We have caught up with Henrietta Rushwaya who has escaped @PoliceZimbabwe custody just as we trace the location of the gold she was caught with worth USD300,000.00. We can reveal the gold is now in the hands of Mnangagwa's sons. Follow the live updates on https://t.co/RMz9FsvEJWpic.twitter.com/pEDyK2yjyr
OPINION ANALYSIS – How former ZIFA President Henrietta Rushwaya was caught with gold worth USD300K in her handbag.
Henrietta Rushwaya has gold mines in Midlands, and she is also in the business of buying gold. The 6kg of gold was hers and Mnangagwa’s son’s. This is one of Mnangagwa’s sons from his first wife (Josiah Tongogara’s sister).
She had a disagreement after she demanded a share of profits. They did agree.
By now the gold is now in the hands of Mnangagwa’s sons.
The person who was a link based in Dubai is an Indian who had linked her with a buyer in the UAE.
There was no way for her to carry 6kg of gold in her handbag.
Farai Dziva|The MDC Alliance is appealing for donations to assist jailed activist Terrence Manjengwa’s family.
Manjengwa was arrested for standing in solidarity with MDC Alliance vice chairperson Job Sikhala.
See the MDC Alliance statement below :
While Terrence Manjengwa is being incarcerated for a crime he didn’t commit ,we as his extended family must ensure that his wife and young daughter are taken care of.
Terrence’s daughter was born on the same day that his father was arrested, meaning everyday he is incarcerated is a day she gets older without seeing her father.
We all know the hardships that we Zimbabweans are going through day in day out , but it is even more difficult when the sole breadwinner is in prison.
With that in mind it is our duty to see to it that our incarcerated cadres family is well looked after .Lets be that big family that we are and see to it that Mother and Daughter are taken care of.
Below is the contact information of Terrence Manjengwa’s Wife Choice Mukwesha including Ecocash
Choice Mukwesha +263771395548
Please lets help in any way we can be it in cash or in kind. Together we can do it as we have always done.
We have caught up with Henrietta Rushwaya who has escaped @PoliceZimbabwe custody just as we trace the location of the gold she was caught with worth USD300,000.00. We can reveal the gold is now in the hands of Mnangagwa's sons. Follow the live updates on https://t.co/RMz9FsvEJWpic.twitter.com/pEDyK2yjyr
OPINION ANALYSIS – How former ZIFS President Henrietta Rushwaya was caught with gold worth USD300K in her handbag.
Henrietta Rushwaya has gold mines in Midlands, and she is also in the business of buying gold. The 6kg of gold was hers and Mnangagwa’s son’s. This is one of Mnangagwa’s sons from his first wife (Josiah Tongogara’s sister).
She had a disagreement after she demanded a share of profits. They did agree.
By now the gold is now in the hands of Mnangagwa’s sons.
The person who was a link based in Dubai is an Indian who had linked her with a buyer in the UAE.
There was no way for her to carry 6kg of gold in her handbag.
If what Justice Erica Ndewere said in her urgent chamber application to the High Court today that she was pressured upon by Chief Justice Malaba to deny me bail despite my meritorious case she presided over is true, it must be known that I am angered. Beware danger ahead. Kill me
If what Justice Erica Ndewere said in her urgent chamber application to the High Court today that she was pressured upon by Chief Justice Malaba to deny me bail despite my meritorious case she presided over is true, it must be known that I am angered. Beware danger ahead. Kill me
At the UN General Assembly (UNGA), African Leaders signalled to the West that it is high time to end the illegal sanctions that have been crippling Zimbabwe for over two decades.
The current Chairman of the African Union, South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa, led the call which was subsequently echoed and strongly endorsed by the Heads of State of Namibia, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and others in their respective addresses to the General Assembly.
I am immensely grateful for this support. Indeed, it could not be more timely. Our African partners understand that a better Africa equals a better world. But, the continent is facing unprecedented challenges. Coronavirus has significantly exacerbated already existing health, economic and food-security challenges on a scale not seen for more than one hundred years. Sadly, for African nations, coronavirus is just one additional burden to be borne: on top of devastating droughts, locust infestations of biblical magnitude and relentless floods.
The West often expects so much from our nations, and world leaders often analyse us through the lens of their own success. But, in doing so they are only adding to the suffering of millions of Africans.
When President Emmerson Mnangagwa won the election in 2018, he pledged to bring about change, to forge a new relationship with the citizens of Zimbabwe and with the nations of the world.
In the face of endless criticism, we have made and we continue to make significant progress. Most recently, we achieved closure on the long-outstanding issue of compensation to farmers whose land was acquired during the Land Reform Programme of the late 90’s and early 00’s. The sum of US$ 3,5 billion, for improvements effected to the land prior to its acquisition, was agreed-upon by way of negotiations between government and the farmers.
Elsewhere, we repealed two antiquated laws (AIPPA and POSA). We passed a new Freedom of Information Act, and draft legislation to address the Constitutional requirement for an Independent Complaints Mechanism will shortly be tabled before Parliament. Other constitutional amendments designed to further modernise and open up government are already before Parliament.
The reformed Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission has received global plaudits, with some notable and important arrests, including two sitting cabinet ministers. The “audit of the rich”, currently being undertaken, is expected to yield further fruits of transparency and accountability.
We have also initiated the most ambitious set of privatisations in the history of Zimbabwe, with 43 of Zimbabwe’s 107 state-owned enterprises earmarked for reform.
We know these reforms are essential if we are to show the world that we are changing our nation’s trajectory. We want to be more open, to grow our economy, to strengthen our public services, to improve the lives of our citizens and we want to play a positive part in the globalised world.
We acknowledge that we still have a long way to go but we are resolute in our determination to modernise Zimbabwe. Even in the midst of the shattering economic impact of COVID-19, we are committed to the path of reform.
I believe the new Zimbabwe has shown sincerity in its willingness to compromise with the West. However, rather than less criticism and an easing of sanctions, we have in fact faced more pressure from the United States. Those who believe these so-called ‘targeted’ measures only hurt the rich and powerful, are profoundly mistaken. The UN recognises that economic sanctions have worsened existing inequalities. They have crippled our banking sector and have negatively impacted upon the performance of businesses both large and small. Our exclusion from lucrative trade benefits afforded under the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), in particular, is holding back our entrepreneurial potential.
Sanctions, and the enhanced country-risk factor they generate, have also made it close to impossible to attract meaningful foreign investors from the West. And a lack of foreign exchange continues to impinge on the very basics of economic life, from raw materials to life-saving drugs.
Our request to the West is very simple: end these sanctions, allow us to respond more comprehensively to the coronavirus pandemic and support us on our journey towards a new Zimbabwe. The desire to squeeze us into a corner serves only to maintain unjustified isolation from the West, to foster negative sentiment towards those who punish us and, most importantly, to perpetuate the suffering and privation endured by our already hard-pressed people.
A better Zimbabwe results in a better Africa and a better world.
It is time to end the illegal sanctions on Zimbabwe.
A 75-YEAR-OLD Colleen Bawn man has been fined $1 500 for stealing two bicycles from his neighbour and barbed wire from a nearby farm.
Hassan Phiri was convicted on his own plea of guilty to theft by Gwanda magistrate, Miss Lerato Nyathi.
He was ordered to have paid the $1 500 fine by October 30 or risk being jailed for two months in case of default. In addition, he was sentenced to five months imprisonment which was wholly suspended on condition that he does not commit a similar offence within the next five years.
Prosecuting, Mr Noel Mandebvu said Phiri stole two bicycles from his neighbours as well as barbed wire from Bromley Farm in Collen Bawn in May.
“On 13 May at around 9PM Mr Foster Hlongwane retired to bed and left his bicycle parked by the verandah. On the following day at around 5AM his wife got up to sweep the yard and she noticed that the bicycle was missing and informed her husband. Mr Hlongwane tried to check the footprints of the accused person but couldn’t find any,” he said.
“Later during that month Mr Hlongwane heard that the police had found some bicycles at the accused person’s homestead while they were investigating another case of theft of a bicycle. On 31 May at around 10AM Mr Hlongwane then proceeded to the accused person’s homestead with the police to identify his bicycle and he found it. The bicycle is worth US$100.”
Mr Mandebvu said under the second count on May 28 at around 8PM the complainant Mr Mbuso Moyo went to visit his relatives who live close to Phiri and left his bicycle unsecured in the yard. He said at around 10PM the complainant decided to go back to his home and discovered that his bicycle was missing from where he had left it.
Mr Mandebvu said the following day at around 6AM the complainant with the assistance of neighbourhood watch committee members and some villagers tracked the bicycle tyre marks which led to them to Phiri’s homestead where they found the missing bicycle in the accused person’s field. He said the matter was reported to the police resulting in the arrest of the accused person. The value of the stolen bicycle is R2 000.
“Sometime during the period between the year 2018 and 29 May 2020 Phiri proceeded to Bromley Farm in Colleen Bawn and stole three rolls of barbed wire which had been used to fence the farm and took it to his homestead. On 29 May at around 6AM police who were investigating a case of theft of a bicycle arrived at Phiri’s homestead and found three rolls of barbed wire.
“Police carried out investigations which later revealed that Phiri had stolen the barbed wire from Bromley Farm leading to his arrest. The value of the stolen barbed wire is R1 000,” he said.
Readers who have been keeping up with the murky Zimbabwean politics, would instantly dismiss President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s latest call for the US and EU to lift sanctions as nothing but an excuse for his failure to push through reforms to fix the moribund economy.
On Sunday Mnangagwa spoke to the nation in a televised address about how sanctions have stifled efforts to revive the economy that is in its worst crisis in more than a decade. It’s the second year running that the ruling Zanu-PF party veteran has blamed sanctions for his failure to reverse the damage of an ill-conceived plan to seize white-owned agricultural land in what was once a thriving economy.
Unfortunately, his calls seem to have found a receptive ear from leaders, including those of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s government. The department of international relations & co-operation shamelessly put out a statement on Sunday, saying it joined other Southern African Development Community (Sadc) members to “collectively voice their disapproval and condemnation of sanctions” against Zimbabwe.
The Ramaphosa government’s endorsement of Mnangagwa’s efforts to pull the wool over the eyes of millions of Zimbabweans fighting for survival in an economy where there are shortages of everything from petrol to medicines, comes as human rights abuses in Zimbabwe hog the headlines. And it fails to acknowledge his counterpart’s failure to make good on his promises to revitalise the economy.
It did not take long for Mnangagwa, a former spy chief who was part of the coup that ousted Robert Mugabe in 2017, to reveal an instinctive heavy-handedness in dealing with antigovernment protests. A few days after an election two years ago, he unleashed an army backed by armoured vehicles and a military helicopter to crush demonstrations by stone-throwing opposition who had accused his party of rigging the elections. Six people were killed as troops opened fire with automatic rifles.
Five months later security forces rounded up hundreds of people in a brutal crackdown after violent protests triggered by Mnangagwa’s sudden announcement of a fuel price increase. At least 17 people were killed in the shooting, and more than 1,000 were arrested during door-to-door raids that conjured up memories of Mugabe’s ruthless pursuit of a one-party state in which he dictated terms.
“Despite President Emmerson Mnangagwa repeatedly voicing his commitments to human rights reforms, Zimbabwe remained intolerant of basic rights, peaceful dissent, and free expression,” the 2019 scathing review of the Zimbabwean government by the Human Rights Watch said.
We could not agree more.
There have been numerous reports of political repression offering evidence that Mnangagwa has failed to break with his predecessor’s authoritarianism, which is also synonymous with sinking the economy to the point where the central bank was printing 100-trillion Zimbabwean dollar bills and throwing millions of the middle-class population into poverty.
His effort to divert attention from failure to push through reforms and rehabilitate the country’s image as an investor-friendly frontier market should not be entertained.
For a start, the sanctions are targeted at individuals rather than the wider economy, and it would be reckless for the EU to lift an arms embargo on an administration that is not averse to using lethal force against its citizens. The government has long argued that it is unable to access funding from agencies such as the IMF and the World Bank as US officials are barred from voting for fresh funding for Zimbabwe.
Assuming they were not barred, it would be hard for the IMF to lend to countries it says is in debt distress, meaning it is choking under unsustainable borrowings and large external debt.
Before the Ramaphosa government lays the blame of economic destitution on sanctions, it would be helpful for everyone, including Mnangagwa, to acknowledge that Zimbabwe consistently fails to respect human rights and the rule of law and to push through fiscal consolidation reforms.
These are central to restoring the country’s credentials as a friendly destination for foreign capital, an important driver of economic recovery.
Henrietta is PG Kumbirai Hodzi’s live-in girlfriend. Did the PG not know anything about this smuggling? Why again was Gula-Ndebele dismissed? Hasn’t the question of Hodzi’s fitness to remain in office arisen? Is he going to properly prosecute his lady-love? pic.twitter.com/bNSPHhepuB
By A Correspondent- Two Zimbabwe National Roads Administration (ZINARA) toll collectors based at the Gweru North tollgate died on the spot when a commuter omnibus they were travelling in side-swiped with a haulage truck a few kilometres outside Gweru recently.
The accident occurred near Regina Mundi High School along the Gweru-Kwekwe highway and the two collectors were part of six ZINARA employees who had just finished their shifts and were being ferried home aboard a commuter omnibus.
ZINARA public relations manager Tendai Mugabe confirmed the death of the two employees but said he was still to get more details.
Meanwhile, Gweru City Council public relations officer Vimbai Chingwaramusee revealed that a Gweru fire brigade team attended the accident.
She said:
Our fire brigade team rescued passengers and both drivers following a side swipe involving a haulage truck and a commuter omnibus near Regina Mundi High School around midnight.
Two people who are said to be Zinara employees died on the spot.
The the accident occurred at about midnight on Friday, 16 October 2020.-Newsday
Harare Provincial Development Coordinator Mr Tafadzwa Muguti
Government has directed town clerks, town secretaries and chief executives for Harare, Chitungwiza, Ruwa and Epworth councils to sign performance-based contracts so that their work can be evaluated and corrective action taken if they fail to ensure the provision of quality services to ratepayers.
Speaking during a tour of Epworth Local Board projects last week, Harare Provincial Development Coordinator Mr Tafadzwa Muguti said councils must feed into the integrated management system of Government.
“We need to have a performance contract with local authorities. Government cannot only have performance contracts with ministries with the ministries failing to have performance contracts with the local authorities,” he said.
“So l am expecting that as the PDC, there is an opportunity to have performance contracts with all the town secretaries for Ruwa and Epworth as well as town clerks for Harare and Chitungwiza.”
Mr Muguti said the performance contracts should also be extended to councillors since they have oversight on council manangement.
He promised to visit all local authorities under his purview to check progress on the 100-day cycles every three months or four times per year.
“I will make these official visits. But in between, my office is working with them daily on key projects to ensure that we are driving development. But one thing, which is critical especially for areas like Epworth is how can we create an industrial hub,” he said.
Mr Muguti urged local authorities to ensure that most businesses in the province are formalised so that they contribute to national development through payment of taxes, where necessary, and creation jobs.
“There is a feeling that the fewer jobs available are a result of more imports and the smuggling of goods, which can be addressed by opening more factories and ramping up production on existing ones.
“Government’s thrust this year is to boost production, hence the establishment of investor friendly laws.
“We cannot have a situation where we allow the factories to close so that the informal business can take over. I believe that what people need to sustain themselves is employment and if you create the jobs l am sure we can be able to address a number of issues,” he said.
HARARE – Suspended High Court judge Erica Ndewere on Monday challenged a decision of the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) to ask President Emmerson Mnangagwa to establish a tribunal to investigate her for misconduct – and then suddenly withdrew the urgent High Court chamber application.
Justice Ndewere is accused by the JSC of wrongly quashing a prison sentence imposed on a thief and also taking too long to deliver judgements, but she accuses Chief Justice Luke Malaba of pursuing a personal vendetta after she ignored an illegal order by him to rule in a certain way in a bail application.
Ndewere filed her urgent chamber application at the High Court on Monday morning, and within hours she had withdrawn it.
“The applicant hereby files a notice of withdrawal of the urge chamber application and tenders costs,” read her notice of withdrawal.
Ndewere had cited President Emmerson Mnangagwa, Chief Justice Malaba, Judge President George Chiweshe, the JSC and Justice Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi as respondents in her urgent chamber application.
The judge said the Judicial Service (Code of Ethics) Regulations 2012 mandated the complainants to set up a disciplinary committee to deal with the issues raised, which she said were not so serious to warrant the establishment of a tribunal by the president.
“It is unclear to me why the second respondent (Malaba) is working with a common purpose to have me brought before a tribunal when they have clearly failed to comply with the Constitution and the Code,” the judge protested.
“I am also concerned that I am being unfairly treated by CJ Malaba and the JSC. In my view, the second respondent is victimising me for refusing to follow his unlawful instruction which he issued in August 2019 in connection with a bail matter I handled that month. This is why even before I had explained in June this year, CJ Malaba told Judge President Chiweshe to tell me that he wanted to take me to the tribunal.”
She is accused of quashing a prison sentence imposed on 21-year-old Kenneth Majecha and substituting it with an order for the trial magistrate to consider community service.
In coming up with the decision Ndewere said she considered that the convict was a youthful offender and had no previous convictions, but the JSC says Majecha had been convicted thrice before, and details of those cases were in the court record.
The review, according to the JSC, was assigned to her in May but she did not deliver a judgement until October, when Majecha had already left prison after serving his sentence.
The JSC argues that Ndewere showed a lack of application to her work and her performance “has failed to meet the expected standard of a judge.”
The JSC says she was warned to improve her performance over delayed judgements in 2017, and got a second warning on February 6, 2019, after failing to perform any work since January 14, 2019.
Ndewere had 12 reserved judgments as at June 30, 2019. The 12 cases had gone for more than two years without determination, the JSC charges.
“Failure to deliver a reserved judgment within a period of 90 days is a breach of the JSC (Code of Ethics) Regulations of 2012,” according to the JSC.
By May 18 this year, Justice Ndewere had 28 pending cases with judgments having been reserved for periods stretching from nine to 24 months.
On September 15, Ndewere received documents of complaints raised by the JSC and her lawyers responded highlighting critical issues on how complaints against a sitting High Court judge ought to be dealt with.
She argued her direct supervisor was Judge President Chiweshe, who has not raised a complaint against her.
Justice Ndewere’s suspension earlier this month came after she granted bail to MDC Alliance deputy chairman Job Sikhala. Chief Justice Malaba was reportedly not happy, although she does not site this particular case, instead referring to a bail matter that was before her in August 2019 when Malaba allegedly made an inappropriate approach.
The controversial case that Justice Ndewere dealt with in August 2019 was the matter of corruption-accused former labour minister Prisca Mupfumira, who she released on bail.
By The Combined Harare Residents Association Information Dept
Suppliers of water through water bowsers have been accused of preying on desperate women and girls fetching water by soliciting for sexual favors in return for water.
This emerged at a Water Dialogue Forum held in Mabvuku on Monday which was jointly organized by Combined Harare Residents Association, Community Water Alliance and Women and Law Southern Africa.
“The drivers and volunteers of water bowsers are openly ask for sex in order to supply us with water, we refused and are no longer supplying our section with water”, said an angry woman.
Women who attended the forum lamented that there has been unfairness in the distribution of water by mobile water bowsers in Mabvuku due to favoritism mainly anchored on sextortion and selling of the water to desperate water seekers.
The water situation has not spared even the young women who are succumbing to the demands of the volunteer workers distributing water.
The water distribution has increased vulnerabilities among women as they come as late as 7pm distributing water in Mabvuku.
The Mabvuku Police Victim Friendly Unit representative Sargent Dube told participants to the Forum that, “Any form of violence against women and girls must be reported to the police and we are ready for action”
Speaking at the forum the Member of Parliament for Mabvuku-Tafara constituency Honorable James Chidhakwa called on for immediate action on the issue.
”We need an urgent meeting with the District Officer because he is in charge of these water suppliers, last time I tried to engage one of the water supplier but I was told that I was interfering and seeking relevance”, said Chidhakwa.
Councilor Wutaunashe of Ward 46 bemoaned the incapacitation at Harare City Council that has been a barrier to a water project that is set to benefit the Mabvuku-Tafara Constituency.
“The water supply challenges in our area has had serious implications on our people, however there is a partner who want to rehabilitate 36 boreholes and sink four more boreholes in Mabvuku –Tafara but City Officials has not been forthcoming in writing a report on the needs which is required by the partner and if the papers are not done by Friday this week the partner will pull out”, explained Councilor Wutaunashe
Water Point Committee representatives bemoan lack of cohesion between the local District Office and the Committees on the governance of public water points.
Participants to the meeting highlighted that the conditions created by the unavailability water have exposed women to sexual and physical violence and that the Tafara women who “killed” a man who attacked her is not guilty of any offence.
Ms. Ivy Chimedza from WLSA explained that the current legislation was not progressive in protecting women especially when they harm or kill their attacker for self-defense.
The Combined Harare welcomed the partnership by CSOs and residents on coming up with stop gap measures to address the issues affecting water supply in Mabvuku.
CHRA calls on for the immediate removal of the Chemplex Corporation’s monopoly of supplying water treatment chemicals to the City of Harare that has disrupted water supply in the City due to lack of capacity to supply water treatment chemical to the City .
Any prize for guessing whose gold Henretta Rushwaya was taking to Dubai? He owns 98% of all forms of gold mining in Zim. He is not intelligent, he is a weak leader and is a low IQ individual. Will he leave Henretta to roast after the ZRP did its job without fear or favour?
Please don't expose your ignorance. She was caught by the by Caz officials after the gold was dictated by a scanner. The gold she had was hers and had no export license for it. It's legal to export gold provided one has the export licence. The licence is given by the Gvt.
The Harare City Council has today approved a steep hike in rates, with refuse collection increasing with at least nine fold, water and sewer charges having quadrupled.
The new tariffs are with effect from November 1.
Harare announced the new fees contained in a supplementary water, sanitation and hygiene tariffs during a special council meeting held at town house on Monday afternoon.
High density residents will now fork out $90 per first five cubic metres up from $20.
They will also now pay $189 up from $41 for sewer charges.
Tanzanian President John Magufuli has promised the electorate more investment in the country ahead of the national polls set for Wednesday.
During his campaign rallies President Magufuli highlighted the billions of dollars his government has spent on a new hydropower dam, a railway, and the revived national airline.
President Magufuli is campaigning for a second term in office promising voters that his government led projects will turbo-charge growth in East Africa’s third-largest economy.
The 60-year-old president’s nickname “The Bulldozer” is testimony to both his fondness for massive public works and his reputation for pushing through policies despite opposition.
Magufuli’s investments and his refusal to shut down Tanzania’s economy this year have buoyed his already strong chances of winning a second five-year term.
His two main challengers, veteran opposition leader Tundu Lissu and former foreign minister Bernard Membe, could split the opposition vote with 12 other candidates.
The presidential election will be held alongside parliamentary polls.
Shortly after he was sworn in to become Tanzania’s 5th president, Magufuli, of the ruling party Chama Cha Mapinduzi, hit the ground running by implementing mega projects across the country.
In his campaigns across the country, Magufuli has been mentioning some of the unfinished flagship projects, including the standard gauge railway, the 2,115 MW Julius Nyerere Hydropower Station in the Rufiji river basin, and an international airport in the capital, Dodoma.
Magufuli’s presidency has also been marked by a focus on curbing corruption, cutting government spending, and investing in Tanzania’s industries.
For the past five years, Tanzania recorded an average economic growth of about 7 percent, making the country one of the fastest growing economies in Africa.
The growth has benefited from implementation of various infrastructure plans and resulted in increased government revenue to finance development projects, improvement of social services and increase in economic opportunities.
Magufuli was born in Chato, Kagera region, on Oct. 29, 1959. He attended several schools for his primary and secondary education, then enrolled for teacher training at Mkwawa College of Education from 1981 to 1982.
Magufuli earned his bachelor’s degree at the University of Dar es Salaam, majoring in chemistry and mathematics, from 1985 to 1988. He received his doctoral degree in chemistry in 2009, from the same university.
In 1995, Magufuli was elected member of Parliament in Chato constituency.
He served in the Ministry of Works as deputy minister in 1995-2000 and then as minister in 2000-2005. He also served as minister at the Ministry of Lands, Housing and Human Settlement Development in 2005-2008, the Ministry of Livestock Development and Fisheries in 2008-2010, and at the Ministry of Works for a second time in 2010-2015.
A man who posed as a doctor at one of Zimbabwe’s biggest hospitals for seven months is in remand prison after being arrested by the police following a report by the hospital.
The man, Admire Chisi, has been charged with fraud and impersonating a public official after he posed as a physician registrar in the accident and emergency department at the Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals.
During the seven months, he attended to patients, wrote medical affidavits and issued prescriptions.
In the latest development, Temba Moyo alleges that the fake doctor had demanded a bribe of USD1,300 for treating his son who eventually died during the ordeal at the hands of the doctor.
He says it was this bribery demand that led to the fake medic being arrested.
Speaking early morning to ZimEye.com, Mr Moyo alleged his child’s mother did not tell the truth on how the son died when she spoke to state run media. The state media said the mother is suspicious that Mr. Admire Chisi was arrested following her child’s death in a statement that may exonerate the fake doctor of murder charges.
“I was told that the fake doctor attended to him in the company of baba mukuru.
“My child died on Monday after he was brought to Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals.
“He was then attended to by another doctor who tried to save him on the oxygen.
“He told the doctor what had happened before he died and it is not about an accident.
In the exclusive interview with ZimEye.com Mr Tembo gave his own account saying the son’s death came after Chisi had posed as a doctor for him [the son] and then demanded money.
He began by saying the son “had an accident involving a kombi full of 13 people at Churchill and Borrowdale road … my inlaws wanted money, we went and got the burial order but the mother went and got the wrong information published,” he said. He continued saying, “after we had settled the inlaws began demanding money. So the story that came out in H Metro is untrue. When we got married, there emerged conflicts in how the process was done. This is still an outstanding matter; They were shifting matters all over the place referring me to different people who should handle the marriage. So when the accident happened, they began blaming my brother trying to extort him,” he said. He added saying the inlaws are accusing his brother of assault leading to his death in an accident while with an unnamed woman inside the car. He then went on to narrate his account of how his son died. He said, “I can connect you with the police officers nd you phone them; in the honda fit was my brother with my son, in the Caravan kombi were the 13 people who collided with the honda fit… My son was first attended to by the fake doctor. What got him arrested was my mupfanha’s case,” he told ZimEye. He said of the fake doctor, ” and also he was demanding USD1,300.00 I have messages [from him] He had demanded USD1000 from my brother, from me he was demanding USD300.00 when he clearly knew my son had died. I don’t know he got my number, whether he got it from my son, or my brother, I just can’t tell.”
Mr Tembo told ZimEye his son’s injuries were not that bad at the time of the accident, so he was likely killed by the fake doctor during his pursuit for money.
FULL INTERVIEW LOADING BELOW…
https://youtu.be/QpjkgysCeHM
Zimbabwe’s doctors have been on strike since the beginning of the year over pay and poor conditions, including inadequate personal protective equipment during the coronavirus pandemic.
Dr Aaron Musara of the Zimbabwe Hospital Doctors’ Association said the incident was indicative of broader problems.
“The issue of the man who masqueraded as a doctor for several months is an undoubtable indicator of the breakdown of systems as health-care workers sank deep into incapacitation because of low wages,” he said.
“It is well known that the time this bogus doctor moved in, is that very time when there was a void because doctors and nurses could not report for work daily because of financial incapacitation.
“One can only wish the powers that be would see that delays in attending to genuine grievances, preferring to think there were no problems, bred this.”
Watch Minister of Police Bheki Cele announce the long awaited break through.
There has been a breakthrough in the Senzo Meyiwa murder case, according to Police Minister Bheki Cele.
Five people have been arrested on Monday morning in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal in connection with the murder.
According to the SAPS, “these arrests are as a result of a multi-disciplinary integrated approach to this investigation which is working closely with the Directorate for Public Prosecution.”
The police say they and the National Prosecuting Authority are confident in the case against all five suspects.
More arrests cannot be ruled out and the investigation is still ongoing, according to the police.
It has been six years to the day since Meyiwa was murdered.
Last week, reports emerged indicating that police may be in possession of a gun allegedly linked to the crime.
The Meyiwa family said the news following the arrests of the five suspects connected to Senzo Meyiwa’s murder is “bittersweet”.
The family said it wants justice brought against all those involved in the crime.
Senzo Meyiwa was killed at his girlfriend’s home in Vosloorus six years ago.
Family spokesperson Siyabonga Meyiwa said it’s still very difficult for the family.
“Senzo was literally everything in the family, we were looking up to him becoming a really bright star, which unfortunately was extinguished by some really bad people,” he said.
“We’re looking forward, everyone who was part of the murder must be booked as well.
“For the family, his mother is happy but there’s nothing that can make up for what Senzo would have done in the family, in terms of, giving them the type of living and the type of benefits that we were expecting and we were looking forward to in his career.
“There was a lot of investment that was done by the family and sacrifices in making sure that he was successful.”
1/2 The ZRP confirms the arrest of Henrietta Rushwaya at RGM International Airport this afternoon after scanners at the airport checkpoint indicated that there was something in her hand luggage.
2/2 As a result, searches revealed that the suspect had 6,09kgs of gold which had not been legally and properly cleared with Customs and relevant offices for export. This is a suspected smuggling case and Police are now conducting investigations.
ARREST OF HENREATTA RUSHWAYA FOR SMUGGLING GOLD TO DUBAI
This memorandum serves to put on record the arrest of the following accused for smuggling of gold:
Complainant. State
Accused Name Henreatta Rushwaya Age 53 years NR 66-031209-C-27 Res 1 Garlake Close, Gunhill, Harare Bus Zimbabwe Miners Federation (ZMF-President) Cell 0771464791
Charge: C/S 182 of the Customs and Exercise Act Chapter 23:02 “SMUGGLING”
Place Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport, Harare
Date 26/10/20
Time 1200hrs
Quantity approximately 6kg of gold.
Value TBA
Circumstances On 26 October 2020, infornation was received by detectives from CID MFFU Harare Airport to the effect that the accused intended to smuggle gold to Dubai through the Airport.
The detectives identified the accused as she commenced check in processes and immigration formalities. The detectives immediately alerted the Civil Aviation authority of Zimbabwe (CAAZ) scanner operators to thoroughly examine the accused’s bag.
Gold was detected by the scanner in the accused’s bag which formed part of her hand luggage. The bag was searched in the presence of the accused by CID MFFU detectives whilst other stakeholders at the Airport witnessed the search. A total of approximately 6kg of gold whose value is yet to be determined was recovered stashed in the accused’s personal luggage in her bag.
The accused was questioned about the origin of the gold and she indicated that she obtained it from one only identified as Ali of number 32 Lanark Road, Alexandra Park, Harare. She indicated that Ali is a licenced gold buyer using the name Ali Japan 786 Private Limited. She alleged that she had been instructed by Ali to leave the gold to an unidentified person at Dubai Airport.
The accused was asked to supply export documents in respect of the gold and she failed leading to her arrest.
The recovered gold will be taken for assay to determine quantity and value. It will be lodged at Fidelity Printers and Refiners for safekeeping.
The accused will be taken to Harare Magistrate Court on 27 October 2020.
Warriors coach Zdravko Logarušić has expressed concern over some players’ commitment to national duty ahead of the blockbuster AFCON qualifiers against Algeria slated for next month.
The outspoken tactician, who believes in talking to the players on his wish list first before allowing the team manager to do his job and make communications with the respective clubs, says the response he has been getting from some of the troops he want, is not encouraging.
“What I can tell you is that I have talked to over 90 percent of players I want to use against Algeria and some of them do not want to play,” Logarušić told The Sunday Mail.
“Some of them do not even respond to my messages, while others are giving lame excuses. You have to be proud of playing for your country. If you have doubts then you are not welcome.
“We are not going to beg anyone. We do not want players with no desire to play for their country. I can confirm that a few players didn’t show desire and we are looking elsewhere,” he added.
Zimbabwe take on the Desert Foxes on the 12th of November in Algiers before hosting them at the National Sports Stadium four days later.-Soccer 24
Zimbabwe is among the eight countries that refused to endorse Ahmad Ahmad for the second term in office as the CAF president.
Ahmad received the backing from 46 of the continent’s 54 football associations ahead of the polls at an Elective Extraordinary General Assembly on March 12, 2021, in Morocco.
The endorsements were obtained via the continent’s six councils that include COSAFA, CECAFA, West Africa Football Union, Central Africa and North Africa.
However, the Malagasy football administrator is yet to submit a formal bid to contest.
Speaking to the Herald, ZIFA president explained their move, saying his association does not believe in group decisions.
“I think those are endorsements made through regional groupings like COSAFA, CECAFA, West Africa Football Union and so forth,” he said.
“As ZIFA we do not believe in group decisions because sometimes the decisions are not real at all. Some just put forth their names just because they want to belong and come election day, they vote otherwise.
“But as ZIFA we are a stable institution. Whatever decision that we make on who to vote for, we will stand by it.
“The other thing is that no candidate has come out in the open to say I am contesting for the CAF presidency. So far, all those names that are being peddled around are still speculation. So it’s not like we are not decided on what we want.”
Kamambo added that his association wants to see continuity at CAF, but will go solo with their vote.
“If Ahmad puts his name forward, we are ready to support him. It’s obvious that we want to see continuity. But like I said, we don’t put our support through groups. We will make an official announcement on ourselves,” he said.
Other countries that did not endorse Ahmad are South Africa, Botswana, Algeria, Cote d’Ivoire, Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Uganda.-Soccer 24
Tinotenda Kadewere made his seventh appearance of the season in Lyon’s 4-1 victory over Monaco on Sunday.
The Zimbabwean striker started and played for 81 minutes and was involved in the build-up of two goals.
The 24-year old initiated the move that led to the opener that was netted by Memphis Depay in the 12th minute. He came back again just after the half-hour mark and set up Toko Ekambi for the second goal.
Lyon’s other two goals came from Ekambi again and a penalty by Houssem Aouar while Monaco’s consolation was scored by Wissam Ben Yedder from the spot also.-Soccer 24
Reigning champions Mamelodi Sundowns swept Kaizer Chiefs aside with a 3-0 drubbing in the DStv Premiership on Saturday afternoon.
Lebogang Manyama and Willard Katsande were immediately thrown back in the Chiefs line-up after returning from suspension, while Sundowns had Thapelo Morena back from the side-lines.
Chiefs looked for an early opener when a first-time volley from Khama Billiat stinged the palms of Sundowns goalkeeper Denis Onyango from a ball over the top of the defence.
The Brazilians recovered from the slow start towards the midway stage and had Chiefs goalkeeper Itumeleng Khune acrobatically pushing Hlompho Kekana’s belter around the post.
Uncertain goalkeeping from Khune before the half-hour mark let in Shalulile who had a looping shot cleared off the line by Ramahlwe Mphahlele with the defence at sea.
Shalulile made sure ten minutes before halftime when he jumped between Daniel Cardoso and Khune to head into the far corner from a well-weighted corner-kick by Rivaldo Coetzee.
The two outfits were unchanged from the first half, as the second period got underway with the Amakhosi having their backs against the wall.
It got worse for the Soweto giants with 52 minutes played when Kermit Erasmus opened his account with a snap-shot after combining with Themba Zwane near the six-yard area.
That was also the forward’s last involvement, as a knock minutes later ended his afternoon with Lebohang Maboe whose final day hat-trick last season gave Masandawana the title introduced.
George Maluleka, who departed the Amakhosi in the middle of last season, made his long awaited debut for Sundowns in the last 20 minutes of the match.
Maluleka made his presence felt after going down in the area to earn a penalty with three minutes to go, leaving Zwane to send Khune the wrong way to extend the lead to 3-0.
Chiefs had a chance to reduce the tally in added time, but second-half substitute Keletso Sifama steered dismally wide from a gaping net as Masandawana bagged the victory.
Accurate pregnancy dating and quality care combined with the steroids are key to survival
The results of a new clinical trial, published today in the New England Journal of Medicine, show that dexamethasone—a glucocorticoid used to treat many conditions, including rheumatic problems and severe COVID-19— can boost survival of premature babies when given to pregnant women at risk of preterm birth in low-resource settings.
The WHO ACTION-I trial resolves an ongoing controversy about the efficacy of antenatal steroids for improving preterm newborn survival in low-income countries. Dexamethasone and similar drugs have long shown to be effective in saving preterm babies lives in high-income countries, where high-quality newborn care is more accessible.
This is the first time a clinical trial has proven that the drugs are also effective in low-income settings.
The impact is significant: for every 25 pregnant women treated with dexamethasone, one premature baby’s life was saved. When administered to mothers at risk of preterm birth, dexamethasone crosses the placenta and accelerates lung development, making it less likely for preterm babies to have respiratory problems at birth.
“Dexamethasone is now a proven drug to save babies born too soon in low-income settings,” says Dr Olufemi Oladapo, head of maternal and perinatal health unit at WHO and HRP, and one of the coordinators of the study. “But it is only effective when administered by health-care providers who can make timely and accurate decisions, and provide a minimum package of high-quality care for both pregnant women and their babies.”
Globally, prematurity is the leading cause of death in children under the age of 5. Every year, an estimated 15 million babies are born too early, and 1 million die due to complications resulting from their early birth.
In low-income settings, half of the babies born at or below 32 weeks die due to a lack of feasible, cost-effective care.
The study notes, healthcare providers must have the means to select the women most likely to benefit from the drug and to correctly initiate the treatment at the right time – ideally 48 hours before giving birth to give enough time to complete steroid injections for maximal effect.
Women who are in weeks 26-34 of their pregnancy are most likely to benefit from the steroid, so healthcare providers must also have access to ultrasound to accurately date their pregnancies. In addition, babies must receive sufficiently good-quality care when they are born.
“When a minimal package of care for newborn babies – including management of infection, feeding support, thermal care and access to a CPAP machine to support respiration – is in place in low-income countries, antenatal steroids such as dexamethasone can help to save preterm babies’ lives,” says Dr Rajiv Bahl, head of the newborn health unit at WHO and one of the study coordinators.
Conducted from December 2017–November 2019, the randomized trial recruited 2852 women and their 3070 babies from 29 secondary and tertiary level hospitals in Bangladesh, India, Kenya, Nigeria, and Pakistan.
Beyond finding a significantly lower risk of neonatal death and stillbirth, the study also found there was no increase in possible maternal bacterial infections when treating pregnant women with dexamethasone in low-resource settings.
Note to editors
WHO includes dexamethasone in its Essential Medicines List. The drug has also recently been shown to be effective in helping to relieve the symptoms caused by severe COVID-19.
It is therefore crucial that countries, health systems, and pharmaceutical companies across the world ensure quality, as well as effective supply chains and pricing to prevent hoarding or stock-outs of this drug, which has many uses; including for helping to save preterm babies lives.
Source:WHO
Inserted by Zimbabwe Online Health Centre
For more information follow /like our Facebook page :Zimbabwe Online Health Centre
MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa yesterday said the government was using sanctions to divert Zimbabweans’ attention from its failure to deliver on promises to improve citizens’ lives.
The government last night organised a virtual gala to ostensibly put pressure on western countries to lift the sanctions imposed nearly two decades ago.
Last year a similar rally held at the 60 000-seater National Sports Stadium attracted a paltry crowd of 7 000 people despite the government dangling food to the revellers.
Chamisa told The Standard in an interview that last night’s event and the government’s campaign against sanctions through the public media was a distraction.
“Zimbabweans should take the day as an opportunity to imagine a better future without hunger, poverty, police brutality, abductions, and corruption,” he said.
“It’s a collective task for every Zimbabwean to imagine a Zimbabwe without the vices of bad governance from the current government.”
He added: “This should be a day of intercession, pastors, bishops and priests should reflect on the real source of the problems Zimbabweans face.
“It should be a solidarity day to the suffering of Zimbabweans and victimised citizens.”
Zimbabwe has been facing its worst economic crisis in a decade characterised by high prices of goods, liquidity challenges, increased poverty levels as well as unemployment.
Mnangagwa and his ruling party have blamed the sanctions for the problems.
When he came to power, Mnangagwa said sanctions should never be used as a scapegoat for failure.
But two months as president, Mnangagwa changed course when the economy deteriorated and started blaming the sanctions for the meltdown.
His party has also accused Chamisa and one of his deputies, Tendai Biti, of inviting the sanctions.
Mnangagwa’s government has lobbied the Southern African Development Community and the African Union to back its anti-sanctions call.
Chamisa, however, said the biggest challenges facing Zimbabwe today included “bad governance, corruption, illegitimacy of the government emanating from a stolen mandate and not sanctions”.
He said Zanu PF was good at explaining causes of problems, and not solutions because it was aware that sanctions were not the major source of the country’s problems.
“Jingles, slogans, adverts, galas, protests will not solve the problem. It is high time Sadc should wake up and smell the coffee,” Chamisa said.
“Let Sadc see its own Zimbabwe without problems.
“Let Sadc do a reality check or it risks being irrelevant to the African problem.”
He added: “Sadc should remove the tinted glasses and have a proper reflection of Zimbabwe.
“Everything is not rosy and Sadc should not see celebratory fireworks where there is a dangerous fire. Sadc should not be part of the problem, but the solution.
“Cheering madness is dangerous because the madness will also affect you as a neighbour.
“You don’t cure a disease by lying to yourself.”
Chamisa dismissed charges that he and his party campaigned for the sanctions.
“Chamisa is not a god, he is not a state that rap_es people, abducts people. Chamisa is not billions of dollars that disappear,” he charged.
“Chamisa is also not the one who manipulates the institutions of the state.
“Don’t give me the powers that I don’t have. I don’t control Washington. I don’t have such powers.”
He said Mnangagwa’s government’s rule was based on lies and deceptions.
“That is why we have a senior government official holding a press conference to announce that Chamisa is training soldiers in (Moldova),” Chamisa added.
“We have officialised lies in order to elevate foolish claims to the level of policy.”
Meanwhile, Chamisa said he was not losing sleep over manoeuvres by the Thokozani Khupe-led MDC-T to decimate his MDC Alliance.
Mnangagwa last week formally recognised Khupe as the official leader of the opposition after the former deputy prime minister sneaked back into Parliament under controversial circumstances.
“I don’t have time for Khupe and Douglas Mwonzora (interim MDC-T secretary-general),” Chamisa said.
“I know they are simply playing a script handed to them by Zanu PF, enforced by captured institutions.
“They are going nowhere. In fact, they are history. People always settle political disputes.”
Khupe is using a Supreme Court ruling that said she was the legitimate interim leader of the MDC-T after she was elbowed out in the battle to succeed the late Morgan Tsvangirai by Chamisa.
The MDC Alliance, however, insists that it broke ranks with Khupe before the 2018 elections and she has no right to take over legislators and councillors of a party that defeated her in the polls.-The Standard
…Contacted by ZimEye.com, Rushwaya was found walking scot-free in the capital Harare and she responded saying she was never arrested (interview below).
By Jane Mlambo| Small scale miners association boss, Henrietta Rushwaya has been arrested while attempting to smuggle gold to United Arab Emirates, a leaked police memo has revealed.
According to the memo, detectives from CID Minerals Flora and Fauna Unit (MFFU) Harare Airport received information this morning that Rushwaya intended to smuggle gold to Dubai through the Airport.
The detectives identified her as she commenced check in processes and immigration formalities and immediately alerted the Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe (CAAZ) scanner operators to thoroughly examine her bag.
“Gold was detected by the scanner in the accused’s bag which formed part of her hand luggage. The bag was searched in the presence of the accused by CID MFFU detectives whilst other stakeholders at the Airport witnessed the search. A total of approximately 6kg of gold whose value is yet to be determined was recovered stashed in the accused’s personal luggage in her bag” reads the memo.
Further questioning made her reveal the origins of the gold where she indicated that she obtained it from one only identified as Ali of number 32 Lanark Road, Alexandra Park, Harare.
“She indicated that Ali is a licenced gold buyer using the name Ali Japan 786 Private Limited. She alleged that she had been instructed by Ali to leave the gold to an unidentified person at Dubai Airport.”
Rushwaya failed to supply export documents in respect of the gold leading to her arrest.
“The recovered gold will be taken for assay to determine quantity and value. It will be lodged at Fidelity Printers and Refiners for safekeeping.”
Contacted by ZimEye.com, Rushwaya was found walking scot-free in the capital Harare and she responded saying she was never arrested. She sad: (interview below)
Farai Dziva|MDC Alliance deputy president, Hon Tendai Biti has challenged SADC to act on the gross violation of human rights by Mr Emmerson Mnangwagwa’s administration.
Hon Biti urged SADC to handle the deepening crisis in the country objectively.
“In the past 3 years ,the regime of Emmerson Mnangwagwa has murdered,butchered tortured and abducted Zimbabweans.
Many have been raped others left homeless.Millions have left Zim as refugees.But this organization has remained mute and indifferent.Dear @SADC_News #ZimbabweanLivesMatter.
We stand in solidarity with the working people of Zim who have withstood 40 years of pain and plunder by a renegade phalanx of looters and murderers. Dictatorship does not last and this one is hanging precariously on last legs. It is time to restore the constitution.Time for new consensus,” argued Hon Biti.
ARREST OF HENREATTA RUSHWAYA FOR SMUGGLING GOLD TO DUBAI
This memorandum serves to put on record the arrest of the following accused for smuggling of gold:
Complainant. State
Accused Name Henreatta Rushwaya Age 53 years NR 66-031209-C-27 Res 1 Garlake Close, Gunhill, Harare Bus Zimbabwe Miners Federation (ZMF-President) Cell 0771464791
Charge: C/S 182 of the Customs and Exercise Act Chapter 23:02 “SMUGGLING”
Place Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport, Harare
Date 26/10/20
Time 1200hrs
Quantity approximately 6kg of gold.
Value TBA
Circumstances On 26 October 2020, infornation was received by detectives from CID MFFU Harare Airport to the effect that the accused intended to smuggle gold to Dubai through the Airport.
The detectives identified the accused as she commenced check in processes and immigration formalities. The detectives immediately alerted the Civil Aviation authority of Zimbabwe (CAAZ) scanner operators to thoroughly examine the accused’s bag.
Gold was detected by the scanner in the accused’s bag which formed part of her hand luggage. The bag was searched in the presence of the accused by CID MFFU detectives whilst other stakeholders at the Airport witnessed the search. A total of approximately 6kg of gold whose value is yet to be determined was recovered stashed in the accused’s personal luggage in her bag.
The accused was questioned about the origin of the gold and she indicated that she obtained it from one only identified as Ali of number 32 Lanark Road, Alexandra Park, Harare. She indicated that Ali is a licenced gold buyer using the name Ali Japan 786 Private Limited. She alleged that she had been instructed by Ali to leave the gold to an unidentified person at Dubai Airport.
The accused was asked to supply export documents in respect of the gold and she failed leading to her arrest.
The recovered gold will be taken for assay to determine quantity and value. It will be lodged at Fidelity Printers and Refiners for safekeeping.
The accused will be taken to Harare Magistrate Court on 27 October 2020.
Farai Dziva|President Nelson Chamisa has described the outcome of elections in Seychelles as a sign of great hope.
“I’m inspired.Felicitations to a friend and opposition candidate H.E.
@wavelramkalawan on his historic win in the Presidential and parly elections in Seychelles.We look forward to a strengthening of the close ties we have.The future is exciting & promising!God bless Seychelles,” President Chamisa wrote on Twitter.
Anglican priest Wavel Ramkalawan defeated President Danny Faure by 54.9% to 43.5%, official results show.
Supporters of Mr Ramkalawan have been celebrating his victory in the capital, Victoria, according to BBC.
In his victory speech, Mr Ramkalawan was conciliatory towards Mr Faure, saying there were no losers or winners.
In his first comments since winning, Mr Ramkalawan said:
“Mr Faure and I are good friends. And an election does not mean the end of one’s contribution to one’s motherland.
“In this election, there were no losers, there were no winners – our country was given the opportunity as the ultimate winner.”
President Ramkalawan
Mr Faure was sitting close by, and nodded in approval as the incoming president spoke, according to Reuters.
Accurate pregnancy dating and quality care combined with the steroids are key to survival
The results of a new clinical trial, published today in the New England Journal of Medicine, show that dexamethasone—a glucocorticoid used to treat many conditions, including rheumatic problems and severe COVID-19— can boost survival of premature babies when given to pregnant women at risk of preterm birth in low-resource settings.
The WHO ACTION-I trial resolves an ongoing controversy about the efficacy of antenatal steroids for improving preterm newborn survival in low-income countries. Dexamethasone and similar drugs have long shown to be effective in saving preterm babies lives in high-income countries, where high-quality newborn care is more accessible.
This is the first time a clinical trial has proven that the drugs are also effective in low-income settings.
The impact is significant: for every 25 pregnant women treated with dexamethasone, one premature baby’s life was saved. When administered to mothers at risk of preterm birth, dexamethasone crosses the placenta and accelerates lung development, making it less likely for preterm babies to have respiratory problems at birth.
“Dexamethasone is now a proven drug to save babies born too soon in low-income settings,” says Dr Olufemi Oladapo, head of maternal and perinatal health unit at WHO and HRP, and one of the coordinators of the study. “But it is only effective when administered by health-care providers who can make timely and accurate decisions, and provide a minimum package of high-quality care for both pregnant women and their babies.”
Globally, prematurity is the leading cause of death in children under the age of 5. Every year, an estimated 15 million babies are born too early, and 1 million die due to complications resulting from their early birth.
In low-income settings, half of the babies born at or below 32 weeks die due to a lack of feasible, cost-effective care.
The study notes, healthcare providers must have the means to select the women most likely to benefit from the drug and to correctly initiate the treatment at the right time – ideally 48 hours before giving birth to give enough time to complete steroid injections for maximal effect.
Women who are in weeks 26-34 of their pregnancy are most likely to benefit from the steroid, so healthcare providers must also have access to ultrasound to accurately date their pregnancies. In addition, babies must receive sufficiently good-quality care when they are born.
“When a minimal package of care for newborn babies – including management of infection, feeding support, thermal care and access to a CPAP machine to support respiration – is in place in low-income countries, antenatal steroids such as dexamethasone can help to save preterm babies’ lives,” says Dr Rajiv Bahl, head of the newborn health unit at WHO and one of the study coordinators.
Conducted from December 2017–November 2019, the randomized trial recruited 2852 women and their 3070 babies from 29 secondary and tertiary level hospitals in Bangladesh, India, Kenya, Nigeria, and Pakistan.
Beyond finding a significantly lower risk of neonatal death and stillbirth, the study also found there was no increase in possible maternal bacterial infections when treating pregnant women with dexamethasone in low-resource settings.
Note to editors
WHO includes dexamethasone in its Essential Medicines List. The drug has also recently been shown to be effective in helping to relieve the symptoms caused by severe COVID-19.
It is therefore crucial that countries, health systems, and pharmaceutical companies across the world ensure quality, as well as effective supply chains and pricing to prevent hoarding or stock-outs of this drug, which has many uses; including for helping to save preterm babies lives.
Source:WHO
Inserted by Zimbabwe Online Health Centre
For more information follow /like our Facebook page :Zimbabwe Online Health Centre
Zanu PF apparachiks have been moving around telling people that sanctions are behind the problems bedevling Zimbabwe.
Their propaganda machinery has reached another level by convincing unsuspecting SADC leaders that Zimbabwe is reeling from sanctions.
Their madness has been supported by setting aside the 25 th of October as the anti-sanctions day.
A closer look at the problems facing Zimbabwe points to corruption and Zanu PF as a system.
Corruption
Corruption remains at the centre of Zimbabwe’s problems other than Western imposed embargo.
Just recently funds have been missing at the Ministry of Health. The corruption scandal claimed the scalp of Obadiah Moyo. His dismissal is a clear admission of the rote within the Zanu PF ruling elite.
His dismissal did not in fact end the corruption at the ministry as there are reports in the mainstream media of tender irregularities. Millions of dollars are lost due to corruption.
Ministers are first greased so that someone is given a tender. If those funds were used in bailing out our ailing industry Zimbabwe could have been somewhere.
Zimbabwe’s mines are fully operational and gold proceeds are shrouded in ambiguity. It’s not known where exactly the proceeds are going which points to corruption.
Chrome is being mined at full throttle in shurugwi and raw chrome is sold to the Chinese. Where the Chrome end up is known by the common man on the streets which indicates corruption and Zanu PF has the audacity to tell the nation that it’s raining when in actual fact it’s sunny.
Late President Mugabe admitted that 15 billion was missing from the diamond proceeds from Chiadzwa mine. The army is heavily involved in the mining of diamonds. Zimbabwe needs at least 10 billion US dollars to kickstart the economy which is far below the missing 15 billion.
Zanu PF
Zanu PF could even deny that they send soldiers that killed people on the 1st of August 2018. The evidence is there that people were massacred by soldiers in the streets of Harare soon after the 2018 harmonised elections.
The only person authorised to deploy the army is the president and no one else. The same president went on to set an enquiry which shows that he was in denial of his role in the bloodshed.
People are being abducted on daily basis and the government would talk of a third force . The army’s swiftness in apprehending the people who murdered a soldier in Chivhu shows a third force will not survive in Zimbabwe.
It is them abducting people and pretend as if they know nothing. The ignorance by Zanu PF to the issue of reforming the security sector is a sanction in itself.
The west is simply calling on Zanu PF to treat Zimbabweans as first class citizens in their own motherland. It’s really something that can be done for real which can help the country unlock it’s potential.
By Muridzo F Perched right deep into Mashonaland Central is Karanda Mission Hospital. The hospital has become an oasis of hope for a nation whose health delivery system is on its knees.
People from every corner of the country make the long trip to Karanda seeking medical attention. In a nation with a collapsing economy and rising poverty, this is no mean fit.
Jacob Ngarivhume, Convener of the 31 July Protests, paid the hospital a visit to see the agony, pain and hardships patients go through in their search for medical assistance.
We left Harare, just after lunch, with goodies prepared by his wife Nyasha Ngarivhume. These were for patients we would meet at Karanda. The weather, a typical summer one, was hot and windy.
After taking a breather in Bindura, we headed north. The state of the toll gate before Madziva aptly sums up the state of our nation. Hastily erected years ago, it still remains just a shed. I wonder what happens when it rains? Who will stand in the rain to swipe toll fees?
The last eight kilometres from Karanda turn off to the hospital proved difficult to navigate. We passed broken down vehicles along this stretch. Such an important hospital deserve to be served with a better road.
Finally, we reached the hospital just as the sun was disappearing over the western horizon. The scene that met us was pathetic and unimaginable. It resembled a refugee camp, somewhere in South Sudan or Syria.
It was now windy, dusty and very cold. Hundreds of people were scattered everywhere. Those who could afford a meal were busy lighting fires to prepare supper. Some were just warming themselves around the fires. The majority with nothing to eat were preparing plastics, sacks and blankets to sleep for the night, silently praying that it will not rain during the night.
Some people had brought their tents but the majority braced for another cold night in the open. Besieged by hunger and a terrible weather, the night will be very long for them.
The arrival of Ngarivhume caused quite a stir. Many believed an official had come to hear their plight and were quick to share their ordeal. They wanted someone who could at least afford them an ear to listen to their horrowing experiences.
They came from all over the country, Gokwe, Mutare, Bulawayo and Murehwa. Some were yet to be attended to while others were waiting for checkups. They had no money to go back and return for review. So they had to stay put. It was really painful listening to their stories.
One man from Murehwa said, “I sold three of my cattle to raise money to bring my father here from Murehwa. But why is the government not developing our hospital there? It is now two weeks and l have been sleeping under this tree as if our country is at war. Does the minister even know the situation we are facing here?”
As we moved from one fireplace to another, the story was the same. Ngarivhume would sit down to listen to each particular case. We met an elderly man who was yet to see a doctor lying in the dust and visibly in pain. He demanded that a shed be built so that people yet to be admitted can have somewhere safe to sleep.
Some families had brought their children as they had no-one to look after them at home. With no toilets outside the hospital, people were using the bush system which on its on present a serious health time bomb.
A few desperate cases were selected and given some food hampers from Mrs Ngarivhume. You could feel their relief and joy as they ate.
After over five hours of interaction with them, it was time to go. In the distant horizon, flashes of lightning could be seen. One last look over the now quiet “refugee camp” my heart melted away. God do not send rains tonight! l prayed.
Back in our car, no-one could talk. Everyone was in deep thought. A quick glance at Ngarivhume, l realised the man was close to tears. This encounter had touched his very nerves!
When he had gathered up himself, he said “Our country is in trouble. Corruption has destroyed every sector while the leadership is hiding behind sanctions. This is pathetic and regrettable”
MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa yesterday said the government was using sanctions to divert Zimbabweans’ attention from its failure to deliver on promises to improve citizens’ lives.
The government last night organised a virtual gala to ostensibly put pressure on western countries to lift the sanctions imposed nearly two decades ago.
Last year a similar rally held at the 60 000-seater National Sports Stadium attracted a paltry crowd of 7 000 people despite the government dangling food to the revellers.
Chamisa told The Standard in an interview that last night’s event and the government’s campaign against sanctions through the public media was a distraction.
“Zimbabweans should take the day as an opportunity to imagine a better future without hunger, poverty, police brutality, abductions, and corruption,” he said.
“It’s a collective task for every Zimbabwean to imagine a Zimbabwe without the vices of bad governance from the current government.”
He added: “This should be a day of intercession, pastors, bishops and priests should reflect on the real source of the problems Zimbabweans face.
“It should be a solidarity day to the suffering of Zimbabweans and victimised citizens.”
Zimbabwe has been facing its worst economic crisis in a decade characterised by high prices of goods, liquidity challenges, increased poverty levels as well as unemployment.
Mnangagwa and his ruling party have blamed the sanctions for the problems.
When he came to power, Mnangagwa said sanctions should never be used as a scapegoat for failure.
But two months as president, Mnangagwa changed course when the economy deteriorated and started blaming the sanctions for the meltdown.
His party has also accused Chamisa and one of his deputies, Tendai Biti, of inviting the sanctions.
Mnangagwa’s government has lobbied the Southern African Development Community and the African Union to back its anti-sanctions call.
Chamisa, however, said the biggest challenges facing Zimbabwe today included “bad governance, corruption, illegitimacy of the government emanating from a stolen mandate and not sanctions”.
He said Zanu PF was good at explaining causes of problems, and not solutions because it was aware that sanctions were not the major source of the country’s problems.
“Jingles, slogans, adverts, galas, protests will not solve the problem. It is high time Sadc should wake up and smell the coffee,” Chamisa said.
“Let Sadc see its own Zimbabwe without problems.
“Let Sadc do a reality check or it risks being irrelevant to the African problem.”
He added: “Sadc should remove the tinted glasses and have a proper reflection of Zimbabwe.
“Everything is not rosy and Sadc should not see celebratory fireworks where there is a dangerous fire. Sadc should not be part of the problem, but the solution.
“Cheering madness is dangerous because the madness will also affect you as a neighbour.
“You don’t cure a disease by lying to yourself.”
Chamisa dismissed charges that he and his party campaigned for the sanctions.
“Chamisa is not a god, he is not a state that rap_es people, abducts people. Chamisa is not billions of dollars that disappear,” he charged.
“Chamisa is also not the one who manipulates the institutions of the state.
“Don’t give me the powers that I don’t have. I don’t control Washington. I don’t have such powers.”
He said Mnangagwa’s government’s rule was based on lies and deceptions.
“That is why we have a senior government official holding a press conference to announce that Chamisa is training soldiers in (Moldova),” Chamisa added.
“We have officialised lies in order to elevate foolish claims to the level of policy.”
Meanwhile, Chamisa said he was not losing sleep over manoeuvres by the Thokozani Khupe-led MDC-T to decimate his MDC Alliance.
Mnangagwa last week formally recognised Khupe as the official leader of the opposition after the former deputy prime minister sneaked back into Parliament under controversial circumstances.
“I don’t have time for Khupe and Douglas Mwonzora (interim MDC-T secretary-general),” Chamisa said.
“I know they are simply playing a script handed to them by Zanu PF, enforced by captured institutions.
“They are going nowhere. In fact, they are history. People always settle political disputes.”
Khupe is using a Supreme Court ruling that said she was the legitimate interim leader of the MDC-T after she was elbowed out in the battle to succeed the late Morgan Tsvangirai by Chamisa.
The MDC Alliance, however, insists that it broke ranks with Khupe before the 2018 elections and she has no right to take over legislators and councillors of a party that defeated her in the polls.-The Standard
By Cde Tendai Chirau |Sanctions are the worst and wickedest form of human rights violations against the sovereign people of Zimbabwe and a flagrant attempt to usurp the will of the people of Zimbabwe. Furthermore, sanctions are a form of economic genocide and they should removed as soon as yesterday.
Tendai Chirauu
The onus is upon the patriotic youth of Zimbabwe to take the lead in not only calling for an end to sanctions but raising awareness among the masses and working together through innovative projects to ensure sustainable development of our Zimbabwe. Let it be known that this is not the time to stand aloof while sanctions bleed our motherland: its either we act now or we will all perish.#zimsanctionsmustGo
By A Correspondent- The Zimbabwe Professional Nurses Union (ZPNU) has criticised Vice President Constantino Chiwenga, who is the Minister of Health and Childcare, for allegedly using command tactics in the health sector.
This comes after the Ministry last week announced that the flexi working conditions had been suspended and advised the health workers to revert to the normal schedule of five days a week.
The flexi system came into existence earlier this year following an agreement between nurses and the Health Services Board (HSB).
Under the arrangement, nurses were working for two days a week in order to reduce exposure to the coronavirus and also to mitigate their incapacitation.
In the letter dated October 23, signed by ZPNU president Robert Chiduku, the nurses protested over what they termed “militarisation of the health sector”.
The letter read in part:
… Our attention has been drawn to your decision to unilaterally and abruptly suspend the flexible duties. The decision was implemented outside an official and legal collective bargaining agreement through the health service bipartite negotiating forum.
We would like to register our displeasure and further condemn the dictatorial, militaristic and one-sided directive to forego relevant labour stakeholders like unions…
… Clearly, this is the genesis of militarisation of the health service and we are really disappointed by such schemes.-Newsday
By A Correspondent- The father of a teenager killed following a Harare accident last week Tuesday speaks exclusively to ZimEye giving his side of the story after the state media only interviewed the mother.
In this interview, Mr Temba Moyo alleges that the fake doctor arrested at Parirenyatwa Hospital last week had demanded a bribe of USD1,300 for treating his son.
He says it was this bribery demand that led to the fake medic being arrested.
Speaking early morning, Mr Temba Moyo alleged saying his child’s mother did not tell the truth on how the son died last Tuesday.
The state owned HMetro quoted only the mother as she said she is suspicious that Mr. Admire Chisi was arrested following her child’s death.
HMetro quoted her saying Mr Chisi attended to her son before his subsequent arrest on Tuesday.
“I was told that the fake doctor attended to him in the company of baba mukuru.“My child died on Monday after he was brought to Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals.
“Everything is suspicious from the way my child died.”
The explanations are not convincing me.“
He was then attended to by another doctor who tried to save him on the oxygen.“
He told the doctor what had happened before he died and it is not about an accident.
“I am in pain,” said Rumbidzai.
The child was buried on Sunday in Chiundura. In an exclusive interview with ZimEye.com Mr Tembo gave his own account saying as the son’s death came after Chisi had posed as a doctor for him [the son] and then demanded money.
He began by saying the son “had an accident involving a kombi full of 13 people at Churchill and Borrowdale road … my inlaws wanted money, we went and got the burial order but the mother went and got the wrong information published,” he said.
He continued saying,:
“After we had settled the inlaws began demanding money. So the story that came out in H Metro is untrue. When we got married, there emerged conflicts in how the process was done.
This is still an outstanding matter; They were shifting matters all over the place referring me to different people who should handle the marriage.
So when the accident happened, they began blaming my brother trying to extort him,” he said.
He added saying the inlaws are accusing his brother of assault leading to his death in an accident while with an unnamed woman inside the car.
He then went on to narrate his account of how his son died.
He said:
“I can connect you with the police officers and you phone them; in the honda fit was my brother with my son, in the Caravan kombi were the 13 people who collided with the honda fit…
My son was first attended to by the fake doctor. What got him arrested was my mupfanha’s case,” he told ZimEye.
He said of the fake doctor, ” and also he was demanding USD1,300.00 I have messages [from him] He had demanded USD1000 from my brother, from me he was demanding USD300.00 when he clearly knew my son had died. I don’t know how he got my number, whether he got it from my son, or my brother, I just can’t tell.”
Mr Tembo told ZimEye his son’s injuries were not that bad at the time of the accident, alleging that he was likely killed by the fake doctor during his pursuit for money. FULL INTERVIEW LOADING BELOW…
A 75-year-old Colleen Bawn man has been fined $1 500 for stealing two bicycles from his neighbour and barbed wire from a nearby farm.
Hassan Phiri was convicted on his own plea of guilty to theft by Gwanda magistrate, Miss Lerato Nyathi.
He was ordered to have paid the $1 500 fine by October 30 or risk being jailed for two months in case of default. In addition, he was sentenced to five months imprisonment which was wholly suspended on condition that he does not commit a similar offence within the next five years.
Prosecuting, Mr Noel Mandebvu said Phiri stole two bicycles from his neighbours as well as barbed wire from Bromley Farm in Collen Bawn in May.
“On 13 May at around 9PM Mr Foster Hlongwane retired to bed and left his bicycle parked by the verandah. On the following day at around 5AM his wife got up to sweep the yard and she noticed that the bicycle was missing and informed her husband. Mr Hlongwane tried to check the footprints of the accused person but couldn’t find any,” he said.
“Later during that month Mr Hlongwane heard that the police had found some bicycles at the accused person’s homestead while they were investigating another case of theft of a bicycle. On 31 May at around 10AM Mr Hlongwane then proceeded to the accused person’s homestead with the police to identify his bicycle and he found it. The bicycle is worth US$100.”
Mr Mandebvu said under the second count on May 28 at around 8PM the complainant Mr Mbuso Moyo went to visit his relatives who live close to Phiri and left his bicycle unsecured in the yard. He said at around 10PM the complainant decided to go back to his home and discovered that his bicycle was missing from where he had left it.
Mr Mandebvu said the following day at around 6AM the complainant with the assistance of neighbourhood watch committee members and some villagers tracked the bicycle tyre marks which led to them to Phiri’s homestead where they found the missing bicycle in the accused person’s field. He said the matter was reported to the police resulting in the arrest of the accused person. The value of the stolen bicycle is R2 000.
“Sometime during the period between the year 2018 and 29 May 2020 Phiri proceeded to Bromley Farm in Colleen Bawn and stole three rolls of barbed wire which had been used to fence the farm and took it to his homestead. On 29 May at around 6AM police who were investigating a case of theft of a bicycle arrived at Phiri’s homestead and found three rolls of barbed wire.
“Police carried out investigations which later revealed that Phiri had stolen the barbed wire from Bromley Farm leading to his arrest. The value of the stolen barbed wire is R1 000,” he said.
By Simba Chikanza| THE FATHER of a teenager killed following a Harare accident last week Tuesday speaks exclusively to ZimEye giving his side of the story after the state media only interviewed the mother.
In this interview, Mr Temba Moyo alleges that the fake doctor arrested at Parirenyatwa Hospital last week had demanded a bribe of USD1,300 for treating his son.
He says it was this bribery demand that led to the fake medic being arrested.
Speaking early morning, Mr Temba Moyo alleged saying his child’s mother did not tell the truth on how the son died last Tuesday.
The state owned HMetro quoted only the mother as she said she is suspicious that Mr. Admire Chisi was arrested following her child’s death.
HMetro quoted her saying Mr Chisi attended to her son before his subsequent arrest on Tuesday.
“I was told that the fake doctor attended to him in the company of baba mukuru.
“My child died on Monday after he was brought to Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals.
“Everything is suspicious from the way my child died.
“The explanations are not convincing me.
“He was then attended to by another doctor who tried to save him on the oxygen.
“He told the doctor what had happened before he died and it is not about an accident.
“I am in pain,” said Rumbidzai.
The child was buried on Sunday in Chiundura.
She said Chisi attended to her son before his subsequent arrest on Tuesday.
In an exclusive interview with ZimEye.com Mr Tembo gave his own account saying as the son’s death came after Chisi had posed as a doctor for him [the son] and then demanded money.
He began by saying the son “had an accident involving a kombi full of 13 people at Churchill and Borrowdale road … my in-laws wanted money, we went and got the burial order but the mother went and got the wrong information published,” he said.
He continued saying, “After we had settled the inlaws began demanding money. So the story that came out in H Metro is untrue.
When we got married, there emerged conflicts in how the process was done. This is still an outstanding matter;
They were shifting matters all over the place referring me to different people who should handle the marriage. So when the accident happened, they began blaming my brother trying to extort him,” he said.
He added saying the inlaws are accusing his brother of assault leading to his death in an accident while with an unnamed woman inside the car.
He then went on to narrate his account of how his son died.
He said:
“I can connect you with the police officers nd you phone them; in the honda fit was my brother with my son, in the Caravan kombi were the 13 people who collided with the honda fit…
“My son was first attended to by the fake doctor. What got him arrested was my mupfanha’s case,” he told ZimEye.
He said of the fake doctor, ” and also he was demanding USD1,300.00 I have messages [from him] He had demanded USD1000 from my brother, from me he was demanding USD300.00 when he clearly knew my son had died. I don’t know he got my number, whether he got it from my son, or my brother, I just can’t tell.”
Mr Tembo also told ZimEye his son’s injuries were not that bad at the time of the accident, alleging that he was likely killed by the fake doctor during his pursuit for money.
The mother of a child who died at Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals on Monday said he was initially attended to by the disgraced fake doctor, Admire Chisi (25) before another doctor took over.
Rumbidzai’s deceased child, Shamah, died mysteriously last Monday after he was involved in an accident at the intersection of Churchill and Borrowdale Road.
Following the accident, Shamah was ferried to Parirenyatwa where Chisi and later another doctor tried to resuscitate him.
The child, unfortunately, passed away and was buried yesterday in Chiwundura.
Said Rumbidzai:
I was told that the fake doctor attended to him in the company of babamukuru.
My child died on Monday after he was brought to Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals.
Everything is suspicious from the way my child died.
The explanations are not convincing me.
He was then attended to by another doctor who tried to save him on the oxygen.
He told the doctor what had happened before he died and it is not about an accident.
I am in pain.
Chisi allegedly attended to the now-deceased child on Monday and was arrested the following day after working at the hospital in the Accident and Emergency Department (Casualty) for seven months without medical qualification.
He has since appeared before a magistrate and is being charged with impersonating a public official.-statemedia
By A Correspondent| Zimdancehall musician, Jah Master has once again apologized to his fans over his actions in which he fly-kicked a fan who came on stage while he was performing saying he does not know what got into him to do such a despicable act.
Posting on his official Facebook page, Jah Master who rose to fame following the release of his chart topper “Hello Mwari” said there was no justification for his action, the reason why he is apologizing.
He added that he is going to look for the fan and ensure he is taken for medical check ups with all proceeds from the show going to him as compensation though he claims to have made up with the fan after the show.
Below is Jah Master’s statement;
Makadii Ruzhinji Rwe Zimbabwe . Ndinonyara kuuya pano mangwanani ano nekuti ndakaita zvinonyadzisa ndakaita zvisingatarisirwe kubva chero kunani zvake. Zvandakaita Hazvina kana justification asi ndati ndiuye pano ndichikumbira ruregerero.
Ndiregerereiwo nezvandakaita zvinonyadzisa ndinoda kuuya pano ndichivimbisa kuti hazvife zvakaitika. Naizvozvo nhasi ndiri kunotsvaga mkomana uyu and make sure medical checks are done kuti paonekwe kana asina kukuvara and also all proceeds from the show will go to him as compensation.
Takataura naye after show and I Apologised for my behavior handiziye ndakapindwa nei. Ndiregereiwo mundipewo zuva rimwe kana maviri ekugadzirisa mhosva yangu iyi.Ndinotenda vese Vari kunditsiura uyezve vese Vari kuisa ma message mu inbox ikodzero yenyu nekuti Zvandakaita izvi zvinhu zvisingatarisirwe uye Hazvina hunhu. Ndichazodzoka pano ne update kuti inenge yava papi nyaya iyi.Muve nezuva rakanaka
By Jane Mlambo| MDC Alliance Youth Assembly Organising Secretary Godfrey Kurauone has been issued with a warrant of arrest following his failure to attend his court hearing due to medical reasons, his party has said.
Kurauone who was acquitted last month of criminal nuisance is also facing another charge of endangering public safety.
The case has been postponed to 26 November 2020 after the state failed to prosecute the case.
By A Correspondent- Junior doctors in Zimbabwe have been invited to the army barracks, ZimEye has learnt.
The development comes following the health professionals’ apology which was captured live on the national broadcaster ZTV where the junior doctors apologised to government for striking over salaries and better working conditions.
The doctors have been instructed to bring their own blankets.
Wrote Dr Peter Magombeyi:
2Junior Doctors invited to Gweru army barracks for training. “Please bring your own blanket”, and you expect much from this?”
Last month, Information and Publicity Minister Nick Mangwana published a statement on his Twitter handle revealing that government had lifted with immediate effect the suspension of the University of Zimbabwe masters students in medicine, obstetrics and gynaecology.
Mangwana attributed the development to a “lengthy engagement between the doctors and Health and Childcare Minister Vice President Dr Constantino Chiwenga”.
The doctors were aired on ZBCTV making their apology.
Said .Dr Maxwell Chimhina, a representative of the department of obstetrics and gynaecology training group:
“We are really sorry about the events that have led to our suspension. We hope you are going to find it in your heart to forgive us to finish our studies and serve the community.
Before the public apology ten trainee doctors from different parts of the country and several government officials met at the Ministry of Health offices. These students had been part of the strike that had stretched for over two months, which had led to the suspension of classes at the University of Zimbabwe on 23 September by the ministry.
In the suspension letter issued by Dr Noah Mutongoreni, UZ dean of medicine and health sciences, students were banned from public hospitals after they requested personal protective equipment, foetal monitors, functional theatre rooms, among others, to allow them to effectively undertake their clinical duties.
The conflict and the public apology that ensured the students’ return to work caused public outrage and critics refer to the incident as one of the government’s attempts to turn the health sector into an extension of the military.
This follows concerns over plans by the government to recruit medical graduates into the Zimbabwe Defence Force.
But in a government response Mangwiro said in parliament on 7 October junior doctors who did not complete their courses and who are willing can join the army, police or prisons, but if there is a vacancy through the Ministry of Health, they can be employed.
“So it is not mandatory, but what we are saying is that there are vacancies in the army, police or prison service,” said Mangwiro.-UWN/ZimEye
By A Correspondent- Former State Security Minister Didymus Mutasa has accused ZANU PF bigwigs of causing chaos in the party ahead of the divisive district co-ordinating committee (DCC) elections.
Mutasa, a former ZANU PF secretary for administration, on Saturday told the Daily News on Sunday that politburo members and senior Cabinet ministers were the main cause of the current chaos in the ruling party.
He said:
You cannot have someone coming all the way from Harare to conduct elections in Manicaland, for example.
What is the provincial minister doing there? He or she is the person on the ground and must have authority over party chairpersons in the districts.
Confusion is being caused by the people from Harare dictating to people in places like Rusape what to do in terms of voting.
Mutasa was fired from ZANU PF in 2014 at the height of the party’s perennial factional fights.
He was accused of belonging to the ‘Gamatox’ faction which was supposedly led by the then vice president Joice Mujuru. Gamatox and ‘Lacoste’ were reportedly angling to over control of the party.
DCC structures were banned during the last few years in power of the late former president Robert Mugabe but his successor, President Emmerson Mnangagwa has sought to revive them.
By Jane Mlambo| Zanu PF Secretary for Administration, Obert Mpofu has scoffed MDC Alliance Spokesperson Advocate Fadzai Mahere public debate challenge on Information Secretary Nick Mangwana suggesting that her equivalent is a Provincial youth league leader.
Mahere had challenged Mangwana to a public debate on the issue of sanctions as she accused government of resorting to propaganda and lies in their push to have the restrictive measures imposed on the country removed.
Mangwana snubbed the challenge saying he would not be drawn to someone’s reality show while emphasizing that he would grant interviews to BBC, Sky and other international media outlets.
Mpofu has also joined the discussion saying Mahere would only match a Zanu PF youth leader at provincial level while instructing the acting youth secretary Tendai Chirau to find someone for the debate.
“TendaiChirau find her an equivalent from one of your Youth League Provincial structures for this challenge. In any case, why must @nickmangwana -a Senior Gvt official have debate with a spin-nurse from a brief-case opposition party?” said Mpofu.
The issue of the anti-sanctions day has attracted wide criticism from the opposition who feel Zanu PF is making noise when the conditions for the removal of the embargo are clear.
The opposition says respect for human rights, rule of law and free and fair elections would unchain the country from the sanctions burden, the government says has slowed down development for the past 20 years.
By A Correspondent- Several former Zimasco employees in Shurugwi town are now living in makeshift shelters or with relatives following their evictions from the company houses they have been occupying.
The former employees have been evicted for failing to pay the increased rentals for the mine houses.
The ferrochrome producer said the evicted families were failing to pay rentals and many of them were in arrears running into several months.
Zimasco spokesperson Clara Sadomba said:
The affected former employees have left the company through retrenchment, retirement or resignation and are therefore treated like any other tenant renting our houses.
When seven former employees tried to resist eviction last month, they were arrested and spent one night at Shurugwi Police Station.
One of those arrested, Tinago Nguluve, said they resisted eviction because they felt that what the company had done was not procedural.
Meanwhile, Shurugwi Councillor, Freddy Ncube condemned the evictions saying Zimasco should have given the tenants some time to look for alternative accommodation.-statemedia
By Jane Mlambo| A local Non-governmental organisation Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum has taken the ministry of finance and economic development to court to compel it to release funds for the construction of more prisons.
According to the organisation, construction of more prisons is important to de-congest jails to protect inmates from the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The Forum has filed a court application to compel the Minister of Finance and Economic Development to release funds for the construction of more prisons facilities.
“This is meant to avoid overcrowding in prisons so as to protect inmates from the COVID-19 pandemic,” the organisation said.
Zimbabwe prisons have a carrying capacity of 17 000 inmates but have been accommodating over 22 000 people, the reason why the NGO Forum wants the court to compel government to take immediate action.
By A Correspondent- The former Deputy Minister in the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology Development, Godfrey Gandawa said that President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s ‘deal’ with chiefs in handling Gukurahundi is akin to sweeping the atrocities under the carpet.
Posting on his Twitter handle @DrGGandawa on Monday morning, the self-exiled former ZANU PF official called for transparency and accountability in dealing with the massacre of an estimated 20 000 citizens mainly from the Ndebele ethnic group by a North Korean-trained Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) brigade in the 1980s.
Wrote Gandawa:
Gukurahundi cannot be swept under the carpet by striking deals with chiefs. What is required is truth, justice and then reconciliation, not so much who leads exhumations and reburials. Those who killed must be subject to a process while victims should be compensated.
The present process, which does not include any truth-telling on the part of the perpetrators, many of whom are alive, is a charade that only serves to tamper with crime scenes. Further, the victims and their families are not being given an opportunity to be heard.
he National Peace and Reconciliation Commission is wholly incapable of delivering for the simple reason that it has no commitment to truth-telling or delivering justice for the affected. The authorities are conducting a synthetic process in the hope of an organic outcome.
What is particularly offensive to the victims is that Mnangagwa, who is accused of playing a key role in the killings as State Security minister, is purporting to preside over atrocities in which he is an alleged perpetrator. His involvement strips the process of credibility.
By Garikai Mananje- Sanctions are political and economic decisions that are part of diplomatic efforts by countries, multilateral or regional organizations against states, organizations or individuals either to protect national security interests, or to protect international law, and defend against threats to international peace and security.
These decisions principally include the temporary imposition on a target of economic, trade, diplomatic, cultural or other restrictions (sanctions measures) that are lifted when the motivating concerns no longer apply.
In simpler terms, sanctions are simply a sort of punishment imposed to an individual, organisation or nation for not following or complying to certain regulations that are supposed to be followed.
This punishment can however be removed when the individual, organisation or country complies.
The conditions for the removal of sanctions in Zimbabwe are clear and straight forward. Restoration of the rule of law, free and fair elections, a stop to the militarisation of the nation, fair and transparent legal system, among others.
These are the conditions required by those who imposed them. They never called the regime to organise musical galas, rallies, commemorations, marches and slogans for the sanctions in order for them to be lifted.
The Mnangagwa regime has imposed tough sanctions on its own citizens, sanctions tougher than the ones it is calling for to be removed. No one is allowed to support any other party other than the ruling Zanu PF, there is no any kind of freedom and human rights in the country at all, there is no rule of law whatsoever.
All state institutions are captured. There is rampant ill treatment and underpayment of workers, extreme poverty, disgusting service deliveries across the nation. There is massive corruption everywhere, injustice, abductions, torture, disappearances, illegal arrests, threats and abuses are the order of the day.
All forms of dictatorship tendencies that you can think of are some of the sanctions every Zimbabwean is calling the government to remove before coming together against sanctions imposed by outsiders.
You can’t be beating up your own wife everyday and expect her to defend you when you get beaten by a neighbour.
The interesting truth is nothing lasts forever. All these dictators have their nasty way out. We had bullies and tyrants like Muammar Gaddafi, Gnassingbe Ayedema, Idi Amin, Charles Taylor Yahya Jammeh, and our own Robert Mugabe among others who at one point believed they were God but are now history through a sorrowful way.
Unfortunately, people like Emmerson Munangagwa doesn’t seem to learn from history and past mistakes. Many Zimbabweans are risking their lives everyday crossing rivers into other countries. Citizens are being subjected to gross inhuman treatment, slavery, harassment, physical and mental abuse in other countries because their own motherland has been turned into a hopeless desert by a few greedy individuals who thinks they own the nation and shift the blame to sanctions.
Families have been destroyed, woman are forced to sell their bodies for survival, many are forced into crime and drugs just for survival. Education has been reduced to nothing but a waste of time and resources, a country used to be the pride of Africa now a shame of the continent. A nation once a breadbasket now a begging basket. Surely this will come to an end. God is not a fool..
By A Correspondent| Zimdancehall musician, Jah Master has once again apologized to his fans over his actions in which he fly-kicked a fan who came on stage while he was performing saying he does not know what got into him to do such a despicable act.
Posting on his official Facebook page, Jah Master who rose to fame following the release of his chart topper “Hello Mwari” said there was no justification for his action, the reason why he is apologizing.
He added that he is going to look for the fan and ensure he is taken for medical check ups with all proceeds from the show going to him as compensation though he claims to have made up with the fan after the show.
Below is Jah Master’s statement;
Makadii Ruzhinji Rwe Zimbabwe . Ndinonyara kuuya pano mangwanani ano nekuti ndakaita zvinonyadzisa ndakaita zvisingatarisirwe kubva chero kunani zvake. Zvandakaita Hazvina kana justification asi ndati ndiuye pano ndichikumbira ruregerero.Ndiregerereiwo nezvandakaita zvinonyadzisa ndinoda kuuya pano ndichivimbisa kuti hazvife zvakaitika. Naizvozvo nhasi ndiri kunotsvaga mkomana uyu and make sure medical checks are done kuti paonekwe kana asina kukuvara and also all proceeds from the show will go to him as compensation. Takataura naye after show and I Apologised for my behavior handiziye ndakapindwa nei. Ndiregereiwo mundipewo zuva rimwe kana maviri ekugadzirisa mhosva yangu iyi.Ndinotenda vese Vari kunditsiura uyezve vese Vari kuisa ma message mu inbox ikodzero yenyu nekuti Zvandakaita izvi zvinhu zvisingatarisirwe uye Hazvina hunhu. Ndichazodzoka pano ne update kuti inenge yava papi nyaya iyi.Muve nezuva rakanaka
Pakistan spin-bowling all-rounder Shadab Khan has admitted that it would be foolish to underestimate Zimbabwe in the upcoming limited overs series.
Shadab has been given more responsibility lately as he was named Pakistan’s vice-captain in limited overs cricket.
Even though many people expect Pakistan to easily beat Zimbabwe, the 22-year-old doesn’t want to fall into the trap of becoming overconfident.
“We won’t be taking Zimbabwe lightly at all. We are fully focused on the job at hand and during the season we are very keen on improving both our game and fitness,” he was quoted as saying by the Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) website.
“Many players discuss fitness and how to improve in that area which is a positive sign indeed. For us each and every point in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Super League matters. A convincing victory against Zimbabwe will hold us in good stead when we depart for the tour of New Zealand.
“We had an excellent build-up to the Zimbabwe series with the National T20 Cup. The tournament was highly competitive. Such tournaments will help narrow the gap between domestic and international levels. The revamped domestic system surely provides that opportunity to the players.”
Pakistan’s series against Zimbabwe will consist of three ODIs and three T20 Internationals, with all the matches taking place in Rawalpindi.
The ODIs will be played from October 30 to November 3, while the T20 Internationals will run from November 7 to 10.
Below is an excerpt of the exclusive interview on 3rd April 2010 with the MDC Alliance renegade, Thokozani Khupe in which she announced how she is taking over President Nelson Chamisa’s seat.
Are you going to inherit @nelsonchamisa's challenge against @edmnangagwa over the 2018 elections? Khupe replies:"why would I challenge when I don't have evidence? He challenged and was asked to produce evidence…why should I waste my time? Unfortunately I'm not understanding…" pic.twitter.com/PiuNUNAvft
Simba Chikanza: Are you going to inherit Nelson Chamisa’s challenge against Mnangagwa over the 2018 elections?
Thokozani Khupe: “How? Why would I challenge when I don’t have evidence? He challenged and was asked to produce evidence…why should I waste my time?”
Simba Chikanza: I am saying there is evidence, there are LIVE broadcast videos beginning with the 15th Dec 2017, ZBC video clearly showing the deployment of the army to change election results. There are other videos right up to election day…. You are avoiding all this evidence simply because a court verdict said so?
Liberation War Veterans have called each other to action to mobilise two million votes for Zanu PF and President Emmerson Mnangagwa for the 2023 election.
Addressing Zanu PF supporters and war veterans in Gwanda over the weekend, Zanu PF secretary for war veterans, Douglas Mahiya, said the war veterans owe Mnangagwa for taking care of them and so must go out and get the votes for him.
“We have been recalled back to the party. The enemy was taking advantage of our absence on the main political platform for over 40 years to defend our side,” Mahiya said.
“We urge all war veterans to join the war veterans wing in order for us to win the 2023 elections. The department will look into the welfare of civil servants,” he added.
War veterans are known for engaging a violent election campaign for ZANU PF in the 2000 and 2005 elections.
The war veterans also led the chaotic land grab from white commercial farmers throughout the country.
These are some of the bean packs which Auxillia Mnangagwa gave schools in CHIMANIMANI. Many of them are are rotten - "Dzimwe dzacho dzakasangana nedzakatoshata" as can be seen. Is this not food poisoning @Jamwanda2? What's govt done now @nickmangwana ? pic.twitter.com/VhAXFnBuKu
ONE WORD TO DESCRIBE THIS FERRET CALLED- Tinashe Jonas who organised the anti-sanctions march yesterday & used to appear on TV in South Africa asking people to take up arms against ZANU PF…today is busy organising for ZANU PF https://t.co/KUAkGK4tyHpic.twitter.com/egIl3jNUil
Police in Bulawayo have launched a manhunt for the driver who hit and killed celebrated Hip Hop artist and producer Mgcini Calvin Nhliziyo before fleeing the scene.
Nhliziyo (34) was killed in a hit and run accident a few meters away from his home in Luveve suburb on Saturday night while coming from watching a televised football match at Cricket sports club in Emakhandeni.
Bulawayo acting police spokesperson Assistant Inspector Nomalanga Msebele said investigations are underway.
“On October 25 2020 and at around 0000 hours a fatal road traffic accident occurred along Ngulukhundwane road near house number 5499 Luveve 5, Bulawayo where one person was killed,” said Ass Insp Msebele.
“Circumstances around the matter are that the driver was driving due west along Ngulukhundwane road near house number 5499 Luveve 5, Bulawayo when he hit Nhliziyo who was crossing the same road due north. The driver did not stop after the accident.”
Ass Insp Msebele said Nhliziyo sustained serious head injuries and he died on admission at Mpilo hospital.
“The cause of the accident was due to failure to keep a proper look out. A charge of “Culpable Homicide” as defined in section 49 of the criminal law (codification and reform) act,” she said.
By Dr Takafira Zhou| Education officials toured schools last week and saw that more than 93% of teachers (including school heads) were not in schools. Surprisingly, these officials through their head, Minister Matema, declared that schools were ready for second phase re-opening of schools for grade 6, form 3 and L6th. One wonders whether Hon Matema uses a dictionary of fools, assuming there is one.
It is clear that the Ministry officials and Hon Minister are either taking Zimbabweans for fools, are at best engaged in fantasy and drama or they are simply cut off from reality in schools. Let the Minister be reminded that even if ministry officials would get helicopters for monitoring, the situation in school would remain the same. How does monitoring capacitate an incapacitated teacher, we wonder? Is Matema implying that President Mnangagwa who acknowledged the genuineness of teachers’ grievences when he presented SONA, was engaging in homiletic bellicose?
As if it is not enough, Minister Matema talks of increased surveillance in schools this week and gap filling. Which gap Hon Minister? Minister Matema has confirmed the exorbitant increase of fees, and equally puzzling is his assertion that no parents complained at such fees. The Minister is certainly guilt of selective forgetfulness.Teachers are parents too and have constantly reminded him of the exorbitant fees beyond their reach. The minister is therefore economic with the truth.
Minister Matema recently claimed he was not concerned with teachers’ incapacitation because he is not their employer. Has he, therefore, become an employer overnight now that he talks of replacing incapacitated teachers?
It is clear, Minister Matema has become a liability to the education system and unless he is stopped forthwith, his cold and calculated education vandalism will have disastrous effects soon.
Fellow teachers Minister Matema has unilaterally declared war on us for no apparent reason as we have not thrust incapacitation upon ourselves. Rather it is the gvt that thrust incapacitation upon us by unilaterally reducing the purchasing power of our salaries from US$520-US$550 to US$40. The only language that Hon Matema may understand is decisive incapacitation action by teachers across the country. Lets take our incapacitation struggle to the highest level, and let every community reverberate with voices of incapacitation. A 0% presence in schools is the only language Matema may understand so well. We cannot be treated as if we are of no account.
There are several reported cases of covid 19 in schools. Sadly, the Ministry is silent on such cases. We reiterate that our heath and safety matter and we will resist attempts to drive us to death traps. The acquisition and placement of testing kits and other PPEs in schools is long overdue.
As much as many parents may have sent their children to school, we hereby reiterate that there will be no learning as teachers will be conspicuous by their absence due to incapacitation. Never say we did not warn you. You have put the life of your child in danger as schools are fast becoming places of sexual orgies and drug abuse in the absence of teachers. To those who have not sent their children, keep them safe in your homes and hold on to the fees a little longer.
We reiterate our readiness to report for work as soon as our welfare, health and safatey concerns are addressed. The raising of fees in boarding schools is tailor-made to ensure that the children of poor (like teachers) should not be brought out of the social environment to which they belong. This must be resisted by the generality of Zimbabweans as education is fast becoming a preserve of the rich as opposed to a right enshrined in the constitution.
We reiterate our commitnent to meaningful dialogue not through the surrogate Apex but the United Front of Teacher Unions. The country can only be taken forward by those who understand the aspirations of teachers as a vital cog of national development, and speak the language of common people. As incapacitated teachers we know we are right and Hon Matema is wrong. We, therefore, will continue in our incapacitation mode until gvt calls for meaningful dialogue with us. No amount of threat can capacitate us. We have nothing to fear except incapacitation, poverty and fear itself. Its game on, let the incapacitation of teachers be more visible through our actions. Let all teachers be part of a solution and not part of our problems.
One person is reported to have died, two survived and one is unaccounted for after a Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks) hired small plane crashed in the Zambezi Valley on Friday, sources have revealed.
The Cessna 182 small plane is reported to have gone down on Friday with two South Africans and two Zimbabweans on board in a mountainous area between Chirundu and the Zambezi Valley.
Hampered by thick forests and mountains, the searchers were frustrated until Sunday when another pilot spotted the wreckage.
ZimParks sources said that one person died on the spot, while two were injured. A third, described as a spotter, is reported to have walked away from the wreckage to seek help – but has not been seen or heard from since.
The Zimbabwe Revenue Authority says it collected 57 billion Zimbabwe dollars ($701 million) for the third quarter, surpassing the target of 44.83 billion Zimbabwe dollars, after coronavirus restrictions were eased.
“Covid-19 lockdown conditions were relaxed, enabling more businesses to resume operations, thereby enhancing their ability to meet their tax obligations,” Josephine Matambo, the authority’s vice board chairperson, said in an emailed statement on Sunday.
“Furthermore, the monetary policy interventions that were done during this period inflated the amounts to be collected, resulting in a corresponding positive impact to the revenues,” according to the statement.
Mining royalties and withholding taxes missed the quarterly targets due to “operational challenges” in the mining sector caused by energy shortages and Covid-19, the statement said.
THE wife to the man alleged to have been caught in bed with MP Joseph Chinotimba’s second wife pleaded for forgiveness soon after the fracas.
Mai Mahachi begged MP Chinotimba for forgiveness on behalf of her husband saying the latter could have lost feelings for her.
She was speaking at Milton Park Police station where the two couples had been taken for counselling.
“VaChinotimba ndinokumbirawo ruregerero nezvaitwa nemurume wangu zvekusvika pakusatya kana kukuremekedzai,” said Mai Mahachi.
“I want to believe he did it in foolishness or he might have lost feelings for me leading him to salivate for someone’s wife as if I was not available.
“Probably I failed to sexually satisfy him.
“His reason to date a married woman might be because I no longer look attractive but he married me and went on to give vows before a minister of religion only to act different today because of Mai Chinotimba.
“I have handed him the ring he gave me. I had been warned by one of the prophets that he had lost faith and was cheating but I did not take it seriously.
“To be honest with you this will not go unpunished. Ndakaudzwa kuti usarega muroyi achirarama.
“I will definitely retaliate by leaving someone injured I swear.
“VaChinotimba, murume wangu anobva kuChivhu mudzimai wenyu anobva Buhera saka vanhu ava ndevezhira imwe chete. “My God will surely strengthen and guide me although my husband has decided to fight the spirit of God by engaging in evil acts,” said Mai Mahachi.
She wrestled with police officers demanding to accompany Mahachi to Maridale Park in Norton where they reside.
“Why do you want me to sit behind him when the front seat is for me not for Mai Chinotimba?” shouted Mai Mahachi.
Mahachi and his wife were led by two police officers in separate vehicles to Maridale Park as they sensed danger after the latter threatened to deal with her husband.
Mahachi clashed with MP Chinotimba after he was allegedly caught kissing and caressing the latter’s second wife Locardia Dzvitiro.
Dzvitiro has since been ordered to leave MP Chinotimba’s house in Belvedere.
FILE PHOTO: Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa attends a rally against Western sanctions in Harare, Zimbabwe October 25, 2019.
Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa on Sunday thanked China and Russia for standing by Zimbabwe in its consistent call for the unconditional removal of Western sanctions.
In a speech to mark the Southern African Development Community (SADC) anti-sanctions day, Mnangagwa paid tribute to the two countries, SADC, the African Union, and other countries around the globe for their support.
“The People’s Republic of China and the Russian Federation, among other nations, have been our dependable pillars for many years,” said the president.
“These nations not only assisted us in our fight for independence, but equally assisted us to defend our sovereignty against the sustained onslaught by our detractors,” Mnangagwa said.
He also thanked United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet for adding their voice on sanctions removal.
Mnangagwa commended the European Union (EU) for taking some positive steps towards normalizing relations with Zimbabwe.
Last year, the SADC declared October 25 as the regional anti-sanctions day, on which SADC member states would collectively call for unconditional lifting of illegal sanctions on Zimbabwe.
Mnangagwa said the Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act and Executive Orders by the U.S. government have constrained development in Zimbabwe for nearly 20 years.
“The cumulative effect of these illegal sanctions has been devastating in every sector of our economy. Furthermore, sanctions have limited Zimbabwe’s capacity to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic,” Mnangagwa said.
“We are grateful to those nations and organizations who have stood by us and supported us in fighting the pandemic,” he added.
Earlier this month, China’s envoy to the UN criticized the U.S. and Western countries for violating human rights and called for the complete and immediate lifting of unilateral sanctions at the General Debate of the Third Committee of the UN General Assembly.
Zhang Jun, China’s permanent representative to the UN, made the statement on behalf of 26 countries, including Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Belarus, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, China, Cuba, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Iran, Laos, Myanmar, Namibia, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Palestine, Russia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, South Sudan, Sudan, Suriname, Syria, Venezuela and Zimbabwe.
Next year’s examination classes — Grade Six, Form Three and Form Five — return to school today, with the Government assuring parents that all necessary precautions have been taken to minimise the risk of Covid-19 infection.
This follows the return of three examination classes four weeks ago near the end of September, with the precautions so far working, thus allowing the second phase with the final nine classes returning on November 9.
The Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education set standard operating procedures for all schools to guide the safe reopening of schools in the Covid-19 environment.
Ahead of the reopening today, parents and guardians yesterday were taking their children enrolled in boarding schools in Form Three and Form Five to the designated bus stops set by the schools.
Scores of pupils converged at the Harare Exhibition Park, the Civic Centre car parks off Abdel Gamal Nasser Road and Mbare Musika in Harare and Bulawayo City Hall car park and between 8th and 9th Avenue along George Silundika Street in Bulawayo waiting for transport.
Some parents made last-minute shopping before their children boarded their school buses. Pupils were sanitised and had temperatures checked before boarding.
In Gweru, Grade Six, Form Three and Five pupils at boarding schools such as Stanley Primary School, Regina Mundi and Thornhill High School arrived at school yesterday afternoon ahead of today’s reopening.
Some school authorities were cashing in on the Covid-19 by forcing parents and guardians to buy school-branded masks for as much as US$5.
Parents who spoke to The Herald in Harare yesterday complained that some schools had unilaterally increased fees, a move they said was not justified considering that the country was not in an inflationary environment.
Some parents implored school authorities not to turn away children whose parents had not yet paid fees.
Primary and Secondary Education Minister Cain Mathema said Government was prepared for the second phase of schools reopening.
He said the ministry would continue exercising caution in view of Covid-19 as it did with the running of the Zimsec June examinations and first phase of schools opening.
Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education director of communications Mr Tongoona Ndoro said: “The Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education is ready to provide a wholesome education for all Zimbabweans through an education system that is competence-driven and that is accessible, affordable and enables citizens to participate in the socio-economic transformation of the nation,” he said.
Mr Ndoro said it was illegal for schools to demand personal protective equipment from parents.
“We are investigating the issue where schools are said to be forcing parents to buy face masks at exorbitant prices,” he said.
Teachers and pupils are expected to quickly adapt to the new normal to minimise the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic.
It is mandatory for learners to wear masks while handshakes, hugs and sharing of desks and textbooks have been banned as part of Covid-19 prevention measures.
The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) has recommended a tribunal to investigate whether or not High Court judge Justice Erica Ndewere was fit to hold office after discovering she was not clearing her workload in reasonable time and that she had not properly studied the file on a thief’s conviction and sentence when she set aside a jail term.
There is no suggestion of improper conduct in the commission’s recommendation, just that the judge is not up to the standard expected by not reading files properly and delaying matters way beyond permitted limits.
In the case of setting aside the jail term of a thief, Justice Ndewere reviewed the decision of a Marondera magistrate to lock up Kenneth Majecha (21) for theft and referred the case back to the lower court for re-sentencing, recommending community service for Majecha, whom she referred to as a youth and a first offender.
But she was wrong about the Majecha being a first offender.
He had three previous convictions and the court record showed this and included copies of the required certificates.
In fact, in giving reasons for the jail term, the magistrate highlighted Majecha’s three previous convictions together with their case numbers.
According to the trial record, which was also brought before the High Court for review, Majecha was convicted for housebreaking and sentenced to eight months in prison in 2016. In 2017, Majecha was sentenced to a wholly suspended two-year prison term but the same year was back in court, convicted of robbery and jailed for an effective 26 months.
The JSC contends the judge decided on the case without fully reading the record of proceedings, the trial magistrate’s reasons for sentence and the attached certificates of previous convictions.
“Had she done so, these would have dissuaded her from making the order she did,” reads JSC’s first complaint against the judge.
But the quashing of the sentence did not affect the prisoner. He had already served his full sentences by the time the judge made her review.
“Despite receiving the record for review on May 9 2019, the judge failed to action the file until October 22 2019 when the review minute was issued. A period of five months lapsed without the proceedings being reviewed. The accused had already served the full term of imprisonment by the time the review minute was released,” reads the second complaint.
“The judge’s performance has failed to meet the expected standard of a judge,” reads JSC’s third complaint.
By June 30 last year, Justice Ndewere reportedly had 12 reserved judgments which had gone for at least two years without a determination. Failure to deliver a reserved judgment within a period of 90 days is a breach of the JSC (Code of Ethics) Regulations of 2012.
By May 18 this year, Justice Ndewere had 28 pending cases with judgments having been reserved for periods stretching from nine to 24 months.
Meanwhile, Justice Ndewere is battling to stop President Mnangagwa from constituting the tribunal the JSC desires.
Through Sawyer & Mkushi Legal Practitioners, Justice Ndewere seeks an order stopping the set up of the tribunal on the basis that if the tribunal is set up she will be automatically suspended, causing her irreparable damage, as well as he belief that “the setting up a tribunal is wrong factually, procedurally and on points of law”.
Justice Ndewere believes she is being victimised.
“In my view, (Chief Justice Luke Malaba) is victimising me for refusing to follow his unlawful instruction which he issued in August 2019 in connection with the bail matter I handled that month. This is why even before I had explained the Kenneth Majecha review in June 2020, the (Chief Justice) told the (Judge President George Chiweshe) to tell me that he wanted to take me to the tribunal.”
She said her application for a court order preventing President Mnangagwa from setting up the tribunal was the only course of action open to her to keep her job.
THE Ministry of Health and Child Care says that a Form Four pupil from Matopo High School who died over the weekend did not succumbed to the Covid-19.
The girl who presented Covid-19 like symptoms at school was rushed to Bulawayo on Friday and died on Saturday afternoon at her Nketa home.
Despite rumours that the girl had succumbed to the global pandemic, the ministry said the girl tested Covid-19 negative posthumously.
The development forced the school authorities to postpone the return of Form Three and Five pupils who were supposed to return to the school yesterday ahead of the reopening today.
Bulawayo acting provincial medical director Dr Welcome Mlilo said the girl did not die of a Covid-19 related illness.
“I can confirm that the pupil from Matopo High School in question did not die from a Covid-19 related illness. The Bulawayo City Rapid Response Team collaborating with physicians from United Bulawayo Hospitals have investigated this death and the Covid-19 test is negative.”
Meanwhile, highly placed sources have told ZimEye.com that an elderly member of the family also died with Covid-19 symptoms late on Saturday.
The family member reportedly lived in the same family home with the deceased student.
More details on the latest death in the family to follow.
Zanu PF Member of the National Assembly for Mwenezi East Jusby Omar has died.
He died yesterday after suffering a heart attack. He was pronounced dead on arrival at Makurira Memorial Clinic.
Minister of State for Masvingo Provincial Affairs and Devolution Ezra Chadzamira confirmed Omar’s death.
The minister said Zanu PF and Government had lost a stalwart committed to helping Masvingo and the nation at large achieve President Mnangagwa Vision 2030.
“It’s true we have received the sad news of the passing on of Omar this evening around 6pm today (yesterday) after he suffered a heart attack and was pronounced dead on arrival at Makurira Memorial Clinic.
“As Zanu PF and also Government we have lost a fighter and dedicated cadre committed to the socio-economic upliftment of the people of Masvingo in general, and Mwenezi in particular. We have been robbed of a true son of the soil and a patriotic cadre who loved his country,” he said.
Minister Chadzamira described Omar as one of the foot soldiers who gave impetus to the drive to achieve Vision 2030.
Omar was first elected Mwenezi East legislator in 2017 in a parliamentary by-election held following the death of Joshua Moyo.
He was to successfully win re-election in the 2018 harmonised polls.
Six years after former Bafana Bafana and Orlando Pirates captain Senzo Meyiwa was shot dead at the house of his girlfriend Kelly Khumalo in Ekurhuleni, police have made a breakthrough and arrested five men believed to have been the hitmen.
Sunday Independent can exclusively reveal that the arrest warrants of the five alleged hitmen, whose names are known to this newspaper, were obtained on Wednesday.
They were signed by advocate Sibongile Mzinyathi, the director of public prosecutions in the Gauteng division of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).
“A succinct summary of the facts and reasons for this decision are set out in the attached memorandum by the team that was assigned the matter. The investigating officer will be collecting the docket from this office for purposes of finalising the outstanding investigations, and also facilitating the first appearance of the suspects in court,” read Mzinyathi’s letter, dated October 21, 2020.
The suspects, who are said to be in jail for other crimes already, are expected to appear in court this week on charges of murder, robbery with aggravating circumstances and the contravention of firearm laws.
National police spokesperson, Brigadier Vish Naidoo, yesterday said he could not comment. “A lot of damage has been done on this case and, therefore, I can’t make any comment about it,” Naidoo said.
However, Sunday Independent sources said the main suspect who pulled the trigger that ended Meyiwa’s life, was arrested on June 16 this year in Rustenburg, North West. He was a mine worker in Carletonville on the Gauteng West Rand.
The man is said to have admitted to killing Meyiwa to an independent police officer, after his arrest.
The man is said to have confessed that he and his friends were hired to kill Meyiwa on October 18, 2014.
The man told the investigators that they were promised R250000 for the hit, even though they had initially demanded R400000, due to Meyiwa’s high profile status, the sources said.
In his confession, the man is also said to have claimed that he had shot Meyiwa when the soccer star tried to hit him with a chair.
The second suspect was arrested on June 22 at a hotel in Ekurhuleni, East of Johannesburg, after police followed him from Nongoma, KwaZuluNatal. He was allegedly found with an unlicensed firearm. The third suspect, who is also a mine worker, was nabbed last December also in Carletonville.
At the time of the incident, it was claimed that unknown people had entered the (Khumalo) house intending to rob the occupants and made off with cellphones.
The apparent confession of the triggerman has blown the lid on the intricate plot and the identity of the person who commissioned the “hit”.
At the centre of the plot is believed to be money that Meyiwa had allegedly promised someone but never fulfilled. The individual is known to the publication but can’t be named yet as police are continuing with the investigations.
A report seen by the publication further revealed that police also found the gun that was allegedly used to kill Meyiwa in a safe at Cleveland Police Station, in Johannesburg, in July this year – after following a lead.
Sunday Independent understands that police are still investigating whether any of the people who were in the house when Meyiwa was shot, can be charged or linked to his murder.
NPA spokesperson Sipho Ngwema, yesterday couldn’t confirm nor deny that Meyiwa’s alleged killers would appear in court before the end of the week.
He added that the NPA did not issue or execute warrants of arrests. “The NPA neither issues nor executes warrants. Further, we can only arrange for the appearance of accused persons once there are suspects that have been arrested, charged and need to appear before court,” Ngwema said.
The history of fighting for an egalitarian society has been littered with pretenders.
It was absolutely clear that the Muzorewa attempt to unseat the Mugabe Zanu PF led regime from 1980-2005 was failing to gather momentum.
One Douglas Mwonzora remain stuck in illusions that one day the outfit will defeat Zanu PF. The change momentum gathered pace in the late 1990s and it resulted in the formation of MDC.
Many right thinking adults back then joined the promising MDC only the Mwonzoras failed to believe in the MDC’S appeal. Six years after he decided to join the movement not because he believed in it but he found an opportunity to annihilate the party from within.
His modus operandi was clear capture the people by manipulating emotions, use mudslinging as a way of taking power.
The 2013 massive rigging by Zanu PF provided him with an opportunity to deal with the MDC power matrix. The MDC structures easily forgot about rigging and focused much of their anger on the then Organising Secretary Nelson Chamisa. Douglas Mwonzora went on mudslinging spree capitalising on the failure by structures to sift through the Nikuv rigging scheme which was way beyond how primary elections were done.
His scheme which was aided by mudslinging remniscent of Zanu PF 2014 dismissal of Joyce Mujuru managed to win him the Secretary General post.
Some of us who were backing Advocate Chamisa believed back then and to this day that the Congress was rigged and dirty money exchanged hands on the Congress. Hallmarks of a Zanu hand were all over.
Zanu PF had already planned it’s game in advance, cause confusion, scatter cimmitted comrades and ensure voter apathy. As the confusion persists it benefits the Zanu PF regime.
Zanu PF will simply claim to be organised more than the opposition because of one Morrison Nyathi who is after power for power’s sake.
He claims to be a genius in terms of law but he is failing to read the modus operandi which shows a deliberate attempt to ignore the obvious.
Zanu PF is well known for thwarting the opposition’s ability to organise but one Douglas Mwonzora was moving around the country with the sole aim of causing confusion among the opposition supporters . He has indeed become a regime enabler.
Remove Sanctions You Imposed on your people first.
Emmerson Mnangagwa
By Garikai Mananje
Editor Sir
Sanctions are political and economic decisions that are part of diplomatic efforts by countries, multilateral or regional organizations against states, organizations or individuals either to protect national security interests, or to protect international law, and defend against threats to international peace and security. These decisions principally include the temporary imposition on a target of economic, trade, diplomatic, cultural or other restrictions (sanctions measures) that are lifted when the motivating concerns no longer apply. In simpler terms, sanctions are simply a sort of punishment imposed to an individual, organisation or nation for not following or complying to certain regulations that are supposed to be followed. This punishment can however be removed when the individual, organisation or country complies.
The conditions for the removal of sanctions in Zimbabwe are clear and straight forward. Restoration of the rule of law, free and fair elections, a stop to the militarisation of the nation, fair and transparent legal system, among others. These are the conditions required by those who imposed them. They never called the regime to organise musical galas, rallies, commemorations, marches and slogans for the sanctions in order for them to be lifted.
The Munangagwa regime has imposed tough sanctions on its own citizens, sanctions tougher than the ones it is calling for to be removed. No one is allowed to support any other party other than the ruling Zanu PF, there is no any kind of freedom and human rights in the country at all, there is no rule of law whatsoever, all state institutions are captured, ill treatment and underpayment of workers, extreme poverty, disgusting service deliveries across the nation, massive corruption everywhere, injustice, abductions, torture, disappearances, illegal arrests, threats, abuses and all forms of dictatorship tendencies are some of the sanctions every Zimbabwean is calling the government to remove before coming together against sanctions imposed by outsiders. You can’t be beating up your own wife everyday and expect her to defend you when you get beaten by a neighbour.
The interesting truth is nothing lasts forever. All these dictators have their nasty way out. We had bullies and tyrants like Muammar Gaddafi, Gnassingbe Ayedema, Idi Amin, Charles Taylor Yahya Jammeh, and our own Robert Mugabe among others who at one point believed they were God but are now history through a sorrowful way. Unfortunately, people like Emmerson Munangagwa doesn’t seem to learn from history and past mistakes. Many Zimbabweans are risking their lives everyday crossing rivers into other countries, being subjected to gross inhuman treatment, slavery, harassment, physical and mental abuse in other countries because their own motherland has been turned into a hopeless desert by a few greedy individuals who thinks they own the nation and shift the blame to sanctions. Families have been destroyed, woman are forced to sell their bodies for survival, many are forced into crime and drugs just for survival. Education has been reduced to nothing but a waste of time and resources, a country used to be the pride of Africa now a shame of the continent. A nation once a breadbasket now a begging basket. Surely this will come to an end. God is not a fool..
By Garikai Mananje
Human rights activist [email protected] Tweets by GarikaiMananje
By Dr Takafira Zhou| Education officials toured schools last week and saw that more than 93% of teachers (including school heads) were not in schools. Surprisingly, these officials through their head, Minister Matema, declared that schools were ready for second phase re-opening of schools for grade 6, form 3 and L6th. One wonders whether Hon Matema uses a dictionary of fools, assuming there is one.
It is clear that the Ministry officials and Hon Minister are either taking Zimbabweans for fools, are at best engaged in fantasy and drama or they are simply cut off from reality in schools. Let the Minister be reminded that even if ministry officials would get helicopters for monitoring, the situation in school would remain the same. How does monitoring capacitate an incapacitated teacher, we wonder? Is Matema implying that President Mnangagwa who acknowledged the genuineness of teachers’ grievences when he presented SONA, was engaging in homiletic bellicose?
As if it is not enough, Minister Matema talks of increased surveillance in schools this week and gap filling. Which gap Hon Minister? Minister Matema has confirmed the exorbitant increase of fees, and equally puzzling is his assertion that no parents complained at such fees. The Minister is certainly guilt of selective forgetfulness.Teachers are parents too and have constantly reminded him of the exorbitant fees beyond their reach. The minister is therefore economic with the truth.
Minister Matema recently claimed he was not concerned with teachers’ incapacitation because he is not their employer. Has he, therefore, become an employer overnight now that he talks of replacing incapacitated teachers?
It is clear, Minister Matema has become a liability to the education system and unless he is stopped forthwith, his cold and calculated education vandalism will have disastrous effects soon.
Fellow teachers Minister Matema has unilaterally declared war on us for no apparent reason as we have not thrust incapacitation upon ourselves. Rather it is the gvt that thrust incapacitation upon us by unilaterally reducing the purchasing power of our salaries from US$520-US$550 to US$40. The only language that Hon Matema may understand is decisive incapacitation action by teachers across the country. Lets take our incapacitation struggle to the highest level, and let every community reverberate with voices of incapacitation. A 0% presence in schools is the only language Matema may understand so well. We cannot be treated as if we are of no account.
There are several reported cases of covid 19 in schools. Sadly, the Ministry is silent on such cases. We reiterate that our heath and safety matter and we will resist attempts to drive us to death traps. The acquisition and placement of testing kits and other PPEs in schools is long overdue.
As much as many parents may have sent their children to school, we hereby reiterate that there will be no learning as teachers will be conspicuous by their absence due to incapacitation. Never say we did not warn you. You have put the life of your child in danger as schools are fast becoming places of sexual orgies and drug abuse in the absence of teachers. To those who have not sent their children, keep them safe in your homes and hold on to the fees a little longer.
We reiterate our readiness to report for work as soon as our welfare, health and safatey concerns are addressed. The raising of fees in boarding schools is tailor-made to ensure that the children of poor (like teachers) should not be brought out of the social environment to which they belong. This must be resisted by the generality of Zimbabweans as education is fast becoming a preserve of the rich as opposed to a right enshrined in the constitution.
We reiterate our commitnent to meaningful dialogue not through the surrogate Apex but the United Front of Teacher Unions. The country can only be taken forward by those who understand the aspirations of teachers as a vital cog of national development, and speak the language of common people. As incapacitated teachers we know we are right and Hon Matema is wrong. We, therefore, will continue in our incapacitation mode until gvt calls for meaningful dialogue with us. No amount of threat can capacitate us. We have nothing to fear except incapacitation, poverty and fear itself. Its game on, let the incapacitation of teachers be more visible through our actions. Let all teachers be part of a solution and not part of our problems.
Farai Dziva|The MDC Alliance is appealing for donations to assist jailed activist Terrence Manjengwa’s family.
Manjengwa was arrested for standing in solidarity with MDC Alliance vice chairperson Job Sikhala.
See the MDC Alliance statement below :
While Terrence Manjengwa is being incarcerated for a crime he didn’t commit ,we as his extended family must ensure that his wife and young daughter are taken care of.
Terrence’s daughter was born on the same day that his father was arrested, meaning everyday he is incarcerated is a day she gets older without seeing her father.
We all know the hardships that we Zimbabweans are going through day in day out , but it is even more difficult when the sole breadwinner is in prison.
With that in mind it is our duty to see to it that our incarcerated cadres family is well looked after .Lets be that big family that we are and see to it that Mother and Daughter are taken care of.
Below is the contact information of Terrence Manjengwa’s Wife Choice Mukwesha including Ecocash
Choice Mukwesha +263771395548
Please lets help in any way we can be it in cash or in kind. Together we can do it as we have always done.
MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa has refuted allegations by the ruling ZANU PF party that he campaigned for sanctions to be imposed on Zimbabwe.
Chamisa told The Standard in an interview that he is neither a god nor does he have powers to control the United States of America’s foreign policy. He said:
Chamisa is not a god, he is not a state that rapes people, abducts people. Chamisa is not billions of dollars that disappear.
Chamisa is also not the one who manipulates the institutions of the state.
Don’t give me the powers that I don’t have. I don’t control Washington. I don’t have such powers.
The youthful opposition leader hit out at President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government, saying its rule is based on lies and deceptions.
That is why we have a senior government official holding a press conference to announce that Chamisa is training soldiers in (Moldova).
We have officialised lies in order to elevate foolish claims to the level of policy.-The Standard
The Emmerson Mnangagwa controlled Judicial Service Commission (JSC) has recommended a tribunal to investigate the High Court judge who granted Zengeza MP Job Sikhala bail, Justice Erica Ndewere’s fitness for holding office.
In recently days, JSC has said its move is not motivated by political angers over the Sikhala judgement.
The organisation said this was after discovering she was not clearing her workload in reasonable time and that she had not properly studied the file on a thief’s conviction and sentence when she set aside a jail term.
There is no suggestion of improper conduct in the commission’s recommendation, just that the judge is not up to the standard expected by not reading files properly and delaying matters way beyond permitted limits.
In the case of setting aside the jail term of a thief, Justice Ndewere reviewed the decision of a Marondera magistrate to lock up Kenneth Majecha (21) for theft and referred the case back to the lower court for re-sentencing, recommending community service for Majecha, whom she referred to as a youth and a first offender.
But she was wrong about the Majecha being a first offender. He had three previous convictions and the court record showed this and included copies of the required certificates.
In fact, in giving reasons for the jail term, the magistrate highlighted Majecha’s three previous convictions together with their case numbers.
According to the trial record, which was also brought before the High Court for review, Majecha was convicted for housebreaking and sentenced to eight months in prison in 2016. In 2017, Majecha was sentenced to a wholly suspended two-year prison term but the same year was back in court, convicted of robbery and jailed for an effective 26 months.
The JSC contends the judge decided on the case without fully reading the record of proceedings, the trial magistrate’s reasons for sentence and the attached certificates of previous convictions.
“Had she done so, these would have dissuaded her from making the order she did,” reads JSC’s first complaint against the judge.
But the quashing of the sentence did not affect the prisoner. He had already served his full sentences by the time the judge made her review.
“Despite receiving the record for review on May 9 2019, the judge failed to action the file until October 22 2019 when the review minute was issued. A period of five months lapsed without the proceedings being reviewed. The accused had already served the full term of imprisonment by the time the review minute was released,” reads the second complaint.
“The judge’s performance has failed to meet the expected standard of a judge,” reads JSC’s third complaint.
By June 30 last year, Justice Ndewere reportedly had 12 reserved judgments which had gone for at least two years without a determination. Failure to deliver a reserved judgment within a period of 90 days is a breach of the JSC (Code of Ethics) Regulations of 2012.
By May 18 this year, Justice Ndewere had 28 pending cases with judgments having been reserved for periods stretching from nine to 24 months.
Meanwhile, Justice Ndewere is battling to stop President Mnangagwa from constituting the tribunal the JSC desires.
Through Sawyer & Mkushi Legal Practitioners, Justice Ndewere seeks an order stopping the set up of the tribunal on the basis that if the tribunal is set up she will be automatically suspended, causing her irreparable damage, as well as he belief that “the setting up a tribunal is wrong factually, procedurally and on points of law”.
Justice Ndewere believes she is being victimised. “In my view, (Chief Justice Luke Malaba) is victimising me for refusing to follow his unlawful instruction which he issued in August 2019 in connection with the bail matter I handled that month. This is why even before I had explained the Kenneth Majecha review in June 2020, the (Chief Justice) told the (Judge President George Chiweshe) to tell me that he wanted to take me to the tribunal.”
She said her application for a court order preventing President Mnangagwa from setting up the tribunal was the only course of action open to her to keep her job. -originally published in the Herald
MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa said his erstwhile colleagues, MDC-T interim president Thokozani Khupe and secretary-general Douglas Mwonzora are now in the political dustbin following their concerted efforts to decimate Zimbabwe’s largest opposition party by recalling its legislators and councillors.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa last week formally recognised Khupe as the official leader of the opposition after she became a Member of Parliament under controversial circumstances.
Chamisa believes Khupe and Mwonzora are simply doing ZANU PF’s bidding through captured State institutions.
He said: I don’t have time for Khupe and Douglas Mwonzora (interim MDC-T secretary-general).
I know they are simply playing a script handed to them by Zanu PF, enforced by captured institutions.
They are going nowhere. In fact, they are history. People always settle political disputes.
Chamisa accused the government of attempting to distract the masses from the real causes of their sufferings through the anti-sanctions campaign.
Said Chamisa: Zimbabweans should take the day as an opportunity to imagine a better future without hunger, poverty, police brutality, abductions, and corruption.
It’s a collective task for every Zimbabwean to imagine a Zimbabwe without the vices of bad governance from the current government.
When he came to power on the back of a military coup in November 2017, Mnangagwa said sanctions should never be used as an excuse for failure but he has since changed his tune as the economic situation has continued to deteriorate.-The Standard
Next year’s examination classes — Grade Six, Form Three and Form Five — return to school today, with the Government assuring parents that all necessary precautions have been taken to minimise the risk of Covid-19 infection.
This follows the return of three examination classes four weeks ago near the end of September, with the precautions so far working, thus allowing the second phase with the final nine classes returning on November 9.
The Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education set standard operating procedures for all schools to guide the safe reopening of schools in the Covid-19 environment.
Ahead of the reopening today, parents and guardians yesterday were taking their children enrolled in boarding schools in Form Three and Form Five to the designated bus stops set by the schools.
Scores of pupils converged at the Harare Exhibition Park, the Civic Centre car parks off Abdel Gamal Nasser Road and Mbare Musika in Harare and Bulawayo City Hall car park and between 8th and 9th Avenue along George Silundika Street in Bulawayo waiting for transport.
Some parents made last-minute shopping before their children boarded their school buses. Pupils were sanitised and had temperatures checked before boarding.
In Gweru, Grade Six, Form Three and Five pupils at boarding schools such as Stanley Primary School, Regina Mundi and Thornhill High School arrived at school yesterday afternoon ahead of today’s reopening.
Some school authorities were cashing in on the Covid-19 by forcing parents and guardians to buy school-branded masks for as much as US$5.
Parents who spoke to The Herald in Harare yesterday complained that some schools had unilaterally increased fees, a move they said was not justified considering that the country was not in an inflationary environment.
Some parents implored school authorities not to turn away children whose parents had not yet paid fees.
Primary and Secondary Education Minister Cain Mathema said Government was prepared for the second phase of schools reopening.
He said the ministry would continue exercising caution in view of Covid-19 as it did with the running of the Zimsec June examinations and first phase of schools opening.
Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education director of communications Mr Tongoona Ndoro said: “The Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education is ready to provide a wholesome education for all Zimbabweans through an education system that is competence-driven and that is accessible, affordable and enables citizens to participate in the socio-economic transformation of the nation,” he said.
Mr Ndoro said it was illegal for schools to demand personal protective equipment from parents. “We are investigating the issue where schools are said to be forcing parents to buy face masks at exorbitant prices,” he said.
Teachers and pupils are expected to quickly adapt to the new normal to minimise the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. It is mandatory for learners to wear masks while handshakes, hugs and sharing of desks and textbooks have been banned as part of Covid-19 prevention measures.
Yesterday, The Herald talked to some parents and students in Harare ahead of the second phase of schools re-opening.
One parent, Ms Mary Grace Chikomwe, whose child is a lower six student at Kwenda High School, commended Government for allowing schools to re-open. However, she was worried about a possible shortage of teachers and called the Government for intervene.
She also said the fees charged by schools are too high given the short period children would be in schools.
“Also most of the schools are over charging on fees. Our children will be at school only for 40 days and most of the schools are charging $20 000 and above. The fees are too high. Some schools are profiteering.”
Another parent, Mr Saul Ndete, whose child attends Johane Masowe Vadzidzi vaJesu Centre Zimbabwe Africa High School said he was happy that their children were finally going back to school.
“I am happy that our children are going back to school after such a long time. But my worry is the shortage of teachers. I have another child in Grade 7 at a local school and I have since stopped him to go to school because of the shortage of teachers. We appeal to Government to intervene on this challenge.”
Mrs Mavilyn Dzvova, whose child is doing form 3 at Junction Adventist High School, urged pupils to behave themselves at school.
A lower six arts student at Sodbury High School, Diana Alexis Lifa vowed to work hard and urged her colleagues to do the same. “I am really happy to be going back to school, our holidays were very long. I will do my best in this one month I will be at school.
“All I can say to my colleagues is to be serious and appreciate the efforts our parents are putting so that we can go back to school. Let us put our books first, always pray because we can not achieve our goals without God’s grace.”
In Bulawayo, the parents and guardians said it was essential for the pupils to return to school as education cannot wait.
“We are happy that our children are finally going back to school. Most of them have regressed in their studies because they have not been to school since March. Government has been reopening various sectors of the economy and the education sector had been left behind. We just have to accept that there is Covid-19 and education has to move forward despite the pandemic,” said Mrs Nomusa Tshuma, who was accompanying a child at Solusi High School.
Another parent who identified herself as Mrs Sibanda said her only concern was that some teachers were on strike.
Another parent who declined to be named said parents have agreed to incentivise teachers so that they can teach. Government banned schools from demanding incentives for teachers as some of the incentives had become extortionate.
“With what is happening it is better for us to pay the little incentives to teachers so that they return to the classroom to teach our children. Our children have already lost a lot of time as they have been stuck at home for seven months without learning. We just hope Government will urgently address the teachers’ concerns so that normalcy returns to schools. Our children’s future is at stake,” said the concerned parent.
Break and lunch time will be staggered to prevent pupils crowding while sporting activities are banned.
In the past pupils or teachers who were not feeling well could attend classes but in the new normal this will be prohibited as the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education has adopted a stay at home policy for those feeling unwell until they recover.
Covid-19 is known to be more deadly among those with underlying diseases hence schools will now be required to keep records of teachers and pupils with underlying conditions without stigmatising them.
A maximum of 35 pupils will be permitted in a single classroom as learners and teachers will be required to maintain a physical or social distancing of at least one metre. -Herald
Barcelona coach Ronald Koeman has blamed VAR for his team’s loss in the Clasico on Saturday.
The Catalans lost 3-1 at home to rivals Real Madrid who scored their second goal from the spot after a VAR review.
Sergio Ramos was awarded a penalty midway through the second half when his shirt was tugged by Barca defender Clement Lenglet. He converted the kick as his side went on to win the encounter.
Barca, on the other end, had two penalty appeals turned down when Lionel Messi went down from a challenge by Raphael Varane in the first half and when the ball bounced off the arm of Varane in the second.
Neither incident was reviewed by the referee on the pitchside monitor.
“I don’t understand VAR, I think it is only used to make decisions against Barca,” Koeman told a news conference.
“You always get shirt tugs like that in the area and I think Ramos makes a foul on Lenglet first. There’s a tug of the shirt, but not enough to make him fall behind as he did… For me, it’s not a penalty.
“We have had five matches and (VAR) has only been used to go against Barca. It’s never gone our way.”-Soccer 24
Teachers’ unions have described as “daylight robbery” Government’s approval of a steep hike in school fees, a development which was confirmed by Primary and Secondary Education Minister Cain Mathema.
The latest school fees increases will see some pupils at boarding and urban day high schools forking out in excess of $55 000 up from $6 000 and $20 000 up from $3 000 per term, respectively.
Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ) president Takavafira Zhou said the fees were certainly beyond the reach of many parents, particularly civil servants.
He said: Our position is that parents must stop paying fees until teachers and government find each other over teachers’ welfare, health and safety.
Sending kids to school when teachers are not teaching is a waste of time; the fees are certainly beyond the reach of many parents, particularly teachers.
Mathema asserted that the fees hikes had been approved after no parent formally raised objections with his ministry.
However, parents who spoke to NewsDay said school heads just presented them with figures to choose from and the process was not clear at all.
Zhou said some school heads manipulated the parents by giving them inflated figures to choose from and in some cases school heads bribe education officials to have their fees approved.
Said Zhou: … school heads have learnt ways of cutting corners and even get government approval of fees without following appropriate procedures.
Heads manipulate attendance registers so that they are presented as consent over a figure that even parents would have shot down, while in some cases, heads bribe authorities at the provincial level to get fees approvals.
Some fees are even unilateral, pegged by schools without input from parents.-NewsDay
ZIMBABWE coach Zdravko “Loga” Logarusic insists he will give priority to players committed to the Warriors’ cause, amid indications there is friction between the gaffer and some of the United Kingdom-born players, popularly known as the British Brigade.
The Croat said he spent the last few weeks having one-on-one discussions with players he is targeting to use for the back-to-back Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers against continental champions Algeria next month.
Although Loga refused to reveal the names of players whose commitment he is questioning, The Sunday Mail Sport has established that one of them is Queens Park Rangers forward Macauley Bonne.
The former Charlton Athletic striker, who has only featured for Zimbabwe in two friendly matches, has once again ruled himself out of the Warriors squad to play Algeria.
Loga has also spoken to Nottingham defender Tendai Darikwa, Reading player Andy Rinomhota, Kundai Benyu (Wealdstone), Adam Chicksen (Notts County), and left-back Jordan Zemura, who is rising through the ranks at Championship side AFC Bournemouth.
“I don’t normally discuss my players in newspapers, so I can’t tell the names of those players who are not interested.
“What I can tell you is that I have talked to over 90 percent of players I want to use against Algeria and some of them do not want to play,” Loga said yesterday.-The Sunday Mail
GOVERNMENT will this week ramp up monitoring of teacher attendance in schools to assess staffing gaps and determine areas that need additional educators to cover for those not reporting for duty.
Next year’s examination classes — Grade 6, Form 3 and Lower Sixth — will commence school tomorrow under the Phase Two reopening plan.
Provincial and district education officers will intensify daily assessments of teachers’ attendance registers at schools to establish staffing gaps which could be covered by hiring more teachers.
Already, Government has recruited 2 300 teachers, with an additional 3 000 to ensure Standard Health Operating Procedures are effected properly.
The monitoring will allow authorities to evaluate the extent to which this year’s syllabus has been covered and the methods that can be deployed to help pupils catch up.
Minister of Primary and Secondary Education Cain Mathema told The Sunday Mail that all schools are adequately prepared for reopening.
The Ministry’s communication and advocacy director Mr Taungana Ndoro said monitoring will allow authorities to assess gaps in staffing levels.
“There have been daily assessments going on and are still ongoing.
“We anticipate the number of pupils attending school to increase as more classes open,” said Mr Ndoro.
“We seek to establish gaps in terms of human resources so that regulations such as social distancing can be properly implemented. However, in terms of preparation, schools are ready to open on Monday.”-The Sunday Mail
By A Correspondent- The Zimbabwe Nurses Association (ZINA) has objected to the unilateral decision by the Ministry of Health and Childcare to scrap the flexible working hours system.
In a letter to Health secretary Jasper Chimedza dated October 21, ZINA president Enock Dongo accused Chimedza of acting bad good faith. He wrote:
The decision to implement the flexible working hour system is a product of agreement within the HSBNP [Health Service Bipartite Negotiating Panel]. It was not given unilaterally by the government nor did the employees adopt it on their own accord.
With this in mind, your decision to unilaterally remove a system which you found in place and, in any event, was reached by agreement, is irregular and certainly not in good faith.
Dongo added that on May 11, 2020, the Ministry had made it clear that the flexible hour system would remain in place because it reduced exposure to coronavirus.
Said Dongo:
Tied to the above, the flexi-hour system did not only address issues to do with PPE but also addressed issues of incapacity.
When you go to the origins of adopting this system, the reason was that regular working hours were becoming expensive to maintain on the salaries nurses were getting.
Chimedza on October 19 directed provincial medical directors to resume normal working hours for all nurses, saying the flexi working hours were creating artificial nurse shortages.-statemedia
MASVINGO residents have written to the city council demanding that the local authority take action, within seven days, to address the proliferation of illegal gold miners at the Target Kopje Hills whose activities are affecting the city’s water supplies and nearby residential properties.
Through the Masvingo United Residents and Ratepayers Association (MURRA), the residents said in a letter dated 16 October 2020, council should quickly move in to stop the illegal mining activities in the area or be dragged to court.
Through its lawyers, Mutendi, Mudisi and Shumba, MURRA said the mining activities were damaging the water reservoirs and contaminating purified water stored in the tanks before being distributed to the city suburbs.
Residents in areas near the hills that include, Target Kopje, Hillside Extension, Mucheke B popularly known as Majange and Mucheke C have complained that the constant blasting of explosives by the miners is damaging their properties.
“It is also common cause that the water reservoir tanks that store water supply for the whole City of Masvingo are located at the said area. We are informed that the said water storage tanks have a capacity of more or less 10 million litres.
If these illegal miners are not stopped the water reservoir tanks may end up bursting which will culminate in flooding and destruction of structures,” reads part of the letter.
The residents said the illegal gold panners are using dangerous chemicals such as cyanide and mercury which are also dangerous if they pollute the water.
“We give you seven days to address the above issue or to sit down with our client and unpack your strategic plan on how you intend to stop the illegal mining activities. If either of the above is not done within seven working days calculated from the date of this letter our client may be forced to approach the courts for relief.”-The Sunday News
Matopo High School outside Bulawayo has advised parents not to send more children to the school while investigations are being carried out on the death of one learner at the school in what is suspected to have been Covid-19 related.
A memorandum circulated to parents and made available to ZimEye.com indicates that the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education gave the school a waiver not to receive the returning form 3 and Lower Six learners until the death is fully investigated.
Below is the circular memo written by the school to all learners:
Good Evening Parents. As Head of the school I have been making consultations with Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education on Phase 2 Opening of schools. In light of the untimely death of one of our Learners, l wish to officially inform you that, The Permanent Secretary of Education in the Ministry has granted Matopo High school a waiver to open schools on Wednesday 28 October 2020 pending the outcome of the postmortem results of our dearly departed Learner. Therefore, there will be no traveling of Learners tomorrow (Sunday), 25th October 2020,until Clearance has been granted. Any delay in sending this important message is sincerely regretted.Sibanda G(Head).
GOVERNMENT will this week ramp up monitoring of teacher attendance in schools to assess staffing gaps and determine areas that need additional educators to cover for those not reporting for duty.
Next year’s examination classes — Grade 6, Form 3 and Lower Sixth — will commence school tomorrow under the Phase Two reopening plan.
Provincial and district education officers will intensify daily assessments of teachers’ attendance registers at schools to establish staffing gaps which could be covered by hiring more teachers.
Already, Government has recruited 2 300 teachers, with an additional 3 000 to ensure Standard Health Operating Procedures are effected properly.
The monitoring will allow authorities to evaluate the extent to which this year’s syllabus has been covered and the methods that can be deployed to help pupils catch up.
Minister of Primary and Secondary Education Cain Mathema told The Sunday Mail that all schools are adequately prepared for reopening.
The Ministry’s communication and advocacy director Mr Taungana Ndoro said monitoring will allow authorities to assess gaps in staffing levels.
“There have been daily assessments going on and are still ongoing.
“We anticipate the number of pupils attending school to increase as more classes open,” said Mr Ndoro.
“We seek to establish gaps in terms of human resources so that regulations such as social distancing can be properly implemented. However, in terms of preparation, schools are ready to open on Monday.”
Minister Mathema said schools will be equipped with the requisite Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and the safety of pupils, teachers and support staff is guaranteed.
“We are prepared and ready to open schools under the second
phase,” said Minister Mathema.
“Schools have been receiving PPE since we opened for the First Phase and it has been an ongoing process. Preparations for schools opening for all phases have been going on for some time now and we are prepared to open schools even for the last phase.”
He said the number of teachers attending class had been steadily rising over the last few weeks, adding that only a handful are not reporting for duty.
National Association of School Heads president Mr Arthur Maphosa said adequate PPE had been provided for all schools.
“The issue of PPE is no longer much of an issue, yes, there might be gaps here and there but Government has been trying to supply,” said Mr Maphosa.
“The biggest issue now is that there are no adequate teachers. Some mission schools have teachers because there were arrangements made between the schools and parents.
“However, in rural and most public schools there are no teachers. At times the attendance register shows that only two out of 47 would have reported for duty, with the two being the head of the school and the deputy.”
He said salary negotiations between Government and public sector workers should be expedited to break the impasse between the two parties.
Salary negotiations
As schools continue with the phased reopening, negotiations for a salary review for public sector workers will commence soon.
Public Service Commission secretary Ambassador Jonathan Wutawunashe said negotiations were ongoing through the National Joint Negotiating Council (NJNC).
“I was informed by the leader of the Government team that the two parties are now working on a suitable date to meet and continue with negotiations,” said Amb Wutawunashe.
“The negotiations will not be for teachers only but the whole civil service sector. That is why there has been a call for teachers to go to their respective stations while their grievances are being attended to.
“Other civil servants are going to work, so it is important for teachers’ unions to tell their members to be at work until finalisation of the negotiations.”
Schools reopened last month starting with examination classes – Grade 7, Form 4 and Upper Sixth – on 28 September. The rest of the classes will open on November 9.
Government recently released $600 million to fund the improvement of sanitation at schools and to enable them to reopen safely. The funds were used to procure PPE for use by learners and teachers.
South African rapper Cassper Nyovest (real name Refiloe Maele Phoolo) has mourned the death of Bulawayo based rapper Cal Vin (real name Mgcini Calvin Nhliziyo) who died this morning in Bulawayo after a hit and run driver of a White Mazda Familia car with no plates ran over him in the early hours of Sunday the 25th of October.
Cassper Nyovest took to Twitter to share his condolences for Cal Vin in a tweet that said Zimbabwe has lost a passionate artist. Tweeted the award-winning rapper:
Rest in peace big dawg. Sad news. Zimbabwe rap icon Cal Vin. What a passionate guy
Cassper in 2015 featured on Cal Vin’s song Zikhupan’ and the song was a chart-topper and also won the Song of the year award at the Zimbabwe Hip Hop Awards that same year.
Meanwhile, another rapper who died on 5 October M.O The Rapper ( real name Alvin Munondo)’s song M.O Mutema’s music video was released on YouTube today. M.O The rapper succumbed to injuries sustained during an accident on 5 October but his death only came to light on social media today.
The Thokozani Khupe led MDC-T has said all economic saboteurs must face the music saying continuous blaming of sanctions for economic collapse by the country’s leadership was not helpful.
It said a cocktail of past disastrous economic policies and “our own acts of omission and commission” are to the root cause for the meltdown.
In a statement to coincide with the second SADC Anti-Sanctions Day commemoration on 25 Sunday, the opposition lamented the suffering of the people and workers who are bearing the brunt of sanctions.
“Whist we call for the unconditional removal of sanctions, we also urge the government to address policy missteps and corruption, whose net effect on the economy may exceed the economic impact of sanctions,” Tapiwa Mashakada, MDC-T Secretary for Finance and Economic Affairs said.
He added “Economic saboteurs must be brought to book” without naming any.
Zanu PF is accused of using the sanctions mantra as an excuse for its economic failures.
The ruling party has always attributed economic, humanitarian and political crises in the country to sanctions which were imposed at the turn of the millennium following the controversial fast-track land reform.
Some say corruption which is rampant in the country is the leading factor choking efforts to revive the collapsed economy.
Western states including the United Kingdom, the United States and members of the European Union argue that the sanctions are measures meant to coerce Zimbabwe to return to constitutionalism, rule of law and good governance.
Mashakada called for “doubling of efforts” to remove sanctions saying ordinary Zimbabweans are suffering.
“As a pro-poor and labour backed party, the MDC-T laments the suffering of the people and workers who are bearing the brunt of sanctions.”
He added, “The economy is partly hamstrung by sanctions due to restrictions faced by corresponding banks and difficulties in accessing new capital as Zidera gives the United States of America veto powers on the Boards of the main Multi-Lateral bodies such as the IMF and World Bank.”
Mashakada said respect international law in its governance architecture was key in removal of sanctions.
“Finally let us desist from blaming sanctions for our own acts of omission and commission.
In calling for the unconditional removal of sanctions we must be honest and accept that some of the economic policies implemented in the past stoked inflation, the budget deficit, currency and exchange rate volatility. Let us fix the issues we control and not just mourn about sanctions.”
However, MDC-T credited itself through its late founding president and former Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai for a massive reduction of people on sanctions list.
“Through our contribution to the re-engagement efforts during the GNU (2009-2013), most travel restrictions were removed and to date, less than 3 people remain on the Sanctions travel ban list.
“Thanks to the wisdom of our late icon Dr Morgan Richard Tsvangirai who made a clarion call for the removal of what he called “all restrictive measures”.
Mashakada also claimed that his formation “fought” for a new Constitution in 2013 which now provides for compensation for developments on the land through the enactment of the US$3.5 billion Global Compensation Deed signed on 29 July between government and former farm owners.
The billion-dollar compensation agreement is expected to bring finality the emotive land issue as envisaged by the country’s constitution.
The Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi while in an interview with the Daily News President Mnangagwa offering firebrand opposition leader Nelson Chamisa the position of the leader of the opposition in parliament was just a rumor, Chamisa was never offered anything.
Ziyambi has been asked:
After the election, President Mnangagwa wanted to offer Chamisa that position.
And he responded and said:
I am not sure Chamisa was offered that position. People were simply discussing, but outside Parliament. Then we needed to change the legislation (because he was not an MP). But if he was an MP and leader of the opposition in Parliament, the Parliament has a provision to offer him that position.
Ziyambi also said lockdown restrictions were still in place and the MDC Alliance might not be able to protest as planned when he was asked:
Our laws are sufficient to deal with them. If you want to protest, you give the necessary notices in terms of the Maintenance of the Peace and Order Bill, you follow the due process that is required.
But as far as I am concerned, because of the Covid-19 pandemic, there is a curfew and there are restrictions on movement.
I am not sure how he wants to protest without violating the laws and our security is on high alert to stop anyone who wants to violate the laws of this country.
The government of Zimbabwe recently spent millions of dollars on luxury cars for senior officials while complaining of sanctions and claiming to be the reason behind the deepening economic collapse that has plunged citizens into profound hardship.
The new cars, including dozens of Range Rovers and Toyota pick-up trucks worth more than $40,000, were distributed to ambassadors and senior civil servants.
Analysts say the move constitutes a new effort to shore up support for the government of President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who took power after the military coup that ousted Robert Mugabe in 2017.
Dozens of luxury models are also believed to have been distributed to senior army officers, while junior ranks have received more modest vehicles. The total cost has not been disclosed but some of the purchases have been confirmed by ministers in answers to parliamentarians.
Sibusiso Moyo, Zimbabwe’s foreign minister, told the parliamentary foreign affairs committee that new vehicles had been delivered to all Zimbabwe’s 50 diplomatic envoys and some other staff.
In another parliamentary hearing, the head of Zimbabwe’s health services board confirmed that commissioners recently took delivery of Range Rover Discoveries worth around $50,000 each. Paulinus Sikosana said the distribution was standard practice for senior bureaucrats.
Currently, thousands of nurses, doctors, and teachers are on strike in protest at working conditions, a lack of protective equipment and low salaries.
Mnangagwa has blamed the economic malaise on sanctions and some unnamed “political detractors”.
“What’s unusual about the expenditure [on luxury cars] is that it comes when the government is under siege financially. It looks like a desperate effort to scaffold their support. The real challenge for Mnangagwa is that the policy of patronage and plunder means significant reform is impossible,” said Piers Pigou, an analyst with the International Crisis Group.
Barcelona coach Ronald Koeman has blamed VAR for his team’s loss in the Clasico on Saturday.
The Catalans lost 3-1 at home to rivals Real Madrid who scored their second goal from the spot after a VAR review.
Sergio Ramos was awarded a penalty midway through the second half when his shirt was tugged by Barca defender Clement Lenglet. He converted the kick as his side went on to win the encounter.
Barca, on the other end, had two penalty appeals turned down when Lionel Messi went down from a challenge by Raphael Varane in the first half and when the ball bounced off the arm of Varane in the second.
Neither incident was reviewed by the referee on the pitchside monitor.
“I don’t understand VAR, I think it is only used to make decisions against Barca,” Koeman told a news conference.
“You always get shirt tugs like that in the area and I think Ramos makes a foul on Lenglet first. There’s a tug of the shirt, but not enough to make him fall behind as he did… For me, it’s not a penalty.
“We have had five matches and (VAR) has only been used to go against Barca. It’s never gone our way.”-Soccer 24
Farai Dziva|The MDC Alliance is appealing for donations to assist jailed activist Terrence Manjengwa’s family.
Manjengwa was arrested for standing in solidarity with MDC Alliance vice chairperson Job Sikhala.
See the MDC Alliance statement below :
While Terrence Manjengwa is being incarcerated for a crime he didn’t commit ,we as his extended family must ensure that his wife and young daughter are taken care of.
Terrence’s daughter was born on the same day that his father was arrested, meaning everyday he is incarcerated is a day she gets older without seeing her father.
We all know the hardships that we Zimbabweans are going through day in day out , but it is even more difficult when the sole breadwinner is in prison.
With that in mind it is our duty to see to it that our incarcerated cadres family is well looked after .Lets be that big family that we are and see to it that Mother and Daughter are taken care of.
Below is the contact information of Terrence Manjengwa’s Wife Choice Mukwesha including Ecocash
Choice Mukwesha +263771395548
Please lets help in any way we can be it in cash or in kind. Together we can do it as we have always done.
The history of fighting for an egalitarian society has been littered with pretenders.
It was absolutely clear that the Muzorewa attempt to unseat the Mugabe Zanu PF led regime from 1980-2005 was failing to gather momentum.
One Douglas Mwonzora remains stuck in illusions that one day the outfit will defeat Zanu PF. The change momentum gathered pace in the late 1990s and it resulted in the formation of MDC.
Many right thinking adults back then joined the promising MDC only the Mwonzoras failed to believe in the MDC’S appeal. Six years after he decided to join the movement not because he believed in it but he found an opportunity to annihilate the party from within.
His modus operandi was clear capture the people by manipulating emotions, use mudslinging as a way of taking power.
The 2013 massive rigging by Zanu PF provided him with an opportunity to deal with the MDC power matrix. The MDC structures easily forgot about rigging and focused much of their anger on the then Organising Secretary Nelson Chamisa. Douglas Mwonzora went on mudslinging spree capitalising on the failure by structures to sift through the Nikuv rigging scheme which was way beyond how primary elections were done.
His scheme which was aided by mudslinging remniscent of Zanu PF 2014 dismissal of Joyce Mujuru managed to win him the Secretary General post.
Some of us who were backing Advocate Chamisa believed back then and to this day that the Congress was rigged and dirty money exchanged hands on the Congress. Hallmarks of a Zanu hand were all over.
Zanu PF had already planned it’s game in advance, cause confusion, scatter cimmitted comrades and ensure voter apathy. As the confusion persists it benefits the Zanu PF regime.
Zanu PF will simply claim to be organised more than the opposition because of one Morrison Nyathi who is after power for power’s sake.
He claims to be a genius in terms of law but he is failing to read the modus operandi which shows a deliberate attempt to ignore the obvious.
Zanu PF is well known for thwarting the opposition’s ability to organise but one Douglas Mwonzora was moving around the country with the sole aim of causing confusion among the opposition supporters . He has indeed become a regime enabler.
