FINANCE and Economic Development Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube has said economic policies put in place by Government are sound but the economy was being sabotaged.
The minister said it was unsustainable to allow the black market to lead foreign currency trading hence Government introduced the forex auction system.
Minister Ncube told senators during Thursday’s Senate Question and Answer session that the currency auction system is meant to bring price stability.
“We are doing various things. Firstly, we have increased civil servants salaries by 50 percent and this is temporary cushion while normal adjustment is taking place as we speak. It is on the table. We have also added an allowance which is the US$75 for all the civil servants and again, that is meant to be an inflation protector during this difficult time,” he said.
“That is what we are doing but the negotiations on salaries are going on as we speak. This is just a gesture from the employer to the employee to cushion them against vagaries of inflation. To be clear, the saboteurs are the people in the parallel market and not the policies.”
He said Government was addressing civil servants’ welfare through various cushioning measures while salary negotiations were in progress. “The intention is to give leadership to the market and then stabilise the market in the process. Once the market is stable, the movement of prices will also be curtailed thereby slowing down inflation. That is really the intention of the auction system, to give better price discovery,” said Prof Ncube.
He said Government was prioritising the productive sectors in its forex allocations.
Prof Ncube said people have been allowed to buy using foreign currency as part of measures to allow forex to circulate in the formal system thereby easing pressure on the local currency as well.
“We allowed it during this Covid-19 period for two reasons. First, to give consumers and citizenry flexibility when they go about shopping and paying for goods and services and secondly, as a way to manage money supply growth by allowing into circulation and transaction activity what you already have in your pockets,” said Prof Ncube.
File picture of health workers taking away a deceased Covid-19 patient
A FAMILY in Victoria Falls lost two siblings aged 45 and 37 years who succumbed to Covid-19 in South Africa resulting in their three children and two brothers being quarantined.
Ms Senzeni Mele Ndlovu (45) who is survived by two children and her husband, died last Wednesday at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital in Johannesburg while her young sister Ms Thabisile Mele Ndlovu (37), who leaves behind a child died the following day at the same hospital.
Thabisile, a teacher who once taught at Tsholotsho High School, was a principal at Basa Tutorial Institute in Soweto while her sister was doing menial jobs in the neighbouring country.
The two siblings lived with their two brothers and three children in the same house in Naturena suburb, Johannesburg.
A family member, Mrs Irene Ncube narrated how her younger sisters died. “This is a painful thing that has befallen the family. We couldn’t believe it when we were informed by other family members about the death. It’s really hard to accept that such a situation has happened and all that we are left with are memories of the loving and hilarious girls that they were,” said Mrs Ncube.
She said Thabisile was the first to be taken to Chris Hani Hospital on June 29 after complaining of chest problems and difficulty in breathing.
Mrs Ncube said her younger sister was not attended to on the first day and was only treated on June 30 when her condition deteriorated before her death on Thursday.
Senzeni was rushed to the same hospital on June 30 in the evening and died the next day at around 3AM.
“Thabisile complained of difficulties in breathing and went to hospital on 29 June but was not attended to until the next day. On 30 June, I was speaking to Senzeni on the phone around 5PM and she didn’t sound unwell as she only complained of headache and coughing which we didn’t think could be serious.
“At around 9PM the same day we were told that Senzeni had been rushed to the same hospital where Thabisile had been admitted. She was admitted around 11PM and died around 3AM the following day. The two didn’t meet in hospital as Thabisile had been moved to another ward where she spent the whole day and died a day after Zenzeni’s death,” said a distraught Mrs Ncube.
She said family members in South Africa informed them that authorities confirmed that the cause of death was Covid-19.
Mrs Ncube said her sisters’ three children and two brothers have since been quarantined.
She said the family wants the bodies to be repatriated for burial in Mapili area under Chief Matupula in Tsholotsho.
Mrs Ncube dismissed claims that one of her quarantined brothers was not feeling well saying they were in communication with the family in the neighbouring country.
“We are in communication with everyone and no one else is sick. The others have been placed on self-quarantine. The bodies are at a parlour waiting for documents and we expect the process to be completed end of this week,” she said.
The family said it would have loved to conduct the burial of the two siblings live on Zoom so that relatives and family members who will not be able to travel because of the lockdown can follow proceedings but they will only record a video and share it later because of network challenges in their village.
MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa has explained his popular “God is in it” mantra indicating that is not a slogan but a statement of faith and what his party believes in.
Comparing his mantra to that of President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s “voice of the people is the voice of God,” Chamisa said Mnangagwa is being blasphemous as God can never be compared with human beings. The opposition leader who himself is an ordained pastor said Mnangagwa’s assertion shows that the President does not understand God and has never been to church.
Ethnic unrest in the aftermath of the killing of Ethiopian singer Hachalu Hundessa has left at least 166 people dead, officials say.
A top police chief said 145 civilians and 11 security personnel died in Oromia region alone. Ten people have been killed in the capital Addis Ababa.
Hachalu, 34, was killed on Monday, sparking unrest that spread from Oromia where he was seen as a hero.
The motive remains unclear. Hachalu had said he had received death threats.
His songs focused on the rights of the country’s Oromo people, Ethiopia’s largest ethnic group, and became anthems in a wave of protests that led to the downfall of the previous prime minister in 2018.
BBC Ethiopia reporter Kalkidan Yibeltal says ethnic and religious tensions have intensified in the aftermath of the killing.
Announcing the latest figures, Oromia deputy police commissioner Girma Gelam said 167 had “sustained serious injuries” during the unrest.
Mr Gelam said 1,084 people had been arrested, without providing further detail.
In his statement, the police official said the violent unrest had now “completely stopped”.
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, himself an Oromo, who came to power in April 2018, has warned that those behind Hachalu’s death wanted to derail his reform programme.
“We have two choices as a people. To fall into the trap being set up by detractors or to deviate from their trap and stay on the course of reforms. Choosing the first is to willingly aid them in our demise,” the prime minister said.
YOJA statement on alleged links with journalist Hopewell Chin’ono and the US Embassy to ‘destabilise the country.’
The Young Journalists Association (YOJA) would like to distance itself from a statement circulating on various social media platforms alleging that it is working with journalist Hopewell Chin’ono and the United States Embassy in an effort to ‘set an agenda against the government of Zimbabwe’.
YOJA is an association of budding journalists who seek to attain capacity around issues of media development and access to information.
In its three years of existence the association has sought to provide young journalists with skills and knowledge on communication issues and advocacy in the media.
We would like to state that the statement which alleges that we have been working with Chin’ono is not only false but also an attempt to soil the good image of our association which is not involved in any agenda besides journalism and access to information advocacy.
The statement raises unsubstantiated information that one Rawlings Magede is mobilising young journalists which is not true as Magede is an ordinary member who participates in achieving the association goals through meetings most of which are done online and are open to the majority of journalists.
Magede is a champion of freedom of expression whose commitment to journalism is unparalleled. Over the years he has done much to improve the welfare of journalists through capacity building workshops on Communication for Development, Peace Building and Human Rights.
Unfounded claims that our members will be traveling to rural areas for ‘USD3.00 stories on human rights’ are not factual and a figment of the author’s imagination’.
Furthermore, at no point has the YOJA leadership met the US Embassy in connection with the alleged human rights issues.
Members of the public are free to learn about the work of the association through its spokesperson Leopold Munhende available on 0777945142 and our social media pages.
MDC-Alliance Matabeleland North senator Phyllis Ndlovu
THE recalling of an MDC-Alliance Matabeleland North senator Phyllis Ndlovu has been halted following an appeal to the Supreme Court.
High Court Judge Justice Joseph Martin Mafusire recently barred the party which is led by Dr Thokozani Khupe from recalling legislators until their court application contesting the party’s right to recall them has been determined.
MDC-T filed a notice of appeal at the Supreme Court.
The party which is led by Dr Thokozani Khupe has been recalling legislators elected under MDC-Alliance, which is a coalition of opposition parties that contested the 2018 harmonised elections.
This followed a Supreme court ruling that found that Mr Nelson Chamisa was not the MDC-T leader and recognised Dr Khupe as the acting president who was charged with organising an extraordinary congress within three months to elect a new president to replace the late founding leader, Morgan Tsvangirai.
Announcing the development, the deputy president of the Senate, Mike Nyambuya said Matabeleland North senator Phyllis Ndlovu will continue to carry out her duties as the recall matter is before the Supreme Court.
He said the MDC-T had written to Parliament on the latest position on the same day the senator was recalled.
“On June 30, 2020, Parliament was notified by the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC-T) party that the Hon Sen Phyllis Ndlovu for Matabeleland North province among others had ceased to be a member of the MDC-T party and therefore no longer represented the interests of the party in Parliament with effect from 30th June, 2020,” said Hon Nyambura.
“However, in a letter on the same date, the MDC-T party informed Parliament that due to litigation in the Supreme Court, Hon. Phyllis Ndlovu had not ceased to be a Member of the party hence she remains a senator for Matabeleland North Province.”
GOVERNMENT has called for the transformation of the multimillion-dollar Ekusileni Medical Centre in Bulawayo into a world-class research institution to enhance the nation’s response to COVID-19 and other diseases.
Briefing the media after a provincial COVID-19 meeting in Bulawayo this Saturday, the Minister of Local Government and Public Works, July Moyo, who is also a member of the COVID-19 Inter-Ministerial Taskforce, called on the National Social Security Authority (NSSA) to go beyond just refurbishing Ekusileni Medical Center in Bulawayo.
“We do not want to stop the work that is going on but we want to ensure that government’s mandate to turn the institution into a whole class specialist training research centre is fulfilled,” said Moyo.
The Deputy Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Honourable Raymore Machingura said the development of Ekusileni Medical Centre into a specialist training school and research centre will benefit the ordinary people.
“Our vision to develop skills for the country this hospital will certainly do that. We will have specialists in the area for our people. It is also important in that the centre can because a regional and an international centre whereby will have people coming from across the board to seek training here,” he said.
Cabinet recently approved Ekusileni Medical Centre to be transformed into a specialist teaching and research medical facility under the National University of Science and Technology (NUST).
Ekusileni Medical Centre is a brainchild of the late Vice President, Dr Joshua Nkomo, but the hospital has been closed for close to two decades while several attempts to open it have failed with no good reason offered.
1So far 202 people have been arrested for rejecting dollars and labelling them “bond notes”, with 51 of them already brought to court, while five have been fined between $200 and $500.
The arrests follow the launch of “Operation accept Zimbabwe currency as legal tender” by police on June 26 when reports starting appearing on social media platforms telling people that bond notes would soon be demonetised.
Some traders, believing anything they read on social media, started rejecting some notes while others, believing the categorical assurances by both fiscal and monetary authorities that all notes were good cash, are increasing sales as stashes of notes appear out of trunks belonging to the gullible and are hurriedly spent.
In a statement yesterday, national police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi warned traders and businesses that they risked being arrested if they reject any legal tender.
As far back as 2008, regulations were issued under the 2004 Bank Use Promotion and Suppression of Money Laundering Act making rejection of any legal tender a criminal offence.
“Members of the public and businesses are urged to comply with the law to promote the maintenance of law and order.”
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) Governor Dr John Mangudya recently said Zimbabwe dollar notes inscribed “bond note” remained legal tender and should be accepted for all domestic transactions. This was backed up by statements from Finance and Economic Development Minister Prof Mthuli Ncube.
Legislation that reintroduced the local currency last year, explicitly states that bond notes constitute variations of the Zimbabwe dollar.
In any case, when bank notes are demonetised, there is a long period of notice while they still circulate, followed by another long period when they can still be banked if no longer circulated.
Part of the problem in Zimbabwe is that cash is hoarded, bought and sold without passing through a bank and so older notes become torn and worn. This is apparently what started the rumours.
Normally the tatty notes would have been taken out of circulation long before reaching that stage with banks routinely sending old and soiled notes to the Reserve Bank for destruction.
Members of Parliament have resolved to invite Treasury and the central bank to explain the mitigatory measures to assist cotton farmers after firms buying the lint stopped making payments following a recent suspension of mobile money platforms.
Cotton buying firms told a visiting Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Agriculture, Water and Resettlement in Gokwe last weekend that they had stopped paying cotton farmers for their produce after Government suspended bulk payments and EcoCash merchants in its bid to stamp out illicit money activities.
During the tour in Nemangwe and Chitekete business centres in Gokwe district, the committee’s chairperson Justice Mayor Wadyajena (Zanu PF) told the farmers and firms that they will engage Finance and Economic Development Minister, Prof Mthuli Ncube and Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Governor, Dr John Mangudya, to establish what they were doing to assist farmers to continue accessing their money.
This was after Cottco business manager, Ms Praise Makombore, told legislators that they were unable to make payments to farmers because of the suspension of the mobile money platforms.
“We had just started paying cotton farmers when Government suspended bulk payments for mobile money platforms. You will realise that the mobile money platform was the only means through which we were paying farmers given that most of them have no bank accounts. We have since stopped the payments because our mobile lines have been disabled following the suspension,” said Ms Makombore.
There was also a call to raise the daily EcoCash withdrawal limit saying farmers would require six days to buy a product worth $30 000, for instance, since the limit is now pegged at $5 000 per day.
The committee heard the plight of Mr Edson Kalungwe at Chitekete Business Centre who has 224 bales and would need several months to use his earnings from EcoCash.
A farmer gets an average of $10 000 per bale and with 224 bales, Mr Kalungwe is set to pocket almost $2 million and that would require several months to be used given the obtaining daily limit.
Other farmers bemoaned the producer price of cotton pegged at $43,94 per kg saying it would not help them get meaningful returns that have traditionally been associated with cotton growing.
In response, Wadyajena said his committee will engage Prof Ncube and Dr Mangudya over the farmers’ plight.
“We have heard your concerns. They are quite legitimate, particularly the effect of suspending bulk payments, how it has impacted on you as cotton farmers.
“We will therefore engage Prof Ncube and Dr Mangudya. We want to find out what mitigatory measures they were taking to address that. Thereafter we will compile a report before the plenary of Parliament with our recommendations,” said Wadyajena.
The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) has set up rules to allow by-elections to be held safely during what it sees as a long-term Covid-19 pandemic,
Zec originally suspended voting during the lockdown, but now considers that the public health emergency is likely to be the “new normal” and so is putting in new voting rules. Under these rules, voters will check online to see if their names are on the voters roll, will be screened for temperature before entering a polling station, and will even have to bring their own pen to mark the ballot papers.
Meanwhile, Zec is ready for filling of proportional representation seats in the Senate and National Assembly, since there is no extra voting in this regard, the results of the 2018 election being used.
When the President of the Senate or the Speaker of the House of Assembly notifies the commission of a vacancy, this will be gazetted and the political party holding the seat will be invited to nominate a replacement.
Parliament has pushed ahead for an early census and new delimitation of seats to enable constituencies in the 2023 reflect the present population distribution.
For the 2023 harmonised elections, the Census and Statistics Amendment Bill sailed through the Senate on Thursday and awaits the President’s assent before becoming law.
Under this new law, there will be an early census, in July next year, instead of waiting for 2022, giving Zec time to delimit all 120 constituency boundaries in time for the Presidential, Parliamentary and local government elections using up-to-date census data.
Constituencies are supposed to be of equal size, within modest limits caused by provincial and district boundaries, but continual movement of people changes the distribution.
Land reform, for example, had a major change in how rural populations were distributed, and the continuous rural-to-urban migration common to most countries outside a small group of the most advanced, has to be taken into account when setting boundaries.
Even opening a new major mine can mean a boundary change as a new town arises.
Presenting the Bill in Senate last Thursday, Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi said Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency should conclude the population census in July next year instead of 2022 to allow Zec enough time to use the information to delimit constituencies for the 2023 harmonised elections.
Minister Ziyambi said in terms of the law, delimitation of electoral boundaries must be completed less than six months before polling day in a general election, and if that failed to happen, boundaries that existed before the delimitation would be applicable. He said use of old constituency boundaries would not be consistent with the legal requirement that equal number of voters be registered in each constituency.
“It is now seven years into the new Constitution, we are faced with the undesirable prospect of using the same electoral boundaries as were used back in the 2013 general election for two reasons. The first is that the next census is only due to be completed in 2022. Even if all the data for 2022 was availed timeously, that still brings us uncomfortably close within the range of six months of the next election in 2023,” he said.
“Secondly, Zec will simply not have the time to do the consultation, produce the report and table before Parliament its preliminary and final delimitation reports to enable Parliament and the President to properly consider them. Remember also Madam Speaker that voter registration is done on a continuous basis by Zec.”
He said it was important that Zec depends on reliable up to date data for its delimitation. “The only achievable one in the short time available to us before the next delimitation, is to amend the Census and Statistics Act so as to align the taking of decennial national census in a manner that will enable the Zec to take into account census data in timeous fashion.”
Under the Bill, the next census must be concluded by July 2021, with a new census every 10 years from that date.
This will mean Zec will produce a new delimitation every 10 years for every other harmonised election, using good census data.
Minister Ziyambi said Zimbabwe’s democracy was based on the principle of one-person-one vote and the country had to wage a war several people paid dearly for the realisation of that right.
“The principle of one-person-one-vote has two meanings as well as signifying the entitlement of every citizen to vote at local and national elections. It also bears the meaning that one’s vote is equally as important and carries the same weight as the vote of any other person,” said Minister Ziyambi.
THE Premier Soccer League is hopeful it will get the green light to kick-start the 2020 season in September, as the domestic game eagerly awaits a Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) resolution this week, on the feasibility of playing this year.
Although there had been indications that the ZIFA board would make a decision on the matter yesterday, it emerged that the association’s leadership would now only meet on Thursday.
Instead, it was the Premier Soccer League (PSL)’s Sports Medicine and the ZIFA Competitions committees who met in the capital yesterday and came up with recommendations detailing the conditions and safety of football returning.
ZIFA communications and competitions manager Xolisani Gwesela told The Sunday Mail Sport that the recommendations of the two committees would now be submitted to the mother body’s president Felton Kamambo and his board.
The committees’ main brief was to look at how safe the game can return against the background of the need to help contain the spread of the coronavirus in the country and make the necessary recommendations.
Gwesela said ZIFA would continue to be guided by Government and health experts as well the Confederation of African Football in coming up with a decision that is suitable for Zimbabwe.
“As you are aware, these are just standing committees. They just recommend and ultimate decisions lie with the Exco (Executive Committee).
“A statement will be issued after the Exco meeting,” Gwesela.
The Sports Medicine Committee, led by Edward Chagonda, has set stringent conditions that include regular testing, social distancing, sanitisation and disinfection before football can return.
This year’s season was scheduled to start in March, but there has been no football in the country owing to the national lockdown that followed the outbreak of Covid-19, which has been effective for the last three months.
Although there had been suggestions in some quarters that the game might never be played at all this year, PSL chief executive officer Kennedy Ndebele said they were actually pressing for a September start-The Sunday Mail
By Farai D Hove| The MDC renegade, Douglas Mwonzora has announced sudden allegations that the Alliance Deputy Tendai Biti and colleagues misappropriated US$23 million stashed for the party in a bank in Botswana.
Speaking during a video recorded address, Mwonzora said, 150 party vehicles were stolen after the 2013 elections. He said this as he swung a direct inference at his predecessor, Tendai Biti.
He said the late Morgan Tsvangirai was duped by people he says are thieves. Mwonzora’s allegations however, come at a time when he failed to speak on the said “theft” during the many years running up to Tsvangirai’s death in February 2018. Furthermore he had more than ample time in his hands, several years, holding the powerful post of Secretary General from 2014 to 2019, a time when he could have even authoritatively spoken on it. Mwonzora’s action and inaction thus make him a direct accomplice in his own allegations.
Despite all this, he confidently continues to announce:
” [Chalton] Hwende went to parliament thinking that he would have powers to remove us.
“He went wearing clean clothes. He was wearing his blue suit, with sharp ended shoes, thinking of of how he would remove Mwonzora.
“This was battle number one: we were the ones given the powers to remove MPs, counselors; they fought us in court, and we defeated them in court over those powers.”
He then begins to make his allegations of theft, saying: ” What people did not know is that Tsvangirai had a system to keep two copies, one at Harvest House, another at the Safe House.
“There are very few people who know where this Safe House is, we will not tell them.
” The other copies are kept with the Secretary General, so I had the papers, they are all with the Secretary General. I wont tell them; so I had the papers this building is ours it is owned by the party, the papers are here.
“We did not know Mr Mudzuri, that the party has 150 cars, we did not know where they are.
“The 150 cars were stolen, the papers are here, so we are now going after our cars, we are now going after our motorbikes.
“We have people who disappeared with USD23 million, not bond. You remember in 2013 we used to use US dollars, there were people who lied to Baba Tsvangirai, and said President we have been told by CIO, there will be a runoff, so we are now taking this money to bank it in Botswana.
“After elections, Tsvangirai then said, on the 23 million, take out 5 million so that we can rebuild the party, then these people began attacking Tsvangirai using big words such as debauchery, and leadership renewal.
“It was all an issue of money, nothing else. so these thieves we are going after them, we know them well.”
Efforts to get a comment from Tendai Biti were fruitless at the time of publishing.
Zimbabwe is in a humanitarian meltdown; cases of corrupt officials and torture of citizens have become the talk of the day.
The once breadbasket of Southern Africa has been reduced to begging for food aid from the international community.
Corrupt governance and mismanagement of government funds has exacerbated the current humanitarian crisis in the country.
As the national crisis continues to deepen in Zimbabwe, Mnangagwa and his ZANU PF administration remain clueless.
Instead of focusing on reviving the economy, they are busy pointing fingers at the opposition, and working tirelessly to dismantle the MDC Alliance.
Citizen driven protests in Mbare and Goromonzi are outcries from the Zimbabweans populace.
Zimbabweans have endured four painful decades under the ZANU PF administration.
After the recent protests in Goromonzi, an MDC Alliance activist and Youth Chair Davison Chamisa was targeted, abducted, tortured and left for dead in Norton.
How can these things be happening in a democracy? Citizens expressing their disgruntlement is no grounds for torture. The Zimbabwean constitution provides its citizen with the right to freedom of expression, and freedom of expression includes these peaceful demonstrations.
“These abductions are an attempt to silence and intimidate the opposition and citizens from speaking against the national crisis”, said Advocate Fadzayi Mahere
Mahere issued a statement on behalf of MDC Alliance in which she was strongly condemning these abductions and abuse of protestors.
“As the MDC Alliance we condemn the continued torture and abduction of our members”, said Mahere.
Legislator Joana Mamombe, youth leaders Cecilia Chimbiri and Netsai Marova were the first victims. This has been followed by several cases of abductions and torture of activists within the country.
The most worrying thing is the way in which these cases are going unaccounted for. The law enforcers are turning a blind eye to all these inhuman acts. The global community seems to have turned a deaf ear to the current crisis in Zimbabwe.
These abductions and torture will continue to take place as the perpetrators are now aware that they can get away with it. The local law enforcers save their masters; it is time for external intervention.
Zimbabwean citizens are protesting about the hunger and suffering within the country. The government should be working on providing solutions to the problems which their citizenry is facing.
Suffering have been exacerbated by a corrupt political system. Government official continue to plunder from the government coffers, and they are never brought to justice.
A recent case to take note of, is the case of ZANU PF Health Minister Obadiah Moyo who was involved in illegal dealing in the procurement of coronavirus tests and equipment.
The Minister was granted bail, but it is rare for such charges to stick especially when the case involves a high-profile cabinet minister.
Corruption by government officials has crippled the Zimbabwean economy and it has resulted in endless industrial actions from workers.
Nurses, doctors and other civil servants are always protesting poor working conditions and the Emmerson Mnangagwa led administration always points a finger on the opposition political party for all the problems being faced in the country.
The reality of it all, and the root cause of all the problems which Zimbabweans are facing now are as a result of corrupt leadership and poor governance.
Government office bearers should be held accountable for their actions. Politicians should accept criticism and work on improving were they are falling short.
Abductions and torture are not the solutions. There will come a time when everyone will be fed up with the corrupt system and no one will be intimidated by abductions.
Corruption has always been an issue in Zimbabwe and since Mnangagwa came to power, there has been many high-profile corruption cases, but many, if not all have ended in acquittals.
A time when torture and abductions will no longer intimidate the citizens will come and Zimbabweans will stand up for what is right.
Police nabbed four suspects aged between 17 and 39 on Friday, following the murder of a police officer in Khayelitsha, Cape Town.
Hawks spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Philani Nkwalase said in a statement that Constable Mzuvukile Emanuel Hlahleni from Steenberg police station was killed at his home in Khayelitsha after an argument with his partner.
“It is alleged Hlahleni was allegedly stoned to death by family members of his girlfriend and some members of the community close to the family.”
Nkwalase said Hawks national priority violence crimes (NPVC) teams traced and arrested the suspects which included two 17-year-old minors.
All suspects are expected to appear in the Khayelitsha Magistrates’ Court next Monday on a charge of murder. — Citizen
State Media-Bulawayo City Council (BCC) says its coffers are running dry and as such it is struggling to pay its workers and deliver services effectively.
The council which says its revenue declined by 80 percent during the past two months, is delaying paying salaries.
According to a council report, in March, the local authority managed to collect $15 million but when the lockdown came into effect at the end of March, revenue inflows tumbled to $3 million in April.
In his presentation on Bulawayo’s state of affairs during a Zanu-PF meeting at Davies Hall yesterday, Town Clerk Mr Christopher Dube said the local authority is “broke” and was now contemplating charging some of its services in foreign currency.
He said council was also struggling to pay its workers as evidenced by delays in paying salaries.
Revenue inflows into council coffers have been erratic since the lockdown came into effect on March 30.
Mr Dube said their suppliers were either charging in foreign currency or demanding exorbitant fees in local currency.
“Council has no money and we are now struggling to offer effective service delivery to residents and we are also delaying in paying our employees due to a sharp decline in revenue inflows. Under the circumstances, council is supposed to have a supplementary budget and it is a process which involves a lot of consultations and our parent ministry has to also approve that because it entails hiking rates and service charges,” said Mr Dube.
He said council was struggling to collect refuse and deliver water in residential areas because it could not buy fuel as fuel was at times only available at service stations that demand forex. Everything is now charged in foreign currency in Bulawayo yet ratepayers continue paying in local currency.”
He said residents have been unwilling to pay bills in foreign currency largely due to the official exchange rate that was not attractive.
“Residents go to the black market where they change their forex and then pay rates and bills in local currency. The challenge is that our suppliers demand forex or charge exorbitant monies in local currency,” he said.
Inflation has reduced the $1,315 billion council budget which was equivalent to US$122 million when it was crafted to about US$17,5 million.
“We have decided to rebase the budget that we approved in US dollar so that even if the value of local currency depreciates, at least we still remain with a budget.
“This means that we are also revaluing the debts in US dollar amount. We have 4 000 stands that we owe people because we don’t have money to service them,” said Mr Dube.
BCC bases its decision to charge in forex on Statutory Instrument 85 of 2020, allowing citizens to pay for goods and services chargeable in Zimbabwe dollars, in foreign currency using free funds.
Previously, SI 212 of 2019 had made it illegal to quote prices and collect in foreign currency or units other than the Zimbabwe dollar.
Yesterday’s meeting, which was attended by United Refineries’ chief executive officer Mr Busisa Moyo and officials from ZimParks, Ministry of Women’s Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development, focused on the economic challenges faced by Bulawayo residents. Mr Moyo attributed the escalating prices of basic commodities to high production costs incurred by manufacturers.
He implored Government through the ruling party to consider adopting the use of the South African rand as a focal currency for businesses operating in the region.
ZANU PF Politburo members Joshua Malinga, Tshinga Dube and Angeline Masuku as well as Bulawayo Provincial Affairs Minister Judith Ncube attended the meeting. -state media/Chronicle
By Mari Matutu | 1) In line with the people of Zimbabwe’s planned demonstration of 31 July 2020 we need to produce the following charges over violations against the constitution.
A)s162 of constitution says “Judicial authority derives from the people of Zimbabwe and is vested in the courts, “
On 31 July 2020 we the people of Zimbabwe must revoke our judiciary authority we have given the courts and Judiciary commission for following reason
i) On 30 March a Constitutional judgement was issued to the effect that amendment number 1 of our 2013 Constitution was unconstitutional. In effect it means all the appointments of judges in courts after the amendment are invalid and unconstitutional. It means Chief Justice, Deputy Chief Justice, Judges president appointments are invalid and unconstitutional. It means the Constitutional court that sat and decided election dispute of 2018 as a full bench was improperly constituted. It was based on appointments of one person. s166(3)(a) demands that when they seat for election dispute they seat as full bench. If one or two or more of the judges were appointments that used the amendment then it means the judges are unconstitutional and the bench was not constitutional. This is why we see all the shenanigans happening in the legislature to try and bring back a bill from previous parliament and shove the amendments. That is why we see members of parliament are being removed from parliament by another party. There is connivance between the legislature and Judiciary to grab people’s authority and amend the constitution without remedy.
ii) Now that we have no legit Chief Justice, legit, Deputy Chief Justice, legit, Judge president there is constitutional crisis that cannot be corrected by those that created it. The parliament, the executive and judiciary have become interested parties with some having personal interest. They cannot be their own judges. The same speaker who was before the courts, same minister of Justice, same president who appointed current judges using the same amendment cannot independently correct the injustice and no Zimbabwean can go to court and have fair and independent ruling that can be constitutionally be followed if we look at the unconstitutional conduct of parliament over the matter that will jam our democracy. Once stooges are place in office it means for years our judiciary remedy shall be at stake. This must be stopped by withdrawing our collective judiciary authority and put things to order.
iii) The Sixth Schedule of constitution on Constitutional court as read with s183. By 31 July 2020 we would be 7 years after the 2013 constitution was signed into law. No Judges of Constitutional court have been interviewed by public in order to receive our judiciary authority. The time frame 7 years for Supreme court judges to act as Constitutional court has lapsed. It over. They cannot as well be appointed by a single man on our behalf. It means as of now we have no Superior court of the land. We have no legal constitutional remedy. The decision cannot also be done through amending constitution by legislature but without legal remedy. It will be making the president the judiciary authority and executive authority and violates constitution. The matter can only now be decided by Zimbabweans.
iv) The conduct of present judges leaves questions in the minds of many. The judgement that are moot and academic are used as a decoy and cause despondency in the electorate. It shows there is connivance between the executive, the judiciary and legislature as shown by conduct of them from 30 March 2020. In that the courts delivered two judgements on a political party dispute and constitutional amendment. The people who could voice on the constitutional crisis were from opposition. The state machinery from publicity was made to publicise the political dispute and remove the attention of the people from real issue of constitutional crisis. We same some funny actions of parliament that after a High court judge found out the recall of MPs by Mwonzora using MDC T is out of order and Mwinzora cannot nominate replacements. The speaker shows he is interested in the matter of a political party and appealed the decision to a trusted court where they have leverage. Even after knowing through courts that there is a dispute in MDC which can only be solved privately and has nothing to do with parliament the speaker recalled more MPs. It looks like there is dispute in MDC but the truth is there is non because Khupe never approached courts for any remedy. When she felt she is not wanted she formed her wing and contested election and conceded defeat. She even went to Constitutional court as MDC T and Chamisa as MDC A and responded as such. The nomination courts accepted nominations in that manner. The people voted knowing what they want. The whole conduct is effort to change the constitution and allow proceeding of court to sail through without challenges. Later they appoint Judges of their choice.
v) Justice Chiweshe was appointed judge president using same amendment in question. He is the same judge who withheld elections results of 2008 for 6 weeks. He was working with Silayigwana in ZEC. If the public is not aware of the constitutional crisis in Judiciary they cannot interpret the conduct of these military man in our constitutional bodies. In terms of Defence act any retired military officer is offloaded to Reserve army which is member of defence forces. These two steal remain like that for life. The Judge president is selecting cases of opposing the conduct of the Parliament and dishing them to selected judges and control the activities. Silayigwana is manipulating the electoral process and issuing statements that are beyond the mandate of CEO of ZEC. All is effort to subvert the will of the people and constitution.
B) will leave the others to say what they think of a Chief Justice who block the access of real time saver of election, a bunch of files that were filed in an election petition got missing in the hands of the court and at the end he says Figures have no value in election. A violation of s3 of the constitution and dampen the hope of ever getting justice on election if to him figures do not count and if ZEC announce any figure which is unbelievable according to him the only method to prove is to open ballot boxes of all election centres. What will be the purpose of other returns in between polling station and announcement. That can only happen through a compromised judiciary. One that is not independent. The judiciary that abuse the constitutional provision of saying their decision is final. The people of Zimbabwe cannot stand aside while their birth right is abused by a cartel. The opportunity is now or never. The evidence is there and overwhelming that as of 31 July Zimbabwe has no more Constitutional court because it is not properly constituted and process cannot happen by appointment of a president who is using powers he got from illegitimate bench and use unelected electorate to decide on behalf of Zimbabweans.
C) The same amendment that annulled had effect to the appointment of Prosecutor General. The seating PG did not pass the interviews but was appointed using the annulled amendment. What it means he is unconstitutional. That is why he is using the official powers to persecute the lawyers in order to instill fear in them. Most people may not notice the reasons of arrests happening but it all have to do with this constitutional crisis. Some times people are abducted or locked up without a cause. The reason is to instill fear and sometimes it is a way to spy because all the contacts of those in custody may discuss about an action on what people plan on this constitutional crisis. Bottom line everything is now off rail and no way it can be fixed without involvement of the electorate.
Over our dead bodies. We are not second class citizens.
Chiefs’ Council president Chief Fortune Charumbira has said they were forced to stay with a suspected Covid-19 patient for two days after health officials failed to respond on time when reached through the national hotline number 2019.
Chief Charumbira and his subjects in Masvingo apprehended the suspect soon after arrival in his area from South Africa, allegedly through an illegal crossing point.
The Chief told the Senate last week that he was disappointed that he failed to get help after calling the 2019 hotline. He said they took the suspect to a local police station but they were turned away.
From the police, Chief Charumbira said he hired a vehicle that took the suspect to Masvingo Provincial Hospital where he was then quarantined.
“We did capture a person who illegally escaped from South Africa in Masvingo and we wanted him to go and be tested. We dialed 2019 and there was no response. At first, they used to respond but now they no longer answer. I once used this number and they came and took the suspected persons twice. This weekend we tried the number and Harare answered and referred us to Masvingo, we did not get any response from Masvingo,” he said.
Chief Charumbira said they took the person to a police station in Masvingo where the police allegedly refused to assist them.
“We took the patient to the police station and the police refused to accept that person, they said dzokerai naye, dzokerai naye (go back with him, go back with him). We phoned the police for two days they did not come. We then hired a car and took that person to the hospital where he was admitted. I hired a car, where do I go to claim my money? My question is who do we call for help in situations like this?,”he said.
The Deputy Minister of Health and Child Care Dr John Mangwiro said if people fail to access the Covid-19 rapid response teams, they must seek the assistance of the police or visit their nearest health institution.
“I apologise for what you encountered. I would like to appreciate the action that you took. However, the police denied to help you and you ended up taking the person to hospital. Yes, there are numbers that you can use but if you fail to get through those numbers, you can take the person to the nearest hospital,” he said.
Deputy Minister Mangwiro said police officers who refuse to assist people should be reported to their superiors.
“I urge you to report police officers who do such things to their seniors. If it is hospitals that are not cooperating, there are senior doctors and nurses you can report to. What happened is not something that we look forward to. You are doing a great job by apprehending border jumpers and taking them to the police or hospital,” he said. -State media/Herald
Farai Dziva|MDC Alliance president, Advocate Nelson Chamisa, has defended his Christian approach to politics saying it is effective and influential.
Chamisa was responding to assertions from critics who accused him of being “too soft.”
Said Chamisa: “Varikuyedza all types of machinations and frustrations but haiwa mirai muoone. Ngoma yavakuririsa iyi yave kuda kutsemuka, kumagumo Kune nyaya. Patinoita setapera ndipo patinotangira kutapira ipapo..Take care!”
“Trust the formula. You will never regret!”
The MDC Alliance leader has vowed that he will not abandon his Christian approach to politics.
“I will always confess Jesus Christ …Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed in him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue: For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God. John 12:42-43.”
Celebrated South Africa veteran actress Mary Twala has passed away, her choreographer son Somizi Mhlongo announced on Twitter.
Sources close to the situation confirmed Twala’s passing, however, Mhlongo’s manager Thato Matuka called for the media to give the family space to make a formal announcement. “Give the family space to make the announcement themselves.
I have not been appointed to speak for the family, so I will not be able to give you a comment,” said Matuka.
In her decades-long career, Twala (80) was an enduring force in local productions, and has been nominated for various awards, including in the Africa Movie Academy Award for Best Actress in a Supporting role in 2011.
Twala was also among the senior citizens President Cyril Ramaphosa bestowed with the 2019 National Orders Awards. Calls to Somizi went unanswered.
Mhlongo’s industry colleagues immediately paid tribute to the actress and offered their condolences.
EFF leader Julius Malema and Human Settlement Minister Lindiwe Sisulu and some business entities also tweeted their tributes to Twala- The Sowetan
Petrotrade (Private) Limited almost lost US$8.5 million to a gang of six highly-placed suspected conmen, but after an alert manager smelt a rat, the six walked into a police trap, spent a weekend in the cells and had their bail hearing in court yesterday, just five days after starting the scam.
Enerst Nyanga (49), the MD for Erlon Energy (Private) Ltd, allegedly connived to defraud Petrotrade with Kenneth Machisa (49), Lloyd Katsvamutima (53), Nichodemus Giniyo (52), Cuthbert Wozhele (49) and Tonongei Machingura (57).
Katsvamutima is a dentist, Giniyo is chairman for Expert Agro Services and Machingura is the deputy director, plant and equipment with the District Development Fund.
They appeared in court charged with fraud, were granted $8 000 bail each along with the usual conditions, and were remanded out of custody to July 21.
It is the State’s case that last Wednesday, the six launched their con to defraud Petrotrade of $8.5 million.
Wozhele contacted Petrotrade through its business development director, Mr Wedson Mupambi, and indicated that the six represented Glencore Energy UK Limited who had a consignment of fuel from Splitridge they wanted to sell to Petrotrade, the court heard.
Mr Mupambi was suspicious and immediately notified his superiors who in turn alerted the police.
So the next day, Thursday last week, police detectives posed as Petrotrade employees and phoned the six, saying they were interested in the deal.
Mr Mupambi and the detectives met the six at Trident Building in Harare, the court heard.
The gang produced a release order reference number, Msasa 22/06/2020-6, purporting to be from Glencore Energy UK Ltd instructing the National Oil Infrastructure Company (NOIC) to release 10 million litres of gas oil, basically diesel fuel, to Splitridge Pvt Ltd.
Gas oil is diesel fuel that, for tax purposes, is designated for use in non-road uses but is identical to diesel in a service station.
The same day, Machisa sent a profoma invoice of US$8,5 million to Petrotrade and another meeting was set for the next day, Friday last week.
Over the next 24 hours, investigations were made and NOIC said that the release order produced by the six was fake,and they had not received any instructions from Glencore Energy.
But the six went to Petrotrade on Friday last week for what they saw as the final meeting, only to be arrested.
According to the State, if the six had succeeded, Petrotrade would have lost US$8.5 million.
A Ugandan man has died after setting fire to himself in a police station when officers allegedly demanded a bribe to release his motorcycle, which he was using as a taxi and which had been impounded over violation of coronavirus restrictions.
The case has provoked anger among Ugandans who say it reflects widespread abuse by security personnel, including beatings, detentions and extortion that in the current climate are often disguised as enforcement of coronavirus regulations.
The rider, Hussein Walugembe, had recently acquired his motorcycle and it was being driven by a colleague when it was impounded on Tuesday for violating a dusk-to-dawn curfew, regional police spokesman Nsubuga Mohammed said.
On Thursday, Walugembe came to the police station in the town of Masaka to claim the bike but was frustrated by some police officers who demanded he pay a bribe, Mohammed said.
After his pleas to the police officer responsible for traffic violations to release his bike were rejected, he doused himself with gasoline, which he concealed in a container in his jacket, and set himself on fire.
“He attempted to grab the officer, for them to die together, but he escaped with minor burns, leaving the victim behind,” the national police headquarters said in a statement.
Police are investigating allegations of “extortion and bribery” at the station, the statement said, adding that two police officers have been arrested. Masaka is about 130km south of the capital Kampala.
Uganda implemented one of Africa’s strictest lockdowns to curb the coronavirus and has kept infections relatively low at under 1,000 cases, with no deaths. The government has loosened some of the restrictions but some remain.
Critics have accused President Yoweri Museveni’s government of using the pandemic to repress rights and harass opponents ahead of a general election due early next year. — Reuters
A Ugandan man has died after setting fire to himself in a police station when officers allegedly demanded a bribe to release his motorcycle, which he was using as a taxi and which had been impounded over violation of coronavirus restrictions.
The case has provoked anger among Ugandans who say it reflects widespread abuse by security personnel, including beatings, detentions and extortion that in the current climate are often disguised as enforcement of coronavirus regulations.
The rider, Hussein Walugembe, had recently acquired his motorcycle and it was being driven by a colleague when it was impounded on Tuesday for violating a dusk-to-dawn curfew, regional police spokesman Nsubuga Mohammed said.
On Thursday, Walugembe came to the police station in the town of Masaka to claim the bike but was frustrated by some police officers who demanded he pay a bribe, Mohammed said.
After his pleas to the police officer responsible for traffic violations to release his bike were rejected, he doused himself with gasoline, which he concealed in a container in his jacket, and set himself on fire.
“He attempted to grab the officer, for them to die together, but he escaped with minor burns, leaving the victim behind,” the national police headquarters said in a statement.
Police are investigating allegations of “extortion and bribery” at the station, the statement said, adding that two police officers have been arrested. Masaka is about 130km south of the capital Kampala.
Uganda implemented one of Africa’s strictest lockdowns to curb the coronavirus and has kept infections relatively low at under 1,000 cases, with no deaths. The government has loosened some of the restrictions but some remain.
Critics have accused President Yoweri Museveni’s government of using the pandemic to repress rights and harass opponents ahead of a general election due early next year. — Reuters
By A Correspondent- Eighteen (18) cases tested positive for coronavirus this Sunday, taking the cumulative number of officially confirmed cases to 716.
In its COVID-19 update on Sunday, 5 July 2020, the Ministry of Health and Child Care also revealed that 181 people have recovered from the disease while 8 people have succumbed to the virus since the first case was detected in March.
The Health Ministry said:
Eighteen (18) cases tested positive for COVID-19 today. These include returnees from South Africa (8), Botswana (6), Canada (1), and 3 local cases who are isolated.
TWO (2) of the local cases are contacts of known confirmed cases, investigations are underway to establish the source of infection for the other case.
Today 1213 RDT screening tests and 411 PCR diagnostic tests were done. The cumulative number of tests done to date is 80 089 46 833 RDT and 33 256 PCR).
To date the total number of confirmed cases is 716; recovered 181, active cases 527 and 8 deaths, since the onset of the outbreak on 20 March 2020.
By A Correspondent- Two vocal unionists representing rural teachers in Zimbabwe have not been paid for almost two years after the government froze their salaries after they took part in last year’s protests against a steep increase in the price of fuel.
Obert Masaraure, the Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ) president, and the union’s secretary-general, Robson Chere, continue providing their services despite the salary freeze.
Masaraure said his ordeal started on January 18, 2019 when he was allegedly abducted by state operatives and consequently failed to report for duty. His salary was immediately stopped.
“During my abduction, the state security operatives severely tortured me and later dumped me at Harare Central Police Station,” Masaraure said.
“I was charged with subverting a constitutionally elected government.
“The charge emanated from my alleged role in organising protests staged from 14 to 16 January 2019.
“I spent 16 days in remand prison and was later released on bail. Upon my release, I learnt that my salary had been ceased by my employer.
“This was cruel as I had communicated my ordeal to my supervisor, who is the school headmaster.
“The same state, which had abducted me, tortured me, falsely accused me and thrown me into prison, was now accusing me of being absent from my workplace.”
Masaraure said he was later advised that the outstanding salary would soon be paid, but that did not happen.
“Eighteen months on, they still claim that they are processing my salary,” he said.
Chere also narrated a similar ordeal.
“I was abducted by state security agents in Arcturus last year during the January national shutdown which was called by ZCTU. I was later dumped at Goromonzi Police Station where some charges were preferred against me.
“I was denied bail by Goromonzi magistrate Felistas Chakanyuka, so as a result I was detained at the notorious Goromonzi Prison for 16 days before being acquitted of all the three charges.
“I then returned to my work station at Arcturus High School only to find that my salary had been ceased.
“Some few weeks later, I was given a Public Service charge letter with misconduct allegations emanating from the incident of my abduction.”
Chere said a disciplinary hearing was conducted in September 2019 and on January 14 this year, he was transferred to Dimbe Secondary School. He was also fined $200, but he is yet to receive his salary.
“I have been forced to withdraw my daughter from boarding school because I could no longer afford the fees,” Masaraure said.
“We have been surviving on the meagre earnings of my wife. We live in want of basics like food, clean water and healthcare, among other basics.
“We have failed to take care of our extended family who traditionally relied on us for support.”
Both Masaraure and Chere say the authorities have been citing bureaucratic procedures as reasons for the delays in unfreezing their salaries, but believe they are being victimised for their work as union leaders.
The duo’s lawyer Doug Coltart said the government made a commitment to pay his clients in March.
“We signed a deed of settlement with relevant authorities in March this year for the unfreezing of those salaries,” Coltart said.
“But up to now, nothing has happened. “We are now going to approach the High Court so that the deed of settlement becomes a court order.”
Primary and Secondary Education ministry spokesperson Patrick Dzumbu said they would help the two to get their salaries.
“As a ministry, we are not victimising the two at all,” Dzumbu said.
“The issue is being handled by the Civil Service Commission and Treasury. We will try to help so their salaries are unfrozen.”
President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s usually huge motorcade was reportedly involved in a pile-up road accident in Kwekwe on Saturday.
Midlands News revealed on Sunday that the accident happened a few kilometres from the Kwekwe CBD close to Central Street in Newtown a residential area in the mining town.
Police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyati could not confirm the incident to the media citing lack of details,
It was not clear whether Mnangagwa’s official ‘Zim 1’ Merc was amongst the vehicles that usually escort the Zimbabwean leader.
Eighteen (18) cases tested positive for coronavirus this Sunday, taking the cumulative number of officially confirmed cases to 716.
In its COVID-19 update on Sunday, 5 July 2020, the Ministry of Health and Child Care also revealed that 181 people have recovered from the disease while 8 people have succumbed to the virus since the first case was detected in March.
The Health Ministry said:
Eighteen (18) cases tested positive for COVID-19 today. These include returnees from South Africa (8), Botswana (6), Canada (1), and 3 local cases who are isolated.
TWO (2) of the local cases are contacts of known confirmed cases, investigations are underway to establish the source of infection for the other case.
Today 1213 RDT screening tests and 411 PCR diagnostic tests were done. The cumulative number of tests done to date is 80 089 46 833 RDT and 33 256 PCR).
To date the total number of confirmed cases is 716; recovered 181, active cases 527 and 8 deaths, since the onset of the outbreak on 20 March 2020.
Opposition Party Leader and 2018 Presidential elections candidates Dr Nkosana Moyo and MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa have both backed fellow opposition leader of the Transform Zimbabwe Jacob Ngarivhume’s call for a demonstration against current government’s failures to run the country.
Speaking in an erally on Sunday, Chamisa told his huge following that the MDC Alliance will back Ngarivhume’s call.
“We are seeing other people starting their own initiatives. We want to tell you that we will support any democratic initiative that can result in freedom for the people. We will join those initiatives. Even those who are in government and want to work towards freedom, we will support them even the civil servants,” said the MDC Alliance leader.
Ngarivhume was once a member of the MDC Alliance election pact before the pact was turned into a full fledged stand alone political party.
Moyo threw his weight behind the demonstration in a video shared by journalist Hopewell Chinono.
2018 Presidential candidate Dr Nkosana Moyo @DrNkosana has endorsed the planned #July31 protest against LOOTING of public funds and corruption.
Dr Moyo said that there was immeasurable suffering of Zimbabwean citizens caused by corruption and lack of action against the LOOTERS! pic.twitter.com/pgGrSiXVPF
Ngarivhume on Sunday told journalists that the action they will be taking will not be partisan.
“We are doing this for the general people of Zimbabwe,” said Ngarivhume.
“I am just their front taking a lead in this time of crisis.
“As we speak, I am coming from a meeting with businesses who have expressed a willingness to confront and bring an end to corruption, which is pulverising their business.”
He said various interest groups wanted to send a message to government that it could no longer be business as usual.
“It’s time we stopped talking in small corners and converge as a nation against these ills,” Ngarivhume said.
“We are even appealing to those in Zanu-PF who are tired of this government to join us on July 31 to say enough is enough.”
He said they would seek police clearance to hold the protests and take measures to ensure that the demos do not fuel the spread of Covid-19.
“On Monday (tomorrow) we will be notifying the police of our intended demonstration,” Ngarivhume added.
“We will also make sure that we have a face masks and that social distancing is observed during the demonstration.
“So we are going to respect all regulations while demonstrating.”
MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa on Sunday addressed the country’s first online rally (eRally) on the political and economic situation in Zimbabwe.
Here are the key points that were raised by Chamisa in his address:
No reforms no elections
Chamisa said that his party will not participate in 2023 elections if electoral reforms are not implemented to their satisfaction.
Transitional authority
He said the MDC Alliance is looking forward to seeing a transitional authority running he government of Zimbabwe to implement reforms that are required for elections to be conducted.
Harvest House Offices
Chamisa says the Harvest House is privately owned and they will not rush to attempt to retake it as it is not yet the time. He dismissed Mwonzora’s claims that it is owned by the party. He says they can retake it anytime they want but the MDC Alliance is avoiding violence.
MDC Alliance Name
Chamisa said, “Do not be worried that the MDC-T will take our name (MDC Alliance). Zita harina basa. (A name doesn’t matter.) We are strengthening the people and the party and we are focused on the people’s agenda. Our focus is jobs for the people and to bring food on the table.”
Action
“We will perform our action at the right time, we have our own time table,” says Nelson Chamisa
31 July 2020 protest
“We are seeing other people starting their own initiatives. We want to tell you that we will support any democratic initiative that can result in freedom for the people. We will join those initiatives. Even those who are in government and want to work towards freedom, we will support them even the civil servants,” says the MDC Alliance leader.
By A Correspondent- A man believed to be 27 years old man who was attacked by suspected robbers including his friend and was seriously injured is stuck at Harare Hospital as he could not recall his surname since his admission at the hospital on 9 March 2020.
The man only identified as Takudzwa or Sipho cannot be discharged as the hospital does not know who to discharge him to. This was revealed by Mr Rutendo Makoni who is a nurse at the hospital who spoke to the publication and said:
This man is around 27 years of age. He was admitted while unconscious sometime in March. There are indications that he was robbed and beaten until he became unconscious. He has not been able to regain his memory – he only managed to tell us his name and it is different from the one we were given by the people who brought him to hospital. The people who brought him here said his name is Takudzwa but he sometimes tells us that his name is Sipho,
The people who brought him here claimed that he is from Hopley and that is where he met his fate, but we do not have the exact address. What is even more confusing is that he talks about many places like Kwekwe among others as his place of residence.
However speculation is rife that one of Takudzwa’s friends is one of the robbers who attacked him, but no one at the hospital really knows the truth about Takudzwa, and the hospital has said the man is in need of physiotherapy.
President Nelson Chamisa of the MDC Alliance has strongly blasted party rebels Thokozani Khupe and Douglas Mwonzora of dining with ZANU PF and President Emmerson Mnangagwa to destroy democracy needed to take the party forward.
Speaking in a hugely subscribed first erally in the country on Sunday, Chamisa said democracy in Zimbabwe was under siege as the State continued to arrest and attack citizens.
“You have seen literally everyone is under attack. Journalists have been arrested, lawyers have been arrested, labour leaders have been arrested, and church leaders are under attack.
“Look at what happened to the three ladies, Joanna Mamombe, Netsai Marova, and Cecilia Chimbiri. We thought these tactics had gone with (late president Robert) Mugabe,” he said.
The opposition leader, who is currently facing a number of challenges including having his MPs and councillors being recalled from Parliament and local councils on the orders of rival MDC-T led by Thokozani Khupe and Douglas Mwonzora declared his former colleagues as party to the threats on democracy.
Watch video downloading below of Chamisa’s full address.
Says a “Whatever they call you ED, Emmerson Mnangagwa whatever they say about you your excellency Goodbye. I say your excellency the president of the republic of Zimbabwe Goodbye Sir Goodbye Sir your time is over goodbye sir you will not stop this.”
Opposition MDC Alliance President, Nelson Chamisa Chamisa has accused ruling ZANU PF leader Emmerson Mnangagwa of entrenching dictatorship by trying to give himself sweeping powers through 27 proposed constitutional amendments.
The unfavourable amendments that have generally been rejected by members of the public are currently under discussion in Parliament with ZANU PF gearing to fastrek them through.
Speaking during an e-rally in Harare broadcast live on ZimEye.com on Sunday, Chamisa promised to derail the process.
“We will not allow the entrenchment of dictatorship and authoritarian consolidation through the changing and amendment of the Constitution.
“We have said; ‘No to amendment, Yes to alignment’. Mnangagwa wants to create a one-man State.”
Chamisa earlier promised to block the 2023 national elections if Mnangagwa and the ruling ZANU PF party refuse to implement political and electoral reforms that have through the years compromised Zimbabwean elections.
Chamisa told the tens of thousands of Zimbabweans who followed his address live that the MDC Alliance will in 2023 not allow a repeat of the past elections that were marred with irregularities, including vote-rigging allegations.
“We want political reforms and these reforms must have people’s consultation. We want credible elections in this country. We don’t want a repeat of the past,” Chamisa said.
“So there are no 2023 elections without reforms. We have the capacity to say there are no elections, and they will not be held because we are the people. We want elections with comprehensive electoral and political reforms,” he said.
“We want free and fair elections and these elections must have a post-election pact to avoid perennial conflicts in the country. We want people to be united and work together. We can’t be a country talking politics every day. Let’s have slogans of economic development, let’s have the fourth industrial revolution slogans and make Zimbabwe a hub of development.”
Warriors striker Tino Kadewere believes Zimbabwe will qualify for the FIFA World Cup.
Since independence in 1980, the Warriors have not made it to the global football extravaganza, with Reinhard Fabisch’s ‘Dream Team’ coming closest-within 90 minutes of securing a ticket to USA 1994, but the Olympique Lyon man believes that jinx will be broken.
“It’s a huge honour to be able to play for your country and I’ll never tire of seeing my name on the squad lists,” Tino said. “Of course, every national team goes through ups and downs, but I’m convinced that the day will come when we will make the whole country smile,” told FIFA.com.
“We all know that the road leading to the World Cup is long and winding, but that’s the goal that we’ve set ourselves. Obviously, we’re going to need to work hard to achieve it but we’ve got some solid foundations to build on. We’ve got real talent in the team and we’re a well-oiled unit that’s been playing together for few years now. That’s a definite asset for us.”
“The main objective is the World Cup, though,” said Kadewere, before giving a reminder that in his case football is very much a family business: “That’s my biggest wish. That and for my family to be proud of me,” he added.
Zimbabwe scrapped past Somalia in dramatic fashion last year in the World Cup 2022 preliminarily round and will battle with Ghana, South Africa and Ethiopia in Group G for the ticket to Qatar- Soccer 24
VICE PRESIDENT MOHADI SAYS: DON'T BLAME GOVT FOR THE FAILED ECONOMY, BECAUSE: "WE GOT OUR POLITICAL INDEPENDENCE BUT THE WHITE MAN NEVER TAUGHT US HOW TO RUN THE ECONOMY" FACT OR UTTER NONSENSE?
Log leaders Real Madrid and defending champions Barcelona resume their LaLiga title race with two difficult fixtures today.
Zinedine Zidane’s men, who are four points clear at the top of the table, travel to San Mamés for a date with Athletic Bilbao in the afternoon kick off while Quique Setien’s Catalans face Villareal later at 22:00.
For the second consecutive game in LaLiga, Madrid are without Belgian winger Eden Hazard, a move Zidane continues to insist is ‘just a precaution.’
Barcelona have no injury problems and will be hoping Madrid slip up and they take advantage of it to brighten the chances of defending their title.
The build up to the today’s clash has been marred by well-documented off field problems, notably rifts between players and the coach, as well as uncertainty over the future of captain Lionel Messi, setbacks which they (Barcelona) have to cast a blind eye on if they entertain any chances of getting a positive result-Soccer 24
Zimbabwe is in a humanitarian meltdown; cases of corrupt officials and torture of citizens have become the talk of the day.
The once breadbasket of Southern Africa has been reduced to begging for food aid from the international community.
Corrupt governance and mismanagement of government funds has exacerbated the current humanitarian crisis in the country.
As the national crisis continues to deepen in Zimbabwe, Mnangagwa and his ZANU PF administration remain clueless.
Instead of focusing on reviving the economy, they are busy pointing fingers at the opposition, and working tirelessly to dismantle the MDC Alliance.
Citizen driven protests in Mbare and Goromonzi are outcries from the Zimbabweans populace.
Zimbabweans have endured four painful decades under the ZANU PF administration.
After the recent protests in Goromonzi, an MDC Alliance activist and Youth Chair Davison Chamisa was targeted, abducted, tortured and left for dead in Norton.
How can these things be happening in a democracy? Citizens expressing their disgruntlement is no grounds for torture. The Zimbabwean constitution provides its citizen with the right to freedom of expression, and freedom of expression includes these peaceful demonstrations.
“These abductions are an attempt to silence and intimidate the opposition and citizens from speaking against the national crisis”, said Advocate Fadzayi Mahere
Mahere issued a statement on behalf of MDC Alliance in which she was strongly condemning these abductions and abuse of protestors.
“As the MDC Alliance we condemn the continued torture and abduction of our members”, said Mahere.
Legislator Joana Mamombe, youth leaders Cecilia Chimbiri and Netsai Marova were the first victims. This has been followed by several cases of abductions and torture of activists within the country.
The most worrying thing is the way in which these cases are going unaccounted for. The law enforcers are turning a blind eye to all these inhuman acts. The global community seems to have turned a deaf ear to the current crisis in Zimbabwe.
These abductions and torture will continue to take place as the perpetrators are now aware that they can get away with it. The local law enforcers save their masters; it is time for external intervention.
Zimbabwean citizens are protesting about the hunger and suffering within the country. The government should be working on providing solutions to the problems which their citizenry is facing.
Suffering have been exacerbated by a corrupt political system. Government official continue to plunder from the government coffers, and they are never brought to justice.
A recent case to take note of, is the case of ZANU PF Health Minister Obadiah Moyo who was involved in illegal dealing in the procurement of coronavirus tests and equipment.
The Minister was granted bail, but it is rare for such charges to stick especially when the case involves a high-profile cabinet minister.
Corruption by government officials has crippled the Zimbabwean economy and it has resulted in endless industrial actions from workers.
Nurses, doctors and other civil servants are always protesting poor working conditions and the Emmerson Mnangagwa led administration always points a finger on the opposition political party for all the problems being faced in the country.
The reality of it all, and the root cause of all the problems which Zimbabweans are facing now are as a result of corrupt leadership and poor governance.
Government office bearers should be held accountable for their actions. Politicians should accept criticism and work on improving were they are falling short.
Abductions and torture are not the solutions. There will come a time when everyone will be fed up with the corrupt system and no one will be intimidated by abductions.
Corruption has always been an issue in Zimbabwe and since Mnangagwa came to power, there has been many high-profile corruption cases, but many, if not all have ended in acquittals.
A time when torture and abductions will no longer intimidate the citizens will come and Zimbabweans will stand up for what is right.
Police nabbed four suspects aged between 17 and 39 on Friday, following the murder of a police officer in Khayelitsha, Cape Town.
Hawks spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Philani Nkwalase said in a statement that Constable Mzuvukile Emanuel Hlahleni from Steenberg police station was killed at his home in Khayelitsha after an argument with his partner.
“It is alleged Hlahleni was allegedly stoned to death by family members of his girlfriend and some members of the community close to the family.”
Nkwalase said Hawks national priority violence crimes (NPVC) teams traced and arrested the suspects which included two 17-year-old minors.
All suspects are expected to appear in the Khayelitsha Magistrates’ Court next Monday on a charge of murder. — Citizen
BREAKING: Police have shot a vendor selling groceries at Jambanja Unit L. Said the local MP: "I have just received a report that Police have shot a person selling groceries at Jambanja Unit L. The person is Tinashe Zharare. We are following up on the case." -M Mavhunga MP pic.twitter.com/gCwzTq1RKM
Here in MashWest, Mhondoro rural Ward 3, the Mwonzora rebels team meeting failed to happen today as was scheduled. Their venue at Chindiya shops just woke up with @nelsonchamisa posters. Their local host called to cancel because of “resistance” because “pamuka pakazara maposter” PICTURES
Here in MashWest ,Mhondoro rural Ward 3, the Mwonzora rebels team meeting failed to happen today as was scheduled. Their venue at Chindiya shops just woke up with @nelsonchamisa posters. Their local host called to cancel because of “resistance” because “pamuka pakazara maposter”
By A Correspondent- The Anglican Church-run Peterhouse Group of Schools has been accused of institutionalised racism, with its alumni claiming that there are rampant cases of segregation as its white leaders allegedly treat students and teachers with racial bias.
A former student at the top private school, Nakiso Gwatidzo, recently claimed that the racism at the school is both individual and institutionalised and is the vilest kind discrimination he has ever encountered.
He said:
Peterhouse harbours and exercises some of the most racist and discriminatory behaviour I have encountered in my lifetime. It’s both individual and institutional; addressing one is not enough.
Meanwhile, Peterhouse Rector Jon Trafford last week denied reports that racism is embedded at the institution. He said:
As a group of schools, we are very conscious that prejudice and discrimination continue to exist within our communities, and that it is within our collective interest as a school community to confront and tackle these issues.
An Anglican school has absolutely no place for racism or any other form of discrimination. We have promoted and continue to promote the belief that all people are created in God’s image and have infinite value.
Reports suggest that some schools in Zimbabwe practice secretive quota systems when they enrol pupils and some have banned indigenous languages on school premises and relegated black staff to non-decision making positions.
Some of the schools reportedly promote Eurocentric values of neatness, where black students, especially girls, are expected to have particular hairstyles.
By A Correspondent- ZERA has released the following statement in which it said fuel prices have not changed and they will remain the same until further notice. This was after ZERA hiked fuel prices by close to 150% a few weeks ago and said it will review the prices weekly in light on the weekly forex auction trading system.
By A Correspondent- Addressing an e-rally Sunday afternoon in the capital Harare, opposition President Nelson Chmaisa has said the move by Douglas Mwonzora to claim the secretary general post was ill informed considering that his tenure expired in 2019.
Said Chamisa:
“All these claims by Douglas Mwonzora are just child’s play. His term expired in 2019 and until his membership is renewed he cannot be Secretary General. He has to go back to the structures to seek the people’s mandate.
“I thought after SC ruling MDC T being led by Dougie or Thoko is the original MDC that was formed by MRT and MDC A does not exist! Therefore it is MDC T that asked for SANCTIONS and not MDC A, so it’s Khupe and Co that brought this suffering, please revise your story”
By A Correspondent- Two vocal unionists representing rural teachers in Zimbabwe have not been paid for almost two years after the government froze their salaries after they took part in last year’s protests against a steep increase in the price of fuel.
Obert Masaraure, the Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ) president, and the union’s secretary-general, Robson Chere, continue providing their services despite the salary freeze.
Masaraure said his ordeal started on January 18, 2019 when he was allegedly abducted by state operatives and consequently failed to report for duty. His salary was immediately stopped.
“During my abduction, the state security operatives severely tortured me and later dumped me at Harare Central Police Station,” Masaraure said.
“I was charged with subverting a constitutionally elected government.
“The charge emanated from my alleged role in organising protests staged from 14 to 16 January 2019.
“I spent 16 days in remand prison and was later released on bail. Upon my release, I learnt that my salary had been ceased by my employer.
“This was cruel as I had communicated my ordeal to my supervisor, who is the school headmaster.
“The same state, which had abducted me, tortured me, falsely accused me and thrown me into prison, was now accusing me of being absent from my workplace.”
Masaraure said he was later advised that the outstanding salary would soon be paid, but that did not happen.
“Eighteen months on, they still claim that they are processing my salary,” he said.
Chere also narrated a similar ordeal.
“I was abducted by state security agents in Arcturus last year during the January national shutdown which was called by ZCTU. I was later dumped at Goromonzi Police Station where some charges were preferred against me.
“I was denied bail by Goromonzi magistrate Felistas Chakanyuka, so as a result I was detained at the notorious Goromonzi Prison for 16 days before being acquitted of all the three charges.
“I then returned to my work station at Arcturus High School only to find that my salary had been ceased.
“Some few weeks later, I was given a Public Service charge letter with misconduct allegations emanating from the incident of my abduction.”
Chere said a disciplinary hearing was conducted in September 2019 and on January 14 this year, he was transferred to Dimbe Secondary School. He was also fined $200, but he is yet to receive his salary.
“I have been forced to withdraw my daughter from boarding school because I could no longer afford the fees,” Masaraure said.
“We have been surviving on the meagre earnings of my wife. We live in want of basics like food, clean water and healthcare, among other basics.
“We have failed to take care of our extended family who traditionally relied on us for support.”
Both Masaraure and Chere say the authorities have been citing bureaucratic procedures as reasons for the delays in unfreezing their salaries, but believe they are being victimised for their work as union leaders.
The duo’s lawyer Doug Coltart said the government made a commitment to pay his clients in March.
“We signed a deed of settlement with relevant authorities in March this year for the unfreezing of those salaries,” Coltart said.
“But up to now, nothing has happened. “We are now going to approach the High Court so that the deed of settlement becomes a court order.”
Primary and Secondary Education ministry spokesperson Patrick Dzumbu said they would help the two to get their salaries.
“As a ministry, we are not victimising the two at all,” Dzumbu said.
“The issue is being handled by the Civil Service Commission and Treasury. We will try to help so their salaries are unfrozen.”
Emmerson Mnangagwa has been given up to the 7th July to act or face imminent action. The ultimatum was issued by the ZAMU PF youth who has a reputation of paving the way for coups, Godfrey Tsenengamu. Tsenengamu speaks during his press address during the week. His presser comes within days of the military Commander Valerio Sibanda complaining about corruption and what he terms selfishness of some who have betrayed the founding principles of the liberation struggle. Gen Sibanda goes onto the point of even hinting that the One-Man-One-Vote principle has been violated.
By A Correspondent- MDC-T led by acting president Dr Thokozani Khupe is expected to take over the Bulawayo offices that were now being used by the MDC-Alliance this week.
The move comes after the party also successfully re-occupied Harvest House in Harare after the Supreme Court, in April ruled that MDC-Alliance leader Mr Nelson Chamisa was not the legitimate MDC leader in terms of the party’s constitution and subsequently ordered the convening of an extra-ordinary congress within three months to elect a new president.
MDC-T secretary-general, Mr Douglas Mwonzora said that the party leadership will be in Bulawayo today. He, however, dismissed speculation that the party will also be recalling some councillors in the city.
“We will be coming specifically for parliamentary business but I will also take the advantage to meet the president, Dr Khupe and the party leadership tomorrow. As for the taking over of the party offices in Bulawayo I necessarily don’t need to be there in person.
“As for the recalling of Bulawayo councillors there is no truth in the matter because we have not got a report from the province. What should be explained is that the Harare councillors were recalled in April with the initial list of MPs that was recalled, the reason there has been a lot of talk around them is because the Ministry of Local Government and Public Works only just wrote to the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec),” said Mr Mwonzora.
An impeccable party source, however, revealed that the party could take advantage of the presence of Mr Mwonzora to re-occupy the provincial party offices.
“This the first time since the Supreme Court judgement that the secretary-general is in Bulawayo therefore as it stands he will meet with Dr Khupe and also the Bulawayo structures, we have also been told to be prepared to go to the Bulawayo offices similar to what occurred in Harare,” said the source.
The MDC-A and MDC-T have been in a legal dispute for some time, starting with Dr Khupe’s objection before the 2018 election that Mr Chamisa had become the MDC-T leader and hence the leader of the MDC-Alliance, which grouped a number of opposition parties.
Since then, Mr Chamisa has argued that the MDC-A is a political party that has succeeded the parties that went into the alliance, while Dr Khupe has argued that the MDC-T still exists.
After taking control of the MDC-T, Dr Khupe’s camp went on to recall four MPs who won their seats on the MDC-A ticket, but who were originally nominated by the MDC-T.
The High Court at the end of last month found that the MDC-A was not a legal entity, instead being just an electoral pact by a group of political parties which retained their previous existence.
Emmerson Mnangagwa has been given up to the 7th July to act or face imminent action. The ultimatum was issued by the ZAMU PF youth who has a reputation of paving the way for coups, Godfrey Tsenengamu. Tsenengamu speaks during his press address during the week. His presser comes within days of the military Commander Valerio Sibanda complaining about corruption and what he terms selfishness of some who have betrayed the founding principles of the liberation struggle. Gen Sibanda goes onto the point of even hinting that the One-Man-One-Vote principle has been violated.
1) The accused is a male adult who currently hold the office of the president of the republic.
i) The accused who first assumed office by military assistance of November 2017 and went on to call for dubious elections using structures he put in place after the military assistance. To date nobody knows the figure of people who voted for him. A figure that that can be deduced as accurate and verified as authentic from 3 set of figures that were announced by a constitutional body. The body was also staffed with people he appointed.
An attempt to go to courts was made by those who felt are the directly affected as candidates. It was shocking to hear a Chief Justice of the republic announcing that figures do not matter. Without direct mandate of the people, through a free and fair election no person can claim powers of executive as vested in s88(2). We the People of Zimbabwe by our own constitution preamble demand an executive that comes as a need to entrench democracy, good, transparent and accountable governance and the rule of law and not need to entrench thievery and cartels as is shown by how he came to office in 2017. The military was rattled by his mere expulsion from government and unconstitutional withdrew arms to bring him into office. People were shot and killed by Zimbabwean army for exercising their right. Under his watch and to date the killers of our beloved citizens are free and without prosecution. Some commanders were even promoted to higher ranks. A promotion of any military General is only given to the General by a person holding the office of president. This gives to second count.
ii) On I August a group of soldiers was deployed from presidential guard and killed civilians who had no arms and had no threat to anyone or security. There was also no sign the police had failed. The video shown in media proves beyond doubt there was aim and intention to kill. Despite being bestowed with power to command and deploy soldiers you never followed the rules and took responsibility.
Instead at the death of fellow Zimbabwean we saw you abused the s110 powers to honour and promote the said Generals. On its own is a sign of showing middle finger to the people of republic and not observing the sanctity of life. You cannot exonerate yourself from conduct of these Generals whom you promoted. For avoidance of doubt General Sanyatwe was promoted by you two times within a space of 6 months after the killing of the innocent people. He was the commander of a brigade directly responsible for your welfare. By conferring him the rank of Major General and few months later the rank of Lt General was a breach of constitution. The man deserved a cell of his own at Chikurubi but you went against people and their lives and promoted him. It must be remembered that under Defence forces Act we have a reserve army that you off load to this retired Generals who remain with the ranks even after your departure. On top of that you made the killer our Republic’s ambassador. What do these killers represent us for if they have no respect to life of Zimbabwean?
iii) As if not enough in January 2019 you killed people who were exercising their constitutional right to demonstrate. No matter what offence Zimbabwean commit in his republic he deserve life and right to stand trial and never a bullet in head from his own mother land army. This is gross violation of constitution and the executive under your command.
iii) The Drax scandal that involves your personal video lie that Zimbabwe got a donation when in fact it is your son and his associates who actually “donated” to themselves public funds that must serve Zimbabwean lives from Corona. You took upon yourself to point a finger at the lives of Zimbabweans and still keep in cabinet a person accused of stealing huge amounts of our birth right resources.
To date Obedia Moyo never slept in a cell like what we see with the rest of people who are found holding placards of saying you ruined the country. The PG you appointed without merit is acting as your front man and never object bail.
2) A lot of people shall bring forth charges of breach of constitution but as people of Zimbabwe we feel you breached s3 of constitution on matters relating to accountability, transparency, good governance, equality of all human beings before the law, rule of law , respect of the rights of political parties. Above all despite s3(2)(g) directing for responsiveness your executive is the worst ever in terms response. The country as whole is dead in everything but you have no response or action other than enriching yourself.
i) The Auditor General uncovered the theft of millions of US$ stolen by companies that are associated with you and the executives of such companies a seen putting on your logo such that we cannot say you have no relation. There is no response or action to arrest and prosecute the culprits. What more evidence is required to arrest and put the accused to defence when a constitutional body has put a finding that there is theft of public funds by Company A? The executive which we gave executive authority has duty of upholding constitution of responsiveness.
Instead the same people are still given tenders to steal again and again.
ii) The Namibian government, a fellow African and Sadc country, led by a revolutionary movement is on record of responsiveness on a matter that is right in your own cabinet and exonerate itself from involvement in Drax. Yet you yourself it not a matter that must die natural death.
iii) Few days ago a mere civil servant under your command, who does not seat in cabinet announced and directed the closure of stock exchange and mobile money and it happened. These are constitutional prerogative of the Reserve bank. Instead the reserve bank responded to the civil servant’s statement and stated clearly in wording that the whole constitutional body that preserve the savings and assets of citizens has been directed and accepted to take directive on monetary issues from a secretary of information. Again this is in violation of constitution and no response from you.
It is not the number of counts of constitutional breaches but in the breach itself and failure to take corrective measure that matters.
We the people of Zimbabwe do not deserve to call your “Excellency” to a person of questionable character. Who can lie before the national television that Zimbabwe recieved donation when is actually his family who has “recieved donations” in the form of fraud.
3) There is a bill that your cabinet produced and is busy shoving on the throats of Zimbabweans. The bill is intending to breach the values and principles of democracy from the wording of “We the people of Zimbabwe” to become “I” the president. The attempt to change the constitution using a flawed representative electorate in parliament which is a known rigged result must be resisted. The whole bill want to change the whole country to run by authority of one single individual who also have power to appoint his preferred deputy.
It is shown by frantic effort to remove members of parliament voted for by another party using another party.
The whole nation is locked up and was fooled under your direction to focus on the drama theater you created by a surrogate Khupe to look at a moot case, a case that involve MDC but has been hijacked by MDC T both political parties that are in records of government gazets as different parties.
By deceit the courts produced a court verdict of Bill number 2 saying it was unconstitutional and if the present composition of the will of the people is maintained it will not stand again.
You directed the lock up of people under lockdown while your two lethal weapon to the will of the people is in operation.
It has also been noted by conduct of speaker though he is a separate arm according to constitution but that line has blurred. A speaker of parliament receive political party names from declaration of ZEC results while ZEC get Candidates from public nominations done in public before courts that we the people of Zimbabwe vest our Judiciary authority in. Where on earth does a speaker get right to recall MPs of another party that stood before a court and got approval of right to stand for election under MDC A and got electoral vote under the name. The whole Parliament has put itself under the authority to an unknown Political Alliance of private individuals exercising their private freedom of association, political formations, and political policies and messages. He is taking the Whole parliament we bestowed power to legislate and trash it and subject himself to private contracts of election pact.
The whole issue is best understood in the conduct of executive on Bill number 2 which failed to pass constitutional standard. It is clear that you want to remove those MPs you feel are going to block the sailing of the bill.
No wonder why the Supreme court delivered the two judgement on same day and the executive locked up people.
It is also shown by announcements CEO of ZEC who is a military officer and was involved in rigging of election 2008 which you the accused confessed in a video message that you designed a plan to subvert the will of people.
These violations are not done to uphold the constitution, its preamble and its values and principles.
We then the people of Zimbabwe who by birth right hold the sovereignty authority to Executive, legislate, and exercise judiciary authority hereby
i) Withdraw the power bestowed in you by s88(2)
ii) Withdraw the judiciary authority vested in courts by s162 on matter relating to conduct of anyone charged with any effort to dislodge you of this sovereign right.
iii) We also withdraw the right vested in s117 to legislate anything from now onwards on behalf of us.
4) We are also aware of the universal suffrage requirement on this matter. We are guided by our preamble and as long as “We” still stands for two or more people by definition it means the decision of these charges can only be resolved by means of election which we can no longer exercise through parliament but public uprising because you have corrupted the institutions.
All the international bodies have always said the matter is resolved by Zimbabweans. We shall also inform them of this action and may invite them to observe.
By A Correspondent- Bulawayo City Council has resolved to repossess 179 stands in Cowdray Park, Entumbane and Pumula after the owners failed to develop them.
Some of the property owners have gone for 22 years without making any meaningful development of their stands after having been allocated in 1998.
Among those who risk losing their stands are some beneficiaries of the Cowdray Park Hlalani Kuhle Project.
Council officially took over the Hlalani Kuhle Project in 2012, in keeping with the Cabinet decision of May 2009 which had directed that all projects be handed over to local authorities.
According to the latest council report the 179 stands had largely gone undeveloped and were owing a total of $490 986 in unpaid rates.
“A total of 179 stands which had been in segment five had been allocated stands during the year 2012. The stands had been at different levels of development. The beneficiaries had not complied with council resolution and Cabinet decision of May 2009 as the stands had remained undeveloped,” reads the council report.
The local authority, however, resolved that the beneficiaries will be given first option to re-purchase the stands at a price recommended by a city valuer, with the offer valued for three months.
The local authority said the repossessed stands will also assist in solving the problem of double allocation especially at Cowdray Park, with some of the repossessed stands set to be given to the people affected.
“It had been therefore directed that council should resolve the challenges of double allocations without prejudicing those beneficiaries with genuine need for shelter, with the major highlight on re-allocation.
“Failure to take up the offer to repurchase the stands in Cowdray Park they will be repossessed and used to solve outstanding double allocations and the excess be allocated to deserving beneficiaries in the Council waiting list,” reads the report.
Second priority of the repossessed stands will be given to beneficiaries who had paid development fees to the Bulawayo Home Seekers Consortium Trust and lease fees to the local authority.
“For those in Entumbane and Pumula Township the repossessed stands will be allocated to deserving beneficiaries in the council waiting list,” reads the council report.
As at May the local authority’s housing waiting list stood at 125 207.
Early this year the local authority announced that it will be repossessing 26 properties in the city after their owners failed to heed an ultimatum requiring them to either pay their rates or resume development works within their stands.
The local authority, in November last year, gave 1 009 property owners that had abandoned their assets or negated to pay rates and develop their stands a final 30-day notice before the local authority repossesses and auctions them.
In 2014 the local authority had initially flighted advertisements exposing over 2 000 properties which the owners had not only abandoned but were not paying their obligated rates and rentals.
BCC has the authority to repossess these properties as guided by the Titles registration and derelict lands Act (chapter 20:20).
The Act states that; “Persons having claim on derelict land may apply to High Court or other public body upon immovable property in Zimbabwe and such property is abandoned, deserted derelict, and the owner thereof cannot be found, it shall be lawful for the person or body claiming such rate or assessment to apply to the High Court, stating the amount claimed to be due and the grounds applying for relief under this Act.”
By Patrick Guramatunhu- “Nyati (Cde Didymus Mutasa) has re-joined the party and since his return, it has been our wish to meet him officially as Makoni leadership and work together going forward,” announce Zanu PF national secretary for finance, Patrick Chinamasa.
“Sometimes we see things differently and fight, but that should not separate us. Now that Cde Mutasa is back, we must unite and work together. He laid a strong foundation for the party in Makoni and his return should solidify it. We are amending our constitution to create a Council of Elders where cadres with vast experience like him can sit as advisors.”
What Chinamasa meant to say is “we must unite and loot together!”
All Zanu PF has ever done since getting into power in 1980 was loot and rig elections to maintain the party’s iron grip on power. As long as there was plenty of loot to go round Zanu PF were united and the looting and rigging went ahead smoothly. The party cadres started fighting to the death when the amount of loot started to fall, notably after the last white owned farms were given away, and members started to fight over the scraps.
One can understand why people like Mutasa are as keen as mustard to re-join Zanu PF – within a few months of being booted out of the party in 2014, together with Mai Mujuru, Rugare Gumbo, Munacho Mutezo, Simbarashe Bhasikiti and many other, many have hit hard times. Hunger, disease and all the other problems afflicting the poor are no strangers to the Mutasa and others’ home; so familiar the dogs wag their tails to welcome them!
One can well imagine Mutasa singing “The good times are here are!” As a member of the proposed Council of Elders, he is probably expecting to get a party car, free fuel, an office and secretary, etc., etc.! He will lucky to be paid Z$500 (US$ 5 at today’s exchange rate) per month allowance.
With the country’s economy sinking deeper and deeper into the abyss, the nation is on edge and desperate for meaningful democratic change and an end to the economic meltdown. Instead of accepting that Zanu PF has failed to revive the economy, step down and allow the nation to implement the democratic reforms necessary for free, fair and credible elections; the party is doing the exact opposite, it is refusing to accept it has failed and will use wanton violence to retain its iron grip on power.
Mnangagwa has Libya’s late dictator Colonel Muammar Gaddafi’s mentality of hanging on to power to the bitter end. Giving up power in a peaceful process is simply unthinkable, it is not in their DNA!
A word of caution to Didymus Mutasa and company; in your eagerness to earn brownie points, do not do Zanu PF’s dirty work.
Didymus Mutasa was fingered in 2012 arson attack of an MDC leader’s home. Christpower Maisiri, an innocent 12 year old boy, was burnt to death! If you pay no heed to this warning, you can be certain Zanu PF will not have time for another cover-up as in 2012; you will be the one left holding the bag and you, not Mnangagwa or anyone else, will account for whatever is in the bag!
By Kennedy Kaitano- I had a discussion with a member of the MDC T Khupe faction who was concerned that activists from the MDC Alliance accuse them of being Zanu PF agents.
It is very unfortunate when people are wrongly accused, but it also reflects that across the country, people hate Zanu PF, and they do not react kindly to anything they identifies with Zanu PF which they suspect is a stumbling block for the removal of Zanu PF from power, wrongly or rightly.
Those falsely accused have a responsibility to explain themselves to avoid the wrath of the restive populace.
The suspected association with Zanu PF is sometimes self-inflicted. Take, for instance, the statement by Dr. Khupe following a visit to Zanu PF President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s farm last December when she said “I will always support President Mnangagwa…”.
What do you think is the natural reaction of oppressed Zimbabweans? Oppressed suffering Zimbabweans will call Dr. Khupe and all those who associate with her as Zanu PF agents.
She gave the evidence of her support for a man seen as an oppressor, and that label will stick on her and all the people she works with for ever.
That label of Zanu PF agent has also stuck on all people who have taken sides with Dr. Khupe, including those MDC Alliance officials who have joined her faction.
That label by the angry people is the last nail in the political coffins of them all. Never underestimate the anger of the people.
Also, when you are in opposition and find yourself getting five star coverage by the State Media which is directly controlled by Zanu PF, be at home with the fact that you are getting Zanu PF support – whether or not you are a Zanu PF agent.
And because that Zanu PF preferential treatment that is denied to other more serious opposition. You should also ask yourself why Zanu PF is allowing the ZBC to give you so much coverage and ruining your political profile. Anything that gets Zanu PF sympathy is seen as a Zanu PF project by the people.
And think about how Zanu PF officials and government ministers publicly showed support for Dr. Khupe, with Ziyambi Ziyambi saying we will give MDC Alliance money to Dr. Khupe.
So politicians must really think about what the opposition supporters will think about them before they made decisions, because if they still want to serve as political leaders.
And if you had been saying Emmerson Mnangagwa stole the election, and all of a sudden you jump out of the Supreme Court and pronounce Emmerson Mnangagwa as President, people will think that you have become a Zanu PF project, rightly or wrongly.
Chief Justice Malaba failed to handle the case brought before him through Advocate Chamisa’s electoral challenge. He clearly stated that he was going to handle the case on its merits not on technicalities at the beginning of the hearing, and could have helped himself by agreeing to look at the electronic voting database.
The case of the Malawian Courts which rules the elections held there in 2019 and ordered a re-run of the election will stand as a reminder how Justice Malaba should have handled Advocate Chamisa’s electoral challenge to avoid people creating the view that the courts have become part of the Zanu PF machinery. This will haunt him for the rest of his life.
Politics is about the aspirations and wishes of the people. In the MDC dispute, one should read the mood of the people, and the mood of the people will always carry the day.
Some of the politicians siding with one who has openly said she support Mnangagwa, and those who find themselves showered with Zanu PF support, should expect the people to call them Zanu PF agents and should learn to live with such labels.
By Robert Sigauke, fellow servant in the Lord, Johannesburg
“I was a stranger, but you did not welcome me, and I was naked, but you did not give me any clothes to wear. I was sick and in jail, but you did not take care of me.” Then the people will ask, “Lord, when did we fail to help You when You were hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in jail?” The King will say to them, “Whenever you failed to help any of My people, no matter how unimportant they seemed, you failed to do it for Me.”
Matthew 25 verses 43-45 (Contemporary English Version)
In these verses, the Lord Jesus was teaching, firstly, about LOVE. He was talking about the importance of showing love to the downtrodden, those who are at their weakest moments, the vulnerable amongst us.
As believers we ought to position ourselves for God’s work to be fulfilled through us. We are vessels, through which the Lord’s work ought to be done.
We ought to be temples, in which He dwells and instructs us what to do and through whose work will be fulfilled amongst the peoples on earth.
However, even when works of love towards the vulnerable amongst us are fulfilled through us, all honour and glory must be given to the Lord, as He is the enabler, by whose provision and strength (not ours) we managed to give a helping hand to those who were in need, as mere vessels.
This is the second teaching, HUMILITY. Being humble is most seen in the way we treat those who “seemingly have nothing to offer us,” because if we only show favour and support to those whom we think will have the means to help us in turn when we are going through our own challenges, then it is no longer out of love but mere material investment.
What we need to remember is that God Himself is the One who gives reward, of our kind works. I deliberately used the phrase “seemingly have nothing to offer us” because true to the phrase ‘every little helps,’ so as every human being, rich or poor, young or old, strong or weak, has something to offer.
All of us in the world encounter challenges at some point or the other in our lives. Some are financial, some are psychological, some are academic, and some are related to our careers and enterprises.
In as much as a rich person can assist you financially to boost or start your business, so as much a poor friend may give critical wise counsel to a rich person going through life threatening anxiety and depression after a failed marriage or betrayal.
There are innocent people in prisons the world over, they need our regular visits and supplies, emotional support and encouragement. There are guilty persons in prison, they too need likewise.
Each one of us might just be the person to help some of them repent before they face the death penalty. Orphans, widows, the old, the unemployed, the disabled, the hopeless, all of them need us and the little or big we can offer.
God created a person in His image, meaning when we see any human being at church, at work, at the market place, at the next door, in school, no matter how “unimportant or pennyless they seem,” we ought to treat them and relate to them as we would with the Lord Himself.
Some do not have a cent in their pockets, but come back after 10 years you will see them alive, still very poor. It means something or someone beyond the natural wants them alive for an important purpose, loves them unconditionally, and is providing for them.
Those in higher offices of authority too, are bound by this verse in the wider spectrum of their office capacity and influence. By creating conditions, social and economic, that allow people to visit and supply their relatives in prison, neighbors to assist neighbors, strangers to have extra to help strangers in our communities, that is their part and reward in that way.
My brothers and sisters, the Lord’s grace is sufficient for all of us.
Robert Sigauke is a fellow servant in the Lord. He writes from Johannesburg. Email [email protected]
By A Correspondent- Mwonzora has been labelled as an opportunist by Chamisa supporters on Whatsapp,Twitter and Facebook platforms but nobody has ever tried to define or explain what is meant by the word opportunist.
In this article I will define and explain what is meant by the word opportunist and expose who the real opportunistic politician is between Chamisa and Mwonzora.
An internet definition of the word opportunist is ” a person who takes advantage of the opportunities as and when they arise, regardless of planning or principles.”For example, we can say “most burglaries are committed by casual opportunists.”
Now let’s see if Mwonzora fits into the above definitions and descriptions.Mwonzora did not bend any rule or principle in order for him to be the current Secretary General of the MDC party.
He was elected at the 2014 Congress and after the disagreements which happened soon after the death of Tsvangirai ,the Supreme Court ruled that Chamisa was illegitimately promoted to the helm of the MDC party and ordered the party to revert to the 2014 structures.
Mwonzora instead of being described as an opportunist he is infact the opposite.He is a law abiding man,respects the rules of his party and respect the national laws and abides by court rulings. He is not an opportunist.
One of the arguments given by the Nerorist camp for refusal to comply with the Supreme Court ruling is ‘Chamisa is loved by the majority and therefore he is our best foot forward’ .Whether this is true or not I don’t like to get into it today but even if it’s true we would have placed expediency above principle.
The principle according to the MDC Constitution Khupe was supposed to be the Acting President soon after the death of Tsvangirai but Chamisa and those surrounding him used the opportunity to grab power through unethical means.They exploited the opportunity to achieve their selfish ends.
Even if Chamisa will be able to maintain his so called popularity and goes on to win elections in 2023, the methods which he used to gain the presidency of the party created a negative image for himself.
Because of the illegitimate methods which he used to ascend to his current post, people now view him as insensitive, unkind, ruthless, harsh, inhuman,callous, brutal, cruel, cold-blooded, merciless, uncaring, cold-hearted ,hard ,hard-boiled, obdurate, pitiless, savage, thick-skinned and unemotional.
Engineer Mudzuri once said the Supreme Court gave the MDC family an opportunity to unite. Remember , the MDC had two factions.One led by Chamisa and another led by Khupe.
The supreme Court ruled that both factions must revert to 2014 structures and go for an extra ordinary Congress to elect a single leader.
It was an opportunity to unite both Chamisa and Khupe supporters to form a single formidable MDC party but Chamisa due to his selfshness saw that the Supreme Court ruling reduced him to a mere Officer for policy and research, refused the unity and chose to escalate the divisions within the MDC in order to satisfy his own selfish egos. He is not for the people but he is after his own advantages and opportunities.
Chamisa made a mistake of being swayed by praises from his ignorant supporters.They told him that he was a brand.They told him that he was much popular than his party the MDC .
They told him that even if he forms a new party they will follow him and continue to support him and therefore,even though he knew that it was good to respect the MDC Constitution and the courts he was swayed by his seemingly popular support and forgot that he was doomed in the end if he disregards principles.
Today I was reading The Big Saturday read by the learned scholar Alex Magaisa in which he is advising Chamisa to find a new name for his party and discard the name MDC Alliance completely.
My learned scholar suggested that reasons for discarding the name MDC Alliance was that the name MDC is now tainted and that it’s nolonger a good brand.
I agree that Chamisa must find a new name for his new party because he no longer represents the principles of the MDC party which was formed in 1999 and that he has tainted the image of the MDC party by his opportunistic tendencies which has further divided the party.
I would like to partially agree that Chamisa had grown bigger than his institution that his departure from the MDC is a good riddance which was long overdue.
Etiwel Mutero is a political analyst,an author and an [email protected]
By Prince Njagu- Zimbabwe is in humanitarian meltdown; cases of corrupt officials and torture of citizens have become the talk of the day. The once breadbasket of Southern Africa has been reduced to begging for food aid from the international community.
Corrupt governance and mismanagement of government funds has exacerbated the current humanitarian crisis in the country.
As the national crisis continues to deepen in Zimbabwe, Mnangagwa and his ZANU PF administration remain clueless. Instead of focusing on reviving the economy, they are busy pointing fingers on the opposition, and working tirelessly to dismantle the MDC Alliance.
Citizen driven protests in Mbare and Goromonzi are outcries from the Zimbabweans populace. Zimbabweans have endured four painful decades under the ZANU PF administration.
After the recent protests in Goromonzi, an MDC Alliance activist and Youth Chair Davison Chamisa was targeted, abducted, tortured and left for dead in Norton.
How can these things be happening in a democracy? Citizens expressing their disgruntlement is no grounds for torture. The Zimbabwean constitution provides its citizen with the right to freedom of expression, and freedom of expression includes these peaceful demonstrations.
“These abductions are an attempt to silence and intimidate the opposition and citizens from speaking against the national crisis”, said Advocate Fadzayi Mahere
Mahere issued a statement on behalf of MDC Alliance in which she was strongly condemning these abductions and abuse of protestors.
“As the MDC Alliance we condemn the continued torture and abduction of our members”, said Mahere.
Legislator Joanna Mamombe, youth leaders Cecilia Chimbiri and Netsai Marova were the first victims. This has been followed by several cases of abductions and torture of activists within the country.
The most worrying thing is the way in which these cases are going unaccounted for. The law enforcers are turning a blind eye to all these inhuman acts. The global community seems to have turned a deaf ear to the current crisis in Zimbabwe.
These abductions and torture will continue to take place as the perpetrators are now aware that they can get away with it. The local law enforcers save their masters; it is time for external intervention.
Zimbabwean citizens are protesting about the hunger and suffering within the country. The government should be working on providing solutions to the problems which their citizenry is facing.
Suffering have been exacerbated by a corrupt political system. Government official continue to plunder from the government coffers, and they are never brought to justice.
A recent case to take note of, is the case of ZANU PF Health Minister Obadiah Moyo who was involved in illegal dealing in the procurement of coronavirus tests and equipment.
The Minister was granted bail, but it is rare for such charges to stick especially when the case involves a high-profile cabinet minister.
Corruption by government officials has crippled the Zimbabwean economy and it has resulted in endless industrial actions from workers.
Nurses, doctors and other civil servants are always protesting poor working conditions and the Emmerson Mnangagwa led administration always points a finger on the opposition political party for all the problems being faced in the country.
The reality of it all, and the root cause of all the problems which Zimbabweans are facing now are as a result of corrupt leadership and poor governance.
Government office bearers should be held accountable for their actions. Politicians should accept criticism and work on improving were they are falling short.
Abductions and torture are not the solutions. There will come a time when everyone will be fed up with the corrupt system and no one will be intimidated by abductions.
Corruption has always been an issue in Zimbabwe and since Mnangagwa came to power, there has been many high-profile corruption cases, but many, if not all have ended in acquittals.
A time when torture and abductions will no longer intimidate the citizens will come and Zimbabweans will stand up for what is right.
By A Correspondent- Cracks have emerged in the Thokozani Khupe camp, with the recently reinstated MDC-T national organising secretary, Abednico Bhebhe the recently reinstated MDC-T secretary-general Douglas Mwonzora of sidelining him in the running of party affairs.
Said Bhebhe in a letter to Mwonzora:
“I notice with disenchantment how your office has failed, omitted or just neglected to send me notice of sittings of the standing committee, for the entire period stretching up to this moment from the delivery of the Supreme Court judgment.
“Your failure, omission or neglect has consigned me to whims of the rumour mill, getting information either a few minutes before or after the meeting and with no formal briefing of the proceedings.
“As you well know, just like my colleagues which you favour with such courtesy, I am entitled and I demand as such, appropriate notice given on time to allow my effective participation.
“The current opportunistic practices are just untenable and I do not accept that, not even for a split of a second.
“As secretary-general, your office is responsible for sending out invitations to members whose attendance on various party committees is prescribed by the constitution.
“My attendance at sittings of the standing committee, as the national organising secretary cannot, and has never been a matter of the pleasure of your office.
“Your failure, omission or neglect to do so has and continues to prejudice the party of the checks and balances the constitution sought to strike by placing various roles in the hands of a plurality of separate individuals.
“For the record, this misguided attempt to tamper with my agency in the direction of party affairs is superfluous and I reserve the right to assert my interests in this regard through the courts of law.
“I reserve the right to take appropriate steps to assert the exercise of my rights and obligations as the national organising secretary through meetings of party organs to which I must receive proper notice from your office.”
By A Correspondent- MDC Alliance National Vice Chairman Job Wiwa Sikhala has told Defence Minister Oppah Muchinguri that he is not afraid of her threats after she claimed that he Sikhala and Apostle Talent Chiwenga among others will be dealt with for attacking the government.
Said Sikhala in a statement:
“If we all remember some days ago the ZANU PF regime through Kazembe Kazembe, issued lies packaged as security and intelligence alert to the nation about the spread of a coup rumour.
In those lies, he specifically mentioned myself, Apostle Talent Chiwenga, Gambakwe Media, ZimEye, Nehanda Radio, Saviour Kasukuwere, civic society organizations and some Prophet in the United States of America whose name,” Sikhala said.
“I don’t remember as culprits. Few days ago Oppah Muchinguri, told Parliament of Zimbabwe that the government is going to arrest all those persons who were mentioned in the lies.
Let me set the record straight from the onset, to Oppah Muchinguri, please bring it on. I am not afraid of the threats because this country can not be governed on the basis of lies and manufacturing of falsehoods against those who are standing against the evils of your government because this country does not belong to anyone’s mother.”
Sikhala said he is briefed that the threat by Oppah Muchinguri is targeting at arresting him and Apostle Talent Chiwenga as soon as possible.
“The brief I received which is quite detailed, says, sooner rather than later after our arrest, journalist Hopewell Chin’ono will also be immediately nabbed.
Among the institutions and individuals they targeted during their Press Conference, it is only myself and Apostle Talent Chiwenga who are in Zimbabwe. As a clampdown operation all those whom they target for persecution will be nabbed and thrown into jail, thus including silencing Hopewell Chin’ono,” he said.
“I gather that they are all aware that Saviour Kasukuwere is exiled somewhere, the operator of Gambakwe media is in SA, ZimEye operates from UK so is Nehanda Radio, hence the only ones in Zimbabwe is Job Sikhala and Apostle Talent Chiwenga.
So all that noise and threats is all about the appetite by the regime to come and have their hands on me and Apostle Chiwenga.”
“Let me be unequivocal. I will not tolerate any persecution on my person anymore. Don’t dare again. Like their threat to come and invade my home on the 29th of February 2020 which turned into a nightmare, I have mobilised the entire population to trigger a revolution in the event of carrying out their threat.
I am a practical man. I will never be persecuted because of my resolute stance against this evil regime. My Masvingo Treason trial will be a pick nick.”
He said this time the wave will be unstoppable and he does not make empty threats.
“I am not that character. I also urge Apostle Chiwenga to activate his constituency. It’s a do or die situation. We deserve our peace and happiness. These idiots can not just create a lie to justify their evil intentions against certain persons. This is my country.
I have every right like any other citizen to express myself on the deficit on how our public affairs are conducted. Inga you have deployed 24 hours surveillance on me and you have noticed I have never been intimidated to the dot,” he said.
“Idiots governing our country should take responsibility for their failures. Trying to use other people as scapegoats is dangerous to its very survival. I have obtained detailed information about all your intentions Oppah Muchinguri. Bring it on. The wheels of the revolution continue to travel.”
By A Correspondent- The Zimbabwe Diamond and Allied Minerals Workers Union (ZDAMWU) has challenged the Chinese miners to stop colonial tendencies on local employees.
This came after a Chinese man shot and injured two employees at Redeem gold mine in the Midlands Province during a confrontation over their outstanding salaries.
In a statement ZDAMWU, Secretary Justice Chinhemarecently said the union does not tolerate abuse of mine workers by foreign-owned companies.
“It is unfortunate that the employees, Wendy Chikwaira and Kennedy Tachiona were shot and badly injured after they had approached their employer to demand their outstanding salary arrears following their dismissal empty-handed,” reads the statement.
“The most absurd thing is that they resort to violence because they gloat over having connections with politically affiliated individuals. Since the invasion of the mining sector by the Chinese, incidents of beatings, harassment and ill-treatment of workers by armed employers are rife and what is more worrying is that these employers brag about their political connections.”
The union warned all Chinese employers in the industry to desist from using colonial tactics in handling labour disputes.
By A Correspondent- Former Sports Minister Makhosini Hlongwane reportedly wants to rejoin the ruling party after he was fired from the party during the coup that toppled Robert Mugabe from power, Sunday News reports.
The matter came to light as Zanu-PF Midlands Provincial chairperson Daniel McKenzie-Ncube was addressing Midlands Provincial Coordinating Committee when he said the province has not recommended that Hlongwane and former Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare Deputy Minister Tapiwanashe Matangaidze be readmitted into the party:
As far as the provincial executive is concerned, we have not recommended the re-admission of any former minister aligned to G-40. The social media has been awash with news that some of the former G-40 members had been re-admitted into the party. Do not be misled by social media. We have proper and formal communication channels as the party and those are the ones that we follow.
MDC-T led by acting president Dr Thokozani Khupe is expected to take over the Bulawayo offices that were now being used by the MDC-Alliance this week.
The move comes after the party also successfully re-occupied Harvest House in Harare after the Supreme Court, in April ruled that MDC-Alliance leader Mr Nelson Chamisa was not the legitimate MDC leader in terms of the party’s constitution and subsequently ordered the convening of an extra-ordinary congress within three months to elect a new president.
MDC-T secretary-general, Mr Douglas Mwonzora said that the party leadership will be in Bulawayo today. He, however, dismissed speculation that the party will also be recalling some councillors in the city.
“We will be coming specifically for parliamentary business but I will also take the advantage to meet the president, Dr Khupe and the party leadership tomorrow. As for the taking over of the party offices in Bulawayo I necessarily don’t need to be there in person.
“As for the recalling of Bulawayo councillors there is no truth in the matter because we have not got a report from the province. What should be explained is that the Harare councillors were recalled in April with the initial list of MPs that was recalled, the reason there has been a lot of talk around them is because the Ministry of Local Government and Public Works only just wrote to the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec),” said Mr Mwonzora.
An impeccable party source, however, revealed that the party could take advantage of the presence of Mr Mwonzora to re-occupy the provincial party offices.
“This the first time since the Supreme Court judgement that the secretary-general is in Bulawayo therefore as it stands he will meet with Dr Khupe and also the Bulawayo structures, we have also been told to be prepared to go to the Bulawayo offices similar to what occurred in Harare,” said the source.
The MDC-A and MDC-T have been in a legal dispute for some time, starting with Dr Khupe’s objection before the 2018 election that Mr Chamisa had become the MDC-T leader and hence the leader of the MDC-Alliance, which grouped a number of opposition parties.
Since then, Mr Chamisa has argued that the MDC-A is a political party that has succeeded the parties that went into the alliance, while Dr Khupe has argued that the MDC-T still exists.
After taking control of the MDC-T, Dr Khupe’s camp went on to recall four MPs who won their seats on the MDC-A ticket, but who were originally nominated by the MDC-T.
The High Court at the end of last month found that the MDC-A was not a legal entity, instead being just an electoral pact by a group of political parties which retained their previous existence.
By Showbiz Reporter | The US singer Kanye West has announced he is running for Presidency this year.
West made his intentions known via the Twitter platform, drawing more than a million reactions.
It was not clear at the time of writing if West is truly going into politics or he is playing stunts. He wrote:
“We must now realize the promise of America by trusting God, unifying our vision and building our future. I am running for president of the United States ??! #2020VISION ”
A CHIREDZI man has been arrested for murdering his elder brother over a dispute on how to divide farmland left by a late brother.
Masvingo police spokesperson, Chief Inspector Charity Mazula confirmed the arrest of Tafadzwa Chimunda, 20, of Dawlish, Village 4 in Chiredzi for the murder of Concern Chimunda, 34.
Mazula said Tafadzwa was angered over the manner in which his brother had talked to their mother in connection with how to divide the farm left behind by a deceased brother.
Last week, Tafadzwa, Concern, and Premier Chimunda, 26, were drinking beer at a local shebeen when at around 7 pm on the same day, the brothers went back home.
Arrival Concern approached their mother and started a discussion on how they should distribute farmland left by the deceased.
However, the two ended up having a misunderstanding and this provoked Tafadzwa who accused Concern of disrespecting their mother. He took hold of a burning log, which he used to strike Concern.
Concern died at the family homestead the same night.
The following day, an informant reported the incident to the Chiredzi police leading to Tafadzwa’s arrest.
THE Government has revealed that human waste was found in water that was supplied to Luveve suburb in Bulawayo which resulted in the outbreak of Typhoid and Dysentery which has killed 13 people in the suburb.
Local Government and Public Works Minister, Cde July Moyo told Sunday News in an interview in Bulawayo yesterday that Government has since dispatched the Environmental Management Agency (Ema) to conduct more tests.
“Once the outbreak occurred, the underlying causes were identified, these being the water which was not available, there was also contamination where it was demonstrated that some of the water had faeces which was beyond the standards that are allowed by the Standards Association of Zimbabwe.
“We have also dispatched experts from the Environmental Management Agency to conduct its own investigations, to help guide our response. We now know that the treatment of water and that of sewage has largely contributed to the outbreak. The city and the Government are now working to correct the anomaly so that we give comfort to our residents,” said Minister Moyo.
The announcement by the Government comes as the local authority yesterday revealed that to date 13 confirmed deaths have been recorded.
City Health Director Dr Edwin Sibanda said while last week there were reports that 17 deaths had occurred its official figure stood at 13, noting that in some cases there could be community deaths that had to be investigated first.
“So far we have 1 798 confirmed cases and 13 verified deaths. The majority of those that have been affected are of the five to 20 years old age group,” said Dr Sibanda.
To add to the local authority’s woes a Bulawayo based non-governmental organisation has accused the local authority of avoiding responsibility for the typhoid crisis.
Community Action Group for Good Governance (CAGGG) accused council of seeking to apportion blame on other parties while removing themselves from the picture.
CAGGG chairperson Mrs Nikiwe Ncube-Tshabalala said council was trying by all means to avoid liability as shown by their initial efforts to accuse people of using open wells and streams for their water.
“When a Government delegation from Harare came to tour the suburb council officials took them to wells, a sign they were implying these were the causes of the diarrhoea outbreak when people clearly indicated there was something amiss with tap water and they even found tissue particles in tap water.
“While some residents used wells, they have stated that it was only a few,” she said.
Mrs Nikiwe Ncube-Tshabalala said it was critical for the city council to be forthcoming in releasing information about the crisis and has written a letter demanding the local authority be open and transparent in the manner they are going about in solving the outbreak.
She said her organisation had engaged residents and were taking some of the sick to a private surgery, with 24 residents having been assisted by yesterday morning.
The residents under the banner Bulawayo Progressive Residents’ Association (BPRA) had also sought a court order compelling council to release vital information relating to the outbreak, which they had intended to use against the council in a lawsuit. However, the residents last week withdrew their court challenge, saying they had reached an amicable resolution with the council.
Just when you thought 2020 couldn’t get any weirder, rapper Kanye West declared his candidacy for US president.
The unlikely challenger to Donald Trump – of whom he has been a vocal supporter – and Joe Biden, chose American independence day to make the surprise announcement on Twitter, triggering a social media storm.
“We must now realize the promise of America by trusting God, unifying our vision and building our future,” West wrote. “I am running for president of the United States.”
The post was accompanied by a stars and stripes flag, an exclamation mark and “#2020VISION”. His wife, Kim Kardashian West, replied to the tweet with an American flag.
With just four months to go before polling day on 3 November, it was not clear whether West’s tweet would have been more fitting on April Fools’ day than American Independence Day.
The People’s President, Adv Nelson Chamisa will address an MDC Alliance online rally today the 5th of July 2020 under the theme ” FIGHT FOR BETTER LIVELIHOODS” starting at 1400hrs and the key note address by the President will be at 1430hrs
In this regard, all NSC, NEC members, Party leadership, MPs & Councillors, members, supporters and generality of Zimbabweans are invited to tune into all the Party online channels as follows;
It is very true that the year 2020 has had a fair share of its political absurdities particularly in the opposition. Depending on how one looks at it there is a tendency to apportion authority to an opinion.
Clearly Alex Magaisa has a particular narrative which has a propaganda slant that he continues to sell. The narrative tries hard to circumvent the facts underlying the MDC T saga. While it is very true and factual that Chamisa and Khupe headed factions of the MDC T as left by Tsvangirai it is a grievous misnomer to factualise Khupe’s faction as such. The facts remain that both Chamisa and Khupe claimed leadership of the MDC T left by Tsvangirai. The same MDC T that is part of the MDC Alliance 7 party conglomeration. Chamisa headed the Alliance on the strength of “heading” the MDC T left by Tsvangirai. That is the MDC T that was subject to the court processes. That is the same MDC T whose leadership dispute was determined by the High Court and Supreme Court respectively. In their findings the courts determined that between Chamisa and Khupe, Khupe was the legitimate interim leader of the MDC T left by Tsvangirai pending the holding of an Extraordinary Congress to elect Tsvangirai’s replacement as per MDC constitution. The dispute is not between the MDC T and the Alliance and that is exactly why the Alliance was never cited in the court cases and that is why Khupe’s faction was never cited in the court cases. None of the two factions claimed independence from the MDC T left by Tsvangirai as the nation went into the July 2018 elections. Hence by omission or commission they both remained tied to the MDC T left by Tsvangirai.
It is misleading to make the MDC T dispute an MDC Alliance dispute. There is never a declared dispute in the MDC Alliance. It would be prudent to hasten to point out that indeed there is a potential dispute in the MDC Alliance. Given that Welshman Ncube dissolved his party it automatically means he has ceased to be a principal in the MDC Alliance. Resultantly the MDC Alliance is now practically left with 6 parties namely Tsvangirai’s MDC-T, Transform Zimbabwe, Zanu Ndonga, Multiracial Christian Democrats, People’s Democratic Party, Zimbabwe People First. This is the factual reality of the existential circumstances of the MDC Alliance currently.
The electoral performance of both Khupe and Chamisa is inconsequential in the matter in dispute. Magaisa’s continual bringing up of this is deliberately designed to overshadow the underlying facts in the MDC T saga. It is common cause that had the electoral performance of the two factions been reverse the court ruling would have remained the same. Whatever, Khupe and Chamisa amassed in the election belong to the MDC T left by Tsvangirai and its Alliance partners.
Khupe’s dalliance with the Political Actors Dialogue platform has no bearing on the MDC T leadership dispute. It must not be used to overshadow the internal constitutional abrogation and mutilations orchestrated by Nelson Chamisa and team in the MDC T left by Tsvangirai. It would be a calamitous disservice to both MDC T members and the nation at large, especially given that the MDC T prides itself as a social democratic entity whose operational tenets are hinged on constitutionalism.
That the MDC Alliance is a thorn in the side of the Zanu PF party is not in dispute. The MDC Alliance is the hub of Zanu PF’s opposition. It is wrong to say Khupe’s political fortunes were resuscitated by political direction from Zanu PF. The fact remains that whatever perceived fortunes that came Khupe’s way are courtesy of the provisions of the MDC operational manual better known as the constitution. It is possible Zanu PF could have reaped political dividends from the outcome of the court cases but it should not be blamed.
I disagree respectfully with Magaisa that Khupe has been firing MDC Alliance MPs and Councillors. That is not true. The truth is those fired are from the MDC T left by Tsvangirai. Not from Ncube’s group or Biti’s PDP, which are the only other members in the MDC Alliance with parliamentary and council representation. Those who are said to be victims are actually the perpetrators of the action taken against them. They declared themselves as not members of the MDC T left by Tsvangirai. As such they had no business to occupy the space contracted to the MDC T left by Tsvangirai. What is happening in the MDC T left by Tsvangirai should and must not be blamed on Zanu PF. The blame must come squarely upon those leaders in the MDC T who chose not to follow their own constitution. In any case Zanu PF has two thirds majority in parliament and the presence of the current opposition parliamentary contingence is neither here nor there in terms of legislative power. Furthermore, if those MPs and Councillors won votes on the strength of their individual capacity as opposed to their organisational affiliation then there should be no issue as they will definitely come back after by election. However, it is unfair and unethical to force a political party to continue to accommodate a member who is not a member. What Magaisa inadvertently reveals here is the fact that these MPs and councillors won as a result of their political party affiliation. Especially, their proximity to the MDC T left by Tsvangirai. All those who won under the MDC Alliance banner were previously members of the MDC led by Morgan Tsvangirai.
It is not the Supreme Court that rearranged Zimbabwe’s political map as Magaisa claims. It is the MDC constitution that rearranged the political map. Any negative impact of that rearrangement should and must be attributed to Chamisa’s unorthodox usurpation of power in the MDC T left by Tsvangirai on his death on 14 February 2018. Had he not done what he did then, we are likely to have an un affected post-election political map in Zimbabwe. It is even possible that the MDC Alliance could have fared way better than it did in the July 2018 elections.
The drama, as Magaisa calls it, that has characterised the post Supreme Court ruling does not emanate from Khupe and company. It emanates from Chamisa and company. First they refuse to respect the ruling of the court and secondly they openly dissociate themselves from the MDC T left by Tsvangirai.
In blatant condescension Magaisa has elected to think and feel for the voters. Without any research he claims that voters are perplexed That the people do not understand why they are not consulted over the recalls. He even goes on to claim the people view the recalls as punishment. He doesn’t tell us who exactly sees it that way and how many they are. He makes his own opinion as public opinion. He effectively turns himself into the so called court of public opinion.
As already aforementioned the MDC Alliance remains intact as per its agreement signed in August 2017. Magaisa talks about absurdities in filling the proportional representation seats in the National Assembly and senate, which seats were held by members of the MDC Alliance. The absurdity actually resides in Magaisa’s flawed assumptions on the nature of the MDC Alliance. The MDC Alliance and the so called ‘MDC Alliance Party,’ if ever it exists, would be two completely different entities. The MDC Alliance which contested the 2018 elections has the MDC T as left by Tsvangirai as the major partner. The MDC Alliance Party does not have the MDC T as left by Tsvangirai. The MDC Alliance party was formed after the 2018 elections which actually means it’s a breakaway party from the MDC Alliance. It would be made up of Ncube’s MDC members, Biti’s PDP members and those who broke away from the MDC T left by Tsvangirai. While running away from this reality Magaisa focuses on vilifying the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC). It seems this is designed to justify any future electoral failures by his chosen group. For the avoidance of doubt the MDC Alliance will definitely fill those seats with their nominees as per the Alliance’s Composite Political Cooperation agreement as signed by the principals of the seven political parties who included the late Morgan Tsvangirai in August 2017. This conforms with democratic sense and it is the correct process which should be followed.
The only group that can claim the MDC Alliance electoral banner is the group that includes the MDC T left by Tsvangirai whose Headquarters are 44 Nelson Mandela Avenue in Harare. This MDC T is the one whose leadership was legally confirmed by the Supreme Court in terms of the MDC constitution.
Whether, it favours the ruling party or not the truth is that any MDC Alliance led by Chamisa divorced from the MDC T left by Tsvangirai can not claim the MDC Alliance whose birth bears the signature of Morgan Tsvangirai.
Actually Chamisa cannot have his cake and eat it. He cannot choose to disown the MDC T left by Tsvangirai and claim the MDC Alliance name that came into existence with the MDC T as an integral part. It is evident that Chamisa and his team made a decision to dissociate themselves from Tsvangirai and his MDC T. We hear they pulled down all portraits of Tsvangirai from the MDC T headquarters which ironically is named after Tsvangirai. They claim to have turned the same into their MDC Alliance party headquarters.
I agree with Magaisa that since Chamisa has chosen to dissociate from the MDC T left by Tsvangirai he should dissociate from anything that involves that party. This means he should let go the MDC Alliance name and have his own. If he is a brand and has followers as Magaisa claims then it should not be a problem to establish himself. His so called people will follow him. However, the truth of the matter is without the MDC T left by Tsvangirai and its Alliance there is no life for Chamisa in the political arena. Magaisa’s advice is sound. Chamisa must relinquish MDC Alliance name. He will never win the battle for the MDC name.
Magaisa views the MDC as a brand that has run its course and must now be dumped. This he argues is because it has become toxic and counterproductive. It may actually be the opposite. Without Chamisa and his politics of toxicity the much loved MDC brand may actually be on the verge of rejuvenation. This is believable given the dictatorial, intolerant and intimidatory nature of Chamisa and his followers. It may actually be the chance to bring the MDC back to its social democratic founding values. What happened over the short two years of Chamisa’s reign over the affairs of the MDC T left by Tsvangirai is actually a grim warning of the danger of politics of personality and cultism.
POLICE are in the course of interviewing Zimbabwe Football Association (Zifa) councillors who are witnesses in the alleged electoral fraud cases relating to the local football governing body’s 2018 elections which ushered into office the Felton Kamambo leadership.
Some of the Zifa councillors are accused of receiving bribes to vote for certain candidates during the elections. Zimbabwe Republic Police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi yesterday confirmed that they were in the process of gathering evidence from witnesses in cases reported by former Zifa president, Philip Chiyangwa and his successor Kamambo. Police have been directed by the courts to get statements from witnesses before the dockets are sent back to prosecutors.
“There are several Zifa cases that have been reported to the police by Philip Chiyangwa and Kamambo and his team. Our Commercial Crimes Unit is carrying out the investigations, the courts have directed the police to interview some councillors as part of the investigative process.
Philip Chiyangwa
“Some have interviewed, some are yet to be interviewed. It is only after the interviews that they will be a determination on which ones are witnesses and which ones are not. It is better to wait for our Commercial Crimes Union to conclude investigations,” said Asst Comm Nyathi.
Even though the police spokesperson could not provide the exact number of councillors part of the investigation, it is understood they are 32.
Zifa Southern Region chairman Andrew Tapela, secretary-general Mehluli Thebe and recently reinstated Bulawayo chairman Francis Ntutha are some of those said to have provided statements to the police. Martin Kweza, the Zifa Northern Region acting chairman, one of those said to be on the list of councillors to be interrogated said he has not yet been interviewed by the police.
MDC-T Secretary General Douglas Mwonzora has yet again blasted MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa accusing of being a dictator and refusing to follow the party constitution and country’s laws.
In a wide interview with the SABC on The Globe programme on Saturday morning, Mwonzora dismissed Chamisa’s big performance in the 2018 elections claiming that it was him and Morgen Komichi who influenced voters to vote for the MDC Alliance.
Watch the full programme which starts with a report on the ongoing strike by health workers in the video downloading below. Please be patient while the video downloads.
MDC Alliance apologist and political critic, Pedzisai Ruhanya has urged MDC Alliance members to give the leader of the MDC-T, Thokozani Khupe some respect as she is not as bad as some people who are locked in a gruesome leadership wrangle with Nelson Chamisa.
Ruhanya’s remarks come after suggestions that Khupe used her political power to recall her ex-lover senator Gideon Shoko who is also the father of her daughter.
Posting on Twitter, Ruhanya said:
“Whatever is happening in MDC, Khupe fundamentally is a good person. She is not as malicious as Mwonzora. I urge MDC Alliance supporters to differ with her with respect and not to use gender against her. Khupe had and has a legitimate grievance than those men who joined her.”
One of the reasons why I urge MDC Alliance supporters to be careful on their differences with Hon Khupe is that we are a society that has a lot of foolish perceptions about women, where we use gender to muzzle women. On that basis I dont want to join that bandwagon. Respect her.
A LETTER TO THE COMMANDERS OF ZIMBABWE DEFENCE FORCES/ COMMISSIONER GENERAL OF ZIMBABWE REPUBLIC POLICE/ DIRECTOR OF SECURITY INTELLIGENCY/ COMMISSIONER GENERAL OF PRISON AND CORRECTIONAL SERVICES.
We The People of Zimbabwe wish to advise you that on 31 July 2020, we are going to exercise our birth right, to
1) Stand united in our diversity by our common desire for freedom, justice and equality, and our heroic resistance to colonialism, racism and all forms of domination and oppression, by anyone or group of people in what ever name or description,
2) As we remain Exalting and extolling the brave men and women who sacrificed their lives during the chimurenga / Umvukela and national liberation struggles,renga / Umvukela and national liberation struggles,
honouring our forebears and compatriots who toiled for the progress of our country, for the betterment of our collective people’s lives and their wellbeing,
3) We still recognise the need to entrench democracy, good, transparent and accountable governance and the rule of law as the true definition of these words remain in dictionaries letter by letter.
4) We are eaffirming our commitment to the upholding of and defending of fundamental human rights and freedoms, acknowledging the richness of our natural resources, celebrating the vibrancy of our traditions and cultures, remain determined to overcome all challenges and obstacles that impede our progress. Some challenges and impediments have become part of us.
5) We demand to remain cherishing our freedom, equality, peace, justice, tolerance, prosperity and patriotism in search of new frontiers under a common destiny, in order build a Nation that resemble the global village in terms of development and liberties.
6) We resolved to withdraw our sovereign authority that we had given:
i) The Executive Authority.
We the people of Zimbabwe resolve to withdraw our collective authority of Executive enshrined s 88 (1) of constitution and is bestowed in President as in s88(2).
We attach the violations of the constitution we level against the incumbent.
ii) We resolve to withdraw our collective Judiciary authority enshrined in s162 and refuse and prosecution by the incumbent. We will attach the violations of constitution we level against the Judiciary and The prosecutor General.
iii) We withdraw our legislative authority as enshrined in s117(1). We shall attach the violations by the Speaker and president of Senate which cannot be rectified by some other universal adult suffrage and equality before any law when the charges leveled against Judiciary are well manifested with proof.
7) We call upon you as our Chapter 11 institution to remain to your oath office and oath of attestation into the establishments.
While each department is established by separate section of constitution we shall not bother to quote individual section that say the same words that you must :-
” all respect the fundamental rights and freedoms of all persons and be non-partisan, national in character, patriotic, professional and subordinate to the civilian authority as established by the Constitution”
We therefore as civilians Zimbabweans knowing very well that s211(2) reads
” The Defence Forces are the only lawful military forces in Zimbabwe”
We have no other state we know and no arms or am munitions of our own beside that which we bestowed you our only army, for a fact as a civilian society we are now divided and is in our charge sheets to the sectors we mentioned there is total collapse of universal suffrage to solve political issues, our ever our constitution use the word “We” in the Preamble and we by dictionary means two or more people. We attach to you as proof number of Zimbabweans who make up the “We”.
We do not intend to make you the arbiter of the issues but by our birth right civilian authority direct you to:
i) assist in the maintenance of public order
ii) detecting, investigating and preventing crime;
iii)protecting and securing the lives and property of the people
iv) above all be non partisan and upholding constitution and not become frontman of those we accuse of undermining our sovereign authority which we are entitled to by birth.
8) We further remind you of s206 and we quote
“(1) The national security objectives of Zimbabwe must reflect the resolve of Zimbabweans to live as equals in liberty, peace and harmony, free from fear, and in prosperity.
(2) The national security of Zimbabwe must be secured in compliance with this
Constitution and the law.
(3) In particular, the protection of national security must be pursued with the utmost respect for—
(a) the fundamental rights and freedoms and the democratic values and principles
enshrined in this Constitution; and
(b) the rule of law.”
We have no reason to suspect that an independent security department is invited and given chance to prepare for democratic events where fellow Zimbabweans are exercising their birth right anyone of will take side or point a gun or button stick towards a Zimbabwean.
Zimbabwe has recorded its 8th coronavirus death after a 21-year-old female died in a coronavirus facility.
The Ministry of Health and Child Care says the deceased was from Harare Province, had no travel history and tested positive for the virus today adding that she had co-morbidities.
Co-morbidity means more than one disease or condition is present in the same person at the same time. Conditions described as comorbidities are often chronic or long-term conditions.
Meanwhile, 5 more people recovered from the virus today bringing the total number of recoveries to 181.
The tragedy comes when some members of the public are now showing complacency especially following the relaxation of lockdown regulations weeks ago.
The number of confirmed cases this Saturday rose to 698, a development that comes as South Africa has since Friday been deporting more Zimbabweans for violating that country’s immigration laws.
The government and doctors this week warned against complacency saying the country was not out of the woods yet.
Behold, the People’s President Advocate Nelson Chamisa today is going to address an online rally at 2pm C.A.T.
The e-rally which is going to be a first of its kind in the Sub-Saharan Africa comes at time when the world is bracing against the deadly Coronavirus pandemic which easily spreads in over crowd situations.
True to our leitmotif, TheParty of Excellence, MDC Alliance leads the way in embracing technologies of the 4th Industrial Revolution in pursuance of the National Democratic Struggle.
Whilst the poverty stricken citizens are grappling with ravaging effects of the Coronavirus induced lockdown, dictator Emmerson Mnangagwa took the opportunity to shrink the democratic space as evidenced by capture of our offices and illegal recalls of MPs and Clrs.
It is given these challenges coupled with the untold suffering of masses at the hands of Emmerson Mnangagwa that President Nelson Chamisa is going to give direction on the next course of action to be taken by the party.
Connect with the People’s President today on the following links:
Crowd favourite Nelson Chamisa leader of the MDC Alliance
UNINFORMED Zimbabweans have continuously blamed Government for the current economic meltdown. For almost two decades, some sections of the society have continued to point fingers at the Government for failing the economy.
Leading the pack of Government accusers are members of the opposition political parties, particularly the MDC and some civic society activists, who choose to have selective amnesia to the role they played in the destruction of the country’s economy.
This article is not going to deny the existence of economic challenges but the article is premised on exposing the genesis of our problems and identify the culprits who are sabotaging our economy to this day. To start with, the architect of Zimbabwe’s problems is not the Government and can never be the Government.
Since 1980, the Government of Zimbabwe has been for the people as evidenced by the various policies and programmes that were meant to stimulate the economy and improve people’s lives. My dear reader will recall some noble policies such as education for all, health for all, land for all, economic empowerment for all, to mention but a few, which the Government pursued to change lives of its people.
Notwithstanding that all these policies and programmes that were meant to better people’s lives were hampered by a group of saboteurs who went around the globe bad-mouthing the country and worked in cahoots with our detractors to bring down a Zanu-PF Government at whatever cost.
This dear reader was the turning point to the fortunes of the country and its populace. 1999, the year the “devil” was born
The genesis of the country’s problems can be traced back to July 1999 when the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) was officially launched. The MDC was created to oppose whatever the Government was doing. To make matters worse, the MDC was foreign funded and it was being handled by the West on what political steps it should take to the detriment of our great nation.
This resulted in most of its modus operandi being unAfrican and unZimbabwe as they were pushing the agenda and interests of their handlers. For instance, in its first year of formation, the MDC vehemently attacked and castigated the land reform programme. To the MDC, it was good and plausible for whites to have vast pieces of land while Zimbabweans were congregated in rocky and non-arable areas.
It’s general knowledge that Zimbabwe’s economy is hinged on agriculture.
The MDC went on a crusade painting a picture that black farmers were inferior to their white counterparts. On several occasions MDC parroted their paymaster’s sentiments that land should be returned to the whites because they were better farmers compared to blacks.
It became clear then that by opposing the land reform programme, which Zimbabweans fought for in a protracted liberation war, the MDC was never for the people, hence its strategy of burning down the house to kill a mouse.
Sanctions and Suffering Of Zimbabweans It’s a known fact that some of the challenges bedevilling our nation are because of sanctions imposed by the Western countries after the MDC lobbied and begged for them. These sanctions have caused untold suffering to the people of Zimbabwe as they are meant to isolate Zimbabwe from the international community, which they managed to do until the Second Republic embarked on a re-engagement exercise.
Dear reader, remember that in January 2002, the late leader of the MDC, Morgan Tsvangirai, called on South Africa to cut off fuel and close the border to Zimbabwe in order to deal with Zanu-PF. Tsvangirai was quoted saying, “I think SA will have to go it alone and do something effective on the ground, and South Africa should say, OK, under those circumstances we are going to cut fuel, we are going to cut transport links.”
Since then, the MDC has to date pursued the “burn it to the ground” motto, despite the massive suffering it has wrought many a Zimbabweans. In August 2018, the unrepentant MDC Alliance Vice-President Tendai Biti, in an interview with the Daily Maverick declared that “the international community is not going to be fooled by this madness. We will make sure they (Zimbabwe) don’t get a cent.”
Biti’s statement was just a reflection of the entire MDC leadership mentality that wants Zimbabwe to be starved of international financial assistance, to perpetuate the narrative that the Zimbabwean Government has failed. To show that the MDC is anti-Zimbabwe and unremorseful of their part in destroying the economy, at a time when the country is grappling with devastating effects of Covid-19, that party’s officials are working flat out to ensure that Zimbabwe does not get assistance from international lenders such as the World Bank.
In a leaked letter that was written by Biti to the World Bank Group president, Mr David Malpass on May 21 this year, the opposition official pleaded with the international lending institution not to extend any loan to the Government of Zimbabwe.
This is the calibre of the opposition we have in Zimbabwe. The opposition that wants to be on the presidential throne through the suffering of the masses. To them, the plight of the Zimbabweans does not matter as long as they set their foot at State House.
Fake abductions and tarnishing of Zim’s image The MDC are not tiring in their quest to tarnish the country’s image so that it can be declared a high risk for investors to do business in Zimbabwe. Recently, the MDC has reactivated their nefarious operations of tarnishing the country’s image through stage-managed abductions.
The alleged abduction of Netsai Marowa, Cecilia Chimbiri and Joanna Mamombe was a calculated move meant to attract the attention of the international community. In a well-choreographed manner, whenever there are incidences of these alleged kidnapping and abductions, the MDC social media trolls are quick to tag the Western Embassies and other foreign dignitaries so that they will depict Zimbabwe as pariah state that should be shunned in all business dealings.
Thank God that one of the MDC insiders, Tapiwa Mashakada, recently confessed that the MDC is in a habit of stage managing abductions to score cheap political goals. We hope Mashakada’s confession will make the Western countries not to believe whatever they hear from the MDC as it is nothing but stage-managed events to tarnish the country.
Dear reader, I will not say much about how the MDC always staged unsanctioned demonstrations to cause chaos in the country. I will also not mention how the MDC are working clandestinely to sabotage all Government efforts of reviving the economy. I will not also remind you dear reader of how Chamisa’s statement of “Kudira jecha” and recently Deputy Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet (Communications) alluded to “a clear nexus between runaway market activities and runaway opposition politics . . . all to create a generalised instability which have the effect of creating disenchantment on the part of government”. Yes, the opposition party has misguided foreign nations who are willing to cause this mayhem so as to elicit demonstrations.
History will judge the MDC party harshly for being used as Western puppets to cause suffering to their fellow countrymen, but in the meanwhile, the country needs its own version of the United States’ Patriot Act to bring to book all those who continue to sabotage our motherland with impunity.
