http://www.monstersandcritics.com
By Jan Raath Apr 24, 2011,
12:20 GMT
Harare - Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe's plans to hang on to
power
through early elections this year have been shot down after his
negotiators
agreed to an election roadmap that would push the ballot well
into next
year, officials confirmed Sunday.
Mugabe has vowed that he
would force elections to be held by June, without
the consent of his
partners in the country's shaky coalition government,
stirring widespread
fears that the vote would bring another wave of violent
mayhem against his
pro-democracy opponents.
However, the latest development shows that has
been Mugabe pushed further
into a corner, Western diplomats say, after his
Southern African neighbours,
led by South Africa's president Jacob Zuma,
last month ordered Mugabe to end
the repeated cycles of violence and to
carry out the democratic reforms he
agreed to at the inception of the
coalition government in February 2009.
Negotiators from Mugabe's ZANU(PF)
party, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's
Movement for Democratic Change and
the smaller faction of the MDC have been
wrestling for more than two years
to reach agreement on the wide range of
democratic and electoral changes
their leaders undertook to carry out, with
only a handful of the issues
settled. Mugabe was widely accused of stalling
on
implementation.
'The negotiators have agreed on certain milestones which
need to be
completed before we go to elections,' Edwin Mushoriwa, one of the
smaller
MDCs negotiators told the German Press Agency Sunday. 'If we look at
the
things agreed, it makes it practically impossible to hold elections this
year.'
The key issue was on the making of a new democratic
constitution, with the
three parties still to begin drafting of a new
national law from the
opinions of thousands of ordinary Zimbabweans heard in
countrywide
consultations, to be followed by several more rounds of talks to
approve the
draft, then a referendum, and approval by
parliament.
'That cannot happen in the course of the year,' Mushoriwa
said.
Then there are also media reforms and other issues that need to be
resolved.
Analysts believe that Mugabe can only win elections through a
strategy of
violent intimidation. In March 2008, the country held its first
violence-free ballot since 2000, when Mugabe faced his first real opposition
since he came to power in 1980 and he lost, only to force his way back to
power in a brutal run-off vote. Opinion polls since then have put Tsvangirai
well ahead of the president.
Since late last year, human rights
monitors have reported that thousands of
soldiers and youth militia have
been deployed in rural areas all over the
country in preparation for
Mugabe's snap vote. Mugabe has banned the MDC
form holding meetings and had
scores of MDC officials arrested, all familiar
pre-election patterns in
Zimbabwe.
However, Zuma's officials have said that he and other Southern
African
leaders would not recognize an election that was not held with the
agreement
of the two MDC leaders.
Observers say that Mugabe's options
are complicated by reports of worsening
health. The weekly Standard reported
Sunday that last week the 87-year-old
authoritarian travelled for the fifth
time in four months to Singapore,
where he is understood to be receiving
medical treatment.
http://bulawayo24.com
by Ndou Paul
2011 April 24
11:16:26 | 85 Views
The MDC-T aligned Daily News say it is in possession
of a fresh list of who
has grabbed what farms in the country which shows
that land grabbers now own
five million hectares of Zimbabwe’s best
agricultural land, or a third of
all the land seized from white commercial
farmers and some black business
people over the past 11 years.
Daily
News say that although not all the details on the list could not be
verified
with the alleged land grabbers at the time of going to Press, the
list says
the Mugabe’s own 13 farms, covering more than 15 000 hectares.
Some of the
farms especially in Norton have been merged into one.
Mugabe's deputy
Joice Mujuru, her husband Solomon Mujuru and a host of their
relatives
allegedly own at least 22 farms.
The only other prominent personality
outside of Zanu PF who got a farm is
Welshman Ncube from the smaller faction
of the MDC.
Among the military top brass are the commander of the defence
forces,
Constantine Chiwenga, and air marshall Perence Shiri have two farms
each.
Police commissioner general Augustine Chihuri is listed as having
one farm.
It would appear that virtually all of Zanu PF’s politburo
members, members
of Parliament and senators were allocated farms. The
former ruling party’s
patronage was also extended to many traditional
leaders, as well as to some
Supreme Court and High Court
judges.
Surprisingly though, Reserve Bank governor Gideon Gono does not
appear on
the updated list, with sources even at the Commercial Farmers
Union (CFU)
confirming last night that he bought the farms that he
owns.
The director general of the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO)
Happyton
Bonyongwe is also missing on the list and sources again said he
bought his
farm believed to be in Manicaland Province.
According to
reports from different organisations like the CFU, government’s
own
investigation and non-governmental organisations, the Mugabe’s own
Gushungo
Estates (Mazowe), Gushungo Dairies (Mazowe), Iron Mask (Mazowe) ,
Sigaru
farm (Mazowe), Gwebi Wood (Mazowe), Gwinha farm (Banket), Leverdale
farm
(Banket), Highfield farm (Norton), Cressydale farm (Norton), Tankatara
farm
(Norton), John O’Groat farm (Norton), Clifford farm (Norton),
Smithfield
Extension (Mazowe) and Bassville farm (Norton).
Mugabe’s close relatives
own more than 20 farms. The relatives include
Mugabe’s sisters and nephews,
Leo Mugabe and Patrick Zhuwao.
Leo Mugabe owns three farms, Nangadza farm
in Mhangura and Journey’s end
farm in Makonde, Mashonaland East province and
another farm believed to be
in Banket. Zhuwao owns Marivale farm in
Mazowe.
Mugabe’s late sister Sabina’s farm is listed as Rem Ext of
Mlembwe (of
Mimosa of Lembwe) in Makonde but the Daily News could not verify
the other
two farms under her name..
The First Lady’s late brother
Reward Marufu is listed as owning Leopards
Vlei farm in Glendale and Kachere
farm in Mazowe.
Indigenisation and Youth Empowerment Minister, Saviour
Kasukuwere is
reported as owning three farms in Mazowe which are Usaka,
Harmony,
Re-extension of Pimento and Conurcorpia.
Commander Defence
Forces, Constantine Chiwenga’s family is listed as owning
three farms
including Chakoma or Risumbeti farm in Goromonzi while his wife,
Jocelyn
owns Sheppard Hall farm.
According to the lists Local government
minister, Ignatius Chombo sources
confirmed that he owns Allan Grange and
Oldham farms while two other farms
are owned by relatives.
State
security minister is said to own, Sydney Sekeremayi owns Maganga
estate and
Ulva farm, it has been said. Legal Affairs minister, Patrick
Chinamasa owns
Lot 1 of Mirror 2 in Nyazura and Nyazura farm in Rusape.
The lists say
the Minister of Mines Obert Mpofu owns Umguza Block 39 farm
and Auchenbery
of Rochester in Nyamandhlovu.
Kasukuwere became angry when the Daily News
made inquiries saying the
questions were stupid.
“Go ahead and
publish those farms you are talking about. That’s stupid.
Those rumours must
come to an end. That’s stupid,” Kasukuwere said before
cutting
off.
Chombo denied that he owns more than one farm and refused to give
any
details about which farm he owns. He said: “Go back to your sources and
confirm with them. Why don’t you check with the Agriculture department? I
don’t know about that. Go ahead and publish what you
have.”
Sekeramayi cut off his phone soon after the Daily News reporter
identified
himself.
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai spokesperson,
Luke Tamborinyoka said the
multiple farm ownership is one of the 24 agreed
issues that have not been
resolved by the unity government.
http://www.timeslive.co.za/
Section 121 used on 30 Zanu-PF opponents
this year
Apr 23, 2011 2:39 PM | By SUNDAY TIMES
CORRESPONDENT
Opponents of President Robert Mugabe's Zanu-PF and human
rights activists
are ganging up to fight the draconian Section 121 of the
Criminal Evidence
and Procedures Act, which lawyers say is being used to
oppress the people.
Section 121 empowers the Attorney-General to appeal
against a court decision
to grant bail, and, if invoked, the decision of the
magistrate or judge will
be suspended and the AG has seven days to appeal
against the bail ruling
while the accused remains in custody.
If the
AG or his representative does not appeal within seven days, the
accused
person can be released. The accused person can also be released if
the
courts throw out the appeal.
What has irked Mugabe's opponents and human
rights defenders is that the
draconian law, which dates back to 1898, has
been used against opponents of
Mugabe or those who would have been perceived
to have crossed his path.
Since the beginning of the year, the law has
been used on 30 people - all of
them Zanu-PF opponents, including Energy
Minister Elton Mangoma, MDC MP
Douglas Mwonzora and Mthwakazi Liberation
Front leaders, John Gazi, Charles
Thomas and Paul Siwela.
The Sunday
Times understands that MDC ministers and backbenchers are
planning an attack
on the law by proposing a motion in parliament to have it
repealed.
An MDC MP confirmed the move on Friday. "We are tired of
this law, because
it is being used against MDC officials and human rights
defenders.
"It has to be repealed because it is being abused. It is a
good law in a
democracy, where it would be used against rapists and
murderers.
"But in our situation, it is being used against Mugabe's
opponents and this
is unacceptable and we have to have it repealed," the MP
said.
Deputy Minister of Justice Obert Gutu agreed that the section was
being
abused by some people in government and said he would, as an MP,
support the
idea of having it repealed.
"It is being used as a tool
of harassment. The problem in Zimbabwe is that
our legal system operates
politically and we tend to misuse and abuse laws.
"The intention of the
law was not to be used to incarcerate political
opponents.
"It is a
special provision that was to be used sparingly. It would be useful
to use
it on murderers and rapists, but in our case it is being used
exclusively to
harass political opponents.
"In a delicate situation like Zimbabwe where
there is no democracy, the law
is easily abused. It is needed in a
democratic country to deal with real
criminals - not political opponents.
The law must be set aside," Gutu said.
The director of the Zimbabwe
Lawyers for Human Right, Irene Petras, recently
told the media that the law
was a violation of the constitution as it denied
Zimbabweans the right to
protection of the law.
"Once Section 121 has been invoked, a judge's
hands are tied. It will be
outside the court's jurisdiction where the
prosecution is taking over the
role of the judiciary. There is no separation
of powers there," Petras said.
Last year, local lawyer Alec Muchadehama
challenged the constitutionality of
the section but the matter is still
pending.
Muchadehama applied for the referral for the section to the
Supreme Court in
the case of the state versus Toendepi Shonhe.
"We
challenged the constitutionality of the section as it gives too much
power
to the Attorney-General.
"It is not reasonably expected in a free
democratic society which Zimbabwe
is supposed to be," he said.
Since
2008, Section 121 has been used on nearly 100 MDC activists, officials
and
even ministers.
http://www.timeslive.co.za/
'PricewaterhouseCooper refuses to certify results because
bank is in the
red'
Apr 23, 2011 3:08 PM | By BUSINESS
CORRESPONDENT
The Zimbabwe Allied Banking Group failed to publish
year-end results last
month amid reports that PricewaterhouseCooper has
refused to certify its
financials as it is bankrupt.
PwC managing
partner Tinashe Rwodzi declined to comment on the issue, citing
client
confidentiality.
Bank spokeswoman Theresa Munjoma confirmed ZABG was
hobbled by the return of
the assets of Barbican, Royal and Trust banks,
hence its failure to meet the
mandatory deadlines for results
publication.
"The unbundling affects balance sheet items and publication
of the bank's
financials will be done when the exercise is complete," she
said, adding
that Stephen Gwasira's bank had also completed reorganising its
branch
network countrywide.
Although several other banks have
published results by the March 31
deadline, the Reserve Bank did not reply
to queries on what action it would
take against the distressed
bank.
Central bank governor Gideon Gono created ZABG seven years ago
under the
guise of preserving the assets of its three antecedent banks, but
it has
always been dogged by underfunding and a 2005 Supreme Court ruling
that the
takeover of the assets of Royal, Barbican and Trust was
illegal.
Following the court order and ZABG's progressive descent into
disaster, Gono
was compelled to hand back the banks' assets in August last
year.
Around the time, two Deloitte & Touche Corporate Finance and
RBZ
verification reports revealed that the bank had debts of nearly
$15-million,
which precipitated PwC's refusal to certify the stricken bank's
numbers, as
liabilities far outstrip assets.
While Gwasira and his
team were installed "to turnaround" the fortunes of
the bank, the Deloitte
report said the amalgamation was in financial ruin
owing to several inept
decisions and inadequate oversight mechanisms.
The team, for example,
inflated the three former independent banks'
head-count by 300 staffers -
out of Royal and Trust's combined 232 employees
at closure - while also
acquiring a record 132 cars in five years.
At a time when the wider
financial sector was beginning to feel the pinch of
a dollarised economy,
the ZABG hierarchy awarded themselves generous
salaries, with Gwasira
netting $16000 a month.
The hefty wage bill and costs, which further bled
the bank, saw ZABG fail to
pay for utilities, including electricity, rental
and telephones for its
various offices. It also owed the National Social
Security and Zimbabwe
Revenue Authority vast amounts in staff pensions, and
other taxes.
This dire financial state not only showed how Barbican,
Royal and Trust
banks' inherited assets were wrecked and shrunk, but also
brought into
question whether the new team brought in any new and serious
business, if
not fresh capital, at all.
At closure, Royal and Trust
were jointly ranked number five in terms of
trading market share, but the
Deloitte report showed they had slipped to a
lowly number 13 as at September
2009. The two also had an 11% market share.
http://www.timeslive.co.za
Govt won't take challenge from three farmers
lying down
Apr 23, 2011 3:06 PM | By VLADIMIR MZACA
The Zimbabwean
government says it hopes the South African High Court will
take into
consideration its diplomatic immunity in a case involving the
government and
three commercial farmers.
The farmers, all victims of President Robert
Mugabe's land grab, have taken
on the Zimbabwe government with the help of
South African lobby group
Afriforum.
Zimbabwe argues that South
African courts have to take into consideration
that they do not have
jurisdiction to register a Southern African
Development Community (SADC)
ruling, on the basis of sovereignty, and in
terms of the Foreign States
Immunity Act (Fisa).
Fisa is a law that establishes the limitations of
whether a sovereign nation
can be sued in a foreign court.
It also
establishes procedures for the attachment of property against a
foreign
state.
Zimbabwe's legal team, led by Patric Mtshaulana, said they would
not take
the ruling lying down if it is not in their favour.
The
farmers - Louis Fick, Richard Etheredge and Michael Campbell, who died
recently - took their fight to the Zimbabwean government with the help of
Afriforum, which in its press statement said it wanted to show that Mugabe
was not untouchable.
"The Mugabes of the world have to realise that
justice will prevail, even
though this might happen in another country,"
said Afriforum in a statement
by its chief executive, Kallie
Kriel.
The ruling in the case is expected in the next three weeks and if
the
farmers get the go-ahead it would set a precedent for anyone of South
African origin with a valid case against the chaotic land reform in
Zimbabwe.
"The rulings will open doors for all those who have been
robbed by Mugabe's
government," Kriel added.
Zimbabwean farmer Harry
Hales said if the farmers received compensation it
would be a landmark
victory for all commercial farmers who were displaced
and
persecuted.
"Justice should prevail thanks to the SADC tribunal. A lot of
productive
farmers were affected by the land invasions and they continue to
suffer at
the hands of Zanu-PF," he said.
If this legal action goes
ahead it won't be the first time Zimbabwe lost a
court case in South
Africa.
A few years ago German development bank KFW Bankengruppe seized
seven
properties around South Africa after the Zimbabwean-government failed
to
settle a multimillion- dollar loan.
In 2002, government-run iron
giant Ziscosteel failed to pay back a bank loan
and the bank seized
properties and put them up for auction.
http://www.radiovop.com/
24/04/2011 13:36:00
CHUNDU,
April 24, 2011- The government has been forced to pay monthly
salaries to
two chiefs in Chundu in Mashonaland West province after the one
who was
acting refused to hand over power claiming he will stay put until
Zanu (PF)
is out of power in the area.
Picture Bereu has been acting Chief Chundu
for nearly three years following
the death of his father Josias. Late last
year traditional leaders in the
area forwarded the substantive chief of the
area.
“ Last year traditional leaders led by Mhondoro Mubaiwa forwarded
Kazizi
Chundu to the local district administrator to take over chieftainship
after
going through traditional vetting and rituals. The DA then made
formalities
that saw senior government officials attending the ceremony in
October last
year but Picture Chundu refused to vacate the throne , ” said
one elder
Daniel Bhiriyadhi of Nyamasoka village in Chitindiva
area.
Villagers here claim that Picture Chundu has vowed not to handover
the
throne to the new chief saying his mission is to make sure Zanu (PF) is
of
power. He mobilised support for the party but lost councillorship to the
Movement Democratic Change (MDC-T) candidate Paddington Chavhuruma.
“
Bereu has the backing of Zanu (PF) and senior government officials and is
using political muscle to stay put but is misinformed.Traditionally he is
not accepted and his refusal to leave power has created confusion to the
local people, ” said a close relative of Bereu.
Although Hurungwe DA
Tendai Chirara was not immediately available for
comment, junior officers
confirmed that there were two chiefs for the area.
“ Bereu's salary and that
of the new chief are still being paid by the
government.As civil servants,
we are caught between tradition and party
politics, ” said a junior official
who declined to be named for professional
reasons.
Bereu was hostile
when approached for comment saying: “ Why do you want to
tarnish my image
and Zanu (PF) over these petty issues?” before walking
away.
Some chiefs
have become partisan and have barred opposition meetings in
their areas in a
bid to stay in Zanu (PF),s good books.
http://www.radiovop.com
24/04/2011
14:32:00
HARARE, April 24, 2011- Up to 12000 children die of
malnutrition each year
in Zimbabwe, according to the office of Deputy Prime
Minister Thokozani
Khupe and Unicef.
This shocking information is
contained in a dossier "A Situational Analysis
on the Status of Women's and
Children's Rights in Zimbabwe, 2005-2010", made
public recently. The
situation has been exacerbated by the food crisis -
mainly caused by the
chaotic land grabs - and compounded by the ensuing
gross human rights abuse
against a background of the disastrous drought in
2002. The findings of the
report were said to be "startling" by the
researchers.
"Today, one in
every three Zimbabwean children suffers from chronic
malnutrition. Globally,
maternal and child undernutrition contributes to 35%
of all child deaths .
"Applying these estimates to Zimbabwe, undernutrition
is likely to
contribute to more than 12000 child deaths each year," the
report
states.
The alarming figures indicate a forecast of poor development in the
near
future as children are the leaders of tomorrow.
"The
undernourished children who survive, suffer lifelong consequences: they
are
more susceptible to disease, and are likely to have poorer educational
outcomes, poorer birth outcomes and reduced economic activity into
adulthood. "Undernourished young children, who gain weight rapidly later in
childhood and into adolescence, are at an increased risk of chronic
conditions such as cardiovascular disease later in life," the report
says.
When Zimbabwe's economy was faring well in the early 80s to the 90s,
child
mortality was the lowest in the region.
"While rates of chronic
malnutrition in Zimbabwe are moderate relative to
other sub-Saharan African
countries, they have been rising at alarming rates
over the past 15 years.
"Rates of chronic malnutrition have increased by
nearly 40% since 1994 and,
at present trends, will reach critical levels
within the next
decade.
Even more concerning are the large disparities in rates of
malnutrition
between districts, wealth groups, boys and girls, and children
residing in
rural and urban areas . Rates of chronic malnutrition range from
a low of
21% in Beitbridge district to a high of 47% in the Mutare district.
Furthermore, rates of chronic malnutrition are considerably higher among the
poorest of the population (40%) than the wealthiest
(25%).
Malnutrition in Zimbabwe knows no class. "Wealth and malnutrition
in
Zimbabwe appear to have an inverse relationship; the poorer the
population,
the higher the malnutrition.
"It is interesting to note,
however, that even the wealthiest have
unacceptably high rates of
malnutrition," the report adds.
The report warned that unless the food and
health situation is taken as a
top priority, things could get out of
hand.
"A sudden deterioration in the food security or health situation in
Zimbabwe
could trigger a rapid deterioration in rates of acute
malnutrition."
http://www.radiovop.com
24/04/2011
14:03:00
BULAWAYO, April 24, 2011-Police on Saturday arrested and
sent prominent
businesswoman and founder of Miss Rural Zimbabwe pageant,
Sipho Mazibuko to
Ingutsheni Mental Hospital after she made a report
accusing several
ministers and senior government officials of sexually
harassing her for the
past five years.
In 2007 Mazibuko, who also
runs beauty contests under the Miss Summer
Strides, was briefly detained by
police on allegations that she abused girls
under her care during camps for
the Miss Rural Zimbabwe pageant.But Mazibuko
in turn accused Karikoga Kaseke
the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) boss of
victimising her by using police
after she turned down his demands for sexual
favours.
However police
officers on duty at Bulawayo police station accused Mazibuko
of suffering
from a mental illness after she visited the police station to
make a report
against certain ministers and other senior government
officials whom she
claimed abused her and her models who were part of the
Miss Rural Zimbabwe
pageant.
Mazibuko had also called journalists to come to the police
station and be
witnesses whilst she was making the report of sexual abuse.
When Radio Vop
visited central police station Mazibuko, who had finished
making her report-
CR number 8884/11 had been arrested. Police officers on
duty refused to
reveal to journalists the names of the ministers and
government officials
whom she accused of sexually harassing her and her
models.
Bulawayo police spokesperson Mandlenkosi Moyo confirmed police
arrested
Mazibuko and sent her to Ingutsheni Mental Hospital after she
caused a stir
at the Station.
“ She was arrested and sent to
Ingutsheni as we suspect she has a mental
problem because after making her
report of sexual abuse she started shouting
at police officers on duty
especially at the male officers , ” said Moyo.In
2008, Mazibuko announced
she was retiring from the world of beauty pageants.
The former beauty queen
said she wanted to focus on charity work.Mazibuko
caused a stir a few years
ago when contestants at the Miss Rural Zimbabwe
pageants paraded bare
breasted on stage.
But she defended her decision saying there was nothing
unusual about
expossed breasts because it was part of the culture of the
Ndebele and other
tribes in the olden days.
It’s been a busy week
for Vigil supporters, with our Independence Day demonstration against violence
and our appeal to the Foreign Office to withdraw the invitation to attend the
Royal Wedding unthinkingly issued to Mugabe’s Ambassador in
London.
Naturally we follow
the doings of the Foreign Office quite closely and this week proved an unusually
interesting one – one which gave us hope of a more robust approach to Southern
African despots. This is how it developed:
·
Monday: word from
Malawi that the British High Commissioner was to be sent packing for privately
criticizing the government of Mugabe’s ally, President Mutharika –
who has been given a stolen farm in Zimbabwe and in return named a highway after
his hero.
·
Tuesday: the
Foreign Office whispers in Mutharika’s ear that his country is bankrupt and kept
afloat by the generosity of British taxpayers.
·
Wednesday:
grovelling apology from Mutharika – ‘Britain is our best friend’ (what about
Mugabe?)
What about
Mugabe indeed! The Vigil wants the Foreign Office to spell out similar home
truths to the other Mugabe acolytes receiving handouts from
Britain.
Even the most
obtuse of SADC leaders knows the sanctions issue is a nonsense but nevertheless
it has surfaced again in Harare’s submission to President Zuma for his roadmap
for elections.
The Vigil
suggests that – to save the obtuse faces – it might be an idea to offer to
suspend the targeted sanctions if the EU, US etc are satisfied with the election
arrangements and are allowed to send observers.
After all the
aim is to achieve free and fair elections. We can always deal with the crooks
later.
For latest Vigil
pictures check: http://www.flickr.com/photos/zimbabwevigil/.
For the latest ZimVigil TV programme check http://www.zimvigiltv.com/.
FOR THE
RECORD: 87 signed the
register.
EVENTS AND
NOTICES:
·
The Restoration of
Human Rights in Zimbabwe (ROHR) is the Vigil’s
partner organisation based in Zimbabwe. ROHR grew out of the need for the Vigil
to have an organisation on the ground in Zimbabwe which reflected the Vigil’s
mission statement in a practical way. ROHR in the UK actively fundraises through
membership subscriptions, events, sales etc to support the activities of ROHR in
Zimbabwe.
·
ZBN News.
The
Vigil management team wish to make it clear that the Zimbabwe Vigil is not
responsible for Zimbabwe Broadcasting Network News (ZBN News). We are happy that
they attend our activities and provide television coverage but we have no
control over them. All enquiries about ZBN News should be addressed to ZBN
News.
·
The Zim Vigil band
(Farai Marema and Dumi Tutani) has launched its theme song ‘Vigil Yedu (our
Vigil)’ to raise awareness through music. To download this single, visit
website: www.imusicafrica.com.
·
Swazi Protest against
Royal Wedding Invitation. Tuesday,
26th April 2011 from 6 - 8 pm. Venue: Dorchester Hotel, Park Lane,
London W1K 1QA – protest located at main entrance to hotel on public footway in
Deanery St W1. Tube: Hyde Park Corner or Marble Arch. Please join the Swaziland
Vigil’s protest outside the Dorchester Hotel where King Mswati who is attending
the Royal Wedding will be staying. He is bringing an entourage of 50 to the
UK.
·
ROHR Manchester
Vigil. Saturday
30th April from 2 – 5 pm. Venue: Cathedral Gardens,
Manchester City Centre (subject to change to Piccadilly Gardens).
Contact: Delina Tafadzwa Mutyambizi 07775313637, Chamunorwa Chihota 07799446404,
Panyika Karimanzira 07551062161, Artwell Pfende 07886839353, P Mapfumo
07915926323/07932216070 or P Chibanguza 07908406069. Future demonstration:
28th May. Same time and venue.
·
ROHR Bournemouth
general meeting. Saturday
30th April from 2 – 5.30 pm. Venue: East Cliff Reformed Church
opposite ASDA store, Holdenhurst Road, Bournemouth BH8 8AY. Contact: Sekai
07772211220, Sledge 07788850146, Abi Nzimba 07780831455.
·
ROHR Harlow general
meeting. Saturday
7th May from 2 – 6 pm. Venue: Sherards Hatch Nursery, Ployters Road,
Harlow CM18 7PS. MP Mr Robert Halfon, ROHR President, UK National executive and
a well-known immigration lawyer will be present. Contact Bothwell Nyemba
07725208657, Grace Kachingwe 07405637283, Aleck Kayima 07961907097, Lloyd
Kashangura 07506481334 or P Mapfumo 07915926323 /
07932216070.
·
ROHR Woking general
meeting. Saturday 7th May
from 2 – 6pm. Venue: Woking Homes, Oriental Road, Woking, GU22 7BE. Contact,
Isaac Mudzamiri 07774044873, Sithokozile Hlokana 07886203113, Saziso Zulu
07861028280 or P.Mapfumo 07915926323/07932216070.
·
ROHR Manchester
meeting. Saturday
14th May: (committee meeting from 11 am – 1 pm, general meeting from
2 – 5 pm). Venue: The Salvation Army Citadel, 71 Grosvenor
Road, Manchester M13
9UB. Contact: Delina Tafadzwa Mutyambizi 07775313637, Chamunorwa
Chihota 07799446404, Panyika Karimanzira 07551062161, Artwell Pfende
07886839353, P Mapfumo 07915926323 / 07932216070 or P Chibanguza 07908406069.
·
ROHR Nottingham
general meeting. Saturday
28th May from 2 – 5 pm. Venue: St Saviours in the Meadows Church,
Arkwright Walk, Nottingham NG2 2JU. The church is just a few minutes walk from
the train station. ROHR National Executive members will be attending to discuss
the abuse of human rights and political situation in Zimbabwe. Contact: Allan
Nhemhara 07810197576, Mary Chabvamuperu 07412074928, Christopher Chimbumu
07775888205, P Chibanguza 07908406069 or P Mapfumo 07915926323 / 07932216070.
·
ROHR West Bromwich
general meeting. Saturday
28th May from 12.30 – 4 pm. Venue St Peters Church
Hall, White Hall Road, B70 0HF, West Bromwich. ROHR President,
National executive members and a well-known lawyer present. Contact: Pamela
Dunduru 07958386718, Peter Nkomo 07817096594, Diana Mtendereki 07771708800,
Paradzai Mapfumo 07915926323 or Phylis Chibanguza
07908406069.
·
Vigil Facebook
page: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=8157345519&ref=ts.
·
Vigil Myspace
page: http://www.myspace.com/zimbabwevigil.
·
‘Through the
Darkness’, Judith Todd’s
acclaimed account of the rise of Mugabe. To receive a copy by post in the UK
please email confirmation of your order and postal address to
ngwenyasr@yahoo.co.uk and send a cheque for £10 payable to “Budiriro Trust” to
Emily Chadburn, 15 Burners Close, Burgess Hill, West Sussex RH15 0QA. All
proceeds go to the Budiriro Trust which provides bursaries to needy A Level
students in Zimbabwe
·
Workshops aiming to
engage African men on HIV testing and other sexual health issues. Organised by the
Terrence Higgins Trust (www.tht.org.uk). Please contact the
co-ordinator Takudzwa Mukiwa (takudzwa.mukiwa@tht.org.uk) if you are
interested in taking part.
Vigil
Co-ordinators
The Vigil, outside
the Zimbabwe Embassy, 429 Strand, London, takes place every Saturday from 14.00
to 18.00 to protest against gross violations of human rights in Zimbabwe. The
Vigil which started in October 2002 will continue until
internationally-monitored, free and fair elections are held in Zimbabwe: http://www.zimvigil.co.uk
Clifford Chitupa Mashiri, 24/04/11
Mugabe’s recent attack on Catholic
Bishops is very disturbing at a time when
Christians all over the world were
marking the death and resurrection of
Jesus Christ. What is even more
worrying are reports of police intimidation
of Anglicans in
Zimbabwe.
Surely, for Mugabe to disown the Catholic Church in which he
was born 87
years ago and accuse the Bishops of being liars and puppets of
the West is
just unbelievable. Considering the fact that he was cared for by
priests and
bishops as a young boy then as a political prisoner and during
the
liberation struggle, Mugabe may soon have to apologise to his maker like
he
is doing to SADC leaders after losing it.
“Even though I was born
in this church (Catholic), their bishops are all
over me on a daily basis.
They attack me and criticise me because they are
led by the whites who have
their interests and agendas. They say I am an
oppressor because they are not
happy that the country is being led by a
Blackman,” Mugabe was quoted as
saying on Thursday 21st April 2011 (The
Daily News, 22/04/11). So he thinks
he is not an oppressor? While he fought
for liberation, Mugabe has turned
against his own people and that is what
the church is telling him but he
does not want to hear the truth.
It is very sad that some Anglicans were
reportedly worshipping in Africa
Unity Square and under trees, while other
worshippers were appealing for
police protection after being ousted from the
Anglican Cathedral in Harare
by a Mugabe supporter, Norbert Kunonga who was
ex-communicated in 2008.
More shocking are reports that tens of thousands
of Zimbabwe’s Anglicans are
being forced to worship in pubs, tents and
private schools while their
churches stand empty, shuttered by the
controversial Nobert Kunonga. All
Saints Church in Marondera Vestries were
said to have been vandalised as
Kunonga people allegedly removed locks and
put their own as they have turned
them into residential homes.
Some
of the news reports are very frightening and distressing. For example
that
there were strong suspicions that the 89-year old Anglican priest Jesca
Mandeya who was found dead in February was allegedly murdered by security
operatives (The Zimbabwe Mail, 19/02/11). Church members and Bishops are
living in fear of being killed as some of them continued to be followed by
suspected operatives of the spy agency.
Strangely, there are some
similarities with developments in China where
dozens of Christians were
arrested on Sunday 24th April when police
prevented an evangelical
Protestant church from holding its Easter Sunday
service, as the state
continued its attack on protests against one-party
rule (Telegraph.co.uk,
24/04/11).
Is this what Mugabe meant by looking East policy? Is Robert
Mugabe now
playing politics with his maker?
Clifford Chitupa Mashiri, zimanalysis2009@gmail.com
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Sunday, 24 April 2011 11:25
BY PATIENCE
NYANGOVE
PRIME Minister Morgan Tsvangirai is the only MDC-T
leader who will not be
challenged at the party’s congress which opens on
Thursday.
A list of nominations released yesterday showed that many
heavyweights, save
for Tsvangirai, risk returning from the congress as
ordinary card-carrying
members.
Final nominations will be
announced on Tuesday after elections are concluded
in
Bulawayo.
The polls were abandoned for the second time after a
fistfight broke out
between rival factions.
At the congress,
Tsvangirai’s deputy Thokozani Khupe will have to slug it
out with veteran
politician and MDC-T national executive member Norman
Mabhena.
Kuwadzana MP Lucia Matibenga, who was controversially
sidelined from the
contest for the leadership of the Women’s Assembly in
2005, is challenging
party chairman Lovemore Moyo.
Co-Home
Affairs minister Theresa Makone is pitted against Matibenga, Eveline
Masaiti
and Editor Matamisa for the leadership of the Women’s
Assembly.
Another interesting duel will be between Finance minister
Tendai Biti and
his Public Service counterpart Eliphas Mukonoweshuro for the
powerful post
of secretary-general.
Sources say nine provinces
nominated Biti while Mukonoweshuro received two
nominations.
Elias Mudzuri will have to outwit party spokesman
Nelson Chamisa to retain
his post of organising
secretary.
Mudzuri and Chamisa’s fight has already turned dirty with
the former Harare
mayor accusing his rival of using the media to fight his
wars.
Chamisa’s nomination for the powerful post opened the door for
Nyanga North
MP Douglas Mwonzora and Youth Development, Indigenisation and
Empowerment
minister Tongai Matutu to contest for the post of secretary of
information
and publicity.
Former Nkayi South MP Abednico Bhebhe,
Thamasanqa Mhlangu, Dennis Murira and
Mudzuri have also been nominated for
the post of deputy organising
secretary.
Announcing the
nominations, Chamisa said those nominated more than once
would have to
decide by Monday which position they wanted to contest as one
person could
not contest in two or more positions.
For the post of deputy
chairperson, Morgen Komichi will be battling it out
with Blessing Chebundo,
Alexio Masundire and Matibenga, if she decided to go
for this
post.
Deputy Mines minister Gift Chimanikire has been nominated for
the post of
deputy secretary-general where he is set to wrestle it out with
the
incumbent Economic Development minister Tapiwa Mashakada, Bekithemba
Mpofu
and Paurina Gwanyanya.
Current national chairman Moyo has
also been nominated for the post but
sources said chances were nil that he
would contest for the lower post.
Exiled treasurer general Roy
Bennett is being challenged by Energy and Power
Development minister Elton
Mangoma and Sekai Holland, the co-minister in the
Organ of National Healing
and Reconciliation.
The youth assembly chairperson post will see
Solomon Madzore, Amos Chibaya
and Promise Mkwananzi fighting it out. It’s
understood that Chibaya was
nominated by seven provinces, Madzore by three
and Mkwananzi one.
Chamisa said the elections would be conducted
through secret ballot.
“Elections will be by secret ballot,” he said.
“We have retaining officers
that are non- party leaders nor in our
structures.
“They are from civic organisations so that we eliminate
any bias.”
The jostling for posts has left the party badly divided.
Last weekend
Tsvangirai warned that vote-buying and violence was threatening
the
existence of the party.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Sunday, 24 April 2011 11:15
BY PATIENCE
NYANGOVE
PRESIDENT Robert Mu-gabe left the country on Friday to
collect his ailing
wife in Singapore; they are expected back home on
Wednesday, sources have
revealed.
Mugabe’s sixth trip to
Singapore since the beginning of the year came amid
revelations that the
ageing leader demands at least US$3 million from
Treasury each time he
leaves the country.
Impeccable sources have revealed that
soon after his return Mugabe will be
off to Rome on Friday for a Food and
Agriculture Organisation (FAO) summit.
Grace Mugabe has been
receiving treatment in Singapore since last month and
this has forced her
husband to travel to the Asian country frequently.
She allegedly
dislocated her hip during a fall at their Borrowdale house
sometime in March
and doctors have been battling to rehabilitate her.
Her 87 year-old
husband, according to his spokesman George Charamba, had an
eye operation to
remove a cataract in January also in Singapore.
Impeccable sources
told.
The Standard that Mu-gabe’s handlers demand US$3 million from
Finance
minister Tendai Biti each time he leaves the country.
The
money is believed to be for medical bills and travel expenses for his
usually large entourage.
Mugabe is known for travelling with as
many as 80 people as part of his
entourage that are all given hefty
allowances.
Sources in the inclusive government that spoke on
condition of anonymity
said Mugabe’s demands had become excessive and were
threatening to cripple
the cash-strapped coalition.
The sources
said Biti had tried to stand his ground but was now forced to
release
substantial amounts after sustained pressure.
“The travelling
expenses have shot up to an extent that they have gone out
of hand,” the
source said.
“They are now crippling government
operations.
“The demands are unlawful and if you look at it they have
gone there almost
six times this year.
“However, Mugabe is not
given the US$3 million he demands because the money
is just not
there.”
Repeated efforts to get a comment from Charamba were
fruitless.
One of Biti’s major challenges since he took over the hot
seat in 2009 has
been to reduce money spent on foreign trips by the
government but the MDC-T
secretary general appears to be losing the
war.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Sunday, 24 April 2011 11:30
BY NQABA
MATSHAZI
PRESIDENT Mugabe’s plan to have an early election has
suffered a body blow,
with revelations that the roadmap for polls says these
can only be held
towards the end of next year.
Negotiators from Mugabe’s
Zanu PF and the two MDCs last week crafted a
blueprint for the next
elections, agreeing that polls this year were
virtually
impossible.
The drafts have been sent to the Southern African
Development Community
(Sadc) and principals of the three parties for
approval.
Mugabe, with his back against the wall following a stinging
rebuke by
regional leaders, might be forced to delay elections and implement
the
recommendations contained in the election roadmap.
Key among
the issues contained in the electoral blueprint are the
constitution-making
process and electoral reforms, which have to be
completed before
elections.
The constitution-making process, already behind schedule,
is viewed as the
biggest impediment to holding elections, as it is now
moving to the thematic
committee stage, then for drafting, before being
taken to parliament.
After this process, a referendum will be held,
and if approved, the new
constitution would be returned to parliament for
ratification.
This process alone, informed sources revealed, meant
that a credible
election could only be held at the end of next
year.
Previously Mugabe had warned that he would call for elections
“with or
without” the new constitution.
MDC vice-president, Edwin
Mushoriwa, said with the roadmap complete, the
parties now had to work on
the given timeframes.
“There are milestones that have to be achieved
before the holding of
elections,” he said. “The Sadc troika has already
advised that elections
could not be held before these targets were
met.”
Mushoriwa, who was standing in for the imprisoned Moses
Mzila-Ndlovu as a
negotiator, said however, the different political party
leaders had to
assent to the roadmap before it could be
binding.
Presently, the negotiators are reviewing the GPA and among
the thorny issues
are missed deadlines, with the political parties having
been told to deal
with outstanding issues swiftly.
A summit to
deal with Zimbabwe and Madagascar is set to be held in Namibia
in May and
regional leaders had advised that a roadmap had to be ready
before that
meeting.
Zanu PF negotiator, Patrick Chinamasa told state media last week
that the
blueprint had been signed and would be sent to the
principals.
“The report identifies activities that had to be
undertaken before elections
are held.
“These are the lifting of
sanctions, completion of the constitution-making
process and enactment of
amendments to the Electoral Act.
“Those are some of the critical
issues,” he said.
However, there were some sticking points that would
be addressed by the
South African facilitation team in the first week of
May.
These included state sponsored political violence and the
invitation of
international election observers and monitors for elections
when they are
held.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Sunday, 24 April 2011 14:09
BY
JENNIFER DUBE
AT least 70 people have died in road accidents during
the Easter and
Independence holidays, police have said.
Police
spokesperson Andrew Phiri said as at 9am yesterday, 359 accidents had
been
recorded across the country. The statistics were collected starting
from
April 15.
“These accidents resulted in the death of 68 people while
386 others were
injured,” Phiri said.
“We have arrested 39 people
for driving while drunk and impounded 499
unroadworthy
vehicles.
“We have also issued out 24 852 traffic
tickets.”
Mashonaland East recorded the highest number of deaths,
accounting for 13
followed by Harare with 12.
In one accident
that occurred in Mash East, seven people perished when a
Mitsubishi twin cab
which was being driven by a police officer and a Nissan
twin cab were
involved in a head-on collision.
Phiri said the Nissan encroached
onto the lane of oncoming traffic.
Both drivers died on the
spot.
A man who said he was related to five family members who
perished in the
accident appealed for help to bury them.
“Five
family members died in the accident – four on the spot and one at
Chivhu
General Hospital,” Kudakwashe Mubika said.
“They were nine in the
Nissan and the four surviving members are admitted at
Harare
Hospital.
“Two are in the intensive care unit while the other two are
in a stable
condition.
“We do not know what to do as a family as
we have no money and one of the
deceased was the breadwinner.”
He
said those who died included the driver Chipo Musoni (40), Cornelius
Musoni
(58), his sister-in-law Nancy Chitombo Gwinji and her children Roy
and
Faith Gwinji.
Mourners are gathered at Mainway Meadows, Waterfalls.
Phiri blamed most of
the accidents on human error.
Holidays in
Zimbabwe have become synonymous with a high number of accidents
and some
people believe they are linked to the country’s poor road network.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Sunday, 24 April 2011
14:05
BY JENNIFER DUBE
THE battle for the control of a
recreational park in Ballantyne Park between
flamboyant businessman Philip
Chiyangwa and residents intensified last week
with the latter petitioning
Harare mayor Muchadeyi Masunda seeking his
intervention.
The residents
say they were alarmed to see Chiyangwa erecting a fence around
the park,
which they say was donated to the community by a Ballantyne
family.
Chiyangwa said he was doing the residents a favour as the
park was dirty.
The residents placed an advert in the press thanking
him for fencing the
park and cleaning it.
“By thanking him, we
were hoping to disempower him thinking he will be
embarrassed to later claim
ownership of the park,” one resident said.
Masunda confirmed
receiving a petition with 1 250 signatures from concerned
residents.
While Masunda said he had tasked officials to look
into the matter,
Chiyangwa said the residents were wasting their time as
both the city and
Masunda have no jurisdiction over the
matter.
“I am a resident in that area who is more acceptable than
these people who
are complaining,” Chiyangwa said.
“That place
was now a sex park and I decided to do what I felt was right and
the
Environmental Management Agency applauded me for that,” Chiyangwa said.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Sunday, 24 April 2011 14:03
BY
JENNIFER DUBE
HARARE mayor Muchadeyi Masunda has scoffed at
government’s recent move to
reduce tariffs for various services offered by
city councils saying it
amounts to unwarranted interference.
Local
Government minister Ignatius Chombo last week said he had agreed with
Water
Resources Development and Management minister Sipepa Nkomo to slash
water
charges.
Harare’s fixed water charge for high-density areas was
reduced from US$7 to
US$5 and that for low-density suburbs from $13 to
US$11.
Consumers will now pay US20 cents per cubic metre down from
US30 cents for
the first 20 cubic metres consumed and US60 cents per cubic
metre from 21 to
50 cubic metres.
Chombo said ratepayers who did
not receive water for 30 consecutive days
should refuse to pay for that
particular month.
Also slashed were health fees, with maternity
charges reduced from US$50 to
US$25.
Children will now pay US$2
and US$5 at clinics and hospitals respectively
while adults will pay US$5
and US$10.
Masunda said slashing charges will negatively affect
council’s capacity and
government should be exploring ways of settling its
US$50 million debt to
council and funding city councils to improve service
delivery.
“Slashing maternal fees will only reduce the capacity of
the clinics and
thus put the life of the pregnant mother and unborn child at
risk,” he said.
“We are doing all we can to reduce maternal
mortality.
“We set these figures after a lot of consultations, taking
into cognisance
all critical factors, including the fact that local
authorities are not
getting any funding from central
government.
“I have had to approach personal friends I learnt with so
they help fund our
health institutions.”
Masunda said while the
city’s financial inflows were trickling, outflows
were high. He said council
spends more than US$2 million on water chemicals
every month but was owed
US$150 million by various stakeholders including
government.
The
slashing of charges came at the back of complaints by residents’
organisations who feel councils’ service delivery does not tally with the
money they are being asked to pay.
In Harare, organisations such
as the Harare Residents’ Trust want residents
to pay only US$2 in fixed
water charges and maternity fees against council’s
proposed US$30.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Sunday, 24 April 2011 14:00
BY NQABA
MATSHAZI
PRESIDENT Robert Mugabe has finally given up on Deputy Prime
Minister Arthur
Mutambara and will ask the robotics professor to hand in his
resignation in
June, insiders have revealed.
This might pave way for MDC
leader Welshman Ncube to assume the deputy
premiership, but insiders claim
his interest in the post has become lukewarm
since Mugabe declined to swear
him in earlier this year.
“Ncube is busy campaigning for the next
election and he is not interested in
the position,” an insider said. “We
donated Mutambara and the deputy prime
ministerial position to Zanu PF and
we are not interested.”
Sources revealed that the ageing leader was
reluctant as ever to let go of
Mutambara, but a number of issues, including
a witch- hunt following Zanu PF’s
loss in the vote for Speaker of
Parliament, have added pressure on him to
reconsider his
position.
Hawks within Zanu PF are said to be angry that the decision
to keep
Mutambara seems to have made the two MDCs close ranks and unite
against Zanu
PF in the elections of the Speaker and in
future.
“Keeping Mutambara seems to have backfired and now Zanu PF is
weaker in
parliament with the two MDCs keen on working together,” the
insider
revealed.
Mugabe is also said to be trying to appease the
Southern African Development
Community (Sadc), which came hard on him at the
troika summit in Zambia last
month.
South African president,
Jacob Zuma is said to have questioned Mugabe
privately on why he was
subverting the will of the MDC by keeping Mutambara
in government, when it
was clear that he had been disowned by his party and
his legitimacy in
government was questionable.
“Mugabe was stung by the last Sadc
meeting and he is keen to make peace with
regional leaders, he will be
making concessions bit by bit,” a Zanu PF
confidante
revealed.
What gives credence to the June date is that Mutambara had
initially asked
to be in power until June when he expects to have completed
his Public
Private Partnership (PPP) programme.
“When Mutambara
was initially asked to vacate the post, he asked that he
stay on until June
when he hoped to have made headway in his PPP
initiative,” the source
revealed.
“But now with Mugabe’s indigenisation drive that initiative
has all but
fallen away and Mutambara has become expendable.”
The
president is also said to have remarked that he had been handicapped
because
on one hand he was dealing with Ncube and on the other hand he had
to deal
with Mutambara.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Sunday, 24 April 2011
13:22
BY BLESSED MHLANGA
KWEKWE — A lease agreement between
council and a company owned by a top Zanu
PF official for a brick moulding
plant has reportedly disappeared, sparking
accusations of
corruption.
Councillors want the lease of Kwekwe Bri-cks by Zanu PF
provincial executive
me-mber Owen Ncube reversed because they say it is not
clear how it would
benefit the local authority.
Lucia Mnkandla,
the acting Kwekwe town clerk told a full council meeting
recently that she
could not tell the councillors the terms of the lease
because they had
failed to locate the agreement.
Mnkandla said she could also not say
how much the council had realised from
the deal but indicated that moves
were now being made to terminate the
lease.
But Ncube, who is a
close ally of Minister of Defence Emmerson Mnangagwa and
former Zanu PF
provincial chairman July Moyo, said he was not aware of a
letter from
council indicating an intention to cancel the lease.
“That letter has
not come through to me and therefore I cannot talk about
it,” Ncube
said.
“We have a lease agreement with council which was signed around
2006 and
will run for 10 years.
“Anyone who thinks he can
terminate that lease outside the legal
requirements must have
money.”
Councillors wanted to know the terms of the lease which was
signed by the
previous Zanu PF council led by former mayor, Stanford
Bonyongwa.
They accused the previous Zanu PF councillors of conniving
to use council
property to enrich their peers in the party resulting in the
local authority
being prejudiced of potential revenue.
Ncube
dismissed the accusations saying the deal was purely business and had
nothing to do with politics.
However, Councillor Weston Masiya
told the council meeting that the local
authority was losing revenue since
the plant was lying idle.
“We are losing revenue by not taking stock
of our properties and demanding
what is due to this city,” he
said.
“I sense a lot of corruption which is happening here and there
is need to
correct it.
“How can council lease out a property and
say they can’t find the lease
agreement.”
Mayor Shadreck Tobaiwa
said there was deep-rooted corruption at council,
dating back to the tenure
of previous Zanu PF councils.
He said his council will revisit all
“shady deals” with a view of reversing
them.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Sunday, 24 April 2011 13:19
BY OUR
STAFF
ATTEMPTS by the police to muzzle debate on the Gukurahundi
massacres and a
resurgent secessionist movement in Matabeleland has
reignited debate on
Zimbabwe’s tribal politics.
Analysts last week noted
that the widening tribal divisions coming 31 years
after Zimbabwe’s
independence were a serious indictment on President Robert
Mugabe’s
legacy.
Mugabe, who has been in power since independence, has
struggled to prove
critics wrong, that just like the country’s vanquished
colonisers, politics
of divide and rule have been hallmarks of his political
career.
The critics say these traits were evident from the split of
Zapu in the
1960s on tribal lines leading to the formation of Zanu PF and
the
Gukurahundi massacres.
Zanu PF’s decision to give national
hero status to Central Intelligence
Organisation deputy director general
Mernard Muzariri, who is said to be one
of the top architects of the
massacres, appears to have inflamed emotions.
MDC president Welshman
Ncube claimed that Muzariri shot and killed a Zapu
official Njini Ntutha
during Gukurahundi.
The arrest of the co-minister in the Organ on
National Healing and
Reconciliation Moses Mzila Ndlovu and a Roman Catholic
priest Marko Mnkandla
last week also exposed that securocrats feared an open
debate on atrocities,
which some groups believe were an attempt at ethnic
cleansing.
Most of the top commanders in the army, police and CIO
have been linked to
the massacres.
Air Force of Zimbabwe
Commander Perence Shiri was the commander of the
Fifth Brigade, which
carried out the atrocities.
But it was the burning of the Zimbabwean
flag during street protests by
Mthwakazi Liberation Front (MLF) activists in
South Africa, which clearly
demonstrated that Zimbabwe is a country at war
with itself.
MLF was formed by Zimbabwean exiles based in South
Africa who are
campaigning for a separate Matabeleland state, alleging
discrimination
against Ndebele-speaking people.
Three MLF leaders
are set to appear in court soon facing treason charges
after they called for
the partitioning of the country.
Analysts said not even pretences
that the country was still unified under
the Unity Accord signed by PF Zapu
and Zanu PF in 1987 could end the country’s
tribal
divisions.
Brilliant Mhlanga, a Zimbabwean academic who has written
papers on the
country’s tribal politics, said the burning of the flag was a
big symbolic
gesture, which the authorities must take
seriously.
“The burning of a flag is very symbolic and it seeks to
make sense of and
clearly locate the calls for a separate state within its
rightful place in
the discourse, hearts and minds of our people,” he
said.
“As a symbolic gesture it shows that the people of Matabeleland
now know and
understand that they do not belong to Zimbabwe with all her
symbols of
sovereignty, including the Zimbabwean flag.”
The
tribal divisions have also become evident in Zimbabwe’s splintered
political
groups with all the political parties split on ethnic lines.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Sunday, 24 April 2011
13:19
University of Zimbabwe political science lecturer John Makumbe says
Mugabe’s
strategy (of violence and repression) is backfiring because it is
making the
MDC-T a saint while Zanu PF is turning out to be the spoiler in
the face of
Sadc and the international community.
He said harassment was
meant to frustrate the MDC-T out of the unity
government.
“When
this happens,” he said, “Mugabe will appoint his own ministers and
call for
elections under the current political environment, which favours
him.”
MDC-T spokesperson Nelson Chamisa said the crackdown was
designed to dampen
the spirits of those fighting for a democratic
dispensation in the country.
“The onslaught is meant to weigh down
democratic forces, hoping to make
their life difficult and in the end
discourage them from pushing for a new
and free political establishment in
the country,” Chamisa said.
He said the new wave of arrests of
Mugabe’s critics and opposition activists
must be seen in the context of the
pending elections.
“They are desperate and panicking,” Chamisa said.
“Remember all weak
characters are violent and all unpopular regimes are
violent.”
Mugabe’s violence strategy has forced the MDC-T to insist
on the drafting of
a roadmap to elections that comprises of the security of
the voter and the
outcome of the poll, he said.
But another
political analyst who requested anonymity said Mugabe was not in
total
control of what is happening as Zanu PF hardliners, aided by Joint
Operation
Command (JOC) members make crucial decisions.
Mugabe (87) is battling
advanced age and persistent ill-health.
The analyst said JOC, an
organ for the co-ordination of state security
matters in the country, has
embarked on a scorched-earth policy in a bid to
protect ill-gotten wealth
and avoid prosecution for human rights abuses.
“Civilian authority is
no longer making decisions in Harare,” the analyst
said.
“JOC is
running the show and they don’t hesitate to use violence to protect
whatever
they have been grabbing over the years.”
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Sunday, 24 April 2011 13:17
BY CAIPHAS
CHIMHETE
PRESIDENT Robert Mugabe is “digging his own grave” by
intensifying the
crackdown on critics and opposition activists at a time
when the wave of
mass protests against autocratic rulers is blowing south,
political analysts
have warned.
While Mugabe’s strategy is meant to cow
critics ahead of elections, analysts
contend that this was likely to
backfire as it emboldens the people’s
resolve to fight for their democratic
rights.
Analysts believe Zimbabweans may feel encouraged by
successful mass revolts
that recently toppled dictatorial regimes in Tunisia
and Egypt.
Even South African President Jacob Zuma, the facilitator
in efforts to
resolve the Zimbabwe crisis, warned Mugabe of “unprecedented
upheavals” if
pro-democracy reforms are not implemented in the
country.
Instead of following Zuma’s advice, Mugabe has intensified
his crackdown on
MDC officials, church leaders and any other civil society
activists
perceived to be against his 31-year-old rule.
The MDC-T
claims that over 100 senior party officials have been arrested in
the past
four months on trumped-up charges.
Some have been brought to court in
leg-irons for holding unsanctioned
meetings as if they were dangerous
criminals.
Religious groups, believed to be critical of Mugabe’s
rule, have not been
spared in the onslaught.
Just two weeks ago,
guns and baton-wielding police stormed a church in
Harare and threw teargas
canisters at frightened parishioners from different
denominations who were
praying for peace.
Parishioners, among them children, were forced to
flee, some through
windows, resulting in many sustaining cuts from broken
glass.
So petty and paranoid has Mugabe’s handlers become that they
see shadows
almost everywhere.
Early this year, police arrested
theatre actors, accusing them of
“triggering political commotion” when they
staged a play, Rituals.
They were charged with criminal
nuisance.
Political analyst Charles Mangongera said Mugabe was
pressing a
self-destruct button by intensifying repression against an
already agitated
populace.
He said with civil servants angry over
low salaries coupled with
macro-economic problems fueling unemployment,
Mugabe is sitting on an
“political powder keg” that is bound to
explode.
“The more people are pressed against the wall, the more they
are determined
to fight back,” he said.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Sunday, 24 April 2011 12:01
BY
INDIANA CHIRARA
FOURTEEN years after the female condom was introduced in
Zimbabwe, the
device remains unpopular among women despite its celebrated
advantages.
Experts say the female condom remains the only tool for HIV
prevention that
gives women control and choice over their sexual
health.
There are different types of female condoms and the old model was
made of
plastic (polyurethane).
The second generation of the female
condoms is made of synthentic nitrile
and are said to make less noise during
intercourse.
A recent version is made of latex, the same material used in
male condoms.
A snap survey showed that the device was not popular with
women because of a
number of perceptions and lack of
information.
Most women who were interviewed said the condom produced too
much noise
during intercourse and was difficult to use.
Patricia
Chiutsi, a 43-year-old vendor from Tafara said she started using
the female
condom this year when her husband tested HIV positive but has
never enjoyed
the experience.
“l was introduced to female condoms when I visited
Beatrice Hospital with my
husband,” she said.
“We liked it because we
realised that it was very strong, reliable and that
it can be worn hours
before the act.
“Unfortunately after a week of using it, l developed some
rash and l
immediately went to seek medical attention and was told to stop
using it.”
Mary Mutasa (39) who is also a vendor said she did not know
anything about
condoms because her husband was not interested in using
protection.
“Ever since we got married 10 years l ago we have been having
unprotected
sex,” Mutasa said.
“There is no way that he can agree to
start using protection today but given
a chance I would use the female
condom.”
A teacher from Glen View said she stopped using the female
condom after she
failed to learn to insert it.
But a sex worker who
only identified herself as Beulah said she had been
relying on the
contraceptive for years now because it does not easily burst
like male
condoms.
Patience Kunaka, the Population Services International (PSI)
interpersonal
communications manager’s said most negative perceptions about
the female
condom were unfounded.
“According to research, these
condoms do not have side effects,” she said.
“One might develop that rush
after using an expired product or that person
might have developed the rash
before using the condom.
“It is always safe for people to check the
expiry dates of the condoms
before using them.”
Kunaka also dismissed
rumours that prostitutes especially in border towns
re-use the female condom
saying the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare has
intensified the
distribution of the free condoms in rural areas.
She said where the
condoms are sold, they were available at reasonable
prices.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Sunday, 24 April 2011 12:31
BY NDAMU
SANDU
GOVERNMENT says Abbey Chikane, the Kimberley Process (KP)
appointed monitor
on Zimbabwe diamonds does not have any more role to play
in the since the
country has complied with the international body’s
provisions to sell the
Marange diamonds.
This comes amid indications that
Chikane wants to quit the job as KP
appointed monitor on
Zimbabwe.
“Our position is that we have complied and therefore there
is no need for a
Joint Working Plan and monitors.
“We should be
treated like any other compliant state,” Obert Mpofu, Mines
and Mining
Development Minister said on Friday.
“Once the Joint Working Plan
expires, Chikane goes.”
Chikane was appointed KP monitor for Zimbabwe
last year following
recommendations of a plenary meeting in 2009 which said
the country should
meet the minimum standards before it could sell the
Marange gems.
Last month KP chairman Mathieu Lapfa Lambang Yamba of
the Democratic
Republic of the Congo gave Zimbabwe the nod to sell the
gems.
The move is being resisted by other KP members who allege that
the chair had
made the decision unilaterally with western countries such the
United
States, Britain, Germany and Australia calling for the extension of a
ban.
However, African and other countries including Russia have
opposed the ban
on the sale of the diamonds.
Mpofu said it “was a
big mistake that we (government) accepted the Joint
Working Plan because not
only is it unprocedural but against the principles
of the
KP.”
Mpofu said there is a scramble by people to get a job in
Zimbabwe yet they
want to frustrate the county’s sale of
diamonds.
“We will not allow any person who comes here and want to
get a job yet he is
behind plans to frustrate the country to sell its
diamonds,” Mpofu said.
This comes amid revelations that Simon Gilberts, a
British national would
replace Chikane as KP monitor on
Zimbabwe.
Contacted for comment, Chikane told Standardbusiness the
matter between
Zimbabwe and the KP is under discussion.
He said
Yamba has not given a verdict on the way forward.
He referred further
questions to Yamba who could not be reached for comment.
The KP
banned Zimbabwe from selling diamonds from Marange in 2009 over
allegations
of human rights abuses in the extraction of the gems and failure
to meet
minimum requirements for trading in the precious stones.
But the
organisation allowed Zimbabwe to conduct two supervised sales which
took
place in August and September last year following a report by Chikane
that
said Harare had met all KP conditions.
The last KP plenary in
Jerusalem in November last year failed to reach a
decision on Zimbabwe, but
the country was however given a conditional
agreement to sell its diamonds
in January.
However, government declined the offer saying that it
wanted to be allowed
to sell the gems without conditions since it had met
the conditions.
Mpofu said there is no country in Africa which was
more compliant than
Zimbabwe and blasted the “country’s detractors using
the KP to pursue the
anti-Zimbabwe agenda”.
Government hopes
revenue from Marange gems will inject cash into the economy
in the absence
of lines of credit from multilateral institutions.
A new diamond Act
would be promulgated to plug the loopholes in the diamond
industry and
generate more revenue for the economy.
Money from the diamonds is
expected to be channeled towards the civil
services’ salary
increments.
Civil servants ear an average salary of US$225 per
month.
Zimbabwe was banned from selling diamonds in 2009 over human
rights abuses
in the extraction of the gems.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Sunday, 24 April 2011
13:16
Negotiators to the Global Political Agreement have started to make
progress
in crafting a roadmap that can lead to elections acceptable to all
parties
in Zimbabwe and also to the international community.
The
progress, made after several months of stubborn resistance by President
Mugabe and hardliners in his party, is a sign that finally the pressure
exerted by the region is beginning to bear fruit.
At a summit
held in Zambia a few weeks ago, the Sadc Troika read the Riot
Act to Mugabe
who has been treated with kid gloves in the past.
They told him point
blank that he had to change his ways and stop endemic
political violence,
the arrests of political opponents and allow for the
establishment of a
roadmap that would result in free and fair elections.
An angry Mugabe
came back from the summit talking tough against the
facilitator, South
African President Jacob Zuma, but such talk was
short-lived as he quickly
realised the folly of his actions.
So the progress reported by
negotiators on Thursday should be understood in
the context of Mugabe doing
all he can to avoid alienating himself further
from the
region.
The negotiators should be applauded for identifying
amendments to electoral
laws as one of the critical issues that need to be
addressed before
elections are held.
It is common knowledge that
these laws favour the incumbent Mugabe at the
expense of other
candidates.
While this progress is commendable, both the MDCs and
Sadc should be wary of
Mugabe, ahead of the May 20 extraordinary summit set
for Namibia.
The 87-year-old remains the same obstinate and crafty
leader who is only
concerned about maintaining his grip on power. His
commitment to reform
should therefore be judged by actions and not
words.
While Mugabe appears conciliatory to political rivals, on the
ground the
actions of the police, his ministers and youth militia show that
Mugabe is
far from changing his ways.
Leopards don’t easily
change their spots, so the old adage goes.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Sunday, 24 April 2011 13:14
By
Tapera Zimbabwe
Perennial wisdom, according to Professor Jonathan
Moyo dictates that all
things good or bad, righteous or evil, will come to
an end.
Likewise Zanu PF’s malevolent abuse of Zimbabwean traditional chiefs
will
end one day.
Clearly this regime has perfected the art of
using chiefs for their own
political gains. It’s an art they inherited from
Ian Smith’s regime.
After realising how sacred traditional chiefs
were regarded in their
communities, Smith saw gains in illicitly using them
as his political
superintendents in the rural areas.
These regime
appointees were used not only to spy on freedom fighting
activities but also
to illegally kill the spirit of democracy among the
blacks who were the
majority.
Loyal and puppet traditional chiefs were appointed and some
of them openly
disassociated themselves from freedom fighters who were
fighting to liberate
Zimbabwe.
Bootlicking Smith, these
appointees expressed despair at the activities of
brave Zimbabweans who had
braced themselves for the armed struggle to free
this nation.
The
then minister of Information, Immigration and Tourism Pieter van der Byl
would appoint puppet chiefs who were against the Chimurenga
struggle.
These chiefs included Jeremiah Chirau and Khayisa Ndiweni
etc. Thus, the
institution of chieftaincy during Smith’s time became an
entrenched organ of
settler control in rural areas.
Highly
censored racial media would spend acres and acres of space covering
appointment ceremonies of these imprecise chiefs. Statements of chiefs
denouncing the freedom struggle were also made headlines in order to mislead
the whole world.
The African Times, which was the Smith regime
mouthpiece masquerading as the
state newspaper, just like The Herald,
praised chiefs for their stance
against fellow citizens who were engaged in
efforts to free Zimbabwe.
On November 7 1973, The African Times
carried the headline “Chiefs back
government against terrorism” and went on
to report that over 1 000 chiefs
and headmen had been consulted and
condemned the Zimbabwean heroes for
taking arms and fighting for their
freedom.
As if that was not enough, the same paper on December 12
that year had a
bold front story, “Treat them as outcasts, says chiefs”. The
paper reported
that chiefs had absolutely rejected the liberation struggle
and wanted all
our dead and living heroes at that time to be treated as
unwanted elements
in the society.
Chiefs were used to silence all
voices which were against the Smith
government. More so, chiefs were
deliberately made to speak on behalf of
the people thereby making misleading
statements aimed at derailing the
spirit of the Chimurenga
Struggle.
However, little did we know that the Zanu PF government
would use the same
dirty tactics to silence democratic voices in independent
Zimbabwe.
This regime has embraced Rhodesian tactics after realising
how fast it was
losing grip among their once fully-fledged
supporters.
The regime is appointing its own loyal chiefs to act as
watchdogs against
their political opponents.
Bootlicking and
puppet chiefs who blindly worship Zanu PF and the ageing
president have
questionably been crowned by Local Government minister
Ignatius
Chombo.
Hefty and unexplained benefits are being dished to the chiefs
in an effort
to make them pliable. Last year we were informed by The Herald
that the
chiefs were allegedly satisfied with President Mugabe and did not
want
anyone except Mugabe to lead this country.
The chiefs
belittled their own integrity to the extent of not seeing any
future after
Mugabe. The Sunday Mail of October 31- November 06 2010, just
like the
aforesaid Smith newspaper, carried the headline “Chiefs want
President
Mugabe for life”.
The paper alleged that chiefs, led by their
president Fortune Charumbira,
had resolved to have Mugabe for life
presidency.
Is that not a wanton blow to the values and ethos of
democracy? If chiefs
can appoint someone for life presidency, so why are we
wasting precious
resources going for an election?
To simply
rubber stamp their choice!
That’s exactly how the Smith regime abused
traditional chiefs in order to
kill variant views.
These days all
chiefs, except for a few level headed ones, are Mugabe
apologists and
enemies of the MDC and all other political parties with
different views from
those of ZANU PF.
I am not an MDC supporter but just a mere
sympathiser and my heart bleeds
when traditional chiefs treat this party’s
supporters as outcasts or
unwanted elements who deserve no space in the
country. I really feel for
those who wish to democratically and legally
express their voices in rural
areas but are met with heavy backlash from
some notorious chiefs and
headmen.
These villagers are sometimes
made to pay fines and even face evictions from
their areas for the simple
reason that they support or voted for the MDC,
which is a a legal political
party in Zimbabwe.
It is disheartening to note that today the
institution of chieftaincy with
the manipulation of ZANU PF has become an
entrenched organ of ZANU PF
control especially in rural areas where this
regime has since lost its once
popular support. Can’t we have brave chiefs
like Rekai Tangwena?
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Sunday, 24 April 2011 13:13
By Nevanji
Madanhire
Lots of my friends studied in Cuba. When they returned
after four years on
the Caribbean Island they waxed lyrical about the great
revolutionary Fidel
Castro. None of them had anything bad to say about him.
One of my greatest
wishes therefore was to meet this great icon before he or
I died. Now
because of his poor health this might not be possible or even
necessary!
It has become clear in the past few months that my friends
had been allowed
to see, or had not been inquisitive enough to discover,
what was really
happening in Cuba. They were beneficiaries of Castro’s
magnanimity and our
own government encouraged a view of the island that was
beyond reproach.
But I had my own fears. A few years ago the
high-profile defection of two
Cuban doctors working in Zimbabwe had awakened
in the minds of even the
least sceptical that “everything was but what it
was not”.
Last September Castro confirmed in his own words that his
economic model no
longer worked even for Cuba.
He told Jeffrey
Goldberg, a writer for the Atlantic Monthly magazine that
“The Cuban model
doesn’t even work for us anymore.”
Even in that statement Castro was
being economic with the truth.
Soviet-style socialism never worked for Cuba
in the 50 years that he was
forcing it upon his country.
A week
ago Castro’s party, the Communist Party of Cuba, was meeting to
discuss a
raft of reforms that would, it was hoped, transform the country
into a
modern state and, more importantly, save the moribund party.
That
meeting coincided with the 50th anniversary of the Bay of Pigs.
On
April 17 1961 about 1 300 exiles, armed with US weapons, landed at the
Bay
of Pigs on the southern coast of Cuba. Hoping to find support from the
local
population, they intended to cross the island to Havana. It was
evident from
the first hours of fighting that the exiles were likely to
lose.
President JF Kennedy had the option of using the US Air Force
against the
Cubans but decided against it. Consequently, the invasion was
stopped by
Castro’s army.
By the time the fighting ended on April 19,
90 exiles had been killed and
the rest had been taken as prisoners. The
invasion made Castro wary of the
US. He was convinced that the Americans
would try to take over the island
again. From the Bay of Pigs on, Castro had
an increased fear of a US
incursion on Cuban soil.
This was a
heroic moment for Cuba for successfully defending its sovereignty
but it
also defined how Cuba was to operate in the next half century.
Because of
the paranoia that resulted from the Bay of Pigs episode Cuba has
been
defined by little acts of bravado that brought economic stasis.
In the
interview with Goldberg Castro even criticised his own actions during
another little act of bravado, the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, when he urged
the Soviet Union to launch nuclear weapons against the United States,
telling Goldberg “it wasn’t worth it at all”.
How many other acts
of the Communist Party of Cuba were not worth it at all?
Sports boycotts,
for example, were they worth it? And these were many.
For
political reasons, Cuba boycotted the 2002 Central American and
Caribbean
Games in San Salvador, El Salvador. In 1987, Cuba did not compete
at the
Women’s World Junior Volleyball Championships in Seoul (South Korea).
The
reason: there were no diplomatic relations between Cuba and South
Korea.
For political reasons, Cuba did not send a baseball team to
the 27th
Baseball World Cup in South Korea in 1982. Cuba boycotted the 1988
Olympic
Games in South Korea.
Cuba sent only seven athletes
to the 2007 World University Games in
Thailand, heeding Fidel Castro’s fears
about future defections. But the 1991
Pan American Games were held in Havana
in which 39 countries participated.
It is reported the Games were a huge
source of pride for Castro.
Castro has been replaced as the leader of
the Communist Party by his younger
brother Raul who is trying to lead
reforms, the major hitch though is that
Raul himself is 79 years old and his
vice José Ramón Machado Ventura, is an
80-year-old veteran of the
revolution.
What this means is that although Raul is urging both
political and economic
reform, Cuba will for a while longer remain in the
clutches of the same
leadership that has failed to move it forward in the
past 50 years.
One factor that stands out is that among Raul’s
proposed reforms is not the
opening of political space to other political
parties. His major reform is
that presidential terms would be limited to two
five-year terms. This will
not personally affect him for it will allow him
to remain at the helm until
2018 when he will be 86.
A Cuban
independent economist is quoted saying that term limits won’t
“resolve our
essential problem, which is the monopoly on power by a group
whose policies
have failed for 50 years.”
But Raul does not see this; he wants to
stick with the same geriatric
leadership instead of inviting competing
opinion
“Today, we are faced with the consequences of not having a
reserve of
well-trained replacements with sufficient experience and maturity
to
undertake the new and complex leadership responsibilities in the Party,
the
State and the Government,” he said at his party
congress.
What is clear from the Cuban fiasco is that eventually it
is not the little
acts of bravado that will stand a country in good stead on
the world stage
but its cultural software. By cultural software I refer to a
country’s
exploits in the arts, in sport and in initiatives that encourage
national
and world peace.
South Africa, for example, has taken
its place on the world stage because of
the efforts of liberation icon
Nelson Mandela, when he was still able to
bring peace to the world after he
reunited his own people who had just
emerged from apartheid. The leaders
that followed him are also engaged in
peace-building initiatives on the
African continent. But also importantly,
its hosting of the Rugby World Cup
and the Fifa World Cup have made it a
giant on the world
stage.
In Zimbabwe Zanu PF’s little acts of bravado have not moved
the country
forward. Gukurahundi, Murambatsvina, chaotic land reform,
pulling out of the
Commonwealth and alienating the country from the West
have already brought
untold suffering on the common people.
When
will President Mugabe meet his Damascus moment and ask himself: “Is his
model working for us anymore?”
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Sunday, 24 April 2011
13:11
By Gilbert Mehluli Sibanda
Reading through the words
of the Matabeleland Police boss in the local daily
I was reminded of the
male mosquito; this insect makes so much noise.
Despite sucking some blood
and causing some pain, it does not cause malaria
in the human body.
Now
that Edmore Veterai has made a political statement it is inevitable that
my
submission will have to be political too.
This attention seeking
police officer’s action will not cause any meaningful
harm and he will not
get the attention he desperately needs from Welshman
Ncube and the MDC
party. If anything, his actions will obviously cause more
shame and
embarrassment to the security forces’ chefs that are already being
viewed as
appendages of Zanu PF.
It is being shallow-minded for someone who is
supposed to be a senior
public officer of the country to assume that to
celebrate Independence Day
means to be paraded sitting closer to those that
have made the celebration
of this great day a mockery; those that have
become the monuments of
betrayal of this great day.
It is no
longer a secret that the Zanu PF regime has trampled upon all that
the
ex-combatants and the people of Zimbabwe sacrificed for. Worse still,
this
year our Independence celebrations came at a time when the nation is
still
living under the pre-independence legislations, has a political
environment
resembling that of the colonial times and nationalwealth remains
in the
hands of the ruling elite and the politically connected.
I believe
the MDC was and is convinced of the innocence of the Deputy
Secretary
General and the co-Minister of the National Healing,
Reconciliation and
Integration Moses Mzila Ndlovu.
I believe that the arrest of the
minister while performing his ministerial
and constitutional duties does not
only smack of malice but is also
contemptuous of the
Executive.
It would have been a betrayal of unimaginable
proportion if MDC President
Welshman Ncube was to be seen jostling for the
seat close to the First
Secretary of Zanu PF while Moses Mzila Ndlovu is
languishing in the custody
of the police, solely for asking the people of a
possible way of reconciling
the country after the crimes that were committed
by the Zanu PF regime.
This politics of patronage entrenched in this
country by Zanu PF over the
past three decades has driven its beneficiaries
to the embarrassing levels.
It is surely unfortunate that the security
forces have become the greatest
causalities, the spurious allegations,
threats and the contempt of the
opposition political have become the
unwelcome order of our politics.
I am convinced that this frustration
against the MDC has been developing
over time; the security chefs aligned to
Zanu PF have been watching the
transformation of the MDC from the congress,
which was a resounding success
to the rallies in the rural areas that Zanu
PF had turned into their safe
zones. It is a thorn in the flesh of Zanu PF
to see the party growing at
this rate, attracting hundreds of people to its
rallies.
It should be clear to the likes of Veterai that the
people of Zimbabwe have
outgrown this intimidation; no amount of
vilification of their leadership
will dampen their spirits.
It is
now a fact that it is not subject to debate that Prof Welshman Ncube
and the
MDC will form the next government through the democratic processes
that we
are currently negotiating. We would not lose sleep over the
statements of
some desperate elements who seek to get recognition by
engaging in some
dirty conversations with President Welshman Ncube.
The imagination that
the MDC wanted to forcibly release Mzila from the
police custody is
preposterous, the party is aware that these malicious and
baseless charges
against the Deputy Secretary General will not see light in
a competent
court, how then can the party want to take him by force when it
is aware
that Mzila is going to be released finally.
The MDC over the
years has seen its cadres facing serious allegations,
President Welshman
Ncube included when he was charged of treason but in all
these charges the
state has never won a conviction. I don’t remember a day
that the MDC has
attempted a violent release of its cadres.
I am convinced that due to
the commitment of the MDC to the liberation of
this country that has
remained undiluted over the years, that it has the
policy in place for the
rehabilitation of the victims of political
patronage.
Those
that have over the years found themselves in a position to please the
system
by crying more than the hurt in exchange for comforts. The MDC will
put a
system of rewards and promotion based on professional achievements
and
certainly not patronage.
Gifford Mehluli Sibanda is the Chief
Information and Communication Officer
of MDC. He writes in his personal
capacity.