Tinashe Sambiri|There are disturbing reports of a huge snake that crept into Joana Mamombe and Cecilia Chimbiri’s prison cell at Chikurubi Maximum Prison.
There was confusion, fear and anxiety at Chikurubi Maximum Prison on Sunday when the reptile crept into Hon Mamombe and Cecilia Chimbiri’s prison cell.
The reptile poked its head through a hole at the rooftop…
On noticing it, the two screamed over and over, and the officers casually said they were calling the National Parks Department for help.
Nat Parks never came. Reacting to this, the two continued screaming though no one came to their rescue.
“Only two officers came after a long wait- to say they would wait for National Parks,”Netsai Marova told ZimEye.
No official comment has been obtained from the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services.
Tinashe Sambiri|There are disturbing reports of a huge snake that crept into Joana Mamombe and Cecilia Chimbiri’s prison cell at Chikurubi Maximum Prison.
There was confusion, fear and anxiety at Chikurubi Maximum Prison on Sunday when the reptile crept into Hon Mamombe and Cecilia Chimbiri’s prison cell.
The reptile poked its head through a hole at the rooftop…
On noticing it, the two screamed over and over, and the officers casually said they were calling the National Parks Department for help.
Nat Parks never came. Reacting to this, the two continued screaming though no one came to their rescue.
“Only two officers came after a long wait- to say they would wait for National Parks,”Netsai Marova told ZimEye.
No official comment has been obtained from the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services.
Tinashe Sambiri|There are disturbing reports of a huge snake that crept into Joana Mamombe and Cecilia Chimbiri’s prison cell at Chikurubi Maximum Prison.
There was confusion, fear and anxiety at Chikurubi Maximum Prison on Sunday when the reptile crept into Hon Mamombe and Cecilia Chimbiri’s prison cell.
The reptile poked its head through a hole at the rooftop…
On noticing it, the two screamed over and over, and the officers casually said they were calling the National Parks Department for help.
Nat Parks never came. Reacting to this, the two continued screaming though no one came to their rescue.
“Only two officers came after a long wait- to say they would wait for National Parks,”Netsai Marova told ZimEye.
No official comment has been obtained from the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services.
Tinashe Sambiri|Zanu Zanu PF is at the centre of corruption in local authorities, MDC Alliance Secretary for Local Government, Sesel Zvidzai has said.
Local Government Minister, July Moyo has been mired in a corruption scandal and he is at pains to clear his name.
Below is Hon Zvidzai’s statement:
JULY MOYO, ZANU PF AT THE CENTRE OF CORRUPTION IN LOCAL AUTHORITIES
The events of recent weeks demonstrate that ZANU PF and central government are at the centre of corruption in local authorities.
It has been recently reported that Local Government Minister, July Moyo, is entangled in a corruption scandal.
It is alleged that Minister Moyo awarded a US$9,3 million contract to supply water pumps to the City of Harare without going to tender. Reports state that July Moyo instructed staff in the City of Harare (who are appointed by central government) to source the equipment from a company linked to a Mr Kruger without following tender requirements laid down in our procurement laws. Mr Kruger is believed to be a friend of the Minister whom he associates with and is involved in the Chilonga displacement saga.
This latest act of grand corruption scandal demonstrates that Minister July Moyo, central government and ZANU PF are at the centre of the corruption crisis in local authorities. It has further come to our attention that Chiredzi Town Council has also been forced to procure generators and other equipment unprocedurally from persons who are connected to the Minister.
July Moyo’s US$9,3 million corruption scandal follows the recent arrests of ZANU PF land barons, Frederick Maramba and Smelly Dube. This is only the tip of a massive iceberg. The Uchena Land Commission Report on State-land established that over US$3 billion worth of land was misappropriated by these land barons who are connected to ZANU PF. We condemn theses corrupt acts as they lead to the delivery of substandard equipment, the siphoning of taxpayers’ money and perpetuate the capture of local authorities by central government. We call upon the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission, the Zimbabwe Republic Police and the National Prosecution Authority to urgently investigate Minister Moyo and hold him to account for his corrupt conduct that is prejudicing taxpayers and citizens who will, as a result, be deprived of decent service delivery. As highlighted by President Nelson Chamisa in his Agenda 2021 address, the fight against corruption is one of the key pillars in our People’s Agenda. Corruption is choking the ordinary person and we call upon all progressive forces and citizens to converge with the MDC Alliance to fight against this scourge. We demand accountability and transformation on all matters of maladministration. The fight against corruption must be driven by a broad alliance. It must overshadow our political polarities because it is killing all sectors of our society. Sesel Zvidzai Secretary for Local Government and Rural Development
7 Common Nutrient Deficiencies: Know the Signs The hidden cause of common symptoms such as fatigue and muscle aches could be a nutrient deficiency.
By Elizabeth Shimer Bowers and Moira Lawler Medically Reviewed by Lynn Grieger, RDN, CDCES Last Updated: March 9, 2021 Medically Reviewed
vitamins and minerals If you think you may have a nutrient deficiency, talk to your doctor, who may recommend a supplement.
You may think nutrient deficiencies are a thing of the past, experienced only by sailors on long sea voyages. But even today, it’s possible to lack some of the essential nutrients your body needs to function optimally.
“Nutrient deficiencies alter bodily functions and processes at the most basic cellular level,” says Tricia L. Psota, PhD, RDN, a lecturer in the exercise and nutrition sciences department at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health in Washington, DC. “These processes include water balance, enzyme function, nerve signaling, digestion, and metabolism. Resolving these deficiencies is important for optimal growth, development, and function.”
Nutrient deficiencies can also lead to diseases. “For example, calcium and vitamin D deficiencies can cause osteopenia or osteoporosis, two conditions marked by brittle bones,” says Kate Patton, RD, a dietitian at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio. “And inadequate iron can cause anemia, which zaps your energy.”
Telltale symptoms are usually the first clue that you are low in one or more important vitamins or minerals, says Patton. Here’s how to recognize seven common nutrient deficiencies.
Calcium: Numb, Tingling Fingers and Abnormal Heart Rhythm Calcium is important for maintaining strong bones and controlling muscle and nerve function, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Signs of severely low calcium include numb, tingling fingers and abnormal heart rhythms, says the Cleveland Clinic. That said, there are no short-term, obvious symptoms of calcium deficiency.
Most adults need 1,000 milligrams (mg) of calcium each day, though women over 50 and men over 70 need 1,200 mg, per the Mayo Clinic. Patton says you’ll likely get enough from at least three servings of milk or yogurt a day. Cheese is another good source of calcium, but if you’re not big on dairy, you can find this nutrient in calcium-fortified orange juice or breakfast cereal (check the nutrition facts label of the food to see if calcium has been added), and dark leafy greens like kale and broccoli, according to the NIH.
MOST HELPFUL Could You Be Vitamin D–ficient? The 7 Best Bone-Building Foods Study: Nutrients From Diet Better Than Supplements
Vitamin D: Fatigue, Bone Pain, Mood Shifts, and More This vitamin is another that’s crucial for bone health and may also prevent some cancers, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Symptoms of a vitamin D deficiency can be vague — fatigue, bone pain, mood changes, and muscle aches or weakness may set in.
“If it goes on long term, a vitamin D deficiency can lead to softening of the bones,” Psota says. Long-lasting deficiency also may be linked with cancers and autoimmune diseases, says Michelle Zive, an NASM-certified nutrition coach based in San Diego.
According to the NIH, most adults need 15 micrograms (mcg) of vitamin D each day, and adults older than 70 need 20 mcg. Patton suggests having three servings of fortified milk or yogurt daily and eating fatty fish, such as salmon or tuna, twice a week, as these are foods that contain vitamin D; spend some time outside in the sunshine every day, too, as this is a great source of the nutrient. Ten to 30 minutes a few times a week of direct sunlight exposure should help, Zive says.
Potassium: Muscle Weakness, Constipation, Irregular Heart Rhythm, and More Potassium helps your heart, nerves, and muscles work properly and also delivers nutrients to cells while removing waste, according to MedlinePlus. Plus, it’s a useful nutrient that helps offset sodium’s negative impact on your blood pressure: “It’s important in maintaining a healthy blood pressure,” Zive says.
You could become low in potassium in the short term because of diarrhea or vomiting; excessive sweating; antibiotics, laxatives, or diuretics; excessive alcohol consumption; or because of a chronic condition such as kidney disease, per the Mayo Clinic. Symptoms of a deficiency include muscle weakness, twitches, or cramps; constipation; tingling and numbness; and an abnormal heart rhythm or palpitations, says MedlinePlus.
For natural potassium sources, try bananas, milk, acorn squash, lentils, and kidney beans and other legumes. Adult men need 3,400 mg each day, and women need 2,600 mg, according to the NIH.
Iron: Fatigue, Shortness of Breath, Cold Hands and Feet, Brittle Nails, and More Iron is necessary to produce red blood cells, which carry oxygen throughout the body, according to the University of California in San Francisco. When iron levels get too low, there may be a deficiency in red blood cells, resulting in a condition called anemia. Some groups at increased risk of iron deficiency include menstruating women, growing individuals (such as children and pregnant women), and those following a vegan or vegetarian diet, Zive says.
Anemia can leave you with symptoms including weakness and fatigue, shortness of breath, a fast heartbeat, pale skin, headache, cold hands and feet, a sore or swollen tongue, brittle nails, and cravings for strange things like dirt, according to the Mayo Clinic. The symptoms may be so mild at first that you don’t notice something’s wrong, but as iron stores become more depleted, they will become more intense.
To boost iron levels, Patton recommends eating iron-fortified cereal, beef, oysters, beans (especially lima, navy, and kidney beans), lentils, and spinach. Adult men and women over 50 need 8 mg per day, and adult women younger than 50 need 18 mg each day, according to the NIH.
Vitamin B12: Numbness, Fatigue, Swollen Tongue, and More Vitamin B12 aids the production of red blood cells and DNA, and also improves neurotransmitter function, according to the NIH. Vegetarians and vegans may be at particular risk for vitamin B12 deficiency because plants don’t make the nutrient, and people who’ve had weight loss surgery may also lack B12 because the procedure makes it difficult for the body to extract the nutrient from food, according to Harvard Health Publishing.
Symptoms of severe B12 deficiency include numbness in the legs, hands, or feet; problems with walking and balance; anemia; fatigue; weakness; a swollen, inflamed tongue; memory loss and difficulty thinking, per Harvard Health Publishing. These symptoms can come on quickly or gradually, and since there’s such a wide range in symptoms, you may not notice them for a while.
Adults need 2.4 mcg of B12 per day, according to the NIH. It’s most commonly found in animal products, and Patton recommends fish, chicken, milk, and yogurt to boost your B12 levels. If you’re vegan or vegetarian, Zive suggests opting for foods fortified with B12, such as plant-based milk and breakfast cereals. You can also find B12 in most multivitamins, according to the NIH, but if you’re at risk of being deficient, you can take a supplement specifically containing B12.
Source: Everyday Health
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Tinashe Sambiri|Mr Emmerson Mnangagwa’s administration is deeply reluctant to prosecute looters of COVID-19 funds, the MDC Alliance has said.
In its weekly health update, the MDC Alliance accused Mr Mnangagwa’s administration of lacking the zeal to protect citizens from the deadly pandemic:
MDC Alliance Weekly Health Alert
*8th Edition *
14 March 2021
One year into the COVID-19 pandemic, how did Zimbabwe fare?
Executive Summary:
The government’s response to the covid-19 pandemic was characterized by failure to test the people, failure to manage immigration, failure to provide necessary resources like Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), COVID-19 admission facilities, oxygen, ventilators, failure to support and appreciate healthcare workers, poor or non-existent messaging, abuse of the pandemic to score cheap political gains at the expense of the people, failure to provide social safety nets and failure to deal with corruption like the Drax scandal and others. Lately, the government has also shown that it has no vaccine plan and only depending on knee jerk reflexes. On a scale of “A” to “E”, with A being the best score, we give the government of Zimbabwe a score of “D” for its performance in the first year of this pandemic because of the aforementioned.
As we commemorate the first anniversary of the worst pandemic in a century, we need to introspect as a nation on what we could have done better. “An unexamined life is not worth living”, as someone has already said. The first cluster of cases of COVID-19 were reported on December 31 2019 in Wuhan, China, and on March 11 2020, the WHO declared COVID-19 “a public health emergency of international concern”.
All systems in Zimbabwe then should have gone into overdrive to avert a national disaster. Mortality in China and some European countries had already started showing sinister trends. The Government of Zimbabwe declared its preparedness for the pandemic, with Wilkins hospital completely kitted up and ready to admit patients, with ventilators and oxygen in place.
The first wake-up call was on March the 20th, 2020, when we had our first real case of COVID-19, a young promising journalist, who passed on three days later under deplorable conditions. The nakedness of both the government and the purported national isolation centre, Wilkins hospital, was exposed. Health workers did not have adequate PPE, they did not quite know what to do with the case, and there was no single ventilator available, though the patient could easily have afforded one.
This was a chaotic and traumatic experience for both the family and all Zimbabweans. We all started weighing our chances of survival in the face of this new reality, with much trepidation, considering that this first fatality did not come from a family of meager means.
These are the lessons learnt from this experience: • Government should never lie to the people that we are prepared when in fact we are not. Complete transparency and honesty have no substitute.
• A caring attitude is important, and cover-ups stink. • All resources should have been channeled to life saving technologies and human resources in a pandemic of this magnitude.
• Government has no power to stop death, but government has the power to avail the best possible service to its citizens, so that at the end we can all say, “Well, all that could be done was done. This was now purely in the hands of The Maker”.
The failure of government to resolve a labour dispute with the doctors & nurses contributed much to our poor state of preparedness. Government should have dealt speedily with the health-workers’ industrial action and restored normalcy ahead of this pandemic. There was enough time to do that. The militarization of housemanship is not an answer to our human resources problem, and is bound to backfire with time. Government must reconsider.
Politicization of COVID-19 lockdowns was a serious miscalculation on the part of government, as this only served to spread the virus. The March 31 Supreme court ruling, now commonly known as the COVID-19 judgement, is a good example of the abuse of lockdown measures. The selective harassment, abuse and fining of citizens throughout this period is another example. These did not serve the interests of the nation in dealing with the pandemic. Instead, we saw Zanu PF functionaries holding parties and posting pictures on social media, supposedly to show that they were in power, without any legal repercussions. But COVID-19 did not understand that, and the events were unfortunately not without their own adverse consequences.
Institutionalized corruption and the looting of the covid-19 funds emasculated government’s response to the pandemic.
Government continues to pay lip service to the fight against corruption as real looters of COVID-19 funds continue to roam the streets scot free and we have not heard about any recoveries, especially from the Drax scandal.
Sadly, government has not been able to provide adequate free testing to the population, consequently no contact tracing was possible, and many cases went undiagnosed. Without testing, there is no isolation and containment of the pandemic. One year later, free testing is still not available to the majority of Zimbabweans. The result is that there has been no science in mapping the epidemic, and targeted lockdown measures and other data informed decisions could not be made. Blanket lockdown measures brought untold suffering to people who did not even need a lockdown in their locality. Government should take healthcare seriously, and make sure adequate resources are availed for the people’s healthcare, in keeping with section 76 of the constitution.
Failure to provide social safety nets in spite of pronouncements by the minister of finance was a monumental failure for this government. People were locked down into hunger and starvation, because the majority of our people live on hand to mouth budgets. We all watched with envy as other nations provided relief to their citizens in these trying times. Locking down the nation without providing food relief was the most cruel thing government did in response to this pandemic. The promised stimulus package to industry did not filter down to the intended recipients. One wonders who benefited.
There were many policy failures in the approach to this pandemic, chief of which was immigration control. Quarantine centres did not work as expected, they were porous and inmates were able to bribe their way out, use political influence to avoid quarantine, or simply escape from the centres through unknown channels. That is how we domesticated a disease that otherwise could have been kept out of Zimbabwe. It is important to move in tandem with international trends when dealing with a pandemic. The visit by the so-called Chinese COVID-19 specialist doctors was suspicious and certainly added no value to our response to the pandemic.
Failure to anticipate the second wave and prevent it was a monumental failure by the government. We all knew that the infection figures and deaths in our neighbouring South Africa were high. We also knew that a new more vicious strain in terms of transmissibility had been identified. It is common knowledge that we have a few million Zimbabweans in South Africa many of whom always want to come home for the festive season. The government took no thought of that to avert disaster, and we ended up with our worst two months, the nasty second wave which was both completely predictable and preventable.
Failure to set up COVID-19 isolation and treatment facilities resulted in untold suffering and unnecessary mortality.
Patients requiring moderate interventions like oxygen supplementation could not get it for there was no place to admit them. Until now, there are many towns without a single COVID-19 admission facility and patients are still turned away to go and die at home without any attempt to supportive therapy. But by far, the greatest looser was the ordinary non-COVID patient who could not be attended to because staff did not have PPE and had no capability to screen for COVID-19. Chronic disease patients were hardest hit, as many could not access their usual medication.
Communication and information dissemination has been very poor throughout this pandemic. The whole response was shrouded in mystery. This is now manifesting in the low vaccine uptake, which is largely caused by the people’s mistrust of government’s choices and failure to deal with conspiracy theories and other legitimate questions pertaining to vaccine safety and efficacy. The lack of transparency regarding the cost of the vaccine is a potential loophole for corruption and looting. The science behind choice of vaccine should be made plain, and full information should be disseminated, first to health care workers who have to deal with the public’s questions and doubts, and then to everybody in the country.
No heavy-handed tactics like withholding social benefits from those who are vaccine hesitant should be used, as previously intimated by Mr Mnangagwa.
The vaccine is our final weapon in the fight against COVID-19 and no effort should be spared in educating the public and allaying all related anxieties, to ensure that all eligible people receive the vaccine. Bringing in other vaccines as announced is a welcome move, but still information dissemination is key to dealing with mis-information and conspiracy theories, which remain rampant. We cannot just wish them away.
Bringing in private laboratory services as a substitute to free government testing sent the cost of all tests spiraling upwards. It was a serious abdication of duty by the government. We have always had private laboratory services in Zimbabwe, and they have their place, but they cannot become the mainstay of service delivery in such a massive public health emergency without a government subsidy. The poor are automatically excluded, and that is 90% of Zimbabweans. Contact tracing and routine surveillance died right there.
The rapid response teams were one of the weakest links in the government’s response strategy. They had a serious mandate without the necessary financing and equipment, notably PPE and diagnostic consumables like nasal swabs. They therefore failed dismally in their execution of duty. These are well-trained cadres by the way, but it is like a good soldier going to war without a gun and basic supplies.
How do we summarize government’s response to this pandemic? In a few words, government was not prepared to spend money on healthcare and on feeding the people during the very necessary lockdowns. Corruption was rife and crippled the response to COVID-19. The ruling party was the chief architect of super-spreader events, in the form of political party meetings and extravagant pleasure parties. Politicization of the lockdowns was rampant and led to much suffering, unnecessary arrests with consequent unnecessary exposure of citizens to COVID-19 in prisons. When it comes to pandemics of this nature, we admonish the government to put aside all partisan behavior, and all Zimbabweans should work together for the common good.
On the basis of this assessment, the government failed dismally in protecting Zimbabweans from this pandemic. We are all here today by a sovereign act of God. We give the government a score of “D”, with “A” being the best score and “E” the worst. The whole nation wants to help government get a score of “A” in this second year, so please, work with the people, and be completely transparent. All eyes are on the vaccine issue.
Going forward, here are our recommendations for the government to take Zimbabwe to a better place and avert a third wave as we open up the economy. Government should vigorously promote COVID-19 safe practices in all languages and on all media platforms. These include hand washing, sanitization, social distancing and avoiding close contact, avoiding supper spreader events, avoiding large gatherings, cough etiquette, and masking up as the new normal (not as a way of avoiding fines!), at least for the next one year as we measure progress. Health workers should be thoroughly equipped with knowledge so that they become the champions for vaccination and other interventions. Vaccine procurement is not the domain of private companies. Government must do its duty. As we move forward, government needs to concentrate on taking the people with it on all issues to do with vaccination and vaccine choice regarding safety, efficacy cost and other factors.
COVID-19 isolation and treatment facilities should be set up in every town, and a generous supply of PPE should be delivered to all health institutions. Schools should be properly equipped, and liaison with teachers’ unions should be intense. Businesses should be appropriately equipped and empowered to prevent infection.
Government needs to ramp up vaccination, and take professional advice seriously, particularly from the national immunization technical advisory group. Educate health workers and the population, procure vaccines in a transparent manner, distribute and administer to all. Convince health workers first and everything else will fall into place.
Dr. Henry Madzorera. Secretary for Health and Child Welfare. MDC-Alliance
By A Correspondent | As this week marks one month after Norton MP, Temba Mliswa’s girlfriend was stopped from flying out of Zimbabwe, following her allegations that she possesses knowledge on the terrorists who bombed White City Stadium in June 2018, ZimEye launches a search for her whereabouts. Is she in Zimbabwe or in Australia?
Susan Mutami
This is Brisbane, where Susan Mutami resides and we check today check on her at her usual addresses. This is St Vincent’s Private Hospital, Brisbane, where she could be employed and where her mother, Rabecca works.
Susan herself used to work here as a Care Assistant.
We are told, “she is not here; she has not been seen in several months.”
We cannot reveal the identity of interviewee at the hospital, per their request.
We now head to Princess Alexandra Hospital. Susan Mutami is not here. Sources tell ZimEye she is not here at all.
The Hospital was placed into lockdown after a positive #COVID19 case was detected 3 days ago. But we manage to speak to a source via phone who responds saying:
“For legal purposes. I cannot say much, but the person you are asking for no longer works here,” a female employee tells ZimEye.
It also turns out Susan cannot work there anymore as she was fired over continued absenteeism, the day before she travelled to Zimbabwe last year.
We now turn to Durack, the place where Susan can only come when she arrives into the country. This is where she lives.
Two of Susan’s closest friends tell ZimEye, they do not believe she is anywhere in Australia. “If she comes back into the country she will come here first, ” one of her colleagues says while asking not to be identified due to the political sensitivities around her case in Zimbabwe.
Meanwhile, as Susan’s mother Rabeccca does not appear willing to speak with journalists, we turn back to Susan herself.
We send her two messages, one becomes, blueticked, the other is still to be opened.
1st message: “Hello Susan. Are you okay? You’ve gone suddenly quiet. Strength to you!”
2nd message: “Many are worried over you. When are you traveling to Australia?”
There is no reply at all, and neither does she pick the phone up, which is not characteristic of her.
As her Zimbabwean phone sounds disconnected, her two Australian numbers all lead to her voicemail boxes. They have been in this state for nearly month.
Where is Susan then, and is she the one who is tweeting on her portal in the last month? A structured content audit of her tweets suggests someone else is publishing the posts. Terms like FDI, and economy do not form her known vocabulary.
When she was stopped from flying out of Zimbabwe on the 18th February, she quickly sought the help of lawyers and began referring journalists to them. Her solicitor last month told ZimEye, “she is alive, she is ok and she is safe.
“I can’t say much due to professional ethics; She will come back to you soon,” she said without revealing much detail.
ZimEye checked on the position of the Australian Embassy in Harare whose assistance she invoked last month, and found in their statement they have distanced themselves from Miss Mutami’s case saying her private conduct in Zimbabwe does not fall under the embassy’s interests.
“Ms Mutami’s behaviour in Zimbabwe are matters for the Zimbabweans authorities as they fall under Zimbabwean law,” the Australian embassy said in a statement responding to her affair with Norton MP Temba Mliswa.
ZimEye today returns to the Australian Embassy for further comment as we investigate Susan Mutami’s whereabouts.
By James Gwati- MDC-Alliance vice President and the parliamentary portfolio committee on Public Accounts Chairman, Tendai Biti, has ordered Zesa Holdings to submit documents related to the 200 MW Dema diesel power plant.
The Harare East lawmaker also directed the power utility to be ready to answer questions on other projects that were flagged in the 2020 forensic audit report produced by PricewaterhouseCoopers.
The dubious Dema project was awarded to Sakunda Holdings although the deal has since been cancelled due to the high cost of electricity produced at the plant.
The directive was issued this afternoon by Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee when Zesa Holdings management led by executive board chairperson Dr Sydney Gata appeared before it to respond to issues raised in the report.
Biti who adjourned the Zesa’s public hearing meeting to Monday next week expressed his committee’s frustration at the Zesa management’s inability to adequately prepare for the meeting despite the meeting having been scheduled since last year.
Zesa was also directed to submit documents related to the transformer deal between its subsidiary, ZENT Enterprises and Indian firm PME, the US$35 million loan deal with Afreximbank and the Gwanda Solar deal with Intratrek.
The forensic audit uncovered irregularities in the manner the deals were conducted.
By James Gwati-The announcement by the government Monday, that the authorities have now takenover the funeral of the late former Studio 263 actress, Anne Nhira, is a great relief to the bereaved family which was appealing for support to transport the body of the deceased to Zimbabwe for burial.
Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet Dr Misheck Sibanda, confirmed that the government was now taking over the funeral of the late actress, meaning that even the repatriation of her body from South Africa could now be facilitated by the state.
Anne Nhira died in South Africa last week from injuries she sustained from a robbery attack.
By A Correspondent- High Court judge Justice Webster Chinamhora has ordered the reinstatement of the NetOne CEO, Lazarus Muchenje.
Muchenje was dismissed on three months’ notice in July last year, but then made an urgent chamber application at the High Court challenging his dismissal and an interim order was granted in his favour suspending the letter of termination.
NetOne tried on 21 December 2021 to fire Muchenje on the same basis, using common law or Notice of Termination according to the Labor Act.
In his ruling, Justice Chinamhora said he had concluded that there was no inconsistency between the Labour Act and the Public Entities Corporate Governance Act within the contemplation of section 2A (3) of the Labour Act.
The provisions of section 12(4) should not have been utilised to bring an end to Muchenje’s employment, he said.
By James Gwati- The late Sibusiso Moyo’s wife and the Zimbabwe Anti Corruption Commission chairperson, Loice Matanda Moyo, has deserted her offices following a break-in that happened at ZACC premises at the weekend.
According to the state media, unknown people broke into ZACC’s Mt Pleasant Business Park offices at the weekend. The state media said investigations were now underway to establish if any crucial documents or property were missing.
After the disturbing incident, Justice Matanda Moyo took an early break and decided to work away from the offices, the state media reported.
Justice Matanda-Moyo confirmed the development this morning.
“Yes, there was a break-in at my office. Investigations are in progress,” she said.
By James Gwati- Sungura music maestro, Alick Macheso has bagged another prestigious award.
The Madhau hitmaker was awarded the Best campaigner- lifestyle and entertainment special award by the Institute of Public Relations and Communications Zimbabwe.
The award was posted on the host organisation’s Facebook page at the weekend.
Tinashe Sambiri|POLAD does not have the capacity and zeal to resolve the country’s political stalemate.
This was said by MDC Alliance Youth Assembly spokesperson, Stephen Sarkozy Chuma.
According to Chuma, POLAD was created to authenticate Mr Emmerson Mnangagwa’s stolen electoral victory.
Read full statement below:
POLAD’s Piggish Demands Must Be Condemned, Resisted
14-03-2021
Extravagant demands by Emmerson Mnangagwa’s acolytes coalescing under the banner of POLAD must be condemned and resisted by all progressive forces and citizens.
Verified reports from the mainstream media is that a grouping of 2018 political rejects are seeking to be pampered with luxurious gifts ranging from farms, diplomatic passports and top of the range vehicles and all this being forked out from the taxpayers money.
Such kind of greed especially coming from men and women who were rejected by the people through the ballot is not only unconstitutional but criminal.
Instead of wasting taxpayers’ money to buy fancy cars that money should be given as Covid-19 Relief Fund for the informal sector which had been shut down whilst big commercial businesses were operating.
The informal sector which hugely contribute to the national fiscus is employing the bulk of young people and it is struggling to recover from effects of lockdown.
With schools opening from Monday the majority of citizens who also happens to be major drivers of this informal sector are now suddenly faced with the school fees bill yet have no income.
We can not afford this piggish appetite and extravagance especially at a time when our teachers are incapacitated to report for work because of poor salaries.
That money intended to buy plush cars for POLAD guys will better save our education sector if added to teachers salaries.
We have said it before and we will say it again that POLAD serves no purpose at all in resolving the national crisis that came out of a disputed presidential election. The simple reason being that the guys in POLAD have no dispute with Mnangagwa but are in agreement with him.
Our free advice is that since the POLAD compradors are all but ZANU PF extensions, they better take the short route, join ZANU PF and spare us this nonsense.
Mnangagwa must stop wasting our time and national resources on these POLAD fellows because they are inconsequential to the national question of the day- national crisis borne out of his illegitimacy.
It is a public secret that MDC Alliance President Advocate Nelson Chamisa is the key ingredient that is needed to solve the current national crisis.
The guys in POLAD were rejected by the people and will be rejected again hence this black market approach to the national crisis does not yield intended results.
This is a year of citizens convergence against lunacy that has brought us where we are as a country.
We, the people we will resist this daylight thievery of the national cake by a few POLAD elites.
DefyOrDie
CitizensConvergence4Change
Agenda2021
Stephen Sarkozy Chuma MDC Alliance Youth Assembly National Spokesperson
By Dr Masimba Mavaza | UNKNOWN people broke into the office of Zimbabwe Anti Corruption Commission chairperson Justice Loice Matanda Moyo over the weekend at Mt Pleasant Business Park.
ZACC chairperson Loice Matanda Moyo
Investigations are now underway to establish if any crucial documents or property are missing. Current investigations suggest there are some gadgets that have gone missing following the burglary.
After the disturbing incident, Justice Matanda Moyo took an early break and decided to work away from the offices.
Justice Matanda-Moyo confirmed the development on Monday morning.
“Yes, there was a break in at my office. Investigations are in progress,” she said.
Justice Matanda Moyo’s retreat to work away from the office is not a retreat in fear but to allow investigations.
Two years back thieves broke in the offices of the Chief Justice Like Malaba and no one has been brought to books over it. In 2016 thieves again broke into the then Vice President’s office the now President of Zimbabwe again no arrests where made.
It is not clearly known if this incident at Matanda Moyo’s office is linked to any of the Corruption case which are under investigations.
In many countries the fighters of corruption are targeted by those who will be wishing to have their cases ignored. The full force of the police has been activated to solve this daring assault on fight against corruption.
Based on Toyota’s founding principle of contributing to society by making automobiles, we have been striving to the sustainable growth of society.
We set environment, traffic safety, and education as the three global priority fields for our initiatives, in addition to making social contributions through our main business.
We also hold social, cultural and other activities according to the social needs on each country or region, utilizing our resources of technology and expertise, etc.
In addition, we focus on volunteering and passing on automotive and manufacturing cultures to the next generation in order to enrich the lives of communities.
To contribute to sustainable development in Africa, Toyota Tsusho actively works on CSR activities, such as providing medical supplies, and maintenance parts for the Toyota vehicles that support people’s lives, in order to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in Africa.
And also, Toyota Tsusho has decided to support the activities of WFP (World Food Programme), sympathizing with their philosophy to eradicate hunger and poverty amongst the poorest and most food-insecure countries and populations.
CSR activities in some countries:
Toyota South Africa Motors (TSAM) has donated close to 50 000 face shields and masks to the local health institutions of KwaZulu-Natal, as well as other personal protective equipment (PPE) paraphernalia to schools in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal. (2020)
TSAM donated more than 65 000 litres of sanitisers to the local taxi industry. (2020)
Toyota Uganda (TUGA) donated a Brand New Hino Truck, food and funds in support of Covid efforts in Uganda. (2020)
Government considering resumption of football in the country The Sports and Recreation Commission has informed that the Government is planning to resume all sporting activities, including football, in the county.
The country’s top-flight has been on hold since March last year due to the Covid-19 crisis. The game is one of the several disciplines that were deemed high risk sports.
In a later sent to ZIFA, and other national sporting boards, the SRC said the resumption of football will be guided by the current World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines on the containment of the coronavirus.
“The Sports and Recreation Commission (SRC) wishes to advises that the Government, through the Ministry of Youth, Sport, Art and Recreation, plans to resume all sport in Zimbabwe…
“The resumption of all sport shall be guided by the prevailing World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines for the prevention and containment of COVID-19.”
Once the proposal is finalised, football clubs will be able to start group trainings and the regulations require them to hold their activities in a bio-secure bubble.-Soccer 24 Zimbabwe
By Jane Mlambo| National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) leader Professor Lovemore Madhuku has responded to damaging reports that members of the Political Actors Dialogue (POLAD) are demanding farms, diplomatic passports and top of the range cars.
Responding to MDC Alliance vice chairperson Job Sikhala who tagged him on his Twitter post asking if the reports are true, Madhuku said not every POLAD member is interested in farms.
Madhuku said there is no special privilege for any POLAD member to benefit from the land reform process.
“The true position is that there is no special privilege for any in Polad to benefit from the land reform process ahead of others. Polad leaders interested in farming and seeking to benefit from the land reform are applying like any other. Not every Polas leader is interested,” said Madhuku.
The weekly Standard newspaper carried a story that POLAD members had put forward their own list of things they wanted President Emmerson Mnangagwa administration to give them including farms with the Secretary for Justice Virginia Mabhiza reportedly looking into their request.
The issue attracted wide condemnation from the public who felt MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa had been vindicated for claiming that the POLAD platform was only for material things at the expense of national development.
The UEFA Champions League is one of the most famous football tournaments in the world, which has been played yearly since 1955. This year, it’s making a highly anticipated comeback later this month, and with plenty of possible outcomes, this season is going to be memorable, without a doubt.
The first legs of the round of 16 ties will be played on the 16th, 17th, 23rd, and 24th of February before the second legs wrap up in March.
What To Expect There’s a great deal of action to expect in this year’s competition. Neymar and Paris Saint-Germain will be competing against Lionel Messi and Barcelona, while Liverpool will do its best to avoid another round of 16 knockout when they go up against RB Leipzig.
Who are the favorites in some of the upcoming stage first legs, and who holds the best chances to win the Champions League in 2021?
UCL soccer betting experts have found that Manchester City and Bayern Munich are not only the top two favorites in their round of ties but also the most favored runner-ups of the knockout stage for the title.
Bayern Remain the Standard After taking the trophy last season, it comes as no surprise that Bayern Munich have still remained the favorites in the Champions League winner forecasts, and have all the chances of keeping the trophy. However, with plenty of support showcased for Manchester City and Liverpool, these Premier League giants are not far behind either, taking the second and third places across all the leaderboards worldwide. Although, let’s not forget that Liverpool drew against the semi-finalists of last season, RB Leipzig, so this match will be the one to watch.
Next on the list of favorites are PSG, who famously lost to Bayern during last year’s final, and they are followed by Atletico Madrid and Juventus. Chelsea comes up before Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig.
Venue Changes: Latest Updates As predicted by many, due to this year’s unforeseen complications and travel restrictions, venues have been changed for three UEFA Champions League rounds of 16 first legs.
RB Leipzig vs Liverpool The first UEFA Champions League round of 16 first leg match that was officially confirmed to change locations was between RB Leipzig and Liverpool FC. The match will now be played at Puskás Aréna in Budapest, with the date and kick-off time remaining the same.
Atlético de Madrid vs Chelsea UEFA has officially confirmed that the UCL round of 16 first leg match between Club Atlético de Madrid and Chelsea FC will take place at the Arena Naţională in Bucharest, with the date and time remaining the same.
Mönchengladbach vs Manchester City It’s been confirmed that the UCL round of 16 first leg match between Borussia VfL 1900 Mönchengladbach and Manchester City FC has been moved to the Puskás Aréna in Budapest. The date and time will remain the same.- Soccer 24 Zimbabwe
By A Correspondent | There was pandemonium at Chikurubi Maximum Prison yesterday when a snake slithered into Harare West MP Joana Mamombe and her colleague, Cecilia Chimbiri’s cell.
IS THE CHIKURUBI PRISON SNAKE A COINCIDENCE OR A SETUP?
The dramatic incidents began on Friday, when it was suddenly noticed that the shift pattern has been changed and a prison guard, only identified as Mbuya Chipangura who took up work on the day began targeting the two MDC Alliance leaders for abuse, as sources tell ZimEye.
On the same day, at night, a snake crept into their (the MDC Alliance leaders’) cell. The reptile poked its head through the hole at the roof top and was now dangling into the cell.
Upon noticing it, they screamed over and over, and the officers only said they were calling for National Parks. Nat Parks never came. Reacting to this, the two continued screaming though no one came to their rescue.
“The only two officers who came through came after a long wait only to say they would wait for National Parks,” the two’s colleague, Netsai Marova told ZimEye.
At the time of writing it could not be established what type of snake it was.
She continued saying: The following day, they were relocated to a COVID-fested cell.
“They complained and we’re subsequently taken back, albeit to the same snake porous cell. As at today, they are back into the same cell which has a snake hole.”
A comment from the Zim prisons Spokesperson could not be obtained at the time of writing. – THIS IS A DEVELOPING STORY.
IS THE CHIKURUBI PRISON SNAKE A COINCIDENCE OR A SETUP?
By A Correspondent | There was pandemonium at Chikurubi Maximum Prison yesterday when a snake slithered into Harare West MP Joana Mamombe and her colleague, Cecilia Chimbiri’s cell.
IS THE CHIKURUBI PRISON SNAKE A COINCIDENCE OR A SETUP?
The dramatic incidents began on Friday, when it was suddenly noticed that the shift pattern has been changed and a prison guard, only identified as Mbuya Chipangura who took up work on the day began targeting the two MDC Alliance leaders for abuse, as sources tell ZimEye.
On the same day, at night, a snake crept into their (the MDC Alliance leaders’) cell. The reptile poked its head through the hole at the roof top and was now dangling into the cell.
Upon noticing it, they screamed over and over, and the officers only said they were calling for National Parks. Nat Parks never came. Reacting to this, the two continued screaming though no one came to their rescue.
“The only two officers who came through came after a long wait only to say they would wait for National Parks,” the two’s colleague, Netsai Marova told ZimEye.
At the time of writing it could not be established what type of snake it was.
She continued saying: The following day, they were relocated to a COVID-fested cell.
“They complained and we’re subsequently taken back, albeit to the same snake porous cell. As at today, they are back into the same cell which has a snake hole.”
A comment from the Zim prisons Spokesperson could not be obtained at the time of writing. – THIS IS A DEVELOPING STORY.
IS THE CHIKURUBI PRISON SNAKE A COINCIDENCE OR A SETUP?
ZIFA has claimed credit for Patrice Motsepe’s election as the new president of the Confederation of African Football (CAF).
Motsepe was declared the new boss of the African football unopposed at the polls held in Rabat, Morocco last Friday.
The Mamelodi Sundowns owner replaced fellow Southern African Ahmad Ahmad of Madagascar who failed to stand for a second term following a two-year FIFA ban for corruption.
According to the Chronicle, Zifa board member Philemon Machana, who attended the elective congress with President Felton Kamambo, said they take credit together with their South African and Nigerian counterparts for Motsepe’s ascendency to the Caf presidency.
“It’s Safa (South African Football Association), Zifa and Nigeria which made the Motsepe’s dream a reality,” he said.
“After 48 countries had been railroaded to endorse Ahmad, Zifa refused to do so.
“Had Zifa not stood its ground, Motsepe would not have found sufficient nominators to stand in the election as one can’t nominate two candidates for the same post.”
Machana thanked those who rallied behind Motsepe in the presidential election.
He added: “We thank everyone who made this a reality, including the contribution of those that later saw our vision.
“We are grateful the majority later changed tact and bought into the vision, including the competitors of the new Caf president who chose to support the best man available for the job.”- Soccer 24 Zimbabwe
MDC ALLIANCE ASSEMBLY OF WOMEN CELEBRATES FADZAI MAHERE AS ONE OF THE ZIMBABWE’S ICONIC WOMEN OF THE LAST DECADE 2010 – 2020
The MDC A Assembly of women would like to congratulate the Spokesperson of the party Ms Fadzai Mahere for being named as one of the iconic Women of the last decade in Zimbabwe.
Ms Mahere was named alongside with some influential women from different walks of life who defined an integral decade in the fight for equality, feminism and women’s rights. This came by through Business Connect who celebrated the International Women’s Day by acknowledging the economic, social, political and cultural achievements of women from all walks of life.
We are proud as women to have Ms Mahere in our midst who has displayed a high level of professionalism and capacity by articulating pertinent issues and speaking very well on behalf of the party and the people of Zimbabwe . She is our inspiration and role model whom we so much believe in and wish her well in all her endeavors.
Keep on shinning Fadzie. You have shown us that those glass ceilings can easily be broken and the sky is the limit. We are greatly honoured by this fine achievement. Congratulations, Makorokoto, Amhlophe Spokes Wabantu!!!! Our special thanks goes to the People’s President Adv Nelson Chamisa for having faith and trust in appointing Ms Mahere.
Unknown people broke into the office of the Zimbabwe Anti Corruption Commission chairperson Justice Loice Matanda Moyo over the weekend at Mt Pleasant Business Park.
Investigations are now underway to establish if any crucial documents or property are missing.
After the disturbing incident, Justice Matanda Moyo took an early break and decided to work away from the offices.
Justice Matanda-Moyo confirmed the development this morning.
“Yes, there was a break in at my office. Investigations are in progress,” she said.
Tinashe Sambiri|POLAD does not have the capacity and zeal to resolve the country’s political stalemate.
This was said by MDC Alliance Youth Assembly spokesperson, Stephen Sarkozy Chuma.
According to Chuma, POLAD was created to authenticate Mr Emmerson Mnangagwa’s stolen electoral victory.
Read full statement below:
POLAD’s Piggish Demands Must Be Condemned, Resisted
14-03-2021
Extravagant demands by Emmerson Mnangagwa’s acolytes coalescing under the banner of POLAD must be condemned and resisted by all progressive forces and citizens.
Verified reports from the mainstream media is that a grouping of 2018 political rejects are seeking to be pampered with luxurious gifts ranging from farms, diplomatic passports and top of the range vehicles and all this being forked out from the taxpayers money.
Such kind of greed especially coming from men and women who were rejected by the people through the ballot is not only unconstitutional but criminal.
Instead of wasting taxpayers’ money to buy fancy cars that money should be given as Covid-19 Relief Fund for the informal sector which had been shut down whilst big commercial businesses were operating.
The informal sector which hugely contribute to the national fiscus is employing the bulk of young people and it is struggling to recover from effects of lockdown.
With schools opening from Monday the majority of citizens who also happens to be major drivers of this informal sector are now suddenly faced with the school fees bill yet have no income.
We can not afford this piggish appetite and extravagance especially at a time when our teachers are incapacitated to report for work because of poor salaries.
That money intended to buy plush cars for POLAD guys will better save our education sector if added to teachers salaries.
We have said it before and we will say it again that POLAD serves no purpose at all in resolving the national crisis that came out of a disputed presidential election. The simple reason being that the guys in POLAD have no dispute with Mnangagwa but are in agreement with him.
Our free advice is that since the POLAD compradors are all but ZANU PF extensions, they better take the short route, join ZANU PF and spare us this nonsense.
Mnangagwa must stop wasting our time and national resources on these POLAD fellows because they are inconsequential to the national question of the day- national crisis borne out of his illegitimacy.
It is a public secret that MDC Alliance President Advocate Nelson Chamisa is the key ingredient that is needed to solve the current national crisis.
The guys in POLAD were rejected by the people and will be rejected again hence this black market approach to the national crisis does not yield intended results.
This is a year of citizens convergence against lunacy that has brought us where we are as a country.
We, the people we will resist this daylight thievery of the national cake by a few POLAD elites.
DefyOrDie
CitizensConvergence4Change
Agenda2021
Stephen Sarkozy Chuma MDC Alliance Youth Assembly National Spokesperson
Tinashe Sambiri|Zanu Zanu PF is at the centre of corruption in local authorities, MDC Alliance Secretary for Local Government, Sesel Zvidzai has said.
Local Government Minister, July Moyo has been mired in a corruption scandal and he is at pains to clear his name.
Below is Hon Zvidzai’s statement:
JULY MOYO, ZANU PF AT THE CENTRE OF CORRUPTION IN LOCAL AUTHORITIES
The events of recent weeks demonstrate that ZANU PF and central government are at the centre of corruption in local authorities.
It has been recently reported that Local Government Minister, July Moyo, is entangled in a corruption scandal.
It is alleged that Minister Moyo awarded a US$9,3 million contract to supply water pumps to the City of Harare without going to tender. Reports state that July Moyo instructed staff in the City of Harare (who are appointed by central government) to source the equipment from a company linked to a Mr Kruger without following tender requirements laid down in our procurement laws. Mr Kruger is believed to be a friend of the Minister whom he associates with and is involved in the Chilonga displacement saga.
This latest act of grand corruption scandal demonstrates that Minister July Moyo, central government and ZANU PF are at the centre of the corruption crisis in local authorities. It has further come to our attention that Chiredzi Town Council has also been forced to procure generators and other equipment unprocedurally from persons who are connected to the Minister.
July Moyo’s US$9,3 million corruption scandal follows the recent arrests of ZANU PF land barons, Frederick Maramba and Smelly Dube. This is only the tip of a massive iceberg. The Uchena Land Commission Report on State-land established that over US$3 billion worth of land was misappropriated by these land barons who are connected to ZANU PF. We condemn theses corrupt acts as they lead to the delivery of substandard equipment, the siphoning of taxpayers’ money and perpetuate the capture of local authorities by central government. We call upon the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission, the Zimbabwe Republic Police and the National Prosecution Authority to urgently investigate Minister Moyo and hold him to account for his corrupt conduct that is prejudicing taxpayers and citizens who will, as a result, be deprived of decent service delivery. As highlighted by President Nelson Chamisa in his Agenda 2021 address, the fight against corruption is one of the key pillars in our People’s Agenda. Corruption is choking the ordinary person and we call upon all progressive forces and citizens to converge with the MDC Alliance to fight against this scourge. We demand accountability and transformation on all matters of maladministration. The fight against corruption must be driven by a broad alliance. It must overshadow our political polarities because it is killing all sectors of our society. Sesel Zvidzai Secretary for Local Government and Rural Development
Tinashe Sambiri|Zanu Zanu PF is at the centre of corruption in local authorities, MDC Alliance Secretary for Local Government, Sesel Zvidzai has said.
Local Government Minister, July Moyo has been mired in a corruption scandal and he is at pains to clear his name.
Below is Hon Zvidzai’s statement:
JULY MOYO, ZANU PF AT THE CENTRE OF CORRUPTION IN LOCAL AUTHORITIES
The events of recent weeks demonstrate that ZANU PF and central government are at the centre of corruption in local authorities.
It has been recently reported that Local Government Minister, July Moyo, is entangled in a corruption scandal.
It is alleged that Minister Moyo awarded a US$9,3 million contract to supply water pumps to the City of Harare without going to tender. Reports state that July Moyo instructed staff in the City of Harare (who are appointed by central government) to source the equipment from a company linked to a Mr Kruger without following tender requirements laid down in our procurement laws. Mr Kruger is believed to be a friend of the Minister whom he associates with and is involved in the Chilonga displacement saga.
This latest act of grand corruption scandal demonstrates that Minister July Moyo, central government and ZANU PF are at the centre of the corruption crisis in local authorities. It has further come to our attention that Chiredzi Town Council has also been forced to procure generators and other equipment unprocedurally from persons who are connected to the Minister.
July Moyo’s US$9,3 million corruption scandal follows the recent arrests of ZANU PF land barons, Frederick Maramba and Smelly Dube. This is only the tip of a massive iceberg. The Uchena Land Commission Report on State-land established that over US$3 billion worth of land was misappropriated by these land barons who are connected to ZANU PF. We condemn theses corrupt acts as they lead to the delivery of substandard equipment, the siphoning of taxpayers’ money and perpetuate the capture of local authorities by central government. We call upon the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission, the Zimbabwe Republic Police and the National Prosecution Authority to urgently investigate Minister Moyo and hold him to account for his corrupt conduct that is prejudicing taxpayers and citizens who will, as a result, be deprived of decent service delivery. As highlighted by President Nelson Chamisa in his Agenda 2021 address, the fight against corruption is one of the key pillars in our People’s Agenda. Corruption is choking the ordinary person and we call upon all progressive forces and citizens to converge with the MDC Alliance to fight against this scourge. We demand accountability and transformation on all matters of maladministration. The fight against corruption must be driven by a broad alliance. It must overshadow our political polarities because it is killing all sectors of our society. Sesel Zvidzai Secretary for Local Government and Rural Development
Extravagant demands by Emmerson Mnangagwa’s acolytes coalescing under the banner of POLAD must be condemned and resisted by all progressive forces and citizens.
Verified reports from the mainstream media is that a grouping of 2018 political rejects are seeking to be pampered with luxurious gifts ranging from farms, diplomatic passports and top of the range vehicles and all this being forked out from the taxpayers money.
Such kind of greed especially coming from men and women who were rejected by the people through the ballot is not only unconstitutional but criminal.
Instead of wasting taxpayers’ money to buy fancy cars that money should be given as Covid-19 Relief Fund for the informal sector which had been shut down whilst big commercial businesses were operating.
The informal sector which hugely contribute to the national fiscus is employing the bulk of young people and it is struggling to recover from effects of lockdown.
With schools opening from Monday the majority of citizens who also happens to be major drivers of this informal sector are now suddenly faced with the school fees bill yet have no income.
We can not afford this piggish appetite and extravagance especially at a time when our teachers are incapacitated to report for work because of poor salaries.
That money intended to buy plush cars for POLAD guys will better save our education sector if added to teachers salaries.
We have said it before and we will say it again that POLAD serves no purpose at all in resolving the national crisis borne out of a disputed presidential election. The simple reason being that the guys in POLAD have no dispute with Mnangagwa but are in agreement with him.
Our free advice is that since the POLAD compradors are all but ZANU PF extensions, they better take the short route, join ZANU PF and spare us this nonsense.
Mnangagwa must stop wasting our time and national resources on these POLAD fellows because they are inconsequential to the national question of the day- national crisis borne out of his illegitimacy.
It is a public secret that MDC Alliance President Advocate Nelson Chamisa is the key ingredient that is needed to solve the current national crisis.
The guys in POLAD were rejected by the people and will be rejected again hence this black market approach to the national crisis does not yield intended results.
This is a year of citizens convergence against lunacy that has brought us where we are as a country.
We, the people we will resist this daylight thievery of the national cake by a few POLAD elites.
DefyOrDie
CitizensConvergence4Change
Agenda2021
Stephen Sarkozy Chuma MDC Alliance Youth Assembly National Spokesperson
MDC ALLIANCE NAMIBIA IS ABSOLUTELY GEARED TO CONVERGE FOR THE CHANGE THAT DELIVERS#AGENDA2021
14 MARCH 2021
Mdc Alliance Namibia district concurs with the People’s President Advocate Nelson Chamisa that the only panacea to socio-economic transformation is through a determined convergence of patriotic citizens who are ready to confront corruption, arbitrary arrests, torture, looting, gross abuse of human rights and an attempt to create a monocratic society in Zimbabwe. We agree with the People’s President that the “little boys and girls” who are sponsored by the rogue regime to decimate the freedom train will neither deter us nor break our revolutionary appetite to confront gross misgovernance exhibited by Zanupf terrorists who are masquerading as liberators in a purported new dispensation.
Moreover, these Zanupf surrogates in the names of Mwonzora Douglas Togarasei, Morgan Komichi , disillusioned and cynical Thokozani Khupe only to mention but a few are just proxies of the politically inept Harare regime , employed to derail the national democratic revolution. Social democrats in Namibia are resolutely inspired by the #Agenda 2021 which calls for all Zimbabweans to converge for complete change under the able, organic and pragmatic leadership of President Advocate Nelson Chamisa in the Motherland and in the diaspora. Our priority being #ReformAgenda where we expect Zanupf to transform it’s electoral system that always rigs polls in favour of the incumbent desperate regime. We are ready to democratically defend our vote.
Moreso, #globalagenda re-energised the diaspora since the People’s President made it point blank that the party shall ensure that the diaspora don’t only participate in the national discourse through remittances but he exposed his zeal to push for more inclusive policies. Diaspora vote is non-negotiable human right according to Rundu Branch Secretary General Simbarashe Ndoda. In his capacity as the Secretary General of a very vibrant Mdc Alliance external branch, he went on to display the branch’s intention to launch a robust diaspora campaign in Rundu town and across the lengths and breadths of Namibia, mobilising citizens to demand their fundamental right to vote. We are not scared by Simon Khaya Moyo’s utterances which threatened to arrest our political dynamo Advocate Nelson Chamisa Wamba Dia Wamba for calling for a peaceful engagement with Zanupf stomach politicians of plunder and self-enrichment.
It is mesmerising and hypnotising that Simon Khaya Moyo has the audacity to concoct spurious treason charges out of a well-articulated and smart policy that shows constitutional democratic qualities. Zanupf Spokesperson perplexed us by claiming that President Advocate Nelson Chamisa called for an unconstitutional removal of a constitutionally elected government because we are quite aware that Zanupf did not win July 2018 elections, after all , our political mountain did not call for violent protests but peaceful discourse with the oppressors to create an even political field towards 2023 general elections. Mdc Alliance Namibia described Khaya Moyo as a political hypocrite who pretends as if there is political and economic stability in a country, where there is incontrovertible evidence of the shrinking democratic space.
Furthermore, Mdc Alliance Namibia demands the unconditional release of all prisoners of conscience in the names of #PeoplePower and Mdc Alliance youth leader Makomborero Haruzivishe, Hon Joana Mamombe, Cecilia Chimbiri, Tungamirai Madzokere, Last Maengahama, Takudzwa Ngadziore , Chiriga only to mention the above. We are urging all social democrats around the globe to embrace #Agenda2021 where the people are promoted as Masters of their own destinies. Let committed and dedicated citizens converge for complete change. Real democrats shall pledge their sweat,tears , energy and blood to rescue the sinking titanic, #ZanupfMustGo!
In a nutshell, Mdc Alliance Namibia shall toe, defend and advertise the Agenda for 2021. We will remain ever ready to mobilise members , supporters and citizens in the diaspora to raise resources and build a formidable movement with full capacity to defeat Zanupf Satanists so that we win Zimbabwe for complete change. Lets brace for dangerous freedom, let us all undress our warm jackets of fear of persecution by prosecution and confront the Fascists in the eye. Enough is enough. Lets not allow these Zanupf blood-thirsty dictators to continue feeding on the blood of our innocent citizens who are languishing in abject artificial poverty.
Tinashe Sambiri|There are disturbing reports of a huge snake that crept into Joana Mamombe and Cecilia Chimbiri’s prison cell at Chikurubi Maximum Prison.
There was confusion, fear and anxiety at Chikurubi Maximum Prison on Sunday when the reptile crept into Hon Mamombe and Cecilia Chimbiri’s prison cell.
The reptile poked its head through a hole at the rooftop…
On noticing it, the two screamed over and over, and the officers casually said they were calling the National Parks Department for help.
Nat Parks never came. Reacting to this, the two continued screaming though no one came to their rescue.
“Only two officers came after a long wait- to say they would wait for National Parks,”Netsai Marova told ZimEye.
No official comment has been obtained from the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services.
Nairobi, Kenya (AP) – Tanzanian police have arrested a man for circulating posts saying that President John Magufuli is in ill health.
Magufuli has not been seen in public for two weeks, sparking unconfirmed reports from opposition leaders that he is unwell and incapacitated.
At least one man was arrested for allegedly spreading false reports that Magufuli was seriously ill in the Kinondoni area of Dar es Salaam, Regional Police Commissioner for Kinondoni Ramadhani Kingai said at a press conference Saturday.
“There are a lot more who have been spreading false statements. We will arrest them all,” Kingai said.
Prime Minister Hassan Majaliwa has denied that Magufuli is unwell or battling COVID-19. The prime minister said Friday that Magufuli, who has not been seen in public for 15 days, had asked him to convey his greetings to residents in the country’s southern town of Njombe.
“The president has a lot to do,” he said, adding that the president had delegated some duties to his aides.
The constitutional affairs minister said Tanzanians who are posting on social media that the president is incapacitated are violating the country’s cybercrime law. Human rights groups say the cybercrime law is one of several that Magufuli’s government uses to suppress freedom of expression.
“A head of state is not a head of a jogging club who should always be around taking selfies,” Constitutional Affairs Minister Mwigulu Nchemba posted on his social media accounts.
“Those who are breaking the law, think about what the penal code says on cybercrime. The government is monitoring,” he said.
Magufuli is one of Africa’s most prominent COVID-19 skeptics. Last year he said the disease had been eradicated from Tanzania by three days of national prayer. He cast doubt on tests to determine COVID-19 discouraged Tanzanians from wearing masks, keeping a distance from others, and the use of vaccines to combat the disease.
Magufuli’s absence is unusual as he is known for frequent public speeches and appearances on state television several times a week.
Opposition politicians raised questions about the president’s health after at least one official close to him died recently.
Magufuli was last seen in public on Feb. 27 at the swearing-in ceremony of his chief of staff. The event was at the State House government offices in Dar es Salaam, the East African country’s largest city.
Exiled opposition leader Tundu Lissu, who lost the October presidential election to Magufuli, claimed in a series of tweets last week that the president had been flown to India in critical condition after first being taken to neighboring Kenya for COVID-19 treatment.
By A Correspondent| Gweru residents are up in arms against their cash strapped local municipality after spending over USD$200 000 on luxury vehicles while service delivery remains neglected and unfulfilled.
City of Gweru reportedly spend US$170 000 on a Toyota Prado meant for the fired Town Clerk Ms Elizabeth Gwatipedza
The Toyota Prado which is a top-of-the-range vehicle, was unveiled together with two KB Max vehicles bought by land developers CASAS and Wackdrive Investments at a cost of US$26 200 and US$30 500 respectively.
Council resolved to have the two vehicles instead of receiving cash which could have been US$56 700.
Added to the cost of the Toyota Prado, the local authority spent US$226 700 on vehicles which could have been channelled towards service delivery.
Ms Gwatipedza was suspended in October 2019 for misconduct before she could drive the vehicle and was subsequently dismissed on December 2 following a disciplinary hearing.
Gweru Residents Association committee member Mr Frank Mazoera said it’s not proper for council to buy vehicles at the expense of service delivery.
“Their priorities show that they don’t have respect for residents. It’s fast becoming a reality that they are after personal gains, packages and fattening their pockets. Look, why should they continue to ration water in areas like Senga and Mkoba? To make things worse we have areas like Mkoba 21 where water is scarce. Council could have drilled more boreholes or bought spare parts needed so that they increase water supplies to meet the city’s daily consumption,” he said.
Residents said a health hazard is looming because council is not collecting refuse regularly because its trucks are constantly breaking down and at times it does not have the fuel.
The whole road network is now filled with potholes, a development that has seen even Zupco buses not servicing some suburbs. Gweru mayor Cllr Josiah Makombe said the two service delivery vehicles council received from the two land developers were part of the contract between the local authority and the companies. He said the Toyota Prado was now one of the pool cars after it had been lying idle for a year following an outcry from residents who wanted it sold to buy service delivery vehicles.
“The vehicle was bought in 2019 and was delivered last year but due to outcry from residents, it had been parked. We wanted to sell it but the procurement laws do not allow us to sell without going to tender. We also wanted to auction it but realised we were going to get less than what we spent.
“We also tried to swap it for service delivery vehicles with those who sold us the vehicle but again procurement laws made it difficult. We were left with no option but to commission it as one of the pool cars,” he said.
The council spokesperson Ms Vimbai Chingwaramusee said council had agreed with the two land developers that they were going to buy it vehicles as part of their contract and there was nothing amiss in the arrangement.
“As a local authority we needed the vehciles which we believe are contributing to improved service delivery,” she said. Commenting on the continued water rationing despite the fact that the supply dams, Gwenhoro and Amapongogwe are spilling, Ms Chingwaramusee said council was failing to pump enough water to meet the city’s daily consumption.
“We are pumping 25Ml a day which is far less than the city’s daily water consumption hence the rationing. We have to upgrade our pumping capacity to meet the daily consumption now that we have enough water in our supply dams,” she said. Ms Chingwaramusee said Gweru like the rest of the country was affected by the heavy rains received this cropping season which damaged roads.
She said since Government declared the country’s road network a State of Disaster, council hoped to benefit fro the resources that are being mobilised by Central Government for road repairs and other infrastructure such as bridges.
Bulawayo City Council (BCC) clinics have been hit by mass exodus of nurses, a development that has further crippled the city’s health delivery system, which was already operating at 60 percent capacity.
The council runs 19 clinics in the city and they are operating with staffing levels of between 49 and 61 percent. Council requires a staff complement of 186 nursing staff to operate at full capacity.
However, the local authority has been running with 120 nurses but resignations has seen the figure dropping to 87 after 33 nurses left between June last year and this month.
Nurses who resigned cited poor salaries and working conditions. It could not be immediately established how much the nurses are earning but the lowest paid council worker earns $14 000.
Authorities are now fearing for the worst saying if the issue is not resolved in the next three months, it is likely to turn into a health catastrophe.
The latest developments come as the local authority is battling service delivery challenges due to a sharp decline in revenue inflows.
According to council, only 16 percent of its ratepayers paid fully their bills in 2020 while 22 percent did not make any payments resulting in council being owed nearly $663 million.
In January, Bulawayo City Council (BCC) workers went on a five-day strike over poor salaries, crippling critical services such as primary health care, refuse collection and burials.
By A Correspondent| Former MDC-Alliance top officials Blessing Chebundo and Lilian Timveos are now being referred to as comrades by the state media following their move to Zanu PF last month.
Chebundo addressed the Zanu PF Midlands Provincial Coordinating Committee meeting also attended by July Moyo.
“The good part is that all Politburo members here, I know them, they are friends, they are relatives. I know them as Midlanders like me.
What a privilege, what an honour, I feel highly honored to be a member of Zanu-PF and I will bring experience and supporters so that we win elections as Zanu-PF under the astute leadership of President Mnangagwa,” he said.
Chebundo said it was not an easy decision to jump ship.
“Today should be written down as history. I am happy to be home. I was born in Shurugwi and spent my life in the Midlands which is home to President Mnangagwa. In 1980 I was a Zanu-PF member. I was in the district structures and later joined the trade unions. When we formed MDC-T, the venue was my house and this means after 21 years in the wilderness, I am bringing wealth of experience, I am bringing my followers. My movement will help the party,” he said.
Yesterday around 9pm,5 men with an IST Toyota attempted to abduct our S.G @robohchere in the Acturus mining community. Men identified by Sec guards as M Manyati ,W Manyati ,C Kamudyariyo & two others who are unknown.Police reporting in progress.The Manyatis are on pics below pic.twitter.com/S7KJzO9q5R
— Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe,ARTUZ (@ARTUZ_teachers) March 15, 2021
By A Correspondent | There was pandemonium at Chikurubi Maximum Prison yesterday when a snake crawled into Harare West MP Joana Mamombe and her colleague, Cecilia Chimbiri’s cell.
IS THE CHIKURUBI PRISON SNAKE A COINCIDENCE OR A SETUP?
The dramatic incidents began on Friday, when it was suddenly noticed that the shift pattern has been changed and a prison guard, only identified as Mbuya Chipangura who took up work on the day began targeting the two MDC Alliance leaders for abuse, as sources tell ZimEye.
On the same day, at night, a snake crept into their (the MDC Alliance leaders’) cell. The reptile poked its head through the hole at the roof top and was now dangling into the cell.
Upon noticing it, they screamed over and over, and the officers only said they were calling for National Parks. Nat Parks never came. Reacting to this, the two continued screaming though no one came to their rescue.
“The only two officers who came through came after a long wait only to say they would wait for National Parks,” the two’s colleague, Netsai Marova told ZimEye.
At the time of writing it could not be established what type of snake it was.
She continued saying: The following day, they were relocated to a COVID-fested cell.
“They complained and were subsequently taken back, albeit to the same snake porous cell. As at today, they are back into the same cell which has a snake hole.”
A comment from the Zim prisons Spokesperson could not be obtained at the time of writing. – THIS IS A DEVELOPING STORY.
IS THE CHIKURUBI PRISON SNAKE A COINCIDENCE OR A SETUP?
By A Correspondent | As this week marks one month after Norton MP, Temba Mliswa’s girlfriend was stopped from flying out of Zimbabwe, following her allegations that she possesses knowledge on the terrorists who bombed White City Stadium in June 2018, ZimEye launches a search for her whereabouts. Is she in Zimbabwe or in Australia?
Susan Mutami
This is Brisbane, where Susan Mutami resides and we check today check on her at her usual addresses. This is St Vincent’s Private Hospital, Brisbane, where she could be employed and where her mother, Rabecca works.
Susan herself used to work here as a Care Assistant.
We are told, “she is not here; she has not been seen in several months.”
We cannot reveal the identity of interviewee at the hospital, per their request.
We now head to Princess Alexandra Hospital. Susan Mutami is not here. Sources tell ZimEye she is not here at all.
The Hospital was placed into lockdown after a positive #COVID19 case was detected 3 days ago. But we manage to speak to a source via phone who responds saying:
“For legal purposes. I cannot say much, but the person you are asking for no longer works here,” a female employee tells ZimEye.
It also turns out Susan cannot work there anymore as she was fired over continued absenteeism, the day before she travelled to Zimbabwe last year.
We now turn to Durack, the place where Susan can only come when she arrives into the country. This is where she lives.
Two of Susan’s closest friends tell ZimEye, they do not believe she is anywhere in Australia. “If she comes back into the country she will come here first, ” one of her colleagues says while asking not to be identified due to the political sensitivities around her case in Zimbabwe.
Meanwhile, as Susan’s mother Rabeccca does not appear willing to speak with journalists, we turn back to Susan herself.
We send her two messages, one becomes, blueticked, the other is still to be opened.
1st message: “Hello Susan. Are you okay? You’ve gone suddenly quiet. Strength to you!”
2nd message: “Many are worried over you. When are you traveling to Australia?”
There is no reply at all, and neither does she pick the phone up, which is not characteristic of her.
As her Zimbabwean phone sounds disconnected, her two Australian numbers all lead to her voicemail boxes. They have been in this state for nearly month.
Where is Susan then, and is she the one who is tweeting on her portal in the last month? A structured content audit of her tweets suggests someone else is publishing the posts. Terms like FDI, and economy do not form her known vocabulary.
When she was stopped from flying out of Zimbabwe on the 18th February, she quickly sought the help of lawyers and began referring journalists to them. Her solicitor last month told ZimEye, “she is alive, she is ok and she is safe.
“I can’t say much due to professional ethics; She will come back to you soon,” she said without revealing much detail.
ZimEye checked on the position of the Australian Embassy in Harare whose assistance she invoked last month, and found in their statement they have distanced themselves from Miss Mutami’s case saying her private conduct in Zimbabwe does not fall under the embassy’s interests.
“Ms Mutami’s behaviour in Zimbabwe are matters for the Zimbabweans authorities as they fall under Zimbabwean law,” the Australian embassy said in a statement responding to her affair with Norton MP Temba Mliswa.
ZimEye today returns to the Australian Embassy for further comment as we investigate Susan Mutami’s whereabouts.
Tinashe Sambiri|The MDC Alliance Mashonaland West Province Facebook account was disabled by State Security agents last week.
The cornered regime has intensified efforts to disrupt the dissemination of the party’s crucial information.
12 members of the MDC Alliance Mashonaland West Provincial executive committee were violently arrested by armed police officers and soldiers last month.
In a statement the MDC Alliance Mash West Province dencounced the hacking of the vibrant Facebook account by State Security agents:
We would like to thank the Lord Almighty for granting us the serenity to lead his flock in the face of adversity,needless to say in the face of barbaric and archaic leadership.
It is a shame that our Facebook page has been under severe attack from State spies such that we failed to update you on the arrest of our 12 Management members on 20 February 2021.
The 12 who were frogmarched by heavily armed soldiers from the Provincial Headquarters to the Chinhoyi Central Police Station are Provincial Chair Mr Ralph T Magunje, Provincial Secretary Mr Tawanda Bvumo, Provincial Spokesperson Mr Mandava Blessing, Provincial Deputy Secretary Mr Emmanuel Chinanzvavana, Provincial Women’s Chair Mrs Abigail Usai, Provincial Youth Chairpersons Mr Colleen Mapfumo, Provincial Deputy Organising Secretary Cllr Dzeka, Provincial Deputy Spokesperson Mr kudakwashe Mandishona,Provincial Youth Secretary Ms Pauline Sibanda, Provincial Secretary for Local Government Cllr Richard Vhitirinyu and Provincial Sec for International Relations Mr Wilson Makanyaire.
These die hard Democrats have appeared again today at the chinhoyi magistrates Court but have been remanded to the 31st of March 2021 for the delivery of judgement on their application for refusal of further remand.
The Democracy soldiers are not deterred by such cowardly and illegal acts by the Regime to whip the voice of the voiceless into submission.
We stand solidly behind the CitizensConvergenceForChange as we fight for a better Zimbabwe.
Dictatorships across the world have a short life span,they will soon crumble.
As much as the Regime continues to persecute us,we will continue to escalate our voice and call for Change.we will be there when the Regime crumbles.
Tinashe Sambiri|The MDC Alliance Mashonaland West Province Facebook account was disabled by State Security agents last week.
The cornered regime has intensified efforts to disrupt the dissemination of the party’s crucial information.
12 members of the MDC Alliance Mashonaland West Provincial executive committee were violently arrested by armed police officers and soldiers last month.
In a statement the MDC Alliance Mash West Province dencounced the hacking of the vibrant Facebook account by State Security agents:
We would like to thank the Lord Almighty for granting us the serenity to lead his flock in the face of adversity,needless to say in the face of barbaric and archaic leadership.
It is a shame that our Facebook page has been under severe attack from State spies such that we failed to update you on the arrest of our 12 Management members on 20 February 2021.
The 12 who were frogmarched by heavily armed soldiers from the Provincial Headquarters to the Chinhoyi Central Police Station are Provincial Chair Mr Ralph T Magunje, Provincial Secretary Mr Tawanda Bvumo, Provincial Spokesperson Mr Mandava Blessing, Provincial Deputy Secretary Mr Emmanuel Chinanzvavana, Provincial Women’s Chair Mrs Abigail Usai, Provincial Youth Chairpersons Mr Colleen Mapfumo, Provincial Deputy Organising Secretary Cllr Dzeka, Provincial Deputy Spokesperson Mr kudakwashe Mandishona,Provincial Youth Secretary Ms Pauline Sibanda, Provincial Secretary for Local Government Cllr Richard Vhitirinyu and Provincial Sec for International Relations Mr Wilson Makanyaire.
These die hard Democrats have appeared again today at the chinhoyi magistrates Court but have been remanded to the 31st of March 2021 for the delivery of judgement on their application for refusal of further remand.
The Democracy soldiers are not deterred by such cowardly and illegal acts by the Regime to whip the voice of the voiceless into submission.
We stand solidly behind the CitizensConvergenceForChange as we fight for a better Zimbabwe.
Dictatorships across the world have a short life span,they will soon crumble.
As much as the Regime continues to persecute us,we will continue to escalate our voice and call for Change.we will be there when the Regime crumbles.
Tinashe Sambiri|Mr Emmerson Mnangagwa’s administration is deeply reluctant to prosecute looters of COVID-19 funds, the MDC Alliance has said.
In its weekly health update, the MDC Alliance accused Mr Mnangagwa’s administration of lacking the zeal to protect citizens from the deadly pandemic:
MDC Alliance Weekly Health Alert
*8th Edition *
14 March 2021
One year into the COVID-19 pandemic, how did Zimbabwe fare?
Executive Summary:
The government’s response to the covid-19 pandemic was characterized by failure to test the people, failure to manage immigration, failure to provide necessary resources like Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), COVID-19 admission facilities, oxygen, ventilators, failure to support and appreciate healthcare workers, poor or non-existent messaging, abuse of the pandemic to score cheap political gains at the expense of the people, failure to provide social safety nets and failure to deal with corruption like the Drax scandal and others. Lately, the government has also shown that it has no vaccine plan and only depending on knee jerk reflexes. On a scale of “A” to “E”, with A being the best score, we give the government of Zimbabwe a score of “D” for its performance in the first year of this pandemic because of the aforementioned.
As we commemorate the first anniversary of the worst pandemic in a century, we need to introspect as a nation on what we could have done better. “An unexamined life is not worth living”, as someone has already said. The first cluster of cases of COVID-19 were reported on December 31 2019 in Wuhan, China, and on March 11 2020, the WHO declared COVID-19 “a public health emergency of international concern”.
All systems in Zimbabwe then should have gone into overdrive to avert a national disaster. Mortality in China and some European countries had already started showing sinister trends. The Government of Zimbabwe declared its preparedness for the pandemic, with Wilkins hospital completely kitted up and ready to admit patients, with ventilators and oxygen in place.
The first wake-up call was on March the 20th, 2020, when we had our first real case of COVID-19, a young promising journalist, who passed on three days later under deplorable conditions. The nakedness of both the government and the purported national isolation centre, Wilkins hospital, was exposed. Health workers did not have adequate PPE, they did not quite know what to do with the case, and there was no single ventilator available, though the patient could easily have afforded one.
This was a chaotic and traumatic experience for both the family and all Zimbabweans. We all started weighing our chances of survival in the face of this new reality, with much trepidation, considering that this first fatality did not come from a family of meager means.
These are the lessons learnt from this experience: • Government should never lie to the people that we are prepared when in fact we are not. Complete transparency and honesty have no substitute.
• A caring attitude is important, and cover-ups stink. • All resources should have been channeled to life saving technologies and human resources in a pandemic of this magnitude.
• Government has no power to stop death, but government has the power to avail the best possible service to its citizens, so that at the end we can all say, “Well, all that could be done was done. This was now purely in the hands of The Maker”.
The failure of government to resolve a labour dispute with the doctors & nurses contributed much to our poor state of preparedness. Government should have dealt speedily with the health-workers’ industrial action and restored normalcy ahead of this pandemic. There was enough time to do that. The militarization of housemanship is not an answer to our human resources problem, and is bound to backfire with time. Government must reconsider.
Politicization of COVID-19 lockdowns was a serious miscalculation on the part of government, as this only served to spread the virus. The March 31 Supreme court ruling, now commonly known as the COVID-19 judgement, is a good example of the abuse of lockdown measures. The selective harassment, abuse and fining of citizens throughout this period is another example. These did not serve the interests of the nation in dealing with the pandemic. Instead, we saw Zanu PF functionaries holding parties and posting pictures on social media, supposedly to show that they were in power, without any legal repercussions. But COVID-19 did not understand that, and the events were unfortunately not without their own adverse consequences.
Institutionalized corruption and the looting of the covid-19 funds emasculated government’s response to the pandemic.
Government continues to pay lip service to the fight against corruption as real looters of COVID-19 funds continue to roam the streets scot free and we have not heard about any recoveries, especially from the Drax scandal.
Sadly, government has not been able to provide adequate free testing to the population, consequently no contact tracing was possible, and many cases went undiagnosed. Without testing, there is no isolation and containment of the pandemic. One year later, free testing is still not available to the majority of Zimbabweans. The result is that there has been no science in mapping the epidemic, and targeted lockdown measures and other data informed decisions could not be made. Blanket lockdown measures brought untold suffering to people who did not even need a lockdown in their locality. Government should take healthcare seriously, and make sure adequate resources are availed for the people’s healthcare, in keeping with section 76 of the constitution.
Failure to provide social safety nets in spite of pronouncements by the minister of finance was a monumental failure for this government. People were locked down into hunger and starvation, because the majority of our people live on hand to mouth budgets. We all watched with envy as other nations provided relief to their citizens in these trying times. Locking down the nation without providing food relief was the most cruel thing government did in response to this pandemic. The promised stimulus package to industry did not filter down to the intended recipients. One wonders who benefited.
There were many policy failures in the approach to this pandemic, chief of which was immigration control. Quarantine centres did not work as expected, they were porous and inmates were able to bribe their way out, use political influence to avoid quarantine, or simply escape from the centres through unknown channels. That is how we domesticated a disease that otherwise could have been kept out of Zimbabwe. It is important to move in tandem with international trends when dealing with a pandemic. The visit by the so-called Chinese COVID-19 specialist doctors was suspicious and certainly added no value to our response to the pandemic.
Failure to anticipate the second wave and prevent it was a monumental failure by the government. We all knew that the infection figures and deaths in our neighbouring South Africa were high. We also knew that a new more vicious strain in terms of transmissibility had been identified. It is common knowledge that we have a few million Zimbabweans in South Africa many of whom always want to come home for the festive season. The government took no thought of that to avert disaster, and we ended up with our worst two months, the nasty second wave which was both completely predictable and preventable.
Failure to set up COVID-19 isolation and treatment facilities resulted in untold suffering and unnecessary mortality.
Patients requiring moderate interventions like oxygen supplementation could not get it for there was no place to admit them. Until now, there are many towns without a single COVID-19 admission facility and patients are still turned away to go and die at home without any attempt to supportive therapy. But by far, the greatest looser was the ordinary non-COVID patient who could not be attended to because staff did not have PPE and had no capability to screen for COVID-19. Chronic disease patients were hardest hit, as many could not access their usual medication.
Communication and information dissemination has been very poor throughout this pandemic. The whole response was shrouded in mystery. This is now manifesting in the low vaccine uptake, which is largely caused by the people’s mistrust of government’s choices and failure to deal with conspiracy theories and other legitimate questions pertaining to vaccine safety and efficacy. The lack of transparency regarding the cost of the vaccine is a potential loophole for corruption and looting. The science behind choice of vaccine should be made plain, and full information should be disseminated, first to health care workers who have to deal with the public’s questions and doubts, and then to everybody in the country.
No heavy-handed tactics like withholding social benefits from those who are vaccine hesitant should be used, as previously intimated by Mr Mnangagwa.
The vaccine is our final weapon in the fight against COVID-19 and no effort should be spared in educating the public and allaying all related anxieties, to ensure that all eligible people receive the vaccine. Bringing in other vaccines as announced is a welcome move, but still information dissemination is key to dealing with mis-information and conspiracy theories, which remain rampant. We cannot just wish them away.
Bringing in private laboratory services as a substitute to free government testing sent the cost of all tests spiraling upwards. It was a serious abdication of duty by the government. We have always had private laboratory services in Zimbabwe, and they have their place, but they cannot become the mainstay of service delivery in such a massive public health emergency without a government subsidy. The poor are automatically excluded, and that is 90% of Zimbabweans. Contact tracing and routine surveillance died right there.
The rapid response teams were one of the weakest links in the government’s response strategy. They had a serious mandate without the necessary financing and equipment, notably PPE and diagnostic consumables like nasal swabs. They therefore failed dismally in their execution of duty. These are well-trained cadres by the way, but it is like a good soldier going to war without a gun and basic supplies.
How do we summarize government’s response to this pandemic? In a few words, government was not prepared to spend money on healthcare and on feeding the people during the very necessary lockdowns. Corruption was rife and crippled the response to COVID-19. The ruling party was the chief architect of super-spreader events, in the form of political party meetings and extravagant pleasure parties. Politicization of the lockdowns was rampant and led to much suffering, unnecessary arrests with consequent unnecessary exposure of citizens to COVID-19 in prisons. When it comes to pandemics of this nature, we admonish the government to put aside all partisan behavior, and all Zimbabweans should work together for the common good.
On the basis of this assessment, the government failed dismally in protecting Zimbabweans from this pandemic. We are all here today by a sovereign act of God. We give the government a score of “D”, with “A” being the best score and “E” the worst. The whole nation wants to help government get a score of “A” in this second year, so please, work with the people, and be completely transparent. All eyes are on the vaccine issue.
Going forward, here are our recommendations for the government to take Zimbabwe to a better place and avert a third wave as we open up the economy. Government should vigorously promote COVID-19 safe practices in all languages and on all media platforms. These include hand washing, sanitization, social distancing and avoiding close contact, avoiding supper spreader events, avoiding large gatherings, cough etiquette, and masking up as the new normal (not as a way of avoiding fines!), at least for the next one year as we measure progress. Health workers should be thoroughly equipped with knowledge so that they become the champions for vaccination and other interventions. Vaccine procurement is not the domain of private companies. Government must do its duty. As we move forward, government needs to concentrate on taking the people with it on all issues to do with vaccination and vaccine choice regarding safety, efficacy cost and other factors.
COVID-19 isolation and treatment facilities should be set up in every town, and a generous supply of PPE should be delivered to all health institutions. Schools should be properly equipped, and liaison with teachers’ unions should be intense. Businesses should be appropriately equipped and empowered to prevent infection.
Government needs to ramp up vaccination, and take professional advice seriously, particularly from the national immunization technical advisory group. Educate health workers and the population, procure vaccines in a transparent manner, distribute and administer to all. Convince health workers first and everything else will fall into place.
Dr. Henry Madzorera. Secretary for Health and Child Welfare. MDC-Alliance
Tinashe Sambiri|Mr Emmerson Mnangagwa’s administration is deeply reluctant to prosecute looters of COVID-19 funds, the MDC Alliance has said.
In its weekly health update, the MDC Alliance accused Mr Mnangagwa’s administration of lacking the zeal to protect citizens from the deadly pandemic:
MDC Alliance Weekly Health Alert
*8th Edition *
14 March 2021
One year into the COVID-19 pandemic, how did Zimbabwe fare?
Executive Summary:
The government’s response to the covid-19 pandemic was characterized by failure to test the people, failure to manage immigration, failure to provide necessary resources like Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), COVID-19 admission facilities, oxygen, ventilators, failure to support and appreciate healthcare workers, poor or non-existent messaging, abuse of the pandemic to score cheap political gains at the expense of the people, failure to provide social safety nets and failure to deal with corruption like the Drax scandal and others. Lately, the government has also shown that it has no vaccine plan and only depending on knee jerk reflexes. On a scale of “A” to “E”, with A being the best score, we give the government of Zimbabwe a score of “D” for its performance in the first year of this pandemic because of the aforementioned.
As we commemorate the first anniversary of the worst pandemic in a century, we need to introspect as a nation on what we could have done better. “An unexamined life is not worth living”, as someone has already said. The first cluster of cases of COVID-19 were reported on December 31 2019 in Wuhan, China, and on March 11 2020, the WHO declared COVID-19 “a public health emergency of international concern”.
All systems in Zimbabwe then should have gone into overdrive to avert a national disaster. Mortality in China and some European countries had already started showing sinister trends. The Government of Zimbabwe declared its preparedness for the pandemic, with Wilkins hospital completely kitted up and ready to admit patients, with ventilators and oxygen in place.
The first wake-up call was on March the 20th, 2020, when we had our first real case of COVID-19, a young promising journalist, who passed on three days later under deplorable conditions. The nakedness of both the government and the purported national isolation centre, Wilkins hospital, was exposed. Health workers did not have adequate PPE, they did not quite know what to do with the case, and there was no single ventilator available, though the patient could easily have afforded one.
This was a chaotic and traumatic experience for both the family and all Zimbabweans. We all started weighing our chances of survival in the face of this new reality, with much trepidation, considering that this first fatality did not come from a family of meager means.
These are the lessons learnt from this experience: • Government should never lie to the people that we are prepared when in fact we are not. Complete transparency and honesty have no substitute.
• A caring attitude is important, and cover-ups stink. • All resources should have been channeled to life saving technologies and human resources in a pandemic of this magnitude.
• Government has no power to stop death, but government has the power to avail the best possible service to its citizens, so that at the end we can all say, “Well, all that could be done was done. This was now purely in the hands of The Maker”.
The failure of government to resolve a labour dispute with the doctors & nurses contributed much to our poor state of preparedness. Government should have dealt speedily with the health-workers’ industrial action and restored normalcy ahead of this pandemic. There was enough time to do that. The militarization of housemanship is not an answer to our human resources problem, and is bound to backfire with time. Government must reconsider.
Politicization of COVID-19 lockdowns was a serious miscalculation on the part of government, as this only served to spread the virus. The March 31 Supreme court ruling, now commonly known as the COVID-19 judgement, is a good example of the abuse of lockdown measures. The selective harassment, abuse and fining of citizens throughout this period is another example. These did not serve the interests of the nation in dealing with the pandemic. Instead, we saw Zanu PF functionaries holding parties and posting pictures on social media, supposedly to show that they were in power, without any legal repercussions. But COVID-19 did not understand that, and the events were unfortunately not without their own adverse consequences.
Institutionalized corruption and the looting of the covid-19 funds emasculated government’s response to the pandemic.
Government continues to pay lip service to the fight against corruption as real looters of COVID-19 funds continue to roam the streets scot free and we have not heard about any recoveries, especially from the Drax scandal.
Sadly, government has not been able to provide adequate free testing to the population, consequently no contact tracing was possible, and many cases went undiagnosed. Without testing, there is no isolation and containment of the pandemic. One year later, free testing is still not available to the majority of Zimbabweans. The result is that there has been no science in mapping the epidemic, and targeted lockdown measures and other data informed decisions could not be made. Blanket lockdown measures brought untold suffering to people who did not even need a lockdown in their locality. Government should take healthcare seriously, and make sure adequate resources are availed for the people’s healthcare, in keeping with section 76 of the constitution.
Failure to provide social safety nets in spite of pronouncements by the minister of finance was a monumental failure for this government. People were locked down into hunger and starvation, because the majority of our people live on hand to mouth budgets. We all watched with envy as other nations provided relief to their citizens in these trying times. Locking down the nation without providing food relief was the most cruel thing government did in response to this pandemic. The promised stimulus package to industry did not filter down to the intended recipients. One wonders who benefited.
There were many policy failures in the approach to this pandemic, chief of which was immigration control. Quarantine centres did not work as expected, they were porous and inmates were able to bribe their way out, use political influence to avoid quarantine, or simply escape from the centres through unknown channels. That is how we domesticated a disease that otherwise could have been kept out of Zimbabwe. It is important to move in tandem with international trends when dealing with a pandemic. The visit by the so-called Chinese COVID-19 specialist doctors was suspicious and certainly added no value to our response to the pandemic.
Failure to anticipate the second wave and prevent it was a monumental failure by the government. We all knew that the infection figures and deaths in our neighbouring South Africa were high. We also knew that a new more vicious strain in terms of transmissibility had been identified. It is common knowledge that we have a few million Zimbabweans in South Africa many of whom always want to come home for the festive season. The government took no thought of that to avert disaster, and we ended up with our worst two months, the nasty second wave which was both completely predictable and preventable.
Failure to set up COVID-19 isolation and treatment facilities resulted in untold suffering and unnecessary mortality.
Patients requiring moderate interventions like oxygen supplementation could not get it for there was no place to admit them. Until now, there are many towns without a single COVID-19 admission facility and patients are still turned away to go and die at home without any attempt to supportive therapy. But by far, the greatest looser was the ordinary non-COVID patient who could not be attended to because staff did not have PPE and had no capability to screen for COVID-19. Chronic disease patients were hardest hit, as many could not access their usual medication.
Communication and information dissemination has been very poor throughout this pandemic. The whole response was shrouded in mystery. This is now manifesting in the low vaccine uptake, which is largely caused by the people’s mistrust of government’s choices and failure to deal with conspiracy theories and other legitimate questions pertaining to vaccine safety and efficacy. The lack of transparency regarding the cost of the vaccine is a potential loophole for corruption and looting. The science behind choice of vaccine should be made plain, and full information should be disseminated, first to health care workers who have to deal with the public’s questions and doubts, and then to everybody in the country.
No heavy-handed tactics like withholding social benefits from those who are vaccine hesitant should be used, as previously intimated by Mr Mnangagwa.
The vaccine is our final weapon in the fight against COVID-19 and no effort should be spared in educating the public and allaying all related anxieties, to ensure that all eligible people receive the vaccine. Bringing in other vaccines as announced is a welcome move, but still information dissemination is key to dealing with mis-information and conspiracy theories, which remain rampant. We cannot just wish them away.
Bringing in private laboratory services as a substitute to free government testing sent the cost of all tests spiraling upwards. It was a serious abdication of duty by the government. We have always had private laboratory services in Zimbabwe, and they have their place, but they cannot become the mainstay of service delivery in such a massive public health emergency without a government subsidy. The poor are automatically excluded, and that is 90% of Zimbabweans. Contact tracing and routine surveillance died right there.
The rapid response teams were one of the weakest links in the government’s response strategy. They had a serious mandate without the necessary financing and equipment, notably PPE and diagnostic consumables like nasal swabs. They therefore failed dismally in their execution of duty. These are well-trained cadres by the way, but it is like a good soldier going to war without a gun and basic supplies.
How do we summarize government’s response to this pandemic? In a few words, government was not prepared to spend money on healthcare and on feeding the people during the very necessary lockdowns. Corruption was rife and crippled the response to COVID-19. The ruling party was the chief architect of super-spreader events, in the form of political party meetings and extravagant pleasure parties. Politicization of the lockdowns was rampant and led to much suffering, unnecessary arrests with consequent unnecessary exposure of citizens to COVID-19 in prisons. When it comes to pandemics of this nature, we admonish the government to put aside all partisan behavior, and all Zimbabweans should work together for the common good.
On the basis of this assessment, the government failed dismally in protecting Zimbabweans from this pandemic. We are all here today by a sovereign act of God. We give the government a score of “D”, with “A” being the best score and “E” the worst. The whole nation wants to help government get a score of “A” in this second year, so please, work with the people, and be completely transparent. All eyes are on the vaccine issue.
Going forward, here are our recommendations for the government to take Zimbabwe to a better place and avert a third wave as we open up the economy. Government should vigorously promote COVID-19 safe practices in all languages and on all media platforms. These include hand washing, sanitization, social distancing and avoiding close contact, avoiding supper spreader events, avoiding large gatherings, cough etiquette, and masking up as the new normal (not as a way of avoiding fines!), at least for the next one year as we measure progress. Health workers should be thoroughly equipped with knowledge so that they become the champions for vaccination and other interventions. Vaccine procurement is not the domain of private companies. Government must do its duty. As we move forward, government needs to concentrate on taking the people with it on all issues to do with vaccination and vaccine choice regarding safety, efficacy cost and other factors.
COVID-19 isolation and treatment facilities should be set up in every town, and a generous supply of PPE should be delivered to all health institutions. Schools should be properly equipped, and liaison with teachers’ unions should be intense. Businesses should be appropriately equipped and empowered to prevent infection.
Government needs to ramp up vaccination, and take professional advice seriously, particularly from the national immunization technical advisory group. Educate health workers and the population, procure vaccines in a transparent manner, distribute and administer to all. Convince health workers first and everything else will fall into place.
Dr. Henry Madzorera. Secretary for Health and Child Welfare. MDC-Alliance
The director of Epidemiology and Disease Control in the Ministry of Health and Child Care, Portia Manangazira has appeared at the Harare Magistrates’ Court on allegations of misappropriating funds and fuel meant for training 800 community health workers who were to raise awareness on Covid-19 in the country.
Manangazira appeared before deputy chief magistrate Mrs Bianca Makwande charged with four counts of criminal abuse of duty as a public officer.
The funds and fuel were part of the US$796 675 disbursed by the Health Ministry to train 800 health workers across the country, who were to raise Covid-19 awareness in various communities.
Mr Lancelot Mutsokoti and Mr Ephraim Zinyandu appeared for the State while Mr Harrison Nkomo represented Manangazira. Manangazira is expected to apply for bail.- The Sunday News
Violence against women remains devastatingly pervasive and starts alarmingly young, shows new data from WHO and partners. Across their lifetime, 1 in 3 women, around 736 million, are subjected to physical or sexual violence by an intimate partner or sexual violence from a non-partner – a number that has remained largely unchanged over the past decade.
This violence starts early: 1 in 4 young women (aged 15-24 years) who have been in a relationship will have already experienced violence by an intimate partner by the time they reach their mid-twenties.
“Violence against women is endemic in every country and culture, causing harm to millions of women and their families, and has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “But unlike COVID-19, violence against women cannot be stopped with a vaccine. We can only fight it with deep-rooted and sustained efforts – by governments, communities and individuals – to change harmful attitudes, improve access to opportunities and services for women and girls, and foster healthy and mutually respectful relationships.”
Intimate partner violence is by far the most prevalent form of violence against women globally (affecting around 641 million). However, 6% of women globally report being sexually assaulted by someone other than their husband or partner. Given the high levels of stigma and under-reporting of sexual abuse, the true figure is likely to be significantly higher.
Emergencies exacerbate violence, increasing vulnerability and risks This report presents data from the largest ever study of the prevalence of violence against women, conducted by WHO on behalf of a special working group of the United Nations. Based on data from 2000 to 2018, it updates previous estimates released in 2013.
While the numbers reveal already alarmingly high rates of violence against women and girls, they do not reflect the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
WHO and partners warn that the COVID-19 pandemic has further increased women’s exposure to violence, as a result of measures such as lockdowns and disruptions to vital support services.
“It’s deeply disturbing that this pervasive violence by men against women not only persists unchanged, but is at its worst for young women aged 15-24 who may also be young mothers. And that was the situation before the pandemic stay-at home orders. We know that the multiple impacts of COVID-19 have triggered a “shadow pandemic” of increased reported violence of all kinds against women and girls,” said UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka. “Every government should be taking strong, proactive steps to address this, and involving women in doing so”, she added.
Though many countries have seen increased reporting of intimate partner violence to helplines, police, health workers, teachers, and other service providers during lockdowns, the full impact of the pandemic on prevalence will only be established as surveys are resumed, the report notes.
Inequities are a leading risk factor for violence against women Violence disproportionately affects women living in low- and lower-middle-income countries. An estimated 37% of women living in the poorest countries have experienced physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence in their life, with some of these countries having a prevalence as high as 1 in 2.
The regions of Oceania, Southern Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa have the highest prevalence rates of intimate partner violence among women aged 15-49, ranging from 33% – 51%. The lowest rates are found in Europe (16–23%), Central Asia (18%), Eastern Asia (20%) and South-Eastern Asia (21%).
Younger women are at highest risk for recent violence. Among those who have been in a relationship, the highest rates (16%) of intimate partner violence in the past 12 months occurred among young women aged between 15 and 24.
Violence against women must be prevented Violence – in all its forms – can have an impact on a woman’s health and well-being throughout the rest of her life – even long after the violence may have ended. It is associated with increased risk of injuries, depression, anxiety disorders, unplanned pregnancies, sexually-transmitted infections including HIV and many other health problems. It has impacts on society as a whole and comes with tremendous costs, impacting national budgets and overall development.
Preventing violence requires addressing systemic economic and social inequalities, ensuring access to education and safe work, and changing discriminatory gender norms and institutions. Successful interventions also include strategies that ensure essential services are available and accessible to survivors, that support women’s organisations, challenge inequitable social norms, reform discriminatory laws and strengthen legal responses, among others.
“To address violence against women, there’s an urgent need to reduce stigma around this issue, train health professionals to interview survivors with compassion, and dismantle the foundations of gender inequality,” said Dr Claudia Garcia-Moreno of WHO. “Interventions with adolescents and young people to foster gender equality and gender-equitable attitudes are also vital.”
Countries should honour their commitments to increased and strong political will and leadership to tackle violence against women in all its forms, through:
Sound gender transformative policies, from policies around childcare to equal pay, and laws that support gender equality, A strengthened health system response that ensures access to survivor-centred care and referral to other services as needed, School and educational interventions to challenge discriminatory attitudes and beliefs, including comprehensive sexuality education, Targeted investment in sustainable and effective evidence-based prevention strategies at local, national, regional and global levels, and Strengthening data collection and investing in high quality surveys on violence against women and improving measurement of the different forms of violence experienced by women, including those who are most marginalized.- World Health Organization
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A 16-year-old boy from Lupane was crushed to death on the Bulawayo-Victoria Falls highway near Cross Jotsholo when a haulage truck ran over him while he was filling potholes on the road.
The accident occurred on Friday and the truck was going towards Bulawayo carrying coal. Simelebona Bongani Ndebele from Gumede village under Chief Mabhikwa, was herding cattle with other boys when they reportedly started filling potholes with soil.
This comes as motorists have expressed concern at the state of the potholed highway as driving along it has become a nightmare.
Simelebona, a Form Two pupil at Mlamuli Secondary School and some other boys had reportedly taken it upon themselves to rehabilitate a section of the road near their village by covering potholes with soil.
The boy’s uncle Mr Sibangani Ngwenya said the family was devastated. “We are heartbroken as a family. He was herding cattle with other boys when he was hit by a vehicle.
“Motorists have created side roads to avoid potholes and the boys who were with him said the truck was driving off the road when it hit him,” said Mr Ngwenya.
He said the truck ran over him and dragged him for about 30 metres. Police attended the scene and took the boy’s body to St Luke’s Hospital.
“We appeal to Government to repair the road because it is very bad and cars are creating side roads which is dangerous for villagers who are sometimes helping to fill the potholes. As a family we have lost a member and have to bear costs that were never planned for,” said Mr Ngwenya.
Hwange West MP Mr Godfrey Dube was among the first witnesses to arrive at the scene soon after the accident. He said when he arrived, the truck had just stopped a distance away while the boy’s body was lying on the tarmac.
“The driver said he only saw the boy at a close range and could not apply brakes. The boy had been filling potholes with others and he wanted to cross the road to pick up a harrow on the other side when he was hit.
“Government should prioritise the rehabilitation of the Bulawayo-Victoria Falls Road which is a very busy road. If the potholes were not there the boy wouldn’t have died. This is a highway which leads to our tourism capital and these villagers are good Samaritans who are filling potholes not for money but just to help motorists.
“Government should assist the bereaved family considering the boy was killed while helping to fill the potholes,” said Mr Dube. The Chronicle could not verify details of the truck company.
Matabeleland North police spokesperson Inspector Glory Banda was not readily available for comment yesterday.
-Chronicle
Former president Jacob Zuma’s son, Duduzane, says he is ready to lead the ANC, according to Afrikaans Sunday newspaper Rapport.
Duduzane, who has been living in Dubai for the past five years, told the newspaper he planned to return “as soon as flights to SA resume again” and that he wanted to try to defeat President Cyril Ramaphosa at next year’s ANC national elective conference.
He was already recruiting support from ANC branches in KwaZulu-Natal, he added.
The Gupta family business associate reportedly said this should not be seen as an attempt to stop the court battles his father was facing. He told the paper he believed in his father’s innocence and he would continue to believe in him, but said he felt his father had also failed in the implementation of ANC policies.
“It is time to move forward, and I believe there is now an opportunity to get involved. I believe I have a lot to offer [as president of the party] and I’m willing to stick my neck out for the ideals that are not being realised,” he told the paper.
Free tertiary education, land expropriation without compensation and the nationalisation of the Reserve Bank are some of the policies that Duduzane said he would implement.
“These are all policy decisions that had been accepted by the ANC before. Why are they not being implemented?”
Staunch supporters of his father expressed mixed views on Duduzane’s announcement with some praising him for his “bravery” while others said his election would be an uphill battle. Sowetan
The late actress, Anne Nhira called her brother, Juan, and told him that she was attacked and this was the last thing that she said before she was rushed to hospital in South Africa on Monday.
Nhira, who shot to prominence through her role on the hit soap opera, Studio 263, died on Wednesday from injuries sustained after a mugging in South Africa’s Belview Suburb on Monday.
Juan who is based in South Africa said when he spoke to his sister, the few words she said were her recollection of what happened.
“The only few words I heard from my sister were that men with guns came out of the bushes at the prayer mountain. When I found her (at the scene), I didn’t want her to talk too much as I wanted to get help,” Juan said.
He said although his sister said there were gunmen involved, he did not see any gunshot wounds on her.
“There were no bullet wounds that I saw, but there was physical damage on the chest area, stomach, rib cage and her back. We’re actually trying to get the surveillance of that area and see if we can come up with anything.
“There’re no witnesses so far and what we know is what she told us,” said Juan.
Asked about burial arrangements, Juan said they are waiting for pathology results so that they map a way forward.
“We signed all the forms that were required so we’re now just waiting for the pathologists to give us the results. It’s only then that we’ll have a solid plan. They’re saying it’ll take a bit of time,” said Juan.
ZIMBABWE coach Zdravko “Loga’’ Logarusic remains a defiant man against the adversity brought by the absence of key players and believes whichever Warriors he will send into battle in their final Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers will complete the job.
Loga, still chasing his first win as Warriors coach, has seen his plans being wrecked by a combination of injuries to key players like star forward Khama Billiat and Prince Dube and the non-availability of the Europe-based stars because of travel restrictions occasioned by the Covid-19 pandemic.
The 55-year-old Croat, however, told The Sunday Mail Sport yesterday that he was confident that whichever side he will have at his disposal for the trip to Francistown for a date against Botswana on March 25 and the home assignment against Zambia in Harare four days later, should be able to deliver the results.
Loga’s men lie second behind African champions Algeria in Group H with five points and need to avoid a slip-up in order to secure the remaining qualification spot from the pool.
He is however, under no illusions as to the impact the absence of such players like Billiat will have on the Warriors’ aspirations.
Kaizer Chiefs talisman Billiat suffered a leg fracture in January which saw him being ruled out of action for two months, but had remained hopeful of recovering in time for the Warriors’ two crucial qualifiers against Botswana and Zambia.
Loga had already been told that he cannot have Tino Kadewere due to the restrictions imposed by the French authorities which require players to go into isolation centres upon return from international duty.
And when Chiefs confirmed that Billiat would not be ready for action in time for the Warriors matches, it added to Loga’s growing woes.
“For sure Khama Billiat is a player we will miss a lot. His presence means a lot for us, it is a big blow for the team,” said Loga.
Despite the blows coming thick and fast in the build-up to the qualifiers, the Croat remains optimistic of the back-up plan he has in place.
“Again it’s not only Khama, we also have some problems with players who are coming from England. It means five or six stars that should be on the field will not be with us… that is the reason we have Plan A, B and C.
“This is a situation we couldn’t do much about, we have to focus on the players we have. I am very sure that the players that will be at our disposal will be ready to play, give their best and represent Zimbabwe properly.- The Sunday Mail
NEARLY 5 000 teenage girls got pregnant while close to 2 000 were married off in the first two months of the year, in what experts believe was a result of idleness and school closures caused by the Covid-19 lockdown.
The Government imposed a Level Four lockdown at the beginning of the year resulting in the postponement of school opening. According to a report by the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development which was presented in Parliament last week, the country recorded 4 959 cases of teenage pregnancies and 1 774 child marriages in January and February alone. The report also showed that 900 girls below the age of 17 were raped in October and November last year, indicating an average of 15 girls being raped per day.
Some of the rape cases were of girls below the age of seven.
Mashonaland Central tops the numbers with 4 475 teenage pregnancies and 1 436 child marriages while Matabeleland South is second with 290 teenage pregnancies and 65 child marriages. Harare did not record any teenage pregnancy nor child marriage while Bulawayo had only one teenage pregnancy case and zero child marriages.
Matabeleland North recorded 74 child marriages and no teenage pregnancies. Women’s Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Minister Dr Sithembiso Nyoni who presented the report said close male family members were identified as perpetrators of rape and other forms of child abuse.
She said it was clear that rural areas have issues around teenagers who are exposed to sex before the age of consent. Dr Nyoni said staying at home and being idle also contributed to the minors getting pregnant.
“We acknowledge that this is a time of great anxiety, uncertainty and stress for many as normal life routines are changed. Women and girls who constitute the greater percentage of gender-based violence survivors find themselves trapped in homes with abusive husbands, fathers, brothers and family members with limited access to protection and support services. With the report, we have indeed witnessed unprecedented incidents of rape during this period.”
On rape cases of underaged girls, the report showed that the Victim Friendly Unit of the Zimbabwe Republic Police received 1 222 cases of rape in the third quarter of 2020 and in the fourth quarter they received 1 274 cases countrywide. A total of 134 girls between the age of zero and seven years were raped in the fourth quarter, 239 girls between eight years and 12 years, 292 girls between 13 and 15 years and 235 girls between 16 and 17 years.
Educationists, experts in adolescent sexual reproduction and parents said there was need for an urgent intervention by the Government and local communities. National Association of Secondary Headmasters president Mr Arthur Maphosa said the solution lies in the opening of schools as most teenage girls were being exposed to abusers while at home.
“The number of teenagers falling pregnant is not only disturbing but detrimental to efforts made by the Government and its partners to protect and empower the girl child. Children have to be in school but that was not possible for a long time due to the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown that forced the closure of schools. Our young girls were exposed to the vagaries of society, made to engage in sex, forcibly in most cases.
“Parents no longer give strict supervision as they heavily rely on the school teacher to do the work. Hopefully as the Government finds a solution with communities, we hope to heal and mend the disaster through intense educational programmes.
We as educators cannot sit and leave the rot to spoil our children’s future. Men as fathers, brother and community leaders have to own up and stop this inhumane behaviour of raping our kids, marrying them off for money and status. It is disgusting.”- The Sunday News
By A Correspondent | There was pandemonium at Chikurubi Maximum Prison yesterday when a snake slithered into Harare West MP Joana Mamombe and her colleague, Cecilia Chimbiri’s cell.
IS THE CHIKURUBI PRISON SNAKE A COINCIDENCE OR A SETUP?
The dramatic incidents began on Friday, when it was suddenly noticed that the shift pattern has been changed and a prison guard, only identified as Mbuya Chipangura who took up work on the day began targeting the two MDC Alliance leaders for abuse, as sources tell ZimEye.
On the same day, at night, a snake crept into their (the MDC Alliance leaders’) cell. The reptile poked its head through the hole at the roof top and was now dangling into the cell.
Upon noticing it, they screamed over and over, and the officers only said they were calling for National Parks. Nat Parks never came. Reacting to this, the two continued screaming though no one came to their rescue.
“The only two officers who came through came after a long wait only to say they would wait for National Parks,” the two’s colleague, Netsai Marova told ZimEye.
At the time of writing it could not be established what type of snake it was.
She continued saying: The following day, they were relocated to a COVID-fested cell.
“They complained and we’re subsequently taken back, albeit to the same snake porous cell. As at today, they are back into the same cell which has a snake hole.”
A comment from the Zim prisons Spokesperson could not be obtained at the time of writing. – THIS IS A DEVELOPING STORY.
IS THE CHIKURUBI PRISON SNAKE A COINCIDENCE OR A SETUP?
THE COMMISSIONER GENERAL OF POLICE ZIMBABWE REPUBLIC POLICE Attention: Police Anti-Corruption Unit (PACU)
Dear Sir RE: COMPLAINT AGAINST HON MATANDA-MOYO J AND MR ERIC CHACHA __________________________________________________________________
I am presently on trial before the Magistrates Court at Harare on charges of criminal abuse of duty as a public officer as defined in section 174 of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act [Chapter 9:23]. These charges were preferred against me pursuant to “an investigation” carried out by the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) which itself was ostensibly acting on a “tip-off” it received from one Peter Bwanya.
Clement Masango
Having looked at the documentary evidence placed before the Magistrates Court against me and listened to the testimony of the attesting witnesses, I am convinced that both the investigation and the subsequent criminal charges against me are clearly a culmination of gross abuse of duty by the Chairperson of ZACC as well as by Eric Chacha, the investigating officer in the matter.
With this letter, I hereby lodge an official complaint of criminal abuse of duty as a public officer against the Honourable Mrs Justice Loice Matanda-Moyo and Mr Eric Chacha. The principal bases for my complaint are set out in greater detail hereunder.
Sometime in February of 2020, one Peter Bwanya who was then the Chief Accountant in the Civil Registry Department authored a minute to the Secretary of Home affairs in which he levelled against me “a plethora of allegations” among them were allegations of unprocedural, unauthorised and fraudulent procurement of vehicles for the Civil Registry Department. I attach hereto Peter Bwanya’s aforementioned minute dated 13 February 2020 and I mark it Annexure “A”. I am presently unaware of the outcome of these allegations against me.
After a meeting with the Secretary for Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage, Mr Aaron Nhepera on the matter, I was instructed to and did submit a written response to the said allegations. I attach hereto marked Annexure “B” a copy of my response. In my response, I requested, among other things, that the whole matter be investigated and I also undertook to avail myself for and cooperate with that exercise. I also recommended and requested that a forensic audit be executed in order to comprehensively and transparently examine and resolve the issues arising out of Mr Bwanya’s allegations against me. At the time of authoring this letter and to the best of my knowledge, no such audit has yet been carried out.
I did not receive any response or feedback of any nature to my written response, and on the 23rd of April 2020, Mr Eric Chacha and four others attended at my office armed with a warrant of search and seizure, a copy of which I have attached hereto as Annexure “C”. After a lengthy meeting with me, Eric Chacha and his team seized/impounded vehicles Ford AEX 4445 and Mazda REG 4251 claiming that same were to be used as exhibits in criminal proceedings that were pending against me. I advised both the Secretary and Honourable Minister of Home Affairs and Cultrural Heritage, Cde Kazembe Kazembe of this development who both professed ignorance and expressed shock over same. I followed this with a written complaint against the conduct of Eric Chacha and his team while at my office, addressed to the Secretary and copied to the Chairperson of ZACC. A copy of my complaint is attached hereto as Annexure “D”.
In my letter of complaint, I categorically denied any wrongdoing and highlighted how Peter Bwanya was deliberately misrepresenting facts for the purposes of diverting the authorities’ attention from the disciplinary action that was pending against him. I also registered my concerns and reservations with individual members of ZACC, especially Eric Chacha who was not behaving professionally and was abusing his office and position to the personal benefit of Peter Bwanya. It appeared to me that Peter Bwanya and Eric Chacha were in league and had established some form of alliance against me. Needless to say, this complaint ought to have alerted the Chairperson of ZACC about the unprofessional manner in which her officer was conducting himself. My written complaint was however neither responded to nor even acknowledged by the said Chairperson.
On the 6th of May 2020 at about 1315hrs, Eric Chacha, accompanied by three others, literally broke into my office, arrested me and took me to their offices in Strathaven, Harare. Throughout the arrest, Mr Chacha et al did not allow me the opportunity to call my lawyer as I am entitled to do by law. Furthermore, I did not understand the reason for their violent, disorderly and bullish behaviour toward me. I did not resist their orders neither did I give them any cause to treat me in the manner they did. I cooperated fully and complied with their instructions. There is no doubt in my mind that their conduct on the day was calculated to demean and embarrass me in front of my subordinates and onlookers and to cause me discomfort for no legitimate reason.
I made it clear to them that they were being misled by Peter Bwanya into fighting for him a personal war with me. I also enquired from them why they were doing this without the participation of and reference to the Accounting Officer of the Ministry to whom I was accountable, considering that these allegations were premised on the administration of my duties as a public officer. Their response to my enquiry was as dismissive as it was contemptuous.
Upon arriving at their offices, the team was joined by five other members. While there, Eric Chacha and his team sought to interrogate me in the absence of my lawyer, to this I protested and informed them that I would not participate in any interrogation without the attendance and counsel of my lawyer. After protracted argument on the matter, they eventually allowed my lawyer Mr TM Mutema of Nembo Attorneys who, I’ve leant, they had been keeping in one of their holding rooms the entire time, to access me. At this point, they then preferred charges against me and invited me to make a statement in response. Attached hereto as Annexure “E” is the Warned and Cautioned Statement I gave in response which shows that I denied the charges in their totality.
At about 1630hrs, Eric Chacha, without giving any reasons or explanation, dismissed my lawyer Mr Mutema who rightfully demanded to know what was going on and whether he was leaving together with me since their interrogation was complete and they had recorded a warned statement from me. Much to our surprise, Eric Chacha responded by telling me that they were taking me to Mabelreign Police Station for overnight detention pending court attendance on the following morning.
My lawyer asked for both the reasons and necessity for such an extreme course of action considering that : a) they had previously interviewed me on the same allegations as far back as the 23rd of April 2020 and I had not attempted to flee; b) there was no likelihood that I would flee and therefore not attend court on the following day; c) there was no likelihood that I would interfere with investigations or evidence; and d) there was no likelihood that I would commit further offence(s) if not detained prior to being taken to court.
To this enquiry, Eric Chacha responded by telling us that it was, to them, standard procedure to detain every person they arrest until they take them to court. No reasons were given for this decision or so-called standard procedure. Instead, he told us not to waste his time, and true to his word, I was boarded into a truck and driven to Mabelreign Police Station where I was detained, ostensibly for court attendance on the following morning. On the following day, Mr Chacha informed my lawyers late in the afternoon that the docket was not yet complete therefore I could not be taken to court as had been promised. I remained in custody until 8 May 2020 when I was eventually taken to court.
At court, the prosecution, on the strength of sworn testimony from Eric Chacha, “vehemently” opposed my admission to bail pending trial. Eric Chacha confirmed under oath the allegations made against me as more fully appears on Annexure “E1”. This he did despite knowing fully that no vehicles had been recovered at my farm or home and that no vehicles had been shown to have been used for “my personal errands at my farm”. To date, he is yet to show and take me to that farm for indications. He even went as far as telling the court, again under oath, that a forensic audit of the financial records at Central Registry concerning the transactions in question had been conducted, and that he was in possession of same. This was a lie. No such audit has been conducted to date in relation to these allegations against me.
Being the experienced investigator he claims to be, Eric Chacha ought to have known that whatever he was saying before the court under oath would be taken into account by the court in considering my suitability for admission to bail pending trial. He also ought to have known that any untruth, falsehood or misrepresentation of facts would most likely mislead the court in its decision, and ultimately work to my prejudice. There can be no doubt that Eric Chacha, in speaking as he did, under oath, perjured himself.
To date, no complaints of abuse of office as alleged by ZACC have been leveled against me by my employer nor has there been any audit qualification to that effect against the financial records of the Department. It is Chacha who went hunting for a complainant against me, in fact, I am reliably informed that he went as far as attempting to coax the Accounting Officer into giving him a report. A reading of the statement by Secretary Nhepera, Annexure “F” clearly shows that the Ministry has not lodged a complaint against me. There is no doubt in my mind that the only reason why Mr Chacha was in such a hurry to arrest and charge me despite the apparent shortcomings of their case was because he was in league with Peter Bwanya and he was doing the said Peter Bwanya’s bidding.
In the meantime, on the evening of the 6th of May 2020, during a televised news bulletin, the Chairperson of ZACC, the Honourable Matanda-Moyo J appeared and announced that ZACC had arrested me for criminal abuse of office in that: a) I had, contrary to procedure, procured for the Department six vehicles, being a Ford Ranger Double Cab Wildtrak and five Isuzu trucks from Duly’s Motors (Pvt) Ltd without going to tender; and that b) during the course of their investigations, they (ZACC) had recovered seven (7) government vehicles being used for my personal errands at my farm.
Despite the fact that these allegations formed the basis of the charges levelled against me, the Chairperson of ZACC spoke of me in a manner understood by those who watched the bulletin and intended by her to mean that I had indeed committed and was guilty of the alleged offences. This was indeed the message carried over in all the leading newspapers and on radio and television stations on the following day.
In her aforementioned address, the ZACC Chairperson also stated that they had recovered 7 vehicles from me which vehicles I had been using to run personal errands at my farm. She did not disclose the particulars of said vehicles neither did she state the name or location of my so called farm. In fact, at the time I am alleged to have committed the offence I did not even own a farm. What aggravates matters and clearly demonstrates malice is the fact that ZACC only ever seized two vehicles which vehicles were in fact parked at Central Registry. If they had cared to check the respective vehicles’ log books and Transport Officer’s records, they would have easily ascertained the history of use and deployment of said vehicles.
The Chairperson of ZACC not only spoke of me in the aforementioned manner but she also authorized and superintended my arrest and subsequent detention despite being fully aware that: a) ZACC’s sole witness was an individual with a clear personal vendetta against me and therefore his allegations and testimony against me were obviously suspect. b) Neither the Ministry of Home Affairs nor the Public Service Commission had lodged a complaint with her office against me in terms of the Public Finance Management Act. c) There had been no forensic audit or internal investigation of any sort into the allegations against me. d) I had complained to her office against Eric Chacha’s partial and unprofessional conduct in the manner he had been handling the investigation which was clearly giving Peter Bwanya an undue advantage to my detriment.
I have no issues with said Peter Bwanya whose motive and intentions he never concealed from the very beginning. I, however, take issue with the manner in which a whole institution such as ZACC which is headed by a judge of the High Court disregarded the basic principles of investigation, that information must be verified and that investigation must precede arrest. Again, I am not surprised as it is now evident that decidedly, they threw all caution to the wind for reasons that I can only speculate on which have nothing to do with the law. Since 8 May 2020, I have been as a result on suspension from duty without pay and benefits. I have also since that date been on bail coupled with conditions that even the magistrate who granted me bail described as “stringent”.
Mrs Justice Loice Matanda-Moyo’s conduct together with that of her investigating officer Eric Chacha is, in my opinion, malicious, arbitrary and an abuse of office warranting censure. It is for these reasons, I hereby formally lodge a complaint against these two officials, in their individual and personal capacities for criminal abuse of duty as public officers in contravention of Section 174 (1) of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act [Chapter 9:23]. I do not believe that this was a collective decision of the Commission but that of these two individuals who were bent on benefiting Peter Bwanya personally and to my detriment, contrary to and inconsistent with their duties as public officers.
Eric Chacha should further be investigated for perjury as defined in Section 183 of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act [Chapter 9:23]. The bases of this averment appear in paragraph 12 above. It would also be interesting to know why and in what capacity and for what interest Eric Chacha has been accompanying Peter Bwanya to the Ministry of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage Head Office, Public Service Commission and the Treasury seeking the latter’s reinstatement to the position of Chief Accountant in the Civil Registry Department, a position from which he resigned on 17 June 2020.
While conducting his investigation, Eric Chacha threatened to arrest one Benjamin Makiwa and Arthur Mathews if they did not corroborate Peter Bwanya’s allegations against me despite the fact that the said Makiwa and Mathews genuinely believed these allegations to be false. When they refused to comply with his demands, he then proceeded to arrest and charge them with theft of fuel. Eric Chacha had no right to act in the manner he did and it is my submission that his conduct constitutes extortion as defined in section 134 of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act.
For the foregoing reasons, I submit that both the Chairperson of ZACC and Eric Chacha criminally abused their duty as public officers in showing undue favour to Peter Bwanya to my detriment within the contemplation of section 174 of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act [Chapter 9:23] and with that, I would like to lodge an official complaint against them with your office. By copy of this letter, I also formally submit this complaint to the Head of the Special Anti-Corruption Unit (SACU) in the office of the President and Cabinet. I am available should your office require any additional representations on this matter.
Yours Faithfully
………………………………….. CLEMENCE MASANGO Cc: The Chief Secretary, Office of the President and Cabinet Cc: The Chairperson, Public Service Commission Cc: The Secretary for Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage Cc: The Head, Special Anti-Corruption Unit (SACU) in the office of the President and Cabinet
The director of Epidemiology and Disease Control in the Ministry of Health and Child Care, Portia Manangazira has appeared at the Harare Magistrates’ Court on allegations of misappropriating funds and fuel meant for training 800 community health workers who were to raise awareness on Covid-19 in the country.
Manangazira appeared before deputy chief magistrate Mrs Bianca Makwande charged with four counts of criminal abuse of duty as a public officer.
The funds and fuel were part of the US$796 675 disbursed by the Health Ministry to train 800 health workers across the country, who were to raise Covid-19 awareness in various communities.
Mr Lancelot Mutsokoti and Mr Ephraim Zinyandu appeared for the State while Mr Harrison Nkomo represented Manangazira. Manangazira is expected to apply for bail.- The Sunday News
Warriors coach Zdravko Logarusic has revealed that the Warriors could suffer another blow as goalkeepers Martin Mapisa and Tatenda Mukuruva could fail to travel for the Afcon Qualifiers against Botswana and Zambia later this month.
The coach has seen several withdrawals from the preliminary squad ahead of the games and the goalkeeping department could be the next to be affected.
Speaking to The Sunday Mail, Logarusic revealed Spain-based Mapisa and US-based Mukuruva are facing struggles to come for the games.
He said “We are facing some problems, but we are trying to solve the problems, and we are hoping we will do it…
“We have again the same situation with the goalkeepers. We called the goalkeepers from the USA and Spain, but we have a situation there but again we have Plan A, B and C.”
Other key players that have pulled out of the squad include Aston Villa midfielder Marvelous Nakamba, Lyon striker Tinotenda Kadewere, Tendayi Darikwa of Wigan and Kaizer Chiefs’ Khama Billiat.- Soccer 24 Zimbabwe
Highlanders have set the dates for their 2021 Annual General Meeting (AGM) and the Executive Members elections.
The polls were supposed to take place on 7 February, a week after the club had held its AGM.
But both events were postponed after the government imposed a level four lockdown in January to curb the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic.
Following the relaxation of the regulations a few weeks ago, Bosso have now announced the AGM and the elective congress will take place this month.
“The club’s AGM and Executive Members elections will be held on the 21st and 28th of March,” a statement by the club reads.
“According to the club’s constitution, club members should have convened for an AGM on the 31st of January before electing three Executive members a week later, but ‘due to Covid-19 pandemic rules and regulations, the negative responses received from the police and relevant sporting authorities and broad consultation on the matter’, the board resolved to postpone the events.”
Johnfart Sibanda is challenging incumbent Kenneth Mhlophe for the Executive Chairman job while Israel Moyo is seeking another term against Morgan Dube for the post of the Secretary General.
The final vacant position at the elections is of the Committee Member which will be contested by Bheka Sibanda and Mgcini Mafu.-Soccer 24 Zimbabwe
Tinashe Sambiri|The MDC Alliance Mashonaland West Province Facebook account was disabled by State Security agents last week.
The cornered regime has intensified efforts to disrupt the dissemination of the party’s crucial information.
12 members of the MDC Alliance Mashonaland West Provincial executive committee were violently arrested by armed police officers and soldiers last month.
In a statement the MDC Alliance Mash West Province dencounced the hacking of the vibrant Facebook account by State Security agents:
We would like to thank the Lord Almighty for granting us the serenity to lead his flock in the face of adversity,needless to say in the face of barbaric and archaic leadership.
It is a shame that our Facebook page has been under severe attack from State spies such that we failed to update you on the arrest of our 12 Management members on 20 February 2021.
The 12 who were frogmarched by heavily armed soldiers from the Provincial Headquarters to the Chinhoyi Central Police Station are Provincial Chair Mr Ralph T Magunje, Provincial Secretary Mr Tawanda Bvumo, Provincial Spokesperson Mr Mandava Blessing, Provincial Deputy Secretary Mr Emmanuel Chinanzvavana, Provincial Women’s Chair Mrs Abigail Usai, Provincial Youth Chairpersons Mr Colleen Mapfumo, Provincial Deputy Organising Secretary Cllr Dzeka, Provincial Deputy Spokesperson Mr kudakwashe Mandishona,Provincial Youth Secretary Ms Pauline Sibanda, Provincial Secretary for Local Government Cllr Richard Vhitirinyu and Provincial Sec for International Relations Mr Wilson Makanyaire.
These die hard Democrats have appeared again today at the chinhoyi magistrates Court but have been remanded to the 31st of March 2021 for the delivery of judgement on their application for refusal of further remand.
The Democracy soldiers are not deterred by such cowardly and illegal acts by the Regime to whip the voice of the voiceless into submission.
We stand solidly behind the CitizensConvergenceForChange as we fight for a better Zimbabwe.
Dictatorships across the world have a short life span,they will soon crumble.
As much as the Regime continues to persecute us,we will continue to escalate our voice and call for Change.we will be there when the Regime crumbles.
One year into the COVID-19 pandemic, how did Zimbabwe fare?
Executive Summary:
The government’s response to the covid-19 pandemic was characterized by failure to test the people, failure to manage immigration, failure to provide necessary resources like Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), COVID-19 admission facilities, oxygen, ventilators, failure to support and appreciate healthcare workers, poor or non-existent messaging, abuse of the pandemic to score cheap political gains at the expense of the people, failure to provide social safety nets and failure to deal with corruption like the Drax scandal and others. Lately, the government has also shown that it has no vaccine plan and only depending on knee jerk reflexes. On a scale of “A” to “E”, with A being the best score, we give the government of Zimbabwe a score of “D” for its performance in the first year of this pandemic because of the aforementioned.
As we commemorate the first anniversary of the worst pandemic in a century, we need to introspect as a nation on what we could have done better. “An unexamined life is not worth living”, as someone has already said. The first cluster of cases of COVID-19 were reported on December 31 2019 in Wuhan, China, and on March 11 2020, the WHO declared COVID-19 “a public health emergency of international concern”. All systems in Zimbabwe then should have gone into overdrive to avert a national disaster. Mortality in China and some European countries had already started showing sinister trends. The Government of Zimbabwe declared its preparedness for the pandemic, with Wilkins hospital completely kitted up and ready to admit patients, with ventilators and oxygen in place.
The first wake-up call was on March the 20th, 2020, when we had our first real case of COVID-19, a young promising journalist, who passed on three days later under deplorable conditions. The nakedness of both the government and the purported national isolation centre, Wilkins hospital, was exposed. Health workers did not have adequate PPE, they did not quite know what to do with the case, and there was no single ventilator available, though the patient could easily have afforded one. This was a chaotic and traumatic experience for both the family and all Zimbabweans. We all started weighing our chances of survival in the face of this new reality, with much trepidation, considering that this first fatality did not come from a family of meager means.
These are the lessons learnt from this experience: • Government should never lie to the people that we are prepared when in fact we are not. Complete transparency and honesty have no substitute. • A caring attitude is important, and cover-ups stink. • All resources should have been channeled to life saving technologies and human resources in a pandemic of this magnitude. • Government has no power to stop death, but government has the power to avail the best possible service to its citizens, so that at the end we can all say, “Well, all that could be done was done. This was now purely in the hands of The Maker”.
The failure of government to resolve a labour dispute with the doctors & nurses contributed much to our poor state of preparedness. Government should have dealt speedily with the health-workers’ industrial action and restored normalcy ahead of this pandemic. There was enough time to do that. The militarization of housemanship is not an answer to our human resources problem, and is bound to backfire with time. Government must reconsider.
Politicization of COVID-19 lockdowns was a serious miscalculation on the part of government, as this only served to spread the virus. The March 31 Supreme court ruling, now commonly known as the COVID-19 judgement, is a good example of the abuse of lockdown measures. The selective harassment, abuse and fining of citizens throughout this period is another example. These did not serve the interests of the nation in dealing with the pandemic. Instead, we saw Zanu PF functionaries holding parties and posting pictures on social media, supposedly to show that they were in power, without any legal repercussions. But COVID-19 did not understand that, and the events were unfortunately not without their own adverse consequences.
Institutionalized corruption and the looting of the covid-19 funds emasculated government’s response to the pandemic. Government continues to pay lip service to the fight against corruption as real looters of COVID-19 funds continue to roam the streets scot free and we have not heard about any recoveries, especially from the Drax scandal. Sadly, government has not been able to provide adequate free testing to the population, consequently no contact tracing was possible, and many cases went undiagnosed. Without testing, there is no isolation and containment of the pandemic. One year later, free testing is still not available to the majority of Zimbabweans. The result is that there has been no science in mapping the epidemic, and targeted lockdown measures and other data informed decisions could not be made. Blanket lockdown measures brought untold suffering to people who did not even need a lockdown in their locality. Government should take healthcare seriously, and make sure adequate resources are availed for the people’s healthcare, in keeping with section 76 of the constitution.
Failure to provide social safety nets in spite of pronouncements by the minister of finance was a monumental failure for this government. People were locked down into hunger and starvation, because the majority of our people live on hand to mouth budgets. We all watched with envy as other nations provided relief to their citizens in these trying times. Locking down the nation without providing food relief was the most cruel thing government did in response to this pandemic. The promised stimulus package to industry did not filter down to the intended recipients. One wonders who benefited.
There were many policy failures in the approach to this pandemic, chief of which was immigration control. Quarantine centres did not work as expected, they were porous and inmates were able to bribe their way out, use political influence to avoid quarantine, or simply escape from the centres through unknown channels. That is how we domesticated a disease that otherwise could have been kept out of Zimbabwe. It is important to move in tandem with international trends when dealing with a pandemic. The visit by the so-called Chinese COVID-19 specialist doctors was suspicious and certainly added no value to our response to the pandemic.
Failure to anticipate the second wave and prevent it was a monumental failure by the government. We all knew that the infection figures and deaths in our neighbouring South Africa were high. We also knew that a new more vicious strain in terms of transmissibility had been identified. It is common knowledge that we have a few million Zimbabweans in South Africa many of whom always want to come home for the festive season. The government took no thought of that to avert disaster, and we ended up with our worst two months, the nasty second wave which was both completely predictable and preventable.
Failure to set up COVID-19 isolation and treatment facilities resulted in untold suffering and unnecessary mortality. Patients requiring moderate interventions like oxygen supplementation could not get it for there was no place to admit them. Until now, there are many towns without a single COVID-19 admission facility and patients are still turned away to go and die at home without any attempt to supportive therapy. But by far, the greatest looser was the ordinary non-COVID patient who could not be attended to because staff did not have PPE and had no capability to screen for COVID-19. Chronic disease patients were hardest hit, as many could not access their usual medication.
Communication and information dissemination has been very poor throughout this pandemic. The whole response was shrouded in mystery. This is now manifesting in the low vaccine uptake, which is largely caused by the people’s mistrust of government’s choices and failure to deal with conspiracy theories and other legitimate questions pertaining to vaccine safety and efficacy. The lack of transparency regarding the cost of the vaccine is a potential loophole for corruption and looting. The science behind choice of vaccine should be made plain, and full information should be disseminated, first to health care workers who have to deal with the public’s questions and doubts, and then to everybody in the country. No heavy-handed tactics like withholding social benefits from those who are vaccine hesitant should be used, as previously intimated by Mr Mnangagwa. The vaccine is our final weapon in the fight against COVID-19 and no effort should be spared in educating the public and allaying all related anxieties, to ensure that all eligible people receive the vaccine. Bringing in other vaccines as announced is a welcome move, but still information dissemination is key to dealing with mis-information and conspiracy theories, which remain rampant. We cannot just wish them away.
Bringing in private laboratory services as a substitute to free government testing sent the cost of all tests spiraling upwards. It was a serious abdication of duty by the government. We have always had private laboratory services in Zimbabwe, and they have their place, but they cannot become the mainstay of service delivery in such a massive public health emergency without a government subsidy. The poor are automatically excluded, and that is 90% of Zimbabweans. Contact tracing and routine surveillance died right there.
The rapid response teams were one of the weakest links in the government’s response strategy. They had a serious mandate without the necessary financing and equipment, notably PPE and diagnostic consumables like nasal swabs. They therefore failed dismally in their execution of duty. These are well-trained cadres by the way, but it is like a good soldier going to war without a gun and basic supplies.
How do we summarize government’s response to this pandemic? In a few words, government was not prepared to spend money on healthcare and on feeding the people during the very necessary lockdowns. Corruption was rife and crippled the response to COVID-19. The ruling party was the chief architect of super-spreader events, in the form of political party meetings and extravagant pleasure parties. Politicization of the lockdowns was rampant and led to much suffering, unnecessary arrests with consequent unnecessary exposure of citizens to COVID-19 in prisons. When it comes to pandemics of this nature, we admonish the government to put aside all partisan behavior, and all Zimbabweans should work together for the common good.
On the basis of this assessment, the government failed dismally in protecting Zimbabweans from this pandemic. We are all here today by a sovereign act of God. We give the government a score of “D”, with “A” being the best score and “E” the worst. The whole nation wants to help government get a score of “A” in this second year, so please, work with the people, and be completely transparent. All eyes are on the vaccine issue.
Going forward, here are our recommendations for the government to take Zimbabwe to a better place and avert a third wave as we open up the economy. Government should vigorously promote COVID-19 safe practices in all languages and on all media platforms. These include hand washing, sanitization, social distancing and avoiding close contact, avoiding supper spreader events, avoiding large gatherings, cough etiquette, and masking up as the new normal (not as a way of avoiding fines!), at least for the next one year as we measure progress. Health workers should be thoroughly equipped with knowledge so that they become the champions for vaccination and other interventions. Vaccine procurement is not the domain of private companies. Government must do its duty. As we move forward, government needs to concentrate on taking the people with it on all issues to do with vaccination and vaccine choice regarding safety, efficacy cost and other factors.
COVID-19 isolation and treatment facilities should be set up in every town, and a generous supply of PPE should be delivered to all health institutions. Schools should be properly equipped, and liaison with teachers’ unions should be intense. Businesses should be appropriately equipped and empowered to prevent infection.
Government needs to ramp up vaccination, and take professional advice seriously, particularly from the national immunization technical advisory group. Educate health workers and the population, procure vaccines in a transparent manner, distribute and administer to all. Convince health workers first and everything else will fall into place.
Dr. Henry Madzorera. Secretary for Health and Child Welfare. MDC-Alliance
Violence against women remains devastatingly pervasive and starts alarmingly young, shows new data from WHO and partners. Across their lifetime, 1 in 3 women, around 736 million, are subjected to physical or sexual violence by an intimate partner or sexual violence from a non-partner – a number that has remained largely unchanged over the past decade.
This violence starts early: 1 in 4 young women (aged 15-24 years) who have been in a relationship will have already experienced violence by an intimate partner by the time they reach their mid-twenties.
“Violence against women is endemic in every country and culture, causing harm to millions of women and their families, and has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “But unlike COVID-19, violence against women cannot be stopped with a vaccine. We can only fight it with deep-rooted and sustained efforts – by governments, communities and individuals – to change harmful attitudes, improve access to opportunities and services for women and girls, and foster healthy and mutually respectful relationships.”
Intimate partner violence is by far the most prevalent form of violence against women globally (affecting around 641 million). However, 6% of women globally report being sexually assaulted by someone other than their husband or partner. Given the high levels of stigma and under-reporting of sexual abuse, the true figure is likely to be significantly higher.
Emergencies exacerbate violence, increasing vulnerability and risks This report presents data from the largest ever study of the prevalence of violence against women, conducted by WHO on behalf of a special working group of the United Nations. Based on data from 2000 to 2018, it updates previous estimates released in 2013.
While the numbers reveal already alarmingly high rates of violence against women and girls, they do not reflect the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
WHO and partners warn that the COVID-19 pandemic has further increased women’s exposure to violence, as a result of measures such as lockdowns and disruptions to vital support services.
“It’s deeply disturbing that this pervasive violence by men against women not only persists unchanged, but is at its worst for young women aged 15-24 who may also be young mothers. And that was the situation before the pandemic stay-at home orders. We know that the multiple impacts of COVID-19 have triggered a “shadow pandemic” of increased reported violence of all kinds against women and girls,” said UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka. “Every government should be taking strong, proactive steps to address this, and involving women in doing so”, she added.
Though many countries have seen increased reporting of intimate partner violence to helplines, police, health workers, teachers, and other service providers during lockdowns, the full impact of the pandemic on prevalence will only be established as surveys are resumed, the report notes.
Inequities are a leading risk factor for violence against women Violence disproportionately affects women living in low- and lower-middle-income countries. An estimated 37% of women living in the poorest countries have experienced physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence in their life, with some of these countries having a prevalence as high as 1 in 2.
The regions of Oceania, Southern Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa have the highest prevalence rates of intimate partner violence among women aged 15-49, ranging from 33% – 51%. The lowest rates are found in Europe (16–23%), Central Asia (18%), Eastern Asia (20%) and South-Eastern Asia (21%).
Younger women are at highest risk for recent violence. Among those who have been in a relationship, the highest rates (16%) of intimate partner violence in the past 12 months occurred among young women aged between 15 and 24.
Violence against women must be prevented Violence – in all its forms – can have an impact on a woman’s health and well-being throughout the rest of her life – even long after the violence may have ended. It is associated with increased risk of injuries, depression, anxiety disorders, unplanned pregnancies, sexually-transmitted infections including HIV and many other health problems. It has impacts on society as a whole and comes with tremendous costs, impacting national budgets and overall development.
Preventing violence requires addressing systemic economic and social inequalities, ensuring access to education and safe work, and changing discriminatory gender norms and institutions. Successful interventions also include strategies that ensure essential services are available and accessible to survivors, that support women’s organisations, challenge inequitable social norms, reform discriminatory laws and strengthen legal responses, among others.
“To address violence against women, there’s an urgent need to reduce stigma around this issue, train health professionals to interview survivors with compassion, and dismantle the foundations of gender inequality,” said Dr Claudia Garcia-Moreno of WHO. “Interventions with adolescents and young people to foster gender equality and gender-equitable attitudes are also vital.”
Countries should honour their commitments to increased and strong political will and leadership to tackle violence against women in all its forms, through:
Sound gender transformative policies, from policies around childcare to equal pay, and laws that support gender equality, A strengthened health system response that ensures access to survivor-centred care and referral to other services as needed, School and educational interventions to challenge discriminatory attitudes and beliefs, including comprehensive sexuality education, Targeted investment in sustainable and effective evidence-based prevention strategies at local, national, regional and global levels, and Strengthening data collection and investing in high quality surveys on violence against women and improving measurement of the different forms of violence experienced by women, including those who are most marginalized.- World Health Organization
Inserted by Zimbabwe Online Health Centre
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Tinashe Sambiri|The MDC Alliance Mashonaland West Province Facebook account was disabled by State Security agents last week.
The cornered regime has intensified efforts to disrupt the dissemination of the party’s crucial information.
12 members of the MDC Alliance Mashonaland West Provincial executive committee were violently arrested by armed police officers and soldiers last month.
In a statement the MDC Alliance Mash West Province dencounced the hacking of the vibrant Facebook account by State Security agents:
We would like to thank the Lord Almighty for granting us the serenity to lead his flock in the face of adversity,needless to say in the face of barbaric and archaic leadership.
It is a shame that our Facebook page has been under severe attack from State spies such that we failed to update you on the arrest of our 12 Management members on 20 February 2021.
The 12 who were frogmarched by heavily armed soldiers from the Provincial Headquarters to the Chinhoyi Central Police Station are Provincial Chair Mr Ralph T Magunje, Provincial Secretary Mr Tawanda Bvumo, Provincial Spokesperson Mr Mandava Blessing, Provincial Deputy Secretary Mr Emmanuel Chinanzvavana, Provincial Women’s Chair Mrs Abigail Usai, Provincial Youth Chairpersons Mr Colleen Mapfumo, Provincial Deputy Organising Secretary Cllr Dzeka, Provincial Deputy Spokesperson Mr kudakwashe Mandishona,Provincial Youth Secretary Ms Pauline Sibanda, Provincial Secretary for Local Government Cllr Richard Vhitirinyu and Provincial Sec for International Relations Mr Wilson Makanyaire.
These die hard Democrats have appeared again today at the chinhoyi magistrates Court but have been remanded to the 31st of March 2021 for the delivery of judgement on their application for refusal of further remand.
The Democracy soldiers are not deterred by such cowardly and illegal acts by the Regime to whip the voice of the voiceless into submission.
We stand solidly behind the CitizensConvergenceForChange as we fight for a better Zimbabwe.
Dictatorships across the world have a short life span,they will soon crumble.
As much as the Regime continues to persecute us,we will continue to escalate our voice and call for Change.we will be there when the Regime crumbles.
Tinashe Sambiri|Mr Emmerson Mnangagwa’s administration is deeply reluctant to prosecute looters of COVID-19 funds, the MDC Alliance has said.
In its weekly health update, the MDC Alliance accused Mr Mnangagwa’s administration of lacking the zeal to protect citizens from the deadly pandemic:
MDC Alliance Weekly Health Alert
*8th Edition *
14 March 2021
One year into the COVID-19 pandemic, how did Zimbabwe fare?
Executive Summary:
The government’s response to the covid-19 pandemic was characterized by failure to test the people, failure to manage immigration, failure to provide necessary resources like Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), COVID-19 admission facilities, oxygen, ventilators, failure to support and appreciate healthcare workers, poor or non-existent messaging, abuse of the pandemic to score cheap political gains at the expense of the people, failure to provide social safety nets and failure to deal with corruption like the Drax scandal and others. Lately, the government has also shown that it has no vaccine plan and only depending on knee jerk reflexes. On a scale of “A” to “E”, with A being the best score, we give the government of Zimbabwe a score of “D” for its performance in the first year of this pandemic because of the aforementioned.
As we commemorate the first anniversary of the worst pandemic in a century, we need to introspect as a nation on what we could have done better. “An unexamined life is not worth living”, as someone has already said. The first cluster of cases of COVID-19 were reported on December 31 2019 in Wuhan, China, and on March 11 2020, the WHO declared COVID-19 “a public health emergency of international concern”.
All systems in Zimbabwe then should have gone into overdrive to avert a national disaster. Mortality in China and some European countries had already started showing sinister trends. The Government of Zimbabwe declared its preparedness for the pandemic, with Wilkins hospital completely kitted up and ready to admit patients, with ventilators and oxygen in place.
The first wake-up call was on March the 20th, 2020, when we had our first real case of COVID-19, a young promising journalist, who passed on three days later under deplorable conditions. The nakedness of both the government and the purported national isolation centre, Wilkins hospital, was exposed. Health workers did not have adequate PPE, they did not quite know what to do with the case, and there was no single ventilator available, though the patient could easily have afforded one.
This was a chaotic and traumatic experience for both the family and all Zimbabweans. We all started weighing our chances of survival in the face of this new reality, with much trepidation, considering that this first fatality did not come from a family of meager means.
These are the lessons learnt from this experience: • Government should never lie to the people that we are prepared when in fact we are not. Complete transparency and honesty have no substitute.
• A caring attitude is important, and cover-ups stink. • All resources should have been channeled to life saving technologies and human resources in a pandemic of this magnitude.
• Government has no power to stop death, but government has the power to avail the best possible service to its citizens, so that at the end we can all say, “Well, all that could be done was done. This was now purely in the hands of The Maker”.
The failure of government to resolve a labour dispute with the doctors & nurses contributed much to our poor state of preparedness. Government should have dealt speedily with the health-workers’ industrial action and restored normalcy ahead of this pandemic. There was enough time to do that. The militarization of housemanship is not an answer to our human resources problem, and is bound to backfire with time. Government must reconsider.
Politicization of COVID-19 lockdowns was a serious miscalculation on the part of government, as this only served to spread the virus. The March 31 Supreme court ruling, now commonly known as the COVID-19 judgement, is a good example of the abuse of lockdown measures. The selective harassment, abuse and fining of citizens throughout this period is another example. These did not serve the interests of the nation in dealing with the pandemic. Instead, we saw Zanu PF functionaries holding parties and posting pictures on social media, supposedly to show that they were in power, without any legal repercussions. But COVID-19 did not understand that, and the events were unfortunately not without their own adverse consequences.
Institutionalized corruption and the looting of the covid-19 funds emasculated government’s response to the pandemic.
Government continues to pay lip service to the fight against corruption as real looters of COVID-19 funds continue to roam the streets scot free and we have not heard about any recoveries, especially from the Drax scandal.
Sadly, government has not been able to provide adequate free testing to the population, consequently no contact tracing was possible, and many cases went undiagnosed. Without testing, there is no isolation and containment of the pandemic. One year later, free testing is still not available to the majority of Zimbabweans. The result is that there has been no science in mapping the epidemic, and targeted lockdown measures and other data informed decisions could not be made. Blanket lockdown measures brought untold suffering to people who did not even need a lockdown in their locality. Government should take healthcare seriously, and make sure adequate resources are availed for the people’s healthcare, in keeping with section 76 of the constitution.
Failure to provide social safety nets in spite of pronouncements by the minister of finance was a monumental failure for this government. People were locked down into hunger and starvation, because the majority of our people live on hand to mouth budgets. We all watched with envy as other nations provided relief to their citizens in these trying times. Locking down the nation without providing food relief was the most cruel thing government did in response to this pandemic. The promised stimulus package to industry did not filter down to the intended recipients. One wonders who benefited.
There were many policy failures in the approach to this pandemic, chief of which was immigration control. Quarantine centres did not work as expected, they were porous and inmates were able to bribe their way out, use political influence to avoid quarantine, or simply escape from the centres through unknown channels. That is how we domesticated a disease that otherwise could have been kept out of Zimbabwe. It is important to move in tandem with international trends when dealing with a pandemic. The visit by the so-called Chinese COVID-19 specialist doctors was suspicious and certainly added no value to our response to the pandemic.
Failure to anticipate the second wave and prevent it was a monumental failure by the government. We all knew that the infection figures and deaths in our neighbouring South Africa were high. We also knew that a new more vicious strain in terms of transmissibility had been identified. It is common knowledge that we have a few million Zimbabweans in South Africa many of whom always want to come home for the festive season. The government took no thought of that to avert disaster, and we ended up with our worst two months, the nasty second wave which was both completely predictable and preventable.
Failure to set up COVID-19 isolation and treatment facilities resulted in untold suffering and unnecessary mortality.
Patients requiring moderate interventions like oxygen supplementation could not get it for there was no place to admit them. Until now, there are many towns without a single COVID-19 admission facility and patients are still turned away to go and die at home without any attempt to supportive therapy. But by far, the greatest looser was the ordinary non-COVID patient who could not be attended to because staff did not have PPE and had no capability to screen for COVID-19. Chronic disease patients were hardest hit, as many could not access their usual medication.
Communication and information dissemination has been very poor throughout this pandemic. The whole response was shrouded in mystery. This is now manifesting in the low vaccine uptake, which is largely caused by the people’s mistrust of government’s choices and failure to deal with conspiracy theories and other legitimate questions pertaining to vaccine safety and efficacy. The lack of transparency regarding the cost of the vaccine is a potential loophole for corruption and looting. The science behind choice of vaccine should be made plain, and full information should be disseminated, first to health care workers who have to deal with the public’s questions and doubts, and then to everybody in the country.
No heavy-handed tactics like withholding social benefits from those who are vaccine hesitant should be used, as previously intimated by Mr Mnangagwa.
The vaccine is our final weapon in the fight against COVID-19 and no effort should be spared in educating the public and allaying all related anxieties, to ensure that all eligible people receive the vaccine. Bringing in other vaccines as announced is a welcome move, but still information dissemination is key to dealing with mis-information and conspiracy theories, which remain rampant. We cannot just wish them away.
Bringing in private laboratory services as a substitute to free government testing sent the cost of all tests spiraling upwards. It was a serious abdication of duty by the government. We have always had private laboratory services in Zimbabwe, and they have their place, but they cannot become the mainstay of service delivery in such a massive public health emergency without a government subsidy. The poor are automatically excluded, and that is 90% of Zimbabweans. Contact tracing and routine surveillance died right there.
The rapid response teams were one of the weakest links in the government’s response strategy. They had a serious mandate without the necessary financing and equipment, notably PPE and diagnostic consumables like nasal swabs. They therefore failed dismally in their execution of duty. These are well-trained cadres by the way, but it is like a good soldier going to war without a gun and basic supplies.
How do we summarize government’s response to this pandemic? In a few words, government was not prepared to spend money on healthcare and on feeding the people during the very necessary lockdowns. Corruption was rife and crippled the response to COVID-19. The ruling party was the chief architect of super-spreader events, in the form of political party meetings and extravagant pleasure parties. Politicization of the lockdowns was rampant and led to much suffering, unnecessary arrests with consequent unnecessary exposure of citizens to COVID-19 in prisons. When it comes to pandemics of this nature, we admonish the government to put aside all partisan behavior, and all Zimbabweans should work together for the common good.
On the basis of this assessment, the government failed dismally in protecting Zimbabweans from this pandemic. We are all here today by a sovereign act of God. We give the government a score of “D”, with “A” being the best score and “E” the worst. The whole nation wants to help government get a score of “A” in this second year, so please, work with the people, and be completely transparent. All eyes are on the vaccine issue.
Going forward, here are our recommendations for the government to take Zimbabwe to a better place and avert a third wave as we open up the economy. Government should vigorously promote COVID-19 safe practices in all languages and on all media platforms. These include hand washing, sanitization, social distancing and avoiding close contact, avoiding supper spreader events, avoiding large gatherings, cough etiquette, and masking up as the new normal (not as a way of avoiding fines!), at least for the next one year as we measure progress. Health workers should be thoroughly equipped with knowledge so that they become the champions for vaccination and other interventions. Vaccine procurement is not the domain of private companies. Government must do its duty. As we move forward, government needs to concentrate on taking the people with it on all issues to do with vaccination and vaccine choice regarding safety, efficacy cost and other factors.
COVID-19 isolation and treatment facilities should be set up in every town, and a generous supply of PPE should be delivered to all health institutions. Schools should be properly equipped, and liaison with teachers’ unions should be intense. Businesses should be appropriately equipped and empowered to prevent infection.
Government needs to ramp up vaccination, and take professional advice seriously, particularly from the national immunization technical advisory group. Educate health workers and the population, procure vaccines in a transparent manner, distribute and administer to all. Convince health workers first and everything else will fall into place.
Dr. Henry Madzorera. Secretary for Health and Child Welfare. MDC-Alliance
PICTURE- Health and Child Care Deputy Minister and Chikomba East Member of Parliament Dr John Chamunorwa Mangwiro commissioned motor bikes which will be used by councillors in fullfilling thier mandate across the constituency. pic.twitter.com/Rx8wTXfLnY
The cost of procuring raw materials for manufacturing stockfeed rocketed by 886% in 2020 after maize prices rose threefold during the period, according to the stockfeed Manufacturers Association (SMA).
The sMA said in a report released last week that it manufactured and bought stock worth $29,5 billion last year during the period, although operations were affected by logistical problems at border posts and foreign currency shortages.
SMA said it bought 562 382 metric tonnes (mt) of raw stockfeed and produced 554 831 metric tonnes (mt) during the period.
These represented a drop of 10% and 11% compared to 2019 respectively.
“The average cost of procurements of raw materials in 2020 was $23 013/mt, an increase of 886% over 2019 being driven by the threefold increase in the maize price from early 2019 to 2020,” the sMA said.
During a recent meeting, SMA members said logistical problems at border posts and foreign currency shortages were among the major factors affecting raw material supply.
They said the last landed price for maize was Us$340 per mt in South Africa and Us$320 per mt in Zambia.
Last week’s report said maize bran and molasses were in short supply during the period.
It said the total tonnage of maize and soya bean derivatives procured in 2020 were 256 260mt and 123 290mt respectively.
These represented a decrease of 13% and 18% respectively compared to 2019.
The total values of maize and soya bean derivatives procured during the period was $5,3 billion and $4,1 billion, being changes of about 1 094% (93%) and 596% (-9%) over 2019.
SMA said poultry feeds continued to dominate the stockfeed industry, accounting for 68% of all feeds produced by weight and 75% by monetary value in the fourth quarter of 2020.
Production averaged 37 328mt per month.
The production of broiler and layer feeds were 33% and 22% higher than the fourth quarter of 2019, respectively.
However, poultry concentrates were 23% lower than the fourth quarter of 2019.
Pig feeds averaged 4 321mt per month worth $166 million, accounting for an increase of 8% by both tonnage and value of total feeds produced in the fourth quarter.
Ruminant feeds averaged 10 720mt per month worth $266 million, accounting for increases of 20% by tonnage and 13% by value of total feeds.
On average, prices of raw materials procured in the fourth quarter of 2020 increased by 13%.
Notable increases were low protein cottonseed meal, screenings and coarse limestone flour.
Indexed to the United states dollar, procurement prices increased by 9% and prices of maize and solvent extracted soya meal averaged Us$262 and Us$438/ mt, being increases of 10% and 3% on average during the third quarter.
Fourth quarter prices of feeds increased by 3%, SMA said.
Average weighted wholesale prices of broiler and layer feeds rose by 4% and 10%, respectively, to $45 120 per mt and $35 600 per mt respectively.-standard
KWADUKUZA, SOUTH AFRICA – SEPTEMBER 24: Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini is seen during Heritage Day celebrations on September 24, 2019 in in KwaDukuza, South Africa. (Photo by Gallo Images/Photo by Khaya Ngwenya/Gallo Images via Getty Images)
Zulu Traditional Prime Minister Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi has announced that the late Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini kaBhekuzulu, who died on Friday last week, will be buried in a private funeral on Wednesday night, followed by a memorial on Thursday.
Buthelezi also said only a select group of men from the Zulu Royal house will participate in the burial.
He said:
After a very protracted meeting, the summary was that there was actually a consensus that the king actually requested that he should be buried at night as happened when his two late sons were buried.
Prince Butho and Prince Lekthula were buried at night. And he said to be buried by men only. It should be a private ceremony of the royal family.
Buthelezi further revealed that the South African president, Cyril Ramaphosa will provide support for the King’s memorial service.
Said Buthelezi:
We are fortunate that one of the sons-in-law of the King phoned the President whilst we were engaged because it is known that His Excellency President Ramaphosa declared a State Funeral Category 1 for His Majesty.
So clearly the President has confirmed that there won’t be what is called a state funeral but nevertheless, the Presidency will support what can be described as a memorial service on Thursday.
Dethroned chief Nhlanhlayamangwe Felix Ndiweni says efforts are being made to have the sacred Ntabazinduna mountain declared a World Heritage Site.
The area is at the centre of a wrangle between Brian Davies and Floyd Ambrose for the ownership of Chiefs Lodge situated on top of the mountain.
With the permission of the late Chief Khayisa Ndiweni, the Davies and Parsons families built Chiefs Lodge in 1992. Davies and Ambrose are fighting for control of a portion of Tabas Induna Farm, where the mountain stands.
Speaking from his base in the United Kingdom, Ndiweni said Ntabazinduna mountain was of cultural significance to the Ndebele nation.
“We have to ask this government who they went to war for and who they fought for because wherever you look in Zimbabwe, they are stocking up tribal tensions and bringing up tribalism,” he said.
“Take a look at Chiredzi, among the Shangani nation, their sacred ancestral land is about to be forcefully taken over by this government.”
Ndiweni said both President Emmerson Mnangagwa and Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga knew about the significance of the mountain.
“We have had talks about it when we met with the VP so I am 100 percent sure he and the president are also well-versed on Ndebele history, so he too knows. Yet we are forced to see this utter nonsense,” he said.
“As the chief of that area, I have to speak up, I cannot keep quiet when such things are happening.
“Otherwise, other traditional leaders will ask: Chief Ndiweni what is happening to our mountain? I must be able to give a reply.”
Ndiweni claimed Ambrose was not acting alone, but was ‘a front.’
“If the president and vice-president believed the importance of Ntabazinduna mountain they would have stopped Ambrose a long time ago,” he said.
“But the fact that Ambrose continues this means he has obtained sanction or authority from the vice president and president,”
The vocal government critic said they were left with no option, but to seek international protection for the mountain.
“It has been for some time now that we have been looking at how we can encapsulate it into a World Heritage Site,” he said.
“There are various criteria to that and I think we meet most of those.
“If we don’t meet some of those criteria, then we can always add an attachment to Matopos, Khami Ruins or other localities. Indeed we can work closely with the City of Bulawayo, which has many sites that qualify to be classed as World Heritage Sites.”
Ndiweni was controversially removed from his position by the government last year.
Doyana villagers in, Umzingwane district under Chief Gwebu are up in arms with a miner who erected a stamp mill near their only water source, a development they say poses a health hazard for the area.
Stamp mills are popular among gold miners, but are deemed to be a threat to the environment as they use mercury.
Mercury is a dangerous metal chemical with long-term effects on the health of human beings and all other species.
Ntolo village headman Lazarus Nyathi said the stamp mill was located about 200 metres from the local dam.
“We were not consulted, we only saw big trucks moving in and installing the stamp mill without our consent,” said Nyathi.
Nyathi said while the identity of the owner of the stamp mill was yet to be known, it was believed the person is related to a powerful politician from Matabeleland.
A 14 member Zimbabwe Schools Examinations Council (Zimsec) board was appointed recently by Primary and Secondary Education minister Cain Mathema to steer the country’s public examinations until 2024.
Bindura University of Science Education vice-chancellor Professor Eddie Mwenje, who was the past Zimsec board chairman, retained his post.
He is deputised by a lawyer, Milidzani Faith Masiye-Moyo. Board members include Chinhoyi University of Technology vice-chancellor Professor David Jambwa Simbi, educationist and administrator John Dewah, retired National University of Science and Technology registrar Fidelis Mhlanga, educationist and educational measurement specialist Lazarus Nembaware, University of Zimbabwe lecturer Eventhough Ndlovu, private school head Suzzane Joscelyne and educationist and administrator Rogers Sisimayi.
Other board members are lawyer Wadzanayi Chirongoma, Zimbabwe Teachers’ Association president Richard Gundane, educationist (specialist in Learners with Disabilities) Sindile Mhlanga, accountant Kind Kapfudza and another accountant Mike Kangeremu.
Minister Mathema announced the new board during a press briefing at Mhlahlandlela Government Complex in Bulawayo.
The 14 board members were appointed following consultations with President Emmerson Mnangagwa.
Mathema said he is set to appoint two additional board members to make them 16.
“After consultations with HE the President of the Republic of Zimbabwe, Emmerson Mnangagwa, I am proud to announce the appointment of 14 new board members to the Zimsec Board, who will serve in this capacity from 2021 to 2024. Zimsec is a parastatal under the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education formed by an Act of Parliament in 1996, mandated to administer public examinations at Grade Seven, Ordinary Level, and Advanced Level.
“It is an internationally accredited examinations board which has very strong links with other examination boards through the Southern Africa Association of Educational Assessment; Association of Educational Assessment in Africa; and International Association of Educational Assessment,” he said.
Minister Mathema said the board will assume their new roles at a time when government has started examining most learners under the competence-based education curriculum.
“This new board comes in at a time when Zimsec is examining the ministry’s competence-based curriculum. The Board of Directors which superintends over Zimsec is made up of academics, lawyers, educationists, accountants and renowned administrators in whom we have faith that standards will be maintained and made better through their guidance,” said minister Mathema.
By A Correspondent- A 98 year old Bulawayo woman is appealing for assistance to buy food and meet other medical expenses as she has no source of income.
Tsinyeko Dungeni from Emganwini said she needs money to buy pampers, which she cannot afford.
A visit by Sunday Southern Eye to her home established that Dungeni still has good eyesight, sharp memory, and a good sense of hearing. Her granddaughter Sihle Mthunzi, who is responsible for her upkeep, said Dungeni has been using pampers for the last three years and was on a special diet, which they were struggling to finance.
“She likes amawoso (braai meat), I think this is due to the strength of her teeth because at 98 she has not lost any of her teeth,” Mthunzi said.
“She has been using pampers for the past three years and I am appealing to organisations to assist me with any of these items.”
Ward 26 shadow councillor Mzamo Dube said it was a blessing to have such old people in the community.
By A Correspondent- Opposition legislator Anele Ndebele has blamed poor teacher deployments for the low pass rate registered by Matabeleland schools as government fails to provide a convincing answer over last year’s dismal Grade 7 final year results.
There is an outcry over the poor pass rate registered by Grade 7 learners last year with Primary and Education minister Cain Mathema being directed to issue a ministerial statement in Parliament.
Mathema blamed sanctions and Covid-19-induced disruptions to learning for the poor pass rate in his response.
According to Zimbabwe Schools Examinations Council (Zimsec) statistics, Matabeleland North registered the worst 2020 Grade 7 results at 15.9%, down from 25% recorded in 2019, followed by Mashonaland Central (22.7%) and Matabeleland South (25%).
Ndebele, however, blamed questionable teacher deployments, starting at infant level, for the poor pass rate as he called on the Public Service and Social Welfare ministry to address the anomaly.
“In the last couple of months, we have been dealing with the mischief of a zero percentage pass rate in Matabeleland and in the flesh he (Public Service and Social Welfare minister) stood in this House and said there is a policy that says at infant level children must be taught by those who are conversant with their home language. So, my question then is the deployment is impersonal, how do we cure the mischief?,” Ndebele asked in his contribution in Parliament.
“How does this impersonal deployment system cure that mischief so that we have a supply good enough to take care of our children between the grade zero to grade three level? “That is where my question is premised.”
Public Service minister Paul Mavima, however, dismissed accusations that there was deliberate “mischief ” in the deployment of teachers.
“In my initial response I indicated that the infant module is special in the sense that government policy is to say those in the infant module ECD A and ECDB, Grade 1 and Grade 2 are supposed to be taught in their mother tongue,” Mavima said.
“It is only from Grade 3 when the language of instruction becomes English except the specific indigenous languages.
“The selection at the infant module takes cognisance of not being from a specific language group or ethnic group, but takes cognisance of proficiency in the language of the area so that they can effectively teach in the mother tongue of that particular area.”
The Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) recently called for inclusion of braille and indigenous languages in the languages of instruction in the education sector to enhance quality schooling.
Zimsec statistics revealed that indigenous languages recorded higher subject pass rates in comparison to subjects such as English, Mathematics, Agriculture and General Paper.
“This picture strengthens the argument that indigenous languages can be used to enhance the provision of quality education to students from various sections of the community,” the ZLHR said in a statement to mark the International Mother Language Day.
“Including the various indigenous languages in Zimbabwe among the languages of instruction in the education system is key to the improvement of the overall quality of students’ results across all subjects. It is therefore imperative for policymakers, local and central government to expedite the process of expanding the range of languages of instruction in schools.”
The International Mother Language Day is a worldwide annual observance held on February 21. It recognises that languages and multilingualism can advance inclusion and the Sustainable Development Goals’ focus on not leaving no one behind.
A 13 year old boy from Mushumbi Pools committed suicide after a misunderstanding with his 21-year-old sister over washing powder.
Mashonaland Central police spokesperson Inspector Milton Mundembe confirmed the incident.
“On March 6 around 0600hrs, at Gumbo village, Chief Chitsungo, Howard Kanyepa (13) was reprimanded by his sister Gracious Kanyepa (21) over washing powder,” Mundembe said.
This angered Howard, who went to his bedroom hut where he took a bottle of cotton pesticide and went into a nearby bush where he drank the pesticide.
Gracious alerted their father.
A search was conducted and Howard’s corpse was found in the nearby bush.
A Bulawayo magistrates court has granted bail to three men, who were arrested after they were found in possession of 285 kilogrammes of beef from five cows they allegedly stole at Methodist village in St Peter’s on the outskirts of the city.
The trio allegedly stole the beasts and slaughtered them near the Pumula North Zesa substation.
Nkazimulo Ngwenya (47) of Lobengula West, Micheck Mlambo (45) of Old Lobengula and Chamunorwa Mahachi (48) of Cowdray Park are facing charges of stock theft.
Mahachi, who is represented by Jabulani Ndubiwa of Mashayamombe and Associates, was granted $7 000 bail, while Ngwenya and Mlambo, who are represented by Maqhawe Mpofu of Samp Mlaudzi and Partners, were granted $5 000 and $3 000 respectively.
By A Correspondent- Former Harare mayor Hebert Gomba has been arrested by the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (Zacc) on fresh allegations of corruption.
Gomba was initially arrested in July last year on allegations of criminal abuse of office in connection with the sale of stands in the city.
This time he is being accused of creating stands inside the Old Hararians Sports Clubopen space and parcelling them out to different buyers.
Gomba was not asked to plead when he appeared before Harare magistrate Stanford Mambanje yesterday and was remanded to tomorrow for bail hearing.
Prosecutors said during the period extending from 2018 to 2020, Gomba, who was the Harare mayor and councillor for Glen Norah, connived with Wellington Mutambirwa, a council evaluation executive, to cause the creation of commercial stands at the Old Hararians Sports Club open space.
The stands were for a proposed creche, medical centre, recreational facilities, market place and fuel service station which were to benefit the council officials from his office.
It is alleged during the plan subdivision, Gomba pressured Samuel Nyabeze through phone and verbal communication to expedite the subdivision of stands.
The prosecution alleged Gomba expressed interest in a fuel service station stand claiming he feared losing that opportunity if a commission was put in place to run Harare before he could get the stand.
It is alleged Gomba’s actions caused the City of Harare to come up with a subdivision plan and Nyabeze signed it.
The prosecutors said council then sold three commercial stands to one family for $5 million without changing the use of the land.
It is alleged Gomba acted unlawfully by influencing the council against the sections of the Urban Councils Act.
Several senior Harare City Council executives, including councillors, have been recently arrested for alleged corruption involving the selling of land.
Eight officials, including town clerk Hosea Chisango, who were all implicated in several cases of fraud involving land deals, have cases before the courts.
Chinese buyers, middleman and corrupt officials reportedly duped Zimbabwe National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority a staggering $13 Million in potential revenue, in shady baby elephants selling deals, The Standard reports.
International investigative journalist and filmmaker Karl Amman said the Zimbabwean government might have misled the Convention on Trade in Endangered Species of Flora and Fauna (CITES) into believing they sold 97 baby elephants to China and Dubai in the period 2012 to 2017 but did not mention the sale of 24 baby elephants in 2015 to Qinguyan Safari Park in China.
Data gathered by Amman using invoices, shipment data etc actually show that Zimbabwe sold 141 elephants to China and Dubai in the period 2012 to 2017.
Zimbabwe might have misled CITES but it was reportedly duped by Chinese safaris and middlemen who bought the elephants for prices ranging between US$14 500 and US$32 000 each only to resell at between US$120 000 and US$128 000 each in China.
Said Amman in his report:
Irrespective of the numbers sold, what is equally interesting is that the revenue declared by Zimparks is around US$32 000 per elephant. The issue here is that we have ample evidence that the end purchasers paid a lot more than US$32 000 per elephant.
Regarding the last 32 elephants exported to Longmont Safari Park, 11 were further sold to (Ordos City Longsheng Wildlife Park Company Limited), one of the biggest traditional Chinese medicine and tiger wine producers, and one was killed in a fight with another elephant.
The importers declared that they paid US$120 000 per elephant. This price is declared in a number of customs and importation documents.
In the case of Zimbabwe, these include well-known Chinese brokers. There is also reliable information that some Zimparks board officials cashed in, and there are two brokers/agents listed in China who would have added their margins.
If 140 elephants were sold for US$432 000 each and the price collected from the end purchasers was averaged US$125 000, we are talking of some US$13 020 000 missing, which would have made a difference on many fronts,
Last year there was a public outcry when 33 baby elephants from Hwange National Park were sold to China. ZimParks is however battling an elephants overpopulation at one point ZimParks considered birth control for the jumbos to control the population.
By A Correspondent- *Dadirai Nyere* is 15 and she is an expecting mother.
The teenager is very shy and she hides behind baggy clothes and for those that do not know her, she is just another girl taking a stroll.
“I only slept with him once and that was it,” she told ZimEye.
“He tricked me into it and he is also a teenager just like me. The challenge is his parents are late and he ran away i do not know where to.”
Nyere is one of the many teenagers who will become mothers while still under age.
Parliament reported that 2021 has seen 5 000 teenage girls getting pregnant and 1800 teens were reportedly married off to their lovers during the first 2 months of 2021.
Authorities are speculating that was due to the idleness due to the 2 months lockdown that was imposed by the government at the turn of the new year to curb spreading the coronavirus.
The Ministry of Women’s Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development told parliament that 15 young girls are raped every day.
Mashonaland Central accounted for most of the pregnancies and childhood marriages as shown in the table below:
Teen pregnancy
A social worker from Bindura who works with a local non governmental organisation ROOTS attributed the scourge to poverty adding that schools closure had adverse effects on the young girls most of whom come from poverty stricken families.
“The Covid-19 pandemic lockdown saw schools closure leaving most girls exposed. Some were pushed to engage in sex for livelihoods and as a source of income.”
Plan International is on record expressing concern at the increasing number of adolescent girls caught up in food insecurity, especially “where they are being traded off by family members in an effort to earn the next meal,” says Stuart Katwikirize, Plan International Regional Head of Disaster Risk Management.
Katwikirize said:
“Many girls face heightened risks of coerced and transactional sex and exploitative labour.”
The organisation called on the international community to make assistance available to millions in desperate need, particularly children and adolescent girls who are at highest risk.
The current midwives shortage in Zimbabwe has reportedly turned deadly as heartbreaking stories of birth complications and maternal deaths circulate on social media and other platforms, The Standard reports.
The sad situation has lead to other complications like other non-midwifery health workers delivering babies among other problems. Inadequately equipped hospitals and a dire economic environment have reportedly driven other expectant mothers to go back to giving birth in the backyards of older women also known as Mbuya Nyamukuta.
Speaking about the current situation in his field, Zimbabwe Confederation of Midwives president Emmanuel Mahlangu said the situation is regrettable as he made a heartfelt plea to the government to adequately equip hospitals and maternity wards:
Our current situation is regrettable. The women of our nation deserve better.
The future generations in today’s newborns can be better protected. The overall prevailing economic environment, the Covid-19 pandemic and the pre-existing shortage of midwives coupled with low recognition have collectively left a demotivated and despairing midwifery workforce.
Mahlangu said burnouts were the order of the day in maternity wards as midwives were overworked due to a number of reasons:
The ongoing skills drain to local non-midwifery employment and international nursing jobs are a dark cloud on the maternity services. Burnout appears to be the order of the day in many maternity service centres in the country and more so in the capital city.
He also indicated that the midwives were also incapacitated to an extend:
Being in an environment where other women are able to make better income from any other ventures other than public health maternity services tends to create a midwifery workforce that is preoccupied with personal concerns more than the caring profession.
The nation needs to restore the dignity of the midwives, which will in turn bring protection to the health of the women, newborns and their families.
He urged the nation to change their mindset and do away with religious practices that put women in labour at risk:
All things being equal, such embarrassing incidents of women delivering outside health facilities should only exist in history textbooks.
We need, as a nation, to closely evaluate religious practices that put women at risk by encouraging delivery by non- trained personnel, late booking for maternity services and many child deaths.
Mahlangu decried the lack of resources and said:
We need to sanitise our health delivery services from repeated disruptions arising from human resource concerns.We need an enabling environment of adequate resources such as ambulances, equipment and consumables.
Regulations for midwifery should be updated to international standards and the profession has to be acknowledged as such. Families need to prepare well for pregnancy and make ready emergency plans for delivery.
Last year. 7 babies died during delivery in one of Harare’s hospitals and the story went viral on social media and caused a public outcry as people urged the government to look into the matter.
King Bulelani Lobengula kaMzilikazi Royal Statement on the passing on of His Majesty King Goodwill Zwelithini kaBhekuzulu
King Bulelani Lobengula of the amaNdebele Nation throughout Matabeleland and the Midlands in Zimbabwe, and in the Diaspora, on behalf of himself, the Khumalo Royal Family and the entire Mthwakazi Nation in its diversity, would like to convey his deepest condolences to the Zulu Royal Family and the entire amaZulu Nation on the passing on of His Majesty King Goodwill Zwelithini kaBhekuzulu on the 12th of March, 2021.
The symbolic significance of the late Zulu King in the cultural identity of amaNdebele people of Zimbabwe always stood as a source of pride and citadel of hope in their quest to reclaim their own national pride and completeness.
We also cherish the numerous moments His Majesty accorded to us as a re-emerging Royal Leadership of our people and the words of wisdom given to us for the full actualization of the Matabele Nation.
He was indeed a cultural father figure not just to Mzilikazi’s amaNdebele people, but also to all Zulus in the Diaspora who spread out to the rest of the continent during Mfecane.
May his soul rest in eternal peace as the entire Zulu nation finds comfort in his heroic legacy.
A survey that was conducted by the Zimbabwe Christian Alliance (ZCA) has revealed that a majority of the people are not willing to take the COVID-19 vaccine.
The survey by ZCA was meant to measure the attitudes, perceptions and reactions of the populace of the vaccine according to the publication. 561 participants took part in the survey and the survey was done on WhatsApp in groups that were made up of church leaders, women and youths across the 10 provinces in the country.
Here are the results that were presented by ZCA after the survey:
75.1% of those interviewed were unwilling to take the jab
10.7% of the respondents were willing to be vaccinated
14.2% of the respondent were not sure if they wanted to be vaccinated.
ZCA in a statement after their mini-survey stated that people were not aware of the issues surrounding the vaccine:
A major finding that was captured during the survey is that a lot of people are ignorant about a plethora of issues around acquisition, administration and side effects about the vaccine. This is a cause for concern as the Covid-19 pandemic has had dire effects globally.
Vaccinations in Zimbabwe are still low as 36 000 frontline workers have been vaccinated so far, a month after the country took the first delivery of the vaccine donated by China.
By A Correspondent- Over 300 structures in Beitbridge Town including Dulibadzimu Stadium, part of the border, a school, a hospital, a police station, and hundreds of houses are to be demolished because they were built on wetlands, The Sunday News reports.
This was revealed in a mapping report that was compiled by the Environmental Management Agency which stated that:
There are 310 structures in Beitbridge that were developed on wetlands. These are 202 residential houses, 66 residential stands, 23 cancelled stands, 15 industrial properties, six commercial properties, six schools and crèches, a hospital, a flea market, a stadium, a police base, two border warehouses, a lodge and three hostels.
This comes after the government in a bid to sanitize urban settlements and preserve wetlands stated that there will be massive demolitions of properties built on Wetlands or on land designated for other plans which were parcelled to home seekers by land barons.
Beitbridge Town clerk Loud Ramagkapola when contacted for comment agreed that indeed some structures were built on wetlands:
We have not yet received a report from the Environmental Management Agency (Ema) pertaining to the houses and other infrastructure on wetlands. However, Dulibadzimu Stadium was constructed in between streams and at law there should be at least 30 metres between a structure and a water body.
The report by EMA also noted that the Gwanda and Plumtree have the same issue of structures built on wetlands too:
A total of 28 wetlands have been mapped in the province, of which Gwanda Town has eight, Plumtree Town has 12 and Beitbridge Town eight, with a percentage coverage of 98 percent for the three urban towns. The wetlands covered are in the residential, CBD, industrial areas and proposed development areas.
By James Gwati-President Emmerson Mnangagwa and former Vice President Kembo Mohadi clashed over a gold mine, resulting in Mohadi losing his job, it has emerged.
Mohadi resigned on the 1stof March after pressure from the media for him to leave the second-highest offices following allegations of sexual scandals with several married women.
Government sources close to the two said Mnangagwa plotted for the downfall of Mohadi after they had clashed over Redwing Mine in Penhalonga, Manicaland province.
The country’s then-largest gold mining group Metallon Gold, owned by South African tycoon Mzi Khumalo, suspended operations at its Redwing Mine in 2014 due to flooding.
Metallon owned five gold mines in Zimbabwe, namely How Mine, the most productive, Shamva Mine, Arcturas Mine, Mazowe Mine and Redwing Mine.
The problem in Penhalonga started with the placement of Redwing Mine under judicial management in 2018, due to viability challenges owing to foreign currency shortages.
Political actors in President Mnangagwa’s preferred dialogue platform POLAD are reportedly demanding farms, diplomatic passports and vehicles for them to effectively carry out their duties.
President Mnangagwa is reportedly actively considering honouring the requests of the POLAD (Political Actors’ Dialogue) Members according to a source that spoke to the publication and said:
…There is also an issue of diplomatic passports and vehicles. We are getting fuel coupons now and there has been an element of discontent from some of us to say they also need to be capacitated.
POLAD members were reportedly told to put their requests before Justice Ministry Permanent Secretary Virginia Mabhiza by President Mnangagwa who refused to comment on the issue when she was contacted for comment.
By James Gwati-Did the controversial preacher Uebert Angel, bribe President Emmerson Mnangagwa for him to be appointed goodwill ambassador?.
Angel who is on the UK police wanted list on several cases of rape and fraud, donated to seven tonnes of mealie-meal to the President’s his wife Auxillia last month .
The “bribe” was handed over to Auxillia Mnangagwa’s Angel of Hope Foundation by Uebert Angel’s representative, one Pastor Felix Chikase on the 15thof February.
“We are grateful for being granted the opportunity to come here and give a hand to Angel of Hope Foundation. We understand the First Lady, our mother, has got a great burden of taking care of the nation and she also needs players to assist her for the benefit of the vulnerable members of the society. As Uebert Angel Foundation, we are there to assist her. “That is why today we have brought seven tonnes of maize-meal to complement the efforts that the First Lady is already doing,” Chikase said when he was handing over the mealie-meal.
By James Gwati- A top government official has defended the appointment of a criminal and fake prophet Uebert Angel to the position of goodwill ambassador by President Emerson Mnangagwa.
Mnangagwa is set to announce the controversial Preacher’s goodwill ambassadorial appointment.
Foreign Affairs Permanent Secretary, Mr James Manzou’s office, on Sunday showed the state media what they called the Ministry’s approval policy for ambassadors which had a list of people who have long since been serving the country as Goodwill Ambassadors who include sportspeople, businesspersons and other influential individuals.
Manzou’s office said the power to appoint ambassadors, plenipotentiaries, and diplomatic and consular representatives, is in terms of Section 110 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe, as read in conjunction with Section 204 vests with the President.
Section 204 reads, “The President may appoint persons to be Ambassadors or other principal representatives of Zimbabwe in other countries or to be accredited to international organisations and may, any time, remove those persons from their posts”.
By James Gwati-President Emmerson Mnanagwa is set to appoint a wanted criminal and fake prophet, Eubert Angel to the post of the country’s goodwill ambassador.
Uebert Angel is wanted by the police in the United Kingdom on several criminal cases which include sexual abuse on female church members.
The British Police have also opened several cases the controversial preacher over a list of offences, which include multiple accounts of rape, and several accounts of fraud.
The Sunday Mail reports that Prophet Angel was joining a long list of people who the President believes could do the country good in their capacities in line with standing policy.
One year into the COVID-19 pandemic, how did Zimbabwe fare?
Executive Summary:
The government’s response to the covid-19 pandemic was characterized by failure to test the people, failure to manage immigration, failure to provide necessary resources like Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), COVID-19 admission facilities, oxygen, ventilators, failure to support and appreciate healthcare workers, poor or non-existent messaging, abuse of the pandemic to score cheap political gains at the expense of the people, failure to provide social safety nets and failure to deal with corruption like the Drax scandal and others. Lately, the government has also shown that it has no vaccine plan and only depending on knee jerk reflexes. On a scale of “A” to “E”, with A being the best score, we give the government of Zimbabwe a score of “D” for its performance in the first year of this pandemic because of the aforementioned.
As we commemorate the first anniversary of the worst pandemic in a century, we need to introspect as a nation on what we could have done better. “An unexamined life is not worth living”, as someone has already said. The first cluster of cases of COVID-19 were reported on December 31 2019 in Wuhan, China, and on March 11 2020, the WHO declared COVID-19 “a public health emergency of international concern”. All systems in Zimbabwe then should have gone into overdrive to avert a national disaster. Mortality in China and some European countries had already started showing sinister trends. The Government of Zimbabwe declared its preparedness for the pandemic, with Wilkins hospital completely kitted up and ready to admit patients, with ventilators and oxygen in place.
The first wake-up call was on March the 20th, 2020, when we had our first real case of COVID-19, a young promising journalist, who passed on three days later under deplorable conditions. The nakedness of both the government and the purported national isolation centre, Wilkins hospital, was exposed. Health workers did not have adequate PPE, they did not quite know what to do with the case, and there was no single ventilator available, though the patient could easily have afforded one. This was a chaotic and traumatic experience for both the family and all Zimbabweans. We all started weighing our chances of survival in the face of this new reality, with much trepidation, considering that this first fatality did not come from a family of meager means.
These are the lessons learnt from this experience: • Government should never lie to the people that we are prepared when in fact we are not. Complete transparency and honesty have no substitute. • A caring attitude is important, and cover-ups stink. • All resources should have been channeled to life saving technologies and human resources in a pandemic of this magnitude. • Government has no power to stop death, but government has the power to avail the best possible service to its citizens, so that at the end we can all say, “Well, all that could be done was done. This was now purely in the hands of The Maker”.
The failure of government to resolve a labour dispute with the doctors & nurses contributed much to our poor state of preparedness. Government should have dealt speedily with the health-workers’ industrial action and restored normalcy ahead of this pandemic. There was enough time to do that. The militarization of housemanship is not an answer to our human resources problem, and is bound to backfire with time. Government must reconsider.
Politicization of COVID-19 lockdowns was a serious miscalculation on the part of government, as this only served to spread the virus. The March 31 Supreme court ruling, now commonly known as the COVID-19 judgement, is a good example of the abuse of lockdown measures. The selective harassment, abuse and fining of citizens throughout this period is another example. These did not serve the interests of the nation in dealing with the pandemic. Instead, we saw Zanu PF functionaries holding parties and posting pictures on social media, supposedly to show that they were in power, without any legal repercussions. But COVID-19 did not understand that, and the events were unfortunately not without their own adverse consequences.
Institutionalized corruption and the looting of the covid-19 funds emasculated government’s response to the pandemic. Government continues to pay lip service to the fight against corruption as real looters of COVID-19 funds continue to roam the streets scot free and we have not heard about any recoveries, especially from the Drax scandal. Sadly, government has not been able to provide adequate free testing to the population, consequently no contact tracing was possible, and many cases went undiagnosed. Without testing, there is no isolation and containment of the pandemic. One year later, free testing is still not available to the majority of Zimbabweans. The result is that there has been no science in mapping the epidemic, and targeted lockdown measures and other data informed decisions could not be made. Blanket lockdown measures brought untold suffering to people who did not even need a lockdown in their locality. Government should take healthcare seriously, and make sure adequate resources are availed for the people’s healthcare, in keeping with section 76 of the constitution.
Failure to provide social safety nets in spite of pronouncements by the minister of finance was a monumental failure for this government. People were locked down into hunger and starvation, because the majority of our people live on hand to mouth budgets. We all watched with envy as other nations provided relief to their citizens in these trying times. Locking down the nation without providing food relief was the most cruel thing government did in response to this pandemic. The promised stimulus package to industry did not filter down to the intended recipients. One wonders who benefited.
There were many policy failures in the approach to this pandemic, chief of which was immigration control. Quarantine centres did not work as expected, they were porous and inmates were able to bribe their way out, use political influence to avoid quarantine, or simply escape from the centres through unknown channels. That is how we domesticated a disease that otherwise could have been kept out of Zimbabwe. It is important to move in tandem with international trends when dealing with a pandemic. The visit by the so-called Chinese COVID-19 specialist doctors was suspicious and certainly added no value to our response to the pandemic.
Failure to anticipate the second wave and prevent it was a monumental failure by the government. We all knew that the infection figures and deaths in our neighbouring South Africa were high. We also knew that a new more vicious strain in terms of transmissibility had been identified. It is common knowledge that we have a few million Zimbabweans in South Africa many of whom always want to come home for the festive season. The government took no thought of that to avert disaster, and we ended up with our worst two months, the nasty second wave which was both completely predictable and preventable.
Failure to set up COVID-19 isolation and treatment facilities resulted in untold suffering and unnecessary mortality. Patients requiring moderate interventions like oxygen supplementation could not get it for there was no place to admit them. Until now, there are many towns without a single COVID-19 admission facility and patients are still turned away to go and die at home without any attempt to supportive therapy. But by far, the greatest looser was the ordinary non-COVID patient who could not be attended to because staff did not have PPE and had no capability to screen for COVID-19. Chronic disease patients were hardest hit, as many could not access their usual medication.
Communication and information dissemination has been very poor throughout this pandemic. The whole response was shrouded in mystery. This is now manifesting in the low vaccine uptake, which is largely caused by the people’s mistrust of government’s choices and failure to deal with conspiracy theories and other legitimate questions pertaining to vaccine safety and efficacy. The lack of transparency regarding the cost of the vaccine is a potential loophole for corruption and looting. The science behind choice of vaccine should be made plain, and full information should be disseminated, first to health care workers who have to deal with the public’s questions and doubts, and then to everybody in the country. No heavy-handed tactics like withholding social benefits from those who are vaccine hesitant should be used, as previously intimated by Mr Mnangagwa. The vaccine is our final weapon in the fight against COVID-19 and no effort should be spared in educating the public and allaying all related anxieties, to ensure that all eligible people receive the vaccine. Bringing in other vaccines as announced is a welcome move, but still information dissemination is key to dealing with mis-information and conspiracy theories, which remain rampant. We cannot just wish them away.
Bringing in private laboratory services as a substitute to free government testing sent the cost of all tests spiraling upwards. It was a serious abdication of duty by the government. We have always had private laboratory services in Zimbabwe, and they have their place, but they cannot become the mainstay of service delivery in such a massive public health emergency without a government subsidy. The poor are automatically excluded, and that is 90% of Zimbabweans. Contact tracing and routine surveillance died right there.
The rapid response teams were one of the weakest links in the government’s response strategy. They had a serious mandate without the necessary financing and equipment, notably PPE and diagnostic consumables like nasal swabs. They therefore failed dismally in their execution of duty. These are well-trained cadres by the way, but it is like a good soldier going to war without a gun and basic supplies.
How do we summarize government’s response to this pandemic? In a few words, government was not prepared to spend money on healthcare and on feeding the people during the very necessary lockdowns. Corruption was rife and crippled the response to COVID-19. The ruling party was the chief architect of super-spreader events, in the form of political party meetings and extravagant pleasure parties. Politicization of the lockdowns was rampant and led to much suffering, unnecessary arrests with consequent unnecessary exposure of citizens to COVID-19 in prisons. When it comes to pandemics of this nature, we admonish the government to put aside all partisan behavior, and all Zimbabweans should work together for the common good.
On the basis of this assessment, the government failed dismally in protecting Zimbabweans from this pandemic. We are all here today by a sovereign act of God. We give the government a score of “D”, with “A” being the best score and “E” the worst. The whole nation wants to help government get a score of “A” in this second year, so please, work with the people, and be completely transparent. All eyes are on the vaccine issue.
Going forward, here are our recommendations for the government to take Zimbabwe to a better place and avert a third wave as we open up the economy. Government should vigorously promote COVID-19 safe practices in all languages and on all media platforms. These include hand washing, sanitization, social distancing and avoiding close contact, avoiding supper spreader events, avoiding large gatherings, cough etiquette, and masking up as the new normal (not as a way of avoiding fines!), at least for the next one year as we measure progress. Health workers should be thoroughly equipped with knowledge so that they become the champions for vaccination and other interventions. Vaccine procurement is not the domain of private companies. Government must do its duty. As we move forward, government needs to concentrate on taking the people with it on all issues to do with vaccination and vaccine choice regarding safety, efficacy cost and other factors.
COVID-19 isolation and treatment facilities should be set up in every town, and a generous supply of PPE should be delivered to all health institutions. Schools should be properly equipped, and liaison with teachers’ unions should be intense. Businesses should be appropriately equipped and empowered to prevent infection.
Government needs to ramp up vaccination, and take professional advice seriously, particularly from the national immunization technical advisory group. Educate health workers and the population, procure vaccines in a transparent manner, distribute and administer to all. Convince health workers first and everything else will fall into place.
Dr. Henry Madzorera. Secretary for Health and Child Welfare. MDC-Alliance
By James Gwati-The Joint Operation Command (JOC), has held an urgent meeting to discuss countermeasures the junta wants to take against the MDC-Alliance Leader, Nelson Chamisa’s planned national protests.
JOC comprises heads of the Central Intelligence Organisation, Zimbabwe National Army, Zimbabwe Republic Police, Airforce of Zimbabwe and the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services.
The junta held a two-hour-meeting last Thursday from 1400 hours which was focusing on scenarios and reigniting of state machinery in preparation of Chamisa calls for “a season of protests by the citizens.”
Chamisa last week though his party’s social media platforms addressed the nation under what he called Agenda 2021, and said that he would lead mass protests against Zanu PF’s abuses on citizens.
By James Gwati- President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s sons are said to be behind the downfall of former vice President Kembo Mohadi.
Internal government sources said the fired former Vice President clashed with the Mnangagwa’s over various business interests including a dry port at the Beitbridge border post.
“ Mohadi has an interest in a cargo bonded warehouse facility at the border so he intended to expand his interests to dry port, but Mnangagwa’s sons also had the interest in the same venture. He confronted the boys and that created serious problems,” said a source.
Mohadi tendered his resignation on the 1st of March after he was exposed by the media for bedding several married women.
