Terrence Mawawa, Masvingo | Masvingo State Minister Josaya Dunira Hungwe’ s remarks about the need to grab the properties in the Save Valley Conservancy have riled officials from the European Union.

Hungwe last week vowed to kick out white people occupying 13 properties in the Save Valley Conservancy.

Of the 27 properties in the Save Valley Conservancy only 13 are owned by foreigners.

Officials who accompanied EU Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Philipe Van Damme during his visit to Chiredzi last week said Hungwe’ s remarks were unfortunate.

“We regret to say the Minister’ s remarks are detrimental to the Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Agreements,” said an official who declined to be named.

However Van Damme skirted the matter when he addressed government officials in Chiredzi last week.

A 30 year old man from Pumula suburb in Bulawayo died after he was allegedly stabbed by his wife who is said to be a shebeen queen following a misunderstanding.

Dube, who is popularly known as ‘Hlengiwe’ in the neighbourhood, allegedly runs a shebeen at her family house where she was staying with her husband.

Neighbours told The Chronicle that Dube killed her husband in the presence of their two children.

“It was sad to hear their Grade 2 child state that ‘mommy killed daddy and threw the knife in the garden.’ Hlengiwe has always been known as a violent woman who has previously chased many people at knife point but we didn’t see this coming,” said one woman speaking on condition of anonymity.

Bulawayo Metropolitan Provincial police spokesperson Inspector Precious Simango confirmed the murder incident.

“I can confirm that we are investigating a case of murder where a woman from Pumula suburb stabbed her husband following a misunderstanding. He managed to stagger outside the house before he collapsed and died,” she said.

“We continue to warn the public to desist from being violent as we continue to lose lives unnecessarily. In this incident, a woman allegedly killed her husband in front of their children and this is bad because it will haunt their children for the rest of their lives.”

A neighbour who only identified herself as MaMoyo said Dube was not new to violent confrontations with people.

“On this particular night, Dube followed her husband at a local bar where the two argued for a while before she returned home in the company of her friends. They purchased a number of bottles of whiskey and they drank through the night.

“When Ncube arrived home at around 1AM, he knocked for a very long time before his wife opened the door for him. We suspect he was annoyed by this and once he got inside the house, he questioned her over why she took too long to open for him and why she had followed him to the bar earlier on,” she said.

“An argument ensued and the woman grabbed a kitchen knife and stabbed him. She ran out, half dressed and started knocking at their neighbours’ house, screaming that she had killed her husband.”

MaMoyo said last month, Dube threatened to stab a woman who lives a few houses from her residence.

“It was over a misunderstanding which didn’t even involve her, but because she loved fighting, she went up in arms with her, threatening to kill her,” she said. – state media

The leaders of two anti-establishment parties – The Five Star Movement and the anti-illegal migrant League party – are setting their sights on power after Italians backed populist politicians in the general election.

The BBC’s James Reynolds, in Milan, looks at what the result means for the country.

Luigi Di Maio and Matteo Salvini were once outsiders in Italian politics. They have now become the mainstream.

Italian voters, when they’re fed up, have a habit of trying out new voices. In 1994, following corruption scandals, the country re-aligned itself.

Now, to a certain extent, Italy is repeating its old experiments.

Five Star began in 2009 as a radical, even anti-political party. For years, it was dominated by its co-founder, the comedian Beppe Grillo. Earlier this year, he decided to stand back from the party.

In retrospect, this looks like a smart move. It allowed the movement to prove that it represents more than the loud visions of a single, occasionally conspiratorial-sounding man.

The movement made a big point of running alone in this election (by contrast, other major parties teamed up into electoral alliances).

But the feature that gives the party its strength – its independence – may now become its weakness.

In order to form a government, Five Star must find coalition partners. Its inexperience in working with others may be a disadvantage in the practical business of coalition building.

So, which way will Five Star turn?

It’s possible that the party will reach out to defeated centre-left Democratic Party, and to other smaller groupings.

Image copyrightAFP/GETTY IMAGES

Alternatively, Five Star may hope to convince the League party to join a coalition as a junior partner.

The two parties share a scepticism of Italy’s relationship with the European Union. They also share several domestic views, including a hostility towards mandatory vaccinations for children.

But the League party is in no mood to take the small chair at the table. In Milan, party leader Matteo Salvini insisted that his organisation has itself earned the right to lead the country.

The League has risen dramatically in recent years. It was founded in 1991 as a secessionist party, which scorned what it viewed as the scrounging southern part of the country.

But the League now seeks the lead the country it once wanted to break apart.

The party has increased its support partly by swapping its enemies. Instead of criticising southerners, the party now campaigns against illegal migrants.

Matteo Salvini has promised the mass deportation of those who’ve come to Italy illegally – a position that’s clearly won him support.

Image copyrightGETTY IMAGES

Crucially, the League has overtaken Silvio Berlusconi’s Forza Italia as the biggest grouping within the centre-right alliance.

Mr Berlusconi, 81, will now have to find a new way of retaking centre stage.

He may be commiserated by his fellow former prime minister, the Democratic Party’s Matteo Renzi – who was also heavily defeated in this vote.

In 1994, Mr Berlusconi was Italy’s fresh voice.

Twenty years later, Mr Renzi took his turn as the energetic new face in Italy’s politics.

But the country’s voters have repeatedly proven that new faces don’t always last. That’s a sobering warning for Luigi Di Maio and Matteo Salvini.- BBC

A man (83) suffering from urinary tract obstruction was found dead at a Bulawayo hospital on Friday after spending hours unattended because doctors are on strike.

Patients who suffer from the condition have a blockage that inhibits the flow of urine through its normal path (the urinary tract), including the kidneys, ureters, bladder and urethra.

Hospital doctors downed tools on March 1 after petitioning Government to address a number of grievances that include the payment of locum allowances.

In an interview yesterday, Nkomazana’s sister Mrs Belina Masuku told The Chronicle that she spent six hours at the casualty ward waiting for her brother to be attended to.

“I am so heart broken right now and I am not sure if I will be able to get over this. My brother was rushed from Mpopoma Clinic in an ambulance and got at Mpilo just before 1PM,” said Mrs Masuku.

“He was given a bed to lie on, but I left the hospital after 7PM and no doctor had seen him and no catheter had been put to help him relieve himself,” she said.

She said nurses eventually allowed her to leave her brother promising that the doctor would attend to him.

“After sitting for hours watching my brother wail in pain, we had to leave Mpilo. The next morning I was shocked to be told that he had died and surprisingly not even the nurses knew when he had died,” added Mrs Masuku.

“The nurse I talked to said she found him dead while doing rounds in the morning and was not sure when it happened.”

Another affected patient is an 81-year-old man from Tsholotsho who said he has been stuck in Bulawayo since last Thursday.

“I visited Mpilo last year and we were asked to buy medication and a kit to treat my feet. The situation worsened and I was due for a check-up last Thursday so that doctors could advise me on what to do next,” said Mr Spendo Dlamini.

“I have been stuck here since last Thursday because doctors are on strike, my feet are still sore and I cannot help but worry about my belongings back in Tsholotsho as I never planned to spend a night in Bulawayo,” said the octogenarian.

He said he was in constant pain and could barely walk.

“I have incurred costs by extending my stay in Bulawayo and I wish I could just see a doctor and go back to Tsholotsho as I have pressing issues there,” he said.

Zimbabwe Hospital Doctors Association spokesperson Dr Mxolisi Ngwenya said the strike was still on as they are yet to receive communication from the Government.

“The Ministry has been communicating to us through the media ever since we took industrial action. They are yet to officially and directly engage us and we are hopeful that such will yield positive results,” said Dr Ngwenya.

“The strike is still on and that is all we can say for now,” he said.

Mpilo clinical director Dr Solwayo Ngwenya said the situation had not changed which was heavily affecting patients.

“We still do not have doctors from last Thursday and they have not communicated anything about when they intend to come back to work. None of them has heeded the call by the Minister and sadly patients are the most affected,” said Dr Ngwenya.

United Bulawayo Hospitals clinical director Dr Narcacius Dzvanga could not be reached for comment on the situation at the institution.

In a joint statement issued on Sunday, the Ministry of Health and Child Care and the Health Service Board said the strike was illegal urging doctors to return to work immediately.

Some of the issues raised by the doctors among them locum payments, motor vehicle scheme, availability of equipment and medicines at hospitals and freeze of vacant positions had been addressed.

Government said it had allocated $10 million for transport costs for the health workers who are sometimes required to report for duty at odd hours.

Terrence Mawawa

Political analyst and National People’s Party(NPP) Spokesperson Jeffryson Chitando has pointed out that the country’ s main opposition party, MDC, is to blame for the rampant corruption in local authorities.

Commenting on Facebook yesterday, Chitando said: “ZanuPF failed the nation but we must also ask who
failed urban areas?

Service delivery and roads in
urban areas are in a sorry state while
we have
councils run by the opposition?

The voters will ask for a
justification of re-electing the same.

The councillors bought houses from meagre $60 allowances and how can that be justified?The voters
have every reason to react by voting against such
corrupt leaders. NPP and PRC both
led by Dr Joice Mujuru demand assets declaration before
one assumes public office.”

Terrence Mawawa

A social media analyst, Antony Taruvinga has launched a scathing attack on embattled MDC Vice President Thokozani Khupe, claiming she is to blame for the intra-party battles rocking the movement.

Below is a statement written by Taruvinga:
KHUPE is the chief perpetrator of violence and
divisions within the MDC-T.

She has always pretended to be
the victim to gain public sympathy when in actual fact she is the
troublemaker.

She joined politics for selfish reasons and has
amassed untold amounts of money using the name of the Movement for
Democratic Change.

It is very unfortunate that Dr.
Morgan Tsvangirai passed on without putting to an
end the Khupe problem.

Yesterday, she clearly stated that she did not
recognise Nelson Chamisa as the president of the party.

She went on to say she was in charge of the party,
in the process lying about the Constitution.

Zanu PF is
good at manipulating such blunt characters as long
their goal of weakening the opposition is realised.

They don’t care about giving you the money as long
the job is done.
The violence that occurred in Bulawayo yesterday
was state sponsored.

The worst is
coming if the leadership does not take swift action to rectify
the matter.

ZANU PF is not taking lightly the threat posed by its former leader, Robert Mugabe, who has refused to retire quietly following his forced resignation last November.

Mugabe has been taking pot-shots at President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government, saying its rise to power was through a “coup”. He has since taken his message to the African Union (AU) and the Southern African Development Community (Sadc).

But seeing that there is inaction from both the AU and Sadc, he has lately been using his private residence in Borrowdale, Harare to agitate resistance against Zanu PF at the polls.

In a statement issued yesterday, Zanu PF spokesperson Simon Khaya-Moyo said the ruling party has noted with grave concern attempts by certain elements of the society, including some political parties and the media, to impugn the legitimacy of the presidency of Mnangagwa on the “false premise” that his ascendancy to the highest office was a consequence of a military coup.

“The party is also aware of some related utterances associated with the former provincial affairs minister Ambrose Mutinhiri’s resignation from the party. It is abundantly clear that the notion is grossly misplaced and is a mere cheap profiling by individuals with the agenda to secure political relevance,” said Khaya-Moyo.

Asked if Zanu PF was worried by the new political outfit’s association with Mugabe, he said “I have no evidence to that effect, I have not spoken to him and I don’t want to think for him because he is a seasoned politician”.

Khaya-Moyo said one of the reasons why Mutinhiri could have decided to lead the new party was that he lost his ministerial post when Mnangagwa came to power.

The Zanu PF Youth League told the Daily News yesterday that Mugabe should come out in the open and stop using proxies such as the New Patriotic Front to re-launch himself politically.

“As the youth league, we view this as child play and we are ready for them. To us, it’s a bunch of failures trying to come back into politics, but that they are failures is their problem not ours. What Mugabe should know is … we respect him only if he respects us,” said Zanu PF politburo member and leader of the ruling party’s youth wing, Pupurai Togarepi.

“If he decides to rock the boat and then his actions affect the stability of the party … he should be ready for the storm to come… we will not be soft with him,” said Togarepi.
The Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association (ZNLWVA) yesterday said they were ready to strip Mugabe of the multiple farms he grabbed at the height of the land reform programme they spearheaded.

Znlwva secretary-general Victor Matemadanda, who is also a member of the influential Zanu PF politburo, said Mugabe risks everything.

“The old man is being misguided. Remember he walked away when he did not deserve to walk away a free man. While he was starring at an impeachment, he agreed to resign and avoided embarrassment; he was supposed to be sentenced to prison but the people of Zimbabwe forgave him but now we are seeing that he does not have a culture of appreciation…

“He forgets that during his 37-year rule he took the people … for granted, and now he wants to destabilise the country. The question now is; when are we going to withdraw the pension that was offered to him? He cannot continue having it both ways.

“He is the person who brought the policy — one family one farm — yet he has over 14 farms and he must lose those, and we are ready to take them as war veterans…” said Matemadanda.

University of Zimbabwe political science lecturer Eldred Masunungure said now that Mugabe has proved to be angling to form his own party — he will “taste the bitter medicine” he used to give to opposition parties when he was still the boss.

“This could be interpreted as a national threat, there is also the issue of regional stability, but I doubt that he will get support from the region. What is now likely to happen is that the new administration will pounce on him because internally he is a threat.

“His projects will be targeted more than those of the opposition and he is going to taste the same bitter medicine he was giving to the MDC and other opposition parties a few years ago,” said Masunungure.

“We thought that the reconfigurations had ended with events of November 2017 but they are some elements who refuse to disappear from the political space, this group, that includes Mugabe is refusing to die, I cannot rule out the possibility of the former gamatox and G40 officials who are still in Zanu PF resigning,” said Masunungure. Daily News

Kaizer Chiefs Coach Say

Terrence Mawawa

Kaizer Chiefs coach Steve Komphela has
downplayed the idea that Teenage Hadebe’s
absence in Saturday’ s Soweto Derby
against Orlando Pirates led to his team’ s humiliating defeat.

Hadebe was left out of the squad that lost 3-1 to Pirates because
he failed a late fitness test. He suffered a knock on
his ankle against Cape Town City three weeks ago.

According to KickOff.com , a South African football
website, Komphela argued Hadebe’ s absence was not the reason for the the team’s loss.

“I wouldn’t say [Hadebe’s absence was felt]. If you
look at how the first goal came about, and you want
to factor Hadebe in there, you would say, ‘But it’s
one of those mistakes possible in any match’,”
argued Komphela.

“The second goal at the beginning of the second half
– I don’t remember if we touched the ball or not –
how would you factor Hadebe in there?
“In eight seconds they hit the back of the net.

It can only be
said by pessimists.”

By Wilbert Mukori| Pastor Mawarire tells France24 restoring basic freedoms and human rights “is a process that cannot be accomplished in one election.”

Zimbabwe is in this political and economic mess because of 38 years of gross mismanagement and rampant corruption by Zanu PF. The ruling elite have profited from the misrule at the expense of the majority as the national economy suffered total meltdown. The people could not remove the corrupt and incompetent Zanu PF thugs from power because they rig elections. The nation has been stuck with this corrupt and tyrannical de facto one-party dictatorship for 38 years.

The primary focus of the nation’s political activity for the last 20 years, at least, was to ensure there was democratic change and thus end the Zanu PF dictatorship. Zimbabwe’s tragedy is that the struggle has often been championed by individuals like Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC friends who have failed to deliver the changes even when they had the golden opportunity to do so.

It is a matter of historic record that MDC leaders had the golden opportunity to implement the democratic reforms which would have ended the Zanu PF dictatorship during the GNU. They failed to get even one reform implemented in five years. Not one!

It is clear that Pastor Mawarire has no clue what the GNU was about; what the democratic reforms are about or why they are important. If he did, then he would know that by implementing the reforms would restore the individual freedoms and human rights including the right to a free, fair and credible elections and the right to life eroded away by the dictatorship.

So, you either implement the democratic reforms to ensure free, fair and credible elections or you do not and the elections are not free, fair and credible; there is no half-way house. This is an event and not a process!

But, of course, if the people of Zimbabwe will accept elections in which President Mnangagwa retains some or even all his carte blanche powers to rig elections the regime will certainly do that. In fact that is exactly what the regime is aiming to do; hold the elections with not even one democratic reforms in place confident that many Zimbabweans like Mawarire will vote for regime regardless.

Zanu PF leaders like Professor Jonathan Moyo and even President Mnangagwa himself have admitted that they will not implement the reforms “and reform themselves out of

office”. Who would! If the electorate are foolish enough that they will do so then this is one process that the ruling elite will want stretched out to the end of time!

No, the coming elections must be free, fair and credible; that is not negotiable. Zimbabweans have been denied this fundamental right by the white colonial regimes and now by this Zanu PF regime; they must not be disappointed ever again.

If Zanu PF fails to implement all the democratic reforms necessary for free and fair election, then the process must be declared null and void. The nation, with the help of SADC, UN, etc., must appoint a transitional government that will be tasked to implement the reforms and hold the country’s first free, fair and credible elections.

The last thing Zimbabweans want is find themselves stuck with a corrupt and tyrannical regime unable to remove it from office because it rigs the vote. – zsdemocrats.blogspot.co.uk

BY DR MASIMBA MAVAZA
Nature abhors a vacuum, and opposition has become a giant vacuum machine, sucking the air out of opposition politics and leaving the government to roam the centre ground at will. One obvious consequence is that ZANU PF is not being constantly challenged and made to justify their decisions at such a crucial time for the future of Zimbabwe. MDC is engaged in fierce position fighting, blood is literally gashing out and their powers are directed against each other. The good thing is that MDC T has taken all the opposition in an Alliance and the internal fight has sucked in the whole opposition.
Another consequence is that it sows discord in ZANU PF because it is not forced to unite against an effective opposition. OPPOSITION’S weakness leaves the airwaves clear for ZANU PF as the only party with a clear alternative to the nation, and the MPs will emerge as the unelected, de facto opposition.
The painful thing is that in this situation ZANU PF is now busy chasing its own shadow. The party is now overburdened with fake news and fake intelligence where people start a spirited witch hunt. Those who had always harboured their grudges have found a reason to point a finger to others and call them G40 and even creating a new party. Any person who visits the former president is labelled as forming a new party. It is this paranoia which gives the cabal strength. There is no tangible evidence that Mugabe is active on the ground. He is a bitter man yes because he was removed when he did not want to be removed. But does he have the power to destabilise the party.
The irony of the whole issue is that those fearing Mugabe’s party are those who were his obedient sons. The idea of Mugabe forming a party is laughable and the tragedy is those who are supposed to be strong are spreading the fear of Mugabe. It is true that Mugabe was the face of ZANU PF but he has fought his fight and he needs to be allowed to rest. The people who are real threats to ZANU PF are those peddling the lies of a new party being formed.
Grace Mugabe was the cause for the fall of Mugabe and indeed she was powered by Jonathan Moyo and Kasukuwere with Chombo and some few other guys around, for them to form a party and command multitudes is a dream which, however, looks unattainable in the near future and could stay that way for years if Momentum consolidates its hold by deselecting moderate MPs or forcing them to abandon the party. At some point the moderates will have to stand and fight, and join the party in large numbers. But as in the 2008s, it will probably require a resounding general election defeat to make ZANU PF come to its senses, root out Momentum and retake the territory that it so successfully occupied.
Our democracy was born out of opposition, opposition to the power of the ruling. Government was exercised by both sides, by the party in power together with the loyal opposition. It is the duty of an opposition to do its best to see that the actions of the government are in the best interests of the country, not simply the party. In that spirit there is nothing wrong to have an opposition, but there is a big problem to create one and name drop those you seek to punish. The word in the air is that there is a party formed and that word is not true. The problem is if a lie is said several times it will look like its true. It is a wonder haw Jonathan Moyo can shake the pillars of the party through twitter. He is creating a fear of the unknown and there are those gullible to his hogwash and causing distress to others.
The opposition’s job is to improve legislation by forcing the government to explain itself more clearly, to consider the consequences of its enactments, and also to expose the role of vested interests and conflicts of interest. The opposition has to be content to oppose until such time as it may find itself in office, when it can expect to be opposed in its turn. An opposition that spends its entire time and resources on dreaming and scheming how to win the next election is worse than useless. A government that does not have to answer the hard questions of the opposition will take what is open to it, that is, the line of least resistance. The problem Zimbabwe is having is that the party in power is fighting itself, the opposition is fighting itself, and we are indeed doomed.
Opposition is gone. Zimbabwe needs a new political party to speak for its deep tolerance and decency. That would be so good. Perhaps we’re all a bit jaded. Maybe we all need new political parties. But this party is not an offshoot of ZANU PF. If only one can understand that the crowds which graced the interface were forced crowds then you will know no party can be formed by the cabal which can be a threat to the incumbent.

The rumour of a new party has forced ZANU PF retreats on several of their most progressive policies and wasting time on the owl with no horns. But, in the face of a party that operates a majority approach when it comes to votes, defeating them policies is a difficult task. So no new party can be formed now and challenge ZANU PF in few months to come. It is important for ZANU PF to concentrate on campaign and let MDC exercise their right to violence as long as they don’t touch the populace. Creating a pretend party is counterproductive. Creating an imaginary split is chasing shadows and total hallucination.

But opposition doesn’t just happen within the four walls of Parliament, nor is it a matter only for politicians. That’s where Momentum comes in. Momentum evolved out of Mugabe when he allowed his wife to rule from the back ground that was not a grassroots network to empower people to build a movement that can get her elected on a transformative platform. Instead it made her unpopular and her handlers destroyed her instead of building her.
Our activists are on the front line of fighting opposition in communities’ violence, and spreading a message of peace. The youth are introducing ED to the populace and it is going well. Now the destructive force is the one which talks about an imaginary party which is a Joke Of the year. In addition to campaigning they are also providing real support to those who are in need and preparing the nation for a great change. By filling the void created by the cabal and providing real solidarity in communities across the country, Momentum activists and local leadership are putting our unity politics into practice, while exposing the vandalism of this heartless cabal and the opposition at large.
Momentum are also organising cultural events to open up political discussion in communities where many have felt disengaged with politics and ignored by the party. A series of events called Take Back Control, which brings together Leave and Remain voters in communities including the youth and the old for a day of discussion, music, food and sport that will question what it would really mean to take back control from the economic elite, must be put on the calendar.
So, while defeating the disjointed opposition is guaranteed, ZANU PF has the people power to mount the momentous country-wide votes needed to keep us in government.
The opposition is toothless at the moment. MDC T, as a party, as opposition, is in far worse condition now than it was in, Tsvangirai’s time. In that era, it was still hanging together as an opposition, still doing the job. Now it isn’t.
The very reasonable people on the ZANU PF benches need to speak out more THE LANGUAGE OF UNITY AND NOT LANGUAGE OF DIVISION. We ought to hear more from them, saying, “We’re still here. Mugabe doesn’t represent the party, we represent the party.” And working out ideas – I see nobody doing that. They’re too quiet. They’re not fighting the fight. They’re not speaking out. They are just attacking each other.
Some of them are worried about their own seats; some of them find their job congenial. It’s very much easier to be a parliamentarian asking questions at appropriate times and speaking during debates than it is taking your case to the country. They should be fighting. They should be working on ideas.
I think the idea of the split is wrong those fired from the party must never make us lose sleep.

We don’t have an effective opposition. The question is how to take advantage of this situation and make ZANU PF strong. I think ZANU PF should start to discuss with a view TO STRENGTHEN THE PARTY. It’s just got to stop for a moment, have a pause on personalities. They’re going to have to return to personalities, they have to have a new THINKING not the old gossiping culture. But at the moment, the issue should be: let’s get the policies right. I’m sure there are areas in which people want to see changes, but they’re obviously completely incoherent over Mugabe, so just let that incoherence lie.
If ZANU PF can’t start to talk about why young people were attracted to the opposition, they won’t find the solution. Mugabe– you can trash him like the right-wing press do every day, I am not defending him, I don’t think he is the right person to be leader of any party he is 94. All I am saying is ZANU PF have got to widen their base, and they’ve got to widen it in an election. That doesn’t stop the party having more values. The party instinctively, like the country, needs to move a bit more to the left. I’m not afraid of talking more about socialism and social values. I think that would be matching the mood of the country. I believe there is a mood in the country that wants a difference. They don’t want recycled Mugabeirism. The party must switch on and move on.
You’ve just got to face up to reality. The fundamental thing is, where we slipped up in election, is that we were not able to answer the question about any solution to our economy.
It seems to me all great movements begin with language. “Liberty, equality, fraternity”. “All men are created equal and independent . . . from that equal creation they derive rights inherent and inalienable, among which are the preservation of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”
Mugabe is not a natural opposition politician. So he should not worry any reasonable person. He is no longer in politics to change the world
We all need an “official” opposition. It saves us thinking for ourselves. We need a drawer into which we can shove the “yes, buts”, the “surely nots”, the boos, the heckles and the cries of “nonsense”. We need someone else to speak truth to power. If not, we feel a strange burden on our shoulders, the emptiness makes us fight ourselves.

The most pressing political issue at present is how to win the coming elections with maximum benefit and minimum damage to the economy and social cohesion.

We must always remember that Opposition is meaningless if it only opposes. It has to offer something better. If the current political landscape looks like a teenage dystopian fantasy, well, the exit from Dystopia lies along Utopia Road. I hear a great deal about what is wrong. I hear very little about what a better society – a good society – might look like.
No, of course our democracy is not in crisis just because one of the main political parties is in a parlous state. But ignorance is when we fight ourselves and let the opposition recover. We are a rich and stable country with a pretty big consensus about the broad outlines of our society none of that is going to change if MDC T disappears down the plughole. But if we create an enemy within ourselves then we are destroying the fabric which united us all along.
So we need to open our eyes and March on the country is ours as ZANU PF to rule.
Vazet2000@yahoo.co.uk

Media Statement

Zimbabwe African Peoples Union wishes to congratulate the Chiefs of Matebeleland for heeding the call to unite and stand firm with their people on the issue of the coronation of Crown Prince Bulelani Khumalo.

The unity of purpose displayed by the Chiefs in the face of a paranoid repressive regime blocking the event over the weekend was demonstration of astute and resolute leadership.

ZAPU, as believers in peoples power stand firm behind the Matebeleland Chiefs and are supportive of their brave stance against the repressive Zimbabwean establishment that is prepared to disregard the constitution and international statutes on human rights in order to push a hegemonic system that violates rights of citizens.

Failure to interpret the law and constitution leading to the weird High Court provisional order over the matter is testimony that the ZANU PF system is so hell bent on perpetuating it’s evil on the people even in areas the constitution seeks to protect them.

It is constitutionally provided that a people can practice their culture without hindrance and interference of any sought. It is also constitutionally provided that a traditional leader of a peoples choice can preside over their traditional and cultural affairs.

The courts decision around this matter, after the monumental failure to read the constitution and law not only smacks of hypocrisy, but as insulting arrogance to everything legal and constitutional by a regime whose existence is a result of a military coup which is not provided for in the Zimbabwean constitution.

How the country’s courts endorsed the November coup and deny coronation of a Ndebele Crown Prince beats the legal mind, especially considering the constitutionality around the Ndebele monarchy and it’s historical connotations.

The involvement of ZANU PF in this matter, together with assigning Fortune Charumbira to interfere in this matter is not only off the point but deliberate ploy to delay the revival of the Ndebele culture and traditions.

ZANU PF and Charumbira are not at all versed about the Ndebele culture, so how do they seek to preside over what they are not aware of? They have never known a King throughout their inflated history.

ZAPU knows fully well that had ZANU PF and Charumbira had a King in their history, by now that monarchy would have been restored. They however can never respond positively to the Ndebele Crown since it’s not part of their culture.

ZAPU also notes with sadness the involvement of one of the Khumalo clan members, Peter Zwide Khumalo who filed in the same courts of Zimbabwe challenging the coronation. The fact that his unveiling went on unhindered is testimony that he has become the hand of the evil system that has oppressed and suppressed the Ndebele nation since it’s fall 1893.

The mother party fully supports the resolution by the Matebeleland Chiefs to remain resolutely united until the King is coronated.

We support the legal and constitutional route they have announced, and any other that is meant to facilitate realization of full rights of all citizens without prejudice.

*Iphithule Thembani Maphosa*
*ZAPU National Secretary for Information Publicity and Marketing*

Twenty one players in the tourism industry recently had their passports withheld by the German embassy in Harare after the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority failed to pay $47 000 to a tourism organiser based in Berlin.

Government, ZTA officials and other tourism players are expected to attend the ITB Berlin (Internationale Tourismus-Börse Berlin) that will run from 7-12 March. The officials are led by Minister of Tourism and Hospitality Industry Prisca Mupfumira. ZTA chief executive officer, Mr Karikoga Kaseke, said the passports were withheld after the authority failed the organisers.

“It is true that passports belonging to 21 tourism operators were withheld by the German Embassy. This was done because we had delayed in paying the organisers of the ITB expo and they in turn had asked their embassy in Zimbabwe to withhold the passports until we paid.

“The operators only got their passports on Thursday last week after we paid,” Mr Kaseke said.

He said ZTA was facing financial problems as Government has not released funds to capacitate its programmes. Mr Kaseke said the prevailing challenges have seen ZTA failing to pay some of its employees on time.

“The ZTA failed to pay on time because the Government has not released funds to us although we submitted our budget for the year,” he said.

“This is despite the fact that there’s an agreement between us and the Finance Ministry on certain events that we must attend. They funded us for these shows last year. Honestly speaking we’re taken aback by these delays.”

Mr Kaseke said ZTA has engaged Vice President General Constantino Chiwenga (Retired) who promised to engage relevant authorities over their financial shortcomings.

He said the ZTA was being hamstrung in its efforts to fulfil its mandate of selling destination Zimbabwe due delays in allocation of funds. The ZTA has already attended the Fitur exhibition in Spain before the Meetings Africa expo in South Africa while another expo has just kicked off in London and all have been serviced by the ZTA without funding from Government.- state media

Staff Reporter| There was drama yesterday when Environment Minister, Oppah Muchinguri was forced to at the last minute, abandon her long trip to Brussels, where she was flying out with a large entourage. The meeting was a function attended by heads of National Parks from a select Southern African countries and her South African counterpart sent to the EU a simple email containing her own video recorded presentation.

Namibia was represented by that country’s local ambassador, and many other nations were not present.

The practice of ministers travelling abroad to perform duties which sitting ambassadors in those country can easily do was characteristic of the former Robert Mugabe regime.

The EU conference was on hunting and was dubbed “Keep Calm and Let Africa Take the Lead.”

Zimbabweans arriving at the European Parliament building hoping to see the minister who is also the ZANU PF National Chairperson, were disappointed as they found Mrs Muchinguri-Kashiri’s name deleted from the program file.

“She cancelled the trip at the last minute,” a parliament  official told ZimEye.com

More drama emerged when the function commenced with Zimbabwe having an empty seat at the stage, despite the ambassador Tadeous Chifamba being present in the room. Organisers later scrambled a plan to get him on stage and have his name printed and displayed.

While no explanation could be obtained at the time of writing, it was believed Muchinguri developed cold feet due to protests by animal rights groups baying for her scalp at the EU meeting following concerns over particularly illegal wildlife exports to China. Another matter is the way in which Minister Muchinguri suddenly fired a whole board of directors of the National Parks And Wildlife claiming they had encroached into her executive authority.

Ambassador Chifamba later stood in for Zimbabwe to answer many questions part of which he argued against protests by rights activists to ban trophy hunting in Zimbabwe.

Meanwhile one of the delegates questioned the criteria for the representation since other regions of Africa appeared to have not been invited.

BELOW WAS A VIDEO ROLL OF THE PROCEEDINGS:

Embattled MDC- Tsvangirai former party spokesman Obert Gutu has claimed that he is receiving death threats. Gutu took to Twitter to explain the alleged threats against his life.

And now some thugs and hooligans are sending me threatening messages on WhatsApp.They think they can scare me,these cowards!
I will never,ever give in to thuggery,violence and intimidation.
Never!! Ever!!

— Obert Gutu (@GutuObert) March 7, 2018

President Emmerson Mnangagwa says he is not happy with claims in the media that former President Robert Mugabe had a direct hand in the formation of the new political outfit, the National Patriotic Front (NPF) fronted by former Minister of State for Mashonaland East Provincial Affairs, Retired Brigadier General Ambrose Mutinhiri.

Just a few days after quitting the ruling Zanu PF party, Mutinhiri was pictured with Ex-President Mugabe at his blue-roof house in Borrowdale, Harare, and the later reportedly endorsed the former before he announced his new party.

In response to that, President Mnangagwa, who has on several occasions hailed Cde Mugabe as his father, mentor and the country’s liberator, said if the reports are true, they are not amusing.

“Currently, we see and hear various speculations and I have no doubt that very soon the facts and reality will be known. We will only take a position when the issues are known and are factual. But currently, we are not happy with what the media is saying. We are not sure whether it’s true or false, it’s an issue that we are examining,” said Mnangagwa, while addressing the Zanu PF Youth League National Assembly in Harare today.

The President also reiterated his commitment to fighting corruption and multiple farm ownership.

“There are people of my grade, who have more than one farm. We are coming,” he said.

Mnangagwa told the youths never to forget or neglect the founding values upon which the party and the country were built and underscored the need for uttermost unity and discipline within the party’s youth league rank and file.

“As youths, you must shun immorality, corruption, tribalism, factionalism and regionalism. Let us as the youth leadership of the revolutionary party esteem transparency, accountability, honesty and integrity,” he said.

Mnangagwa also said he remains committed to addressing the challenges facing the country’s youths and to this end, the new government has prioritised economic resuscitation in view of employment creation and empowerment opportunities for the youth and the generality of the people of Zimbabwe.

As the country prepares for general elections, Mnangagwa reiterated that the polls will be peaceful, credible, free and fair.- state media

FAKE! pic.twitter.com/lG3Z9uQXFt

— Hon S Kasukuwere (@Hon_Kasukuwere) March 7, 2018

Farirai Madhumbe | Former Zanu PF National Commissar, exiled Savior Kasukuwere, has responded to reports that he is part of the New Patriotic Front leadership, which is fronted by former President Robert Mugabe.

Kasukuwere took to twitter to dismiss a leadership line up circulating on social media as “fake”.

Ray Nkosi | Former President Robert Mugabe has lost all privacy and perhaps even sense of dignity after a rough list of his travel entourage has been leaked to the press.

The list was leaked amidst other reports that his workers in Zimbabwe were being harrased by state operatives, putting Mugabe in a more vulnerable security situation. The list details the names of the officials who have travelled with Mugabe to South-Africa, in the past a well kept secret, as the world awaits to hear what the vocal former head of state has to say after weeks of silence under house arrest.

INSIDE BLUE ROOF: Below is the picture of National Patriotic Front Spokesman, Jealousy Mawarire inside Robert Mugabe’s blue roof residence at the weekend. He was flanked by ZANU PF’s latest quitter, Gen Ambrose Mutinhiri who has since joined the party following his resignation from Emmerson Mnangagwa’s ZANU PF party. Mawarire calls Mutinhiri, “Zimbabwe’s Incoming President”:

Russian Foreign Minister Mr Sergey Lavrov arrived in the country last night to deliver a special message to President Mnangagwa from President Vladimir Putin.

Zimbabwe and Russia enjoy warm bilateral relations dating back to the days of the liberation struggle.

He is also expected to sign a cooperative agreement and meet the business community in the country.

Mr Lavrov was welcomed at Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport by Minister Moyo and Foreign Affairs secretary Mr Joe Bimha, senior Government officials and Russian ambassador to Zimbabwe Mr Sergey Bakharev.

His visit is expected to further cement the solid relations between Harare and Moscow.

Russia has stood by Zimbabwe when the West imposed illegal sanctions on Harare.

Announcing the visit of Mr Lavrov on Tuesday, Minister Moyo said: “The excellent political relations between the two countries have created grounds for expanded economic ties, trade, mining and cooperation in many areas such as agricultural mechanisation and manpower development.”

Mr Lavrov, who is President Putin’s confidante, is leading a high-powered delegation.

He last visited Zimbabwe in 2014 for the ground-breaking ceremony of the US$4 billion platinum mine in Darwendale, Mashonaland West province.

The Great Dyke platinum investment project, which is one of the biggest investments in the country since 1980, is poised to be jump-started by the visit, with renewed commitment made on the deal.

Mr Lavrov’s visit comes at a time when Government has opened doors for investors to explore opportunities in the country.

Zimbabwe is endowed with various minerals ranging from platinum, diamonds, lithium, coal, gold, asbestos to tin.

In 2008, Russia and China vetoed a United Nations Security Council resolution sponsored by Britain and the United States seeking to impose punitive sanctions on Zimbabwe.- state media