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ConCourt
rules in favour of Mike Campbell & Co. - AfriForum
http://www.politicsweb.co.za/
Willie Spies
27
June 2013
Willie Spies says Zimbabwean govt's appeal dismissed, will now
be possible
to proceed with the legal sale of property
Constitutional
Court rules against Zimbabwe on land grabs
The Constitutional Court today
dismissed an appeal by die Zimbabwean
Government against an earlier ruling
of the Supreme Court of Appeal in
Bloemfontein in favour of the late Mr Mike
Campbell and 77 other Zimbabwean
farmers regarding Robert Mugabe's illegal
and racist land reform plan. The
court also ordered the Zimbabwean
Government to pay the farmers' costs. The
farmers were supported in this
endeavour by the civil rights organisation
AfriForum.
In the
judgement of the Constitutional Court, delivered by Chief Justice
Mogoeng
Mogoeng, common law was developed to give recognition to the
registration
and enforcement of the rulings on human rights by international
courts. The
matter was initially heard on 28 February by the Constitutional
Court.
Today's ruling was unanimous, with only one difference of emphasis
regarding
a legal point in the reasons for the ruling by Judge Zondo.
Last year the
Supreme Court of Appeal also dismissed with costs the appeal
of the
Zimbabwean Government against an earlier ruling of the Pretoria High
Court
confirming the registration and enforcement of the judgement of the
SADC
Tribunal in favour of the Zimbabwean farmers.
The process started when a
Zimbabwean farmer, Mr Mike Campbell succeeded in
2008 with an action against
the Zimbabwean Government before the SADC
Tribunal in Windhoek. The
Tribunal, which consisted of five judges from
various Southern African
states, ruled in November 2008 that the Zimbabwean
land reform process was
illegal and racist, and that Mr Campbell and the
other 77 farmers who became
involved in the process should either be left
alone or be compensated for
the expropriation of their assets.
The elderly Mr Mike Campbell, his
wife, Angela, and his son-in-law, Ben
Freeth, were brutally assaulted and
intimidated by war veterans in the
run-up to the hearing in an effort to
discourage them from appearing before
the Tribunal. The case did proceed and
Campbell eventually succeeded, but
the severity of his injuries caused his
health to deteriorate and he died in
April 2011.
AfriForum supported
the Zimbabwean farmers in a legal process which led to
the registration of
the ruling by the Tribunal in a South African court and
the confiscation of
a property in Kenilworth, Cape Town belonging to the
Zimbabwean Government
in order to offset the punitive cost order handed down
by the
Tribunal.
The dismissal of the appeal by the Zimbabwean Government means
that, for the
first time in international legal history, it will be possible
to proceed
with the legal sale of a property belonging to a state found
guilty of gross
human rights violations.
Statement issued by Willie
Spies, Legal Representative, AfriForum, June 27
2013
SA court dismisses Zim govt appeal of farm
ruling
By Alex Bell
SW Radio Africa
27
June 2013
South Africa’s highest court has
dismissed an appeal lodged by the Zimbabwe government, against an order that its
properties can be auctioned as part of a landmark legal
ruling.
In 2010 the North Gauteng High Court
ruled in favour of a group of farmers, who lost land in Zimbabwe during the ZANU
PF farm seizures. The farmers had approached the South African courts for
justice, because the Zimbabwe government refused to honour a regional ruling in
2008 that the land grab was unlawful.
That ruling was passed down by the
SADC Tribunal, which was subsequently suspended by SADC leaders in 2010. This
forced Zimbabwean commercial farmers and South African citizens Louis Fick, Mike
Campbell and Richard Etheredge to seek legal recourse in South Africa, because
Zimbabwe had refused to compensate them for the loss of their land, as ordered
by the Tribunal.
The South African High Court ruling
set an important precedent by enforcing the Tribunal ruling and recognising that
court’s jurisdiction. The Court also ruled that a Cape Town property owned by
the Zim government should be ‘attached’ for auction, to cover the government’s
debt to the farmers.
The Zim government then appealed this
decision at the South Africa Supreme Court of Appeal, which last year dismissed
the appeal. But the government then went to the Constitutional Court to
challenge the ruling.
The ConCourt on Thursday also
dismissed the appeal. In a majority judgment, Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng
referred to article 32 of the SADC Tribunal protocol, which obliges all member
states to facilitate the enforcement of judgments and orders of the
Tribunal.
“It also makes these decisions binding
and enforceable within the territories of the states concerned,” he
said.
Justice Mogoeng also said Zimbabwe was
duty-bound to act in accordance with the provisions of article 32, effectively
accusing the government of being in open contempt of the regional
court.
The court decision Thursday is being
seen as an important victory in the fight for justice for victims of the land
grab campaign.
However there is still concern that
the Tribunal remains in limbo, after SADC leaders last year agreed to limit its
mandate. This decision means SADC citizens no longer have access to an
independent human rights court, if their own government’s fail to protect their
rights.
Constitutional
Court to hear election cases 4th July
http://www.swradioafrica.com/
Staff Writer
27 June
2013
The Constitutional Court will hear the multiple cases, calling for
the delay
of elections, on Thursday 4th July. This is after reports
suggested they
would be heard on Friday.
The Court will hear what has
been described as a ‘super’ application,
combining the cases filed by
Justice and Legal Affairs Minister Patrick
Chinamasa, Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai, Industry and Commerce Minister
Welshman Ncube, Nixon Nyikadzino
and Mariah Phiri. All the cases seek to
reschedule the holding of elections
from Wednesday 31st July.
The Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights said
Chief Justice Godfrey Chidyausiku
set the new hearing date after meeting
legal representatives for both the
applicants and respondents in his
chambers at the Constitutional Court on
Thursday. The legal representatives
agreed to consolidate and argue the
cases all at once.
Constitutional
Crisis Looms as Court Shifts Election Challenge Dates
http://www.voazimbabwe.com/
Blessing
Zulu
27.06.2013
WASHINGTON DC — Chief Justice Godfrey Chidyausiku has
deferred to next week
the hearing of the challenges to President Robert
Mugabe’s July 31 election
proclamation date.
The challenges are led by
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and Industry
Minister Welshman
Ncube.
The delay has been described as a blow to Mr. Tsvangirai by some
legal
experts who say some of the prime minister’s arguments that parliament
align
laws such as the Public Order and Security Act, security and media
laws and
the Electoral Act before close of business has been overtaken by
events.
The Southern African Development Community had also urged
Zimbabwe to appeal
for an extension of the election date to allow for
reforms.
The Constitutional Court also told lawyers representing rival
political
parties to combine four separate applications over the timing of
the country’s
elections and meet Justice Chidyausiku in chambers
Tuesday.
This followed the filing of separate applications by MDC
leaders, Mr.
Tsvangirai and Professor Ncube, over the same issue. Other
citizens Nixon
Nyikadzino and Mariah Phiri had also filed separate
applications.
Mr. Tsvangirai’s lawyer advocate Lewis Uriri said if the
court rules in
their favour, there might be a constitutional crisis as
parliament will not
be in session.Chief Justice Godfrey Chidyausiku has
deferred to next week
the hearing of the challenges to President Robert
Mugabe’s July 31 election
proclamation date.
The challenges are led
by Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and Industry
Minister Welshman
Ncube.
The delay has been described as a blow to Mr. Tsvangirai by some
legal
experts who say some of the prime minister’s arguments that parliament
align
laws such as the Public Order and Security Act, security and media
laws and
the Electoral Act before close of business has been overtaken by
events.
The Southern African Development Community had also urged
Zimbabwe to appeal
for an extension of the election date to allow for
reforms.
The Constitutional Court also told lawyers representing rival
political
parties to combine four separate applications over the timing of
the country’s
elections and meet Justice Chidyausiku in chambers
Tuesday.
This followed the filing of separate applications by MDC
leaders, Mr.
Tsvangirai and Professor Ncube, over the same issue. Other
citizens Nixon
Nyikadzino and Mariah Phiri had also filed separate
applications.
Mr. Tsvangirai’s lawyer advocate Lewis Uriri said if the
court rules in
their favour, there might be a constitutional crisis as
parliament will not
be in session.
ZANU
PF primary elections leaves party in disarray
http://www.swradioafrica.com/
By Tichaona
Sibanda
SW Radio Africa
27 June 2013
A storm is brewing in ZANU PF
following the party’s primary elections held
this week, amid reports many of
the losing candidates are contemplating
standing as independents in the
upcoming elections if their grievances are
not dealt with.
But there
is little chance the party will have time to deal with appeals, as
elected
party candidates are expected to file their papers with the
nomination court
on Friday.
ZANU PF national chairman Simon Khaya Moyo said all was in
order following
the primaries, but many candidates are unhappy with the way
the elections
were conducted.
At the root cause of the problem is the
party’s decision to ditch its own
electoral register for the internal
selection process, and instead encourage
anybody with a national ID to walk
into any polling station and vote.
Those with financial muscle abused the
system and used their resources to
bus in people from outside their
constituencies to vote, and this practice
was widespread. SW Radio Africa
spoke to a losing ZANU PF candidate in
Mashonaland East province who told us
that even ‘a burial society
organization could have organized a better
election than their party.
‘I’m not happy with the way the elections were
conducted and I’ve told the
party I will contest as an independent,’ he
said. But ZANU PF has said it
will block him filing his papers with the
nomination court.
‘I was told in confidence today (Thursday) that the
party will send youth
members to the nomination court to make sure that I do
not present my papers
with the court. They are telling me I made my name
through ZANU PF and as
such there was no way they were going to let me split
the vote,’ he said.
Our correspondent Simon Muchemwa told us that, if not
careful, the latest
flare-up in the former ruling party could incinerate
President Robert Mugabe’s
hopes of winning the elections slated for July
31st.
Muchemwa said a day after the primaries ZANU PF is being rocked
with a
cocktail of accusations, particularly the contests that pitted its
heavyweights against lesser known figures.
In some constituencies,
sitting MPs like Local Government Minister Ignatius
Chombo in Zima North
allegedly bused in people from Chinghai, camped them at
different locations
and bought them food.
In other areas several big guns allegedly did worse
things, like bringing in
cardboard boxes already stuffed with votes.
Muchemwa explained that the
extent of the damage caused by the primary
elections will be clearer on
Friday after the nomination court.
‘At
least this is when we will be able to know the number of people
registered
as independents, following fallout from the primaries,’ said
Muchemwa.
Full Zanu PF primary election results
June
27, 2013
Chaotic Zanu PF primary elections ended in most constituencies on
Wednesday with a number of new faces trouncing heavyweights and sitting
legislators. A few dodgy results saw Auxillia Mnangagwa amassing over 17 000
votes in Kwekwe-Chirumanzu.
Full Zanu PF primary election results
Results from most areas had been released by last night, although
voting was still in progress in areas like Mbire and Bindura, while counting was
on in Harare and other parts of the country.
Zanu-PF national chairman Simon Khaya Moyo yesterday said all was in order
with regards to the primaries, with provincial committees expected to submit
names of winning candidates today.
“They have a full day tomorrow (today) to complete everything so that their
papers are in order and ZEC will assist by checking if candidates’ papers are in
order since on Friday there will be no time,” he said.
Winners will file their papers at Nomination Courts sitting in the capitals
of their respective provinces starting at 10am tomorrow. Heavyweights who fell
by the wayside include Politburo member Sikhanyiso Ndlovu, who lost to
businessman Joseph Tshuma in Pelandaba-Mpopoma in Bulawayo.
Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development Minister Joseph Made
was defeated in Makoni West by youth wing member Kudzi Chipanga. Former Copac
co-chairperson Munyaradzi Paul Mangwana lost his Chivi Central seat to trade
unionist and sugar cane farmer Ephraim Gwanongodza.
In the Midlands, Lawrence Mavima lost to former Hwange Colliery managing
director Freddy Gandiwa Moyo.
Several new faces made it in Masvingo and these include Zimpapers board
chairman Dr Paul Chimedza who beat lawyer Dr Vengai Guni in Gutu South.
In Harare, provincial chairperson Amos Midzi won in Epworth, while Noah
Mangondo will represent the party in Harare East. Tendai Savanhu won in Mbare,
Fortune Gumbo in Kuwadzana East, Shadreck Mashayamombe in Harare South and
Tongesai Mudambo in Harare North.
Glen View South will be represented by Steven Hurungudo, Glen View North will
have Martha Mhonderwa, while Harare Central will be represented by Rickson
Musarurwa. In Harare West, Varaidzo Mupunga will represent the party, while Ace
Lumumba Matamanje will be the candidate in Hatfield.
Moreen Nyemba beat Gabriel Chaibva to represent the party in Sunningdale,
with Tongai Nheta triumphing in Kambuzuma, Idah Mashonganyika in Highfield East
and Emmanuel Juda in Highfield West.
Glen Norah constituency would be represented by Peter Maeresera, with Abicia
Ushewokunze in Warren Park, Never Kowo in Dzivarasekwa, Onisimo Gore in
Southerton and Jason Passadi in Mt Pleasant.
In Mabvuku-Tafara Godwills Masimirembwa received 3 609 votes against Pastor
Robert Gumbura’s 276.
Voting started late yesterday in constituencies in Mashonaland Central in
areas like Bindura, Shamva, Chiweshe, Mukumbura, Muzarabani, Mazowe, Mbire and
Guruve. Vote counting started late in the night and results from the
constituencies were expected this morning.
In Masvingo Urban, former Zanu-PF provincial chairman Daniel Shumba beat
Joosbi Omar, while in Masvingo Central Eddison Zvobgo (Jnr) fell to businessman
and party provincial secretary for Administration Edmund Mhere.
In the Masvingo senatorial seat, Politburo member Dzikamai Mavhaire trounced
the sitting senator Maina Mandava, together with Central Committee member
Clemence Makwarimba.
In Masvingo West, Ezra Chadzamira won the elections after staving off the
challenge of war collaborators’ provincial boss Namatirai Chivanga.
Losing candidate in the constituency Retired Major Benard Mazarire filed an
appeal contesting the outcome, alleging that some people who voted were from the
Midlands.
“Yes we have received an appeal from Retired Major Mazarire in Masvingo West
and we will look into the issue tomorrow (today),’’ said provincial chairperson
Lovemore Matuke. Matuke was another new entrant in the province when he beat
businessman Benson Dandira in Gutu Central.
In Gutu North, Ticha Madondo won. Gutu West went to another new entrant
Tongai Muzenda, son to the late Vice President Simon Muzenda who was contesting
against sitting legislator Noel Mandebvu.
Matuke said results for Bikita West where former advisor to Reserve Bank of
Zimbabwe governor Dr Munyaradzi Kereke was contesting against his former
workmate Elias Musakwa had been withheld, but could not disclose the
reasons.
In Bikita South, provincial secretary for Finance Jappy Jaboon defeated
provincial women’s league boss Shylet Uyoyo and Wilson Makonya.
In Bikita East, the primary elections were won by former MP Kennedy Matimba,
while Chivi South was won by Mafios Utete who defeated incumbent Ivine
Dzingirai, Jonathan Gapare and Dr Sylvester Maunganidze.
In Chivi North, sitting legislator and provincial commissar Tranos Huruva
together with Clifford Mumbengegwi lost to a newcomer Retired Major Mathias
Tongofa. Politburo member Kudakwashe Bhasikiti retained his ticket to represent
the party in Mwenezi East after shrugging off the challenge of Pastor
Chigoyi.
In Mashonaland East’s Chikomba West, sitting MP Mike Bimha retained his seat
after defeating Douglas Makuku by 4 986 to 1 587. Makuku conceded defeat and
promised Bimha that he would work hand in glove with him.
Felex Mhona was uncontested in Chikomba Central as well as Edgar Mbwembwe in
Chikomba East.
Beatrice Nyamupinga won in Goromonzi West, while Simon Musanhu won in Wedza
North with 3 915 votes against 12 other candidates. Paddy Zhanda won Goromonzi
North with 5 484 against General Charles Maredza (Rtd) who had 1 116.
Mashonaland East provincial chairperson Cde Ray Kaukonde won convincingly in
Marondera Central. In Uzumba constituency in Mashonaland East, Simbaneuta
Mudarikwa won with 9 413 votes against Joseph Kademiri (3149) and Wilbert
Gwashavanhu (667).
Murehwa West went to Cde Ladislus Ndoro with 3 736 votes against Jonah Severa
(2611 votes) and Cde Victor Chitongo(1567 votes ). In Murehwa South, Joel Biggie
Matiza won with 4 807 votes against Michael Chifamba (4 291).
Maramba Pfungwe was won by Washington Masvaire with 4 657 votes against
Kenneth Mutiwekuziva (3 978), Godfrey Chikono (4143), Anderson Mapisa (144)
Clyness Kaditi (130) and Admire Mapisa(34).
In Beitbridge East, incumbent Kembo Mohadi got 1 566 against Philemon Mbedzi
459, Johanne Ndau 402 and Lawrence Tshili 315. Metrine Mdau retained Beitbridge
West with 1 016 votes, while Ruth Maboyi got 79 and Llyod Sioka received
429.
In Zvimba North in Mashonaland West, Ignatius Chombo won with 6 382 votes
against Edwin Matibiri’s 1 208. Dexter Nduna won Chegutu West after garnering 7
028 votes followed by Clever Kunonga (304) and Lucia Muchenje (181).
Sylvester Nguni won the Mhondoro-Mubaira constituency with 3 470, while
businesspersons Kennias Shamuyarira and Nyarai Chasi got 1 490 and 1 155
respectively.
In Mudzi North in Mashonaland East Newton Kachepa got 10 165 to Betty
Jakarasa’s 3 171, while in Mudzi South Eric Navaya received 3 838 votes to David
Kanjeve’s 3 171.
In Mutoko East, incumbent Ordor Nyakudanga lost to Ricky Mubvumbi who got 5
338 votes to his 4 687, while Logic Karimatsenga got 270.
David Chapfika won the right to represent the party in Mutoko South after he
got 4 198 to beat the challenge of Edmund Jacob, Everisto Pfumvuti and Clara
Mushimbo who got 775, 4 182 and 118 respectively.
In Mutoko North, Aquillina Katsande polled 4 900 votes to beat Magina Mudyiwa
(2924) and Kumbirai Maganze (1 179).
In the Midlands, Dorothy Mhangami the sitting MP retained the right to
represent the party in Gokwe Central after garnering 3 112 votes ahead of
Cornellious Muzezi with 1 723, Victor Matemandanda with 1 178, Bornface Zijena
with 569 votes and Davidson Masvisvi who polled 506 votes.
For the Senate, Jason Machaya won with 3 888 votes ahead of Themba Masuka who
got 1470 votes. In Manicaland’s Makoni Central Justice and Legal Affairs
Minister Patrick Chinamasa won against Arda board chairman Basil Nyabadza.
Former Mutasa senator Mandi Chimene won in Makoni South ahead of Happiness
Nyakuedzwa and Nathaniel Mhiripiri.
Senior police officers Ronald Muderedzwa and Oliver Mandipaka won in Buhera
Central and Buhera West respectively, while Joseph Chinotimba and William
Mutomba won in Buhera South and Buhera North.
Former Harare South legislator and Deputy Minister of Energy and Power
Development, Hubert Nyanhongo, will be representing Zanu-PF in Nyanga North
after seeing off the challenge of Nicodimus Antimalaria Chibvura and Maxwell
Kapomba.
In Headlands, party national secretary for administration Didymus Mutasa
sailed through unopposed, while in Nyanga South journalist and radio proprietor
Supa Mandiwanzira was uncontested.
In Chipinge South, former legislator Enock Porusingazi sailed past Lazarus
Ndlovu, Angela Hobwana, Lameck Mahlayeya, Charity Bhila and Skumbuzo Tondhlana.
In Mutasa North, a member of the Johanne Marange Apostolic Church Luke Masamvu
won ahead of Lameck Kutsawa.
Reketai Micah Duru and Trinity Munowenyu won in Dangamvura/Chikanga and
Mutare Central respectively.
In Bulawayo, National Assembly winners included Cdes Eliphas Mashaba (Nketa),
Alderman David Ndlovu (Nkulumane), Kelvin Zidziwa (Bulawayo East) and Cde
Mlungisi Moyo (Bulawayo Central).
Retired Colonel Tshinga Dube was nominated unopposed for Makokoba.
Bafana Dube won in Bulawayo South with Godfrey Malaba emerging winning in
Pumula and Grace Dube triumphing in Magwegwe. Judith Ncube won in Emakhandeni,
while Christopher Dube will stand in Lobengula constituency. Nicholas Mhlanga
won the right to stand for the Luveve seat.
In the Senatorial the winners were Absalom Sikhosana (Emganwini), Violet
Ncube (Masotsha), Shadreck Mukaro (Mzilikazi), Professor Callistus Ndlovu
(Khumalo), Cdes Anna Moyo (Gwabalanda) and Modecai Mlotshwa (Mabutweni).
In Matabeleland South, Madodana Sibanda won the Gwanda North seat by 1 056
votes against Jeffrey Moyo who polled 611 votes and Rido Mpofu’s 95 votes.
Abednigo Ncube defeated Orders Shakespeare Mlilo by 2 513 votes against 561 in
Gwanda South.
Retired Major Lungisani Nleya garnered 1 663 against Dingumuzi Phuthi who
polled 1 396 votes in Bulilima West. In Bulilima East, Mathias Siqhoza Ndlovu
got 1 690 votes against Bulilima District Administrator Ethel Moyo 710 and
Christopher Masuku’s 555 votes.
In Matobo South Cde Saul Mahalima Ncube garnered 1 988 against Richard
Sibanda who got 303 votes. Never Khanye polled 1 287 votes in Matobo North
defeating former diplomat and NRZ board chairman, Dr Khotsho Dube who got 979
votes.
Incumbent Insiza North MP Andrew Langa won by 5 917 votes against Patrick
Hove’s 2 137 and Gibson Siziba’s 235 votes.
In Insiza South constituency former ZBC disc jockey Malaki Nkomo garnered 1
130 votes beating Spare Sithole who polled 806 votes, Jabulani Dube 710, Johnson
Langa’s 599 and Esau Moyo’s 332.
In Umzingwane constituency William Dhewa defeated nine contestants.
Winners for the Senatorial seats in Matabeleland South are Simon Khaya Moyo
(Bulilima-Mangwe), Tambudzani Mohadi (Beitbridge), Ananias Nyathi (Matobo), Alma
Baloyi-Mkhwebu (Gwanda), Naison Khutshwekhaya Ndlovu (Insiza) and Hallet Sibanda
(Umzingwane).
In Matabeleland North, provincial chairman Richard Moyo beat Senator Lot
Mbambo for the Bubi Umguza Senatorial seat.
Sithembiso Nyoni humbled Maplot Donga with a wide victory margin in Nkayi
North National Assembly primaries. In Nkayi South, Stars Mathe emerged
victorious against Tshatha Mguni, Nkululeko Mathe and Lot Fuzwayo.
Professor Jonathan Moyo and Dr Obert Mpofu sailed unopposed in Tsholotsho
North and Umguza respectively. Incumbent legislator, Clifford Sibanda beat
council chairperson Cecil Mathambo and Sonny Mguni in Bubi constituency.
Dr Isaac Ndebele won in Binga and Cde Sithembiso Gumbo prevailed over Cdes
Mthenjwa Gumbo, Shadreck Mazibisa, Luka Mguni and Clarence Ndlela in Lupane
East. In Lupane West, Martin Khumalo was unopposed.
Reeds Dube beat Simbarashe Munamba in Hwange Central, while Bekithemba Mpofu
won against five contestants, Michael Muleya Siluwe, Dilipaumah Pandya, Absom
Madubise, Bishop Ncube and Rafael Ncube in Hwange West.
In other Senate results in the province, Essau Dube was unopposed and Nomusa
Mthunzi went through in the women’s quota under proportional representation, in
Nkayi.
Bulawayo Governor and Resident Minister, Cain Mathema was unchallenged in
Tsholotsho South, while Medeline Bhebhe went through under the women’s quota in
Bubi-Umguza.
Foreign Affairs Minister, Simbarashe Mumbengegwi won the Shurugwi-Zvishavane
Senatorial seat primaries, while Midlands Governor Jason Machaya emerged
victorious in the Gokwe South constituency.
Politburo member, Tsitsi Muzenda won the Gweru-Chirumanzu senatorial
primaries. Defence Minister, Emmerson Mnangagwa was unchallenged in the
Chirumanzu-Zibagwe constituency so was Flora Buka for the Gokwe North Senatorial
seat.
Results for Mashonaland Central Province were still to be verified.
Zanu
PF primaries: Made, Sikhanyiso booted out
http://www.newzimbabwe.com/
26/06/2013 00:00:00
by
Staff Reporter
AGRICULTURE minister Joseph Made and politburo
member Sikhanyiso Ndlovu were
among the top party leaders to fall by the
way-side in Zanu PF primary
elections held across the country on
Wednesday.
Made was beaten in Makoni West by the party’s youth wing
member Kudzi
Chipanga while Sikhanyiso Ndlovu lost to Bulawayo businessman
Joseph Tshuma
in Pelandaba-Mpopoma.
The set-back for Made leaves his
cabinet position in doubt should President
Robert Mugabe keep his word to
only appoint elected ministers if he wins the
next elections.
“We
were able to set up a Global Political Agreement (GPA) with some who had
won
the elections and others who had lost,” Mugabe told reporters in during
a
recent summit in Japan.
“Both professors for example Welshman Ncube and
Arthur Mutambara had lost.
They had been beaten but they came in as
honourable ministers who had been
dishonoured by the people. It won’t happen
again.”
Other top casualties included ex-Copac co-chairperson Munyaradzi
Paul
Mangwana who lost his bid to retain the Chivi Central seat to trade
unionist
and farmer Ephraim Gwanongodza.
In Sunningdale, Harare,
Gabriel Chaibva - who quit the MDC to join Zanu PF -
was defeated by Moreen
Nyemba.
Another returnee, telecoms entrepreneur Daniel Shumba, who
briefly quit Zanu
PF form his own party, won in Masvingo Urban.
Zanu
PF had hoped to finalise the selection of its candidates by Tuesday but
huge
voter turnouts in various constituencies and logistical problems forced
the
party to extend the process to Wednesday.
And the party will have been
encouraged by the massive turn-out in in
several constituencies, with
Kwekwe-Chirumanzu raising eyebrows as Auxillia
Mnangagwa claimed more than
17,000 votes to beat former Kwekwe city
councillor Clarissa
Muchengeti.
However, problems remain in areas such as Masvingo West where
Retired Major
Benard Mazarire has appealed his defeat to Ezra Chadzamira
claiming some of
the people who voted were from the Midlands
province.
“We have received an appeal from Retired Major Mazarire in
Masvingo West and
we will look into the issue tomorrow (Thursday),’’ said
provincial
chairperson Lovemore Matuke.
Results have also been
withheld in Bikita West where former Reserve Bank of
Zimbabwe (RBZ)
employees Munyaradzi Kereke and Elias Musakwa were battling
to represent the
party. Officials would not give reasons for not releasing
the
results.
National chairman, Simon Khaya Moyo, said the primaries would be
finalised
on Thursday, in time for winning candidates to file their papers
with the
Zimbabwe Electoral Commission.
“(Provincial committees) have
a full day tomorrow (today) to complete
everything so that their papers are
in order and ZEC will assist by checking
if candidates’ papers are in order
since on Friday there will be no time,”
he said.
Opposition
parties mull new Movement for Change
http://www.newzimbabwe.com/
26/06/2013 00:00:00
by Staff Reporter
PLANS are underway to form a grand coalition to
challenge President Robert
Mugabe and his Zanu PF party at the next
elections, Mavombo Kusile leader
Simba Makoni and Zapu's Dumiso Dabengwa
have revealed.
"We are working towards coming up with a movement for
change," Makoni told a
recent public meeting organised by the Media
Institute of Southern Africa
(Misa) in Harare.
The former Zanu PF
politburo member and finance minister however insisted
that the coalition
would not participate in the polls unless key reforms
were put in
place.
The coalition is expected to include the Makoni’s Mavambo, the MDC
formations as well as Dumiso Dabengwa’s Zapu.
Dabengwa also confirmed
the plans at a press conference in Harare on
Wednesday.
“We do hope that
the results of elections will give Zapu a victory or
alternatively will give
us enough seats to go into a coalition arrangement,”
he said.
“We are
still engaging other political parties on this coalition and we will
announce as soon as we finalise.”
The parties have held meetings in
recent days to work out joint strategy
after Mugabe announced elections
would be held on July 31.
The first meeting was held ahead of the SADC
summit in Maputo and the second
after the meeting where Prime Minister
Morgan Tsvangirai and MDC leader
Welshman Ncube briefed Makoni on the
outcome on the regional meeting.
Ncube’s MDC however, denied the meetings
had discussed the formation of the
grand coalition although the party did
not rule out the possibility.
“We wish to state equivocally that the
meeting which is being purported to
have been a meeting of grand coalition
leaders and meant to discuss a
coalition for the upcoming election was in
fact convened for the sole
purpose of briefing the other political leaders
of the events and outcome of
the recent SADC Summit in Maputo,” the MDC said
in a statement.
“It is (however) a matter of public record that the MDC
stated after its
National Standing Committee last week and in very clear
terms its attitude
towards coalition.
“It has also publicly stated
who among its leaders should be approached with
regards to conversations for
political cooperation of any nature.”
Speculation over the proposed
electoral alliance has also attracted the
attention of Nathaniel Manheru, a
herald columnist who is believed to be
Mugabe’s spokesman George Charamba
who commented on the development in his
column last Saturday.
He
wrote: “Is anyone getting the same whispers reaching me on the grand
coalition? That the sleek Simba Makoni has weaved his way in, to become
Tsvangirai’s right hand man, much to the consternation of core MDC-T
ministerial personalities? There is a rumble. There is terror, and the talk
is that MDC-T is about to be done another Mavambo!
“Wait and see if
you have eyes; wait and hear if you have ears. The people
he does not have
on the ground, he makes up for in well- rounded words!
Bvunzai veZanu PF
vanomuziva!
“Pamashoko chete, haa-a ruvava! And Dabengwa too, what does
he bring
kumadzakutsaku aya? A whole war veteran? A whole commander who
claimed he
formed Mavambo to save the liberation movement?
“What now,
black Russian? When did this sell-out collaboration start? How do
we see you
now? It will not be long before the grand alliance becomes a
grand
headache.”
Meanwhile, Makoni claimed that Mugabe was a worried man as
most people in
his Zanu PF party had grown weary of his rule.
"I am aware
that Mugabe is now living fear because he knows that no one
still respects
him. There are more people who need change in Zanu PF than
those outside the
party," said Makoni.
Chindori-Chininga
family insist fatal ‘accident’ was murder
http://www.swradioafrica.com/
By Alex Bell
SW Radio
Africa
27 June 2013
The family of the late ZANU PF official Edward
Chindori-Chininga, who died
in a car accident last week, has insisted that
his death was deliberate.
The Guruve South MP was buried at his Mudhindo
homestead this week, amid
ongoing speculation that the fatal crash he was
involved in was no accident.
More fuel was added to the fire during the
burial ceremony, when his
relatives said the MP had been
killed.
“Politics kills, you are killed by a stupid person,”
Chindori-Chininga’s
nephew John Chanetsa said, adding that his death was
celebrated by political
rivals in ZANU PF.
“After I heard about the
death, I ran around and realised people were
celebrating the death. You
killed him to pave way for yourself,” Chanetsa
said.
Chindori-Chininga’s death followed the release of a damning
parliamentary
committee report about Zimbabwe’s diamond sector, with details
about the
involvement of ZANU PF officials and allies in the industry. That
report has
exposed the level of corruption evident at the Chiadzwa diamond
fields,
where millions of dollars in profits, meant to be earned by the
national
Treasury, are unaccounted for.
Chindori-Chininga was the
chairman of the committee that authored the
report, but even before the
report was released he was known as a man who
tried to shine a light on the
murky practices at the diamond fields. Alan
Martin from Partnership Africa
Canada, who communicated extensively with
Chindori-Chininga, said last week
that the ZANU PF MP knew he was a “marked
man” and that his work as chairman
of the parliamentary committee on mines
and energy had ended his political
career in the party.
The report lends credence to the concerns raised for
years by human rights
groups about the goings-on at the diamond fields. Its
findings back up
previous reports by groups like Partnership Africa Canada
and Human Rights
Watch, which have accused ZANU PF of controlling the
diamond trade and
illicitly using the trade profits to run a ‘parallel
government’.
In its report, the parliamentary committee said it had
observed with concern
that the government had not received any meaningful
contribution from
diamonds because there are “serious discrepancies between
what it receives
and what the diamond-mining companies claim to have
remitted to Treasury”.
The car in which Edward Chindori-Chininga
died
The report quoted the Mbada Diamonds mining firm as saying it had paid
$293
million to the government since it started mining in 2009, including
$117
million between 2011 and 2012. This is in stark contrast to figures
released
by Finance Minister Tendai Biti, who said the government had
received only
$41 million in diamond revenue last year.
The report
also questioned the serious lack of transparency in the diamond
sector,
pointing a finger at Mines Minister Obert Mpofu, who they said had
secretly
chosen various investors with a clear conflict of interests.
Other
revelations include the ongoing presence of the military which,
according to
the report, still controls much of the diamond fields. This is
despite the
insistence of the Mines Ministry that the military has no role
to play,
after concerns were raised that there were military-led abuses at
the
diamond fields.
Farai Maguwu, the Director of the Centre for Resource
Governance, said the
lack of transparency seen in the diamond sector is the
major challenge in
trying to resolve the issues there. He said the problem
is a political one,
and a lack of political will was a key failure in
turning the diamond sector
into an honest trade.
“The problem also
goes beyond just corrupt politicians. Unfortunately
Zimbabwe is operating in
a corrupt international system that is taking
advantage of situations like
in Zimbabwe,” Maguwu said.
Minister
Theresa Makone condoned seizure of radios by police
http://www.swradioafrica.com/
By Nomalanga
Moyo
SW Radio Africa
27 June 2013
Co-Home Affairs Minister Theresa
Makone has defended the move by police to
ban possession of wind-up
shortwave radios in February.
The issue was raised in parliament by
legislator Simon Hove, who wanted to
know from the Minister what the motives
for the ban were.
A report in the Herald newspaper indicates that Makone,
whose ministry is
responsible for the police, condoned the seizures, saying
the police were
within their powers to confiscate the illegally imported
radios.
The same report also quoted Makone as saying the receivers were a
security
threat because they peddled hate speech.
Outgoing MDC-T
Highfield East MP Simon Hove, who asked the question in
parliament, told SW
Radio Africa Thursday that Minister Makone’s response
left him none the
wiser.
He said Thursday: “I wanted to know the motive behind such
selective and
vindictive actions by the police. I wanted the minister to
explain to me
whether this was government policy or whether police were
pursuing political
parochial interests.
“In her response, Makone went
on to address the issue of two-way radio
transmitters used by the police and
security personnel, commonly known as
‘Over-Overs’, yet my question was
specifically about shortwave radios used
by ordinary citizens to access and
acquire information,” Hove said.
MP Hove said it did not make sense that
the police viewed wind-up shortwave
radios as a security
threat.
“People have a right to know what is happening around them and
beyond.
Besides radios do not tune themselves, individuals navigate through
several
stations before they select a particular station to listen to,” he
said.
Hove said towards the end of her answer Minister Makone appeared to
acknowledge the usefulness of the shortwave radios but still seemed to
justify the police actions by saying they were either confiscating illegally
imported radios or acting against hate speech.
This was also
confirmed by the MDC-T MP for Mazoe Central, Shepherd
Mushonga, who said
Minister Makone first condoned radio seizures before
adding that hate speech
was also prevalent in the print media within the
country.
“The radios
are not the problem, but the peddling of hate speech, and the
police will
also confiscate illegally imported radios. The threat is found
when citizens
are being set against each other,” Makone is quoted in the
Herald as having
said.
Hove said: “Even so, there is no justification for the police to be
raiding
private citizens’ homes. They are supposed to take this up with the
importers. Still, the receivers could not have got into the country without
the authorities being aware.”
Hove added that the so-called hate
speech said to be peddled by radio
stations based outside the country, which
are the main target of the police
ban, is nothing more than citizens finding
an alternative channel to be
heard.
He said public figures should be
prepared to be subjected to scrutiny by
citizens: “Most of what is being
called hate speech by the police is people
expressing themselves on issues
that wouldn’t have been attended to by
elected officials.
“The
solution is not in shutting out those voices but in listening to what
the
people are saying,” Hove said.
SW Radio Africa could not get a comment
from Minister Makone, as her
assistant said she was in a
meeting.
Since the confiscations began in February, human rights
activists have
raised concern that the banning of the solar powered radios
violates the
people’s constitutional right to information.
Conflicting reaction over Minister’s ‘sex boycott’
appeal
Priscilla Misihairabwi-Mushonga and
Margaret Dongo
By Violet Gonda
SW Radio
Africa
27 June 2013
Cabinet Minister Priscilla
Misihairabwi-Mushonga has come under fire from former opposition leader Margaret
Dongo, for calling on women to embark on sex boycotts to force their husbands to
go and register to vote.
Misihairabwi-Mushonga, who is also the
MDC Secretary General, is reported to have told a rally in Matabeleland North
province that women are the hardest hit by economic hardships, so it was up to
them to help change the status quo.
“If your husband has not yet gone to
register to vote then you must deny him his conjugal rights. If he does not have
a registration slip to show that he has registered then do not give in,” she is
quoted telling supporters in Cross Dete, Hwange.
But Dongo said this is not “wise”
advise to give to people who have not been empowered socially, mentally and
economically.
Dongo told SW Radio Africa:
“Zimbabwean men are very tricky and our culture is very tricky. You will find a
lot of women being thrown out of their homes. After all rural women are not well
empowered in terms of information and in terms of being able to stand for
themselves and protecting themselves.
“You cannot use women to use sex to
pressure men to go and register. Besides, if men register, who are they going to
vote for in those constituencies?”
She said 33 years after independence
Zimbabwean women are still under-represented in politics and yet women represent
52 percent of the society.
Dongo encouraged gender activists to
use their power to mobilize more women to participate and vote for each other
rather than use their ‘bottom-power’ to encourage men to vote. “We don’t only
have the bottom power. We have other powers rather than the bottom. The bottom
is for luxury,” Dongo added.
The former opposition leader said more
women should have been encouraged to run for parliamentary elections and not
wait to participate through the proportional representation
system.
Sex boycotts have been used in a
number of countries as a method of non-violent resistance, to protest issues
ranging from employment to anti-war campaigns, although some critics say it
isn’t very successful because it starts ‘wars’ between sexes.
A couple of years ago a prominent
Togolese rights activist and opposition leader, Isabelle Ameganvi, was on the
receiving end of verbal attacks from men in her country when she urged women to
withhold conjugal sex for a week, to force their husbands to demand the
resignation of President Faure Gnassingbé, who took power in a fraud-ridden
elections.
In 2009 gender activists in Kenya
encouraged women to go on a week-long sex ban in protest over the infighting
that plagued the country’s coalition government. At the time the executive
director of the Federation of Women Lawyers Patricia Nyaundi, one of the
organisations in the Kenyan campaign, told the BBC that they had asked wives of
the Kenyan president and Prime Minister to join in. “Great decisions are made
during pillow talk, so we are asking the two ladies at that intimate moment to
ask their husbands: ‘Darling can you do something for Kenya?’” Nyaundi
said.
Click here for interview Margaret
Dongo
Partisan
generals not a threat: Dabengwa
http://www.newzimbabwe.com/
26/06/2013 00:00:00
by
Staff Reporter
ZAPU leader Dumiso Dabengwa has said partisan security
services chiefs were
no threat to a successful transition of power in the
event President Robert
Mugabe and his Zanu PF party lose the next
elections.
MDC-T leader and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai wants polls
to elect a
successor to the coalition government delayed to allow what he
describes as
re-alignment of the country’s security sector, among other key
reforms.
Tsvangirai claims he has repeatedly been advised by pro-Mugabe
generals that
they would not allow him to take over power even if he won the
elections.
Several top commanders have also issued statements insisting
they would not
serve under a president who did not participate in the
country’s liberation
struggle, a barely veiled reference to the MDC-T
leader.
Tsvangirai believes the generals planned the brutalisation of his
supporters
after he beat Mugabe in the first round of the presidential
ballot in 2008.
But Zapu president, Dumiso Dabengwa - a top Zipra
commander during the
independence war - told reporters in Harare Wednesday
that the threats were
par for the course.
Dabengwa, who served as
home affairs minister but later quit Zanu PF to
revive Zapu, said similar
threats were made by Ian Smith’s generals before
independence in
1980.
“I think the issue of a threat that hangs along the power that the
security
sector might have, it’s not threat at all I don’t see it,” he
said.
“Up to Lancaster I and (Josiah) Tongogara asked to meet General
(Peter)
Walls, when we were already agreed on the ceasefire and we wanted to
agree
and discuss on certain details which would apply during the
ceasefire.
“He (General Walls) used to say we are terrorists but
immediately after we
set foot on home soil and we met under the ceasefire
commission he was
talking and saluting us and listened to what we
said.”
The country’s security service chiefs first threatened to block
Tsvangirai
from power in 2002 when, led by then Zimbabwe Defence Forces
Commander
General Vitalis Zvinavashe, they declared that the presidency was
a
“straitjacket”.
“Let it be known that the highest office on the
land is a "straight jacket"
whose occupant is expected to observe the
objectives of the liberation
struggle,” Zvinavashe, flanked by the heads of
the other security services,
told a press conference in a widely condemned
statement.
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“We will therefore not
accept, let alone support or salute anyone with a
different agenda that
threatens the very existence of our sovereignty, our
country and our
people.”
Mugabe tried to explain the anxieties of his generals at the
recent SADC
meeting in Maputo where he said most of them were still in
liberation war
mode.
“These are people who were with us during the
liberation struggle and they
have not disconnected themselves from the
liberation struggle to today. As
far as they are concerned they are still in
the mould of the liberation
struggle and we know we have to treat them with
sensitivity but l agree
there is a problem,” Mugabe told regional leaders,
according MDC secretary
general Priscilla Misihairabwi-Mushonga who attended
the meeting.
Meanwhile, Dabengwa said despite facing huge funding
challenges, Zapu would
field candidates in elections due this year to
replace the coalition
government.
“Zapu has been reviving its
structures throughout the provinces quietly with
very little resources at
its disposal. Zapu is satisfied and we have covered
enough ground,” he
said.
“We will not boycott elections and hold people of Zimbabwe at
ransom. It
doesn’t matter how we are disadvantaged.”
He also
confirmed that talks were on-going over a possible grand coalition
with
other political parties.
“We do hope that the results of elections will give
Zapu a victory or
alternatively will give us enough seats to go into a
coalition arrangement,”
he said.
“We are still engaging other
political parties on this coalition and we will
announce as soon as we
finalise.”
Mobile
voter reg flawed: Madzore
http://www.thezimbabwean.co/
26.06.13
by Nelson
Sibanda
The on-going voter registration exercise will leave thousands of
potential
voters disenfranchised, according to the Parliamentary Portfolio
on Defence
and Home Affairs after a tour of some mobile
centres.
Slow registration of voters at registration centres in the
urban areas had
frustrated the efforts of potential voters to participate in
coming
elections, said committee chairman Paul Madzore.
New voters in
some remote areas such as Chipinge waited 14-30 days before
their finger
print forms, needed for accessing national identification
documents, were
returned from forensic in Harare.
They cannot register as voters without
approved fingerprints. Given the
limited registration period, most first
time voters without identification
documents would be
disenfranchised.
At other centres such as Besa Primary in Seke area,
identification documents
for new voters are yet to be received since June 10
and registration teams
have since moved base. Madzore and his committee have
compiled a document on
their disturbing findings.
“Though I am not in
a position to pre-empt our findings, I personally feel
someone is
deliberately frustrating the registration process in order to rig
the
election before it starts,” Madzore told The Zimbabwean.
He said the
registration exercise was conducted in breach of the
constitution, as
eligible voters were not accorded the constitutional 30
days to register.
“Imagine the elderly having to follow registration teams
to other wards
where the queues would be long and the process moving at a
snail’s pace,” he
said.
The Combined Harare Residents Association recently expressed
concern at huge
numbers of eligible voters who failed to register at mobile
registration
centres around Harare. In Tafara and Mabvuku the centre closed
business at
the end of the two or three day registration period, leaving
long queues of
people unattended.
“The elderly residents who were
hoping to cross-check their names on the
voters’ roll or assist their minors
get registration certificates, were left
hopeless,” reads part of the CHRA
report.
Mzembi
embroiled in UNWTO tender row
http://www.dailynews.co.zw/
ERIC CHIRIGA, BUSINESS EDITOR • 27 JUNE 2013
1:46PM
CHAOS has marred the United Nations World Tourism Organisation
(UNWTO)
hosting preparations, with event management firms crying foul over
the
tendering of a million-dollar conference organiser
contract.
Zimbabwe is set to co-host UNWTO’s 20th general assembly with
Zambia in
August this year in Victoria Falls.
The firms allege Walter
Mzembi’s Tourism ministry has engaged African Bureau
of Conventions (ABC) —
a South African event organiser — as the official
UNWTO assembly
professional conference organiser (PCO) while the contract or
job is still
under tender.
They also accuse the ministry of manipulating and
interfering with the
tendering process.
“While the Tourism ministry
is asking us to re-tender several times, we hear
that ABC’s representative
is already on the ground in Victoria Falls working
with the ministry’s
officials,” said a local events manager who preferred
anonymity.
“The
lady (ABC’s representative) has actually confirmed that they have spent
nearly R60 000 on travel and preparing to do the job,” he
said.
However, Mzembi dismissed the claims.
“I have no time for
that. We are at an advanced stage and we are moving. You
are focusing on the
negative,” he said.
“PCO and conferencing solution provider are Cabinet
cleared matters. So I
advise that you don’t waste your energy on useless
leads,” Mzembi said,
adding that “there are no local skills to answer UNWTO
specifications.”
But the events manager argues that locals are capable
and with some even
cheaper than ABC.
They said the engagement of a
South African firm at a time government is
spearheading an indigenisation
programme was surprising.
According to him, the Tourism ministry intended
to grant ABC the PCO
contract before it was instructed to go through the
tender by the State
Procurement Board (SPB).
He said the ministry
then floated a tender, number MOTHI/T-001/2, in
November 2012, with eight
event organisers participating, including ABC
which bid for $771 106
excluding value added tax.
He said before the tender — whose closing date
was November 27, 2012 —
results were announced SPB cancelled it.
“The
State Procurement Board has, through PBR 2154 of December 4, 2012,
resolved
that tender number MOTHI/-001/12 for engagement of a professional
conference
organiser for the UNWTO conference, be and hereby cancelled due
to technical
irregularities,” Charles Kuwaza’s SPB said, adding that “the
accounting
officer should float an open tender with a short closing
period of 14 days.
SPB then floated another tender — number
MOTHI/T-001/12 — but with new
conditions.
The tender required all
interested parties to attend a compulsory
pre-bidding meeting on January
4.
“…non-attendance will lead to automatic disqualification.
A
certificate of attendance to this meeting will be issued on this day and
has
to be attached to final documents submitted to State Procurement Board,”
the
tender document stated.
According to the local events manager, all
tenderers attended the January 4
meeting except ABC.
He said a
Tourism ministry director named Mavhumbe addressed the meeting and
said he
had been “requested to notify you that the meeting has to be
postponed to
January 9 because Margaret Sangarwe (the ministry’s permanent
secretary)
could not attend as she is on holiday.”
He said the bidders were annoyed
by the ministry’s heal dragging and
demanded that any tenderer who was not
present be disqualified to attend the
January 9 meeting as dictated by the
tender.
“We all agreed to that including Mavhumbe. The assumption was
that no one,
including the ministry, was in touch with any
tenderer.”
“Surprisingly, ABC was present at the January 9 meeting,” he
said.
The organiser said bidders protested against ABC.
However,
the tender was then awarded to the Zimbabwe International Trade
Fair (ZIFT)
in March.
“… the State Procurement Board has, in terms of Section 21 of
the
Procurement Regulations 2002, awarded the tender… to Zimbabwe
International
Trade Fair (Pvt) Ltd, in the sum of $367 862,” SPB said in a
March 8 letter
to one of the bidders.
While it is unclear what
transpired, in a new twist, ZITF’s tender was
withdrawn and new one — number
SFT/MOTHI-001/12 — with a 48-hour closing
period, was floated.
ZITF’s
comment could not be obtained by the time of going to print.
“The
professional conference organiser is expected to assume the role
shortly
after conclusion of the tender,” the Tourism ministry said in a
letter dated
June 20, 2013.
The tender results are yet to be announced.
UK-based
rights activists in plea for peaceful elections
http://www.swradioafrica.com/
By Nomalanga
Moyo
SW Radio Africa
27 June 2013
London-based human rights
activists marched Thursday to commemorate the 5th
anniversary of Zimbabwe’s
violent 2008 presidential election run-off and to
appeal for peace ahead of
this year’s poll.
The protest was organised by justice and rights lobby
group, Action for
Southern Africa (ACTSA), who were joined by members of the
UK’s Trades Union
Congress and the Zimbabwe Vigil, outside the Zimbabwean
Embassy in London.
ACTSA head Tony Dykes told SW Radio Africa that the
message of Thursday’s
demo was two-pronged: “Firstly we were saying ‘Never
Again’ to the 2008
violence, intimidation, killings, disappearances and
rape. That shouldn’t
happen.
“Zimbabwe will hold elections again very
soon and the second part of our
message was that there should be free and
fair elections to enable
Zimbabweans to vote for whoever they want without
fear of favour,” he said.
Dykes said they were not demonstrating in
support of any political party but
the right of Zimbabweans to peacefully
exercise their democratic right.
“We were also calling for impartiality
by the institutions of the state, and
credible electoral processes,
including allowing both domestic election
observers and truly independent
external election observer missions, in
place well before the elections,”
Dykes added.
Dykes said his group was encouraged by signals from the
Southern African
Development Community (SADC) which indicated that the
regional bloc is
acknowledging that the last election did not comply with
its norms and
standards.
“And so while the demo wasn’t about SADC, it
was in some ways in support of
that SADC stance on Zimbabwe and trying to
reinforce that message,” he said.
In a statement released before the
march, the TUC said: “It is the duty of
the Government of Zimbabwe to ensure
free and fair elections in a peaceful
environment without violence and
intimidation and in strict compliance with
international standards. We do
hope that the elections will usher in a new
era of peace, prosperity and
justice for all.”
ZimVigil spokesperson Ephraim Tapa said: “As things
stand free and fair
elections are very unlikely because of intimidation and
vote-rigging. We
fear the election results will be cooked by ZANU
PF.”
After Thursday’s protest a ‘Tree of Hope’, covered with messages of
hope for
free and fair elections written on red paper roses, was carried to
Southwark
Cathedral. Red roses are used as a symbol of peace in Zimbabwe by
the women’s
movement.
The Zimbabwean Embassy in London has been the
location of weekly demos by
the ZimVigil group since 2002.
Zimbabweans:
Unity Govt Failed to Implement Key Reforms
http://www.voazimbabwe.com/
Thomas
Chiripasi
27.06.2013
HARARE — The unity government on Thursday came
under attack from a cross
section of Zimbabweans for its failure to
implement key democratic reforms
as elections draw near.
With the
life of the seventh parliament coming to an end in two days and
fresh
elections beckoning, some Zimbabweans said the unity government has
failed
in its mandate to create conditions for free and fair
elections.
Freelance journalist Jeffrey Moyo said parties in the unity
government spent
the last four years haggling over the implementation of
provisions of the
Global Political Agreement but produced no
results.
Moyo said the little time left before the expiry of the term of
the current
parliament midnight Saturday is the clearest indication that
journalists
face a tough time ahead due to the absence of media
reforms.
Human rights activist David Chidende, who works with the
National
Constitutional Assembly, says the absence of security sector
reforms ahead
of this year’s elections may see political violence
re-emerging ahead of the
upcoming polls.
Although the two MDC
formations have repeatedly called for the re-alignment
of the security
sector, Zanu PF – through Defense Minister Emmerson
Mnangagwa and Justice
Minister Patrick Chinamasa – has remained defiant that
reforms are a
pipe-dream of parties they say are scared of elections.
Director of the
Media Centre, Earnest Mudzengi, said the outcome of the
forthcoming poll
will not be credible given the unlevel playing field that
they will be held
under.
At its summit held in the Mozambican capital, Maputo, on June 15,
the
Southern African Development Community urged Harare to take immediate
measures to ensure credible polls are held in the country.
Prior to
the summit, President Robert Mugabe had declared that polls would
be held on
July 31. But after representations to regional leaders by Mr.
Mugabe’s
governing partners, the regional bloc urged Harare to delay the
holding of
elections by at least two weeks pending the full implementations
of reforms
agreed by parties in the coalition government.
Following the summit, Mr.
Mugabe through Minister Chinamasa, unilaterally
sought to extend the poll
date to August 14 without consulting Prime
Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and
Industry Minister Welshman Ncube, leader of
the smaller other MDC
formation.
This prompted counter applications by both Mr. Tsvangirai and
Professor
Ncube. The president’s absence resulted in the Constitutional
Court
postponing indefinitely the hearing of five cases brought before it –
all
cases have a bearing on this year’s crucial polls.
One of Mr.
Tsvangirai’s lawyers, Selby Hwacha, said attorneys representing
all
opposition parties met Chief Justice Godfrey Chidyausiku and agreed that
all
the cases be consolidated into one and will be heard next week
Thursday.
Meanwhile, the nomination court is expected to sit Friday to
take names of
candidates who will contest for presidential, parliamentary
and local
government seats.
Many people now believe that SADC and the
African Union have failed to
resolve Zimbabwe's political impasse.
State invokes controversial law to keep Sagandira in custody
despite bail
June 26, 2013
By Tatenda Mabasa | Nehanda Mutare Bureau |
RUSAPE – THE MDC-T candidate for the orphaned Makoni Central Mr
Patrick Sagandira was on Tuesday remanded in custody after the prosecution
invoked the notorious Section 121 of the Criminal Procedure and Evidence
Act.
Mr Patrick Sagandira was arrested by CID details in
Rusape
Mr Sagandira had been granted bail by a Rusape magistrate, but the State
lawyer Mr Tirivanhu Mutyasira, invoked the notorious legislation to thwart his
bid for freedom for the next seven days.
Sagandira will be languishing in remand alongside his campaign manager Mr
Lovemore Chifomboti, who handed himself to police early Tuesday morning. This is
the second time in as many weeks that Mr Mutyasira invoked the same law to deny
an MDC-T official liberty.
Two weeks ago Mr Mutyasira did the same to the MP for Makoni South Hon Pishai
Muchauraya following his arrest on allegations of making death threats to former
Daily News Editor Geoff Nyarota’s campaign manager Mr Amos Kutiya.
However, the Attorney General’s office was forced to withdraw its appeal
before High Court judge Justice Joseph Musakwa.
Sagandira and Chifomboti are facing public violence charges following a
report by his rival Grace Kwinjeh’s campaign team Messrs Tazviona Marima, Canaan
Nyamombe and one Yasini.
The MDC-T pair is denying the charges arguing that they were being persecuted
by their political rivals following their victory in Saturday’s polls.
The latest incident allegedly occurred at Nyabadza Business Center where
Kwinjeh’s bid for public office fell away following a poor showing. Mr
Sagandira’s incarceration has angered party supporters, who packed the court
gallery, only to leave it shaking and scratching their heads in disbelief.
Grace Kwinjeh, a veteran MDC-T activist and fearless
campaigner
Their lawyer Mr Leonard Chigadza, of Chigadza and Associates, who was being
assisted by Mr Taurai Khupe had this to say:
“My clients are proper candidates for, and had been granted bail by the
magistrate, but the State appeared aggrieved by that decision and reacted by
invoking Section 121.
“We will wait for the expiry of the seven days period, and if the AG lodges
an appeal, we will argue at the High Court, but if they fail, the two will be
released on $100 bail as adjudicated by the magistrate,” said Mr Chigadza.
“They have entered a not guilty plea because we feel it were the complainants
who must have been arrested because they caused commotion by grabbing the ballot
boxes.
“Anyway, we will be looking up to it, but my clients are being persecuted by
a faction within the party, who are not happy by Sagandira’s victory in the race
for Makoni Central,” said Mr Chigadza.
Mr Chigadza allayed fears regarding Sagandira’s fate ahead of Friday’s
nomination.
“He has submitted all the necessary papers to the party and his agents (Peter
Sagandira and Zeohania Mberikunashe) will be there to submit his documents on
the nomination day. The law allows that. The incarceration does not signal an
end of his political career. He will contest the forthcoming elections,” added
Mr Chigadza.
Hordes of MDC-T supporters attended the hearing.
Sagandira has since been confirmed as the party’s candidate for the next
elections, despite Kwinjeh’s stance to the contrary. Kwinje polled 222 votes
while Sagandira polled 280. Kwinjeh is disputing his lead alleging vote
irregularities and violence – in which her manager Marima is the only
complainant.
Kwinjeh, whose chances suffered a lethal blow due to her absence on the
ground and reliance on weak emissaries that failed her campaign as a founder
member of the party, had been misled into believing that she had the seat under
her thumb two weeks ago.
That was despite the fact that only nine out of 16 wards had cast the ballot
when the Deputy Women’s Affairs Minister, Jessie Majome, Senator Ceaphas
Makuyana and provincial member Teddy Chipere presided over the election.
Company
Closures Escalate In Manicaland
http://www.financialgazette.co.zw/
27 Jun 2013
MUTARE — Manicaland is
now a tale of two narratives occurring at the same
time.
On one hand, the
mountainous region has a thriving diamond mining sector
that has become the
source of hope for the entire nation.
The rest of the region’s industries, on
the other hand, are haemorrhaging,
thereby condemning thousands of workers
onto the streets.
This is at a time when unemployment levels in Zimbabwe have
topped 94
percent, according to the United Nations.
Apart from diamonds,
Manicaland is also famed for its citrus farming,
timber, agriculture,
hospitality and cattle ranching.But much of its
industries are in ruins
because of the harsh economic conditions blighting
the country’s
economy.
Many people had expected to see industry’s revival after February
2009, when
the country ditched its heavily battered Zimbabwe dollar in
favour of
external currencies, but more challenges have since emerged to
shatter the
dream.
Consequently, a number of strategic companies in the
region have gone under
in the past decade.
The list includes Karina
Textiles, Cairns Foods, Pine Products, PG Safety
Glass and Mutare Board and
Paper Mills, which used to be the country’s only
manufacturer of
newsprint.
Those that remain are struggling to remain afloat: These include
Quest
Motors and Tanganda Tea Company, which are operating way below
capacity.
Regarding the first narrative, diamonds have become a source of
conflict in
the region.
Communities in Manicaland allege that only a few
a benefiting from the
extraction of the gems at the expense of the
majority.
On top of their grievances is that they are being marginalised
because
companies operating in the Chiadzwa diamond fields are employing
people from
outside the region.
Another accusation is that none of the
companies extracting gems in
Manicaland has honoured a pledge to fund the
Zimunya-Marange Community Share
Ownership Trust: Its coffers remain dry
almost a year after the Trust was
launched by President Robert Mugabe last
August.
Politicians in the area have also queried government’s decision to
construct
a diamond-cutting and polishing centre in Harare and the hosting
of a
diamond conference in Victoria Falls other than the host
province.
In terms of the second narrative, the business community in Mutare
says
government’s failure to step in and resuscitate the struggling
industrial
sector was reprehensible.
Captains of industry were hoping
that government would make available cheap
bailout packages to these
struggling companies through the Distressed
Industries and Marginalised
Areas Fund, but only a few companies have been
able to access credit due to
the stringent conditions attached to the
facility.
The business community
in Mutare says the inertia on the part of government
might turn industries
into white elephants.
Of late, government has been lobbied to compel diamond
mining companies
operating 70 kilometres away from Mutare to make available
resources that
could help revamp businesses operating in Manicaland.
The
diamond mining companies are being accused of failing to support
struggling
industries by awarding them tenders to supply goods and services.
The
Manicaland Business Action Group (MBAG), which consists of the
Affirmative
Action Group, the Manicaland Business Forum, the Asian
Community, the
Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI) and the Zimbabwe
National Chamber
of Commerce (ZN-CC), has been at the forefront of the
lobby.
MBAG has
been working with ZANU-PF secretary for administration Didymus
Mutasa to
encourage diamond mining companies to support local businesses and
industries.
The City of Mutare has also engaged Mutasa to seek assistance
on their
behalf from diamond firms to pay their workers and rehabilitate
traffic
lights.
Manicaland Provincial Governor and Resident Minister,
Christopher Mushohwe,
has also engaged Mbada Diamonds on behalf of the
Mutare Provincial Hospital
to donate wheelchairs.
But government has
lashed out at the business community for trying to use
influential officials
and politicians to gain business favours.
Fungai Mbetsa, the provincial
administrator for Manicaland, said by roping
in politicians, the business
community was allowing a culture that produces
businesspeople who are
neither aggressive nor willing to take risks to
permeate society.
“The
question here is, are our business people aggressive? Are they
positioning
themselves well? Are they prepared to go into innovative ideas
and take
risks?
“They always expect government to do them favours.
“They want the
government to assist them to talk to Marange (Resources),
Mbada (Diamonds).
Some even come to me in person so that I assist them to
talk to these
companies. Is that how business people operate? They suffer
from the fear of
engagement, the fear of loss,” he said.
Mbetsa believes such a culture, which
has spread to other sectors is wholly
to blame for the collapse of
industries in the city.
“This is why you find that there is no strong lobby
from the business
communityat a time when companies here in Manicaland are
collapsing yet we
have business people. They have never invited these
companies to discuss how
they can get assistance. I am even surprised that
ZNCC and CZI still exist
but they are quiet about the collapsing of
industries in Manicaland,” said
Mbetsa.
Listen
to the people
http://www.thezimbabwean.co/
19.06.13
by Editor
The outcome of
Saturday’s SADC special summit on the Zimbabwean political
crisis should
send a clear message to President Robert Mugabe and hardliners
in Zanu (PF)
that the voice of the people must be heeded.
We are relieved that
SADC and the mediator, President Jacob Zuma, heeded the
complaints from the
two MDC formations, concerns that are shared by the
majority of Zimbabweans,
regarding the selfish and ill-advised manner in
which Mugabe had set the
date for the election.
It was clear right from the start that, even
though the Constitutional Court
had ruled that the general election must be
held by July 31, a lot of things
were wrong about that timeline. There was
need to seriously consider
prevailing conditions to determine if that
deadline was wise or even
constitutional.
There was also a concern
that resonated among Zimbabweans that Mugabe had
acted unilaterally and on
bad advice from his advisors when he invoked the
Presidential Powers to pass
amendments to the Electoral Act.
It has always been obvious that the hard
core in Zanu (PF) wants a rushed
election to safeguard its own interests,
yet a hurried poll would work to
the detriment of democracy and the majority
of people in this country.
Zimbabwean citizens and other concerned
stakeholders had rightly pointed out
that it was not prudent—and illegal to
a large extent—to abide by the court’s
deadline.
So many things need
to be set right before we can hold the election.
Parliament is involved in
refining the Electoral Act and other statutes such
as the Public Order and
Security Act, the Criminal (Codification and Reform)
Act and the
Broadcasting Services Act to bring them in line with the
Constitution. Also,
as many people argued, there is need to adhere to other
constitutional
provisos regarding voter registration, the notice period for
nominations and
the time before a presidential decree on poll dates.
Now, the message is
clear. The President and the hard core in his party must
stop acting
unilaterally and heed what the people are saying. Reforms must
be made.
Enough time should be given to raise the necessary resources and it
should
be ensured that all eligible voters are registered. Zimbabwe is a
beautiful
country with the potential to be a regional and African
powerhouse – rather
than a very lucrative tuck shop for Mugabe, his cronies
and the Chinese.
June
27: Lest we forget
http://www.dailynews.co.zw/
FUNGI KWARAMBA • 27 JUNE 2013 9:49AM
TODAY is
exactly five years after Zimbabwe had perhaps its bloodiest
election since
independence in 1980.
There is palpable fear and spirited attempts to ensure
the country is not
thrown back to that kind of violence in the impending
elections.
Following a March 2008 harmonised poll that handed President
Robert Mugabe
and his party a devastating electoral defeat, Zimbabwe was
swept by a wave
of State-sanctioned violence that human rights groups say
claimed over 200
lives and uprooted another 200 000.
Zanu PF
shock-troopers — war veterans and youth militia — with the tacit
approval of
State security apparatus —waged a brutal war that was
internationally
condemned, forcing Morgan Tsvangirai to pull out of a
presidential run-off
poll.
On June 27, 2008 Mugabe staged a one-man election that returned him
to
office.
Tsvangirai’s withdrawal was, however, a non-event as
Mugabe proceeded to be
sworn in.
Scared and scarred, Zimbabweans are
yet again limping towards make-or-break
elections where Tsvangirai and
Mugabe will yet again renew their fight for
dominance.
In the
interim, successive reports from organisations such as the Human
Rights
Watch (HRW) have warned of a repeat of the sham 2008 presidential
election
runoff if Zimbabwe goes to elections without the implementation of
crucial
reforms.
Citing an unreformed security sector and the lack of political
will to
implement such reforms, the reports paint a gloomy picture if the
country
goes to polls in the current state.
After failing its own
test during the primary elections, analysts are
curious how Zanu PF intends
to retain power amid indications that like in
2008, the party whose
structures are in disarray will fall-back on the
organised and disciplined
structures of the army and the Central
Intelligence
Organisation.
Police officers sat along Zanu PF presiding officers when
the party held its
shambolic elections on Tuesday and
Wednesday.
Civil Society Organisations (CSO) which are currently under
siege from the
hybrid government have already warned that the country’s
looming polls would
be bloody unless culprits responsible for the 2008
violence are brought to
book.
An organ of National Healing and
Reconciliation formed at the inception of
the “unity” government has been a
paper tiger lacking legal teeth.
Wounded and limping towards a crucial
poll whose dates are still hazy,
supporters from both Zanu PF and MDC are
upbeat that their respective
parties will win the watershed
elections.
Three opinion polls have put Mugabe and Tsvangirai neck to
neck, with the
Zanu PF leader edging his younger opponent by a mere
percentage at 33
percent, setting the stage for a potentially explosive
battle.
Zimbabwe:
Is democratic change possible?
http://www.politicsweb.co.za/
Eddie Cross
27 June 2013
Eddie Cross
says that from its inception the MDC has rejected the use of
violence to win
power
Democracy in Africa
One of the small political parties in
Zimbabwe (we have 28 right now and
more coming) said this past week that
"you cannot remove a dictatorship by
democratic means, only by revolution."
When he used the word "revolution" I
assume he was actually referring to the
use of violence in some form to
unseat an entrenched autocracy.
Those
African States that were governed by a settler class (South Africa,
Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Angola) all had to fight to gain their rights. In
Syria right now the majority are attempting to remove a minority ethnic
dictatorship by the use of arms. Libya went through a similar
process.
Only in those countries where an external force (the colonial
State)
exercised its power to determine the nature of the transition did
some sort
of independent democratic State emerge. In some cases (Egypt) the
regime
collapsed and change became possible simply by street action -
another form
of violence. The situation in Turkey is another example of this
sort of
effort.
What makes the situation in Zimbabwe so distinctive
is that the effort to
remove the Mugabe dictatorship has concentrated almost
exclusively on the
use of democratic means. There were good reasons for that
choice: it is
difficult to imagine that any of our neighbours would have
given the forces
of change here secure external bases and support. The fact
that the cold war
no longer sets one group of States against another in such
regional or
country based conflict is yet another reason. Sourcing arms
would be another
difficulty although they are abundant enough to fuel
conflict anywhere in
the world.
But beyond those arguments, it was a
choice that the leadership of the MDC
made at its inception and in which it
was supported by its membership -
largely drawn from the working class and
rural peasants.
Our assumption at the outset was that everyone would
recognise what a
revolutionary stance this was and that support would be
forthcoming from
local business, intellectuals, regional States and the
global powers. It was
not to be. We found ourselves the subject of regional
and even continental
ostracism fueled by the active and determined efforts
of the South African
Government.
Aid from the international Community
was sporadic and even parsimonious,
technical assistance yes - funding no.
The largest contribution we got in
the early days was a $50 000 grant from
the Westminster Foundation in
London. That was bitterly attacked by the
regime and thereafter no further
assistance was available.
We found
ourselves isolated in the region, the AU and even in the UN. As for
business, they could see no purpose in funding the MDC - what could we offer
them; they feared retribution from the State (fully justified) and could not
see us ever unseating what looked like an entrenched, powerful and ruthless
oligarchy.
Despite these difficulties (a German politician told me
once that politics
was all about money) the MDC made rapid and surprising
progress: we won the
March 2000 referendum, nearly beat a frightened Zanu PF
in the June
Parliamentary elections (they retained their majority by three
seats) and
then went on to beat them soundly in the 2002 Presidential
ballot. Only
regional intervention and protection allowed them to "fix" the
result and
allowed Mugabe back into State House.
Then in 2007 we were
reluctantly accepted as a player who could not be
ignored and we were
brought into play - the international community followed
suit with great
cynicism, the African community with some respect for these
plucky "small
boys". We were forced into negotiations and eventually a
government of
national unity even though it was a totally unequal and unjust
arrangement.
Through it all, we stuck to our principles and worked
towards a democratic
solution. Strangely this struggle gained us little
recognition or attention.
One old time journalist, a veteran of many
conflicts once said to me "come
on Eddie, let's see some violence, some
blood on the streets: give us a
story".
You can see the effect of
that - just watch your news every night on any
channel. It's not the peace
keepers who get the exposure and attention.
Today the USA gave $300 million
to the struggle in Syria - for humanitarian
aid, that's great, but when they
have to fight an election will they get the
support they need to
win?
Now we have had yet another SADC summit - very encouraging, but no
sooner
had we got back than Zanu PF were once again up to their old tricks.
In all
probability we will be forced into another election on an uneven
playing
field. In the middle of the most serious crisis in the past 14
years, the
summit and the struggle for democracy in Zimbabwe did not justify
a single
minute of news time on any of the major networks, or even the
networks of
southern Africa. Just hours of riots in Turkey and smashed
buildings and
ruined lives in the Middle East.
If as I suspect, we
end up with an election on the 31st July, without media
reform, without
security sector realignment, with a manipulated voters roll
and millions
denied the right to vote, we will still win by a wide margin
because the
people are totally fed up with the status quo. Perhaps we will
then merit a
60 second news clip on the BBC, but for the rest we are just
another small
country taking a halting step towards the future.
What they all will miss
is that this is a story of courage and principle, a
story of David and
Goliath, a victory for the ordinary men and women in the
world who just want
to make a better life for themselves and their children.
But above all it
will be a victory for the democrats.
Eddie Cross is MDC MP for Bulawayo
South. This article first appeared on his
website www.eddiecross.africanherd.com.
The
God Complex of our politicians
http://www.politicsweb.co.za/
Vince Musewe
27 June 2013
Vince
Musewe says many Zimbabweans in leadership positions believe they know
all
the solutions
The God Complex of our politicians
We need leaders
who can say "I don't know" or "I was wrong" and that's okay.
In his book
his new book, "Adapt: Why Success Always Starts With Failure",
Tim Harford,
an economist, argues that; the world has become far too
unpredictable and
complex for today's challenges to be tackled with
ready-made solutions and
expert opinions. Instead, Harford suggests that, we
need to learn to embrace
failure and to constantly adapt, to improvise
rather than plan, to work from
the bottom up rather than the top down.
He comes up with a term called
the "God complex" which is practiced by most
individuals in leadership
positions when they pretend that they know all the
solutions. Looking at the
state of Zimbabwe today, one is inclined to agree
with this
gentleman.
There unfortunately is a "God complex", where some leaders in
our government
or public sector including opposition political parties,
believe that
because they have a "position" or a "title", they therefore
possess the
monopoly of wisdom and solutions to the complex social problems
we face.
What this has done, is to create a culture of worshiping of our
leaders,
while alienating those who may have viable alternative solutions or
ideas,
simply because of their rank in the party or their position in an
organization. The result is that, wrong solutions are often implemented,
simply because the leaders say so, or bully those around them, using rank to
push their inappropriate ideas.
The God complex plays, itself out
each and every day, especially in
Zimbabwe, where we have a "chef"
mentality. For example, ZANU (PF) has
dismally failed to develop the
country, but blames everyone else beside
themselves for that
failure.
The perennial problem is that, ZANU (PF) is led by parochial old
men, who
not only are unwilling, but are unable to see a new Zimbabwe that
is
significantly different from the past. They don't know what they don't
know.
In fact, they deliberately suppress dissent or the rise of the "young
turks"
into important positions within the party, in order to protect their
interests and opinions. They have never stood up and accepted their
mistakes, but display unfathomable arrogance.
A clear example is how
Gideon Gono single handedly decimated this economy,
but still insists that
he "saved' Zimbabwe. Nothing can be further from the
truth!
The same
applies, of course, to agriculture disaster, gukurahundi and
muramabtsvina.
These were monumental errors of judgment that still weigh
heavily on our
brains, like a nightmare to this day. Isn't it rather amazing
that, , there
hasn't been any iota of acknowledgement by ZANU (PF) that "we
were wrong" or
"we could have done things better?"
Instead, for example, we get headline
news on ZTV that Zimbabwe is importing
maize from Zambia, as if it's a major
achievement for the country. How
laughable because, it is highly likely
that, that maize was grown by the
same white farmers we expelled.
I
can also bet you that, the disunity we find within the MDCs today for
example, is probably solely based on egos and certain individuals believing
that only they are right and know what is best for Zimbabwe. I disagree with
that.
In his video, Tim Harford says, imagine a politician standing
in front of us
and saying "I do not have all the solutions, but I have a few
ideas which we
can try out and see which one works the best to achieve what
we want".
That would be incredible wouldn't it?
The God like
complex can also be found in the private sector where,
executives and
managers behave as though they have all the solutions and
ideas. This
marginalizes those employees who may not have big offices or big
paychecks,
but could come up with new smart ideas or solutions that could
make huge
difference.
This, of course, was also the case in the past where, whites
played "God" to
blacks. I hear that this is purportedly still rife in
countries such as
South Africa, especially in the farming and mining
sectors.
All of us should really note that, there are a myriad of ideas
and solutions
out there, on how we can get the country to develop and
progress. What we
must do, is to encourage debate and multiple views and be
brave enough to
admit that, despite our titles, experience, positions and
perks, we really
still don't know everything.
Admitting that we don't
know is, to me, the most honorable and empowering
act anyone can take. The
cost to Zimbabwe and the lost opportunities because
of this "God complex'
are astounding. Dictatorships arise because of this
mentality.
Zimbabwe needs leaders who are not only accountable to
their followers, but
leaders who take full responsibility for the results
that they create,
whether intentionally or inadvertently.
We need
leaders who can say "I don't know" or "I was wrong" and that's
okay.
Vince Musewe is an economist based in Harare; you may contact him
on
vtmusewe@gmail.com
The spirit of wrath
is upon us
A
mysterious Facebook character is predicting murder and
mayhem
Baba Jukwa’s
avatar
AS POLITICIANS wrangle
over the precise date of Zimbabwe’s imminent presidential and parliamentary
elections, the clarion call of “Baba Jukwa” has cut through the din. Claiming to
be a disgruntled insider from President Robert Mugabe’s Zanu-PF party, the
gossipy Facebook page belonging to this mysterious character, whose name echoes
that of a spirit medium, has drawn more than 185,000 “likes” in just three
months, with hundreds of responses to every post.
Some think Baba Jukwa
is a sort of Zimbabwean Robin Hood, stealing secrets from the ruling party and
sharing them with the disfranchised masses. Every day the blogger names and
shames politicians for alleged corruption and brutality, often including their
mobile-phone numbers with instructions to call and demand answers. Other posts
encourage Zimbabweans to register to vote. “Asijiki!” Baba Jukwa signs off. “No
turning back!”
Zimbabweans tend
to believe that this pseudonymous rabble-rouser really is an insider. An
editorial in Newsday,
an independent daily, told its readers to “take Baba Jukwa seriously”, adding
that “It will be naive to ignore what this Facebook character says as we go
towards watershed elections.” The state-controlled Herald newspaper, slavishly pro-Mugabe, denounced the
“sinister elements” and “stooges” behind Baba Jukwa.
As elections approach,
his warnings of violence are beginning to resonate grimly. Baba Jukwa has been
credited with predicting the death of Edward Chindori-Chininga, a Zanu-PF member
of parliament who died on June 19th in a car accident after issuing a report on
his party’s theft of vast revenues from the diamond fields at Marange, in the
country’s east.
After months of
confusion it is still unclear when Zimbabwe will hold its first elections since
the harrowing ones of 2008, when Mr Mugabe lost the first round of the
presidential race to Morgan Tsvangirai, whose party was then bludgeoned by
Zanu-PF thugs into aborting the run-off. Though Mr Mugabe at first got his
constitutional court to set the date for July 31st, he is now seeking an
extension until August 14th in response to pressure from the Southern African
Development Community, a regional club.
No less worrying for Mr
Tsvangirai’s Movement for Democratic Change, the timetable issued at Mr Mugabe’s
behest allows for six weeks between the first round of the presidential poll and
the run-off. It was during this period last time that Mr Mugabe’s party militias
and the security forces clobbered the opposition, especially in the countryside,
killing some 200 of its people and forcing Mr Tsvangirai to give up. As prime
minister since 2009 in an awkward ruling coalition, he has asked for a longer
delay before the polls go ahead.
It had been agreed that
the voters’ register, the state security machine and the media laws should all
be reformed before the poll. But none of this has happened. “An early and rapid
election will play in Zanu-PF’s favour in that it is easy to rig where
preparations are done rapidly,” says Baba Jukwa. As there has been “no time to
implement key electoral reforms, my party is in full control of the current
system.”