http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Friday, 16 March 2012 08:54
Owen
Gagare
TWO senior Zanu PF politburo members, Minister of State for
Presidential
Affairs Didymus Mutasa and his Indigenisation counterpart
Saviour
Kasukuwere, have been linked to Israeli and Russian underworld gold
and
diamond dealers who were recently deported after a raid on their hideout
in
Harare’s Glen Lorne suburb.
The incident helped to shed light on
activities in the underworld of diamond
and other precious mineral dealings,
as well as the nexus between politics
and dirty
business.
For some time there have been reports that senior
Zanu PF officials,
including ministers and politburo members, are minting
money in criminal
underworld deals involving mainly diamonds and gold. The
situation
deteriorated after the discovery of alluvial diamonds in
Chiadzwa.
Mutasa and Kasukuwere’s alleged links to the gangland
dealers were
discovered during a raid last month on a hideout located at
Number 57
Follyjon Crescent by crack units drawn from the police,
immigration, Central
Intelligence Organisation and Zimbabwe Revenue
Authority
The swoop on the house — believed to be owned by Thamer Al
Shanfari, the
former chairman of Cayman Islands- based mining company Oryx
Natural
Resources (ONR) — on January 3 led to the arrest of a Russian
national,
Alexander Filegon alias Alexander
Filatov, and an Israeli, Mike
Raslan, who were said to be diamond and gold
dealers.
Filegon
and Raslan were later deported.
It was during the raid at Number 57 Follyjon
– a popular rendezvous for
hardened dealers frequented by Zanu PF ministers
and politburo members –
that Mutasa and Kasukuwere’s names cropped
up.
Security agents who were part of the raid said Filegon and Raslan
were
unshaken by the raid despite the serious allegations levelled against
them,
boasting they were well-connected and nothing would happen to
them.
“During the raid one of the major issues of interest was that
Raslan and
Filegon appeared unperturbed by the swoop by security units and
the
subsequent searches despite the seriousness of the allegations,” one of
the
security agents involved told the Zimbabwe Independent this
week.
“In fact, Raslan boasted that he is well-connected within the
Zanu PF top
hierarchy and alleged that he has been involved in a mining
joint-venture
with the first family in the DRC. He proceeded to show his
political
connections by summoning ministers DidymusMutasa and
SaviourKasukuwere to
witness the raid and the ministers
came.”
Wealthy dealers in Zimbabwe of all shades often claim without
producing
evidence that they are working with or for the first family either
to get
protection or intimidate their business partners and clients. Their
allegations have been denied.
Security agents conducting the
searches said they ignored the ministers as
they proceeded to ransack the
premises but a furious Mutasa sprung into
action by blocking the exit gate
and delayed the team’s departure after
conducting the
raid.
Another security agent involved in the raid said: “It was clear
the
ministers and those dealers were working in cahoots because Mutasa,
visibly
angry, even blocked the exit gate and delayed the security team’s
exit from
the premises after the end of the search,” the security agent
said.
Although no diamonds or cash were discovered at the premises,
Filegon, who
was accused of violating immigration laws and working in the
country as a
“geological consultant” at Benson mine in Mutoko on a tourist
visa, and
Raslan were both arrested and later
deported.
Francis Mabika, an Assistant Regional Immigration
Officer, yesterday
confirmed the pair had been deported.
Mutasa
also confirmed visiting the house during the raid but denied trying
to
protect Filegon and Raslan.
“Was there an announcement that there
would be a raid? I was just visiting
the place and I was unaware that there
would be a raid,” he said.
Mutasa said allegations that he came to
the house after being called by
Raslan were “absolutely nonsense” adding, “I
don’t do things like that.”
Kasukuwere said he had gone to the house
for a meeting with South African
businessmen to explain the indigenisation
policy and not to rescue Raslan
and Filegon. He said he did not know the two
but was there at the invitation
of Shanfari, whom he said was a major
investor in the country.
“We were there for a separate meeting. We
had a prior business meeting. I
don’t interfere with the law. I don’t know
the two you are talking about. I
was there to see the owner of the house,”
Kasukuwere said.
“There were some South African businesspeople, who
wanted to understand the
business climate in the country and the issue of
indigenisation. Some are
interested in investing in
Zimbabwe.”
“By the time we got there, they were refusing to open the
gate for officials
and I told them to open it and cooperate.”
In
2008, Shanfari was put on the United States government sanctions list
because of his links to President Robert Mugabe and ONR, but he issued a
statement denying the links and said he resigned from the company in
2002.
Shanfari was also mentioned in a report produced by a panel of
United
Nations experts titled the Illegal Exploitation of Natural Resources
and
other forms of wealth of the Democratic Republic of Congo, dated October
8,
2002. The report alleged that ONR represented covert Zimbabwean military
financial interests in negotiations with state mining companies in the
DRC.
The report also alleged ONR and Shanfari were engaged in the
illegal
trafficking of blood diamonds from the DRC and were financing Zanu
PF during
elections.
The raid at the house was led by a senior
immigration official, Evans
Siziba, after whistle blowers revealed the two
were dealing in diamonds and
had stashed about US$400 000 at the premises
while trading in illegal
diamonds and gold.
There were also
allegations they had smuggled two Toyota Fortunes and a
Toyota Hilux into
the country without paying duty. Detectives from the
Minerals and Border
Control Unit impounded the vehicles on February 1.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Friday, 16 March 2012 08:53
Faith
Zaba
VICE-PRESIDENT Joice Mujuru this week appeared to be losing
political ground
in her Mashonaland Central home turf after candidates
aligned to her faction
lost in District Coordinating Committee (DCC)
elections, triggering fears
she could be stumbling in the Zanu PF succession
race after the death of her
influential husband.
This comes amid
clear indications that Zanu PF — already reeling from
crippling internal
power struggles — is struggling to resolve its succession
issue ahead of
elections and reports of plans by President Robert Mugabe to
indicate after
the polls who he wants to take over from him.
Due to the
succession problem, Zanu PF risks plunging further into turmoil
and
suffering the fate of other regional liberation movements like Kanu and
Unip
after the death of army commander General Solomon Mujuru, a stabilising
force, and the inevitable departure of Mugabe from the political
scene.
Since General Mujuru died in a mysterious fire last August, there have
been
questions whether Vice-President Mujuru, who is well-placed to succeed
Mugabe, would be able to take advantage of her position to claim the
throne.
However, the vice-president, who is bitter over the death of
her husband,
seemed this week to be losing ground in her own backyard after
losing four
out of the seven DCC elections.
In particular the
defeat of the vice-president’s faction in her own
district, Mt Darwin, has
sent alarm bells ringing within the party since
Thursday last week when
elections started.
Candidates aligned to her faction also lost in
Mazowe, Shamva and Mbire
districts. The entire old executive aligned to her
faction lost in Mbire, in
a massive vote of
no-confidence.
Elections in the last DCC, Guruve, were held
yesterday. However, the results
were not yet out at the time of going to
press.
Vice-President Mujuru’s losses are being interpreted in Zanu PF as
signs of
her losing her grip on the power base, consolidated by her husband
over the
years.
Only during the 2009 congress, the Mujuru
faction, then still led by the
general, crushed the rival camp led by
Emmerson Mnangagwa as it did in 2004
and 1999. However, things appear to be
changing after the general’s death.
Following his death, the faction
now seems struggling and even faces
disintegration without its “commander”
to outflank the Mnangagwa camp now
widely seen as the frontrunner, despite
doubts about his leadership
qualities and democratic
credentials.
However, there seems to be some consolation for Mujuru
as one of her allies,
Zanu PF’s Mashonaland East provincial chairman Ray
Kaukonde is reportedly
rising in his bid to fill the vacuum left by General
Mujuru. Sources said
this week Kaukonde has become so influential in the
province that he is
beginning to overshadow one of the heavyweights in the
region, State
Security minister and politburo member Sydney
Sekeramayi.
“Although Kaukonde may be junior to Sekeramayi who hails
from the same
province, he is the one wielding power because he controls the
cells,
branches, districts and district coordinating committees,” a source
said.
“In fact, he is increasingly regarded as the province’s next Godfather
like
the General was.”
Another source said Vice-President
Mujuru’s losses did not necessarily mean
gain for Mnangagwa, particularly
because she was a victim of a protest vote
against the imposition of
candidates and vote-buying.
“The problem is that Mai Mujuru’s people
were trying to impose candidates
and people said no. They also tried to use
money to buy votes. So what we
are saying here is that those tactics no
longer work,” a senior Zanu PF
leader in the province
said.
Sources said in fact the main beneficiaries of the
vice-president’s defeat
could her provincial allies, politburo member
Nicholas Goche and Saviour
Kasukuwere whose support for her in on and
off.
The province is now gearing up for a bruising fight between
current chairman
Dickson Mafios and former Guruve North MP David Butau, a
close Mujuru ally.
A Zanu PF youth leader in the province warned
Vice-President Mujuru against
this.
“Instead of working with
Mafios, her faction is pushing for Butau to take
over. She is making another
mistake,” the leader said.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Friday, 16 March 2012 08:50
Nqobile
Bhebhe
RESERVE Bank Governor Gideon Gono yesterday urged the Bulawayo
business
community to protest against Finance minister Tendai Biti, Industry
and
Commerce minister Welshman Ncube and CABS over the delays in
disbursement of
the Distressed and Marginalised Areas Fund (Dimaf).
Gono
disclosed that only US$900 000 has been disbursed out of the
applications
worth US$27 million during an address of the Bulawayo business
community
under the auspices of the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries.
Vice-President John Nkomo attended the meeting at which Gono made startling
remarks.
“You need to adopt a different approach than one of
mourning and crying. Go
and get that money…stop mourning,” said
Gono.
Gono suggested that demonstrators should occupy the offices of
ministers
Biti and Ncube as well as those of CABS, telling them that this
was not a
crime and therefore they should not fear. He was prepared to join
them, he
said.
This, Gono believed, would help secure the release
of Dimaf, a US$40 million
fund set up by Treasury last year to be disbursed
through CABS to revive
Bulawayo industries. Nearly 100 companies have shut
down in Bulawayo over
the years due to economic problems. Dimaf is meant to
help companies in the
city to purchase equipment and raw materials to
enhance output and quality
of goods, as well as assist them cover their
operating costs.
“I look to a day where I see headlines saying you
have gone on a hunger
strike, spent three days in Biti’s office so be it, or
Ncube’s office rather
than crying. Now that you know where the money is, go
and even occupy CABS’
offices,” Gono challenged the
businessmen.
“Worldwide we have heard of Occupy Wall Street, but you
are just sitting
here…it is time for people of this region to stand up and
go and implement
issues.”
Gono lambasted the Matabeleland region
for having an over-dependency
syndrome, resulting in it having the most
Non-Governmental Organisations in
the country. He said people in the region
had a tendency of “blaming our
leadership, including Nkomo who is
here”.
The governor quickly stressed that he was not advocating
violence, saying
“violence is a sign of being
barbaric”.
“Government allocated US$40 million to Bulawayo industries
but where are the
wheels falling off, it’s at implementation stage, who is
supposed to
implement it?” asked Gono.
Earlier, CZI Matabeleland
President Ruth Labode appealed to Nkomo to
intervene by having the funds’
administration taken away from Ncube and Biti
and be administered by Gono.
Labode said Gono has vast experience in
handling “sector-targeted
funds”.
“Ncube and Biti took US$20 million from government meant for
Dimaf and gave
it to a building society, CABS, to administer, but I doubt if
it has
capacity to handle it. Please Nkomo intervene. It would be better for
Gono
who has experience to handle the funds but they should be only for
Bulawayo,” she said.
Labode said the Dimaf concept is ideal but
Ncube and Biti “have failed us”
and it would take Gono a week to disburse
the funds.
The Industry and Commerce ministry says 85 companies
closed down last year
due to high production costs, high tariffs and lack of
credit lines, leaving
20 000 workers jobless. Of the 85 closed companies, 19
are in the clothing
and textiles, 63 in the motor and three under the
construction sector, while
five companies were reported to be under judicial
management.
On Thursday, Biti said less than US$2 million has been
disbursed under
Dimaf, primarily set up to resuscitate industry in
Bulawayo.
“Following the launch of Dimaf in Bulawayo on October 10, 2011,
modalities
for implementation of the facility were put in place and eligible
companies
were invited to submit projects to CABS,” he said.
“To
date, applications submitted to CABS amount to US$16,9 million, of which
US$12,2 million is for Bulawayo projects. Projects totalling US$3,4 million
have been approved, whilst actual disbursements amount to US$1,97 million,’’
said Biti.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Friday, 16 March 2012 08:50
Chris Muronzi
THE
Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE) and Securities Commission of Zimbabwe
(Sec)
are set to clash yet again, after the securities regulator questioned
disclosure issues around Ariston’s and RioZim’s planned recapitalisation
exercises.
In a circular on Ariston’s proposed rights issue, Sec CEO
Tafadzwa Chinamo
said there was need for detailed background on the
underwriter, Afrifresh,
particularly as to whether the South African firm’s
role was confined to
underwriting or whether it already had a stake in the
business.
He questioned Ariston’s use of an unlicensed advisor in the
proposition and
the absence of a licensed independent advisor. Sec needed to
know the
dilutive impact of the rights issue.
Sec also demanded
an entire debt maturity profile so that investors or
shareholders could make
their own assessment on who was owed by the company
and how much was owed.
In addition, the commission also required projections
and impacts of the
recapitalisation exercise on the business over the next
five years as well
as a breakdown of application of funds from the rights
issues, what capital
expenditure would be undertaken and disclosure on the
ownership status of
the estates.
“The Commission has already communicated its concerns to
the ZSE, Ariston
management and the advisors,” Chinamo
said.
Chinamo raised the similar queries on RioZim’s proposed
recapitalisation
exercise, saying there was need for disclosure on who the
underwriters GEM,
Raintree and GEM Raintree were.
In addition he
said the company’s circular to shareholders was based on a
comparison of
unaudited and audited financials, a development that he said
posed a
challenge given that the numbers could change post auditing.
“There
is need for an illustration on the dilution of the shareholding
structure,
particularly assuming full conversion of the debenture. Top of
page 12
implies Riozim will not draw down the debenture facility all at
once to
limit dilution yet there not mention of any cashflow projections,”
he
said.
He added there was need for a detailed illustration on the
dilutive impact
of the transaction and a debt maturity profile so that
shareholders could
make their own assessments on who was owed and the size
of the debt.
The Sec boss argued the permission granted by the ZSE
Listings Committee
nullified the whole process, saying the committee’s
constitution was ultra
vires.
He said SECZ would engage the
committee and “rectify any underlying
problems.”
He advised the
investing public to exercise caution in exercising their
rights. ZSE CEO
Emmanuel Munyukwi was said to be out of office at the time
going to
press.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Friday, 16 March 2012
08:46
Herbert Moyo
THE National Social Security Authority (NSSA)
is exposed to local banks to
the tune of more than US$200 million through a
combination of direct equity
investments, loans and money market investments
in various, mostly
indigenous banks many of which are reeling from the
current liquidity crisis
gripping the market.
This came to light
following investigations into allegations against NSSA
conducted by the
National Economic Conduct Inspectorate (NECI), a department
under the
Finance ministry whose main duties include carrying out
investigations into
white-collar crimes and checking on compliance auditing
by both private and
public companies.
The investigation was established to probe a series
of corruption
allegations rocking NSSA, which had been turned into lender of
the last
resort by some businessmen and their political handlers and an easy
take-away place for those looking for cheap funds.
According to
the report, two non-banking institutions, Tetrad –– US$18
million, and
National Discount House (figure not given), also accessed funds
from NSSA,
which administers social security public funds on behalf
contributors and
pensioners.
The funds invested in banks were mainly contributions for
the Workers’
Compensation Insurance scheme (WCIF), National Pension Scheme
(NPS),
Occupational Safety and Health (OSH), Employees Funeral Fund and
rentals
received from NSSA’s tenants.
“In general, it can be
observed that NSSA placed its funds with nearly all
the indigenous-owned
banks, though at varying intervals and levels of
funding. Rates were also
noted to be fairly uniform across the banks, with
variances obtaining for
varied instruments and tenors,” the NECI says in its
report on the
investigations it carried out in 2010 at the instigation of
Labour and
Social Welfare minister Paurina Mpariwa (pictured) under whose
portfolio
NSSA falls.
The NECI report reveals apart from NSSA investing in the
banks or placing
funds in their instruments, the same banks also secured
bailouts from NSSA
to cover their precarious positions. The report notes
that while the idea of
supporting local banks was good, this left NSSA
exposed as most banks,
including the ones it had invested in, were battling
with liquidity
problems.
A case in point was the previously
troubled ReNaissance Merchant Bank, where
NSSA’s total exposure amounted to
US$35 million. RMB faced closure before it
was put under the management of a
curator and was only resuscitated after
NSSA opted to convert a US$8,5
million debt owed to it by RMB into equity,
and assumed a US$5,7 million
debt owed to Econet by RMB and its parent
company RFHL.
Sources
close to NSSA questioned the wisdom of the social security
institution’s
decision to assume RMB’s debts to Econet. They also warned
NSSA could end up
taking over shells in the banking or general corporate
sector in a bid to
recover from poor investment positions. After losing
money in RMB, NSSA
found itself being forced to pour more funds into the
troubled
bank.
“The curator only worked with NSSA to convert deposits into
equity, yet
there were other significant depositors who could have also gone
for a
similar debt-to-equity arrangement but ultimately it was NSSA alone.
Why did
they assume the debt of a non-performing entity? What was in it for
them?”
the source asked.
Sources also accused NSSA of doling out
money to troubled institutions as
though they were dishing out worthless
Zimbabwe dollars, not hard currency.
They said that NSSA should have been
prudent enough to consider new risk and
protection measures following the
dollarisation of the Zimbabwean economy as
the US dollar was way too
valuable to throw around like confetti.
“Given what has been
happening at NSSA government needs a much more
thoroughgoing investigation
to root out rampant corruption and fraudulent
activities at the
institution,” a former NSSA senior manager said. “It’s
irresponsible and
criminal to allow such things to take place while
contributors and
pensioners are suffering.”
The NECI report –– dated April 2011 ––
details a series of acts of
corruption and fraudulent activities involving
senior company officials and
various economic actors. Although NSSA has been
struggling to play down the
NECI findings, the report exposes corrupt
activities in the organisation,
including how influential and well-connected
individuals and companies
accessed funding for themselves at the expense of
contributors and
pensioners –– the real owners of the
institution.
Despite spirited denials by NSSA, the report exposes
acts of corruption
spanning a wide range of areas, including tender
processes, real estate
projects that included building of houses and hotels,
structured finance in
all sorts of areas, even purchases of wheat that never
materialised.
NSSA directors and management also splashed money on buying
mansions and
luxury cars for themselves, while paying out pensioners a
meagre US$20 a
month.
NSSA, constituted and established in terms of the
NSSA Act of 1989, is a
statutory body tasked by government to provide social
security to workers so
that they have an income to look forward to upon
retirement. However,
contributors and pensioners have found themselves
getting meagre payouts
averaging US$20 per month, while business executives
and politicians enjoy
the benefits of their sweat and tears.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Friday, 16 March 2012 08:44
Paidamoyo
Muzulu
CONSTITUTIONAL and Parliamentary Affairs minister Eric Matinenga
has blasted
Attorney-General Johannes Tomana for unilaterally halting
prosecution of
cases involving abuse and embezzlement of the Constituency
Development Fund
(CDF) as well as government officials who operate along
political party
lines.
This has escalated the battle between Tomana and
those who want MPs who
abused public funds prosecuted. The fight is seen as
an indication that some
in government entertain corruption by protecting
relatives and friends for
personal and political
reasons.
Matinenga dismissed Tomana’s legal reasons for halting the
prosecutions
after the AG had written to the Constitutional and
Parliamentary Affairs
ministry and the police ordering them to halt
prosecution of all MPs accused
of corruption involving the CDF saying they
could only start in June after
complete audits of all the country’s 210
constituencies.
“There is no legal basis to that,” said Matinenga,
who is a lawyer by
profession.“I cannot stop prosecuting a shoplifter in
Mbare until a
shoplifter in Mufakose has been arrested. Cases should be
prosecuted as and
when evidence available shows that a case is prosecutable.
The problem is
that some people think that everybody works on the basis of
political
allegiance. I do not work that way,” said
Matinenga.
Matinenga could not rule out the possibility that Tomana
may be using powers
vested in him by the law for political reasons since
calls for elections are
growing louder.
“We have had problems
with selective prosecution. Some people deny the
allegations but when one
looks at the history of political prosecution, it
becomes clear who is
targeted or not, but I would not want to believe that
the AG is doing that,”
he said.
The MDC-T has registered complaints against Tomana’s alleged
political
prosecutions since the establishment of the coalition government
in 2009.
Some senior political leaders and ministers from the MDC formations
have
been arrested, prosecuted and acquitted on spurious charges.
Among
the prominent leaders arrested or investigated are Prime Minister
Morgan
Tsvangirai, Energy minister Elton Mangoma, MPs Rodger Tazviona,
Costin
Muguti, TongaiMatutu, Douglas Mwonzora and Lynette Karenyi.
In a
recent letter to President Robert Mugabe, Tsvangirai complained that
his
ministers were targeted for arrest, Zanu PF ministers are not. The
premier
has been for a long time been pushing for Local Government minister
Ignatius
Chombo’s investigation and arrest on allegations of corruption but
nothing
has been done about it.
An MDC-T national executive member confirmed
that there was a lot of
discomfort within the party about the CDF
investigations to the extent that
the matter was not debated at their
meetings.
“There was no discussion of the matter at last week’s
national executive
meeting. The party has even blocked a proposed suggestion
to move a motion
on the issue in parliament. Some members feel Matinenga was
hasty in his
investigations,” said an insider.
Matinenga
confirmed that he was currently not popular among the
politicians.
“I can assure you that we are not making friends out
there for doing our
duty to protect public funds,” said
Matinenga.
Investigations have so far implicated close to 10 MPs,
including three
cabinet ministers. Four MPs, three from MDC-T and one from
Zanu PF, had been
arrested by the Anti-Corruption Commission and arraigned
before the courts
for CDF abuse.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Friday, 16 March 2012
08:43
Faith Zaba
RANI investment, the majority shareholder in
River Ranch mine in Beitbridge,
yesterday denied reports that relations
between its owner, Saudi-based
tycoon Adel Abdul Rahman al Aujan and the
late army commander, General
Solomon Mujuru, had soured,despite clear
evidence showing that.
A spokesperson for Rani Investment, the majority
shareholder in Limpopo
Resources which owns River Ranch Mine, also denied in
a statement
allegations that his company was
anti-indigenisation.
Limpopo Resources owns 80% of River Ranch
diamond mine in which Mujuru’s
family holds a 20% stake through Khupukile
Resources, whose directors are
former Zanu PF legislator Tirivanhu Mudariki
and Mujuru’s daughter, Nyasha
Mujuru del Campo.
The spokesperson
for the company said the relationship between Mujuru and
Aujan has always
been “one of friendship and mutual respect”.
“The sad demise of the
general came as a shock to us, as it did to everyone
who knew and respected
him,” he said.
However, documents seen by the Zimbabwe Independent
reveal that Mujuru and
Aujan clashed at Victoria Falls in May last year over
the mine.
In a letter to Aujan dated January 30 2012, Mudariki said:
“Adel, taking
cognisance of the fact that in Victoria Falls last year you
parted with the
General on a bad note and indeed a lot of senior officials
in both the party
and government are aware of this… do not rub on the wounds
of the Mujuru
family in their time of mourning.”
Mujuru died in a
mysterious fire in August at his Alamein Farm in Beatrice.
He died
the night before he was due to travel to Beitbridge with
Indigenisation
minister Saviour Kasukuwere to present an indigenisation plan
for River
Ranch, which included a 45% shareholding for Khupukile
Resources.
According to the indigenisation plan, Rani Investment was
to remain with 39%
shareholding, while 10% would have gone to the community
trust and 6% to the
mine workers -- which Rani Investment
rejected.
Kasukuwere had initiated the plan after writing to Rani
Investment ordering
the company to comply with the indigenisation policy.
But Rani Investment
did not re-submit its provisional indigenisation
implementation plan.
However the spokesperson denied this saying:
“Rani Investment has always
acted within the laws of the country. It has
always addressed the
requirements of all governmental authorities with the
utmost respect.
“Our interaction with the Ministry of Indigenisation
has always been in the
spirit of the dialogue and mutual understanding and
in ensuring we comply
with Zimbabwe’s Indigenisation and Economic
Empowerment Regulations within
the stated timeframes.”
He said
Rani Investment had only decided to sell its interest in River Ranch
because
of a need to refocus its financial and management resources on its
core
business in Zimbabwe and southern Africa, which is within the tourism
and
hospitality sector.
“After more than three months of discussions and
the lapse of the
mutually-agreed deadline, the minority shareholder had not
managed to make
an offer for Rani Investment shares. As a result, the
company decided to
offer its shares to the government of
Zimbabwe.”
He added: “The company believes the government of
Zimbabwe is ideally suited
to manage the mine in the best interests of the
country.”
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Friday, 16 March 2012
08:40
Faith Zaba
FRESH political divisions have emerged in Zanu PF
over the controversial
draft constitution, with one group pushing for
withdrawal from the
constitution-making process and calling for early
elections under the
current constitution amended 19 times and the other
saying the party must
follow the Global Political Agreement
roadmap.
Briefings to the Zimbabwe Independent this week show Zanu PF is
deeply
divided over the draft constitution which is yet to be made public,
with
President Robert Mugabe and his inner circle, which include securocrats
and
the team that conducted the bloody June 2008 presidential election
run-off,
threatening to ditch the process if the party’s positions are not
included.
However, some politburo members and Zanu PF MPs are arguing
the remaining
contentious issues were not so critical as to warrant the
abandonment of the
whole constitution-making process which has so far
gobbled up US$38,17
million –– US$19,27 million from government and US$18,9
million from the
UNDP.
Contentious issues include the structure
of government (whether to have a
president, vice-president(s) or a prime
minister), devolution, the death
penalty, dual citizenship, an Independent
Prosecuting Authority and whether
the threshold of victory for a president
should be 50% of the votes cast
plus one vote or a simple
majority.
Mugabe has already warned he would reject the clauses he
does not want in
the draft. Zanu PF politburo member Jonathan Moyo, widely
viewed as the
party’s strategist, and others support Mugabe on
this.
In an interview with the Independent on Tuesday, Zanu PF
spokesperson Rugare
Gumbo said his party would not accept the draft in its
current form.
“Whoever, whether from within or outside, thinks that we will
accept this
(draft) thing the way it is must be joking –– we will not accept
it at all,”
he said, adding that “we will not go to a referendum until we
are satisfied
with the draft. That is the party position.”
Gumbo
added: “There is no need for negotiations on the contentious issues ––
they
either table what we want or we go for elections. If we are not in
agreement, we will quit the process and call for elections under the
Lancaster House Constitution.”
He said as far as Zanu PF was
concerned the three steps in the roadmap to
elections were drafting a new
constitution, followed by a referendum and
then elections. “If sanctions are
not removed, forget about everything else.
Implementation of the GPA has to
be done concurrently with the removal of
sanctions,” he
said.
Issues in the GPA which the two MDC formations want implemented
before the
country can hold credible, free and fair elections include media,
security
sector and electoral reforms.
However, some Zanu PF
politburo members and MPs who are strongly opposed to
elections this year as
this would cut short their parliamentary terms for
the second time in four
years. They say ditching the constitution-making
process was tantamount to
committing political suicide.
Zanu PF officials argue holding elections held
under the current
constitution will produce a disputed outcome again,
leaving Mugabe and the
party exposed.
“We will lose the support
of our friends in Sadc and the AU if follow that
route,” one politburo
member said. “I don’t see why we should risk that
over issues which are not
so crucial. These issues can be resolved and I
believe we can easily come to
an agreement on the seven contentious issues.”
A Zanu PF Copac member said
the issues in dispute were easy to resolve and
there was no need to abandon
the whole process. Mugabe said recently some
Copac member wanted the process
to continue for them to carry on getting
allowances.
According to
the draft constitution seen by the Independent, the executive
will comprise
an executive president, one or two vice presidents, a cabinet
and no prime
minister. It states that there should be maximum of 30
ministers, although
five more could be appointed outside parliament.
The draft
constitution stipulates the maximum term of office of the
president is two
five-year tenures under the new constitution. The clause on
the maximum age
limit has been abandoned after furious protests by Zanu PF.
On
devolution, the draft charter states: “Zimbabwe is a unitary state that
is
guided by principles of devolution of governmental functions, powers and
responsibilities to all people and at all appropriate
levels.”
The three tiers of government are national, provincial and
local
governments. On electoral systems, it was agreed to have a hybrid
system,
which includes first-past-the-post and proportional
representation.
The election to the senate would be by proportional
representation and it
would consist of 80 representatives. A specific number
would be reserved for
each province, two seats for the disabled and 10 for
the chiefs.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Friday, 16 March 2012 08:39
Owen
Gagare
THE Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe (BAZ) has deferred the
issuing of
commercial radio licences in a move some applicants believe is
meant to
ensure the airwaves remain under the grip of people aligned to Zanu
PF.
BAZ had flighted applications for 14 commercial radio licences to operate
from the country’s major urban centres in November last year, but is yet to
approve a single one. It is considering further extending the deadline for
applicants. Initially, the deadline was January 31 but it was moved to
February 29 and they are yet to set another date.
BAZ announced
it would allocate a single frequency in 14 urban centres ––
Harare,
Bulawayo, Mutare, Gweru, Masvingo, Chinhoyi, Bindura, Gwanda,
Marondera,
Lupane, Plumtree, Kariba, Victoria Falls and Beitbridge.
The
commercial radio licences were in addition to the two national
commercial
broadcasting licences that were awarded to AB Communications
headed by
broadcaster Supa Mandiwanzira (pictured) and Talk Radio run by the
state-owned Zimpapers.
The Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation,
widely accused of operating as a Zanu
PF propaganda mouthpiece, has
monopolised the airwaves since Independence in
1980.
According to
sources, BAZ’s legal committee met last week and recommended
postponement of
issuing licences, saying there have only been a few
applications.BAZ
officials revealed they had only received applications for
licences in
Harare, Bulawayo and Lupane. There was low interest in most
areas because of
little advertising revenue investors expect.
However, some of the
applicants believe the postponement was meant to ensure
that Zimpapers’ Talk
Radio and Mandiwanzira’s ZiFM consolidate their
operations in Bulawayo and
Harare without competition, while giving people
with links to Zanu PF time
to apply for licences in certain targeted areas.
BAZ chairman
Tafataona Mahoso referred questions to chief executive officer
Obert
Muganyura who could not be reached for comment.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Thursday, 15 March 2012 16:49
ONE of
the most controversial subjects in the ongoing constitution-making
process
is the organisation of the state and system of government. In this
debate
devolution of power, the statutory granting of powers from central
government to sub-national levels such as provinces, districts or
municipalities, stands out as the most hotly-contested issue.
The
question is: Is devolution, which is a form of decentralisation,
feasible
and desirable in Zimbabwe? Zanu PF, which prefers a
highly-centralised
unitary state, strongly opposes it, while the MDC parties
believe devolution
should be introduced to allow people at local levels to
participate directly
in how they are governed and in developing their own
areas.
Zimbabwe Independent News Editor Dingilizwe Ntuli
(DN) spoke to Enterprises
minister and MDC-T Bulawayo provincial chairman
Gorden Moyo (GM) whose
province is making the strongest demands for
devolution. Find below excerpts
of the interview.
DN: Thank you
for giving us this opportunity. So what is your party’s
position on
devolution?
GM: Our position is very clear. It’s the people’s
position and that’s what
we have adopted, and shall continue to work towards
its realisation to
devolve power from the centre to the meso levels. South
Africa is a devolved
state; Ghana has devolved powers and recently Kenya
introduced devolution as
a system of government and constitutionalised it.
So we are not reinventing
the wheel, but simply confirming what Zimbabweans
have said, and also
learning from the regional and international best
practice.
DN: If we have devolution, wouldn’t certain regions resist
sharing their
resources with others?
GM: That’s a misconception.
Devolution has five pillars. Firstly, we need
governors elected by the
people, and not appointed, because if they are
appointed they would only be
accountable to whoever appointed them. Then we
need provincial budgets from
national government implemented by the
governor; provincial assemblies with
your MPs sitting in the provinces; a
jurisdiction whereby you identify
sectors to be administered by provinces
and make provinces autonomous, but
linked to national government.
So devolution is a system within a
unitary system of government, not
federalism. You still have national
government running the country,
including resource mobilisation for all
provinces and budgeting. Provinces
can be given latitude to tax just like
local authorities to have extra
resources over and above what comes from
central government, but central
government has the responsibility to
equalise if there are problems in other
provinces. If there are resources or
economic activities in a particular
province, those economic activities must
first benefit people within that
province in terms of
employment.
DN: Would the same constituency MPs at a national level
sit in provincial
assemblies or separate individuals have to be
elected.
GM: It’s a choice that will be made by the people or the
government. You
will never have a uniform devolution system throughout the
world. Each
country has got its own peculiarities. Zimbabwe might say we
want to have
separate MPs who only do provincial business or you may have
the same MPs in
the national assembly to sit in the province.
DN:
Which of these systems does the MDC-T prefer?
GM: The constitution
shall come from the people. People have aired their
views and drafters are
now working on a new constitution. They must design
the structure of
devolution based on what the people said.
DN: President Robert Mugabe
has outrightly rejected devolution, saying it’s
tantamount to partitioning
the country.
GM: It’s a misunderstanding, misconception or misreading
of what devolution
is. People confuse devolution with federalism. What the
president, by the
nature of his remarks, was rejecting was federalism, not
devolution. There
is a world of a difference between the two.
DN:
Why is Matabeleland always mentioned whenever talk of devolution crops
up?
GM: The people of Mutare, Masvingo, Midlands and some parts
of Mashonaland
have also called for devolution. It’s not only the people of
Matabeleland
who want devolution.
DN: When did calls for
devolution actually begin?
GM: Over the past 30 years, Zimbabweans
have seen how bad centralisation of
power is. The challenges we are facing
in this country are partly as a
result of centralisation. People from all
over the country have experienced
the difficulties of coming to Harare, for
instance to get a trading licence
or passports and other such basic
documents.
DN: What happens should Zanu PF reject
devolution?
GM: They will be rejecting the demands of the people and
the people will
speak when they get a chance. I can’t speak on behalf of the
people. It’s
not the MDC which wants devolution, but the people
themselves.
DN: Turning to your province, what issues or problems are
affecting the
region?
GM: There are a number of unfinished
projects in Matabeleland and Bulawayo
and this has been a major grievance.
There’s the unfinished Nkayi road,
construction of the National University
of Science and Technology and the
Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo airport, among
others. People are worried about this
and believe with effective devolution,
these issues would be dealt with
urgently and efficiently. There is the
issue of water politics in
Matabeleland and many other things which need
people to be involved at a
local level to resolve. The reason why there is a
general thinking in
Matabeleland that the region has been marginalised by
government since
independence, is that people are alienated from
development, business,
resources and employment. That’s the
problem.
DN: What strides has the MDC made in trying to address some
of these issues
since it displaced Zanu PF there?
GM: MDC is in
government but is not government. We don’t have an MDC
administration so we
have not been able to make decisions at government
level that would directly
respond to some of the issues. Until the MDC is in
power or we have
devolution of power as a constitutional and legal
framework, we will
continue to have these kinds of problems. MDC has done a
lot.
The
ministry of water has done a lot and the ministry of finance together
with
the ministry of industry and commerce has identified the
reindustrialisation
of Bulawayo as a priority, but they are not good enough.
DN: There
have been reports of factionalism in your party in Bulawayo. What
is going
on?
GM: Factionalism in Bulawayo exists only in the newspapers. It’s
not there
within the structures of the MDC. We have strong united structures
which are
now preparing for the elections. We only read about factionalism
in
newspapers.
DN: So the MDC-T is ready for elections with or
without a new constitution?
GM: The MDC is clear in terms of
elections. The Prime Minister (Morgan
Tsvangirai) said MDC has always won
elections and we will win the next
elections, but we want elections that
will respect the will of the people.
We want the people to be allowed to
express their will unhindered during
elections, that’s why reforms are
fundamental before the polls.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Thursday, 15 March 2012 16:36
Gamma
Mudarikiri
MOST Zimbabweans are now at risk of developing cancer due to
drinking unsafe
water from polluted sources, amid revelations that continued
consumption of
contaminated food and water is fuelling a spread of epidemic
proportions in
the disease in the country.
According to a research by the
University of Zimbabwe (UZ)’s department of
biological sciences in Harare
last year, one in every 1 000 people in the
capital is at risk of developing
colon or liver cancer.
Fish and water in Lake Chivero, Manyame River
and other water sources around
Harare were heavily contaminated with
industrial pollutants, which included
chemicals, heavy metals and raw sewage
- all of which scientific research
has shown cause cancer, the research
says.
It also revealed water from these sources is not safe to drink.
This, it
said, was worsened by continued disposal of raw sewage by local
authorities
into city’s rivers.
Cancer cases are rising at an
alarming rate with statistics showing that the
number of infections recorded
between 2007 and 2011 had doubled.
According to the Cancer
Association of Zimbabwe (CAZ), the country is
currently recording an
average 7 000 new cancer cases annually compared to 3
349 registered in
2007.
Of note, it said, was the increase in digestive system cancer
infections,
which scientific research has shown are due to continued
consumption of
contaminated food and water.
CAZ knowledge manager
Tafadzwa Chigaro said: “It is worrying that there is a
lot of effluence
flowing into our river sources and these could be
carcinogens (substances
and exposures that can lead to cancer).”
But an independent survey
carried out a year before the research in 2010
revealed that Harare’s tap
water was safe for drinking. The survey, based on
tests conducted by experts
from the UZ, says the qualify of Harare’s
drinking water met World Health
Organisation (WHO) standards and, as such,
does not pose any health
risks.
Yet findings by other experts a year later condemned Harare
tap water as
unsafe for consumption. UZ researcher Professor Chris Magadza
revealed in
March last year Harare’s “treated” water did not meet minimum
WHO standards.
Magadza told the EcoSchools World Water Day
commemorations last year that
“clinical studies carried out on Harare’s
water supplies and results
obtained revealed that the city’s water bodies
carry a significant amount of
pollutants which pose a potential health
risk”.
“The catchment water supply for Chivero is swiftly decreasing,
making Harare
increasingly reliant on recycled sewage. The water table for
Harare has sunk
from 15 to 30 metres within the last decade,” said
Magadza.
Water shortages have worsened the situation, forcing
people to resort to
contaminated wells.
Meanwhile, the 2011
African Journal of Aquatic Science indicates that levels
of metal
contamination in these water bodies was too high and fish from
Manyame,
Mukuvisi and Gwebi rivers have an unusual concentration of zinc and
iron.
This, the journal says, affected aquatic life and human
health as evidenced
by an upsurge in cancer cases in the
country.
The Harare, Chitungwiza and Norton town councils were last
year fined US$15
000 by the Environmental Management Agency for disposing
raw sewage into
water bodies and for poor management of
waste.
Scientific research has shown that drinking five glasses of
water daily
decreases the risk of colon cancer by 45%, breast cancer by 79%,
and bladder
cancer by 50%. However, most Zimbabweans continue to drink
contaminated
water, which, in some cases, contains
rust.
According to CAZ, cancer is now killing more people than HIV
and Aids,
tuberculosis and malaria combined with recorded cases reaching 7,
6 million
annually worldwide. Over 12,7 million people in the world are
reported to
have cancer.
Ominously, cancer cases in children in
Zimbabwe are also growing. The
Zimbabwe Children’s Cancer Relief — a
Non-Governmental Organisation dealing
with children with cancer — says in
the first six months of 2011, it dealt
with 254 cases of children with
cancer and the number continues to rise.
In its 2007 report, the cancer
association indicated that of the 3 349 new
cases recorded, 57,3% were women
while men constituted 43,7 %. Cervical
cancer affected 33% of women, breast
cancer 9,9%, while Kaposi sarcoma
accounted for 9,3%.
Kaposi
sarcoma remains the leading cancer in men in Zimbabwe accounting for
19,2%
of all cancer cases. It causes patches of abnormal tissue to grow
under the
skin, in the lining of the mouth, nose, and throat or in other
organs. The
patches are usually red or purple and are made of cancer cells
and blood
cells.
Prostate cancer cases account for 12,7%. Lately, breast cancer
has also been
detected in men.
Chigaro said: “We don’t have solid
statistics on breast cancer in men in
Zimbabwe but from our observation,
there is an increase in the number of men
with breast cancer. But from a
global perspective, 1% of the male population
has breast
cancer.”
Smoking causes between 80-90% of lung cancer deaths in
Zimbabwe and about
30% of cancer deaths in developing countries. It also
causes kidney,
pancreatic, cervical, bladder and stomach
cancers.
Close to 60% of cancer cases recorded in Zimbabwe, according
to the National
Cancer Registry, are HIV-related. People with HIV and Aids
are at high risk
of developing cancers like Kaposi sarcoma, non-Hodgkin
lymphoma and cervical
cancer.
“Most cancer cases in Zimbabwe are
HIV-related. The other causes are change
in lifestyles — we are now adopting
a Western kind of lifestyle,” said
Chigaro.
WHO and the United
States-based National Cancer Institute (NCI) says an
estimated 60-80% of all
cancer cases in children are caused by contaminated
air, food and water. The
NCI points out that an increase in carcinogens in
water and local
authorities’ inability to remove them at the treatment
plants would result
in a situation where one in every four people globally
would be affected by
cancer.
Other causes of cancer, besides contaminated water and food,
include tobacco
smoking and chewing, lack of exercise and genetics, family
history of
cancer, excessive drinking of alcohol, being overweight, chronic
stress and
unsafe sex.
Cancer has proved to be one of the most
expensive diseases to treat. The
cost of treatment in Zimbabwe is
prohibitive, with public hospital charging
at least US$600 a session of
chemotherapy, while a cancer patient requires
at least six sessions of
treatment.
The cost of treatment for advanced cancer, including
doctors’ fees, surgery
and chemotherapy is estimated at between US$4 000 and
US$5 000 in private
hospitals.
Cancer treatment in Zimbabwe is
confined to two public health centres — the
Radiotherapy Centre at
Parirenyatwa Hospital in Harare and at Mpilo Hospital
in Bulawayo.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Thursday, 15 March 2012
16:18
Brian Chitemba
FOLLOWING a decade of political stalemate and
economic meltdown largely due
to disputed elections the country’s three
major parties, Zanu PF, MDC-T and
MDC agreed to form a coalition government
under a Sadc-brokered Global
Political Agreement (GPA) to restore peace and
stability while introducing
reforms to ensure free and fair elections whose
outcome would not be
contested.
The GPA is basically a
roadmap to fresh elections after the poll bloodbath
of June 2008 which
resulted in President Robert Mugabe’s purported victory
secured through a
campaign of violence and brutality being widely rejected
as illegitimate. It
sought to usher in a peaceful environment where recovery
and stability would
dominate Zimbabwe’s political landscape, displacing the
climate of fear and
misery enveloping the country.
Article VI of the GPA stipulates that
a new constitution must be in place
before free and fair elections could be
held. This was the understanding
among the parties right from the beginning.
In fact, the central element of
the GPA— the roadmap towards fresh elections
—is to have a new constitution
before the polls.
However,
Mugabe’s remarks at the chiefs’ conference in Bulawayo last week
that the
GPA was never about writing a new constitution but putting an end
to
political violence before new elections sounded like an attempt to
rewrite
the agreement which is clear on what its overall purpose is and how
to
achieve that.
Political commentators say Mugabe’s statements about
the GPA were misleading
and motivated by his self-serving desire to abandon
the current
constitution-making process and stampede the country into early
polls
without the necessary reforms and preparations to ensure the outcome
is not
disputed again.
Mugabe expressed his unhappiness at the
slow pace of the constitution-making
process which has dragged on for three
years now, saying he would be forced
to call for polls this year in line
with resolutions of the Zanu PF
conference in Bulawayo last December with or
without a new constitution.
This has of late been Zanu PF’s mantra as
Mugabe and his loyalists
desperately try to wriggle out of the GPA processes
to go for early
elections to suit their political designs. Mugabe’s age and
frailty as well
as his problematic succession issues have often been cited
as the main
reasons why they want early elections.
The new line
which Mugabe and his party are pursuing — that the country is
going to
elections this year with or without a new constitution —has put the
GPA’s
survival in jeopardy and set the veteran leader on a collision course
with
Sadc leaders.
Crisis Coalition regional coordinator Dewa Mavhinga
said the GPA was
certainly about a new constitution as provided for in
Article VI. Mavhinga
said while there were existing draft constitutions like
the Kariba, NCA and
rejected 2000 Constitutional Commission documents, the
GPA provided for the
writing of a new constitution owned and driven by the
people of Zimbabwe
before the elections.
He said the writing of a
new constitution was an essential element of the
raft of reforms necessary
to create a free and fair electoral environment.
Without a new constitution,
he said, nothing would change in terms of the
electoral
conditions.
“Mugabe appears either to be mistaken or to have
forgotten the contents of
the GPA,” said Mavhinga. “To give full effect to
the fundamental right and
duty of Zimbabweans to produce a new constitution
by and for themselves, as
provided in article VI of the GPA, it was
necessary that government sets
aside various constitutional drafts and
genuinely consults the people and
reflect their wishes in the final draft to
be subjected to a national
referendum,” he said.
The
constitution-making process, which is now at drafting stage, has been
delayed by constant fierce clashes between Zanu PF and MDC-T and other
problems.
Mavhinga said current political horse-trading on the
constitution rendered
the wishes of the people irrelevant and has left them
questioning why there
was even an outreach programme when there was no
intention of respecting
views aired during the process.
Analysts
warned at the beginning of the current constitution-making process
that this
exercise was doomed to fail or to produce a half-baked draft
because it was
firmly controlled by three self-interested political
parties — which only
represent a section of the society — pursuing narrow
power-grabbing
agendas.
He said the GPA had 25 articles and it was important for
Mugabe to read and
interpret the agreement in its totality rather than pick
and choose and to
manipulate what he wants to suit his political agenda and
ambitions.
Bulawayo-based political commentator Nyamutatanga Makombe
said Mugabe’s
utterances showed Mugabe preparing for possible disengagement
from the GPA
processes and inclusive government to force the country into
early
elections.
Makombe said the GPA was flawed because it had
many clauses which were
either unclear or not tight, and grey areas which
gave Mugabe an opportunity
to abandon the agreement and call for
elections.
Makombe said: “What Mugabe said was what may have been.
Whereas the GPA is a
legal document, it is steeped in high politics and this
has been the main
reason why we have had as many interpretations as there
are interested
parties. As such, it is almost difficult to tell whether
Mugabe interpreted
the GPA well or otherwise given the lack of clarity and
gaps in the
agreement.”
Makombe said Mugabe’s remarks must be
seen in the context of the recent
spate of violence and growing talk about
elections.
“Taking this vein, one would see that what Mugabe was
saying is that they
are preparing for disengagement. It is very easy to
disengage as the rules
of engagement through GPA were flawed. Mugabe was
telling the nation through
an address of the chiefs that they will do
everything to end the marriage
and call for elections,” said
Makombe.
Makombe said there was nowhere in the world where there has
ever been the
so-called “people-driven constitution”, hence the current
process was a
charade and the Kariba and 2000 drafts could have been used to
write a new
constitution. It would have been easier and progressive to come
up with a
final draft out of all these drafts which have been done, he
said.
Mugabe said he had agreed with Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai
and Deputy
Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara to use the Kariba draft as a
yardstick for a
new constitution, but the MDC-T and MDC later somersaulted.
Zanu PF now
appears to be using this pretext to undermine or disrupt the
current
process.
So the question is: Were the MDC formations
sincere or were playing to the
demands of their supporters after the parties
initially agreed to the Kariba
draft?
Makombe said: “The
constitution-making process, when one prepares the
balance sheet, has more
debit than credit, it is a loss. It has divided
society and it is doomed to
fail. There is no guarantee that it will pass
the test of parties which need
to agree to the draft, all-stakeholders
conference, referendum and adopt in
parliament through a two-thirds
majority.”
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Thursday, 15 March 2012 15:44
THE
European Union (EU) recently lifted targeted sanctions on senior Zanu PF
officials and individuals aligned to the party. Zanu PF however dismissed
the move as a ploy to sow divisions within its ranks, calling for complete
and unconditional removal of the restrictive measures. Zimbabwe Independent
reporter Elias Mambo (EM) last week interviewed EU ambassador to Zimbabwe
Aldo Dell’Ariccia (AA) on this controversial issue. Find below excerpts of
the interview.
EM: The debate about sanctions has been going on for years
in Zimbabwe and
is now increasingly becoming controversial. Wherever you
officiate you are
usually confronted with the “sanctions” term, yet you call
them “restrictive
measures”. What is the difference between the
two?
AA: Sanctions are measures against a country and government.
They have an
immediate effect on a country and there is an immediate impact
on support
that (the) EU can give to a country. And in the case of Zimbabwe,
we do not
have sanctions. The EU has been supportive of the Zimbabwean
government.
We have diplomatic relations, we exchange ambassadors,
and that is why I am
here. Under sanctions, we would not have this scenario.
We are meeting the
Zimbabwean government officials regularly, for example,
when we signed our
fund agreements with the education and the health
sectors. Yes, we do not
call them sanctions, these are targeted restrictions
only. So what we have
in Zimbabwe are restrictions targeted at companies and
individuals
perpetrating or acting in cahoots with those implicated in gross
human
rights abuses.
EM: Tell us when will you completely remove
these targeted restrictions?
AA: We have always repeated our mantra
that restrictions can be removed when
the individuals targeted have shown
some improvements; when human rights
abuses are eradicated; when Zimbabwe
can hold free and fair elections; when
people in Zimbabwe can be allowed to
move freely and vote for a candidate of
their choice; when the Sadc roadmap
for elections in Zimbabwe is adhered to
and when there is public media
reform to an extent that opposition political
parties can get equal coverage
by the media during their campaigns. Then the
restrictions can go. When the
electoral reforms are implemented then we can
talk of total removal of these
restrictions. Yes, we are saying play your
part then we will also play our
part. A fair deal, isn’t it?
EM: The Attorney-General is pressing
ahead with a lawsuit against the EU/US
sanctions. What is your response to
this?
AA: I can’t say anything about the lawsuit because the
communication was
between the Head of State (President Robert Mugabe) and
the EU president
(Herman van Rompuy). However, the EU respects the rule of
law and
governance. In the framework of the rule of law, whatever decision
can be
challenged before the courts.
EM: Do you think conditions
in Zimbabwe right now are conducive for free and
fair elections?
AA: We
do not set dates and the conditions when elections in sovereign
nations
could be held but our call is for Sadc and (the) AU to say yes
Zimbabwe can
go ahead and hold elections. We follow them, we support them,
and we believe
in their professionalism. We accept their responsibility to
allow Zimbabwe
to go for polls. We stand ready to consider any request for
further support
to national or regional efforts aimed at fostering a
conducive environment
for democratic elections. The EU will not favour one
party over the other.
The EU will accept any outcome of a credible election
process.
EM: Given Sadc leaders’ common history of the liberation
struggle with
Mugabe, do you think they can stand up to him on critical
issues if push
comes to shove?
AA: That is not for us to judge
their relationship. We have mechanisms to
check such unholy alliances. On
the election roadmap, for example, Sadc
cannot say all has been done when
there is evidence that a lot still has to
change. Like I said earlier, we
believe in the honest and professional
engagement with Sadc and
AU.
EM: If Mugabe persists and succeeds in his call for early
elections, are you
going to send observers?
AA: We are ready to send
observers into the country well before the
elections date to monitor the
progress, the campaigns, preparations and
monitor how the polls will be
held. We are ready but it all depends on
whether we will be invited. If not
invited then we monitor the polls through
the eyes of Sadc and AU. We will
then check what Sadc and AU say against the
views of a lot of other
non-governmental organisations that will be
monitoring the
elections.
EM: Going back to the restrictive measures issue, some
quarters are saying
the EU is trying to divide Zanu PF by removing some
people from the EU
restrictive list. What is the EU’s intention and what
criteria did you use
to come to such a conclusion?
AA: Well,
certain sections may say so as everyone is free to say whatever
they want.
As for us, we perform our yearly assessment of these measures and
our
criteria were based on the activities of the individuals in as far as
their
involvement in human abuses is concerned. It was seen that the
delisted
people and companies were no longer actively or directly
participating or
involved in gross human rights abuses hence the decision to
remove them.
Whatever the effect this has caused to other interested
parties, it is for
them to say, not us. We do not have any other interests
in this
matter.
EM: What is your position with regards to the issue of
diamonds in Marange?
AA: Our position is clear, and it is based on
respect of the Kimberley
Process Certification Scheme (KPCS). We are happy
the government of Zimbabwe
has accepted visits by civil society through the
facilitation by the
Ministry of Mines. So Zimbabwe is moving towards the
right direction. The EU
has been instrumental in building consensus on an
agreement enabling
Zimbabwe to sell diamonds from its Marange mines under
the KPCS. The
agreement –– brokered by the KPCS chair (DRC) with the support
of the EU ––
brought an end to the suspension of exports. This is a positive
outcome for
the people of Zimbabwe who will be able to benefit from the
revenues derived
from the export of their natural resources.
EM:
Has the EU cut down on aid to Zimbabwe since the imposition of
restrictive
measures?
AA: Not at all, and this is why we say these are not
sanctions because under
sanctions we cut down or remove our support.
With
Zimbabwe, we have so far donated close to US$1 billion in development
assistance with emphasis on supporting the provision of social services and
food security, reinforcing democratic institutions and processes as well as
fostering economic recovery. Trade has, in fact, increased to 36% between
2010 and 2011 showing there are no sanctions to talk about.
EM:
When should we expect the EU-Zimbabwe re-engagement process to
resume?
AA: We have already written a letter to our member states so
when a response
comes then we will be ready to re-engage Zimbabwe. All I can
say right now
is that we are in the process of re-engagement.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Thursday, 15 March 2012
16:25
CIVIC organisations say the call for elections this year by
President Robert
Mugabe is appropriate as the country cannot expect Copac to
deliver a
people-driven constitution any time soon, ZBC told us on
Monday.
Civic organisations are “in agreement” with the call for
elections ZBC goes
on to claim. Muckraker was keen to find out which civic
organisations could
be making such a declaration.
Alas!
It was the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Justice fronted by none other than
Advocate
Martin Dinha which had taken the mantle of representing civil
society.
National Constitutional Assembly chairman, Professor Lovemore
Madhuku, who
had called for free and fair polls, was roped into the
narrative giving the
impression he was also calling for early
polls.
We understood the claim to represent civic organisations in
the context of
the bogus organisations Zanu PF has invented like the
Zimbabwe Children of
War Liberators Association, Zimbabwe Coffin Makers
Association, Zimbabwe
Exhumers Association, Youth in Natural Resources
Management, the Zimbabwe
Congress of Student Unions, Journalists for
Empowerment, Destiny for Afrika
Network, Zimbabwe Revolutionary Volunteers
Front, the Federation of Civil
Society Organisations, Zimbabwe Lawyers for
Justice and Upfumi Kuvadiki
among others.
Maybe ZBC needed to
clarify that Zanu PF-aligned civic organisations are
calling for elections.
There could be no doubt about them being in
agreement.
Will somebody explain what
all the fuss is about regarding the presence of
Hassen Ebrahim. Here is a
distinguished ANC lawyer and legal draftsman who
has been seconded by
President Jacob Zuma to assist Copac in its
deliberations.
Wasn’t
this arrangement agreed at previous Sadc summits on Zimbabwe? And
weren’t we
told at the recent centenary celebrations of the ANC that we were
like blood
brothers with our southern counterparts?
Why then the near hysteria
being generated in the state press? Ebrahim is
being portrayed as “Zuma’s
man in Copac”, a fifth columnist who has “cut and
pasted” elements from the
South African constitution which he also worked
on.
It is
difficult, reading the Sunday Mail article (“Zuma’s man in Copac
outed”) to
work out what aspects of his advice are so subversive. But we
should have
guessed. “According to sources he was the source of the highly
contentious
provisions of the draft constitution that allegedly sought to
protect
homosexuality as well as weaken key national institutions such as
the
judiciary and security services.”
Ebrahim was the source of
so-called international best practice, we are
told.
“That means
70% of the controversial material that is anti-President Mugabe
and Zimbabwe
in the draft came from him,” the Sunday Mail claimed as if best
practice was
an offence!
Then the UNDP was dragged in
for good measure as part of a plot by David
Cameron to “spread homosexuality
in Africa”.
Does anybody believe this childish nonsense? Isn’t best
practice precisely
what the Copac negotiators are mandated to produce? If we
don’t have best
practice in the constitution then we will get a repeat of
the past 32 years.
Zimbabwe needs a sound document, not a partisan patchwork
of Zanu PF
prejudices.There is the manifest danger that if Copac produces a
basic law
that fails to defend the rights of minorities, for instance, the
country
will once again find itself without aid or
investment.
Cameron is not trying to incorporate homosexuality in the
constitution as
the Sunday Mail fatuously asserts. He is simply saying if
countries want
international aid they should not persecute minorities in the
name of some
ignorant nationalist crusade. Next thing we will have Bishop
Nolbert Kunonga
prescribing what values we should incorporate in the
draft!
On the subject of ignorant
nationalist agendas, Morgan Tsvangirai is failing
to provide robust
leadership to the nation by not standing up for media
freedom. Instead he
seems to be competing with President Mugabe to see who
can make the most
vitriolic attack on the press.
He was quoted by the Sunday Mail as
having accused the Daily News of
creating political tension in the country
by publishing falsehoods.
This sounds like Rugare Gumbo or
Webster Shamu, not Morgan Tsvangirai.
“We would like to think
Zimbabwe is where it is today,” the Daily News
commented, “because it has
its fair share of political thugs, imbeciles and
media hangmen –– concrete
knowledge that we would hope would dissuade him
from jumping into this kind
of cesspool.”
If Tsvangirai did say what the Sunday Mail accused him
of saying, the Daily
News said, “is he now adopting Zanu PF’s worst
tendencies –– a primitive and
barbaric political culture that has raped,
murdered and bankrupted our once
beautiful
country”.
On the subject of not looking
so good, we noted Jonathan Moyo’s remark that
Tsvangirai had “in effect
conceded on eTV that the president was more astute
than
him”.
“That Tsvangirai is younger than President Mugabe,” Moyo said,
“is of course
as obvious as the fact that he is so irresponsible and so
reckless in his
personal life that he is known to have unprotected sex
outside marriage to
the extent that he has exposed himself to HIV or has
exposed his female
victims to the same such that his health status will
remain an issue until
he goes for a public HIV test.”
Is it in
fact an issue outside the editorial pages of the Sunday Mail? It is
a pity
the paper is prepared to publish this crude and abusive invective.
The
danger is of course that some readers may recall that Tsvangirai is not
the
only or most prominent politician accused of having sex outside the
confines
of marriage.
Muckraker came across an
interview the Standard had with the late
nationalist James Chikerema, in
2003, whose content is as pertinent today as
it was then. Chikerema had made
the assertion that President Mugabe would
cling to the presidency “until
death do them part”.
“All that succession talk is just gibberish,” Chikerema
said.
“ ... Mugabe is not leaving office until he dies. Can’t you see
that he
doesn’t even want to discuss the issue of who his successor will
be,”
Chikerema said.
Chikerema, the Standard states, laughed
uncontrollably when asked if
Jonathan Moyo, then Minister of State for
Information and Publicity in the
President’s Office, could assume the reins
of power.
“That would be the joke of the millennium,” he said. “We
really used to
admire Moyo when he was a critic of the Zanu PF regime during
his days at
the University of Zimbabwe. But how he has switched roles is the
reverse of
what happened to the biblical Paul at Damascus. Moyo will never
be
president. He cannot be
trusted.”
Zanu PF apologist, Vimbai
“European” Chivaura took the adulation of
President Mugabe to alarming
levels, describing him as a “spirit medium”
that will never
die.
According to RadioVOP, Chivaura said this while addressing
traditional
chiefs last Friday in Bulawayo at their annual conference. He
said Mugabe is
a spirit medium just like Mbuya Nehanda and
Chaminuka.
“He might die physically, but his spirit will remain with
us, just like
Mbuya Nehanda and Chamunika,” said Chivaura. “We will continue
fighting the
British and other imperialists using his spirit,” he
said.
“So as traditional chiefs you should support this great man
because he will
always be in us,” he added.
Is Zanu PF so
desperate to woo votes that they need to deify Mugabe? Mugabe
should rein in
such crass sycophancy if he wants to retain anything from his
frayed legacy.
Unless of course he is affording us a good
laugh.
Zimbabwe’s school pupils
must be taught the country’s political history,
Media minister Webster Shamu
said at a ceremony at Tynwald Primary School to
celebrate the life and
legacy of late national hero General Vitalis
Zvinavashe.
He is of
course perfectly correct. Today’s children should be taught how a
fine and
prosperous nation was brought to its knees by a parasitic elite.
What had
been a successful middle-income economy in 1980 was by 2012 a
basket
case.
Millions of Zimbabweans had fled abroad –– mostly to Britain
and South
Africa where they could enjoy a better life and escape
repression.
Those remaining should be taught that “Cecil John Rhodes
was a thief and a
gay”, the Herald reported Shamu as saying. So that was
the secret of his
success!
While we are on the subject of a good
education, we noticed the following on
Page 4 of Monday’s edition of the
Herald. “Farmer seizes neighbour’s 70 herd
of cattle.”
We presume
that was 70 head of cattle? We only mention it because the Herald
was
congratulating itself last week on being some sort of superior paper.“We’ve
done it again,” they declared.
Indeed, they had. Now they need to
get it right.
Muckraker enjoyed
Bill Saidi’s obituary for Bornwell Chakaodza even if it
did sound a bit like
Bill once again providing us with his recollections of
“50 years in the
media trenches of Southern and Northern Rhodesia”.Chakaodza’s
main
contribution was to assist Bill with Bill’s Misa-commissioned
autobiography,
it seems.
“Chakaodza and I worked well on the book –– his function
was that of a
proof-reader –– and he was good,” Saidi recalled.
“He
understood why I insisted that if he thought there ought to be a change
in
the content or context then he had to consult me which he did.”
Sounds a bit
like somebody else’s obituary!
Muckraker’s question: Why did it take
Bill so long to get this hagiography
together? Were there any obstacles
along the way?Any lengthy holidays?
MDC99
has embarked on new strategies in order to advance the party and
deliver a
“good brand” to the electorate ahead of the impending
elections.
Addressing a press conference last Sunday, the “firebrand
and brave” party
President Job Sikhala revealed his party’s progress at
provincial and
national level.
“In the recent past our party has
been infiltrated by sell-outs who are
briefing and collaborating with
enemies on our developments and plans.
“Their aim is to cripple and
antagonise us but they will not succeed in
their
machinations.
“As a result of such disturbances, the party has
reshuffled its executive
and we also have claimed the scalps of sell-outs
who wine and dine with the
enemy in order to drive us backwards,” Sikhala
said.
The reshuffle entailed, among other things, the reassignment of
the party’s
first vice president Madam Sibanda “to a less demanding post” of
treasurer-general.
The information department was also revamped,
says Sikhala. Former party
spokesperson Aaron Muzungu was expelled from the
party on allegations that
he was the one “leaking false information to the
security agents”.
We thought that was a good thing. Did you want
him to give them accurate
information Cde Sikhala?
As if that was
not enough, the party will employ a strategy of embarking on
a hunger strike
in March “on an undisclosed date for security reasons
despite spirited
efforts by police commissioner-general Augustine Chihuri
and other state
security agents to thwart it”.
If the hunger strike is held at a
secret location, won’t it be a case of
winking in the
dark?
In our edition of March 9, we
referred to Godwills Masimirembwa’s election
campaign in Tafara and asked
what role, if any, LaFarge was playing. LaFarge
has written to say it
doesn’t have any relationship with Masimirembwa.
“LaFarge is a cement
manufacturer which does not in any way participate in
the politics of this
or any other country,” it said.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Thursday, 15 March 2012
16:20
REACTING negatively to the recurrent, increasing cries of the
populace in
the cities and towns of Zimbabwe, with the exception of Harare,
for
government to effect constructive national devolution, President Robert
Mugabe and the Minister of Local Government, Urban and Rural Development,
Ignatius Chombo, have emphatically rejected the concept. In so doing, the
President contended that devolution is nationally divisive.
He also
argued that Zimbabwe is too small for devolution to be
constructively
pursued, and that the effect of devolution would be to divide
that allegedly
small country into numerous minuscule countries.
However, the
reality is that the majority of those pressing for devolution
are seeking
economic and administrative devolution, in contradistinction to
political
devolution. None are seeking that their provinces should become
separate,
independent countries. But they do contend, with great
justification, that
administration should be decentralised from Harare, and
that within the
parameters of an overall national economic policy,
appropriate underlying
policies should be regionally determined, as all too
often one area may be
in need of policies and actions very specific to their
areas.
The
Zimbabwean economy continues to be extremely weak and distressed, but as
grievous as is the economy in Harare and its surrounding districts, that in
the remainder of Zimbabwe is even worse. To a significant extent that
weakened economic circumstance is due to the almost total lack of
devolution. Any interactions with government must be pursued in Harare, for
the offices of the diverse governmental ministries in other cities are
naught but post offices, devoid of any determinative powers. That is so in
respect of the ministries of Industry and Commerce, Agriculture, Land Reform
and Rural Resettlement, Finance, Labour and Social Welfare, Local
Government, Urban and Rural Development, Mines and Mining Development, and
almost all other ministries.
Almost any issue requiring
ministerial interaction is subject to referral to
Harare (where, as a
general rule, such referrals are dealt with at one of
three speeds, being
slow, very slow, or stop! As a result, innumerable
issues impacting
economic activity in non-Harare areas, are jeopardised and
negatively
impacted upon.
Like circumstances apply to almost all State
enterprises and parastatals,
including Zesa, TelOne, NSSA and many others.
Moreover, because of that
governmental administrative infrastructure of
near-total concentration of
operations and determinative authority in
Harare, similar circumstances
apply to most private sector entities of a
national nature. This is
especially apparent in the banking sector, with
branch managers in centres
other than Harare being devoid of any substantive
authority. This applies
similarly in the case of pension funds, insurance
companies, and very many
others.
Recently the Bulawayo
Progressive Residents Association (BPRA) issued a
comprehensive, most
informative statement entitled Demystifying the Myths
about Devolution of
Power, suggesting that the arguments against devolution
of power are
superficial. Its first comment is that “one major myth against
devolution
is the perceived fear that it would lead to the disintegration of
the
country and the state”. Refuting that myth, BPRA states that “the
reality
is that devolution is the sharing of power between the various
spheres or
levels of government within one state. It is merely a call for
the
government to cede authority, resources and responsibilities to the
local
communities”.
BPRA also authoritatively refutes the presidential
contention that Zimbabwe
is too small for devolution of power, which it
convincingly states is
devoid of substance and uninformed. BPRA points out
that “with a population
of 14 million, the population is larger than that of
eight African countries
put together”, being “Namibia (2,2 million),
Botswana (2 million), Lesotho
(2,1 million), Mauritius (1,3 million), Gabon
(1,5 million), Guinea Bi
ssau (1,6 million), Swaziland (1,2 million), and
Equatorial Guinea (0,7
million)”, all of which successfully have pursued
devolution. BPRA
reinforces this emphatic contention that size is not a
constraint on
devolution, by recording that “Switzerland is a small country
with a
population of 8 million people and distinct languages but has
implemented
devolution and reaped huge benefits as it is one of the most
stable
countries in Europe”. This is conclusive evidence that population
size does
not really matter in devolution.
BPRA’s statement also
credibly highlights that “devolution involves not just
the transfer of
power, but also financial resources”. It emphasises that
“the rightsizing of
the central ministries and bureaucracies consistent with
the transfer of
functions to other levels should result in considerable
savings which should
provide finance and personnel to devolved governments.”
The BPRA
statement contends that “the expenses incurred by the state in
maintaining a
large bureaucratic structure” would, if effective devolution
is pursued,
“result in considerable savings which should provide finance and
personnel
to devolved governments”. BPRA emphasises this by stating that
“the
expenses incurred by the state in maintaining a large bureaucratical
structure will be diverted to the establishment of smaller, less expensive
local government structures”.
Over and above numerous other very
convincing arguments by BPRA on the
merits of devolution, their statement
makes the very valid point that “the
existence of devolution enables
decisions on local issues being “made by
local citizens through a lower
level government that is closer to the people
and more responsive to local
needs”.
BPRA emphasises this by stating that “devolution
transfers the power,
functions and responsibility that enable local
governments and communities
to make socio-political and economic decisions
that determine their
livelihood, and thus promotes citizen participation in
critical issues that
affect communities”.
Moreover, BPRA
makes the very credible assertion that “within the context of
Zimbabwe,
direct participation of the people through decentralised systems
of
governance could be a panacea for corruption and help in the promotion of
developments and strengthening of democracy.”
Zimbabwe’s next
door neighbour, South Africa, has substantially effected
devolution, with
positive economic and other benefits, and without it in any
manner being
nationally divisive The head offices of the governmental
ministries are in
Pretoria, but parliament is conducted in Cape Town. The
majority of the
ministries operate offices in Johannesburg, Durban, Cape
Town and
Bloemfontein, the personnel therein having fairly extensive
determinative
powers within the framework of prescribed national policies.
In like
manner, most of the banks, insurance companies and pension funds
have their
offices and top management in Johannesburg, but have substantive
offices in
other centres, with the branch managers having relatively
substantial
authoritiy. If devolution works in South Africa, and in many
other
countries, it should surely similarly work in Zimbabwe.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Friday, 16 March 2012
09:13
CURRENT market sentiment is that the banking sector is having
liquidity
challenges. The argument is that the banking sector has become
over-extended
to low quality loans at unsustainably high leverage ratios,
hence the
liquidity challenges.
We beg to differ. The conditions in our
market are displaying the pathology
of a credit crunch, which if unchecked
will quickly precipitate into a full
blown financial crisis. By persistently
referring to our situation as merely
a liquidity crisis, our policy-makers
are misleading the nation. This
continuous misnomer over the last two and a
half years has led to policy
failure as the solutions prescribed have either
fallen short or have been
downright inappropriate for the situation. This is
akin to a doctor treating
symptoms and not addressing the disease. The
consequences can be fatal.
Indeed, one can trace this unfolding
crisis to a number of regulatory blind
spots. In recent times we have seen
the Reserve Bank and other stakeholders,
through moral suasion, put pressure
on banks to increase their Loan to
Deposit Ratios. This naturally led some
banks to relax their lending
criteria and to extend loans to entities that
would normally be regarded as
sub-prime.
We hear a major bank is
sitting on a pile of bad loans, but this is never
reflected in their
provisions or write-offs. That is quite surprising from a
bank that emerged
for the ashes and had to have its bad loans housed in a
special purpose
vehicle. The bank itself and the regulators seem to have a
very poor
institutional memory that is not serving them well, or they are
deliberately
turning a blind eye so that history can conveniently repeat
itself.
According to RBZ Governor Gideon Gono’s recent Monetary
Policy Statement,
lending and investment rates quoted by banks have remained
unsustainably
high since the advent of the multi-currency regime. So have
credit spreads,
due mainly to persistent liquidity shortages, comparatively
high credit
demand, high associated risks, limited access to external lines
of credit
and the absence of an active domestic money
market.
The absence of a functioning money market has also
resulted in the widening
of interest rate ranges quoted by the different
banks. A liquidity crisis
refers to an otherwise sound banking entity
finding itself temporarily
incapable of accessing the bridging finance it
needs to facilitate its cash
flow payments and fund operations. The key
difference is that a liquidity
crisis should be temporary, not
sustained.
Often a credit crunch is accompanied by a flight to
quality by lenders and
depositors as they seek less risky repositories for
their money. There is a
flight to liquidity by banks that will only lend to
highly liquid or
creditworthy companies which traditionally would not need
to borrow, whilst
depositors seek perceived large well-capitalised banks
with strong depositor
bases and therefore higher relative liquidity. We have
already seen the
signs, the hoarding of cash by the multinational banks that
have a lot more
respect for institutional memory, and the increasing
inability of some
creative banks to perform very basic functions of serving
depositors and
effecting payments on their behalf.
This situation
is particularly grave when one factors in the hitherto
unquantified and
little-talked-about bad loans that are accruing in the
informal and
semi-formal credit markets. We have households exposed to
multiple debts at
very high cost. For instance, civil servants are hopping
from one
microfinance company to the other, month after month, taking out
loans. We
have shops and businesses in towns extending credit terms to
customers whose
credit history they know very little about. We have
businesses operating on
the mercies of creditors, with landlords not
receiving rentals on time if at
all. In some cases employees are not being
paid and Air Zimbabwe is a clear
case in the public domain; there are sure
to be many others.
All
these issues are now coming to a head, and urgent appropriate policy
intervention is required, but the authorities in general, and the RBZ in
particular, are keeping these issues in the public blind spot. The obvious
starting point is the formal banking sector and this is where the central
bank should start dealing decisively with the unfolding pathology of a
credit crunch.
The regulator should scrutinise existing loans
and start requiring banks to
increase their loan loss provisions and charge
offs. They should be a lot
more conservative in evaluating the financial
health of banks and
significantly raise the spectre of examiners’ wrath on
imprudent lending.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Friday, 16 March 2012
09:12
Dumisani Muleya
GOVERNMENT has finally succeeded in
arm-twisting South Africa’s Implats, the
world’s second-largest platinum
producer, to surrender 51% of its equity in
its coveted local subsidiary
Zimplats to indigenous shareholders following
threats of
nationalisation.
The move is likely to send shivers down the spines of
foreign-owned
companies currently under intense pressure to comply with the
controversial
indigenisation and empowerment policies which have resulted in
massive
capital flight, denting economic recovery and fuelling the current
liquidity
crunch.
Of course most companies are likely to stay on,
as we are seeing in other
parts of the world where resource nationalism is
gaining ground, but new
investors might keep away and economies suffer
eventually.
After resisting threats of seizure or nationalisation,
Implats ultimately
yielded this week to the sustained campaign to force
foreign-owned companies
to give up their majority shareholding to the
bankrupt, state-run National
Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment
Fund.
The deal may effectively amount to seizure because local
shareholders,
including the broke state fund, are likely to fail or refuse
to pay for
their equities.
Most people agree the principle of
indigenisation — now fuelled by the winds
of resource nationalism sweeping
across different countries — is good, but
the approach is
bad.
This is what many said about land reform and were vindicated.
The same thing
might happen again unless government learns from its mistakes
and wises up a
bit.
Resource nationalism is a rising phenomenon
in which governments of
countries with vast reserves of natural resources
are trying to gain greater
economic benefit.
Whether it is in
Zimbabwe, Central Africa, South East Asia, Russia or
Mongolia, global mining
companies are being forced to play by the rules of
impatient governments,
some well-intentioned and others not.
As the case of Zimplats clearly
demonstrates, the notion that powerful
multinational companies are able to
resist expropriation is a myth. It is
true in any country governments are
sovereign and companies are subject, but
then there are other factors that
come into play.
The trouble with the indeginsation policy in Zimbabwe
is not so much that
the idea is bad but the motive and credibility of those
behind it. In this
case, Zanu PF’s agenda is to use indigenisation as a
campaign tool; hence
this has now become partisan and
damaging.
It would have been much better if this programme was being
driven by an
ethical and purposeful leadership, charting the way forward on
economic
transformation. However, a bunch of corrupt and incompetent
politicians who
have demonstrated over the past three decades that they have
no clue on how
to run a modern economy are in charge — fumbling and
looting.
Just like land reform, indigenisation may end up as a mere
perversion of
authority to serve party-political interests and parochial
ends such as
self-enrichment and tyranny.
On Zimplats, there
can’t be any camouflage: It’s clear expropriation or at
least something very
close to it. This will almost certainly embolden and
intensify calls for
nationalisation — which has failed everywhere with
disastrous consequences
not just in Zimbabwe, but also across the region.
By entertaining the failed
idea of nationalisation, however remotely,
Zimbabwe, which suffered a decade
of cumulative decline characterised by an
economic meltdown and
hyperinflation, may be inviting trouble again.
There is a downside to
resource nationalism. It carries serious risks,
including that of outright
nationalisation and expropriation as we are
witnessing in Zimbabwe and we
saw in moves against gold and oil industries
by President Hugo Chávez in
Venezuela; export freezes for geopolitical
reasons, as enacted by Iran; or
more commonly increases in taxes on revenues
such as those seen in Australia
and in the UK against energy companies
operating in the North
Sea.
Indonesia’s recent decision to shut the door on foreign control
of its mines
has gone down badly with global miners but none are yet
threatening to quit
the country.
The truth, as we saw in the case
of Zimplats, is that mining companies are
getting increasingly squeezed but
are hanging in there because they no
longer have any easy investment
destinations to turn to, although this
crusade might end up being a pyrrhic
victory. The Zimplats story is likely
to end that way.
dumisani@zimind.co.zw
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
Friday, 16 March 2012
09:09
Itai Masuku
WE read this week that Zimplats has finally
succumbed to the indigenisation
proposal and is now in the hands of the
“indigenous”. We have no problem
with indigenisation but after taking over
shares, the real question is, what’s
next? To be more precise, who is going
to be managing the company?
Zimplats has been doing well not
simply because it sells one of the world’s
most highly-priced minerals but
also as a result of its sound management. It
has had world class management.
We are more concerned about government
trying to get into business. As we
have said before, governments worldwide
generally do not have a good track
record of running businesses.
Ours is no exception. Once again a
gentle reminder is the demise of
parastatals such as Air Zimbabwe, NRZ,
Zupco, and the Cold Storage
Commission to name but a few. Many of these are
or were at one stage virtual
monopolies, but still floundered because of
poor management.
In the mining industry one can think of Zisco,
Kamativi, Mhangura and even
Hwange. Because of poor management, these
government-owned enterprises
failed to take advantage of, in the case of
Zisco, the demand for steel by
China and India from the mid 80s, which saw
prices firm. Mhangura lost out
on the surge in copper prices in the mid
1990s, which saw the Minorcos of
the world increase their fortunes, while
closer to home, the Konkola Deep
mining project in Zambia received attention
from Anglo American Corporation.
After decades in the doldrums,
tin mining in Kamativi may be resuscitated
thanks to interest from some
foreign investors. Ironically, it’s foreign
investors that are being looked
up to at both Kamativi and Mhangura, the
same way India’s Essar have
breathed a new lease of life into Zisco.
And yet, on the other
hand, foreign investors are being booted out of
Zimplats and Mimosa. With
the diamonds, it’s the Chinese that have the upper
hand. This apparent
inconsistency on what constitutes indigenisation creates
what psychologists
call cognitive dissonance, ie confusion to the brain when
two conflicting
ideas are juxtaposed.
We are aware that inspiration has been drawn
from Chinese state capitalism.
But Chinese state capitalism did not occur
overnight. It began almost 50
years ago after the “great leap forward” (1958
to 1963) which subsequently
became a disaster, but was China’s first attempt
to indigenise its economy
using its own economic theory. After the Maoist
Cultural Revolution (1965 to
1968), which saw the equivalent of our “Upfumi
Kuvadiki” and “Chipangano”
emerging, this was followed by a gradual
transition from communist ideals to
the embracing of
capitalism.
So after their disastrous experiments the Chinese
embarked on a well-thought
out model to indigenise their economy. Credit for
China’s transition to
capitalism is in the main attributed to Deng Xiaoping,
whose famous quote
was “It doesn’t matter if a cat is black or white, so
long as it catches
mice”.
Deng took over the reins of the
Communist party after Mao’s death in 1976
and effectively became premier in
1978. The economic model created under
Deng’s leadership is the reason for
China’s success to date.
Ours, however, appears to be simply driven
by nothing other than political
expediency ahead of anticipated elections.
We have to remind the authorities
that it’s management that makes businesses
tick.
