http://news.iafrica.com/
Article By:
Sat, 02 May 2009 16:26
African National
Congress Treasurer General Mathews Phosa said the coalition
government in
Zimbabwe must be given a chance to succeed, SABC radio news
reported on
Saturday.
Speaking to international investors in London, Phosa said the
new ANC-led
government would continue to support Zimbabwe to ensure the
success of the
multi-party government in that country.
"We will
continue to support the Zimbabwean process to ensure that there is
normalisation and democratisation in Zimbabwe.
"We need to continue
to support the sensitive aspect of life in Zimbabwe as
it affects people.
For example, health affects the economy of Zimbabwe,"
Phosa said on
Saturday.
On Thursday in London, Phosa told the Royal African Society
that the
government of ANC president Jacob Zuma had an ambitious delivery
plan aimed
at addressing challenges in housing, energy, health, education
and public
infrastructure.
"Our policy will be to create additional
revenue to partly fund the
programmes aimed at dramatically boosting the
infrastructure in the sectors
mentioned.
"There are also
opportunities for global businesses to bring the best in
technology,
knowledge and business acumen to our shores," Phosa said at the
time.
Earlier, on April 15, Phosa told the Cape Town Press Club that
the ANC had
made mistakes about public service deployment, black economic
empowerment
and land reform that must be corrected after the
elections.
Sapa
http://www1.sundaymail.co.zw
Sunday, May 03, 2009
Sunday Mail
Reporter
THE University of Zimbabwe is on the verge of collapse because
it is grossly
under-funded amid
revelations
that only 68 out of 12 000 students at the institution have paid
tuition
fees while grants from traditional sources such as the Government
have
either not been released or are not adequate.
All the toilets at the
institution have not been functioning for a year
while only one out of the
seven boreholes is pumping water. There is no
basic teaching and learning
material such as writing paper, modern
textbooks, chalk and pens and all the
campus food outlets have been shut
down.
The university's research
work is also under threat, as most of the vehicles
used for field trips are
grounded. In addition, the general telephone lines
are not working, the
lecture theatres are in a bad state and only one bus is
available to ferry
lecturers to and from work. UZ Vice-Chancellor Professor
Levi Nyagura told
The Sunday Mail last week that the university requires
US$4,6 million to
resuscitate its crippled infrastructure and operations. He
said the
institution lacks the funds to address the dire problems it faces
partly
because students are reluctant to pay the set fees.
"There is no money to
buy basic necessities. We would have expected the
clients to pay, but they
are resisting the fees. If they paid, this would
help rectify the problems
we are facing," he said.
The University of Zimbabwe has been facing
serious problems since last year.
The first semester was scheduled to begin
last August but was postponed
following fears that the lack of water at the
institution exposed its 12 000
students and 3 000 staff members to a major
health risk.
The academic year only got under way in November after the
Zimbabwe National
Water Authority (Zinwa) undertook to rehabilitate the
boreholes and sewer
system.
However, the semester had to end
prematurely because the situation had not
been rectified. This resulted in
most students failing to sit for first
semester examinations.
The
second semester should have begun in March this year. But again, the
deplorable water and sanitation conditions remain unchanged with operations
deteriorating further.
Prof Nyagura said US$1,8 million is required
to restore the university's
infrastructure and US$2,8 million for academic
operations.
He emphasised that it was critical for students to pay fees,
as this was one
intervention that would place the university on the path to
recovery.
Students studying humanities are supposed to pay US$300 per
semester while
those in the science field should pay US$350. Fees for life
sciences and
foreign students were set at US$400 and US$2 500.
It is
understood that out of the 12 000 students at the institution, only 68
have
paid. Also not many have enlisted for Government's cadetship programme
under
which students are bonded.
Said Prof Nyagura: "It seems most people are
willing to pay huge sums of
money for concerns other than university
education. Yet, the fees we are
charging are not comparable because these
are just for the semester.
"The University of Zimbabwe is the oldest
higher learning institution in the
country. Hence, the challenge is always
to maintain standards. But parents
and students should demonstrate
willingness to pay for the services they
receive.
"The UZ has quality
education so this needs to be supported. To start with,
there is no water;
so you cannot bring thousands of people here. There hasn't
been any water
since last year, meaning a huge sum of money would be
required to sort out
the blocked sewer system alone.
"Other problems are operational: You need
to attend to areas such as
workshops and lecture theatres. Certainly, items
such as bulbs, florescent
lights and stationery are also required, but there
is no money to buy such
basic necessities."
Association of University
Teachers' (AUT) president Mr Government Phiri said
Government's lack of
funds had also drastically affected the university as
it can no longer
access State grants.
He said unlike the situation at other State
universities such as the
Midlands State University, funds collected from
tuition charges were meagre
and could not sustain
operations.
"Without begrudging them, I think the inclusive Government is
talking too
much about primary and secondary education and virtually nothing
about
university education," he said.
"Just to illustrate this, some
of our lecturers have not been paid for a
while, and the reason given for
this was someone had forgotten to factor us
in during salary
calculations.
"A massive and urgent cash injection is required for the
university to open.
The students have been greatly affected by the situation
because they could
not write first semester examinations. As we see it, the
first semester
should start afresh when the university re-opens.
"The
problems have not spared lecturers either. We cannot research. An
academic
cannot be archaic. We have sought to have our salary concerns
addressed, but
so far our efforts have been hitting a brick wall."
ZAKA- MAY 2 2009- Villagers in Zaka now fear to trade their goods using United States Dollars fearing fake notes which are in circulation.
Speaking to Radio VOP on Saturday, villagers from areas such
as Jichidza, Ndanga and Gunguwo said they were receiving fake USD notes and had
resorted to barter trading. The villagers however said they were desperate for cash to
pay school fees. |
http://www1.sundaymail.co.zw
Sunday, May 03, 2009
By Augustine
Moyo
"THE death of the Zimbabwe dollar is a reality we have to live with.
Since
October 2008 our national currency has become moribund," said Finance
Minister Tendai Biti while presenting a revised 2009 budget in
Parliament.
After having been certified and pronounced dead by Mr
Biti, the Zimbabwe
dollar has defied "death" as it is still in circulation
and proving to be a
reliable medium of exchange in some sectors of the
economy.
The Zimbabwe dollar, specifically the $50 billion note,
continues to
circulate in Harare where it is being used as change in
commuter omnibuses
and by biscuit and vegetable vendors.
The note is
being used as change in most omnibuses which charge US$0,50 or
R5 or $3
trillion, only if in $50 billion notes.
Economist Dr Godfrey Kanyenze
said: "It is a very interesting mystery that
we have here as far as the use
of the local currency which was recently
being shunned by everyone is
concerned.
"My hunch is that when Government announced the use of
multiple currencies
it was not a planned shift but was simply legalising
what was already
happening in the economy. That is why right now as an
economy and a country
we do not have a lender of last resort.
"What
is happening with regards to the use of the Zimbabwe dollar is
indicative of
the need for smaller denominations, particularly coins for
change.
"This has led to the emergence of sub-systems in the economy
that are
emerging to correct the distortions arising from the unplanned
partial
dollarisation and multi-currencing. The system is creating its own
new money
which implies using certain sections of the Zimbabwe dollar like
the $50
billion note."
Dr Kanyenze added that within that system
there is an equilibrium that seems
to have aligned the value of US$0,50 or
R5,00 to $3 trillion.
"This means that someone has not bothered to issue
coins. The mystery of the
use of the Zimbabwe dollar is that it is filling a
practical gap created by
lack of coins."
Following the legislation of
multiple currencies in the economy early this
year by the then acting
Finance minister, Senator Patrick Chinamasa, smaller
denominations for
change have remained a challenge, forcing retailers to
force customers to
pick up small items such as sweets, pens, soups and
plastic carrier bags in
lieu of cash.
Mr Maola Muzondo, a commuter omnibus driver plying the City
to Hatcliffe
route, said the local unit is only used for purposes of change
due to the
shortage of smaller denominations for change on the
market.
"The Zimbabwe dollar just circulates within the commuter omnibus
business.
We cannot use it for fuel, acquire spare parts for our vehicles,
for our
salaries or bank it. So many times passengers give us less than $3
trillion
but we just accept it for change, we do not even count it because
we know
that we will just pass it on.
"We accept $3 trillion because
the last time that the Zimbabwe dollar
traded, the exchange rate was at US$1
to $6 trillion and has never moved
since. Seeing that a trip costs US$0,50
we are charging half of what the
rate was.
"Only if there were a way
by which Tendai Biti can peg the $50 billion note
to be equivalent to
US$0,50 or R5, it would be better. We don't like the
idea of moving around
with a bunch of $50 billion notes," explained Mr
Muzondo.
Economic
Planning and Development Minister Elton Mangoma was recently quoted
as
saying the Zimbabwe dollar will be out for at least a year.
"We resolved
that there will be no immediate plans to reintroduce the money
because there
is nothing to support and hold its value.
"Our focus is to first ensure
that we have a vibrant industry. If we try to
reintroduce the local currency
now, it will face the same fate of being
wiped out of its value within
weeks."
Economic experts opine that the Zimbabwe dollar can only be
introduced when
capacity utilisation in industry returns to 100 percent and
there is enough
production.
Head of the Economics Department at the
University of Zimbabwe Dr Takawira
Mamvuma said there is need to stabilise
the production side of the economy
before the country can use its own
currency.
"It will not make any sense to introduce the Zimbabwe dollar
when literally
all sectors of the economy are down. We can introduce the
local currency
when we are producing our own goods because at the end of the
day we will
have too many Zimbabwe dollars chasing very few goods and simply
return to
where we were last year.
"Capacity utilisation does not
necessarily have to be at 100 percent. At 80
percent, we will be safe. The
determinant for an industry's capacity
utilisation is the markets. If an
organisation is also an exporter and doesn't
only cater for the local market
then capacity utilisation could be more.
"Currently there is a dampening
of demand for goods locally because very few
people have access to the US
dollar and the South African rand. To stabilise
the production side of the
economy we need lines of credit, rationalisation
of policy, inputs and the
right pricing," he said.
http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com/?p=16102
May 2, 2009
By Our
Correspondent/Financial Gazette
BULAWAYO - Tourism Minister Walter Mzembi
has castigated the media for
covering a demonstration organised by war
veterans' leader Joseph
Chinotimba, saying Zimbabwe was trying to repair its
battered image which
had seen tourism decline rapidly.
He also
blasted Chinotimba for continuing to tarnish the image of the
country when
the government was fighting to attract tourists ahead of the
2010 World
Cup.
Chinotimba, a leader of the Zimbabwe National Liberation War
Veterans'
Association, organised war veterans last week to protest against
the drive
to repossess farms and farming equipment given to new farmers by
the Reserve
Bank of Zimbabwe from those who were productively using
them.
This is the first time a Zanu-PF official has publicly censured the
activities of the war veterans who have been in the forefront of the land
invasions going back over the past 10 years. Chinotimba a former municipal
security guard, whose credentials as a veteran of Zimbabwe's war of
liberation have been openly questioned, has climbed the ladder of success
within Zanu-PF merely for the role he has played in spreading the violence
which has tarnished the country's image abroad.
Speaking at a
business conference organised by the National Economic
Consultative Forum at
the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair yesterday,
Mzembi said his ministry
was doing everything to take advantage of the 2010
soccer World Cup to he
held in South Africa.
He called on the business community to capitalise
on this mega event because
the next event of its size in Africa would only
be held in 2034.
Mzembi said his ministry had lobbied strongly for the
lifting of travel
warnings by the West. So far, the United States, Britain,
Germany, Sweden
and Japan had lifted these travel warnings. The European
Union was likely to
follow suit in a week or two.
"We are now
regarded as a free, very safe and secure destination. We don't
need the kind
of publicity we are getting from my own brother Chinotimba. We
do not need
this now," he said to applause from the business people
attending the
conference.
At one time 45 airlines were flying into the country but this
was now down
to seven. Tourism had also become one of the major contributors
to gross
domestic product but last year it was down to five
percent.
Mzembi said the country had two million tourists last year, down
from
2,5million the previous year. It earned US$294 million compared to
US$365
million in 2007.
The minister said tourism was critical for
every sector in the country. The
2010 World Cup offered opportunities for
the construction industry, the
manufacturing sector and the service
industry.
He said Zimbabwe should improve its water and sewerage systems
because
tourists were scared by the recent cholera epidemic. It should also
improve
its health services as well as the availability of
accommodation.
South Africa had indicated that it would need 40 000 rooms
for the World Cup
which is now exactly 12 months away but a survey had
indicated that only 10
000 rooms were available. It was therefore up to
business to provide the
additional rooms needed, Mzembi said.
He also
called on the financial sector to reintroduce the use of plastic
money
because it was inconvenient for tourists to travel with cash.
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk
Editorial
Comment
Thursday, 30 April
2009
President Robert Mugabe is prepared to go in order to keep
Reserve
Bank of Zimbabwe Governor Gideon Gono, Attorney General Johannes
Tomana and
other old boys in their jobs
Less than 100 days in
office, the power-sharing government is facing a
potential stalemate that
could paralyse the whole institution or even cause
it to
collapse.
Certainly, collapse of the power-sharing government will
be
catastrophic for Zimbabwe, but it is something that may not surprise many
people given the acrimonious circumstances of the birth of the
administration and the fragility it has exhibited since its February 13
formation.
What most Zimbabweans will no doubt find shocking and
unacceptable are
the reasons that may bring about this debilitating
paralysis in the
administration, the so-called outstanding issues.
Outstanding because they were considered too peripheral to stop
formation of
the power-sharing government and therefore could be postponed.
Outstanding issues that in reality are only outstanding as an example
of the
extent to which President Robert Mugabe is prepared to go in order to
keep
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Governor Gideon Gono, Attorney General
Johannes
Tomana and other old boys in their jobs (read on the gravy train).
Mugabe, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and Deputy Prime Minister
Arthur
Mutambara are scheduled to meet again this week - the sixth time they
will
be meeting inside three weeks to discuss the reappointment of Gono,
Tomana,
ambassadors, permanent secretaries and provincial governors.
Previous
meetings failed because Mugabe is adamant his loyalists must
keep their
jobs.
We are reliably informed this week's talks will not achieve much.
The
principals will have to declare a deadlock and formally request SADC to
return to Zimbabwe - much earlier than the six months the regional body had
said it would wait before reviewing the power-sharing deal.
Yet
Mugabe - a man who really should be charged for ruining our once
beautiful
country - gave his word in Pretoria last September that he was
agreeable to
a review of all senior public appointments to ensure they
reflected the new
power-sharing arrangement. Shame on the old man!
But the MDC formations
are not without blame for this depressing state
of affairs. They have been
too eager to praise the unity government as the
only viable alternative for
Zimbabwe - that may be true.
However, in their haste to prove that they
took the right decision to
join the unity government, the MDC formations
have been overzealous in
playing public relations for the coalition
government while there is little
or nothing at all to prove that Mugabe and
his inner circle have truly
changed their ways.
Yes, there are
encouraging signs that the economy is moving towards
stability; schools and
hospitals have been re-opened.
But more work remains undone. The same
thugs who have destroyed
agriculture continue to invade farms. The rule of
law remains absent, human
rights continue to be violated - and this is just
the tip of the iceberg.
The point is that the MDC must demand that
Mugabe plays ball or they
are out of the unity government. The starting
point is to insist Mugabe
keeps his word on the reappointment of senior
public servants.
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk
Friday, 01 May 2009
HARARE - A special parliamentary committee is expected to probe
reports that
Dande Capital Holdings - a company with strong links to Vice
President Joice
Mujuru -- allegedly defrauded the Zimbabwe of Revenue
Authority (ZIMRA) of
US$10 million three years ago.
Sources, who said a police probe into
the alleged fraud had for
unknown reasons made little or no progress at all,
said that Parliament's
portfolio committee on budget finance and economic
development had indicated
it would launch a probe into the scam as soon as
it begins sitting.
"There was an investigation by the ZRP that has not
made much
headway," said a source familiar with the controversial dealings
between
Dande and ZIMRA.
"The most promising investigation has been
promised by the
parliamentary committee on budget, finance and economic
development which
has taken interest in the transaction and want Dande to
refund the money,"
added the source.
However, chairman of the
portfolio committee Paddy Zhanda said his
committee had not yet decided
whether to probe the ZIMRA/Dande deal.
"As a committee we have not set
down to look at that. I think the
people who are telling you are anxious to
get these things looked at," said
Zhanda.
Mujuru
brainchild
Dande, a growing locally-owned conglomerate that has
interests
spanning several key sectors of the economy including agriculture,
mining
and telecommunications is the brainchild of Mujuru.
The Vice
President, who it was not immediately possible to establish
whether she had
any direct interest in Dande, was instrumental in the
setting up of the
company as a way to economically empower indigenous
Zimbabweans from the
northern regions of the country where she comes from.
According to our
sources, Mujuru in 2006 took several government
companies and bodies to
China to seek supplies of spares and other
requirements and among those that
were on the trip was ZIMRA that was
represented by its Commissioner General
Gershom Pasi.
ZIMRA clinched a deal with the China National
Earotechnology Import
and Export Company (CATIC) for the supply of scanners
but the tax collector
did not have the US$10 million demanded by the Chinese
firm.
It is alleged that Mujuru -- who had taken along Dande
executives to
China - suggested that ZIMRA pays ZW$27 trillion in working
capital for
Dande's chrome mines and in return the firm would use proceeds
from its
chrome exports to payoff the tax collector's debt to the Chinese
firm.
At the time of the transaction, $27 trillion was equivalent
to US$10
million.
Dande failed to pay
ZIMRA provided
the capital to Dande as agreed but the company
allegedly did not meet its
part of the bargain. Dande never paid off ZIMRA's
debt with the Chinese
suppliers nor did it pay back the tax collector the
cash advanced as working
capital for its chrome mines, it is alleged.
According to our sources
attempts by the ZIMRA board to recover the
money given to Dande, including
several representations to Mujuru and the
Ministry of Finance have yielded
nothing.
In a report May 29, 2007, the Office of the Comptroller and
Auditor
General confirms that at the time of the audit Dande had not paid
the
Chinese company well after the 100 days within which payment should have
been made.
"Dande Capital Holdings had not yet honoured its
obligation and the
stipulated time of 100 days from the day of the last draw
(down payment)
that was 26/09/06 had already passed," the report
said.
Penalty risk
It added: "If the arrangement does not
materialise as planned the
authority (ZIMRA) is at risk of penalty from
CACTIC China for failure to
service the foreign debt timeously.
"In
addition the authority might have suffered an opportunity cost
associated
with its capital at Dande Capital Holdings. I therefore suggest
that the
authority expedite the recovery process of either the amount
advanced with
interest or the agreed foreign amount in order to maintain its
credibility
with CATIC China."
According to our sources the proposed probe by the
parliamentary
committee will seek to establish whether Dande was involved in
chrome mining
and if so whether the size of its operations were such that it
could be able
to raise the cash promised to ZIMRA and its Chinese
supplier.
The committee will also seek to establish why it has taken
the police
so long to get to the bottom of the controversial deal. - BY
GERALD MOYO
http://www.thezimbabwestandard.com/
Saturday, 02 May 2009 19:39
ATTORNEY-General Johannes Tomana last week defended the decision by
the
state not to call Defence Minister Emmerson Mnangagwa to testify in a
corruption trial.
Mnangagwa was supposed to appear before a
Harare magistrate to answer
to allegations that he had unfairly benefited
from Grain Marketing Board
inputs allegedly looted by Jeffery Tabva, his
former subordinate and Raymond
Williams, a businessman last
year.
Williams and Tabva were acquitted on Tuesday on five counts
of
contravening Section 136 (b) of the Criminal Law (Codification and
Reform)
Act.
Tomana told The Standard that there was no
purpose in bringing
Mnangagwa to court, as his presence there would have
added no value to the
case.
"My job is not to harass people
but to call people who add value to
what they do. Mnangagwa was not a
necessary witness for purposes of proving
the offences charged," he
said.
However, Harare magistrate Lilian Kudya in her ruling
lashed out at
the state for not bringing Mnangagwa to
testify.
"The state eventually decided to close its case
without calling the
minister to clearly show the court how the accused had
defrauded the state.
No reasons were advanced by the state as to why it
eventually decided not to
call its so-called witness," she
said.
In their defence outline and throughout the trial, she
said, Tabva and
Williams had insisted that they were sent by Mnangagwa to
purchase the goods
at the GMB and by failing to bring Mnangagwa to testify
the state had failed
to prove a case against the accused.
"In the result that the state failed to make out a prima-facie case
against
the accused persons, they are both accordingly discharged at the
close of
the state case. They are accordingly found not guilty and are
acquitted,"
she said.
State prosecutor Benson Taruvinga two weeks ago
closed the case saying
he had finished questioning "all the witnesses"
except Mnangagwa. He refused
to shed more light on why he had not asked
Mnangagwa to testify.
Last month the court heard that the state
was having problems bringing
Mnangagwa to testify as he had failed to appear
in court on three occasions.
Mnangagwa later appeared at the
courts on March 27 but he did not
testify and no explanation was given amid
reports that the AG's office had
intervened to stop him from
testifying.
It had been alleged that on May 27, 2008 Tabva
purchased 720 x 50kg
bags of urea fertiliser from the GMB claiming that
Mnangagwa had sent him.
The parastatal released 500 bags of
fertiliser all under Mnangagwa's
name, which were moved from a GMB depot by
Williams.
In his defence outline, Williams said he was only
hired to provide
transport while Tabva argued he had been assigned to source
the inputs not
only for Mnangagwa but other unnamed Zanu PF officials for
distribution to
party members.
Tabva said during the 2008
election period he was actively involved in
Zanu PF campaigns and made
numerous purchases of various commodities for the
benefit of party members
in various constituencies.
He said the commodities were for the
benefit of various politicians,
including Mnangagwa.
BY
SANDRA MANDIZVIDZA
http://www.thezimbabwestandard.com/
Saturday, 02 May 2009 19:37
GENDER
activists see the drafting of a new constitution spearheaded by
a
parliamentary select committee as a golden opportunity for women to claim
their space as equal citizens to their male counterparts in terms of the
law.
They plan to mobilise women to take part in the process
which will
lead towards a new constitution, heralding fresh
elections.
"We hope this coming constitution will recognise us as
equal citizens
to our male counterparts and eliminate all forms of
discrimination against
women," Women in Politics Support Unit (WIPSU)
director Cleo Ndlovu said.
"We will also make submissions
suggesting that whatever regional or
global instrument we sign as a country,
it should automatically become law
and should not go through the process of
ratification and domestication as
that takes a long time before the
instrument is implemented".
The women's movement said it wanted
clear constitutional provisions
for women and children in terms of resource
allocation by the state that
would improve their wellbeing.
Zimbabwe Coalition on Debt and Development (ZIMCODD) chairperson
Rutendo
Hadebe said women must push for reforms that bind government to make
more
resources available to women and children.
"The immediate needs
of women include support in light of the cholera
crisis, and access to
health for themselves and their children," Hadebe
said.
"Without anything binding in the constitution, women's issues will
continue
to be sidelined", they said.
According to the activists, the current
constitution makes men more
equal than women, setting the basis for
inequality in terms of the law.
That inequality, they say,
negatively affects women and children when
national resources are allocated.
Among other things, the gender activists
want a revision of Section 23 of
the country's supreme law, which they said
still takes away women's rights
on the basis of tradition and culture,
despite undergoing 19
amendments.
They said Section 23 does not protect married
women in private spaces
such as homes or offices, "yet it is in these spaces
where most violations
against women take place".
The
women's movement want to see an end to the Registrar-General
office's
requirement that forces women to seek consent from their children's
fathers
to obtain passports for them.
A test case in which war veteran
Margaret Dongo is challenging the RG's
office over this matter is already
before the courts. The matter was heard
by the full bench of the Supreme
Court comprising Justices Godfrey
Chidyausiku, Paddington Garwe, Rita
Makarau, Anne-Marie Gowora and Vernanda
Ziyambi last month. Judgement in the
matter was reserved.
Represented by Sarudzayi Njerere, Dongo is
arguing that the
Guardianship of Minors Act is discriminatory and that the
common law on
guardianship and African customary law relating to
guardianship is
discriminatory to women.
BY BERTHA SHOKO AND
JENNIFER DUBE
http://www.thezimbabwestandard.com/
Saturday, 02 May 2009 19:34
ZIMBABWE should set up a justice commission to investigate all cases
of
political violence and human rights abuses that occurred since the
country's
independence, a coalition of women's organisations has said.
The
Women's Coalition of Zimbabwe (WCOZ) said a justice commission was
vital to
unravel injustices, particularly against women as the nation moves
towards a
new political dispensation.
Speaking during a one-day meeting on
"Zimbabwean Women in Transition"
recently WCOZ director Netsai Mushonga said
it was important to break the
culture of impunity that has characterized the
country's history.
She pointed out that women were the most
affected people during last
year's political violence and other times of
instability.
"The issue of social justice is highly critical
during this period
because it will decide whether or not we become a
peaceful society or remain
a violent society where we adopt a culture of
violence to make social and
political change in our country," said
Mushonga.
The WCOZ director bemoaned the absence of mechanisms
to cater for
women whose rights were violated during the liberation struggle
and
Gukurahundi Massacres of the early 1980s, which killed about 20 000
people.
"You will remember that Zimbabwe went through a
protracted liberation
struggle where gross violation happened against women,
but after
independence there was no process to address all this," she
said.
"After independence we had the Gukurahundi massacres and then we
had
subsequent acts of politically motivated violence with last year being
the
worst. So these are all issues we need to address."
Speaking at the same meeting Swedish ambassador to Zimbabwe Sten
Rylander, a
special guest at the meeting, concurred saying transitional
justice was
important to allow the nation to move forward in the same manner
that
countries such as South Africa have done.
"I think transitional
justice is very important. At least people
should be transparent and
accountable for what has happened in order for
things to move forward in a
nation," said Rylander.
"I don't mean that you should hang
anyone you know but facts should
come out and taken into account in order
for people to move forward as they
did in South Africa and other countries
that had gone through difficult and
violent times."
The
meeting, which brought together hundreds of women from grassroots
level,
leaders in politics, civic society and academics, was designed to
find out
how women can effectively engage and participate in the new
political
dispensation to better their lives.
The deputy Minister of
Justice and Legal Affairs Jessie Majome said
the current Constitution
discriminates and disempowers women in their every
day
lives.
She urged the women's movement to take advantage of the
opportunity
presented by the pending Constitutional Review process to craft
a gender
sensitive Constitution.
In a brief analysis of the
current Constitution, Majome gave 12
reasons why it is discriminatory to
women.
One reason she mentioned was that Section 23 does not protect
women in
private spaces such as homes or offices, adding that this is
discriminatory
because it is in the home where most violations against
women's rights take
place.
Majome said what section 23 of
the current constitution does to women
is "nothing short of
criminal".
"Although there have been attempts to change Section 23 of
our
current constitution I maintain it is the worst constitutional provision
in
the world as far as women's rights are concerned." said
Majome.
Former National Constitutional Assembly (NCA)
chairperson and gender
activist Thoko Matshe said women must take advantage
of the constitutional
review process to empower themselves.
Matshe urged women to forget about "dancing and singing men into
power" and
focus on the real issues that improve their lives.
The Minister
of Women's Affairs, Gender and Community Development
Olivia Muchena conceded
that women were underrepresented in the inclusive
government but urged them
to fight for a new constitution that prevents such
issues in
future.
"The GNU (Government of National Unity) is irreversible
now but what
we must now fight to do is to ensure that we contribute to
bring out a new
constitution that will fight our battles for us in future,"
Muchena said.
"The work begins now and I urge the Women's
Coalition of Zimbabwe to
work very hard to engender our
constitution."
BY BERTHA SHOKO
http://www.thezimbabwestandard.com/
Saturday, 02 May 2009 18:49
THE Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) has called for the
amendment of
the country's labour laws saying they are "repressive".
Speaking at
the launch of a ZCTU's handbook on workers' rights
entitled Workers Know
Your Rights last week, union president Lovemore
Matombo cited Chapter 28:1
of the Labour Act which he said does not give
workers the right to
strike.
"Some of these legislations include the Labour Act Chapter
28:01
itself.
"This Act up to now does not give workers
their full right to strike
and has so many obstacles that take away the
right," Matombo said.
The handbook contains literature on
workers' rights and labour laws
meant to educate workers on their
fundamental rights at the workplace.
Matombo said besides the
Labour Act, there was a vital need to amend
legislations such as the Public
Order and Security Act (POSA) and the
Criminal Law (Codification and Reform)
Act which he said impinges on workers'
rights to protest against poor
working conditions.
He said the laws give employers powers to
undermine and violate
workers' rights by allowing them the opportunity to
interfere in labour
unions thereby contravening the workers' rights to
freedom of association.
Matombo said the ZCTU was working to
ensure that the country's labour
laws matched with international standards
on labour legislation.
"Our ultimate goal is to ensure that all
workers in Zimbabwe are
governed by one legislation which complies with
international standards of
labour relations," he said.
The
ZCTU president also attributed the problems facing workers to "bad
governance" in the country. There is over 85% unemployment, while those
employed are poorly paid.
Matombo however expressed
optimism that the inclusive government would
act on repealing the repressive
legislation.
The labour body also warned employers against the
"arbitrary slashing
of workers' salaries".
The warning
comes amid reports that the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply
Authority (Zesa) and
the Harare City Council have slashed salaries of their
employees.
ZCTU secretary general Wellington Chibebe said:
"The issue of salary
reductions is a non-starter. We have communicated with
the Minister of
Labour and Social Welfare who has since told us that it is a
misnomer."
He said any reduction of workers salaries without consulting
labour
movements is arbitrary.
He said it could only be done
after extensive consultation with worker's
unions.
General
Agricultural and Plantation Workers' Union of Zimbabwe
(GAPWUZ) secretary
general Getrude Hambira expressed concern over the
continued violation of
human and workers rights in farming and rural
communities.
"We therefore call for all the stakeholders, especially the
government, to
do all they can to open up space for the tired and abused
Zimbabweans to
express their fundamental freedoms," said Hambira, who is
also a general
council member of the ZCTU.
BY EDGAR GWESHE
http://www.thezimbabwestandard.com/
Saturday, 02 May 2009 18:45
BULAWAYO - Zimbabwe's coal mining giant, Hwange Colliery Company (HCC)
has
appealed for an urgent US$100 million loan from the government in a bid
to
revive its crumbled operations following last year's 17% drop in
production
levels.
The financially struggling coalition government has however
responded
to the distress call by chipping in with a mere US$5 million to be
shared
out with the Zimbabwe Power Company (ZPC), diminishing any hopes of a
quick
turnaround at the troubled coal company.
Obert Mpofu, the
Mines and Mining Development Minister confirmed that
Hwange Colliery had
appealed for assistance.
"The company needs US$100 million to
operate full capacity and it has
since submitted its proposals to the
government and its major shareholders,"
said.
Mpofu last
Friday toured Hwange Colliery's open cast and underground
mining for two
days.
Hwange Colliery chairman Tendai Savanhu has indicated
that since there
were no major equipment purchases during 2008, the existing
aged plant and
equipment had frequent breakdowns that constrained the
company's operations.
Production at HCC fell to 1.722.801
tonnes last year from the 2007
figure of 2, 071 526 tonnes, a 17 % drop,
owing to a constant breakdown of
aged machines, flight of critical skilled
staff and price controls.
HCC also failed to recapitalise its
operations last year as it was
financially handicapped. It has also been
affected by power shortages.
Drastic coal shortages despite
massive natural deposits have had a
ripple effect throughout the country's
economy.
BY OUR STAFF
http://www.thezimbabwestandard.com/
Saturday, 02 May 2009
18:38
THE Botswana Confederation of Industry and Manpower (Boccim)
will
this week lead a private sector delegation to find ways of supporting
the
Short Term Emergency Recovery Programme (STERP).
The visit
comes on the back of a trade delegation that was led by that
country's
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance and Development
Planning.
In a statement issued last week Boccim said the visit
was designed to
"scan the business environment in Zimbabwe first hand and to
appreciate any
risks as well as to build contacts for future
relationships".
The visit comes at a time when Botswana has
already pledged assistance
through lines of credit to the tune of P500
million (US$69m).
"The purpose of the mission is for the
Botswana private sector to meet
their counterparts in Zimbabwe to identify
the needs of the Zimbabwe private
sector, to explore opportunities of
working together through business
linkages (joint ventures, supply
management contracts etc) that will be
mutually beneficial to both countries
with the one objective of rebuilding
the economy of Zimbabwe," Boccim
said.
Employers' Confederation of Zimbabwe (Emcoz) has
confirmed the visit.
"We are aware of the intended visit", said
Emcoz chief executive
officer John Mufukare. "We will be hosting them as the
Business Council of
Zimbabwe (BCZ)". BCZ comprises private sector
organisations such as Emcoz,
Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI) and
Zimbabwe National Chamber of
Commerce (ZNCC) among others.
The organisation said the arrangement would facilitate growth of
enterprises
in both countries.
The organisation also highlighted the need
to revisit various
bilateral trade agreements between Zimbabwe and Botswana
to ensure that they
are used effectively.
Following the
constitution of an inclusive government southern
African nations and the
international community pledged assistance to rescue
the country's troubled
economy.
Botswana and South Africa have so far been at the
forefront, mostly
because they are the countries directly affected by the
crisis in Zimbabwe.
Major western economies have also promised to avail
lines of credit once
they are satisfied with the progress of the inclusive
government.
BY OUR STAFF
http://www.thezimbabwestandard.com/
Saturday, 02 May 2009 18:29
AN epic
battle is looming between the board of African conglomerate
Lonrho and
activist shareholders over the fate of LonZim, a subsidiary which
was set up
by Lonrho in 2007 "to invest in the recovery of Zimbabwe".
The
consequences could be dramatic: the entire board could be sacked
and all the
assets sold and the cash returned to shareholders.
SA-based AMB
Capital, through its Irish subsidiary, which has a 20,75%
stake in LonZim,
has called an emergency general meeting to vote out the
current board and
replace them with four new AMB-nominated directors.
AMB is
supported in its action by Damille Partners IV, which owns
6,25% in
LonZim.
The board of Lonrho, which holds a 20% equity stake in
LonZim, will
fight AMB's proposals. It sees the action as "a divestment
policy which is
not in the best interest of shareholders", says Lonrho
chairman Dave
Lenigas.
"AMB bought its equity in LonZim at
an extremely low average price of
16p/share.
This is below
the current market price. If AMB is permitted to sell
the assets and return
capital to shareholders, it will make a profit on its
investment if it can
deliver an exit price over 16p/share. The majority of
other shareholders
will not."
The long-term success of these investments is
dependent on a
resurgence in the Zimbabwean economy. Divesting the portfolio
now will
deprive shareholders of significant value, says
Lenigas.
Sprague disagrees. "Lonrho (which manages the
operations of LonZim)
has mismanaged the assets. LonZim is overpaying for
assets that will not
deliver a return, even when the economy
recovers."
LonZim recently acquired the Leopard Rock hotel for
US$8m.
"It's a 50-room hotel with a lovely view and golf
course. But at that
price it will never deliver a return to shareholders,"
says Sprague.
He also questions the strategy. Deals are funded
from equity, without
including debt financing.
Big projects are
planned in areas that lack basic infrastructure.
There are also
corporate governance blunders.
Last year LonZim spent £3m
buying nearly 60m shares in Lonrho, without
informing shareholders.
"This is not LonZim's mandate. The deal was done because the parent
company
was running out of money," says Sprague.
Lonrho also doubled
executives' pay and reduced the cost of executive
options from 44p to 6p,
without informing shareholders.
FINANCIAL TIMES
http://www.thezimbabwestandard.com/
Saturday, 02
May 2009 19:16
IT is hardly coincidental that among the wealthiest in
Zimbabwe are
people who happen to occupy or are connected to those who
occupy political
or quasi-political office.
If the new breed of
politicians in the inclusive government is to
bring in real change, they
ought to go beyond the current quest for
structural change and introduce a
new political culture based on
transparency and accountability.
At present politicians are pre-occupied with structural change by
which is
meant the more visible changes in the structures of government as
symbolised
by the acquisition of political office and other organs of the
state as we
have been since the inception of the Inclusive Government in
February
2009.
These structural changes have been difficult given the
refusal by Old
Power to embrace the partners. So the disputes over
ministerial portfolios,
diplomatic appointments, governors, central bank
management, etc are all
part of this quest towards structural change. Yet,
that is only the
beginning.
The greater challenge, which
must be tackled alongside the structural
changes is cultural change which
might be conveniently referred to as change
in political
culture.
This is less visible - it the change in the way things
are done; the
manner in which resources are managed, etc.
If change is limited to the structural level alone, the risk is that
the new
personnel will simply continue on a business as usual mode.
After a
few years when people look back they lament that nothing has
changed,
because the new officeholders have simply continued on the path of
their
predecessors.
They would even argue, to justify their conduct that
this has always
been the case and that others have done it
too.
It is in this context where we must consider some ways of
promoting
cultural change on the part of our leaders.
The
primary point from which the rot commences can be identified as
the problem
of conflict of interests. Many of the problems such as
corruption, abuse,
misuse and misallocation of public resources arise from
the fact that too
many of our political leaders are conflicted.
other words, they
place themselves in situations where their personal
interests conflict with
those of the state or state related entities such as
parastatals which they
ought to serve honestly and faithfully.
The oaths that they
take before the President are forgotten as soon as
they finish reciting
them.
When ministers manage public resources on behalf of the
state, they
are in the position of fiduciaries, that is, they are in a
position of trust
and confidence. As such their principal obligation ought
to be to manage the
resources in the best interests of the state, the
ultimate beneficiaries
being the people.
The trouble
however, is that political power places them in a position
of advantage
relative to the rest of the population.
This power allows them to
have greater access to information and
resources which, without sufficient
checks and balances, they can be easily
tempted to turn to their own
advantage.
This risk is increased by the limited oversight that
is exercised by
the people, many of whom have limited, if any information
about national
resources and the way government operates.
The body that is supposed to carry out this task on behalf of the
people is
parliament but it can be ineffective especially in one-party
states or
worryingly in Zimbabwe's case in states that are governed by
coalitions
where all parties agree to toe the line.
This ineffectiveness of
parliament can be easily purchased by the
executive such as where
parliamentarians are grateful recipients of
government largesse, even when
unprocedural means are used. It becomes very
difficult for them to exercise
their monitoring role against their
benefactors.
That is the
principal reason why some of us have queried the MPs'
acceptance of motor
vehicles from the Governor of the Reserve Bank who could
be the subject of a
parliamentary investigation.
The risk is that these politicians
have become compromised and can no
longer claim the high moral ground to
scrutinise the Governor's activities.
The biggest conflict
however, as we have seen over the years is when
government ministers and
senior civil servants engage in private commercial
activities outside
government business.
There is actually at least one piece of
statute that recognises this
risk and provides for a way to deal with it.
Section 18(2) of the Reserve
Bank of Zimbabwe Act effectively prohibits the
Governor of the Reserve Bank
or his deputies from engaging in 'any
occupation of a commercial, industrial
or financial nature' except with the
permission of the Minister of Finance.
This is a significant
clause, which recognises the importance of the
office of the Governor of the
central bank and the potential for conflicts
of interest that exist as a
result of one's occupation of that office.
If a person holding
such office must have other business interests
that fall within the scope of
the defined activities, then he must of
necessity declare them to the
minister and seek permission to carry on such
activities. The law requires
it and for very good reason.
would, of course, be ridiculous to
stop an office holder from carrying
out certain activities since holding
office is only for a particular term of
appointment.
Indeed, he
may have been engaged in profitable business prior to his
appointment or
election and in some cases a regime that is prohibitively
strict can be
counterproductive as it inhibits entrepreneurship and
therefore deters from
public service otherwise talented individuals.
Nevertheless, a
monitoring framework is essential to ensure that
conflicts of interest are
minimised.
Therefore, in certain cases, permission can be
withheld, where the
potential for conflict is greater. It is important to
note that in the case
of the Reserve Bank such permission is given not by
the President but by the
relevant Minister of Finance at any given
time.
Minister Biti could for example, call for a declaration
of any such
activities and interests that fall under the scope of what
constitutes an
"occupation of a commercial, industrial or financial nature"
and determine
whether or not to grant permission.
I have
used the RBZ law by way of example but it is certainly
something from which
lessons can be drawn. This is something that an
independent commission could
take up - to maintain a register of interests
and monitor activities of
office-holders to ensure there is a reduction in
the incidence of conflict
of interests.
This is a challenge to the new MDC politicians
now in power. If they
are ready to go beyond structural change and to
introduce change in
political culture, they should surely find no problem in
subscribing to a
system that provides for public
accountability.
The more they reduce the incidence of conflicts
of interests the less
they are tempted to pinch from the public
purse.
They may also be reminded that the idea is not new - their
partners
in government Zanu PF used to have a beautiful if too idealistic,
concept of
the 'Leadership Code' in the early 1980s.
That code
is probably buried somewhere in the archives of government,
having been
violated and effectively discarded before the ink had even
dried.
Alex Magaisa is based at, Kent Law School, the
University of Kent
and can be contacted at wamagaisa@yahoo.co.uk or a.t.magaisa@kent.ac.uk
http://www.thezimbabwestandard.com/
Saturday, 02 May 2009 19:14
THE government disregarded consultations when drawing up the programme
for
this week's so-called stakeholders' conference in Kariba.
When the
sector expressed alarm at the conference agenda and the
presence of known
media talibans, all it offered were ambiguities.
With its record of
disregarding agreements it is party to, can those
wary of government's
ulterior motives play along and expect their voices to
be heard, let alone
their suggestions to scrap AIPPA, BSA and POSA be
offered a platform and
listened to?
Here is a measure of the government's commitment
to media freedom as
the country marks World Press Freedom Day: Jestina
Mukoko, Shadreck Anderson
Manyere and two Bulawayo Chronicle journalists
face imprisonment.
The four cases are a barometer of how hostile
the media environment
in Zimbabwe remains - eight months after the Global
Political Agreement
(GPA) under which the three main political parties
committed themselves to
media reforms.
Statements by the
Minister of Media, Information and Publicity,
Webster Shamu, threatening the
media last weekend confirm government's
harassment of anyone who does not
dance to its tune.
The hostility towards the media has its
roots in the formation of a
ministry with a brief that gives it oversight
over the media. Any government
genuinely committed to freedom of the press
would have known that there is
no need for the government to police the
media, especially after the launch
of the Voluntary Media Council last
year.
For the past three months, the two MDC formations - partners
in the
inclusive government - have raised concern about outstanding issues.
The
response from the third partner has been unilateral decisions in total
contravention of the GPA.
similar approach is evident in the
build up to the Kariba conference.
A conference that seeks
long-term media reforms would not have
exhibited arbitrary tendencies. It
would have convened the sector players to
sound them on what areas the
industry is in need of urgent redress.
Zimbabweans who have been
driven into exile by the hostile
environment would be actively involved in
this process, especially as the
GPA committed the government to creating
favourable conditions for their
return.
But anyone with
real interest in the media reform would know that the
sector has been
calling for restrictive laws to be scrapped. So what needs
to be done is
already public knowledge. It does not require three days at a
holiday
resort.
The second step, after agreeing what should be done,
would have been
to establish focus groups to draw up recommendations.
Representatives of
these groups, drawn from the industry, would take the
recommendations to a
media indaba that would draw up a reform
roadmap.
Scepticism about the government's intentions is not
only raised by the
arbitrary nature the agenda has been drawn or the
arrogant and unilateral
inclusion of characters with a violently unrepentant
disposition towards
free speech.
It is raised by the time
allocated participants. This can only
suggest one thing: the outcomes are a
fait accompli, awaiting presentation
to the participants who will be
"kraaled" into the conference venue.
The only way exiled media
operators can end their external operations
is by involving them and
creating an environment conducive for their return.
The conduct of
the government and its pronouncements sadly demonstrate
that it is only
interested in shutting them down, completely. The MDC
formations by playing
along are tarnishing their claim to media freedom.
http://www.thezimbabwestandard.com/
Saturday, 02 May 2009
19:08
TODAY, May 3 2009 is Press Freedom Day, which means the world
celebrates the freedom that the media, often known as "the press" enjoys, or
should enjoy.
This day of the month is preserved every year as
a very important day
for journalists and media workers. In parts of the
world where such freedom
is non-existent or substantially limited, the Day
is only commemorated.
Whether it is a commemoration or a
celebration in Zimbabwe is the
subject of this evaluation.
A good starting point for the assessment might be the definition of
the term
"press freedom". There are dozens, if not hundreds of definitions.
One of the concise and straightforward definitions comes from Eric
Barendt
(Oxford University Press) who makes the point that "freedom of the
press
simply refers to the free speech rights of owners, editors, and
journalists."
Many countries, including Malawi, Namibia and
South Africa have
entrenched press freedom in their
constitutions.
Zimbabwe's constitution simply provides under
section 20 for Freedom
of Expression. Lamentably, there is no explicit
reference to press freedom
in the domestic primary law.
In
most modern democratic societies, the importance of the press
(which
includes electronic and print media) to the sustenance and
nourishment of
the democratic system is no longer a subject of debate.
The press
is therefore regarded in those jurisdictions as "the Fourth
Estate", the
first, second and third estates being government, parliament
and the
judiciary, respectively.
In recognition of this esteemed status
that the press ought to enjoy,
the freedom of the press must be guaranteed
through structural entrenchment,
ideally into the constitution, or into some
statutory instrument where a
reigning regime is not committed to the ideal
standard.
Many rulers in developing nations and defenders or
sympathisers of the
reigning regimes often struggle to understand why the
press should be
accorded preferential treatment for specific inclusion in
the constitution.
They fail to appreciate the estimation of the
press as "the Fourth
Estate".
The centrality of a free
press to democratic governance was
highlighted during Zimbabwe's 2008
harmonised elections
The freeness and fairness of the election
could best have been
illustrated to the citizenry through widespread and
nationwide coverage of
the electoral process in the pre and post election
periods as well as during
the election itself.
On the print
media front, whilst the independent and privately owned
press did their best
in covering electoral issues, their coverage could not
be as comprehensive
as the case would have been had more publications been
allowed to
exist.
Clearly, current and potential owners of media
institutions, editors
and journalists were severely curtailed at the
election by government's
policies of limiting the number of media
institutions existing in the
country.
Promises have been
made about the introduction of new daily newspapers
in due course from the
Zimbabwe Independent and The Financial Gazette
stables, but for now these
remain just promises.
Whilst the principals at the Thabo-Mbeki
talks agreed through the
Global Political Agreement (GPA) in 2008, that they
would welcome back
foreign-based radio stations, sometimes referred to by
government as "pirate
radio stations" to operate from home, conditions on
the ground have not
improved at all to make this a reality.
Zanu PF and the two formations of the Movement for Democratic Change
(MDC)
agreed under Article XIX of the GPA "that the government shall ensure
the
immediate processing by the appropriate authorities of all applications
for
re-registration and registration in terms of both the Broadcasting
Services
Act as well as the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy
Act."
But The Daily News and other banned publications have
not been
re-registered. Community radios such as Radio Dialogue in Bulawayo
and
Community Radio Harare (CORAH) in Harare have not been granted community
broadcasting licences, despite their readiness to go on
air.
The monopolies of ZBC and state-controlled newspapers and
magazines
have undermined press freedom in Zimbabwe.
The
least that the Government of National Unity (GNU) could do to
repair the
damaged image of the government, would be to go back to the GPA,
and
implement all the provisions of Article XIX immediately and strictly.
That,
as a first step, would also go a long way in enhancing press
freedom.
With free airwaves and a free press, Zimbabwe would
restore its
position among other nations as a respectable, modern and
democratic nation.
n Chris Mhike is the Chairperson of the Zimbabwe
Association of
Community Radio Stations (ZACRAS)
BY CHRIS
MHIKE
http://www.thezimbabwestandard.com/
Students Left in the Lurch
Saturday, 02 May 2009 19:04
ONE
fails to understand the kind of message which is being driven home
by the
administration at the National University of Science and Technology
(NUST).
One cannot tell whether the university has ceased to be
a state
institution or it has been privatised. It's very worrying that more
than 70%
of the students are being denied the right to write end of semester
examinations because of non-payment of the exorbitant fees being asked
for.
One wonders where that kind of money will come from
considering that
the government itself is struggling to pay public servants
reasonable
salaries.
But the administration at NUST is
insensitive in the way they operate
the state institution. Is it political?
No one knows and if it is, who are
they trying to punish?
Is it Dr Stan Mudenge, the Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education?
Definitely no!
Then why is the administration sabotaging
the students by denying them
the right to education and to be more specific,
the right to write
examinations?
This is as good as
destroying a person's future.
At one time the responsible
minister issued a series of statements
saying state universities should not
chase away students for non-payment but
his directives have been rejected
and the opposite is happening.
We applied for cadetship funds
but nothing fruitful has come out. That
was our only hope. Then to whom are
we supposed to take our plight to?
This is a painful
experience, and as students, we cannot believe that
such kind of
discrimination is back.
This is something we thought was over and
buried with the emergence of
a new political dispensation.
Children of the rich will go to school while the majority of us who
have
been always struggling and living from hand to mouth are in trouble.
The
administration has become greedy and what they are after is filling
their
pockets by employing tactics they think will force students to pay
up.
They act as if they dropped from Mars yesterday and are not
aware of
the situation currently bedeviling the country.
What they are good at is sabotaging efforts being made by the unity
government and no one knows who is giving them that power to act in this
manner.
How could a university call anti-riot police to
guard and scare away
students so that they won't protest against being
denied entry into
examination halls?
That is
unprofessionalism at its worst. Learning is supposed to make
people wiser
but it seems too much learning is getting into people's heads
causing them
to become far removed from reality.
Let them prevent us from
writing the examinations and we will see how
they will be able to run a
university with 20% of the enrolment. The other
thing that is surprising is
that no one, especially the responsible
minister, has bothered to comment on
the actions of the NUST administration.
At the end of the day,
we would be compelled to think that the
minister is speaking with two
voices - saying one thing in public and the
other in
private.
If the minister gives a directive, why is the
university allowed to
defy it? We wait for heads to roll if the minister
genuinely meant every
word he said concerning the status of tertiary
institutions, specifically
state universities.
We cannot be
chased away and the minister responsible keeps quiet and
does nothing. We
are looking up to him.
Concerned student
National
University of Science and Technology
Bulawayo
-----------
Why Flash Offer Letters at
Harvest?
Saturday, 02 May 2009 19:04
IT boggles the mind how
our so-called "very patriotic" Zimbabweans are
turning out to be very
opportunistic and calculating much to the detriment
of our beloved
nation.
It has come to our attention that certain individuals, as
if in a
frenzy, are now running around flashing offer letters as if their
very lives
depend on it. Were it not for the fact that their intentions are
filled with
malice, I would admire their commitment and feel sympathy for
them.
The majority of them always find themselves in possession of
offer
letters every harvest season. What is even more interesting is the
fact that
it is the same people with offer letters for farms in different
provinces.
The timing is so curious as to raise suspicion that it's not need
for land
that drives them but it is a greedy misdirected drive to reap where
they did
not sow.
This has been happening year in year out
since the commencement of the
land reform programme and always towards
harvest time.
One question then comes to mind: Why is it
always the same
individuals from the "top brass" mainly from the army and
government and
never the peasants who are hungry for land?
Let's stop this malicious nonsense before our nation is ruined by
these
greedy people. The inclusive government must act speedily. If they don't
act
now, then they are equally useless.
Moses Mazhande
Chitungwiza
-------------
Not too Late to Return RBZ
Cars
Saturday, 02 May 2009 19:01
ACCORDING to press reports,
25 MDC parliamentarians have defied the
party and helped themselves to
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe disused vehicles
which were purchased as part of
Gideon Gono's quasi-fiscal activities.
This is despite the fact
that Gono himself vowed that he would not
engage in quasi-fiscal activities
again in order to ensure economic
recovery.
In dishing out the
cars to the MPs, Gono has acted against his
promise, giving evidence that he
has not reformed, hence unfit to continue
as RBZ Governor.
Gono's continued practice of quasi-fiscal activities vindicates the
positions of the World Bank which visited Zimbabwe recently, a group of
South African investors who also visited recently, as well as the world
Group of 20 rich countries who are able to bail out
Zimbabwe.
They are all reported to have recommended the removal
of Gono from
office, yet our dear MPs decide to encourage Gono's continued
activities.
The electorate from the respective constituencies
could be asking
themselves if these MPs really see the national benefit of
an improved
economy.
Have they even bothered to think about
the negative impact of the
quasi-fiscal activities which they are now
supporting, by getting the cars.
The electorate will certainly
judge them harshly if they ever present
themselves for
re-election.
I hope that if our dear MPs had not realised how
stupidly and greedily
they acted, this comment and many others by various
other contributors will
open their eyes.
They should return
the cars immediately, and instead propose a method
of disposing the
vehicles.
At least they will continue to enjoy their
parliamentary salaries
until the next election which will take place within
the next two years,
according to the September 15, 2008 Global Political
Agreement.
Benjamin Chitate
New
Zealand
---------------
Zesa's Blackmailing us
Saturday, 02 May 2009 18:58
OVER the recent weeks a one-page circular
has been doing the rounds in
Marlborough. It gave notice of a meeting which
took place at Gateway High on
Saturday last week (April 25, 2009) to discuss
our electrical power crisis.
I found the notice amusing because of
the claims it made. It said in
one of the statements: "During the past few
months a small group of
residents has linked with the Zesa management based
in Mabelreign and has
successfully helped them to restore power on a number
of occasions by
voluntarily providing transport, cash to buy parts, and a
support service.
So it can work!"
I am not sure what they claim
works because since the end of March
those of us near Marlborough Medical
Centre have known nothing but darkness.
This is despite the fact that the
Clinic takes in patients and there are
emergency cases. Power goes off for
up to more than 24 hours, almost daily.
The meeting at Gateway
High asked residents to bring with them at
least US$30 (or whatever you can
afford to donate) and at least US$100 from
each business. "Our target is
US$35 000.
Please no fuel coupons," it very thoughtfully advised.
And then this:
"Remember this - without our help and co-operation with Zesa,
power cuts
will become more frequent and longer in duration. This is
certain," it
declared. I was alarmed because ever since the circular, we
have experienced
more power cuts.
I wondered whether this was
not a form of "encouragement" to ensure we
coughed up the money to "help"
Zesa. It seems this matter needs to be
investigated thoroughly because of
the potential to fleece gullible
residents. How does Zesa ensure regularity
of power supplies if there is a
nationwide energy shortage?
But Zesa has also warned against "helping" its staff in this way. Just
how
is Zesa Mabelreign management going to ensure that they generate power
to
keep the households free from power cuts, when they have no respect for
the
Marlborough Medical Centre which is supposed to serve medical
emergencies
almost 24 hours a day? Zesa HQ and the Anti-Corruption
Commission might be
interested in following this up.
Hostage to Zesa
Marlborough, Harare
--------------
Mathema Tries to
Re-invent Self
Saturday, 02 May 2009 18:58
I refer to two
stories published in The Standard of April 26, 2009.
The first
appears on Page 6 and is under the heading "Governor seeks
go ahead to
acquire land."
The second appears on Page B2 and is titled, What's
in it for us, asks
Mathema. The two stories report remarks by Bulawayo
Metropolitan Governor,
Cain Mathema.
This is the first
time, as far as I can recall that the good governor
has ever said anything
that is remotely near the interests of the people of
Bulawayo since he
assumed office.
And where does Mathema's courage stem from for
him to take pot shots
at the Government of National Unity?
Throughout Zanu PF's neglect of Bulawayo, the de-industrialisation and
the
water crisis, the Mtshabezi Dam and the trans-Limpopo spatial
development
programme, Mathema could not find his voice because his party,
Zanu PF was
the culprit.
Now he is trying to re-invent himself as the
champion of the forgotten
people of Bulawayo. He must take us for
fools.
I never heard him ask what was in Zanu PF's PLARP,
ASPEF, PSF,
Agricultural Mechanisation and the Bacossi programmes for
Bulawayo, or the
other experiments by Reserve Bank Governor Gideon Gono or
those launched by
Zanu PF ministers of finance.
He is just
being an opportunist who takes the people of the western
part of the country
as having very short memories. We shall never forget.
He
belongs to Zanu PF hard liners. Where he asks about land, we must
be
careful. What he means is that, given state land around Bulawayo he will
turn it into a tool to promote votes for Zanu PF at the next
elections.
He should get the red card, as soon as the
outstanding issue of
provincial governors permanent secretaries and
ambassadors is resolved.
He has outlived his
sell-by-date.
Mtshumaeli Mpofu
Richmond
Bulawayo.
----------------
SMS The Standard
Saturday, 02 May 2009 19:12
Uphold Lesson
A GOOD
lesson for Zimbabwe, but especially for Zanu PF to consider in
the recent
elections in South Africa. We saw true democratic elections.
This is a very good lesson for President Robert Mugabe and his
securocrats,
among them Constantine Chiwenga, Augustine Chihuri, Perence
Shiri, Paradzai
Zimondi and Happyton Bonyongwe. During the run-up to the
South African
general elections we did not hear of torture bases, houses
burnt, looting of
property and general victimisation of supporters of the
other parties. The
various parties were allowed free airtime on public radio
and television
stations. Our own authorities should be ashamed. Zimbabwe is
not the only
country with a history of the liberation struggle.- Undi,
Norton.
GPA violations
NOW you can see
that President Robert Mugabe is violating the Global
Political Agreement so
that we can't get foreign funding and hence
Zimbabweans will continue to
suffer. But he must know that God is watching
(Job 34v11) - tee,
Chitungwiza.
Revisit decision
ALL the MDC MPs
should examine their decision to retain the RBZ cars
because they bear the
blood of their colleagues. The blood stains that the
cars conceal are from
the throats of their murdered or tortured party
colleagues. Abductors,
torturers and murderers carried out horrendous acts
in those cars that these
MPs seem quite happy to accept and drive in. -
Hameno.
IS the
government aware that by failing to pay our salaries on time,
our insurance
policies - funeral, for example - have lapsed? - Affected.
***************
COULD the Ministry of Education help parents of
students at Peter
House College? The R23 000 being charged by the school is
too much for some
of us. Imagine a parent paying R69 000 a year in school
fees for one child?
***************
THE previous
government gave numerous jobs to Gideon Gono, which
resulted in him chairing
a number of parastatals. Does anyone recall where
his board performed with
excellence? There were so many promises at the
beginning of each assignment,
which were never been realised. The Governor's
term at the RBZ has been a
mega failure. - Royal, Harare.
**************
WHY
re-invent the wheel? Zimbabweans have no sense of urgency. We are
proposing
two years to craft our own constitution when we can draw the best
there is
from other constitutions in the free world. For immediate results,
why don't
we adopt something closer to the South African constitution? That
would be
the right signal to send to the rest of the world. Then we can have
free and
fair elections before our acceptance back into the international
fold. -
Zimbabwean.
**************
THE Minister of Education,
Sport, Arts and Culture, Senator David
Coltart should make a decision on "A"
Level students who have been promised
their results since the formation of
the inclusive government. We have been
crying out for the results and we are
about to lose hope of anyone hearing
us. - Tessie, Harare.
Debt
headache
I see that Dr Gideon Gono, the Governor of the Reserve
Bank, says that
we owe a regional bank US$1 million. Which bank is this?
Could it be one of
the banks that lent money to the RBZ? How is this money
going to be
liquidated? We have allowed one man to run the country's economy
almost
single-handedly. Is there accountability? Let's reform this
institution. -Fungai, Harare.
**************
I WANT to
thank the Governor of the Reserve Bank, Gideon Gono for
publishing our names
indicating the 25% retention he owes us. Now it's time
he published all the
names of the "farmers" who benefited under his crazy
Farm Mechanisation
Programme. Fair is fair. - Karoi farmer.
*************
LET'S face facts. Corruption is bad but difficult to purge among
starving
civil servants. Who among us can freely choose between justice and
survival
when one's children are crying because they are starving? -
One-One,
Harare.
Ominous silence
OLD anti-imperialist
silence on Sudanese President Omar al Bashir's
indictment is disturbing. Can
you please induce him to say something? Or
does the silence suggest fear of
the International Criminal Court (ICC)'s
ire? After all, to the ICC, he must
be the equivalent of a mouth-watering
melon. Let them take him there so that
we can make progress on the Global
Political Agreement (GPA). He thinks that
the GPA is a paper game. Such
antiquated thinking! - Gift
Mwanza.
GET rid of Zimbabwe ambassador to South Africa, Simon Khaya
Moyo. He
is a disgrace to this country. What this country needs right now
are honest,
truthful diplomats, who are an asset to Zimbabwe. - N.
Maine.
Your blood
THOSE who donate their blood for
free might want to know that the
National Blood Transfusion service in turn
charges US$200 per unit. -
Concerned.
Solar
power
AFRICA in general and Zimbabwe in particular needs affordable
solar
borehole pumps and motors. - SOS.
Shocked
WAAH! Letombo Park had water on Saturday last week, April
25, 2009
after going for seven months without. That is since September 2008!
We hope
there will be no interruptions to the supply. -
Resident.
***************
PLEASE include more sport
coverage on international soccer. I hear
Chinyama is the top soccer scorer
in Poland. Why not interview him. He would
be good news since Benjani
Mwaruwari has lost form. - Avid.
*************
FOR me to
drive across to South Africa and back would cost R300 in
toll fees in
Zimra's so-called access fee. What the hell is this? This is
obviously a
fishing expedition. The charges are ridiculous even if halved! -
Angry
patriot.
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk
Saturday, 02
May 2009
The rapid unravelling of Kenya's "unity" government, formed
after
intervention by the international community to quell the violent
conflict
that following the flawed 2007 election, does not augur well for
Zimbabwe.
Last year, when the three main players in the politics of our
northern
neighbour were negotiating a settlement of their often violent
disagreements
through the mediation efforts of former president Thabo Mbeki,
the Kenyan
example was embraced by some as a uniquely African solution that
Zimbabwe
would do well to emulate. But the fundamentals of democracy are
universal;
there may be forms that are better suited to African cultures and
the
circumstances particular countries find themselves in, but there are
essential elements that cannot be abandoned without making a mockery of the
concept. Settlements negotiated at a political level may be necessary as an
interim measure on occasion, but they are no substitute for democratic
elections.
That is in the process of being illustrated in
Kenya, where
co-operation between Prime Minister Raila Odinga's Orange
Democratic
Movement and President Mwai Kibaki's Party of National Unity is
now almost
nonexistent and few of the disputes that led to the post-election
violence
have been resolved. The bloated "unity" government may incorporate
representatives of the vast majority of Kenyans who voted in the disputed
election, but it is deadlocked over all but the most minor issues, and those
tend to concern perks paid to Kenya's 94 ministers and deputies. The core of
the problem in both Kenya and Zimbabwe is that incumbent parties which lost
elections refuse to hand over power. The winners were persuaded to accept
negotiated settlements by the promise that the resulting unity governments
would be temporary, but have ended up shooting themselves in the foot.
Neither Kibaki nor Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe are prepared to risk a free and
fair election, so they are content to drag things out indefinitely. The
longer there is no progress, the weaker the position of the
opposition.
The Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) in Zimbabwe was on
the back
foot from the start due to Mbeki's blatant bias towards Mugabe, but
was so
keen to end the persecution of its followers and arrest the downward
spiral
of the economy that it accepted a deal that left Mugabe with the
lion's
share of power. Now it is paying the price, with Mugabe's Zanu PF
blithely
ignoring the terms of the agreement and the international community
quite
rightly declining to finance the country's reconstruction until the
promised
reforms have been implemented. The danger for both Odinga and the
MDC's
Morgan Tsvangirai is that citizens will turn against them. Already in
Kenya
the only effective opposition to Kibaki is perceived to be coming from
civil
society organisations, and Orange party representatives in government
are
increasingly tainted by corruption scandals.
In Zimbabwe, while
a measure of economic stability has been achieved
through the MDC taking
over the finance ministry, meaningful recovery is not
even on the horizon.
Meanwhile, Mugabe is making a fool of the opposition by
preventing it from
making key appointments, refusing to release political
detainees and
unilaterally seizing a ministry that in terms of the unity
agreement was
meant to be controlled by the MDC. Farm invasions have
increased in
frequency, and the opposition has been powerless to intervene.
Public
servants are growing increasingly frustrated, and even the trade
unions,
which originally gave Tsvangirai the platform he needed to challenge
Mugabe,
are starting to demand an independent voice in matters such as the
drafting
of a new constitution, which is the preserve of Parliament. The
unity
government is going to have to produce results soon, or the MDC's
credibility will be destroyed.
Comment from Business Day (SA)
http://www.radiovop.com
MASVINGO - ZANU PF provincial leaders in the province
were on Friday
conspicuous by their absence at the Workers Day
commemorations held at
Mucheke Stadium.
Political
analysts said it showed the Robert Mugabe led party was not
fully committed
to work with the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC).
Despite
being invited and scheduled to speak at the function, Masvingo
Governor and
Resident Minister Titus Maluleke did not attend and did not
excuse himself.
This was the same with Senator Maina Mandava as well as
politburo and
central committee member Dzikamai Mavhaire.
Sources within ZANU PF said
the provincial leadership did not grace
the occasion as they argued that the
Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions
(ZCTU), once headed by MDC leader and now
Prime Minister, Morgan Tsvangirai
was pro MDC. They intend to be part of the
Zimbabwe Federation of Trade
Unions (ZFTU) celebrations to be held next
week.
"They said they could not attend a function held by MDC
supporters who
they felt were anti-Mugabe. They made it a point that nobody
was going
to attend. Instead, they will attend the ZFTU celebrations
slated for
next week," said a source.
The Tsvangirai led party was
born from the ZCTU. It is mainly labour
backed.
However, ZANU PF
provincial chairman Lovemore Matuke said the party
did not take a resolution
to bar any member from attending. "We did not stop
anyone from attending.
Everyone was free to go," he said.
Governor Titus Maluleke said he was
occupied when the commemorations
were held. "I was attending to other
government business," said Maluleke.
MDC provincial chairman Wilstuff
Sitemere, who was present at the
function, said the move by ZANU PF sent
clear signals that it signed
the inclusive government under protest as
they had always displayed
dubious commitments.
"From the onset, it
was clear that Mugabe joined hands with us under
protest. Ever since, ZANU
PF's commitment to the deal has been
questionable as evidenced by
recent farm invasions, the snatching of
Chamisa's Ministry, among others,"
Sitemere said.
Mugabe recently down-graded the Ministry of
Communications headed by
MDC's spokesperson Nelson Chamisa by stripping it
some of its powers and
handing them over to a Zanu PF Minister of Transport
Nicholas Goche.
The May Day function, organized by ZCTU, saw thousands
of workers from
the private sector as well as civil servants defying the
heat to hear the
national speech read by ZCTU's first Vice-President Lucia
Matibenga on
behalf of the President Lovemore Matombo.
In Harare,
Tsvangirai told crowds that gathered for the event that the
government was
broke and was unable to pay wages. He also said there was no
going back on
the unity government, despite some disagreements with Mugabe.
http://www.zimeye.org/?p=4370
By A
Correspondent
(ZimEye,
Zimbabwe)
PRESS
STATEMENT
1 May 2009
I, Wurayayi Zembe, the President of the Democratic
Party (DP) in Zimbabwe,
hereby give evidence and testimony that on Thursday,
30 April 2009 at 1000
hours, I was harassed, humiliated, abducted and
tortured by the Zimbabwe
Republic Police (ZRP) security guards guarding
Munhumutapa Building at the
corner of Samora Machel Avenue and Sam Nujoma
Street in Harare. Munhumutapa
Building houses the offices of the joint
venture illegitimate regime of
Robert Mugabe, Morgan Tsvangirai and Arthur
Mutambara in Zimbabwe.
The following is the first-hand account of
what happened to me on the
fateful day.
I was walking along Sam
Nujoma Street towards Africa Unity Square when I met
a former secondary
school classmate of 33 years ago at the Intermarket
Building Society which
is adjacent to Munhumutapa Building. We greeted each
other profusely since
we had not met for a long time. Before we could even
finish exchanging
greetings, with our hands still firmly clasped, suddenly a
young man
appeared armed with a long rifle hanging on his back with belts of
ammunition round his chest. The young ZRP security guard then shouted at us,
accusing us of holding a meeting. "Is this a place to hold a meeting?", he
said. Both of us responded politely that we were greeting each other
according to our African tradition and we were going in opposite
directions.
The security guard could not listen and suddenly he readied his
gun, cocked
it and he asked us to move in his dictated direction since we
had become his
captives, supposedly arrested. We asked him what offence we
had committed
but the angry police guard told us that he was acting under
orders. I tried
to let him know that he was the age of my son so he had to
respect me and my
colleague but he could have none of it. Instead he accused
me of being
clever. Without noticing, I was then grabbed by my belt at the
waist and it
was then that I decided to comply with his orders.
I and my
classmate where ordered to move, herded like cattle being driven
to a dip
tank. We were driven along Samora Machel Avenue past the main
entrance to
Munhumutapa Building to a fenced security place behind the
building. At
that point I asked our captor where he was taking us. He
replied that he
was taking us to his senior, the Head of Security at
Munhumutapa Building,
the Headquarters and Home of Cabinet of the
illegitimate inclusive regime of
ZANU PF, MDC-T, and MDC in Zimbabwe. The
gate was opened and we went
inside.
At gunpoint I was ordered to move quickly in the pointed
direction where a
water tape, knee high, was located. I was asked to stoop
below the tape
with all my clothes on including shoes and spectacles. The
tape was opened
and water splashed over my body from the head downwards.
Meanwhile the Head
of Security remained behind talking to my classmate. My
classmate was then
ordered to go. The Head of Security then approached
where I was, still
stooping with tape water running from my head downwards.
I was in that
position of torture for 5
minutes.
As we entered, we saw a
middle-aged man, like us the two captives, walking
in the yard. The man was
dressed in a black suit and a tie. Our armed
abductor then handed us to his
senior. The Head of Security then asked his
junior to narrate what had
happened. When the junior guard began to distort
the facts I attempted to
correct him and suddenly with lightning speed, the
Head of Security
commanded our armed abductor, "muindise kumvura" (take him
to the
water).
When the Head of Security came close by, he gave another
command to the
armed security guard who was still pointing his gun at me,
"That is not
enough, take him to the shower". I was then ordered to go
behind some
toilets where the shower room was located. There I was ordered
to stand in
a perpendicular position with the overhead shower pipe directly
over my
head. The shower pipe did not have a shower cap.
By
that time both my captors were close by standing at attention at the
entrance of the shower room. For fear they could wet their clothes, I was
asked by the Head of Security to open the tape, still with the armed guard
pointing his gun at me. I complied and opened the tape and water poured
from my head down all over my body, still with my clothes, shoes and
spectacles on. The torture continued for 10 minutes until my whole body and
clothes were thoroughly drenched and then the Head of Security ordered me to
close the tape.
After that the Head of Security ordered his
junior to leave the fenced
security area. I was asked to follow the Head of
Security as he led me in
the direction of the opposite entrance to the one
we used first. I realized
that the second entrance is along Kwame Nkrumah
Avenue behind Defence House
formerly Lonhro House.
At that
entrance were five soldiers at the security cabin checkpoint. My
torturer
ordered me to stand at attention next to the soldiers and then he
handed me
over to them. He reported that I had been tortured for attempting
to put a
law at Munhumutapa Building. The soldiers then asked me what had
happened.
I told them what had happened on the street and I also told them
that as a
senior citizen I had no knowledge of their torture law. The Head
of
Security then shouted, "You could have been shot and killed on the spot".
To
which I replied that as humans we will all die and none of them would
live
forever. In fact, I put it to them that we would still meet in heaven.
It
was at that moment that I was freed.
I then decided to go to the
nearby Herald newspaper offices to file a report
of my ordeal. I went into
the newsroom with my clothes wet and dripping. I
related my story while
standing because I could not sit down since I was
heavily wet. I showed the
reporters my cell phone that had been soaked in
water and could not
function, for it was in my shirt's pocket when I was
being tortured with
water boarding. News reporters in the newsroom were
shocked to see me in
that state as I narrated my ordeal.
I then left Herald House and
went to the Financial Gazette newsroom, again
where I reported my shocking
torture experience. I could see so many faces
showed disbelief of what had
happed to me. This is how my last day of April
2009 had started, a terrible
and horrendous beginning.
In the evening of that day my heart
bled when I tuned and listened to VOA
Studio 7 news and heard the MDC-T
co-Minister of Home Affairs Giles Mutsekwa
making a statement that all those
who committed offences during the violent
bogus elections of 29 March to 27
June 2008 will be investigated, yet his
ZRP security guards at Munhumupa
Building continue committing the same
offences. I had just been tortured on
the day. I could only say what
hypocrisy. During the same news bulletin
Tendai Biti MDC-T Minister of
Finance had just finished meeting the British
and American governments and
he was quoted in a jovial mood feeling
ebullient that he had successfully
begged money to pay for civil servants'
salaries. He also said the human
rights situation under the inclusive
regime had improved. Again I could
only say what
hypocrisy.
Later that evening the Zimbabwe Broadcasting
Corporation Television news at
8 showed Robert Mugabe and Rupiah Banda,
President of Zambia at the Zimbabwe
International Trade Fair in Bulawayo
standing side by side happily. In his
address President Banda showered
praise on the inclusive regime. Yet, the
inclusive government is busy
torturing the people of Zimbabwe. I could only
say what
hypocrisy.
In another ZTV news item I saw Tsvangirai, Mutambara
and Khupe seated with
wide smiles on their faces as if they had inhaled "a
laughing gas". Again I
could only say what hypocrisy and betrayal of the
citizens of Zimbabwe.
The truth is that the Human Rights
situation in Zimbabwe has worsened since
the inauguration of the
illegitimate coalition regime of ZANU PF, MDC-T, and
MDC. My ordeal of
torture at Munhumutapa Building narrated above bears
testimony to that. I
will be petitioning the regime to investigate my
torture thoroughly to bring
the culprits to book. These violations of
fundamental human rights of the
people of Zimbabwe must come to an end.
When I related my torture to
relatives and friends I was told of horrendous
acts perpetrated on innocent
citizens at the same Munhumutapa Building. If
the regime is too scared of
people then the whole place should be cordoned
off so that civilians are not
trapped and brutalized. How can state guns,
buildings, facilities and
personnel be turned against the people and be used
to torture and kill
them?
It is for such reasons that since 12 February 1994 the
Democratic Party (DP)
has been calling for a people-driven democratic
Constitution as the
foundation for the respect and observance of fundamental
human rights, peace
and security, rule of law, and good governance. That
people's democratic
Constitution can only come from the people themselves
not from the ZANU PF,
MDC-T, and MDC illegitimate coalition regime's
parliament and select
committee.
Wurayayi Zembe
DP
PRESIDENT
Email: zembewt@yahoo.com
Cell:
0912342707
New Empire House
Harare, Zimbabwe
2009/05/02
Katherine
Wilkinson GARDEN ROUTE CORRESPONDENT
IT‘S not often you come across someone who supports 10 relatives by working at something he really loves to do, but a Knysna-based artist has achieved this elusive aspiration. Fulton Nhamba, 36, creates artworks ranging from a couple of centimetres in diameter to large pieces that are several metres tall. Nhamba, who is originally from Zimbabwe, uses wire and beads and the enjoyment he experiences while creating his works are clearly reflected in his creations. He said when he was in primary school in Harare, his teacher would send children out to the soccer field to collect grass, which they would then fashion into animal shapes. Further inspiration came when, aged nine, he had a friend who made cars out of wire. “I was interested, so I made one of my own and it was better than his, so I left grass work for wire,” he said. His hobby remained latent during his high school years but Nhamba said after he finished school he got back into it. Then, as a young man, he came to South Africa to earn money to help support his family. “I made a wire car and wire motor-bike and sold them at the Bruma Lake market in Johannesburg. Then customers asked me to make other stuff. At first I struggled, but then I enjoyed making stuff from pictures.” His venture into beadwork came about when a customer brought a sample of a gecko made with beads and asked him to replicate it. “She even brought me the beads as I didn‘t know where to get them. That‘s how I learned to turn wire into animals.” Nhamba said at first he would return to Zimbabwe every three weeks with cash for his family. However, he hadn‘t been back since 2003 due to political turmoil in that country. While creating a three-metre high giraffe commissioned by a Durban-based outlet, he met an artist who carved in wood. “He gave me a tip and said Knysna was a ‘touristy‘ place and that there was nothing like my stuff there.” Nhamba moved to Knysna in 1996 and soon received orders from retail outlets in Garden Route towns like Plettenberg Bay. “I met a lady selling necklaces at a stall in Knysna and she invited me to share her stall, so I manned the stall every day as she had another job.” Nhamba said the stall was one of the old ones that no longer existed on Knysna‘s Main Road, and that it had been rather tucked away from view. “Mr Edward (the managing director of Knysna‘s Woodmill Lane shopping centre) invited me to set up a stall in the centre.” Nhamba is still running the stall, which is positioned at the hub of the centre, and this is where he creates his art, surrounded by coffee shops and musicians from the town sometimes creating a backdrop of melody. “When I go to sleep at night I think of new ideas for things to make.” These include parrots, flamingos, baobab trees, elephants, rhinos, lampshades, zebras, penguins, flowers and even a vintage car. Nhamba joked that he even made Nguni cows for lobola: “I‘ve had overseas people come to me and say they want to pay the in-laws.” He said he phoned his family in Zimbabwe two to three times a week and they had told him the situation was improving there. “Before, when I sent money, they couldn‘t buy anything, but now at least they can buy food.” |
http://www1.sundaymail.co.zw
Sunday, May 03, 2009
Hifa stories by
Garikai Mazara, Mtandazo Dube and
THE Harare International Festival of
the Arts (Hifa) comes to an end today,
with a performance from Roll Jordan
Roll, to mark yet another successful
six-day arts
celebration.
Indeed they have been six days of
fun and pomp.
To pick any particular show as the "show of the year" would
be grave, as
every performance, from theatrical productions, musical
performances to
visual displays, were simply out of this world.
Most
people wondered what the theme Enligh10ment meant and what was to be
expected at the festival, but that was all explained on the opening night
dubbed: Out of Darkness, a Rite of Passage.
The opening night
chronicled Zimbabwe's story for the past 10 years,
captured the events of
the country's "dark period" and talked about the long
"enlightened" road
that lies ahead.
Rute Mbangwa opened the doors on Tuesday setting the
pace for what would
become a thrilling musical week at the Harare Gardens
and the surrounding
venues.
La Brass Banda, a group from Upper
Bavaria, which had never set foot on
African soil, performed at the same
venue with their horns, drums and
guitars to a true and original Gypsy-funk
sound that left many spellbound.
The trio of Carmen, Louisa and Tahona,
who make up the group African
Destiny, rounded up performances at the
Coca-Cola Green on Tuesday before
giving way to the Bira Ceremony, which was
led by Stella Chiweshe, at the
Global Stage.
Early in the day theatre
lovers had been treated to In Living Colour,
Spitfire and Oedipus, of which
Oedipus earned a second slot after the first
one had left many who had
wanted to watch it stranded outside the Standard
Theatre.
The Hifa
2009 Opera Gala was the major highlight on Wednesday and did not
disappoint
hundreds of people that thronged the venue to listen to music
which many
consider as classical.
On the same day highly acclaimed Bulawayo-based
dance troupe Iyasa gave a
dazzling performance at the Global Stage where
they won more converts with
their act of yesteryear hits by renowned
musicians such as the late Brenda
Fassie, among many
others.
Churchill School Jazz Band gave an inspiring performance on the
Coca-Cola
Green during lunch hour while at Reps Theatre Beauty and the
B.E.E.
enthralled audiences in the evening.
The South African play
caused "havoc" at the festival as it gave an insight
into the new SA black
elite, the politics and the business manoeuvres.
Swedish popstars Don't
Be a Stranger rounded up the performance day with a
breathtaking performance
on the Coca-Cola Green before the visiting DJs spun
discs well into the
early hours of Thursday.
On Thursday the main stage belonged to
Portuguese diva Sara Tavares whose
blending of gospel, funk and soul left
audiences clamouring for more.
Popular local dance ensemble Tumbuka
joined forces with Iyasa to stage a
contemporary dance fusion, Chenura, at
Rainbow 7 Arts Theatre in Avondale.
Earlier at the Standard Theatre,
theatre enthusiasts were treated to a rare
performance by a Zimbabwean man
who told the story of how he crossed the
crocodile- infested Limpopo River
into neighbouring South Africa a few years
ago in the play The Crossing. The
play left many in tears while others awed
at this touching representation of
the harsh realities of border jumping.
Lion Lager Day (Friday) was the
busiest of the festival since it fell on
Workers' Day in addition to a
star-studded line-up on the music list.
Malaika, Alick Macheso, PJ Powers,
Alexio and Prince Edward Jazz Band
entertained audiences at different venues
throughout the day.
Prince Edward Jazz Band illuminated the Coca-Cola
Green at noon while PJ
Powers - backed by our own Rusike Brothers - had a
lunch treat for her fans
at the Global Stage.
Malaika came to the
main stage in the evening to give a splendid act that
will definitely remain
etched in the minds of many for some time.
The duo of Matshediso Mholo
and Bongani Nchang mesmerised the capacity crowd
in the spectacular show.
The South African Afropop stars kept revellers on
their feet throughout the
performance.
Theatre lovers were treated to an exciting play In Living
Colour, a
HifaDirect project while Catch and Two Gentlemen of Verona
completed the
theatre line-up.
Yesterday's main act was Habib Koite
who was expected to perform on the main
stage last night.
Gateway
School Jazz Band made its presence at the festival felt while Willom
Tight
proved that he could still run the race with good a performance. Max
Wild
and Sam Mtukudzi staged an excellent combination.
http://www.cathybuckle.com
Saturday 2nd May 2009
Dear Family and Friends, This month's
municipal accounts are the first
printed bills we've had from the local
council for eight months. The
accounts were hand delivered, door to door,
post box to post box in
residential suburbs. This, believe it or not, is
cause for comment!
When a neighbour told me to look in my post box, I
laughed and said that was
a waste of time because nothing has gone into my
home post box for nearly a
year. The Post Office don't deliver any letters
anymore - who knows why. The
bank's have long since given up sending out
statements to their customers
and other street delivered items like
electricity, telephone and municipal
accounts have fallen by the wayside in
Zimbabwe's collapse. It's been so
long since anything's gone into my post
box that I had to use a stick to
clear a way through the spiders webs and
had to manoeuvre my hand carefully
underneath a hanging hornets' nest.
There, lying in the dust and rust was my
municipal bill. A couple of hornets
flew out and the nest shivered in
warning and alarm as I carefully lifted
out the piece of paper. No envelope,
not stapled closed, not even folded
discreetly, the municipal bill may as
well as have stayed where it was for
the information it contained.
"All charges are in US Dollars and you are
expected to pay on time to avoid
inconveniences," it said. The bill itemized
municipal charges and included a
Fire Levy. This was cause for much heated
conversation in the street. "A
Fire Levy," people said, "for what?". The
last time a house burned down in
our neighbourhood the fire engine didn't
come, apparently because it was
picking up sick people.
Another item on
the bill causing rage is that of Public Street Lighting. For
three years the
street lights in our neighbourhood haven't worked so you can
cross that
charge off, everyone is saying. Then there's the one that makes
us all
furious: Refuse Removal. It's been over a year since our garbage has
been
collected. We burn what we can, because we have no choice, we bury what
we
can and we accumulate what's left. Piles of trash lie under trees, on
roadsides and dumped on any vacant piece of land.
Water charges on
the municipal account are cause for disgust and contempt by
residents. As I
write this letter we are going into our fourth day without
water - not a
drop anywhere in the whole town and none are spared, not
schools, hospitals,
old age homes, industry or residences. The absence of
water for days at a
time is just one of our nightmares and does not address
the issue of raw
sewage flowing into the dam our water is being drawn from.
Not to mention
the levy for the pipeline from the new dam that we've been
paying for years
and yet not a drop does it deliver, in fact the pipe is not
yet even laid in
the trench dug for it.
Needless to say, no one is paying the ludicrous
amounts being charged by the
municipality. Charges so high that they amount
to three quarters of a civil
servants entire monthly wage. Everyone is
paying something but only a small
token. We have been paying in US dollars
for electricity, telephones and
municipal services for three months and now
its time to receive service.
The new sentiment sweeping over Zimbabwe, at
all levels, is: You deliver, we
pay. You fix, we pay. You maintain, we pay.
Until next time, thanks for
reading, love cathy