By A Correspondent- A councillor from the Zibagwe Rural District Council and his wife died after they were assaulted with a log by their mentally challenged grandson on Sunday evening.

Ward 8 Councillor, Ambrose Ncube (74), died on the spot after the attack by Victor Sibanda (24).

His wife, Thandi Khumalo (68) also died after she was assaulted as she tried to intervene.

National Police Spokesperson, Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi confirmed the incident.

“We can confirm that police are investigating a murder case of an elderly couple, a man aged 74 and his wife aged 68. The couple is believed to have been murdered by their grandson believed to be mentally challenged,” said Ass Comm Nyathi.

He said the incident took place at Village Mutsekwa under Chief Samambwa area in Zhombe on Sunday around 6pm.

Zibagwe RDC Council Chair, Councilor Chamunogwa Zvishamira said Sibanda is the deceased couple’s grandson.

“The late councillor had just taken his grandson to stay with him. I am told that the grandson has a mental challenge. While details are still sketchy, we know that they had a misunderstanding and he drew a log and hit his grandfather several times on the head and he died,” said Cllr Zvishamira.

He said the wife died as she tried to intervene.

“Seeing that her husband was being assaulted, the wife tried to restrain Sibanda, but he turned the log onto her and assaulted her and she also died on the spot. Their bodies have since been taken to Kwekwe General Hospital where they await postmortem,” he said.

He said Sibanda has been picked up by the police.-statemedia

By A Correspondent- The late former Vice-President Joshua Nkomo’s son Sibangilizwe Nkomo has resigned from the Joshua Nkomo Legacy Restoration Project Trust and the Joshua Nkomo Cultural Movement to pursue politics full-time.

The development comes amid reports that Sibangilizwe was interested in contesting the Zapu party presidency.

Nkomo’s name recently featured among candidates forwarded by branches to the party’s national executive to contest the presidency during the Zapu elective congress slated for August.

Yesterday, the two organisations pushing for the maintenance of Nkomo’s legacy, announced Sibangilizwe’s resignation.

“The two institutions welcomed Nkomo’s resignation and withdrawal from the activities of the trusts with immediate effect,” the organisations’ joint statement read.

“It is our solemn belief as institutions, that every person has his or her constitutional right and freedom to associate or belong to any organisation of his choice. It is this right that Nkomo has rightfully decided to pursue and exercise.”

The organisations advised all stakeholders, partners, groups and Zimbabweans based locally and abroad that Nkomo, who had been chairperson and founding trustee of the two institutions, had resigned with immediate effect to pursue an interest in active politics.

The Joshua Nkomo Legacy Restoration Project seeks to unite people through cultivating a culture of love, unity, peace and tolerance which was part of the late VP Nkomo’s vision.

It also enjoys good relations with government.

“Following this development, the Joshua Nkomo Legacy Restoration Project Trust will continue with its work as usual under the capable leadership of its chairperson, Mehluli Moyo and the two organisations shall, from time-to time, consult him on matters that require the Nkomo family’s attention given that he was a representative of the family of our icon whose legacy the two trusts seek to help preserve for future generations,” the statement read.

Sibangilizwe yesterday confirmed his resignation.

“It’s true that I have resigned to pursue politics,” he said without further revealing the political outfit that he will join.

Recently, Nkomo told Southern Eye that if the people deployed him for the Zapu presidency, he would accept the offer.-newsday

By A Correspondent- A funeral parade to honour two Air Force of Zimbabwe (AFZ) pilots and a technician who died in a helicopter crash in Goromonzi on Friday last week will be held this Friday.

The pilots are Wing Commander Thomas Tinashe Manyowa and Flight Lieutenant Anita Mapiye while the aircraft technician is Flight Sergeant Tinodiwanashe Chikamhi.

An 18 month old toddler, Jade Fenyere, who was sleeping with her twin sister, Jada, was also killed when the Agusta Bell 412 (AB 412) helicopter crashed into their house.

The AFZ on Monday said Wing Commander Manyowa will be buried in Chinhoyi, while Flight Lieutenant Mapiye will be interred at Glen Forest Memorial Park in Harare.

Flight Sergeant Chikamhi will be buried at Mucheke Cemetery in Masvingo.

Jade Fenyere will be buried today in Bocha, Manicaland Province.-statemedia

By Nomusa Garikai- Much has been said about the endless factional wars in the country’s main opposition MDC ever since the party’s launch in 1999.

Zanu PF has suffered similar factional war with the booting out of the VP Joice Mujuru and her Gatamox faction in 2014. This was followed by the November 2017 military coup that forced Robert Mugabe to step down and many of the G40 leaders were lucky to get away with their lives. 

Now there is talk of President Mnangagwa inviting both Gamatox and G40 members to rejoin Zanu PF. Why?

“The ruling party now feels it is in a strong position having essentially marginalised the opposition as a unified force, and hence it wishes to consolidate its position as the dominant political force in the country,” answered University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies, Professor Stephen Chan.

“Reaching out to the G40 must not be misconstrued as an act of desperation, but one of confidence.

“What we see emerging is not just a dominant party state, but a hegemonic party state.

“The question is, however, for what does this hegemonic party stand? It seems sometimes like a gigantic patronage and enrichment network.

“However, this can still work if the oligarchic elite can ensure that economic benefits trickle down to those who are poor. A politically strong party in a fraying economy is in a difficult position.”

For once, Professor Chan is right, what good will come from having a strong party when the economy is in free fall! Mnangagwa has failed to revive the Zimbabwe economy and as long as the country remains a pariah state ruled by thugs there will be no meaningful economic recovery. The corona virus pandemic is set to drag the economy into even greater depths of poverty and despair.  

Come 2023 elections, the voters will be concerned about their economic situation and will not care that Mnangagwa and his former G40 and Gamatox Zanu PF colleagues have kissed and made-up.

Many of the G40 and Gamatox members are as keen as mustard to rejoin Zanu PF to escape the economic hardships brought on by the economic meltdown. They will soon discover that Mnangagwa wanted their vote but has no jobs and/or looted wealth to give them. Nothing!

There is no denying there is total chaos and confusion in the MDC camp, the recalls of elected MDC A officials in the last year have left many members divided and bitter. MDC has imploded. 

Still, if there were free, fair and credible elections in Zimbabwe; the people would rather vote for divided and confused opposition if only to be rid of the corrupt and oppressive Zanu PF. Mnangagwa knows that and hence the reason he will never ever implement the democratic reforms and hold free, fair and credible elections. 

The dog-eat-dog fighting in the MDC has worked to Mnangagwa’s advantage in making the MDC weak to exploit Zanu PF’s weaknesses but the pendulum has swung too far; a weak MDC has lost political credibility.

In 2013 SADC leaders advised Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC friends not to participate in the elections until reforms were implemented.  “If you go into elections next month, you are going to lose; the elections are done!” SADC leaders warned.

MDC leaders did not heed the warning. Zanu PF won the elections with a landslide. SADC leaders’ warning was equally valid in 2018, but again MDC leaders paid no heed and Zanu PF blatantly rigged the election again. 

MDC leaders ignored the SADC leaders’ warnings because they were content with the few gravy train seats Zanu PF gave away as bait, they did not care that the elections were flawed and illegal. Zanu PF enticed MDC leaders to participate so the flawed process would have some credibility and the result have legitimacy for that Zanu PF did not mind sharing of the spoils of power with MDC leaders. A cosy win, win arrangement for both Zanu PF and MDC but one that has left people questioning the political credibility of MDC as the opposition.   

A credible opposition parties should aim to win power, especially free and fair elections in 2023 are guaranteed to deliver and opposition landslide victory. MDC leaders are once again gearing to participate in the 2023 elections with no reforms. They are, once again, content to win the few gravy train seats.

Mnangagwa and his Zanu PF cronies are used to having their cake and eat it too; they rigged the elections and bribed the MDC to participate to guarantee legitimacy. 2023 elections are set to be Zanu PF’s worst nightmare. If Zanu PF dares to implement the reforms and hold free, fair and credible elections; the party is certain to lose. The economy is in a real mess and the electorate will jump at the chance to finally get rid of the corrupt and tyrannical regime. 

If Zanu PF does not implement any reforms and blatantly rig the elections only the opposition parties with no political credibility would participate in flawed elections for the now obvious reason of greed. Like it or not a now totally discredited opposition will never give the vote rigging Zanu PF any legitimacy. 

For the first time in since independence; HEADS Zanu PF lose and TAIL the povo win! 

By A Correspondent- President Emmerson Mnangagwa was misled into believing that Victoria Falls City has achieved herd immunity against COVID-19, it has been established.

In a post on Twitter on Monday morning, President Mnangagwa claimed that 77% of the Victoria Falls’ adult population got vaccinated.

He said:

Victoria Falls has now achieved herd immunity!??

Last month, I received my first COVID-19 vaccine in Victoria Falls. I am immensely proud that over 77% of the city’s inhabitants have received their second jab.

Thank you to all the health officials who have made this possible.

However, according to Zim Fact, President Mnangagwa’s claim is not backed by empirical data.

It said:

Official data shows that by April 25, when Mnangagwa made the claim, 77% of Victoria Falls’ targeted adult population had only received the first shot of the COVID-19 vaccine.

Given the double-dose vaccines currently in use by Zimbabwe, persons are only considered to be fully vaccinated after receiving their second shot.

Further, the threshold for herd immunity against COVID-19, a new disease that emerged in late 2019, is yet to be established.

The World Health Organisation defines herd immunity as the protection from an infectious disease that a population gets from a previous infection or vaccination.

WHO says it only supports the attainment of herd immunity through vaccination and not through allowing infections to spread unchecked through populations.-Zimfact

By A Correspondent- Villagers in the Dema area of Seke district have renewed their efforts to have the Dema tollgate relocated as it is economically affecting their lives.

The tollgate, located along Chitungwiza-Wedza Highway near Ziko Shopping Centre, is set to be moved to Kandava after disgruntled villagers protested over its location.

Seke legislator Munyaradzi Kashambe (Zanu-PF) yesterday said the relocation of the tollgate had since been approved, adding that erection of a new tollgate would be done once funds have been released.

“The Dema tollgate will be relocated to Kandava area near the Econet booster. They were waiting for the new toll plaza design and the design is out and approved. We are now waiting for the disbursement of the funds from the Finance ministry, otherwise all is good to go.

“We hope we won’t be delayed this time because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, most of the funds are likely to be channelled towards road rehabilitation because roads have been declared a national disaster,” he said.

The Dema tollgate has been reported as one of the worst revenue collection points as motorists use feeder roads to evade paying toll fees.

Seke Rural Development Platform secretary-general Givemore Chipere said: “We handed over a petition last year to the then (Transport) minister Joel Biggie Matiza. Unfortunately, he passed on before responding to our issues. We are basically saying this tollgate should be moved further up. The tollgate is inconveniencing the villagers especially those who rely on farming and travel to markets in Chitungwiza.

“It is unfair for us to pay toll fees within our area almost everyday. Moreover, our schoolgoing children, especially at Besa Primary are at risk of being hit by vehicles that use a feeder road to evade paying toll fees,” he said.

The Zimbabwe National Roads Administration in 2018 admitted that the toll plaza was wrongly located.-newsday

By A Correspondent- Financial services giant CBZ Holdings Limited has resolved to slash its workforce in response to rapid sector changes that have been precipitated by the COVID-19 pandemic and fresh inroads made by digitalisation since the global scourge rattled the markets last year.

COVID-19 only amplified a crisis that had haunted unions since banks scaled up a well-meant financial inclusion strategy about five years ago, which meant they switched to digital platforms to serve clients, eliminating a decades-old physical contact tradition.

Yet as governments rolled out hard lockdowns to fight the pandemic, which forced banks to make staff work from home, it provided them with a chance to rationalise costs by pursuing digitalisation in the post-lockdown era.

In his letter to staff on Friday, CBZ chief executive officer Blessing Mudavanhu did not disclose the extent to which COVID-19 and digitalisation had reshaped the bank’s operations.

But he invited them to take up a voluntary retrenchment package. Should there be a lukewarm response to the offer, Zimbabwe’s biggest banking group will then roll out compulsory job cuts from June, in one of the most shocking banking sector developments since COVID-19 hit Zimbabwe. He said CBZ had discovered that as the pandemic forced its way through, new skills had become crucial to move the banking group forward.

But those who were unwilling to embrace new business models being implemented were free to leave, he said.

The Zimbabwe Banks and Allied Workers Union told NewsDay Business yesterday that CBZ’s move could only be a tip of the iceberg as a number of banks were already implementing the same strategy.

“It has been essential to us as an organisation to ensure the preservation of jobs and earnings and we have committed to that for the duration of this crisis and furthermore, provided a range of additional measures to ensure that we support all of our staff and your families,” Mudavanhu told staff.

“The manner in which we reach, serve and provide solutions to our customers and clients has changed significantly. Most of our work has transitioned to digital platforms and automation has become key. This is an area which will continue to change and with this comes the need for new business models and different skill-sets.”

“As we venture into a new and changing business model and new ways of work, we will inevitably need to review our current structure and operations. We acknowledge that there are some colleagues among us who may not be willing or able to undertake this journey of change and will want to take the opportunity to pursue other interests. We are, therefore, pleased to announce the offer of a voluntary severance package for any employee who willingly, freely and voluntarily wishes to consider pursuing opportunities outside the organisation. Following the voluntary severance exercise, should it be found that we do, indeed, need to consider retrenchment, our retrenchment exercise will commence in June 2021,” he said.

Telecommunications giant TelOne has announced plans to axe about 200 workers.

“The TelOne digital transformation journey which has special focus on client experience enhancement and provision of new products and services entails the digitalisation of the company’s operations and systems through network upgrade and modernisation,” TelOne said.

“For this drive to succeed, relevant skills and qualifications emerged as one of the main priorities. Consequently, the company has taken a position to embark on a realignment programme to terminate the contracts of 184 individuals whose skills-set has been rendered redundant.”

By A Correspondent- Nkayi South MP Stars Mathe (Zanu-PF) is under fire from Matabeleland activists for bootlicking President Emmerson Mnangagwa, notwithstanding that the Zanu-PF leader was allegedly involved in the execution of Gukurahundi massacres in the early 1980s.

Mnangagwa is said to be one of the brains behind the Gukurahundi genocide in the Matabeleland and Midlands regions, which resulted in an estimated 20 000 civilians being killed and tens of thousands displaced. Mathe got herself in trouble after she praised Mnangagwa for ensuring political stability in the country.

“I am happy that this country is still run by blacks and has attained 41 years of independence. Some countries are still fighting for their independence and others have attained it, but they still have problems,” she said.

“We got our independence long back but we still live in unity, peace and harmony and we have not experienced any spilling of blood,” Mathe said in the National Assembly.

Her remarks sparked outrage from the secessionist Mthwakazi Republic Party (MRP) which described her as someone who does not deserve a position in Parliament.

“Honestly, there is nothing honourable in Mathe. The title honourable is too smart for her. Let her say and do honourable things and we will address her by that title.

“The people here are disgusted by parliamentary debates and the contributions attributed to the Nkayi South MP Mathe,” said the MRP in a statement.

“The controversial Mathe shamelessly exonerated her party Zanu-PF from the genocide which took place in Matabeleland.

“Mathe, who is also from Matabeleland, has guts to speak glowingly of Mnangagwa forgetting his involvement in the killing of thousands of people in the region.

“This kind of bootlicking should be criminalised. How on earth would Mathe hail Mnangagwa for things that do not exist in this country? How can she try to sweep under the  carpet crimes involving bloodshed in which the very people she is praising are implicated?”

The MRP claimed that Mathe was a witness to the genocide, which the late former President Robert Mugabe, Mnangagwa and the Zanu-PF government masterminded soon after independence in 1980.

“She is a witness to the more than 20 000 innocent civilians who fell to the unjustified sword of the same people and party to which she is expressing her blind loyalty.

“Her own relatives and villagers in Nkayi were equally affected. They are in emotional pain to this day. Some still suffer physical agony to this day, but here Mathe is pretending that nothing of the sort ever happened.”-newsday

By A Correspondent- Police in Bulawayo have arrested a 30-year-old man from Cowdray Park suburb who allegedly stabbed his neighbour with an okapi knife following a beer brawl.

The incident occurred yesterday when Njabulo Ncube and three accomplices who are still at large kicked and spilled complainant’s beer around 4PM while they were all drinking at a place called Caravan in Cowdray Park.

Bulawayo provincial police spokesperson Inspector Abednico confirmed the incident saying the complainant is in critical condition at hospital as he sustained three serious stab wounds on the back, one under the left eye and one on the right-hand palm.

He warned residents against taking the law into their own hands and to seek redress when there is a misunderstanding.

“Police have arrested Njabulo Msebele, a male adult aged 30 years from Cowdray Park, for attempted murder which occurred yesterday at around 4PM. The other accused persons are Shalom Ncube, Bhizo and Adolf whose other details are not known and all the three are still at large,” said Insp Ncube.

“The complainant was drinking beer at Caravan, Cowdray Park, Bulawayo together with the accused persons when Bhizo kicked and spilled the complainant’s half-full calabash. A misunderstanding arose between the complainant and Bhizo and the two started exchanging blows.

At that moment, the other three accused persons joined in and Njabulo Msebele produced an okapi knife, stabbed the complainant three times in the back, once under the left eye and once on the right-hand palm,” he said.

Insp Ncube said 30 minutes later, the complainant made a report at ZRP Cowdray Park Caravan base and the scene was attended to.

Police arrested Msebele who was searched and an okapi knife was recovered from his right trousers’ pocket.

“The other accused persons Shalom Ncube, Bhizo and Adolf were not located and are still at large. The okapi knife was booked as an exhibit at ZRP Cowdray Park. An ambulance was summoned which ferried the complainant to Mpilo hospital and his condition is serious,” he said.

Insp Ncube added: “Bulawayo police would like to warn members of the public to desist from taking the law into their own hands and to seek redress when there is a misunderstanding. We are also appealing to anyone with information which can lead to the apprehension of the other accused persons to report at any nearest police station.”-statemedia

By A Correspondent- Primary and Secondary Education Minister Cain Mathema has directed school authorities to submit names of teachers who have not been reporting for duty since the reopening of schools last month as Government moves to enforce the “no work, no pay” principle.

The number of teachers reporting for duty has decreased since schools reopened last month as they are citing incapacitation.

According to the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education, the situation is more pronounced in Bulawayo and Harare as some teachers elsewhere have ignored the call for strike by their unions. In Bulawayo, only 50 percent of teachers have turned up for duty with pupil attendance pegged at 68 percent.

Speaking in Parliament during a question-and-answer session, Minister Mathema said his ministry is working with school heads to gather attendance information including names of teachers at all the schools not reporting for duty.

The information will then be forwarded to the Public Service Commission and the Ministry of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare. Minister Mathema warned that there will be consequences for teachers who are not attending lessons.

“I have heard that there are some schools where teachers are not going to work. What we are saying is that no work, no pay to those teachers who are not at work. We are working with school heads to have registers so that I pass on that information to the Public Service Commission and the Ministry of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare,” he said.

The minister said he has not received any representation from teachers’ unions pertaining to their grievances.

“We cannot have a situation where teachers just decide not to go to work. As the Minister of Primary and Secondary Education, I have not received any representation from any of the teachers’ unions in the country. So, no work, no pay,” he said.

Speaking during a Covid-19 Taskforce meeting in Bulawayo last Tuesday, Provincial Deputy Education Director Mr Thabani Sibanda said two weeks ago, the ministry sampled 75 schools for teacher and learner attendance.

From that sampling, statistics showed that the teacher attendance drastically dropped due to incapacitation notices forwarded to schools, districts and the province. Cabinet last week reiterated that negotiations for improved conditions of service remain open under the National Joint Negotiating Council and that the ‘no work, no pay policy’ will be strictly enforced.

Government offered a 25 percent salary increment to civil servants from this month while a further 50 percent would be effected in June.

Three weeks ago, Government met its employees and outlined constraints being faced, emanating from a prolonged economic shutdown owing to the lockdown measures instituted to manage the Covid-19 pandemic, during which revenue generation was reduced to virtual insignificance.

Further, Government coffers are stretched since it is paying for vaccines, with the aim of administering doses to at least 10 million people to achieve herd immunity.

Government has set aside US$100 million to buy Covid-19 vaccines. However, Government has remained committed to fulfilling the payment of salaries and benefits to all civil servants, including those who were at home during the long periods of national lockdown.

-statemedia

Main opposition MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa says his party has tightened the criteria used to select parliamentary and local authority candidates to avoid infiltration by “fortune seekers” who defect to the ruling Zanu PF party once they win elections.

In an interview with online news agency, CITE, at the weekend, Chamisa said the recent defection of elected MDC Alliance representatives, among them top party executives, to Zanu PF had taught them hard lessons and forced them to tighten screws in the selection process.

Chamisa, who narrowly lost to President Emmerson Mnangagwa, the Zanu PF leader, in the disputed 2018 harmonised elections, said the MDC Alliance would now settle for “change agents committed to the struggle” ahead of the 2023 harmonised elections.

“What has happened is that a lot of our MPs and a lot of our councillors are people who are looking for opportunities,” he said.

“In fact, I have learnt from what has happened that instead of having people coming across as change seekers, change agents and change makers, they are actually job seekers, and so the preoccupation is to preserve a job as an MP or councillor,” said the youthful opposition leader, who has lost over 40 MPs and about 80 councillors in recalls orchestrated by the rival MDC-T party led by Douglas Mwonzora and Lucia Matibenga of the People’s Democratic
Party.

Following the mass recalls, several other MDC Alliance legislators and councillors also crossed the floor to the ruling party to safeguard their jobs.

Chamisa described the defections as “a survival strategy” as well as a great betrayal of the struggle for democracy.

He accused Zanu PF and the MDC-T of conniving to decimate his party by dangling trinkets to elected MDC Alliance representatives.

“That is why I am now apologising to the people of Zimbabwe to say that we had not thought through the processes of our candidate selection, and that is why we have to go back to the drawing board to say we don’t have a party candidate, but a community candidate, a collective ethic and converged process run by community and opinion-makers as opposed to a political party because these processes produce candidates who do not have their loyalty in communities and to the people,” Chamisa said.

“Most of the MPs and councillors who have remained in Parliament on account of allegiance to a counter party formed by Mnangagwa have not shown loyalty to the people and we are going back to the drawing board.”

The MDC Alliance leader said communities and stakeholders would now lead the candidate selection process as opposed to using party structures.

“There will be a radical shift and change to the current candidate selection process in this organisation to allow the community to lead the process,” he said.

But MDC-T spokesperson Witness Dube scoffed at Chamisa’s claims, saying the MPs had dumped him after realising that the MDC Alliance had low regard of constitutionalism.

“There were no defections and the MPs only decided to stand on the side of their party constitution and the country’s Constitution. It is misleading for long-time comrades like Chamisa to believe in the lie he started himself that there is money involved or buying of people involved. He cannot be the only paragon of political correctness,” he said.

“He must not trivialise issues to that extent. It is very regrettable and insulting to people who made this party to be what it is.”

Chamisa also accused the Zanu PF government of engineering the arbitrary arrests of MDC Alliance activists, but the State has denied the charge.

“All the elected people were elected on the MDC Alliance ticket, but what we have seen is lawfare, the abuse of the courts in this case by Mr Mnangagwa to recall by his created surrogates whom you know, to then say all MDC Alliance MPs now belong to the MDC-T,” he said.

The MDC Alliance leader said the takeover of the party headquarters by Mwonzora’s MDC-T was a temporary setback, adding that his party would soon reclaim the property.

“What we have seen is authoritarian consolidation, an escalation of tyranny and we have seen the panic mode by Zanu PF and Mr Mnangagwa on account of our strength. We have remained steadfast, we have remained very strong and that’s why you have seen that they are in sixes and sevens. If we were such a non-factor in the politics of this country, they would have simply ignored us, but they can’t ignore us. They have discovered that we are too strong on the ground and want to weaken us, decimate our structures but they will not succeed,” Chamisa said.

Recently, Zanu PF spokesperson Simon Khaya Moyo told NewsDay that his party was not involved in opposition party fights.

-Newsday

Outspoken Norton MP Temba Mliswa, who is being accused of violating COVID-19 regulations, yesterday successfully applied for the release of his passport to enable him to travel to Portugal and South Africa.

The Norton legislator applied for the release of his passport last week, but the magistrate delivered the ruling yesterday.

Mliswa allegedly violated COVID-19 regulations when he convened a Press conference at his Borrowdale residence in Harare, which was attended by nearly 20 journalists.

The legislator denied the charge, saying he was an essential services provider allowed to do business during the COVID-19 lockdown.

He also unsuccessfully filed an application to have his matter heard at the Constitutional Court saying the arrest violated his rights.

Meanwhile, suspended director of health in the Health ministry, Portia Manangazira, who is being accused of employing more than 27 relatives, including her father, who is in his late 70s, as health workers in December last year also successfully applied for the release of her passport.

Manangazira appeared before magistrate Stanford Mambanje, who released the passport to enable her to go to Zambia on a business trip.

Meanwhile, embattled wife of Vice President Constantino Chiwenga had numerous attempts to get her passport back to enable her to seek medical attention outside the country, hitting a brickwall.

Is it a case of selective application of the law?

-Newsday

By A Correspondent- Warren Park, Harare, Child senator Mike Zinyoni, has scored 23 ‘A’ Level points in the 2020 Zimbabwe School Examination Council examinations held last November.

Zinyoni, who was at Marlborough High School, studied Pure Mathematics, where he got an A, Statistics (B), Software Engineering and Computer Science (A) and Business Studies (B) which are classified as technical sciences.

He told NewsDay that initially, it was hard for him to choose which subject to study between Physics or Statistics since their timetables clashed, but he ended up choosing Statistics since he felt it was more applicable in the real world.

Zinyoni is now looking for sponsorship to further his studies.-newsday

By James Gwati- The Zimbabwe Republic Police has embarked on mass recruitment of police officers ahead of the 2023 elections.

The police force has also set the completion of a five-kilometre run as one of the initial interview processes.

ZRP is advertising this mass recruitment in the state media.

Observers have however viewed this recruitment as a political move aimed at assisting Zanu PF to rig the forthcoming elections.

Zanu PF has a history of using the police and soldiers to intimidate rural voters every time the country holds national elections.

By A Correspondent- Two ladies who survived the Thursday Gweru love triangle shooting involving a Gweru businessman, Peter Dube are battling for their lives.

Gweru businessman, Peter Dube (35), last week Thursday allegedly shot his girlfriend and socialite Nyasha Nharingo (31), her sister Nyaradzo (34), his girlfriend’s alleged lover identified as Mr Shelton Chinhango and Nyasha’s friend Ms Gamuchirai Mudungwe (30).

Nyasha and Nyaradzo are admitted to Gweru Provincial Hospital where they are battling for life in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).
Dube allegedly fled from the scene after the cold-blooded shooting and police have launched a manhunt for him.

By A Correspondent-A 32-year-old woman from Sika village in Bindura has been arrested for concealing the death of her two-year-old daughter and secretly burying the body in a garden.

Portia Chovani was turned in by a neighbour who suspected that something bad had happened to the girl and reported to the police that the toddler was missing.

Mashonaland Central acting police spokesperson Assistant Inspector Naison Dhliwayo said they are treating the case as murder pending investigations. He said on April 17 at around 5pm, Shamva police received a tip off that a child was missing in unclear circumstances.

“A police officer went to Sika village under Chief Musana and interviewed Chovani on the whereabouts of her child. In response Chovani said the child was with relatives in Guha village,” he said.

“Police went to Guha village, 10km away and failed to locate the minor. They came back and questioned Chovani who changed the story and said the child had died. She said the child had fallen sick at the end of January and become serious in March before passing away on March 8.

“She told the police that she had dumped the body in the garden because she had no money to meet expenses of a proper burial.”
Asst Insp Dhliwayo said Chovani told the police that her neighbours had warned her that there was no place to bury her child because she is a foreigner.

She led police to a garden about 400 metres from her home, where she had dug a 60-centimetre-deep grave and buried the child.
Her neighbour, Sarudzai Kafireni (52) alleged that the child was malnourished.

On April 18 this year, an application for the exhumation of the body was granted and the body was retrieved in the presence of village head Mr Bernard Sika (67).

The body was in an advanced stage of decomposition and it was sent to Bindura Hospital for a post-mortem.

Asst Insp Dhliwayo said parents and guardians need to understand that children need love and care.

“Take your children to the clinic when they fall sick and when you are struggling to look after them approach the Department of Social Welfare for assistance. Nothing justifies killing a child,” he said.

— Herald

By James Gwati- Vice President Constantine Chiwenga’s wife Mary’s court case seems to be crumbling following failure by the state to find any incriminating evidence.

Mary has been on remand for 15 months now with the court failing to put her on trial.

Through her lawyer, Beatrice Mtetwa, Mary on Monday challenged and applied for refusal for further remand arguing that the courts were now persecuting her client.

Mary is on remand on a case in which she is being accused of attempting to kill the Vice President when he was in hospital in South Africa.
She is also facing allegations of money laundering.

Ms Mtetwa told the court that the State had promised to complete investigations a month into her arrest, but has failed.

Ms Mtetwa also told the court that the State was aware of the complexity of extra-territorial investigations when they made a one month promise.

She made the application after the State led by Mrs Mushayabasa applied for a postponement of the matter to allow police to complete investigations into the matter.

Mrs Mushayabasa told the court that there were extra-territorial investigations that need to be carried out in South Africa.

She appeared before regional magistrate Mr Stanford Mambanje.

Tinashe Sambiri|President Chamisa has taken the citizens convergence programme to Matabeleland region.

Matabeleland region has been grossly neglected by the Zanu PF regime over the years.

The rural mobilization programme is giving Zanu PF apparatchiks sleepless nights.

In a brief statement, President Chamisa described the Matabeleland programme as fruitful.

“THANK YOU MATABELELAND for your warmth and kindness.

I’ve been here in Matabeleland for the past three days meeting with citizens.I love this place. I’m so encouraged by the consultations and feedback.

Citizens are converging for Change.The people are solid & unshaken.#PeoplePower”

By A Correspondent- The Gweru businessman, Peter Dube who killed two people including a boyfriend of his second wife, had been ditched, it has emerged.

Gweru businessman, Peter Dube (35), last week Thursday allegedly shot his girlfriend and socialite Nyasha Nharingo (31), her sister Nyaradzo (34), his girlfriend’s alleged lover identified as Mr Shelton Chinhango and Nyasha’s friend Ms Gamuchirai Mudungwe (30).

He allegedly shot the four while his wife Justina Nomatter Chawama (30) and his brother Advance Dube watched.
According to the state media Dube, could not stomach being ditched by Nyasha, a popular Gweru socialite who was now going out with Mr Chinhango, his friend who is a known gold dealer based in Kwekwe.

Dube, could not stomach being ditched by Nyasha, a popular Gweru socialite who was now going out with Mr Chinhango, his friend who is a known gold dealer based in Kwekwe.

The car dealer was allegedly incensed after Mr Chinhango drove Nyasha, Nyaradzo and Ms Mudungwe to Masvingo to collect Nyaradzo’s passport without his knowledge leading to the fatal confrontation.

By A Correspondent- Police have warned members of the public and university students against hosting parties late at night in violation of the curfew order and also engaging in orgies of violence.

This follows the arrest of a 30-year-old university student, Michael Muza after he hosted a party for his fellow university students in Bulawayo.

Muza was arrested on Saturday for breaching COVID-19 regulations.

The students, who were apparently drunk, started to randomly attack innocent people and passers-by resulting in one cornered motorist drawing out a pistol and firing warning shots to avoid being assaulted by the group. Police said in a statement:

The ZRP warns residents and university students against hosting parties late into the night and engaging in orgies of violence.

On 24/04/21, police in [Bulawayo] arrested Michael Muza (30) for breaching COVID-19 regulations.

The suspect hosted a party for his fellow university students in Selborne Park, [Bulawayo] which resulted in violence and attack on innocent motorists who were passing by.

A cornered motorist had to fire warning shots to evade attack from marauding students.

The party organiser clearly contravened COVID-19 regulations which include a curfew order.

Under the relaxed COVID-19 regulations announced by President Emmerson Mnangagwa in early March, a curfew is to be observed from 10 PM to 5 AM as part of the measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

However, some unruly elements flagrantly flout the restrictions raising fears of a third wave as winter approaches.

By A correspondent- Vice President Constantino Chiwenga’s wife Mary, has been on remand for 15 months now with the court failing to put her on trial.

This came out today when she applied for refusal for further remand arguing that the courts were now persecuting her.

Mary is on remand on a case in which she is being accused of attempting to kill the Vice President when he was in hospital in South Africa.
She is also facing allegations of money laundering.

Through lawyer Ms Beatrice Mtetwa, Mrs Chiwenga told the court that the State had promised to complete investigations a month into her arrest, but has failed.

Ms Mtetwa also told the court that the State was aware of the complexity of extra-territorial investigations when they made a one month promise.

She made the application after the State led by Mrs Mushayabasa applied for a postponement of the matter to allow police to complete investigations into the matter.

Mrs Mushayabasa told the court that there were extra-territorial investigations that need to be carried out in South Africa.

She appeared before regional magistrate Mr Stanford Mambanje.

By A Correspondent- MDC-T president Douglas Mwonzora says his efforts to reach out to MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa have been rejected by the latter.

Speaking during an interview with Daily News on Sunday Senior Staff Writer Blessings Mashaya, Mwonzora accused the vanquished ZANU PF G40 faction of influencing the MDC Alliance leadership to engage in “hate politics”.

Said Mwonzora:

I have tried to talk peace with my brother Chamisa with a view to unite the Zimbabwean people and solve the national problems, but these efforts have been rebuffed by his team and himself.

They have resorted to denigrate and humiliate me on social media.

Unfortunately, they are under the influence of the G40s who specialise in hate politics.

Mwonzora also denied allegations that he stole over $6 million from the MDC-T before the party’s chaotic 27 December extraordinary congress.

He accused his colleagues within the MDC-T of using Patson Murimoga to report the alleged theft of funds to the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) in a bid to achieve their political objectives.

Mwonzora said:

This is the work of internal opponents who were irked by my victory at the extraordinary congress on December 27th last year. They have teamed up with some members of the opposition and the G40.

They are sponsoring and exploiting this desperate youth to try to achieve their political objectives. They hope that I would be arrested so that I will be out of the political scene.

Our unique political style and strategy have confounded them.

The allegations are totally preposterous, false and malicious. They wanted to secure my arrest before congress so that I would not assume leadership of the MDC-T.

They reported the matter to the police and even tried to buy my arrest. But law officers work on evidence and this is what these people don’t have.

Some of them tried to accuse me of theft last year only for acting president Thokozani Khupe to write a letter exonerating me.

It is totally impossible for one person to take money as much as $6 million from a party with as elaborate accounting and signing procedures as the MDC-T. But their sordid efforts will simply be defeated by the truth.

By A Correspondent- Sunday Makore (47) of Sizinda suburb in Bulawayo and three accomplices allegedly stormed a Meteorological Services Department (MSD) office and stole a generator before fleeing in a getaway car on 16 March this year.

Makore and his three accomplices who are all still at large, reportedly struck at Goetz Observatory in Khumalo suburb travelling in unregistered Toyota Runx on 16 March at around 8 PM.

Prosecuting, Ashley Dube said Makore dropped from the motor vehicle and he walked straight to the generator room.

Two of the suspects and Makore allegedly took a Kipor Diesel Operator, loaded it into the car and the gang drove away at high speed.

Makore last Friday pleaded not guilty to one count of theft when he appeared before Bulawayo magistrate Rachel Mukanga.

Mukanga granted him $10 000 bail and he will be back in court on 5 May. The State did not oppose bail.

Meanwhile, the total value of the generator is $102 000 and nothing was recovered.-statemedia

By A Correspondent -Acting Midlands provincial police spokesperson Assistant Inspector Ethel Mukwende said police were still looking for the man who shot dead his second wife, friend and her boyfriend and dismissed social media reports claiming that the man had a shoot-out with the police in Bulawayo.

Social media reports are circulating and claiming that the Gweru polygamous businessman Peter Dube was spotted in Bulawayo and exchanged gunshots with the police in Pumula.

On the fateful day on Thursday last week, Dube allegedly approached the wife, Nyasha and suspected lover, Shelton, as they were parked outside a flat where the wife resides.

Dube is said to have shot Shelton, who was on the driver’s seat, at close range and he died on the spot.

The wife’s best friend, Gamuchirai, was shot in the chest and also died on the spot while the wife and her sister Nyaradzo, were shot in the neck and head, respectively.

Nyasha’s father, Mr Nharingo said after committing the crime, Dube phoned and told him about the incident.

By A Correspondent- An earth tremor with a magnitude of 4.2 on the Richter scale shook Chipinge and Chimanimani in eastern Zimbabwe again at around 6:53 pm on Saturday.

This is barely two months after another quake was reported in the same area in February this year.

Online sources define an earth tremor as an earthquake, especially of low or moderate intensity.

Chipinge district meteorological officer, Lydia Masengu confirmed the quake to Masvingo Mirror saying there were no damages or injuries reported.

She said:

I talked to a number of people over the phone (WhatsApp groups) who felt the earthquake. I have not received any reports of damages but we however will make more enquiries to determine its intensity and the exact areas that it was felt.

Masengu said the eastern border areas have high earthquake activities and these are caused by natural plate tectonics attributed to the East African Rift System (EARS) which extends into Mozambique.

Memory Moyo of Kopa, Chimanimani, told the publication that she was at home when she felt the vibrations at around 6 PM which lasted some 10 seconds.

Jairos Sithole of Gaza high-density suburb said at first he thought there was a haulage truck passing along a nearby road but he later realised that it could have been a tremor after his neighbours also wondered about the vibrations.

By A Correspondent-Gweru polygamous businessman Peter Dube who brutally shot four people last Friday, two of them fatally, after confronting his second wife on suspected infidelity, also attempted to shoot his five-year-old son, the only child born out of that relationship.

He only turned the gun off his son Nyasha Brendon Dube (5) to shoot at his wife’s best friend Gamuchirai Mudungwe after she wailed and intervened, trying to stop him from shooting the child, it has emerged.

His wife’s young sister Tadiwanashe Nharingo (16), said she held the child firmly on her lap and against her chest on a car seat as Dube pointed the gun at them and later escaped with the child, as Dube changed focus to an intervening Gamuchirai.

“As he pointed the gun at his son and me because the boy was on my lap, my sister’s friend, Gamuchirai, shouted and screamed at him asking why he wanted to kill his own son and me, and that is when he turned the gun on Gamuchiraai and shot her.

“Thereafter, he pursued my sisters, Nyasha and Nyaradzo inside the flat while I ran away with the boy. I then heard two gunshots inside the flat and I knew my sisters had been shot at,” she said.

Tadiwanashe said she was still traumatised by the incident.

By A correspondent- An attorney representing Vice President Constantine Chiwenga’s wife Mary, Ms Biatrice Mtetwa has challenged the courts for taking more than a year to establish a case against her client.

Mary has been on remand for 15 months now with the court failing to put her on trial.

Mtetwa challenged the court today when she applied for refusal for further remand of Maru where she argued that the courts were now persecuting her client.

Mary is on remand on a case in which she is being accused of attempting to kill the Vice President when he was in hospital in South Africa.
She is also facing allegations of money laundering.

Ms Mtetwa told the court that the State had promised to complete investigations a month into her arrest, but has failed.

Ms Mtetwa also told the court that the State was aware of the complexity of extra-territorial investigations when they made a one month promise.

She made the application after the State led by Mrs Mushayabasa applied for a postponement of the matter to allow police to complete investigations into the matter.

Mrs Mushayabasa told the court that there were extra-territorial investigations that need to be carried out in South Africa.

She appeared before regional magistrate Mr Stanford Mambanje.

By A Correspondent- The burial of the two people who died on spot following a love triangle murder in Gweru has been set for this weekend.

Gweru businessman, Peter Dube (35), Dube allegedly shot his girlfriend and socialite Nyasha Nharingo (31), her sister Nyaradzo (34), his girlfriend’s alleged lover identified as Mr Shelton Chinhango and Nyasha’s friend Ms Gamuchirai Mudungwe (30) last Thursday.

His junior wife Nyasha Nharingo and her young sister Nyaradzo are in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at Gweru Central Hospital after sustaining life-threatening gunshot wounds, while the suspected boyfriend Shelton Chinhango and Gamuchirai (30) died on the spot.

The state media reported that Nyaradzo was still in critical condition in the ICU where she is set to be operated on to remove the bullet lodged in her skull.

Nyasha is, however, out of danger and is now admitted to the female surgical ward according to her father, Mr Bothwell Nharingo.

By A correspondent- Vice President Constantine Chiwenga, Mary, has challenged the courts for continuously placing her on remand.

Mary today applied for refusal for further remand arguing that it is now 15 months of her attending court with the State failing to complete investigations into her matter in which she is accused of attempting to kill the Vice President when he was in hospital in South Africa.

She is also facing allegations of money laundering.
Through lawyer Ms Beatrice Mtetwa, Mrs Chiwenga told the court that the State had promised to complete investigations a month into her arrest, but has failed.

Ms Mtetwa also told the court that the State was aware of the complexity of extra-territorial investigations when they made a one month promise.

She made the application after the State led by Mrs Mushayabasa applied for a postponement of the matter to allow police to complete investigations into the matter.

Mrs Mushayabasa told the court that there were extra-territorial investigations that need to be carried out in South Africa. She appeared before regional magistrate Mr Stanford Mambanje.

By A correspondent- Vice President Constantino Chiwenga’s wife, Mary, today applied for refusal for further remand arguing that it is now 15 months of her attending court with the state failing to complete investigations into her matter in which she is accused of attempting to kill the Vice President when he was in hospital in South Africa.

She is also facing allegations of money laundering.
Through lawyer Ms Beatrice Mtetwa, Mrs Chiwenga told the court that the State had promised to complete investigations a month into her arrest, but has failed.

Ms Mtetwa also told the court that the State was aware of the complexity of extra-territorial investigations when they made a one month promise.

She made the application after the State led by Mrs Mushayabasa applied for a postponement of the matter to allow police to complete investigations into the matter.

Mrs Mushayabasa told the court that there were extra-territorial investigations that need to be carried out in South Africa. She appeared before regional magistrate Mr Stanford Mambanje.

By A Correspondent -Harare magistrate Mrs Tafadzwa Mhiti has eased Monday Norton legislator Temba Mliswa’s bail conditions and returned his passport to allow him to travel to Portugal and South Africa to conduct business.

Mliswa is facing allegations of violating Covid 19 regulations through convening a press conference attended by nearly 20 journalists.

As part of his bail conditions, Mliswa was ordered to report to police once a week every Friday, continue residing at his Borrowdale home in Harare, surrender his passport with the Clerk of Court and not address press conferences until his matter has been finalised.

-Herald

By A Correspondent -Harare magistrate Mrs Tafadzwa Mhiti on Monday temporarily released Norton legislator Temba Mliswa’s passport to allow him to travel to Portugal and South Africa to conduct business.

Mliswa is facing allegations of violating Covid 19 regulations through convening a press conference attended by nearly 20 journalists.

As part of his bail conditions, Mliswa was ordered to report to police once a week every Friday, continue residing at his Borrowdale home in Harare, surrender his passport with the Clerk of Court and not address press conferences until his matter has been finalised.

-Herald

By A Correspondent- MDC Alliance youth assembly president Tererai Sithole was on Monday arrested at the Harare Magistrates Court.

Sithole was arrested in the morning after he appeared in court where he was answering charges of holding an illegal demonstration in Warren Park last year.

According to the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR), Sithole is now facing criminal nuisance charges. Police said that Sithole committed the offence on 1 April.

The MDC said in a tweet:

Our Youth Assembly Chairperson, @TereraiSithole has been arrested while leaving court this morning where he was answering to flimsy charges of holding an illegal demo. He has not been advised of the charges against him. #FreeObey.

By A Correspondent- An Air Zimbabwe pilot captain Kevin Chituku has died under mysterious circumstances, barely 48 hours after the death of two experienced Air Force of Zimbabwe (AFZ) pilots and a technician in a helicopter crash in Goromonzi.

Captain Chituku died while alone at his flat in Highlands, Harare this Sunday late afternoon.

His death was announced by Reverend Dr. Lungile Mpetsheni Rhadebe, who is the General Secretary of the Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa (UPCSA).

Kevin’s sister, Lydia Chituku-Neshangwe, who is also a Reverend with a Presbyterian church, also confirmed the death of her pilot brother.

She said in a statement:

My brother, Kevin. You used to depart and still land back home. This time you’ve departed, never to come back. May your soul rest in peace. You will always be loved.

Zimbabwe Voice quoted sources as saying nothing much was known as the deceased young pilot was alone.

A family member said:

Only after the postmortem is conducted will the picture get clearer. Otherwise, we’re all in the dark despite being close family members with our dear departed.

In a message to the church’s members, which the Zimbabwe Voice is in possession of, Dr. Rhadebe consoled the Chituku family and called on members to join in praying for the family.

The statement read:

It is with a heavy heart and sadness to inform you that Rev Lydia Neshangwe has lost her brother Kevin Chituku. He was found dead in his house in Highlands, Harare, Zimbabwe this afternoon. May his soul rest in eternal peace. Further details of the will be communicated as they become available.

Let us uphold the Neshangwe and Chituku families in our prayers during this difficult time. Rev Lydia Neshangwe is a minister to St Andrew’s Presbyterian, Hillside, Bulawayo within the Presbytery of Zimbabwe. She is the chaplain of the Moderator of the UPCSA General Assembly.

She is also the Moderator of the Council for World Mission.

An Agusta Bell 412 helicopter crashed into an Arcturus house on Friday afternoon, killing Wing Commander Thomas Tinashe Manyowa, Flight Lieutenant Anita Mapiye, and aircraft technician Flight Sergeant Tinodiwanashe Chikamhi, and an 18-month-old toddler Jade Fenyere.

-zimbabwevoice

By A Correspondent- Religious organisations in Gweru, Zimbabwe’s third-largest city have converted factories into churches following two decades of deindustrialisation in the once economically vibrant city.

A survey recent survey by The NewsHawks revealed that the giant chimneys that used to discharge smoke now churn out religious hymns and prayers.

Gweru used to be home to thriving companies such as Zimcast, Fort Concrete, Radar Castings, Kariba Batteries and David Whitehead.

However, the firms have shut down in the past two decades, rendering thousands of workers jobless.

According to a recent ZCTU report, new players in the industry operating at full capacity included Chinese companies such as Jin An, Xin Yu and Nelson Holdings.

One Josphat Muroyiwa, who attended a service by charismatic preacher Walter Magaya’s PHD Ministries last Sunday on premises that used to house Cembee furniture manufacturers told The NewsHawks that rentals in the industries are lower than in some parts of the city, for example, the Central Business District (CBD).

Cembee used to employ hundreds of people who made quality furniture, but the building located behind Dairibord is now home to PHD Ministries’ Gweru church.

Gweru mayor Josiah Makombe said Council has offered churches facilities to conduct their services in, but they prefer closed industries.

Said Makombe:

Although as a local authority we have facilities that can be hired by various organisations including churches, most churches however prefer to take space in the closed industries as they are cheap and affordable.

We also used to collect revenue through rates when the industries were fully operational, but now the situation has changed.

ByA Correspondent- President Emmerson Mnangagwa has said Victoria Falls City has achieved herd immunity following the roll-out of mass vaccination against COVID-19 last month.

Posting on his official Twitter page, President Mnangagwa said 77 per cent of Victoria Falls citizens had received their second jab. He wrote:

Victoria Falls has now achieved herd immunity. Last month I received my first Covid-19 vaccine in Victoria Falls.

I am immensely proud that over 77 per cent of the city’s inhabitants have received their second jab.

Thank you to all the health officials who have made this possible.

President Mnangagwa launched the country’s second phase of the national vaccination programme in Victoria Falls in March and the government’s plan was to achieve a 60 per cent herd immunity of the population in the resort town.

Close to 20 000 had received their first dose when the second round started a few days ago, with citizens still thronging various static and mobile sites for vaccination.

-statemedia

By A Correspondent- Three Harare men last Thursday appeared in court for duping a businessman of US$45 000 in a botched gold deal.

Stephen Mhumbwe, Louis Mudzongo and Mike Tafira appeared before Harare magistrate Dennis Mangosi and were remanded out of custody to June 2.

The court heard that the trio connived and duped a local businessman only identified as Mashiri, who is a registered gold buyer, by selling him fake gold.

It is the State’s case that Mudzongo was approached by Tafira who told him that some people in Ngezi were looking for a gold buyer.

Mudzongo then allegedly engaged Mhumbwe to look for a buyer. Mashiri allegedly fell for the deal and Mhumbwe then accompanied him to a person identified as Mashonganyika to buy the gold.

The State further alleges that Mhumbwe then accompanied Mashiri to meet Mashonganyika who was in the company of one Jena and T-One.

Mashiri was then given what appeared like genuine gold and he paid US$45 000 for it through Mhumbwe.

He later discovered the scam and made a police report.

No recoveries were made as the trio became evasive. Lancelot Mutsokoti appeared for the State.

-newsday

By A Correspondent- Eight people most of them schoolchildren have been quarantined at Thorngrove Infectious Diseases Hospital and Elangeni Training Centre in Bulawayo.

This follows mass testing and contact tracing that followed the detection of COVID-19 cases at Mzilikazi Primary School and Mzilikazi High School.

Chronicle reported on Saturday that there had been no new coronavirus positive cases at Mzilikazi Primary School but as more results trickled in, some positive cases have since been recorded.

Bulawayo Health Director Dr. Edwin Sibanda said although they are yet to ascertain the exact number of cases since the laboratory which is dealing with the samples is overwhelmed, they have recorded a total of 38 cases, eight being staff members and the rest pupils.

He said:

The first case which was recorded at the school was a worker who tested positive on March 27 and as of yesterday, 1 930 pupils, 55 teachers, and 13 student teachers had been tested, meaning 97,9 percent of the learners were tested.

… From Mzilikazi high school, we collected 30 samples in contact tracing, and unfortunately, results are still pending.

We have taken eight in isolation either at Thorngrove Hospital and Elangeni Training Centre.

Dr. Sibanda said they want all the teachers and other staff to be vaccinated because adults are more vulnerable to the coronavirus compared to pupils.-statemedia

By A Correspondent- The duo,Joana Mamombe and Cecillia Chimbiri are at the courts today.

They are being represented by their defense lawyer Alec Muchadehama at the High Court and at Rotten Row court by Mutongi Bhamu.

Said a source privy to developments:

“Their bail application hearing will likely be stalled because of the ferret team which seems to have taken over the case. They are running up and down the corridors.

At the regional court, it is also highly likely that the case may be remanded to May 5 2021.

The delays and blockages seem to be coordinated by state security agents. These agents are working in carhoots with the national prosecuting authority.

The lawfare framework is being used in conjuction with the political framework and so the environmental framework of our courts is now toxic and terrorised.

I see no light and no reasonable progress in Chapter 4 section 50 of our Constitution; (20:13).

The truth is we are heading towards a much more disastrous environment. There is NO RULE OF LAW IN THIS COUNTRY AND ITS UTTER CHAOS which potentially will exacerbate forced disappearances of many.”

Former Public Service minister Priscah Mupfumira, who is facing criminal abuse of office charges at the courts, told Senate on Thursday that law enforcement agents should thoroughly investigate cases before arresting suspects, saying the “catch and release” practice adopted by police was aiding corruption.

Mupfumira said this while contributing to debate on a report of the 2021 virtual hearings at the United Nations on fighting corruption to restore trust in government and improve development prospects.

She said poor investigations by the police on corruption cases were resulting in suspects being released without conviction because there would be no evidence against them, adding it exposed government to unnecessary litigation in the event of collapsed cases.

“The problem on why we are not properly handling corruption is that you hear the issue of catch and release. You hear that people have been arrested because of corruption, but later you hear that they are released,” Mupfumira said.

“The problem is that there are a lot of false allegations that are going on. So, no one will take us seriously and we will score lowly when it comes to the index. Human dignity should be considered when there are arrests or allegations. When there is an investigation, there should be a good investigation. Law enforcement agents should be well-trained to separate rumours and reasonable allegations.”

Mupfumira was sacked from government after criminal abuse of office charges were levelled against her.

She is jointly charged with former permanent secretary Ngoni Masoka on allegations of corruptly claiming US$90 000 from the National Social Security Authority to purchase personal vehicles.

They have however denied the charges.

Mupfumira told Senate that malicious arrests would discredit the anti-corruption institutions, and result in increased cases of abuse of public resources.

“Let us not act upon rumours because by the time we get to the courts, it will become just mere allegations that will not stand and it becomes a ‘catch and release’,” she said.

“Otherwise we end up losing credibility because of that and it is as if this ‘catch and release’ was just meant for propaganda. Let us ensure that we investigate properly so that government does not face litigation. Investigators should work on fact and not hearsay or rumours.”

Midlands senator Morgen Komichi (MDC-T) called on government to empower the anti-corruption institutions with training and resources to enhance efficient service delivery.

–

By A Correspondent- The trial of six MDC Alliance party youth leaders commences today at the Harare Magistrates Court.

According to the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR), the activists are being represented by Obey Shava.

The MDC-A activists are facing public violence charges after they allegedly participated in an anti-government protest against hunger during the 2020 national lockdown period.

The six are Joanna Mamombe, Tererai Sithole, Cecilia Chimbiri, Netsai Marova, Lovejoy Chitengu, and Stan Manyenga.

They were arrested in 2020 and charged with participating in a gathering with intent to promote public violence, breaches of the peace, or bigotry as defined in section 37 of the Criminal Code.

Prosecutors claim that the six participated in an illegal demonstration held on 13 May 2020 in Warren Park suburb, Harare.

Following the flash demonstration, Mamombe, Chimbiri, and Marova were arrested at a police roadblock on their way to the city centre and allegedly abducted later from a police station.

The trio further alleged that they were physically and s_xually abused by their armed captives over a two-day period in Bindura before they were dumped by the roadside.

By A Correspondent- Joshua Maponga, a Zimbabwean-born public speaker and religious leader, has allegedly been having an affair with a South African woman behind his wife’s back.

According to Daily Sun, Maponga’s 29-year-old alleged lover from Newcastle, KZN, said although they spent most of their time hiding in hotels, the affair was amazing.

The unnamed woman also claimed she was impregnated by Maponga but miscarried.

She said the relationship with Maponga started when she sent him a message on social media in October asking for spiritual guidance for her calling.

She said Maponga introduced her to one of his associates, a sangoma, but he (Maponga) kept checking up on her regularly.

The woman is quoted as saying:

I dreamt of him one night and thought it was a sign from the ancestors he’s the right person to help me. I began to feel comfortable.

He invited me to Joburg and paid for my travel expenses including the hotel. He said he wanted to marry me as his second wife.

According to her, she used to travel to Joburg at least twice a month and stay for a few days.

On one of her visits in December, the woman said Maponga told her he suspected she was pregnant.

She said:

The results came back positive. But one morning I had severe cramps and started to bleed. My mum took me to a clinic and I was told I had a miscarriage.

I was heartbroken and more hurt that he showed no sympathy. I then realised things are not what they seem. I no longer had visions and dreams.

The woman said Maponga even named the dead baby as per custom.

Although he said he knew the woman, Maponga denied allegations of infidelity, pregnancy, and using juju.

He said the woman was trying to extort money from him and accused her of harassment.

However, Daily Sun said they are in possession of their intimate WhatsApp conversations, which include conversations about rituals for their dead unborn child.

When Daily Sun asked Maponga to respond to the screenshots of their intimate conversations and pregnancy, he asked to meet the reporters on Thursday for a comprehensive reply.

But on the day of the meeting, he asked the reporters to meet him in the presence of his attorneys.

Daily Sun opted to send his attorney an email of the inquiry, whose receipt was acknowledged.

The attorneys had not responded to the inquiry at the time of going to print.

By A Correspondent- An undated video has surfaced on social of the late Air Force of Zimbabwe (AFZ) female pilot Flight-Lieutenant Annita Mapiye flying a helicopter.

Mapiye, who died with two others and an 18 month old baby where the helicopter they were travelling in crashed in Arcturus last week is seen navigating a military helicopter over rugged terrain.

Mapiye, who is Zimbabwe’s first female helicopter fighter pilot, died with a co-pilot, a technician, and an 18-month-old toddler identified as Jade Fenyere, when the Agusta Bell 412 (AB 412) helicopter crashed into a house at Plot 2 of Gardner Road, Ward 16 in Goromonzi.

Watch the video below:

By A Correspondent- Kariba-based freelance investigative journalist, Obert Siamilandu, has received anonymous phone calls threatening harm to his personal life for penning the stories he does.

Siamilandu first received the threats through a phone call on the 17th April 2021 in which he was told to drop what he was doing (“siyana nezvaurikuita”). When he sought clarity on what exactly he needs to stop doing, the caller simply said “unozviziva” (you know what you are doing). The caller further warned that at this stage he was only warning the journalist, but would move a gear up and unleash  actions to incapacitate and harm the journalist (“yandirikukupa is advice but ukaramba uchienderera mberi I will go on another stage”). Siamilandu had that week broken the story of Municipality of Kariba’s suspension of its Town Planner for improper conduct. The story was carried by Newsday and was an instant hit online.

Although at that stage Siamilandu  took the threat, veiled as advice, lightly , he was taken aback when they were repeated when he attended the opening of court proceedings against three Municipality of Kariba officials in Chinhoyi on Wednesday. Richard Kamhoti (Town Clerk), Saratiere Chitenhe (Director of Financial Services) and Tendayi Mapondera (Ward 5 Councillor) are facing fresh charges of abuse of office as public officers.

It has emerged that Siamilandu, who used to anchor a Municipality of Kariba-sponsered programme on Nyaminyami FM, a provincial commercial radio station based  in Kariba, called “Municipal Talk”, recorded the calls and is now co-operating with state security agents who are on the trail of the caller/s.

Now a freelance  journalist who is a correspondent for several media houses, Siamilandu is a thorn in the flesh of a cartel of corrupt officials in Kariba who thrived on the backdrop of a docile media content to receive brown envelopes and other preferential treatment to overlook clear corruption harming the resort town. 

Siamilandu admits that perks and inappropriate gifts are “killing our journalism” and vows not to take his leg off the pedal in the anti-corruption drive. 

“They want to silence me but unfortunately they won’t succeed,” enthused Siamilandu.

Zimbabwe Union of Journalists (ZUJ) Kariba Chapter Chairman, Addmore Mbonda, when contacted for a comment, claimed that Siamilandu was yet to contact him, adding “if he did so we could have made a statement or a report to Police”.

The fear mongering is escalating as more and more officials at the municipality are afraid the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC), which is probing Kariba, might unravel more corruption and make more arrests. Ward 9 councillor and lawyer, Simbarashe Lloyd Manyumwa, has also confirmed on social media receiving similar threats. Samu Mawawo, formerly Executive Chairman of the vocal Kariba Incorporated Area Residents and Ratepayers Association (KIARRA) wrote that “I have also received one threat” after current KIARRA Executive Chairman, Dickson Siapunda, had advised on the KIARRA WhatsApp platform that he was being threatened following the arrest of Municipality of Kariba officials. 

“Ndavakuvhundutsirwa namamwe maboora ngoma panyaya dzevakasungwa” intimated Siapunda. Mawawo was accused by his caller of having written to Local Government Minister, July Moyo, detailing corruption in Kariba.

Kariba has been dogged with corruption allegations for a long time which some claim has crippled service delivery in the once thriving town. The resort town has no formal modern vegetable and vending markets despite funding having been availed through Devolution Funds. Probably the most baffling anomaly is the unavailability of a constant supply of water in the majority of suburbs despite a huge investment in supposedly functional water pumps. Kariba is blessed with the world’s biggest man-made lake, by volume and availability of water should not be an issue at all.

Residents point to a failed and corrupt leadership at their municipality and are relieved  that ZACC has finally moved in. Better late than never, they reckon.

By A Correspondent- The trial of six MDC Alliance party youth leaders commences today at the Harare Magistrates Court.

According to the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR), the activists are being represented by Obey Shava.

The MDC-A activists are facing public violence charges after they allegedly participated in an anti-government protest against hunger during the 2020 national lockdown period.

The six are Joanna Mamombe, Tererai Sithole, Cecilia Chimbiri, Netsai Marova, Lovejoy Chitengu, and Stan Manyenga.

They were arrested in 2020 and charged with participating in a gathering with intent to promote public violence, breaches of the peace, or bigotry as defined in section 37 of the Criminal Code.

Prosecutors claim that the six participated in an illegal demonstration held on 13 May 2020 in Warren Park suburb, Harare.

Following the flash demonstration, Mamombe, Chimbiri, and Marova were arrested at a police roadblock on their way to the city centre and allegedly abducted later from a police station.

The trio further alleged that they were physically and s_xually abused by their armed captives over a two-day period in Bindura before they were dumped by the roadside.

By A Correspondent- President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government has bowed to pressure and agreed to consider another adjustment on civil servants’ salaries after teachers threatened a full-blown strike last week as their employer moved to effect a no-work-no-salary policy.

Last Thursday, Public Service minister Paul Mavima confirmed the development in Senate, saying government was considering another “slight adjustment” to the “staggered 70%” wage offer tabled last month, which civil servants have rejected. He, however, insisted that the salaries (i would be in local currency as government had no capacity to pay United States dollar-indexed salaries.

“With regard to salaries, government is working out to ensure that workers are motivated properly, but the workers should also appreciate efforts that are being made by government. According to our revenue at the moment, it is not possible for us to go beyond what we have already offered,” Mavima said.

“We may actually adjust or increase, but not with a big percentage because we stand guided by the Finance ministry. I know that there is a problem that some teachers re-port for duty, but do not teach and children are being denied the education they deserve.

“The government team went back to the negotiating table so that our offer may be re-considered, hence Treasury and Public Service Commission technical people are meeting to see how they can increase the PTUZ secretary-general Raymond Majongwe offer to the civil servants. We are saying that since government has opened the negotiation forum, may civil servants, especially teachers go back to work while negotiations go on,” he said.

Last November, Mavima accused civil servants of making outrages demands.

Teachers, who make up the bulk of civil servants, are demanding between US$520 and US$550 or their equivalent in the local currency.

Teachers are currently earning between $17 000 and $22 000, which they say is below the poverty datum line.

In March, government agreed to adjust its workers’ salaries, offering a 70% staggered adjustment, which saw civil servants this month getting 25% of the offer.

Their unions told NewsDay yesterday that they had lost faith in the negotiations.

“We have negotiated enough and nobody seems to care. We are being considered as workers who do not deserve attention as if to mean we are a nuisance. The best we can say is that we are condemned employees. We have been neglected like mercenary prisoners of war and the only solution before us is to show that we are human beings worth surviving, like the members of Parliament who are demanding more than $72 000. We need to rise up and be counted,” Zimbabwe National Teachers Union chief executive Manuel Nyawo said.

Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ) president Takavafira Zhou said: “This is no time for rhetoric and empty promises, but a time for realism and pragmatic action that can restore meaningful learning and teaching in schools. Our plea is that government must invest in quality public education and the payment of a living wage to teachers must be high on the government agenda, moreso in light of Agenda 2030 aimed at revolutionising education through life-serving skills revolution. Well-paid teachers in safe schools are a must for quality public education.”

The Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (Artuz) claimed government of using terror tactics to force teachers back to class.

Artuz claimed that its members in Zaka, Masvingo province, had been assaulted by parents on the incitement of some ruling Zanu-PF party members.

“We are gathering that a school head and his deputy at Mapanje Primary School in Zaka have been attacked by parents. We are also advised that the ruling party has launched a campaign to incite parents against teachers. Our schools must be safe,” Artuz said on its Twitter handle yesterday.

But Zanu-PF spokesperson Simon Khaya Moyo yesterday dismissed the reports, adding that if it were true, then the union should report the perpetrators to the police.

“Why Should Zanu-PF involve itself in school affairs? Those who claim they have been assaulted should report the matter to the police. But that is not how we behave in Zanu-PF,”Moyo said.

PTUZ secretary-general Raymond Majongwe said victimisation of teachers by politicians was not a new phenomenon.

“Teachers have been victimised for ages. Politicians should never interfere with educational issues. Those who are meddling with the issues happening in schools should stop forthwith,” Majongwe said.

Last Thursday, labour representatives stormed out of the Tripartite Negotiation Forum meeting in Harare in protest after government said it would not intervene in salary negotiations between employees and employers.

By A Correspondent- Farmers at Velvekia farm Guruve are up in arms with an ex-soldier Christopher Magomo and one white farmer Duncan Wood.

The duo is reported to have grabbed a tractor and planter under an agriculture scheme meant to benefit poor farmers at Velvekia.

“Magomo  and his colleague (Wood) took our machinery and used it in their fields without considering our plight despite the deposit we paid to have the machinery available at the farm,” lamented the source.

“Our major concern now is that the duo is refusing to repair the tractor which broke down in their hands and us farmers we are now being tasked to pay again yet we did not benefit from the scheme.” 

It is further alleged that the tractor driver has not been paid for more than three months.

Meanwhile, one Peter Madzvamuse allegedly repossessed the equipment from the duo and took it to a police base where it is currently parked.

Madzvamuse  is now mobilizing funds from farmers to repair the damages since no audit has been done to that effect.

Efforts to contact Magomo and Wood were fruitless by the time of publishing.

-Byo24

By A Correspondent- Former Public Service minister Priscah Mupfumira, who is facing criminal abuse of office charges at the courts, told Senate on Thursday that law enforcement agents should thoroughly investigate cases before arresting suspects, saying the “catch and release” practice adopted by police was aiding corruption.

Mupfumira said this while contributing to debate on a report of the 2021 virtual hearings at the United Nations on fighting corruption to restore trust in government and improve development prospects.

She said poor investigations by the police on corruption cases were resulting in suspects being released without conviction because there would be no evidence against them, adding it exposed government to unnecessary litigation in the event of collapsed cases.

“The problem on why we are not properly handling corruption is that you hear the issue of catch and release. You hear that people have been arrested because of corruption, but later you hear that they are released,” Mupfumira said.

“The problem is that there are a lot of false allegations that are going on. So, no one will take us seriously and we will score lowly when it comes to the index. Human dignity should be considered when there are arrests or allegations. When there is an investigation, there should be a good investigation. Law enforcement agents should be well-trained to separate rumours and reasonable allegations.”

Mupfumira was sacked from government after criminal abuse of office charges were levelled against her.

She is jointly charged with former permanent secretary Ngoni Masoka on allegations of corruptly claiming US$90 000 from the National Social Security Authority to purchase personal vehicles.

They have however denied the charges.

Mupfumira told Senate that malicious arrests would discredit the anti-corruption institutions, and result in increased cases of abuse of public resources.

“Let us not act upon rumours because by the time we get to the courts, it will become just mere allegations that will not stand and it becomes a ‘catch and release’,” she said.

“Otherwise we end up losing credibility because of that and it is as if this ‘catch and release’ was just meant for propaganda. Let us ensure that we investigate properly so that government does not face litigation. Investigators should work on fact and not hearsay or rumours.”

Midlands senator Morgen Komichi (MDC-T) called on government to empower the anti-corruption institutions with training and resources to enhance efficient service delivery.

-newsday

By A Correspondent- The government has banned religious organisations from holding their gatherings in schools in a move meant to protect teachers and learners from the coronavirus scourge.

Religious organisations, Christian denominations included, renting school premises have been told to find alternative places for their services.

The development was confirmed by the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education director of communication and advocacy Taungana Ndoro.

He said:

Yes, I can confirm that churches have been banned from using classrooms or school premises for conducting church services in line with measures to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The move is meant to protect pupils and teachers.

This is the second time that the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education has banned religious denominations from holding services in schools.

Last year, Education Minister Cain Mathema banned the use of schools before the writing of the Zimbabwe School Examinations Council (ZIMSEC) 2020 June examinations.

Meanwhile, Gweru Mayor Councillor Josiah Makombe said many churches were now conducting their services in closed council beer halls.-statemedia

By A Correspondent- Traditional leaders have demanded that the Justice minister must not be given power to appoint them as marriages officers in the Marriages Bill as that would undermine their authority.

Clause 9 of the Marriages Bill, which is currently before Senate, proposes that the Justice minister “may” choose to designate a chief to become a marriage officer.

However, last Thursday in Senate, chiefs raised objections against the clause, saying it must be removed as they automatically qualified to be marriage officers and did not need to be appointed by the Justice minister.

Senator Chief Ngungumbane, born Zama Mkwananzi of Mberengwa, described the clause as discriminatory.

“The first one is, when I become a chief, I have to apply to you as the minister administering this Act. The word ‘may’ means that you can use your discretion to approve or disapprove that application of a chief. To me, that creates discrimination among the institution of chiefs,” Chief Ngungumbane said.

“I think by virtue of me being a chief, I automatically become a marriage officer. It should be automatic,” he said.

President of the Chiefs’ Council Chief Fortune Charumbira said: “When one is appointed a chief, all chiefs are equal. So, you cannot by operation of this Bill, start grading them and say this one is competent and that one in not.”

But Justice minister Ziyambi Ziyambi defended the clause, saying it was not discriminatory.

“What we are simply saying is we want chiefs to be made alive to what they would be doing in terms of solemnising the marriages of their people. I plead with chiefs that this is a very progressive clause that we cannot remove because if we remove it, it means that government will now accept marriages that may be void without any control or without any training of the very people that they would have allowed to be marriage officers,” Ziyambi said.

-newsday

By A Correspondent- Former University of Zimbabwe Sociology department chairman during the former first lady Grace Ntombizodwa Mugabe’s controversial PhD, Doctor Watch Ruparanganda has made some stunning claims before the court when he said that Grace Mugabe was a ghost student who appeared from nowhere.

Dr Ruparanganda who is a third witness in the trial of suspended University of Zimbabwe Vice Chancellor Levi Nyagura said some of his duties when he was a senior lecturer at UZ was to ensure that the enrollment of the students was per the regulations but he claimed whilst he was working there, he never came across Grace. He said he doesn’t know Grace and he believes she doesn’t know him either.

“I don’t even know Grace Mugabe and even if she was here she wouldn’t have known me, she just appeared from nowhere, and it was through the grapevine that I heard that she was graduating with a PHD degree,” he said.

Dr. Ruparangada further stated that Mugabe was a ghost student as the board did not have any knowledge of her and the topic she was researching. They only came to know about her when she was about to graduate.

He said as the board, they were supposed to have known her qualifications to avoid enrolling standard six students.

“Mugabe was supposed to have seen me as the chairman like what other candidates like Thokozani Khupe did,” he added.

According to The Herald, Dr. Ruparangada told the court that, Professor Nyagura knew very well that for one to supervise a PhD candidate, he or she had to have the qualifications but instead he chose to select an unqualified friend of his to supervise the ghost student.

The former Vice-Chancellor is facing criminal abuse of office charges. The charges stem from the degree that was awarded to the former first lady Grace Mugabe by the UZ’s Faculty of Social Studies Department of Sociology in 2014.

The degree attracted intense criticism and speculation after claims that Grace did not defend her thesis, let alone write one, and that she did not take the required period to complete the doctorate.

His trial kicked off on Thursday last week.