor Jacob Mafume.

Justice Joseph Mafusire on Tuesday ordered Local Government and Public Works Minister July Moyo not to interfere with Mafume’s work at Town House.

Moyo has suspended Mafume several times as a councillor on allegations of gross misconduct, gross incompetence, and willful violation of the law.

He has also, on several occasions, replaced Mafume with Stewart Mutizwa of the Douglas Mwonzora led MDC-T.

According to the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, Justice Mafusire has ordered Moyo not to suspend Mafume again on the same or similar allegations as in his letters of suspension of December 2020, January 2021, September 2021, and December 2021.
The judge also ruled that the decision to suspend Mafume is a nullity and set it aside.
Mafume was represented by Tonderai Bhatasara of ZLHR, who in January filed an application for review of Moyo’s decision to suspend him as Ward 17 Councillor.

By- The High Court has ruled that Jacob Mafume should not be suspended from his Harare mayoral position.

Justice Joseph Mafusire on Tuesday ordered Local Government and Public Works Minister July Moyo not to interfere with Mafume’s work at Town House.

Moyo has suspended Mafume several times as a councillor on allegations of gross misconduct, gross incompetence, and willful violation of the law.
According to the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, Justice Mafusire has ordered Moyo not to suspend Mafume again on the same or similar allegations as in his letters of suspension of December 2020, January 2021, September 2021, and December 2021.
The judge also ruled that the decision to suspend Mafume is a nullity and set it aside.
Mafume was represented by Tonderai Bhatasara of ZLHR, who in January filed an application for review of Moyo’s decision to suspend him as Ward 17 Councillor.

Tinashe Sambiri|Citizens’ Coalition for Change has accused the Zimbabwe Republic Police of failing to take a firm position on the abduction of Moreblessing Ali.

The ZRP has released a statement literally defending Zanu PF bosses implicated in the abduction of Moreblessing.

In a statement, CCC called for the immediate release of Moreblessing.

WE CONDEMN THE ENFORCED DISAPPEARANCE OF MOREBLESSING ALI

Ms Moreblessing Ali (47 years of age) is a strong member of the Citizens’ Coalition for Change who is a community leader in Ward 21, Chitungwiza North. She is the mother of two children and has been involved in various community-building activities.

On the night of the 24th of May 2022, it is reported by an eyewitness who knows Moreblessing Ali well that she was seized and forcibly shoved into a motor vehicle by Pius Jambo who is a member of Zanu PF. It is alleged that he is the half-brother of Simba Chisango, who is a Zanu PF leader in the Nyatsime area. They are both known for using violence and terror in the community.

Moreblessing Ali’s family was informed of the enforced disappearance on the 25th of May 2022 whereupon an official police report was made at Makoni Police Station by the CCC. The team that had been deployed to handle the police report and assist with investigations on behalf of the movement was subsequently referred to DisPol Mashonaland East where a further report was made under reference number 5048384.

On Saturday, the 28th of May 2022, a team of hundreds of citizens led by CCC MPs, councillors and community leaders conducted a search party for Moreblessing Ali throughout the Nyatsime area. Regrettably, the search was not successful. Continued contact with the Police has revealed that the chief suspect, Pius Jambo, is also on the run for other criminal offences. According to information in the possession of the CCC investigation team, Jambo is allegedly facing charges of murder and fraud. Today, further investigations have revealed that chief suspect, Jambo, is in hiding in Hurungwe.

A team has been dispatched to conduct a further search for him there while the investigation into the whereabouts of Moreblessing Ali continue.

We condemn the continued disregard of the rule of law by Zanu PF, the flagrant use of violence, the abuse of fundamental human rights and the escalation of political violence against our members.

Zanu PF has a long record of using enforced disappearances as a tool to spread terror with society. The insecurity and fear generated by these despicable acts is not limited to close relatives but also affects communities beyond that which is directly affected. The examples of Rai Dzamara, Joana Mamombe, Cecilia Chimbiri and Netsai Marova, to mention a few, prove this beyond any doubt. Enforced disappearances have no place in a constitutional democracy.

We call for the Zimbabwe Republic Police to honour their constitutional mandate set out in section 219 of the Constitution to protect and secure the lives of all Zimbabweans and investigate this matter in a non-partisan manner. We call upon any person who has knowledge about the whereabouts of Moreblessing Ali to get in touch with Hon Godfrey Sithole (CCC) on 0774558997 or any leader of the CCC to ensure that Moreblessing Ali is found and returned safely to her family.

Fadzayi Mahere National Spokesperson

This is complete bull crap Paul Nyathi. Pius Jamba is a well known ZANU PF thug here in Chitungwiza. He is half brother to Simba Chisango and they have been working hand in gloves to terrorise innocent citizens in Nyatsime. There are several pending reports and cases before the pic.twitter.com/kamPGaUmSH

— HON Job Wiwa Sikhala (@JobSikhala1) May 30, 2022

is embarrassing and a clear demonstration that u protect perpetrators of violence. It is a pathetic lie to suggest that it was a love affair conflict when it was clear political violence. We live and stay here in Chitungwiza. Hatiudzirwe. Don't lie to the nation. It purely

— HON Job Wiwa Sikhala (@JobSikhala1) May 30, 2022

Can you imagine that most of the people who enumerated in the Zim 2022 Census haven't been paid yet up until now!

After all that effort, what is wrong with this government? They say it's a payroll glitch. It's been a month now. We all know Census is well and fully funded!!??? pic.twitter.com/eemSGzhWj3

— Sir. Muhlwa (@Fewbrix) May 30, 2022

By A Correspondent- A 23 year old Harare woman arrested on allegations of smuggling sex toys (dildos) and selling some to schoolchildren was granted bail on Monday after spending 15 days in jail.

Ayanda Unity Mponda was released on ZWL$30 000 bail by High Court judge Justice Esther Muremba.

She was also ordered to report to the police twice weekly.

A magistrate had denied Mponda bail saying she was a danger to society. She was arrested on 15 May.

Mponda, who is represented by Harare lawyer Zorodzai Dumbura, denies charges she sold her toys to children.

She is being charged for violating provisions of the Customs and Excise Act and exposing children to pornographic material.

By A Correspondent- Top economist Eddie Cross Monday gave a gloomy image of Zimbabwe’s battered economy but maintained dollarising it will destroy the country’s re-industrialisation drive.

Speaking to NewZimbabwe.com Monday, Cross said although the country’s inflation rate was “worryingly” on the increase, the much-preferred US dollar was not Zimbabwe’s solution to its economic crisis.

“We face very considerable difficulties at the moment, and I am afraid recent actions by government have not helped,” said Cross about President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s decision to temporarily suspend banks’ lending.

The government’s measure led to huge losses by business and worsened exchange rate disparities.

“The inflation continues to grow, very worryingly, very rapidly. The parallel marketing rate continues to depreciate, it is approaching ZW$500 now.

“I do not think we should dollarise. I will go the other way. We are not going to dollarise, it is government policy and I concur with that view.

“If you go to any of our neighbouring countries such as South Africa, the Rand is used, Zambia uses its Kwacha, in Botswana they use their Pula, and in Mozambique they use the Mozambican Metical. These countries use their own currencies and do not use the United States Dollar (USD).   

“We need to use our own currency and that is the key to maintaining our productive sector. If we dollarise, we destroy our competitiveness,” Cross added.

His comments will however not be well received by civil servants who have been threatening to go on industrial action if government does not award them salaries in the more table US dollar.

Their Zimbabwe dollar wages have been eroded by massive inflation, with most of them getting about ZW$19 000, an equivalent of less than US$50 at the prevailing black-market rate.

Zimbabwe’s inflation stands at 244%, ahead of war-torn Ukraine and Syria; and on top of economist Steve Hanke’s global rankings.

Cross said Zimbabwe’s fundamentals supported the use of the Zimbabwe dollar, further referring to Finance Mthuli Ncube’s surplus.

Without clarifying, he blamed the current crisis on how the country was trading its foreign currency.

Said Cross:

“There is nothing wrong with the economy, the fundamentals are sound here, we have a balance payment surplus, we have a surplus in our budget accounts and there is no reason for the country to be in this situation.

“We are not trading our foreign currency properly, if we did so, Zimbabwe would be a different country quickly.”

Cross, a former MDC legislator, said time was up for the old and the young should now take over reigns of the economy as has happened in other developing countries.

“A lot of change is needed in the business sector, but it is to do with the young people.

“The main change I see in the business sector is terrific, I want the young generation to take control of the economy, It is their time. My time is finished.  

“The new generation needs to stand up and take the lead. It happened in China and Rwanda and soon you will see the results.” Cross said.

By A Correspondent- Heavily indebted State power utility Zesa Holdings has incurred a fresh US$43,5 million debt under a public private partnerships (PPP) with one of its major customers, Dinson Iron and Steel Company (Disco).

Disco is a sister company to Afrochine, and is currently establishing a mega steel production and value-addition project in Manhize, Mvuma where its first steel production is expected in September 2023.

The new debt adds to the more than US$37 million legacy debt owed to the power utility by various entities.

Zesa’s indebtedness brings into question the issue of viability at a time when its going concern status has been questioned due to its ballooning debt.

Most of its operational costs are largely due to antiquated equipment. Latest reports state that Zesa owes creditors more than $15 billion.

During a signing ceremony for the facility which is under the Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company (ZETDC), Zesa’s energy distributing arm, ZETDC managing director Howard Choga said a transmission line would be set up from Kwekwe, Sherwood substation to Manhize in Chivu where Disco’s steel project is based.

“The project was approved by Cabinet a fortnight ago…in three years, Disco will require 500MW,” he said.

“I would like to assure the nation that we are up to the task,” Choga added.

Disco representative Wilfred Motsi said the powerline got the greenlight from environmental authorities after an impact assessment on the project was carried out. He also said the Lands ministry identified land to resettle farmers who may be affected by the powerline.

All the equipment for the project is already in place, Motsi said.

“It’s not just a key enabler for our project but a model that will benefit the Zimbabwean economy,” Motsi added.

Disco will require 40% of the power in the initial stages.

When fully operational, Disco’s project requires 500MW and is set to be the largest power-consuming project in the country which is generating just about 1  700MW.

Disco’s steel plant has capacity to produce more than 1,2 million tonnes of steel annually. Last year, Afrochine said the steel plant would sit on 2 000 hectares. This will comprise a 1,5km long and 600 metre wide processing plant and mines.

Altogether the operation will turn over at least US$1,5 billion per annum.

Afrochine, Zimbabwe’s largest chrome smelting operation is a subsidiary of Chinese conglomerate Tsingshan Holdings, which accounts for 25% of global steel production.-statemedia

By A Correspondent- A teacher in Zaka District, Masvingo Province, is one of the four suspected members of a syndicate remanded in prison last week over copper cables theft.

Olivia Muchekeza, a teacher at Gumbu Primary School in Zaka, and her alleged accomplices were arrested on allegations of stealing 30.5kgs of four core armoured cables and 26.5kgs of copper rewinds.

Muchekeza’s lawyer Tafadzwa Mbwachena of Ruvengo Maboke and Partners argued that she was not part of the syndicate.

Mbwachena told magistrate Ritaiswe Silaigwana that Muchekeza only provided space for storage of the cables after being asked by the key suspect.

Muchekeza appeared in court last week on Wednesday and was remanded to 4 June 2022.

The State led by Tarisai Muvengi is opposing bail arguing that the charges faced by the four are serious and they could abscond if granted bail.

However, Mbwachena argued that Muchekeza was unlikely to abscond as she was gainfully employed as a teacher.

He also submitted that his client owns a house at number 16205 Gwara Street, Runyararo West and therefore has more to lose if she absconds.

Muchekeza’s co-accused are Fanuel Moyo, Kenneth Makotose and Bernad Mufanebadza.

Muvengi told the court that on 22 May 2022, police received a tip-off that the alleged syndicate was involved in copper theft.

Following investigations, police found the accused persons loading cables in a Toyota Honda Fit parked outside Muchekeza’s house.

Mbwachena is also representing the other three suspects and he made bail arguments for Moyo and Makotose and will make representations for Mufanebadza at a later stage.

Mbwachena submitted that Makotose, who is a taxi driver did not know anything about the alleged theft.

He said Makotose was only asked by Mufanebadza to provide transport for undisclosed luggage.

He further argued that Moyo who is employed as a security guard by Shynetime was called by Mufanebadza to assist in carrying the heavy sacks.

By A Correspondent- Kudakwashe Mahachi, accompanied by his wife, Rose Tatenda Mahachi, finally visited his child at Mpilo Central Hospital on Sunday after his lawyers secured a court order.

The minor was admitted to the hospital on 19 April with third-degree burns.

Mahachi is alleged to have deliberately scalded his four-year-old son with hot water in South Africa before he smuggled him to Zimbabwe.

He denies the allegations and has engaged a law firm, Tanaka Law Chambers to clear his name.

In an interview with B-Metro, Mahachi’s lawyer, Nkosiyabo Sibanda, of Tanaka Law Chambers confirmed that his client visited his son. He said:

Yes, we went to Mpilo Hospital yesterday and father and son had a healthy conversation.

The child requested goodies from his father. That is all I can say for now.

Mahachi’s ex-wife, Maritha Ndlovu, who is the mother of the minor, confirmed that Mahaachi and his wife visited the child. She said:

He came with his wife after they produced a court order and the hospital allowed them to see the child.

I kept out of their way because the law has to be respected, but the visit traumatised my child because he was not comfortable and he cried throughout the night. Calming him was a struggle.

-BMetro

By- Zanu PF has ululated the alleged defection of the wife of CCC Binga North legislator Prince Dubeko Sibanda, to the ruling party.

Zanu PF claims that Memory wrote a letter to the party leadership in Matabeleland North province, saying that she Zanu PF’s progressive development policies lured her.

The state media reports that Zanu PF Matabeleland North provincial chairman, Richard Moyo, confirmed receiving a letter from Mrs Sibanda.

“Yes I received a letter from Honourable Sibanda’s wife Memory requesting to join the ruling party, Zanu PF.
“We are going to invite her to our Provincial Co-ordinating Committee meeting where she will renounce her CCC membership card and regalia. She is welcome to join her party of choice,” said Moyo.

By-President Emmerson Mnangagwa has conferred national hero status on the late Major General Godfrey Chanakira following further consultations.

In a statement, the Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet, Dr Misheck Sibanda, said Major General Chanakira was declared a national hero after further consultation and has since been granted a State-assisted funeral.

Burial arrangements for Chanakira will be announced in due course.

Dr Sibanda added that President Mnangagwa also conferred provincial hero status to Christopher Kuruneri, while Chief Denis Ndlovu Nhlamba of Garanyemba area in Gwanda was granted a State-assisted funeral.

Kuruneri, a former Finance Minister and Zanu PF legislator for Mount Darwin East, died in South Africa at the weekend, while Chief Nhlamba passed on at the United Bulawayo Hospitals on Saturday.

President Mnangagwa also conferred provincial hero status to Francis Komboni Gondo and Charles Savanhu.

Meanwhile, Vice President General Dr Constantino Chiwenga will represent President Mnangagwa at the funeral of the late Chief Nhlamba.

By- The Douglas Mwonzora led MDC-T councillor and acting Harare Mayor Stewart Mutizwa has authenticated the condemned Pomona dumpsite project.

Mutizwa was part of a Zanu PF government delegation led by the Minister of Information, Publicity, and Broadcasting Services, Monica Mutsvangwa, who toured the Pomona dumpsite on Monday.

“The way this deal is structured will see the council paying its equity of US$22 000 a year, but the energy deal will benefit government and the city on a profit-based arrangement,” Mutizwa told reporters at the site.

The dump deal will prejudice the capital city and residents of millions of dollars.

By-Zanu PF has responded to the abduction of a CCC member who was forced to disappear by its notorious Beatrice member at the weekend.

In its response to a police statement confirming that one Pius Jambo was responsible for the missing of Ali, Zanu PF director of information, Tafadzwa Mugwadi said:

Nyadzi dzinokunda rufu Thank you 

@PoliceZimbabwe

. How about arresting all those known elements with verified Twitter accounts who were spreading falsehoods? People must pay the price for lying and spreading falsehoods against the state!!

Nyadzi dzinokunda rufu

Thank you @PoliceZimbabwe. How about arresting all those known elements with verified twitter accounts who were spreading falsehoods?

People must pay the price for lying and spreading falsehoods against the state!! pic.twitter.com/WeHu22atEV

— Hon. Tafadzwa Mugwadi (@TafadzwaMugwadi) May 30, 2022

By – CCC Binga North Member of Parliament, Prince Dubeko Sibanda has joined Zanu PF.

Memory joined ZANU PF on Monday, day after Nelson Chamisa addressed a thank you rally in the district.

Zanu PF social media accounts flooded the internet with pictures of the welcome ceremony that was presided over by Zanu PF Hwange District Chair, Mathew Muleya and attended by a host of party members.

Sibanda and his wife have been having been having marital issues which have dragged them to court.
In January Memory accused her husband of verbal and emotional abuse coupled with several threats of physical abuse.
The threats culminated in threats to kill her and his mother-in-law with an axe after the latter and their children had forced their way into the couple’scouple’s bedroom upon hearing her scream for help as Sibanda strangled her then picked an axe and threatened to axe her to death.