SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

The government has once again been called on to intervene in a worsening situation facing villagers in the Marange region, where diamond mining operations have affected thousands of families. More than 4000 families from the Chiadzwa area are understood to be facing increased food insecurity, including more than 1000 who were relocated to the Government provided Arda Transau plot of land. That relocation four years ago paved the way for mining operations, with an agreement that the mining firms would pay for new houses and other amenities for the affected villagers. But this agreement has not been fully honoured and the families at Arda Transau have faced worsening hunger, with no access to crop growing facilities or other necessities. Food relief packages that were meant to be provided have also stopped, and the situation there has been described as “critical.” At the same time, about 3000 families that remain near the mining operations are also reportedly in crisis. According to the Herald newspaper these families also face hunger after their farmland was allegedly barricaded by mining firms. James Mupfumi, the Acting Director of the Marange based Centre for Research and Development (CRD) said Tuesday that situation is “appalling.” He told SW Radio Africa that the chief concern is the lack of access to food.“It’s really bad. People at Arda Transau can’t grow crops because everything they were promised has not been delivered. And then the people earmarked for relocation have been told not to grow crops either,” Mupfumi said. He urged the government to take responsibility for the situation, because it is a joint partner in the mining firms operating in Chiadzwa. “It is a matter of revenue. The revenue from the diamond mining is not going to government to help the villagers, instead it is benefitting some individuals. So we would have expected the government to stop the mining there, and review the contracts so that revenue transparency and other issues could be dealt with,” Mupfumi said.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

Three Harare-based National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) activists were hospitalized on Sunday after they were attacked by ZANU PF supporters, the new party has claimed. A party statement said Taurai Maravanyika, Patson Mangwiro and Olibeletsi Noko were amongst the NCA activists who were campaigning for the forthcoming Sunningdale council by-election, when ZANU PF supporters pounced on them. The three were admitted at the Avenues Clinic in Harare and discharged late Monday and are now recovering at their homes. Media reports Monday quoted ZANU PF Harare provincial chairman Amos Midzi denying any knowledge of the incident. Midzi claimed that ZANU PF was committed to peace and that the party’s campaign strategy ‘has not really changed.’ But the NCA on Tuesday insisted that their members were attacked as they were putting up posters in Mbare for Takura Gadzira, the party’s candidate in the by-election scheduled for January 25th. The NCA fingered ZANU PF candidate Maureen Nyemba and her group of supporters in the incident which was reported at Stodart Police Camp. NCA spokesperson Madock Chivasa said it was expected that Midzi would deny the incident because it was ZANU PF’s ‘tried and tested strategy’ to inflict violence on opponents and deny responsibility. Speaking to SW Radio Africa, Chivasa said: “It is clear Nyemba is guilty. Those people who attacked us were with her and they live with her. They (ZANU PF) are simply denying the obvious.” The NCA statement also said that the party will continue with its peaceful campaign in the hope that “primitive parties like ZANU PF will learn from us to be civilized in their approach to politics.” Nyemba lost the contest for the Sunningdale parliamentary seat to MDC-T’s Margaret Matienga in last year’s election and has now resorted to vying for the council sear. Also contesting in this month’s by-elections, which will be held in Karoi and Zaka too, is the MDC-T while the other MDC faction led by Welshman Ncube is not taking part. It will be for the first time the newly formed NCA political party is contesting in any election since its launch in September last year.

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The MDC-T has confirmed that it will be hearing an appeal by the Mutare Mayor Tatenda Nhamarare and three other councilors all of whom were expelled from the party for ‘disobedience’ last year. Nhamarare and his colleagues Pamela Mutare, Richard Mupfura and Farai Bhiza are challenging the party’s decision to fire them on charges of disregarding the party directives during the mayoral elections last year. According to a Wednesday NewsDay report the quartet are claiming in their appeal that they were victims of factionalism within the MDC-T and are accusing the party of misdirecting itself when it fired them. National party spokesman, Douglas Mwonzora, confirmed the impending hearing to SW Radio Africa Wednesday. Mwonzora said the case will be heard before an Appeals Tribunal, chaired by Advocate Eric Matinenga, on January 20th and a decision is expected by the end of the month. Nhamarare and his colleagues were fired last month from the party for misconduct during the council elections which were held last October. They were accused of ‘colluding and conspiring’ with certain ZANU PF councilors to defy a party directive to elect Thomas Nyamupanedengu as mayor and Kudakwashe Chisango as deputy mayor. It is the MDC-T’s contention that Nhamarare became the mayor through the assistance of ZANU PF councilors. Nhamarare was further accused of placing an advert in the press in which he congratulated President Robert Mugabe for ‘resoundingly winning the harmonized election.’ This was against the MDC-T’s official position which is that the July 31st elections were largely unfair in favor of Mugabe’s ZANU PF party and were also rigged. According to the NewsDay report, Nhemarare continues to be a divisive figure within the MDC-T with some senior members being accused of joining his victory celebration party even after he was expelled from the party.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

The emerging economic crisis in the country since last year’s elections is fuelling demand for passports, an indication that more Zimbabweans might be preparing to seek refuge outside the country. Lionel Saungweme, SW Radio Africa’s correspondent in Bulawayo said that since the beginning of the year, the Registrar General’s offices have been besieged with people applying for new passports and Emergency Travel Documents.“Others are trying to renew their expired passports and it’s a struggle to get service at the registrar’s office because it’s always packed with people queuing for the same service,” he said. An ordinary Zimbabwean passport costs US$50 while other regional countries charge less than US$30 for the same document. But faced with heavy demand, the Passport Office has assigned priority to those willing to pay US$253 dollars to obtain an emergency passport in three days, or even US$318 for one-day service. “Even with the exorbitant charges people are flocking to the passport offices and the officials are failing to cope with the sheer numbers,” Saungweme added. The correspondent said it appears the failing economy seems to be sending thousands packing to neighbouring countries. Although the economic and political situation had improved marginally during the period of the inclusive government, things have not been the same since ZANU PF ‘won’ the elections that were disputed by the opposition parties. While analysts agree that few people are fleeing political repression, many others are contemplating escaping the affects of the failing economy and poor service delivery.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

The ZANU PF government has been warned against reinstating the postal voting system, because such a move could ‘erode’ some of the positive gains achieved since the adoption of the new constitution. The government is set to scrap the special vote system used during the elections last year and reinstate postal voting, if the Electoral Amendment Bill published in the Government Gazette last week is passed into law The special vote was introduced during the tenure of the unity government, amid concerns about the transparency of postal voting. The new system gave government workers and members of the disciplined forces an opportunity to vote before polling day on July 31st. The special vote was fraught with irregularities, mainly because of the short time frame between the announcement of the election date and the vote itself. But according to monitoring group the Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN), the special vote is still a preferable to postal voting because it is easier to conduct checks and balances. ZESN Chairperson Dr. Solomon Zwana told SW Radio Africa that “postal voting is a cause for concern in terms of transparency.”“Our fear is that postal voting could be abused. We do believe there is room for improvement for the special vote, and it should be given a chance and not done away with,” Dr. Zwana said. Meanwhile, there are concerns that this planned amendment is the start of more changes to the constitution. With a return to majority control in Parliament, ZANU PF is able to amend the new constitution to suit its own purposes, and there have been concerns that some sections of the charter will be under threat. The new charter was the result of years of negotiation, disagreement and eventual compromise on the part of ZANU PF’s previous partners in the unity government. Under the new constitution, previously overreaching presidential powers had been limited, while new reforms that enhance human rights had also been introduced.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

The government has been accused of negotiating in bad faith and not showing interest in resolving a wage dispute with civil servants, a union leader said on Wednesday. Takavafira Zhou, the President of the Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ) said they feel betrayed as government was showing no interest to honour its pledge to increase salaries for civil servants by the start of 2014. “Teachers are going back to work next week Tuesday and the issue of their salaries has not even been resolved a pledge it promised during electioneering,” he said.“It’s unfortunate that at this eleventh hour, the government is trying to be evasive and elusive and without concrete agreement, we might be forced to take other measures,” warned Zhou. He said that all they were asking for was a remuneration package that values the job teachers do. In the run up to and after the July 31st polls President Robert Mugabe promised to improve the welfare of government employees, a pledge that has not been fulfilled. Last month, civil servants’ representatives met in Harare with government officials in their first joint negotiating meeting in two and a half years. The union representatives said that meeting was “very inconclusive” and there was hope government would reconvene a meeting in January to start the salary negotiations. Teachers in Zimbabwe earn a basic salary of between $300 and $480 per month, but the Consumer Council of Zimbabwe says a food basket for an average family of five now costs $540 a month.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

Police are said to be investigating an incident in which four people were allegedly shot and killed by suspected poachers in Binga, Matebeleland North. The dead are believed to be illegal ivory buyers who were killed following a dispute over the price of some elephant tusks they planned to buy, according to Bulawayo-based Radio Dialogue which broke the story Tuesday. Two former legislators have who spoke to SW Radio Africa on Wednesday confirmed the deaths of the ivory buyers, who included one local female dealer known as MaMoyo. Available details suggest that the deceased were killed at an area along Kariangwe Road, where they had arranged to meet up with the poachers. Villagers suspect a fall-out over the price of the elephant tusks may have led to the would-be buyers threatening to withdraw from the deal, leading to the killings. Provincial police spokesperson assistant inspector Eglon Nkala professed ignorance of the shootings when SW Radio Africa contacted him Wednesday. But former Binga North parliamentary representative Patrick Nene Sibanda said agents from the Criminal Investigations Department had visited him at his homestead as part of their probe. Sibanda told SW Radio Africa Wednesday that although he had not seen the actual bodies of the alleged illegal ivory dealers, investigators had shown him some pictures.“I don’t have the full details but what I gathered from security agents who visited my homestead, is that four people were killed,” Sibanda said. He added: “The four had earlier been seen at Manjolo Business Centre driving a white twin cab towards the Muchesu area along Kariangwe Road. I understand that after killing the dealers, the poachers overturned the car so that the bodies were trapped underneath to make it appear like it was a fatal crash.” The former MDC-T MP said investigating officers had even been to Nagoma health centre to check whether anyone had been to the facility seeking treatment for injuries sustained during the botched deal. “I am a local leader and a driver, so officers approached me asking whether I had seen anything suspicious on the road and also to urge the community to come forward with any information about the incident.” The poachers also allegedly decapitated the head of one their victims according to Sibanda. Another former MP and well-known businessman Jealous Sansole corroborated the story and said three men and one woman appear to have been shot in the head before being bungled into an Isuzu twin cab and dumped by the roadside. Sansole said he was not surprised that the police were reluctant to confirm the murders because usually, senior government officials are involved in the illegal ivory trade. “People from this region know that although locals are also involved, poaching is mainly done by those from outside, especially Zambians and Namibians. The buyers are also people from outside this region and usually from Harare and other cities who use locals as contacts,” Sansole said. The former Hwange legislator criticised the government for what he said is its reluctance to curb poaching. “Villagers see these poachers, usually armed Zambians, moving around but police reaction to any reports is usually very slow. They steal our cattle and we make reports but nothing is done,” Sansole added. His counterpart Sibanda called on government to provide adequate resources to departments such as the police and ZimParks to enable them to increase patrols and roadblocks in the area.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

Maize imports from South Africa have begun arriving in the country with Zimbabwe receiving 700 tonnes of grain so far, reports said this week. A Wednesday Herald report quoted Agriculture minister, Joseph Made, saying Zimbabwe had received close to 700 tonnes and more should be expected because the holidays are now over in South Africa. Made said the maize will be distributed across the country for sale while 10 percent of every delivery will be reserved for the vulnerable groups such as the elderly and orphans. Made’s deputy, David Marapira, revealed last week that Zimbabwe is importing 150, 000 tonnes of maize to guarantee food supplies before the April harvest. According to a survey by the Zimbabwe Vulnerability Assessment Committee at least 2.2 million people in the rural areas will need food aid before the harvest period. Reports state that Zimbabwe needs over two million tonnes of maize every year but only produced 800, 000 tonnes last year. Zimbabwe’s food problems are generally blamed on Robert Mugabe’s controversial seizure of commercial farms, which saw the widespread destruction of the agricultural sector. But the government routinely blames drought and Western targeted sanctions for the food shortages. The imports also come at a time when the ZANU PF government is routinely accused of politicizing food aid, with opposition supporters being denied any allocations.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

As a deadline for the application for commercial radio licenses passed this week, community radio stations said it is now their turn to benefit from the government gesture to liberalize the airwaves. The Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe (BAZ), which invited applications for commercial radio licenses in October last year, announced that by the closure of business on Wednesday it had received 21 out of the 25 advertised applications. A statement from BAZ said it received applications from Harare, Bulawayo, Gweru, Masvingo, Mutare, Lupane, Victoria Falls, Zvishavane and Bindura with Harare and Bulawayo having the highest applicants at six and five each. The Zimbabwe Association of Community Radio Stations welcomed the development but seized the moment to say it was now their turn and urged its members to push the government to extend the gesture to their sector. Chairman of the association, Gift Mambipiri, told SW Radio Africa that in their earlier engagements with the government this year they were made to understand that the community radio stations would be the next after the commercial sector. He said: “I think this is our time. But I don’t think the government would willingly open the space for us; I honestly believe that the space will be provided to us based on our capacity to demand those licenses and we will do whatever we can to demand that space.” Mambipiri said already they had worrying information that out of the six groups that applied in Harare, the government wants to license only one commercial radio station. These developments come a month after the Catholic Church launched Radio Chiedza in Harare. If granted the license Radio Chiedza will broadcast community-based stories for greater Harare. Radio Chiedza joined more than 20 community initiatives, six of which have studios already established, waiting only for the government to open up the space for them. At the launch of Radio Chiedza, Archibishop of the Catholic Church in Harare, Reverend Robert Ndlovu, blamed the government’s obsession with media control for lack of diversity in the media. Regionally, Zimbabwe is lagging behind in the liberalization of airwaves with countries like South Africa and Zambia already way ahead. South Africa has got nearly 120 community radio stations while Zambia had its first in 1994.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe’s platinum mining companies, who are facing a new15% export levy, were due to meet government officials Thursday hoping to clarify issues surrounding an ultimatum to set up a local refinery. According to the Associated Press (AP), platinum companies were given 10 days to submit proposals for the new refinery, which the government has demanded be built by the end of this year. Next to South Africa, Zimbabwe has the second largest reserves of raw platinum in the world, but the country has no local refinery. Former Mines Minister Obert Mpofu gave the industry a two-year ultimatum, ending in twelve months, to set up one or risk a government ban on all raw metal exports. Platinum giants, including Impala Platinum (Implats) and the American Amplats, opposed the proposal from the beginning saying a local refinery was not sustainable under current production levels and would cost billions to establish. But the new ZANU PF led government, still reeling from a disputed 2013 election victory, has carried the threat forward into 2014. The export levy on all raw platinum exports was proposed by Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa in his budget statement last month, and companies are expected to pay the 15% levy as of this month. Economic and political commentator Bekithemba Mhlanga told SW Radio Africa that the amount of investment needed for a project of that magnitude requires transparency, and for both sides to be willing to compromise. “One cannot just legislate for things to be done and commandeer people to set up a refinery plant. It takes a whole lot of planning, coordination of resources and clear thinking about these things,” Mhlanga explained. He also addressed the issue of the time allocated the mining companies to implement government’s orders, saying two years is sufficient time to just explore and decide whether it is economically viable, but not to set up the actual plant.“I think we also need to look at whether government is looking to serve the interests of Zimbabwe with this plant or are they looking to serve the interests of other companies and individuals. I think it is a wide and complex discussion that we need to have,” Mhlanga said. He added that given the government’s record so far, there are also the issues of trust, reliability and honesty at play when so much investment is involved. He pointed to the lack of transparency in diamond mining as an example. Thursday’s meeting was expected to iron out details regarding the local refinery as well as the export levy. But ahead of that meeting, there were no indications that government would back down. The industry on the other hand, is faced with an unsustainable proposition and even worse risks if they do not comply. One report quoted an official at Unki platinum mine, a subsidiary of Amplats, as saying that platinum mining companies “had no option but to comply” with payment of the 15% export levy. Like other sectors that have already collapsed, platinum mining is a lucrative business that government is increasingly exploiting in a desperate bid to save a government that is broke. The meeting on Thursday is just another blow that would contribute to the destruction of an otherwise viable industry and further weaken Zimbabwe’s already ailing economy.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

Some parents have accused retailers of using the forthcoming new school term as an excuse to clandestinely increase prices of some basic commodities. The new school year starts January 14th, and parents shopping for uniforms and basic scholastic items such as stationery say there has been an upward adjustment in the prices. “Prices have increased. For example a counter book which cost less than $2 before Christmas now costs $4.99. All along the books were readily available but two days ago I noticed that they seem to be suddenly in short supply,” Magagisa told SW Radio Africa Thursday. She said prices of basic items such as cooking oil went up hiked in the run-up to Christmas, and there is no indication that retailers will be adjusting them downwards. “With food items, the increases range from $0.20 to about $1 and while some people may think this is a small margin, this adds up to a significant financial strain when we consider that many families are already unemployed and hard up,” Magagisa added. A survey by Bulawayo-based correspondent Lionel Saungweme revealed that items such cooking oil, Coca-cola and laundry soap and school uniforms have also gone up. Saungweme said this was likely to be the first round of increases to face residents as retailers traditionally raise prices the moment civil servants get a raise. “This further squeezes unemployed Zimbabweans because retailers ignore the fact that not everyone is a civil servant,” Saungweme said. He said parents whose children will be going to boarding school will need at least $320 for a term’s groceries, for one child, consisting of basics such as geisha bath soap, washing powder, lotion and sugar.“That is before we factor in the cost of uniforms, which for a child attending Milton Primary School would cost around $200. For example a grey short costs $8, shirt $10, trousers $16, pair of socks $4, trunk $60, stationery $30, pair of shoes, and a satchel $10.“Wages are generally around $200, and this means that most parents will find the year ahead very tough,” Saungweme added. Taxi driver Kuda Gushungo said he feared that the worsening economic conditions will see an increase in incidences of theft and robberies. “In the first half of last year I used to cash about $45 at the end of each day ferrying commuters but this has declined to about $10-$15.“Things are worse for those with no jobs and now with more companies closing, there will be many unemployed people some may resort to stealing,” Kuda told SW radio Africa’s Simon Muchemwa. Rentals have also gone up, and many people are being forced to seek alternative accommodation, according to Muchemwa. “Some families who were renting in low/medium density suburbs are now moving to the high density areas because they can no longer afford the monthly $400 required,” Muchemwa added.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

A magistrate in Chimanimani on Tuesday freed a former MDC-T legislator, who in 2011 commented that the notoriously homophobic Robert Mugabe was in a homosexual relationship. Lynette Karenyi, the former Chimanimani West MP was due to stand trial for ‘undermining’ the authority of the President, after being charged under Zimbabwe’s controversial insult laws But on Tuesday, Magistrate Sekesai Chiwundura set Karenyi free, after it emerged that the state prosecutor did not have the authority to charge her. Karenyi spent a week in custody after her arrest in December 2011. The State claimed that Karenyi insulted Mugabe at a rally held in Nhedziwa when she uttered the words: “Robert Mugabe President veZANU PF aiita zvehomosexuality naJonathan Moyo uyezve Canaan Banana aiita izvi,” which prosecutors translated to mean “Robert Mugabe, the ZANU PF President was practising homosexuality with Jonathan Moyo.” The prosecutors stated that the former MDC-T legislator’s alleged statement was abusive, indecent, obscene and meant to cause hatred, contempt or ridicule to Mugabe. Mugabe has previously sworn to amend Zimbabwe’s laws so homosexual ‘offenders’ would ‘rot in jail’ for life. The 89 year old has also insisted that ‘filthy gays destroy nations’, and previously threatened to cut gay people’s heads off, castrate them and has also compared them to ‘pigs and dogs’. Last year, the Constitutional Court rebuked State prosecutors for abusing the country’s insult laws by bringing frivolous cases against critics of Mugabe. Over 70 people are said to have been dragged before the country’s courts since 2010, charged under the laws.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

Senator Lilian Timveos, the MDC-T shadow Minister of Home Affairs has deplored the police for arresting citizens unnecessarily before carrying out thorough investigations. Timveos told SW Radio Africa on Thursday that she feels the police are out to persecute officials from the opposition while shielding lawbreakers from prosecution. This comes after her politician husband, Michael Timveos, the MDC-T MP for Zvishavane-Ngezi was brought to court Thursday to answer charges of issuing threats to one Paul Mundandi. The shadow minister said in a bid to perform their duties, some officers have erred on many aspects that have at times put the reputation of the force in the spotlight. The case brought against her husband Michael failed to take off on Thursday after the prosecution and defence agreed there was insufficient evidence to bring him to court. The MP was reported to the police by Mundandi, who claimed he was threatened by Michael inside his business premises. Mundandi told the police that the Zvishavane-Ngezi MP simply told him ‘ibva pano, ndati ibva pano,’ (get away from here). According to Michael’s lawyer, Tichaona Chivasa, the words uttered by his client do not constitute a criminal offence considering that he said them inside his private premises. Tthe alleged offence took place on 30th August 2013 and it was reported on 6th September 2013. But Chivasa said his client was only invited to go and give a warned and cautioned statement this Wednesday.“The business is owned by Mr. Timveos, which means that the complainant could only be there with the blessings of the MP. The moment Mr. Timveos ceased to want the complainant to be there, the complainant would have become a trespasser and he could not resist an order to vacate,” said Chivasa, in his affidavit. He added: “I am surprised that even the state had to take such a decision to waste state resources compiling a docket and taking the accused to court over such a trivial matter. There is no evidence constituting a criminal offence there. After we deliberated with the area Public Prosecutor, they ordered us to go home and they will summon the accused when they are ready with more evidence. Now we don’t know if they will get any evidence because they had compiled a full docket.”

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

The family of a man, who disappeared during a hike up Mount Nyangani over the weekend, has pleaded for any assistance in trying to track him down. The search and rescue operation for 31 year old tourist Zayn Dada entered day six on Thursday, with no sign yet of the missing man. Dada, his wife and parents-in-law were visiting the Nyanga area on holiday, and had ventured out on a hike up the notorious Mount Nyangani on Saturday. When his family turned back to their holiday chalets, Dada continued on the hike on his own, but he never returned. Since Saturday his family has been trying to coordinate search efforts, which were significantly hampered by poor weather and thick mist that descended on the mountain on Saturday. Dada’s uncle Azhar Khan told SW Radio Africa on Thursday that the mist didn’t lift until earlier this week, “and we found it very difficult to look for him or find support, because no one wanted to go out in those conditions.”“It was family members who started to liaise with locals chiefs, who alerted us to the notorious behavioural aspects of the mountain, the mists and traditional beliefs that surround the area, and how people have gone mission previously. It’s considered a bit of a Bermuda triangle and we’ve been searching ever since,” Khan said. With clear skies and better weather, the search has been ratcheted up, with a numbers of volunteers, mountaineering groups and others joining the rescue efforts. The provincial Governor has also been assisting, liaising with locals, rescue teams and officers from the police, army and National Parks who have all been involved in the search. So far, the only glimmer of hope, according to Khan, has come in the shape of a witness who claims to have seen Dada, and has provided the search parties with coordinates to where he might be. Khan meanwhile added said that the family has needed to be mindful of the traditional, spiritual side of the search. “The local chief has been instrumental in trying to do cleanses and rituals, and ask the spirits to return our beloved nephew to us,” Khan said. A Facebook page titled ‘Let’s Find Zayd’ has been started, providing updates and details of the search. Anyone who wants to help in any way are encouraged to get in touch via the Facebook page.“We are pleading for volunteers. If there is anyone out there able to come and join in the rescue efforts. We are on day six and a lot of the people that have been with us from the very beginning are totally exhausted. If people can donate their time, we would be indebted to you and totally filled with gratitude,” Khan said. Mount Nyangani already has a mysterious reputation, and a number of people have previously disappeared while exploring there. This includes the two daughters of former government minister Tichaendepi Masaya.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

Gideon Gono and Munyaradzi Kereke. Mere mention of these two names in Zimbabwe stirs up heated debate over their feud. Is their fight really just over factionalism in the ruling ZANU PF party? Or did a shared history of animosity between the wealthy businessmen and their camps trigger it? Observers agree the real turning point in the feud, according to accounts given by friends and colleagues of the two protagonists, was after their fallout at the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ). Since the two fell out in January 2012, when Gono reportedly fired Kereke from the central bank, the pair has been trading barbs and throwing accusations at each other. Soon after Kereke left the RBZ he launched a fierce verbal assault on Gono, claiming that he did the academic work for his ex-boss’s doctoral degree. He then made sensational claims that Gono looted over $37,5 million and gold from the RBZ, at a time when Zimbabweans were wallowing in poverty. In late 2012 Gono hit back at Kereke and filed a $25 million lawsuit for defamation. After that things went cold, until Kereke reignited the feud in November last year when he approached the Constitutional Court demanding to know why the courts were not prosecuting Gono on corruption allegations. This time Gono came out guns blazing, lobbing verbal grenades at Kereke and accusing his nemesis of suffering from ‘legitimate psychological and psychotic issues’ that required expert medical assistance. Gono also reminded Kereke that he was no angel himself, an implicit reference to allegations Kereke is facing of raping a minor and being shielded from prosecution because he’s well-connected in police and judiciary circles. Harare based journalist and analyst Itai Dzamara, who has been closely following the case said one thing which is clear from the expose is that Kereke’s allegations cannot be taken lightly.“I think Kereke’s allegations cannot be dismissed cheaply as people might think its sour grapes because Gono fired him the RBZ. These two worked together for over ten years and had a close working relationship. Each would have knowledge of what the other did, even deep secrets.”“I believe Kereke cannot just wake up in the morning and accuse Gono of wrongdoing without the hard facts. This will be an accusation that a court of law can be able to deal with,” Dzamara said.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

Dumiso Dabengwa could become the next co-Vice President if President Mugabe succeeds in luring him back to ZANU PF, reports this week suggested. A Friday report in the Zimbabwe Independent said that Mugabe is courting Dabengwa to take up the post, which has been vacant since the death of John Nkomo in January last year. According to the paper, the reports of Mugabe’s offer lend credence to speculation about why ZANU PF has not yet announced Nkomo’s replacement. The post of the second Vice President is a preserve for former ZAPU members in line with the 1987 Unity Accord between the party and ZANU PF. At the moment ZANU PF national chairman Simon Khaya Moyo is the most senior former ZAPU member who could land the post if Dabengwa declines Mugabe’s offer. Dabengwa himself is quoted in the Zimbabwe Independent as saying that he has no problem with returning to ZANU PF if the conditions set by ZAPU are met. According to the report Dabengwa said a ‘position paper’ had been sent to Mugabe’s party stipulating ZAPU’s conditions for rejoining ZANU PF. In an interview with SW Radio Africa last week, Dabengwa said ZAPU wanted the war records which were seized at the height of the 1980s Gukurahundi genocide returned. In the same interview, Dabengwa said his party wants the government to return the properties which it summarily grabbed from a holding company Nitram (Pvt) Ltd combining the party properties and those bought from contributions by the ZAPU war veterans. Dabengwa’s comments came after Mugabe made a passionate plea for Dabengwa and ZAPU colleagues to reconsider their pull out from ZANU PF five years ago. SW Radio Africa correspondent, Lionel Saungweme, said the report in this week’s Zimbabwe Independent was ‘plausible’ because ZANU PF has been trying to lure Dabengwa back since last year. However, Saungweme said indications are that ZANU PF ‘will not meet’ the demands spelt out by Dabengwa. He cited ZANU PF secretary for administration and presidential affairs minister, Didymus Mutasa’s recent comments in which he said that the properties in question were automatically transferred to ZANU PF at the signing of the Unity Accord. According to Saungweme most ZAPU cadres deny the existence of a ‘position paper’ setting conditions of return to ZANU PF, which Dabengwa claims was sent to Mugabe’s party. Saungweme said Dabengwa’s comments in the Independent may be his ‘personal views and not those of the party.’ He said most ZAPU cadres simply want their properties back and have no interest in Mugabe’s politics anymore.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

Workers at Tolrose Gold Mine have approached the Labour Court following a pay dispute with Grace Mugabe’s son Russell Goreraza, who seized the mine in October 2013. The workers went on strike last Friday demanding that Goreraza pays them their wages backdated to October, amid complaints that some employees and union leaders have been assaulted for asking for their wages. “He is looting and running the mine mafia-style,” National Mine Workers’ Union of Zimbabwe president Tinashe Mugwira told SW Radio Africa Friday.“The situation is gloomy for more than 351 families who used to rely on the mine for their survival since Goreraza took over.”“There are no systems in place to ensure that workers are paid. He (Goreraza) comes, collects the gold and goes. Some workers and union officials including myself were assaulted trying to engage the new management over wages.”“Anyone who raises a grievance is either dismissed or taken away and assaulted,” said Mugwira, who also said he too was beaten up by Russell’s uncle and Grace’s brother, Sam Marufu. Efforts by the Labour Ministry to intervene reportedly failed after Goreraza tore up the papers served on him, telling the workers that he was “above the law”. The ministry then referred the matter to the Labour Court, which has since appointed an arbitrator, a Mrs. Musunhe, to look into the allegations made by the workers against their employer. “He said to us ‘you use the law, I use the power of my mother’ and we are not sure he will turn up for arbitration. We are also looking into asking the courts to attach the mine or some assets so that workers can get their dues.”“But with the mafia-style management at the mine we do not think this will even be possible. We had hoped that with the publicity surrounding this dispute the First Lady and Goreraza’s step-father (President Robert Mugabe) would intervene and do something but this hasn’t been the case,” Mugwira added. Tolrose Mine’s human resources manager Nyasha Munangwa denied allegations that workers were not being paid when approached by the NewsDay newspaper Wednesday.“The allegations that we are not paying workers are false and are being pushed by people with an agenda,” Munangwa told the newspaper.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

Senior MDC-T legislator Paurina Mpariwa has accused ZANU PF of hiding behind the law to violate the rights of civil servants, who are threatening to strike over a delayed pay rise. In the run-up to last year’s elections, senior ZANU PF officials including President Robert Mugabe himself pledged to increase civil service wages and to improve working conditions. Zimbabwe’s ordinary civil servants are the worst paid in the region, with most of them on an average monthly wage of $300 – well below the poverty threshold of $600. It’s now almost six months since the party assumed power. But despite efforts by civil servants’ unions to engage their employer over the issue, there is nothing to indicate that the government has the appetite to honour its promises. Restive civil servants have threatened industrial action starting next week when schools open. Labour Minister Nicholas Goche warned that any such move should be done according to the labour law, and that he should be notified first. But Shadow Labour Minister Mpariwa says it is every worker’s constitutional right to engage in industrial action and Goche should be bargaining rather than issuing threats.“The new constitution enshrines and articulates these rights more clearly than the Labour Act that Goche is referring to,” Mpariwa told SW Radio Africa Friday. Mpariwa accused the ZANU PF government of delaying the process of aligning old laws with the new constitution to serve its own ends. “The Public Service Act is still being used to manage the civil service and is preventing workers from enjoying their full constitutional rights, including the right to collective bargaining and to legitimate industrial action.”“If old laws remain unaligned to the new charter, even current salary negotiations between the unions and government will continue to be just a talk-shop, and that is why Goche can afford to threaten and intimidate workers,” Mpariwa added. She said her party wants ZANU PF to pay workers decent salaries that are pegged in line with the poverty datum line, and to do so on time. The MDC-T official accused ZANU PF of a lack of concern for the welfare of workers, adding that the ruling party’s hostile policies were to blame for the collapse of industry in the country, which had rendered millions jobless.“It is worrying that many companies are slipping into liquidation, voluntary or judicial management, throwing thousands out of the job market because ZANU PF has killed both the formal and informal sectors of the economy.“Over 300 companies have been liquidated in recent months while 149 companies have filed for liquidation at the High Court and over 300 workers are being retrenched on a weekly basis. And this is just the tip of the iceberg.”“It is clear that while they succeeded in rigging the July 31st election, they are failing to rig the economy,” Mpariwa added – Read the MP’s full statement here. On Wednesday, minister Goche told the State media that public servants will receive salary increments backdated to January this year once negotiations have been completed. “They will get their increments backdated to January. Government has written to the staff associations to call for a meeting where it will respond to their proposals,” Goche told the Herald newspaper. However, in an interview with SW Radio Africa Wednesday union leader Takavafira Zhou said the government had so far shown no commitment to resolve the wage dispute – see here.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

The distraught family of a man who disappeared during a hike up Mount Nyangani last Saturday has denied receiving any demands for a payment of $21,000 from the local chief. The search for 31 year old Zayd Dada entered its seventh day on Friday. Dada was out hiking in the Mount Nyangani area last Saturday with his wife and another couple. When the others decided to turn back, Dada carried on up the notorious mountain on his own, and never returned. The Herald newspaper on Friday quoted unnamed sources as claiming that the local Chief Saunyama, who has been part of the local efforts in trying to track Dada down, demanded cash from the family. According to the report, the Chief allegedly wanted a down payment of US$1000 to allow the search to continue, as well as US$20,000 once Dada was found. But the family has denied this is the case, saying the Chief has played an instrumental role in the ongoing search efforts. Dada’s Aunt Shenhila Mohamed told SW Radio Africa that the family is “totally refuting all claims that the Chief has requested money.”“There was no request ever made for money. The Chief is actually cooperating with us and we don’t know where the report came from. No one in the family has been approached for money and no one has paid any money to any of the traditional leaders,” Mohamed said. The search efforts were on Friday once again hampered by bad weather conditions, with thick mist and rain descending on the area. The army, police, local traditional leaders, family members and people from the across the country have all joined the search, while online support for the ongoing operation has continued to grow. A Facebook page titled ‘Let’s Find Zayd’ has been joined by almost 8,000 people with people sharing messages of hope for the family. Others have pledged to assist with financial aid, have offered prayers, and others have pledged to help in the physical search. Mohamed said the family has been overwhelmed by the support shown by people all over the world. She reiterated a previous appeal for more volunteers to help in the search operation, saying: “we really need more feet on the ground. It’s a vast area and people are exhausted. So any more help would be very welcome.”“It’s a hard time for the family, for Zayd’s mom and wife in particular. But we are optimistic and we are holding on to the belief that we are going to find him. We’re not going to rest until we bring him down from that mountain,” Mohamed said.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

Tanonoka Joseph Whande Monday 13 January 2014 Last week, I jokingly speculated that Minister Emerson Mnangagwa might not be too thrilled by Joyce Mujuru’s now too frequent interludes as Acting President when Mugabe continues with his endless but useless voyages abroad at taxpayers’ expense. While ZAPU leader Dumiso Dabengwa says that no formal approach has been made to him, there are reports that Mugabe is courting Dabengwa to take up one of the two positions as Vice President. The unfortunate idea is to placate compatriots in Matabeleland as it has been an unwritten rule that one of the two Vice Presidents must come from Matabeleland or from ZAPU. Although there is no longer any ZAPU to talk about, Mugabe is, once again, trying to swallow ZAPU for a second time. What effect would Dabengwa have in cabinet, a place he worked in for years as Home Affairs minister but failed to bring any changes to the region, failed to do anything of significance for the province? If appointed back into cabinet, what clout will he carry this time around except offering Mugabe an opportunity to silence him once more? If we accept that Matabeleland, or any region in the country, needs stronger representation in cabinet, Zimbabweans in the affected region who feel left out and unrepresented should be given the opportunity to appoint a person of their own choice to represent them alongside Mugabe and other leaders. An appointment to cabinet is a job offer and whoever is appointed to cabinet is beholden to a president who gave him the job. This shifts loyalties away from the people. Over the years, the wily Mugabe has made surprising appointments of regional leaders, bringing them into cabinet as a way to silence them. Once offered a job in cabinet by Mugabe, Dabengwa will be just as submissive as the others from other regions. Do you think Dzikamai Mavhaire will ever dare make any more silly statements about Mugabe having been rescued from near bankruptcy by being offered an undeserved cabinet post? Although a president is free to choose those he feels he can work with in government, Mugabe is using the state and the nation to settle old scores and re-pay personal debts. The nation is burdened with the same old failed ministers who have been in cabinet for years but who failed to make much of a difference in their respective portfolios. And to have the same failures always being regurgitated over and over again is nauseating. The continued presence of these spent politicians is as retrogressive as Mugabe’s presence. All the political parties in Zimbabwe today have these old geezers at the top and they will not allow the emerging of younger leaders from within their parties. It is an unfortunate situation, particularly when we consider that about 61.9% of the population is 25 years and younger. With those between 25 and 54 years of age making up 30.8% of the population, the side-lining of young people in our political system is something that should be cause for concern. But here we are, burdened with useless failures who have been unable to impose new progressive ideas on the nation or influence the government in one way or other. While my tête–à–tête is inspired by Mugabe’s rumoured courtship of Dabengwa, it is not about Dabengwa but about the way Mugabe continues to abuse people and shut out young people from full participation in the direction our nation should be taking. My position is that because of the nature of appointment that is always viewed as a favour, people like Dabengwa will bring no more improvement to the region as people like Mavhaire will. It is called window dressing and for that reason, regions or provinces must stand firm as to who among them should be considered for some of these positions. We cannot always end up with Mugabe apologists around him. We want people who serve the nation through such appointments not those who prioritise the security of their cabinet posts at the expense of bringing the much needed input and direction to the nation. Mugabe would like us to believe that if we do not agree with him or if we oppose ZANU-PF ideas, we are traitors. Unity does not mean disbanding a political party and joining ZANU-PF; unity is presenting ideas, however dissimilar, that benefit the nation not a political party. We see it in many other countries where presidents appoint some individuals from opposition parties to serve in their governments without demanding that they renounce their parties’ ideologies. Unity comes from accepting and respecting our different approaches to solving our nation’s problems and that does not come through a ruling party taking over and swallowing other political parties. The heart of the matter is that opposition parties should be banding together; they should be pooling their resources to remove ZANU-PF not to be joining it. Our government has no need for two Vice Presidents, none at all. I find it terribly wasteful that the Vice Presidency portfolio is being used to placate tribal imbalances in ZANU-PF. That is nothing but window dressing. In trying to balance tribal representation in cabinet by handpicking leaders without consulting those who feel unrepresented and short-changed, the end result is not guaranteed to succeed. Most importantly, though, why should a Vice President from Matabeleland always have to be chaperoned by another from another tribe? Why not dissolve that useless cabinet and appoint younger, progressive members with an able, forward-looking Vice President? The job of Vice President only sounds important but it is meaningless; people need real action taken to balance things on the ground…to hell with tribal balancing in cabinet. We have seen Mugabe appointing stooges from various regions and provinces and those people have delivered praises to Mugabe and nothing to their constituencies. People need action taken; people want to see developments. We want to see a government that serves the people. It is also politically dangerous to those who are so chosen only to find that they do not have any say in how things should be within their ministries. Yes, Mugabe will handpick someone he knows he can work with, someone he thinks will be of benefit to him but Mr Dabengwa is better advised to tread carefully and avoid being used. He must also remember the expectations to deliver that people have and it will not do him any good to appear to fail or to turn out to be politically impotent. The chosen Vice President owes gratitude to Mugabe for giving him a job; he owes the people nothing and from what we have seen of our politicians, they always choose money, political power and glitter over the people they represent. But then, we are trying to read a newspaper from the back of a speeding lorry. Mugabe is not legitimate enough to bring good people in government. He has failed the nation over and over again and he loves to set people on each other. Just look at what he is doing with Mnangagwa and Joyce Mujuru! And if and when Dabengwa comes in, this will bring a very interesting dimension to the succession wars…something I would cherish indeed. Opposition parties should be banding together to oust ZANU-PF, not to join it. I do not care for a tribally balanced cabinet; I care most about balanced development across Zimbabwe. This is not the time to be joining ZANU-PF. I am Tanonoka Joseph Whande and that, my fellow Zimbabweans, is the way it is today, Monday, January 13th, 2014.