http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March 2009 23:51
THE war
of attrition between Finance minister Tendai Biti and Reserve
Bank governor
Gideon Gono intensified this week, raising fears it could
disrupt the smooth
operation of monetary and fiscal policies unless quickly
resolved.
Biti this week took the fight deep into Gono's
territory after he told
cabinet that the central bank boss ran a parallel
government structure at
the height of his power which gobbled 45% of Gross
Domestic Product (GDP).
Sources said Biti told cabinet on
Tuesday that Gono had been running a
"parallel government" using state
resources secured via printing of money.
He said this took 45% of GDP,
leaving government in a state of paralysis.
Biti seems to be on a
warpath against Gono. Government insiders fear
an ugly row which could
disrupt the transitional government.
Biti, who has compared Gono to
an Al-qaeda terrorist who deserves to
be put before a firing squad, last
week stoked fires when he accused his
rival for the first time in public of
engaging in "illegal and excessive
quasi-fiscal activities that have been
done outside the provision of the
Constitution of Zimbabwe".
This signalled that Biti wanted to squeeze Gono on the legal front,
observers noted, possibly using sections of the state apparatus to support
his move.
However, Gono has repeatedly said he engaged in
quasi-fiscal
activities in a bid to deal with "extraordinary circumstances"
which
demanded "extraordinary interventions".
Previously, he
even published a list of ministerial directives to show
he was acting under
orders from above.
Efforts to get comment from Gono were unsuccessful
Thursday.
Sources said President Robert Mugabe, who chaired cabinet
on Tuesday,
shook his head in an ambiguous manner without necessarily
showing whether he
agreed or disagreed with Biti.
The sources
said Mugabe later left the cabinet chair to Vice-President
Joseph Msika as
he went to another meeting.
"Biti is determined to continue pushing
for Gono's removal," a source
said. "He seems to have changed his strategy.
It appears his Plan A is to
get him out if he can and, failing that, his
Plan B is to sideline him.
"Removing him looks complicated, but
undermining and sidelining him
seems to be the main line of attack.
"Biti said Gono ran a parallel government structure using public funds
and
no one in cabinet challenged that."
Biti's remarks came as a major
surprise after the two held a private
meeting on Monday in a bid to reduce
tensions.
Sources told the Zimbabwe Independent that Biti and Gono
met on Monday
and agreed to work together.
Before that, their
relationship was so bad that Biti had not been
talking to Gono. Biti had
been refusing to return Gono's calls, sources
said.
They said
there was hope of improved relations after Monday's crucial
meeting but
things unexpectedly deteriorated afterwards.
Last week Biti described
Gono's quasi-fiscal activities as "illegal".
He said quasi-fiscal
activities had now ceased, blaming the measures
for fuelling hyperinflation.
Gono has insisted he was trying to save the
country from
sinking.
BY DUMISANI MULEYA
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March 2009
23:51
THE process of introducing a new constitution will roll into
motion
next week when a crucial parliamentary select committee is appointed
to
spearhead the exercise expected to lead to fresh elections after 18
months.
The move will mark a major step in the implementation of
the global
political agreement (GPA) which led to the current inclusive
government.
Civil society groups, particularly the National
Constitutional
Assembly (NCA), have warned they would oppose a
constitutional reform
process driven by self-interested political parties,
saying it wants a
"people-driven process".
Sources
within Zanu PF and the MDC said the parliamentary committee
would be
appointed next week and would have up to 50 members.
The committee,
whose structure would also include sub-committees,
would use the draft
constitution agreed by Zanu PF and MDC negotiators in
2007.
The
so-called Kariba draft would be the basis for consultations which
should
lead to an improved document.
After consultations, the draft would be
subjected to a national
referendum.
Sources said the committee
would start working next month for a period
of 18 months after which fresh
elections would be held.
President Robert Mugabe said last month
there would be elections after
the new constitution had been
agreed.
Mugabe's presidency is badly tainted by his claimed
electoral victory
in an election run-off in June last year secured through a
campaign of
violence.
Zimbabwe would soon be in an
electioneering mode again if the
constitutional process succeeds and parties
agree to go to elections.
"A parliamentary select committee will
almost certainly be appointed
next week to begin the constitutional reform
process. It will have between
35 and 50 members," a leading negotiator with
one of the parties said.
"The select committee will start work on
April 14 and for the
following 18 months will be seized with gathering
people's views on the
relevant draft and how it can be
improved."
According to Article 6 of the global political
agreement, a select
committee will be
composed of MPs and
representatives of civil society, but the
committee will have a final say in
the crafting of the draft.
The agreement states that the select
committee should be in place two
months after the formation of the inclusive
government and should convene an
"all-stakeholders" conference within three
months after its appointment.
The public consultation process, the
pact reads, should be completed
no later than four months after the
stakeholders' conference.
"The draft constitution shall be tabled
within three months of
completion of the public consultation process to a
second all-stakeholders
conference," reads the GPA.
"The draft
constitution and the accompanying report shall be tabled
before parliament
within one month of the second all-stakeholders
conference."
The draft and the accompanying report would then be debated and if
necessary
amended in parliament within one month, before it is gazetted and
a
referendum conducted within three months.
In the event that the
draft is approved in the referendum, it shall be
gazetted within a month of
the date of the plebiscite and would be
introduced in parliament not later
than a month after the expiration of a
period of 30 days from the date of
the gazetting.
Zimbabwe is currently governed under the 1979
constitution agreed at
the Lancaster House talks in London. The constitution
has been amended 19
times since the country's Independence in
1980.
An attempt to introduce a new constitution between 1999 and
2000
failed after the NCA and other civil society organisations, backed by a
nascent MDC, successfully campaigned against a government-sponsored
draft.
A fierce political battle is expected when the draft goes to
a
referendum.
NCA chair Lovemore Madhuku has already declared
war against the draft.
"People must write their own constitution
directly, not through
politicians, parliamentarians or government. The
surest way to make sure
that a constitution is respected is if it is written
by the people
themselves and carries their word," Madhuku said after the
signing of the
GPA.
"Article 6 of the agreement is a direct
insult to the need for a
people-driven constitution. It is an arrogant
approach to the whole
constitution-making process."
After the
agreement, the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions president
Lovemore Matombo
also denounced the process as flawed.
"It is merely an act of
consolidation of power taking us back to the
era of one-party states.
Constitution-making processes are algebraic in
nature. If you don't get the
formulae right, then you won't get the answer
right," he said.
BY CONSTANTINE CHIMAKURE AND DUMISANI MULEYA
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March 2009
23:48
ZIMBABWE may require 20 years to repair its battered image to
attract
tourists, Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara has
said.
Speaking at a tourism conference in Harare on Wednesday,
Mutambara
proposed measures to reverse the country's bad-boy image that has
over the
years led to a sharp decline in tourist arrivals.
He
challenged citizens and public figures to align with what he termed
the
national aspiration in the tourism sector.
"The starting point of
Zimbabwe is to remove those sanctions that you
are imposing among
yourselves," Mutambara said in a powerpoint presentation
at the
conference.
He said Zimbabwe's image had been blighted by farm
invasions, human
rights violations and the cholera epidemic.
"We want to rebrand Zimbabwe, but what are we known for?" asked
Mutambara.
"How are we perceived by the rest of the world?
"We are known for
violence, farm invasions, disregard for the rule of
law, electoral fraud,
cholera, an unheard of rocket-propelled inflation,
gigantic corruption and
mafia-style abductions and kidnappings of
journalists, human rights
activists and anyone seeking democratic space,"
said Mutambara.
He added that stakeholders should take responsibility for the downward
trend
in tourism adding that they should "remove internally imposed
sanctions"
among themselves.
"You (Karikoga) Kaseke (Zimbabwe Tourism
Authority chief),
(Information Communication Technology minister Nelson)
Chamisa or (President
Robert) Mugabe, what are you known for?" asked
Mutambara. "Is your brand
equity aligned to the national aspiration? We must
make sure that our
personal equity is aligned with the national
aspirations.This is a long
journey -- a 20-year journey that starts today. A
brand can't be built
overnight," he said.
He proposed that the
tourism sector should identify "triggers" that
are sellable to the
international market, citing Coca Cola and Mercedes Benz
as reputable
companies that have established solid brands.
The deputy prime
minister said the inclusive government would consider
legalising the
establishment of a council tasked with rebranding Zimbabwe's
image in line
with the new administration.
"We need to change the constitution to
include the Zimbabwe
International Marketing Council," Mutambara said. "We
must liberalise the
media laws and get BBC, CNN back to Harare. We are the
government and we are
going to do that.the more the merrier. We of course
want to constructively
engage our own media to make them drive the national
agenda."
Reading a written speech at the same conference,
Vice-President Joice
Mujuru demanded an end to politically motivated
violence.
Zimbabwe is positioned at number 33 world-over with
regards to tourist
attractions, but is ranked number 117 in terms of tourist
arrivals.
"To the international community, I ask you to give the
inclusive
government a chance as this is in the best interest of the nation
and people
of Zimbabwe," she said. "We commit ourselves, as government, to
listen to
those who have concerns and communicate with us through
appropriate
channels, but we also plead with the world to listen to our
inclusive
voice."
Chamisa criticised the current government
website for being outdated,
unattractive and lacking interactivity with
visitors.
"Your first tourist attraction is your national website",
Chamisa
said.
He said the "yesteryear mode" government website
"militates" against
what he termed the national brand.
"Tourism
minister Walter Mzembi," Chamisa proposed "should engage
Google (on the
issue of the government website having precedence over
tourism websites) so
that we can rebrand our tourism.
"Since 2004 we have had 300 000
visits to the government website
compared to 21 million that visited the
Zimbabwe Tourism Authority website."
Chamisa cited Kenya and South
Africa as having website interfaces that
promote tourism rather than the
government set up.
"We also have a situation where a SIM card is
more expensive than
airtime. That is ridiculous." he added.
Zimbabwe Council of Tourism president and panellist at the inaugural
tourism
stakeholders' conference, Emmanuel Fundira, blamed deteriorating
infrastructure, a sharp decline in agricultural productivity, disregard for
property rights and repressive media laws for battering the country's
image.
"What is important is that tourism is the face of Zimbabwe.
We should
interrogate ourselves without fear of favour. For as long as we
don't
introspect, we will not go anywhere," Fundira said.
Last
year tourism recorded a 22% annual decline despite having posted
11% growth
during the first quarter of the year.
BY BERNARD MPOFU
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March 2009
23:46
THE replacement of members of the House of Assembly and senators
by
the three political parties which are signatory to the Global Political
Agreement (GPA) will not be automatic as their candidates will be subjected
to by-elections if there are independent candidates contesting the
seat.
There has been speculation that the political parties will
just
forward their nominations for replacement of members of the House of
Assembly and for senators for endorsement by the respective
houses.
Zanu PF and the two MDC formations have to replace members
of the
House of Assembly and senators who died since the last elections in
March
and those that took up different positions.
The Minister
of Constitutional and Parliamentary Affairs, Eric
Matinenga, this week
confirmed that the process of replacing the House of
Assembly members and
senators would not be automatic.
"The issue of when replacements of
members of the two houses has not
been addressed yet but the Global
Political Agreement applies to three
parties Zanu PF, MDC-T and MDC and if
any other candidate from any of the
parties not involved in the agreement
want to contest, they will be allowed
to contest and a by-election will be
called in the constituency," Matinenga
said.
He said if there
were no independent candidates and other political
parties contesting the
three political parties will nominate candidates who
will automatically sit
in parliament.
Matinenga said after the nominations the Zimbabwe
Electoral Commission
(ZEC) will call for the other parties to contest the
vacant constituency and
if there are challengers then a by election will be
held in the
constituency.
Matinenga said he would meet with the
parties to ensure that they send
the names for their nominees to
ZEC.
ZEC deputy chief elections officer Utoile Silaigwana said
seven
parliamentary seats were vacant and by-election if necessary would be
held
soon.
"Please be advised that by-elections will be held as
and when they
fall due. The global political agreement is agreement reached
by the three
parties only," Silaigwana said in written response to questions
from the
Zimbabwe Independent.
"It therefore follows that any
party or individual which or who is
outside the three parties is not barred
from contesting the election which
would have arisen as a result of the seat
falling vacant for whatever
reason."
BY LOUGHTY
DUBE
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March 2009
23:38
THE central bank's quasi-fiscal operations over the past five
years
opened loopholes for corruption as both public and private interests
took
advantage of lapses in implementation to enrich
themselves.
Gideon Gono, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe governor,
stitched together
a number of facilities to keep the country limping and to
bust economic
sanctions.
The central bank undertook
quasi-fiscal projects and introduced
projects such as the Productive Sector
Facility, Basic Commodity Supply Side
Intervention (Bacossi), Local
Authorities Reorientation Programme (LARP),
the Farm Mechanisation Programme
and the Agricultural Support Enhancement
Facility.
Under these
programmes, parastatals, local authorities and government
departments and
ministries relied heavily on the central bank for financial
assistance to
discharge their statutory mandates.
Many of the operations were
abused by corrupt individuals and public
officials within and outside the
central bank for personal gain.
Several people have been arraigned
in court for abusing the RBZ's
facilities and at least one central bank
divisional boss is on the run.
Other facilities to boost
agricultural production like subsidised fuel
and inputs were also abused by
farmers who sold them on the black market for
quick returns.
This month, the Anti-Corruption Commission said it was hunting for the
RBZ's
Agricultural Mechanisation and Small to Medium Enterprises Support
divisional head, Mordecai Masakwa, to explain the recovery of farm equipment
and inputs at a church and two houses in Harare.
The equipment
and inputs, which include three tractors, 41 tonnes of
fertiliser, 30 tonnes
of soyabean seed, 11 electricity generators, 10
motorcycles, 50 assorted
garden tools, 21 knapsack sprayers and eight
cultivators, were allegedly
diverted from the Farm Mechanisation Programme.
John Banda, who
impersonated a senior police officer, was arrested in
connection with the
case and has since appeared in court where the state
said it suspected that
the equipment and inputs were released improperly
from Bak Storage in the
capital.
Two weeks later, a Harare businessman, Anderson Mwashita -
the
managing director of Westgate Investments (Pvt) Ltd - was found guilty
by
the High Court of theft by conversion for swindling the RBZ out of more
than
Z$1,5 billion in 2005 that was earmarked to buy two tractors and a CAT
grader for Chegutu Municipality.
Mwashita was fined Z$450 000
and ordered to pay US$91 762 as
restitution to the central
bank.
His company had won a tender to supply the tractors and
graders to the
municipality at a cost of Z$2,2 billion to be paid by the
RBZ, which
deposited Z$1,5 billion - 70 % of the contract price - into the
firm's
account.
Mwashita failed to deliver the tractors and
grader and could also not
refund the central bank.
Besides the
abuse of the Farm Mechanisation Programme and the LARP,
the RBZ's Bacossi
and vehicle acquisition schemes also fell prey to
corruption.
The Bacossi programme was introduced by the central bank in July 2008
to
sell basic commodities in the form of food hampers to the public at
affordable prices.
Former radio and television personality
Tichafa Matambanadzo and his
business partner Raymond Chamba were recently
hauled before the courts on
allegations of defrauding the central bank of
Z$150 140 which was meant to
buy food hampers under Bacossi.
Matambanadzo and Chamba's company, Subvented Solutions (Pvt) Ltd, were
approached by the RBZ in November last year and contracted to supply 1 151
food hampers comprising salt, maize-meal, laundry soap, candles, petroleum
jelly, toothpaste, bath soap and margarine.
The RBZ transferred
Z$150 140 into the firm's account and later
advised the company to cancel
the order and reimburse the money on the
grounds that the central bank no
longer required the goods.
Matambanadzo and Chamba allegedly did
not comply and withdrew the
money for personal use.
The duo is
on US$500 bail each and will appear in court on Tuesday for
further
remand.
Questions have been asked why the RBZ had approached the
two's company
instead of manufacturers of the goods it wanted.
The central bank's vehicle acquisition facility to benefit
parastatals,
government departments and ministries to alleviate their
transport blues was
also abused by public officials.
A senior official in the Media,
Information and Publicity ministry is
on the run after he was implicated in
a scandal where the RBZ vehicles were
sold using fake registration
papers.
Clyde November, the acting director of finance, human
resources and
transport in the ministry, is also wanted by police for his
alleged role in
the sale of the cars.
His accomplices, Isaac
Chigumadzi (34), employed as a driver and
Blessing Mphawanyera (21), who is
a freelance salesperson, were convicted
last week by Harare regional
magistrate Stephen Musona on two counts of
stealing two vehicles valued at
US$29 000.
Between February 12 and 16, 2008 the RBZ handed over 79
various cars
to the ministry.
In April last year, the two who
were accused of acting in cahoots with
November and went to Production
Services in Harare where they drove away
with a Mazda B1800 valued at US$17
000, which they sold to Francis Dewe
Mutyavaviri for US$8 500.
Two months later, the trio went to the ministry's parking area at
Munhumutapa Building, where they drove off with a Mazda BT 50 worth US$12
000.
They sold the car for US$8 000.
Mphawanyera
is also facing charges of stealing three more vehicles
valued at US$54 000
belonging to the same ministry.
Several other RBZ vehicles are
reportedly not accounted for.
The introduction of quasi-fiscal
operations by the central bank was
largely blamed for hyperinflation in the
country. Gono defended the move
arguing that these were extraordinary
measures meant to address
extraordinary circumstances and realities on the
ground.
Gono said this position would be confirmed by the bank's
external
auditors as part of their due-diligence of the central bank's
financial
records.
He said the operations were embarked on as
survival interventions in
the national interest.
But
multilateral financial institutions like the International
Monetary Fund and
the World Bank said the quasi-fiscal activities had
interfered with monetary
management and the independence and credibility of
the RBZ. The institution
estimated that losses from the activities had in
2006 alone amounted to
about 75% of the gross domestic product because they
were financed by money
printing or issuing RBZ securities.
Soon after President Robert
Mugabe re-appointed Gono to serve a second
term at the helm of the central
bank, the former CBZ chief executive officer
said the RBZ would cease
quasi-fiscal operations and concentrate on its main
function of inflation
control and financial sector stability with effect
from January
2009.
He said: "As I accept this extended call of national duty, I
pledge to
maintain a very tight monetary policy stance, anchored on the
comprehensive
realignment and streamlining of the Reserve Bank's functions
in a manner
that leaves monetary authorities with the core responsibilities
of
inflation-targeting, management of the national payments systems and
safeguarding financial-sector stability."
Gono said under the
thrust, the central bank would establish a
stand-alone, self-funding and
well-capitalised developmental institution to
manage "all the work-in
progress" under the previous quasi-fiscal desks of
the bank, as well as
meeting other developmental programmes as they arise.
"I also wish
to take this opportunity to once again re-affirm the bank's
position and
assurances to stakeholders that all the bank's quasi-fiscal
outlays since
December 1, 2003 have been fully amortised such that there
will be
absolutely no penny to be transferred as a burden on the fiscus, and
hence
the taxpayers," he said.
Gono said this position would be confirmed
by the bank's external
auditors as part of their due-diligence of the
central bank's financial
records.
BY CONSTANTINE CHIMAKURE
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26
March 2009 23:38
THE Ministry of Information will tomorrow hold a
two-day consultative
conference to review the country's media policies and
chart a new direction
for the sector ahead of impending changes to statutes
governing the
profession.
Deputy Information minister, Jameson
Timba, in a press statement
Thursday, said the conference will include
"thematic workshops" covering
media economics, media training, professional
development, gender politics
and media law and regulation.
The
conference comes at a time when several prospective media
operators have
submitted applications for licences to launch newspapers as
stipulated by
the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act
(Aippa).
Civil society and privately-owned media organisations
have criticised
existing laws for narrowing democratic space and suffocating
media freedom.
Four "key presenters", according to Timba, will
cover a "wide range"
of issues that include the anatomy of media laws in
Zimbabwe, the role,
structure and management of public media and
self-regulation.
"Stakeholders from the private media, public media
and civic society
will present position papers and recommendations on the
state of the media
in Zimbabwe with particular reference to the challenges
and opportunities,"
said Timba.
"The conference represents the
first consultative step by the ministry
as it reviews Zimbabwe's media
environment and policies with a view to
advising the inclusive government on
its new policy in the context of the
Global Political Agreement (GPA) and
the Short-Term Emergency Recovery
Programme."
The September 15
GPA, which ushered in the inclusive government,
states that "government
shall ensure the immediate processing by the
appropriate authorities of all
applications for re-registration and
registration in terms of both the
Broadcasting Services Act as well as
Aippa".
Representatives
from media organisations such as the Zimbabwe Union of
Journalists, Misa,
the Zimbabwe National Editors Forum, Media Alliance of
Zimbabwe, the Media
Monitoring Project and the Voluntary Media Council of
Zimbabwe are expected
to present position papers at the conference.
The power-sharing
pact also demands the termination of external
"hosting or funding" of radio
stations broadcasting into Zimbabwe.
If this measure is fully
implemented, the US-based Studio 7 of the
Voice of America and SW Radio
which both broadcast through the shortwave
band could cease coverage on
Zimbabwe.
Instead, the inclusive government "encourages" Zimbabwean
media
entrepreneurs living abroad to make broadcasting applications in terms
of
the law. -- Staff Writer.
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March 2009 23:34
BULAWAYO has not appointed a substantive town clerk for almost three
years
due to the failure by the Local Authority Board to approve a candidate
from
a list forwarded by the city a year ago.
Bulawayo has not had a
town clerk since the death of Stanley Donga,
who was in that position for a
month before his death in 2007.
A full council meeting on Wednesday
said there was need to engage
government so that a town clerk is appointed
urgently.
Since Donga's death the government has appointed Bulawayo
provincial
administrator, Khonzani Ncube, to act as town clerk, a move that
has caused
friction with councillors who argue that the Urban Councils Act
stipulates
that the chamber secretary should be seconded to the post in the
absence of
the incumbent.
The issue of the appointment of a
town clerk for Bulawayo has turned
political after councillors said Ncube
should not sit in on council
meetings, a move many believe infuriated Local
Government minister Ignatious
Chombo, resulting in delays in the
confirmation of the town clerk.
Bulawayo mayor, Thaba Moyo, said
they were still awaiting a response
from the Local Authority Board for a
candidate after they sent a list of
three shortlisted candidates to the
board last year.
"We are still awaiting confirmation from the Local
Authority Board,"
Moyo said. "Names were sent to them a long time ago but
since then we have
not heard anything from them."
Front-runners
for the position include the incumbent chamber
secretary, Gilbert Dube and
the city treasurer, Middleton Nyoni.
The other candidate for the
post is the current Gwanda town clerk,
Gilbert Mlilo who is said to have
performed well during interviews. Moyo
said the council will engage Chombo
on the issue.
"As it is, the city is suffering as the town clerk is
the one who
should lead all our development projects. We will engage Chombo
so that the
process is expedited," Moyo said.
Bulawayo has been
rated as one of the best-run local authorities in
the country but without a
substantive town clerk and a collapsing national
economy, service delivery
has deteriorated with potholed roads, burst sewers
and uncollected rubbish
everywhere.
BY LOUGHTY DUBE
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March 2009
23:30
THE case involving the impounded vehicle that MDC-T leader Morgan
Tsvangirai used in his campaign ahead of the June 2008 presidential election
run off has taken a new twist after police this week indicated that they are
going to summon and question Jameson Timba, the Deputy Minister of
Information and Publicity, over the matter.
The twist in the
case comes amidst reports that police in Lupane have
wrecked the
vehicle.
Police had initially indicated that they wanted to charge
the owner of
the vehicle who had donated it to Tsvangirai for use during the
election
campaign.
The police allege that South African
businessman, Adriaan Espag, the
owner of the bulletproofed BMW X5 sports
utility vehicle, flouted the
Customs Act and the country's Immigration laws
when he allowed an
unauthorised person to use the vehicle in the
country.
The vehicle is still impounded at Lupane police station
after it was
forcibly seized from Tsvangirai in early June last
year.
Job Sibanda, the lawyer representing the MDC-T in the matter,
confirmed this week that police now want to question Timba over the
matter.
"I had a meeting with the police last week and they
indicated that
they have gone through the papers pertaining to the car,"
said Sibanda.
"They have established that Espag (the owner of the vehicle)
had authorised
Timba to be in charge of the vehicle in his absence and in
that instance
Timba was the only person at law authorised to use the vehicle
in the
country," said.
However, it emerged that the matter has
now been referred to President
Robert Mugabe as the MDC-T felt that the case
related to the election period
which is already covered under the
GPA.
Sibanda said the police said they want to question Timba on
circumstances that led to Tsvangirai's driver using the
vehicle.
"Timba has been informed of the charges police have
levelled against
him. I believe the matter is being addressed elsewhere in
government. But
the police have indicated that they are proceeding with the
case," Sibanda
said.
Over allegations that the police have
wrecked the luxury vehicle,
Sibanda said he enquired from the police over
the allegations and the police
denied ever using the vehicle.
BY LOUGHTY DUBE
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March 2009
23:30
BUSINESS came to a standstill last week along the
Chirundu-Livingstone
Road, which connects Zambia to Zimbabwe, Botswana and
Namibia after a
culvert was damaged, resulting in a portion of the road
being washed away.
Traffic only started flowing on the road on
Tuesday after the
construction of a detour.
Zambia's Road
Development Agency (RDA) said it was awaiting a report
from its consultants
to ascertain the cost of the damaged portion and
consequent re-designing of
the road.
RDA public relations manager Loyce Saili was quoted by
the Zambian
Times saying the road was now usable by motorists.
Saili said the agency had contracted a transport and construction
company to
construct a diversion which motorists were for the time being
using.
She said once the consultancy report is ready, the road
would be
properly repaired.
Saili cautioned motorists to adhere to
the contractor's instructions
to avoid possible "congestion" when using the
makeshift diversion.
Some drivers told the Zambian Times that they
were happy that the road
was now passable.
On Friday last week
Zambia's Southern Province was completely cut off
from the rest of the
country when a culvert on the Chirundu-Livingstone Road
was
damaged.
Over the weekend, Zambian President Rupiah Banda visited
the site and
directed the Office of the Vice President to conduct regular
maintenance
work because a "good road network is vital to accelerating
economic
development". - Staff Writer.
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March
2009 23:19
PARLIAMENT has constituted the Committee on Standing Rules
and Orders
that will, among other things, select members of various
commissions to run
government institutions.
The
constitutionally established committee was formed on Tuesday and
is expected
to expedite the setting up of portfolio committees, which have
oversight
roles over government ministries.
The Committee on Standing Rules
and Orders is dominated by lawmakers
from the two MDC
formations.
It is made up of Speaker of Parliament Lovemore Moyo,
his deputy
Nomalanga Khumalo, Senate President Edna Madzongwe, Deputy Senate
President
Naison Ndlovu, and Vice Presidents Joseph Msika and Joice
Mujuru.
Leader of the government in the House of Assembly Morgan
Tsvangirai,
his deputy Thokozani Khuphe, co-Deputy Prime Minister Arthur
Mutambara,
Constitutional and Parliamentary Affairs minister Eric Matinenga,
Industry
minister Welshman Ncube and Finance minister Tendai Biti are also
members of
the committee.
Other members are Defence minister
Emmerson Mnangagwa, Justice
minister Patrick Chinamasa and legislators Paul
Mangwana, Mabel Chinamora,
Njabuliso Mguni, Thabitha Khumalo, Tongai
Mathuthu, Tapiwa Mashakada and
Obert Gutu.
Chief Fortune
Charumbira is the traditional leaders' representative in
the
committee.
The committee is expected to expedite the selection of
members of the
long-awaited Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission and the
Zimbabwe Media
Commission to replace the Tafataona Mahoso-led Media and
Information
Commission.
The Zimbabwe Media Commission, once
constituted, will, among other
issues, attend to the issuance of publication
licences.
The committee would also have a say in the selection of
members of
other commissions such as the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission and
the Zimbabwe
Anti-Corruption Commission.
BY LOUGHTY
DUBE
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March 2009
23:01
THE government should fully implement the terms of the Global
Political Agreement (GPA) if the new economic recovery programme unveiled
last week by President Robert Mugabe is to succeed, political and economic
analysts have said.
The analysts said the GPA was the
launch pad of the Short Term
Emergency Recovery Programme (Sterp) which sets
out the agenda government
should pursue to attract regional and
international financial backing
desperately needed for the recovery
programme.
Launching Sterp last Thursday, Mugabe begged for
financial and
technical aid for Zimbabwe to extricate the country from the
decade-long
economic meltdown.
Investor-unfriendly economic
indicators and deteriorating living
standards are but some of the challenges
that confront Mugabe and his
co-captains in the new government - Prime
Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and his
deputies Arthur Mutambara and Thokozani
Khupe.
Mugabe's plea for aid will not be spared the litmus test of
inspiring
investor confidence.
Analysts contend that in as much
as Mugabe wants to stay on in
anticipation of an election after expiry of
the power-sharing pact, he has
to deliver in the interim or at least show
commitment to the recovery
process.
Notwithstanding this, there
are signs that Sterp might be a stillborn
if party politics come into
play.
"The inclusive government faces the challenges of collapse and
decay
and the poverty and suffering of our people. We either wallow in the
wish
wash of disempowering party politics or choose Sterp and make a bold
step
away from mundane," the Sterp document says.
Apart from
this, government fears that sanctions against Zimbabwe
could be another
impediment.
The Sterp document added: "It is recognised that some
measures against
Zimbabwe are in respect of omissions and commissions
arising from various
bilateral agreements and instruments, eg the Cotonou
agreement with the
European Union (EU).
"In this regard
discussions have already started with the EU, European
Commission, World
Bank, IMF and the African Development Bank with the
objective of removing
above sanctions and measures in compliance with
Article 4.6 (C) of the GPA.
As far as the USA is concerned, it is imperative
that the Zimbabwe Democracy
and Economic Recovery Act (Zidera) be repealed
and representations and
consultations have begun in this respect."
The Cotonou Agreement is
aimed at the reduction and eventual
eradication of poverty while
contributing to sustainable development and to
the gradual integration of
ACP countries into the world economy.
The revised Cotonou Agreement
is also concerned with the fight against
impunity and promotion of criminal
justice through the International
Criminal Court.
Sterp
prioritises three key areas: the constitution and
constitution-making
process, social protection and stabilisation.
Civic organisations
for years have been calling for a people-driven
supreme law and only time
will tell whether the so-called Kariba draft will
meet this
expectation.
Changes relating to media diversity and freedom and
"strengthening
governance and accountability" have to be made despite Sterp
not spelling
out when and how these changes will be effected.
This test will determine whether Sterp will be a step forward or
backward.
What is guaranteed though is that the economic recovery plan will
be a
subject of academic discourse well after its tenure.
Currently
operating with no privately owned national daily and
state-controlled ZBC
being the Hobson's choice, the government still has
more media licences to
sign before democratic space is widened.
A handful of potential
players have already shown commitment in
establishing newspapers, creating
hope for jobless scribes and other
prospective beneficiaries.
The government also envisages formulating a sound social protection
policy
after past policies exposed the elderly and other vulnerable citizens
to the
harsh economic meltdown characterised by worthless local currency and
diminishing savings.
Lastly, government wishes to stabilise the
comatose economy through
various measures seeking to boost agricultural,
mining and manufacturing
sectors.
Noble and pragmatic, some of
the measures might appear, but the US$5
billion recovery plan will not
succeed unless funds are injected into the
treasury.
University
of Kent at Canterbury senior lecturer of law Alex Magaisa
argues that delays
by the Sadc and African Union in extending lines of
credit to Zimbabwe could
stall Europe's commitment to bailing out the
debt-ridden
government.
"The trouble of course is that the success of Sterp
depends not simply
on what we can do (and there is much that we must do) but
more importantly,
resource-wise, it is far too dependent on external
support, which may or may
not come," Magaisa warned.
"So far I
am disappointed that Sadc and the international community
are beginning to
play that old dirty game which in Shona we refer to as
'kukandirana nyoka
mhenyu' - no one wants to hold the snake in his hands so
they are now
throwing it around, disowning it. Zimbabwe is that snake and no
one wants it
close by, yet all along they were promising many incentives and
assistance
to Zimbabwe. Sadc needs to step up to the plate and fulfil its
promises.
The AU also needs to do the same - only then can the
West and others
be persuaded that this is a creature worth
saving."
Commenting on the reported cases of new farm invasions
targeting white
commercial farmers, Magaisa said: "Government has to show
that it is in
control; that this behaviour cannot be tolerated any longer.
The farm
invasions must be stopped. The ball is in our court and we must
play it
right."
He argued government should release all
political prisoners
languishing in remand prisons.
Tsvangirai,
Mugabe and Mutambara met soon after the formation of the
unity government
and agreed on the release of the political prisoners on
bail.
Most of the political detainees, among them rights activist Jestina
Mukoko
and deputy minister of agriculture-designate Roy Bennett, have been
freed on
bail.
"The fundamental approach must be that the government adheres
to the
rule of law by upholding rights of individuals. It must actively
engage the
international community and the diaspora," said the UK-based
lawyer.
Government has since Independence propounded more than 10
growth-
related documents that have failed to stimulate the economy due to
various
reasons.
The World Bank-approved Economic Structural
Adjustment Programme of
1991 failed to slash the central government deficit
to 5% from 10%. Critics
were quick to blast the structural programme for
lacking "home-grown"
measures.
BY BERNARD MPOFU
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March 2009
22:42
SADC heads of state and government will meet on Monday in
Swaziland to
consider a US$2 billion economic aid package to Zimbabwe, amid
desperate
calls from the inclusive government to international donors to
bankroll its
economic recovery programme.
The inclusive
government said without an immediate rescue package from
international and
regional donors, the administration would fail to deliver
leading to an
escalation in the current humanitarian crisis.
Most of the donors
have remained sceptical about President Robert
Mugabe's commitment to change
and have withheld the much-needed funds to
kick start the country's
economy.
Western donors are not willing to bankroll the new
government because
a number of issues which they said needed urgent
attention -- the freeing of
the media, observance of property rights and the
rule of law.
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, Finance minister
Tendai Biti and
Foreign Affairs minister Simbarashe Mumbengegwi last month
approached South
Africa seeking US$5 billion for economic
revival.
This led to the convening of a Sadc Council of Ministers
meeting in
South Africa which came up with a US$2 billion package that must
be ratified
by the regional bloc's heads of state.
Monday's
summit would be preceded by a meeting on Sunday of the
Council of Ministers
to be chaired by South African Foreign minister
Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, to
process reports to be considered by the summit.
The Council of
Ministers will present a report on the Zimbabwe
economic recovery plan to
the Sadc heads of state for approval by the
summit.
It is hoped
that this would lead to South Africa opening a credit line
to help Zimbabwe
rebuild its shattered economy after years of political
crisis.
In his maiden speech in parliament on Wednesday, Deputy Prime Minister
Arthur Mutambara said countries like Britain and the United States should
remove sanctions against Zimbabwe for it to access balance of payments
support.
Mutambara said: "Here is our message to the
international community.
Hear us on this one - Americans, British or whoever
you are - we are
determined to make this agreement work. It is irreversible.
Please do not
give us conditions like we are waiting for signs . . . if we
do not get
balance of payments support this government will collapse and the
people
will be the victims.
"Surely, surely, we are saying,
remove any type of sanctions you have
imposed. When you impose sanctions,
you impose them on Cde Tsvangirai. You
undermine the efforts of the Prime
Minister. It is not for the Americans or
British to judge us."
The same day, Biti told the visiting Norwegian Environment and
International
Development Minister Erik Solheim that the international
community should
remove benchmarks for aid to be offered to Zimbabwe as the
new government
was still in its infancy.
"We need some breathing space so that we
deal with mandate issues. The
international community should not put walls
through these benchmarks," Biti
said.
But online news agencies
quoted a Western diplomat in Harare saying
the international community was
willing to have dialogue with Zimbabwe for
purposes of setting conditions
for re-engagement.
Swedish Ambassador to Zimbabwe Sten Rylander
reportedly said: "We are
willing, together with the rest of the
international community, to have
dialogue with the Zimbabwean government and
to agree on mutual benchmarks to
assist Zimbabwe on the path of
recovery."
The inclusive government, looking for US$2 billion from
the region and
at least US$5 billion for economic recovery, desperately
needs US$1 billion
over and above its fiscal budgetary requirements to meet
an array of
emergency financial obligations.
Failure to secure
the US$1 billion could cripple the operations of the
new government that has
raised public expectations on economic recovery and
delivery of services,
making its first 100 days a barren stretch.
The Zimbabwe
Independent two weeks ago reported that a confidential
internal government
memo circulated to selected ministries says US$1 billion
is needed now to
meet emergency obligations which include critical payments
for fuel,
electricity, water, grain, seed, fertiliser, lines of credit,
diplomatic
missions, parastatals, currency printing equipment, the
Registrar-General's
office, presidential scholarships, security ministries,
loans and
debts.
The memo says as of last month, Zimbabwe had outstanding
obligations
of US$222 million to Equatorial Guinea for fuel, Noczim US$26,5
million,
Noczim-pipeline US$4 million, lines of credit US$195,4 million, GMB
US$106,05 million, corporate loans US$240,74 million, diplomatic missions
US$30 million, fertilisers US$35,6 million, army/intelligence/police US$20
million, Air Zimbabwe US$10 million, Zinwa US$5 million, China US$5 million,
the Registrar-General US$5 million, presidential scholarships US$4 million,
Zesa US$40 million, seed US$12 million and currency printing US$100
million.
"This amounts to US$1 061,29 billion. Government needs to
swiftly
raise this money to keep running," the memo says. "Failure to pay
some of
these obligations urgently would further weaken the country's credit
rating
in regional and international markets."
The memo says
government is facing a serious financial crisis and
would need to move with
speed to raise funds to save the situation. The
crisis is aggravated by a
total stock of external debt of over US$5 billion.
BY PAUL
NYAKAZEYA
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March 2009 22:36
FORMER Industry and International Trade minister Nkosana Moyo has been
appointed vice-president and chief operations officer of the African
Development Bank (AfDB).
In making the announcement AfDB said
Moyo, a holder of a PhD in
Physics from Imperial College, London, and MBA
from Cranfield School of
Management in England brings to the bank vast and
extensive managerial and
financial experience from the private and public
sectors in Africa and
international institutions.
Moyo who is a
pilot has served in the IFC, Standard Chartered Bank, TA
Holdings, Botswana
Capital and Actis Capital, World Bank and Batanai Capital
Finance, a company
he founded in 1997.
Prior to his appointment to the ABD he served
as senior advisor and
chairman of Actis Africa Advisory Board, Actis
Capital, LLP. He also sits on
the boards of Diamond Bank in Nigeria, UAC --
Nigeria, South African
Airways, Investment Climate Facility, Kumba Iron Ore
- an Anglo subsidiary
in South Africa. He is the chairman for Commercial
Bank of Rwanda and DFCU
Bank Group in Uganda.
In 2001 Moyo
resigned as Minister of Industry and International Trade
and left for South
Africa after being appointed in 2000 due to "sharp
differences" with
President Robert Mugabe who described him as "spineless" -- Staff
Writer.
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March 2009
22:30
MONTH on month inflation declined for the first time since July
2006,
official figures showed this week.
The last time month on
month inflation declined was in July 2006 when
it went down 1,2% the
previous month. During the same period year on year
inflation declined to
993,6% from 1 184,6%.
The Central Statistical Office (CSO) -
government's preferred measure
on inflation - on Tuesday announced that
month on Month inflation for the
January 2009 was -2,3%, and -3,1% for the
month of February.
This means that a basket of goods and services
that cost US$100 in
December cost US$97,70 in January and US$94,67 in
February 2009.
Prices of goods in Zimbabwe have stabilised over the
past three months
after government allowed the use of multiple
currencies.
The decision was arrived at after monetary authorities
failed to find
a lasting solution to rising inflation, which was resulting
in the local
currency losing value against major currencies at an alarming
rate.
Economist Brains Muchemwa said the decline was a result of
the
dollarisation of the economy.
"Month on month inflation is
expected to continue declining in the
short term. There is increased
competition for goods which are now readily
available on the
market.
In such an environment it would not make business sense to
price
yourself out of the market," he said.
Economic consultant
John Robertson said the decline should be
supported by
production.
"For inflation to continue declining, all major sectors
of the economy
should increase production. The country also needs financial
aid," he said.
CSO however did not announce the year on year
inflation figure for the
seventh consecutive uninterrupted
month.
The last official inflation figure was 231 million percent
in July
last year.
The last time official inflation figures showed
a decline was in
September 2007 when it dropped to 6 592,8% from 7 634,8%
the previous month.
The retail price index - an alternative measure
of inflation - was
also not revealed.
CSO said an average family of
five people needed US$552 in January for
food, rent and other goods in order
not to be deemed poor.
According to the Consumer Council of
Zimbabwe (CCZ)'s February basket,
food prices showed a
market
decline of 20% from US$153,63 in January to US$122,65 in
February.
The basket of food includes margarine, roller meal,
white sugar, tea,
fresh milk, cooking oil, bread, flour, rice, salt, onions,
tomatoes and
cabbages.
Despite falling food prices last month,
rises in the cost of amenities
such as electricity and water kept the cost
of living for an urban family of
six at US$374,25, from US$381,23 in
January.
Food makes up 32% of the total basket while transport,
rent, water and
electricity, health services, education, clothing and
footwear make up the
balance.
Countering the fall in food
prices was a rise last month in the cost
of transport, rent, water,
electricity, health, education, clothing and
footwear as all sectors were
dollarised.
According to the CCZ, a family of six needed US$239, a
12% rise from
January's US$214 for the non-food items.
"The
cost of a number of services is still prohibitively high and
these include
rent, water, and lighting and these have pushed up the cost of
the basket,"
said the CCZ. -- Staff writer
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March 2009
22:24
THE property sector has over the past five years experienced a
severe
strain to maintain value of property portfolios amidst serious
shortages of
foreign currency to replace and service equipment.
ZimRe Property Investments (ZPI) however believes in a
hyperinflationary
environment, their business revolves around their asset
column as opposed to
income column. For the group, "profit is made when you
buy and not when you
sell".
Announcing their financial result for the year ending
December 31
2008, ZPI this week said it foresees real growth in the sector
that had been
on a downward spiral over the years.
"With the
all inclusive government finally in place -- a national
budget dollarised
but balanced, a monetary policy regime that essentially
liberalised exchange
control with dividend and profits remittance
decontrolled -- we see brighter
prospects for real growth of the business,"
said ZPI chairman Buzwani
Mothobi said.
Mothobi said the property market will experience a
time lag before it
responds to real growth.
"For possibly the
next six months, activity on the property market
will remain slow as the
market adjusts to the dollarisation and attempts to
align with regional
markets, depending on political and economic development
in the country,"
said Mothobi.
Due to the absence of inflation figures, the group
announced their
results in historical terms, which in a hyperinflationary
environment does
not give a clear picture of the company's
performance.
The figures are "meaningless" as they are also
reported in local
currency. The group does not compare the December 31 2008
figures with the
previous period as they were reduced to nil after the
Reserve Bank revalued
the currency removing 13 zeros.
ZPI said
the company experienced one of its worst operating periods
during last
year.
Their operating environment was marked by rapidly rising
inflation
which necessitated currency reforms in August, spiralling business
and
service costs, a crunching cash crisis for the greater part of the year,
excessive regulation of prices and a distributing market-wide flight of both
skilled and unskilled manpower.
"Coupled with this was the
rapid decay in business ethics and what
amounted to extortionist and
predatory pricing structures for both goods and
services across the
economy," Mothobi said.
ZPI said whilst costs escalated,
particularly during the second half
of the year when they tracked the US
dollar on the parallel market exchange
rates, rental income remained subdued
in Zimbabwe dollars.
As a result, rentals continued to be
sub-economic and trailed far
behind comparatives.
The group
said an eight year ambitions project blueprint for large
scale commercial,
industrial and residential developments which was in line
with future
outlook of the sector had been put in place.
A total of 136 low
density residential stands in Parklands, Bulawayo
were completed last year
at an estimated cost of US$1,5 million.
The US$30 million Pabasa
Industrial Park in Bluffhill, Harare, is said
to be at an advanced stage on
a 3,2 hectare to accommodate 36 factory
shells.
The Rhodene
residential development in Masvingo is said to be in
progress and comprise
of 300 low-density stands.
"To date all roads, water and sewer
designs are complete and were
approved by the City of Masvingo. An
Environmental Impact Assessment
commenced in early 2009 to complete the
preliminary works for the project,
essentially launching the project to take
off," ZimRe said.
NQOBILE BHEBHE
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March 2009
22:19
ZIMBABWE Stock Exchange (ZSE) has struck a deal with three local
banks
to act as clearing houses to expedite settlements after trading of
stocks.
The banks are CBZ Bank, Stanbic and Kingdom
Bank.
Ideally stockbrokers wanted the local bourse to work with one
bank as
moving money from one bank to another was costly on their part due
to "very
high" charges.
ZSE chief executive Emmanuel Munyukwi
told BusinessDigest on Tuesday
that an agreement with traders, local banks
and the ZSE was reached last
week.
"We have agreed to settle
payments through a T+7 method, meaning
traders would be paid seven days
after each trade," Munyukwi said.
However, he could not reveal the
names of banks working clearing
houses.
But Businessdigest has
it on good authority that ZSE had stuck a deal
with CBZ, Stanbic and
Kingdom.
Stockbrokers this week said the stock exchange had not
formally
announced the arrangements because the banks had not started their
operations.
"It would be mandatory for all stockbrokers,
despite not having
foreign accounts with the banks, to open one," Munyukwi
said.
Before the stock market started trading in foreign currency,
Stanbic
Bank acted as the clearing house.
The local bourse last
month reverted to the T+7 settlement method
barely a week after resuming
trade from the T+3, meaning that payment would
be done seven days after each
trade.
The local bourse had resorted to the T+3 after investors
complained
that the T+7 was not making the stock exchange the preferred
investment
vehicle because of rising inflation.
"It might be
an inconvenience but that's the best method we have come
up with,"
said.
The ZSE traded upbeat this week on the back of strong gains
in
heavyweight counters after monetary authorities restored the fungibility
of
all dual listed counters.
Analyst said they expect
dual-listed counters to re-price their share
prices in Johannesburg and
London. This should give short-term upward
momentum to the local
bourse.
The cost of transaction on the local bourse, which is
higher than
elsewhere in the region, is expected to fall following the
removal of
surrender requirements.
Foreign currency investments
are however likely to remain elusive in
the short term as investors test the
credibility of government.
Meanwhile, banks are experiencing low
deposits from clients who feel
that their foreign currency accounts might be
raided by the Reserve Bank of
Zimbabwe.
Bankers Association of
Zimbabwe president, John Mangudya said the
"routine raids of the past" were
unlikely to recur.
"Although in my view the raids that started in
November 2007 might not
recur the new Finance minister (Tendai Biti) has to
constantly reassure
depositors that the era of random raids on FCAs was
over," Mangudya said.
"For the betterment of Zimbabwe's economy we encourage
people to make
deposits to ensure that money circulates within the formal
sector."
Economist Eric Bloch said confidence was low among
depositors
particularly on depositors whose accounts where raided last
year.
On reports that depositors have to endure a long period for
money
transfers to come though from one FCA to the other, Mangudya said:
"Normally
it takes three days for transaction to be concluded, and that is
international practice."
He said there is what is termed a
"correspondent bank that functions
in a triangular way".
Once a
commercial bank in Zimbabwe gets a money transfer instruction
from its
client it sends a message to New York where it has an account to
deposit
money to another bank account in Zimbabwe, Mangudya said.
Under the
recently launched Short Term Emergency Programme commercial
banks are
encouraged to expedite payment mechanisms for the new monetary
environment.
"Customers with FCAs need to be able to pay for
goods and services
with debit cards and should be able to withdraw South
African rands or
United States dollar notes from ATM machines," reads the
document.
NQOBILE BHEBHE
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March 2009
23:07
WHEREVER a transitional government has been formed, especially on
the
Africa continent, a key question that has regularly arisen has been its
durability; that is, how long they intend to last, how long they can exist
in reality and when the next election to acquire a democratic government
will take place.
In Zimbabwe's case, this question at first
sight appears to be a
settled matter because it is assumed the inclusive
government should exist
for two years before the holding of free and fair
elections under a new
people-driven constitution.
This may
still be possible but it must be considered with an
increasing amount of
caution. This is because transitional governments tend
to take on
characteristics that are informed by political party pragmatism
that relates
primarily to the retention of workable power as well as seeking
an avoidance
of what in our instance may be another tedious, dangerous and
undemocratic
election.
Another problem could be the stronger political parties
in the
agreement may not be confident of winning an election outright and
could
therefore decide collectively to plod on until such a time they feel
they
are ready to seek fresh mandates.
Because of these
considerations, there is a need for the people of
Zimbabwe to insist on
their right to vote by year end 2010 through a free
and fair democratic
process.
The reasons for this are not necessarily based on the
considerations
of political parties, but are mainly because political
transition, in
essence should not merely or continually be a process of
configuring and
reconfiguring power between rival political
parties.
Instead, it should be about democratic political and
social
transformation, both in the immediate as well as in the long-term.
And
because the measurement of a transitional government plus its political
players can only be democratically measured through an election, Zimbabwe
needs a free and fair election by the end of the year 2010.
In
this vein, it is necessary to outline some of the challenges that
may emerge
to deny the people of Zimbabwe the right to exercise their
democratic right
to vote for a government of their choice.
The end of 2010 as the
period when elections should be held is not an
off the cuff time-frame. It
is derived from the Global Political Agreement's
inference of the same and
the proclamations that there should be an election
after a people-driven
constitutional reform process.
The time frame for this is 18
months.
But it is obviously easy for a government leader to argue
that it is
impossible to hold elections in a country where there is so much
social and
economic suffering.
Another might even argue that
there is need to prioritise resolution
of issues within the socio-economic
context that is Zimbabwe.
In such an argument, elections might not
top the agenda, and in their
place, narratives will emerge about the
importance of economic and social
welfare delivery.
Furthermore, there is the apparent risk of the political parties in
this
government getting comfortable with each other as time progresses.
What is self-evident almost two months into the formation of this
government
is the increase in assumptions of collective responsibility.
The
visibility of government ministers from Zanu PF and either of the
two MDCs
sitting together, appearing on television, and literally
functioning as if
they were hewn from the same stone, is indicative of a
shift in how they
have come to understand their roles as members of one
cabinet.
Agreed there may be contestation behind the scenes as to who is
responsible
for what in various ministries, but there is the general
understanding that
there will be negotiations about this, with the
occasional assistance of the
Sadc-appointed mediator, Thabo Mbeki.
The comfort in government
could then influence the principals of any
of the three parties to decide
that the government is working and that an
election will upset the apple
cart. Even where they decide the government
is not working, it would still
be reason enough to not want to hold an
election as per a new
constitution.
The evidence of this may however be limited, thus
far, but the little
that there is, is very telling.
Another key
consideration on the issue of elections and the
transitional government is
the extent to which the actual issue is discussed
publicly both by civil
society and the political parties.
Thus far, there have been very
few instances where such talk has been
heard, and one particular incident
involved President Mugabe last month
saying there should be a new
constitution and elections.
He mentioned the Kariba document, which
the majority of people have
not seen, as one of the departure points of the
new constitution, but the
main issue is that of elections.
Whether his colleagues in the government agreed with this view or saw
it as
a threat, one may not be able to judge, but the key issue is that no
major
leader since that time has publicly committed themselves to ensuring
elections are held in a scheduled manner.
There are also
arguments around the life of the current parliament of
Zimbabwe and the
necessity of having new elections for the same.
While I do not seek
to be in contempt of the legislature, the
political reality is that debate
will obviously rage in favour of a full
five-year term for the august House
with reasons such as national healing or
completing the legislative agenda
of the government being placed on the
table as excuses.
Civil
society organisations may fall into the same trap, not because
they have
five-year mandates but because, being civil society, one has to
work with
what is at hand, in terms of government.
Further, where there are
problematic organisations, co-option of their
leaders will be a key
component of government counter-strategy against
dissent.
Advocacy and lobbying will be done within government and occasionally
donor-preferred parameters, a process in which principle might succumb to
expediency in the name of "working with what we have got" or seeking
incremental changes without policy confrontations that go beyond what is
perceived to be "normal".
To conclude in a manner that does not
unnecessarily ruffle too many
feathers, I, in my personal capacity, still
insist on voting in two years
regardless of the assumed practicalities and
excuses that may be proffered
for not being allowed to do so.
If indeed, we are in a transition, and if indeed the political leaders
in
government will remember the very purpose of their inclusive government,
they should accept this position and must begin in earnest to work towards
its realisation.
The process remains simple; a people-driven
constitutional reform
process, followed thereafter by a free, fair election
in terms of that new
constitution.
Zhangazha is National
Director of MISA Zimbabwe. He writes here in
his personal
capacity.
BY TAKURA ZHANGAZHA
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March 2009
22:09
FOR many years Zimbabwe's ruling elite has lived far beyond its
means. Many activities of the past government, especially in the 1990s to 2
000, to a large extent contributed to the current economic
crisis.
Examples that immediately come to mind include the Congo
war adventure
in which at some point Zimbabwe was spending more than US$1
million a day.
Those in power now might as well look at those days
with both envy and
regret. The cost of the Congo war to Zimbabwe has never
been fully accounted
to date, both in human and monetary terms.
The Congo adventure combined with the unbudgeted payments to war
veterans
and the looting of the same fund have also never been fully
revealed in as
far as how they dented the country's purse and their
contribution to the
current economic crisis.
The social strife that arose from the
economic challenges led to half-
hearted political machinations such as the
constitutional reform process
meant to pacify a restive civil
society.
When this failed the ruling elite went for broke,
instigating farm
invasions and political violence under such hollow slogans
as "the land is
the economy and the economy is the land".
Zimbabwe has been poisoned by divisive politicians who churned out
doses of
meaningless ideological mantras. This only brought successive years
of
hunger and increased poverty.
Zimbabwe never recovered from this
and has never been the same. The
rest, as they say, is history.
This background brings us to the latest efforts by the unity
government to
settle the wrongs of the past 15 years or so.
The new economic
programme launched by President Robert Mugabe and
crafted by the Ministry of
Finance is probably the most realistic assessment
of the economic and social
quagmire that the previous government sunk this
country into.
At the centre of this new document is the reality that Zimbabwe is
broke and
that this is the time to live within available means.
We will eat
what we gather or collect, were the words of Finance
minister Tendai Biti.
In other words the living beyond our means by a few
that continued even as
Zimbabwe collapsed has to stop.
This included printing money to buy
foreign currency, and the
splashing of foreign currency to buy vehicles for
senior military and
government officials.
The days of
government officials going to the Reserve Bank with a
truckload of Zimbabwe
dollars and coming out with wads of US dollars in
their pockets have to
stop.
The days of the Reserve Bank bankrolling political projects
of Zanu PF
and paying the "green bombers" have to stop.
And the
days of army generals and brigadiers receiving the latest 4x4s
on the
market, every year, must come to an end.
This is the sole reason
why the generals are sulking like little
children: it's not politics, trust
me. Hiding under fighting sanctions and
fighting imperialists, these
economic evils were perpetuated to the
detriment of the real national
interests.
They promoted a culture of patronage, corruption and
clientelism.
The new economic programme comes against the
background of the
formation of the unity government whose thrust is to
resolve a number of
challenges Zimbabwe is facing in all aspects of social
life.
An important element of the Global Political Agreement upon
which the
economic programme is based is the absence of the usual
ideological rhetoric
of fighting imperialists, and "looking east where the
sun rises" and hollow
slogans of "Zimbabwe will never be a colony
again".
With the widespread and legal use of foreign currencies and
dominance
of foreign products in our shops, Zimbabwe seems very much like a
colony
again.
It seems finally the former ruling elite and
former government has run
full circle in understanding that the world has
long since abandoned
ideological leanings as the basis to conduct
business.
The Chinese and Russians and others might have supported
the
liberation struggle in the 1970s purely on the basis of expanding their
political beliefs and influence.
The realities of seeking
economic growth and ultimately happiness for
their societies have since led
them to embrace market-based economic
policies and the world, albeit
maintaining a tight grip on politics.
In Zimbabwe Zanu PF succeeded
in only one of these, that is
maintaining a stranglehold on political
discourse and participation while
completely failing on the economic
side.
While the Chinese maintain solidarity with Zimbabwe at the
United
Nations, this has not extended to broad-based economic support.
Indeed China
is concerned that it might not get economic returns for its
investments and
like the West, China sees Zimbabwe as risky.
The reporting by Chinese news agencies such as Xinhua also show how
desperate the Chinese are for this unity government to work, because it
gives their interactions with Zimbabwe legitimacy and a moral grounding.
Zimbabwe, more than being a friend was becoming an irritant and one of those
"friends" you want to keep at arm's length and speak to in hushed
tones.
President Mugabe visited China a few years ago and came back
with a
load of maize, the same stuff that USAid and the European Union are
giving
millions of starving people in Zimbabwe.
Basing economic
policies and growth on utopian ideological beliefs of
fighting and defeating
phantom enemies has been the hallmark of the previous
government.
This did not yield any results. Examples abound
from which the unity
government can learn from on how the world is
moving.
These include the new thrust by the Obama government to
reboot its
relations with China, Iran, Syria and many other so-called rogue
states.
While there are geo-political and security concerns for the
USA, the
bottom line is that ideology is no longer driving foreign
relations, but
national interest and survival.
China is the
single largest buyer of US investments and it is China's
trillions that are
expected to prop up the economic stimulus plan in the
USA. In the USA, the
federal government is becoming an active player in the
economy, almost
turning upside down the sacred principles of capitalism.
This
reality demonstrates that Zimbabwe's relations with the outside
should be
driven first by national interest and not personal egos or
ideologies of a
few who feel they are embodiments of the struggle and
revolution.
Instead of travelling with army generals and
bootlickers, we hope the
president and prime minister can travel with CEOs
of leading Zimbabwe
industries, invite civil society to the table and engage
academia.
Army generals and soldiers should keep their place in the
barracks or
follow the example of the late general Vitalis Zvinavashe into
fulltime
farming and business, and stop telling us who they want to salute
or not:
Zimbabwe is not one of their barracks or police camp.
Apart from reengaging the West which the unity government is already
doing,
the government should actively engage the east, not on the basis of
hollow
talk of the east being "where the sun rises" but the real business of
investment, trade and assistance. It matters no more where the sun
rises.
I don't see anything wrong with the prime minister making a
visit to
Beijing one of his first priority trips abroad; it was so with US
Secretary
of State Hillary Clinton. He is far better positioned to unlock
assistance
from China than President Mugabe.
The world is a
maze of shifting alliances now driven by economic
realities and not
ideology.
This is the time for the unity government to make a
realistic
assessment of where help can come from and when.
A
key matter as we move forward is to determine and have a clear
timetable and
benchmark on how Zimbabwe can move out of this current
situation.
This programme cannot be one with infinite
objectives, the people of
Zimbabwe would want to see what the measurements
of success are and when we
attain them.
This programme has to
take into account the real possibility that the
West wants to see Zanu PF
change its ways in some areas.
If President Mugabe is serious about
this programme succeeding then he
should release all political prisoners and
stop unnecessary farm invasions.
He should rein in the army
generals and police chiefs who are now a
law unto themselves. The world
might have gone through a lot, especially
around the time of the cold war.
Africa and Zimbabwe might have received
some benefits from that
division.
It seems now the present world has changed, and ideology
and rhetoric
can no longer bring a plate of food.
The days of
President Mugabe haranguing the world won't bring cholera
medicine. Much
thinking is needed and developing people and our society is
the only key to
national success.
Rashweat Mukundu is a programme specialist
for Media Freedom
Monitoring, Misa regional secretariat,
Windhoek.
BY RASHWEAT MUKUNDU
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March 2009
22:09
ZIMBABWE is a nation both blessed and cursed; blessed with an
honest
and hardworking citizenry. The residence of bad governance
perpetuated by
Zanu PF under the stewardship of President Robert Mugabe has,
insidiously,
become our curse.
Their agenda has become averse
to the needs of the general populace in
Zimbabwe.
What is their
agenda? Simply put, it reads thus: "We do not say an eye
for an eye neither
do we say a tooth for a tooth.
Anyone who knocks out one of our
teeth will have his jaw bashed in and
one who pokes our eye will have his
head chopped off." Zanu PF is now
literally feeding off the very system that
our erstwhile liberation icon
Josiah Magama Tongogara vowed to
crush.
It has brought the common adage that, "power corrupts and
absolute
power corrupts absolutely" into proper perspective.
The internecine tremors that have visited our socio-economic realms
all have
their epicentres firmly rooted in bad governance. Our Achilles heel
as the
citizenry of this once great nation has been, and is, our docile
propensity
vis-ą-vis constitutional reform (the basis for governance).
The
Constitution of a country is not sacrosanct, like any other
document, it is
written by men and hence can be changed by men.
The independence
Constitution borne out of the Lancaster House
Agreement signed on December
21 1979 did present major constraints on the
Zanu PF-led
government;
l Land could only change hands on a willing buyer,
willing seller
basis -- white commercial farmers were free to keep "their
land". Only
underutilised land was to be compulsorily
acquired.
l Constitutional matters regarding land transfers and
white
participation in government were to beguaranteed for the first 10
years
(1980 - 1990).
In return for the Zimbabweans guaranteeing
existing property rights,
the British agreed to underwrite half the costs of
a resettlement programme.
More than £630 million of aid was pledged at the
Lancaster House conference.
The first phase of land reform began in
1980, and was mostly funded by
the United Kingdom. It successfully resettled
around 70 000 landless people
on more than 20 000 km² of land. The
Independence Constitution presented a
window of opportunity for the
megalomaniacs in Zanu PF and is the bedrock on
which they have built a
system of bad governance.
In the period 1990 to 2000 (20 years
after our Independence) the issue
of a new Constitution was not on the main
agenda.
A Draft Constitution was rejected in a referendum held on
February
12-13 2000. Instead of engaging stakeholders in their entirety and
addressing their concerns, Zanu PF used the popular 'NO' Vote to kick-start
farm invasions. Deemed "invasions" because the Independence Constitution
recognised the white commercial farmers as Zimbabweans who had rights to
farm the land and own it.
Being the revolutionaries they are,
Zanu PF amended the
Constitution -- Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment (No
17) Act of 2005. Do
you first incarcerate a person for a certain action and
then, in hindsight,
pass a law making the action of that person an
offence?
Such guerilla tactics may have served us well in the
liberation
struggle but in post-colonial Zimbabwe, where we claim to have a
functional
judicial system, they are redundant if not
repugnant.
President Mugabe has always poured scorn on Lovemore
Madhuku and the
organisation he leads, the National Constitutional Assembly
(NCA).
According to Mugabe, the NCA has but one member referring to
Madhuku
himself. His assertion implies that he is in complete denial about
the
urgent need for a new home-grown Constitution in Zimbabwe.
If Madhuku was to go to Mugabe's house and shout, "Look Sir, your
house is
on fire", he would reply nonchalantly thus, "Why should I believe
you
Madhuku?
Ko vamwe vanotsigira zvaunotaura izvi varipiko? (Where are
the people
who back up what you are saying?) Besides, I am quite confident
that it's
not the whole house that is on fire, part of it is still intact --
surely."
Our Constitution should ensure that those we vote into
office serve
the people and not vice-versa. Morgan Tsvangirai when signing
the MOU
between his party, Zanu PF and MDC rightfully noted that there is no
single
individual in this country who has a monopoly of
patriotism.
Constitutionally this should translate to a limit in
the number of
terms that one can serve as president. There has to be a
guarantee that any
Zimbabwean with true character, a good CV (not
necessarily a liberation war
hero), and has the ambition of serving his/her
country in the office of the
president, should have a fair mathematical
chance of doing so.
We cannot leave it to one individual to just
decree that there is no
vacancy in this office; this office should have a
vacancy after a set period
of time.
We hope for a constitution
that recognises the simple truth that,
"Power will intoxicate the best
hearts, as wine the strongest heads. No man
is wise enough or good enough to
be trusted with unlimited power."
To that end, power should be
decentralised. Constitutional bodies such
as parliament and the judiciary
must act as safety nets against dictatorial
tendencies and undemocratic
practices.
The president must have power, by and with the advice
and consent of
parliament (House of Assembly and Senate). This institution
needs to be
protected from any overtures from the executive.
The House of Assembly houses representatives of the people. Logically
then,
the president and entire executive should be answerable to this body.
We say
no to unlimited presidential powers.
Unlawful detentions,
beatings by the police, abductions by "unknown"
armed men, are all common
occurrences in Zimbabwe. Some of the latest
victims are Jestina Mukoko,
Broderick Takawira, and Pascal Gonzo (all of
Zimbabwe Peace
Project).
Why is it a crime to demonstrate peacefully, write an
article critical
of the president, strike for better wages,
etc?
Is there no Bill of Rights enshrined in the Constitution that
defends
these most basic of citizen's rights? If it's there, Zanu PF treats
it as
irrelevant and immaterial because to them the violation of our rights
is
payment of homage to them for freeing us from the shackles of
colonialism.
We look forward to a Constitution that promotes and
protects all human
rights with no exceptions. Let the people be educated on
the Bill of Rights
and not just on voting.
All state machinery
and resources must be used first and foremost to
defend the rights of every
citizen in a non-partisan, non-racial, and
non-sectarian
manner.
We are all too familiar with the story of the man who built
his house
on a foundation of sand -- when the rain poured down and the
rivers
overflowed and wind blew against that house, it fell.
Zanu PF now points an accusing finger at the West saying that all our
economic challenges are due to the "illegal" sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe
by Britain and its allies.
It is true that the sanctions have
caused tremendous suffering for the
ordinary man on the street. But these
sanctions where not in existence from
the start.
They came
about as a result of bad governance.
Tonderai Mthembu writes from
Bulawayo.
BY TONDERAI MTHEMBU
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March
2009 21:56
HAVING for long experienced governance that ignored
realities required
to assure a viable and growing economy and providing
substantive sustenance
for the population, almost all Zimbabweans were
increasingly convinced that
the devastated economy was beyond
redemption.
With rare exception, Zimbabweans subjected to intense
and increasing
poverty and hardships developed a conviction that not only
did government
have neither the will nor the ability to reverse the
gargantuan economic
ills, but that government had so grievously destroyed
the economy that a
virile, vigorous economy could never again come into
being.
Instead, almost all had such deep-seated perceptions of
perpetual
suffering with intense doom and gloom, pessimism and negativity.
This
developed to such a great extent that all uncorroborated rumours of bad
news
and further adversity were immediately accepted as fact, whilst if
there was
any good news, it was immediately dismissed as misplaced optimism
without
any foundation.
The tragedy was that in so doing, the
government-created economic
catastrophes were exacerbated and intensified,
for the absence of
businesses, investor and public confidence is the enemy
of economic
wellbeing, its maintenance and continuance.
Although inevitably the doubting Thomases are still an overwhelming
majority, some are now recognising that, at last, some real steps are being
taken towards reversing the eleven-year long economic
regression.
Admittedly, with over seven million Zimbabweans
struggling to survive
on incomes far below the Poverty Datum Line, over 90%
of the employable
population without formal sector employment, with the
educational, health
care, energy generation and supply and other essentials
of a national
infrastructure teetering on the precipices of total collapse,
all would wish
the real steps to recovery to be rapid and
extensive.
But, at least, after more than a decade of blatant
disregard for
economic necessities, some very important actions are finally,
very
belatedly, being taken.
The first small but nevertheless
important step was the coming into
being of the "inclusive
government".
Although that is a compromise, patchwork substitution
for that which
should be democratically created by the electorate in a
genuinely free and
fair determination, it is a small, tentative step towards
reestablishment of
democracy in Zimbabwe (and the president has already
acknowledged that
elections should be held before the end of
2010).
Of greater importance is that, subsequent to the creation of
the
inclusive government, there have been some significant policy
moves.
Of utmost importance is that Zimbabwe reconciles and
interacts
constructively with the international community, instead of
constantly
reviling it. It is therefore significant that the Short Term
Economic
Recovery Programme (Sterp), launched officially last week by
President
Robert Mugabe and extensively encompassed in the Budget Review
Statement of
Minister of Finance Tendai Biti last week "recognises that the
foundation
for a new Zimbabwe needs to address. the rule of law, crafting of
a new,
people-driven constitution, restoration of property rights,
restoration of
political legitimacy, freedom and liberties, opening up of
the media, as
well as the restoration and reintegration of Zimbabwe into
the community of
nations.
"Furthermore, it is trite that
without a well functioning economy,
democracy and human rights are
impossible and equally, without a well
functioning democracy, economic
development is impossible."
It is significant that Sterp is
promoted by the inclusive government
as a whole, as evidenced by the
president's launch thereof, and Minister
Biti's extensive positive
motivation of the programme in his Budget Review
Statement, for unless there
is governmental unity on the pursuit of the
programme it has no prospect of
success.
Of even greater significance is that President Mugabe, his
wife Grace,
vice-president Joice Mujuru and others of the Zanu PF hierarchy
have
suddenly vigorously called for a total cessation of political violence
and
of unauthorised farm evictions.
Similarly, it is intriguing
to note the extent that those that have
recurrently vilified the
international community have now not only desisted
from doing so, but also
are publicly pleading with that community for
support and assistance in
bringing about economic recovery.
In addition to some pronounced
changes to, or modifications of,
precious racially, tribally and
politically-driven policies, government is
taking some important actions to
enable economic recovery and development to
occur. Some of the most
important of such actions include:
lReduction of budgeted state
expenditure in 2009 by US$900 million,
and instead an intended pursuit of a
"what we gather is what we eat" policy;
lRemoval of mandatory
surrender of foreign currency obligations from
exporters and other foreign
currency generators, thereby contributing to
restoration of export and
business viability;
lIntentions of completion of the land audit,
followed by constructive
restructuring of the land reform programme,
inclusive of assurance of land
tenure security, so as to achieve real
recovery and growth in agricultural
production;
lBringing about
mining sector revival through various measures,
including actions "to ensure
that international commodity prices are levied
and received by mining
houses", concurrently with enhancement of the
framework for the marketing of
all minerals, and with a review of mining
sector taxation of royalty levels
"in line with international practices";
lRecognition that, for the
foreseeable future, the Zimbabwe dollar has
become moribund, it being a
currency that the public and trader will not
accept, and pursuant to that
recognition, the revocation of S.I.5 of 2009,
which prescribed duality of
currencies.
On March 20 the Minister of Energy Elias Mudzuri
announced a
substantial downward revision of the grossly-excessive tariffs
applied by
Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority, which were potentially of
major
prejudice to the viability of commerce, industry, mining and other
economic
sectors, and a source of extreme hardship for the populace in
general.
These are just some of many other recent measures which
the inclusive
government in general, and Minister Biti in particular, must
be commended
for, albeit that had Zimbabwe previously had good governance,
such measures
would not have been necessary.
Economic recovery
will inevitably be long and slow, but at least it is
now, at best,
commencing, and it can well be accelerated if international
support is
speedily forthcoming.
The first step to such support must be the
discontinuance of economic
sanctions, including the US's Zimbabwe Democracy
and Recovery Act, although
it may understandably be considered necessary to
continue, at this stage,
with sanctions targeted at specific
individuals.
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March 2009 22:01
THE Ministry of
Information will this weekend convene an
all-stakeholders' media conference
to guide government's media policy.
As we welcome this initiative
by the ministry, we should not lose
sight of the fact that government's
meddling in the media has resulted in a
crisis which the all-stakeholders'
conference now seeks to amend.
We have today media that has be
been sculpted to support narrow
political interests. The media-law regime in
Zimbabwe over the past 10 years
smacks of the depraved state intent to close
off the media space and to
punish dissent through statutory
regulation.
Colleagues in the government-controlled media have
lived a charmed
life in which they see the raft of egregious media laws on
our statutes as
weapons to fight opposition media.
But the
chickens are coming home to roost. Scribes at the Chronicle
were last week
victims of the Criminal Defamation Act, a colonial law used
and abused to
prevent legitimate criticism of those in the public spotlight.
The
paper condemned the arrest of their editor and reporter last week.
We join
them in this condemnation and we hope that the paper will also come
to the
party in pushing for media reform.
The conference at the weekend is
an opportunity for media
practitioners to begin the process of emptying the
tool kit of repression.
We have seen journalists who gleefully
carry the oppressor's toolbox
and celebrate the arrest and detention of
fellow reporters.
We have seen government prevailing on state
scribes to bar them from
participating in media projects designed to advance
press freedom. The
Voluntary Media Council of Zimbabwe is a case in
point.
As editors, we have differed with our colleagues in the
state media
over their perception of Aippa and other media laws which they
regard as
necessary.
I do not know if they all still do!
Resultantly there are two groups
representing editors. We have differed on
fundamental principles.
One of the thematic workshops at the conference
has a title framed:
How should Zimbabwe, if at all, regulate, accredit and
register media
practitioners and houses in the current and future
constitutional
dispensation?
Governments love statutory control
of the media. Failure by the media
to collectively oppose state control has
been tragic.
The formation of the GNU is optimistically seen as a
major step toward
undoing state excesses which have divided the country into
camps.
The divisions have also been apparent in the
media.
They have manifested in the reportage of our crisis. It is
apparent
that media in Zimbabwe have been fractured almost along the same
fault lines
as those dividing political protagonists.
The
reporting of conflict in Zimbabwe has resultantly been dominated
by hate
speech, intolerance of minority views and rights, and instances of
unethical
amplification of conflict.
The manner of reporting has been about
"us and them" as the media was
easily co-opted into political camps that
ventilate dogmas and propaganda.
Professionalism in the media has
been sacrificed on the altar of
political expediency as media organisations
have become extensions of
political entities.
In all this the
profile of the industry and that of the individual
journalists have become
blurred. The journalist has become a public
relations practitioner, a
political commissar for political forces and a
propagandist.
Stories published in printed and broadcast in the electronic media are
laced
with crude adjectives and innuendo to advance sectoral and political
causes.
There is hate speech in news and editorials as
journalists compete in
the quest for unprofessional conduct. The new unity
government's Joint
Monitoring and Implementation Committee - whose members
are drawn from all
key political parties - has recognised hate speech as a
major impediment to
national healing.
Local media monitors,
the Zimbabwe Media Monitoring Project, had this
to say about the hate speech
that characterised the election period in the
first half of 2008: "In
Zimbabwe hate speech has been a cause of much social
disharmony that needs
to be stopped by exposing it for what it is."
The Information
ministry has said it is playing a facilitator's role
at the conference. We
hope the ministry's role remains that.
Practitioners and
stakeholders should be allowed to decide on what
media Zimbabwe should
have.
Heavy-handed attempts by the state to regulate the media have
brought
us to where we are today.
Stakeholders at the conference
have an opportunity to demonstrate to
government that self-regulation works
and that they have the capacity to
achieve that.
The
stakeholders should also be on the look out for political attempts
by
government to come up with a transitional arrangement in media law reform
in
tandem with the interim state of the unity government.
We should
reject all attempts to have the media directed towards a
halfway house
between repression and freedom.
Zimbabwe is a country on the path
to change and it is therefore
incumbent on the media to augment the change
process by giving readers
information that is accurate, impartial and
responsible - as set out in the
global political agreement.
It
is appropriate at this stage to sharpen the profile of a journalist
and
remove all political baggage. That's good old journalism that only comes
when we go back to basics.
BY VINCENT KAHIYA
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March 2009
21:56
AT least 44 days have gone since the new government came
in.
The government has been trying with its feet on the ground to
reform
the situation but so far the more things appear to be changing the
more they
remain the same.
However, the jury is still out on
its performance, even though the
overall picture still remains rather
gloomy.
The first 100 days will be an early test for the unity
government's
policy initiatives and programmes.
Analysts and
critics will look at government's vision, remit, policy
framework and the
economic recovery programme.
They will assess how it would have
dealt with the social and economic
problems buffeting the
population.
They will review progress and the governing style,
take a close look
at the opportunities and challenges lying
ahead.
Credit will be given where it is due and criticism will also
come in
equal measure, if not more.
Finance minister Tendai
Biti last week reviewed the budget presented
in January.
He
slashed it to US$1 billion, from US$1,9 billion. The budget even by
regional
standards is negligible. It is less than Botswana's and even lower
than
South Africa's budget allocation for social grants.
It is a
pittance.
Biti said the government must learn to live within its means,
which is
a good economic principle.
However, in the process he
also indicated - albeit implicitly - that
he does not think the economy will
recover any time soon.
That's why he cut the budget by almost half,
showing he understands it
will take a great deal longer for the economy to
recover and for government
revenues to start picking up.
From a
fiscal policy point of view, Biti's skimpy cash budget did not
offer any
real economic incentives and stimulus. Fiscal policy measures are
often used
by governments to influence the level of aggregate demand in the
economy in
an effort to achieve economic objectives of price stability,
employment and
economic growth.
There was no room for manoeuvre for
Biti.
All the same, Biti has been trying hard to hit the ground
running. He
started off with the issue of paying civil servants in foreign
currency,
US$100 allowances, to persuade them to come back to work. It
worked, but
most of them are still complaining and threatening to stay
away.
This shows that it's a stopgap measure and not a
solution.
Apart from his budget proposals, Biti also came up with a
plan to
address the current economic crisis. It has been hectic for him ever
since
February 13.
The Short-Term Emergency Recovery Programme
(Sterp), which will cover
the period February to December 2009, is defined
as an emergency short term
stabilisation programme whose key goals are to
stabilise the macro and
micro-economy, recover the levels of savings,
investment and growth, and lay
the basis for a holistic economic
recovery.
Priorities of Sterp include political and governance
issues,
constitutional, legislative and media reforms, strengthening
government
accountability systems, promoting the rule of law, enhancing
availability of
food and humanitarian assistance, reviving education and
health, restoring
the value of the "dead" local currency and guaranteeing
its stability,
ensuring capacity utilisation in all sectors of the economy
and, hence,
creation of jobs, ensuring the supply of fuel, electricity,
water and
rehabilitation of collapsed infrastructure.
This is a
brilliant wish list. The real challenge for Biti and
government lies in
implementation. Delivery is going to be a different
proposition, especially
without resources.
Zimbabwe is hoping for a US$2 billion rescue
package from Sadc, but if
truth be told the money will be a drop in the
ocean even if it comes.
The US$5 billion needed to fund the
economic recovery plan is also
woefully inadequate even though it would be
difficult to find.
The situation is worsened by the US's extension
of sanctions and EU
reluctance to lift its own restrictive measures. Biti
and his colleagues
will have to redouble their efforts to pull this country
out of the doldrums
given the sea of troubles engulfing them. It won't be
easy.
There is a long way to go.
So far there is no
change in the state of the roads, schools,
hospitals, clinics, in the supply
of water, electricity and food
availability.
The situation will
almost certainly remain like this by the time the
first 100 days are up and
even beyond.
Continued farm invasions and disruption of production is
not helping
matters. Without the cessation of the land grabs and revival of
agriculture,
economic recovery will remain a pipe dream.
The
vandalisation of agriculture, the country's economic base, had a
ripple
effect across a swathe of the economy.
As a result, the economic
recovery plan must be anchored on the
resuscitation of agriculture. At the
moment the opposite is happening.
Attacks on the agriculture sector
have resurfaced with greater
intensity in some areas.
This
gives a hostage to fortune to the sceptics and critics, including
the US and
EU. Sanctions must go but surely the issues which led to their
imposition
must be addressed.
Why is it so difficult for this government to
restore democracy, the
rule of law, human rights, good governance, property
rights and such other
values which only dictators fear?
Let's wait and see how this government will address these issues.
Frankly,
it's not looking good so far!
BY DUMISANI MULEYA
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March 2009
21:52
READERS of the government press may be surprised to hear that
according to Foreign minister Simbarashe Mumbengegwi "we have never had
political prisoners in Zimbabwe and the three parties making up the
inclusive government have agreed that suspects go through the whole process
of the law through the courts".
While it is unlikely that the
visiting Norwegian delegation will have
swallowed whoppers of this size, the
ministerial claim does expose a
fundamental flaw in the unity-government
system.
While the two wings of the MDC may remain diplomatically
silent on the
issue of abductions, torture and defiance of court orders that
have become a
way of life since last year, civil society -- and the media in
particular --
has a duty to speak out.
Amidst the hullabaloo
over "illegal" sanctions that have become the
focus of the government's
public relations campaign we need reminding that
the circumstances in which
they were imposed have not changed radically.
They have certainly
not changed to the extent of meeting the
benchmarks set by the global
political agreement.
Zimbabweans continue to be arbitrarily
arrested and farmers harassed
on instructions from the Attorney-General's
office.
One farmer was arrested for filming a crash site which the
MDC had
asked him to do.
Three farmers in Ruwa were arrested
and held for more than two months
on the specious grounds that their
outward-bound centre was a militia
training base. Raids on their farms were
in fact inspired by a predatory
neighbour.
Jestina Mukoko and
others picked up last year at the same time still
face charges of sending
youths for training in Botswana even though Botswana
has invited the
Zimbabwean authorities to come and identify the bases where
this training is
alleged to have taken place.
Needless to say they haven't found
them.
Among the more egregious episodes this year has been the arrest
of a
magistrate who complied with a High Court order for the release of Roy
Bennett.
The Magistrates Association of Zimbabwe has expressed
its outrage at
the arrest and asked how magistrates can perform their duties
if the threat
of arrest hangs over them.
The visiting Norwegian
ministers would have been well aware of all
this. While Norway is not a
member of the European Union, it follows events
in Zimbabwe closely through
its embassy here.
Instead of pretending human rights abuses don't
happen, a ludicrous
claim in the circumstances, Mumbengegwi should have
simply pledged the new
government to uphold the rule of law.
The inability of either wing of the MDC to set the record straight
reflects
the fix it has got itself into. But that shouldn't prevent it from
stating
how important it is to have a professional and independent law
enforcement
system.
For its part parliament has made no effort to repeal the
Consequential
Provisions (Gazetted Land) Act which the AG is using as a
weapon to deprive
productive farmers of their livelihoods.
As
it is, Zimbabwe remains a lawless state. The MDC may have secured
the
release of a handful of political prisoners but it has not stopped the
arbitrary arrests or the occupation of farms which has disrupted production
and discouraged investment.
While President Mugabe may regard
the Windhoek Tribunal's ruling on
farm occupations as "nonsense", the rest
of the region regards the tribunal's
judgements as binding.
Why
did Zimbabwe law officers agree to abide by the tribunal's ruling
and then
see their government renege on that undertaking?
This goes to the
heart of the matter. The farm invasions are
manifestly damaging, both in
terms of output, inflation and the country's
reputation.
They
are seen as redolent of the ancien regime, representing
everything the new
government has pledged to change.
Yet the MDC can't stop them. And
it remains silent on the great issues
of the day in order to propitiate its
partners in government. Those
responsible for abductions and torture
continue to stalk the land with
impunity.
That is bad news for
Zimbabweans seeking a path out of the current
crisis.
This
needs to be put up in lights: No donor of any importance will
revoke
sanctions so long as the circumstances of their imposition remain.
That is because in part those countries have substantial
constituencies to
which governments are beholden.
Despite the state media's fatuous
attempts to paint Barack Obama as
racist, African American opinion would
never let him attempt to open a
dialogue with the Mugabe regime under the
present circumstances.
The state media can bleat all it wants for a
lifting of the "illegal"
sanctions, but nothing will change on that front so
long as people like
Mumbengegwi continue to be in denial about how we got
into this mess.
http://www.thezimbabweindependent.com
Thursday, 26 March 2009
21:41
IT was good to see President Robert Mugabe and his supporters
pledging
their commitment to the Short-term Emergency Recovery Programme
last
Thursday.
What we need now is to reform the public
media so the people have
access to a variety of views.
The Sunday
Mail has for instance been harbouring state propagandists
who think Morgan
Tsvangirai and his MDC ministers have a duty to fit in with
Zanu PF's
hidebound thinking.
One commentator last weekend argued that the
prime minister "should
continue to trim his political frame to fit the
straight (sic) jacket which
the service chiefs are guarding and should
continue guarding". He should
adopt their "values system", we were
told.
General Vitalis Zvinavashe was cited as a good example of
someone
upholding those values.
The writer appears unaware that
a straitjacket is not something to be
valued or commended. It is a symbol of
imposed conformity.
Why should Tsvangirai want to be confined to an
object that reflects
all that is rigid and totalitarian in our society?
Zimbabwe's freedoms were
won and then abused by many who today claim to be
their guardians. Which is
why a majority of voters rejected their
blandishments last March.
Zimbabweans overwhelmingly saw the MDC as
the party of reform and
recovery.
So those who want to see
Tsvangirai adhering to the state's
discredited "values system" are in for a
rude awakening. It ain't going to
happen!
And how can the
author in all seriousness lecture Tsvangirai on
national sovereignty in the
same week that Zimbabwe was forced to adopt the
rand as its reserve currency
because the post-liberation aristocracy have so
completely pillaged the
economy that our own currency has all but
disappeared?
By the
way, newspapers should where possible disclose the function of
those
contributing to their columns. Why did the Sunday Mail not tell us who
Malvern Makoena is?
Is the paper ashamed to have the author of
such pernicious views made
known to readers? Despite his self-indulgent
patriotism he has yet to
discover the year in which the Battle of Chinhoyi
was fought!
We had another self-indulgent patriot calling
himself "New African" on
the letters page of the Herald on
Monday.
His contribution was a virulent diatribe against UN
Secretary-General
Ban Ki-Moon for not lifting sanctions.
The
author also took a few pot shots at Barack Obama for failing to
help
Zimbabwe's "farms to flourish" and "clean waters flow".
We
suspect this was an opinion piece shunted across to the letters
column so it
couldn't be seen as reflecting the views of the "new-look"
Herald. A number
of old-guard reactionaries are taking refuge in the letters
column when once
they occupied more prominent space.
They are evidently in denial
about exactly who has prevented Zimbabwe's
farms from
flourishing!
And what exactly is Sunday Mail columnist Tafataona
Mahoso's function?
Here is another self-advertised patriot. He used
to call himself the
"executive chair" of the Media and Information
Commission when he was
whipping newspapers into line.
Now we
learn that outfit continued to exercise authority over
journalists long
after its functions had been abolished by new legislation.
And it never
provided for an "executive" chairman in the first place!
Amidst all
the recent tributes to the late Zvinavashe, we came across
this statement by
him which appears to have gone largely unnoticed.
"There is no
need to fight over these results," he reportedly said
after last year's
election. "We must accept the reality that we have lost
the elections to the
MDC.
What is important for us is to live together in peace, both
winners
and losers. We do not want violence in this area. We are
relatives.
"Most of us lost these elections not because we are
not popular in our
constituencies. We lost these elections because of one
man.
People rejected us because we were campaigning for him. People
in
Masvingo have rejected him and we became collateral damage."
The statement was first published by NewZimbabwe.com last year but we
are
grateful to the MMPZ for drawing it to our attention again.
Among
the US$1 billion the government said it urgently needs are a few
items of
particular interest. Firstly, we always wondered what happened to
the fuel
bill from Equatorial Guinea. Now it has arrived. It currently
stands at
US$222 million. That's the price of solidarity it seems!
And there
we were thinking the Fort Hare scholarships were a
reflection of
presidential bounty. We recall the lucky recipients lining up
at State House
where they were told to work hard.
Never did we think one day the
bill would arrive - and that it would
be taxpayers picking up the
tab!
Muckraker has always been a tad sceptical about the French
version of
the Commonwealth, La Francophonie.
French embassies
around the world were mobilised recently to generate
public interest in a
week of cultural activities.
The organisation includes countries
that use the French language or
"where a large part of the population speak
French", we were told. A list of
countries was provided.
But we
would take a lot of convincing that the following countries
have populations
that speak any French at all: the Czech Republic, Egypt,
Mozambique, Austria
and Romania.
How did they get to be included?
How many
French-speaking Mozambicans are there? Muckraker would be
happy to discuss
this with our French friends over a nice Chateauneuf du
Marondera (2009).
And we promise not to mention Madagascar.
At the same time the
Commonwealth should never have agreed to include
Mozambique and Cameroon in
their ranks.
At least Cameroon has a slither that is Anglophone.
All Mozambique can
claim is that they drive on the left!
Our
thanks to blogger Levi Mhaka for his mail headed "Serious Breach
of Protocol
at Heroes Acre". It contains useful information.
"On Saturday March
14 there was a burial of Retired Army Commander
Vitalis Zvinavashe at Heroes
Acre in Harare," he writes.
"During salutations by President Robert
Mugabe, he recognised Vice
Presidents, the Prime Minister, Deputy Prime
Ministers, Senate President,
and Speaker of Parliament.
He then
breached state protocol by officially recognising Zanu PF
National Chairman
John Nkomo and Zanu PF Secretary for Administration,
Didymus
Mutasa.
"He then mentioned the Chief Justice. Both of the two
Zanu PF men
recognised by their party positions are mere Ministers of
State.
They should not have been recognised at all. On placing
flowers at the
grave, the Zanu PF Chairman was called to do so ahead of the
Senate
President and Speaker of Parliament.
"The seating
arrangement in the VIP tent was such that the Zanu PF
National Chairman
(Nkomo) had a place reserved for him. Up to this day,
there is no record
anywhere of anyone raising (this matter).
"This is contrary to the
Preamble of the Global Political Agreement
(GPA) which (emphasises) our
shared commitment to re-orient our attitudes
towards respect for the
Constitution and all national laws, the rule of law,
observance of
Zimbabwe's national institutions, symbols and national
events."
"Article 8 further deals with the same
matter.
The burial of a national hero is a "national event" at a
"national
institution" under a "national law".
Therefore the
decision to confer national hero status should be done
by a non-partisan
body and the protocol to be observed should be
non-partisan.
The National Order of Precedence (NOP) should be formalised and
gazetted so
that it does not become subject to personal whims.
The problem is
the state protocol office is part of the Office of the
President and it has
people of "residual resistance", as the Prime Minister
Morgan Tsvangirai
called it on a different subject.
"Relatedly, even after the
coalition government, the Zanu PF politburo
meets on Wednesday during
working hours.
The Ministry of Youth has been an extension of the
Zanu PF Department
of Youth Affairs to access fiscal funds.
The
national bus company, Zupco, has been asked to provide transport
to Zanu PF
events without being paid.
The little that the company has received
came from the then Ministry
of Local Government, National Housing and Public
Works.
"The determination of heroes should now be done by the
creation of a
National Honours and Merit Awards Committee, while the
National Unity Day
when Zanu PF and PF Zapu merged into one political party
should either be
reformed so that it celebrates the unity of Zimbabweans as
a people or
scrapped as a national holiday.
"Every nation has a
system of recognising and rewarding the
outstanding feats and achievements
of its citizens. Such recognition and
reward place on record public
appreciation for the contributions of those
citizens who have distinguished
themselves in their services to the nation.
They are also
instruments for motivating the wider citizenry to strive
for greater heights
and to contribute more actively towards promoting the
nation's intellectual,
creative and societal value systems.
"All these matters were dealt
with by the Global Political Agreement
and put in Constitutional Amendment
No 19. There are so many other instances
that the Prime Minister should
immediately deal with. We are starting all
over as a new
nation."
www.levi-mhaka.blogspot.com
Did the visiting Norwegian team this week tell Simbarashe Mumbengegwi
that
Norway is a member of the EU?
The Herald on Wednesday was certainly
under that impression. (It isn't.)
And it would be useful to hear the
Norwegian team's reaction to Mumbengegwi's
ridiculous claim that "we have
never had political prisoners in Zimbabwe".
Did they buy that
attempt to kick sand in their eyes? We doubt it.
Over 70 Iranian
tourists arrived in Zimbabwe on Monday, the Business
Herald reported. They
will be joined by 90 others.
"In total 300 tourists from the Arab
country are expected to visit
Zimbabwe this month."
And will they
be impressed? Not if the Herald insists on describing
them as Arabs!