By Staff
Reporter Last updated: 05/31/2005 10:36:47 SW RADIO Africa which
broadcasts into Zimbabwe from London could be doing its last broadcast today
after it exhausted its budget trying to beat jamming devices used by the
Zimbabwe government.
The station which has been broadcasting on short
wave since 2001 was forced into doing multiple broadcasts on both short wave
and medium wave after President Robert Mugabe's regime bought sophisticated
Chinese equipment to target the SW Radio Africa signal.
The station
which recently won the 2005 Free Media Pioneer Award from the International
Press Instititute is headed by Gerry Jackson who started Capitol Radio in
Zimbabwe before its equipment was seized by police from the Meikles Hotel in
Harare.
Jackson left for the United Kingdom, immediately setting up SW
Radio Africa which has recruited top broadcast journalists from Zimbabwe
including Tichaona Sibanda, Violet Gonda, Lance Guma, John Matinde and
Tererayi Karimakwenda.
New Zimbabwe.com has been told the station
needs at least £100 000 every month to continue broadcasting, or just over
£1 million for a year.
"The biggest chunk of that money goes into paying
for transmitters," a source at the station said.
The Zimbabwe
government has publicly condemned the station, and has been revelling at the
prospect of it shutting down. Government officials see SW Radio's problems
as evidence of donor fatigue, but sources at the station say efforts aimed
at beating the jamming had eaten into its budget. TO LISTEN TO SW RADIO
AFRICA: http://www.swradioafrica.com
Zimbabwe sadly seems unable to extricate itself from
a set of disastrous economic policies that have reduced what was once an
African bread-basket to a country where millions of people do not get enough
to eat.
The latest folly is an announcement by Zanu-PF spokesman
Nathan Shamuyarira that the ruling party will soon amend the constitution to
abolish all private ownership rights to land and to nationalise all
productive farmland. This will virtually liquidate the rights of all private
landowners.
Shamuyarira correctly believes that such a
constitutional amendment to Zimbabwe's land tenure system will end
"ceaseless litigation" by white farmers who are still fighting to reverse
the illegal confiscation of their properties in the courts.
However, what he fails to realise is that it will also end any last
remaining beliefs in the ability of Zimbabwe law to protect the private
rights of its citizens.
This step also will take Zimbabwe down
a well-trodden road littered with failures. Private ownership of land is the
cornerstone on which many advanced economies were built. It provides society
with its best opportunity to build personal wealth among the people. Private
initiative and the freedom to own assets is fundamental to building an
economy.
The failures of former Eastern Bloc communist states
were testimony to the folly of stunting private ownership and initiative.
Zimbabwe has already seen a drastic reduction in its agricultural export
capacity as a result of its land policies and yet it continues to dig itself
deeper into a poverty hole.
It is not surprising that the
proposals have sparked a bitter rift within the Zimbabwean cabinet, with
several senior members saying it would have serious negative economic and
political implications for the country.
This suggests there are at
least still some sensible voices left in the cabinet, although they are
being drowned out by the sycophantic supporters of an increasingly
irrational 81-year-old president.
Last updated: 05/31/2005
10:35:22 ZIMBABWEANS joined the rest of the African continent in
commemorating the sub-planet's biggest day on 25th May. The event widely
known as Africa Day is celebrated annually in a historical deference to the
founding of the Organization of African Unity in 1963. The organization has
since then been replaced by the African Union, which now has the unenviable
task of carrying the torch for the continent's future.
Africa
Day is a time in life when we as Zimbabweans are normally expected to
remember our Africahood with euphoria and pride. Zimbabweans are anticipated
to proudly appreciate their rich history of overcoming the scourges of
racist slavery and colonialism. They are expected to celebrate their
independence and look forward to a prosperous future for the
nation.
Unfortunately for many Zimbabweans this was not to be. Most
of them celebrated Africa Day amid alarm and despondency. The day arrived
under the dark and heavy clouds of doubt and uncertainty about the nation's
future hopes. Many Zimbabweans were still trying to come to terms with the
ghastly implications of the recently held Parliamentary elections. The polls
had only worsened the plight of the nation's majorities by further
complicating the resolution process of the crisis in Zimbabwe.
As if suffering from the side-effects of an indecisive and contested
plebiscite was not enough, many Zimbabweans have now been ruthlessly exposed
to the side-effects of Zanu-PF's maladministration and crisis of
purpose.
The past month of May has witnessed some really
frightening levels of confusion on the part of the Robert Mugabe led regime.
The regime appears to be increasingly stranded and bereft of ideas about the
way forward for the nation. After stealing a third major poll in a row, the
regime seems clearly uncertain on what to do with its fraudulent
legitimacy.
It is no wonder why that while the nation's erstwhile
neighbours across the borders where busy celebrating Africa day in song and
dance, the situation was completely apposite in Zimbabwe. Zimbabweans spent
the greater part of the day reeling from the side-effects of the latest
confused government crackdown on their social livelihoods.
As
the most revered day in Africa dawned, most Zimbabweans were busy wondering
why a government that claims to be one of the most patriotic ones in the
sub-planet was busy unleashing a wave of unprecedented brutality on its own
people.
Surely how did the government of Zimbabwe expect its people
to take time to celebrate their hard won African identity, integrity and
sovereignty when there was utter anarchy and mayhem all over the country?
Indeed how could they join the rest of the continent amid sounds and blasts
of teargas guns and the military armoured vehicles strolling in their
neighbourhood? Surely as the morning of 25th May dawned, some parts of the
nation's urban areas resembled some parts of Iraq!
It is a very
sad indictment on the Mugabe regime that it decided to celebrate the 2005
Africa day by lowering the standards of hopes and expectations among its own
people. The regime decided to depart from its normal practice of ensuring
that its people celebrate their African pride with the rest of the continent
in style.
In the many years since 1980, the regime has ensured that
Africa day is celebrated through pomp and ceremony. I do remember the times
when Zimbabweans where treated to a soccer final featuring some of the
country's leading teams such as Highlanders, Dynamos and Caps United. I also
vividly recall that the day was also commemorated through song and dance
with leading musicians in the country such as Leonard Zhakata, Simon
Chimbetu, among others.
That was Zimbabwe then.
How the times have changed! How the situation has become so
different!
On 25th May this year, the regime decided to treat its
people to one of its most callously and brutal menus since the 1980s
genocide in Matebeleland-Midlands. The regime decided to unleash the
so-called 'Operation Restore Hope and 'Operation Marambatsvina' on its long
suffering people.
Surely how can the regime restore hope on its
despondent people by pulling down their homes, business stands, flea markets
and other so called illegal structures?
How can they talk of
the people's main source of livelihood as 'illegal structures'? Surely the
only illegal structures that really need urgent removals are imposed
authorities that have no popular legitimacy. The obviously illegal
structures are such impositions as the Sekai Makwavarara led Harare
Commission and the so-called Metropolitan Governors like David Karimanzira
and Cain Mathema.
The talk of illegal structures also evokes bitter
memories of the stolen elections results. Surely a presidency and parliament
that are derived from fraudulent polls certainly qualify to be called
'illegal structures'! They are thus the ones that are the real illegal
structures and need urgent removal into the dustbins of political
history.
Surely how dare they call this whole callous operation,
'murambatsvina'? Surely the only dirt that needs to be cleaned is the dead
wood that Zanu-PF has accumulated in the 25 years of its misrule! The only
dirty that need to be rejected and ejected is the culture of cronyism,
corruption and chicanery that has festered over the many years under the
regime.
As if it was not enough, the regime capped it all by the
revelations that the Mugabes (Robert and Grace) are planning to throw one of
the biggest wedding anniversary bashes in the wedding history of Zimbabwe.
Not content to see their people wallow in the mud of abject poverty, the
callous couple is reportedly hoping to display their luxurious best sometime
in August.
It is reported that this spending spree will gulp up to
R3 million in its budgetary wake. To imagine that this huge bill will be
fitted by the already heavily burdened Zimbabwean taxpayer! It is so
hardhearted for these heartthrobs to celebrate their romance at the expense
of their people.
I would like to warn the Mugabe couple that they
are busy planting their love roses in a garden full of thorns. The thorns of
their people's daily suffering will soon choke their marital bliss. Sooner
than later they might not have the privilege of holding their wedding
anniversaries at the people's expense. An angry tide will flow from the
broken hearts of the masses and spoil their romantic bash when they least
expect it. I repeat, sooner than later! CONTACT DANIEL BY E-MAIL:
danielmolokele@yahoo.co.uk
Daniel Molokele is a lawyer and a former student leader. He is currently
based in Johannesburg, South Africa. His column appears here every
Monday
THE MDC has dragged Chief Justice
Godfrey Chidyausiku to his own backyard, seeking an order to declare as
invalid the appointment of five Electoral Court judges, arguing that the
Judicial Service Commission was not consulted. The opposition party on
Friday filed papers in the Supreme Court through Harare lawyer Chris Mhike,
of Atherstone and Cook. The party is saying that Section 162 of the Electoral
Court used by the Chief Justice to appoint the judges was inconsistent with
Section 92 (1) of the Constitution. Section 162 of the Electoral Act
reads: "The Chief Justice shall, after consultation with the Judge
President, appoint one or more judges of the High Court to be Judge or
Judges, as the case may be, of the Electoral Court." In the Supreme Court
case, the MDC candidate for Goromonzi during the March parliamentary
elections, Claudious Marimo, and the MDC are first and second respondents,
while justice minister Patrick Chinamasa, Attorney-General Sobusa
Gula-Ndebele and Chidyausiku are the first, second and third
respondents. Marimo lost the election to finance minister Herbert
Murerwa, who is cited as the fourth respondent. Marimo and the MDC are
seeking a declaration that "the manner of appointment of judges to it as
provided in section 162 (1) of the Act be and is hereby declared to be
inconsistent with section 92 (1) of the constitution. All appointments
already made by the third respondent to the Electoral Court without first
consulting the Judicial Service Commission on that specific appointment are
accordingly declared invalid." Section 92 (1) of the constitution reads: "The
power to appoint persons to preside over a special court shall vest in the
President, after consultation with the Judicial Service Commission: Provided
that Parliament may provide that the Chief Justice may, after consulting the
Judicial Service Commission, appoint a person holding the office of judge of
the High Court to preside over a special court for such period as he may
specify." In his affidavit, Marimo said the Judicial Service Commission must
always be involved in the appointment of judges to avoid "unqualified or
political appointments". He added that presently all the judges were not
appointed in terms of the country's constitution and that the Electoral Law
"which was fast tracked through Parliament" must be amended to bring it into
conformity with the supreme law. "It can be seen from the above that if
we were to waive the requirements of section 92 (1) and ignore the problem
in these cases, we would open the doors to any kind of tribunal created by
the legislature being able to oust the jurisdiction of the courts
established in accordance with the constitution," said Marimo in his
affidavit. Chidyausiku appointed Justice Rita Makarau as head of the
Electoral Court, where Justices Antonia Guvava, Tendayi Uchena, Maphios
Cheda and Nicholas Ndou will help her. Cheda and Ndou are based in
Bulawayo. MDC secretary-general Welshman Ncube also filed supporting
affidavits, saying the opposition party stood by his claim and prayed for
the same order. The MDC, which garnered 41 seats against Zanu PF's 78, is
challenging the election in 16 constituencies won by Zanu PF. The
challenges are being heard in the Electoral Court. Chidyausiku and his
co-defendants were by yesterday yet to respond to the application.
THE police yesterday shut down
the sprawling Mupedzanhamho flea market in Mbare barely two days after stall
holders expressed confidence that the busy market, which is mostly
synonymous with selling traditional artefacts and regalia, would be spared
the current clampdown. They believed that since their wares were largely
traditional it would not invite the ire of the law enforcers who thought
otherwise. The police have since claimed that the bulk of illegal trading
manly in foreign currency was being conducted in flea markets throughout the
country hence the need to rid the cities of such activities. But by
mid-afternoon, scores of informal traders were milling and jostling around
the bustling flea market trying to get transport to ferry their wares under
the watchful eye of municipal and riot police. Besides Mupedzanhamo, a number
of buildings along Jo'burg lines and Mbare Musika Bus Terminus, were razed
to the ground. "Taomeserwa hanzvadzi, handizivi kuti tichararama sei (things
have been made difficult for us my brother, I don't how we are going to
survive," said Alice Nyevhe, who resides in Tafara, but trades in
Mbare. Another vendor, Brighton Chivasa said: "The market was constructed by
the council and we were paying rents every month. I do not know why they
have closed it down. A lot of families are going to suffer as a result of
this because other flea market operators where coming here to get their
orders even from as far as Chegutu, Kadoma and so on." At Mbare Musika,
business was low with huge clouds of smoke billowing from burning wooden
cabins. "I don't have anything else to do besides vending, so I will continue
doing so because my family will starve if I stop selling," said Sarudzai
Mbasera, who said she was a mother of four school going children.
THE current
shortage of sugar on the market has been triggered by the consistent
breakdowns and derailment of wagons of the National Railways of Zimbabwe
(NRZ) and fuel supply bottlenecks that have hit the transport sector, The
Business Mirror heard last week. Zimbabwe has in the past two months
experienced a critical shortage of basic commodities such as bread, salt,
milk, mealie meal and cooking oil. This has been largely blamed on
speculative dealers suffocating the market to influence price hikes through
hoarding. However, officials at the listed sugar production concern, ZSR last
week pointed out that while there had been massive incidences of hoarding
in recent months, one of the major problems facing the company in meeting
market demand was transport. "To transport our products from plants in
the Lowveld to Harare has been a mammoth task in recent months. In addition
there have been occasional derailments of NRZ wagons. "We also have been
hit by the current fuel shortages and on a number of occasions, Blue Star
Transport has failed to provide enough trucks due to the fuel shortages," an
official with Blue Star Transport said. Blue Star is a subsidiary of ZSR and
specialises in the transport business. ZSR chief executive officer (CEO)
Patison Sithole said apart from the fuel problems, the logistical company
had also suffered from depressed business due to several problems, among
them, the slide in agricultural production, which is also attributed to the
removal of white farmers from their farms. On sugar production, the company
said while there were challenges in the period ending March 31 2005,
performance has picked up in the current year. "We had a positive start to
the New Year, the challenge is to secure adequate stocks but like any other
business in Zimbabwe, we will be more aggressive on the regional
front. "ZSR is also looking at portfolio restructuring and we want to look at
existing businesses to see how we can grow," Sithole added. He however
stressed that the continuous price controls by the government were impacting
negatively on revenue streams and regular adjustments were necessary to keep
the company afloat. Sugar is among the basic commodities that were placed
under strict government controls. The government recently effected a 15
percent adjustment to the prices but Sithole said this was not enough in the
wake of the shooting production costs.
From
Netsai Kembo in Mutare issue date :2005-May-31
MORE than 50 furious
visually impaired people in Mutare last week hit back at the government
sanctioned clean-up operation to rid urban areas of illegal activities and
lawless by besieging the office of Manicaland Provincial Governor and
Resident Minister Tinaye Chigudu. They stormed the governor's precinct
protesting the confiscation of their wares by the police. The foot
stomping, singing and dancing protesters demanded an audience with Chigudu
to use his influential clout to seek "preferential treatment" from the
police to enable them sell their goods. But the uniformed forces would have
none of that and promptly dispersed the blind protesters. "We demand that
the police leave us selling our wares in the streets for that is our only
means of survival," Onias Mangatu, spokesperson for the visually impaired in
the eastern border city. "City wholesalers have been sympathetic enough by
allowing us to buy either a pack or carton of scarce basic commodities each
for resale and yet the police are trying to reverse that
opportunity. "This is total lack of sympathy for us and cruelty at its best
because we are trying to eke a genuine living." Mangatu explained that
vending was their only way of supplementing the meagre $60 000 monthly
subsistence allowance given by the social welfare department. Efforts to
get comment from Chigudu or Manicaland provincial administrator Fungai
Mbetsa, were in vain with their secretaries insisting the two officials were
"very busy" to respond to media questions. Police superintendent Kenny
Mtombeni confirmed that law enforcement agents were summoned to the
governor's office to disperse the irate protestors but declined further
details. As part of the ongoing national blitzkrieg on vegetable vendors,
flea-market traders, black-marketeers and traders outside designated areas,
Mutare police since last weekend netted hundreds of the law breakers and
confiscated goods worth millions of dollars. Police have warned they
would deal appropriately with anyone found on the wrong side of the law
regardless of creed, race, political affiliation and social status.
THE Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions
(ZCTU) has taken the Minister of Home Affairs Kembo Mohadi, a senior
detective and Police Commissioner Augustine Chihuri to the High Court over
recent searches conducted by the uniformed officers at its head offices in
Harare.
Mohadi, the Officer-in-Charge of the Criminal Investigations
Department (CID) and Chihuri, are cited in their official capacities as
first, second and third respondents in the urgent chamber application Case
Number 2401/05 dated May 24 2005. Police raided the Chester House offices
of the ZCTU some two weeks ago and searched for suspected shady deals. In
his certificate of urgency, ZCTU lawyer Andrew Makoni, stressed that the
police seizure of the labour body's property was unlawful. He also pointed
out that some of the confiscated property was not covered in the search
warrant. "The applicant needs the materials seized for their daily use.
The police also seized applicant's diskets, which provide essential back-up.
The material on the discs risk being lost or deteriorate in value if they
are not properly kept. The police also seized applicant's current cheque
books thereby paralysing its operations," said Makoni. The urgent chamber
application was also filed on grounds the search warrant was "couched in
vague and general terms" and therefore invalid. Apart from the fact that the
warrant did not specify the offence for which the search was carried out,
the lawyers also allege that the search itself was conducted
improperly. "Most of the documents seized did not relate to those listed in
the search warrant," Makoni argued, adding, "applicant's operations are
being hampered by the continued and unlawful withholding of its
property." In her founding affidavit, Tsitsi Mariwo, the applicant's legal
advisor, said the court application was meant to have the search warrant
issued by Chihuri declared null and void. "The Applicant is also making
an application for the release of all items seized by the police on the 13th
of May 2005," Mariwo said. According to Mariwo, facts were that on the date
in question and at around 1pm, members of the police CID fraud squad led by
Detective Inspector Mambambo descended on the applicant's premises located
in the 9th and 10th floors, Chester House, Harare. The police were armed
with a search warrant to scrutinize the ZCTU's bank statements and financial
records and any other documents relating to the labour body's
finances. Mariwo claimed she tried in vain to block the police from carrying
the search after they had produced a warrant that did not specify what
exactly they were looking for. "The search warrant did not disclose the
offence for which the police wanted to carry out the search. The relevant
portion of the search warrant was not completed. I also raised the issue
with the police concerning that aspect but I was not given any good reason
why this was not done. "Detective Inspector Mambambo and his lieutenants said
they knew what they were doing and were going to carry out the search
whether we liked it or not," claimed Mariwo. She said Mambambo only
mentioned in passing that they suspected applicant had committed fraud
against some of its affiliates without naming the said
affiliates. According to Mariwo, the police did not conduct the search
themselves but let four officials from the National Economic Conduct
Inspectorate (NECI) namely Bernard Savanhu, Mapanzure, Musiiwa and Ms Sango
do the brief. Apart from files and cheque books, Mariwo said the NECI
officials also recovered foreign currency. "The NECI personnel also came
across twenty seven United States of America dollars (US27), forty British
pounds (40 pounds), two thousand five hundred Zambian Kwachas (K2 500) and
one hundred and ten Euros (Euro 110)," she said. Savanhu allegedly took
the foreign currency, which Mariwo stressed did not belong to the ZCTU but
to one of its officers. Mariwo argued NECI personnel ransacked applicant's
offices and even ruffled through those outside the accounts department
offices confiscating whatever they wanted. Some of the things the police
grabbed were not covered by the search warrant.
ZIMBABWE's current
Constitution will be amended to allow for the re-establishment of the
Senate, President Robert Mugabe has reiterated.
Soon after the
announcement of the March 31 polls in which Zanu PF won 78 seats against the
MDC's 41, President Mugabe said one of the first things his party would do
was to amend the Constitution taking most of the leafs from the rejected
February 2000 Constitutional Referendum. The remaining seat went to an
independent. "Through the overwhelming mandate we got from the Zimbabwean
people, we must now proceed purposefully to effect those constitutional
changes which will allow for better management of national affairs,"
President Mugabe said while addressing an extraordinary session of the Zanu
PF central committee. President Mugabe said at independence in 1980, the
country's legislative arm had an Upper House or Senate and a lower House or
National Assembly, which were products of the Lancaster House
discussion. For quite some time, the country worked with both chambers until
it was felt that such an arrangement for a young nation emerging from a
colonial past was burdensome and protracted, and would be better served by a
faster law-making parliamentary process with one House. "We
accordingly abolished the Upper House and remained with only the National
Assembly, the arrangement we have had to this day. We now seek to
re-establish the Senate," the President said. He said there were other
areas of the Constitution relating to Land Acquisition and Land
Resettlement, the Electoral Supervisory Commission and the composition of
the Senate and mode of appointment or election of its members, which needed
to be amended as well. He said there was need to bring finality to the land
reform programme started in 2000. "In most cases we are not having that
finality because of the tactics or techniques being employed by the settler
farmer to delay the process. These amount to legal tactics when we have some
farmers appealing to the courts," he said. The President said the
constitution needed to be amended to accommodate the newly created Zimbabwe
Electoral Commission (ZEC). The ZEC was formed last year in terms of the
Southern African Development Community (Sadc) principles and guidelines
governing democratic elections in the region. Meanwhile, the President
said the government was working on a comprehensive plan to alleviate the
fuel and transport problems currently facing the country. "The situation
shows the need for us to bring into the country as fast as we can all those
buses we have secured," he said. He was referring to more than 300 buses that
the country has purchased from China. -New Ziana/Mirror
Reporter
ZIMBABWEANS will have to
make-do with power blackouts until the end of the winter season, Zesa
Holdings spokesman Obert Nyatanga has said. In a statement yesterday,
Nyatanga also said the power utility had been experiencing a "temporary
power shortfall since Thursday last week. "This is because we lost two
generators at Hwange Power Station (or 380 megawatts) due to the critical
shortage of spares for maintenance and overhauls. We are having temporary
supply interruptions throughout the country," he said. While promising
that the situation at Hwange would be back to normal by tomorrow, Nyatanga
acknowledged that with the onset of the winter peak period, demand for
electricity was outstripping supply. "We are, however, getting the maximum
imports we can get from the region, whose markets are also in their winter
peak. These temporary power supply interruptions are likely to be with us
throughout the winter period," he said.
Herald
Reporter A FIVE-member delegation comprising some leading figures in the
Chinese media industry yesterday paid a courtesy call on the Minister of
Information and Publicity, Cde Tichaona Jokonya, at his Munhumutapa
offices.
The head of the delegation and China Radio International's vice
president, Mrs Dongmei Wang, said they were in the country to seek areas of
co-operation for media institutions in the two countries.
To this
end, she said, her delegation had held talks with the management at New
Ziana and Zimpapers, which centred on the exchange of programmes and
products between the two media institutions and those in China.
Mrs
Wang said they had also visited the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Holdings (ZBH)
where discussions centred on the training of personnel, exchange of news and
the ongoing digitalisation at the State television.
"We are aware
that ZBH is undertaking a digitalisation programme, which we also went
through. We believe that we are in a position to help Zimbabwe in this
process," she said.
Mrs Wang said they also looked at the possibility of
distributing Chinese newspapers such as the Beijing Review and China Daily
in Zimbabwe.
Cde Jokonya said Zimbabwe was a very young country, which
was under siege from its former colonial master.
However, Zimbabwe
could draw on the experiences of China when it was also under siege during
the time it was classified as a Pariah state because of its position on
Taiwan.
He said Zimbabwe needed all the support it could get especially
in the area of information, which was crucial for development.
The
minister said cooperation between the media industries in Zimbabwe and China
was essential especially in portraying the situation in Zimbabwe to the
Chinese people and to the world.
He said the ministry was already looking
at ways in which it could co-operate with China for the development of the
country's media industries in various areas such as training.
"We are
aware that China produces a lot of things like digital cameras which are
thrown away and we believe that we could come to some kind of understanding
to help each other," he said.
The Chinese ambassador to Zimbabwe, Cde
Xianyi Zhang, who was accompanying the delegation reaffirmed his commitment
to work towards the development of relations in the media industries of the
two countries.
Cde Jokonya said he had tasked the Zimbabwean ambassador
to China, Cde Chris Mutsvangwa, to look into the issue, while his ministry
would follow-up on the media delegation's visit.
The same sentiments
were echoed by Cde Jokonya's deputy, Cde Bright Matonga, who said his
ministry was an action oriented one and would want to ensure that the
efforts being made to strengthen cooperation between the two countries'
media industries came to fruition.
Apart from Mrs Wang, other members of
the delegation are Mr Gangyi Wang, the Publisher of the Beijing Review, Mr
Huo Wang, the assistant editor-in-chief of the China Daily and Ms Lin
Chunxiang, the deputy director of Information in the State
Council.
The delegation, which was in the country since Thursday,
returned home yesterday.
Herald Reporter THE cash-strapped Harare City Council is
failing to pay about $10 billion owed to several private companies
contracted to collect refuse.
Council has been facing serious financial
problems that have seen it failing to pay contractors on time and meeting
its other obligations like paying its workers on time.
However, the
local authority has undertaken to settle the debt as part of its turnaround
strategy which seeks to change the fortunes of the local
authority.
Settling the debt, meeting other obligations and
transforming Harare into a world class city are among the things the
turnaround strategy seeks to address.
Harare town clerk Mr Nomutsa
Chideya confirmed that the council owed contractors the money.
"We
have been failing to pay contractors on time owing to the financial problems
we have been facing over the years but that is set to change owing to the
funds that we expect to get from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe.
"I don't
know off hand how much is owed but that is the position," said Mr
Chideya.
With the budget on new rates, tariffs and service charges
approved by Government, Mr Chideya said the local authority was in a
position to break even and provide efficient services.
In a related
matter, heaps of garbage have gone for days without being collected in
Mbare, Glen Norah, Kuwadzana, Glen View, Warren Park and
Highfield.
Residents have raised concern about the uncollected
litter.
"They have not come to collect refuse for some time and rats have
become a problem which we fear could lead to a disease outbreak," said Mr
John Kabaya of Mbare's Matapi flats.
However, the city council is set
to acquire 35 new trucks and 20 tractors for refuse collection.
'Increase entrance fees to Zim's tourist
attractions'
Herald Reporter DELEGATES attending the just-ended
African Wild Life Consultative Forum said Zimbabwe should increase entrance
fees to its array of fascinating tourist attractions because of their high
historical value.
The delegates were reacting to a US$20 they had paid to
view the breathtaking Victoria Falls and US$15 to see the wondrous Matobo
Hills, which they said was too little.
Most of the delegates said
while other countries charged more on less attractive places, Zimbabwe had a
more valuable and fascinating array of tourist destinations, which were
being undercharged.
They said huge foreign currency amounts could be
generated if the country charged the right amount.
"The most amazing
thing that cannot be found anywhere else in Africa is the naturalness of the
Victoria Falls and Matobo Hills, among many others. To imagine that we only
paid US$20 to see such a miracle breaks my heart," a Malawi conservationist
Mr Isaiah Chele said.
He said Victoria Falls is endowed with so much
mystery and the Government had done well not to tamper with the fauna and
flora species around it.
"It is of utmost importance for Zimbabwe to be
made aware that they are blessed with vast riches in the tourism sector that
only awaits to be tapped appropriately." The Victoria Falls has five 70 to
95 metre deep falls where more than two million gallons of water gush
through in a second.
Regional tourists pay up to US$10 while local
tourists pay $30 000 to view the falls.
At least 905 international
tourists have visited Zimbabwe to see the falls and other national parks
surrounding it.
Another Wildlife expert from South Africa said more than
US$20 is paid in other countries to view other cities like where former
presidents' homes were and the clothes they wore.
"I did not expect
to pay as little as US$20 because I have been to many places were I was made
to pay so much money but not happy with what I saw. Victoria Falls should
churn out more money to benefit communities that live around this place and
help in wildlife management," Mr Clement Hussein said.
Parks and Wildlife
Management Authority director Dr Morris Mtsambiwa yesterday said the tariffs
charged were regularly reviewed after some consultations.
"We make
various considerations which include the volume of tourists before we
review. Another section is, however, looking into the matter," Dr Mtsambiwa
said.