More Zimbabwean companies and institutions on Monday reported cases of Covid-19 infections which have seen them temporarily halting operations in a development that is expected to take a heavy toll on the economy.

Observers say the jump mainly point to a failure by the public to follow laid down regulations concerning hygiene, wearing of masks and social distancing, prompting a wildfire spread of local infections of
the disease.

As of July 26, Zimbabwe had recorded 2 512 confirmed cases of the disease which has so far killed 34 people in the country.

Local transmission accounts for 1 486 of the infections while 1 026 were imported.

On Monday, pension fund, the National Social Security Authority (NSSA), the Infrastructure Development Bank of Zimbabwe (NSSA), Pick ’n Pay, Avenues Clinic and the Parliament of Zimbabwe joined the growing list of institutions that have recorded positive cases of
Covid-19.

“The results so far have revealed six positive samples amongst our
staff members,” the IBDZ said, adding it would close its office in Harare for three days to allow for disinfection.

NSSA said on employee had tested positive forcing, the closure of its Harare head office.

Two Parliamentarians tested positive, Speaker of the National Assembly
Jacob Mudenda said, while at the Avenues Clinic, at least eight staff members were said to have been infected.

A long list of firms including Econet, retailer OK Zimbabwe, Federal
Express, medical aid societies Cimas and PSMAS have already closed part of their operations after employees were affected.

Here is a list of companies and institutions that have temporarily halted operations since the lockdowns restrictions were eased  by the government to allow workers to go back to work about 8 weeks ago, after members of their stuff tested positive for COVID-19:

1. National Social Security Authority (NSSA),
2. Infrastructure Development Bank of Zimbabwe (IDBZ),
3. Pick’n Pay,
4. Avenues Clinic and
5. The Parliament of Zimbabwe
6. Econet,
7. OK Zimbabwe Five Avenue and Mbuya Nehanda
8. Bon Marche Mt Pleasant
9. Federal Express, medical aid societies
10. Cimas and
11. PSMAS.
12. StarAfrica Corporation

Government has tightened lockdown regulations to curtail unnecessary
citizens’ movement to reduce the spread of the disease but cases continue to spike owing largely to disregard of health regulations that have been put in place.

Police have arrested 116 047 people from March to date countrywide for violating national lockdown regulations, as the number of those that have escaped from isolation centres has also risen to 285.

On Saturday alone, police arrested 1 362 people countrywide for various offences related to contravening the regulations.

Most of them were arrested for unnecessary movement, failure to wear masks and offences related to the Liquor Act and the Road Traffic Act.

In a statement on Sunday, national police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi said Harare continued to have the highest numbers of arrests, with 24 925, followed by Manicaland with 22 028, while Bulawayo has 16 009 people arrested.

Those arrested for illegal crossing and smuggling are now 612.

By last week, police had arrested 4 382 motorists, especially errant kombi and pirate taxis operators for operating public transport without exemption.

Last Tuesday, a night curfew from 6pm to 6am for all but essential services and a retreat to 8am to 3pm working hours for exempted businesses was imposed, along with criminalisation of deliberate or reckless transmission of Covid-19.

Announcing the new measures, President Mnangagwa stressed enforcement of other present lockdown rules.

Non-working people should stay at home except for essential movement to buy food, find water or for medical reasons; masks had to be worn outside of homes; everyone screened entering public places and buildings; social distancing observed; public transport passengers screened and sanitised on boarding with buses disinfected between round trips; and intercity movement remains banned.

Businesses already formally exempted and allowed to operate, including food markets, were only affected by the shortening of the working hours by 90 minutes in the afternoons.

The curfew and other changes were the result of the rapid increase in the number of total infections, especially those within Zimbabwean communities, seen recently with local cases now greater than those among returning residents.

OK FIFE AVENUE & OK MBUYA NEHANDA -NOTICE OF TEMPORARY CLOSURE

The company has drawn up a plan to test all staff members for COVID-19 even when there has been no incidence of infection at the different stores or offices. During these screening tests. a few of our staff at OK Fife Avenue were confirmed positive for the virus and have been referred for PCR testing. At OK Mbuya Nehanda a staff member who had other health conditions unfortunately passed on. As a precaution, we have closed the store for decontamination and all staff are being tested. Both stores will be opened once the health authorities clear us to re-open.

At each of the stores, arrangements are made with outside contracted specialist companies to deep clean and thoroughly disinfect the premises as a measure to ensure decontamination. We have taken these steps to ensure that the health and safety of our employees, service providers and customers is safeguarded

• Services
• Building
• Home
• Groceries

• Dating
• Jobs
• Commercial
• Health

We take this opportunity to assure all our stakeholders that the situation is under control. Thorough hygiene practices continue to be conducted at all our stores, workstations and offices and these facilities are deep cleaned as well as disinfected regularly. In addition. we have a scheduled program where we are carrying out routine RDT COVID-19 tests of all employees, customers and service providers at each of our store sites

ALL employees, customers and service providers have their body temperatures checked at entry points to our premises. have their hands sanitised and are required to wear face masks correctly at all times

We are working with City Health departments and the Ministry of Health officials for guidance as follow the required processes and hope to resume the branch operations with minimum delay after full decontamination of the stores.

Mr. A. E. Siyavora Chief Executive Officer

VIDEO LOADING BELOW

https://youtu.be/9aXFxXF3QZ0

Police are looking for more than a dozen opposition politicians and activists suspected to be behind plans for the anti-government protests on July 31.

Top on the police list released on Monday police said they were appealing for information leading to the arrest of MDC Alliance deputy chairman Job Sikhala among others.

Below is the full list of wanted activists:

RESPONSE ON ALLEGATIONS OF FAILURE TO ADMIT MR NORMAN MATARUKA

We have taken note of a widely circulating social media article alleging that doctors discouraged Mr Mataruka from getting admitted at Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals because the hospital was poorly equipped. Contrary to the article, the facts of the matter are as follows:

• Mr Norman Mataruka was referred to Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals COVID-19 Centre on the night of 26 July 2020.

• The patient was admitted into our COVID-19 Centre around 2300hrs on 26 July 2020.
• Our doctors and nurses did their best to resuscitate and stabilize the patient but unfortunately he succumbed to his illness around 0700hrs today, the 27th of July 2020.

We also wish to inform the public that amongst other equipment , our COVID-19 Centre has 7 ventilators and a steady supply of oxygen. We appeal to the general public to desist from circulating unverified information as this exacerbates staff demotivation and also reduces public confidence in public hospital services.

By A Correspondent- At a press conference in Harare today, the ruling party spokesperson former cabinet minister Patrick Chinamasa rallied his party members and urged them to get ready to defend their sovereignty, peace, property and people.

Speaking at the press conference at the Zanu PF headquarters, Chinamasa said, in case law enforcement officers were not close by, Zanu PF members must get ready to fight back should the protestors who he called all sorts of names including hooligans and mercenaries go ahead and protest on 31 July.

Said the former Cyber Security Minister:

Zanu PF calls upon our supporters, cadres and sympathisers, wherever you are, to remain alert and ready to defend yourselves, defend our people, their property and most importantly defend peace in your communities against these malcontents, these hired hooligans and hoodlums who rejoice at burning properties and looting.

They must know that when they are being attacked, law enforcement agents might not be near. In those circumstances, their first line of defence is themselves and their families. They have a legal and constitutional right to defend themselves. Don’t ask for permission from anybody, it’s your constitutional and legal right.

Don’t be intimidated by hooligans and mercenaries. Don’t be like sitting ducks as you were in August 2018, don’t be sitting ducks as you were in January 2019, phoning us (to ask what you should do). No, this time no. Use any means at your disposal to defend yourselves.

Organisers of the protests have emphasised over and over again that the protests will be peaceful, but the government and the ruling party have remained adamant that the protests will be violent to the point of calling them anarchy and arresting those who are calling for them like Jacob Ngarivhume and Hopewell Chin’ono on charges of inciting public violence.

Is there anything such as a man of God in Zimbabwe, Africa?

— ZimEye (@ZimEye) July 26, 2020

Baba Ezekiel Guti

— GENERAL ZIHWIRIMWE (@sorotihurukai) July 26, 2020

paul mwazha the archbishop of Africa

— Lion-Lion (@Shumbasamaz) July 26, 2020

Talent Chiwenga is one we have in Zimbabwe.Kuparidza kwake ndekwemhando yedenga.

— Chipikiri Chitiyo (@BabaVale3) July 26, 2020

Yes, Apostle Chiwenga

— Mr. Dimples (@MrDimPools) July 26, 2020

https://twitter.com/petgumus/status/1287435543886823425?s=20

The trial of Vice President Constantino Chiwenga’s estranged wife Marry Mubaiwa was today deferred after she told the court that she cannot stand trial because of ill-health.

Mubaiwa, through her lawyer Ms Beatrice Mtetwa, told the court that she was still recovering and needs more time to heal. Mubaiwa is facing assault charges after she allegedly attacked her former maid Delight Munyoro.

She appeared before Harare regional magistrate Mrs Marehwanazvo Gofa, who remanded her to September 7 for trial. Mr Charles Muchemwa and Mrs Netsai Mushayabasa prosecuted.

Own Correspondent

Zanu PF spokesperson Patrick Chinamasa has let out party members to fight against July 31 protestors urging them to get ready to defend their “sovereignty, peace, property and people.”

Speaking at the press conference at the Zanu PF headquarters on Monday, Chinamasa said, in case law enforcement officers were not close by, Zanu PF members must get ready to fight the protestors who he called all sorts of names including hooligans and mercenaries.

“Zanu PF calls upon our supporters, cadres and sympathisers, wherever you are, to remain alert and ready to defend yourselves, defend our people, their property and most importantly defend peace in your communities against these malcontents, these hired hooligans and hoodlums who rejoice at burning properties and looting,” said Chinamasa.

“They must know that when they are being attacked, law enforcement agents might not be near. In those circumstances, their first line of defence is themselves and their families. They have a legal and constitutional right to defend themselves. Don’t ask for permission from anybody, it’s your constitutional and legal right.

“Don’t be intimidated by hooligans and mercenaries. Don’t be like sitting ducks as you were in August 2018, don’t be sitting ducks as you were in January 2019, phoning us (to ask what you should do). No, this time no. Use any means at your disposal to defend yourselves,” he said.

Organisers of the protests have emphasised over and over again that the protests will be peaceful, but the government and the ruling party have remained adamant that the protests will be violent to the point of calling them anarchy and arresting those who are calling for them like Jacob Ngarivhume and Hopewell Chin’ono on charges of inciting public violence.

Watch Chinamasa full press conference in the video downloading below.

WATCH VIDEO LOADING BELOW

By A Correspondent- Vice president Chiwenga’s ex-wife Marry Chiwenga nee Mubaiwa’s trial failed to kick off today and was deferred because Marry through her lawyers told the court she could not stand trial because of ill health.

Mubaiwa’s lawyer Beatrice Mtetwa told the court that her client was still recovering and needs more time to heal which prompted Harare Magistrate Marehwanazvo Gofa to remand her till 7 September for trial.

Marry is in court facing assault charges after she reportedly assaulted one Delight Monyoro who was her maid at one point.

-statemedia

The ruling Zanu PF party has threatened to expel the United States ambassador to Harare, Brian Nichols in a new low in diplomatic relations between Harare and Washington.

Addressing journalists at the party headquarters in Harare, acting spokesperson, Patrick Chinamasa said the diplomat should be ashamed of himself.

“I want to warn them (foreign diplomats) that it is high time to know that Zimbabwe is a sovereign Republic and we are a full sovereign state under the Montevideo Convention. The US ambassador whom I am told is African-American, must be totally ashamed of himself.

“What has the United States has to offer in terms of values and human rights observance when his own African American people are treated like rats in full view of world media and he remains an Uncle Tom used to propagate values which by themselves they do not practice on their own people,” said Chinamasa

Without remorse Chinamasa warned Ambassador Nichols that should he continue to undermining the country’s laws Zanu PF will not hesitate to expel him.

“He continues to engage in acts of undermining this Republic and if he does so, if he continues engaging in acts of undermining the Republic mobilizing and funding disturbances coordinating violence and training insurgency our leadership will not hesitate to give him his marching orders.

“Diplomats should not behave like thugs and Brian Nichols is a thug. We remind Nichols that he is not a super Diplomat in this country. There are several Diplomats seconded to this republic from African Union countries and the world over. They have never masqueraded and pretended to be our prefects as Mr Nichols is doing. We have nothing to learn from the United States or from countries which impose sanctions” he said

The threats come at a time Government has also issued statements accusing the American embassy of funding the planned July 31 protests.

Parliament has got it the hard way after the High Court ruled against non governmental organisations that sort to block holding of public hearings during the Covid-19 lockdown time.

Two urgent chamber applications were filed by two advocacy groups seeking to stop parliament from conducting public hearings in Zimbabwe on some proposed amendments of the constitution when the country is under a coronavirus COVID-19 lockdown but Parliament challenged the move.

In an urgent chamber application filed on Thursday 11 June 2020 by Job Sibanda of Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR), Habakkuk Trust represented by its Chief Executive Officer Dumisani Nkomo, argued that Zimbabwe is currently facing a health pandemic which had necessitated the imposition of a national lockdown, where public gatherings were virtually banned to try and curb the spread of coronavirus.

Habakkuk Trust argued that by conducting public hearings to discuss some proposed amendments to the Constitution, Parliament, Chokuda and Ziyambi were putting the health of the public at risk at a time of the coronavirus pandemic.

Two Members of Parliament, a journalist and a driver have since tested positive for Covid-19, while going on a public consultations round.

The issue has prompting Speaker of the National Assembly Jacob Mudenda to immediately suspend Parliamentary activities.

The officials from the Transport committee were part of a team that had been on field visits around the country when two MPs developed symptoms, Mudenda said.

“Two members were showing some signs of infection, all members were tested and the two members tested positive, plus our driver of the bus and the reporter who had accompanied them,” Mudenda said.

“Other committees that were supposed to travel to the Eastern borders, their trip had to be cancelled,” he added.

The business of Parliament, including sittings of both Houses, committee workshops, public hearings and site visits, have been suspended with immediate effect.

“Consequently, tomorrow’s sitting for the National Assembly will be done with very limited numbers for the sole purpose of adjourning to a future date,” Parliament said in a statement.

“This will allow for deep cleaning and disinfection of the Parliament Building and contact tracing and testing of those who came into contact with the affected Members of Parliament.”

Meanwhile, MPs and officials who were part of the affected team are now in self-quarantine in line with ministry of Health guidelines.

Own Correspondent

Reports received indicate that Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services (ZPCS) authorities have turned away visitors who had gone to see remanded journalist Hopewell Chin’ono.

The visitors are reported to have been bringing with Covid19 essentials such as sanitisers, a toothbrush and a bathing towel for the award winning journalist.

Chinono’s visitors expressed that they were concerned that when he was arrested last Monday, he did not carry any toiletries with him.

According to the reports, the prison officer who attended to them insisted that he was not going to allow them to either see him or leave the toiletries.

Farai Dziva|An MDC Alliance member was brutally killed by a Zanu PF activist for challenging the partisan distribution of food aid in Bulilima.

According to the MDC Alliance, the party member was killed by a Neighbourhood Watch Committee officer aligned to Zanu PF

See full statement below :

27-07-2020

MDC Alliance Youth, Mazwi Ndlovu, son to former MDC Bulilima East Ward 2 Councillor Msongelwa Ndlovu was viciously attacked and killed in cold murder by a member of the ZRP neighborhood watch for questioning partisan food distribution by a ZANU PF Councillor.

Ndlovu was killed over the weekend by a ZRP neighborhood watch, Twoboy Moyo after confronting a known ZANU PF member, one Bhebhe over partisan food distribution.

Matabeleland South is one of the drought prone areas and this year is not an exception hence people depend much on food relief usually donated by Non Governmental Organizations.

Sadly over the years ZANU PF abuses its influence in the province to deny opposition supporters equal access to food aid.

Under the government of MDC Alliance, equal access to food for all remains our priority.

Meanwhile, the MDC Alliance Youth Assembly will deploy peace monitors to ensure equal access to donor aid especially during this trying time when the majority are facing starvation.

Stephen Sarkozy Chuma
MDC Alliance Youth Assembly National Spokesperson

Mudenda shuts down parliament building as 2 MPs and a journalist test positive #COVIDー19 pic.twitter.com/WKlQouYHIX

— ZimEye (@ZimEye) July 27, 2020

All Business of Parliament has been Suspended Until Further Notice

The Clerk of Parliament has this morning made the following announcement:

It is with a heavy heart that Parliament announces the suspension of most of its business due to exposure of some Members & Parliament to COVID-19. As at this morning, only two Members of Parliament had been confirmed positive. A driver from one of our service providers and a journalist who were part of the team also tested positive. Our thoughts and prayers are with the affected and their families. The Members were part of a team that had been on field visits around the country. Everyone who was part of that team is now in self-quarantine in line with the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare guidelines This measure has been taken to safeguard the health of Members of Parliament, staff and the public who interact with the institution. Consequently, tomorrow’s sitting for the National Assembly will be done with very limited numbers for the sole purpose of adjourning to a future date This will allow for the deep-cleaning and disinfection of the Parliament Building and contact tracing and testing of those who came into contact with the affected Members of Parliament.

Parliament of Zimbabwe will continue to monitor the situation and Members of the public will be duly advised of the date of resumption of the business of Parliament. 

By A Correspondent- In the early 1960s Mildred Nhliziyo a school teacher met Edward Nyanyiwa at a church function.

This charismatic, hardworking and humble man, nicknamed ‘Mujubeki’ because he had lived in Joburg for several years, won her over with his love and respect for God.

In 1964 Edward married Mildred and together with his son Terrance from a previous relationship set out on their journey of Christian marriage and fellowship.

Ten years later, Edward Nyanyiwa was away working in South West Africa (Namibia) operating machinery in construction.

Mildred Nyanyiwa was on maternity leave from her teaching post. Her favourite subject was domestic science so she relied on her skills and love of cooking to earn an income.

TALK OF THE TOWN

She started selling tea and sadza to labourers. She was living up to her nickname ‘Pfugari’.

The word Pfugari is known to mean ‘we will feed you’. It defines ‘communal eating’ and some say it’s literal translation means ‘with this pot we will feed you till you are full’.

Mildred’s fame spread because of how she cooked and in 1974 she was interviewed by a local radio station.

The journalist who interviewed her reportedly confessed that Mildred was the talk of the town and said ‘tanzwa nemukurumbira kuti panomudzimai atanga business pano.’

Her daughter, Itai, told ZimEye that this interview was overheard by a colleague of Mr Edward Nyanyiwa’s who was on holiday from South West Africa.

On returning to work, he informed everyone there that ‘Uyu anonyebera kuti ane nhamo asi ndakanzwa mukadzi wake paradio. Ane business raanaro paMachipisa’.

Edward Nyanyiwa immediately took leave and came home and persuaded Mildred not to return to teaching but instead pursue the business as it was lucrative.

He however returned to work and left his wife operating her business. By the end of 1974, the business had grown to such an extent that Nyanyiwa saw the need to give up his job and join his wife full time, marking the couple’s turning point.

HARDWORK

In 1980 Edward and Mildred Nyanyiwa registered their company as Eddies Pfugari Private Limited- Eddies a shortened version of Edward’s name and Pfugari his wife’s nickname.

In fact, the pfugari pots have been the logo representing the Pfugari business and were in honour of Mildred Nyanyiwa.

The business was built on takeaways and expanded into butcheries and then properties.

Nyanyiwa and his family understood that the name Pfugari represented Mildred’s interests in any business venture.

Husband and wife had equal shares and responsibilities in the family business. Mildred Nyanyiwa worked day and night with her husband for over 25 years.

A devoted and loyal wife, a business partner, a loving mother but above all, a God-fearing woman, Mildred put her trust in her husband the man with whom she had set out on the journey of Christian marriage in 1964.

The couple’s first business, a café in the backyards of Harare’s Highfield high density suburb started off modest before they expanded and got space in the central business district.

Together with her husband, the couple would cook their food in black Kango pots mainly used in households and sell it throughout the day before counting their daily returns at 11pm.

They aimed bigger and always did things differently as the duo had a vision to see their empire flourish and grow.

SUCCESS

The Pfugaris business was an instant success and they moved into the CBD where they opened their first restaurant at Charge Office in 1978.

Business had expanded, assets amounting to millions of USD had been accumulated; everything they had originated from the Eddies Pfugari money.

The parent company, and other companies they later formed or bought were operating as ‘one economic unit’.

WHAT NEXT AFTER THE TRAGEDY?

Tragedy struck in 2005 with the death of Mrs Mildred Nyanyiwa. She died having built the business with her husband, equal partners with equal number of shares in their business.

The year is 2016 and what has this year have to do with Mildred Nyanyiwa who is long dead.

Yes, she is dead but on the 10th January 2016, Mr Stern Mufara was appointed as executor dative to the estate of the late Mrs Mildred T. Nyanyiwa DR 2895/15. The beneficiaries of this estate are Mr Stephen Nyanyiwa, Mrs Naume Makumbe, Miss Henrietta Nyanyiwa and Mrs Itai Collier.

Mr Edward Nyanyiwa later passed on in February 2019 with Mr Clever Mandizvidza appointed executor dative to the late Edward Nyanyiwa’s estate DR 471/19.

Beneficiaries of this estate are the two customary wives he married after the death of Mildred; Hazel Nyanyiwa and Nancy Nyanyiwa (niece to his first wife, Mildred) and his 5 children: Edward Nyanyiwa (Jnr), Stephen Nyanyiwa, Naume Makumbe, Henrietta Nyanyiwa and Itai Collier.

Unfortunately, Terrance had died in 1997.

Mildred’s beneficiaries await the distribution of her estate which is entwined with that of her husband.

Edrward and Mildred Pfugari had set out on their journey 50/50. Will their wishes be fulfilled and will the estate be distributed accordingly?

Farai Dziva|An MDC Alliance member was brutally killed by a Zanu PF activist for challenging the partisan distribution of food aid in Bulilima.

According to the MDC Alliance, the party member was killed by a Neighbourhood Watch Committee officer aligned to Zanu PF

See full statement below :

27-07-2020

MDC Alliance Youth, Mazwi Ndlovu, son to former MDC Bulilima East Ward 2 Councillor Msongelwa Ndlovu was viciously attacked and killed in cold murder by a member of the ZRP neighborhood watch for questioning partisan food distribution by a ZANU PF Councillor.

Ndlovu was killed over the weekend by a ZRP neighborhood watch, Twoboy Moyo after questioning the a known ZANU PF member, one Bhebhe over partisan food distribution from donor aid.

Matabeleland South is one of the drought prone areas and this year is not an exception hence people depend much on food relief usually donated by Non Governmental Organizations.

Sadly over the years ZANU PF abuses its influence in the province to deny opposition supporters equal access to food aid.

Under the government of MDC Alliance, equal access to food for all remains our priority.

Meanwhile, the MDC Alliance Youth Assembly will deploy peace monitors to ensure equal access to donor aid especially during this trying time when the majority are facing starvation.

Stephen Sarkozy Chuma
MDC Alliance Youth Assembly National Spokesperson

26-07-2020.

HARARE—I have made a deliberate and sensible choice not to lower my expectations in life and be part of the “Stay Positive” brigade and that decision is non-negotiable.

That nonsense of being asked to stay positive when there is nothing to be positive about is what made this country the absolute Shit Hole it is today!

At a social level, this “Shinga Mwanangu” claptrap has seen our sisters live miserable marriages generation after generation, whilst being pummeled daily by bullying and horrible husbands.

This is NO different to what the Emmerson Mnangagwa regime is doing to us by refusing to fully implement Political Reforms that would set this country on a strong economic footing.

What is there to be positive about in this country and why should citizens be asked to suffer whilst smiling at the outcomes of their tormentor’s cruelty, a tormentor that does not seek to change his ways?

We have no clean running water, no electric power, no jobs, no money, no political will to Reform from Emmerson Mnangagwa, no fuel, we have CORRUPTION galore, no health care, nepotism and mismanagement of State institutions continues, looting of State and national resources also continues unabated, fraud by the political elites remains standard and yet you expect Hopewell Chin’ono and the country to be positive?

Positive about what exactly?

We have no bright future under this regime and it is deliberately killing that future for generations to come, should we be smiling to that tragic reality?

NO! I will not lower my standards and join the “Stay Positive” brigade in a hole by making life there comfortable instead of getting out and seeking a normal human existence.

My father taught me that if you are in a hole, don’t make life there comfortable, GET OUT.

The elites have been making life in our hole comfortable for themselves by buying generators, buying solar equipment installations, drilling boreholes, buying 4 X 4s, seeking medical treatment from South Africa and the list goes on.

What my father taught me is what I have chosen to do, I have chosen to be on the right side of history, I have chosen to be with the people, and that requires me to work on getting out of that hole!

I have made this choice at a time when I could have been with the tormentors making millions like what the Regime Associates do daily, but that is not how I was brought up!

I might not live to see a better Zimbabwe through natural or unnatural circumstances, but I am at peace with the decisions that I have made, and I am not afraid to die for holding those principles.

Many have asked me about that probability as a price for speaking out, I respectfully ask you not to ask me anymore.

I know the price for speaking against a gangster State, but more importantly, I also know the huge price for keeping quiet.

It is a soft genocide that we are seeing everyday as we bury our loved ones dying in hospitals without medication.

We shall all die, but it is what we leave behind that will count many centuries after we are gone, so I am at peace with any such eventuality were it to happen to me.

It has happened to many others, and it shall happen to many others too until our politics becomes civilized.

I am a product of my existence and as such, what I say and what I do with my life is a reflection of how I was brought up by my parents!

We live under an incompetent and corrupt government that hires private jets for Vice Presidents, a Government that dishes out cars to traditional Chiefs when hospitals have NO ambulances!

A government that has left the poor to die from easily treatable diseases and turned public hospitals into death traps, and yet some amongst us have the nerve to ask me to stay positive?!

We have been asked to stay positive since 1997 when this crisis began, what has that positivity yielded for our people 22 years later?

Some make these calls whilst sitting in their Range Rovers or call me from air-conditioned mansions in Harare asking me to be positive.

It shows the huge and shameful disconnect between the Haves and the Have-Nots of this country and it also shows that whilst making their millions, the elites of this country will continue being happy cohabiting with this regime’s broken moral compass!

I want to put it on the record, until this government starts doing the right things, it’s Regime Associates and Apologists should Stop asking me to be positive!

It is nonsense and it is insensitive to ask me to be positive when I am seeing compatriots die daily because of this government’s shortcomings!

I do not seek to be accommodated at the feeding trough like many amongst us, that is why I turned down the offer to sit on a parastatal board when it was made last year, what I am after is a better life for all.

A life that gives all hard working citizens of this country a fair chance to live a decent life.

They will never get it at the rate at which this government is destroying our country, they will never get these opportunities if elites continue to seek accommodation instead of CHANGE in return to keeping their business interests going!

The selfishness of the elites is only truly self evident when those opportunities are blocked for their own kids, that is only when they join the masses in protesting.

But why would they complain when they were getting forex at 1 to 1 and when they don’t spend hours in fuel queues like the ordinary citizen?

There is a name for that, SELFISHNESS!

I come from Murewa where one of the first black millionaire businessmen in Rhodesia, Mr Kanyasa of the Farai Uzumba bus service fame chose principle over money.

He died in a Rhodesian jail fighting the racist colonial regime’s oppression and racist corruption.

There were many black businessmen like him who made profit not for profit’s sake.

Those are my heroes, those are the people that I look up to because they understood that being rich on the back of regime favors in a pool of government induced poverty is the equivalent of losing your soul to the devil.

If they had taken the “stay positive” route, Rhodesia would have stayed in colonial and racist shackles forever or much longer than was necessary.

Mr Kanyasa from Uzumba and of the Wafawanaka totem had the largest fleet of buses in Rhodesia, a hard working millionaire businessman.

He also had supermarkets and land, but he chose to support the liberation struggle giving freedom fighters clothes, food and money and allowing his buses to ferry them where need be.

He paid the ultimate price for it, but today he remains an icon of our liberation struggle and to this very day those with a moral compass remember him in their thoughts.

I have no such wealth like Mr Kanyasa, so why should I reduce and recede my integrity by tacitly supporting a broken regime when a man who could have thought of saving his millions chose to do the right thing?

I have questioned myself why black millionaires of today and political elites become so insensitive to the suffering of our people to the point of losing their moral compass and expecting someone who is going to bed on an empty stomach to be sensitive!

Positive about what?

“Being positive” doesn’t fix political and economic problems, it doesn’t fix crippling power shortages, drug shortages, cash shortages, fuel shortages or water shortages.

If it did we would have been living in a better country where the citizen was happy!

It shows that we have NO decent community and business leadership when people in privileged positions in our society ask us to be positive in the midst of an uncaring Regime.

It shows that we have NO leadership when the privileged define silence against a corrupt regime as patriotism!

This government has induced a chaotic existence in pursuit of easy pickings from things like fuel cartels and forex trading at the central bank, the RBZ!

This “stay positive” brigade is shameless because they speak from their own position of privilege and they are unconcerned by why we are not positive as long as their lives remain on track and their interests are protected?

The regime is aware of this weakness so it seeks to co-opt them and pretends to sort out their economic concerns through tinkering with the economy whilst the looting continues, and the regime also gives them futile seats on the table to feel special.

When truth, justice and common sense become secondary elements to one’s existence, when decency, empathy and compassion become tradable commodities, then the “stay positive” brigade becomes NO different to our persecutors!
It is aiding and abetting the suffering of our people in pursuit of business favors from this regime.

This regime should simply implement Political Reforms and stop asking for “positivity” from citizens groaning under a political crisis that manifests itself through economics, when it is giving us nothing in return!

If you so wish to be positive about this gross incompetence, corruption, nepotism and mismanagement, please do so on your own, but don’t attempt to guilty trip us into supporting the very people who have made our lives unbearable!

Stop asking me to be positive, Ask Mnangagwa to implement Political Reforms!

HOPEWELL CHIN’ONO is an award winning Zimbabwean international Journalist and Documentary Filmmaker.

By A Correspondent| Nurses and and medical staff at Avenues Clinic are currently engaging in some kind of industrial action demanding among other things, COVID-19 tests for all workers, proper PPE and risk allowances in United States dollars.

This follows reports that eight workers tested positive for COVID-19 including one nurse who used to work from the casualty section.

The recent positive cases have forced the hospital to close its casualty section while relatives and friends of admitted patients have also been banned from visiting the medical centre.

According to a source close to the developments, workers reported for duty but refused to enter the premises, choosing to remain outside the gate while waiting for the top hierarchy to address them.

“There is a nurse who tested positive to COVID-19, she started feeling sick after reporting for night duty and was send back home for quarantine at home, but they did not test her though her symptoms were so visible,

“Her health was deteriorating very fast and she had to find a doctor on her own, took PCR tests at Harare hospital on her own. She tested positive and is currently admitted at Parirenyatwa hospital

“So workers are saying we are at risk and Avenues is not willing to take care of us when we get sick, as what happened to their colleague, they are demanding that all workers be tested for COVID-19. They also want proper PPE and risk allowance paid in USD,” said the source.

At the time of publishing, the workers were still outside Avenues clinic while the hospital administration had not acted on their requests or addressed them officially.

Efforts to get a comment from Avenues administration are still ongoing.

This is a developing story, keep refreshing for more details…

Farai Dziva|Several people were injured in Gutu town on Sunday after being assaulted by soldiers.

“Several people were injured yesterday at around 6 pm when heavily armed soldiers from 42 infantry battalion indiscriminately beat up residents of Gutu at Hwiru Shopping Centre, Mupandawana Town,” a source told ZimEye.com.

According to the source, the soldiers did not explain why they were assaulting people.

Just IN- Former RBZ official Norman Mataruka dies from Covid-19 Monday morning. As he deteriorated, Mangudya tried to get him admitted at Parirenyatwa but doctors said the hospital was poorly equipped. He is survived by his wife and two daughters. pic.twitter.com/xW6Sb8S1ah

— ZimEye (@ZimEye) July 27, 2020

MDC Alliance member Mazwi Ndlovu was murdered in Bulilima ward 2 in Mat South. @ZANUPF_Official members ganged & beat him up for quering a partisan maize distribution list
He was taken to Plumtree hospital where he was further reffered to UBH Bulawayo & passed on at admission.

— Citizens Coalition for Change Social Welfare (@cccwelfare) July 27, 2020

He was beaten on the 24th and he passed on on the morning of the 25th of July 2020

— Citizens Coalition for Change Social Welfare (@cccwelfare) July 27, 2020

By A Correspondent| According to former Sunday Mail editor, Edmund Kudzayi, a former Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe official Norman Mataruka has succumbed to Covid-19 earlier this morning.

As he deteriorated, RBZ Governor Dr John Mangudya tried to get him admitted at Parirenyatwa hospital but doctors said the medical facility was so poorly equipped he was better off staying at home.

Mataruka leaves behind a wife and two daughters.

More to follow…

By Own Correspondent| Soldiers and police details were attacked by a swarm of killer bees in Kuwadzana 4 Harare recently.

Narrated a witness to the incident:

“There came a lorry full of police details and soldiers in Kuwadzana 4 Harare so everyone ran away.

Some of the soldiers were in civilian clothes and they were just arresting everyone and for you to run away, you ended up just being arrested.

In the past you would just notice that this person who has arrested me is a soldier or a police officer and that you have been arrested and are being taken to the police truck when you saw their boots.

But today, they were just arresting everyone …so when they arrived at Kuwadzana 4 shops, people ran away leaving their groceries, the ones that they were selling including their firewood.

So there were bees that came from nowhere,they just flew and went underneath a cart.

The cart was like the ones that are used by vendors in towns when they are selling their wares. No one knows what time these bees made this cart their haven, but it should be today because this cart was at home last night and was taken to the shops this morning for it’s daily business.

So when people ran away after seeing that the soldiers in plain clothes were arresting people and taking them to their truck, they left their wares.

So these soldiers started confiscating people’s groceries and that is when they saw the cart and they started loading the confiscated goods and firewood into that cart.

Trouble began when they started to push the cart. The bees left their haven ,underneath the cart and started biting the soldiers. They were bitten so bad that they left the cart and started running away.

The soldiers were bitten and they ran back to their truck and they were wailing while the swarm of bees continued biting them. It was a swarm of bees. And when these soldiers who were fleeing the bees got to their truck, the bees continued biting them and those who were inside the truck were not spared either. They were all bitten.

The driver of the truck sped off but this did not help, the bees continued biting them.

I doubt these bees are a natural species. They must be someone’s bees. In Kuwadzana 4 today, we witnessed a rare occurence.

The soldiers were bitten so bad. They were wailing and crying.

Please do not take people’s property. This happened around 12pm in Kuwadzana 4, Harare.

The firewood that they wanted to take belonged to one granny whom we call gogo Ndunge. The soldiers were bitten so bad.”

watch the live video loading below….

SUSPENSION OF PARLIAMENT BUSINESS, 27TH JULY 2020

This serves to advise all Members of Parliament that the business of Parliament, including sittings of both Houses, Committee workshops, public hearings and site visits, has been suspended with immediate effect to a date to be advised.

This has been necessitated, regrettably, by the fact that two Members of Parliament have tested positive for COVID-19 while on official duty.

The suspension of business will allow us to deep-clean and disinfect the building while also guaranteeing the safety of Members, staff and members of the public who interface with the institution.

Members of the National Assembly who are still in their constituencies are advised to remain there until further notice….

Said speaker of Parliament Jacob Mudenda:

“Two members of Parliament tested COVID-19 positive including one journalist who was with the committee of transport while they were inspecting various ports of entry and Tollgates.”

MDC Alliance Youth Assembly National Executive member from Bulawayo Takunda Madzana is battling for life after a night of horror at the hands of state agents ahead of 31 July protests.

Madzana was abducted at his home by a group of unknown assailants who gruesomely fractured his body parts before dumping him in the bush.

Since the illegitimate Emmerson Mnangagwa’s regime took over through a coup in 2017 abductions have become a new norm whenever citizens raise their voices against their nervous conditions.

As an Assembly, we would like to make it clear that we are not going to be intimidated from speaking against corruption and its drivers.

Let it be known that the time is now ripe to return fire by fire especially on abductions.

#KushingaMberi!

Stephen Sarkozy Chuma
MDCAllianceYouthAssemblyNationalSpokesperson

27-07-2020

MDC Alliance Youth Assembly National Executive member from Bulawayo Takunda Madzana is battling for life after a night of horror at the hands of state agents ahead of 31 July protests.

Madzana was abducted at his home by a group of unknown assailants who gruesomely fractured his body parts before dumping him in the bush.

Since the illegitimate Emmerson Mnangagwa’s regime took over through a coup in 2017 abductions have become a new norm whenever citizens raise their voices against their nervous conditions.

As an Assembly, we would like to make it clear that we are not going to be intimidated from speaking against corruption and its drivers.

Let it be known that the time is now ripe to return fire by fire especially on abductions.

#KushingaMberi!

Stephen Sarkozy Chuma
MDC Alliance Youth Assembly National Spokesperson

[23/07 15:59] +263 73 417 7181: Mwonzora Backyardanozviitisawo futi. He had become a doyern of constituionalism by standing with the Supreme court ruling which sought righting wrongs but his current actions exposes him otherwise. Imagine if he then becomes president?
[23/07 16:00] +263 78 300 7150: Achigadzira mastructures e Fake ?
[23/07 16:00] +263 78 300 7150: Ngaambosuspendwa
[23/07 16:00] +27 61 162 6887: Anofanira kususpendwa haachakwikwidzi bcz hapasisina fareness
[23/07 16:01] +263 73 417 7181: That is not the point. The point is, did he follow due process?
[23/07 16:01] +263 77 355 2297: Takazviona kare kuti kwanga kusiri kuda Constitionalism but kutsiva
[23/07 16:02] +263 78 300 7150: Ko SG anogounganidza vanhu venomination president na Chairman vasikuzviziva ?
[23/07 16:03] +263 78 300 7150: Haasi ave Center of power here SG uyu
[23/07 16:06] +27 61 162 6887: Kuvunganidza vanhu venomination zvisingaziikamwi napresident nachairman
[23/07 16:06] +263 78 300 7150: Ngaadzingwe
[23/07 16:19] +263 78 300 7150: Ukupushura Mwonzora ka iwewe at all costs even to the extent yokujustifya ma fake structures
[23/07 16:19] +263 73 417 7181: Ummm, you are speaking as a Douggy guy not as an MDC guy. The issue at hand does not need short cuts. Remember the EOC is meant to correct some past wrongs and this SG seems to be walking that same paths. I think the letter from Sen Komichi serves well on tgis issue. Ko kungotevera gwara nhai. Congress yoitwa kana Mwonzora ariye anodiwa as you claim zvinongoonekwa nekuhwina kwake not kuita zvechimuhwande muhwande izvi.
[23/07 16:20] +263 78 300 7150: Matemadanda hanti aiti Mwonxora munhu wedu aribho
[23/07 16:30] +263 78 627 3178: Why maprovinces ese arikumiswa kuita nomination? Chii chikonzero
[23/07 16:33] +263 78 300 7150: Uno accepter sei maresults from fake structures ?? vanhu vanhongwawo muroad
[23/07 16:33] +263 78 300 7150: Kubirira kunonyadxisa
[23/07 16:40] +263 78 300 7150: Ko Manase anovhota sei ku Congress iye aisapo pa 2014
[23/07 16:46] +263 78 300 7150: Ko ana Misihairabwi vakutsvakei ku Congress
[23/07 16:49] +263 78 627 3178: No…komichi akapinda sei pahunational chairman
[23/07 16:49] +263 78 300 7150: Ne midlands
[23/07 16:49] +263 78 300 7150: He imposed himself
[23/07 16:52] +263 78 300 7150: Ko Komichi haana kuresigner here paakaenda ku MDC Alliance
[23/07 16:52] +263 78 627 3178: You are crying more about why harare nominated mwonzora
[23/07 16:53] +27 61 162 6887: Anominator Nani kupi
[23/07 16:53] celina: Harare did not nominate Mwonzora or anyone else. For your own information, nominations have not been done anywhere else through out the country.
[23/07 16:54] +263 78 627 3178: Why? The legal date is 31 chii chirikumisa manominations?
[23/07 16:55] +263 78 300 7150: Ko Khupe aenda kumacourts kumisa congress koz aona anogona kudyiwa
[23/07 16:59] +263 78 627 3178: Bhebhe arikuda unity nachamisa
[23/07 17:04] +263 78 300 7150: Ko nei Mwonzora ariye akurova gap filling mumadistrict
[23/07 17:05] +27 61 162 6887: Itsotsi
[23/07 17:05] +263 78 627 3178: Akaita gap filling kupi tinofanirwa kuziva
[23/07 17:07] +263 78 300 7150: Ku Ruwa ne MARONDERA NE CHINHOYI NE MHONDORO
[23/07 17:07] +263 78 627 3178: Ndoda kutozivawo kwaakaita gap filling
[23/07 17:08] +263 78 300 7150: Nei mwonzora akubuda paradio achizviti ini election renyika muchandiona achizvicompeya na chamisa khupe aripo
[23/07 17:55] +263 73 459 4318: ??? politics is a very dirty dirty dirty game, parikunyangirwa bag n power. Each n everyone has his/her own foot soldiers. I’m seeing another split – MDC-DOUGY, MDC-MUDZURI, MDC -T
[23/07 18:40] +44 7503 771439: He should just respect Thoko and Komochi, he is alledged to be positioning himself. How can he just clandestinely fast track to the Top. That’s dangerous. Ano donha ne gotsi.
[23/07 18:46] +44 7503 771439: I now understand why people are saying Chirasha should take “chimuti” If Dougie is clean he should nullify his Harare Province nomination. He should apologise to the Nation on Camera. Press conference chopas. He is under scrutiny. All those defending this allegation against him could have been paid. If you are for the truth why would one support such. Don’t bully Thoko, let’s respect women. They have a role to play in Zim politics. Aaaah!
[23/07 18:53] +263 73 459 4318: Wangu iri I delayed match, Dougy knew want he wanted from the time he became Judas to Wamba, Ana komichi mabridge ekuyambutsa vamwe, thoko has been fooled, mudzuri Ari kubhadhara vanhu kkkkk, hapana kwazvosvika izviii
[23/07 19:10] +44 7503 771439: We hear the ‘meeting’ was attended by 38 people and allegedly chaired by Mr. Simon Hove.
Even then Mwonzora rigged :
Mwonzora got 184 votes, Mudzuri 38, Khupe 0 and Komichi 0.
[23/07 21:39] +27 62 359 8289: I think maumbwe arikuitwa neteam iri ini
[23/07 21:40] +27 62 359 8289: Personally i think Alliance ndokune dhiri am not ae member ther
[23/07 21:40] +27 62 359 8289: But i support their vision
[23/07 21:42] +27 62 359 8289: I will never support Alliance but their vision ka, mukatarisa zvinoitwa nana Khuphe vacho we have lost hope
[23/07 21:45] +27 62 359 8289: Apa mdct apasisina , togara taziva hedu, vana Mwonzora ma sellouts awa, Alliance inemuono uribho bt vana Chamisa nana Biti imbavha ka idzo ??
[24/07 11:35] +263 78 300 7150: Haa hanti hanzi pane vamwe vadzokera kwa Wamba here kuMurehwa neku Goromonzi
[24/07 11:36] +263 78 300 7150: Nana Bhebhe na Chimanikire vadzokera Kwa Chamisa so I hear
[24/07 14:21] +27 60 354 3378: Do you think Dzambara and Maravanyika are not a team. Do you think dmtl leaders who are putting people to attack SG in groups like this don’t know their game plan

By Own Correspondent| The president of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions, Peter Mutasa (PM) has hinted that workers will soon be embarking on a series of protests over poor salaries and working conditions.

He made the remarks during an interview with a local publication where he also bemoaned state brutality on workers and the citizenry.

He said:

We made a call for workers and citizens to liberate themselves through collective action. We also indicated that we are embarking on mobilisation of the workers around the country.

This is going on and we are almost there. We need all workers to unite first around uniform demands.

In the past, we had some discord, especially with some unions in public services, especially Zimbabwe Teachers Association who supported Zimdollar salaries.

Out of a nasty experience, all unions are now agreed on our demands and all are mobilising members towards collective action. An announcement of the dates and form is coming any time.

Unless our demands are met, we are proceeding with serious concerted national strikes and peaceful protest action.

Everyday will be a day of protest and every space an arena of struggle until we shrug off the oppressive chains of a brutal dictatorship.

The Zimbabwean government is now just like the colonial regime and even worse than (the late former President Robert) Mugabe’s last days.

It is sad that we ended up having such a government 40 years after independence.

A number of companies have in the recent past closed their premises over the coronavirus pandemic.

Some of them are Econet Wireless, the Environmental Management Agency (EMA), OK Norton and the National Social Security Authority (NSSA).

We present below NSSA’s statement of the temporary closure of NSSA House.

NSSA management wishes to advise stakeholders of the temporary closure of NSSA House in Harare with effect from Monday 27 July 2020 to allow for deep cleaning and decontamination following the incidence of a positive COVID-19 test for one of our employees.

This decision was taken in compliance with Section 6 at Statutory instrument 174 of 2020. Public Health (COV10-19 Prevention, Containment and Treatment) (Notional Lockdown) (Amendment) Order. 2020 (No. 14).

The affected employee was lost at NSSA House on the 10th of July 2020 due to the implementation of a decongestion programme that has seen the Authority operating at one-third of its staff complement.

Management has however resolved to implement the necessary precautionary measures.

The Authority is also conducting contact tracing to facilitate testing for individuals who may have been in contact with the affected employee.

All other NSSA offices are safe and Shut continue to operate under the Ministry Of Health and Child Care COVID-I9 guidelines. We sincerely apologise for any inconveniences caused by the temporary Closure.

Stakeholders shall be kept informed Of the situation via various media channels. including our darted media platforms @nssazw on Facebook and on Twitter. as well as our website: www.nssn.org.zw.

Issued on 26 July 2020:

Tendai Mutseyekwa

Marketing and Communications Executive

Edith Opperman Maternity Clinic in Mbare over the weekend shut down leaving scores of pregnant women stranded.

The clinic shut its doors after a number of nurses (it’s not clear how many) tested positive for the virus.

Dozens of pregnant women some of them in early stages of labour were over the weekend seen standing outside the shut gates of the institution as they peered inside.

The guard at the place said he did not know when the clinic would reopen.

This is not the first time the plight of pregnant women has taken a back seat due to some crisis. For a good part of last year Edith Opperman’s maternity hospital was not taking patients due to equipment shortages and a crippling nurse strike. This forced these women to risk their lives in home births and makeshift shelters.

AUTHORITIES are considering stiffer suburb lockdowns amid a recent spike of confirmed Covid-19 cases in some high-density areas of Bulawayo.

With over 587 locally transmitted cases in Bulawayo, the government is considering clamping down on unnecessary movements in specific western suburbs which have become COVID-19 hotspots in the City of Kings.

The provincial COVID-19 taskforce chaired by Local Government and Public Works Minister Honourable July Moyo convened a special meeting this weekend and expressed concern over the surge in local transmissions in Bulawayo.

“At the beginning here in Bulawayo COVID-19 was more centred in the eastern suburbs, but now it has moved to the west where there is a concentration of people. Once we analyse that there is a concentration in one area, yes the President has announced a new lockdown system, maybe can look at particular localities so that we can isolate it and lock it down so that it doesn’t spread,” he said.

Bulawayo City Council Health Services Director Dr Edwin Sibanda said the recent COVID-19 storm calls for rapid testing and constant updating of data so that authorities make informed decisions.

“We have Cowdry Park with very high figures, also Magwegwe, Nkulumane and parts of Emganwini, the map that we are generating on a daily basis, we must update it as quickly as possible as we improve the turnaround time for specimen collection and issuing of results…,” he said.

The taskforce also appealed to the public to continue weeding out illegal returnees who are suspected to be part source of the recent upsurge.

Dismissed ZANU PF parliamentarian Killer Zivhu who claims to have remained loyal to President Emmerson Mnangagwa says he wants to meet opposition leader Nelson Chamisa.

Zivhu was fired from both ZANU PF and parliament on recommendations of the ZANU PF provincial leadership after he wrote on social media that he wanted to see Mnangagwa and Chamisa Get involved in dialogue.

Deapite his dismissal, he went on to confess his undying love and loyalty to Mnangagwa.

Last week he was heavily criticised and insulted on social media when he said that Zimbabweans should not demonstrate against Mnangagwa on July 31 but give him a chance to revive the country.

Below is his latest Tweet expressing his undying love for Mnangagwa and willingness to meet Chamisa.

Morning everybody ndinotenda nokundituka kwenyu but still give ED time. I will make arrangements to meet Advocate Nelson Chamisa, I believe in dialogue not protests. Nhaimi vaimbova ma obedience sons ava Mugabe vavazve ma obedience sons ava ED , ndipo pane problem ipapo

— Hon Zivhu (@killerzivhu1) July 27, 2020

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Zimbabwe has sped past the 2500 mark with the number of those who have been confirmed to have died from the disease still standing at 34.

According to the Ministry of Health update, the country recorded an astounding 78 cases with 74 being local cases.

As expected most coronavirus cases have been recorded in towns and cities although escapees from quarantines have also worked tirelessly to bring Covid-19 even to the most remote villages.

Authorities are obsessed over entry into the CBD While in the early days of March the police would regularly patrol lockdown rules were being followed that has not been the case ever since restrictions were relaxed in March.

People hold house parties, birthday parties and church services in defiance of the lockdown provisions. It is extremely rare to find people wearing masks in their neighbourhood roads in the high density suburbs at least.

The Ministry of Health has conceded multiple times that there are mysterious sources of infection they could not identify.

This line is not included in the latest publication so it’s not clear whether they have identified these sources or not.

However, the way people are acting in residential areas requires the authorities to rethink their current enforcement strategy which is too focused on the CBD.

Price Check

President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s spokesperson, George Charamba has attacked MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa for taking a back seat in the run up to the July 31 protests.

In a series of tweets at the weekend, Charamba said the vibrant opposition leader was a coward for allegedly using fellow opposition leader Jacob Ngarivhume as a frontman in calling for the July 31 protests.

Charamba also blasted Chamisa for appointing Welshman Ncube to act as party president during his indefinite mourning period.

In his official Twitter handle #Jamwanda2, Charamba mocked Chamisa for tactfully evading censure over the planned #31July protests.

Charamba also said Chamisa avoided appointing Tendai Biti, co-MDC A vice president, because he viewed the aggressive politician as a major threat to his job.

“Ever wondered why Nelson Chamisa chose to hand over reigns to the insipid WELSHMAN NCUBE as he grieved over loss of his dear mother? Or why the WELSH man got mired in TRUST FUNDS controversy soon after the appointment…Here we go: The US Embassy in Harare whose govt has always rooted for Tendai Biti as safe bet for American interests here, had hoped to use Ngarivhume and his pseudo-leadership of July 31 disturbances,” Charamba said.

“…to re-launch Tendai Biti as the new leader of MDC-Alliance, with the impulsive Jobho Sikhala as the TONG for handling hot pieces. Both men are America’s centurions, Biti designated to play the Philosopher-King, while Sikhala is the Hotspur of the equation.

“The choice of Ngarivhume – another of America’s men whose roots are in Chipinge – was the right face for that operation which would have consigned Nelson Chamisa to the dustbin. Previous to Ngarivhume, Americans had hoped for the Malawian cleric, Shingi Munyeza, who was later dropped for being inorganic and tainted after hopes of washing him clean by goading ED to fire him from PAC failed. The key calculation was to ensure that the well-healed insurrection be led by a political nearly-man who would not prove a runaway, thus securing Tendai Biti’s take-over.”

Charamba added, “Nelson Chamisa got wind of it, forcing him to counter that by appointing the man from Wales, while dodging brickbats of violent demonstrations under the plausible cover of ‘in mourning’.

“The young man doesn’t want risks, which is what riles Americans whose wish is confrontational politics in Zimbabwe.

“Soon after, and to checkmate this counter, the Biti group used a wing of G-40 hoping to stop the man from Wales in his tracks!!”

“Unfortunately both sides misread the macroenvironment, and scenario-build on a hesitant State. How wrong!!! It’s now back to drawing board, banking on international pressure and nursing of different projects of inspiring opposition and dissent, a fraction of which has been subcontracted to Dumisani Muleya and his Beverley Court project which will not take off zvayo!!! #handeitione!!!.”

State Media

THE Air Zimbabwe Boeing 767-200ER stuck in Bangkok to undergo an engine change is now back in service collecting stranded South Africans and Zimbabweans to bring them back home.

The plane, under charter to Maple Aviation Limited, flew first to Kuala Lumpur after being certified as flight-worthy before flying across the South China Sea to Guangzhou in China where it collected mainly South Africans wanting to return home and bringing them back to Kuala Lumpur.

Last night it was expected to make a second trip from Kuala Lumpur to China, this time to Wuhan, to pick up more Zimbabweans and South Africans.

It will return first to Kuala Lumpur to consolidate the passenger list before flying back to Harare via Johannesburg, most likely on Wednesday.

The plane underwent its needed engine change in Bangkok on Thursday and Friday and was certified to fly again by the Thai and Zimbabwe civil aviation authorities and Boeing. The engine change was undertaken with the help of Thai and Bangkok-based Japanese Nippon Airways engineers under supervision of the two Air Zimbabwe engineers.

Ten Air Zimbabwe engineers originally supposed to undertake the refitting were refused entry into Thailand on health quarantine grounds by Thai authorities, but the Nippon Airways engineers familiar with the plane type were available.

ZIMBABWE Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) president Peter Mutasa says the labour body will announce a series of dates for fresh protests after the July 31 anti-corruption march.

In an interview with NewsDay, Mutasa said the workers will demonstrate everyday until their demands are met.

“We made a call for workers and citizens to liberate themselves through collective action. We also indicated that we are embarking on mobilisation of the workers around the country. This is going on and we are almost there. We need all workers to unite first around uniform demands. In the past, we had some discord, especially with some unions in public services, especially Zimbabwe Teachers Association who supported Zimdollar salaries. Out of a nasty experience, all unions are now agreed on our demands and all are mobilising members towards collective action. An announcement of the dates and form is coming any time,” he said.

“Unless our demands are met, we are proceeding with serious concerted national strikes and peaceful protest action. Everyday will be a day of protest and every space an arena of struggle until we shrug off the oppressive chains of a brutal dictatorship.

“The Zimbabwean government is now just like the colonial regime and even worse than (the late former President Robert) Mugabe’s last days. It is sad that we ended up having such a government 40 years after independence.”

By A Correspondent| Just as ZimEye exclusively predicted early last year, ZANU PF leader Emmerson Mnangagwa, has appointed is own neice, Lydia Heather Mudhari to the post of Zimbabwe consul to Scotland.

The development comes as Mnangagwa appeared as one of those encouraging Scotland to demand independence from the UK.

Last year sources inside ZANU PF UK confirmed the development to ZimEye as some threatened to “pour jecha” on Mnangagwa’s niece.

Zimbabwe is opening the consulate at a time when it is closing numerous embassies across the world, where is the logic?, ZANU PF sources fumed speaking to ZimEye.

“Mudhari has been assigned the post, and it now awaits public announcement,” an impeccable source told ZimEye back then.

For a person to be appointed an ambassador, they need to have first undergone special training for over a year and sources questioned why Heather Mudhari has been rushed to the post without the requisite training.

Our undercover investigations involved a test using a real case of a Glasgow based woman desperate for an ETD to travel for her mother’s funeral in Harare.

ZimEye has exposed how the consulate service was now already functioning by last year April and the official position was only twisted after senior ZANU PF officials noticed that ZimEye has opened an investigation.

“Where and when did she do training for the post?,” a top ZANU PF member questioned.

Mudhari was at the time contacted and her tone of voice sounded “street level, rough” while responding.

She did not deny that she now carries the title, “ambassador.”

“Can you call the embassy in London” she said in response after answering to the salutation which was repeated thrice to her ears.

She then abruplty dropped the phone while the client was still speaking.

A year later, the proof has popped out and Mudhari is now heading to Scotland.

Mudhari has confirmed to the state owned Sunday Mail all this is true as ZimEye accurately revealed in April last year.

“I was recently appointed the Honorary Consul General for the Republic of Zimbabwe to Scotland by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade,” she said.

“I have become the first Zimbabwe Representative to Scotland and joined the Zimbabwe UK diplomatic Mission led by His Excellency Colonel Rtd Ambassador Christian Katsande, Zimbabwe High Commissioner to the United Kingdom. My appointment was accepted and acknowledged by the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office in a letter that congratulated me for the new role and I am now recognised as a member of the Diplomatic Consular Corps in Scotland.”

A 99-year-old granny from Tsholotsho, Matabeleland North left villagers shocked after she moved her body just as she was about to be buried.

Mrs Nkazanyana Ncube from Kwine village under Chief Gampu who was buried yesterday, ‘resurrected’ twice as villagers attemped to bury her.

She died at her homestead and was not certified dead by a doctor.

Mrs Ncube is said to have died on Saturday at about 3AM and resurrected as fellow villagers were about to bury her the same day forcing them to take her back into the house.

Villagers who had taken her ‘body’ which was wrapped in a blanket to the grave, noticed movements as they prepared to lower the body into the grave and immediately suspended the burial.

At about 1AM yesterday, they discovered her body was ‘cold again’ and when they resumed burial preparations, she started moving her body again.

She finally passed on at around 6AM yesterday leading to her burial at around 11AM.

Relatives said they did not panic as they believed that as a traditionalist her ‘resurrection’ was being triggered by ancestors.

A Chronicle news crew visited Kwine village yesterday and villagers spoke of their shock saying nothing like that had been experienced before.

Family spokesperson Mr Thabson Ndlovu said his aunt died and ‘resurrected’ twice.

“She has been unwell for quite a long time. Besides old age, she suffered a stroke that affected her right side. The situation deteriorated a few days ago as she could no longer speak. On Saturday at about 3AM she died. We started burial arrangements, we informed the village head and burial preparations started as villagers gathered and started digging her grave. As we were about to bury her, we noticed movements of the blanket she was wrapped in. The ‘body’ had been removed from the house and placed just near the grave. That is when one of the villagers said there was movement in the blanket. She seemed breathing,” said Mr Ndlovu.

He said the body was taken into the house where she died again at about 1AM and when they resumed burial preparations, they again noticed movements of the blanket confirming she was alive.

Mr Ndlovu said at 6am they were planning to take her to the local clinic.

“We were very worried as we didn’t know what was happening. We were planning to take her to the clinic and we had even hired a car to take her to hospital from the clinic. Normally, it’s elderly women who assess and make pronouncements on deaths but following those two episodes even us men entered the house to check for ourselves. When she was pronounced dead, her body was really cold, but later you would feel that it was warm, confirming that she was alive. So, we really got puzzled,” said Mr Ndlovu.

He however said villagers did not panic when Mrs Ncube rose from the dead.

“We did not panic partly because we believe her resurrection was triggered by amadlozi as it happened when we were conducting rituals. She was a traditionalist possessed by ancestral spirits,” he said.

A villager Mrs Tede Moyo said it was her first time to hear of someone dying before rising again.

“This is really worrying. I can imagine if she was in a coffin, she could have been buried alive. This left most us shocked that someone can be confirmed dead when he or she is alive. We’ve never heard of such a miracle before. If it wasn’t for some minor works that had to be carried out at the grave before burial, she could have been buried alive,” said Mrs Ncube.

Kwine village head Mr Elijah Vundla said he was convinced that Mrs Ncube died and rose from the dead.

“We were even planning to consult sangomas because this is not something that we are accustomed to. We thought that since she was traditionalist, there were things that needed to be done. But she then died peacefully this morning but we had to delay burial just to be sure,” said Mr Vundla.

Acting Mpilo Central Hospital clinical director Dr Xolani Ndlovu, said it was difficult to express a medical opinion on such a matter because the body was not taken to a health facility.

He said medically, the person was not dead but added that in old age there may be fluctuations that may result in one not being conscious.

“So, in medical terms, we can’t say the person was dead. There is no proof. Clinically if someone is dead, there is no brain activity. Unlike the heart, if the brain stops working, it can’t be restarted,” said Dr Ndlovu.

It’s quite normal in old people and those people who suffer from liver failure or liver cirrhosis. Even people who are diabetic can suffer from the same problem due to the fluctuating sugar levels which may leave one unconscious. So, when sugar levels fluctuate, a person can easily drift into unconsciousness and consciousness. In this case probably she lost consciousness and had a very low heart beat which made her relatives and villagers believe that she was dead and then bury her. This is why we encourage that qualified doctors should be the only ones to certify deaths.”

State Media

MORE than 100 Covid-19 patients have been admitted to the United Bulawayo Hospitals (UBH) following a decision to use the hospital as a temporary Covid-19 hospital pending the completion of renovations at the designated Covid-19 health institutions.

The designated institutions are Ekusileni Medical Centre, Thorngrove Infectious Diseases Hospital and Old Bartley Memorial Block (BMB) within UBH that are all undergoing renovations.

Following the decision to use UBH as a temporary Covid-19 hospital, patients with other ailments are now being served by Mpilo Central Hospital.

The development is aimed at preventing mixing Covid-19 patients and those that are Covid-19 free.

Mpilo and UBH are the main public hospitals catering for the southern region which covers Masvingo, Midlands, Matabeleland North and Matabeleland South and Bulawayo provinces.

A total of 102 Covid-19 patients had been admitted to UBH by yesterday and one of the patients had absconded from a quarantine facility.

Over the weekend, Bulawayo had 532 Covid-19 active cases according to the Ministry of Health and Child Care.

Acting UBH chief executive officer Dr Narcacius Dzvanga confirmed that the hospital had started admitting Covid-19 patients.

“We have a total of 102 patients including four nursing mothers and one abscondee at the moment,” said Dr Dzvanga.

He said other patients at the hospital who are supposed to be transferred to Mpilo Central Hospital under the new arrangement, were awaiting their Covid-19 test results.

“This is work in progress and we are yet to send our patients to Mpilo as we are waiting for their Covid-19 results. There is no specialised equipment needed as yet for these Covid-19 patients other than adequate and consistent supply and use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), staff education and training on Covid-19,” said Dr Dzvanga.

He said the whole exercise to separate patients had been delayed due to logistical problems including access to Bulawayo City Council ambulances to transport those who are negative and positive separately.

Dr Dzvanga urged members of the public to take heed of warnings to avoid local transmissions.

“Members of the public should be careful and stay away from public places, practise hygiene and wear masks all the time so that hospitals are not overwhelmed by Covid-19 cases,” said Dr Dzvanga.

Acting Mpilo chief executive officer Professor Solwayo Ngwenya said Covid-19 patients that were at Mpilo had been moved to UBH.

He said by Saturday afternoon, all Covid-19 patients had been moved to UBH and that patients from around the region who were UBH referrals had started accessing treatment at Mpilo.

“By Saturday afternoon we had taken all the eight Covid-19 patients to UBH and we are now attending to all UBH referrals from all over the southern region that are Covid-19 free,” he said.

Prof Ngwenya said a person who is Covid-19 positive by the time he is identified, would have infected three or more people hence the need for members of the public to avoid exposure to the virus.

He said all people were potential Covid-19 carriers so nobody should be assumed clean until he or she is tested.

“Actually, one person can infect thousands of people so until we have tested everyone at one go, it’s not possible to say how many people have the virus. Zimbabwe has not done mass testing and as such the incidence or prevalence of this virus in the community is unknown,” said Prof Ngwenya.

He said with the global shortage of test kits, it would be optimistic to think everyone will be tested soon.

Last week, Cabinet resolved that an agreement be signed between Government and Mater Dei Hospital for the health institution to admit critical Covid-19 patients for free.

The police are putting stringent measures to ensure compliance with the lockdown as there is suspicion of forged letters being used for passage at roadblocks.

In carrying out their duties, the police will require contact numbers and details of shift work, to allow people to pass through a roadblock without further investigations.
documentation signed by an employee’s chief executive officer or general manager so that those legitimately going to work in an essential service or an exempted business can pass with the minimum of fuss.

While no regulations have been gazetted detailing any requirements to pass through a roadblock, only the lists of those who are allowed to go to and from work, the police as the enforcement arm of the lockdown regulations have been accepting letters from employers as proof that a person is working in an essential service or an exempted business and have been allowing them through without further follow-ups.

The police have a legal duty to enforce the lockdown regulations but to minimise inconvenience to the exempted members of the public have put in place procedures from the very beginning of the lockdown, so only those against whom there is strong suspicion of breaching the rules face long delays or charges.

Zimbabwe’s Covid-19 confirmed total hit 2 434 on Saturday with another 138 confirmed cases, 128 of them infections within Zimbabwe, with two further deaths taking the toll of fatalities to 34.
The daily report from the Ministry of Health and Child Care said the two fatalities were institutional deaths in Bulawayo and Mashonaland Central. To balance this, so far 518 of Zimbabwe’s confirmed patients have fully recovered.
Bulawayo is still the most heavily hit province with 587 local infections and 16 deaths, but Harare is catching up with 488 local infections and 10 deaths. Midlands now has 147 local infections and three deaths.

South Africa now has now recorded 6 655 deaths from 434 200 confirmed cases.
In listing required documents, police have said journalists are allowed to pass through the checkpoints using their Zimbabwe Media Commission press cards, with the 2019 ones still valid.

National police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi said yesterday that if journalists encounter any problems they should get in touch with the officers commanding provinces or the Police General Headquarters.

For those in the health sector, he said, they should be in uniform with their identity cards on them while those in civilian attire should have a letter from their medical superintendent or chief executive officer stating place, dates and times of reporting on and off duty. The contact details of the chief executive officer should also be indicated in the letter.

“For companies or organisations, employees should have letters from the chief executives or general managers stating the place, days and times of reporting on and off duty. The contact details of the chief executive officer should also be indicated on the letter.

“Ministries and parastatals at national level need an exemption letter from directors and above stating the duty, place, days and times of reporting. At provincial level, an exemption letter from the provincial head stating the duty, place, days and times of reporting. The letter should also indicate contact details of the responsible person,” Asst Comm Nyathi said.

“Commercial farmers should have an offer letter or lease agreement and an exemption letter certificate from their local police officer in charge while communal farmers should have a supporting letter from the headman or village head stating the business to be done, the date, time, place and an exemption letter from the officer in charge. The contact details of headman or village head to be indicated,” Asst Comm Nyathi said.

Food retailers and sole traders should have certified copies of a shop licence and an exemption letter from the police.
Those in private security services should have uniforms, company IDs and letter from management.

People seeking medicines and medical supplies should have medical cards or prescriptions and, if possible, contact details of the doctor responsible.
For those intending to attend funerals, the concerned relatives should produce a copy of a burial order to a local police station and the officers in charge, officer commanding district and officers commanding provinces should issue exemption letters showing destination and dates of movement to those who intend to bury relatives in other towns and rural areas.

Right from the beginning of the lockdown at the end of March, members of the public were expected to travel no more than 5km to buy basic necessities like food, gas and medicine. They can travel further if the required goods are not within 5km, under the lockdown regulations.

The public should also make prior arrangements to obtain assistance for themselves or someone to whom they are related or have a duty of caring for.
“This includes an ill person whom they are related to or care for for purposes of rendering medical assistance or provide for, said Asst Comm Nyathi.

The police reminded the public that there is a 6pm to 6am curfew and so they should conduct permitted activities between the hours of 6am to 6pm.

Workers in essential services, but not exempted ordinary businesses, are allowed to travel to and from work and home during the curfew and deliveries of essential goods are permitted at night.
Asst Comm Nyathi added: “The observance of the national lockdown measures will promote the effective maintenance of law and order by police and other security services.”

Last Friday, police commanders countrywide were directed to intensify the enforcement of lockdown regulations, resulting in a number of people being turned away from Harare city centre if they failed to present employment exemption letters or medical documents to warrant being outdoors.

Police Commissioner General Godwin Matanga said the intensification of enforcement was designed to protect people from Covid-19 and warned that those who wilfully breached the regulations would face the wrath of the law.

He said citizens were reminded to be home by 6pm, adding that there would be no excuses for non-compliance, except for those who will be providing essential services.

He reminded exempted businesses that they should only operate between 8am and 3pm and made it clear that commuter omnibus operators, bottle stores, shebeen operators and anyone else who violates the regulations will be arrested.

Private transporters, especially those that own kombis, have been removing registration numbers or putting private registration number plates so that they carry passengers early morning and in the evening, in contravention of lockdown regulations, which indicate that only Zupco buses are allowed to carry fare-paying passengers.

Said Comm-Gen Matanga: “Kombis, which are removing number plates and carrying passengers in violation of Covid-19 regulations will be impounded, with the owners facing stern action.”

On Friday, in a further gazetted amendment to the lockdown regulations, enforcement officers, basically the police, are permitted to seize any vehicle used for illegal fare-paying passenger services if such vehicle is used again after the driver has been warned or charged. Effectively the regulations now allow seizure as an exhibit in a criminal case the second time it is found picking up paying passengers.

President Emmerson Mnangagwa has appointed his own niece as the government consul in Scotland. Watch live discussion on the issue.

Zesa Holdings board will be conducting a thorough investigation into its executive chairman, Dr Sydney Gata, after allegations surfaced that he may have allocated for his personal use five company vehicles, scuttled the disciplinary hearing of a top executive, spent $10 million on Christmas parties, sent four consultants to South Africa, and set up a trust to mine gold.

Energy and Power Development Minister Advocate Fortune Chasi described the corruption allegations as “indeed egregious and very worrying” and called for a thorough board investigation.

The Zesa boss — who has had an on-off romance with the company — yesterday denied the allegations.

“We have received the allegations and it’s not true. I am not involved in any of those issues.”

But Adv Chasi said the accusations deserved a thorough investigation.

“This case will be good test case as to the spinefullness of the (Zesa) board. Government expects no less than adequate action that is in line with the seriousness of the matter in question. The board’s speed of action must reflect the urgency and seriousness of the matter.”

Adv Chasi said the Government’s attitude towards corruption was clear as pronounced by President Mnangagwa that any corrupt activities must be investigated and dealt with decisively.

“Additionally, we expect that a proper investigation be carried out and that the outcomes of such investigation shall inform the requisite action by the board. The importance, actual or imagined, of an alleged perpetrator is completely irrelevant to the inquiry and the corrective action to be taken in the circumstances,” he said.

It is alleged that on 14 January 2020 Dr Gata usurped powers of a disciplinary committee investigating Zesa acting group chief executive officer Mrs Norah Tsomondo.

She had been brought before the disciplinary authority to answer allegations of unauthorised expenditure of US$20 million in 2018.

On January 14 2020, Dr Gata allegedly wrote to the disciplinary authority secretary Mr Garikai Churu directing the committee to withdraw action against Mrs Tsomondo. In part the alleged letter reads: “Reference is made to the above matter and to the meeting held on January 14, 2020, in my office attended by the acting group chief executive officer, Mrs Tsomondo, and which you were later on invited to attend.

“I am directing you to discontinue the disciplinary hearing of Mrs N Tsomondo with immediate effect. Kindly advise the disciplinary authority members accordingly.”

On vehicles, it is alleged that after Dr Gata was allocated his official car, a Mercedes Benz (ADY 9279), he also personalised two Toyota Fortuner vehicles and three Madza BT50s. It is alleged that the parastatal splashed over $10 million in December parties in Hwange and Kariba. Dr Gata denied hosting any lavish party, saying it was the public relations department that organised the end of year events in December last year.

There are also questions surrounding the engagement of Mr Peter Mutsinya, Mr Shumani Mhlanga, Mr Muvengwa Zinyuku and Mr Johatt Sithole who were flown to South Africa for a study tour at Eskom at Zesa’s cost.

Dr Gata wrote to Energy and Power Development Permanent Secretary Dr Gloria Magorimbo on March 11, 2020, seeking Cabinet authority for the clearance of the four consultants to travel to South Africa.

Consequently, for the four-day trip, Zesa paid $107 913, the equivalent of US$5 876, for the consultants’ airfares and allowances.

Questions were also raised over the creation of the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Industry Trust (ZESIT), which is set to undertake several projects including the Tuli Mining Project and gold mining at Munyati. Dr Gata explained that ZESIT will be officially launched this week and there was nothing sinister about the entity.

The Herald understands that an investigation will be conducted into Zesa’s proposed partnerships with Korean firms for manufacturing concrete poles for electrification.

The Zesa boss was appointed as the executive chairman in November 2019 but labour experts have questioned why Dr Gata had been given an executive post as the Public Entities Corporate Governance Act did not provide for an executive chair of a parastatal but has board members separate from executive management.

Dr Gata was once the Zesa Holdings executive and left in 2006 amid several allegations, chief among them being a 2003 fight with trustees of the Zesa pension fund over an alleged illegal withdrawal of $1,6 billion from the fund to finance the payment of retrenchment costs. Dr Gata denied the allegations.

There were also concerns around Zesa’s unbundling under his watch and alleged failure to ring fence finances of subsidiaries. One of his duties in his present term is to rebundle Zesa.

It is also during Dr Gata’s tenure at Zesa that the power utility signed several power deals with several companies, including one from Iran, but little was delivered on that front.

Own Correspondent

Zimbabwe today recorded 78 new coronavirus cases pushing the total to 2 512.

There were no deaths for a change, but local cases continued to outpace imported ones.

Today, 74 cases were local transmissions increasing the tally to 1 486 and that for imported cases to 1 026.

The country now has 1 960 active cases and has tested 119 866 people.

A British Telegraph article review reveals how:

VIDEO LOADING BELOW – PLEASE BE PATIENT

https://youtu.be/G5h-duawqpY

• Bees are cheaper to train than dogs.

• Bees can be trained to smell solders and police and detect military weaponry.

https://youtu.be/6D2TKvur2G0

Amazing research has been coming out lately about bees and their high-intensity sense of smell. In addition, they can easily be trained to recognize smells in a very short time.

The Telegraph reported that Croatian and French biologists were able to train bees to detect explosives and mines in the Balkans. Their olfactory sense allows bees to detect thousands of unexploded underground landmines and explosives.

Yves Le Conte is the director of the bee and environment unit at INRA in Avignon, France. He has stated that bees can detect TNT if they receive the proper training.

This 3:08-minute long video shows how honeybees can help save human lives by detecting landmines that were hidden in the Balkans in the 1990s.

Dr. Rebecca Nesbit works at Inscentinel, a company that trains bees. She has stated that bees are cheaper and easier to train than sniffer dogs and their scent-sensing capabilities are so heightened that they can detect an odor in parts per trillion. For instance, they can sniff-out a grain of salt in an Olympic swimming pool.

Do bees smell fear? Keep in mind, bees traditionally use their sense of smell to protect their hives. It is not so much the actual fear that bees smell as it is the pheromones, which are like hormones, that are released by a creature when that creature feels fearful. Bees know to interpret that scent as fear and they can emit scents of their own to ‘talk’ to each other about the smell they identify as fear, so the entire hive is quickly alerted.

If a human, cat, dog, squirrel or raccoon gets too close to a beehive, the pheromones of that creature are picked up as ‘different’ to that of the hive, and the watcher bees will alert the rest of the hive by emitting their own pheromones that danger might be near. It is a defensive move intended to put the hive on high alert, rather than a desire to attack the stranger. Yet. An attack will usually only take place if the intruder initiates any sort of attack on the colony.

This 3:47-minute long video shows how honeybees are being trained as scent-detecting crime-fighters.

https://youtu.be/Ulsc0FpNVaQ

Remember, bee talk is non-verbal and unfolds in two ways. The waggle dance and bee pheromones are the languages of bees. The species is considered to engage in one of the most advanced means of communicating out of all social insects.

The waggle dance is the popular and well-known way bees talk to each other. We blogged about the waggle dance, which is how foraging bees tell each other about the hottest new foraging grounds so they can all enjoy the nectar and pollen.

Pheromone “talk” is the complex language of scent that informs bees about many things. It is especially useful as an early warning system to let them know if danger is nearby. If a bee is under attack or in distress, she can release “attack pheromones” and these will alert other bees nearby, causing a swarm of her defensive sisters to fly in and protect her.

What are bee pheromones and how do bees use them to smell? Pheromones are chemical substances that are created by an animal’s exocrine glands. When they are triggered within that creature, it elicits a response from another animal of the same species depending on the physiological or behavioral signature associated within that species.

Bees have an intense sense of smell and are drawn to scents as much as they are to colors. Their antennae pick up odors, even while flying. They can discern the trace of a scent mid-flight, which helps them to identify flowers that are rich sources of pollen and nectar. They can spontaneously follow the scent to the flowers or herbs.

They love the scents of native plants and some aromatic herbs bees love are lavender, hyssop, chamomile, beebalm, sage, rosemary and thyme. They do not like the smells of cinnamon, peppermint, geranium and cucumber, to name a few.

Can a bee smell a human? Some people think bees can smell fear, because many people get scared when they see a bee, and then the bee seems drawn to come take a closer look. The bee is just scoping you out unless you are provoking the hive.

The queen bee sets the pheromone signature scent in a hive, but what about individual bees? An exciting new study by EarthSky indicates that the scent profiles of bees change at different times in their lives. Most bees in the hive don’t notice subtle differences in the scent of their hive-mates. but the hive’s alert watchers, the Guard Bees, are geared to ‘smell’ outsiders that don’t belong in the hive. Since foragers may pick up other scents while they are away from the hive, they can be treated differently by Guard Bees when they seek hive re-entry since they no longer smell like the younger bees who have never left the hive but still maintain the full integrity of the queen’s hive scent.

What do you think of bees being trained as sniffer-bees? You can share your thoughts over on our Facebook page. – Source: beemission.com

THE ZANU-PF Midlands Province Youth League has expressed fear against the July 31 protests against corruption claiming that it is a wider plan to overthrow the government of Zimbabwe and its leader Emmerson Mnangagwa.

In a statement, Midlands province Youth League Secretary for Administration, Justice Mayor Wadyajena said, the government has created the freest and broad political space since independence which is being undermined by opposition political parties and civil society.

“Cde E.D Mnangagwa has created the freest and broad political space since Zimbabwe’s independence, the MDC-Alliance has been in cahoots with a number of unsavoury Civil Society elements to undermine these efforts and go against the will of the Zimbabwean people by usurping power.

“The demonstrations planned for the 31st of July serve as a smokescreen for what we know to be a clear intention to overthrow the government of the day and is doubly irresponsible given the threat of a serious escalation in the spread of COVID-19,” said Wadyajena.

Wadyajena said as the youth league they stand firmly in support of the right to demonstrate peacefully as enshrined in the Constitution, but will not idly observe while these fundamental rights are abused.

“This is a clear violation of the newly found freedom Zimbabweans are enjoying under the New Dispensation. His Excellency, Cde ED Mnangagwa has shown his unquestionable dedication to further democratize political space in Zimbabwe, evidenced through the creation of platforms such as POLAD through which all other credible and genuine political parties have engaged the government and through which positive collective change can be made possible.

“For unclear and unconvincing reasons, the MDC-Alliance has refused to engage in a public national dialogue on the future and fortunes of Zimbabwe, but the peace and stability that Zimbabwe enjoys cannot and should not be lost because of the greedy and treasonous ambitions of the MDC-Alliance and its surrogate whose singular solution is to take to the streets in a violent uprising,” he said.

The youth league expressed dismay towards the conduct of MDC Alliance spokesperson, Fadzai Mahere, for allegedly inciting Zimbabweans to oust the revolutionary party.

“We are extremely disturbed by the conduct of MDC spokesperson Ms Fadzayi Mahere who is on public record openly inciting the people of Zimbabwe to oust ZANU-PF on the 31st of July 2020. As a lawyer, she is well aware of the contents and spirit of our Constitution but appears hellbent on driving mayhem and unlawful behaviour that sits in direct opposition to the tenets of her profession.

“We therefore call upon law enforcement agencies to heed the call of the youth and look directly into the behaviour and actions of such persons and respond to these mischievous malcontents who continue to advocate for sanctions and policies that further cripple our nation,” he explained.

The league is worried by actions of some members of the revolutionary party and government for leaking confidential information to enemies of progress.

“Equally worrying is the illegal and treasonous leaking of sensitive and confidential official documents to characters such as the exiled and discredited Jonathan Moyo. As H.E, Cde E.D
Mnangagwa has stated, we indeed have wolves in sheep’s clothing within the ZANU-PF ranks and civil service, surreptitiously working with infiltrators and turncoats to destabilise this Government. We call upon authorities to hunt down these compromised Comrades, weed them and to decisively deal with them,” he said.

He further said the ZANU-PF Midlands Province Youth League blames the sanctions imposed on some ZANU PF leaders and businesses for the corruption ravaging the country.

“As ZANU-PF Midlands Province Youth League, we strongly support H.E, Cde ED Mnangagwa’s efforts to fight the illegal sanctions placed on Zimbabwe which we all know to create a fertile ground for corruption affecting the poorest and most vulnerable members of our society. Corruption has become a serious plague in our country and we throw our weight behind all constructive and progressive efforts to fight it.

“Fighting corruption, however, requires the vigilance of all citizens regardless of political affiliation. We, therefore, urge all Zimbabweans to band together to eradicate this plague earnestly and with a pure motive and using legally provided channels. In this regard, we warn against and take exception to regime change sponsors who have usurped the corruption narrative in futile attempts to assassinate the character of H.E, Cde ED Mnangagwa in the hope that Zimbabweans will take to the streets,” said Wadyajena.

Source: ZBC News

State Media

THE Government has not banned people from attending churches and they are allowed to congregate for as long as they adhere to the Covid-19 specified regulations, Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister, Senator Monica Mutsvangwa has said.

Speaking in Chinhoyi yesterday during an inter-ministerial taskforce on Covid-19, which was attended by provincial Government heads, Members of Parliament and church leaders, Minister Mutsvangwa said the recent enforcements aimed at thwarting the spike of the novel coronavirus by President Mnangagwa still allowed citizens to congregate at their respective places of worship.

“The recent lockdown restrictions issued by the President seek to arrest the spread of the virus through a raft of measures among them, restricting gatherings,” said Minister Mutsvangwa.

“Only gatherings that exceed 50 have remained banned and the Government has not reviewed the figure up or down.

“People are allowed to congregate for as long as they observe the stipulated figure, sanitising, social distancing, temperature checking and members wearing masks.”

Most church-goers in Chinhoyi town yesterday told The Herald that they received communication from their leaders that church services were suspended following a directive issued by the police.

Minister Mutsvangwa said yesterday’s meeting was aimed at checking the response and identifying gaps for corrective action in fighting Covid-19.

She said although the figures were rising daily, the Government, through the leadership of President Mnangagwa, had and was still doing all things necessary to address the upsurge in positive cases.

“What the Government did through President Mnangagwa was to first quickly pronounce it a national disaster and put together an inter-ministerial taskforce to make sure that we up our game in terms of response to this disease,” said Minister Mutsvangwa.

“The disease has ravaged people across the world and there is nothing that the Government has done wrong in addressing the challenge and the interventions put in place to contain the disease.

“Zimbabwe has had low figures for quite a number of months, but because the President couldn’t close the border on returning residents, we continued to receive returnees from many countries who contributed to the spike of the disease.

“Nonetheless, Government introduced quarantine and isolation centres for screening purposes to curb the spread of the virus.”

Minister Mutsvangwa singled out challenges of escapees from quarantine centres and returning residents skipping the border to avert mandatory quarantine procedure as flaring the figures.

Minister Mutsvangwa underscored the need for provincial taskforce teams to escort returnees switching quarantine centres following concerns raised that some of the returnees would further spread the disease as they passed through various towns and purchase food and access ablution services.

In her remarks, Mashonaland West Minister of State, Mary Mliswa-Chikoka said the Chinengundu and Mzari isolation centres were now ready to admit Covid-19 patients, while Chinhoyi provincial isolation centre was at 50 percent to completion owing much to procurement challenges.

She lauded private players for rising to the occasion in assisting Government in the fight against Covid-19.

26-07-2020

Four heavily armed suspected state agents besieged MDC Alliance Bulawayo Councillor for Ward 24, Anorld Batirai Dube’s homestead last night.

The four, asked about Clr Dube’s whereabouts before getting away with valuables like laptop, 2 cellphones and money.

The break in comes hotly after another failed attempt just few days ago.

A shaken Mrs Batirai narrated her harrowing ordeal at the hands of the four who threatened to blow off her head demanding to know Clr Dube’s whereabouts.

Clr Batirai Dube is MDC Alliance Youth Assembly Deputy National Secretary for Local Governance.

As an Assembly, we believe Clr Batirai Dube is a victim of a panic stricken regime that is keen to foil the impending 31 July protests through a Night of Long Knives on opposition supporters.

We shall not be intimidated nor relent!

Stephen Sarkozy Chuma
MDC Alliance Youth Assembly National Spokesperson

In the video footage below Honourable Job Sikhala speaks to ZimEye.com following reports that he had been abducted by state security agents.

Sikhala declares no man can stop the wave of change :watch video below-

In the video footage below Honourable Job Sikhala speaks to ZimEye.com following reports that he had been abducted by state security agents.

Sikhala declares no man can stop the wave of change :watch video below-

Strange bees attacked soldiers in Kuwadzana, Harare today and many are more questions than answers pertaining to the incident.

Watch video below :

Strange bees attacked soldiers in Kuwadzana, Harare today and many are more questions than answers pertaining to the incident.

Watch video below :

THE Zanu PF Youth League has urged law enforcement agents to deal with the planned violent demonstrations being organised by opposition activists and all those involved.

In separate statements yesterday, Zanu PF Youth League provincial structures said the planned demonstrations are meant to further an illegal regime change agenda.

Zanu PF Mashonaland West Youth League chairperson Vengai Musengi said holding a demonstration during a pandemic poses a danger to public health.

“Opposition elements are keen to cause violence at the end of this month,” said Musengi.

“Such acts pose a serious threat to the safety of members of the public and seriously undermine social order. They warrant society’s most severe condemnation.”

He said the organisers of the demonstrations were using social media to promote attacks on State institutions and private property.

The police, Musengi said, must use appropriate force to disrupt the planned demonstrations and arrest those involved.

Youth League chairperson for Matabeleland North Province, Tamuka Nyoni, said opposition elements were trying to destabilise the country through demonstrations.

“The provincial league, as much as other progressive forces in our country, is saddened and disheartened by news circulating in the electronic and print media regarding the 31st of July so called ‘mass protests’ by regime change agenda advocates,” said Nyoni.

“They are trying by all means to polarise the peaceful environment enjoyed by the citizenry, which is trying to come to terms with the reality of this global pandemic which is making lives unbearable.”

He said the organisers are criminal elements who intend to overthrow a constitutionally-elected Government which has a mandate that runs until 2023.

“We, therefore, call upon the citizenry to fight these forces in order to maintain the peace that we enjoy in the midst of this pandemic.

The Mat North Youth league appeals to like-minded and progressive formations who share our vision, to shun these calls and exercise maximum unity.”-The Sunday Mail

Farai Dziva|Tajamuka leader Promise Mkwananzi has said the July 31 protests are about sacrifices meant to emancipate the people of Zimbabwe from poverty and corruption.

In a strong warning to the Zanu PF regime, the former MDC Youth Assembly Secretary General said no form of ammunition would stop the protests.

“This is the time for the people of Zimbabwe to unite and fight for total emancipation.The demo is not about political parties, rather it is about the people of Zimbabwe.

Nobody is supposed to go to work, for once let us unite as Zimbabweans.

We know they want to suppress the protests but our message to them is clear- no form of ammunition will stop us from fighting for freedom.

Those who want to buy food please do so in time because this is not a joke.Nobody should be left out of the programme.We are going to confront the regime without fear,” said Mkwananzi.

“We are saying enough is enough , Zimbabweans have suffered for too long as result of Zanu PF misrule.”

VIDEO LOADING BELOW – PLEASE BE PATIENT

https://youtu.be/G5h-duawqpY

MDC-T interim president Dr Thokozani Khupe has reportedly sent emissaries to senior members of the MDC-Alliance led by Mr Nelson Chamisa to seek support in a bid to ward off pressure from secretary-general Mr Douglas Mwonzora for the top-most position in the party.

Dr Khupe who is likely to face off with Mr Mwonzora for the position of party president is reportedly making inroads into Mr Chamisa’s close allies especially in Bulawayo with the hope of convincing them to attend the pending extraordinary congress and fend off the party’s secretary-general’s attempt to wrestle power.

Two weeks ago it was reported that some councillors and MPs in Bulawayo, fearing a recall by Dr Khupe, were advocating for a settlement between Dr Khupe and Mr Chamisa, failure to which they would join the former Deputy Prime Minister.

Party insiders have revealed that a number of councillors and MPs in the province and senior members of the MDC-Alliance provincial structures have already committed themselves to attending the extraordinary congress.

However, Dr Khupe’s spokesperson, Mr Khaliphani Pugeni refuted the allegations claiming the party leader had more class than to nicodemously approach Mr Chamisa while knowing the true party position regarding him.

“There is no basis at all to those reports, as you might know after the Supreme Court judgement and the actions by Mr Chamisa thereafter, the party wrote a letter expelling him, a letter that was signed by Dr Khupe.

“Therefore, it cannot work for Dr Khupe to then go against the party position to nicodemously approach Mr Chamisa.

In actual fact, I believe Dr Khupe has more class to do such an act, people chose the path they took after the Supreme Court ruling,” said Mr Pugeni-The Sunday News

watch the video loading below…….

A British Telegraph article review reveals how:

• Bees are cheaper to train than dogs.

• Bees can be trained to smell soldiers and police and swarm their garrison.

https://youtu.be/6D2TKvur2G0

Amazing research has been coming out lately about bees and their high-intensity sense of smell. In addition, they can easily be trained to recognize smells in a very short time.

The Telegraph reported that Croatian and French biologists were able to train bees to detect explosives and mines in the Balkans. Their olfactory sense allows bees to detect thousands of unexploded underground landmines and explosives.

Yves Le Conte is the director of the bee and environment unit at INRA in Avignon, France. He has stated that bees can detect TNT if they receive the proper training.

This 3:08-minute long video shows how honeybees can help save human lives by detecting landmines that were hidden in the Balkans in the 1990s.

Dr. Rebecca Nesbit works at Inscentinel, a company that trains bees. She has stated that bees are cheaper and easier to train than sniffer dogs and their scent-sensing capabilities are so heightened that they can detect an odor in parts per trillion. For instance, they can sniff-out a grain of salt in an Olympic swimming pool.

Do bees smell fear? Keep in mind, bees traditionally use their sense of smell to protect their hives. It is not so much the actual fear that bees smell as it is the pheromones, which are like hormones, that are released by a creature when that creature feels fearful. Bees know to interpret that scent as fear and they can emit scents of their own to ‘talk’ to each other about the smell they identify as fear, so the entire hive is quickly alerted.

If a human, cat, dog, squirrel or raccoon gets too close to a beehive, the pheromones of that creature are picked up as ‘different’ to that of the hive, and the watcher bees will alert the rest of the hive by emitting their own pheromones that danger might be near. It is a defensive move intended to put the hive on high alert, rather than a desire to attack the stranger. Yet. An attack will usually only take place if the intruder initiates any sort of attack on the colony.

This 3:47-minute long video shows how honeybees are being trained as scent-detecting crime-fighters.

https://youtu.be/Ulsc0FpNVaQ

Remember, bee talk is non-verbal and unfolds in two ways. The waggle dance and bee pheromones are the languages of bees. The species is considered to engage in one of the most advanced means of communicating out of all social insects.

The waggle dance is the popular and well-known way bees talk to each other. We blogged about the waggle dance, which is how foraging bees tell each other about the hottest new foraging grounds so they can all enjoy the nectar and pollen.

Pheromone “talk” is the complex language of scent that informs bees about many things. It is especially useful as an early warning system to let them know if danger is nearby. If a bee is under attack or in distress, she can release “attack pheromones” and these will alert other bees nearby, causing a swarm of her defensive sisters to fly in and protect her.

What are bee pheromones and how do bees use them to smell? Pheromones are chemical substances that are created by an animal’s exocrine glands. When they are triggered within that creature, it elicits a response from another animal of the same species depending on the physiological or behavioral signature associated within that species.

Bees have an intense sense of smell and are drawn to scents as much as they are to colors. Their antennae pick up odors, even while flying. They can discern the trace of a scent mid-flight, which helps them to identify flowers that are rich sources of pollen and nectar. They can spontaneously follow the scent to the flowers or herbs.

They love the scents of native plants and some aromatic herbs bees love are lavender, hyssop, chamomile, beebalm, sage, rosemary and thyme. They do not like the smells of cinnamon, peppermint, geranium and cucumber, to name a few.

Can a bee smell a human? Some people think bees can smell fear, because many people get scared when they see a bee, and then the bee seems drawn to come take a closer look. The bee is just scoping you out unless you are provoking the hive.

The queen bee sets the pheromone signature scent in a hive, but what about individual bees? An exciting new study by EarthSky indicates that the scent profiles of bees change at different times in their lives. Most bees in the hive don’t notice subtle differences in the scent of their hive-mates. but the hive’s alert watchers, the Guard Bees, are geared to ‘smell’ outsiders that don’t belong in the hive. Since foragers may pick up other scents while they are away from the hive, they can be treated differently by Guard Bees when they seek hive re-entry since they no longer smell like the younger bees who have never left the hive but still maintain the full integrity of the queen’s hive scent.

What do you think of bees being trained as sniffer-bees? You can share your thoughts over on our Facebook page. – Source: beemission.com

MDC-T interim president Dr Thokozani Khupe has reportedly sent emissaries to senior members of the MDC-Alliance led by Mr Nelson Chamisa to seek support in a bid to ward off pressure from secretary-general Mr Douglas Mwonzora for the top-most position in the party.

Dr Khupe who is likely to face off with Mr Mwonzora for the position of party president is reportedly making inroads into Mr Chamisa’s close allies especially in Bulawayo with the hope of convincing them to attend the pending extraordinary congress and fend off the party’s secretary-general’s attempt to wrestle power.

Two weeks ago it was reported that some councillors and MPs in Bulawayo, fearing a recall by Dr Khupe, were advocating for a settlement between Dr Khupe and Mr Chamisa, failure to which they would join the former Deputy Prime Minister.

Party insiders have revealed that a number of councillors and MPs in the province and senior members of the MDC-Alliance provincial structures have already committed themselves to attending the extraordinary congress.

However, Dr Khupe’s spokesperson, Mr Khaliphani Pugeni refuted the allegations claiming the party leader had more class than to nicodemously approach Mr Chamisa while knowing the true party position regarding him.

“There is no basis at all to those reports, as you might know after the Supreme Court judgement and the actions by Mr Chamisa thereafter, the party wrote a letter expelling him, a letter that was signed by Dr Khupe.

“Therefore, it cannot work for Dr Khupe to then go against the party position to nicodemously approach Mr Chamisa.

In actual fact, I believe Dr Khupe has more class to do such an act, people chose the path they took after the Supreme Court ruling,” said Mr Pugeni-The Sunday News

An opinionist writing for the Daily News has said new restrictions as announced by the president are not the solution to the country’s COVID-19 woes.

The opinionist said the government must first right the wrongs bedevilling the systems like providing PPE and bettering the frontline workers’ working conditions. The opinionist opined:

Imposition of the dusk to dawn curfew without righting all the other wrongs and shortcomings within our systems may not produce the desired results of containing the spiking coronavirus (Covid-19) local transmission as well as deaths.

The government will only be fuelling suspicions that the restrictions are also targeted at scoring political goals like dealing with the threat of protests as already indicated by some opposition parties and civil society organisations over the worsening economic conditions in the country.

Besides their welfare, the issue of personal protective equipment (PPE) for health workers, as well as other equipment for the care of those in isolation remains paramount and needs to be sorted out urgently.

About 200 health workers have so far tested positive for Covid-19, a worrying trend in which more and more frontline workers are being exposed to the lethal virus as a result of the shortage of PPE. As we write, doctors have given the government a two-week notice of their intention to strike over salaries and working conditions.

Salary talks between the doctors and their employer have broken down as the government has insisted on Zimbabwe dollar-denominated pay against the doctors’ demand for US dollar salaries.

President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s administration must do more than impose restrictions when the very basic of provisions have not been ensured.

One of the major problems that have led to the spike in cases involved escapees from quarantine centres, in some cases when the escaped inmates had tested positive, exposing the communities into which they go.

Although more can be done, on a positive note, the president in announcing the new measures indicated that escaping from quarantine centres will be treated as a criminal offence. However, more should be done.

As people get into quarantine, the security of the facilities and the well-being of the inmates fall squarely on the shoulders of the government. Therefore, it is only because of laxity of security at the centres that inmates escape.

Also, provisions like food, blankets and medication during quarantine must be adequate.
The purpose, as well as modalities of their stay at the facilities in terms of testing, must be clearly spelt out and followed to the letter, thus removing any motivation on the part of the inmates to escape.

On the whole, putting restrictive measures in place without corresponding attention to the pressing issues in the sector, are not enough

Dear ⁦@_AfricanUnion⁩ Chairperson, President ⁦@CyrilRamaphosa⁩, please ask President ⁦@edmnangagwa⁩ to release anti-corruption journalist ⁦#FreeHopewell Chin’ono pic.twitter.com/xBCI8tBdcg

— Prof Thuli Madonsela #KindnessBuilds (@ThuliMadonsela3) July 26, 2020

By A Correspondent- Former Finance minister Herbert Murerwa and ex-legislator Biata Nyamupinga are tipped for the Goromonzi South seat if the incumbent Energy Mutodi is expelled from the party.

Mutodi was dismissed as deputy Media Information and Broadcasting Services deputy minister in May for making undiplomatic remarks on how Tanzania’s President John Magufuli had responded to Covid-19 outbreak as compared to what President Emmerson Mnangagwa had done.

He was suspended to carry out party activities in his constituency.

In Chivi South, ex-legislator Mafios Vutete is shoo-in to replace Killer Zivhu who was expelled from the party last month.

Business Times heard this week that political manoeuvring has started in Mashonaland East after the province recommended the expulsion of Mutodi.

Murerwa is tipped to replace Mutodi and has been working in the province in the past years.

Another dark horse who can make a political comeback is former MP Nyamupinga who was expelled for having been associated with the G40 cabal.

The suspension was lifted and was readmitted into the party.

Zanu-PF secretary for administration Obert Mpofu said the party had received reports of the recommendation from the provinces and had taken appropriate action in dealing with the Masvingo Province resulting in the expulsion of Zivhu and was still seized with the matter of Mashonaland East province.

“The party is aware of all political developments taking place in the provinces including recommendations. We shall be dealing with the matter at the appropriate time,” Mpofu said.

“We know the issue of Mashonaland East province and we shall deal with it.”

-BusinessTimes

By A Correspondent- Bulawayo residents through the Bulawayo Progressive Residents Association are suing their local authority for not providing them with safe drinking water after 13 people in Luveve Surburb died due to a Typhoid and Dysentry outbreak that was caused by contaminated water.

The residents on Thursday last week reportedly filed a class-action civil suit at the High Court against BCC for failing to provide them safe drinking water as required by the Urban Councils act.

Court papers seen by the publication which cite BCC and Local Government Minister July Moyo as the first and second respondent respectively reads in part:

The statutory obligation of the first defendant is to provide and maintain a supply of safe and clean potable water to its council area, arising, in turn and inter alia from Section 183 of the Urban Council Act, Section 19 of the City of Bulawayo sewerage, drainage and water by-laws and Section 57 of the Environmental Management Act.

The first defendant breached these duties of care in that it supplied the plaintiffs and residents of its council areas with water contaminated with faecal matter, coliform bacteria and water that was visibly discoloured, mixed with solids, odoriferous and clearly unfit for human consumption.

As a result of the first defendant’s breach of its duties the plaintiffs were exposed to typhus, shigella and other bacteria which caused them to contract or materially contributed to them contracting a serious gastrointestinal disease.

Further to the breach of its duties the first defendant behaved in an egregious, insidious and recalcitrant manner in that it was grossly negligent, failed to take adequate measures to diagnose and stop the spread of the outbreak, through its representatives adopted a callous, offensive and combative attitude even in the face of loss of lives

The residents have attached soil samples and medical reports for the outbreak to be used in the lawsuit. The government is on record confirming that the water that was pumped to Luveve residents was indeed contaminated with human waste.

-statemedia

By A Correspondent- The government beginning next week will screen 7225 households for COVID-19 in all 54 districts including households in the rural areas to assess the extent to which the pandemic has spread in Zimbabwe.

Of the 7225 households to be tested, 4 625 will be in the rural areas.

This was revealed by Director of the National Institute of Health in the Ministry of Health and Child Care, Professor Nicholas Midzi who explained the motive behind the initiative and how it will be conducted and said:

The tests will inform authorities on the extent to which Covid-19 has spread, the high and low transmission areas as well the necessary interventions for each area.

Only one individual will be tested per household and we will target all age groups from two years. ZimStat will start with household registration this coming week while training of health workers and tests will commence a week after.

We will determine the presence of Covid-19 through testing of the antibodies with further tests set to be administered to confirm the first tests.

According to the publication, the tests will be conducted in 30 days. Hotspots like border towns and communities near isolation centres and communities near highways have been identified and will be prioritised in the survey.

-statemedia

Technomag

Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe is offering a free six month subscription to all schools that would have benefited from the regulator’s e-learning programme, an official has revealed.

The move is meant to capacitate mostly unconnected peri urban and rural schools which are currently receiving laptops, but do not have fixed connectivity in their premises or power supply.

In a sideline interview with TechnoMag after the official opening of Chinotimba Community Information Centre in Victoria Falls on Friday, POTRAZ Director Postal and Courier Services Kennedy Dewere said,

“The six months subscription that will be paid for by POTRAZ under the Universal Service Fund will be done for schools that will have benefited in terms of getting computers under the e-learning programme. Actually internet connectivity is part of the e-learning programme that POTRAZ is rolling out, so what happens if a school benefits by way of receiving computers immediately we will arrange service providers to go and ensure connectivity then we pay six months in advance.”

The e-learning programme is aimed at equipping schools (rural and urban) with digital skills in line with sustainable development goals (SDGs) number 9.

The goal underscores the need to significantly increase access to information and communications technology and strive to provide universal and affordable access to the Internet.

Dewere said the proposition was aided by the need to generate appetite for internet connectivity.

“The reason for paying the six months in advance is to ensure that we generate some appetite among the users, they also get to understand how beneficial internet connectivity is. We also realised that most of the beneficiary schools have no sufficient resources to deploy in that regard. So this is the reason why as a matter of policy we have said as part of the e-learning programme whichever school gets some computers under the e-learning programme that should be accompanied by a six month subscription, which is paid in advance direct to the service provider, after the six months the school can then start paying themselves,” Dewere said.

Some of the schools to benefit from this initiative include the three schools (Chidobe Primary school,Ndlovu Secondary school and Neshaya secondary school) that received computers at Chinotimba Community Information Centre in Victoria falls.

To date, the programme has witnessed the disbursement of more than 4000 computers to at least 400 schools countrywide.

Meanwhile, the telecommunications regulator is rolling out another initiative dubbed 1300 schools connectivity programme where 1300 schools have been earmarked to benefit from internet connectivity.

The programme, spearheaded by the government owned internet service provider, ZARNET, has so far benefited 800 schools across the country

All 68 inmates who escaped from a jail in South Africa’s Western Cape on Friday have been rearrested, the government says.

Prison officials were praised for “restoring stability” following a two-day manhunt.

The break-out happened after inmates at Malmesbury Prison “overpowered” staff during an exercise session.

They then locked three officers in a cell before freeing other prisoners and escaping over a roof, authorities said.

Previous reports said they had escaped while being transferred to court for trial.

South Africa’s prison body had originally said 69 inmates escaped, but the department of justice on Sunday said they were 68 in total.

According to local news site EWN, the reason for this confusion was that one inmate presumed to have escaped had in fact “moved to a different cell during the chaos and never left the facility”.

Part of the escape was caught on camera by a member of the public who was sitting in his car.

Only 20 prison officers were on duty to supervise the facility’s 451 inmates, said a statement from the South African Correctional Service on Friday.

“The escapees overpowered officials, took the keys and locked three officials in a cell and opened other cells before escaping through the main entrance and over the roof,” it added.

Nine prison officers “sustained minor injuries and bruises” during the incident.

South Africa’s Justice Minister Ronald Lamola has since thanked people in the local community for giving “critical information” that led to the arrests.

He was quoted by local news site News24 as saying the escapees would be punished for their actions.

State Media

GOVERNMENT is procuring more personal protective equipment (PPE) and undertaking extensive training of healthcare workers to effectively use available gear to curb the spread of Covid-19 within the health workforce.

This comes as 323 health workers have contracted Covid-19 since the beginning of the outbreak in March as local infections continue to rocket.

Chief Co-ordinator for the National Response to the Covid-19 Pandemic in the Office of the President and Cabinet, Dr Agnes Mahomva, said coronavirus infections among Zimbabwean health workers, while worrying, were still within manageable levels.

“Every time we have a healthcare worker infected, it is of great concern to us, so we continue to prioritise them at all times by procuring more PPEs,” said Dr Mahomva.

“We are, however, looking at how the little PPE available is being utilised. We have noticed that sometimes it’s not being used appropriately, for example, you don’t need someone wearing a suit from top to bottom checking temperature at the gate.

“So we are also providing that training and sensitisation to ensure that the little that is available is used appropriately in the right places.”

Government is taking the Covid-19 fight to the communities, with over 7 000 households in different parts of the country set to get tested for Covid-19 beginning next week in an effort to assess the extent to which the pandemic has spread in the country.

Dr Mahomva said while some infections were occurring within healthcare institutions, the approach by communities towards the pandemic has contributed to the increase in healthcare workers testing positive for Covid-19.

“Often, people think that health workers are getting it within institutions but it’s also very possible that they are getting it out there where they live, so we look at the response in a more comprehensive way to ensure that all preventative measures are put in place.

“If you walk around, Zimbabweans in general seem to think that it won’t affect them and these same people are teachers, nurses, doctors, engineers walking in the street. This means you can take it to your workplace,” she said.

Acting Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health and Child Care Dr Gibson Mhlanga said while no fatalities had been recorded so far, testing of health workers and provision of PPE was critical to ensure that numbers remain low.

“It is unfortunate that we are having health workers being infected by Covid-19. These are critical in dealing with the rising number of cases being reported countrywide,” he said.

“So far 323 health workers have tested positive in Zimbabwe since the beginning of the outbreak, luckily no deaths have been reported among these health workers.

“Of these, nurses are the most affected, constituting 168 and doctors 16. Other affected health workers include people working in pharmacies, accounts, general hands working in the cleaning services as well as drivers ferrying patients. These healthcare workers need PPEs at all times,” added Dr Mhlanga.

Between June 9 and July 25, 70 health workers had tested positive for Covid-19 at Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals, 64 of them being those who work in general wards while six work in the Covid-19 centre.

The hospital also noted community deaths, where 13 corpses that were brought in dead tested positive. This has seen health experts call for increased testing for a quickened pace towards flattening the curve.

The Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZimStat) will this week begin household registration with testing following thereafter.

Government plans to screen 7 225 households in all 54 districts and the country’s two metropolitan provinces. Of these households, 4 625 will be in the rural areas.

Director of the National Institute of Health in the Ministry of Health and Child Care, Professor Nicholas Midzi, said the tests seek to find the best interventions to curb the disease at community level.

“The tests will inform authorities on the extent to which Covid-19 has spread, the high and low transmission areas as well the necessary interventions for each area,” he said.

“Only one individual will be tested per household and we will target all age groups from two years. ZimStat will start with household registration this coming week while training of health workers and tests will commence a week after.

“We will determine the presence of Covid-19 through testing of the antibodies with further tests set to be administered to confirm the first tests.”

The sample tests will be done within 30 days with 289 selected areas countrywide set to be covered.

Harare Metropolitan Province will have the largest number (50) with 48 of these areas being in urban areas while two are rural.

Ministry of Health and Child Care Epidemiology and Disease Control director Dr Portia Manangazira said Government had identified hotspots which will be prioritised in the survey.

The hotspots include border communities, communities near isolation, quarantine centres and major highways.

She also said 200 community workers had been recruited to complement the work of health workers.

“We have started training community workers based in Mashonaland and Matabeleland, who will be working with the health workers,” Dr Manangazira added.

“We also are closely monitoring hotspots which have been identified which will inform on the measures to be implemented in the areas.”

Zimbabwe has been recording a surge in Covid-19 cases over the past weeks with an increase witnessed in local transmissions.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) in March warned that disruption to the global supply of PPE due to rising demand, panic buying, hoarding and misuse was putting lives at risk from Covid-19 and other infectious diseases, particularly frontline workers.

In South Africa, more than 3 500 health professionals have been infected by the novel coronavirus according to the country’s Health Minister Zweli Mkhize, with 34 fatalities having been recorded so far.

Kenya has seen 257 infections among healthcare workers while Ghana has recorded over 2 000.

Zimbabwe recorded its first case of the novel coronavirus disease on March 20 with Government swiftly enforcing a 21-day lockdown to control the spread of the deadly virus 10 days later.

To date, the country had recorded 2 434 confirmed cases and 34 deaths from over 100 000 tests.

Zimbabwe international Marvelous Nakamba’s Aston Villa survived a nightmare final day of the Premier League with a 1-1 draw with West Ham in England’s Premier League.

Watford, Bournemouth and Norwich were relegated on a day when SuperSport showed all 10 matches across its channels.

Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea grabbed the Champions League places.

But for Zimbabwe it is about seeing their own Nakamba next season among England’s elite next season.

Watch the team celebrate below:

https://twitter.com/AVFCOfficial/status/1287437514920398851?s=08

State Media

ZAPU will not participate in the planned July 31 illegal protests as doing so will increase the risk of members of the public contracting Covid-19.

Already, the country has recorded over 2 000 Covid-19 positive cases and 34 deaths.

In a statement Zapu spokesperson Iphithule Maphosa said the focus should be on fighting Covid-19 not politicking.

He said the agenda of July 31 protest organisers is still shrouded in mystery.

Mr Maphosa said the protests seem to advance individual agendas while sacrificing the public.

“We would like to categorically state that the mother party is not an active participant to the said demonstrations that are purportedly against corruption.

“This is informed by the reluctance by the organisers of the said demonstrations to engage, consult, or better still to invite other opposition players into partnering them,” said Mr Maphosa.

“The mother party is also, as a responsible entity that is sensitive to the safety and well-being of the populace, concerned more about the high-risk citizens are being subjected to by calling them to converge and mass protest.

“The lives of a desperate population are being pawned and deliberately put in firing line from the marauding coronavirus.”

“As such, we are certain that instant popularity, gained from a moment of desperation and freedom deprivation, does not carry the magnanimity of the Zimbabwean struggle in its totality.

“Are we just interested in the moment’s popularity or we want a lasting and sustainable solution to the people’s predicament? This is a question everyone must ask themselves. Don’t we care about the current ravaging pandemic, so long we will be popular for a moment? Is that what the Zimbabwean problem calls for?” asked Maphosa.

TelOne have reviewed their prices for broadband. These prices will take effect from the 1st of August:

TelOne residential broadband

Package	Download Cap	US$	ZWL$
Home Basic	10GB	10.00	722.00
Home Basic Night	20GB	13.00	938.00
Home Extra	15GB	11.00	794.00
Home Plus	30GB	17.00	1,227.00
Home Plus Night	60GB	22.00	1,587.00
Home Premier	60GB	29.00	2,092.00
Home Premier Night	120GB	37.00	2,670.00
Home Boost	200GB	42.00	3,030.00
Infinity Pro	500GB	61.00	4,401.00
Intense	Uncapped* (FUP)	83.00	5,988.00

TelOne

SME Broadband Packages

Package	Download Speed	Download Cap	US$	ZWL$
Infinity Supreme	20 Mbps	Uncapped* (FUP)	104.00	7,504.00
Intense Extra	50 Mbps	Uncapped* (FUP)	139.00	10,029.00

TelOne

Blaze LTE Packages

Package	Download Cap	US$	ZWL$
Blaze Lite	8GB	9.00	649.00
Blaze Xtra	15GB	14.00	1,010.00
Blaze Boost	20GB	18.00	1,299.00
Blaze Ultra	40GB	29.00	2,092.00
Blaze Trailblazer	100GB	44.00	3,175.00
Blaze Supernova	Uncapped* (FUP)	87.00	6,277.00

TelOne

Public Wifi

Package	US$	ZWL$
1GB	1.00	72.00
2.5GB	2.00	144.00
6GB	3.00	216.00

Own Correspondent

Econet Wireless has announced that it is giving all its subscribers three free call minutes as compensation for time lost during an over twenty four hour network breakdown on Thursday.

Econet said the 3 free minutes can be used by subscribers to call any Econet number between 8PM to 9PM on Sunday 26 July, 2020.

The country’s biggest mobile phone service provider goes on to apologise for the service disruptions which resulted in customers being unable to make calls as well as access the internet.

Below is the statement issued by the company:

Dear Valued Customer,

Enjoy 3 FREE minutes on voice calls when you call any Econet number between 8 pm and 9 pm tonight, Sunday 26 July 2020.

Stay connected with your family and friends.

We thank you for your patience during the 24 July service interruptions. We truly appreciate your continued support and apologise for the inconvenience caused.

Econet Wireless

We are failing to locate Hon Job Sikhala so we are sorry that tonight's program might have to be cancelled pic.twitter.com/jR10aBixdN

— ZimEye (@ZimEye) July 26, 2020

https://twitter.com/ZimEye/status/1287448573324517376?s=19