News Day

By Prosper Ndlovu

6 December 2012

The marking of the 2012 grade seven examinations has been completed and schools are expected to start receiving the results today. Zimbabwe School Examinations Council (ZIMSEC) chairman, Professor Norman Maphosa confirmed the development saying the examinations body delayed marking as it was waiting for the Ministry of Finance to release the $1, 5 million to pay the markers. Cabinet had to intervene by ordering ZIMSEC to use its own resources to fund the exercise. Meanwhile education, sport, arts and culture minister senator David Coltart has reassured the nation that Ordinary and Advanced Level Examination results for this year will be released on time.

The Zimbabwean

By Kundai Marunya

5 December 2012

Renowned actor, theatre guru and playwright Walter Mparutsa, who died in April, has been honoured by Rooftop Promotions.

A bust of the actor by sculptor Chenjerai Mutasa was unveiled at Theatre in the Park last week at the premiere of “Protest”. The ceremony was attended by the Minister of Education Sport and Culture David Coltart, Mayor of Harare Muchadeyi Masunda, members of the diplomatic corps and Mparutsa’s family.

“Mparutsa was a staunch advocate for artistic freedom and democracy who died aged 72 after a brave fight with cancer,” said Rooftops PRO LesleyMoyo.

He began his acting career way back in the late 1960s when he founded the Chiedza Drama Club in the then Harare (now Mbare).

Around the same period, he also founded and chaired the Anglican Young Peoples Association at St. Michaels in Mbare, which staged religious plays. He adapted plays from Shona novels and wrote scripts, rehearsed, directed and toured plays around greater Harare.

In the 1980s he won the award for Best Actor in the National Winterfest Theatre Festival for his role in Athol Fugard’s Nongogo, as adjudicated by RADA Theatre Practitioners from the UK. In 1983 he shared the Best Actor Award with stage compatriot Dominic Kanaventi in Andrew Whaley’s play Platform Four.

News Day

By Khanyile Mlotshwa 

5 December 2012

EDUCATION minister David Coltart has revealed that the government will soon launch a satellite educational television and radio channels to enable it to reach out to some of the country’s remote schools.

In a statement yesterday, Coltart said the channel will be operating from the Education Training Centre (ETC) in Mount Pleasant where refurbishments have reached an advanced stage.

Coltart said the German government was funding the rehabilitation of the centre that will include radio and television studios.

“The ETC is one of the most critically important components of Zimbabwe’s education system in that in the past it has generated a wide variety of educational materials to supplement and complement the work of teachers in the classroom,” he said.

“Twenty-five years ago it had cutting edge technology and facilities which were the envy of Africa, including two radio broadcasting and recording studios and one TV studio.

“It also had art studios which produced magnificent teaching aids.”

Coltart said the studios were under renovation “using cutting edge Apple computer technology” and will be completely refurbished in the next few months.

“This exercise has come at a critical moment in the stabilisation and redevelopment of the entire education system in Zimbabwe,” he said.

“We are just about to embark on a major exercise to review and reform the curriculum which will entail, amongst other things, the development of an array of new textbooks and other teaching materials.

“These new education applications, together with old existing materials, which will be converted from analogue to digital format using the new equipment, will be disseminated to all schools.

“ In this regard, I hope to start a pilot “school-in-box” project next year which will use tablet computers and solar technology to take these applications to the most remote Zimbabwean schools which do not have electricity or access to the Internet.”

The minister said part of the plan was to start education broadcasting.

“In years gone past, materials produced in the ETC were broadcast to remote schools and communities throughout Zimbabwe,” Coltart said.

“The new studios will enable us to do that again and now we are going to take broadcasting a step further by using modern satellite technology to have our own dedicated education channel.”

News Day

1 December 2012

EDUCATION, Sport, Arts and Culture minister David Coltart has bemoaned the lack of use of Queens Cricket Sports Club for international matches by the Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC).

Coltart said this at ZC franchise Matabeleland Tuskers/Lobels Partnership launch at Queens on Thursday night.

“It’s been over a year now since we have had international cricket at this venue and it’s a shame. I have issued a directive to Zimbabwe Cricket to ensure that all international matches that will be played be spread nationwide.” Coltart said.

This is the second time Coltart has made that call after he wrote a letter to the Sport and Recreation Commission (SRC) in June directing the sports body to have international games in all sporting disciplines spread throughout the country where there are suitable venues.

“All sports associations recognised by the SRC will immediately advise the SRC of the venues which are accepted/recognised for international fixtures by the relevant international sporting body . . . With effect from 1st August 2012, the SRC shall only authorise international sporting events (in terms of Section 19(d) of the SRC Act) on condition that all sporting associations hold all matches involving representative Zimbabwean teams, including both friendly and official matches, at all internationally accepted venues on an equitable and alternating basis . . . The purpose behind these directives is to ensure national equity and fairness,” Coltart wrote in June.

The minister took time to applaud the Tuskers/Lobels Youth Development partnership and stated that the government was in a tight spot and therefore was in no position to launch such initiatives, encouraging the business community to continue showing their support for the promotion of youth development in sport.

Lobels are the first company to sponsor Matabeleland Tuskers in their bid to promote the development of cricket in disadvantaged communities among the youth.

The confectionery unit made available a sponsorship deal of up to $5 000 for the Champion of Champions Schools Tournament.
Lobels have been sponsors of a local women’s soccer team, New Orleans, for the past three years and have been involved with local schools around Bulawayo.

The finals for the junior boys and girls’ competitions were played with Magwegwe Primary School emerging winners in the girls’ finals.

Mtshingwe Primary School were the winners in the boys’ category of this year’s Champion of Champions.

The Independent

30 November 2012

There has been much controversy of late over the source of funds President Robert Mugabe uses when distributing farm inputs worth US$20 million.

Mugabe recently launched the Presidential Well-Wishers Special Agricultural Inputs Scheme with maize and fertilisers being distributed through Zanu PF structures, according to newspaper reports.

The campaign, however, is becoming a tad scruffy with Mugabe’s spokesman George Charamba telling state media Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai finds enough money to “atone for his carnal excesses”. He claimed Mugabe raised the money he needed for distributing farm inputs by carrying a food hamper to save money from his travel and subsistence allowance.

The MDC-T hit back, NewsDay, reported, saying Charamba’s remarks were a clear indication Mugabe had failed.

“For Mugabe who is repeatedly and monotonously referred to as head of state and government by state institutions to concede that the same government he is head of failed to support its farmers is not only astonishing but self-defeating…”

While this is clearly a serious matter, Muckraker couldn’t help but chuckle at Charamba’s claim the president carried a food hamper around with him to cut costs from his travel and subsistence allowance. Does this include Air Zimbabwe meals we wonder?

The real little man

How the mighty have fallen! On Tuesday excommunicated Anglican Bishop Nolbert Kunonga and his surrogates were told they had up to 4pm to vacate all Anglican Church properties.

The Daily News reports the Church of the Province of Central Africa obtained a “Warrant of Ejection” from the High Court for which Kunonga was liable. He was reportedly in contempt of court for failing to abide by the court ruling and thus liable to arrest.

This is a far cry from the Kunonga of years past who bristled with confidence following High Court judge Justice Ben Hlatshwayo’s ruling granting him ownership of all Anglican Church property in Zimbabwe.

In September the boisterous Kunonga told the Sunday Mail’s Munyaradzi Huni: I don’t have anything against (Bishop Chad) Gandiya. He is a little man. I have never considered him to be significant. I don’t know where he came from and there is nothing personal between us . . .”

“It’s an insult that people say I am fighting Gandiya. Even Bakare, he is no equal to me. I am fighting Rowan Williams. That’s where these people are making a mistake. I am not fighting any black man. I am fighting Britain and America. I am not petty. This is where they misunderstand me,” bellowed Kunonga. Who is the little man now Cde Kunonga?

Chickens home to roost

Here’s another quotable quote from Kunonga: “One of the reasons why I succeed is that I don’t operate outside the law.” Except this time around the law did not work out in his favour and Kunonga is crying foul.

Following his loss, Kunonga said his concern was now with the “level of moral decadence” affecting Zimbabwe.

Oh, puh-leeze! Kunonga cannot claim any moral high ground considering allegations several churches he had seized had been desecrated with some being turned into bedrooms and brothels. He had once crowed “I am not controversial. I am the controversy”.  It seems the controversy has finally come back to bite him.

Tomana loses the plot

Attorney-General Johannes Tomana says he will crack down on what he calls saboteurs of state interests.

Replying to a question from what sounded like an interested party in the diamond sector, Tomana said things would be done differently from now on.

“If we truly want this country to experience the hope that we are a secure country, an orderly country, we need to upgrade our law enforcement side …

“Things are now going to be done differently. That level of tolerance is now suspended. I wish to advise accordingly.”

A delegate had asked at the Victoria Falls indaba if the country did not have sufficient laws to punish those that had campaigned against Zimbabwe’s Marange diamonds which resulted in the international community questioning the cleanliness of the gems.

“For the record, I am sure you remember those from civic society, they have gone on record to actually say that those laws that protect us are bad laws and because they are bad laws they can be ignored, and that is the reason you would see people violating those laws in the name of democracy…”

Tomana appears not to understand the basics of democratic rule. The public are entitled to describe bad laws as such if they impinge upon people’s rights. Billions of dollars in diamonds have reportedly been syphoned from the Marange diggings. Should that claim be ignored? Newspapers and civil society surely have an obligation to fulfil a watchdog role in this regard?

Instead of threatening civil society, Tomana should be thinking of ways to enhance democratic safeguards for the nation’s minerals output. Zimbabwe has a bad record of sweeping inconvenient problems under the political carpet. And what of the human rights violations in 2008 which have not seen the light of day? Jestina Mukoko may have a view on the state’s level of “tolerance”!

Selous Scout by force

Jonathan Moyo, it seems, refuses to accept that David Coltart was never a Selous Scout. He has an explanation for his error. “Any Rhodie who served any organ of Rhodesian forces was a Selous Scout in letter or spirit or both and so the difference was in detail and not in orientation or purpose,” he declared.So there you have it. We can count on Moyo not allowing inconvenient facts to get in the way of his agenda.

Back to ‘Dark City’

Of late Zesa Holdings had given its tortured customers a reprieve from its incessant load shedding which had earned Harare the infamous “Dark City” monicker.

Zesa had finally turned a corner, or so we thought, before Zesa spokesperson Fullard Gwasira –– without warning –– announced the useless utility would once again embark on massive load-shedding until the beginning of next year effective this Monday.

Gwasira said load-shedding had been caused by “extensive maintenance programme at Hwange and Kariba power stations”.

“The original plan was to implement the maintenance works between April and May, but we realised that it is the winter peak period so we decided to postpone to December where demand is low considering companies would have closed down for the festive period,” Gwasira said.

Why consumers were not warned of this impending blackout only Zesa knows. And we are unimpressed by the way it suddenly “realises” something like when winter falls.

As if to rub salt in the wound Gwasira claimed Zesa would “put in place measures to reduce the load-shedding”.

“Our aim is to ensure that the consumer is not affected adversely by our attempt to improve power supply so we have put in place measures which are within our jurisdiction to alleviate the situation,” Gwasira bleated offering cold comfort to households and businesses already plunged in darkness. For Zesa the adage “the more things change, the more they stay the same” is certainly apt.

Bank loan mogul

Mines deputy minister Gift Chimanikire recently took time to exonerate his boss Obert Mpofu from accusations his vast wealth has been amassed through misappropriating proceeds from diamonds. Mpofu had made his fortune through his sweat, Chimanikire declared at the Victoria Falls diamond conference.

This realisation had been made after working with Mpofu at the Mines ministry, we were told.

“When I joined the Mines ministry, Mpofu had been there for a year. He already had that kind of wealth,” Chimanikire said as if Mpofu had not been in government before.

This is despite Mpofu being among Zanu PF officials fingered as multiple farm-owners still clinging onto the farms they grabbed ignoring the one-man-one-farm policy as well as restrictions on farm sizes.

In September we carried a story which revealed Mpofu was still holding on to three farms.

Mpofu once claimed to have acquired much of the property he now owns through a bank loan.

If anyone believes that they will believe anything!

Too close for comfort

Though they were from different political parties, Chimanikire said, he had worked very well with his boss whom he went on to describe as “King of  Matabeleland”.

The Daily News reports MDC-T spokesperson Douglas Mwonzora said the party is demanding an explanation from Chimanikire as he “does not have the capacity to determine the wealth that is in the hands of Mpofu”.

Mwonzora said Chimanikire is trying to “provide flattery to Mpofu” but does not have the “ability nor means” to determine sources of Mpofu’s wealth.

A report released in London by Partnership Africa Canada detailing corruption in the Marange diamond fields makes interesting reading. “His (Mpofu) unexplained wealth is emblematic of wider problems of revenue transparency associated with this promising national resource,” the report stated.

The Chronicle

28 November 2012

MTSHINGWE Primary School and Magwegwe Primary School were the winners of the Lobels Bread sponsored Matabeleland Tuskers Champion of Champions schools cricket tournament in their respective finals played at Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo yesterday.

In the boys’ section, Mtshingwe clobbered Milton Junior by 10 wickets while Magwegwe were crowned the girls’ champions when they defeated Luveve by 10 runs. The boys final was played over 20 overs with the girls playing each other in a 10 over affair.

Coached by Matabeleland Tuskers off spinner John Nyumbu, Milton Junior thought they had done enough to win the match when they posted 90 runs for the loss of eight wickets in 20 overs. Mtshingwe, under the guidance of former Matabeleland B player Vincent Dururu, lost no wicket in scoring 94 runs in 13 overs to romp to victory.

Magwegwe made 29 for two wickets in their allotted 10 overs and restricted Luveve to 19 for five from the same number of overs.

For their efforts, Mtshingwe went home $250 richer while Milton Junior received $100. Magwegwe got $300 with $100 going to Luveve.

Lobels Bread provided all the teams with playing kit, refreshments and transport.

This afternoon will see the official unveiling of the Lobels Bread and Matabeleland Tuskers sponsorship deal at Queens Sports Club.

Tomorrow, the secondary schools boys and girls finals take place at the same venue with Mpopoma High School from Bulawayo taking on Gebuza Secondary School from Hwange. The girls final is between Emakhandeni Secondary School from Bulawayo who take on Mosi-Oa-Tunya from Victoria Falls.

David Coltart, the Minister of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture is expected to grace the awards ceremony to be staged after the two matches tomorrow.

New Zimbabwe

24 November 2012

EDUCATION Minister David Coltart has angrily rejected claims by Zanu PF politburo member Jonathan Moyo that he is a former member of the Selous Scouts.

Moyo, a former Information Minister, has referred to Coltart repeatedly as an ex-member of the Rhodesian special forces unit responsible for unspeakable atrocities during the 1970s independence war.

It is an allegation Moyo made again in a new article published in the state-run Herald newspaper last week as he accused Coltart of irrational criticism of a US$20 million Zanu PF scheme to dole-out farming inputs to some 800,000 farmers, “in typical Rhodie fashion”.

Moyo charged: “Stung by the self-evident policy significance and positive impact of the Presidential agricultural input scheme which is in fact not new as it has been running for years now, Welshman Ncube’s MDC unleashed David Coltart – a former Rhodesian Selous Scout who by his own admission in his own website only started having an interest in human rights and good governance after independence in 1983 – to attempt an impossible task of trashing the scheme.”

But Coltart strongly refutes the charge, accusing Moyo of being “desperate”. The truth, Coltart says, is that he served as a member of the British South Africa Police (BSAP) – the regular police force in colonised Zimbabwe – for two years as part of compulsory national service.

“It is always such a relief to be in Jonathan Moyo’s bad books. Comforting to know one must be doing something right,” he said. “Dear old Jonathan must be desperate – he of all people knows that I was never a Selous Scout but he has to roll that falsehood out again.

“I hope Jonathan will also say I played prop for Rhodesia Rugby – he may as well because it is just as unlikely as me being a Selous Scout!”

Coltart said Moyo was trying hard to attach a stigma to him in a bid to torpedo his political fortunes – but had so far failed.“Jonathan Moyo is viewed by all rational Zimbabweans as an unprincipled political chameleon who cannot be trusted. This allegation [about Selous Scouts] has been made time and time again against me for over 12 years without any damage to either my reputation (such as it is) or political prospects,” Coltart said.

“Indeed in 2002, the allegation was contained in [Robert] Mugabe’s manifesto – something with far more gravitas and spread than Jonathan’s latest article. My election in 2005 and 2008 is proof that the slur hasn’t damaged me politically.”

Coltart said he was hesitant to sue Moyo because he had “an inherent dislike for defamation suits because they can perpetuate, feed and enlarge a
defamatory statement”.

“Jonathan’s statement is so ridiculously false and tainted that I am not going to give it the seriousness is doesn’t deserve by wasting legal fees on an action that will take several years to resolve and which a biased electronic media will latch on to fuel the falsehood”, Coltart said.

“It may seem curiously naive but at the core of my belief system is that the good Lord knows the truth and that is all I have to fear. Jesus was slandered and never had the opportunity to resort to the courts to redeem his reputation, something he didn’t actually care about.”

On Saturday, Moyo was unrepentant when we put Coltart’s denials to him.In an e-mailed response, Moyo said: “It is notable that the intended but hopeless strength of Coltart’s predictable denial is his use of a patently dehumanising term to label me a ‘chameleon’ in the same way Hutus dehumanised their critics in Rwanda as ‘cockroaches’. But of course the use of dehumanising labels is very typical of Rhodies like Coltart to whom blacks have been all sorts of things including ‘kaffirs’, ‘baboons’ and ‘goons’ among a host of dehumanising labels.

“Maybe Coltart would care to tell us whether cockroaches, chameleons, baboons and goons have human rights and if so what they are. Like any Rhodie who served in any organ of the brutal Rhodesian security forces and whose politics today are funded from Europe, America and the White Commonwealth, Coltart is just a fake democrat whose intolerance and hatred of African nationalism and independence is dramatised by the fact that he discovered human rights, the rule of law and good governance only in 1983.

“Otherwise, I maintain that Coltart is a former member of the Rhodesian Selous Scouts. This is not an insult but a description of a historical fact whose devil is in the detail and is based on the public record. Any Rhodie who served any organ of Rhodesian forces was a Selous Scout in letter or spirit or both and so the difference was in detail and not in orientation or purpose. In any case, the Selous Scouts were the lynchpin of the brutal and inhuman Rhodesian security system which Coltart by his own admission served as a BSAP patrol officer, not desk but patrol officer between 1975 and 1977.

“This was a satanic period which was the height of Rhodesian atrocities committed by all Rhodesian security forces without exception including Coltart’s BSAP whose abbreviation was taken to mean ‘Bambo Satan Ari Pano’ by countless Zimbabweans who were brutalised and dehumanised by BSAP patrol officers like Coltart whose number terrorised blacks while on patrol and in interrogation, detention centres and police cells and who were undeniably Selous Scout contacts, link points and informants.

“It is foolish for Coltart to try and give the impression that serving the BSAP in Rhodesia those brutal years between 1975 and 1977 was like serving the International Committee of the Red Cross. And the fact that Colart and others like him have been elected to Parliament despite their sickening Rhodesian history is no recommendation at all but simply dramatises how the political situation in our country has been poisoned and corrupted and why it must and will be corrected come rain or shine and sooner rather than later.”

Zimbabwe Independent

23 November 2012

Marginal salary increases for civil servants and a raised tax-free bonus threshold of US$1 000 for all employees announced by Finance minister Tendai Biti in his 2013 budget proposals may provide some relief to workers, but overall, the US$3,8 billion budget could struggle to meet the country’s public service delivery, particularly in health and education despite the sizeable allocations given to both sectors.

In a budget that some analysts said was designed to be pro-poor, Biti allocated US$1 billion towards education, the largest vote, or 27% of the total while health received US$381 million. The bigger chunk, or 68,4% of these funds are to go towards salaries and wages for these sectors, a general trend throughout the budget, which left approximately, US$1,2 billion for government’s operational expenses, development projects and public services.

Civil society has hailed the pro-poor stance of the budget, where US$407 million was allocated to specific poverty alleviation strategies.

Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition called the budget a “good statement of intent”, commending its provision of social services in five key areas.

These include US$97,2 million for water and sanitation mainly for dam construction and building of water and sewer infrastructure by local authorities; US$13,5 million for economic empowerment and employment creation; US$25,7 million for social protection; US$175,3 million for health (which includes allocations for district and provincial hospitals and maternal health); and lastly, US$95,9 million towards education for student support, purchase of learning materials and the maintenance and construction of schools.

While Crisis in Zimbabwe is positive about an increase in overall spending on health and education, Minister of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture David Coltart was more cautious in his response to Biti’s US$1 billion allocation for education as the ministry had only received US$11,5 million in non-wage budget support by November 2012.

“We are pleased with the theoretical figure that we have gotten, but the theoretical figure needs to be matched with actual disbursement. For this year, we only got 15% of the non-salary figure and we need to see if we’re actually going to get more. For us that’s the real test,” Coltart said on Tuesday.

The minister has previously complained about government’s prioritisation on expenditure, saying Zimbabwe spends more on defence and foreign travel than on education.

He says figures from the January-June table of non-wage budget support show that as at June 30, 2012, the Ministry of Education, received US$4,7 million only out of an allocated US$77,3 million allocated for sport and culture had been disbursed, while the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare had received US$22,7 million in non-wage budget support out of an earmarked US$170,2 million.

By comparison, the Ministry of Defence received US$35,8 million out of US$101,4 million, while the Office of the President and Cabinet received US$30,7 million out of its US$114 million allocation.

Coltart, however, sounded hopeful that 2013 would be a better year in disbursements as consultations with the Finance ministry could see critical projects such as those for maternal health as well as those for orphans and vulnerable children being ring-fenced.

“We have had productive discussions with Mr Biti and we have talked about measures to ring-fence some of the projects and make sure we get the money. I hope that might resolve some of the problems,” he said.

Some of the challenges facing the ministry include marking of Zimbabwe School Examinations Council (Zimsec) Grade 7 examinations scheduled to begin in November, which was delayed this week because the Ministry of Finance had not provided US$1,5 million needed for travel and accomodation expenses for exam-markers.

Last month government was forced to pay US$1,1 million after Zimsec threatened to block 16 000 Basic Education Assistance Module (Beam)-aided students from sitting their O and A-Level exams late in October.

Beam is a scheme launched by government and international partners in 2001 to provide school and exam fees for hundreds of thousands of pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds.

On health, although Biti noted that government spending had increased to US$18 per capita from US$7 per capita allocated in 2009, incomplete disbursement of the health budget would mean this figure could be lower as noted in the National Child Survival Strategy for Zimbabwe 2010-2015 report.

“While the share of health in the overall budget had started showing a decreasing trend over the years, with current per capita investment in health by government of US$18 falling below the US$34 recommended by the National Health Strategy (2009 – 2013), the 2013 budget proposes an allocation of US$381 million,” said Biti.

However, the National Child Survival Strategy report produced by the Ministry of Health, Unicef and the World Health Organisation comments on the adverse impact of budget disbursements falling short of a projected allocation on health spending.

“The Ministry of Health was initially allocated US$157 673 800 for the 2009 budget, which was revised down to US$121 million.However, only US$23 millon (18%) was actually disbursed,” the report says.“This translates to approximately US$7 per capita, of which only US$2 per capita was disbursed. The trend has been for budget disbursements to be below 15% of allocation over the years.”

The report notes that government’s inability to fund its own people’s health has meant relying on international donors to supplement health funding. Health minister Henry Madzorera could not be reached for comment at the time of going to press.

As Zimbabwe strives to meet its Millennium Development Goals targets for 2013 and prepare for another year of fiscal austerity, adequate health and education services remain the concerns of ordinary Zimbabweans, according to views aired in the rural areas during pre-budget consultations.

Although the budget promises to allocate more money to social services and Biti has given assurances that government will ring-fence social funds, it remains to be seen whether 2013 will be a better year for the disbursement of funds for social services.

Daily News

By Fungai Kwaramba

22 November 2012

HARARE – Shocking details have emerged of widespread abuse of orphans at an orphanage and schools which were run by disgraced and dethroned Anglican bishop Nolbert Kunonga, prompting human rights organisations to demand an investigation.

Yesterday, the Anglican Church Harare diocese convened a press briefing where the dastardly endeavours which happened in the past five years under Kunonga’s watch were revealed.

Kunonga was in charge of the institutions after he seized them from the Church of the Province of Central Africa, often using violence and help from the police.

Chad Gandiya, who is the bishop of Harare, told reporters in Harare that the Anglican Church, which won a landmark court victory on Monday, was carrying out an inventory that will ultimately lead them to their vast properties which had been turned into “lucrative business joints” by the ex-communicated Kunonga.

With more than 100 parishes and sub parishes in the diocese of Harare which encompasses, Mashonaland, East, West and Central provinces and hundreds of schools in the same diocese, Kunonga has not been settling electricity and water bills and an inventory would allow bona fide Anglicans to know the amount that the self-proclaimed Zanu PF supporter is supposed to pay.

Kunonga lost the case of control of the Anglican Church properties with costs at the Supreme Court and is supposed to clean his slate before he exits the buildings which he has personalised and even “desecrated” in the past five years.

Gandiya said on December 16 a cleansing ceremony will be carried out to drive out demons before the church gets to use its defiled sanctuaries.

But it is the issue of abuse of children which is most shocking, especially coming from men of the cloth.

Just like with other schools and hospitals, the Anglican Church lost Shirley Cripps, an orphanage to Kunonga, who violently kicked out nuns, some of whom had been running the place for more than 30 years.

Debauchery by Kunonga’s men was to follow, Gandiya said yesterday.

“The children’s home is very dear to us, last week we received information hat children were being abused. The matter was referred to the police and we are happy a person was arrested. There is widespread sexual abuse at the orphanage.”

While Anglicans across the country are on cloud nine celebrating their victory, Gandiya expressed concern with the manner in which Kunonga’s supporters are deserting premises literally abandoning children.

“We are not there to fight anybody. If people are moving out they should inform us so as to ensure that children do not starve,” said Gandiya.

After leaving the Anglican Church, ostensibly over homosexuality, Kunonga an acclaimed supporter of President Robert Mugabe’s policies, went on to replace professionals at the institutions he had seized.Standards have plummeted with children at the Anglican Church-run schools complaining of abuse while infrastructure is in a sorry state.

Officials say sexual abuses at Shirley Cripps are just a tip of the iceberg judging from the decadence of the moral fibre at institutions that had been in the hands of Kunonga.

Education, Sport, Arts and Culture minister David Coltart said his ministry will take stern measures against teachers who will be found to have abused children.

“We are certainly going to investigate. We will support the Anglican Church and they should give us any kind of allegation which they have so that we take it to the police commissioner-general. If we find that teachers abused children, then we will punish them severely,” said Coltart.

Irene Petras Director of Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) said the Human Rights Commission which was recently given teeth after Mugabe signed the Human Rights Bill into law should investigate the matter along with the ministry of Education.

“Children just like everyone else should enjoy their rights. What happened when Kunonga was in charge should be investigated by the ministry of Education because the first mandate of education is to ensure that children develop in a proper environment.

This is something that the Human Rights Commission should also do,” said Petras.

Contacted for comment, police spokesperson Charity Charamba said she is still in the dark about the matter.

Zim Eye

22 November 2012

The Minister of Education, Art, Sport and Culture, David Coltart is moving in to investigate sexual abuses reported to have taken place at schools and other child institutions that disgraced Bishop Nolbert Kunonga seized from the Anglican church.

Shocking details have emerged of widespread abuse of children at an orphanage and other schools by the dethroned Anglican bishop which have prompted human rights organisations to press for police investigations.

Revealing that a cleansing ceremony would actually be required to ‘drive out demons before the church gets to use its defiled sanctuaries’, bishop Chad Gandiya said that he has received information that children at the Shirley Cripps orphanage were abused.

“The children’s home is very dear to us, last week we received information that children were being abused. The matter was referred to the police and we are happy a person was arrested. There is widespread sexual abuse at the orphanage.”

Officials say sexual abuses at Shirley Cripps are just a tip of the iceberg judging from the decadence of the moral fibre at institutions that had been in the hands of Kunonga.

David Coltart said his ministry will take stern measures against teachers who have abused children.

“We are certainly going to investigate. We will support the Anglican Church and they should give us any kind of allegation which they have so that we take it to the police commissioner-general. If we find that teachers abused children, then we will punish them severely,” said Coltart.

Another matter of concern has been the lack of coordination in the process of exchanging hands at the various institutions where vulnerable individuals,mainly children are taken care of.

While Anglicans across the country were celebrating their victory, Gandiya expressed concern with the manner in which Kunonga’s supporters have also been deserting premises as they abandon children.

“We are not there to fight anybody. If people are moving out they should inform us so as to ensure that children do not starve,” said Gandiya.

After leaving the Anglican Church, ostensibly over homosexuality, Kunonga an acclaimed supporter of President Robert Mugabe’s policies, went on to replace professionals at the institutions he had seized.

Standards have plummeted with children at the Anglican Church-run schools complaining of abuse while infrastructure is in a sorry state.

Irene Petras Director of Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) said the Human Rights Commission which was recently given teeth after Mugabe signed the Human Rights Bill into law should investigate the matter along with the ministry of Education.

“Children just like everyone else should enjoy their rights. What happened when Kunonga was in charge should be investigated by the ministry of Education because the first mandate of education is to ensure that children develop in a proper environment,”Petras said.

This is something that the Human Rights Commission should also do,” Petras added.

Contacted for comment at the time of writing, police spokesperson Charity Charamba however said she was still in the dark about the matter.