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Parties use referendum to push election agenda

http://www.thestandard.co.zw

March 18, 2013 in Politics

POLITICAL parties used the referendum campaigns to sell their election
manifestos and to gauge their support ahead of this year’s plebiscite
instead of articulating the real contents of the draft constitution.

BY CAIPHAS CHIMHETE

The elections are scheduled for later this year.

Although both Zanu PF and the MDC formations campaigned for a “Yes” vote,
they were citing different reasons for why people must support the draft
constitution.

This is more so because Copac failed to give people enough time to study and
understand the contents of the draft constitution.

Zanu PF has been stressing on issues such as, indigenisation and economic
empowerment and the land reform programme.

These are the same issues that underpin the party’s election strategy.

In one of several adverts flighted in newspapers last week, Zanu PF
encouraged its supporters to vote in the affirmative because the draft
charter “recognises the irreversibility of the land reform programme”and
ensures that youths and veterans of the liberation struggle are looked after
and given opportunities for economic empowerment.

War veterans have been at the centre of Zanu PF and President Robert Mugabe’s
campaign machinery.

The MDC-T, on the other hand, urged people to vote “Yes” because the draft
charter allowed devolution of power and because “aliens” would vote, while
security services would be subject to parliamentary oversight.

“The people formerly commonly referred to as aliens, who were born in
Zimbabwe but with parents from the Sadc region, are now Zimbabweans by birth
and [as] such they are entitled to vote or be voted for,” said MDC-T in its
campaign messages.

Electorate being deprived right to make decisions

Analysts said by informing their supporters on selective data from the draft
charter, the parties deprived them of their right to information to enable
them to make independent decisions.

Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition (CiZC) spokesperson, Tabani Nyoni said the
convergence of the “Yes” vote was motivated by different reasons.
He said Zanu PF and the two MDC formations were using the referendum to
kick-start their campaigns, as well as confirm who their voters would be
during the forthcoming elections.

“Both or all the political parties want to claim victory when the “Yes” vote
prevails and from there build momentum for the elections,” said Nyoni.
“Basically, it is an opportunity for the political parties to build momentum
and garner as much support as possible ahead of the elections.”

Nyoni added: “The running around you saw was not about the referendum as
such but about preparing for the forthcoming elections.”

Addressing a meeting on the referendum in Bulawayo last week, Prime Minister
Morgan Tsvangirai said it was his party that campaigned for devolution to be
included in the draft constitution.

“Devolution of power is not a Matabeleland fight but a national cause. For a
very long time, they [Zanu-PF] thought the ones from Matabeleland were the
only ones who were campaigning for devolution of power,” said Tsvangirai.
“We [MDC-T] say a devolved state is the one we want.”

Analysts said this showed that the MDC-T was trying to get political mileage
from the people of Matabeleland ahead of the elections by claiming to
champion their cause.

Political analyst, Alois Masepe said political parties were just picking
points from the draft charter that interested their supporters so that they
could be voted into office.

“Parties were basically campaigning for elections because they were only
picking strong points they knew would endear them with their supporters,”
said Masepe. “These parties are already in the election mood and would not
publicise points that will work against them.
Publicising the whole document was the work of Copac, not political
 parties.”

Zanu PF sympathiser, Christopher Mutsvangwa admitted that the idea of
picking certain points and leaving out others disadvantaged people.
“Ideally, they [parties] are supposed to tell people everything but remember
we are going into an election,” said Mutsvangwa.

The parties however, agreed on issues such as the rights of women and the
youth’s right to free basic education.

“This is because both parties are fighting for votes from women and the
youth,” said one analyst. “This is why they are highlighting such points.”

Zimbabweans yesterday voted in a referendum on a new constitution which is
opposed by the NCA who claim that Zimbaweans were not given ample time to
study the charter before it was brought to a referendum.


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Don’t set me on collision course with my bosses — Kasukuwere

http://www.thestandard.co.zw

March 24, 2013 in Local

INDIGENISATION Minister Saviour Kasukuwere is breathing fire over a story
published in yesterday’s edition of NewsDay alleging that the Zimbabwe
Anti-corruption Commission (ZACC) was now a battle ground for Zanu PF
succession politics.

BY EVERSON MUSHAVA

The story alleged that Kasukuwere believed a faction led by Vice President
Joice Mujuru was behind attempts to arrest him and two other cabinet
ministers on suspicion of being involved in corrupt activities.

But Kasukuwere yesterday said he was not given a chance to defend himself
and accused the journalist behind the story of malicious intent to end his
political career by setting him on a collision course with Mujuru.

This, however, was despite several attempts to get a comment from him.  On
Wednesday, Kasukuwere answered his mobile phone and said he was in a
meeting. Subsequent attempts to get a comment did not yield results.

“You are abusing your privileges as the media. You want to destroy me. I
have a family to look after. You should know that I am not your sibling,”
Kasukuwere charged at the reporter yesterday.

“I have been quite about the issue because I know you want to set me on a
collision course with my leadership. I have never said Mujuru wanted to get
me arrested. It is your sources who said that, not mine.”

Mujuru and Defence minister Emmerson Mnangagwa reportedly lead Zanu PF
factions angling to succeed President Robert Mugabe. The two have however
repeatedly denied harboring presidential ambitions.

According to the NewsDay report, Zanu PF has allegedly divided the Zimbabwe
Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) with some commissioners contemplating
quitting in protest over infiltration as the anti-graft body becomes the
latest battle ground for the political party’s succession politics.

ZACC is reportedly heavily divided with some commissioners claiming their
efforts to crack down on corrupt top Zanu PF officials were being frustrated
by ‘sell-outs’ in their midst who were allegedly leaking information to
targeted party big wigs.

The High Court recently blocked ZACC   from conducting searches at National
Indigenization and Economic Empowerment Board (Nieeb) and Zimbabwe Mining
development Corporation (ZMDC) offices.

Kasukuwere, Transport Minister Nicholas Goche and Mines minister Obert
Mpofu — all Zanu PF politburo heavyweights were the target of ZACC’s
crackdown.

Zacc spokesperson Goodwill Shana last week told journalists that the
commission did not secure search warrants to “pursue under-hand and
malicious investigations against certain organisations, their officials and
respective ministries.”

Although Shana denied that commissioners were contemplating quitting, The
Standard  is reliably informed that such plans were being muted due to
infiltration of the body.

“Even if Zacc has overwhelming evidence against the ministers, it is
difficult to nab them because the ministers are informed of every move,” the
source said.

One of the commissioners recently warned fellow commissioners’ against
probing ministers. He allegedly said the ministers were “untouchable” and
probing them would have a reverse effect on the commission. True to his
word, ZACC is under siege.


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Sweden funds Harare City Library renovations

http://www.thestandard.co.zw

March 24, 2013 in Community News

THE Harare City Library is set for a major revamp following the injection of
a US$1 million grant by the Swedish government.

BY OUR STAFF

Under the project, which is being managed by the Culture Fund of Zimbabwe
Trust, the major refurbishment works were centred on the leaking roofs,
dilapidated facades, internal ceilings, walls, windows, floors and toilets.

A spokesperson for the project said on Friday a large portion of the funds
would be used to purchase books, update the computer network and to
modernise the electrical wiring at the main library.

“Once completed, the library will provide a conducive environment for people
to access information which is paramount to development,” she said. “The
project will also provide a basis for life-long learning, as well as
injecting new life into the civic centre of Harare.”

The spokesperson said a number of activities had already been held at the
main library to bring awareness to library users and other stakeholders of
the project and services presently offered by the library and beyond the
renovation project.

She said the Swedish grant, signed in November last year,  would lead to the
preservation of the main library building, which was of architectural and
aesthetic importance to the City of Harare.

The spokesperson said it was envisaged that in 10 years’ time, the library
would become a protected building in accordance with the Museums and
Monuments Act.

Farai Mpfunya, the executive director of the Culture Fund said the Swedish
support was a “catalytic fuel” in the library’s quest to develop into a
modern, world-class library service provider.

Harare City Library chairman, Mike Curling was hopeful that like-minded
funders would also provide funds to enable the complete restoration and
re-equipping of the library.

The eventual total restoration would be of benefit to the Harare public,
young and old, and will enable extension of the library’s services beyond
the city.

In addition to the Harare City Library grant, Sweden has since 2006 been
injecting about US$1 million annually into the culture sector in Zimbabwe
through the Culture Fund of Zimbabwe Trust.


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Villagers in quandary as rains destroy bridge

http://www.thestandard.co.zw

March 24, 2013 in Community News

MUTOKO — Some villagers in Mutoko are failing to access Nyanga district
where they sell goods and agricultural produce after Rwenya Bridge, which
links the two areas, was destroyed by heavy rains last month.

BY SOFIA MAPURANGA

Villagers who spoke to Standardcommunity last week said they had not been
able to engage in any form of business with people from other areas since
the bridge collapsed.

Most of the villagers sell their wares to gold panners in Nyanga, where
panning activities are rampant.

“We rely on gold panning for our livelihoods but we have been stuck here
since the bridge was destroyed,” said Deren Bando from Mutoko.
He said they cannot swim across or use canoes because the current is very
strong.

Grace Dziva from Nyamande area, who also sells her various wares to the
panners, said she had not been able to cross into Nyanga since the bridge
collapsed.

“Even when we are selling our agricultural produce, we prefer selling it in
Nyanga because it is closer than Mutoko centre,” she said.

“Travelling to Nyanga is cheaper and convenient but as it is, all activity
has come to a standstill. Our link has been destroyed.”
Efforts to get a comment from Mudzi Rural District Council were fruitless
last week.


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San community on the verge of starvation

http://www.thestandard.co.zw

March 24, 2013 in Community News

BULAWAYO — A hunger-stricken San community in Tsholotsho is demanding from
Zanu PF leadership in Matabeleland maize-meal that was donated to it by the
late Vice-President, John Nkomo before his death early this year.

BY NQOBANI NDLOVU

Nkomo donated 100 10kg bags of maize-meal to the starving San community
through the office of Matabeleland North governor, Sithokozile Mathuthu last
year but that donation is yet to reach the intended beneficiaries.

Community representative, Madlela Maphosa said they were shown the
maize-meal by a Zanu PF delegation led by the party’s national chairperson,
Simon Khaya-Moyo, which visited Nkomo’s homestead on March 8 this year.

They were told the maize-meal would be delivered on the same day, but up to
last week the San people had not received the donation.
There are now fears that the maize-meal could have been diverted by some
Zanu PF officials for personal benefit.

“We are hungry and still waiting for the promised maize-meal,” said Maphosa.
“We were told that we would get the maize-meal as soon as possible, but to
date there has been no communication.”

The 70-year-old community representative said hunger was forcing the San to
harvest the maize cobs and watermelons even before they were ripe.
The plight of the San community has been worsened by the fact that a local
organisation, which had been giving them food hand-outs, suspended
operations last week.

The San community is angry that they have not been able to access the
donated maize at a time when they are starving.

“We do not know why they are doing this to us [withholding the maize-meal].
What they are doing is evil,” said Siwatshi Moyo, a member of the community.

Mathuthu on Friday, however, said the maize-meal that was shown to villagers
at the late Nkomo’s rural home on March 8 was just a “sample”.

She said the maize-meal was still there, but there was no transport to ferry
it to Mgodimasili area, which is 48km from Tsholotsho centre.

“The maize-meal is still there. What we do not have is the transport to
ferry it to Mgodimasili. Once we get transport, we will ferry it,” said
Mathuthu. “In fact, that was just a sample [90 bags of 10kg maize-meal].
There is more maize-meal that will be going to the San.”

Analyst Dumisani Nkomo said it was tragic that Zanu PF leaders were making
“false” promises of food aid to the San people who are facing death because
of hunger.

“It is tragic and evil,” Nkomo said. “The San are the most marginalised
group in Zimbabwe. We need structural reforms that will recognise and
respect the San in order to improve their standard of living.”

Most of the san people in Mgodimasili area, a settlement of about 200
people, live in abject poverty and in dilapidated huts.

But just a few kilometres away, there is the Tjitatjawa village, which
boasts of neat houses with corrugated iron roofs.


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Villagers set to benefit from banana project

http://www.thestandard.co.zw

March 24, 2013 in Community News

CHIPINGE — More than 200 small-scale irrigation farmers in Mutema and
Chibuwe villages are set to benefit from a banana plantation project
financed by Matanuska, a farming concern controlled by Malaysian investors.

BY OUR CORRESPONDENT

The company last year gave villagers inputs such as fertilisers and suckers
to start banana plantations and they are expected to have their first
harvest “in a few months” to come.

Matanuska liaison officer, Crispen Manyuchi told Standardcommunity that the
company had assisted at least 240 farmers with inputs and trained them in
banana plantations management last year.

“They are operating on a five-year contract where the company will provide
them with inputs and requisite training on how to manage banana
 plantations,” said Manyuchi. “We started the project in Mutema village but
because of the interest shown by other farmers we have included farmers from
Chibuwe village.”

The beneficiaries hoped that the venture would bring relief to their
financial problems following the collapse of several tomato and beans
farming projects in their area.

The projects collapsed after water pumps broke down in 2000.
One of the beneficiaries, Mark Tembwe said, “Since the breakdown of the
water pumps in 2000, there was no meaningful farming project here till last
year when a banana project was introduced. We are set to harvest our first
banana fruits in the next few months.”

A banana plant takes about nine months to mature and produce bananas.

Another beneficiary, Artwell Chingara said the project was a real
empowerment venture which would benefit several other communities.
He said the company also gave them loans which they are expected to repay
once the farmers sell their produce.

“We agreed to repay the loans once we sell our banana produce; this is real
empowerment of communities and we are grateful for the initiative,” he said.

Farmers at Jopa near Chipinge town, who were assisted by another company to
grow bananas, are already selling their produce.


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Sechele: The student who eclipsed his teacher

http://www.thestandard.co.zw

March 24, 2013 in Community News

IT is 200 years since the birth of David Livingstone, perhaps the most
famous of the missionaries to visit Africa in the 19th Century.

BY STEPHEN TOMKINS

But as author and church historian Stephen Tomkins explains, the story of an
African chief he converted is every bit as incredible as Livingstone’s.

According to the title of one biography, David Livingstone was “Africa’s
Greatest Missionary”.

This is an interesting claim about the Lanarkshire-born man, considering
that estimates of the number of people he converted in the course of his
30-year career vary between one and none.

The variation is because Livingstone himself wrote off his one convert as a
backslider within months of his baptism.

The irony is that this one backslider has a much better claim than
Livingstone to be Africa’s greatest missionary.

This man on whom Livingstone gave up became a preacher, a leader and a
pioneer of adapting Christianity to African life — to the great annoyance of
European missionaries.

His name was Sechele, and he was the kgosi or chief of the Bakwena tribe,
part of the Tswana people, in what is now Botswana.

Born in 1812, he was 10 when his father, the previous kgosi, was killed. Two
of his uncles divided the tribe between them. Sechele escaped with a few
followers into the desert for nine years, and returned to oust one of his
uncles.

This was how things stood when Sechele first met Livingstone — he ruled a
half-tribe. Livingstone persuaded him to make peace with his other uncle by
sending him a gift of gunpowder for his rifle.

The uncle was suspicious that the gunpowder was bewitched, tried to
neutralise it with fire, and in the resulting explosion was killed.
Sechele thus ruled over a re-united Bakwena.

Like many kgosi, Sechele was keen to have a missionary living in his town.
Missionaries came with guns (and powder), making them an invaluable defence,
and with medicine.

Sechele amused Livingstone by asking for medicine to make him a better
hunter. But the thing Sechele wanted above all from Livingstone was
literacy.

He learned the alphabet, upper and lower case, in two days, compiled his own
spelling books, and set about reading the one book in the Tswana language,
the Bible.

He ate breakfast before sunrise in order to start school as quickly as
possible, and then taught his wives to read.

As Sechele grew increasingly interested in Christianity, he found two huge
barriers in his way. One was rain.

Tswana tribes had rainmakers, whose job was to use magic to make the rain
come. Livingstone, like all missionaries, vehemently opposed rainmaking, on
both religious and scientific grounds.

Sechele happened to be his tribe’s rainmaker as well as kgosi, and
Livingstone’s stay coincided with the worst drought ever known, so Sechele’s
decision to stop making rain was predictably unpopular.
The greater problem was polygamy.

Sechele had five wives, and Livingstone insisted that to become a Christian,
he needed get rid of the “superfluous” ones. This was a political as well as
a personal nightmare, threatening the political structure of the tribe and
relations with other tribes.

But in 1848 Sechele divorced four of the women and was baptised. The
following year, however, one of his exes became pregnant, and it turned out
that Sechele had fallen. He repented, and told Livingstone: “Do not give me
up because of this. I shall never give up Jesus. You and I will stand before
him together.”

Livingstone did give up on him, going north to embark upon his celebrated
adventures.

Their last contact was in 1852. Sechele had fought off an attack from the
Transvaal Boers, and was en route to Britain to ask for Queen Victoria’s
protection. He got as far as the Cape before being turned back.

At this point, Sechele largely disappeared from view. His reappearance was
startling.

The first British missionaries who arrived to work with the Zulu Ndebele
tribe in what is now Zimbabwe in 1859 were staggered to find that they
already had regular Christian prayers. Sechele had beaten them to it.

Sechele had decided to lead church services for his own people after
Livingstone left. He taught reading, the Bible became popular, and slowly
the Bakwena became Christian. Sechele travelled hundreds of miles as a
missionary to other tribes, and having withstood the Boers, the Bakwena
became a refuge, absorbing many tribes into their Christian society.
At his death in 1892, Sechele ruled 30 000 people, a hundred times the
number Livingstone first found him with.

Stephen Tomkins is the author of David Livingstone: The Unexplored Story


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Shunning local products destroys industry

http://www.thestandard.co.zw

March 24, 2013 in Business

After receiving an email from a friend, I felt obliged to share it. I
paraphrased it below.

by Adolf Chirimuta

Picture this: A man works for a company that makes local Zimbabwean
margarine, he discusses with his wife how tough things are at work due to
the low demand for margarine and explains that this is the reason why his
salary was paid late. He proceeds to give his wife the money for their
groceries.

The following day his wife goes out and buys “cheaper” imported products,
including imported margarine.
The following month the margarine plant downsizes and her hubby is
retrenched.

So, are the wives who buy groceries destroying their husbands’ sources of
income? Did the wife indirectly fire her hubby?

If this is being replicated throughout the country, are we not being
irresponsible with our purchasing power and purchasing decisions and
creating jobs for South Africa, China and other nations while our children
are without jobs? Is this not similar to cutting all trees and hunting
animals into extinction because of decisions and choices that we make? I
believe we (you and me) are the largest culprits to blame for the current
state of our economy. (Not entirely of course!)

Remember what happened to the textile factory employees when mabhero [bales
of second-hand clothes] started coming into the country and trade started
with China?

I make margarine for you and you make maize-meal for me, another guy drives
me to work in his bus and my friend makes plastic packaging for the
maize-meal that you make. A cousin of yours makes cooking oil and his
brother makes corn cereals, his sister makes clothes for everybody, etc.

But if one of these products is imported, then one person or several people
become unemployed. If more of the products are imported, more people become
unemployed. So make sure at least half of what you buy are local products,
that way, you will help create jobs in Zimbabwe.

You will help save my job and I will help save your job and the government
will collect taxes and sort out the water and power issues (hopefully). We
have the power to help each other. Let’s create jobs here and not for South
Africa or China, by buying Zimbabwean products.

Every time you buy a product, you create a job somewhere, so why not create
that job here for someone that you know and that way, you won’t have to pay
school fees for your brother’s children because he will be able to pay it
himself. Your kids will have jobs here and not have to go job-hunting in
South Africa when they finish school. Before we blame others for our state
of affairs, let’s do our bit by buying Zimbabwean products.

In light of this, I was moved to think that we are the authors of our own
financial quagmire as a nation. My suggested solution is in us adopting what
has been termed the spider web doctrine as a lifestyle, if not a national
policy, because government is also guilty of preferring imported goods and
services, and this will help us to earn more and generate some local
savings.

The spider web doctrine simply entails what has been described above, I buy
my groceries from the local general dealer wepa [round the ] corner who has
purchased them from the local manufacturer weku [from the] home industry, so
that the money stays within our community instead of a reverse scenario,
where, as if to show you that I have made it in life and as a status symbol,
I buy my groceries from foreign-owned shops, who eventually channel the
money to their home countries.

Instead of sending my car for service to the unemployed yet qualified and
skilled young man down my street, I send it to some fancy garage whose name
I cannot even pronounce because it is so foreign and a tongue-twister.

In simple layman’s terms, when you want to buy something, goods or services,
first think of the person you are directly connected to — who happen to be
countless, hence the name spider web — who offers what you need. Always give
them the first right of refusal to supply you.

This kind of behaviour has far-reaching dire effects on the economy,
although they may be felt in the most subtle of ways. I am calling for an
immediate paradigm shift for the adoption of the spider web doctrine as a
personal lifestyle.


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Can the referendum mirror election voting pattern?

http://www.thestandard.co.zw

March 24, 2013 in Politics

THE just-ended referendum, which reportedly recorded the highest voter
turnout since independence, confounded analysts who had forecast apathy.

BY NQABA MATSHAZI

But the voting demographics serve for interesting reading, although they are
highly unlikely to be an indication of the voting patterns at the next
general election.

While some analysts have claimed that the voting patterns could indicate
which party had the strongest effect on its supporters to go and vote,
others maintain the referendum left Zimbabweans none the wiser.

For example, Bulawayo, where the MDC-T swept all but one seat in the last
parliamentary elections, recorded the lowest turnout, meaning if the party
is to repeat the feat, it has its work cut out.

On the other hand, Harare had the highest turnout in the referendum and has
in the past also been an MDC-T stronghold.

Zanu PF will on the other hand claim that it has a firm grip on the
Mashonaland provinces, saying that it was able to encourage them to go and
vote.

The three Mashonaland provinces recorded significantly high turnouts and
Zanu PF will hope to maintain that momentum in the next elections, as these
have always been their strongholds.

If the turnout were to serve as an indication of future elections, then
alarm bells should be ringing in the MDC camp, as voters in Matabeleland
South and North were not forthcoming.

In the last election, MDC got most of it seats in Matabeleland South and
received a fair share of votes in Matabeleland North and it will be hard
pressed to encourage supporters to go and vote in the next election.

MDC-T on the other hand will be encouraged by the large turnouts in
Manicaland and Masvingo, where it out polled Zanu PF in the last elections
and will hope that this is an indication of future good tidings.

The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) announced that 3,3 million people
had voted, by far the highest turnout since independence in 1980.

MASHONALAND VOTES INCREASE

Election Resource Centre director, Tawanda Chimhini said an inspection of
provincial voting trends indicated an increase in voter turnout in Harare,
Manicaland, Midlands and Masvingo compared to the 2008 election.
“These provinces alone can influence the popular vote in an election,” he
explained. “The Mashonaland provinces recorded a percentage increase in
turnout of between 33 and 48% compared to 2008 and this jump in
participation could further increase in the next election given what will be
at stake in that election.”
He said Harare alone had recorded an increase of 64% compared to the last
election.
Election turnouts have been 3,2 million in the 2002 presidential election,
2,9 million and 2,5 million in the 1985 and 1980 general elections,
respectively.

‘Don’t read too much into the referendum’

Analysts have warned that Zimbabweans should not read too much into the
plebiscite, saying it might not be an indication of future voting patterns.
“Voting patterns are difficult to discern given that this is a referendum
and analysis that is demographic is hard to do and one which is geographic
maybe misleading in terms of elections, given that people could vote from
anywhere,” McDonald Lewanika, the director of Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition
said.
“However, if the stats are correct in terms of turnout, then we can clearly
discern that there is a huge appetite and eagerness to participate in public
political processes, if it is safe to do so, and the environment is
conducive to free expression.”
Lewanika noted that past elections had been fraught with violence, a
characteristic that was tellingly absent from the referendum and if future
elections were peaceful, then higher turnouts could be expected.
He said another factor that could have contributed to the high turnout was
the absence of “cumbersome processes associated with registration and
actually going to vote”, which had served to discourage voters, particularly
the youth.
“The ease of the process – no checking on voters roll, no multiple ballots –
and the relative absence of politically motivated violence, augured well for
effective participation,” he said.
Dumisani Nkomo, a political analyst concurred with Lewanika, saying the
loosened requirements for the referendum could have driven the turnout
upwards.
“I think in future they should loosen registration requirements for the
18-25 year age group as this will encourage the youth to vote,” he said,
adding that the referendum had shown that there was a huge turnout of first
time voters.
To register as a voter, one is required to provide proof of residence and
for most youth this this is a requirement they cannot meet.
Nkomo said he expected the momentum generated from the referendum to
continue towards the elections.


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Mtetwa incarceration an ominous sign of violent elections

http://www.thestandard.co.zw

March 24, 2013 in Opinion

The arrest of top lawyer Beatrice Mtetwa on Sunday March 17 has reinforced
the notion that the selective application of law in Zimbabwe is rampant.

Sunday View by Maunganidze Mamuse

It also strengthens the argument that there is need for security sector
realignment if we are to hold a credible election.

This is not to suggest Thabani Mpofu, Warship Dumba, Alex Matsinde, Anna
Muzvidziwa and their lawyer Mtetwa were not supposed to be arrested if any
offence was committed; it is the manner in which the same police react
whenever anyone from Zanu PF is involved in a crime.

Even when names were given for the suspects in Christpowers Maisiri’s death
in Headlands last month, no one was picked up for questioning, but on March
16 2013, an MDC activist, Samson Magunura from Headlands was arrested on
allegations of petrol bombing a Zanu PF ward 12 aspiring councillor William
Chapepa in that area.

The police always develop cold feet whenever a report is made against a
member of Zanu PF, but will react in a flash whenever the same party is on
the receiving end. This is probably what Police Commissioner-General
Augustine Chihuri meant when he professed his allegiance to Zanu PF.

Our greatest worry though is that the security chiefs have taken it upon
themselves to campaign for Zanu PF, and this has compromised their
constitutional duty which is to protect the nation and not political parties
or individuals.

Recent reports which indicated that, at a police workshop in Matabeleland
conducted and facilitated by the Police Professional Updating Centre,
officers were told not only to register as voters but to also vote for
President Robert Mugabe and his Zanu PF party made sad reading.

There is no problem in urging everyone to register as a voter but to address
the recruits and telling them to vote for a political party is mischief.

To the peace-loving and serving officers of this nation, be careful not to
be used by your superiors who will turn against you when the tables are
turned. Indeed you should be registered voters, but as to who you should
vote for, let that be your secret. You have, like anyone else, a
constitutional right to choice.

What does it reflect when our police ignore a court order? On Monday March
18, Mtetwa’s lawyer, Harrison Nkomo was granted a high court order to secure
her release, but as they wished, the police refused to let her go. All this
was done in the face of the Sadc observers here for the referendum!

Is it not therefore far-fetched to say within Zanu PF there are some who are
working against the party? President Mugabe should be concerned about this
development.

As it stands now, the action by the police, especially their refusal to
implement a court order, has managed to put Zimbabwe on the international
arena for all the wrong reasons. In a joint statement, the International
Commission of Jurists, the Pan African Lawyers Union and Sadc Lawyers
Association described Mtetwa’s arrest as “unlawful’’. The Law Society of
South Africa also added its voice.

Even if we are to have a new constitution, it will not be the panacea to our
crisis. A constitution is just a piece of paper, what is critical is for the
political leadership, especially Mugabe, to ensure that we embrace a spirit
of constitutionalism. It is one thing to have a new charter, but quite
another to abide by it. It all needs political will.


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Zacc investigations: Police must be impartial

http://www.thestandard.co.zw

March 24, 2013 in Opinion

Transparency International Zimbabwe (TI-Z) is deeply concerned by the recent
happenings as chronicled in media reports in which the Zimbabwe
Anti-Corruption Commission (Zacc) officers are reportedly being victimised
for trying to expose alleged corrupt deals at various government departments
and agencies.

Sunday Opinion by Transparency International Zimbabwe

While there is merit in the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) investigating
alleged corruption within the anti-corruption body, the ZRP should deal with
the individuals implicated and not seek to discredit the legitimacy of the
body.

The ZRP should not interfere with Zacc’s mandate of fighting corruption as
recommended in the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC) and
articulated in section 108 A of the Constitution of Zimbabwe.

Likewise, the ZRP continues to carry out its constitutional mandate despite
numerous allegations of corruption within the police force. Corrupt
individuals must be weeded out of all state institutions but the
institutions must be afforded an opportunity to exercise their mandate to
the legitimate expectation of the society they serve.

This requires that they be unfettered in the execution of their duties. As
such, the ZRP is encouraged to deal with implicated individuals and not to
interfere with the Zacc’s mandate as an institution in state machinery of
law enforcement for the elimination of corruption in the country.

The ZRP has, in the past, been accused of bias especially in instances where
investigations involve high ranking government officials.

The police should not selectively investigate issues that involve, among
other people, prominent individuals in society. Such actions show high
levels of impartiality and impunity on a few public officials.

The police force should be guided by principles of professionalism; they
must be independent and impartial in the discharge of duties so that their
actions are not misinterpreted for protecting a few individuals in society.

TI-Z once again raises concern over the politicisation of the fight against
corruption.

Perceptions that there are political agendas or expediency being served by
current events as detailed in the press cannot be overruled. Unfortunately,
these events discredit and bring to question not just the legitimacy of the
Zacc but also the police as arresting officers, the courts as the issuers of
the search and arrest warrants.

Together these institutions represent the state’s law enforcement mandate.
This mandate appears to be subverted to other more dominant interests that
have nothing to do with upholding the rule of law and fighting impunity.

The legitimacy of law enforcement agencies can only be re-established when
the impunity of public officials and political leaders cannot be protected
for political expediency. Whether some officers of Zacc are guilty of
corruption is not the test for its capacity or legitimacy to interrogate the
three implicated ministers. These are two divorced issues that should be
treated as such. One does not undercut the other. If this was the criteria,
it would also discredit the police’s legitimacy and capacity to investigate
Zacc because its own officers and office have similarly been levelled with
allegations of corruption on many occasions.

It is the position of TI-Z that more attention must be paid by the current
coalition government and future government on guaranteeing the independence
of these institutions and releasing them from political subservience so that
they are not used as pawns for political vendettas.

No reforms to the Zacc, police or judiciary are possible within the ambit of
heavy-handed political directives muddying the issues.

The legitimate expectation of Zimbabwean citizens is that those agencies
mandated with enforcing and upholding the rule of law should execute their
duties with the full support and cooperation of the Executive and
Parliament.

In this instance, if the allegations levelled against the three ministers
have a legitimate source, they must be investigated and if found to be true,
the law must take its course.

Similarly with regards to the allegations made against Zacc. Saying “No to
Impunity” implies that there are no “sacred cows” in carrying out
investigations; the probe should go beyond one’s political or social status.

Punitive action should be taken against perpetrators of corruption not as a
political end but to guarantee the freedoms and entitlements of all
Zimbabweans. The Executive and Parliament owe it to the people of Zimbabwe
to enforce and oversee transparent and accountable rules of Government which
also entail respecting Institutions created by Constitutional Decree such as
the Zacc.


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Regional vigilance critical as poll nears

http://www.thestandard.co.zw

March 24, 2013 in Editorial

The next elections are going to be a high-stakes game; the signs are already
there for all to see.

From the Editor’s Desk with Nevanji Madanhire

At stake are not merely parliamentary seats and the presidency but also the
very political survival of lots of personages.

The events of the past week have shown how people’s civil liberties will be
painfully taken away from them, how no one is safe from the reach of a
marauding power elite that will stop at nothing to win the coming elections.

The lawyers are in trouble, next it will be the journalists. This is not
difficult to see.

In the past few weeks it has been the press that has exposed the rampant
corruption in certain circles of the political elite. The problem is not
that corruption has been exposed, its existence has for long been an open
secret.

In December last year President Mugabe said at his party’s annual conference
he was aware that some of his henchmen were demanding kickbacks from
potential investors. He promised to act against such charlatans.

The problem is that the recent investigation into corruption by the Zimbabwe
Anti-Corruption Commission (Zacc) has hit right at the core of Zanu PF’s
survival strategy.

The party had wagered on the success of the indigenisation programme to win
votes. The argument was that by grabbing stakes in foreign-owned companies
and giving them to indigenous Zimbabweans, the party would regain its
popularity as it claims it did at the turn of the millennium with the land
reform programme.

Looked at from a disinterested angle, empowering the majority of the people
through the indigenisation programme was a masterstroke. Who would not
support such a noble cause? The community share ownership schemes that
President Mugabe launched across the country were a great propaganda coup.

But like the land reform programme before it, the indigenisation process was
also fraught with problems and the press was quick to expose these. The
major problem was corruption. The revelation that while portraying
themselves as people’s champions by crusading against imperialism, the
protagonists were also lining their own pockets, was a major blow to the
campaign strategy.

What is happening to the anti-corruption commission and to anyone who dares
expose the rampant corruption are an attempt at damage control. Members of
the commission have to be exposed as corrupt, by so doing taking away their
moral authority to investigate the cancer.

Interestingly, the process of smearing the commissioners has not spared
judges. Any judge who has supported efforts to expose corruption is also
targeted and his gravitas undermined. In any other country such direct
attacks on judges would be deemed to be attacks on the judiciary and would
be seen as highly contemptuous of the High Court.

It would bring the whole judicial system into disrepute.
When the courts have been silenced and the judges have been silenced too,
the press necessarily becomes the next target. It has happened before and it
will happen again. We have already seen how the public press has been
suborned and is being used as the weapon of choice in the dirty fight; next
the private press will be labelled an enemy.

In 2001, a newsroom and a printing press were bombed. The act showed the
extent to which the perpetrators could go to silence voices that exposed the
ruling elite’s impropriety.

Some of the nonsense being published in state-run newspapers is laughable.
For example, Zacc chief executive, Sukai Tongogara, is no longer daughter of
the late liberation war hero General Josiah Tongogara because of her
involvement in the corruption investigations.

She is also accused of being a member of a political party that’s fighting
her father’s comrades and their ideals.

The person who has the audacity to make the accusation not long ago was seen
at Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s door asking for help and vilifying the
same party that she now says her stepdaughter is about to destroy. But how
that little piece of trivia is supposed to undermine her work, no one knows;
one doesn’t have to be the daughter of a national hero to be able to fight
corruption.

The move is an attempt at labelling her a liar and therefore unfit for
office.

It is when the private press continues to expose this farcical approach to
issues that it will be targeted. The press will be lucky if it gets away
with litigation only as has often happened but already threats are beginning
to fly around which are likely to turn very nasty.

What all this points to is that the next few months – the months before the
elections some say will be held in July – will be like a crucible in which
Zimbabwe will be plunged back into uncertainty and insecurity.

President Mugabe has of late been preaching peace but it is now apparent
peace cannot subsist in an environment in which there is no rule of law or
in which the rule of law is subverted to serve certain interests.

After the successful holding of the referendum, the world was beginning to
think that Zimbabwe had reinvented itself and was now on a clear path to
peace. But the events of the past week or so point otherwise. This means the
world, especially the regional body the Southern African Development
Community (Sadc) should continue to keep the eye on the ball.

The roadmap spelt out in the global political agreement that brought about
the government of national unity that rules the country today has only been
partially fulfilled. On the roadmap are some important reforms that are
still to be implemented. These include security sector reform, media reform
and the establishment of a working human rights commission.

If these reforms are not implemented, civil society, particularly
journalists and lawyers, will continue to be vulnerable to attack as is
happening now.

Sadc should maintain a continuous presence in Zimbabwe to monitor progress.
The powers that be will argue Zimbabwe is a sovereign country which should
be allowed to rule itself the way it wishes, but sovereignty does not mean
bludgeoning civil society into submission.

Often the sovereignty argument is used by the main culprits in the
undermining of the rule of law. Vigilance is important at this critical
juncture so Sadc should not shy away from its responsibility.


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Another bitter election looms

http://www.thestandard.co.zw

March 24, 2013 in Editorial

Events of the past week have exposed the fallacy that President Robert
Mugabe is committed to seeing free and fair elections in Zimbabwe this year.

The Standard Editorial

Even before the ink had dried on the pinkies of those who voted in the
referendum, the party has not been ashamed to declare war on the MDC-T,
which is a partner in the government.

The party’s actions are a clear signal that, far from the peace and lull
that prevailed during the referendum, the election would be a different ball
game altogether characterised by the blatant suppression of those
challenging Mugabe’s grip on power.

It may even turn bloody, like what happe-ned in Headlands where 12-year-old
Christ-powers Maisiri was killed in an arson attack.
There are signs that things may get worse as election day draws closer.

The office of Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai has been raided and staffers
and their lawyer, Beatrice Mtetwa, are languishing in remand prison.

The Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (Zacc) has also been under siege
after it tried to investigate three Zanu PF ministers over corruption
charges.

The attack on High Court Judge Charles Hungwe in the state media over the
alleged failure to sentence Jonathan Mutsinze of Marondera 10 years after he
was convicted of robbery and murder charges, also raises eyebrows.

This is the same judge who granted Zacc a search warrant against the
Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation and the National Indigenisation and
Economic Empowerment Board, raising the ire of the targeted ministers and
their hangers on.

Over a month ago, The Standard wrote about Mutsinze’s predicament, but no
hullabaloo was raised because Zacc had not threatened Zanu PF ministers.

These unwelcome developments show Zanu PF will not abandon its strategy of
decimating opposition forces.

They are a timely reminder that four years after partnering the MDC
formations in government, Zanu PF has not changed and is keen to resort to
the same old tactics to maintain power.

Sadc, which guarantees the Global Political Agreement, is advised to act in
a manner that will force Mugabe to create conditions for a free and fair
election.


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