http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
Friday, 07 August 2009
17:43
THE death of Vice-President Joseph Msika in Harare on Wednesday
after
a long illness has re-opened President Robert Mugabe's explosive
succession
race guaranteeing a fresh power struggle within his
deeply-divided Zanu PF.
Msika's death, coupled with simmering
factionalism within the party,
leaves Mugabe potentially exposed in the
raging battle over his position.
Leadership changes in Zanu
PF will determine whether the party will
renew itself to inject new blood
and ideas to prevent almost inevitable
defeat by the main MDC in future
elections.
The departure of Msika could also revive the campaign by
Mugabe's
loyalists to declare him President-for-Life in the party. Already
provincial
executives have suggested that Mugabe is the "Supreme Leader" of
Zanu PF.
Msika stopped Zanu PF from declaring Mugabe
President-for-Life during
the party's 69th ordinary session of the central
committee in early 2007.
He shot down the proposal that was
contained in the 9th National
People's Conference report presented by party
chairman John Nkomo to that
meeting. Msika's move came during a heated
debate on the report of the party's
annual conference held at Goromonzi from
December 13-16, 2006.
Confidential Zanu PF politburo and
central committee documents seen by
the Zimbabwe Independent show Msika
torpedoed the campaign to ensure Mugabe
remained leader until
death.
The controversial central committee report had suggested
that: "The
President (Mugabe) should be declared President-for-Life."
However, Msika
responded: "We should not think with emotions. The president
must get his
mandate from the people and we should be guided by the
constitution which
should apply to all incumbents in the
future."
The issue had also been raised in the politburo in
March 2007 by Zanu
PF Women's League chairperson Oppah Muchinguri. At the
time there was a
strong lobby for Mugabe to remain at the helm until his
demise, an unwritten
rule of the party.
Like his
predecessors Joshua Nkomo and Simon Muzenda, Msika died in
office an
octogenarian, showing there is an established practice of having
leaders for
life in Zanu PF. Nkomo died aged 81, Muzenda 80 and now Msika
86. Mugabe is
85.
There are widespread fears that the battle for the soul of
Zanu PF
will eventually lead to the disintegration of the party along its
regional
and ethnic fault lines when Mugabe dies.
However,
in the meantime the immediate fight in Zanu PF will be over
the unresolved
succession issue which is currently being managed by a
committee of senior
party officials to prevent it exploding into an
uncontrollable
crisis.
A briefing to the Independent by senior Zanu PF
politburo officials
this week indicate that jostling for Msika's position
started to escalate
when it became clear his health was rapidly
deteriorating ahead of the party's
congress in December.
Although Mugabe, who has been Zanu PF leader for 32 years, had largely
been
endorsed as "Supreme Leader" to extend his leadership by another five
years,
Msika's death is likely to reopen fresh power struggles within the
party.
Sources said Msika's death would fuel battles
between Zanu PF chair
John Nkomo, politburo member Obert Mpofu and Bulawayo
governor Cain Mathema
to succeed him. Nkomo, a member of the Zanu PF
presidium, is seen as the
frontrunner as Mpofu and Mathema are relative
lightweights.
The vacancy left by Msika is expected to be
filled in by a former PF
Zapu old guard in terms of the Zanu and Zapu 1987
Unity Accord.
Sources said John Nkomo, Mpofu and Mathema have
been lobbying party
stalwarts and ex-combatants to boost their succession
bids. Mpofu and
Mathema are however seen as long shots.
A
senior Zanu PF official said while there is a tussle for Msika's
position,
it was almost certain Nkomo would win. "The race is on but Nkomo
is likely
to win it. If (Dumiso) Dabengwa was still with the party it would
be a
different issue altogether," the official said. "The real fight now
might be
over who becomes chairman."
Since the Unity Accord, Zanu and Zapu
shared equally the top four
positions.
Msika was the
chairman of Zanu PF when Joshua Nkomo was
vice-president. When Msika became
vice-president in 1999 after a fierce
battle with Thenjiwe Lesabe, then Zanu
PF Women's League head, party
heavyweight Emmerson Mnangagwa clashed with
John Nkomo over the
chairmanship.
After a bitter struggle which
prominently featured the late maverick
Eddison Zvobgo, Mnangagwa lost to
Nkomo. Ever since Mnangagwa has been
trying hard to climb the greasy pole.
His 2004 attempt to rise after the
death of Muzenda in 2003 had disastrous
consequences for himself and his
faction. His campaign was thwarted by
Mugabe and his faction crushed in the
process.
Mnangagwa's
rival Joice Mujuru dramatically ascended to the presidium
from lower down in
the pecking order. The battle was followed by serious
purges in the party
which has a history of infighting and killings.
Sources said
Mnangagwa might nevertheless try again to seize the
current opportunity to
become chairman. However, given Zanu PF's resolution
in 2007 that "the Unity
Accord is not negotiable", Mnangagwa might have a
serious problem coming
in.
Sources said Didymus Mutasa, the party's secretary for
administration,
might join the race. The sources said if Mpofu fails to beat
Nkomo, he might
settle for the chairmanship, pitting himself against
Mnangagwa and Mutasa.
Msika, a veteran nationalist who helped
to rope in Mugabe to join the
anti-colonial struggle in the early 1960s, was
a stabilising factor in Zanu
PF which is torn by regional divisions and
ethnic infighting.
Msika - who almost stormed out of the Zanu
PF extraordinary congress
in December 2007 in protest against war veterans
leader Jabulani Sibanda's
divisive activities - provided direction by
blocking the spirited campaign
by Mugabe's diehards to keep him in power for
life.
Sibanda was also seen as helping to ensure Mugabe
remained leader for
life with his "Million-Man" march and other activities.
As a result there
was a heated debate in a politburo meeting on October 24
2007 about Sibanda's
moves. Msika won the day again and Sibanda stopped in
his tracks.
The debate was so heated that Angeline Masuku ended
up saying there
was "a conspiracy to remove Zapu leaders from their party
positions". She
also said there were "within the politburo" individuals
being used to divide
people along tribal lines.
Lesabe
weighed in, suggesting if the situation continued like that
Zapu leaders
must opt out of the Zanu PF leadership positions. Mugabe was
riled by these
remarks and warned Masuku and Lesabe not to create a volatile
"Zanu versus
Zapu" conflict.
BY DUMISANI MULEYA
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
Friday, 07 August 2009
17:34
A CLIQUE has emerged in Zanu PF pushing for leadership renewal
beginning in the Youth League and cascading down to the main wing of the
party as the succession battle continues to rage on ahead of the December
congress.
The force led by, among others, Youth minister
Saviour Kasukuwere,
Transport minister Nicholas Goche, Zanu PF youth
director Patrick Zhuwao and
Mashonaland West executive member Themba Mliswa,
is reportedly pushing for
major leadership changes in the party's Youth and
Women's League, central
committee and the politburo - in a move meant to
create a formidable and
saleable party in the event of fresh national
elections.
Fresh polls are not expected to take place even if a new
constitution
is promulgated within the first two years of the inclusive
government.
Impeccable sources in Zanu PF told the Zimbabwe
Independent that the
force was also positioning Kasukuwere to take over the
leadership of the
party in the future and gun for national
power.
The sources said the clique has begun a nationwide
campaign in support
of the retention of President Robert Mugabe,
Vice-President Joice Mujuru and
minister John Nkomo in the Zanu PF presidium
at the congress to block the
ascendancy of Defence Minister Emmerson
Mnangagwa.
Mnangagwa is tipped to become national chairman if
Nkomo succeeds in
replacing Vice-President Joseph Msika who died on
Wednesday. The sources
said the plot to block Mnangagwa or any of his
faction members from the
presidium was in place even before the death of the
veteran nationalist.
Mnangagwa leads a faction fighting to
succeed Mugabe with another camp
headed by retired army general Solomon
Mujuru. The Kasukuwere team is
another faction which backs Mugabe for its
own ends, but does not support
either Mnangagwa or Mujuru.
"The group is pushing for renewal of the Youth League as a precursor
to the
renewal of the other structures upwards," one of the sources said.
"The
Kasukuwere group backs Joice Mujuru to remain in the presidium because
they
see her as weak and not a threat to their interests in the
party."
The Mnangagwa faction has reportedly lined up Women's
League boss
Oppah Muchinguri to wrestle the vice-presidency from Mujuru at
the congress.
Before taking Mujuru head on, Muchinguri would
have to fight with
Women's Affairs minister Olivia Muchena for the Women's
League chair.
Muchena is a close ally of Mujuru.
The
sources said Kasukuwere has since been nicknamed "Obama" by his
camp, which
has so far reportedly won the support of Mashonaland West,
Mashonaland
Central and Bulawayo provinces who have endorsed the current
Zanu PF
presidium to retain power at the December congress.
The sources
said the Kasukuwere faction was working tirelessly to
influence the
leadership of the Youth League, which holds its elective
four-day national
conference beginning August 20.
The conference would, for the
first time, enforce the party's
constitution that the leaders and members of
the league should not be above
30 years of age.
This would
see Kasukuwere stepping down as the league's deputy
secretary and his group
has lined up a former Mnangagwa faction member,
Anastancia Ndhlovu, to take
over from him.
Ndhlovu, Shurugwi MP and the league's deputy
secretary for
administration, fell out of favour with the Mnangagwa camp,
which is
reportedly battling to secure a suitable candidate to contest
against her.
Kasukuwere is reportedly eyeing the post of
national political
commissar that became vacant after the death of Elliot
Manyika last year.
Zanu PF insiders said the Kasukuwere faction
was positioning itself to
be in charge of Zanu PF when fresh polls take
place most probably in 2013
after Mugabe has finished his full term in
office.
Indications are that Mugabe and deputy premier Arthur
Mutambara are
opposed to early elections as they are afraid of being
humiliated by Prime
Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC
party.
Speaking at the launch of the Independent's Zimbabwe
Quoted Companies
Survey 2009 yesterday, Mutambara said the global political
agreement did not
specify when fresh polls would be held.
The deputy premier said: "We are not looking at having elections soon,
not
in the next two years. If the environment is not conducive to a free and
fair election, where losers will congratulate winners, the GNU (government
of national unity) will continue. If we had said we will have elections in
the next 18 months, some of us will play politics and start campaigning
instead of focusing on national healing."
Already, the
constitution-making process - expected to lead to fresh
polls - has
reportedly been stalled by infighting between the 25-member
parliamentary
select committee, the administration and Constitutional
Affairs minister
Eric Matinenga over control of the process.
The committee has
since the first stakeholders conference three week
ago failed to set up 16
thematic committees to drive the consultative
process, a move that will
delay the drafting of the new supreme law.
BY CONSTANTINE
CHIMAKURE
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
Friday, 07 August 2009
17:31
HIGH Court judge, Justice Nicholas Ndou, on Wednesday reserved
judgment in a case in which three MPs from the Arthur Mutambara-led MDC are
seeking an interim order preventing their expulsion from both the party and
imminent ejection from parliament.
Ndou said he needed time to
pore over submissions made by the
lawmakers - Abedinico Bhebhe (Nkayi
South), Njabuliso Mguni (Lupane East)
and Norman Mpofu - and the
respondents, MDC-M national disciplinary
chairperson Lyson Mlambo, the
party, House of Assembly Speaker Lovemore Moyo
and Clerk of Parliament
Austin Zvoma.
The three MPs and Alex Goosen, a member of
the MDC-M national
executive council, were recently expelled from the party
on allegations of
"indiscipline and disrespecting the party
leadership".
Lawyer Joseph James representing Mlambo asked the
court to dismiss the
application arguing that it was not urgent because the
MPs and Goosen had
already been axed from the party.
"The
matter is not urgent. The applicants have already been expelled
from
respondent 2 (MDC-M) and struck from the register," James argued. "The
first
three applicants (Bhebhe, Mguni and Mpofu) are no longer members of
parliament."
James further argued that the quartet had "not
exhausted their
domestic remedies (in the MDC-M)".
But Thamsanqa
Khumalo representing the quartet said the interim relief
being sought by his
clients was to stop their expulsion not only from the
party, but also from
parliament.
"It is submitted that the applicants have made out
a case for
interdict sought and accordingly pray for the granting of the
same," Khumalo
said.
The MDC-M accused Bhebhe, Mguni, Mpofu
and Goosen of addressing
meetings in their constituencies attacking the
party leadership at the same
time urging party members to join the MDC-T
faction.
This led to a disciplinary hearing in July from which
the quartet
stormed out accusing the party of failing to lay specific
charges against
them.
After their dismissal from the party,
MDC-M Secretary-General Welshman
Ncube advised Moyo that Bhebhe, Mguni and
Mpofu were no longer their party
members and should declare their seats
vacant to pave way for by-elections.
Ncube said pending the
holding of by-elections, the three MPs should
be ejected from parliament, or
stopped from attending parliamentary sessions
under the party
name.
The move leaves the MDC formation with seven MPs and six
senators in
the House of Assembly and the Senate.
This
prompted the lawmakers to approach the High Court.
In their
application last Thursday, the legislators sought to be
granted an order
staying and suspending their expulsion from the party and
also stopping
parliament from declaring their seats vacant.
The three MPs
have continued to attend parliamentary sessions,
including chairing
portfolio committees.
Two other MPs who were summoned to the
disciplinary hearing, Maxwell
Dube of Tsholotsho South and Thandeko Zinti
Mkandla of Gwanda North, escaped
with warnings.
The hearing
of the other suspended members, Job Sikhala, a member of
the national
executive and Gift Nyandoro, the chairman of the youth
assembly, are still
to be convened.
BY NQOBILE BHEBHE
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
Friday, 07 August 2009
17:12
As Zimbabweans nurse their profound grief on the passing away of
Vice-President Joseph Wilfred Msika and ponder over the significance of his
lifetime of struggle ahead of his befitting burial at the National Heroes
Acre on Monday, the abiding wisdom that death cancels everything but truth
must be reverberating in the hearts and minds of those who worked with or
knew him as the contagious embodiment of the truth in politics.
The late Vice-President Msika was so irrepressibly committed to the
truth as
an expression of intergenerational leadership that he personified
it. He
talked and lived the truth with all the associated consequences.
There is
nobody who worked with or under him, no matter how old or young,
who did not
experience or suffer the impact of Vice-President Msika's quest
for
truth.
It is for this reason that, as a man of the truth,
he was without
doubt the conscience of the nation. He was a leader of
immense stature and a
very ordinary person at one and the same time. He
connected with such
ordinary pursuits as boxing and football in ways that
are yet to be told.
One fact that stands out as towering as his
stature in the history of
the nationalist movement, something rather typical
of leaders who are
truth-driven, is that Vice-President Msika never
exaggerated his capacity.
He was always humble, ever ready and
willing to learn even from people
much younger and less experienced than
himself. But even so he was
nevertheless very impatient and even ruthless
with the "mafikizolos", the
textbook politicians - sometimes called the
"young Turks" - who thought or
behaved towards him like they knew everything
when the contrary was
self-evidently true.
The chief error of
the "mafikizolos", which Vice-President Msika never
tired to point out, was
that they naively took the mere formal fact of
holding senior positions
either in the Zanu PF hierarchy or the Cabinet to
mean that they were
"leaders"!
Vice-President Msika could not stomach that
impudence. He used to be
routinely vicious against it and would not mince
his words when denouncing
the evil. This is because to him, being a youth
was not a licence to willy
nilly say or do anything and there was always
more to leadership than just
having high sounding formal educational
credentials or holding a formal
position.
And in the same
vein, and for the same reasons, Vice-President Msika
was never one to take
kindly to people who claimed entitlement by dint of
having done this or that
during the liberation struggle. To him, the virtue
of one's past or future
or stature was always a consequence of one's present
deed.
Equally compelling was Msika's nationalism. Many have been called
nationalists but their record is a mixed tale of tribalism. Not Msika, he
was not a lip-service nationalist who takes on a national character when
there is a crowd before him.
As a man of the truth, he was one
leader who was truly above
tribalism. He was at home with real everyday
people on the ground anywhere
in Matabeleland, in terms of both deeds and
language, as he was anywhere in
Mashonaland. In this regard, he was in a
class all by himself as a paragon
of profound nationalism troubled by the
otherwise deep-seated scourge of
tribalism in our country.
Against this backdrop, Vice-President Msika had an infectious
management
style which saw leadership less as a position and more as a
disposition.
This perhaps explains why, as is readily clear
even from a cursory
review of his leadership role in the history of the
nationalist movement,
Vice-President Msika did not seek high positions for
their own sake even
when opportunities came begging.
It is as
remarkable as it is instructive to note that he was one of
the leading
nationalist voices that invited the late Vice-President Joshua
Mqabuko Nkomo
to be the founding leader of the African National Congress in
1957. Since
then and up to his passing away on Wednesday, Vice-President
Msika's loyalty
to Nkomo remained legendary.
Of course, the loyalty was not to
the person of Nkomo but to the
ideals and values of the liberation struggle
first to politically free
Zimbabwe from colonialism and later to
economically empower Zimbabweans by
ensuring that they have full control of
their God-given natural resources.
It is no exaggeration to say
that the whole of Vice-President Msika's
adult life was about this
struggle. He did not have any other life. He was
not invited into that
life by anyone. He just found himself naturally at the
centre of the
struggle and in the end the struggle made him while he made
the struggle and
in the process Msika made Zimbabwe.
Whatever freedoms some
Zimbabweans might claim they do not have today,
a claim which must be
academic by definition, the fact is that they are able
to make the claim as
result of the lifetime sacrifice that Vice-President
Msika made. He gave up
everything for the sake of a free Zimbabwe.
The people who know
this only too well are members of his family. But
there is no reason the
rest of us cannot see it because it's a reality that
speaks for itself and
which young Zimbabweans, especially, can ignore at
their own existential
peril from an identity point of view.
In the same way that
young and future Americans cannot recall the
history of the making of their
country without reference to the likes of
Thomas Jefferson, it will not be
possible for anyone to tell a complete
history of the making of a
politically and economically independent
Zimbabwe, with empowered citizens,
without acknowledging the lifetime
contribution made by Vice-President
Msika.
Those among us who sometimes suffer from the foolish
temptation that
the history of our country starts in 2000 have all the
reasons to use the
sad passing away of Vice- President Msika to revisit and
understand the real
and troubled history of our beloved
country.
While it can indeed be told from many perspectives based
on the
contributions of many illustrious sons and daughters of the
revolution, some
departed and others still with us, the perspective of the
late
Vice-President Msika is arguably the most compelling.
As
President Robert Mugabe has said, people like Msika do not die:
they live on
indelibly anchored in our everlasting memories.
* Jonathan Moyo is
independent MP for Tsholotsho North.
BY JONATHAN MOYO
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
Friday, 07 August 2009
17:04
ZIMBABWE has made a formal request for a further R300 million
facility
from South Africa to fund the country's education sector and the
summer
crop.
The request came a week after the South African
Department of
Government Information Services, International Relations and
Cooperation
revealed that it had transferred two thirds of the R300 million
it pledged
to assist the power-sharing government earlier this
year.
Finance Minister Tendai Biti yesterday confirmed that
government made
the request for additional funding a week after it received
R200 million of
the first facility from South Africa.
"We
have sent our request to the South African government for further
funding of
R300 million and we hope the credit line will be extended and we
want to use
the money to fund the education sector and areas of concern are
infrastructural developments at universities, primary and secondary
schools," Biti said.
He said the funds required would also
be channelled towards this year's
summer crop and for capitalising
provincial hospitals.
"The first part of the R200 million was
used towards the
rehabilitation of the Harare water systems, the
refurbishment of Mpilo and
Harare hospitals and we are seeking more funds so
that we can also build a
hospital in Lupane and capitalise the ones in
Chitungwiza and Mutare.
We also need to supply farmers with
adequate chemicals and maize seed
for the summer crop," Biti
added.
He said the remaining R100 million of the first
facility, which is yet
to be provided by the South African government, would
be used to construct
the Mtshabezi water pipeline that will connect
Bulawayo's water supply dams
to Mtshabezi Dam.
The first
R300 million grant from South Africa was pledged to assist
Zimbabwe in
critical sectors that needed urgent attention at the time.
In
confirming the disbursement of part of the funds pledged, the South
African
government's Information Services, International Relations and
Cooperation
director-general Ayanda Ntsaluba this week said: "This grant is
aimed at
assisting Zimbabwe in some of the critical sectors that require
assistance."
He said his government had already dispatched
R200 million to
Zimbabwe.
Botswana is the only other
southern African country to have loaned
substantial amounts of money to
Zimbabwe after South Africa. Botswana made
available US$70
million.
The southern Africa region, through Sadc, is also in
the process of
finalising a credit line facility for
Zimbabwe.
Government badly needs the funds to resuscitate
collapsing
infrastructure, recapitlise industry to operate optimally and to
boost
agricultural production.
Zimbabwe has for close to a
decade been reduced to a basket case
relying on donations from neighbours it
has previously supplied with food
due to poor government policies and the
political crisis that started in
2000.
The economic
situation in Zimbabwe has improved vastly since the
formation of the
inclusive government in February, but the international
community has been
sceptical with the progress of implementing the global
political agreement
signed last September between President Robert Mugabe,
Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai and his deputy Arthur Mutambara.
The United States
and Western countries have declined to offer the
government budgetary
support and only pledged humanitarian aid until the
full implementation of
the political pact.
BY LOUGHTY DUBE
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
Friday, 07 August 2009
16:55
GERMANY has warned the government that revival of trade relations
between the two countries may be endangered after an economic empowerment
body, the Affirmative Action Group (AAG), threatened a German company for
allegedly declining to embrace indigenisation.
In a letter of
complaint to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Monday,
the German Embassy
in Harare said the AAG's action "highly endangers our
recent efforts to
resuscitate Zimbabwean-German business relations which are
part of the
broader relations between Zimbabwe and the EU".
While the
letter did not mention the name of the company allegedly
threatened by the
AAG, state media last Thursday identified the firm as DHL
Zimbabwe.
The embassy said the company was being threatened
for not employing a
Zimbabwean as its country director.
"It
is with great concern that we learned about the threats which were
put
forward against a German company in Harare by members of a group called
"Affirmative Action Group", a note verbale read. "The company's interim
director from South Africa was reproached for not employing a Zimbabwean
citizen as its future director and for the fact that the company was not
partially owned by Zimbabweans."
The embassy said the
threat culminated in the demand to "disinvest"
under these
conditions.
After the threats, the embassy claimed the firm
received negative
publicity and "the company's employees do strongly feel
intimidated".
The firm has 100 Zimbabwean
employees.
"As an embassy we cannot credibly lobby for German
investment to come
back to Zimbabwe as long as such harassment takes place
and respective
instigating news are disseminated by state-media. These kinds
of acts
furthermore seriously challenge the Prime Minister (Morgan
Tsvangirai)'s
latest declaration of Zimbabwe's readiness to do business with
the rest of
the world," the letter read.
However, AAG
president Supa Mandiwanzira yesterday told the Zimbabwe
Independent in
Bulawayo that it was unfortunate that the German Embassy had
turned "a
domestic issue into a diplomatic one".
"The German Embassy
should know that the AAG is not a department of
the Zimbabwe government, not
funded by it but is an independent lobby group
that has a reputable track
record in advancing the cause of indigenous
Zimbabweans. If they have any
issues with AAG they should engage us
directly," Mandiwanzira
said.
He said the decision by the embassy of "rushing to
petition government
without engaging them directly" was
unfortunate.
"The contents of the letter are based on half
truths. As AAG we would
like to engage the embassy directly on this issue
and they will be
embarrassed by their rushed action of petitioning
government with
information that is far from being true," Mandiwanzira
said. "The said
company, DHL Zimbabwe, has had several meetings with us on
complaints raised
by its workers and resolved them amicably. They even
apologised to us on the
racist remarks made by its
management."
He added that the AAG fully supported government
calls for foreign
investment.
"The German Embassy should know that
AAG is encouraging German
companies to invest in Zimbabwe but companies
should not come only to
exploit our resources at the expense of locals,"
Mandiwanzira said.
BY NQOBILE BHEBHE
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
Friday, 07 August 2009
15:56
ON Monday Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai was in South Africa
talking
to President Jacob Zuma. These were critical talks on which the
whole
process underway here in Zimbabwe depended.
We have been
working towards this near-landing on the beach for the
last 10 years; we
have fought many battles and suffered a great deal. But
we must watch out
in these last moments before a landing -- there are rocks
in the
water.
The first rock is an attempt that is under way right
now to dislodge
the MDC Speaker of the House of Assembly, Lovemore Moyo, and
replace him
with a person from Zanu PF or the Mutambara
group.
The background to this is the allegation -- made just
after Moyo's
election to this very important post in 2008 -- that his
election was not
acceptable from a procedural perspective. This led to a
High Court hearing
two weeks ago where the merits of the case were heard and
could lead to a
hearing where the allegations may be upheld and his election
nullified by
the courts.
If that happens we would face a
fresh election process for a new
Speaker and in anticipation, our opponents
in the House are working to
eliminate the majority that gave us control of
the Speaker's post in 2008.
The Mutambara group has "dismissed"
three MPs already and is targeting
others. The courts have convicted five
members of parliament on various
grounds and many others may be convicted in
the near future.
If these convictions succeed they (the MPs)
would loose their voting
rights in any election for the Speaker. If this
manoeuvre is successful Zanu
PF would gain control of this vital post,
giving them effective control of
all three main arms of government -- the
judiciary, the executive and
parliament.
Once this
objective is gained, they would then go to the next phase
which is to secure
a majority in parliament. This they would try to achieve
by forcing a large
number of by-elections. Already we can identify 17 of
these and there may be
more by the time we get to the date targeted for the
elections.
This could be as soon as October.
Such a large number of
by-elections at one time would constitute a
virtual mini national election
and in anticipation Zanu PF is mobilising
their formidable machine designed
to deliver an electoral victory. The
majority of the by-elections will be in
remote rural constituencies --
clearly their favoured electoral
environment.
They may want to activate Joint Operations Command
structures in all
provinces, deploy army officers to take charge of the
preparations in the
electoral districts and position teams of youth militia
in all electoral
wards.
A programme of violence is planned
to target the constitution-making
process which is under way and the
by-elections themselves. We know full
well what lies in front for us -- we
have been there before and it's not
pretty.
If they get the
results they are targeting then by the end of the year
they could have
turned the political situation here on its head -- they
would hold a
majority in parliament and the Speaker's chair, they would have
control of
the judiciary and the executive even though we are in there and
cannot be
ignored.
This would give them the capacity to then control the
constitution-drafting process and direct its outcome. They would be able to
protect their positions in the security establishment, the media and the
electoral system.
They would have a full quiver of weapons
to use against the MDC in any
future elections. They would control the
ground and make the rules, they
would control the voters roll and the
delimitation process and they would
collect the voting ballots and be
responsible for counting them and
reporting the results -- and we all know
what that means.
It would deliver this transitional government
boat onto the beach it
has been destined for since September 15 2008. But
instead of bringing in a
new dispensation and hope for the future, instead
of restoring our rights
and freedoms or the prospects of rebuilding our
broken economy, it would
dump us on the beach defeated and broken and our
isolation and national
destruction would continue unabated.
Our only defence is to know they are there and manoeuvre around them
in our
thrust for the beach or to engineer a wave that will carry us over
them
without tearing the bottom out of our boat.
The past two weeks
have been fascinating, knowing that Tsvangirai
would be seeing the South
African president, Zanu PF has been running around
trying to limit the
damage. They finally agreed to hold a meeting of the
National Security
Council after failing to do so for five months. There they
had to sit and
listen to the prime minister listing their failures to fulfil
their
obligations under the global political agreement.
In parliament we
had to sit through a long-winded explanation of why
the security chiefs
still refuse to salute the premier.
After two years of legal
efforts a letter was finally released giving
the owners of the Daily News
the right to approach the licensing authority
for a licence to resume
publishing the newspaper. When this emerges on our
streets it will have an
immediate impact on the political situation. Already
down to very small
circulation figures, the Zanu PF-controlled and
state-funded newspapers will
struggle to stay afloat and may even be forced
to close unless Zanu PF
itself can prop them up financially.
Last Thursday, the
speakers from the whole of the Sadc region sat in
the Speakers Gallery of
parliament to witness the debate in our House. There
they heard a series of
hard hitting and well-researched contributions by MDC
legislators on the key
issues of our day -- political violence,
gerrymandered elections, and
rigged court cases on trumped up charges in
politically motivated and
controlled courts.
They witnessed one after another of the Zanu
PF benches empty until by
the end of the day there was only one lone Zanu PF
legislator in the House.
They did not even try to defend
themselves.
They prefer working in secret -- underwater, plotting how
to sink this
ship before it can deliver the people onto the beach, free to
rebuild their
individual lives and nation.
Cross is a
member of the MDC-T national executive and also MP for
Bulawayo
South.
BY EDDIE CROSS
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
Friday, 07 August 2009
15:49
The following is an address by Swedish Ambassador to Zimbabwe,
Sten
Rylander, at the National Journalistic and Media Awards last
Friday.
I WOULD like to use this opportunity to look at the
progress of the
inclusive government and the role of the
media.
I will share my views from an international perspective
and as a
friend of the Zimbabwean people. I believe an international
perspective is
crucial because free media and freedom of expression know no
borders.
Media should and can never be constrained by narrow
national
perceptions or sovereignty.
Sweden has an admired
tradition of press freedom, which dates back as
far as 1766 when the Freedom
of the Press Act was passed. Sweden's current
work with media is ultimately
founded on the rights of the individual: the
right to freedom of expression,
the right to knowledge, the right to
transform knowledge into action and the
right to freedom from poverty.
This year the Swedish government has
boosted its commitment to
democracy and freedom of expression even further
through a decision on
increased spending and other initiatives.
This special action is one important way to counter oppression, which
is an
obstacle to poverty alleviation. As Sweden we are therefore interested
in
how the inclusive government deals with the media and how the media
covers
the progress of the inclusive government as this has an impact on the
lives
of ordinary people.
As from July 1 Sweden took over the
presidency of the European Union.
The Swedish EU presidency has an
overall goal which is to lead the EU
in a transparent and efficient manner,
in line with Swedish policy and
values, and in the interest of the EU as a
whole.
As part of the agenda during our presidency, we aim to build
democracy
and to further coordinate and strengthen the EU in its external
and
developmental policy. As the Swedish presidency in Zimbabwe we seek to
follow and monitor the implementation of the Global Political Agreement
(GPA).
The opening up of the media environment is one of
the key issues that
we will be observing. As part of the agenda we also
endeavour to achieve a
successful dialogue (under Article 8 of the EU-ACP
Cotonou Agreement) with
the Zimbabwean government aimed at normalised
relations.
In this regard, an open and vibrant media will be
important in order
to highlight and communicate the progress of the
inclusive government as the
country moves towards
re-engagement.
Press freedom is not an alien concept. One of
the best and most
comprehensive sets of media guidelines was produced in
Namibia in the early
1990s.
I am happy to inform you that I was
Ambassador in Namibia when the
Media Institute of Southern Africa (Misa) was
established and I contributed
very actively to its formative stages. Its
birth came after the Windhoek
Declaration on Promoting Independent and
Pluralistic Media in 1991.
The African Commission on Human and
People's Rights has wedged in with
a Declaration of Principles on Freedom of
Expression and Information.
Despite the adoption of these
commendable declarations, monopolies
continue to exist in some countries,
not least in Zimbabwe, which still has
a single national broadcaster
contrary to the objectives espoused in its
broadcasting laws.
In addition, there have been documented cases of freedom of the press
violations in most countries in the region and unfortunately Zimbabwe has
not been an exception.
Over the last years the state
repression of the media has intensified
through the use of legislation like
Aippa, Posa and the Broadcasting
Services Act.
These laws have
seen the crackdown on the media resulting in forced
closure of private
newspapers and radio stations, the arrest and
intimidation of journalists
and the restructuring of the state media into a
deplorable and highly
politicised monopoly.
The international community and indeed
Zimbabweans are closely
monitoring the media environment expecting an end to
the repression as an
indicator of the success of the inclusive
government.
For us to have a clear understanding of the
progress of the inclusive
government and the role of the media, it is
important to focus on the GPA,
which provides the framework for the
inclusive government.
Article 19 of the GPA, signed by the three
political parties,
recognises the importance of the right to freedom of
expression and the role
of the media in a multi-party democracy. The
implementation of the GPA in
general and the adherence to the article
dealing with media in particular is
a litmus test of the sincerity of the
inclusive government to usher in a new
era of unity, freedom and
work.
The GPA notes that while the provisions of the
Broadcasting Services
Act permit the issuance of licences, to date no
licences other than to the
public broadcaster have been issued.
It is very important for the government to urgently open up the
airwaves to
allow for the operation of "as many media houses as possible" to
directly
quote from the GPA. A first step would be to open the airwaves for
community
radio stations.
As Sweden we join so many others in believing that
the absence of
community-based radios hinders development and slows down
poverty reduction
efforts. Community radio stations could be playing a
crucial role in terms
of informing the ordinary people, especially in rural
and marginal areas, on
the progress of the inclusive government and other
key issues like national
healing and the constitution-making
process.
We call upon the government to open the airwaves and grant
operating
licences to community radio stations and other
broadcasters.
The parties to the GPA agreed that the government
shall ensure the
immediate processing by the appropriate authorities of all
applications for
re-registration and registration in terms of both the
Broadcasting Services
Act, as well as the Access to Information and
Protection of Privacy Act
(Aippa).
We urge the government to do
this and to go further to allow
parliament - in consultation with all media
players - to discuss these acts
to determine if they help or hinder media
freedom. If they hinder it, we
urge the parties to amend or repeal parts of
these laws, which are not in
line with the spirit of the inclusive
government, and realign them with key
regional media declarations. It is
important for government to come up with
legislation that will open up the
media landscape and help facilitate the
implementation of the
GPA.
The GPA notes that it is important for the public and
private media to
refrain from using abusive language that may incite
hostility, political
intolerance and ethnic hatred - or that unfairly
undermines political
parties and other organisations.
It is
therefore worrying to note the hate speech and negative and
biased reporting
that is still coming from the state media on a regular
basis. The inclusive
government should ensure that appropriate measures are
taken to achieve this
objective as articulated in the GPA.
In order to open up the media
environment as anticipated by the
agreement, the parties agreed that steps
should be taken to ensure that the
public media provides balanced and fair
coverage of all legitimate political
activities. We call upon the government
to ensure that the public media
abides by what was agreed in the
GPA.
The media is very important in the current dispensation; its
role is
to accurately inform on the various processes underway, for instance
the
constitution-making process, the re-branding exercise and the crafting
of
the national vision.
It is regrettable and unfortunate
that media coverage and access in
Zimbabwe is below 50%. There are many
areas in Zimbabwe, especially rural
areas, where there is no radio or
television coverage and which newspapers
do not reach. It is very important
for the media to be accessed by ordinary
Zimbabweans.
The
government has to provide adequate funding that will ensure
universal media
access to all Zimbabweans.
As we honour distinguished
journalists who have excelled in various
categories we should also call upon
the government to support initiatives by
various media organisations in
training journalists.
Such training is relevant to the current
dispensation, since the
quality of journalism will determine the role that
the media can play in
reporting and giving feedback on the work of the
inclusive government.
The training will also be important in order
to build a new brand of
highly trained journalists, whose work can
contribute towards rebuilding the
country.
Most of the
media reforms we are calling for are not alien or imposed
by the West but
are derived from the wisdom of the GPA and are in line with
the key regional
declarations on media freedom. It is therefore imperative
that the
government abides by what it agreed upon in the GPA.
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
Friday, 07
August 2009 14:02
THE manufacturing sector still needs more lines of
credit and a
reliable supply of electricity, transport and
telecommunications to boost
capacity utilisation, economic analysts have
said.
The analysts say despite the formation of the inclusive
government in
February, most manufacturing companies are still operating
below capacity
owing to unstable economic environment triggered by a
decade-long political
and economic recession that has seen firms shutting
down or relocating to
neighbouring countries.
A manufacturing
survey by the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries
(CZI) last year revealed
that industry was operating below 30%.
The sector was at its peak
between 1990 and 1996. Then it was famous
for its diversity of products and
as an important contributor to the country's
Gross Domestic Product
(GDP).
It accounted for 16% of GDP, 37% of exports and foreign exchange
earnings and 15% of formal employment at the time.
Given that the
Zimbabwean economy is dominated by agriculture and
mining, the manufacturing
sector is dominated by agro-processing accounting
for 54%, and mineral
processing 25%.
Presenting his mid-term monetary policy statement last
week, Reserve
Bank Governor Gideon Gono said: "There is need to swiftly
re-orient the
overall infrastructural grid of the country such as energy,
NRZ, Hwange,
telecoms, road transport and air transport system so as to
unlock greater
response from the manufacturing sector."
Gono said
capacity utilisation in the sector should be uplifted
through
toll-manufacturing programmes with regional and international
partners.
The call came amid realisation that manufacturers were
still
performing below expectations.
Economist Eric Bloch said:
"The manufacturing sector continues to face
challenges related to unreliable
delivery of essential public utilities such
as power, coal, water, transport
and telecommunications."
He said other challenges related to working
capital, ageing equipment,
low effective domestic demand as well as pressure
for higher wages.
"Central to challenges the sector is facing, is
securing lines of
credit to allow improved capacity utilisation," Bloch
added.
Immediate requirements for the manufacturing sector amount to
US$1
billion. According to the Finance ministry, as of June 30 US$562
million has
been identified as potential lines of credit.
Announcing the mid-term fiscal policy statement last month, Finance
minister
Tendai Biti said: "Major manufacturing potential exists in
foodstuffs,
beverages, textiles, timber, paper and packaging, steel and
other metal
products, fertilisers, agricultural equipment and chemicals."
Since
2000, the manufacturing sector has significantly contracted as a
result of
major problems, which included a hyperinflationary environment,
foreign
exchange controls, depressed aggregate demand, shortage of foreign
currency,
working capital constraints and a regime of price controls, which
compromised viability.
The sector also suffered from skills flight,
power outages and erratic
supply of fuel as the economy sank deeper into
recession.
As a result, capacity utilisation gradually declined,
reaching 35,8%
in 2005, 33,8% in 2006, 18,9% in 2007, and dropping sharply
to between 4%
and 10% by the end of 2008.
Consequently, output
contracted by 18% in 2006, 21,1% in 2007 and an
estimated 29,6% in
2008.
"It is very critical that the planned foreign investment
promotion
programmes by government emphasise the need to increase domestic
value-addition on the country's primary production, within the context of a
broad export-led strategy," said Gono.
Economist Brains Muchemwa
said capacity utilisation within the
manufacturing sector was showing signs
of recovery with indications that it
was nearing about 50% from below 30%
last year.
"This follows the liberalisation measures introduced at the
beginning
of the year that have resulted in improved operations in some
industries,"
Muchemwa said. "What is important is to ensure that local
products are
competitive on the foreign market and more lines of credit are
secured for
the industry."
Addressing delegates at the launch of
the Government Development Forum
(GDF) on Monday, Biti said Zimbabwe needed
at least US$45 billion dollars to
rebuild its economy in the next 10 years
and get it to levels it reached in
1996 before the economy started to
shrink.
"An in depth study we have done at the Ministry of Finance
shows that
we actually require US$45 billion up to the year 2019 to get our
economy to
where it was in 1996," Biti said, adding that this was the reason
the
government had decided to work with a conservative figure of US$8
billion
for the next three years.
The Finance minister said the
government wanted to move away from
consumptive to transformative aid to
help the country rebuild its
manufacturing sector and shattered
economy.
Commenting on what was contributing to the decline in the
manufacturing sector,
John Robertson, an economic analyst, said the
emergence of a more
robust informal market for commodities as was happening
with the informal
trade in foreign currency was resulting in prices shooting
up because the
government lacked the capacity to monitor and control
informal markets.
"Manufacturers stop producing because carrying on
with business would
not make any sense as they would be running at a loss,"
Robertson explained.
"Worse still, goods on the black market tend to be of
inferior quality and
are unhygienic."
Robertson said with the
introduction of multi-currencies and reviving
of most sectors of the economy
"the (manufacturing) sector operating
capacity would improve".
Going forward, following the liberalisation measures introduced at the
beginning of 2009, confidence has started building up, critical for the
normalisation of day to day operations.
As a result, capacity
utilisation in some industries has increased
rapidly to between 25-50% in
the first half of 2009 and the business
community is on record saying it was
optimistic that this will significantly
improve further by end of the
year.
BY PAUL NYAKAZEYA
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
Friday, 07 August 2009
12:26
THE government will in the next two weeks produce a report
outlining
progress and achievements under the 100-Day Plan, Deputy Prime
Minister
Arthur Mutambara said yesterday.
Speaking at the launch of
the Zimbabwe Independent's Quoted Companies
Survey 2009 whose theme is
"Transformation", Mutambara -- who was responding
to a question by Africa
Sun CEO Shingi Munyeza on why government had not
reported back to the public
on progress on the 100-Day Plan -- said the
report would provide a sector by
sector synopsis of achievements of the GNU
under the plan which expired
this week. He said it was imperative that
government be run like business
with progress evaluated periodically.
"Government in the next two weeks
will release a report. We need to
monitor and evaluate progress. This report
will enable (President) Mugabe,
Morgan Tsvangirai and myself to have a
clearer picture of the health of the
country," said Mutambara.
Responding to another question, Mutambara also revealed that
government was
working to review indigenisation legislation to make it
investor friendly.
He said the best measure for such legislation would be to
subject local
investors to similar legislation and see if they could do
business under
that legislative framework. He said the eventual legislation
should include
input from the private sector. He however warned that any
policy framework
must ensure that local people have ownership of resources
to enable the
growth of the middle-class.
"The strength of any economy is measured by
the participation of the
middle class," he said. "Indeginisation is a global
phenomenon and not
something unique to Zimbabwe."
In an earlier
address Mutambara said Zimbabwe needed transformation
that ensured maximum
performance of all sectors of the economy to attract
foreign investors. He
said it was time government and the private sector
"make positive things
happen and not just seeing them happening in other
countries and wonder how
they are happening in other countries".
"We have had so many seminars,
strategic meetings and forums, but it
is time to act and transform this
country," he said. "Zimbabweans are now
known for talking too much but less
action. We should speak as one. When we
quit thinking primarily about
ourselves and our own self-preservation, we
undergo a truly heroic
transformation of consciousness."
Guest speaker at the launch,
businessman Herbert Nkala said recent
events in Zimbabwe had ushered in
positive transformation.
He said the transformation and excitement is
fuelled by the
recognisation that Zimbabwe was a blessed and richly endowed
country.
"Transformation is in three dimensions, thought, feeling and
action.
It is no longer time to fight unnecessary battles. The best way to
predict
the future is to create it for ourselves," Nkala said.
Nkala implored on the government to listen to private sector concerns
instead of fighting business. Describing business leaders present at the
function as a library, Nkala urged government to tap into that resource to
help develop the country.
Nkala said transformation anywhere in the
world happens when people
are healed and start investing in other
people
Zimind Publishers chairman Trevor Ncube said Zimbabweans were a
resilient people adding that they should be remembered for that.
"Personal transformation can and does have global effects. As we go,
so does
Zimbabwe, for Zimbabwe is for us. The revolution that will save this
country
is ultimately a personal one," Ncube said.
Chairperson of the
Securities Commission Willia Bonyongwe said a
transformation that attracts
foreign investors and more investment
opportunities was now needed in
Zimbabwe.
"There is still uncertainty with regards to investing in
Zimbabwe by
some foreign investors. We need transformation between
shareholders and
companies. Listed companies need to distinguish themselves.
They should be
more concerned with increasing capacity more than margins,"
she said.
The Quoted Companies Survey has been running for the past
11years and
has been sponsored by BancABC (formerly ABC) for the last five
years. --
Staff Writer.
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
Friday, 07 August 2009 12:11
COMMERCIAL
bank deposits, which used to average US$350 million in the
first six months
of the year, have declined to US$41,8 million this year.
Figures
made available by the Reserve Bank show banks deposits had
declined
significantly as most individuals and corporates are still
sceptical about
the banking sector.
As of June 30, a total of US$627,6 million was
deposited in the
country's 14 commercial banks.
CBZ handled the
most deposits amounting US$183,6 million. The banks'
total loans and
overdrafts were US$86,1 million during the interim period.
Stanbic bank
was second with deposits totaling US$132,1 million, while
Standard Charted
was third after handling US$89,3 million.
Barclays (US$74 million),
MBCA (38,5 million), FBC (US$38,3 million),
Kingdom (US$23,5 million), ZB
Bank (US$21,9 million), NMB (US$10,6 million),
Zabg (US$6,3 million),
Agribank (US$3,5 million), Metropolitan (US$2,7
million), TN US$1,8 million
and CFX US$783 444
The Reserve bank said deposits increased in May and
June after being
depressed since January.
"Although there is a
gradual increase in the level of deposits, there
is no corresponding level
of increase in loans and advances," the bank said.
While some banking
institutions have mobilised relatively large
amounts of deposits, in some
instances this has not resulted in
corresponding levels of loans and
advances," the bank said.
Of the country's six merchant banks, BancABC
handled the highest
deposits during the period under review of US$18,9
million, followed by
Premier Bank with US$11,8 million.
Interfin's
deposits where US$9 million, while those of Rennaisance and
Genesis where
US$5,4 million and US$1,9 million respectively.
Most banks however have
not been offering loans relative to the
deposits they have.
"An
analysis of the extent of credit extension for the three months
from April
and June 2009 indicates that lending has been restricted as
reflected by the
average loans to deposit ratio of 35,83%," the Reserve Bank
said.
Building Societies who provide mortgage loans have not been releasing
money
on a large scale because their deposits have declined more when
compared to
commercial and merchant banks.
Of the country's four building
societies, CABS handled the most
deposits of US$14,9 million. Beverley was
second with deposits amounting to
US$2,2 million. ZB Building society and
FBC handled US$1,2 million and
US$678 887 respectively.
"As
monetary authorities, we are greatly concerned with extreme
instances of
disintermediation at some banking institutions. While we
appreciate the need
to conduct due diligence and sound risk management,
banking institutions
should play a meaningful role and contribute to the
economic turnaround of
the country," the Reserve Bank said.
BY PAUL NYAKAZEYA
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
Friday, 07 August 2009
11:56
THE Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe has paid loans which had been
advanced to
government by different multi-lateral institutions, banks and
countries
amounting to US$375 million.
According to Reserve
Bank Governor Gideon Gono, the bank had to repay
loans amounting to US$375,3
million backdating to 2003, the year he was
appointed governor.
"The gravity of these matters was demonstrated by undue pressure
applied on
government by the Eximbank of America demanding re-payments
within seven
days in May 2007," Gono said.
Gono said the Reserve bank had to pay
most of the debt some of which
was borrowed in the early 1980s as government
did not have the capacity to
do so.
"Whereas the bulk of the
country's external obligation were contracted
in the early 1980s and 1990s,
the Reserve Bank has had to honour some of the
guarantees on behalf of
government," Gono said.
The government creditors include the
International Monetary Fund,
Eximbank of America, World Bank and African
Development Bank. Government
also owed money to countries such as Botswana,
China, Malaysia and
Equatorial Guinea.
Government's failure to
honour debts and high inflation has resulted
in a low savings culture in the
country.
Savings and investment which are critical for Gross Domestic
Product
(GDP) growth have been progressively falling with marked declines
from an
average of 15% during 1995 - 2000 to around 4% of GDP last
year.
Zimbabwe has been lagging behind the rest of other Southern
African
Development Community (Sadc) countries on savings.
The fast
growing economies of East Asia have had savings and
investment ratios of at
least 25% of GDP and often more than 30%.
In Zimbabwe's case,
investment levels are as low as 4% of GDP which
means that there has been
virtually no new investment projects, and grossly
inadequate levels of
capital maintenance and replacement investment in
recent years.
"The country now faces the daunting task of having to restore the
pre-existing capital stock while at the same time wanting to move forward
with investment into new areas. In the infrastructure sectors, the
deterioration due to inadequate maintenance is very obvious; having to
rehabilitate existing capital items is going to be much more expensive than
regular maintenance would have been," said Finance Minister Tendai Biti in
his Mid-Term Fiscal policy.
"The legacy of the recent economic
crisis in terms of destruction of
capital, loss of skills and the creation
of highly unequal society has not
just pushed Zimbabwe down to a much lower
starting point, but has also
reduced the economy's growth potential," Biti
said.
Government is technically insolvent and has been failing to
honour
most of its foreign debt which is currently said to be US$4
billion.
Gono said government's borrowing should be "reduced to promote
economic growth" as all major sectors of the economy had shown a sign of
improving since the country was dollarised.
Analysts also said
government ministries also need to "control" their
debts if the country's
economy was to be revived at a faster pace.
According to the Ministry
of Finance, government ministries have
accumulated arrears amounting to
US$21,7 million, especially for utility
bills such as electricity, water,
telephones and vehicle hire as at June 30.
Government domestic debt
which stood at $59 sextillion as at February
26 fell off after government
redeemed all Treasury Bills (TB) subsequent to
adopting multiple
-currencying.
Under the hyperinflation environment in 2008, revenues
were much
higher than expenditures, allowing government to redeem the entire
domestic
debt by February 2009. Analysts said it would be interesting to
know whether
the repayment of that 59 sextillion debt was due to a
successful sustainable
debt restructuring programme by government or it's
symbolic of how
government had benefited from inflation, whilst the holders
of the TB bore
the brunt of fiscal recklessness and
irresponsibility.
Following the dollarisation of the economy,
government is now relying
more on foreign aid and lines of credit from
international financial
institutions.
Economist Brains Muchemwa
told businessdigest on Wednesday, that at
one time domestic debt stood at
more than 20% of GDP and all of a sudden a
broke government expunges it at
the symbolic value of US$1.
"That is an economic joke of the century.
It clearly shows government
being the biggest beneficiary of the inflation
it had manufactured, and how
banks, depositors and pension funds have lost
money to inflation. It says
volumes about how this present generation passed
poverty and hardships to
the next generation," said Muchemwa.
Due
to high inflation, the financial sector's balance sheets were
reduced to
less than 25% of their 2004 value, reflecting an erosion of the
real value
of financial assets and liabilities in Zimbabwe dollars.
"In order to
remain afloat, most banks have had to downsize their
operations by closing
branches, especially those in the outlying service
centres, leaving about
65% of the population unbanked, most
particularly in the rural areas,"
Biti said.
BY PAL NYAKAZEYA
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
Friday, 07
August 2009 11:42
ZIMBABWE needs to allow foreigners to own controlling
shareholding in
mines if the country is to attract investment, Reserve Bank
governor Gideon
Gono has said.
In his mid-term monetary policy
review statement last week, Gono said
the Mines and Minerals Act should
reflect an indigenous policy that
encourages foreign investment.
"The Mines and Mineral Act should reflect an indigenous policy that
encourages foreign investment. The policy should allow foreign investors who
are bringing in capital to own more than 50% of the venture," he
said.
Gono's recommendations contradict an earlier stance by government
to
give majority control of mines to indigenes.
The central bank
boss said it was disheartening that Zimbabwe
continued to experience foreign
currency shortages while it was "basking in
the highest abundance of mineral
resources".
He said government should address uncertainties arising
from
"inconclusive" reviews of the mining sector legislation and what the
governor described as "mysterious procrastinations" in the approvals of
investment proposals coupled with uncoordinated investment attraction
strategies.
"Another area of serious concern is that currently, the
mining sector
was contributing very negligible amounts to the fiscus in the
form of
royalties as low as 1%," said Gono.
In April this year,
President Robert Mugabe assured a group of South
African businessmen that
Zimbabwe was a safe business destination and
avoided talk of
indeginisation.
Mugabe also assured the investor community that his
country was ready
to respect "the sanctity of property rights" but investors
are still in a
wait and see mode.
An empowerment law, which among
other things, provides for the
mandatory sale of at least 51% stake in a
foreign owned business was enacted
last year.
South Africa embarked
on a Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) drive a
few years ago but the exercise
is now mired in controversy after the ruling
African National Congress
officials got the lion's share of empowerment
deals.
Investors have
been jittery about investing in Zimbabwe because of the
political
situation.
Should Mugabe keep his word, Zimbabwe could see foreign
direct
investment in key sectors such as mining, pharmaceutical, banking and
engineering.
Mining contributes 6% of the country's Gross Domestic
Product and
accounts for a sizeable portion of Zimbabwe's total exports. The
sector
accounted for 42% of Zimbabwe's exports in the first half of this
year.
Mineral sales amounted to US$211 compared to US$402 million during the
same
period while manufacturers sold US$67 million compared to US$402
million.
"The 2009 mining shipment exports represent a decrease of
57,6%
compared to 2008. This is mainly due to the fall in mineral prices
caused by
the world recession. Furthermore, the sector stills faces
challenges in
specific sectors like labour shortages, frequent power cuts
and foreign
currency shortages,"Gono said.
BY CHRIS
MURONZI
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
Friday, 07 August 2009
11:32
ZIMBABWE'S exports fell by 38% during the first half of this year
when
compared to the same period last year, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe
(RBZ)
said.
The country exported goods valued at US$475 million
compared to US$762
million in the comparative period. Most of the goods
exported to world
markets where raw.
Reserve Bank governor Gideon
Gono in his mid-term monetary review
policy statement last week, attributed
the decline in exports to a global
economic recession.
Of the
exports, mining accounted for 42%, tobacco 26% and
manufacturing
14%.
Zimbabwe's manufacturing sector is still to emerge from the woods
after capacity utilisation declined to an all time low of between 4 and 10%
last year from as high as 50% before the turn of the century due to the
unstable political and economic environment.
But so far lines of
credit secured from external financers fall short
of the industry
requirements, a development analyst say will delay the
recovery of
manufacturing industry.
Mining sales amounted for US$211million
compared to US$402 million
while manufacturers sold US$67 million compared
to US$402 million achieved
during the same period last year.
"The
2009 mining shipment exports represent a decrease of 57,6%
compared to 2008.
This is mainly due to the fall in mineral prices caused by
the world
recession," said Gono "Furthermore, the sector stills faces
challenges in
specific sectors like labour shortages, frequent power cuts
and foreign
currency shortages," Gono said.
Agriculture, formerly Zimbabwe's major
exports driver before
government embarked on a land reform exercise fell
14,9% comparatively.
Government now has the onerous task of reviving
the once strong sector
after years of mismanagement reduced
production.
"Total exports under the agriculture sector amounted to
US$191,3
million compared to US$224,9 million worth of exports for the same
period in
2008. This represents a decrease of 14,9%. Like any other sector
of the
economy, the agriculture sector has been affected by the prevailing
shortage
e of foreign exchange for procurement of critical inputs," Gono
said.
The global recession has also had its toll on agriculture
exports,
especially the horticulture sector, where prices have continued to
be
depressed, the central bank said.
But the central bank remains
optimistic that the dollarisation of the
economy would lift production and
resultantly boost exports.
BY CHRIS MURONZI
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
Friday, 07 August 2009
11:27
THE distribution sector in Zimbabwe received US$168,7 million or
27,23% of the loans advanced by commercial banks during the second quarter
of the year, figures obtained from the Reserve Bank revealed this
week.
The distribution sector is involved trading, retailing,
wholesaling
and logistics.
In April the sector received US$34,4
million from the country's 14
commercial banks. In May the loans amounted to
US$46,2 million before
increasing to US$83,1 million in June.
"Of
the total banking sector loans and advances of US$263,49 million
as at June
30 2009. The distribution sector had the largest allocation of
US$83,15
million (27,2%) followed by agriculture with US$72,39 (24,09%) and
manufacturing with US$52,89 (18,09%)," the Reserve Bank said.
Agriculture which used to be the major foreign currency earner
received
US$148,3 in Q2 or 24,08%.
Agriculture, has strong linkages to the rest
of the sectors,
contracted by an annual average of -7,1% between 2000 and
2008.
Cumulatively, agricultural output contracted by -79,4% during 2002 -
2008.
The manufacturing sector borrowed a total of US$111 million or
18,09%
during the same month.
Analysts yesterday the sector seem to
be channeling the loans for the
correct use as evidence by the improvements
it is showing.
The sector suffered from skills flight, power outages,
and erratic
supply of fuel as the economy sank deeper into recession last
year.
As a result of the above issues, capacity utilisation gradually
declined, reaching 35,8% in 2005, 33,8% in 2006, 18,9% in 2007, and dropping
sharply to between 4-10% by the end of 2008.
Output contracted by
18% in 2006, 21,1% in 2007 and an estimated
29,76% in 2008. Following the
liberalisation measures introduced at the
beginning of 2009, confidence has
started building up, critical for the
normalisation of day to day
operations.
As a result, capacity utilisation in some industries has
increased
rapidly to between 25-50% in the first half of 2009 and businesses
are
generally optimistic that this will significantly improve further by end
of
the year.
The mining sector which had put on hold long term
plans due to the
"investor unfriendly" mining bill received loans amounting
to US$54,1
million during the three months.
Mining accounts for
about 4% of the GDP and 16% of total annual
foreign currency to the country.
Due to mining closures, foreign currency
shortages and uncertainty regarding
the mining bill, mining output is
expected to record a decline of -11,2%
this year.
Financial firms received US$43 million during the three
months or 7%
of the total loans advanced.
The service industry
which has not improved since the dollarisation of
the economy accounted for
6,75% or US$41,5 of the loans.
Individuals received loans amounting to
US$15 million during the three
months while the communication sectors whose
service is not as efficient
when compared to the region received US$10,7
million.
The construction industry had the least loans approved which
amounted
to US$$4,8 million.
BY PAUL NYAKAZEYA
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
Friday, 07 August 2009
11:22
ZIMBABWE'S mobile phone operators have taken their fight for
market
share beyond the corporate drawing boards and promotional norms. The
fight
could get messy.
The past month has seen the two smaller
mobile operators,
traditionally laid back and content with whatever share of
the pie they had,
launch aggressive marketing and promotional campaigns in a
bid to claw back
some market share.
Telecel Zimbabwe, the smallest
operator, is throwing in sneaky punches
at Econet, the largest operator,
promising its customers that the company is
going "forward with confidence
and renewed hope for the future" in an
advertisement titled: "Do you
remember?"
The advertisement reads: "Difficult times sometimes call for
drastic
measures, but as Telecel, we have remained true to our commitment to
offer
you a personal, quality service. During the challenging times, we kept
you
roaming, and our contract customers remained unaffected without
switching of
packages or being forced to pay something upfront. We believe
this is what
makes for our valued relationship - in good or bad
times."
This is a direct dig at Econet, which switched postpaid -
telecommunications jargon for contract subscribers - to the prepaid platform
at the height of Zimbabwe's economic crisis.
Econet management took
the decision in November last year to migrate
postpaid customers to prepaid
because the mobile operator could not invest
in a new billing system at the
expense of other key components of the
network.
The decision
ultimately saw Econet avoid exposure to defaulting
customers, whereas its
rivals were forced to discount outstanding bills in
order to salvage
something from defaulting clients.
"We therefore did not have negative
exposure during the changeover to
US dollars. An important point to note is
that while the changeover to
pre-paid had indeed caused great discomfort, it
enabled our customers to
have better control of their costs," Econet
corporate communications manager
Ranga Mberi said recently. "For instance,
corporate customers that had
multiple lines on contract used the opportunity
to trim the number of
accounts on their books upon their return to contract,
enabling them to have
a firmer handle on their costs."
Net*One, the
state-owned operator, is also saying it is "the country's
number one", and
"making a splash with prices that are diving even lower for
you".
The company is the second largest operator in the country in terms of
subscribers and claims its tariffs make it "the most economical network for
our contract and (pre-paid) customers".
Experts say reducing
intra-network calls does not help Net*One much.
Because of Econet's
dominance - a 62% market share - the bulk of
mobile traffic in Zimbabwe is
to Econet. This means there is no real savings
for Net*One subscribers, as
Net*One still has to factor in the termination
rate paid to Econet for calls
going to its subscribers.
Econet, whose subscriber number stood at 1,2
million in February,
intends to grow its capacity to 2,5 million by end of
year. No reliable
statistics are available on the subscriber numbers of
Net*One and Telecel,
but it is believed they command just over 700 000
between them.
Despite its dominance, Econet is not missing from the
marketing fray,
running its "Thanks a Million", where it is celebrating
signing on more than
one million customers in a multi-million dollar
promotion for subscribers.
A marketing blitz is expected around its 3G
launch.
But Telecel and Net*One face an uphill task and need to roll up
their
sleeves in order to attract new customers if the players are serious
in
their bid to topple Econet as the market leader.
Econet and
Net*One presented conflicting outlooks of the first quarter
operating
environment two months ago with the later singing the blues.
Econet on
the other hand said the first two months of this year
contributed close to
32% of the total revenue the mobile firm realised in
the last financial
year.
The mobile operator says beyond the two months, revenue continued
to
grow as new subscribers were added, but did not state the actual numbers,
saying such information would be made available when the company releases
its interim financial results this month.
Its major rival, Net*One
said it was bearing the brunt of "economic
hardships" and appeared
sympathetic to its subscribers' plight saying
contract subscribers who
accumulated bills in the first quarter of this year
following the
dollarisation of the economy had been granted some kind of
reprieve.
Although Net*One did not issue distress calls, the
company will be
happy to salvage whatever it could after giving postpaid
subscribers slight
room to make calls following the dollarisation of the
economy.
"Net*One understands that dollarisation has affected us all.
Taking
into consideration the economic hardships, Net*One is giving you a
30%
discount on bills incurred between January and March 2009, provided you
settle that bill not later than 31 August 2009," the company said.
The company also put a cherry on top of the discount in the form of
easier
payment terms and credited customers who have already honoured their
bills
saying such subscribers would be automatically credited with a 30%
discount.
Net*one had given subscribers up to the end of this
month to pay up.
BY CHRIS MURONZI
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
Thursday, 30 July 2009
19:09
THE price of fuel is set to come down following a decision by the
Minister of Finance Tendai Biti to review fuel levies and duty.
Speaking to businessdigest yesterday, Minster for Power Development
Elias
Mudzuri said following his meeting with Biti this week, they agreed on
important issues that would ensure viability and constant supplies of
fuel.
"A statutory instrument would be published with regard to the
revised
tariffs. We also agreed on the Noczim issue (scrapping of debt
redemption),"
Mudzuri said.
"He also promised to source funding for
the industry to ensure it
remains viable," he said.
This comes as
Mudzuri on Monday summoned all chief executives of oil
companies to discuss
their cost builds and factors affecting their
operations.
Industry
executive executives who attended the meeting told
businessdigest that the
major issue they wanted Mudzuri to address was the
reduction of taxes and
levies.
"Oil companies are only making 7% (return), yet government is
making
55% on petrol and 35% on diesel on the free on board (FOB) price,
which is
the cost of the product before including cost of freight and
insurance," an
official who attended the meeting said.
Officials
said Mudzuri advised oil company players that he would meet
with Biti to
discuss the issues which are being described as "hot and
urgent".
"For an oil company to break even it needs to import a minimum of 2
000 000
litres per month, and presently that is not happening. There has
never been
any funding given to oil companies over the years. If you include
overheads
in their operations you find that they are operating at a loss,"
an insider
said.
Players in the oil industry said it was now a "hand-to-mouth
business
which was being personalised or politicised".
Asked by
businessdigest about the fuel situation in Zimbabwe on
Wednesday, the
principals of the Business Council of Zimbabwe (BCZ) which
formalised the
apex body by appending their signatures to a constitution
that would govern
it said the fuel situation needed to be addressed "as soon
as possible" as
it plays a pivotal role in the revival of the economy.
The signing by
their principals on Wednesday means that the BCZ, which
was formed in
September last year, is now a legally constituted body.
Zimbabwe
Commercial Farmers Union president Wilson Nyabonda said the
challenges
affecting the oil industry negatively affected the economy as a
whole.
"There is need for all stakeholders to speak with one voice.
If the
fuel issue is not addressed, it will affect viability of every sector
and it
is proving to be inflationary," he said.
Confederation of
Zimbabwe Industry president Kumbirai Katsande said
there was a danger that
the country would price its self out of the market
if the issue was not
immediately addressed.
"We must go for a low cost economy, especially
when our borders are
being opened. There will be so much competition,"
Katsande said.
Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce president Obert
Sibanda said
fuel was the backbone of industry and therefore "viable levies
and taxes
need to be adopted to ensure all sectors of the economy record
positive
gains".
Oil companies said the major challenge they were
encountering was
paying duty upfront before other transactions were
done.
They also said long-term plans that need to be addressed were to
ensure there are facilities in place to "smoothly" bring fuel into the
country.
According to papers seen by businessdigest, oil companies,
said
government should reduce carbon tax from $0,013 a litre for diesel to
$0,005, and $0,040 a litre for petrol to $0,005 per litre.
"Zimbabwe National Road Authority Road levy needs to be slashed to
$0,01 a
litre of petrol and diesel," reads the document in part.
As of
yesterday the price of fuel was higher by an average of
US$0,26c compared to
what the region is charging.
"We cannot squeeze revenue targets from
the same volume, but rather
reduce taxes and excise duties to ensure we
raise volumes especially through
diesel so that industry produces and those
volumes are boosted and therefore
raise the revenue base," the document
said.
BY PAUL NYAKAZEYA
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
Friday, 07 August 2009
14:14
SOMETHING rather interesting happened last week. A proposal by
Reserve
Bank governor Gideon Gono that the Zimbabwe dollar could come back
at any
time was shot down by the Herald. He had not read the mood of the
country,
the newspaper pointed out in an editorial on Saturday.
Indeed, the same thing struck us. It must be obvious to all except
President
Mugabe's inner circle that any attempt to resurrect the abused and
discredited Zim dollar would be suicidal.
The one good thing we can
all agree upon regarding the government of
national unity is the monetary
stability it has brought via the US dollar.
It has introduced a sense of
calm and predictability to our hitherto
roller-coaster economy. Finance
minister Biti has understood this and firmly
slapped down any attempt to
suggest the Zim dollar could make a comeback.
It is a measure of Gono's
distance from reality that he could in all
seriousness speak of its
revival.
This is a useful illustration of how Mugabe and his minions
are out of
step with public opinion. The Zim dollar is associated with money
printing,
fiscal chaos and national suffering. In other words, with the Gono
era.
Everybody seems to understand that except, obviously, Gono himself and
his
political patrons.
But it is curious that in the same week that
Mugabe returned from a
smart partnership meeting in Uganda, the Herald felt
able to say that "no
one wants to derail progress" in the economy by going
back to a failed
currency.
"The currency switch has restarted the
Zimbabwean currency and might
well make it the world's fastest growing this
year," the Herald opined.
Reintroducing the Zimbabwean currency now "would
be a bit like giving an
alcoholic a bottle store licence".
Indeed
it would. What we have here is history in the making. Gono for
the first
time coming under fire in the state media. And by implication his
boss. What
does this tell us?
Meanwhile, Victoria Ruzvidzo was quoted in the same
edition as
referring to "Dr Gideon Goon". This may be taking your newfound
free
expression a tad far, Victoria!
Poor old Arthur Mutambara
has taken a drubbing in the government
press. Every half-baked nationalist
in the country has climbed aboard the
bandwagon to declare AGO a traitor for
having dared to suggest that any
re-branding process in Zimbabwe should be
amenable to the world at large.
Other African leaders gathered in
Uganda were equally mortified and
outdid each other in beating the
nationalist drum.
But this is surely an obvious point. If we are to
lure investors and
tourists, they should warm to our hospitality, just as
Croatia signs off on
CNN with the message "The Mediterranean as it once was"
- a very effective
selling point for a market that values the richness of
past civilisations.
If Zimbabwe's rebranding is to work, it must have
appeal to the wider
world. And that can only come from networks that
broadcast to the world.
There's not much point buying time with ZTV. Who's
going to see it?
Meanwhile, the state media remains in denial over what
Mutambara
identified in an earlier speech as "farm invasions, fraudulent
elections,
and cholera", undermining whatever brand we craft.
"No
King Arthur, that's not for us," the Herald's Eagle Eye, told us.
Sadly, it is. No amount of rebranding, or for that matter national
healing,
can take place so long as lawlessness and political persecution
persist and
the likes of Tafataona Mahoso purport to speak for the nation in
the
hidebound emissions of yesteryear.
We wish they would tell us why the
public media continues to be the
exclusive domain of a party whose mantras
were decisively rejected by voters
in both the legislative and presidential
polls last year. The only comfort
they can draw from this unambiguous
repudiation is that after a second round
of unprecedented violence their
candidate won.
Which brings us to Giles Mutsekwa's ridiculous claim
last week that
demonstrations were allowed in Zimbabwe. The brave women of
Woza, we feel,
may have another view having been clobbered regularly. They
have been beaten
and imprisoned so many times it is difficult to recall how
many for
exercising their right to expression.
Notification by
conveners of gatherings or processions, Mutsekwa
claimed, was not meant to
be "some form of application for permission from
the police to proceed with
the intended gathering or procession".
The intention was to initiate a
process of negotiations between the
police and the convenors, he explained
unconvincingly.
Does Mutsekwa not recall what the MDC was told when it
applied to hold
demonstrations last year? How many of those applications
were approved?
"Ask us after the election," was the usual response to
applicants.
Does he not recall what happened to NCA members who
demonstrated in
support of constitutional reform?
Mutsekwa claimed
that the purpose of negotiating with the police was
to ensure minimum
disruption to traffic. Did the police require the
conveners of the so-called
one-million-man demonstration in November 2007 to
consult with them on the
route they proposed to take - through the middle of
the city on a Friday
lunchtime causing traffic chaos?
Have the police understood the amended
provisions of Posa to mean that
the applicants are simply "notifying" them
of their intention to gather?
How could Mutsekwa get away with such
extraordinary manipulation of
the record? Many readers of the article in the
Herald where Mutsekwa and
Kembo Mohadi claimed that only in "rare
circumstances" would the police
resort to the use of minimum force must have
felt an overpowering need to
laugh out loud. What use are MDC ministers when
they engage in helpful
camouflage of this sort?
So what was
this sudden need to explain things all about? Sadc is
shortly due to audit
progress in the GNU. Morgan Tsvangirai may have
returned from Europe and
North America empty-handed, but he brought back a
very large agenda on what
needs to be done before Western chequebooks will
open. It is that catalogue
of unfulfilled promises that will be handed over
to Sadc.
That
includes the abuse of Posa and the public media where the only
voices heard
across the nation are those of Mugabe and his loyalists.
Despite the anxiety
of Sadc leaders to be helpful to Mugabe - and executive
secretary Tomaz
Salomao is the worst offender in this regard - nothing can
disguise the
record of obstruction and heel-dragging that has characterised
fulfilment of
the terms of the GPA to date.
And by the way, who slipped in the
paragraph in Mugabe's meeting with
the Sadc Parliamentary Forum about there
being 400 British companies
operating here? We cannot believe the president
is that ill-informed. There
haven't been 400 since 2000! And could somebody
please help him with the
distinction between Afrikaans and Afrikaners, or do
we need to speak to the
Herald's deputy news editor about that?
Mugabe took the Sadc delegation "down memory lane", we were told. It
was
more like "up the garden path". Contrary to what he told them, the March
poll last year certainly produced a clear winner. It was the subsequent poll
that didn't.
The Herald's Heroes Day build-up last week
provided a good
illustration of why the country needs alternative sources of
news. Narrating
the career of Willie Musarurwa, drawn from A Guide to the
Heroes Acre, the
paper tells us that in 1981 Musarurwa became editor of the
Sunday Mail.
"He was asked to leave the weekly following editorial
controversies,"
we are told.
In fact he ran a column called Gono
Goto in which he was critical of
Zanu PF's South African ally, the PAC. He
also provided details of the
unfolding Gukurahundi campaign in
Matabeleland.
"Willie Musarurwa's name will always be remembered and
linked with
enquiring, responsible journalism," we are told.
Indeed
it will. Just a pity none of it fed through to the Herald or
Sunday
Mail!
Another "hero", Chenjerai
"Hitler" Hunzvi,
"spearheaded the establishment of a number of
income-generating projects for
war veterans," we are informed. These
included the Zexcom Foundation, "an
investment fund for war veterans".
At least that's what it claimed to
be. In fact this outfit turned out
to be very similar to the one Hunzvi
accused the early settlers of setting
up under Cecil Rhodes' licence to
loot.
"Faced by a flurry of negative decisions in the courts, they
argued
the land was a political issue and not a legal one," we are
told.
So that justified violence and theft against law-abiding citizens
did
it?
All these thugs had to do was to declare a political motive
and
lawlessness became sanctified. Useful to have that on the
record.
At last the National Incomes and Pricing Commission is
doing something
useful. It is assisting the government in policy
formulation. The NIPC was
set up in 2007 to monitor and fix prices following
"unjustified price hikes
by business people", the Herald reported on
Monday.
But what has happened to our friend and Zanu PF zealot Godwills
Masimirembwa who played such an important role in harassing the business
sector in the pricing chaos of 2007? Did the job he was obviously bidding
for finally elude him? Or is he still on the gravy train?
American businessman Donald Trump, famed for US beauty pageants and
reality
show, The Apprentice, would be laughing uncontrollably if he
witnessed the
circus at Monday's "public interviews" for would-be
commissioners for the
Zimbabwe Media Commission.
Twenty-seven shortlisted candidates, who
included Tafataona Mahoso and
Vimbai "European" Chivaura, crossed their
fingers as they hoped to be
selected on
the basis of their Zanu PF
allegiance.
The former Media and Information Commission chairman was
not only the
last to be interviewed before the lunch break but according to
media reports
scored the lowest marks, thanks to his long-winded
answers.
Like any other applicant, Mahoso was told to answer six
structured
questions in 15 minutes but it seems the time allocated was not
enough for
the Sunday Mail columnist, not known for his editing skills. When
asked to
describe the relationship between the new commission and civil
society,
Mahoso attempted to restructure the question before mumbling how he
had
produced "the most thorough report" on civil society.
People
who led the Svosve and Nyamandlovu land seizures at the turn of
the
millennium, according to Mahoso, are also part of civil society.
He
reminded the panel that he was not a journalist but a would-be
regulator
when he was asked to comment on media ethics.
The first question,
typically an icebreaker in any job interview, drew
a lot from the
applicants. But we found Chivaura's answer to a question on
the significance
of the national anthem interesting. He described the
Simudzai mureza anthem
as a "supreme poem" that encapsulates our heritage.
Declaring
everything "supreme" seems to have become the in-thing in
Zanu PF after the
Midlands province recently declared Mugabe the "supreme
leader". We wonder
what inspired Chivaura to allude to such supremacy!
Mahoso was
described by one MP as "hostile and typically arrogant"
during his
interview. What we want to know is why Mahoso thinks he has any
contribution
to make to the regulation of the media after his disastrous
role at the MIC
putting journalists out of work?
He claimed that when he started work
at the MIC "we only had a desk,
terms of reference and an Act". He should
have added "and a manifest bias".
Now they have computers, a 4x4 and
driver for Mahoso, and dozens of
journalists out of work. Quite an
achievement! If you go to their office
between 1pm-2pm you will be told "we
are resting".
Finally congratulations to Brigadier-General Douglas
Nyikayaramba for
his role in the acquittal of Gutu East MP Ramsome Makamure
who was accused
of abusing agricultural inputs. Magistrate William Bhila
said Makamure
should not have been tried in the first place as there was
nothing wrong
with an MP distributing inputs.
Bhila said according
to the evidence given in court, Makamure had a
farm and did not acquire the
inputs fraudulently.
He also queried why the army was alleging that
Makamure committed the
offence on October 24 last year, a month before
guidelines on the
distribution of inputs were made on November 4.
Nyikayaramba, who led Operation Maguta in Masvingo, was described as
dishonest by the magistrate who was not happy with his conduct in
court.
During the trial Nyikayaramba threatened one of his
subordinates,
Major Mapuranga, who was also a witness, after he led evidence
that absolved
Makamure of any wrongdoing.
It was also discovered
during the trial that Nyikayaramba only advised
Zanu PF MPs on how the
inputs scheme worked and left out the MDC caucus.
"Brigadier-General
Nyikayaramba is the one who destroyed the case,"
the magistrate
said.
We recall Nyikayaramba telling us he had retired when serving on
the
electoral commission in 2002. He then popped up again in uniform a few
weeks
later!
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
Friday, 07 August 2009
14:09
AFTER 11 years of almost never-ending and intense decline,
Zimbabwe's
economy has commenced recovery over the last six
months.
Although only the first phase of reversal of the near total
economic
collapse, the extent of transformation has not been insignificant.
At the
end of 2008, almost the only things in the majority of shops were
rows and
rows of empty shelves.
Today all the shelves are full,
with virtually all basic commodities
being readily available, as well as
many other goods. And prices have
cascaded downwards, with inflation falling
from many trillions percent in
2008 to successive deflation from January to
May this year, and only 0, 6%
inflation in June. Admittedly, notwithstanding
the decrease in prices (save
for those of parastatals and local
authorities), purchase of the goods that
now fill the shelves is beyond the
means of a very large number in the
Zimbabwean population, for pronounced
poverty still afflicts a majority of
Zimbabwe's long-suffering
people.
There have been many other positive economic developments,
including
currency stabilisation (although still in short supply), achieved
through
"dollarisation", followed by demonetisation of Zimbabwe's currency.
Whilst
well below Zimbabwe's needs, some international aid, additional to
humanitarian aid, has started to flow into the country after years of being
withheld. Far from the extent needed, Agriculture and Tourism are
nevertheless experiencing growth. Progressively, the authoritarian and
bureaucratic control by and constraints of government upon the economy are
being replaced by deregulation. Market forces are increasingly becoming
economic drivers. And, for the first time in years, some real interest in
investment in Zimbabwe is being demonstrated by both Foreign Direct
Investors and by domestic investors.
None of these, and many other
economic positive developments, can
detract from the fact that the
Zimbabwean economy is still extremely
fragile. At least seven million, if
not more, are struggling to survive
below the Poverty Datum Line, and more
than half of those are grievously
undernourished, suffering grave
malnutrition, their minimal incomes being
below the Food Datum Line.
Zimbabwean agriculture has not yet recovered to
an extent necessary to
sustain all Zimbabwe, necessitating continuing
importation of more than a
third of the country's staple food needs.
More than four-fifths of
Zimbabwe's employable population is without
formal sector employment. There
is a national scarcity of technological and
other skills. Parastatal service
providers are disastrously unable to
address the economy's needs, the
country suffering from immensely frequent,
and very prolonged, interruptions
in energy supplies, some householders
having been without water for many
months. Telecommunications are so
defective that pigeon post and runners
with cleft sticks are more reliable,
and many more parastatals are similarly
unable to service national needs.
These are but some of the economic
recovery constraints still prevailing
and, as major as they are, the economy
is indisputably attaining some
recovery.
Whilst there are many
factors that retard economic recovery, one of
the greatest ones is the
pronounced illiquidity impacting upon commerce and
industry, and upon other
diverse economic sectors. The working capital
resources of almost all
enterprises have shrunk to infinitesimal levels.
Operational losses during
years of economic contraction, concurrently with
intense, hyperinflation,
severely eroded the capital of most businesses.
Thereafter, most of their
residual capital lost all value upon the
"dollarisation" of the economy
(although if "dollarisation" had not
occurred, that value loss would still
have arisen as a result of the then
ever-declining value of Zimbabwean
currency). The lack of working capital
precludes businesses timeously
purchasing adequate quantities of
manufacturing inputs and stock in trade.
It prevents them from paying
adequate salaries and wages. They are unable to
extend credit to customers,
who in turn do not have the capital to effect
cash purchases, most ventures
cannot fund adequate maintenance,
refurbishment, rehabilitation and
replacement of plant and machinery, motor
vehicles, and other assets
essential to the effective and viable operations
of the businesses.
In a normal economic environment, working capital
inadequacies are
generally addressed by recourse to banks and financial
institutions,
businesses encumbering assets, ranging from property to plant
and machinery,
motor vehicles and debtors, as collateral for diverse
financial facilities.
According to circumstances and needs, the
facilities may be loans,
banks overdrafts, bill discount funding, leases,
letters of credit, or
various other financial products. However, currently,
the opportunities of
accessing such finance are exceptionally limited. On
the one hand, the
financial sector as yet has only extremely limited access
to lines of credit
from sources beyond Zimbabwe's borders. Lenders outside
the country still
perceive Zimbabwe to be a high credit risk, partially
because the economic
metamorphosis is still in its very early stages, and to
a considerable
extent because of scepticism that there is real and
meaningful change within
the political environment. The financial
institutions have a great need to
access international lines of credit,
partially because their capital
resources have also been eroded, and
substantially because of the very
considerable funding requirements of their
clients.
On the other hand, the institutions are also limited on their
lending
ability because of the relatively low levels of deposits by their
customers.
Reactive to the intense scarcity of currency, most businesses are
reluctant
to deposit receipts, for they do not feel assured of an ability to
withdraw
funds as and when required, for at such times the financial sector
institutions may not have the required currency. This reluctance is
compounded by a fear that if monies are deposited, the deposits may be
expropriated, in whole or in part, by the Reserve Bank or by government.
There are strong recollections of such expropriations in 2008. In addition,
the continuing non-availability of chequebooks, and the magnitude of service
and other charges levied by the banks are yet further deterrents to
depositors.
However, the inadequacies of institutional funding
facilities are
exacerbated by the very minimal extent to which the
institutions are
effecting advances from such client deposits as are
received and held by
them. It cannot be contested that a significant portion
of deposits must be
held in liquid form to enable disbursements to
depositors on an "as and when
required" basis. But, for much more than a
century, the world over, banks
have applied a meaningful proportion of
deposit inflows to effecting lending
to clients, recognising an ability to
service withdrawals from a combination
of non-disbursed deposits.
Zimbabwe's bankers need to be conservative in their operations, but
such
conservativeness should not be excessive. In the interests of their own
viability, their clients' operations and the progression of economic
recovery, they need to reassess their present, non-constructive stance.
Their current policies are fuelling national illiquidity, which is slowing
the critically needed economic recovery.
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
Friday, 07 August
2009 13:56
THE three-day 19th Global Smart Partnership dialogue held in
Uganda
ended last month. What is remarkable is that it has generated more
debate in
Zimbabwe on the remarks made by Deputy Prime Minister Arthur
Mutambara, as
part of his contribution to what was meant to be an open
dialogue on the
future of Zimbabwe.
He made the point that not
only Zimbabwe but also Africa in general
need rebranding and in doing so it
must be appreciated that it would be
wrong for anyone, for instance, to be
a judge unto his/her own cause.
By raising the questions, "What is
Mugabe's brand? What is Museveni's
brand? What is Kikwete's brand?" he
obviously underestimated the risks
inherent in using this kind of language
to make a point in any debate in
Africa.
He made his argument even
more controversial by making the case that
Africa cannot endorse her own
brand and equally, for example, President
Robert Mugabe whose role in
post-colonial Zimbabwe is a subject that has
dominated heated conversations
not only in Zimbabwe but globally, cannot
endorse his own brand. Presidents
Museveni and Kikwete who were also
participants should leave it to others to
comment on how good they are than
engage in self-congratulatory exercises
when the condition of Africa is open
for all to see.
He then pushed
himself into a lion's den by suggesting that Africa's
brand needs the
endorsement of institutions like CNN, BBC, Sky News and
more importantly of
the West.
The response was swift as expected and what is significant is
that
there is an attempt to denigrate the messenger and in doing so dismiss
the
important message about what kind of Africa we want to see.
I
have no doubt that by Professor Mutambara making this point, he was
naïve to
assume that he would not be rebuked. However, a point needs to be
made that
the future of Africa belongs to builders and after 53 years of
independence,
there is no better time to pause to reflect on what kind of
values, beliefs,
and principles should inform our choices.
It is and should not be
sufficient to point a finger at people who
seek to open a conversation about
the brand positioning of the continent's
leaders.
It would be naïve
to dismiss the perceptions that have been created
rightly or wrongly about
African leaders and the role of the media in
perpetuating such negative
perceptions.
If the perception did not matter and was irrelevant to
Africa's
economic, political and social change, then there would be no need
to engage
in any conversation on rebranding Africa's leaders.
The
need for branding and rebranding Africa cannot be overstated.
Like any
pyramid, what one sees first from afar is the apex. Leaders
are generally
expected to see further than the followers. Leaders have an
obligation to
protect their followers who should after all be in the same
pyramid of human
organisation and the strength of the pyramid should ideally
be measured by
its weakest link.
The decisions any progressive leader makes must be
evaluated in terms
of their overall impact on the value chain of economic
change. Smart leaders
inspire people to rise up to the challenge. In fact,
success shows when it
is evident and enemies normally are good examiners of
one's actions.
Ideally, confident people should not be afraid of
enemies and should
bring them closer. Africa is part of a global system and,
therefore, cannot
abdicate from its obligations to the global family of
nations.
If Africa is good to its people, the results will show and no
disability will be suffered if the continent's brand custodians, its
leaders, are prepared to be misunderstood in the interests of getting the
world to better appreciate what the challenges and opportunities
are.
The questions that Professor Mutambara raised will remain
unanswered
until we accept that there is nothing toxic about raising the
inconvenient
questions in a debate among smart partners.
What
values, beliefs and principles inform the choices that Africa's
leaders
make? Why would we seek to raise the Independence flag and yet our
actions
show that we want the very people we despise to finance our
development
charge?
If we stand for an independent Africa, then we should work
towards
that objective than spending valuable time discussing what our
supposed
enemies are planning for us. Africa's leaders have to respond to
the brand
challenge, particularly when it cannot be denied that Africa's
brain trust
is now resident in the same jurisdictions that are despised by
our leaders.
Why is it that when given a choice, Africans in their
majority would
rather be educated in the West and more importantly would
prefer to sell
their time in the West than in the continent of their
birth?
I have often remarked that Jesus Christ left disciples with no
real
estate or money and yet it cannot be denied that he left powerful
teachings
that allowed his followers to use as a guide to create not only
the largest
portfolio of real assets in the name of the Lord. Although
physically
absent, he left a legacy that has provided meaning to generation
after
generation. We are all better for it.
Jesus' followers had no
choice but to think hard about what kind of
organisation they needed to
create. In the case of the Roman Catholic
Church, for instance, the need for
a Vatican as a wholesaler of faith was
evident from the outset. The church
had to stand for something and had to
position itself among competing
faiths. The choice of a Pope had to be
carefully considered. If the Pope's
brand were contaminated then the
consequences would have been obvious from
the beginning as it should be now.
What makes a church grow like any
human organisation is and must be
its relevance to its target market. You
cannot force people to subscribe to
any ideology. We all may have different
views about the West but what is
undeniable is that many of Africa's
potential leaders are more comfortable
in London, for instance, than in
Lagos. Even when entry barriers are raised,
we see many of our compatriots
busy trying to meet the requirements to exit
Africa and if this trend is not
a cause for concern to our leaders then what
should be.
Mutambara
chose to join the trenches and yet finds himself on the
defensive after
expressing the views that are generally held by many in the
diaspora about
Africa's leaders. In attempting to dismiss Mutambara's
remarks, ideological
issues have been brought into the argument. Jesus, for
example, left words
and memories of what he had done and this was sufficient
to galvanise
followers into action. If he were a bad leader, the
consequences would have
been predictable.
He was not afraid of being judged by his enemies,
rather he encouraged
it.
What do we lose if we are doing the right
thing by, for example, CNN,
BBC being allowed into our countries? What are
we afraid of?
What is tragic is that our post-colonial development
strategy seems to
be anchored on the benevolence of what we classify as
enemies. We have the
resources and yet we want the West to remove sanctions?
If our values,
beliefs and principles are different from our enemies the
obligation to make
Africa work for its people must be on Africans
themselves.
In asking the question about the utility of our leaders'
brands, we
all can benefit from honest and frank answers. Any good soccer
player, for
instance, would not worry about what his opponents think of him
but would
worry about perfecting his skills and ultimately it is the
spectators who
are the best judges.
Africa's future is not in the
hands of leaders. A leader is just
another human being and any development
process that is anchored on leaders
possessing all the critical answers to
human challenges is fundamentally
wrong.
The African brand should
be owned by us and not by the leaders.
Should, for instance, Mugabe have a
brand position that is separate and
distinct from the generality of
Zimbabweans? Any leader who derives his
legitimacy from the people must
necessarily reflect the people he leads.
We ought to ask ourselves what
we have done to celebrate or denigrate
the African brand rather than
focusing on the leaders. There is nothing to
stop us buying, for instance,
insurance from one source and yet when we are
given choices we invariably
end up making choices that are on the face of it
detrimental to our
progress.
If we make the right choices our leaders have no choice but
to follow.
The more confused followers are the more tyrannical our leaders
become.
A leader will only know what the eyes and ears that are exposed
to
him/her allow him and it should be our obligation to ensure that no
leader
can stay in power for too long to the extent that other minds are
crowded
out from the seat of decision-making.
Human assets are the
most complicated assets that God has created. Not
only do you have to
manage and massage egos but also with the right values,
beliefs and
principles you can achieve extraordinary outcomes.
The real question is
whether the African brand is underpinned by the
kind of values, beliefs and
principles that are required to generate the
kind of response generally
expected in a progressive society. After raising
the independence flag, we
have no choice but to think deeply about the kind
of brand that we need to
advance our own cause.
Africa has demonstrated that it can accommodate
people with ideas and
innovation even if they are not born on the continent.
It has made many rich
and yet the majority remain in the valley.
What is required to lift Africa up? We are the consumers and yet we
rarely
make the choices that show that we have the power to change what we
do not
want to see, not necessarily people in state power but even the faces
of the
people who produce and distribute food that we need for sustenance.
The
future is our business and working together there is no doubt that
we will
be able to decide for ourselves how we should be governed and how
we should
feed ourselves.
Ultimately, we have to rise above the past that blinds
our choices and
see the future as a shared project that need not have race
as its focus but
service delivery and, more importantly, freedom, justice
and equality. -
ZimOnline.
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
Friday, 07 August
2009 15:43
WE journalists write stories, the big, the small, the
controversial
and sometimes the inconsequential. But we rarely make news
unless we have
been abducted, arrested or killed in political
battles.
The New Vision published a story on a reversal exercise at
the Smart
Partnership Dialogue at Speke Resort Munyonyo (Uganda) where the
Heads of
State in attendance got to ask the journalists
questions.
The presidents seemed to focus on why journalists
report bad stories
about Africa. The most notable question came from
Zimbabwe's President
Robert Mugabe and his no holds barred attack on the
Western media.
"There are agencies like BBC, CNN," he said.
"When you act as agents
of those kinds of media, do you have the option of
being impartial?" he
asked. "If they are pursuing a hostile attitude, do you
protect the
interests of Africa because you are Africans? Can you report
truthfully or
factually or do you fear losing your jobs?"
He urged African journalists not to serve neo-colonialist or
imperialist
interests.
Well Mr Mugabe should know that the media, despite
the times when
their reporting may be flawed, don't owe their allegiance to
these leaders.
When he talks about imperialist interests, Mugabe should know
that the media
serves the public and not him or any other
leaders.
To an ordinary person and indeed to the media, Mugabe
and imperialists
are the same. He arrests opposition members for simply
opposing him and uses
violence as a tool of oppression.
Like
many other African leaders, he believes he is the only one with a
vision for
the continent and thus continues to stifle debate and proper
political
participation.
Similarly many leaders give the shares in the
best companies to their
relatives and cronies, and appoint leaders on tribal
lines. So how is all
this different from imperialism? The difference is that
the colonial
imperialism was foreign and this is homegrown. I happen to
believe the
homegrown imperialism is actually more painful.
Mugabe and other African leaders actually owe their rise and their
prolonged
stay to imperialism. They were students of imperialists and they
continue to
benefit because, just like imperialists, they believe they are
never wrong
and that they know what is best for us.
They profit from this
Western imperialism because it is their
ever-present excuse for failure to
move Africa forward. So the media must
treat leaders like Mugabe the same as
they do any other kind of imperialist.
Of course he has a
point on the ability of African journalists to
change the whole coverage of
Africa as a continent of disease, despair and
poverty but he cannot expect
positive coverage when he continues to spread
mayhem and fails the unity
government.
Where there's good being done it indeed deserves
attention but the
media cannot be used as a tool to downplay the impact of
bad rulers.
Indeed the coverage has little to do with whether
African journalists
are putting Africa first or not. Mugabe should know that
bad news travels
faster, as a saying in my village goes.
This
article was recently published in Uganda's Independent newspaper.
BY ROSEBELL KAGUMIRE
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
Friday, 07 August
2009 14:53
IN 1999 pundits opined that the death of Vice-President
Joshua Nkomo
was the ultimate test for the Unity Accord signed between
President Mugabe's
Zanu PF and PF Zapu in December 1987. Cynics went as far
as declaring that
the departure of Nkomo marked the death of the Unity
Accord.
It was always going to be difficult for Vice-President
Joseph Msika -
who passed away this week -- to fill the void left by Nkomo,
but for 10
years Msika gave the uneasy marriage the semblance that the
political
dispensation that Nkomo had helped to establish would survive him.
Fissures
revealing underlying discontent by former Zapu cadres have opened
up in the
last 10 years to reveal the weak foundations on which the Unity
Accord was
built.
Thus if the passing of Nkomo in 1999 was a major
test for the Unity
Accord, Msika's death this week not only represents the
last rites in the
burial of the agreement, it also completes the demise of
Zanu PF as a
political force in Matabeleland. Msika represented the last
strong legs of
the old Zapu in the united Zanu PF.
He was the only
one left among his Zapu peers with the air of a
national leader because of
his long years in the nationalist struggle and
close ties with Mugabe. He
differed with the president during the early days
of the land reform and not
so long ago over the war veteran Jabulani Sibanda
saga. In between there
were skirmishes but these were overshadowed by the
veteran leaders' dislike
for the opposition MDC at the time of its
formation. Their differences
therefore were perhaps not significant enough
to upset the apple cart. Msika
generally stayed the course on fundamental
issues and Mugabe carried him
along, an arrangement that may now prove fatal
for Zanu PF in
Matabeleland.
With Nkomo, the relationship was different. Such was
Father Zimbabwe's
clout that he could hold Mugabe by the hand and lead the
president to Kezi
or Gwanda to meet tormented souls there. Nkomo carried the
president in
Matabeleland after the Unity Accord but the popular former Zapu
leader did
not require the same rehabilitative treatment in other parts of
the country.
His appeal cut across the country and his huge presence gave
him a national
identity. But more importantly Nkomo was useful in as far as
he was able to
keep a tight leash on Zapu heavyweights now under the ambit
of Zanu PF. That
control enabled him to convince the people of Matabeleland
that the Unity
Accord was the only way to end state-sponsored butchery of
the Ndebele
people in the region. He was their sole hope in delivering
development and
positive change.
Nkomo's death less than a year
before the 2000 election shook this
status quo to the core. No one could
have put it more aptly at the time than
Jethro Mpofu, a member of the
regional pressure group Imbovane
Yamahlabezulu.
"For the first time
since Independence, people such as (Dumiso)
Dabengwa, (Simon Khaya) Moyo,
(Thenjiwe) Lesabe and others had to go into an
election without Nkomo's
help." he told the media. "Before that, it was only
Nkomo who came to
announce who was to be MP and who was not to be MP.
Without Nkomo's help,
they could not win. In previous elections in
Matabeleland, people were
voting more out of respect for Nkomo than for
these politicians. Now they
are in trouble and alone."
And indeed trouble befell Zanu PF in the
2000 parliamentary elections.
Ndebele voters swung their support behind the
nine-month-old MDC which
captured 20 of the 23 contested seats in the
Matabeleland region. The
parlous state of Zanu PF in Matabeleland has not
improved much. Zanu PF has
continued to lose its hold on the region since
the death of Nkomo and the
coming in of Msika did not help matters either.
Lacking the clout of Nkomo
to hold the former Zapu cadres together, VP Msika
was always going to
struggle and with it the further weakening of Zanu PF.
The lowest point of
this waning soul of the party was the open rebellion
against the Unity
Accord last year by senior Zanu PF members led by Dabengwa
to revive PF
Zapu. More tragically, it was Dabengwa who many believed would
succeed Nkomo
in 1999, who led the charge to the exit.
A cursory
glance at party leaders does not inspire confidence that a
national leader
will emerge from the region to help the flagging fortunes of
Zanu PF. The
leaders on the ground will find it hard to restore Mugabe's
diminishing
influence in Matabeleland. Most of them have been rejected in
their
constituencies and this was reflected in the March presidential
election
when Mugabe fared very badly, losing to Morgan Tsvangirai and just
beating
Simba Makoni in the region.
A lot has been said lately about national
healing. Mugabe may venture
into the subject in his speech at Heroes Acre on
Monday but today history
has come back to haunt his party. Signing the Unity
Accord in 1987 was not
enough to provide the therapeutic process in
Matabeleland. The accord is in
danger of failing to outlive its principals.
Do I get a sense of déjà vu?
BY VINCENT KAHIYA
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com/
NCA
Indaba Poorly Organised
Friday, 07 August 2009 15:32
ALLOW me to comment
on the just-ended People's Constitutional Convention
held by the National
Constitutional Assembly (NCA). I believe Lovemore
Madhuku should explain how
he expects to take charge and mobilise the people
to participate in his
"people-driven" process if he failed to organise a
convention.
Accommodation arrangements were in shambles and some
organisations had to
make alternative arrangements for their delegates to
avoid any
embarrassment.
Again not all of the delegates were fed as the
food was served in a chaotic
manner and when the convention ended some
delegates were still stuck in
Harare as NCA could not raise their bus-fares.
Meanwhile Madhuku and his
secretariat were nowhere to be seen.
Madhuku
should have learnt from the blunders made at the All-Stakeholders
Conference
and put his house in order.
It might be true that the NCA is broke but why
then did they call for a
convention of 3 000 delegates when they could only
support 10 people?
It is clear that the convention was held merely to endorse
what was already
concluded as there were no adequate plenary sessions to
warrant any
resolutions.
We were just invited to endorse someone's
position and be used as fronts to
indicate that NCA has support -- which it
does not have.
If we had known, our organisation would not have accepted the
invitation to
participate in the convention.
We ended up footing bills
that had not been budgeted for and were thrown
aside like trash after being
used.
On trying to make follow-ups to ensure that our delegates got their
bus-fare
reimbursements the staff at NCA told us they had done their part in
inviting
us to the convention, it was up to organisations to ensure their
delegates
got home.
By the looks of it Madhuku will not be able to "take
charge" and mobilise
the people to be on his side. I think the people should
participate 100% in
the ongoing constitution-making process regardless of
the way it was
initiated -- it seems more credible.
At this rate Madhuku
will not be able to take his product outside Bumbiro
House or not even
across the street to David Livingstone School.
Used and
Dumped,
Harare.
----------------
Security Forces Should Respect the
People's will
Friday, 07 August 2009 15:29
THE National Security Council
(NSC) is of paramount importance and without
order and discipline within the
top brass we are bound to have no progress
as a nation.
National interest
should in this Government of National Unity (GNU) era
take precedence over
political motives. We have suffered for a long time and
it is high time we
put our heads together -- as a nation -- and put our
house in order. We
enjoy the support of a lot of African, Asian and European
countries who are
keen to see our economy revived.
However, we still have a very shaky GNU
because of some pretenders who are
still undermining it.
Every leader in
the GNU -- regardless of political affiliation -- must work
out a solution
to heal the ailing nation. They also deserve to be respected
so that the
bread and butter issues can be worked on instead of partisan
squabbles.
The NSC has been there for a long time and did nothing to stop
the
destruction, looting and killing that was going on. Now they have a
chance
to make amends with the new blood that has been injected in the
government.
They should all pull together and ensure that all Zimbabweans
enjoy the
peace and prosperity that we so desperately need.
As a nation
we all fought the war of liberation together. The soldiers
should remember
that they had no food packs but our chickens and beasts
brought them
sustenance and that was never replaced at all. Yet they still
insist that
they liberated this country! I do not see any freedom, democracy
and peace
when we still cannot express our opinions openly, elections are
dictated by
one party and human rights breached on a daily basis.
To be in the army or
any of the uniformed forces does not imply that one has
the right to induce
fear in the public but rather should protect and serve
them.
Even if the
incumbent administration is changed they are supposed to serve
in the new
government. Soon after Independence we had a lot of people from
the previous
Ian Smith government operating in various government
departments. Ultimately
the power resides with the people. The security
forces should always bear
that in mind.
Enos Chikukwa,
Harare.
--------------
Friday,
07 August 2009 15:24
RECOGNISING that the Lancaster House constitution can no
longer serve the
people of Zimbabwe and its future generations justly,
truthfully and
transparently we however reject the mysterious and
exclusively drafted
Kariba draft constitution as a basis for drafting the
new constitution.
We are cognisant of the fact that the youth have been
greatly affected by
the crises in Zimbabwe which cannot be resolved through
the current
constitution and we also acknowledge that the election of the
next
government should be based upon the dictates of a new and people-driven
constitution.
There is a need therefore to set a new political precedent
that respects
electoral democracy as an important aspect of political
transition.
We deplore the continuous marginalisation of young people
in the economic,
social and political agenda as shown by their lack of clear
representation
in the current processes,
Years of bad governance, human
rights abuse, discrimination, alienation,
under-development,
marginalisation, intimidation and political violence
cannot silence us nor
can they stop us from shaping our future and that of
our children by fully
participating in the current constitution-making
process as this is the only
way to bring about a new and genuine democratic
dispensation in our
country.
As a way of making our voice heard distinctly and our concerns
addressed
accordingly in the future, we demand that the new constitution
should
include the following:
* The devolution of powers from central
government to provinces to allow
us and future generations to develop our
provinces in line with the needs of
our people;
* Recognise minority
groups and languages within the provinces they are
situated in through the
provision of laws that preserve their way of life
and culture;
* Allow
for easy access to national documents like IDs, and passports among
others;
* The reduction of the president's term from the current
unlimited number
of terms in office to a maximum of two five year terms in
order to allow
younger and fresher minds the room and opportunity to serve
their country
and people.
We also call for the opening of the media
space to other players so as to:
* The devolution of powers from
central government to provinces to allow us
and future generations to
develop our provinces in line with the needs of
our people;
* Recognise
minority groups and languages within the provinces they are
situated in
through the provision of laws that preserve their way of life
and
culture;
* Allow for easy access to national documents like IDs, and
passports among
others;
* The reduction of the president's term from the
current unlimited number
of terms in office to a maximum of two five year
terms in order to allow
younger and fresher minds the room and opportunity
to serve their country
and people.
We also call for the opening of
the media space to other players so as to:
* Rid the country of the
current polarisation in the media that has seen
the public media being used
as a propaganda tool by Zanu PF-aligned
government officials and the private
media being mostly aligned to (former)
opposition political party
officials;
* Ensure a better informed and more participative
citizenry.
Recognition of minority groups, languages/cultures for the
purposes of:
* Nurturing the co-existence of different social groups in
our society as
well as encouraging celebration of diversity of cultures and
people in our
society;
* Reflecting our diversity in which the strength
of our peoples' humanity,
kindness, warmth, and traditions
lie.
Reform of electoral laws to ensure:
* That all
registered Zimbabwean citizens especially youths get the
opportunity to vote
and that their votes count;
* The electorate hears the result of their votes
within a reasonable enough
time frame;
* Querying political parties have
the opportunity to be heard by the courts
who will fairly adjudicate these
matters to the satisfaction of the involved
parties and the
electorate;
* That no intimidation and violence is tolerated before or
during the
voting period and at voting stations.
Reduction in the
size of government with a view to:
* Reducing government expenditure
and ensuring easy monitoring of the
dealings of cabinet and other arms of
government.
It is our hope that if these are met, our constituency will
be well on its
way to finding the kind of representation and protection by
the supreme law
that they seek.
Bulawayo Youth
Council.
----------
ZTA's Hunting Charges too High
Friday,
07 August 2009 15:22
DOES the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA)
understand that hunting
operators already pay 2% of their trophy fee to the
National Parks, plus 2%
of the daily rate -- which covers all the amenities
to ZTA. Now we are
required to pay yet another 2% of the trophy fee to
ZTA.
This makes a total of 6% on top of the original cost of a
hunt.
ZTA claim this must be added to the client's invoice and then
passed
onto ZTA.
By comparison with neighbouring states who also
offer hunting and with
whom we have to compete, ZTA have now priced Zimbabwe
out of the overseas
market. I wonder if these government bodies understand
the implications of
the global recession.
It means that people who
might have overlooked the political unrest,
shortages, and low reputation of
Zimbabwe, will now find somewhere else to
go and hunt because it has become
uncompetitive and they can find a better
deal elsewhere.
ZTA is
supposed to assist tourism and hunting, not kill it.
Bemused
Hunter,
Harare.
-----------
Prioritise
Infrastructure Development
Friday, 07 August 2009
15:16
IF the economy is to emerge from the lows to which it has
sunk,
there is need for the government to marshal efforts and resources
towards
infrastructural development.
As the socio-political
crisis has rocked the nation -- for the
past 10 years -- little was done to
build or even refurbish the road and
rail networks, buildings and
telecommunications infrastructure.
As a result Zimbabwe is
lagging behind -- even in the region --
particularly in the
telecommunications sector and therefore needs to
institute policies and
frameworks that fast track infrastructure
development.
It is
not enough for the government to be vocal about
infrastructure development
without any tangible and visible accomplishments
since the consummation of
the Global Political Agreement (GPA).
We are sick and tired of
talk shops and conferences that
continue to be convened by government
ministries without any visible
developments on the ground.
All government ministries must use various means and devices to
implement
that which they have articulated to achieve in the 100 Day Plan
and not give
us excuses about lack of funds as reasons for their failure to
carry them
out.
NM
Harare.
---------
SMS The Zimbabwe Independent
Friday, 07
August 2009 15:13
VID Masvingo must be probed. We all know that
Mhunga buses were
no longer roadworthy but they were always deemed
roadworthy.
Observer, Harare.
THE current
constitution including its 19 amendments should be
published as was done
with the Kariba draft. It's logical to start from
there. A people-driven
process requires that we know what it is that
requires
changing.
Transparent, Harare.
IS the MDC
going to meekly stand by and watch whilst their MPs
lose their seats on
trumped up charges. There are far more Zanu PF MP's
guilty of countless
offences. What a farce!
Lundi.
I WANT to
advise all MDC-T MPs to hand themselves over to the
nearest police station
and be arrested before we read about them in the next
issue of the
Herald.
Patriot, Zengeza.
A TYPICAL ZBC news
bulletin will be framed like this very soon
at this rate: "The
commander-in-chief of the defence forces, head of state
and government,
first secretary and supreme leader of Zanu PF, chancellor of
UZ, Nust,
Chinhoyi University, MSU, Zou et al, patron of Zimbabwe Cricket,
Baba
vaBona, His Excellency Comrade Robert Gabriel Mugabe has arrived back
in the
country.
Kufa nekuseka.
ZANU PF officials
really mean it when they say "we took the
nation by the bullet" . Only that
they do not mean liberating us from
colonialism; they mean taking the
country from us, the rightful owners.
Fellow Zimbabweans let us fight to
reclaim our country.
Peasant, UMP.
THE
inclusive government should last for only two years, we are
told. How then
are the MPs going to repay the US$30 000 loans they are
making? We are now
seeing the true colours of these politicians.
R
Mugidiza.
I WILL never forget Jonathan Moyo's five-year
"reign of terror"
on the freedom of the media as Information Minister. It
shocks me to
discover that some people -- come election time -- still vote
for him.
Observer.
THE heroic and epic
struggle that ushered in our Independence
has been severely scarred by the
brutality and deprivation of the recent
past. We should postpone this year's
Heroes holiday.
Nut09.
A COMMISSION of enquiry
should be set up to investigate officers
involved in shootings to curb the
excesses of trigger happy officers. There
is seemingly wanton disregard for
the life of criminals by the police force.
Human rights
watcher.
I AM looking for my long lost sister Charity Ndlovu.
She used to
stay at KG6 with her uncle. Anyone with information on her
whereabouts
please call 023 333 329.
Concerned
Relative.
MY daughter wrote 11 'O' Level subjects at Lydia
Chimonyo Girls
High school. When the results came only one subject result
was on the
results slip. Where are the other 10 results coming? Can someone
explain?
Concerned Parent.
THE government
should address the plight of returning teachers
now. We have had no salary
since March and again in August there has been no
salary. We are dying of
hunger. What really is the problem?
MTC.
CAN
the government come up with packages to lure back college
lecturers. The
nation can no longer afford to lose any more.
Mr
Mzimba.
WHY is the City of Harare not sorting out Warren
Hills Cemetery's
crematorium? It is shocking that we no longer have any
crematorium in the
capital city!
NMBS.
CAN
the powers that be at Delta beverages give us an explanation
as to why there
is such an acute let-up in beer supply? We now go for weeks
without getting
any supplies at all from our wholesalers. We can't all queue
at your depots
where there is rampant corruption.
Irate.
IF
Delta Beverages cannot meet 30% of beer demand in winter,
what will be the
situation in summer -- considering that it's only a month
to summer and
there are no signs of any improvements or explanations.
Mutengesi
Mkuru.
I DO not understand why I should pay a fixed charge to
Zesa, an
amount which is higher than my actual monthly electricity
usage.
Rip off, Mutare.
THERE is no water in
Athlone, Greendale. Wells have run dry and
yet water bills continue to come.
We are threatened with lawsuits over
non-payment of a service we are not
receiving. May the powers that be come
to our aid.
Thirsty.
http://www.zimnetradio.com
By KING SHANGO
Published on: 7th August,
2009
HARARE - The MDC says the forthcoming Heroes' Day next week brings
back to
the fore the perennial debate on the conferment of hero status in
Zimbabwe.
The MDC says it believes that conferment of hero status in the
country
cannot be an exclusive prerogative of either the Zanu-PF Politburo
or the
MDC National Council.
There party said in a statement to zim
NET radio the process must be an
inclusive national policy and an
independent body with set parameters and
clearly defined yardsticks which
determines who qualifies to be a national
hero or heroine. The same panel
must define the meaning of a hero, said the
MDC spokesman.
The MDC
says hero status is an important status which cannot be conferred by
a
subjective organisation or political party which will most certainly
discriminate against deserving individuals.
"In any case, not only
politicians have lifted the Zimbabwean flag high,"
said spokesman Luke
Tamborinyoka.
"We have many sons and daughters who have served and
continue to serve this
country with pride and distinction.
These
people are found in business, in sports, in music, in the army and in
the
police; the unsung heroes of our country. They deserve their place of
honour
in the national hall of fame regardless of the fact that they are not
politicians."
Tamborinyoka said the Zanu PF Politburo cannot be an
objective substitute of
an independent panel.
"The MDC believes that we
need a panel of respected and eminent persons to
come up with set criteria
for the conferment of hero status," he said.
"As a party of excellence,
we have since said that one does not need to be
dead to be appreciated in
the country of their birth. Acknowledging talent
and celebrating it is the
hallmark of progressive and civilised societies."
The MDC said as the
country approached Heroes' Day, the party was calling on
all Zimbabweans "to
reflect on the Zimbabwe we want, the process of defining
heroes and the
definition of that hero. We must sculpture as a nation the
legitimate and
credible formula of conferring hero status."
http://www.herald.co.zw/
Saturday,
August 08, 2009
Herald
Reporters
Harare residents have slammed council for seeking to buy a
US$153 000 ML 320
CDI Mercedes Benz for Mayor Mr Muchadeyi Masunda, saying
the city fahters
[sic] should get their priorities right.
The
majority of people interviewed yesterday said the decision to buy an
expensive vehicle when service delivery was poor was shocking.
The
council committee tasked with policymaking and approval of expenditure
on
Tuesday agreed to splash US$153 000 on a new car for the mayor without
debate.
They argued that the current Mercedes Benz S320 bought in
2004 for then
mayor Engineer Elias Mudzuri had become "aged and
unreliable".
Zimoco, the sole DaimlerBenz franchise holder in Zimbabwe,
will supply the
vehicle.
Mrs Nqobile Xaba said it was wrong for the
city which was relying on
handouts from Government and donors to spend so
much money on one car.
"It is not fair given that we were given money by
donors for Harare water
and sewer reticulation. We should not concentrate on
luxuries," she said.
Another resident, Ms Rufaro Marere, of Braeside,
said the decision to buy
the vehicle was ill-advised.
"The mayor
should first ensure that all Harare residents have access to
water and that
there are adequate water treatment chemicals.
"We also want our refuse to
be collected," she said.
Ms Marere said Mr Masunda should only enjoy such
luxuries when service
delivery improved.
Mrs Mercy Katuka said while
residents wanted their mayor to live a life that
corresponded with his
office, he should first address the water and sewer
issues.
"There
are many blocked toilets in the city centre and uncollected garbage
in the
suburbs," she said.
Mr Oscar Gasva, a lawyer, agreed that the money
should be channelled to
service delivery.
However, Mr Emmanuel
Mahachi said if the funds were available there was
nothing wrong with the
purchase.
"It is fine if it is going to be an official car and the funds
were budgeted
for.
"The car suits the status that goes with being a
mayor of a city as big as
Harare," he said.
Another resident who only
identified himself as Mr J.C. Munowenyu, said the
city should learn to
prioritise key issues.
"The car is very expensive to maintain. Why can't
they get the mayor a much
cheaper luxury vehicle for, say, US$50 000?" he
said.
He said the balance would be used to fund other
projects.
Apart from the issues of water, sewer and refuse collection,
council has
been hard-pressed to fill potholes and replace non-functioning
traffic
lights.
Residents felt comments by finance director Mr Cosmos
Zvikaramba that the
city had embarked on an intensive debt collection
exercise, which included
disconnecting water to non-paying consumers, to
fund the purchase were
worrying.
On assuming office in July last
year, Mr Masunda stated that he did not see
why residents should be saddled
with additional expenses to cater for his
upkeep.
"I have my own
things.
"I do not see why residents of Harare have to be lumbered (with
additional
expenses)," he was quoted as saying.
At present Mr Masunda
drives a single-cab Toyota Hilux.
Contrary to misleading claims and clumsy moralization of Msika's death by South African President Jacob Zuma, Finance Minister Biti and Robert Mugabe, the death of Msika represents a botched legacy. Since his appointment in 1999 as Vice-President, he became a co-author of a series of man-made disasters. As one of the leading figures of the monastic establishment, he presided over one of the most ignominious and darkest chapters of Zimbabwe's history. By the time of his death, he had become an irrelevant hero and a real danger to the very people he helped liberate, just like Mugabe.
The death of Msika has ignited a moral outrage. In the court of public opinion,a verdict has already been reached (quite easily). Msika was a civil servant who, for 29 years, was sustained by public funds. It is only justifiable for his true masters - the taxpayers, to undertake a moral critique and to take an audit of his performance during his painfully protracted tenure in office.
If the people of Zimbabwe were to arrive at the unlikely conclusion that Msika was simply incompetent, then that would be a mildly acceptable and forgivable excuse. However his record shows that he was not a dim-witted Vice-President nor one who slept at the wheel. He actively facilitated Mugabe's overstay in power and in the process he was a direct beneficiary of power himself. He became a senior member of the plutocracy worth millions of dollars. He never acknowledged the people's misery, With all the suffering he has left behind, his legacy is that of emptiness.
Consider his demeaning statement made in December 2003 that, “All those who talk of succession are bloody sell-outs. There was someone who wanted to bring up the issue here at the conference. We were going to deal with him if he had brought up the issue, Mugabe cannot go ...” He fiercely silenced any succession debates. There is no doubt that Msika was a polarizing figure even in his own party.
At a time Zimbabwe was desperate for change, Msika shortchanged the people of Zimbabwe. During a rally in Zaka last year (2008) he said, “Voting for the MDC in the run-off will be like voting for Rhodesia and the British which means voting for war. I will never accept to be ruled by an MDC government that is keen to sell the country’s birthright. I would rather die fighting.’’
Even Msika himself knew that he was lying and was deeply buried in denial. Less than a year later, the unthinkable happened as the very MDC he humiliated for a decade became the trusted government of the day. And the winds of change continue to blow to this present day.
Such dubious characterizations, show that he was referring to a war against the MDC as had previously done because no British forces or foreign armies had invaded Zimbabwe. It was a war that Zimbabweans are well too familiar with - deadly violence against unarmed citizens. They experienced that war during the 2002 presidential elections which left over five hundred Zimbabweans (mostly MDC supporters) dead while thousands were injured, tortured or abused. Six years later (2008) hundreds of Zimbabweans perished under similar lies and incitements. After all, that violence was state-sponsored.
In spite of isolated incidents and piecemeal efforts to sanitize his name, which clearly contradicted what he conspicuously advocated for, Msika described the land reform 'chaotic'. Other than that, where was the Vice President when the tsunami of green bombers and rented thugs unleashed violence, death and destruction on the defenseless people of Zimbabwe?
If Msika was a well-intentioned man, why didn't he resign in protest of Mugabe's misrule? Men of virtue like Joshua Nkomo offered to resign when Mugabe denied entrepreneur Strive Masiyiwa the license and the right to operate a wireless network. He stood up for justice throughout his life and he will forever be remembered as a true hero.
As someone who was up there in the chain of command, clearly Msika was a veteran demagogue, the magnitude of Mugabe, his boss who in 2005 declared, “let me be a Hitler ten-fold.” Msika relentlessly participated in the regime's heinous activities which deprived the people of Zimbabwe their basic freedoms and rights.
Msika's record clearly demonstrates that he did not have the independence of mind to follow his own conscience, no wonder he couldn't resign even as geriatric disorders took their toll on him. He surrendered his life to Mugabe's whims and bought the notion that they were irreplaceable. Msika's lust for power impaired his moral judgment.
When Mugabe says “This is not death, Msika cannot die”, that sounds quite disturbing. If he literally meant that, then we might very well be dealing with a mental case here. Does he think he is immortal. What else can explain his determination to die in office or coercing his Vice President to die office? But seriously, if these people are concerned about Zimbabwe's posterity and their own their legacies, then they must do the honorable thing now – pack their bags and go, for they have outlived their usefulness.
No one, in his/her right frame of mind needs the current crop of Zanu PF politicians. To the overwhelming majority of Zimbabweans, they have become a perennial liability. Most of Zanu PF men and women will regrettably retire to their deathbeds squirming in shame and rejection.
As Zimbabweans try to quickly forget about Msika's legacy, Mr Biti volunteered himself to be the harbinger of the depressing news that the Vice President was “untainted by corruption” and that “his name stayed away from scandal.” How emotionally troubling!
But for someone who just got a bullet in the mail, it's understandable. 'Mugabephobia' has taken its grip on Mr Biti. However, the irony of Mr Biti's cosmetic eulogy is that Msika was the co-author of this violence which is hounding the rest of the Zimbabwean populace, Mr Biti included.
For a decade, Msika oversaw the barbaric torture and killing of Zimbabweans but still intentionally hid his head from the horror that terrorized a nation in broad daylight. He goes to his grave with so many unanswered questions yet no one will ever be able to bear testimony better than him. His record is replete with prosecutable human rights violations such as aiding and abetting torture in contravention of Geneva Convention.
It is insulting to the people of Zimbabwe to call such a human being a ' true hero'. In any case as Minister of Finance, Mr Biti has no business pontificating about such controversial issues which have nothing to do with the fiscus. These politicians must learn to speak for themselves. It's not fun. What a shame of a statement purporting to represent all men and women of the MDC!
As if to out-compete each other, from across the Limpopo entered Zuma, calling it a 'painful loss'. What 'painful loss?' Zuma is the president of a country which has become a symbol of Zimbabweans' desperation caused by the failed leadership of Mugabe and Msika. No-one will ever forget the burnt corpses of Zimbabweans who perished in xenophobic attacks in Zuma's backyard. Just last week, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai toured the 'humanitarian crisis-ridden' camps holding Zimbabweans in South Africa. It's despicable.
Zuma must quickly disengage himself from doublespeak and equivocation about Zimbabwe's desperate situation, Instead of helping Zimbabwe to quickly democratize Zuma is busy wailing over one member of the plutocracy who plundered the nation unabated for as long as he wanted. Is he following the same failed 'quiet diplomacy' set by Thabo Mbeki? He must condemn violations of GPA terms such as appointment of Gono and Tomana. He must condemn the wanton arrest of MDC MP's by Mugabe and his men. He must condemn lawlessness in Zimbabwe. He must condemn ongoing murders on the farms. Now that is painful!
Mugabe and Msika have an intricately shared legacy. The two are inseparable. The same way no one can talk about the colossal failures of Bush Administration on Iraq, Hurricane Katrina and the economy without bringing up the names Bush and Cheney together as architects of the disaster. Likewise Bill Clinton and Al Gore are responsible for 'good ol' days in America. According to the most revered book of all time, the Bible, “When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked bears rule, the people mourn.” (Proverbs 29:2). What an incontestable truth about Zimbabwe.
The people's definition of heroes has changed. Anybody who is working towards bringing peace, creating jobs, bringing clean water, feeding the hungry, providing for aids patients, eradicating poverty, improving the filthy prisons, fixing schools, universities and hospitals, protecting the environment is the people's hero in Zimbabwe. No one should impose heroes on them. Zimbabwe's liberation war heroes have not guaranteed and safeguarded the real virtues of independence such as peace and prosperity, democracy and the rule of law. In that regard, people like Tonderai Ndira's stature as national heroes easily dwarf Msika.
Msika and fellow geriatrics like Mugabe, represent a self-imposed leadership utterly disconnected with the present generation and fiercely out of touch with reality. Msika leaves behind a total nightmare for millions of Zimbabweans. Can you imagine the millions scattered across nations who are waiting to go back home as soon as Mugabe is no longer in power? Many Zimbabweans have publicly wished that this Msika tragedy must have happened to the 'big fish' himself. That shows extreme desperation when people cross traditionally designated taboo lines to express their anger. (Even though its a 'state' crime to express that anger)
http://www.telegraph.co.uk
The former girlfriend of
Prince Harry, Chelsy Davy, has denied allegations
that her father is linked
to rhino poaching in Zimbabwe, in her first ever
public statement.
By
Peta Thornycroft in Harare and Sebastien Berger
Published: 11:32PM BST 07 Aug
2009
Miss Davy is Zimbabwean-born and her father, Charles, is one of
the
country's biggest landowners. Her background often provoked controversy
during her relationship with the Prince of Wales' second son.
It was
rekindled earlier this week when reports alleged that he had
connections to
a poaching and trading cartel making a fortune selling horns
to Chinese
buyers, prompting her to speak out.
Mr Davy is one of the shareholders in
the Bubye Conservancy, a vast
800,000-acre landholding in the south of the
country that is home to rhino,
elephant, giraffe, lion and other game. He
and his co-owners have invested
around £50 million in the property, which is
regarded as well-run by
conservationists.
"I have never made an open
statement to the press but we, as a family cannot
sit back and watch my
father be vilified by a complete fabrication of the
truth," said Miss
Davy.
"Every member of our family loves Africa, its people and its
wildlife.
"My father has been involved in conservation since I can
remember, few men
are more passionate and practical when it comes to
protecting and promoting
wildlife." Bubye, she said, "is one of the great
modern-day conservation
efforts".
At present trophy hunting, which is
legal in Zimbabwe, is a key part of the
viability of Bubye, with wealthy
foreigners, particularly Americans,
prepared to pay tens of thousands of
dollars for the right to shoot
elephants and lions.
The Conservancy
is hoping to move away from hunting into eco tourism, a
member of staff, who
asked not to be identified said yesterday.
"I personally do not like
hunting," Miss Davy said, but added that
sustainable hunting was "a very
important" part of conservation.
"All allegations about my father being
involved in poaching are absolutely
untrue and most unfair."
The
claims relate to a rhino trading cartel allegedly headed by an ally of
President Robert Mugabe.
Questions have long been asked over how Mr
Davy has been able to retain his
land in Zimbabwe when thousands of white
farmers have been dispossessed and
evicted by thugs loyal to Mr Mugabe,
leading to the destruction of
commercial agriculture and triggering the
collapse of the economy.
But he denied being a friend of Mr Mugabe's.
"Never even shaken his hand,"
he said.
He has had "enough of this
nonsense", he added. "I have spent a good part of
my life building up game
sanctuaries and protecting wildlife, I doubt that
you will find anyone who
has done as much for the conservation of wildlife
with his own money than I
have."
Mr Davy and his staff are under enormous pressure from gangs of
armed
poachers invading the Conservancy in increasing numbers looking for
rhino.
Many conservationists in Zimbabwe believe that South Africans are
the front
men in poaching operations in Zimbabwe.
The Bubye River
Conservancy provides sanctuary to most of the remaining few
hundred black
rhino's in Zimbabwe, but even this once safe haven is now
targeted by armed
gangs.
Yesterday in the second attack in a week, government rangers and
Conservancy
staff were hunting down armed thugs who had set fire to a part
of the
sanctuary.