http://www.thestandard.co.zw
January 20, 2013 in Politics
AS
thousands of people prepare to throng the National Heroes’ Acre for the
burial of Vice-President John Landa Nkomo tomorrow, the death of the former
nationalist is likely to stir fresh debate on the relevance of the Unity
Accord, analysts have said.
BY OUR STAFF
They said as
President Robert Mugabe continues to lose trusted allies in
Matabeleland,
the relevance of the Unity Accord between Zanu PF and PF Zapu
would soon
come under scrutiny, again.
With the Dumiso Dabengwa-led Zapu having
pulled out of Zanu PF five years
ago, questions linger whether the accord
that ended mass killings in
Matabeleland and Midlands was still relevant 26
years later.
On the other hand, Nkomo’s death is also likely to re-ignite
an acrimonious
succession battle that characterised his own ascension to the
vice-presidency.
Nkomo took over from Joseph Msika who died in 2009.
Msika himself had
succeeded nationalist and founding Zapu leader Joshua
Nkomo who signed the
Unity Accord with Mugabe in 1987.
But it is the
power dynamics in Zanu PF and Matabeleland, where Nkomo’s
death is most
likely to be felt.
Despite Nkomo having not contested an election since
1995, he was viewed as
a senior leader, whose voice would carry the
day.
Over the years, Nkomo’s stature had somewhat diminished in
Matabeleland,
although he remained important because of his status as
Vice-President.
While most of the focus shall be on who shall succeed
Nkomo, it is the
jostling for the Zanu PF chairmanship’s post that is likely
to hog all the
attention.
Present chairman, Simon Khaya-Moyo is the
front runner to succeed Nkomo, but
it is unclear who is likely to take up
his post in the likely event that he
becomes vice-president with the likes
of Home Affairs minister, Kembo Mohadi
considered as a dark
horse.
Mines and Mining Development minister Obert Mpofu is also said to
be a
contender.
A service was held yesterday at the late Nkomo’s
Milton Park home before the
body was flown to Tsholotsho.
Meanwhile,
South African leader, Jacob Zuma has joined Zimbabweans in
mourning
Vice-President John Landa Nkomo who died at St Anne’s Hospital on
Thursday
after a long battle with cancer.
Zuma extended his deepest condolences to the
Nkomo family as well as to the
government and the people of Zimbabwe on the
passing on of Nkomo.
“Our thoughts go out to the entire Nkomo family and
the people of Zimbabwe,”
he said in a statement.
Nkomo started his
political career with South Africa’s African National
Congress
(ANC).
He was then deployed to the National Democratic Party (NDP), which
was later
banned and was reborn as Zapu.
Zimbabweans from all walks
of life and across the political divide yesterday
also continued to mourn
Nkomo.
Several MDC-T ministers attended the service where they paid
tribute to the
late Nkomo.
Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara
described Nkomo as a unifier who
worked for the betterment of the
country.
“From his time as a trade union leader to being a minister and a
Vice-President, Nkomo was a unifier par excellence, a true son-of-the-soil
and he worked hard throughout his life to ensure that peace and
reconciliation prevailed,” he said.
Mavambo-Kusile-Dawn leader, Simba
Makoni said the nation had been robbed of
a mature, true national leader,
with unwavering dedication to the country.
“Nkomo was a unifier and
pacifier. He was a humble, kind and loving leader
to all the people of
Zimbabwe,” he said. “He was tireless in his quest for
national cohesion. He
belonged to all Zimbabwe, not one political party, not
one area or province,
not one social class.”
Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU)
secretary-general, Japhet Moyo said
Nkomo was a “rare breed” of a politician
who could mix with different people
at different levels without any
problem.
“He was a good listener, down-to-earth politician who worked
immensely to
uplift the lives of many Zimbabweans,” he said.
Moyo
said ZCTU remembered him well during his time as Labour minister
between
1988 and 1995 where he presided over some notable amendments to the
Labour
Relations Act.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
January 20, 2013 in Local
The
Zimbabwe Investment Authority (ZIA) last week fell foul of Herald
columnist
Nathaniel Manheru, widely believed to President Robert Mugabe’s
spokesman
George Charamba, following the publication of figures that showed
that
foreign investment was declining in the country, authoritative sources
said.
REPORT BY OUR STAFF
The sources said Charamba summoned
ZIA officials and gave them a rap on
knuckles for the statistics. ZIA
however, denied they had ever been summoned
to the President’s
office.
The sources said Charamba, who is also Media, Information and
Publicity
permanent secretary, fumed that the figures, which were publicised
in The
Herald, showed the Zanu PF’s indigenisation programme was driving
investors
away.
The figures showed that the country’s investment
approvals fell to US$930
million last year, from US$6,6 billion a year
earlier, “illustrative of an
abysmal” investment climate.
The
authority apparently approved 172 projects between January and December
last
year, down from 227 projects approved in the same period in
2011.
However, the article stated that these were merely approvals and
most of the
projects were not running yet.
In his Saturday column in
The Herald, Nathaniel Manheru, who is widely
believed to be Charamba,
lambasted both the newspaper’s Business desk and
ZIA over the article which
he deemed untenable.
“. . . if the story and its false figures are empty,
why headline the
non-story, Zim investment falls? Which investment? What has
fallen? Can
anything which is not there fall, given what the story itself
admits to?”
quipped Manheru.
“Intended or unintended, this non-story
entrenches a certain perception on
Zimbabwe in the reader, namely a country
which is inhospitable to
investments. Much worse it attributes that
inhospitality to one factor:
Indigenisation.”
Manheru questioned why
ZIA continued to give out what he termed “useless
statistics”.
“And
when ZIA approvals don’t see the light of day, who answers for that?
Kasukuwere? Does this imply ZIA approves outside of the country’s laws? To
achieve what? A high failure rate? These are key questions which the
Business Herald must raise, must probe.”
ZIA Chief Executive, Richard
Mubaiwa last week denied that he was summoned
by Charamba over the
publication of investment figures.
“Those are just statistics that we
gave them; the article they [Business
Herald] ran was their opinion. It’s
all just speculation,” said Mubaiwa.
“Right now I’m on leave and the
officials at the [ZIA] offices would have
told me if there was any issue. He
[Charamba] never spoke to me about that.”
Foreign investors have in the
past few years been reluctant to invest in the
country because of the law of
indigenisation which compels foreign-owned
companies to cede 51% of their
shareholding to locals.
‘I did not write column as Manheru’
George
Charamba, who denied penning the Manheru column, yesterday said the
article
in question sought to question the authenticity of the statistics
released
by the investment authority.
“That’s simply what I read in the column,
who said I am Manheru?” said
Charamba. “Maybe you have a very fertile
imagination or you are being
terribly misled [that I wrote that article as
Manheru].”
He denied that he had summoned any ZIA officials stating that
the authority
did not fall under his purview.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
January 20, 2013 in Local
A construction project
by a Chinese company near the National Sports Stadium
in Harare has joined
the league of government buildings which are guarded by
military personnel
amid claims that it belongs to the army.
REPORT BY JENNIFER
DUBE
The Standard news crew recently got in trouble with soldiers
guarding the
site after being spotted taking pictures of the building
complex, which is
said to be a shopping mall.
Clad in full military
combat, one of the soldiers charged towards the
journalists demanding to
know why they were taking pictures of the place
without
permission.
He tried to seize the camera that was being used in taking
the pictures but
ended up settling for a handbag belonging to one of the
reporters after
failing to grab the camera. The soldier took the handbag to
an official who
was not in uniform, who seemed to be his boss.
To get
the handbag back, the journalists were advised to get inside the site
and
talk to the Chinese officials, something they rejected fearing for their
safety.
“If you do not know, you will never win a case against the
Chinese,” the
uniformed officer said. “You may not be aware that this
project belongs to
the army. I am not here on personal business but under
instruction.”
The official in civilian clothes threatened to call his
“boss” so that they
could deal with the reporters.
However, the
journalists were given back the handbag and allowed to go after
being forced
to delete all the pictures they had taken.
Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA)
spokesperson Alphios Makotore yesterday
demanded that questions be delivered
to his office on hard copy.
He said he would only be able to attend to
them tomorrow.
Anjin board member, Munyaradzi Machacha on Friday said
the company recently
beefed up security at the construction site after
losing a lot of building
material to thieves.
“Every property owner
wants privacy, that is why we do not allow people to
take pictures,”
Machacha said. “Because it is still under construction, the
place is not yet
open to the public and thus we do not expect anyone to be
taking
pictures.
He added: “If one is a bona fide journalist, all they need to
do is come to
us and our public relations personnel will facilitate their
access to the
place. We have materials worth millions of dollars at that
place therefore
we tightened security to avoid further
thefts.”
Machacha said the project was jointly owned by a Chinese mining
company,
Anjin and China’s Anhui Foreign Economic Construction Company
(AFECC).
“It is not true that it belongs to the army,” Machacha said. “It
is an
Anjin-AFECC investment, AFECC being the company which built the
defence
college and a partner of the Zimbabwean government.”
Machacha
said the building would soon be open to the public, starting with a
shopping
mall and offices. He said a hotel would follow later.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
January 20, 2013 in Local
It had been over
two decades since I last took a bath with rain water
harvested from asbestos
sheets.
BY CAIPHAS CHIMHETE
I had to do it a few days
ago.
We had gone for several weeks, if not nearly a full calendar month,
without
getting a single drop of the usually smelly council water from our
taps.
Even neighbouring suburbs, where I usually scrounge for the
precious liquid,
were in the same predicament, if not worse. While I was
harvesting water
from the roof of my house, I realised that I was not alone
as several others
in the neighbourhood were doing the same.
It
reminded me of my childhood, growing up in the rural areas, when we would
venture into torrential rain, stark naked, and run in circles around the
house.
Then I enjoyed it.
What the Muchadeyi Masunda-led
Harare City Council has managed to do is to
turn back the hands of time.
Like in rural areas, it is now common to see
women and children in Harare,
carrying all sorts of containers, moving from
one well or borehole to the
next, looking for water.
This is how the City Fathers in the “Sunshine
City” have turned Harare
residents into “water scavenging
villagers”.
Despite this noticeable crisis, it is surprising that the
council, which
dreams of turning Harare into a world class city by 2025, has
not been
making visible efforts to address this problem.
What is more
worrying is the council’s insistence that tap water is clean
for us despite
scientific evidence to the contrary.
Numerous tests, some by scientists
from the University of Zimbabwe, have
shown that the water that council is
pumping into our homes falls below the
World Health Organisation
standards.
This is why Masunda and company at Town House probably never
drink water
from the tap, but they still have the audacity to misinform us
that it is
fit for drinking purposes.
Notwithstanding dollarisation
in 2009, which saw many sectors of the economy
improving, our council has
dismally failed to collect refuse on a regular
basis, exposing residents to
diseases.
But still we pay our rates.
Over 4 000 people have died
in Harare since 2008 following the outbreak of
waterborne diseases such as
cholera, typhoid and dysentery.
I lay the blame squarely on Masunda and
company because they have failed to
collect refuse and deliver clean water
to ratepayers, who continue to drink
from condemned
boreholes.
Surely, they must feel guilty if they have human
hearts.
Informal settlements have been allowed to mushroom.
The
bad situation of our roads has spiralled into a disaster. Driving around
the
town’s suburban areas is now a nightmare because of the potholes, some
deep
enough to submerge the whole wheel, especially for vehicles with low
clearance.
Last week, I had to be pushed out of a “crater” that has
been allowed to
widen in the middle of the road at some traffic lights in
Glen View 8.
Other vehicles nearly rammed into me as they tried to avoid
other potholes
nearby.
One of my rescuers joked that motorists must
now drive around with long
sticks so that they can measure the depth of
submerged potholes on our roads
before they attempt to manoeuvre their
way.
The situation is almost the same in all suburbs — talk of Warren Park,
Malbereign, Waterfalls, Hatfield and Kambuzuma — just to mention a
few.
I was shocked to also see deep potholes along the Harare-Bulawayo
Highway.
The next morning, the potholes had been filled with what looked
like sand
and a few pebbles which, by mid-day had been swept away by
rains.
Does this mean the council cannot afford to buy tar and bitumen to
patch the
potholes or resurface the roads?
How did former Harare
Mayor Elias Mudzuri manage to keep the city clean,
with fewer potholes and
pumping clean water during a time the economy was
most depressed?
Is
it not wise for the learned Mayor to get a few tips from him?
City
suffers neglect
Grass continues to grow along road sides, obstructing
motorists and causing
accidents, especially at intersections.
I have
noticed that almost three quarters of traffic lights in Harare are
not
working properly and it appears there is no effort by council to address
the
problem.
The solar-power traffic project, once touted as the panacea to
the problem,
has flattered to deceive.
It is now a nightmare to drive
in Harare’s central business district (CBD),
especially during peak hours
because of congestion worsened by the absence
of functional traffic
lights.
I can’t talk of street lights anymore — they are
history.
People I spoke to believe poor service delivery in the council
emanates from
the strained relations between the Mayor and the councillors.
They said
Masunda, a lawyer by profession, is opinionated and does not
listen or
respect the councillors.
He considers them uneducated and
unable to comprehend complex local
government issues but these are the same
people who worked with other
mayors.
Is it not a case of a poor
workman who blames his tools?
I think Masunda has survived this long because
politically, he is more of a
“middle of the road person”, meaning no one
from Zanu PF and the MDC
formations is ready to critically assess his
performance.
Had he been an outright MDC, MDC-T or Zanu PF member, he
would have been
asked or ordered to resign a long time ago.
Surely,
his likeable character and neutrality has served him well.
I also think that
Masunda’s failure to address challenges faced by
ratepayers also steams from
the fact that he has too much in his plate. He
chairs several companies’
boards including Zimplats, Old Mutual, Lafarge and
one or two regional local
government associations.
Surely, with such a load, the Mayor might not
find time to deal with issues
that affect the ordinary person in Mbare or
Highfield. This is where people
are dying of typhoid, cholera and drinking
water of questionable quality.
When some angry residents picketed at Town
House last year demanding that
Masunda must resign, I thought they were just
mad.
One of them carried a banner which read: “Masunda go, you have
failed; We
are tired of drinking sewage; corruption is rife and refuse is
not being
collected.”
Certainly, it is time the Mayor concentrates on
what he knows best —law.
As certain as the sun will rise tomorrow, I will
get criticism from his
legion of supporters.
But I don’t give a damn,
for I have said it as it is.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
January 20, 2013 in Local
A
few vehicles are haphazardly parked at the huge car park in front of the
Joshua Nkomo International Airport in Bulawayo.
BY MUSA
DUBE
The parking lot can accommodate hundreds of vehicles but these days
the
airport looks deserted.
Only less than 10 cars are in the car
park.
Faint sounds of birds can be heard, obviously enjoying the peace
and
tranquility that now engulfs the area.
One or two groundsmen are
seen lazily walking around the spacious yard and
from the look of things,
they seem not in any hurry in whatever they are
doing.
The silence
that characterises the area signals that something has
definitely gone wrong
with the airport.
The airport is currently being upgraded to
international standards.
According to the Civil Aviation Authorities of
Zimbabwe (Caaz), the
upgrading is now 98% complete and the official opening
is set for year-end.
During a recent tour, airport manager Passmore Dewa
said US$25 million had
so far been pumped into the upgrading of the
facility.
The airport, which is now four times bigger than the old one,
boasts of
having all the facilities that any airport anywhere in the world
can have.
It has hi-tech facilities such as CCTV, access control, a fire
alarm system
and state-of-the-art telephone system that meets international
standards.
In addition to a business lounge, the airport houses offices,
shops, bars,
banks and the Joshua Nkomo gallery.
Regrettably,
however, the state-of-the-art airport is operating at less than
30%
capacity.
Analysts said there was an urgent need to map out strategies to
save the
huge investment from going to waste.
Economist Eric Bloch
said the airport used to be a hive of activity with
people travelling to
various destinations in and outside the country.
“The airport was a
business airport and company managers would fly from
Harare in the morning
and work in Bulawayo before catching the evening plane
back to Harare,” said
Bloch.
However, the closure of several businesses and industries in
Bulawayo over
the past few years has hit hard the operations of the airport.
The number of
tourists visiting the country has “nosedived” in the past few
years,
negatively affecting business.
Dewa bemoaned the low number of
flights landing at the airport. He called on
the City of Bulawayo to help
market the airport for the benefit of the local
authority and the country as
a whole.
He said the amount of business did not justify the employment of
hundreds of
workers at the airport.
“We are just receiving one flight
a day, that is the South African Airways’
Bulawayo-to-Johannesburg daily
flight. Air Zimbabwe also intends to increase
its flight to four times a
week,” said Dewa. “That traffic we are receiving
is not good because we have
about 500 workers here and we don’t want to
retrench them.”
Paul
Sibanda, another economic commentator, said if nothing was done to
increase
the airport operational capacity, the infrastructure would become a
white
elephant.
“There is need to increase the number of planes landing at the
airport by
attracting low-cost planes that can be used even by low-income
earners,” he
said.
The upgrading of the airport, named after the late
Vice-President Joshua
Mqabuko Nkomo, has been going on for almost a
decade.
The airport was initially scheduled to be completed in December
2004 but has
been dogged by a numerous problems, including funding.
It
now has the capacity to receive about 1,2 million passengers annually, up
from the previous 350 000.
“But I am hopeful that when the United
Nations World Tourism Organisation
general assembly begins next year,
business at the airport will pick up,”
said Sibanda. “The arrival of
Emirates, KLM and LAM into the market is also
going to positively impact
business at the airport.”
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
January 20, 2013 in Community News
CHINESE
mining operations in Guruve have been put under constant monitoring
by the
Environmental Management Agency, to ensure they abide by the country’s
laws
to avoid environmental degradation.
BY TAWANDA MARWIZI
This comes
after several complaints from across the country that Chinese
companies were
disregarding local environmental laws, causing serious land
degradation, as
well as ill-treating their employees.
Speaking after touring Chinese
mines in Mashonaland Central recently, EMA’s
provincial manager, Robert
Rwafa said the agency was closely monitoring the
mines so that they do not
destroy the environment.
“We are working closely on these mines so that
the guys there do not damage
the environment, especially when they are
leaving the place,” he said.
Kehri Investment, one of the Chinese
companies mining chrome in Guruve, has
been accused of leaving huge pits in
the area and thereafter relocating to
Zvishavane.
Kehri officials
could not be reached for comment last week.
But Rwafa said: “They said they
are going to come back. We have to inspect
these open pits which are not
healthy for animals and people. that is why we
are pushing them to fill up
their pits.”
He said the agency had been receiving reports from villagers
that their
livestock were falling into the huge open pits.
The
Tengenenge community in Guruve recently told Standardcommunity that
Chinese
firms were contaminating local water sources, making it unfit for
domestic
use and watering their livestock.
“That is the other reason why we are
having conflicts with them,” said one
villager, Ngoni Mundongi. “We have
instructed them to drill boreholes for us
but they have not done so.”
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
January 20, 2013 in Community
News
MASVINGO — Villagers from Nyajena communal lands in Masvingo South
province
now fear for their lives after Renco Mine allegedly discharged
“poisonous”
effluent into nearby rivers.
BY TATENDA
CHITAGU
The villagers also claimed that their domestic animals were dying
because
the mine was discharging the effluent into Nyajena River and other
streams
that feed into it.
The villagers also use water from the
river and streams for domestic
purposes.
Last week, the villagers who
joined a strike by Renco Mine workers’ wives
which started on Monday, said
the mine was not being friendly to the
environment.
Their
spokesperson, Shingirirai Zvavamwe said many villagers had lost
livestock
under unclear circumstances. He said the villagers suspected that
the deaths
were caused by the effluent the mine was discharging into water
sources.
“Many villagers have lost livestock and we feel it is
cyanide which the mine
uses in the extraction of gold. We need an
explanation from the mine
management,” said Zvavamwe.
Renco Mine
manager, Suprine Kachisa could neither deny nor confirm the
allegations,
saying he could not talk to the press due to company protocol.
The mine’s
managing director, Ashton Ndlovu said he wanted questions in
writing, but
had not responded by the time of going to print.
The villagers also accused
the mine of reneging on its promise to develop
the community under its
social responsibility programme.
About 800 wives of the mine workers
demonstrated last week, charging that
their husbands were paid a paltry
US$180 a month on average yet the mine was
making a lot of money from their
sweat.
Renco Mine, which started gold mining operations in 1983 in
Masvingo, is a
subsidiary of Rio Tinto Zimbabwe.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
January 20, 2013 in Community
News
MURAMBINDA — Poverty has driven scores of young girls here, some
barely in
their teens, to prostitution to raise money for food for their
families and
for their school fees.
BY CLAYTON MASEKESA
Some
of them are pushed into selling their bodies by desperate guardians or
parents who have no other source of livelihood.
Murambinda is in
Buhera, a dry district which falls under geological region
five, where crops
such as maize rarely grow to maturity.
The girls are being taken
advantage of, mostly by illegal diamond dealers,
truck and bus drivers, as
well as government and NGO workers who can afford
a few dollars to spare
from their salaries and other “dealings”.
It has become common to see
heavy trucks parked at the business centre,
waiting in the
darkness.
Once it gets dark, the drivers invite young girls into their
trucks for sex
while others are driven away to secluded
places.
Alcohol and marijuana have become the girls’ daily
diet.
Once they are high on drugs, they start soliciting for clients,
wildly
gyrating to loud music, daring to mix and mingle with clients from
all walks
of life.
Residents now fear that childhood prostitution,
apart from destroying the
future of the children and the general moral
fabric, will further fuel the
HIV and Aids prevalence rate in the
area.
One resident of the area, Kenneth Masomere blamed the increased
prostitution
on parents and guardians who failed to instil discipline in
their children.
“Most parents in this area are failing to stamp their
authority over their
children who have taken the centre-stage in
prostitution,” he said.
Masomere added: “It is poverty that has forced
them to sell their bodies.
They want to make money easily, yet they are at
risk.”
An investigation by Standardcommunity recently established that in
some
cases, the children were forced into prostitution because of
poverty.
Some families near the business centre survive on food hand-outs
from
charitable organisations.
One of the young prostitutes, who
identified herself only as Netsai, said
she was a student at a local
secondary school.
“The money that men pay me for sex allows me to pay my
school fees and that
of my little sister,” she said.
Another teenage
hooker, Sandra, who comes from Chapanduka village in the
same district, said
she turned to prostitution after failing to get
employment at the business
centre.
Her mother, a fish vendor, had sent her to seek employment as a
domestic
worker as there are many officials who work in government offices
and for
NGOs operating at the centre.
Sandra said she had, on many
occasions, fallen victim to physical and sexual
assault by her clients that
would be unwilling to pay.
She said some forced her to have unprotected
sex.
“It is not uncommon for some of our clients to force us to have
unprotected
sex or even to assault us,” she said.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
January 20, 2013 in Business
NYANGA —
Foreign-owned banks operating in the country should cede 51%
shareholding to
locals before elections this year, Youth Development,
Indigenisation and
Empowerment minister Saviour Kasukuwere has said.
BY CLAYTON
MASEKESA
Addressing members of the Youth Empowerment Trust in Nyanga last
week,
Kasukuwere said he was targeting the banks namely Barclays, Stanbic
and
Standard Chartered which are still to comply with the indigenisation
law.
“These three banks are on top of the list among others. All foreign
banks
must comply with the indigenisation law,” he said.
“Zimbabweans
should be their own investors. Zimbabweans should invest in
their economy.
The banking industry is the key to the economy and this move
will go a long
way in empowering our people.”
The minister did not indicate when the
elections would be held. President
Robert Mugabe has said elections will be
held in March this year but the
MDCs have vowed that the polls would only he
conducted after the
implementation of reforms to level the electoral playing
field that
currently favours Zanu PF.
Analysts have however,
dismissed the March poll date saying it was too near
because the country
still had to complete the constitution-making process,
hold a referendum and
then synchronise different laws of the new charter.
Kasukuwere said
Zimbabweans should not be treated as aliens in their
country.
“This
is our country and we should benefit from all that is in it. These
banks
should comply or ship out. We are not going back on indigenisation,”
Kasukuwere added.
Kasukuwere’s ultimatum comes a week after he warned
foreign banks to adhere
to the law meant to address historical imbalances or
face stern measures.
Addressing guests at the signing ceremony for the
terms agreement between
Zimplats and government recently, Kasukuwere warned
that the government
would rein in banks that defied the indigenisation
legislation.
“I would like to encourage other companies, particularly in
the banking
sector, to comply with our laws as non-compliance will no longer
be
tolerated,” said Kasukuwere.
“Uncalled-for defiance and arrogance
will not be tolerated as all companies
must respect the law and desist from
provoking the State,” he said.
Kasukuwere’s latest ultimatum to banks is
likely to be met with resistance
from Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe governor
Gideon Gono and Finance minister
Tendai Biti, who have in the past called
for caution when dealing with the
delicate banking sector.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
January 20, 2013 in Business
ZIMBABWE will soon be
allowed to sell its goods to the European Union (EU)
without paying tariffs
and quotas, the clearest indication yet that the
relationship between the EU
and the southern African nation is thawing.
BY NQABA MATSHAZI
The
EU parliament on Thursday granted its consent to the Interim Economic
Partnership Agreement, which also includes Madagascar, Mauritius and
Seychelles.
The economic partnership agreement (EPAs) would allow the
four countries —
Zimbabwe, Madagascar, Mauritius and the Seychelles — to
sell coffee, sugar
cane and tobacco in the EU without tariffs and
quotas.
The deal received token resistance with 97 Members of the EU
Parliament
(MEPs) voting against it, while 494 approved.
There were 33
abstentions.
But questions have been raised on Zimbabwe’s human rights
records, with
others saying the country should not be included in the
agreement.
“As to Zimbabwe’s human rights record, I agree that the final
EPA must
include a binding rule on human rights, but at this interim stage
we are
focusing on economic matter,” EU rapporteur, Daniel Caspary
said.
The interim agreement, Caspary said, should improve conditions and
foster
regional growth in the long run.
Members of the EU Parliament
reportedly expressed their concern over human
rights violations in Zimbabwe,
warning that this could affect the economic
agreement’s future.
They
called on the EU delegation in Harare to help Zimbabwe improve its
human
rights records.
Zimbabwe’s checkered human rights record has been a
concern for the EU,
culminating in the bloc slapping sanctions on President
Robert Mugabe and
his inner circle.
Zanu PF maintains the sanctions
have been economically debilitating and
should be removed.
The
inclusive government set up a re-engagement committee to engage the EU,
but
this has so far come to naught.
EPAs are set out to stimulate growth in
African Caribbean and Pacific group
of countries and help them integrate
into the world economy.
This EPA is the first agreement to be
implemented, as the four countries
were the first to complete all the
necessary reforms.
Now the countries and all EU members should ratify the
agreement.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
January 20, 2013 in
Opinion
Has there ever been an economic tragedy simultaneously so
profound and so
disregarded as Zimbabwe?
Sunday View
The
situation is so much more tragic because it has raised so little
attention
in the capitals of the world.
Zimbabwe’s financial collapse resulted in
an inflation rate so extreme it
was treated more with wry amusement around
the world than with the concern
rightfully due to its citizens.
How
many countries in the world have gone so far backwards so fast? The
Zimbabwean middle class has long deserted the country, its most promising
citizens have left, its hospitals have few medicines, and a once glorious
education system lies in ruins.
A promising country with an
industrial base once second only to SA in
southern Africa staggers on, with
its citizenry at the mercy of its greedy,
self-righteous and conniving
political class. The deeper it sinks, the more
conniving and the more toxic
that political class becomes.
The era of hyperinflation is now
over—thanks to what Zimbabwean politicians
laughingly call their “decision”
to abandon the Zimbabwean dollar. There was
never really a decision; the
currency had ceased to function.
Now Zimbabwe is technically growing
again, but everybody knows it is growing
from minuscule to slightly larger
than minuscule, and that is not much of an
achievement.
Having gone
through what the country has gone through, you might think the
consequences
of economic catastrophe would have chastened the political
class, and made
it more cautious about embarking, yet again, on any dubious
economic
adventures. Yet, seemingly undeterred, the government has now
embarked on a
process of “indigenisation” — a polite word for an asset grab
by the
elite.
Under the cloak of localising ownership, Zimbabwe is picking off
what
remains of the carcass of business entities, forcing them to sell half
of
their equity to politically—connected locals. That includes a shady fund
managed by military figures.
This process is akin to SA’s process of
black economic empowerment (BEE).
Yet, for all its flaws, the foundation on
which BEE is premised is an
earnest attempt to rectify inequality caused by
apartheid. Indigenisation,
on the other hand, has no such grand moral aims.
It is simply an act of
national economic chauvinism.
That may play
popularly among the political class; indeed, that is its
intention. But the
economic consequences are horrendous. Essentially, it
means that to invest
in Zimbabwe, the return on capital has to be double
that achieved elsewhere,
as the equity is halved.
That may be possible in tiny, marginal areas of
the economy, but generally
it is an obvious mistake.
The
indigenisation programme places existing investors in Zimbabwe in a
tight
spot. There is little international companies can do except try to
explain
the basic economic rules to Zimbabwe’s political elite. But, as they
are not
listening, the choices are stark.
Last week, Impala Platinum struck the
deal necessary to abide by the
legislation, as its only choice is to comply
or withdraw. As the ore is
available in minable quantities only in Zimbabwe
and SA, its hand is forced.
In fact, as the company is one of the few
large-scale employers left in
Zimbabwe, its bargaining position with labour
is close to despotic. So what
it loses in the equity grab by the politicians
it can counterbalance in
lower production costs — one of the unpleasant
ironies of this situation.
Now Empowerment minister Saviour Kasukuwere
says his next target is the
banking sector.
No doubt the banks will
comply. Yet the fact remains that, Zimbabwe has
taken another step towards
economic perdition. It does so with the world,
not to mention its southern
neighbour, determinedly looking the other way.
Ultimately, that is the real
tragedy.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
January 20, 2013 in Opinion
With this
almost permanently grey skied, very wet new year, and water never
far from
mind, it’s time to take up the gauntlet and face familiar
challenges, the
first, being the continuing wetland crisis.
Column by Rosie
Mitchell
I was rather taken with a recent headline in another Sunday
paper, Wetlands
swallow up Chitungwiza houses, sent on to me with the email
subject line
“The wetlands fight back” — an equally appropriate
header.
While not dismissing the plight of the residents concerned
without
compassion, it has to be said that this occurrence was perhaps
timely,
drawing attention as it does both to the unsuitability of our
precious,
life-giving vleis, which free of charge store and filter our
drinking water,
for building, and to the fact that the relevant stands were
“irregularly
acquired”.
Structures collapsed, houses may very well
soon follow suit. Several toilets
collapsed too — again, highlighting the
foolhardiness of construction in the
wetlands, for this is an all too common
occurrence and is one of the ways
our ground water is becoming contaminated
with sewage.
Thankfully, due to much higher media attention last year,
the fate of our
city wetlands is now becoming an issue of greater concern
for far more
residents and relevant organisations. on Tuesday I’ll be
attending an
all-day event on the wetlands crisis and issues around it, run
by the
Humanitarian Information Facilitation Centre, which also organised a
media
tour of wetlands under onslaught late last year.
So, this good
fight continues in earnest in 2013. Please join it, making
your objections
to illegal agriculture, dumping and construction in your
nearest vlei felt
by Environmental Management Agency and the council, in
writing and in
person!
Another familiar challenge that resumes is the Two Oceans Half
Marathon and
22km Trail Run in Cape Town at Easter.
An unexpectedly
high number of runners turned out for the Harare Athletics
Club’s first
event of the season, a 15,5km run with 8 and 10km add-ons
through the hills
of Helensvale, with two explanations. first; post-festive
season resolutions
to take control of one’s health, lose weight and get
fitter, and second; the
countdown to Two Oceans — an annual event of over
four decades comprising a
56km ultra marathon, more recently, the Half and
most recently, the Trail
Runs.
HAC itself also has a very long history, founded as it was back in
1949 and
with the phenomenal growth in running globally as a recreational
pursuit of
great benefit to health and happiness, membership is on the rise.
We have
finally got around to joining, too! Ten thousand places in the Two
Oceans
Half Marathon for those who’d run it before, opened back in November,
and
sold out in just four and a half days.
The remaining 6 000
entries opened to novices on Tuesday and sold out in a
phenomenal two and
three-quarter hours! It seems this premiere race in the
“Mother City”, which
draws runners from all over the world, may be heading
towards going the
route of the London Marathon, where entry is by ballot and
unless you are
lucky enough to get drawn, you must join a registered charity
team and raise
a significant amount of money to be able to run.
Follow Two Oceans on
website
Squeezing in the necessary training has become particularly
challenging in
these weather conditions and we are resorting to many sodden
runs in the
rain to keep it going!
Sponsor, Old Mutual, has a website
called Do Great Things, where you can
access detailed training programmes
tailored to each Two Oceans race and
your goal time, and friendly virtual
coach, the ultra-runner Norrie
Williamson, who, we have discovered, replies
on the forum to requests for
advice at lightning speed, and who is likely to
be in Zimbabwe next month.
This facility is well worth drawing on, so follow
the link on the Two Oceans
website and sign up.
It’s a good time of
the year for snake spotting.
Out training in the rain, I was delighted to
add a new, rarely seen species
to my list; the Common Purple Glossed Snake,
a very shiny, unaggressive
burrowing snake, which though venomous, is not
considered dangerous.
In appearance, it is quite easy to mistake the much
more aggressive, also
venomous Stiletto Snake (or Burrowing Asp) for this
one — though I quickly
drew the conclusion it was not one of these, from its
length (it can grow
much longer, and this was just over a metre) and its
passive behaviour!
Having once met a more diminutive Stiletto Snake in
the vlei, and been
entirely startled by its aggression, behaving not at all
as I expect and
experience from snakes, by swift withdrawal, but rather, by
aggressively
moving towards me, its identification is well-etched in my
mind!
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
January 20, 2013 in Environment, Opinion
It
would seem efforts by the government and other stakeholders to make
available inputs in a desperate bid to boost the agricultural sector in the
country have all but gone to waste.
Column by Chipo
Masara
With the exception of the tobacco industry which has been on an
upward
trend, there has been very little productivity, leaving millions of
people
in Zimbabwe in dire need of food assistance.
What boggles many
is how in just over a decade, Zimbabwe has gone from being
a major food
exporter to being a country dependent on hand-outs to alleviate
its
people’s hunger.
It is continually becoming clear that simply providing
agricultural inputs
will not be enough to ensure food security in the
country. What is clearly
required to revive agriculture, which is clearly
the panacea to acquiring a
food security status, is a proper turn-around
strategy.
Many factors have played a part in seeing the agricultural
sector crumble,
some factors being natural and beyond the farmers’ control,
while some, the
farmers have brought on themselves.
It is now
undeniable that the climate has indeed been changing, which has
given much
credence to the climate change and global warming phenomenon. In
what many
scientists believe to be the culmination of the phenomenon, there
has been a
major shift in the country’s rainfall patterns, something that
has left many
farmers unsure as to when exactly to start planting.
When the rains
finally come, they are often followed by long dry periods
characterised by
intense heat, which has in most instances ravaged the
crops, making
replanting a necessity. And then there are times, as is
presently happening
in most areas, when the rainfall is too abundant and
damages the crops in
the end.
The Herald of Wednesday 16 January had a story entitled “Wet
spell triggers
widespread leaching” which talked about how “low-lying areas
are now so
waterlogged that crops such as maize and cotton are suffering
from stunted
growth.”
Ecological balance has been upset
The
wanton cutting down of trees by some so-called farmers has upset the
ecological balance that once existed, destroying wildlife habitat and
leaving the country facing serious deforestation. So, in a nutshell, years
of inappropriate agricultural practices have had an adverse impact on
agriculture.
It has resulted in land degradation and decline in soil
fertility, pollution
of water and air, and loss of wildlife, among other
woes.
Many conservationists believe it is time more efforts were put, not
so much
in gathering inputs (as these would still come to waste if present
conditions still prevail), but in helping farmers adapt to new farming
practices that have been proven to work, even under the country’s current
climatic conditions.
Time to adopt sustainable farming methods in
Zim
Besides natural disasters that have rendered farming a mammoth task,
most
farmers have not made matters any easier on themselves. Most of them,
mainly
owing to clear ignorance, have not been practising good farming
methods.
They have for some time employed tactics that they believed
minimised
operating costs, like slash and burn, which have degraded the
soil, making
it infertile and as a result yielding very little. The
overdependence on
pesticides and other chemicals has only served to tire the
soils even
further.
The adoption of conservation farming by every
farmer is long overdue.
Conservation farming has been described as “any
system or practice which
aims to conserve soil and water by using surface
cover (mulch) to minimise
run-off and erosion and improve the conditions for
plant establishment and
growth”.
Conservation farming is a system
that is designed to use the mulch cover to
reduce soil erosion and land
degradation, reduce soil temperatures and
conserve moisture for plant
growth, increase organic matter levels and
improve soil structure and
fertility.
This is meant to achieve viable and sustainable
productivity.
It also includes components and practices such as zero
tillage,
agro-forestry, alley cropping, integrated pest management, organic
farming,
crop and pasture rotation and contour farming, among many
others.
For those with a profound interest in farming and would want to
know more
about conservation farming, there will be a follow-up article next
week that
simplifies the different components of this type of farming,
describing in
detail what it involves.
Zimbabwe has the potential to
not only revive the agricultural sector and
ensure food security for its
entire people, but to once again become the
bread basket of southern Africa,
and beyond.
What is required is for farmers to realise that it is no
longer
business-as-usual and that with a change in strategy, they can make
the
present conditions work for them.
It is time to adopt sustainable
farming practices.
For feedback email, cmasara@standard.co.zw
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
January 20, 2013 in Editorial
The state of
Zimbabwe’s roads should be declared a national emergency!
The Standard
Editorial
The country has just emerged out of the bloodiest festive
season ever with
the death toll peaking at more than 200. A good number of
the road accidents
can be attributed to the state of the roads.
For
such a small country, it is a great tragedy that so many people perish
in a
four-week period. Besides snatching away members of families who could
have
been sole breadwinners, the cost to the country’s economy is also
immense;
some of the dead were very likely highly-skilled individuals whose
contribution to nation building was sizeable. Although the statistical focus
was on the happy season, it is obvious the death toll during the rest of the
year isn’t any different.
Without looking solely at the emotional
side of road accidents, it is also
very important to consider other negative
impacts of a poor road network.
The potholed roads have impacted very badly
on motorists as damage to
vehicles is now a constant menace.
Bad
roads speed up vehicle wear and tear; often whole wheels, let alone
suspension systems, have to be replaced in short periods of time. The effect
on families as scarce money is used for vehicle repair instead of family
upkeep is difficult to quantify but is obviously huge.
Following the
collapse of our railway system, industry thrives on road
transport which has
become not only costly but also unreliable due to the
state of the
roads.
Zimbabwe is also at the epicentre of the region’s transport
system. This
means the whole region looks up to Zimbabwe for the flawless
transportation
of goods. It would be a tragedy if transporters shun Zimbabwe
and find
alternative routes.
The tourism sector was about to trough
out of its worst days and Zimbabwe’s
hosting of the UNWTO conference in
August was the icing on the cake. But the
state of the roads just might be
the Achilles’ heel that will thwart the
country’s efforts to lure back
tourists.
Government should therefore redouble its efforts to correct this
national
disgrace — the money is there.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
January 20, 2013 in
Editorial
Zimbabwe is the co-host of the United Nations World Tourism
(UNWTO)
conference scheduled for August 2013.
Sunday Opinion with
Tafara Shumba
This global event will be hosted on the African soil for
the second time
since its inception. The first time it was held in Africa
was in 2007 in
Senegal. Zimbabwe’s chance of hosting the same event again
will be probably
after 300 years.
This alone is sufficient to show
how much Zimbabwe has been honoured. It is,
however, unfortunate that our
media seem to be unaware of the importance of
an event of such a
magnitude.
The local media have been writing acres of negative aspects on
the
preparations of the event. The reportage borders on discrediting the
capacity of the country in hosting this event. The crusade was dramatically
upped in the run up to the assessment visit by the UNWTO inspection
team.
It would help a lot if the local media could pluck a leaf from the
manner
that the UK media covered the Olympics in their country. The classic
coverage epitomises the highest degree of responsible and patriotic
journalism. The UK media showered the Olympics with positive coverage,
starting with the preparations up to the closing ceremony.
The
British media invested heavily in their coverage of the Olympics. The
BBC,
for instance, ensured that 52 million people, which is 90% of the UK
population, watched the Olympics. In addition, the Corporation dedicated 26
channels to the Olympics. As a result, BBC won a gold medal for its
coverage.
The BBC’s Director General was at one time forced to make
public
clarifications after it was alleged that he was unhappy at the
emphasis that
the corporation was putting on the Olympics to the exclusion
of all else. He
had to make these clarifications after a deafening outcry
from the citizens.
These are the citizens who understand the importance
of hosting
international events.
Most newspapers ran special
supplements and souvenir issues throughout the
fortnight. Headline writers
and sub-editors ran out of superlatives.
This paid dividends as their
sales and advertising revenue drastically
increased. The same can happen in
this country in August 2013.
The hosting of the UNWTO General Assembly
stands to benefit all and sundry,
the media included. The benefits are
political, economic and social.
The general assembly will provide
Zimbabwe with an opportunity to market
itself to the more than 4 000
delegates from 158 countries expected to
attend. The assembly must prove
that Zimbabwe is back on the map as a safe
place to visit.
The mega
event must be a time for the restoration of the national pride and
ego. Over
100 countries will be there to endorse the national pride. The
media should
assist, as Walter Muzembi said, in the shaping of brand
Zimbabwe by putting
greater accent on positives.
The assembly is set to boost the country’s
economy.
Tourism is one of the fastest growing industries in Zimbabwe. It
is the
second largest sector after mining, which contributes to the national
purse.
The general assembly will market the tourism potential in Zimbabwe
and this
will ensure an increase in the arrival of tourists.
Some
economists have projected that Victoria Falls will generate more money
during the assembly than it does in a year. Favourable publicity from the
media will ensure that more delegates will prefer staying in Victoria Falls
to Livingstone.
The media must, therefore, understand that it is not
the infrastructure per
se that will determine the success of this event. The
type of reportage
given to this event during this preparatory stage has a
big role to play in
the success or failure of this event.
The new
facilities which are being put in place in Victoria Falls will be
left
behind for life after the assembly.
These facilities, especially the 5
000-seat conference centre, will boost
Victoria Falls’ reputation as a
world-class conferencing destination. The
Victoria Falls folks can give
testimony to this as they immensely benefited
when CHOGM, which was hosted
in the same area in the late 1990s. The raw
water pumping system was
revamped and the ablution facilities were
constructed at the schools that
hosted the delegates.
There are also employment opportunities for the
locals who are providing
much of the labour in the construction and
refurbishment of facilities such
as hospitals, roads, hotels and the airport
among others. A lot more will be
absorbed in the tourism and hospitality
sector during the assembly.
Even farmers, vendors, the entertainment
industry, transporters, retailers
and many other sectors stand to accrue
benefits from this event. The media
themselves will realise an increase in
sales and advertising revenue.
The media should be the goodwill
ambassadors for Zimbabwe if maximum
benefits are to be reaped from this
event. Government should engage the
media and impress upon them the
importance of hosting this event.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
January 20, 2013 in Editorial
January has
been a month full of surprises. It is the month before President
Robert
Mugabe’s 89th birthday.
From the Editor’s Desk with Nevanji
Madanhire
From February 22, he will begin to wave goodbye to his
octogenarian years; a
year later he will become what is called a
nonagenarian. Only a handful ever
achieve that feat.
The death last
week, aged 79, of Vice-President John Nkomo must have been,
to him, a stark
reminder of that reality. Nkomo’s three predecessors all
fell
short.
On January 16 a headline in the official Herald hit the nation in
the face:
“We’ve put aside our differences”. Two days later headlines
proclaimed that
Mugabe and the other principals had approved the draft
constitution.
The nation must have heaved a sigh of relief. President
Mugabe told visiting
outgoing African Union chairman and Benin President
Boni Yayi Zimbabwe would
this year hold peaceful and friendly elections as
Zimbabweans have realised
that they have a common destiny despite their
differences.
“In my country, yes, we have also had divisions, political
divisions, but I
am glad that we all appreciate that whatever political
affiliations we
belong to, we are Zimbabweans.”
This is by any
measure a historic statement coming from Mugabe! For the
first time he is
looking ahead to “a common destiny”, an outlook he has not
accentuated in
the past, choosing instead to talk more about “our history”.
If it comes
from deep down his heart, the statement changes the playing
field
altogether. What have our difference been? They have mainly been
founded on
the thinking that this country belongs to those who actively
participated in
the liberation war; the whole liberation movement had been
reduced to a
single facet — participation in the liberation war, preferably
as a
fighter.
This thinking had rendered all political affiliations not
directly related
to the 1970s’ war, at best irrelevant, at worst
counter-revolutionary.
It had led to a chorus from the uniformed forces,
most of them former
liberation war fighters, that this country would not be
ruled by anyone who
didn’t participate in the war.
Such
pronouncements, particularly from the military, had become the single
biggest threat to our country’s endeavours towards a common democratic
destiny.
On the common destiny, Mugabe had this to say: “That is the
understanding.
That is how we have groomed ourselves into that kind of
understanding and I
think our elections are going to be very friendly
elections in the sense
that they will be a political fight but it will be a
fight in the knowledge
that we belong to each other.”
These words
must have left the country incredulous and wondering what the
old fox was up
to!
But when 48 hours later he, with his political rivals, approved the
draft
constitution, every Zimbabwean must have been given some
relief.
“We are glad to say that we have now come to the conclusion of
the exercise
[drafting the constitution] and all parties are agreed. Sure
there will be
some t’s to cross and i’s to dot but we are generally agreed
and the
finalisation of the draft has now been made.”
But describing
the road ahead as crossing the t’s and dotting the i’s is
obviously an
understatement. There are too many positions too deeply
entrenched in
Zimbabwean politics, particularly in Mugabe’s own party, to
underestimate
the potential for strife.
We have a ruling elite which has been in power
the whole duration of our
independence. For them, a future where electoral
democracy takes precedency
over the politics of patronage, poses a lot of
challenges and a younger
generation lurks on the touchline to take over. The
old guard don’t want the
status quo to be rocked.
Zanu PF’s “Young
Turks”, most of who are in the disciplined forces, wish to
take over not
only the party leadership but also the leadership of the
state. They know a
transparent democratic process stands in their way and
are prepared to fight
to achieve their ends. These will very likely be the
major purveyors of
electoral violence. They have seen political violence
work in the past and
are inclined to try it again.
Mugabe’s call for a common destiny will
therefore be his last great fight:
it begins in his own backyard; it begins
with security sector reform! As
indicated above, the security sector is the
single biggest obstacle to
democratic processes in Zimbabwe. In the past
decade or so this sector had,
for political expediency, been highly
politicised.
The line between Zanu PF as a ruling party and the state as
an apolitical
living form was blurred to such an extent the military and the
police saw
the party as being bigger than the state. Their service was to
the party
first and to the state second.
Army generals and police
commissioners began to see their natural path as
leading first to senior
party positions and later into politics or to the
leadership of state
enterprises, the parastatals.
The barracks had become the springboards to
parliament and to the corridors
of power.
But how does Mugabe change
that without upsetting the very people who have
kept him in power? His fix
is telling his closest allies, “Guys, let’s get
into elections which you’re
likely to lose.”
So, of all reforms demanded by the Global Political
Agreement, security
sector reforms will be the toughest, but without it, we
can’t have a common
destiny. All other reforms, though very important, are
ancillary to this.
The message that the Benin president carried from
Mugabe is very
interesting: “We need to strengthen democracy in our
countries. We need to
strengthen good governance. We need to strengthen the
peace and stability
and unity of our countries.”
Contrary to popular
belief, this message indicates that Mugabe has not been
blind to events
taking place in other parts of the African continent. He has
seen the Arab
Spring and how it led to the demise of some of his staunchest
allies.
He has seen the effects of war in many African countries, be
it in Sudan,
the DRC, the Central African Republic and now in Mali. In
Nigeria, Islamists
are waging their own holy war while civil war rages in
failed states such as
Somalia.
All these events point to the message
President Boni Yayi got from Harare:
We need to strengthen the peace and
stability and unity of our countries!
Such wisdom comes with age, even if
it takes 90 years!
