War veterans owe schools $37 million

The government, through the War Veterans ministry, owes various schools around the country over $37 million in unpaid fees for children of war veterans, NewsDay has established.

Source: War veterans owe schools $37 million – NewsDay Zimbabwe November 11, 2016

BY BLESSED MHLANGA

War Veterans ministry permanent secretary Walter Asher Tapfumaneyi confirmed the debt yesterday, saying the ministry was in financial doldrums after receiving $3 million to settle part of the debt.

“All in all, we are owed by Treasury $37 million in school fees, which we in turn owe to schools. We got $3 million for school fees last Friday. When we started this ministry, we inherited arrears in school fees of $19 million, starting from the third term of 2013. Because of the inadequacies of funding, that grew up to the first term this year to $22 million,” he said.

The 22 000 children of war veterans bleed Treasury of $6,4 million every term in school fees, which the government is currently struggling to pay.

War veterans blew a record $2,4 million at a four-hour meeting with President Robert Mugabe in April from their allocation of school fees.

Tapfumaneyi, who has come under fire from Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans’ Association chairman Christopher Mutsvangwa for alleged misplaced priorities after being accused of using $1 million meant for school fees to fund Zanu PF factional wars, said the money was being used to fund other statutory benefits.

“He (Tapfumaneyi) had obtained the $3 million through the tested use of playing up on the paranoiac insecurity of the Executive: The war veterans want to dethrone the party leader, they already have their own candidate for the Presidency in the 2018 elections,” Mutsvangwa said.

Tapfumaneyi disputed that, arguing the law provided for several benefits to war veterans, among them funeral support, school fees, medical cover, loans for business and subsistence grants.

“These are what we call statutory benefits, but we have so far only received school fees,” he said.

“So whenever school fees come, we take a small percentage, that’s why you are hearing Mutsvangwa saying Tapfumaneyi is retaining $1 million which he is using to bribe war veterans. It’s an administrative component which we are keeping to pay the other statutory benefits.”