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War vets demand Cabinet positions

7/10/00 9:37:08 AM (GMT +2)

Tarcey Munaku, Political Editor

WAR veterans, used to having their way with President Mugabe, are now demanding key ministerial posts and governorships to seal off rural Zimbabwe from opposition political influence, ahead of the presidential election in 2002.

Morgan Tsvangirai, the leader of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), yesterday said the ex-freedom fighters had tabled the demands during a meeting with Mugabe.
This is part of the strategy for the 2002 presidential election, which the war veterans want Mugabe to win at all costs, said Tsvangirai in an interview with The Daily News.
Presidential spokesman George Charamba confirmed that Mugabe last Tuesday held a meeting with the national leadership of the war veterans but denied knowledge of the demands made to the President by the ex-combatants.
He said: "There was a meeting between the President and the national leadership of the war veterans' association. That happened on Tuesday and this was in the context of a post-mortem on the election.
"The one thing that never ever came up for discussion was how the President was going to structure his government, specifically to make Cabinet appointments."
Chenjerai Hunzvi, the leader of the war veterans, said he was not prepared to comment on the meeting. But he said Tsvangirai had no business talking about the affairs of war veterans. Hunzvi is, however, on record as having said he was confident of a ministerial position when Mugabe announces the new Cabinet, probably this week.
However, Tsvangirai said the MDC had reliable information that Mugabe had private consultations with the war veterans where they made demands which were "very alarming" for the nation.
He said the leaders of the war veterans demanded that Mugabe appoints war veterans as provincial governors in the four provinces of Matabeleland South, Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland East and Manicaland.
The idea, said Tsvangirai, was to consolidate these provinces as "no-go areas" for the opposition.
He said: "The war veterans also demanded that Augustine Chihuri, the Police Commissioner, be appointed Minister of Home Affairs because he has been working very well with the war veterans that have invaded farms. It is no wonder he has not been effective in enforcing law and order in these areas."
However, Charamba dismissed this saying it was known among all Zanu PF cadres that all government appointments were the "absolute prerogative" of the President.
He said: "At best, he consults his two vices. There is no one who would ever dare make a suggestion of how the President is going to constitute his Cabinet. So, I take such rumours to simply indicate an impatience in the country over who is going to be in the new Cabinet."
Tsvangirai said other demands from the war veteran leaders were that farm invasions be intensified but with the target now being white commercial farmers purported to be supporters of the MDC.
The intention, he said, was to chase the farmers off their properties completely.
He said the whole strategy was part of the 2002 presidential election campaign.
"They want Mugabe to seek re-election. If this strategy is allowed to function it means that Mugabe and the war veterans have no other strategy to restore the economic well-being of the country because to them the main preoccupation is political survival through anarchy."
Tsvangirai said since Zanu PF's victory in the election came about "as a result of violence and anarchy", that party would use the same strategy again.
He said the Zanu PF leadership was aware of the electoral fraud in the constituencies that the MDC were disputing the poll results and they planned to engage in violence in these areas should there be a rerun of the elections.
Tsvangirai said Mugabe had drafted ex-Zipra and ex-Rhodesian army soldiers in the Zimbabwe National Army and the Police Support Unit and deployed them in areas where Zanu PF suffered heavy defeat in the parliamentary election.
He said: "They are using unmarked vehicles with no registration plates and are beating up people in so-called trouble spots.
"But the strategy will not work because the people of Zimbabwe are a united people. Poverty, unemployment and degradation favour no tribe."
Police have confirmed the presence of Special Forces in areas such as Dzivaresekwa and Mabvuku in Harare and in Kwekwe, ostensibly to curb post-election violence.

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NATIONAL NEWS Monday 10 , July

Panic in the corridors of Herald House

7/10/00 10:32:16 AM (GMT +2)

Staff Reporter

PANIC is sweeping through the corridors of the State-controlled media after allegations that the editors failed miserably to “sell” the government's platform during the run up to the election, in which Zanu PF lost 58 seats.

But Chen Chimutengwende, the Minister of Information, Posts and Telecommunications, denied there were any changes planned at Zimbabwe Newspapers (1980) Limited (Zimpapers).
“This is just speculation by the so-called independent Press,” he told The Daily News.
“There are no changes that I am aware of, unless they have taken it upon themselves to restructure Zimpapers without consulting me.”
Nelson Samkange, chairman of the Zimpapers board, told The Daily News the board was reviewing the company’s performance “in terms of the current economic situation”.
“I am not saying there is no shake-up at Zimpapers, neither am I saying there is one, but there is a review of the company’s performance in line with the present economic situation,” Samkange said.
Sources familiar with the shake-up said the board had given Matthews Kunaka, the Zimpapers’ chief executive officer, an ultimatum to leave the company two weeks ago because the company had failed to make a profit.
The source said: “In his response, Kunaka threatened to take up the matter with his lawyers and that was the last I heard of it.”
Samkange denied any moves to sack Kunaka, saying: “I have not told him to leave. He is still with us but if he wants to leave he can do so of his own free will.” Most Zimpapers editors contacted were either unwilling to speak or spoke in defence of the government, with one saying: “We’ve done a great job. They can’t ditch us now.”
But another editor, who refused to be named, said: “I do not see the logic of them saying we did not do enough, because even in Harare where a lot was done by the papers, Zanu PF still lost.”
The features department at The Herald has been phased out, the source said. Maxwell Chivasa, the features editor, becomes the supplements editor while Shepherd Mutamba, who was responsible for supplements, joins Ronald Imbayago as assistant news editor.
The fate of the senior reporter, Sam Munyavi, still hangs in the balance as management has yet to decide where to place him.
Bornwell Chakaodza, the editor of the flagship of Zimpapers, The Herald, is tipped to retain his job as managing director and relinquish his post as editor. Musekiwa Kumbula, a consultant in the Zanu PF campaign team in last month’s election, is tipped to become the editor of The Herald.
The source said at least eight reporters were likely to be retrenched as the restructuring took shape. The sub-editors’ desk has also been targeted, but it is still unclear how many may face the chop.
Among those reportedly likely to lose their jobs are John Gambanga, editor of The Manica Post, Stephen Mpofu, editor of The Chronicle, Edna Machirori, editor of The Sunday News, and Pascal Mukondiwa, editor of The Sunday Mail, according to the South African Press Association (Sapa) last week.
Luke Munyawarara, Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation’s director-general, has also been targeted, the source said, but efforts to get a comment from him proved fruitless.
Munyawarara faced mounting pressure before the election to allow views other than those of the government to be aired on the public-owned radio and television network.
A middle manager at one newspaper, preferring to remain anonymous, told Sapa: “Chimutengwende summoned our editors for a tongue-lashing session in Harare shortly before the election, accusing them of not doing enough to sell the policies of the government on various issues and failing to promote the image of the ministers.”
But Chimutengwende last week denied he had harangued the editors, saying, as the responsible minister, he held regular meetings with them. Gambanga, editor of The Manica Post, told Sapa from Mutare: “It is true that the minister did summon us to complain, but that was more of a discussion than a command. We are not in the army.
“The minister simply said our papers were too much in the middle of the road, and we told him that was because the whites had declared war on us by taking away their advertising.”
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NATIONAL NEWS Monday 10 , July

Noczim, Forestry Commission get new bosses

7/10/00 10:29:28 AM (GMT +2)

Staff Reporter

The National Oil Company of Zimbabwe (Noczim) and the Forestry Commission now have substantive heads, following appointments made last Thursday.

Simon Khaya Moyo, the Minister of Environment and Tourism, announced the appointment of Webster Muriritirwa as the new chief executive officer of (Noczim) and Dr Enos Shumba as the new general manger of the Forestry Commission. The appointments are effective from 1 July 2000.
Muriritirwa replaces the late Morgan Mpundu who and the entire Noczim board were suspended by Enos Chikowore, the former minister of Transport and Energy.
The company was allegedly looted of $1,4 billion through contracts awarded without going to tender.
Nicholas Ncube, managing director of Zimbabwe Investment Centre, was running Noczim until the announcement last week.
Shumba takes the post left vacant by Dr Yemi Katerere who resigned five years ago.
Shumba had been acting general manager ever since.
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NATIONAL NEWS Monday 10 , July

Maize output to drop, say farmers

7/10/00 10:27:55 AM (GMT +2)

Agriculture Reporter

THE Zimbabwe Grain Producers' Association (ZGPA) says the farmers’ maize output will decline by 15 percent during the coming season because of the harsh economic climate and farm invasions by war veterans.

The slump threatens Zimbabwe’s chances of meeting the domestic maize requirement of more than 1,8 million tonnes a year next year.
Koos Burger, the outgoing ZGPA chairman, told the association’s annual general meeting recently that maize production would decline next season because of viability problems as a result of poor government policies and the farm invasions.
War veterans, who occupied more than 1 500 white-owned commercial farms since February, disrupted farm operations and drastically reduced confidence in the industry.
Burger said: “The state of the economy and the viability of maize production, the government maize marketing policy and controls, availability of inputs, maize thefts and land invasions and security, are some of the reasons why producers intend to reduce maize planting this coming season.”
Of the 28 maize theft cases tried at Bindura Provincial Court in April, the fines imposed on the culprits have been less than 50 percent of the value of the stolen maize.
Theft of maize is increasing as farm invasions continue.
Commercial maize producers account for about 40 percent of the total maize output in Zimbabwe while small-scale, communal and resettlement farmers produce the remainder.
Zimbabwe this year produced about 2,1 million tonnes of maize against a target of 2,5 million tonnes.
The maize producers want the Ministry of Lands and Agriculture to announce a maize floor price and the annual agriculture marketing policy statement, which are both overdue by three months.
The Minister of Lands and Agriculture, Kumbirai Kangai, said his ministry would be “announcing the maize floor price in the next couple of days”.
Kangai, facing allegations of corruption and fraud involving $228 million at the Grain Marketing Board, has been out of office for the past two months while Joyce Mujuru was acting.
The ministry has not said why it has failed to announce a maize producer price and the agriculture marketing policy statement.
The policy helps the industry to decide on commodity prices. Kangai did not specify when the floor price would be announced.
“The harsh realities of the farmer today are that we do not have a producer price nor do we have a liberalised market.
“This has resulted in a stagnant maize market with no one prepared to take a position,” said Burger.
White maize costs $4 900 a tonne delivered at the Zimbabwe Agricultural Exchange Commodity, a price farmers say is not viable.
Farmers are calling for a price between $6 500 and $7 000 a tonne.
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NATIONAL NEWS Monday 10 , July

Mugabe’s threats on Ncube worry CCJP

7/10/00 10:13:16 AM (GMT +2)

Staff Reporters

THE Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace in Zimbabwe (CCJP) is deeply worried by President Mugabe’s threats against Archbishop Pius Ncube.

Ncube is accused by the Zanu PF leader of influencing the ruling party’s defeat in Matabeleland during last month’s parliamentary election.
In a statement, CCJP acting national director, Tarcisius Zimbiti, said the clergyman was being unfairly persecuted for calling for a cessasion to the violence that had gripped the country before and after the election.
The violence has left at least 30 people dead.
Zimbiti said it was foolhardy to blame the party’s heavy losses in urban areas to the work of Ncube, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Bulawayo.
“It is unfortunate that in a democratic state where mature people have exercised their freedom of choice they are deemed to have been adversely influenced by a single person,” he said.
“The protest vote was a result of causes other than Archbishop Ncube’s alleged decampaigning programme. Economic frustration is one of the major causes of the protest vote.”
Zimbiti said politicians should learn to tolerate diversity instead of enforcing the dominance of a single political entity.
Ncube is being blamed by the ruling party for allegedly influencing the people of Matabeleland to vote for the opposition Movement for Democratic Change.
The Roman Catholic clergy first received nocturnal visits from members of the Central Intelligence Organisation during the run-up to the election. He received threats to his life.
Two weeks ago, Mugabe allegedly threatened to boycott the memorial service for the late vice president Joshua Nkomo if Ncube was allowed to preside over the event.
Ncube was subsequently removed from the programme.
Mugabe warned churches from involving themselves in politics, saying they should concentrate on preaching the word of God.
The president of the Catholic Students Society at the University of Zimbabwe (UZ), Chris Mhike, yesterday dismissed as “untrue and defamatory” a story carried by a Sunday publication in which catholic students allegedly supported Mugabe’s threats against Ncube.
The Sunday Mail said the Catholic Students Society had attacked two Bulawayo-based Catholic priests, Father Nigel Johnson and Ncube “for trying to preach democracy, human rights and good governance which they nor their church do not practice.”
He said, instead, Catholic students at the UZ were concerned that they had not given enough support to church leaders like Ncube and Johnson “in their struggle against corruption and oppression perpetrated by the incumbent regime.”
“The role of the church is to identify with the poor and the voiceless and to give them support in their struggle for freedom, justice and dignity.
This is exactly what Ncube and Johnson have been doing and we want more of that.” He said the UZ wing was contemplating action against the paper for publishing the story quoting a joint statement allegedly issued by the International Movement for Catholic Students and the Catholic Student Society of the University of Zimbabwe.
“We were never consulted and I know nothing about that statement and I do not know what they mean when they talk of Catholic students as I had no contact whatsoever with the press prior to the publication.”
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PAGE Monday 10 , July

Politicians preoccupied with self-survival

7/10/00 9:47:03 AM (GMT +2)

HE is accused of involvement in a crime in which millions of dollars were lost to the government of which he is a Cabinet minister.

Naturally enough, he would like the State to drop all the charges against him. So far, the prosecution in the case is not budging: they would like to proceed with the case.
Meanwhile, Kumbirai Kangai, the Minister of Lands and Agriculture, suspended from his job by President Mugabe last March, must be giving poor Joyce Mujuru a headache. She was appointed acting minister in his place when he was suspended. But last week, he turned up at an official function and made a speech in his capacity as . . . the Minister of Lands and Agriculture?
His application to the court was to be allowed to visit his office in Gungunyama building without a police escort. Nothing was mentioned of the President lifting his suspension from the job.
If the charges against him have not been dropped and he is still to face trial, what legal mumbo-jumbo can allow him to claim that “I am back in my office” as Minister of Lands and Agriculture?
From the beginning, Kangai’s case had its curious elements. He was arrested in March and charged with contravening the Prevention of Corruption Act. He is alleged to have siphoned off $228,4 million from the Grain Marketing Board (GMB), which falls under his ministry.
His permanent secretary and officials from the GMB were arrested around the same time. Kangai was freed on bail of $250 000. Shortly after that, it was rumoured he had committed suicide, rumours which he himself squelched by appearing looking hale and hearty on television.
Then came the drama: the Manicaland executive of his party, Zanu PF, apparently refused to let him enter the primaries for the June election, but he himself said President Mugabe had allowed him to stand in the party primaries in Buhera South. Subsequently, he was allowed to campaign and duly won the right to stand as the party’s parliamentary candidate for Buhera South, which he won in the election whose campaign had so much violence few people have endorsed it as totally free and fair.
So, now, Kangai is a Member of Parliament, although he stands accused of a very serious crime. He has tried to have the charges quashed, but the prosecution insists the case should go ahead.
Meanwhile, last Friday Joyce Mujuru, in her capacity as acting Minister of Lands and Agriculture, announced the producer price of maize, effectively putting paid to any claim by Kangai that he has bounced back into office.
What is not entirely clear is why Mugabe doesn’t step in to set the record straight.
If Kangai is back in office then the President ought to make a statement to that effect. Likewise, if Kangai is still out in the cold then the President should not permit him to get away with any false claims to the contrary.
After all, Cabinet ministers serve at the pleasure of the President.
It is appreciated that Mugabe still has to come to terms with the reality of the electoral disaster which his party suffered last month losing 55 of their seats in one election and that Zanu PF is still grappling with the internal battle over the appointment by Mugabe of the 12 non-constituency Members of Parliament in a situation where there are far less seats than there are Zanu PF politicians hoping to be included but life must still go on outside the upper echelons of the ruling party.
Mugabe has an unenviable task of building a new Cabinet. He must feel compelled to retain some of the aging loyalists rejected by the people at the polls. He must at the same time accommodate the younger MPs who have proved beyond doubt that they are worth their weight in gold to Zanu PF.
Then he obviously will feel obliged to reward those who, in his opinion, spearheaded the Zanu PF election campaign Chenjerai Hunzvi, Border Gezi, perhaps Jonathan Moyo. Then there is the dominant war veteran factor.
Hopefully Mugabe will resist the temptation to enlarge the Cabinet to accommodate all cases deemed to be deserving.
What is particularly worrying at the moment is that there is no sense of urgency anymore, as the government, from the President down to the most junior minister, seems preoccupied with their own political survival rather than the survival of the country.
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The born-frees have arrived

7/10/00 9:47:57 AM (GMT +2)

IN our African culture, elders are respected to the point of veneration.

They are regarded as the repositories of our traditions, customs, history and wisdom. This characteristic of our culture is sometimes misunderstood by some misguided elders. They fail to distinguish between respect and fear.
They also misunderstand the fact that elders are respected because of their dignity, experience and wisdom. They are not respected because of the fact that they are old.
If an old man is foolish or stupid he does not deserve respect. What he or she deserves is pity.
This misunderstanding that some old people have has played a big role in our under-development. Africans tend to muzzle the young or youthful in their discussions, philosophising and planning.
They, therefore, tend to lose their vibrant and creative thinking in running their affairs mostly in politics at national level.
As a boy, I enjoyed listening to adults discuss issues. Sometimes I would forget who I was and want to contribute to the discussion. In more cases than one an uncle would interrupt saying: “Nyarara iwe. Uri mwana muduku. Hapana zvaunoziva (Keep quiet. You are too young to know anything about this).”
This was very frustrating and I would mutter under my breath: “Stupid old illiterate goat!”
For me things have changed now. My opinion is sought in adult discussions because I have grandchildren and my beard has turned white.
Proved wisdom, education or technical ability don’t necessarily have anything to do with my new status. No wonder we have lagged behind in development as a people!
I am convinced that Zanu PF lost the election after plunging us into the economic morass we are in because it ignored its young people. Even the chairman of the Youth League, Josiah Tungamirai, is an old man who is well over the hump. One has to congratulate our young people for discerning the difference between respect and fear. They have boldly entered the fray in the political sphere, which used to be the domain of the elderly.
The MDC gave Zanu PF such a fierce run for its money because it is composed of mostly young people who are among the cream of our society in terms of intellectual acumen and moral integrity. They understand the economic imperatives facing the nation and articulated them clearly to the electorate, the majority of whom are under 25 years of age.
It is such a joy to watch the young people in the MDC, including a 24-year-old elected Member of Parliament, talk about their plans for the future of Zimbabwe. There is hope for us yet for the future of any nation lies in the hands of its young people. Our homes, schools and churches have nurtured a wonderful crop of such enterprising offspring that we can now look ahead with hope and confidence. We can now look forward to being part of the global village without any apprehension or fear now that the old-fashioned Takarwa Hondos (The We-fought-the-war Brigade) are on their way out. The signs clearly show that the next president of our republic will be a youthful, upright and articulate Zimbabwean who understands the nature of the international environment of which we are a part.
Thank God, the born-frees are of age. Watching and listening to these idealistic young people is both fascinating and gratifying. Among them is an aggressive elite who are intellectuals, technocrats and entrepreneurs either by training or natural bent.
They were not interested in politics per se but looked to politicians to supply the political requirements for visible economic and social development.
When they realised that the politicians were nothing but racist charismatic posturers who couldn’t deliver the goods, they took the bull by the horns and effectively challenged the Zanu PF government.
Lest somebody thinks that I just hate Zanu PF, let me assure them that I don’t, though the temptation has often been there. Some of my best friends are still members of that party, though for what reason I don’t know.
I would like to see some of the returned and new, not so old, Members of Parliament like Christopher Kuruneri, Francis Nhema, Herbert Murerwa, Olivia Muchena, Charles Ndhlovu, Phillip Chiyangwa and Saviours Kasukuwere given some real responsibilities so that they can work together with their colleagues in the MDC to formulate policies and strategies for the survival and prosperity of Zimbabwe.
My advice to the “Young Turks” in the new Parliament is: Keep out of business involvement. Be satisfied with your salaries and allowances.
Establishing and running businesses will sidetrack you from serving the people. Many Zanu PF leaders became removed from the people because they were busy making money. Some compromised themselves by flouting tender procedures and getting involved in all manner of corruption.
I am so excited, I can’t wait for the new Parliament to sit. I never used to read Hansard because it was not worth reading.
I only looked for a copy when I heard that Margaret Dongo had said something. Now, I will be an ardent reader because I am sure there will be fireworks in Parliament.
It is a pity that Dzikamai Mavhaire, Moses Mvenge and Michael Mataure could not make it back. They had so much to contribute.
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New cabinet this week

PRESIDENT Robert Mugabe is expected to appoint his long-overdue cabinet this week, with the millennium legislators expected to be sworn in on 18 July (Tuesday next week), The Standard learnt last night.

Although the director of information in the Office of the President and Cabinet, George Charamba, said he was not aware of the move, authoritative sources said last night that Mugabe himself confirmed on Thursday that he would name his cabinet this week, while the 150 parliamentarians would be sworn in on 18 July. “I can only confirm information that has been brought to my attention. In this case, I haven’t been informed about the appointment of the cabinet this week,” said Charamba.

But sources said last night Mugabe was going to name his cabinet on Thursday, and would make public the 12 non-constituency legislators at a Zanu PF meeting scheduled for Wednesday this week.

The announcement date for a new cabinet and for the swearing in of new parliamentarians came in the wake of questions that were asked Mugabe at a Zanu PF closed meeting last Thursday.

This paper has it on good authority that Chegutu legislator, Charles Ndhlovu, asked Mugabe when the cabinet was going to be appointed since the 2000 general election had been completed.

Mugabe told the meeting that vice president Joseph Msika, and local government and housing minister, John Nkomo, were already two of the 12 non-constituency MPs he had already picked.

Nkomo is the party’s national chairman. Msika was later was elevated to the post previously held by the late Dr Joshua Nkomo.

Msika and Nkomo refused to contest the June 2000 parliamentary election, arguing that their respective positions in Zanu PF were more important than seeking for a parliamentary ticket.

Mugabe is said to have told the meeting that he was under pressure from women who wanted to be included as non-constituency legislators.

Other likely politicians to be picked by Mugabe as non constituency MPs are: Dumiso Dabengwa, Emmerson Mnangagwa, Simon Khaya Moyo, Patrick Chimanasa, Thenjiwe Lesabe, Oppah Muchinguri, and leading banker, Gideon Gono.

On Thursday, The Standard understands that the new Chinhoyi legislator, Phillip Chiyangwa, complained that there were people in government who were failing to do their work properly. There was also mention of a lack of financial discipline, a complaint believed to have been targeted at the current finance minister, Dr Herbert Murerwa.

Although Mugabe has kept the nation guessing about his cabinet outfit, sources close to him said Mugabe was likely to retain Dabengwa as home affairs minister, while Mnangagwa was likely to be appointed as the security boss, a post that he held during the political disturbances in Matabeleland, with Dr Sydney Sekeramayi going to head the health ministry.

Sources say minister without portfolio, Eddison Zvobgo, who is the most ideal candidate for the justice ministry, after Mnangagwa’s defeat, might not get the job due to health problems.

Sources said the new cabinet to be appointed by Mugabe this week had been the biggest headache for the 76-year-old leader in the history of the country’s independence since 1980.

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Zanu PF councillor defects to MDC
Gibbs Dube

ZANU PF councillor and Gwanda East Zanu PF chairman Petros Mukwena has crossed the floor to join the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC). "I have decided, with immediate effect, to join the opposition party because of the humiliation I have suffered in the ruling party," he told The Zimbabwe Mirror this week.

"Just before the just-ended parliamentary elections, I was beaten up at Manama Rural Service Centre by my colleagues in the ruling party who suspected that I was campaigning for MDC.

"I don't want to be associated with Zanu PF anymore. It is a party of thugs," Mukwena said. "Despite the fact that I was elected councillor for ward nine in Gwanda on a Zanu PF ticket, I have decided to become an MDC councillor. As I speak right now, my new party has one councillor in Gwanda." The Urban Councils Act is silent on councillors who cross the floor.

Police in the Matabeleland South provincial capital confirmed that they received a report on Mukwena's assault and said investigations were in progress.

"We will soon arrest suspects in connection with this incident. It is now only a matter of time before we pick them up for questioning," said a police spokesman.

Mukwena claimed that his assailants, a war veteran and three top Zanu PF officials (names supplied), threatened to kill him for allegedly supporting and campaigning for the MDC.

He suffered head injuries in the attack and was admitted for three days at Manama Mission Hospital, 72 kilometres south of Gwanda.

"I am among the people who refused to accept the nomination of former Umzingwane MP Thenjiwe Lesabe to represent Zanu PF in the parliamentary elections in Gwanda North," he said.

"This did not go down well with the ruling party's leaders in Matabeleland South. Zanu PF supporters in Gwanda wrote a petition to President Robert Mugabe voicing their concern over the issue but nobody listened to our grievances." Lesabe, who is the ruling party secretary of the Women's League, was soundly beaten in Gwanda North constituency by Paul Themba Nyathi of the MDC.

"As a progressive citizen of this country and mature politician, said" Mukwena, "I have decided to leave Zanu PF in peace. I have not yet informed the ruling party about my decision …All that they can do is to read it in your newspaper or ignore it altogether.

"When I joined the ruling party from PF Zapu, I never announced my presence. Now that I am leaving the ruling party, I should do the same. My contract with Zanu PF has expired," he said.

"I am on record as having said that I don't want to be associated with parties that impose candidates in any election. Top Zanu PF officials are specialists in this.

"To make matters worse," said Mukwena, "the ruling party continues to recycle politicians, making Matabeleland a political museum. To some of us, the party is working against the will of the people." Both MDC and Zanu PF officials were not available for comment.

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Massive funding fuelled MDC campaign
Constantine Chimakure

The opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) spent well over $100 million in its glitzy campaign to dislodge Zanu PF in the just-ended parliamentary elections, The Zimbabwe Mirror has learnt.

However, the total amount raised for the campaign is estimated by some sources at around $600 million.

The money came mostly from commercial farmers and local businesspeople who grouped to form the Zimbabwe Business Initiative (ZBI), co-ordinated by Marco Garizio.

External well-wishers also made donations that were deposited in the party’s trust fund which was launched last December.

The fund maintains bank accounts in Zimbabwe, Australia, South Africa and the United Kingdom.

Judith Todd, a director of The Daily News, retired judge Washington Sansole, former University of Zimbabwe vice-chancellor Gordon Chavunduka, UZ sociology lecturer Marvellous Mhloyi and the MDC deputy secretary-general Gift Chimanikire are the fund’s trustees.

"I can’t say how much we raised because this is a sensitive issue, but our campaign cost us over Z$100 million," Garizio said this week.

He said the money was raised from well-wishers spread around the world.

Sources estimating the amount raised to be in the region of Z$600 million claim that the money came mainly from some Nordic countries, international organisations, local farmers and businesspeople.

Information on the party’s website clearly states that the trustees are the administrators of the trust fund:

"All queries concerning the trust and its operation should be addressed to the trustees. The Trust Deed is available for inspection, by contacting the trustees.

"Pricewaterhouse Coopers have been retained to provide independent professional accounting services to the trust on a commercial basis. They are primarily responsible for banking all donations and presenting accounts to the trustees."

This week Todd professed total ignorance on how much the fund raised and used in campaigning.

"I am a trustee of the fund but I am not aware of the amount raised," said Todd, referring further questions to the MDC treasurer, Fletcher Dulini Ncube, who could not be reached by time of going to press.

Contacted for comment yesterday, Chavunduka confirmed that he was a trustee. "I was approached and agreed but there was no further communication between me and them."

Asked how much the MDC raised for campaigning he retorted: "Ask MDC’s finance department. I don’t know anything about it."

According to information on the party’s website, the MDC in Zimbabwe has two accounts, one for cheques and the other (account number 0014-003-8578601) for cash donations maintained at Stanbic Bank and operating under the name "MDC Support Centre".

In Australia the party operates account number 10183641 with the Commonwealth Bank under the name Friends of MDC, while in the UK the party holds account number 71070397 with the National Westminster Bank under the tag "MDC Trust UK".

In South Africa, the MDC has an account (number 9325388) with the Cape of Good Hope Bank using the name "ZIMSA Trust".

Alastair Abrahams and the son of the late former Zimbabwe minister of National Scholarships Senator Joseph Culverwell, Eldridge, are the contact persons in the UK for MDC’s fundraising.

Contacted by this reporter by telephone last night, Abrahams declined to disclose the amount raised by the MDC’s UK branch insisting that he needed to establish the identity of the caller first.

"I don’t think we will deal with this issue over the telephone. We have to establish who you are first," said Abrahams. "It is not an issue we can discuss, I am sorry."

The Swedish ambassador to Zimbabwe, Lennart Hjelmaker, distanced his country from funding the MDC and any other political parties in the world.

"Our policy is very clear. We don’t support political parties as a government," he said last night.

Responding to assertions that some Nordic countries poured in a total of $200 million towards the MDC campaign, Hjelmaker flatly declined to comment. "I cannot speak on behalf of other countries."

In the pre-election period, the MDC came under scathing attacks from Zanu PF for accepting foreign funds, especially from ex-Rhodesians and the local commercial farmers.

Zanu PF’s attacks came amid reports that it too was being funded by former Rhodesians.

The South African Mail & Guardian quoted a British business tycoon, Nicholas Hoogstraten, in May saying he had been funding individual Zanu PF politicians in return for the safety of his properties in Zimbabwe.

He claimed to have begun funding the ruling party since the 1960s when he acquired land in Zimbabwe.

In April, a New York black human rights organisation, the December 12th movement, launched the "Friends of Zanu PF" fundraising campaign.

Zanu PF is also believed to have received campaign funding from Libya.

Apart from the foreign funds, the ruling party last year received Z$65 million from the exchequer under the Political Parties Finance Act.

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MDC in secret talks with IMF, World Bank

Caiphas Chimhete

The opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) last month held secret discussions with local representatives of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank "to discuss the economic future of the country."

MDC economic affairs committee chairman, Eddie Cross, who declined to give further details on the discussions, said apart from analysing the country’s economy, the meeting also served as an opportunity to review the party’s recovery programme after the parliamentary elections.

"Ours was just an informal discussion with the IMF and World Bank in the context of restructuring MDC’s economic recovery programme," said Cross, who is an economist by profession.

A senior official in one of the two Bretton Woods institutions confirmed that the MDC approached them to "brief us on the country’s economic situation and how they see the way forward".

Asked if it was normal for the two institutions to hold such meetings with the opposition, the official, who did not want to be named, said: "Wherever we go we listen to different views; whether from the ruling party or from the opposition.

"I think they came to us because they thought we might be interested in knowing their views about the economy and how they wish to tackle the crisis," said the official.

He added that the two institutions were waiting, among other things, for the appointment of the new cabinet before considering resuming discussions on aid to Zimbabwe.

Last year, the IMF withheld US$193 million (about Z$7,3 billion) in aid to Zimbabwe, due to among other reasons, the government’s failure to disclose how it could sustain Zimbabwe’s onerous military involvement in the Democratic Republic of Congo without having to drain resources from the Treasury.

The World Bank also withheld the release of a US$140 million (Z$5,5 billion) structural adjustment credit (SAC) facility in August 1999. This facility would have been followed by two further SACs amounting to US$340 million over three years.

Cross estimated that Zimbabwe would need about US$1,5 billion (about Z$57 billion) to stabilise the national economy. "How that money would be secured is the work of the government and the donors," he said.

He added that provided Zimbabwe gets the US$1,5 billion injection, it would take about six months for the economy to stabilise "and a year before we could expect the resumption of economic growth."

Cross said the money would be enough to service the country’s immediate debts, including those owed by the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (Zesa) to its major power suppliers in the region. "Zesa owes up to Z$120 million through power imports, part-line operations and port charges."

Zimbabwe imports power mainly from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Mozambique and South Africa.

Cross also expected the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to decline by 10 percent or more this year.

He said the fall in GDP was directly linked to the general downturn of business activities, farm invasions by war veterans and decline in tourism.

"The present situation is the worst economic crisis in our country and it appears we are heading for further disaster," said Cross.

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