http://www.thestandard.co.zw
July 21, 2013 in Local, News,
Politics
SADC troika leaders were last night locked up in a crisis
meeting in
Pretoria, South Africa to discuss the hurdles affecting
Zimbabwe’s electoral
processes ahead of next week’s harmonised
polls.
REPORT BY PATRICE MAKOVA
The meeting of the presidents of
Mozambique, Tanzania and Angola with
President Jacob Zuma, the Sadc
appointed facilitator for Zimbabwe, came one
day after the African Union
Peace and Security Council also met in Addis
Ababa, Ethiopia.
The
Council discussed the pending elections in Zimbabwe, Madagascar, Mali
and
Togo.
Zuma’s international relations advisor, Lindiwe Zulu yesterday
confirmed the
regional body’s Pretoria meeting.
“I can confirm that
the leaders are meeting this evening [yesterday] to
discuss reports
submitted by the political parties,” she said.
Earlier last week, Zulu
said preparations for elections in Zimbabwe were
“not looking
good”.
She said Zuma had called President Robert Mugabe to tell him he
was not
pleased with the run-up to the poll on July 31.
MDC-T
secretary for international affairs, Jameson Timba said although the
Troika
leaders were meeting on their own, his party made its submissions on
Friday
to update Sadc on the developments taking place in the country.
Timba,
who is also the minister of state in Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s
office, said the key issues raised by his party included the shambolic
manner in which last week’s special voting exercise for the uniformed forces
was conducted and concerns regarding the credibility of the voters
roll.
“But most importantly, we underscored that we were vindicated with
respect
to the practicability of the July 31 election date,” he said. “What
happened
with the special voting proves we were right. The country needed
time to
adequately prepare for a free and fair election.”
Timba said
the MDC-T would stand guided by the deliberations and decision of
last
night’s Troika meeting. Sources said the meeting was likely to discuss
the
recent Sadc Maputo resolution which ordered Mugabe to approach the
Constitutional Court (ConCourt) to extend the July 31 deadline to hold
harmonised elections.
The ConCourt however rejected the application
insisting elections be held on
the proclaimed date.
Most resolutions
by Sadc at the Maputo summit were never implemented by
Mugabe casting doubt
on whether the meeting’s recommendations would be
adhered to, in order to
level the electoral playing field.
Concerns have been raised over poll
preparations with Treasury saying
funding had not yet been
secured.
The special vote was marred by administrative and logistical
challenges,
resulting in over 40 000 out of the 69 000 registered failing to
cast their
ballots. Sadc is the guarantor of the GNU and does not want a
repeat of the
2008 scenario where elections were disputed.
Meanwhile,
the AU Peace and Security Council said it looked forward to the
successful
conducting of free, fair and transparent elections in Zimbabwe.
In a
communiqué after its meeting on Friday, the Council said it welcomed
the
on-going deployment of AU election observers in the country.
It called on
all political stakeholders in countries heading for elections
to take the
necessary steps to conduct peaceful, credible and timely
elections in order
to reduce political tensions on the continent.
“Council welcomes the
generally peaceful and calm political atmosphere in
Zimbabwe in the run-up
to elections scheduled for 31 July 2013 and commends
the efforts of the
Government of National Unity to this effect,” said the
AU.
“Council
commends Zimbabwe on a successful referendum and the coming into
force of a
new Constitution. Council further welcomes the expressed
commitment to
peaceful elections by all the stakeholders in the country and
urges all of
them to positively contribute to holding free, fair and
transparent
elections on 31 July 2013.”
Justice minister, Patrick Chinamasa
represented Zimbabwe at the Council
meeting. His mobile phone was
unavailable yesterday.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
July 21, 2013 in Local, News,
Politics
CANDIDATES from across the political divide continue to pitch
their
individual manifestos as the July 31 harmonised elections reach the
home
stretch.
REPORT BY PATRICE MAKOVA
The candidates continue
to make promises, most of which appear hard to
fulfil.
Acie Mutumanje
Lumumba is one of the youthful leaders contesting the
elections.
The
25-year-old Zimbabwe Youth Council chairperson for Harare is
representing
Zanu PF in the Hatfield Constituency.
He will contest MDC-T deputy
secretary general and Economic Planning and
Investment Promotion minister,
Tapiwa Mashakada, Paul Mushonga of MDC and
Tarwirei Chadambura of
UMD.
Lumumba, who calls himself the miracle baby of Zanu PF, said he is
not
afraid of heavyweights, having won his party’s primary elections in a
tight
contest.
He won by two votes against eight other candidates,
among them a provincial
Zanu PF Harare Province Secretary for Education,
Last Mbizvo and Danny
Masukume, an economic analyst.
However,
Lumumba’s name does not sound Zimbabwean and he contested the party
primaries without the relevant qualifications.
He said he was a
first-generation Zimbabwean having been born in Hatfield to
a Zimbabwean
mother and father of Congolese origin.
He was allowed to contest the Zanu
PF primary elections although he has not
served in the party for five
consecutive years as was stipulated in the
primary poll guidelines. Lumumba
said after presentations were made to the
Harare provincial leadership, he
was given a waiver to contest.
“I am stubbornly Zanu PF and what I am is
a reflection of the party in 2013.
We have redefined ourselves and at least
25 youths below the age of 35 in
Harare alone are contesting on a Zanu PF
ticket,” said Lumumba.
But asked why Zanu PF invested in 89-year-old
President Robert Mugabe
instead of opting for a younger and more energetic
candidate, Lumumba said
age was of no consequence.
“Zanu PF does not
select its leaders based on age. Mugabe was selected
because of his ability
to get the job done. People are not going to vote for
his age, but his
ability and the trust they have in him,” he said.
If elected, Lumumba
said his priority was the basic restoration of community
services and
providing a platform for constituents to air their views.
He said roads,
schools, street lights and community facilities in the
constituency needed
attention. Lumumba said Hatfield should benefit from its
vicinity to the
Harare International Airport by creating jobs, constructing
shopping malls,
hotels and industries.
The youth leader said he was inspired to join
politics by the
“revolutionary” path Mugabe had taken.
He said Youth
Development, Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment minister,
Saviour
Kasukuwere mentored him for the past five years. Lumumba said
Prophet Uebert
Angel was his spiritual guide.
Former student leader and MDC-T national
executive responsible for
Mashonaland West Province, Chalton Hwende is
representing his party in
Chegutu West.
He faces it off with Zanu
PF’s Dexter Nduna, Tagwireyi Ngwenya of MDC and
Ernest Mudimu, an
independent.
Hwende said he wanted to see a better Chegutu and spearhead
its development.
“It is time to bring an oasis of living to Chegutu West.
I promise to be
held liable wherever there is my signature. Over and above
all, I promise to
bring change to Chegutu West in line with the broad vision
of the MDC-T,” he
said.
Hwende said his major priorities included
ensuring that every home in
Chegutu receives clean water supply, and
facilitation of the opening up of
industries.
“Unemployment in
Chegutu is high and so industry has to open. I will work
tirelessly to
market my constituency to attract investment so that companies
like David
Whitehead can open and operate to full capacity. This will create
jobs and
opportunities for a lot of people,” he said.
Hwende said road
infrastructure in Chegutu needed a complete overhaul. “The
roads are
terrible. I will work hard with the responsible ministry to ensure
that a
good road infrastructure is put in place. I will also work hard for
the
electrification of communities that are not yet connected with
electricity.”
‘MY ZIMPAPERS CASE WAS BLOWN OUT OF
PROPORTION’
Lumumba at one time worked for Star FM radio as political
anchor, but left
unceremoniously.
Zimpapers announced the suspension
of Lumumba and head of programmes Tichafa
Matambanadzo over allegations of
irregularities involving the transaction of
advertising revenue.
But
Lumumba down-played the case saying both himself and Star FM mutually
agreed
to terminate their relationship after a “business disagreement”.
He said
the case was blown out of proportion by the media, adding no
criminal
charges were ever pressed against him. “I love Star FM and I hope
they also
do the same,” said Lumumba.
Residents will control their council revenue:
Chimbiri
Henry Chimbiri is an executive member of the Professor Welshman
Ncube-led
MDC.
He is contesting the Budiriro seat. Chimbiri described
himself as courageous
having worked for the united MDC information centre
where he documented
information on victims of political violence and
torture.
Chimbiri was arrested over 30 times since 1999 and was violently
assaulted
by State security agents. In 2002, he was assaulted by the
suspected
intelligence agents in front of schoolchildren and fellow teachers
and was
left for dead at Mukai High School, Highfield.
This was after
he had contested the Mt. Darwin South seat in 2000. He was
eventually
dismissed from his teaching post for being an MDC activist while
working as
a civil servant under a Zanu PF government.
Chimbiri said having lived in
Budiriro for over 18 years, he has first-hand
experience on the challenges
facing residents.
“I will overcome the challenges in Budiriro using the
MDC’s Actions for
Devolution through participatory people-centred
leadership,” said Chimbiri.
He said if elected, every child would have
access to affordable education
through the Basic Education Assistance Module
(Beam).
He said residents would control their Council revenue for quality
clinics,
roads and water.
“Chimbiri will encourage women, young
people and investors to have an
initiative in creating jobs and employment
opportunities in new home
industries. A new Constituency Development
Committee will be the first step
in the organisation of Budiriro communities
towards real development,” said
the aspiring MP.
He is in the race
for the Budiriro seat together with Costa Machingauta of
MDC-T, Andrew Nkani
of Zanu PF, Shepherd Manganda of UMD and Douglas
Muzanenhamo of MCD.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
July 21, 2013 in News, Politics
FEARS
abound that Zimbabwe could have another disputed election outcome if
the
Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) fails to address logistical problems
that characterised last week’s special ballot, analysts have
warned.
REPORT BY CAIPHAS CHIMHETE
They also expressed serious
reservations about the electoral management body’s
capacity, in the absence
of enough funding 10 days before the poll date, to
deliver credible
elections.
Recently ZEC — which had over the past months claimed that it
was ready for
the elections — failed to conduct a special vote for 69 000
people, leaving
at least more than half of them unable to cast their
ballots.
If the election management body failed to conduct an election
for 69 000
voters in two days, the analysts reasoned, it will be foolhardy
to expect it
to successfully manage a poll for about 6 million people in 12
hours.
The special voting process failed to commence at most designated
polling
stations due to a shortage of ballot boxes, stationery and ZEC’s
failure to
timeously deliver the special voting
certificates.
Analysts said the whole election process was poorly
planned, plagued by
irregularities and under-funding.
As of
yesterday, Finance minister Tendai Biti was still to secure adequate
funding
for the elections to be held on July 31. On Friday, he accused
Justice
minister, Patrick Chinamasa of frustrating the election process, an
allegation Zanu PF has also raised against the Prime Minister, Morgan
Tsvangirai’s MDC-T.
“We gave US$20 million to [ZEC] on Monday for the
actual elections after
giving out US$11 million last week,” said Biti. “We
don’t have resources at
the moment.
We are not happy with the issue
of diamonds.”
ZEC has budgeted US$130 million for the harmonised
elections.
University of Zimbabwe political science lecturer, Shakespeare
Hamauswa said
the credibility of the July 31 elections hinged on how ZEC
addressed the
mistakes it encountered during the special
ballot.
“This was the first time that special votes were done outside the
police
stations,” he said. “So the credibility of the elections will depend
on how
ZEC addresses these issues.”
Govt should tackle election
challenges urgently: CCDZ
University of Zimbabwe political science
lecturer, Shakespeare Hamauswa said
ZEC should exploit the absence of
political violence that characterised the
2008 elections to ensure a
credible and an internationally-recognised poll.
The MDC-T has said at
least 200 of its supporters were killed by Zanu PF and
State security agents
during the 2008 violent poll.
But Zanu PF has dismissed the
allegations.
The Centre for Community Development in Zimbabwe (CCDZ) has
urged government
to convene a Cabinet meeting and try to address the
problems affecting the
smooth running of the electoral process ahead of the
elections.
The civic organisation monitored the two-day special voting
exercise across
the country.
“There is urgent need for government to
avail funds to ZEC and strengthen
the electoral management body and build
technical capacity of this
institution to preserve the country’s democratic
processes,” said CCDZ in a
statement.
Sadc leaders last month in
Mozambique urged President Robert Mugabe to ask
the Constitutional Court
(ConCourt) to extend by two weeks the July 31
deadline for the holding of
elections.
This was after the MDC formations and civil society
organisations complained
to the regional body that the country was not ready
for elections, noting
that reforms to level the electoral playing field had
not been effected.
The ConCourt, however, dismissed the application,
insisting that the polls
be held on July 31 as earlier ordered.
ZEC
last week denied it was partisan insisting that it was a professional
body
and reiterated its commitment to holding fee and fair elections next
week.
“Commissioners and staff of ZEC have different backgrounds but
they are all
required to be and to date have been impartial in the discharge
of their
duties,” said ZEC in a statement. “The Commission remains committed
to
conducting free and fair elections on 31 July 2013.”
‘ZIM HEADING
FOR ANOTHER SHAM POLL’
Political analyst, Phillip Pasirayi said ZEC
lacked capacity to deliver a
credible poll.
He said there was need to
build capacity and offer technical assistance to
the body, including
removing from its ranks those partisan individuals
associated with the
election debacle of 2008.
“Without addressing these challenges, I am
afraid to say that the next
elections are a mere self-legitimating ritual no
different from the previous
elections,” said Pasirayi. “Judging by the chaos
that we witnessed during
the special voting exercise, the country is headed
for another sham election
whose outcome will not reflect the will of the
people.”
OBAMA CALLS FOR CALM AFTER ZIMMERMAn ACQUITTAL
ANFORD,
Florida — US President Barack Obama called for calm after the
acquittal of
George Zimmerman in the shooting death of black teenager
Trayvon Martin, as
hundreds of civil rights demonstrators turned out at
rallies to condemn
racial profiling.
Zimmerman, cleared Saturday last week by a Florida jury
of six women in the
shooting to death of the unarmed Martin, still faces
public outrage, a
possible civil suit and demands for a federal
investigation.
In Washington, the US Justice Department said it was
evaluating whether it
has enough evidence to support prosecution of
Zimmerman in federal court
after his acquittal in Florida.
Civil
rights activists have been pressuring the Obama administration to
bring
civil rights charges in federal court. Critics contend Zimmerman
wrongly
suspected 17-year-old Martin of being a criminal because he was
black,
making it a civil rights issue. At a rally in New York’s Union
Square, more
than 200 protesters turned out chanting “No justice, no peace” — Reuters
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
July 21, 2013 in Local,
News, Politics
RENOWNED human rights lawyer and MDC-T parliamentary
candidate for
Chikanga-Dangamvura constituency, Arnold Tsunga together with
50 party
supporters were on Friday arrested for participating in an illegal
procession.
REPORT BY OBEY MANAYITI
They were released
yesterday after paying US$20 admission of guilty fine.
They spent one night
in police custody.
Tsunga and some party supporters were detained at
Dangamvura Police Station
while the others were at Mutare Central Police
station.
Passmore Nyabureba, who was representing the 50, said his
clients were
accused of participating in a procession with about four
vehicles in
Dangamvura Ward 6 without authorisation from police.
“The
procession was diverted by anti-riot police at around 4pm and they were
diverted to Dangamvura Police station where police said they wanted to talk
to them and release them,” said Nyabureba. “When I arrived there in the
company of Tinoziva Bere, we were told they were charged with participating
in a procession without authorisation.
He added: “However, when they
were detained, the report record book and
detention book indicated they were
charged with criminal nuisance.”
Party’s spokesperson, Douglas Mwonzora
slammed the arrest saying police were
now acting in a partisan
manner.
“The arrest of MDC officials and candidates is a plot by Zanu PF
to try and
further the divisions within the MDC. We see no reason in
particular why Mr
Tsunga was arrested by the police. The fact of the matter
is that he was
arrested by pro-Zanu PF police,” said Mwonzora.
Tsunga
together with former MP, Giles Mutsekwa both filed papers to
represent MDC-T
in the elections slated for July 31.
The MDC-T has failed to be decisive
on who should represent the party.
Efforts to get a comment from the
police were fruitless yesterday but they
have on several occasions denied
being partisan.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
July 21, 2013 in Local, News,
Politics
THE presidential election is now just 10 days away, and barring
any
unforeseeable mishaps, Zimbabweans will soon know who is going to occupy
the
State House for the next five years.
REPORT BY PATRICE
MAKOVA
The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) has promised it will
announce the
result of the presidential election within five days, after the
poll.
The top contenders in the watershed polls are President Robert
Mugabe of
Zanu PF whose 33-year rule is under threat from Prime Minister
Morgan
Tsvangirai of MDC-T.
The smaller formation of the MDC led by
Professor Welshman Ncube is however
warning of an upset.
Analysts say
if Mugabe wins, no radical transformation is expected, while a
victory by
Tsvangirai may change the course of the nation forever.
Political
analyst, Gift Mambipiri said a Zanu PF win would likely set the
country on
an edge for the next six or more months until the party settles
its
succession matrix.
He said in the meantime, the destiny of the country
would be tied to the
fate of the party’s leadership dynamics.
“The
succession debate has proved to be a hot potato over the years. It is
now a
time bomb. The formula used to solve this succession equation, and the
result, will determine whether we proceed to Canaan [freedom], or regress to
Egypt [bondage],” said Mambipiri. But, he said, the odds were heavily
stacked against a clean succession formula.
Mambipiri sees the
succession flames being stoked from deep within the party
even after a Zanu
PF win, warning “those flames will consume every other
part of our national
fabric.”
Two factions in Zanu PF are battling to succeed 89-year-old
Mugabe. One is
loyal to vice-President Joice Mujuru and the other has links
to Defence
minister Emmerson Mnangagwa.
Both Mujuru and Mnangagwa
have however repeatedly denied leading factions or
harbouring presidential
ambitions. Mambipiri said if the MDC-T wins,
Tsvangirai would be lucky to
assume power.
He said if he does, nothing material would change in the
development
discourse of the country in the first years, because Zanu PF has
in the last
33 years spread its wings into every other aspect of people’s
lives.
“To ‘de-Zanunise’ the state structures to facilitate a new
governance
language will be a mammoth task, yet the country desperately
needs to chart
a new course,” said Mambipiri.
University of Zimbabwe
political science lecturer, Shakespear Hamauswa said
a win by either of the
two main candidates was tricky.
However, he said Tsvangirai had better
potential as he has been learning
from Zanu PF’s mistakes. Hamauswa said
with Tsvangirai’s “commitment” to
curb corruption and promote good
governance, a new and transformed Zimbabwe
was possible.
“He has been
in government under the shadow of Zanu PF, thus given the
chance to rule
alone the systems of governance will be transformed for the
better,” he
said.
Hamauswa said the MDC-T was unlikely to issue “reckless” statements
that
would invite the security chiefs to the electoral process like what
they did
in 2008.
He said if the MDC-T was prepared to give a safe
exit package to the Zanu PF
hardliners and security chiefs, stability would
be guaranteed.
“Thus they have to be strong enough to tell the world that
an eye for an eye
will not be possible in Zimbabwe. A gradual reform will
make MDC’s rule and
governance easier,” said the political
scientist.
He said the international community was unlikely to endorse
Mugabe’s
victory, especially considering the chaotic special voting
process.
Hamauswa said Zanu PF was likely to further frighten potential
investors,
not only foreign, but also domestic ones.
He said no one
would invest in a country where polices were not predictable.
“In terms
of bringing the much needed change to the country, Zanu PF is
promising
nothing, this is clear from their campaign message on television
that is
full of hate and derogatory statements,” said Hamauswa.
“Besides deriding
Tsvangirai, we are not aware as to what the Zanu PF
government will have for
media reforms, for home-seekers or for civil
servants.”
He said Zanu
PF also threatened to bring back the Zimbabwean dollar and to
pull out of
Sadc, a move that would further alienate the country from the
community of
nations.
“So a country with friends from the East only will not be able
to survive
economically, it will be like putting all eggs into one basket,”
said
Hamauswa.
The Zanu PF manifesto focuses on indigenisation and
economic empowerment,
promising to create 2,2 million jobs over the next
five years by unlocking
value from idle assets worth at least US$1,8
trillion of mineral claims or
reserves.
The MDC-T manifesto on the
other hand, promises to create one million jobs
by 2018 and a US$100 billion
economy by 2014.
It focuses on investment entrepreneurship, job creation,
rural development
and poverty alleviation.
zanu pf win will not
change much — analyst
Commenting on the possible outcomes of the
elections, political analyst
Tamuka Chirimambowa said a Mugabe win would see
the continuation of the
current indigenisation and economic empowerment
polices which were
benefitting only the elite and those closely connected to
Zanu PF.
He said on the other hand, if Tsvangirai won, his government was
likely to
opt for a broad-based empowerment programme as espoused in the
MDC-T’s
Agenda for Real Transformation (ART) and Jobs, Upliftment,
Investment,
Capital and Environment (Juice) economic
plan.
Chirimambowa said the MDC-T was talking of both investment and
creation of
jobs as not everyone has the capacity to start a
company.
“It’s a fallacy to say that everyone can own a company. You need
to strike a
balance between creating jobs and investment,” he said.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
July 21, 2013 in Local, News,
Politics
THE opening and verification of the special votes by the
Zimbabwe Electoral
Commission (ZEC) continued yesterday and was expected to
be completed by end
of day.
REPORT BY OUR STAFF
ZEC officials
yesterday however said sorting of the ballots in accordance
with their
destination would take longer.
The team on Friday battled to finish their
work and only wrapped up for the
day in the early hours of
yesterday.
By lunchtime yesterday, boxes from Harare, Bulawayo, Masvingo,
Manicaland,
Mashonaland (East, North, Central) and Matabeleland had been
opened. A total
of 4 108 votes were recorded, while 398 ballots were
unclaimed.
Meanwhile, some observers were keen to know what would happen
to unclaimed
ballots.
A ZEC official said they would be destroyed
after the elections.
“The unclaimed ballots will not be opened but will
be destroyed after the
election. For some reason, these were not opened at
their respective
stations. It could be that they arrived late,” the official
told observers
at the Harare International Conference Centre (HICC)
yesterday.
ZEC chief elections officer, Lovemore Sekeramayi on Friday
said the process
had gone well.
He said it was impossible to rig
elections under such a transparent process.
ZEC however, has received
wide criticism for the botched special voting
process which resulted in many
failing to vote.
Only about half of the 69 000 government personnel
managed to cast their
ballots in two days under the special voting ahead of
the July 31 elections
date.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
July 21, 2013 in Local, News,
Politics
BULAWAYO — Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai yesterday said next
week’s
elections were a do or die poll where people would choose between
“darkness
and prosperity”.
The elections will be held on July
31.
BY SILAS NKALA & NQOBANI NDLOVU
Addressing several
thousands of party supporters in White City Stadium in
Bulawayo, Tsvangirai
urged people to vote for MDC-T which he described as
the party for the
future.
The MDC-T leader said Zanu PF was clueless on how to end
deep-seated
suffering faced by Zimbabweans.
It is estimated that over
85% of the country’s population is living in
abject poverty.
“What
can they [Zanu PF] do in the next five years that they failed to in
the last
33 years?,” Tsvangirai told thousands of cheering party supporters.
“Zanu
PF is clueless and voting Zanu PF will be retrogressive. The July 31
election is a choice between darkness and prosperity for generations and
generations to come.”
He added: “President [Robert] Mugabe should be
grateful to the Sadc who
rescued him after losing the 2008
election.”
Tsvangirai said future generations will remember Mugabe and
Zanu PF for
destroying the country’s economy. He said the MDC-T will be
known for saving
the country from total collapse.
“Mugabe’s legacy is
not about the role that he played during the liberation
struggle; his legacy
will be his record in government since 1980. He will be
remembered for
causing the suffering of Zimbabweans,” said Tsvangirai. “The
MDC-T entered
into a unity government in 2008 to rescue Zimbabweans and save
the
country.”
The Prime Minister promised to re-industrialise Bulawayo and
develop the
whole of Matabeleland region that has faced years of neglect and
underdevelopment. Thousands of companies have closed shop in Bulawayo in the
past decade.
“The MDC-T has a plan to rescue Zimbabwe from a quagmire
of poverty,
quagmire of corruption, quagmire of impunity and quagmire of
lack of
accountability. At least 10% of the national budget will be set
aside for
the development of Matabeleland region,” said the MDC-T
leader.
He promised to make Bulawayo “a free economic zone” that would
attract
investment and lead to the re-opening of companies and
industries.
“Industrialisation cannot take place when there is no
efficient railway
system. The MDC-T will rehabilitate the railway system as
part of the
industrialisation policy,” he said.
Tsvangirai indicated
that the MDC-T would ensure that victims of Gukurahundi
were compensated
“because the scars will remain with us forever”.
An estimated 20 000
people from Midlands and Matabeleland regions were
killed by North-Korean
trained Fifth Brigade during the Gukurahundi era in
the
1980s.
Earlier on, Elizabeth Macheka, the premiers’ wife called on the
people to
shun political violence and urged Tsvangirai not to take for
granted the
support that he is receiving from Zimbabweans.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
July 21, 2013 in Local, News,
Politics
TOURISM and Hospitality Industry minister, Walter Mzembi said he
had been
vindicated in calling for caution on the Save Valley Conservancy as
some of
the invaders had been rejected by the electorate during Zanu PF’s
primary
elections.
REPORT BY NDAMU SANDU
Last year, Zanu PF
heavyweights such as the late Higher and Tertiary
Education minister, Stan
Mudenge and Masvingo provincial governor, Titus
Maluleke among others
invaded the conservancy.
Others included former legislators, Roni Ndava
(Chiredzi North), Ailess
Baloyi (Chiredzi South), Abraham Sithole (Chiredzi
East) and War veterans’
leader, Joseph Chinotimba.
They were later
given 25-year leases by the National Parks and Wildlife
Management
Authority.
“The Save Valley saga claimed four [potential] MPs in Chiredzi
— governor
Maluleke, Ronnie Ndava, Baloyi and Sithole — who were championing
it but
were rejected by the people. It seems there must have been something
people
found,” Mzembi said.
“The sum total of it is that this
wildlife-based reform programme as
originally conceived, that is, the
empowerment of individuals, is extremely
unpopular. The people are in favour
of a broad-based empowerment model and
that’s how they have spoken through
our primary election.”
Mzembi’s remarks are likely to set him on a
collision course with Zanu PF
colleagues who had been pushing to take over
the conservancy, a wildlife
conservation leader in Zimbabwe.
In
February, Maluleke told President Robert Mugabe he wondered why the
conservancy was spared from the indigenisation crusade.
“We are
skeptical why Save Valley alone is defiant to indigenisation. Our
concern is
why Save alone among all the four conservancies in the country,”
Maluleke
told Mugabe at the belated annual Chiefs Council in Masvingo.
Maluleke’s
number was barred from incoming calls yesterday.
Last year’s invasion of
the conservancy by Zanu PF bigwigs and securocrats,
after getting 25-year
leases and hunting quotas from the Parks and Wildlife
Management Authority,
was widely condemned and viewed as another platform by
the connected few to
amass wealth. The new owners were accused of poaching
animals.
The
matter spilled into Cabinet with Mugabe booting out the new owners and
putting in place a cabinet committee to resolve the issue.
Mzembi
told tourism stakeholders last week the Save Valley saga would not
have
happened had environment and tourism been one ministry.
Stakeholders had
asked Mzembi whether it was possible to lobby for the
amalgamation of the
ministries of Tourism and Hospitality Industry and
Environment and Natural
Resources Management to avoid the chaos that took
place in the
conservancy.
Mzembi said the allocation of ministries was the prerogative
of the
President but the industry can lobby if they wanted the two
ministries to be
amalgamated.
Before the consummation of the inclusive
government, tourism and environment
was under one ministry.
Mzembi
said his interventions in the Save Valley saga had inspired him to do
an
academic research for his doctorate under the title An Exploratory Study
of
Regional Conservation Governance Dynamics in the Kavango-Zambezi
Transfrontier Conservation Area.
‘Save conservancy, primaries
distinct issues’
Ailess Baloyi told The Standard yesterday Zanu PF
primaries and the
developments at Save Valley Conservancy were two distinct
issues and he was
still at the conservancy in line with a court ruling that
said they were the
rightful owners of the place.
“There is nothing in
connection with that. We never took that issue [Save
Valley conservancy] to
the people,” he said.
Baloyi said his defeat in the primaries could be “a
result of money flowing
around” but pledged to support Zanu PF in the
forthcoming polls.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
July 21, 2013 in Community
News
LONG-forgotten Zimbabwe dollar notes are back in “circulation” in
Victoria
Falls, where they are being sold by curios vendors to
tourists.
REPORT BY MUSA DUBE
A visit by Standardcommunity to the
resort town last week revealed an
interesting scenario where some foreign
tourists were scrambling to buy
long-discarded Zim dollar notes.
The
vendors said they expected the demand for the Zim dollar to pick up in
August during the United Nations World Tourism (UNWTO) general
assembly.
“I have already stocked up on large amounts of Zim dollar notes
ahead of the
meeting, where I expect to record brisk business by selling
them to
visitors,” said one of the traders.
A lot of foreign tourists
are expected to attend the meeting which is being
co-hosted by Zimbabwe and
Zambia from August 24 to 29.
One of the traders, Jonas Mudimba said the
Zim dollar was selling like hot
cakes to wallet-touting tourists who wanted
to show them to their friends
and relatives back in their
countries.
“We are making lots of money by selling Zim dollar notes to
foreign
tourists. They want to use them for various reasons. some keep them
as a
memento,” said Mudimba.
He said prices for the worthless dollars
were negotiable.
“There is no fixed price. We can sell a 100 trillion
dollar note for any
negotiated price,” he said.
However, inquiries by
Standardcommunity revealed that a $100 trillion
Zimdollar note was going for
between US$5 and US$50, depending on one’s
marketing skills.
Tourist
arrivals in the country have picked up significantly ahead of the
UNWTO
meeting.
One of the tourist said she was fascinated by the Zim dollar
note and would
want to keep it as a souvenir.
“I want to use Zimbabwe
dollars as a souvenir,” said Jane Bradley from the
United States, who bought
several trillions of the notes.
Some of the tourists said they were
buying the notes for resale back home.
“I want to sell the notes when I
get back home because they are in high
demand there,” said Peter Page from
UK.
During the time of the country’s economic crisis inflation reached
231
million percent as the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe continued to print money.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
July 21, 2013 in Community
News
SUCCESSFUL implementation of paediatric anti-retroviral therapy is
being
hampered by lack of appropriate food supplements in most households in
Seke
communal areas in Mashonaland East province, health officials have
said.
REPORT BY PHYLLIS MBANJE
Senior nurse from Seke Rural
Hospice, Edrian Kwangwa last week said while
the area has been categorised
as a green zone [areas which receive adequate
rain], many people in Seke had
small pieces of land that do not produce
adequate food
supplies.
“Most of the villagers around this area have small pieces of
land which do
not produce enough food for the whole family,” said Kwangwa.
“For the
children who are on anti-retroviral drugs, it becomes critical if
they do
not get enough food.”
Kwangwa pleaded with organisations that
can provide food aid to supplement
their efforts by giving out food packs to
children living with HIV and Aids.
“Most of the children are orphaned and
are living with their grandparents
whose means of survival are below
average,” said Kwangwa.
Seke Rural Hospice, which was founded in 2001,
has a catchment area of about
80 000 and aims to improve the quality of life
for those affected by HIV and
Aids, the terminally and chronically
ill.
Presently, it provides home-based services to 5 000 patients and has
460
secondary caregivers who volunteer for the hospice.
The health
centre also provides psychosocial and material support,
counseling and
bereavement services, and strengthens existing support groups
for people
living with HIV and Aids.
The hospice also works closely with another
local health centre, Kunaka,
which now offers HIV and Aids-testing
services.
“Previously we would take all our patients to Chitungwiza
hospital for
testing and medication,” said Kwangwa. “But now the bulk of
them go to
Kunaka for the same services.”
She said stigma, which used
to be a major problem, was no longer an issue,
as most people in the
community now viewed people suffering from HIV and
Aids the same as any
other person.
“Many villagers are no longer ashamed of the disease,” she
said.
CHILDREN ARE THE MOST AFFECTED — KWANGWA
Food assistance and
nutrition counselling are needed for people with HIV
infection in the areas
so that the full advantages of anti-retroviral
therapy can be
realised.
“When we approach other organisations for help, they tell us
that this area
is in the green zone, meaning that it is assumed that people
have bumper
harvests,” said Kwangwa.
She said that lack of good
nutrition hindered the programme as some of the
children were now refusing
to take their medication.
“The small ones in particular complain that
they get sore tummies when they
take medication on empty stomachs,” she
said.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
July 21, 2013 in Community News
ROUND
huts line up along the dusty and run-down roads.
REPORT BY MUSA
DUDE
Buildings at most of the shopping centres and schools show signs of
ageing
and neglect — peeling off paints, sagging roofs and huge cracks on
walls.
Youths wander around the dilapidated shopping centres because they
have
nothing else to do to while up time, as the majority of them are
unemployed.
Out of desperation, some of their colleagues crossed into
neighbouring South
Africa or Botswana in search of a better
life.
This is Matabeleland North province, where underdevelopment and
poverty have
taken root among the people despite an abundance of natural
resources in the
province.
Most of the households in the province survive
only on one full meal per
day.
Access to clear water is a struggle
and villagers have to contend with
sharing drinking water with wild
animals.
One of the villagers, Peter Mudimba from Siachilaba in Binga,
said villagers
walk long distances looking for drinking water.
“We
don’t even have clean drinking water, let alone for our domestic
animals.
There is need to invest in water management so that villagers can
engage in
meaningful agriculture and improve food security,” said Mudimba.
“Many
villagers are struggling to farm because we don’t have irrigation
systems.”
He said hunger had been exacerbated by the withdrawal of
most of the
non-governmental organisations (NGOs) that used to donate food
items to the
local communities.
“The majority of people have not
harvested anything this year due to drought
and to make matters worse, some
NGOs that used to give us food stuffs have
stopped and some children are
malnourished,” he said.
The villagers complained that their lives were in
danger from wild animals
such as lions and elephants from nearby Hwange
National Park.
Mudimba revealed that several children in the area were
dropping out of
school as their parents could not afford to pay for their
school fees.
The villagers also bemoaned that the government was dishing
out mining
claims to the Chinese who were not doing anything to develop the
area.
“We were hoping to also benefit from the Lupane gas but our hopes
were
scuttled after some foreigners were awarded the tender to exploit it,”
said
Isaac Moyo, another villager from Lupane.
The latest survey by
the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (Zimstat) put
poverty levels in
Matabeleland North at 82%, the highest of all provinces in
the
country.
Another survey by a research institute, Mass Public Opinion
Institute
(Mpoi), showed that 91% of people in Matabeleland North often or
“always” go
without food.
Chairperson of the Matabeleland North Women
in Mining, Monica Mguni also
said a lot of foreigners were visiting the area
with the intention of
venturing into mining while locals were being denied
access.
“We always see foreign investors coming into the country to
invest in
mining. Why are the foreigners getting first preference ahead of
the
locals?” queried Mguni.
CHIEF BEMOANS CLOSURE OF KAMATIVI
MINE
Chief Dingane Nelukoba from Hwange said the province, located in
geological
region five, barely received any meaningful rainfall to enable
sustainable
agricultural production.
“We are in region five and we
don’t get enough rainfall to carry out any
agricultural activities and
that’s why we are wallowing in poverty and
asking for food donations,” he
said.
The chief also complained that companies that were operating in the
area
were extracting mineral resources for the benefit of other
provinces.
The province has coal, methane gas, gold, timber and wild
animals which
never benefit the locals, he said.
“What is
disappointing is that most of the companies operating here are not
ploughing
back to the community,” fumed Chief Nelukoba.
He lamented the closure of
Kamativi Tin Mine, which used to employ thousands
of people, saying this has
worsened the situation.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
July 21, 2013 in Business
ZIMBABWE’S
domestic savings have been wiped out by hyperinflation and
dollarisation,
leaving the country relying on foreign capital which is not
an optimal
growth path, a leading economist has said.
REPORT BY OUR
STAFF
Tony Hawkins, a professor of business at the University of
Zimbabwe’s
Graduate School of Management, said last week that excessive
“dependence on
foreign capital is deeply ironic given the government’s
indigenisation
policy”.
“Those countries that reduce consumption — as
a percentage of GDP [Gross
Domestic Product] — and boost domestic savings,
use their capital better to
grow faster than those that rely on foreign
borrowing, especially foreign
aid,” Hawkins said at an HIS Africa Economic
Outlook conference in South
Africa.
Hawkins said foreigners were not
going to supply the requisite capital “so
long as economic and resource
nationalism dominate the policy agenda and
there is no debt-restructuring
agreement”.
Since 2009, Zimbabwe has attracted US$6,7 billion in foreign
capital with
the majority (80%) borrowed offshore and the remainder in
portfolio and
Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).
Hawkins said FDI is
more closely correlated with growth, but Zimbabwe’s
current hostile stance
towards FDI limits such inflows in reference to the
indigenisation
legislation which analysts say scare away potential
investors.
The
law stipulates that at least 51% shareholding in any businesses with a
net
asset value of US$500 000 or more should be in the hands of
locals.
Foreign debt to double in five years
Tony Hawkins said by
the end of the year, foreign debt — including arrears —
would have almost
doubled in just five years.
“Most of this steep increase in offshore
borrowing is short-term funding by
the private sector while long-term
inflows, including FDI, have been
disappointing,” he
said.
‘Zimbabwe’s economy undermines export competitiveness’
Tony
Hawkins said the trade gap, although narrowing to US$2,7 billion last
year
from US$3,1 billion in 2011, remains huge as the country is a serial
over-consumer (90% of GDP) so that demand spills over into
imports.
He said the country has become “a high-cost, low-productivity
economy that
attracts imports and undermines export
competitiveness”.
Since 2009, Zimbabwe has run up a cumulative
balance-of-payments deficit of
about US$11,6 billion.
Over half has
been covered by net capital inflows, a quarter in unrecorded
inflows and the
balance further built-up in arrears, now totalling about
US$7,5 billion,
Hawkins said.
He said seven primary products, dominated by precious and
semi-precious
metals, contributed two-thirds of exports.
Four
products — tobacco, platinum, diamonds and gold — contribute almost 60%
of
the exports.
“This highlights just how vulnerable the economy is to
commodity price
fluctuations, especially those for gold, platinum and
diamonds, where
Zimbabwe is a volume producer of low-quality gems,” Hawkins
said.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
July 21, 2013 in
Business
GOVERNMENT will retain the aluminium and glass structure that
will serve as
a conference centre for next month’s United Nations World
Tourism
Organisation (UNWTO) General Assembly as it wants to reposition
Victoria
Falls as a conferencing destination.
REPORT BY BY NDAMU
SANDU
Zimbabwe and Zambia are co-hosting the UNWTO 20th session in
Victoria Falls
and Livingstone respectively from August 24 to
29.
This comes after Treasury released US$2 million enabling organisers
to pay
deposit for the structures and professional conference organiser
(PCO).
Tourism and Hospitality Industry minister Walter Mzembi told
Standardbusiness that the structure, with a capacity of 1 500, would be
retained and the ministry was in talks with hospitality group African Sun
Limited (ASL) for a management contract.
The structure will be put at
Elephant Hills run by Zimbabwe Stock
Exchange-listed ASL.
It will be
in place in two weeks’ time.
Mzembi said government’s thrust to position
Victoria Falls as a conferencing
destination has resulted in Zimbabwe
hosting a major convention next year in
the resort town.
“We have one
in the bag already which will be held sometime next year: a
blood
transfusion Africa conference that would have delegates in excess of
800. I
am in conversation with the minister of health on the matter, which
has
already been tabled before cabinet. Cabinet has endorsed our hosting of
that
convention,” Mzembi said.
Government’s push to lure conferences to
Victoria Falls is dependent on the
successful hosting of the UNWTO General
Assembly.
Mzembi said by virtue of paying deposit for the aluminium and
glass
structures and the PCO, Zimbabwe had made a giant step in its
preparations
for the General Assembly.
“Those two are the ones that
make or break a general assembly and I am happy
the state has finally made a
commitment through the deposit and work that is
in progress now,” he
said.
Mzembi said government would retain “the services of all the actors
into the
General Assembly for future bidding of conferences including the
PCOs in
line with our vision to establish a conventions bureau”.
The
Zimbabwe Tourism Industry (ZTA) has a department on meetings,
incentives,
conferences and exhibition (Mice) and Mzembi said the authority
had put
proposals to the Tourism ministry for the establishment of the
convention
bureau.
“We have been limited in the past to attract conferences to
Victoria Falls
by our limited conferencing space, the largest being one that
has a capacity
of not more than 300 delegates,” Mzembi said, adding that
another operator
had secured a marquee that can seat up to 5 000
delegates.
“Post General Assembly that destination will be busy with
conferences,” he
said.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
July 21, 2013 in Opinion
Zanu PF will
forever be very grateful to the Ian Smith regime. The regime
which Zanu PF
has emulated, left enduring lessons of which the most
important ones are the
use of terror and outright violence against
opponents. Zanu PF has learnt
this lesson with a passion and zeal only
equalled in religion. The
ever-increasing talk of an election has raised
political temperatures to
unheard of levels as parties gird their loins for
the votes. The fact that
there were sporadic outbreaks of violence during
the referendum is in itself
a harbinger of bad things to come. During the
March 16 referendum,
Zimbabwe’s major political players were in agreement
about the “Yes” vote.
There was little disagreement about it.
REPORT BY WILLY
SAUROMBE
Just when the coast seemed clear for the referendum, Zimbabweans
were jolted
from their usual slumber by violence across the country during
the
referendum. People in Mbare were beaten up by Zanu PF’s youths calling
themselves Chipangano. The Prime Minister’s rally in Harare was disrupted by
the police. As if that was not enough, the PM’s offices were invaded by the
police and staffers were arrested. Zanu PF’s daggers were out and battle
lines drawn.
Ironically, while all this was happening, President
Robert Mugabe was in
Rome, at St Peter’s Square listening to the new Pope
calling for a world
that respects humanity, the environment and gives men
dignity.
The violence that rocked the nation from the death of little
Christpowers
Maisiri hitherto, was intentionally brewed for two major
reasons. Firstly,
it served to test the preparedness of the terror and
violence machine ahead
of the elections. Remember violence, intimidation of
opponents and outright
murders are the only weapons remaining for the
beleaguered party which is
clearly devoid of any ideology.
Secondly,
the violence was meant to fire warning shots into the air. Nobody
should be
under any illusion about how the contest will be played out. The
game will
be really nasty.
Look at how the rural communities flocked to the polling
stations to approve
a constitution they did not even know. The referendum,
for all intents and
purposes, stood as the finest ground to test voter
preparedness.
All this points to several facts that we will have to
comprehend sooner
rather than later as we head for the next elections and
any other election
that Zanu PF will contest.
Zanu PF has become a
larger than life party like Stalin’s communist party,
controlling everything
from economics, social life, politics, to how we
think and act.
The
continued invasion of our privacy by the police, the daily battering by
the
army and intimidation by the CIO, all point to a country haunted by the
very
institutions which must protect it. This has nothing to do with a
defective
constitution. Our woes will not end with a new constitution like
the one we
have, which protects fundamental freedoms. Our woes will only end
when we
shake off our usual lethargy and be brave enough to go out and
vote.
Zimbabweans must also speak out loud against violence. This should
also
include naming and shaming perpetrators. The private media must be
applauded
in this regard as in the past it has done quite a lot to name,
shame and
speak loudly against violence.
Lastly, war credentials are
no compensation or justification for his
post-war villainous deeds.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
July 21, 2013 in
Opinion
The coming election on July 31 2013 is the swan song for the
Global
Political Agreement (GPA) and its offspring, the Government of
National
Unity (GNU).
REPORT BY ALOIS T MASEPE
The main
platform of the GPA and the agenda of the GNU were to ensure that
Zimbabwe
had in place a firm foundation for the establishment of a truly
democratic
society. The transformation process required a new constitution,
institutional reform and mind-set/attitudinal paradigm shift in respect of
some key organs of state such as the security sector, Judiciary, election
administration and government-controlled media.
We had to undergo the
above process as a way of exorcising the ghost of the
June 2008 presidential
election run-off when the beast in man was allowed to
walk naked and take
centre-stage. The primitive savagery that was unleashed
on innocent people
in the period preceding the election day (June 27 2008)
left the people
shell-shocked and traumatised. The madness subsequently
attracted the
intervention of Sadc and the African Union.
Now that we have come to the
GPA and GNU endgame — the question is: Are the
elections going to be free
and fair (feya-feya) or are we involved in a
wapusa wapusa and feja-feja
[manipulation of figures] game?
For the uninitiated, feja-feja is a money
game of the underworld in which a
victim is lured into playing on promises
of winning easily. In the initial
stages of the game, the victim actually
wins big and easily as a confidence
boosting ruse. Once the victim warms up
and is sufficiently massaged to
fully partake, the game also changes into
wapusa wapusa [blink-and-you-lose]
mode. The victim is not allowed to quit
the game until the conmen are
satisfied that they have indeed creamed off
and cleaned out their prey.
The fairness and fair nature of an election
is not determined by the casting
of ballots. It is fallacious and misleading
to argue that the act of casting
a vote equals democracy. Democracy is much
more than the ritual act of
casting the ballot paper. In order to judge an
election, one must look at
the totality of the election process and the
mind-set of those mandated to
manage the actual election.
The key
questions are:
Do we have national consensus on the issue of establishing a
multi-party
democracy in Zimbabwe and, have the political gladiators agreed
to embrace
and be guided by democratic principles and norms in their
endeavour and
efforts to seek power?
Do we accept and embrace as
sacrosanct the principle and belief that all
legitimate and sovereign power
comes from the people and that the manifested
will of the people is also the
wish of God?
Do we in this country have in place support structures that
insist upon,
encourage and reinforce the establishment of a truly
multi-party democracy
and institutions and organs that guarantee, uphold and
defend the will of
the people?
Are we agreed that the practice of
holding elections that are seen to be
free and fair is the only guarantee
for nation peace, security and
development.
If the answer to the
above questions is in the affirmative, then we would be
proud of the result
on July 31.
We have a new constitution — albeit being work in progress —
that captures
the ideals and principles of a democratic society. However, it
is undeniable
that going into the coming elections, the new constitution has
been
effectively frozen, thanks to Presidential Powers Act.
The
attitude, demeanour and conduct of the security sector are hostile and
threatening.
The government-controlled media and other keys organs of
the electoral
process (which were created to serve the purpose of a one
party anachronism)
refuse to undergo political paradigm shift.
Given
the above indications and observations, the country is clearly not in
a
position to hold free and fair election.
The real problem is that the
country is in the midst of a transition arising
from a clash of the old and
new order. The election is therefore an unfair
contest between a
well-entrenched, omnipresent and combative old order and a
popular new order
movement struggling to find its roots and space.
A free and fair election
is a product of a political environment and
mind-set that effectively
empowers the people to express their political
freedoms of expression,
choice and association. This situation demands that
the political leadership
must been seen affording the people the opportunity
and space to exercise
their free will in electing a political leadership of
their choice.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
July 21, 2013 in Editorial
The picture of a
forlorn Robert Mugabe in VaPositori garb, staff in hand,
grovelling for
votes from thousands of superstitious church-goers, sent out
a clear message
to all those who dared listen: the old guerrilla is no more.
Report by
Nevanji Madanhire
His advisers scored an own goal. Ailing Fidel Castro
still dresses up in his
trademark battle fatigues. Mao Zedong until his
death still tried to live
the life of a true guerrilla, at one stage
reportedly swimming 15km in 65
minutes in the freezing Yangtze River when he
was 73 years old. Many
sceptics doubted that he achieved this feat which
would be a world record,
but they are agreed it was a great publicity
coup.
“The contention elicited guffaws from foreign observers, who took
the claim
as a sign that China was descending into political madness. Yet
for the old
man of the revolution [Mao], the swim was a call to China’s
younger
generation to dive into a political struggle against counter
revolutionary
party bureaucrats. If the ageing Chairman could conquer the
mighty Yangtze,
surely the nation’s youth could brave the winds and waves of
a political
storm and overthrow Mao’s opponents.”
[Time World Sept. 27
1999]
The Apostolics [VaPositori] are a superstitious cult; they believe
everything is controlled by demons and the strength of their leaders is
determined by their ability to cast away these demons. They don’t send their
children to school; like the Boko Haram of Nigeria, they believe the book is
dirty. They don’t go to hospital when they are sick because they believe all
illnesses are caused by evil spirits. They don’t allow their children to be
immunised against common childhood diseases hence, most of their offspring
die before they are five. The only foreign custom they have embraced is the
drinking of tea, which they take in copious quantities. They don’t vote
because they believe in spiritual, not secular, leadership. So, for
discerning politicians, they are a waste of time.
If the debacle does
not show clearly enough that Zanu PF has descended into
political madness,
it surely says louder than any message spoken at any
political rally that
Zimbabwe is crying out for renewal. The country has
reached its moulting
moment, if it can be compared to an eagle.
Researchers say eagles can
live up to 60 years but sometime in their midlife
they begin to lose their
feathers, their claws become too long, calcium has
accumulated on their
beaks making them too heavy and they lose most of their
sight. In other
words, the eagle ceases to be an eagle. Many die when they
reach this stage
but many more renew themselves. They go into isolation at
the top of the
highest mountain where they proceed to pull out the rest of
their feathers
and cast away their unwieldy talons and beaks by beating them
against the
rock until they fall off. After a while, new feathers grow, new
sharper
talons emerge and the beaks become razor sharp, so do their eyes.
And off
they go, on a new hunt.
Politicians from across the political divide have
been addressing thousands
of people at rallies since the beginning of the
electoral season. They have
espoused high-sounding policies and made
incredible promises to lure the
voter to their side, but they have failed to
tell the prospective voters
what is at stake in this election. What is
really at stake in this election?
It is about renewal, stupid.
In
its first 30 years of life, as it soars above the earth clinically
killing
its prey, the eagle accumulates in its feathers lots of oil and dust
that
coagulate and harden them until it becomes almost impossible for them
to
fly. It’s much like sea birds emerging from an oil spill, only less
dramatic. Similarly in the decades of Zanu PF rule, bad governance,
nepotism, favouritism, politics of patronage and corruption, have got into
the country’s wings encumbering its progress.
The ungainly
bureaucracy and the lack of openness and tardiness in
implementing policy
can be likened to the eagle’s talons and beaks which
have become too long
and too heavy to be used efficiently in the hunt.
Zanu PF has failed to
renew itself; therefore it cannot be expected to be
able to renew the
country. Its candidate is a nonagenarian who has led it
for all of 40 years.
The rest of the leadership is geriatric although there
has been a
superficial attempt to hoodwink the public by a sprinkling of
young faces
here and there. We have, for the first time, seen Zanu PF
candidates in
their twenties but these have been thrown into constituencies
in which they
don’t stand a chance in heaven of victory.
The policies expounded in
their manifesto and at public rallies are the same
old ones which got the
country in the mess it finds itself. Zimbabwe needs
two important things
urgently, namely, international goodwill and foreign
investment. The way
Zanu PF is conducting itself, clearly trying to
manipulate the coming
elections in a way that makes them disputed does not
augur well for either.
Already, regional bloc Sadc and many western
countries have begun to voice
their reservations on the whole electoral
process.
But the war is not
lost yet.
If the voters are told clearly what it is that’s at stake, they
will come in
large numbers and know what they have to do come voting day.
Those
contesting against Zanu PF are hardly the saints we would have loved
them to
be. But the beginning of our country’s renewal should surely lie in
placing
the country into a new set of hands. The country has a new
constitution; it
needs a new set of hands to implement it!
The
political and economic crises Zimbabweans have suffered in the past two
decades have left them wiser. They now appreciate the power of civil
society, the importance of free media and the importance of popular
participation in national issues. This means they won’t allow any political
formation that takes the reins of power from Zanu PF to behave in a way
similar to their predecessors.
In the few days left before the
elections, it is important the message of a
Zimbabwean renaissance is
articulated clearly because it’s what this
election is all about.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
July 21, 2013 in Editorial
The Zimbabwe Electoral
Commission (ZEC) last week denounced people
criticising the body for the
shambolic manner in which it conducted the
special voting exercise
recently.
THESTANDARD EDITORIAL
The body was hitting back at those
who were “throwing aspersions on the
integrity and impartiality of its
commissioners and staff, thus putting into
question their professionalism
and commitment to the cause of conducting
free and fair election on July
31”.
While ZEC has a right to defend its reputation when improperly maligned,
it
would be more useful if commissioners can direct their energies to fixing
the problems that are inherent at the body, charged with conducting a free
and fair election in a few days’ time.
The shambolic manner in which ZEC
conducted the special vote for a mere
69 000 voters shows the body is not
prepared for the bigger task at hand.
Soldiers, police and other civil
servants who turned out in their thousands
hoping for a smooth voting
exercise failed to get ballot papers, ink and the
translucent boxes at the
voting centres.
This bungling by ZEC resulted in 40 000 people being denied
their
constitutional right to vote.
The elections management body has not
convinced anyone that these problems
have been corrected. In a few days’
time, it has to conduct an election far
bigger than the special voting in
terms of the numbers and logistics
involved. How many more people will be
denied a chance to vote if the
elections body fails to put its house in
order?
The credibility of the polls hinges on ZEC’s ability to ensure that
everything —voting material, security of the ballot boxes and transport and
other logistics — are in place when six million people cast their ballots in
one day across the country, come July 31.
Instead of sliding into a
defensive mode, the commissioners should
re-examine their systems and
explain the effect limited resources are having
on their ability to conduct
a free and fair election. They must also be
transparent and involve all the
stakeholders in ensuring that we will have a
chaos-free harmonised election.