Source: SOUTHERN NEWS: Joc running Zim elections: Dabengwa – DailyNews Live
Jeffrey Muvundusi 26 July 2017
BULAWAYO – The continued involvement of the Joint Operations Command (Joc)
in the running of the country’s elections is likely to work against the
fight for free, fair and credible polls, Zapu president, Dumiso Dabengwa,
warned this week.
The former Zipra intelligence supremo is adamant that Joc has been in
charge of the country’s elections since 2008 when Zanu PF lost its
majority in Parliament for the first time since independence in 1980.
In that election, MDC leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, won the first round of
the presidential poll but could not be declared the winner after his votes
fell short of the required threshold.
That election had to be decided through a run-off that saw Tsvangirai
pulling out of the race after his supporters and officials became targets
of widespread violence.
Over 200 MDC supporters and officials were killed in cold blood.
Dabengwa told Southern News this week that the securocrats should have no
role in the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) and that an independent
administrative body must run the elections.
“It (Joc) should be dismantled. This country is run by a Joc system where
the security makes decisions and makes sure its decisions are
implemented,” Dabengwa said.
“The staffing in Zec comprises people who are and have been in security,
people who take orders to do those (vote) manipulations.
“We also recommend that their influence and participation in elections
should be done away with such that we have proper elections that are run
by an independent administration,” he added.
Joc is the supreme organ for the coordination of State security in
Zimbabwe.
It was established by the Rhodesian Security Forces to supervise its
counter-insurgency campaign in the Rhodesian Bush War as well as external
incursions into neighbouring countries such as Zambia and Mozambique.
It retained its role in the post-independence Zimbabwe.
It comprises heads of the intelligence, police and army.
Dabengwa’s statement comes after he recently called for the postponement
of the 2018 elections, saying events on the ground indicated that Zec was
not yet ready to conduct a credible election.
Dabengwa also cited the involvement of Joc as one of the reasons why the
elections should be postponed.
“It is obvious that Joc is in control of the country. Nothing can be done
without reference to that security system that was created since 2008.
“After the results of the 2008 election were cleared, it was Joc which
said they were not to be announced over a period of time until they were
able to manipulate everything and come up with a result that would keep
Zanu PF government in power,” he said.
“They (Joc) are physically there. They are deployed each time there are
elections. Army commissars go around to influence voting in each
constituency.
“Besides that, it is the army, police and other security personnel that
actually administer the process of voting.”
Infighting cripples women’s league
ZANU PF Women’s League has virtually been crippled in the second city by
the ugly infighting in President Robert Mugabe’s party after suspension
and counter-suspensions done at the instigation of the warring factions
left the wing without a clear leader.
In May, the provincial Women’s League executive suspended six of its
members for “taking orders” from the organ’s former national deputy
secretary, Eunice Nomthandazo Moyo, (pictured) who was forced to resign
from its national executive on allegations of fomenting discord in the
party and extorting money from well-wishers in the name of First Lady
Grace Mugabe.
But before those who were behind the suspension could even conduct a
disciplinary hearing for the suspended official, they were also suspended.
The entire top four, led by provincial chair, Eva Bitu, were suspended in
what sources described as retaliation by one of the factions.
Since then, there has been ugly infighting at Davies Hall, the provincial
headquarters where Zanu PF factions – Generation 40 (G40) and Team
Lacoste, are battling for control.
Rattled by the suspensions, Judith Ncube, the leagues’ national secretary
for information, raised the matter over the weekend with visiting Zanu PF
national secretary for administration, Ignatius Chombo.
“The executive had suspended five people and before we could look into the
issue of their hearing, the chairperson, her vice, secretary and the
commissar were suspended and that has left the Women’s League at a stand
still,” Ncube said.
She said the suspensions have left women without leadership in the
province.
“We appeal to you (Chombo). The more you delay, the more we are killing
the party. We want to work. Before these suspensions, there were
programmes that we had put in place as Women’s League but because there is
no leadership in Bulawayo we cannot move forward. How do we move when you
suspend the entire top five?” she said.
Bitu, who was also in attendance, told Chombo that she considered herself
still the chairperson, as she felt she was unprocedurally suspended by
people who had also been suspended.
“I don’t want to speak to the media anymore because they will start
accusing me of being talkative,” she told the Southern News.
Contacted for comment, Ncube, who is also Zanu PF central committee
member, however, refused to be drawn into the provincial factionalism,
saying she was only a national member of the league.
“I can’t say much because I am not part of the province, I am at national
so I am not directly involved in some of those issues,” she said.
She, however, emphasised that it was worrisome for the province to operate
without leadership, before calling for a resolution of the issues to allow
the party to move forward.
Gwanda community raise alarm over water
COMMUNITIES in gwanda here have raised alarm over lack of action by
authorities in addressing the water crisis after five dams burst and
emptied following heavy rains in the last season.
The dams – Gungwe, Matanangombe, Nkanini-Mandihongola, Mapate, Makokwe and
Malipulihula – were the main source of drinking water for the communities,
which are now stranded.
The crisis has largely affected livestock in the arid region.
Farmers in the district, who spoke to the Southern News this week, said
there was need for urgent intervention by government.
“We are in a catch 22 situation…we don’t even know what to ask for and
from who, because the challenge we are facing is a natural disaster and
our livestock are in danger,” Sidumo Magagula of Ward 12 said.
Gwanda Rural District Council chairperson, Johnson Mangwangwa, described
the situation as dire.
“The situation is bad and the major crisis is on our livestock,” he said.
“While as human beings we also face a similar crisis, it cannot be
compared to that of our livestock, which drank from the water bodies. We
humans have an option of drinking from small water bodies or even from
boreholes but what about thousands of our livestock,” Mangwangwa said.
He said communities in Wards 12 and 16, which house the five dams that
were destroyed, were the worst affected.
“Unfortunately, we wish the community could do anything to rebuild these
dams but it’s impossible, we are talking of dams not wells. So, now it’s
the government that should intervene,” Mangwangwa said, adding that
“unfortunately, nothing has happened so far in as far as giving any
attention to all these dams which were razed by the floods”.
Chief Mathe also concurred with the district chair, saying the issue
needed urgent attention.
“People are in a serious danger of losing their livestock due to lack of
water to drink. I am very confident that in three months‘ time, we will be
hearing stories of cattle in particular dying as a result,” Mathe said.
“I have spoken to our Member of Parliament, Abedinico Ncube, and he has
just promised me that he will look into the issue, but nothing has
materialised so far. We urgently need government intervention in this
regard,” he appealed.
Efforts to get a comment from Ncube were fruitless as he was not answering
his mobile.
Govt cranks up CSC revival
AFTER years of going back and forth on Cold Storage Company (CSC)’s
revival, government believes it has finally found that missing link which
could do the trick – Command Livestock.
Command Livestock is a by-product of the much-hyped Command Agriculture,
rolled out last year to ensure food security for the country.
This was after successive droughts had combined with the negative effects
of a chaotic land reform of 2000 to reduce Zimbabwe, an agro-based
economy, from being a bread basket for the southern region, to a basket
case.
In the first year of its implementation, officials claim that Command
Agriculture achieved a bumper harvest, with President Robert Mugabe
suggesting last week that his officials should consider exporting the
surplus maize harvest.
Critics are, however, casting aspersions on these claims because the
2016/17 summer cropping season received good rains, unlike the previous
seasons.
This resulted in farmers that were not contracted under Command
Agriculture achieving a better harvest that also contributed to the
overall output.
Riding on its achievements under Command Agriculture, government is upbeat
about reviving CSC through the livestock version of the initiative that
borrows heavily from the collapsed Soviet Union’s planned economy of the
mid 20th century.
Once the largest meat processor in Africa, CSC used to handle up to 150
000 tonnes of beef and associated by-products a year, exporting beef to
the European Union, where it had an annual quota of 9 100 tonnes.
In its heyday, it used to earn Zimbabwe at least $45 million annually.
CSC is currently saddled with a debt of over $25 million, mainly from
fixed costs such as wages, rates and taxes on land.
It owes its 413 employees $3, 5 million in salary arrears.
Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development minister, Joseph
Made, is confident that the implementation of Command Livestock might come
as a boost to the ailing Bulawayo headquartered parastatal.
He said the revival of the ailing meat processor would benefit Bulawayo
and its hinterland, which are prolific in cattle breeding.
“Bulawayo, as a metropolitan province, means the southern part of the
country along with the rural provinces that are Matabeleland South and
North, including some parts of Midlands, is going to benefit from the
livestock sector in its broadest terms,” he said.
“We know that if CSC is resuscitated, it will create many jobs for our
people here. I want to emphasise that the revival of CSC is going to be
intensified in terms of the government support as well as the partnerships
that we are going to form,” he added, without giving timelines.
Made was addressing Zanu PF supporters at Davies Hall last weekend.
Last year, CSC received a major boost after pay-as-you-go pension scheme,
the National Social Security Authority (Nssa), announced that it will
inject $18 million of pensioners’ money into the parastatal to pull it
back from the brink of collapse.
Pursuant to the announcement, Made has since constituted a new board for
CSC to drive its revival.
The board is chaired by Sylvia Khumalo-Jiyane, who is deputised by Nemrod
Chiminya.
To complete the cast up are board members Emily Mumbengegwi; Anxious
Masuka; Rufaro Mazunze; Khodholo Setaboli; the chief executive officer of
CSC, Ngoni Chinogaramombe; Peter Nyoni; Cecilia Paradza; Bhekhithemba
Nkomo and two ministry of Agriculture representatives, Unesu
Ushewokunze-Obatolu and Reston Muzamhindo.
The CSC board has, however, set tongues wagging following revelations that
a quarter of the appointees were related, in one way or the other, to
bigwigs in Mugabe’s Cabinet.
This week, Made said government will use CSC’s revival to also empower
women and the youths, who form the majority of the country’s population.
“It will benefit mainly the women and youths…even adults will benefit
because there are different classes of livestock that we are going to deal
with.
“We are going to be dealing with large livestock, which means dairy and
beef in the peri-urban areas where we have got land. The second aspect of
the livestock is going to be the small stock, which includes any class of
small livestock of your choice,” he said.
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