http://www.africareview.com
By KITSEPILE NYATHI in Harare |
Wednesday, March 27 2013 at 10:49
Major Western donors have
pledged to support Zimbabwe’s economic revival if
the country holds credible
elections later this year.
The Friends of Zimbabwe, a group made up of
the country’s major donors, held
ground breaking talks with Harare’s three
governing parties in London on
Tuesday where the pledge was made.
A
new constitution adopted on March 16 paves the way for presidential and
parliamentary elections in June or July, to end a power sharing government
between President Robert Mugabe and his main rival, Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai.
In a communiqué released after the talks, the donors
pledged to work with
anyone who wins a credible election.
“We will
continue to work closely with partners in the country, region and
wider
international community,” reads part of the communiqué.
“For our part, we
collectively stand ready to broaden, deepen and harmonise
our engagement and
support as the country moves further down the path of
democracy and respect
for human rights, with credible elections being a
crucial element in this
respect.”
The donors comprise Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria,
Canada, Czech
Republic, Denmark, the European Union, Finland, France,
Germany, Ireland,
Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain,
Sweden, Switzerland,
the UK and the US.
Vote rigging
Despite
sanctions imposed on President Mugabe and his inner circle in 2002
for
alleged electoral fraud, the donors have poured in $2.6 billion in aid
into
Zimbabwe since the formation of the coalition government in 2009.
“We
noted that aid from international donors, deployed in line with
Zimbabwean
priorities, has been instrumental in improving food security and
agriculture, in delivering of basic services such as health education, and
water sanitation, and in the strengthening of democratic processes,” Friends
of Zimbabwe said in the communiqué.
“We look forward to strengthening
our commercial ties with Zimbabwe to help
accelerate its path towards
prosperity.”
The peaceful referendum on the new constitution raised hopes
of a credible
election after the 2008 polls were marred by violence and
allegations of
vote rigging.
The EU responded by lifting a travel ban
and an asset freeze on 81
Zimbabweans officials and eight state-owned
companies.
However, President Mugabe’s family and eight security
commanders remained on
the list with the EU saying they still posed a threat
to a peaceful
election.
Australia, Canada and the US have their own
set of sanctions against the
veteran ruler and his allies.
The
Friends of Zimbabwe expressed concern about the renewed crackdown on
civil
society groups critical to President Mugabe.
They also pledged to review
the remaining sanctions if the country held a
credible election.
1. The Friends of Zimbabwe met in London on 26 March 2013, re-confirmingour governments’ continued strong commitment to the Zimbabweanpeople and support for a prosperous and democratic Zimbabwe.Underlining our desire for engagement based on partnership, we werepleased that representatives from the Zimbabwe Government of NationalUnity parties and regional representatives joined us.2. We welcomed and supported SADC’s lead role as guarantor of the GlobalPolitical Agreement. We also commended SADC’s continued efforts, inparticular those of the South African facilitation team, in encouragingZimbabwe’s political parties to work together for the full implementation ofnecessary reforms ahead of elections. The breakthrough leading to therecent constitutional referendum was testament to these efforts. Wereemphasised our commitment to support SADC in their efforts to facilitatethe GPA and the roadmap for elections.3. In our discussions, we strongly welcomed progress on the new constitutionand the referendum that was held on 16 March. We looked forward to theimplementation of the remaining democratic reforms in the GPA and roadmap,and recognised the work of the Joint Monitoring and ImplementationCommittee (JOMIC) in supporting this. We welcomed calls by Zimbabwe’spolitical leaders for peace and non-violence and the statements by partyleaders that Zimbabweans should be able to choose their own governmentin free and fair elections, and to be able to vote without fear orintimidation. We look to all Zimbabweans, including state institutions andthe security sector, to heed these calls. We expressed concern aboutcurrent harassment of civil society and reports of political violence andstrongly urged that such incidents should cease. We stressed theimportance of a vibrant civil society to Zimbabwe’s development.4. We welcomed the effective SADC observation of the constitutionalreferendum and SADC’s stated intention to observe the elections,consistent with the SADC Guidelines. We discussed the importance oflong term SADC observers covering the period in the run-up to, during andafter elections. A wide range of international observers would contribute tobuilding confidence and help enhance the credibility of the poll and thestrength of the government elected.5. We took note of views from all representatives from the Government ofNational Unity including on; the importance of full implementation of theGPA, the facilitation role played by SADC, their request for a lifting ofinternational sanctions, peaceful free and fair elections, and respect for therule of law.6. In our discussions, we reaffirmed the commitment of our governments towork with any government emerging from free and fair elections, which arecredible, peaceful and transparent. Where relevant, we confirmed ourgovernments’ plans to review their targeted measures following suchelections.7. Since the inception of the Government of National Unity the internationalcommunity has increasingly shifted its support from humanitarian aidtowards transitional and longer term development assistance. Over thisperiod, our transitional development support has amounted to aroundUS$2.6 billion. We noted that aid from international donors, deployed inline with Zimbabwean priorities, has been instrumental in improving foodsecurity and agriculture, in delivering of basic services such as health,education, and water and sanitation, and in the strengthening ofdemocratic processes.8. We acknowledged the good work being done by the GNU to stabilise theeconomy and welcome the ongoing engagement and support of themultilateral agencies and international financial institutions. Werecognised the importance of Zimbabwe tackling its external debts. Westand ready to support the GNU to discuss this further with the IMF, andwelcomed progress by the GNU and IMF towards a Staff MonitoredProgramme.9. We stressed that transparency and integrity in economic and financialgovernance and extractive industry management are essential to combatpoverty and corruption, and contribute to inclusive economic growth. It iscritical that Zimbabwe’s natural resources are utilised for the benefit of allZimbabweans and that ownership and revenues from mineral extractionare fully transparent and accountable. We look forward to strengtheningour commercial ties with Zimbabwe to help accelerate its path towardsprosperity.10. We will continue to work closely with partners in the country, region andwider international community. For our part, we collectively stand ready tobroaden, deepen and harmonise our engagement and support as thecountry moves further down the path of democracy and respect for humanrights, with credible elections being a crucial element in this respect. Thiswould create the conditions for Zimbabwe to develop its natural potential,attract foreign investment and move beyond the need for internationaldevelopment assistance.11. We look forward to continuing to engage constructively with the GNU andthe region in order to support the Zimbabwean people in achieving apeaceful, prosperous and democratic future.
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Violet Gonda
27 March
2013
ZANU PF lead negotiator and Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa
received no
response from the British authorities when he brought up the
issue of
shutting down the London based SW Radio Africa.
Chinamasa,
in London for the first time since being placed on an European
Union travel
ban more than a decade ago, was part of the Zimbabwe government’s
re-engagement committee that met western representatives and major
development partners calling themselves ‘Friends of Zimbabwe’ on
Tuesday.
Prior to the meeting the minister had said he would use it as an
opportunity
to demand that all sanctions be lifted unconditionally and ask
for Britain’s
help to shut down SW Radio Africa, which together with Voice
of America’s
Studio 7 has been forced to broadcast from exile because of the
strict media
restrictions in Zimbabwe.
MDC lead negotiator Priscilla
Misihairabwi-Mushonga, who was at the meeting,
confirmed that Chinamasa
raised the issue of what he called pirate radio
stations and that he asked
why SW Radio Africa was being hosted by the
British government.
She
said the MDC formations, including the MDC-T’s Elton Mangoma, didn’t
support
Chinamasa because they have told ZANU PF that the external
broadcasters have
been forced to report from outside Zimbabwe because of the
lack of media
space in the country.
Referring to the two new FM radio stations in
Zimbabwe, the MDC minister
said the media reforms that have been implemented
in Zimbabwe were awarded
to people who are pro-ZANU PF “so that they can
perpetuate the system.”
She said the outside broadcasters are an
important alternative voice to
counter the “hate messages” Zimbabweans are
subjected to on a regular basis
by state controlled media. “So we refused to
engage in that because he knows
what our position has always
been.”
Asked what the reaction of the British authorities was,
Misihairabwi-Mushonga said: “No one responded to him.”
We were not
able to reach the Justice Minister for comment.
Meanwhile, in a
communiqué issued by the Friends of Zimbabwe late Tuesday,
the group, which
includes countries that have imposed sanctions on members
of ZANU PF,
reaffirmed they would work with any government emerging from
free and fair
elections.
Observers say this is a significant development, showing
western countries
are now prepared to work with President Robert Mugabe, if
he wins in
“credible, peaceful and transparent” polls
.
Misihairabwi-Mushonga said this is significant only in the sense that
the
international community has now realized that the discussion on Zimbabwe
has
to go beyond Mugabe, that it needs to be about setting a new value
system,
with or without the 89 year old leader.
“We raised the point
that if they are going to be seen as a people who are
engaging Zimbabweans
then they have to relook at the message sent by those
sanctions.
The
MDC formations accuse ZANU PF of using the sanctions issue to derail
progress, while ZANU PF blames the economic collapse on the restrictions
imposed by the western countries.
The MDC minister said the meeting
was also symbolic because, for the first
time, the Friends of Zimbabwe
decided to include the Southern African
Development Community, the
guarantors of the Zimbabwe Global Political
Agreement (GPA).
“This
represents a major shift in the manner in which the international
community
would want to engage on the issue of Zimbabwe.”
It was also symbolic
because the meeting was held in the United Kingdom,
which has had a thorny
relation with the Zimbabwe government.
Misihairabwi-Mushonga said this
represents a shift in diplomacy and in the
way the British now want to
engage with Zimbabwe.
Asked if ZANU PF has also changed its hard stance
since the international
community seems to be changing,
Misihairabwi-Mushonga said there is a
section in Mugabe’s party who want the
sanctions to remain and to stay
because it gives them relevance – and so
they can use this as an excuse to
beat up people and deliberately not
implement reforms.
She said the next step now after the successful
constitutional referendum is
for the partners in the inclusive government to
go back to the election
roadmap and finalise the disputed issue of election
dates, and implement
fundamental reforms, which include dealing with a
partisan security sector.
The Friends of Zimbabwe expressed concern about
current harassment of civil
society and reports of political violence in the
country.
Misihairabwi-Mushonga insists the MDC formations and SADC will
not allow
elections to take place without the fundamental reforms agreed by
all the
political parties in the GPA, to ensure that there will not be a
repeat of
the violent and disputed 2008 elections.
The full interview
with Priscilla Misihairabwi-Mushonga can be heard on
Easter Monday.
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Alex Bell
27 March
2013
The crackdown against the Anti Corruption Commission (ZACC)
continued this
week with the arrest of yet another official, and the refusal
by the police
to release the organisation’s CEO.
ZACC’s Emmanuel
Chimwanda was picked up by police on Tuesday and kept
overnight at Harare
Central Police Station. Police national spokesperson,
Charity Charamba,
confirmed the arrest, saying Chimwanda was picked up for
questioning and was
set to be released after signing a warned and cautioned
statement.
“He was picked up by police in connection with
impersonation. They will
record a warned and cautioned statement from him
and he will be released,”
Charamba said.
The anti-graft body’s chief,
Ngonidzashe Gumbo, meanwhile remains in police
detention after the state
appealed his release on bail. He was granted bail
on Monday after his arrest
last week, but now faces detention until April.
This onslaught against
the group has come in the wake of attempts to launch
corruption
investigations into key parastatals, as well as the alleged abuse
of
community development funds. Among the parastatals that the ZACC has been
trying to investigate are the Zimbabwe Mining and Development Corporation
(linked to Mines Minister Obert Mpofu), and the National Empowerment Board
(linked to Indigenisation Minister Saviour Kasukuwere).
The
principals in the inclusive government meanwhile resolved this week that
the
crackdown on the commission must be stopped.
Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai’s spokesperson Luke Tamborinyoka confirmed
the Principals meeting
with the NewsDay newspaper and said there was
agreement on the commission’s
operations.
“The principals agreed that the commission must be allowed to
do its work.
It’s an independent commission and must not be interfered with
so as to
enable the execution of its constitutional mandate,” Tamborinyoka
said.
http://www.dailynews.co.zw
Wednesday, 27 March 2013
11:48
Indigenisation minister Saviour Kasukuwere has signed several
multi-million
dollar empowerment deals.
HARARE - Some Zanu PF Members of
Parliament have come out guns blazing
demanding answers on how the
indigenisation programme was implemented, as
the Nieebgate Scandal exposed
by the Daily News rages on.
Legislators from the Mines and Energy
portfolio committee, drawn from Zanu
PF and the MDC formations, have been
attending a three-day workshop in the
resort town of Vumba — and yesterday
questioned the implementation of the
programme saying there were some
anomalies.
Last month, the Daily News exposed apparent flaws in the $971
million
Zimplats deal — touted as the biggest empowerment deal since
independence in
1980.
Other indigenisation deals for top-earning
companies have also since been
questioned, triggering a public indignation
that also saw corruption
sniffers from the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption
Commission trying to pounce on
the National Indigenisation and Economic
Empowerment Board (Nieeb).
Ironically a local company, Brainworks
Capital, was consultant in the seven
deals involved that have caused a
furore in government.
The portfolio committee argues that Nieeb should
have consulted with all
tiers including Parliament before rushing to sign
the controversial deals
which would have seen government losing out to
foreign companies had the
Daily News not exposed the scam.
The
committee has already indicated that it plans to summon Indigenisation
and
Empowerment minister Savior Kasukuwere when Parliament resumes sitting
next
month to explain the scandal.
Signalling a potentially explosive showdown
between the Executive and the
Legislature when Parliament resumes sitting —
Zanu PF legislator Simbaneuta
Mudarikwa questioned why Kasukuwere forged
ahead with a programme that is
designed to empower the broad masses without
consulting parliamentarians.
“The MPs are not involved in the
implementation of the community share
ownership schemes and why is this
happening?” queried Mudarikwa, who said
the fact that they were side-lined
contributed to the near-collapse of the
programme.
Chairperson of the
committee, Edward Chindori-Chininga a Zanu PF MP, warned
that if the
programme is not carefully implemented, Zimbabwe will slide the
Zambian way
and eventually abandon the policy.
“Zambia had a policy called
Zambianisation and it failed because it was not
properly
implemented.
“In Zimbabwe, we are going to face the same problem because
if President
Mugabe wins the next election, a new minister may come in and
change the
whole policy,” he said.
Chindori-Chininga also told the
Daily News recently that Parliament will
“always carry out our
responsibilities as mandated by laws of Zimbabwe
without due
influence”.
He has in the past told the Daily News that no amount of
intimidation will
derail the body from carrying out its constitutional
mandate of getting to
the bottom of the matter and any other issues that
will arise.
Michael Fungati, a director in the troubled ministry, told
parliamentarians
the decision to circumvent Parliament was a deliberate move
to avoid
politicisation of the programme.
“We needed institutions
which are impartial like chiefs and rural district
officers. (These
institutions) are going to be there forever but
parliamentarians will come
and go,” said Fungati.
But legislators rejected Fungati’s defence,
setting the stage for a
potentially-explosive encounter with Kasukuwere who
has already been
adjudged to be off-side by Mugabe on the issue.
Vice
President Joice Mujuru has also torn into the mass empowerment
programme
saying it should not be abused to benefit a few individuals.
Pressed by
lawmakers, Fungati who was representing the Indigenisation
ministry,
admitted that his ministry had made some mistakes.
“We admit we made some
mistakes and we are trying to correct them. So we
have put some proposals to
the Attorney General’s office to review the Act.
We are going to make more
consultation in the mining sector so that we
correct everything,” said
Fungati.
MDC MP Pearson Mungofa said: “Yes, we grilled him (Fungati) but
he was not
giving satisfactory answers.
“I wanted him to clarify
certain things in the deals, but he could not give
answers,” said Mungofa
who said MPs from both Zanu PF and the two MDC
formations are prepared to
take Kasukuwere to task over implementation of
the programme. - Chengetai
Zvauya and Fungi Kwaramba
http://www.swradioafrica.com/
By Nomalanga Moyo
27 March
2013
The High Court on Wednesday granted bail to Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai’s
four aides, who are facing allegations of ‘impersonating a
police officer’.
Defence lawyers approached the High Court appealing a
20th March ruling by a
magistrate, who refused to bail the four on the
grounds that they were a
flight risk.
Justice Chinembiri Bhunu
overturned Magistrate Marehwanazvo Gofa’s ruling,
and agreed with the
defence team that Gofa had erred in reaching that
decision.
Bhunu
took over from Judge Joseph Musakwa, who recused himself from the case
Tuesday, to avoid a conflict of interest as he said he once worked with
three of the accused at the attorney-general’s office.
Thabani Mpofu,
Warship Dumba, Felix Matsinde and Mehluli Tshuma –who are
part of
Tsvangirai’s research team – were arrested on March 17th as part of
a raid
on the Prime Minister’s office.
The four are accused of breaching
official secrets laws and compiling
corruption dossiers against government
officials, including police chief
Augustine Chihuri.
Welcoming
Justice Bhunu’s ruling, defence lawyer Chris Mhike said: “The
judge noted
that magistrate Gofa did not follow standard guidelines
pertaining to bail
applications and that if she had, she wouldn’t have
arrived at the decision
she did.
“The judge therefore set aside the magistrate’s judgement. This
means that
the four accused persons can now go home on bail until the state
has
finalised its case.”
As part of their bail conditions, the four
co-accused were ordered to pay a
deposit of $500 each and told not to
interfere with state witnesses and
investigations. They were also ordered to
surrender their passports and to
report to the police once a week, on
Fridays.
But while the rest of the co-accused will be relieved to be
going home after
spending 11 days in remand prison, Mpofu will be preparing
for a court
appearance on Thursday at the Rotten Row Magistrates’
Court.
Mpofu, a former prosecutor, is facing an additional separate
charge of
possessing a gun without a licence and not securing it
properly.
Mpofu’s lawyer Mhike, told SW Radio Africa that his client was
scheduled to
appear at the courts Wednesday but the trial had to be
postponed to allow
Mpofu to attend the High Court bail
appeal.
However, the lawyer said it was doubtful that the trial will
commence as
scheduled, owing partly to the Easter break that starts
Thursday.
“Thursday is half-day at the Rotten Row Magistrates’ Courts and
I doubt that
the court will have enough time to hear the matter, and also
considering
that the courts are already congested with other
cases.
“There is also the challenge that as the defence team we have not
had an
opportunity to interview our client and prepare for trial because of
the
other case,” Mhike added.
http://nehandaradio.com
on March 27, 2013 at 1:42
pm
By Itai Mushekwe
Iran’s ostracized leader Mahmoud
Ahmadinejad has upped the ante in relations
with Zimbabwe with reports that
Tehran is involved in a massive cyber
training exercise of hundreds of
Zimbabwe’s intelligence and military
operatives Nehanda Radio has
gathered.
The move ahead of presidential and parliamentary elections
expected in less
than three months, has sparked fears of a crackdown against
Zanu PF
opponents.
The two nations it would seem are now
consolidating their anti-western world
foreign policy, amid remarks by
Iran’s defence minister, Brigadier General
Ahmad Vahidi while meeting his
counterpart defence minister, Emmerson
Mnangagwa last April in Tehran that
the Islamic republic:
“Will help strengthen their military so that they
are able to protect their
land and culture, especially so they are prepared
against the pressures and
threats from Western countries.”
Senior
security service officials in a wide-range of briefings to us have
confirmed
that the cyber training program began in earnest in 2007, and had
now
reached it’s crescendo.
“The country’s then national security minister,
Didymus Mutasa was
instrumental in establishing the cyber training
programme, with assistance
from various Iranian intelligence organizations
under the auspices of that
country’s ministry of intelligence and national
security,” said an official
working with the state security ministry in
Harare.
“Mutasa visited Iran in March 2010 where he was signing a uranium
for oil
deal, and took the occassion to monitor the programme he had
commissioned.
Groups of armed forces and Central Intelligence Organisation
(CIO) personnel
are undergoing intensive cyber training, which includes
technological
warfare techniques, counter-intelligence and methods of
suppressing popular
revolts among others, every six months.”
Mugabe
is determined in his bid of holding onto power, to use rogue cyber
assaults
to perform complex eavesdropping and hacking techniques against
perceived
government opponents, including his own ministers and Zanu PF
officials
suspected of sympathising with the MDC and western diplomats, the
officials
said.
Tehran has developed one of the world’s most sophisticated
mechanisms for
controlling and censoring the internet, enabling the regime
to examine the
content of individual online communications at a grand scale,
after courting
the assistance of some European telecommunications companies
in developing
its monitoring capabilities.
Some of the companies,
which include German conglomerate Siemens AG, and
Finnish mobile phone
manufacturer, Nokia Corporation came under fire
recently for doing business
with Iran which has been slapped with financial
sanctions by the EU over its
controversial nuclear programme.
Now there is growing panic that: “Harare
has already negotiated with Tehran
to provide it with similar
telecommunications technology it has developed,
for internal use at home,”
another source said.
A secretive intelligence arm, the Military
Intelligence Unit (MIU) will be
charged with the responsibility to monitor
and tap into the communications
of opposition figures, civil societies and
journalists perceived to be “a
security threat through their
work”.
Our informants believe the little known MIU is as dreaded as the
Central
Intelligence Organisation (CIO), the only difference being that the
former
is an apparatus operating under the defence ministry’s covert
operations,
reporting to the defence minister who in turn passes and
coordinates
intelligence with the army commander and
president.
Through a technique called “deep packet inspection”, Iran’s
sophisticated
mechanisms of controlling the internet enables government
authorities to not
only block communication but to monitor it, to gather
information about
individuals, as well as alter it for propaganda purposes,
which is a dream
come true for Mugabe’s egregious security law, The
Interception of
Communications Act passed in 2007 to allow government to
wiretape all
communications of the populace, without their consent or
notification.
The law empowers the chief of defense intelligence, the
director-general of
the CJO, the commissioner of police and the commissioner
general of the
Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA) to intercept telephonic,
e-mail and
cellphone messages.
This piece of legislation also
empowers state security agencies to open mail
passing through the post and
through licensed courier service providers.
Apart from the covert cyber
training, Iran announced in February 2010
through its ambassador to
Zimbabwe, Rasoul Momeni, the construction of an
airbase in the country that
will be used to train local helicopter pilots,
technicians, make possible
supplies of new aircrafts, together with
assistance in maintenance and
repairs.
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Tichaona Sibanda
27 March
2013
Major-General Douglas Nyikayaramba, the top army commander who
infamously
proclaimed two years ago that the army would die to make sure
Robert Mugabe
remains in power, wants to contest the parliamentary elections
for ZANU PF
in Uzumba, Mashonaland East province.
Nyikayaramba, the
only serving soldier who is not a service chief but still
on the EU
sanctions list, has been seen around Uzumba campaigning wearing
military
fatigues. A source told SW Radio Africa that Nyikayaramba, who has
also
declared that Mugabe will only leave office when he dies, is
challenging the
sitting ZANU PF MP, Simba Mudarikwa.
Mudarikwa is reportedly linked to
Vice-President Joice Mujuru’s faction
while Nyikayaramba belongs to Defence
Minister Emmerson Mnangagwa’s camp.
Nyikayaramba has been de-campaigning
Mudarikwa, using contents from a leaked
US diplomatic cable detailing the
ZANU PF MP’s meeting with Charles Ray, the
former US ambassador to
Zimbabwe.
Mudarikwa is quoted in the leaked cable telling Ray new
leadership was
essential in ZANU PF and would emerge when some of the
old-timers, including
President Mugabe, left the scene. The cable,
dispatched to Washington on
February 10 2010, said Mudarikwa offered his
observations on various topics,
including the state of ZANU PF,
indigenization and elections.
Mudarikwa said that Mujuru or Simon Khaya
Moyo, former ambassador to South
Africa and now ZANU PF national chairman,
were possible successors, although
Mujuru’s fear of President Mugabe was
affecting her ability to lead.
It is believed Nyikayaramba’s campaign
strategy borders around the leaked
cable, briefing people who attend his
meetings that Mudarikwa was not a
trusted cadre. But the soldier’s fight to
dethrone Mudarikwa may be
curtailed by new regulations governing primary
elections being mulled over
by ZANU PF.
Our source said ZANU PF is
considering adopting a very controversial rule
that only allows party
officials who hold positions in the provincial
executives, the central
committee and the politburo to contest party
primaries.
http://www.newzimbabwe.com
27/03/2013 00:00:00
by Staff
Reporter
MDC-T secretary general Tendai Biti has vowed to risk arrest at
the next
general elections by announcing results from the party’s own
parallel vote
tabulation process.
Speaking Tuesday at a public
meeting in Harare which also included MDC and
Zanu PF panellists, Biti said:
“I know there are CIOs here; prepare to
arrest us.
“Even though the
new Electoral Act now says no one, except the Zimbabwe
Electoral Commission
(ZEC), should announce election results, l want
guarantee you that l am not
going to announce the election results but l am
going to announce our own
because l (won't be) breaking any law.”
Zimbabwe will, this year, hold
fresh elections to replace the coalition
government although the GPA parties
remain miles apart over the timing of
the new polls.
Biti was
arrested and charged with treason for announcing the results of the
2008
elections before the state electoral agency had released its own
tallies.
The charges were later thrown out by the courts.
The top MDC-T official
said he had only overcome a “strong temptation” to
announce the MDC-T’s own
tabulation of results from the recent
Constitutional referendum out of
“respect” for newly appointed ZEC
chairperson, Justice Rita
Makarau.
He however, said there was a significant variance between ZEC’s
referendum
numbers and those compiled by his own party and suggested
elements in the
election agency may have massaged the plebiscite outcome in
preparation for
the forthcoming elections.
“The number of people who
voted in certain provinces is more than the total
number of people that the
census said there are in these constituencies and
the provinces are
Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South, Midlands, Masvingo
and Mashonaland
East,” he said.
“It means that there were great inaccuracies in the
census or it means that
certain people are cooking numbers in preparation of
the general election.”
The election agency was reconstituted as part of a
raft of reforms expected
to help ensure credible elections in the
country.
But Biti said although his party had no problems with ZEC’s
commissioners
the organisation’s secretariat needed to be revamped before
the new
elections.
“I have no problem with the commissioners,” he
said.
“But the ZEC staff has to be dealt with. We know that they were having
meetings with JOC (Joint Operations Command), we know that they were an
extension of the security apparatus of this country. We can’t go to an
election (with the) current ZEC staff.”
Biti also repeated claims
senior MDC-T officials had been targeted for
assassination before the
polls.
“They (Zanu PF) are targeting the real centres of the
pro-democracy movement
and it’s going to come to our party,” he said.
“We
have evidence of people that are being trained in Israel for
assassination
attempts…so l wouldn’t be surprised if there are strategic
assassinations in
the movement.”
The allegations – first made by Biti at a party rally in
February were
however dismissed as “pathetic lies” by Zanu PF.
“These
(allegations) are manufactured lies and they are only meant to win
the
hearts of (the MDC-T’s) sponsors,” Zanu PF spokesman Rugare Gumbo
said.
“We are not even moved by their lies and what they should know is
that we
are not going to eliminate anyone from the race that way. We will
eliminate
them democratically.
“It is (however) disturbing to note
that towards elections, when we have
agreed that we are going to create a
conducive environment for free and fair
elections, the MDC- T is still
orchestrating plans to discredit other
political parties in the race.”
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Tichaona
Sibanda
27 March 2013
Doubts have been raised that ZANU PF will cruise
to a landslide victory
against the MDC-T in the forthcoming harmonized
elections, as suggested by
some analysts.
Pedzisai Ruhanya, a
director for the Zimbabwe Democracy Institute, said it
is foolhardy for
analysts to predict a victory for any particular political
party, based on
the voting patterns of the just ended referendum.
Speaking on SW Radio
Africa’ s Hidden Story program on Wednesday, Ruhanya
said the next election
will be won based on what the parties will be able to
offer to
Zimbabweans.
‘First of all I beg to differ with assumptions that ZANU PF
will win the
forthcoming harmonized elections basing on the referendum
voting patterns.
‘That may not be true. Nothing significant has taken
place in Zimbabwe that
shows Robert Mugabe has redeemed himself. Nothing has
happened to show ZANU
PF has redeemed and is now a reformed political
party,’ said Ruhanya.
He added: ‘They continue to harass people, they
continue to arrest people,
they continue to be corrupt and they continue to
crackdown on the civil
society in Zimbabwe.’
The former journalist said
he wondered how, with such a scandalous track
record, the former ruling
party would be able to market itself as a party
for the people and one that
seeks to improve the lives of Zimbabweans.
Ruhanya also discounted the
theory that ZANU PF still has strongholds in
rural Zimbabwe, arguing that
the MDC-T has made huge inroads in the past
years.
‘Look at Masvingo
province. Before the 2008 elections the MDC-T had one
parliamentary seat,
but after the harmonized poll they won 14 seats. In
Manicaland, the MDC-T
had two seats before the poll but managed to win 20
out of 26.
‘Those
statistics show the MDC-T has made incredible strides inside ZANU PF’s
political turf. Voters are now looking at real issues and not political
rhetoric, so parties should not take things for granted, they should instead
sharpen their strategies and use them to mobilize people to vote,’ he said.
http://nehandaradio.com
on March 27, 2013 at 2:56
pm
By Lance Guma
CHIMANIMANI – President Robert
Mugabe’s Zanu PF party is being accused of
cheating in advance of elections
this year with officials from the Registra
General’s office allegedly making
it hard for known MDC-T supporters to
register to vote.
MDC-T
Treasurer General Roy Bennett, a former MP for Chimanimani said
“People from
Old Location and rural areas that do not have proof of
residence are going
to register, they are then sent to get a stamped
document from the council
and are charged one dollar.”
In contrast “Zanu PF youth chair Joshua
Sacco”s 30 tonne “Gonyete”
Registration number ABN 7717 Blue Freight Liner,
which is ferrying 250
people at a time to the Registration office. They are
going straight in and
getting ID’s and registering as voters. This is a tip
of the iceberg country
wide,” he said.
Bennett who famously pushed
Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa to the floor
in parliament has endured
arrests, beatings, torture and prolonged periods
of detention before he
decided to go into exile. This week he urged
Zimbabweans to “keep shinning
lights in the dark corners of Zanu PF’s
desperation.”
At the
inception of the unity government in 2009, Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai
appointed Bennett to serve as the Deputy Minister of Agriculture.
Mugabe
refused to swear him in claiming he faced treason charges. But even
after
Bennett was cleared of those charges Mugabe still refused to swear him
in.
Meanwhile the MDC-T and other parties continue to ignore warnings
about
going into another election with a Zimbabwe Electoral Commission whose
secretariat is still stuffed with former soldiers and Central Intelligence
Organisation (CIO) officials who are fiercely loyal to Mugabe and his Zanu
PF party.
http://www.herald.co.zw/
Tuesday, 26 March 2013 23:38
Lloyd
Gumbo
Herald Reporter
ZANU-PF will win the forthcoming harmonised
elections basing on the
referendum voting patterns, National Constitutional
Assembly chairperson
Professor Lovemore Madhuku has said .
Prof
Madhuku made the remarks at a discussion forum at Sapes Trust in Harare
last
night.
Zanu-PF was represented by Cde Godwills Masimirembwa while the
MDC-T was
represented by its secretary-general, Mr Tendai Biti.
The
discussion was about the significance of the referendum results in the
balance of power for the harmonised elections. Voting trends in the
referendum showed most
Zanu-PF strongholds in rural areas delivering
high turnouts to drive the
“Yes Vote” with MDC-T-dominated urban areas
recording low endorsement in
some areas. Analysts posited that if the
referendum results mirrored the
impending harmonised elections, then Zanu-PF
was poised for a landslide
victory.
“My impression was that most votes
were Zanu-PF until I heard Dr (Ibbo)
Mandaza saying Tendai (Biti) thinks
they were MDC-T,” said Prof Madhuku.
He said Harare province, which is
considered an MDC-T stronghold, may have
recorded the highest vote, but most
of the people who voted were
unregistered voters.
“It is in the rural
areas where votes matter, especially in Mashonaland East
province, in
Mashonaland Central and Mashonaland West. In Harare, there will
be a low
voter turnout because some people will not be registered while
rural areas
will maintain a high voter turnout.
“In the MDC-T strongholds there was
so much resistance (at the referendum),
especially in Matabeleland
provinces. I did not also hear of people who got
to the polling station and
said they wanted their vote to be cast on
Tsvangirai, but it was very common
to hear people saying they wanted their
vote to be cast on President
Mugabe,” Prof Madhuku said.
The University of Zimbabwe law lecturer
said they would not sympathise with
the MDC-T’s calls for a delayed poll,
saying the party abandoned them when
they protested the
referendum.
He said claims by MDC-T that they needed more time were
uncalled for
considering that the NCA did not get sufficient time to
campaign for a “NO”
vote.
Prof Madhuku said the harmonised elections were
likely to be held towards
the end of June or by mid-July.
Cde
Masimirembwa said it was clear that most people who voted at the
referendum
belonged to Zanu-PF.
“Those people believe that now is the time for them
to defend what they
fought for during the liberation struggle. The people of
Zimbabwe know what
they want. That vote by the people was an informed vote,”
said Cde
Masimirembwa.
He said it was strange that MDC-T was claiming
ownership of the draft
constitution when it contained founding principles
and values that are
synonymous with Zanu-PF.
The founding values, he
said, stated that Britain was supposed to compensate
white former commercial
farmers whose land was redistributed to the landless
majority.
Cde
Masimirembwa said the MDC-T would never push for such an agenda
considering
its relationship with the former colonisers.
He said it was the prerogative
of President Mugabe to proclaim the election
date, adding that Zanu-PF would
romp to victory in both rural and urban
areas.
The life of the
current Parliament, he said, would lapse on June 29, hence
there was need to
have elections before that deadline.
Mr Biti claimed that the
constitution-making process was the brainchild of
his party since its
formation.
He said the MDC-T ran a parallel vote counting which, however, had
variances
with the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission results.
“There are,
however, disturbing things where we found that in provinces like
Midlands,
Mashonaland East and Masvingo the number of people who voted at
the
referendum is more than the number of people reflected in the
preliminary
results of the population census,” he said.
Mr Biti said his party conducted
a district by district analysis of the
voting patterns at the
referendum.
He said in Harare province there was a 33 percent gap between
registered
voters and those who are not registered.
Mr Biti claimed that
the earliest time that elections could be held was
August 15 basing on the
number of processes that have to be done before the
elections.
He said
the forthcoming elections were going to be an issue-based election
between
indigenisation and job creation.
Mr Biti claimed that the polls would
experience more political violence than
previous ones and reiterated his
claim that some people were being trained
in Israel to assassinate the MDC-T
leadership.
Ironically it is the MDC-T which is likely to have closer
ties with Israel
on account of its western linkages as Zanu-PF is inclined
towards Palestine.
Some of the people who contributed said Zanu-PF was
likely to win the
elections given its capacity to mobilise the rural
voters.
Several recent surveys that have given Zanu-PF the edge over its
coalition
government partner, the MDC-T.
In September last year, the
UK-based pro-MDC-T group, Zimbabwe Vigil, said
the MDC-T was likely to lose
the forthcoming harmonised elections because of
rampant corruption within
its top leadership among other issues.
Zimbabwe Virgil’s damning
assessment of MDC-T’s electoral chances came hard
on the heels of two
unflattering surveys by the US-based group, Freedom
House, and Afro
barometer that said President Mugabe and Zanu-PF would win
polls ahead of Mr
Tsvangirai and the MDC-T. The Freedom House survey, that
was released in
August, said support for the MDC-T had fallen from 38
percent in 2010 to 20
percent this year while support for Zanu-PF grew to 31
percent from 17
percent, over the same period.
The survey also said that President Mugabe
would command the support of 31
percent of voters in a presidential
election, compared to 19 percent for Mr
Tsvangirai.
The survey said
Zanu-PF had clear programmes such as the land reform and
other empowerment
programmes to sell to the electorate while the “Change”
mantra pushed by
MDC-T had lost steam.
The Afro barometer survey, entitled “Voting
Intentions in Zimbabwe: A Margin
of Terror?”, also put Zanu-PF ahead of
MDC-T, but said another coalition
government was likely. Another survey
carried out later in the year, in
November, by the Mass Public Opinion
Institute and released in February this
year said Zanu PF would win the
parliamentary elections with 33 percent of
the vote to 32 percent for the
MDC-T.
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk
27.03.13
by Bulawayo Progressive Residents
Association
BULAWAYO Progressive Residents Association (BPRA), through
its Ward 13
Chairperson, Alick Gumede, has once again blocked the Minister
of Local
Government, Urban and Rural Development from undemocratically
interfering in
the affairs of Bulawayo without the consultation of
residents.
Alick Gumede under the aegis of BPRA has successfully
blocked two special
interest councillors – Gatsha Mazitulela and Siphiwe
Ncube – who were
unilaterally imposed on Bulawayo by Minister Chombo from
attending Bulawayo
City Council (BCC) meetings after he filed a high court
application arguing
that the appointments were unwarranted and a waste of
ratepayers’ money as
councillors’ terms of office were about to end. In
January, BPRA again,
through its Secretary for People Living with
Disabilities in ward 13,
successfully blocked Chombo from appointing Fidelis
Fengu as a special
interest councillor in Bulawayo.
Gumede, through
his lawyer Job Sibanda argued in papers filed on 26 February
2013 that “the
appointments were grossly irregular as to defy common sense
in that the very
life of council to which they have been appointed comes to
an end in the
next month or so.” He further argued that: “such appointments
shall not
benefit council, but shall only drain the financial resources of
the council
to which the applicant is a contributor by virtue of him being a
ratepayer.”According to media reports, High Court Judge Justice Meshack
Cheda last Thursday (21 March 2013) barred the two special interest
councillors from attending BCC meetings pending the outcome of the court
challenge by Gumede. He is cited as having said he was “inclined to agree
that no purpose will be served by these appointments” arguing that they were
too late and hence unreasonable.
BPRA has previously expressed
concerns that the Urban Council’s Act (Chapter
29:15) invests too much power
in the Minister of Local Government, allowing
him too much leeway to
undemocratically dictate the conduct of local
authorities without consulting
residents. It is BPRA’s contention that
special interest councillors should
not be imposed by a minister, but should
be elected by the residents (or the
special interest group to be
represented) in a democratic manner. As such
BPRA rejects the appointment of
special interest councillors as they are
imposed by Minister Chombo, who is
not impartial in the country’s political
contestations, without consultation
of residents. As part of its mandate to
promote democratic local governance
in Zimbabwe, the association will step
up its campaign to have the Urban
Council’s Act amended. Furthermore, it
will continue to resist attempts my
Minister Chombo or any other minister of
local government that may be
appointed in the future from undemocratically
meddling in the affairs of
Bulawayo.
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Tichaona
Sibanda
27 March 2013
MDC leader Welshman Ncube has suffered another
political blow in his attempt
to be recognized as a party principal, when
the Supreme Court postponed
judgment on a legal wrangle which involves the
deputy Prime Minister, Arthur
Mutambara.
Mutambara has been battling
to keep his position in the inclusive
government, after he sought a court
order to nullify the MDC ‘s January 2011
congress that ejected him as
President.
Mutambara lost his position as president of the smaller MDC
formation to his
former Secretary-General Ncube at the congress, and has
since formed a
parallel executive, which he says is the legitimate MDC
faction.
Two years ago, Bulawayo High Court Judge Justice Lawrence
Kamocha declared
Mutambara an illegitimate MDC leader, in an order which was
meant to put an
end to the long-running legal wrangle over control of the
party between him
and Ncube.
But that order was to stand, pending the
outcome of a Harare case in which
Mutambara’s ally, Joubert Mudzumwe and 13
others, challenged Ncube’s
ascendancy to the party’s helm at the 2011
congress.
That matter was heard on Monday and Mutambara had a political
reprieve when
the Supreme Court indefinitely postponed judgment in his
appeal against an
order declaring him an illegitimate leader of the
MDC.
Lionel Saungweme, our correpsondent in Bulawayo, described the
judgement as
a massive blow to Ncube’s attempts to dethrone Mutambara as a
party
principal.
‘What this ruling means is that the inclusive
government will run its full
course without Ncube joining Robert Mugabe and
Morgan Tsvangirai as
principals. Ncube might be consoled by the mere the
fact the present
government has less than four months to go before elections
are held to
usher in a new regime,’ Saungweme said.
http://www.voazimbabwe.com
Gibbs
Dube
27.03.2013
WASHINGTON — Zimbabweans in some cities continue
experiencing a slowdown in
internet services due to the severing of under
sea cables by ship anchors
six days ago near Egypt and
France.
According to some residents of Zvishavane, Victoria Falls,
Bulawayo and
Masvingo, the slowdown has affected business transactions such
as the
popular Econet Wireless Zimbabwe's money transfer system – EcoCash,
communication between civil society groups and social
networking.
Liberty Bhebhe of the National Youth Development Trust said
most youths are
feeling the pinch of the slowdown as internet social
networking has become
part of their lives.
In a statement posted on
its website, SEACOM - which is in charge of some
of the internet cables -
says it has completed the restoration of the
majority of its customers on
its cable system link that was cut in Egpyt and
Europe.
Internet
users in Harare and Mutare say the situation has improved following
the
slowdown which started Friday.
According to the Posts and
Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of
Zimbabwe, mobile internet
subscribers on Zimbabwe's three mobile networks
rose to over 2 million by
the end of August last year.
http://www.swradioafrica.com/
By Alex
Bell
27 March 2013
Zimbabwe’s wildlife authorities have been urged to
keep strengthening the
country’s anti-poaching laws, if the problem is ever
to be eradicated.
The Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority
has announced new laws
that impose stiffer penalties for people found guilty
of poaching protected
species. The Authority’s public relations manager,
Caroline Washaya-Moyo,
said the new laws would affect those who kill any
protected animals gazetted
by the Ministry of Environment and Natural
Resources Management. This
includes rhino and elephant.
“Any person
who is convicted for unlawful killing of a rhinoceros or
elephant is
expected to be sentenced to nine years for a first offender or
eleven years
for a second or subsequent offender,” she said.
Poaching has been rife in
Zimbabwe for years, and conservation groups have
been calling for a stronger
reaction from the authorities in an attempt to
stamp out the
problem.
Johnny Rodrigues, the chairman of the Zimbabwe Conservation Task
Force, told
SW Radio Africa on Wednesday that the new laws are a
“beginning,” but a lot
more needs to be done.
“I do think the
penalties are quite lenient and I think they should be much
tougher. But the
problem is that poaching will continue because it is so
lucrative,”
Rodrigues explained.
He said the problem will not be solved by arresting
individual poachers,
because they are often “doing the dirty work” for large
syndicates. He said
that these syndicates are taking advantage of Zimbabwe’s
poor economic
climate, where unemployment is rife.
“These syndicates
are hiring just a normal person to do the actual poaching
and paying them
peanuts. And these are the guys that then get arrested. So
it’s very hard to
bring the actual perpetrators to book,” Rodrigues said.
He also explained
that while tougher laws are welcome, “there is no body
policing or enforcing
the laws.”
“Who is enforcing any of the laws that exist now? It is very
serious and
there is a lot of work to be done,” Rodrigues said.
http://www.timeslive.co.za
Sapa | 27 March, 2013 13:03
A court
review into the SANDF's plan to send helicopters to Zimbabwe has
been
postponed until next month, civil society organisation AfriForum
said.
"The matter was postponed by agreement of all the parties. The
minister of
defence was not ready," said AfriForum's legal representative
Willie Spies.
He said the review would be heard on April 18 in the High
Court in Pretoria.
In late February, an interim court order to stop the
proposed delivery of
South Africa's fleet of Alouette III helicopters and
its spares to the
Zimbabwean Air Force was confirmed.
Defence
Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, the National Conventional Arms
Control
Committee (NCACC) and the Secretary of Defence did not oppose the
granting
of a final interdict.
The interdict stands pending the completion of
AfriForum's application to
review the SA National Defence Force's decision
to donate the military
equipment to its neighbouring country.
On
Wednesday, Spies said the defence minister had filed papers detailing the
decision-making process to the court.
He said the review AfriForum
wanted would essentially ask the court to
investigate whether the SANDF's
decision was a lawful one.
AfriForum believed it contravened the public
finance management act, which
stipulated that no donation can be made unless
certain procedures were
followed.
Spies said his organisation also
wanted to investigate if laws were adhered
to which required a permit before
conventional arms can be exported.
The Alouette helicopters were in
service in the SA Air Force for over 40
years, but became obsolete with the
arrival of a fleet of Italian-made
helicopters procured as part of the
controversial arms deal.
Members of the opposition have expressed concern
that the donation of the
helicopters would send out a message that the South
African government
condoned the use of force by the Zimbabwean Defence Force
to return
President Robert Mugabe to power in the upcoming elections in that
country.
Lunacy is ZANU PF’s second nature, it would appear. Without wasting time and
effort looking beyond the so-called Zimbabwe Liberation War Veterans
Association, one can easily count more than a dozen lunatics who have
unfortunately tainted what would have been a noble organisation, given our
bitter history.
When the leadership of this association went
to the dogs (literally), not
many Zimbabweans continued to take it
seriously, including, paradoxically,
even the patron of the organisation who
is now at a loss as to which of the
two splinter groups represents the real
ideals of the liberation struggle. A
former taxi driver masquerading as
medical doctor and freedom fighter,
Chenjerai Hunzvi, who knew the streets
of Warsaw better than he could spell
his full name, was the first to bring
shame to the former liberators’
movement. Later, came the “legendary “Joseph
Chinotimba and now this
prodigious moron, Jabulani
Sibanda!
The only difference between Sibanda and his two
predecessors is probably
that he is too young to have fought in the
liberation war no matter how much
spin he puts to his curriculum vitae. Even
if it was edited by Jonathan
Moyo, any sane Zimbabwean would still see
gaping holes in it. Jabu’s age is
a matter of public record and I won’t
waste your precious time discussing
that fact other than to say he was never
a bearer of “chitinyana or
sitikinyana” assuming he knows what it is. But I
digress.
At a press conference recently in Gweru, Sibanda,
shamelessly, accused the
MDC of “betraying the liberation struggle by
calling for sanctions”. He went
on to say that war veterans will not allow
MDC or any party other than ZANU
PF to win the next elections. As if this
foolish sabre-rattling was not
enough, Jabulani further said, categorically,
“If the worst comes to the
worst, our weapons will defend our
ideas”.
When one looks at events of the past few days which
culminated in the
shameful incarceration of prominent lawyer Beatrice Mtetwa
and a number of
innocent Zimbabweans including staff from the Prime
Minister’s office, one
can conclude that in his calamitous desperation, this
hoodlum is not acting
alone.
Nevertheless, if ours was a
normal democracy, recent statements attributed
to him would have instantly
attracted a charge of treason for which he would
be facing a death sentence
or a lengthy period as an unwilling guest at
Hotel Chikurubi. Jabulani needs
to be reminded that nowhere on planet earth
has the gun solved any problem
conclusively. It may have been a means to an
end in some cases but not an
end in itself. Lancaster House talks, UN
Resolution 435 which paved the way
for an independent Namibia and may
others, are very close examples which
demonstrate that the pen is always
mightier than the sword as voters will
again prove during the next
elections. For that reason, Zimbabweans are
ready and itching for that
opportunity to use the pen to defend their
destiny.
Nobody should take Zimbabweans for granted. Had it not
been for our love for
peace, prosperity and co-existence (some would say
it’s cowardice), the
country would have “burned and crashed a long time
ago”, to borrow a famous
quote from Eddie Cross. However, our deep love for
the only Zimbabwe we have
coupled with our above-average literacy (by
African standards), made us
choose the route of peace which we are
determined to conclude in the
solitary comfort of the ballot box. The recent
referendum, like that in
2000, has been a big wake-up call for Jabulani
Sibanda and other like-minded
scaremongers so they are now trying their best
to provoke our intelligence
with the hope that we will lose focus and start
exerting our energies
towards useless battles, but we
won’t.
Jabulani and his surrogates as well as masters must be
reminded that
Zimbabweans know that they are now in their last mile so there
is no need to
start the race afresh. Hypothetically, if we were to pit all
surviving
ex-combatants against the rest of the peace-loving population, I
don’t think
we would need to be rocket scientists to accurately predict the
result even
if the referee was a blindfolded blind
man.
Zimbabweans will never forget who their real heroes and
heroines are. We
shall forever hold these in the highest esteem such as
Josiah Tongogara,
Nikita Mangena, Josiah Tungamirai, Lookout Masuku, Rex
Nhongo, comrade Dzino
(Wilfred Mhanda), Henry Dzinotyiwei, Teurai Ropa
Nhongo (even those who have
now lost their way such as Rugare Gumbo and
Emmerson Mnangagwa), not wet ear
imposters literally singing for their
supper such as Jabulani Sibanda.
In South Africa, there was once
a youthful loose cannon in the name of
Julius Malema but we all know what
eventually happened to him. If ZANU PF
won’t reign in their misguided sons
such as Jabulani Siabanda, Zimbabweans
shall. It is just a matter of
when.
Moses Chamboko writes in his personal capacity. He can
contacted at
chambokom@gmail.com
http://nehandaradio.com/
on March 26, 2013 at
5:09 pm
By Rawlings Standgun Magede
Recently, I was
debating the recent referendum with COPAC co-chair, Paul
Mangwana over the
legitimacy of the yes vote.
His argument was that Zimbabweans did
well by grabbing this opportunity
presented them and voted in favour of the
document as this process had taken
a lot of time and money.
He went
on to argue that there is no constitution that can best meet the
term
“people driven” citing that even the American constitution was written
by
less than five people and yet it is ranked as one of the best
constitutions
in the world.
To him the fact that only a “handful’ of people were
consulted during the
scandalous outreach programme, made the constitution
“very’ people driven.
While there might be a grain of truth in his
argument I reminded him that
the United States of America and Zimbabwe are
totally different countries at
different socio-economic and political
developments, hence those countries
are worlds apart in terms of governance
to say the least and cannot be
compared.
As far as Mangwana’s duty as
a citizen is concerned, he thinks that his job
was done because he claims
that he delivered the constitution 33 years years
after independence. He
wrongfully thinks history will absolve him for
delivering such a careless,
selfish and disastrous constitution to the
people of Zimbabwe.
I
argued and told him that constitutions across the world are based on the
country’s history hence the reason why the Lancaster Constitution was
amended so many times like that because it fell short in addressing arising
issues.
I later on jokingly concluded to him that if there was
anywhere in the world
where constitutions should not provide for an
executive president, then it’s
in Africa, the place where power is abused by
incumbent presidents to
unleash terror and mayhem against
opponents.
The idiots of the 21st century are not those who oppose and
question
undemocratic decisions taken by politicians and labelled ‘nhinhi”
at every
turn, but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn from
history.
They are those who herd people like cattle into unprincipled
terrains where
the grass will not be greener for the future generations of
Zimbabwe. The
question should be: is the next generation going to be proud
of decisions
that we make for them?
History in Africa has taught us
that if too much power is given to one
person, where he is the sole
appointing authority of all key posts, then
there will be untold suffering
on all those who dare question or oppose him.
While this writer feels
pity for the two MDC formations in the inclusive
government and some
malleable civic society organisations for choosing
against better advice to
support the COPAC draft amid widespread approval of
the draft as an elitist
document by the people of Zimbabwe and some civic
organisations such as NCA,
they had no clue what the consequences of their
decisions meant.
For
them no matter the contents of the draft, ‘progress’ and not the content
was
important as long as we do away with the Lancaster constitution. They
actually were hoodwinked into believing that ZANU PF was sincere in calling
for unity and peace and the need to “move” the country forward by voting
“yes”, little did they know that they were wrong.
In the end ZANU PF
managed to achieve what they had always wanted: writing a
constitution that
protects their interests. There is no name in the lexicon
that can best
describe such sell-out tendencies within the MDC’s and some
CSO’s.
While some of us who we campaigning for a no vote were
harangued and called
all sorts of names and labelled retrogressive elements,
events that began
unfolding have led many people realise that the “yes vote
was not about
progress and moving the country forward but it was about
settling a
political score.
Before the ink on the ballot papers could
even dry, a top human rights
defender, Beatrice Mtetwa was arrested under
unclear and malicious
circumstances.
As if that was not enough, The
Prime Minister of the Republic of Zimbabwe,
the right honourable Morgan
Richard Tsvangirai’s staff were arrested. More
arrests followed. The Prime
Minister even tried to get them released but to
no avail.
What does
it show to the people of Zimbabwe? He is the Prime Minister and
hence should
have influence on the police that is if at all he has any aorta
of influence
and power in government.
At one point I used to believe that Tsvangirai
was the man who had felt the
pulse of the people of Zimbabwe but when he
endorsed such a draconian draft
by whipping his supporters to support such a
flawed document that creates an
all powerful president I changed my
mind.
He went on to tell green lies to the electorate that the COPAC
draft will
clip executive power. Where? How? I still wonder and I am still
looking in
this “foolish” draft where executive power is trimmed till
today.
While many of his supporters see the world in binary terms i.e.
MDC-T vs.
ZANU PF, what they fail to understand however is that our politics
transcend
political parties. Whoever thought that the Nazi under Hitler
would be
exterminated from the face of German politics?
Back during
those days, it seemed a herculean task to ever imagine a Germany
without
Hitler. Today if you go to Germany and dare mention Hitler’s name,
you might
find yourself dead or wounded because the people there don’t want
to be
reminded of such a dark phase in their history.
Coming back home we make
our decisions without foresight of what the next 30
years of our beloved
country hold by voting for a document where the
president remains the sole
appointing authority of literally everyone.
I thought that most civic
society groups who have witnessed unparalleled
attacks, imprisonment,
killing and clampdown on their activities were going
to at least question
the issue of the attorney general who just like in the
Lancaster
Constitution is appointed by the president.
We have seen unwarranted
arrests even after courts clear and order people to
be released but still
many continue to be detained. On this subject of
attorney general there was
surreal silence on who should appoint him from
civic
organisations.
The evil agenda of the attorney general’s office against
civic organisations
is conspicuous to any functioning mind.
For these
CSOs this draft constitution that they voted “yes” for does not
change or
seek to address the issue of the attorney general who has been a
thorn in
their flesh for the all these years. Many sold out their principles
just
because they wrongfully think that the MDC-T is always right and should
never be questioned and is never wrong.
They don’t realise that as
far as their mandate as civic society that of
being the watchdog of
government is concerned, they lost the plot and will
continue suffering
huge, if not fatal setbacks in their pursuit of an
“MDC –type” of a
democratic society.
While this shoot-from-the-hip approach by civic
society to endorse a
fraudulent constitution against better advice on the
basis that the MDCs had
endorsed it, unfortunately when the history of
Zimbabwe is written, it will
not be kind to such sell out
elements.
Otherwise the selling out by some civic society groups and the
two MDC’s in
the inclusive government is a story yet to be told and it shall
be told in
the same way as the sun shall rise tomorrow.
Rawlings
Standgun Magede is a rural political enthusiast who writes from
Nkayi,
Matebeleland north province. He can be emailed on
rawedge699@gmail.com
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk/
26.03.13
by Tawanda Majoni
Zimbabwe
must surely hold the world record for being the topmost country
outside a
war zone to be ruled, governed and controlled by fear. Give me a
Zimbabwean
who is not very afraid and I will show you a female Pope.
This
culture of fear that has pervaded our society for so long now is the
product
of myopic and self-interested Zimbabwean politics.
It started off with
some politicians, taking a cue from the colonial model,
instilling fear in
perceived enemies as a method of self-preservation. Those
fear mongers then
became big, so big in the head that those who had sent
them became startled
as well.
Consider the security sector. Right from the early days of
independence,
especially during Gukurahundi, politicians in power used the
army, police,
and central intelligence to suppress a group of people who
were seen as
rebels, together with thousands of innocent civilians whom
government
imagined were aiding the dissidents.
This way, the
security sector tasted power and, over the years, those at the
helm used
their newly found thrones to dabble in all sorts of corrupt
activities to
enrich themselves. Top securocrats, by virtue of the wealth
they have
acquired over the last three decades, have become a very powerful
lot.
Needless to say, they have the guns - and files of who is doing
what and
how, and the maps of State House and Munhumutapa. That puts the
politicians
in a messy situation because they cannot easily deal with the
securocrats.
That is why, despite their calls for peace, co-existence and
adherence to
the laws of the country, the security sector still has the
audacity to act
contrary to what they are exhorted to do by the
politicians.
Yet the matrix goes beyond that. The securocrats, because of
their dirty
hands and screaming skeletons, are quaking in their combat
boots. They are
afraid of the past, present and future. They are afraid of
the politicians
that gave them power, and they are afraid of politicians who
are likely to
take that away. Their past is dirty, their present uncertain
and their
future doomed. They therefore use more fear to bastion imagined
hope about a
safe future.
In that regard, the securocrats would be
the last ones to accept free and
fair conditions for this year’s general
elections. After all, their
ill-gotten largesse will be forfeited and most
of them will end up in sorry
prison garb, here or at The Hague. But I’m not
concerned about that sort of
fear, because they brought the goblin home and
it is purely their affair how
to get rid of it.
What is most painful
and problematic is that the judiciary is also afraid.
Most of the top
magistrates and judges are there on the basis of partisan
manipulation. I am
not saying they lack the professional merit - it is just
that they are so
beholden to the politicians, and to some extent to the
securocrats, they
have to peep over their shoulders before making a ruling.
Failure to toe the
political line makes them extremely vulnerable. Do you
remember the case of
former Judge, Benjamin Paradza, who in 2006 had to flee
to South Africa in a
truck because he had made politically incorrect
judgments? It didn’t matter
that he was a war veteran.
Current magistrates and judges remember, of
course, what happened to
justices Anthony Gubbay, Fergus Blackie, James
Devittie and George Smith.
These are “shining examples” of what can happen
to them if they step out of
line.
Now, to make matters worse, lawyers
have also become a frightened group.
They get detained for representing
clients. Andrew Makoni, Beatrice Mtetwa
and Thabani Mpofu make good case
studies. Advocates get thoroughly beaten
for doing their job and are
therefore afraid of taking on “political cases”.
This would definitely
reduce all of us to a quivering lump. There is nothing
as scary as having to
step into the dock to be faced by a quivering
magistrate and all in the
absence of your lawyer who is doing time at
Chikurubi on trumped up
charges.
Journalists, too, are now forced to spend time hiding at a
relative’s place
rather than doing their job of informing, educating and
entertaining,
because the politicians, police and securocrats are afraid of
their
profession. They can’t countenance the possibility of having to face a
sweating judge and without legal representation for writing that President
Robert Mugabe dozed during a cabinet meeting, because that would be
“treating the President with contempt”.
MPs have not been spared the
fear culture. Sometime last year, I was
chatting to an MP who belongs to the
parliamentary committee on defence and
security, just after they had
summoned police chief Augustine Chihuri for a
hearing. He told me he
couldn’t ask all the questions he wanted for fear of
being followed after
the hearing! Contrast that with the recent Marikana
hearing in South Africa
when the National Police Commissioner, Riya Phiyega,
was quizzed over last
year’s mine killings and the atmosphere was so free!
When judges, lawyers,
law-makers and journalists stop functioning properly,
the general public are
most at risk. There is no guarantee that they will
get justice in the
courts, and they will not know what is happening. - For
feedback, please
write to majonitt@gmail.com
BILL
WATCH 11/2013
[27th March
2013]
Both
Houses of Parliament are
Adjourned until Tuesday 7th
May
Government
Gazette Extraordinary 26th March
The
Referendum Results were gazetted yesterday in General Notice 201A/2013 signed by
the Minister of Constitutional
and Parliamentary Affairs:
General
Notice 201A of 2013.
REFERENDUMS
ACT [CHAPTER
2:10]
Publication
of the Referendum Results
IT
is hereby notified, in terms of section 18(2) of the Referendums Regulations
2013, published in Statutory Instrument 26 of 2013, that the number of the votes
as finally ascertained by the Chief
Elections Officer
and the results of the referendum that was conducted on 16th March, 2013, are as
shown in the Schedule.
ADVOCATE
E.T. MATINENGA, MP,
Minister
of Constitutional
and Parliamentary Affairs.
The
Schedule
to the General Notice contains a series of tables listing, province by province,
the results for each of the 210 constituencies into which the country is
divided. Columns show constituency
names, votes in favour of issue, votes against, rejected votes, and total votes
cast.
A
National Summary
then lists the National Total: Yes
vote 3,079,966; No vote 179,489; Rejected votes 56,627; Total votes cast 3,316,082.
The
Schedule ends with an illustrative bar-chart and map depicting provincial voting
patterns. [Full
text of GN available from veritas@mango.zw as PDF document,
884KB]
President
Applies to High Court to Waive By-Elections
The
President has filed an urgent application in the High Court seeking, in effect,
to be excused from having to proclaim the dates for the three Matabeleland
by-elections by the 31st March deadline fixed by Judge-President Chiweshe on 2nd
October last year [see Court Watch 22/2012]. The application is due to be heard by the
Judge-President on Thursday 28th March at 10 am; the venue is the High Court,
Harare.
In
the main affidavit, made by the Minister of Justice and Legal Affairs on behalf
of the President, the explanation given for the application is that, following
the YES vote in the Referendum, Parliament is expected to finish passing the new
Constitution by 8th May and that the proclamation calling the harmonised
elections will be gazetted immediately thereafter. The Minister states that “In terms of the Constitution the life of
Parliament terminates on the 29th of June 2013, by which date harmonised
elections must be held in the country”.
This is the basis of the request for the court to allow the President to
delay calling the by-elections on condition that he ensures the harmonised
elections are held by 29th June.
But,
there is no law that says the elections must be held by 29th June. Section 58 of the present Constitution allows
four months for elections to be held after Parliament comes to an end and the
new Constitution does not lay down a period within which the first election must
be held. Both the other GPA parties have
pointed this out; they have also protested that satisfactory elections cannot
possibly be held by 29th June.
According
to the Prime Minister’s spokesman, the President and Mr Tsvangirai agreed at
their weekly meeting on Monday 25th March that an election date should be worked
out by Ministers Chinamasa and Matinenga who will prepare timelines taking
account of the legal requirements and necessary political reforms.
Private
Members Bills: Supreme Court Case
Judgment
is still awaited in the case in which Minister Ignatious Chombo asked the
Supreme Court for a order stopping Parliament from proceeding with the Urban
Councils Amendment Bill, a Private Member’s Bill. His argument was that Article 20 of the GPA,
as incorporated in the current Constitution, prohibits the introduction of such
Bills. Minister Chombo’s application was
strongly opposed by the Bill’s proposer and seconder and Parliament’s presiding
officers – the Speaker of the House of Assembly
and the President of the Senate.
It is been hoped that judgment would be handed down before the coming
court vacation [6th April to 5th May], although judgments can be handed down
even during the court vacation. It is
needed before Parliament reconvenes in early May.
Mutambara
v Ncube: MDC leadership dispute
Sitting
in Bulawayo, the Supreme Court this week heard argument in Deputy Prime Minister
Arthur Mutambara’s appeal against Justice Kamocha’s 2011 decision confirming
Professor Welshman Ncube’s election as president of the MDC. Judgment was reserved. [See
Bill Watch 56/2011 for background.]
Update
on SADC
MDC-T
Envoy Takes Political Violence Dossier to SADC leaders
On
27th February Mr Tsvangirai’s envoy Jameson Timba left Harare to update SADC
governments
on
MDC-T
concerns: the issue of stalled reforms,
political violence and intimidation and harassment of those perceived to be
Zanu-PF critics. Speaking the day
before, MDC-T
Secretary-General and GPA negotiator Tendai Biti blamed ZANU-PF
for blocking the implementation of agreed media and electoral reforms, saying
that with political will the reforms could be accomplished speedily.
Facilitation
Team Visit – 5th March
President
Zuma’s facilitation team was in Harare on Tuesday 5th March for meetings with
the co-chairs of the Joint Monitoring and Implementation Committee [JOMIC] and
the GPA negotiators. The visit’s purpose
was to receive updates on the security situation ahead of the Referendum, the
state of preparedness for the Referendum and what would follow the announcement
of the Referendum result. In remarks to
a reporter after the meeting, ZANU-PF
negotiator Patrick Chinamasa was said to have mentioned only that a Yes vote
would require Parliament to pass the Bill for the new Constitution and a Bill to
make consequential amendments to the Electoral Act; significantly, there seems
to have been no reference to the other democratic reforms generally regarded as
vital of the election is to be free and fair.
Organ
Troika Summit Meeting In SA – 9th March
The
Troika of the SADC Organ
on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation met in Pretoria on Saturday 9th
March. Present were the Organ
chairperson, President Kikwete of Tanzania, President Zuma, the Prime Minister
of Namibia and the Defence Minister of Mozambique representing the President of
Mozambique, who is the SADC chairperson.
The SADC Executive Secretary Dr Salomão
was in attendance. The GPA parties were
not represented, having instead been invited to make submissions in writing
beforehand; submissions from all three parties were presented to the Summit by
President Zuma.
Communiqué According to the brief media statement issued
later, the Summit received and endorsed a report from President Zuma on
developments
in Zimbabwe and commended him for his “efforts towards full implementation of the
GPA”; commended the GPA parties on completing the constitution-making
process, and called
on them “to continue to work together
towards creating a conducive environment for the forthcoming elections”; and
said the Troika would “remain seized with
the political developments in Zimbabwe” [full
statement available from veritas@mango.zw].
Media and security
sector reforms still on agenda Speaking in Harare a few days later, before
the Referendum on 16th March, SADC Executive Secretary Salomão was a little more
specific and confirmed that SADC is urging media
and security reforms as well as electoral law reforms. And Lindiwe Zulu of President Zuma’s
facilitation team, which was back in Harare for the Referendum, said
SADC continues to push for the election roadmap to be
implemented.
PM
Tsvangirai
calls for SADC Summit – 15th March
At a meeting on 15th
March, Mr Tsvangirai told the SADC Election Observer Mission there there
were problems that needed to be addressed before the coming elections: there had
been a resurgence of violence, there was still selective application of the law
by a partisan police force, the Registrar-General’s
office was frustrating registration of first-time voters and those people
previously classified as aliens, and that he was concerned by the deployment of
military personnel around the country and the failure of the SADC
representatives on JOMIC to assume their duties. He called for a full SADC Summit to assess
whether Zimbabwe was ready for free, fair and credible elections.
JOMIC
deadlocked over SADC participation
The
South African facilitation team met JOMIC members on 20th and 21st March but
failed to secure consensus from them on the terms of reference for the
attachment to JOMIC of representatives from the SADC Organ
on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation who were nominated months ago and
have been awaiting deployment ever since.
Press reports of a heated confrontation and gatecrashing by the
facilitators were denied by their spokesperson
Lindiwe Zulu, who said later that they had been invited to the meeting and that
the roadmap leading to the elections now needed to be developed.
Veritas
makes every effort to ensure reliable information, but cannot take legal
responsibility for information supplied