Mail and Guardian
Harare,
Zimbabwe
30 November 2005
02:25
A Zimbabwe court has handed down its first
decision
based on a recent constitutional amendment banning white farmers
from
legally challenging land grabs, state media said on
Wednesday.
A high court in Zimbabwe has allowed
three black
farmers back onto a farm from which they had been evicted by the
white
owners, overturning its earlier
decision.
The original judgement had been used by
the white
farm owners to evict the three black occupiers, but now Justice
Tendai
Uchena has overturned this judgement handed down by a fellow judge,
Bharat
Patel.
"Uchena clearly stated that
resettled people can no
longer be evicted as appeared to have been
sanctioned by Justice Patel," the
state-owned daily The Herald
reported.
"In the event of any inconsistencies
between this
order and any other previous orders in this case, this order
shall prevail
over any such orders," Uchena was quoted as
saying.
Zimbabwe's Parliament, dominated by
President Robert
Mugabe's deputies, in August approved a constitutional
amendment on state
ownership of land, effectively preventing farmers from
taking legal
recourse.
About 4 000 cases by
white farmers challenging the
seizure of their properties were pending in
the country's courts. But the
cases are soon expected to be scrapped off the
court rolls.
Zimbabwe's land reforms which began
often violently
in 2000 after the rejection in a referendum of a
government-sponsored draft
Constitution, have seen about 4 000 white farmers
lose their properties.
The land has been
redistributed to landless farmers
in a move that the government has said is
designed to correct imbalances
created by colonial rule, when the majority
of prime farmland was owned by
about 4 500 white farmers. -
Sapa-AFP
People's Daily
Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe has appointed
two ministers and six
non-constituency member of parliament, according to
the Ministry Information
and Publicity.
Sithembiso Nyoni was
re-appointed minister of Small and Medium Scale
Enterprises Development
following her appointment as non- constituency
member of
parliament.
She replaces deputy speaker of parliament Edna Madzonwe
as non-
constituency member of parliament.
Madzonwe is tipped
to land the post of president of the Senate in
polls to be held on Wednesday
when the new Senators will be sworn in.
Former minister of Industry
and International Trade Samuel Mumbengewi
has been appointed minister of
State for Indigenization and Empowerment,
replacing the late national hero
Retired Air Chief Marshal Josiah
Tungamirai, who died in August this
year.
Mumbengegwi is the Senator-elect for Chivi-Mwenezi following
his
victory in the weekend elections.
The six non-constituency
Senators are Kantibhai Patel, Mrs. Sheila
Chipo Mahere, Peter Haritos, Aguy
Clement Georgias, Tazvitya Jonathan
Mapfumo and Joshua Teke
Malinga.
The six together with their counterparts who were elected
in the
just-ended Senate elections will be sworn in on
Wednesday.
Source: Xinhua
Daily Mirror, Zimbabwe
The Daily Mirror
Reporter
issue date :2005-Dec-01
THE country's 66 Senators were
yesterday sworn in at a ceremony where former
deputy speaker of the lower
chamber Edna Madzongwe made history by becoming
Zimbabwe's first female
President of the Senate.
The ruling party's Insiza Senator, Naison Ndlovu was
also elected,
unopposed, as the vice president of the Senate.
All the 66
Senators, those appointed by President Robert Mugabe, 10 chiefs
and 24
elected and 19 Zanu PF members who waltzed into the Upper House
unopposed as
well as 7 elected on an MDC ticket turned up for the ceremony.
In her speech,
Madzongwe said her nomination and the inclusion of women in
the upper
chamber showed government's commitment to creating a "new
Zimbabwe" of
gender equality.
She added that in her new post she would strive to pursue
and achieve the
goals of the country's liberators.
The Senate President
said the upper chamber and the lower house of assembly
were of equal
importance.
"The lower chamber and upper chamber are not competing, they are
complementary. The challenge is to harness our collective strength,'' she
said.
Madzongwe was nominated by Rushinga Mt Darwin South Senator
Diamond Mumvuri
and seconded by non-constituency Senator Khantibal
Patel.
Mumvuri said Madzongwe was the most experienced person for the
post.
"After the 1995 general elections, Honourable Madzongwe was elected
Deputy
Speaker was elected deputy Speaker of the House of Assembly and
chairperson
of committee's thereby becoming the first woman ever to become a
Presiding
officer of Parliament in the history of the country," he
said.
Ndlovu the first black Bulawayo mayor and Insiza senator was nominated
by
Tracy Mutinhiri (Marondera Seke Senator) and seconded by firebrand
politician and Masvingo Senator Dzikamai Mavhaire.
By Tererai
Karimakwenda
30 November 2005
The NewZimbabwe.com
website reports that the deputy Information
Minister Bright Matonga was
booted off his Mupandaguta farm in Banket. The
property is reported to be
the 2nd one he had invaded in Mashonaland West in
just over a month. New
Zimbabwe said Matonga had been given an offer letter
to occupy Chigwell
Estate in Chegutu, if he agreed to leave Mupandaguta the
same month. But as
the story goes, Matonga remained there longer, and
repeatedly ignored lands
officers' orders to vacate the farm. In the end,
they brought in the police
to help. Government officials have been evicting
commercial white farmers
illegally with impunity, and lands officials have
been making decisions
about farms in their jurisdiction, without following
guidelines laid out by
the law. New Zimbabwe.com says Matonga went on a
10-minute tirade when they
asked him for comment, and claimed he had access
to the editor's phone calls
and e-mails exchanged with Zimbabwean
politicians and journalists. He
allegedly said: "The farm story is very
silly. It's a rubbish story, even if
I had 15 farms what has that got to do
with you?"How many farms government
officials have stolen is every
Zimbabwean's business. They are the ones
starving due to the food shortages
caused by cronies like Matonga who steal
farms and destroy agriculture. He
needs to make it clear whether any farm
workers lost their jobs when he took
over these properties, and whether he
has continued to grow food for the
nation. "What has it got to do with you "
is the typical ZANU-PF attitude
that always comes up when these greedy
officials are asked to explain their
actions.
SW Radio Africa
Zimbabwe news
By Lance
Guma
30 November 2005
A lawyer who was tortured in
police cells, Gabriel Shumba, argued his
case against the Zimbabwean
government at the African Union on Wednesday.
The Commission on Human and
Peoples Rights is currently sitting in the
Gambia to hear various cases from
across Africa. The move has forced the
Director of Public Prosecutions Loise
Matandamoyo and two other government
lawyers to travel to Banjul the capital
of Gambia in order to put up a
defence. Shumba was arrested by police in
January 2003 and tortured for
three days only to be released on bail five
days later. He told the
commission that torture on the African continent was
indefensible and that
he had every right to pursue a remedy to his torture.
Government is arguing
amongst other things Shumba's evidence is
inadmissible, he has not exhausted
all the legal options in Zimbabwe and
that he is actually a fugitive from
the law. Shumba scoffed at the claims
saying when he travelled out of the
country to Canada, the police issued him
with a clearance letter and this
would not have been possible if he was
wanted. The government has not denied
Shumba was tortured. A fact-finding
mission to Zimbabwe by the same
commission in 2003 cites Shumba's torture
case as one of the most serious
violations to occur in the country to date.
Shumba told the commission that
torture is an offence, which is not
recognised under Zimbabwean law and that
was why he had brought the issue to
the commission. From Gambia, Shumba told
Newsreel most of the questions by
the African Commissioners during the
hearing were directed at the government
lawyers and this had made him
confident they would rule in his favour. A
decision is expected in a few
weeks.
SW Radio Africa Zimbabwe
news
By Lance Guma
30 November 2005
The suspended student
leadership at the University of Zimbabwe has
petitioned the European Union
to impose a travel ban on the Vice Chancellor,
Professor Levi Nyagura. The
petition was signed by all 6 members of the
Students Executive Council (SEC)
and submitted to British Prime Minister,
Tony Blair who is the current
Chairman of the European Union. They cite
Nyagura as the chief henchman of
the Mugabe regime who is responsible for
victimising students at the
University. The Vice Chancellor has defied a
High Court order quashing the
suspension of student leaders by re-suspending
them. Secretary General
Mfundo Mlilo told Newsreel they want Nyagura to be
placed on targeted
sanctions by all European countries to make the point he
is an extension of
the current regime. The petition documents the recent
harassment and
victimization of students taking place. Students have been
arrested,
detained and tortured in police cells on trumped up charges before
getting
released without charge. A copy of the petition has been sent to the
SADC
Chairman, Minister of Higher Education, UN Secretary General and
foreign
diplomatic missions in the country.
SW Radio Africa
Zimbabwe news
By Tererai Karimakwenda
30 November 2005
Prison
officers in Zimbabwe, not happy with their salaries and tired
of being used
to carry out political assignments, are reported to be
deserting the prison
services and relocating secretly. Our correspondent
Simon Muchemwa reports
that at least 15 officers left their jobs in the last
month alone, and many
did not bother to go through the proper procedures of
resigning. Shortages
of food, fuel and other necessary resources have made
working conditions
unbearable, but the politicisation of their duties is
proving to be the most
difficult for many officers. Muchemwa says the
government was testing their
loyalty by sending them to assault or
intimidate opposition supporters.
Failure or hesitation was considered a
sign of disloyalty to the ruling
party. It usually led to being transferred
to some remote area, or being
demoted or being fired. The other problem has
been that private catering
companies hired to service branches of government
are now hesitant to renew
their contracts. The government is notorious for
not paying its bills on
time, and the ever-rising inflation has caused
problems with suppliers.
Prices are constantly changing while the terms of
some contracts remain the
same. The prison system is not the only one hit by
low morale and desertions
over salary and work conditions. The army has also
suffered, with many
soldiers reportedly sent home due to food shortages
SW Radio Africa
Zimbabwe news
By Tichaona Sibanda
30 November
2005
Australia has added a further 127 names to a list of
people in the
Zimbabwe government barred from doing business with Australian
firms. News
agency reports said the Reserve Bank of Australia issued a
revised list of
Zimbabwean ministers, headed by Robert Mugabe, with whom
Australian firms
and individuals are banned from doing business. The
statement from the bank
read in part; "At the direction of the Australian
government, the Reserve
Bank has expanded the list of individuals restricted
by these financial
sanctions to include new members of, and persons
associated with, the
government of Zimbabwe. All transactions involving the
transfer of funds or
payments to, by the order of, or on behalf of such
persons are prohibited."
It is believed many Zanu (PF) officials have
children attending university
in Australia. Their fees were paid using the
Reserve Bank facility. Sources
told us Gideon Gono has 3 children in
Melbourne - twin daughters named,
Pride and Praise and a son named Passion.
The Australian sanctions list is
interesting in that it includes several
prominent white business people who
are in business with Zanu PF
individuals. One notable exception is Charles
Davey, the father of Chelsy,
Prince Harry's girlfriend, who is in business
with MP Webster Shamu. Notable
inclusions are Eric Bloch who is an advisor
to Reserve bank governor Gideon
Gono. Others on the list are Zed Koudanaris
and Tom Brown, directors of
Innscor, a listed company on the Zimbabwe Stock
Exchange. Their link is Ray
Kaukonde who owns shares in Innscor and is also
on its board. Ian Kind the
Chief Executive Officer of National Foods is on
the list as Kaukonde is on
the company's board of directors.
SW Radio Africa Zimbabwe news
VOA
30 November
2005
Independent observers in Zimbabwe say that fewer than thirty
percent of
those eligible voted in elections for the new senate. This was a
record low
turnout and confirms the fact that many Zimbabweans regard the
new senate
as, at best, an irrelevance, and more likely as a wasteful
extravagance that
the country can ill afford.
Morgan Tsvangirai,
President of Zimbabwe's opposition Movement for
Democratic Change party, had
called for his followers to boycott "this
meaningless election." Under the
circumstances, it is no surprise that the
ruling ZANU-PF party has won
twenty-five of thirty-one seats that were
contested.
The senate was
created in August by the passage of a controversial
constitutional amendment
that gives the senate little real power and
mandates that the body will go
out of existence in 2010. Critics say that
President Mugabe created the
Senate as a source of jobs for ZANU-PF cronies.
Whether or not that is
true, the elections will do little or nothing to
address Zimbabwe's enormous
problems. More than seventy percent of
Zimbabweans cannot find employment in
the ever-contracting economy.
Inflation exceeds three-hundred percent. More
than four million people are
at risk of hunger. Government mismanagement has
led to severe shortages of
fuel and foreign exchange. The new senate may
provide jobs for politicians,
but it will not put food on tables or bring
wages into alignment with
inflation.
The U.S. has called on the
government to restore the rule of law and work to
improve conditions for the
people of Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe needs sensible
economic policies, accountable
government, and a real dialogue between the
government and all segments of
society in order to find solutions to the
crises that are wrecking the
country.
Time is running out. The current planting season has gotten off
to a
horrible start, with shortages of fertilizer and other essential
inputs.
Economic mismanagement has rocked every productive sector, leaving
the
entire population with scarcer resources to buy food even if it is
available. Food shortages and hunger will be even worse next year if quick
action isn't taken. President George W. Bush has commented on the
situation:
"We are concerned about a leadership that does not adhere to
democratic
principles, and obviously concerned about a country that was able
to, for
example, feed herself, now has to import food as an example of the
consequences of not adhering to democratic principles."
"The world
needs to speak with a common voice," says Mr. Bush, "in insisting
that the
principles of democracy are adhered to by the ruling party in
Zimbabwe."
The preceding was an editorial reflecting the views of the
United States
Government.
Reuters
Wed Nov 30, 2005 2:48 PM GMT
HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe is hopeful that
international donors will
provide cash to increase the number of HIV/AIDS
patients on life prolonging
anti-retroviral (ARV) drugs, Health Minister
David Parirenyatwa said on
Wednesday.
Health officials, speaking on
the eve of World AIDS Day, said an estimated
21,000 people were on ARVs in
the country while latest figures showed that
1.61 million are living
with
HIV/AIDS.
A majority of the patients are being treated in
government hospitals where
prices are cheaper, the officials
said.
"We hope that we will get more people, the donors especially, to
assist in
putting more people on ARVs," Parirenyatwa said at the launch of
the
national HIV/AIDS estimates for 2005.
"I am hoping that come next
year, with the global fund money coming through,
we should have more people
on treatment," he said but offered no further
details.
The
Geneva-based Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria
attracts,
manages and disburses cash to fight the diseases - top killers in
Africa.
The health officials said some 289,000 people were in need of
ARVs in the
southern African country and although a local company had
started
manufacturing generic ARVs, this was not enough to meet demand by
HIV/AIDS
patients.
Zimbabwe's HIV infection rate has fallen to around
20 percent of the
population from 25 percent five years ago, apparently due
to more condom use
and fewer sex partners, a rare piece of encouraging news
for a country
battling its worst economic and political crisis since
independence in 1980.
But Zimbabwe, with a population of some 12.5
million, still has among the
world's highest HIV prevalence
rates.
Zimbabwe is expected to record 134,993 new HIV infections and
142,330 AIDS
cases by the end of this year while another 139,950 people are
expected to
die from the disease. Some 57 percent of infections and deaths
are women.
Reuters
Wed Nov 30, 2005 2:13 PM GMT
LAHORE, Nov 30 (Reuters) - The International
Cricket Council (ICC) has said
it is saddened by the state of Zimbabwean
cricket but is still not prepared
to get involved in internal
matters.
"I am extremely saddened for the cricketers and people of
Zimbabwe," ICC
chief executive Malcolm Speed told a news conference on
Wednesday.
"There has been disintegration in Zimbabwe cricket. We are
getting daily
reports on the situation there but the policy of the ICC board
remains we
don't get involved in internal matters unless invited to do so by
the
cricket administrators of that country."
Zimbabwe captain Tatenda
Taibu quit recently, warning that cricket in his
country would die unless
urgent changes were made to the way the game is
run.
Taibu claimed
threats had been made to his life and his family after he,
other leading
players and six provincial bodies had called on Zimbabwe
Cricket Union
chairman Peter Chingoka to resign.
Zimbabwe cricket has been in crisis
since Heath Streak was sacked as team
captain for criticising selection
policy in April 2004.
It led to a boycott of international cricket by
more than a dozen white
players, some of whom did not return to the fold
even after Streak ended his
dispute in February.
The team's results
have been poor, leading to the sacking of coach Phil
Simmons in
August.
Speed said it was a difficult decision for the ICC member
countries whether
to get involved in the internal affairs of a member
country.
"This issue will come up next when Zimbabwe is to play test or
international
cricket. I am sure the board will discuss the matter at its
next meeting,"
he added.
Zimbabwe are due to tour West Indies in
April-May and play two tests and
five one-day internationals.
The ICC
suspended Zimbabwe from playing test cricket last year following the
Streak
affair.
Daily Mirror, Zimbabwe
Clemence
Manyukwe
issue date :2005-Dec-01
NATIONAL air carrier - Air Zimbabwe -
has reportedly lost billions of
dollars by paying its pilots in foreign
currency for over a year.
Well-informed sources at the troubled airline say
the pilots, numbering 48,
are currently being paid $US8 000 per month dating
back more than a year.
They questioned that arrangement at a time the airline
is failing to turn
around its fortunes due to a serious lack of spare parts
and inadequate fuel
caused by inadequate forex reserves.
"Each pilot is
being paid US8 000 American dollars every month. All the
foreign currency
was not going into the bank as required as they (pilots)
are given it in
cash.
"A company employee (name supplied) was tasked with taking it to the UK
from
where the payments are made. The forex is never declared at customs,
and in
London it is not clear how the money is disposed of," said a
source.
The AirZim employee, a woman, is reportedly attached to the credit
control
division while her male counterpart supposedly assigned to the
treasury
department, allegedly facilitates the forex payments.
The
national airline at one time flew with hungry passengers because it had
failed to pay up a debt of 2 000 pounds sterling to a catering
company.
Efforts to reach the two officials since Monday were fruitless as
they were
repeatedly said to be out of office.
The airline was also said
to be operating two offices, with one of them
reportedly closed but rent
still being paid in British pounds.
Air Zimbabwe spokesperson, David Mwenga
yesterday skirted the issue of
foreign currency payments in his written
reply to The Daily Mirror.
Mwenga said the issue of employees' payments (in
forex) was an internal
matter that could not be discussed in public.
"We
refuse to discuss the issue of salaries in the media. Even your company
cannot discuss your salaries in the media. I am sorry you are not going to
get the answers the way you want them," he said.
However, Mwenga
acknowledged that AirZim was striving to meet international
standards and
would go out of its way to retain qualified and experienced
fliers.
He
said: "However, it is important to note that in the case of the pilots,
because of their specialised skills and demand world-wide, the airline would
like to operate within international practices so as to retain them".
On
allegations that the airline was guilty of externalising forex, he said
Air
Zimbabwe was authorised to use its foreign currency resources to pay for
some specialised services.
But he stressed that there was "no question of
the airline not declaring its
use of foreign currency resources".
On
allegations that the airline was losing millions in rent for one of its
two
offices currently closed, Mwenga said at one time, Air Zimbabwe moved
from
its traditional offices at the Piccadilly to Victoria Station in the
UK, but
it now operated only one office.
He said the new offices were central and
accessible to clients while the old
one had since been sublet.
"The lease
agreement for these premises expired early this year and the
airline then
moved back to its offices at Piccadilly which themselves had
been sublet.
Piccadilly are the only offices from which Air Zimbabwe is
selling tickets,"
he said.
"The airline has two offices in London, but one of them has been
closed for
some time now. Despite not being in use, AirZim is still paying
rent. We
wonder whether the airline needs two offices in the first
place."
Last week, AirZim's board suspended the chief executive, Tendai
Mahachi and
corporate secretary, Tendai Mujuru.
They were suspended
"pending investigations into serious disruptions of the
airline's operations
and services" which forced it to ground its fleet the
whole day after
running out of A1 jet fuel.
Even though the fleet is now operational, that
did not stop Reserve Bank of
Zimbabwe governor, Gideon Gono, from describing
the mishap as "the nonsense
that is taking place at AirZim." at a media
briefing last week.
Daily Mirror, Zimbabwe
Oswelled
Ureke
issue date :2005-Dec-01
ZIMBABWEANS from all walks of life are
expecting a myriad of social concerns
to be addressed in the 2006 annual
national budget due to be announced today
by the Minister of Finance Herbert
Murerwa.
While the budget may not be expected to be divorced from addressing
pressing
macro-economic challenges, people interviewed by The Daily Mirror
revealed
that a number of social issues would also need to be
considered.
The annual rate of inflation, which has risen to 411 percent, has
seen
ordinary Zimbabweans failing to meet basic needs.
On the other hand,
while the poverty datum line stands at $11,6 million,
most Zimbabweans,
especially those employed in the public sector are earning
far below that
figure.
According to the Consumer Council of Zimbabwe (CCZ), in light of the
increasing poverty levels, besides economic development, next year's budget
also ought to be more oriented towards social priorities such as affordable
health care, education and the provision of basic utilities.
The budget
is expected to address the issue of struggling urban councils in
order to
enable them to avail satisfactory services to residents.
Harare, Chitungwiza,
Bulawayo and Chegutu, among many cities and towns, are
facing dire water
shortages and cannot cope with blockages and leakages of
their sewer systems
burdened by unanticipated overpopulation.
Hard-done residents in some areas
are having to buy water for domestic
consumption.
Israel Mabhoo, the
vice-president of the Combined Harare Residents
Association (CHRA) said the
water shortages were causing untold suffering to
urban residents, an issue
he said warranted incorporation into the national
budget.
The Zimbabwe
National Water Authority (Zinwa) has been struggling to meet
water demand
and has had to resort to 24-hour water cuts in affected cities.
Already,
three dams in Matabeleland, namely Lower Ncema, Upper Ncema and
Umzingwane
have dried up, compounding the water woes in Bulawayo.
The governmentis
widely anticipated to consider giving a sizeable vote to
urban councils and
Zinwa to improve the operations.
Ordinary Zimbabweans also largely expect
Murerwa to consider the issue of
food security in the budget.
"One needs
to eat, commute and live somewhere but first and foremost there
should be
food on the table. As it is, all those three are hard to come by
and the
health situation is also deplorable," said Simon Mesowenyama, a
Harare
resident.
According to a recent Zimbabwe Vulnerability Assessment Committee
(ZIMVAC)
report, 3 million Zimbabweans may face food shortages this farming
season.
The shortage of food is worsened by the low incomes earned by the
majority
of the population; a sizeable chunk earns much less than the PDL,
with most
government employees earning about $3 million a month.
Although
there is a challenge to reign in inflation by reducing money
supply, those
working in the civil service want the government to effect
substantial
salary increments for the new financial year.
Already, some sections of civil
society have started clamouring for
increments while some sectors have
resorted to unbridled corruption within
their rank and file to subsidise
their meagre earnings. The Progressive
Teachers' Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ)
recently threatened to go on strike next
year, if Murerwa did not factor in
an 836 percent salary increment for
teachers in the national budget.
The
plight of workers has been worsened by excessive taxation. The CCZ, in
its
input ahead of the budget, urged the government to equate the taxable
threshold to the PDL.
"The plight of workers has been worsened by an
excessive tax regime,
exacerbated by the introduction of new taxes in the
mid term fiscal policy
review. The extra taxes have made the position of
workers worse off, with
the majority of workers taking home very
little.
"In this light, there is need for fiscal authorities to review the
non-taxable income from the current $1,5 million to levels at par with the
poverty datum line," submitted the CCZ.
Wellington Masango, who resides
in Chitungwiza, concurred with the CCZ's
submission, saying salaries were
"just too little to be budgeted."
Another major challenge that Zimbabweans
want to see being attended to in
the national budget is the perennial
pandemic of HIV and Aids. The havoc
caused by the deadly condition has long
developed into a social problem not
just a health matter.
The government
through the National Aids Council (NAC) is anticipated to
avail finances for
the acquisition of anti-retroviral (ARV) drugs to help
those infected by the
virus. Simultaneously, welfare organisations would
also need to be helped
shoulder the onus of looking after people infected or
affected by the
pandemic.
Another paramount issue the public wishes to see being tackled in
the
national budget is that of the fuel crisis bedevilling the
country.
"There is no fuel. It is difficult for one to travel to any
destination
because the fuel shortages have resulted in exorbitant fares,"
said Trust
Marimo, another Harare resident.
The country is virtually
running empty despite assurances from the
government that fuel would be
acquired earlier this year. The finance
ministry would be largely expected
to avail money to fuel the nation and end
the transport blues that the
Zimbabwean populace is enduring.
The resettlement programme Operation
Garikai/Hlalani Kuhle, which would see
the accommodation of thousands of
people displaced by Operation
Murambatsvina also needs government's maximum
support.
"We want houses for everyone not for those in positions of authority
only.
There should be a housing scheme for everyone, not just Operation
Garikai.
The government needs to think about that," said
Marimo.
According to a disputed United Nations report, 700 000 people were
displaced
by Operation Murambatsvina. The government is in the process of
constructing
houses, factory shells and vendor marts to ensure that
evacuated urbanites
are accommodated.
If adequate financial resources
are not availed towards this operation,
squatting, vagrancy and illegal
vending may re-emerge in the city centre, as
is lately becoming evident,
analysts say.
Zimbabwe faces an uphill task of achieving its Millennium
Development Goals
(MDGs) while burdened by issues that need immediate
solutions. The
International Monetary Fund (IMF) on one hand requires
Zimbabwe to pay up
her arrears while on the other hand, the European Union
and the USA have
slapped the country with punitive economic
sanctions.
With that background the government in its budget would have to
allocate
substantial quotas to relevant sectors to see the attainment of the
set
goals and targets.
The agricultural sector, crippled by relentless
regional droughts, is
challenged with providing adequate food to sustain the
nation as used to be
the case in recent years.
The nation expects the
government to assist farmers with inputs and
expertise for a good
harvest.
To complement the budget the government is expected to initiate
thorough
audits on parastatals and trusts that receive funds from the budget
on
behalf of the public.
Observers say the financial resources should be
accounted for so that the
public is not undermined by corrupt individuals in
positions of authority.
Daily Mirror, Zimbabwe
Givemore Nyanhi/Godfrey Mutsago
issue date
:2005-Dec-01
THE 2006 national budget should move away from being a wish
list for the
government that it would later fail to follow, analysts have
said.
They added that budget should be supported by clear policies to
enable it
achieve its stated goals.
In addition labour called on the
government to make further concessions on
the income tax thresholds and ease
the burden on workers exposed to a
hyperinflationary economy eroding their
disposable incomes.
Taking a cue from the current 2005 national budget, that
carried largely
optimistic growth prospects for critical economic sectors
such as mining,
agriculture and manufacturing, analysts said government
needed to
restructure the budget and ensure that capital expenditure is
given top
priority.
"In the last budget and in previous budgets practice
has shown that
traditionally recurrent expenditure constitutes close to 90
percent of the
budget while less than 10 percent is channelled towards
capital
expenditure," economist Witness Chinyama said.
"The budget needs
to be structured in such a way that capital expenditure
gets a bigger
allocation as compared to recurrent expenditure to create an
enabling
environment for business."
Capital expenditure refers to the allocation of
national funds that goes
towards capital projects and infrastructure
programmes such as the
construction of roads, railways, dams, power
generation, the building of
hospitals, schools, and other
infrastructure.
Chinyama said such a scenario, where capital expenditure
gained precedence
over recurrent expenditure would create an enabling
economic environment
through a 'crowding in effect' that would allow
business, especially the
private sector to carry out their operations in
conducive conditions.
He said expectations were also that there would be a
shift from a budget
that prioritised close to 80 percent of its allocation
to social ministries
instead of economic ministries that in reality
implement capital projects.
For more than five years, the financing of the
country's national budget has
increasingly been bankrolled by the domestic
market as the country's
alienation from the international community has cost
it precious balance of
payments support. Prior to that the international
credit institutions used
to play a significant role in the nation's budget,
coming in with critical
financial input into the budget.
The inability of
the domestic market to meet the full needs of the budget
last year forced
the government to come up with a supplementary budget that
has seen the
government's domestic debt increase.
In the last budget the Finance Minister
Herbert Murerwa made a commitment to
maintain domestic debt at below five
percent of the gross domestic product
(GDP).
"But after the minister
promised to keep domestic debt at below five percent
of GDP the
supplementary budget has seen the proportion of the debt grow to
more than
8.7 percent," an economist noted.
Economic analysts said the government has
been trying unsuccessfully to
restructure its ballooning domestic debt, and
this has been doing through
the issue of various treasury instruments such
as short and long term bills.
But in the country's hyperinflationary
environment short-term bills have
tended to compound the rate of inflation
because of their early maturities
whilst the long-term bills have been
unattractive.
Economists said the government needed to conceptualise the 2006
national
budget within practical government policies that would ensure that
the
budget would not degenerate into a mere wish list that is not
followed.Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) deputy secretary general
Collin Gwiyo said they expected the budget to cushion workers by making sure
the tax bands of workers are increased.
Gwiyo said this could be done if
the government reduced the taxable band
from 45 percent to 30 percent and
made sure that those workers earning below
the poverty datum line are not
taxed.
Presently the poverty datum line for an average family of six as
calculated
by the Consumer Council of Zimbabwe is estimated at over $11,6
million."Government
needs to increasingly recognise the fact that the
economy can only grow if
people have a disposable income so that they can
buy goods produced by the
manufacturing sector. This supports production but
that disposable income is
going back to the government as tax," Gwiyo said.
He said non-taxable
thresholds for pensioners were also required to ensure
that pensioners
protected from the hyperinflationary environment.
Neither
Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce (ZNCC) president, Luxon Zembe
nor his
Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI) counterpart Patison
Sithole was
available for comment yesterday.
Murerwa today unveils the 2006 budget on a
backdrop of quickening
de-industrialisation that has seen the country sink
deeper into economic
quick sand.
Murerwa's last offering was punctuated
with optimistic outpourings of
recovery and growth that have since been
wiped away by resurgent inflation,
foreign currency and fuel
shortages.
Agriculture was expected to grow by 28 percent, mining by 11.6
percent and
manufacturing by at least 8.5 percent.
Overally, Murerwa
forecasted the economy to grow by at least 3,5 percent but
the mounting
challenges the country has faced in the last 12 months have
seen
conservative estimates point out that Zimbabwe was set to witness a
decline
of more than 7 percent this year.Meanwhile, leaders of the Zimbabwe
Commercial Farmers Union (ZCFU) and Zimbabwe Farmers Union (ZFU) said they
were looking forward to Treasury support for various farming programmes in
order for them to participate in efforts to turn around the economy.
They
said that some time this year they submitted proposals on the funding
of the
agricultural sector for 2006.Although it does not subsidise
agriculture per
se, government, through the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ)
supports
agricultural projects. Farmers usually receive concessionary
interest rates
as a way to keep them on the land.
The unions are also hoping to receive
increased financial support for the
day-to-day administration of their
offices.ZCFU president Davison Mugabe on
Monday confirmed that the union had
submitted some funding proposals to the
parliamentary select committee on
agriculture for consideration. "We were
invited to submit proposals and air
our views in support of the proposals
before they were submitted to Treasury
for consideration," said Mugabe.
"We believe that government is aware of our
suggestions as we want
agriculture to be a success."
ZCFU, which
represents large-scale commercial farmers, is looking forward to
mammoth
support in the form of funding of proposed macro-agricultural
programmes
focussed on increasing production of food and cash crops.
An emphasis was
placed on traditional cash crops with the hope of generating
the much-needed
foreign currency, whose shortages have greatly crippled most
business
operations in the country.
ZCFU's thrust is directed on tobacco, soya-bean
and cotton that have ready
markets abroad.
The union also seeks support
on resuscitating horticulture.
A number of new farmers resettled under model
A2 (large-scale commercial
farms) inherited horticultural projects, which
require funding to put them
back on track
Horticulture is another major
source of foreign currency.
There are a large number of horticultural
projects in Mashonaland East and
Central provinces that are not fully
functional at the moment.
Also on the list of priorities for funding is
desired support in the
building of the national herd, with emphasis on beef
and dairy cattle.
With Zimbabwe currently gearing itself for resumption of
beef exports to the
European Union (EU) in mid 2006, farmers require support
in rebuilding the
national herd.
In dairy, a large number of farmers in
Manicaland, Midlands, Mashonaland
East, West, and Central provinces are
reviving abandoned dairy schemes and a
lot of funding is required.
ZCFU
is concerned over delays in disbursement of funds earmarked for various
developments.
"Delays in the disbursement of funds have had a negative
impact on our
sector," said Mugabe.
"As a result we have often ended up
reaping less than the expected
returns."
ZCFU also looks forward to
receiving support in the procurement of farming
equipment and machinery not
readily available in the country.
High hopes have been placed on the buying
of tractors that are required for
tillage. The union expects the central
bank to handle the matter with
urgency.
The country currently has a total
of about 15 000 tractors.
ZCFU, which has suggested that it would play a
pivotal role in the
generation of foreign currency, wants its members, now
numbering around 20
000, to be able to buy at least a tractor
each.
Although both the ZFU director Dzarira Kwenda and the union's president
Silas Hungwe could not be reached for comment as they were said to be out on
business, the union also submitted its proposals that seek government
support in turning smallholder farmers into smallholder commercial
farmers.
According to proposals recently made available to The Daily Mirror,
the
union is seeking support in the provision of capital investments
especially
on infrastructure that its members usually use on a communal
basis.
ZFU, among its priorities, wants to focus on the rehabilitation of
dilapidated irrigation schemes and tobacco barns on former white commercial
farms, where its members who benefited under the model A1 scheme
(smallholder plots) were resettled.
Both the ZCFU and ZFU are hoping to
receive increased support for their
day-to-day administration.
Government
has in the last three years supported the unions through a $100
million
annual grant.
The unions, in the proposals, have hinted that the grant no
longer served
required needs as costs of maintaining offices had gone
up.
The unions share the fund with ZFU receiving the larger share of $65
million.
While the unions depend mainly on membership fees, in most cases
they are
not receiving levies they are supposed to benefit from.
In the
past, the Grain Marketing Board (GMB) used to collect levies on
behalf of
respective unions on crops individual union members sold to the
parastatal.
However, in the last three years, GMB has not been doing
this.
ZFU has on various occasions raised the
issue of levy collection at
its congress but has
not received any positive response from authorities.
Daily Mirror, Zimbabwe
Court Reporter
issue date :2005-Dec-01
THE Harare man
who allegedly swindled Central Africa Building Society (CABS)
of more than
$430 billion yesterday argued that his case was not fraud, but
just a bank
overdraft.
Mathias Ndlovu (37), an accountant formerly employed by First
Banking
Corporation, allegedly abused his Platinum Club account, a facility
exclusive to people who enjoy privileged banking services.
In his bail
application before magistrate Rodin Mzyece, Ndlovu's lawyer
Misheck Hogwe
said his client would argue that his transactions with CABS
were above
board.
"The accused will at the appropriate time during his defence show that
what
is merely there is an overdraft rather than fraud," Hogwe argued.
He
added that Ndlovu had the means to pay off the overdraft.
In his final
submission in the application, Hogwe indicated that at a later
stage he
would apply for refusal of remand on the basis that the matter was
civil.
Hogwe further argued that the allegations raised by the State were
shaky and
did not disclose key elements of fraud.
"Where there is
overwhelming evidence, the court is unlikely to grant bail.
The allegations
are of fraud and key elements of fraud are that there must
be a
misrepresentation. I submit that the allegations are shaky for the
reason
that complainant was the keeper of the records of the accused's
account. It
boggles the mind to say accused misled the complainant when he
was the
keeper of the records," Hogwe argued.
He said all the vehicles acquired from
proceeds of the alleged offence were
under police guard at Ndlovu's Gunhill
home and that CABS had communicated
with all financial institutions to
freeze his accounts.
Hogwe said there was no reason to point out that Ndlovu
might abscond trial
if granted bail.
However, the State through the
investigating officer, Detective Inspector
Nyasha Sereki said he still
needed a month to finalise investigations, as
there were witnesses he still
had to interview and he believed there were
recoveries he was yet to
make.
He said the amount involved was substantial and from his view of the
case,
the evidence was overwhelming and if convicted Ndlovu would face a
long jail
term.
"From my own assessment of evidence furnished by the
complainant I see it as
overwhelming. If at all the accused is to be
convicted there are prospects
that he will face a long term imprisonment and
that I see as an incentive to
abscond," Sereki said.
Prosecutor Blessing
Mhande alleged that Ndlovu operated three accounts with
CABS and issued 82
cheques in his favour from his Platinum chequebook
totalling $432 220 000
000.
Between July and November this year, Ndlovu deposited the cheques into
his
transaction account, which gave him the privilege to deposit and
withdraw.
The cheques were allegedly deposited at different banks, which do
no have
the Platinum facilities so they could not be detected.
Under the
privileges of the Platinum facilities, the cheques would instantly
be
cleared.
Mzyece is expected to rule on the bail application tomorrow.
Daily Mirror, Zimbabwe
The Daily Mirror
Reporter
issue date :2005-Dec-01
THE African Union (AU) Commission on
Human and People's Rights has started
presiding over some complaints made
against the government.
The commission's 38th ordinary session began in
Gambia on November 21 and is
expected to sit until December 5. The Minister
of Justice, Legal and
Parliamentary Affairs, Patrick Chinamasa confirmed the
development, saying
his ministry's permanent secretary, David Mangota had
led the government
legal team.
He then referred questions to Mangota who
has since returned to the country.
"Can I refer you to Mangota who led our
delegation. He is back in the
country, l think he is better placed to
comment," Chinamasa said.
Efforts to reach the permanent secretary were
however fruitless yesterday.
Zimbabwe Lawyers For Human Rights (ZLHR)
director, Arnold Tsunga also
confirmed that the issues were now before the
commission. The forum is
critical of the government which, in turn, has
branded it a front for
imperialist interests.
Tsunga said the lawyers
were being represented by Otto Saki, Jacob Mafume
and Sternford Moyo, while
the government by the Director of the Civil
Division in the Attorney
General's Office Loice Matanda Moyo. The ZLHR
director said some of the
cases being brought before the commission revolved
around the Access to
Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA) and
the 2003 deportation
of Andrew Meldrum, a foreign journalist, among others.
Meldrum, through the
ZLHR and the Institute for Human Rights and Development
in Africa, has
requested the commission to urge the government to permit him
to return to
Zimbabwe and compensate him.
From The Pretoria News (SA), 30 November
Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai arrived at his party's
headquarters as
usual on Tuesday, ignoring attempts by rivals to force him
from office. "It
is business as usual," said Tsvangirai's spokesperson
William Bango.
Differences over a weekend election for a new Senate have
caused an
unprecedented split within the MDC, the only party to have
seriously
challenged President Robert Mugabe's increasingly autocratic
25-year rule.
Tsvangirai ordered a boycott of Saturday's poll, but a narrow
majority of
his party's national executive voted in favour of participating.
Rivals led
by Tsvangirai's deputy, Gibson Sibanda, fielded 26 candidates -
just seven
of whom won seats in the 66-member Senate.Tsvangirai this week
rejected a
letter from Sibanda informing him that the party's disciplinary
committee
was suspending him. He has since ignored instructions to vacate
his office
and return all party property except two cars allowed for
personal
use.Tsvangirai maintains only the party's annual convention,
scheduled for
February, has the authority to remove him. Party spokesperson
Paul
Themba-Nyathi said Tsvangirai violated party rules by insisting on the
boycott. His refusal to step down was "further defiance of the national
disciplinary committee and would be dealt with accordingly", he said on
Tuesday. Bango said there were no attempts to prevent Tsvangirai entering
party headquarters in the capital, Harare.
Just 19,4 percent of
the 3,2 million eligible voters cast ballots on
Saturday - the lowest
turnout for a national election since independence
from Britain in 1980 -
according to the independent Zimbabwe Election
Support Network. Tsvangirai
claimed most voters heeded his boycott call.
Independent observers said
general apathy, ignorance about the role of the
Senate and voter fatigue
after bruising elections in March for Parliament's
lower house also affected
turnout. The labour-backed opposition won just 41
of the 120 seats up for
grabs in that election amid allegations of
intimidation and vote- rigging.
Mugabe appoints an additional 30 members in
the lower house. Tsvangirai
argued participation in Saturday's poll would
only give credibility to
another tainted vote. His rivals said the party
should take advantage of an
opportunity to increase the opposition's voice
in the legislature. Mugabe
himself abolished the Senate in 1990. His critics
charge the institution was
only restored to increase Mugabe's ability to
doll out jobs and perks in
Zimbabwe's ailing economy. The new house has no
veto powers over legislation
passed in the lower house. The US state
department this week called the
Senate election a "non-event".
From The Cape Argus (SA), 29 November
Morgan Tsvangirai has been suspended as
president of the Zimbabwe opposition
MDC, at least according to the party's
constitution. MDC legal secretary
David Coltart, who has refused to be
aligned to either side in a dispute
which has ripped the party apart, said
that according to Article 10.4 of the
founding constitution, the
disciplinary committee had the power to suspend
anyone. Coltart was
disturbed by the letter of suspension delivered on
Saturday during the
senate election, which the MDC lost. "I question the
wisdom of taking this
action at this point in time," he said. The
disciplinary committee is
chaired by vice-president Gibson Sibanda, who met
three other members,
including lawyer Josphat Tshuma, in Bulawayo last week.
They drew up the
letter and sent it to Tsvangirai. At first Tsvangirai
reacted by claiming
that he could not be suspended, but yesterday, via his
spokesman William
Bango, he said: "I don't want to get bogged down in legal
interpretations.
This is a political problem and would have to be sorted out
politically."