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By Charles Ray, US Ambassador to Zimbabwe

19 March 2011

After a five-year voluntary absence from Test Cricket, Zimbabwe’s national team goes up against a seasoned line-up in the World Cup matches in Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka. Despite not winning, they still came away “winners” because of the spirit of their play and the fire in their bellies to prove themselves.

The late Vince Lombardi, famous winning coach of the Green Bay Packers and coach for the Washington Redskins, once said, “Winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing.”  Now, I have the greatest respect for Lombardi; in my opinion one of the greatest football coaches who ever lived; but, I have to take exception to that statement.  In sport, and in the game of life, sometimes it’s as important how you lose as how you win.

Take the Zimbabwe national cricket team, for instance.  Returning to top level cricket for the first time in five years recently in Cricket World Cup matches against Australia, Sri Lanka, New Zealand, and Pakistan they lost, but one has to label this valiant young team a bunch winners nevertheless.  These young men went up against teams with outstanding records; and more significantly, with five years of test match experience that they lost out on; and they still hung in there.  As Zimbabwe’s minister of education, sports, art and culture David Coltart said, “One only has to look at the way Bangladesh has performed to see that we have not disgraced ourselves – in fact our run rate is the best outside the 8 test nations who have qualified for the quarters.”

The quality of the team’s play was first rate; it was just they were matched against teams with more experience.  I had the opportunity to meet with the team just before their departure for the matches, and I was impressed with the fighting spirit they displayed.  As I said to them in the pep talk I gave them, “winning is more than just scoring points.  The team that posts the most runs will win the match, but the team that hangs in there, even when the odds are against them, and when no one thinks they can win, will be the real winner in the long run.”  They apparently took my words to heart, because they hung in despite the long odds against them.

Zimbabwe voluntarily withdrew from Test cricket in 2006 after a controversy between the team’s senior players and management, greatly weakening the team.  Plans to return to Test play last year were cancelled when the New Zealand team refused to come to Zimbabwe, citing security concerns.  Those matches would have given the inexperienced young team some much needed blooding before their journey to the World Cup matches.  Some of the senior players, including Grant Flower and Ray Price, returned to the squad, and Zimbabwe Cricket managing director Ozias Bvute believes that the team will emerge stronger in the end.

Like the ‘Little Engine That Could.” Zimbabwe’s team will be winners in the end – just wait and see.

www.kubatana.com

By Tendai Huchu, Africa Report

18 March 2011

Last August I had the privilege of hearing David Coltart, Zimbabwe’s education minister from the opposition Movement for Democratic Change, speak at the Edinburgh Book Festival. Most of his talk focused on the problems Zimbabwe faced – which are already well known – but I was rather surprised when he moved on to speak about the cabinet’s response to the teachers’ wage strike in the preceding months.

He said that whilst he had favoured a negotiated settlement, most of his colleagues from his party, like those from the Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front, were in favour of using the full extent of the country’s repressive laws to break up the strike. It was only after Mugabe’s personal intervention that the matter was decided in his favour.

What I found surprising was the willingness of opposition members in the unity government to use force against constituents who had previously suffered oppression for supporting them. It seemed to me that once in a position of power their attitude had already changed, which says a lot about governments in our continent.

I found myself wondering if changing the faces in government would change realities on the ground. After all, we have been here before. The very revolutionaries who suffered and bled under colonial oppression in turn began to oppress the people who had supported them during Zimbabwe’s independence struggle.

There are many absurd parallels between Zimbabwe today and colonial Rhodesia. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the role of the military and police, which were set up, not primarily to protect the country from external threats or maintain law and order, but to suppress citizens. Today these institutions still mainly exist for this function. Other arms of the government only serve to entrench the interest of the elite. The prevailing attitude is “to govern is to completely dominate.”

Whilst criticising the government is easy, more nuanced are the parallels one finds in society itself. The middle and upper classes have merely supplanted the old white elite, with all the usual trappings – large houses, fancy cars, housemaids, garden boys and foreign holidays. They are all too comfortable flashing opulence, seemingly oblivious of the dire poverty around them.

I am not convinced that changing the faces in government is going to transform the country in any meaningful way if it means preserving its blatantly colonial character. What Zimbabwe needs is a meaningful national dialogue that seeks to create a true African democracy: the creation of an intellectual framework that everyone buys into, not just the wealthy and powerful, and which seeks to transform the relationship between the people and the state.

I do not pretend to know what form such a framework would take, but with elections pending later this year it is not enough to keep repeating the same formula that has failed the people for 120 years.

Zimbabwean

Written by Fungi Kwaramba

Friday, 18 March 2011

HARARE – The ministry of Education, Art, Sport and Culture will soon establish night schools to reduce the debilitating effects of more than a decade of decay in the education sector precipitated by President Robert Mugabe’s ruinous policies.

Speaking last week at an electricity commissioning programme at Westlea Primary School, Education Minister David Coltart said his ministry had successfully equipped schools with books and was now turning its attention to the electrification of schools.

“We have realised that it is essential to establish night schools so that people who dropped out of school can go back and at least get basic education that will enable them to fend for themselves,” said Coltart.

Hundreds of thousands dropped out of school before the inception of the Government of National Unity (GNU) as parents battled to pay school fees in the face of unprecedented hyperinflation and economic meltdown, and thousands of teachers left the country to escape poverty and political persecution by Zanu (PF) militias and state agents. Coltart is determined to reintroduce night schools that were once popular in the 80s and 90s.

Many teachers have now returned and Coltart has promised that they will be paid for teaching extra lessons.

“We have secured funding from donors for the night school programme. Teachers will be paid with the funds that we secured recently,” he said.

The night schools are expected to equip people with the necessary basic education in line of the government commitment to education so as to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Coltart also urged schools not only to concentrate on education but also other core values of the ministry such as sports and art.

“If we become narrowly focused on education alone we will not wholly benefit the student. Sport is business and parents should encourage students to consider sport and art,” said Coltart.

Harare West legislator Jessie Majome, who used her ConstituencyDevelopment Fund (CDF) to electrify the school, said the provision of electricity was critical for all schools in the country.

www.mediacentrezim.com

18 March 2011

By Gilbert Munetsi

THE education ministry is finding it difficult to sustain its operations, as it has to rely on US$63 million out   US$469 million it got from the treasury. The revelations were made by Education, Sport, Arts and Culture Minister, Senator David Coltart, while responding to a question raised by Mberengwa East legislator, Mr. Makhosini Hlongwane (Zanu-PF), on whether the Government has a policy in place that is meant to protect the various vulnerable children in rural areas to ensure that they have an access to education.

“Honourable members of the house may think that the budget allocated to my ministry is a lot of money, but when you analyse, you will see that it is grossly insufficient. US$406 million of the US$469 million has been allocated to salaries, leaving a balance of US$63 million to run the Education Ministry including Sport, Arts and Culture.

“We have over three million children that we have to educate but we have something like US$2 per child per month to educate children, which is awfully inadequate,” he said.

Senator Coltart alluded to the fact that there were an increased number of parents and guardians who could no longer afford to pay fees, and the problem was further aggravated by the ever increasing number of orphans compared to the past two decades.

“So what we have are two forces of insufficient money coming in from the Government to the education sector on the one hand, and parents who themselves cannot fund education on the other.”

The Minister proposed, among a number of solutions, lessening government priority in such areas as travel and science, and channeling the money saved into high-priority sectors that include health and education.

Turning to the point of incentivizing of teachers, Sen. Coltart said it was a sad development that the profession had lost its glamour and until teachers could be adequately remunerated, incentives would stay.

However, he agreed “there has been a lot of lawlessness around the issue as many feel it has been applied in an indiscriminate way and unfair manner in many respects.

“We need to tighten up legislation regarding how incentives are raised and how they are paid to ensure that this is done fairly and in accordance with the law,” he said.

ZimEye.org

17 March 2011

Education, Art, Sport and Culture Minister David Coltart said the government is going to reintroduce night school learning throughout the country in order to assist children who dropped out of school in the past decade of economic decline adding that he had raised the funds to be paid to the teachers who shall do the work.

Thousands of school going people dropped out of school before the inception of the Government of National Unity (GNU) because of most parents’ failure to raise school fees school.

Some of the affected crossed the border for the Diaspora without completing their education.

“I have just finalised the funding deal with donors which will see teachers being paid for extra lessons countrywide. We have realised that it is essential to establish night schools so that people who dropped out of school can go back and at least get basic education that will enable them to fend for themselves,” Coltart said at an electricity commissioning programme at Westlea Primary School.

Coltart said the funding will also reduce the burden which parents were carrying of giving incentives to teachers.

As a result of  the depressed economy teachers were demanding incentives from parents

The Incentives parents were paying were meant to improve teachers’ salaries.

This then resulted in an inequitable treatment of students from impoverished family backgrounds.

www.globalconversation.org

By Danielle Johnstone

March 17th, 2011

Senator David Coltart is the current Minister of Education, Sports and Culture in Zimbabwe. In the 1980s, Coltart was keenly involved in campaigning against the colonial Rhodesian Front. He is currently part of the opposition party, MDC, in the Mutambara faction.

At one stage, Zimbabwe’s education system was noted as one of the best in the world. Sadly, the crisis in the country that started in 2000 has caused it to deteriorate. Teachers left schools to pursue other careers or to emigrate, and funding for public schools fell sharply with the failure of the Zimbabwean currency and economy.

In this interview, Senator Coltart addresses some of the historical elements that have maintained the strength of education in Zimbabwe even throughout its turmoil in the political crisis, and his policies for reforming and improving education in the country.

Me: Zimbabwe is acclaimed as having one of the most literate populations in Africa and a lot of people would say that this is a triumph in the field of education in itself. How far do you feel that Zimbabwe’s efforts at education have been successful?

DC: There’s no doubt that Zimbabwe has one of the best education systems in Africa and the roots of that go back well over 50 years. In the 1950s, a very good curriculum for all peoples was devised. The problem with the education system in the 1960s and 70s was that a series of bottlenecks were created so that whilst all white children benefitted from the curriculum only very talented black children could get through these bottlenecks. But the bottom line is that the underlying education system even during Rhodesian days was very good. This is especially apparent if you compare it to South Africa, where they had Bantu education. The basic Bantu education was terrible. It was designed to ensure that all people could only be menial labourers. They didn’t have good literacy and numeracy skills.

A Zimbabwean classroom. Citing an educational “crisis” on the ground and questionable methodology, education Minister Colatart has scoffed at a United Nations Development Program’s 2010 Statistical Digest which put the southern African country’s literacy rate at 92 percent — the highest in Africa.

What happened in 1980 was that ZANU-PF came to power and, in essence, broke all the bottlenecks. They rapidly expanded the education system- that at its core was good. That resulted in, by the end of the 1980s, Zimbabwe having, by some considerable margin, the best education system in the whole of Africa. South Africa on the other hand is still battling with its education system because the foundation was rotten, so they will have to completely transform their system. So, up until the late 1980s, we had a terrific education system. Sadly in the last two decades it has been terribly under-funded. So, by the end of the 1990’s, it was in decline, not in terms of the basic standard, but in terms of access to education, especially for poor Zimbabweans.

Me: Where do you feel education still needs to be improved?

DC: What I’ve been trying to do during the last two years is stabilize the sector, stop it from continuing its free-fall. And, we’ve pretty much done that. We’ve got teachers back in schools, teachers teaching again, textbooks delivered to schools. Our great challenge now is to get adequate resources, to ensure that teachers are paid a viable wage and to start rehabilitating the physical infrastructure of our schools, which is in a serious state of neglect. Another key program is the review of the curriculum, which hasn’t been comprehensibly reviewed since the 1980s. There have been major changes in teaching techniques and knowledge in particular subjects, so we have to bring our curriculum up to date.

Me: You have spoken about how Zimbabwean education is well-based on older colonial structures, but how do you feel education is now being effected by a new Zimbabwean culture, new traditions, new colours, in a more racially-open period in Zimbabwe?

DC: Well obviously in last 30 years, our curriculum has been made increasingly relevant to an African culture. The strength of a Southern Rhodesian, in other words a pre-UDI, system is that it emphasized strong numeracy and literacy skills, which transcend culture. And a curriculum that was relevant to Africa, relevant to Zimbabwe was built upon that foundation. So, it is a curriculum that is entirely relevant to Zimbabwe.

Me: Well, I feel that Zimbabwean and African history is neglected in the classroom, by my experience. Perhaps this is limited to private schools, however. But what effect do you think it has had on Zimbabwean nationality and national identity?

DC: I think that you are correct that there is such a terrible gulf in the teaching of history because in private schools there is a focus on western, American and European, history and very little taught on Zimbabwean or African history. The other extreme is that the government history curriculum is very partisan and in fact it’s racist in some respects. So the history curriculum is a key area that needs curricular change and refinement. We need a history syllabus that is far more objective and less divisive. Then we will need to make sure that all sectors of our society learn that history, and in that way use it as a tool to help reconciliation.

Me: You’ve spoken briefly about the gap between private and public education and how class distinction has crept into education. To what extend to you feel that the closing of this gap is a priority in reforming education and how should Zimbabwe go about doing this?

DC: There is no doubt a huge gulf, which is growing because of the serious under-funding of government schools. We’ve got to tackle it in a couple of ways. Obviously we need to direct further resources to government schools. I’ve always said there’s no point pulling private schools down to the level of government schools. Instead we have to aim at raising the standards in government schools to those enjoyed in private schools. The main strategy is to generally get more government resources for these schools.

We also have some more refined policies, the principle of which is the academies program, where we are focusing resources on a few key government schools, rehabilitating their infrastructure, getting the best teachers in and then reserving 40% of the intake for talented yet disadvantaged Zimbabweans. In that way I hope we will be able to provide for talented, disadvantaged Zimbabweans a sort of “half-way house” school which is a lot cheaper than private schools but which offers an education and facilities that are comparable to private institutions.

Me: In thinking about this development of education, the idea of tertiary education comes to mind. How important do you think universities are? Does tertiary education hold less priority than primary and secondary education?

DC: Obviously we have to preserve our tertiary institutions because otherwise where will we get our doctors and engineers? I believe, and this is a personal view and not a view of the cabinet, that we’ve spread our resources too thinly over too many universities, and we probably need to focus our limited resources on a couple of key universities. I’m not saying that we close the other universities down, but we need to recognize that until we get some centers of excellence at tertiary level, the danger is that all our universities will just be second- or third-rate, and remain that way.

Me: As well as being a minister of education, your portfolio includes sports and culture, which some would see as being completely separate entities to education education. What role do you feel that sport and culture play in the education of Zimbabwe’s youth?

DC: Well, I think that there’s a logic in putting them all together. Increasingly in the modern world, sport and art provide a livelihood for people- I have a stock phrase, I say “Sport is business, art is business.” In our curriculum reform we intend to ensure that sports and art become an integral part of the curriculum, taught in the same way as Maths or English.

Me: Well, sport has an integral role in Zimbabwean society. In 2003, key cricket players, Andy Flowers and Henry Olonga wore black armbands during the world cup to signify their mourning over the “death of Zimbabwe”. The sparked quite a heated controversy. How much do you think this action impacted politics in Zimbabwe in a tangible way, and how much do you think sports has a role in politics?

DC: Firstly, Andy and Henry’s protest was done at what arguable were some of the darkest days in our history.  Their actions had a profound impact on world opinion. They highlighted the very grave human rights violations that were taking place in the country and they were seriously damaging to ZANU-PF and Robert Mugabe. I did and still do, support what they did.

They were very brave acts that had a very powerful effect. Having said that, I believe that sports and politics, as far as they can should be kept apart. I don’t think that sporting associations should ever become partisan. But individuals do have fundamental rights such as freedom of expression, and they should, within reason, never be denied the opportunity of expressing their views. Andy and Henry’s actions didn’t disrupt the game in any way- I think that they struck the perfect balance. Another area that sport can have a powerful role is in reconciliation.

Me: Clearly, politics creeps into areas where people would prefer it remained absent. Politics have caused various disruptions in the education sector for example, with teachers strikes a few years ago being of great concern throughout Zimbabwe. How far do you think politics has impacted on education? And can education impact politics?

DC: Well, I was saying in parliament today, the education ministry in any country should be the least political of any, because children should be allowed to develop their own thought processes. In the Zimbabwean situation, schools have been used as bases for militia and teachers have been threatened and that is abhorrent. But if children are taught properly and develop good literacy and numeracy skills, if they are able to access the Internet and read, that knowledge invariably results in people being empowered. And empowered people result in a strong, democratic nation, because people know their rights and can see through the wiles and corruption of politicians. Society becomes more accountable. A strong education system is a prerequisite to an effective and strong democracy.

Me: One of the big problems governments face is how to distribute resources. In what ways do you think education should remain a priority for government spending when there are so many other areas where government invests?

DC: Well, I don’t think you can support the education sector at the expense of the health sector or vice-versa. I think other sectors of society should be deprived so that both education and health are adequately funded. I personally believe that the defense, especially, of small nations like Zimbabwe does not require anything like the amount of funding that we’ve allocated. Also, the size of government in Zimbabwe, 39 ministers, is ridiculous. This is where cuts should be made.

Statement by Senator David Coltart

15 March 2011

On behalf of the Ministry of Education, Sports, Arts and Culture. I wish to extend our deepest sympathies to the people of Japan following the massive earthquake and tsunami that struck parts of Japan last week.

The Ministry of  Education, Sport, Arts and Culture has a long history of friendship with Japan and numerous artists , students and sportsmen and women of Zimbabwe have had various opportunities supported by the people of Japan. Japan is also one of the few countries which has supported the Education Transition  Fund, which in turn has funded the textbook programme for all primary schools in Zimbabwe. This act of generosity towards our children makes the suffering of Japanese children and their families all the more distressing for us. The Ministry of  Education, Sport, Arts and Culture and indeed our entire nation Zimbabwe, stands with the people of Japan and we are ready to assist in whatever way we can.

Senator David Coltart

Harare

15 March 2011

Newsday

By Nqobani Ndlovu

14 March 2011

The Welshman Ncube-led MDC is seeking the arrest of Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara on contempt of court charges for his continued representing of the party during the weekly inclusive government principals’ meeting.

The party said it would seek Mutambara’s arrest.

The MDC said it would also file court contempt charges against President Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai for allowing Mutambara to attend the weekly indabas held every Monday by the three principals.

For attending the weekly principals’ meeting, officials in the MDC said Mutambara was in violation of a recent High Court directive barring him from exercising any function vested in the president of the party.

“We are filing court contempt charges against Mutambara because he should not be attending the principals’ meeting since he is not the MDC leader,” Edwin Ndlovu, the MDC Bulawayo spokesperson, told NewsDay on Sunday.

“He is violating a court order and should be arrested. He can do any other functions of the DPM, but not any other functions relating to the party that principals discuss every Monday,” Ndlovu said.

Lawyer Josphat Tshuma, who is representing the MDC, confirmed he was filing papers against Mutambara for violating a High Court interim relief barring him from representing the party.

Qhubani Moyo, a senior MDC official, last week said Mutambara was a “dangerous element to democracy for undermining the judiciary by his violation of the interim order”.

“The act of attending the meeting of principals is a clear contempt of the High Court ruling and a clear sign of undermining of the judiciary. This is particularly sad coming from someone who has always claimed to be a champion of democracy and human rights,” Moyo said last week.

Mutambara’s attempts to regain control of the MDC suffered a huge knock after Bulawayo High Court judge Justice Nicholas Ndou ruled he could not purport to be president of the party until the leadership dispute was fully resolved.

The interim relief granted by Justice Ndou reads: “The respondent is interdicted from exercising any function vested in the president of the MDC and/or principal in the inclusive government pending the finalisation of the matter in case number HH612/11.”

Mutambara is challenging the court interdict.

Yesterday, Mutambara’s spokesperson Maxwell Zimuto said he would not comment on issues that were being dealt with by the courts.

“Ncube, as a lawyer, should know that making a comment now on a case which is sub judice is improper. I do not want to be dragged into matters that are being dealt with by the courts and it would be unfair for me to comment on the issue now,” he said.

“However, in any case, is being a party president equal to being a principal?”

The Ncube-led MDC approached the court seeking an order barring Mutambara from performing duties of party president.

Mutambara has, however, refused to step down since Ncube took over as leader during the party’s congress in January.

The saga has seen President Mugabe taking sides with Mutambara, telling Ncube he will not swear him in, no matter what happens.

Ncube’s camp hit back saying they had “donated” Mutambara and the DPM post to Zanu PF.

But Mutambara continues to claim the presidency to the party and reports last month indicated he was considering sacking ministers Ncube, David Coltart and Priscilla Misihairabwi-Mushonga and had allegedly already approached several party MPs offering them ministerial appointments.

The Herald

By Chipo Bewu

14 March 2011

The phenomena of extra lessons by most teachers and schools across the country has crippled our education system like cancer and in the manner exhibited by Somali pirates in the Indian Ocean.

The main reason why teachers are demanding pupils to pay for extra lessons is because they are not adequately remunerated. However, Zimbabwe has been going through economic recession, the education sector was on its demise like any other government department.

While most parents appreciate difficulties that teachers and the rest of civil service is going through, the question is, who in this country is earning enough to bask in the glory of paying the extra cost for their children’s education.

When will salaries for civil servant be enough to warrant the removal of this cancer? The only barometer for a reasonable salary is the poverty datum line, which is fair, but against what the company or institution gross earnings.

It seems as if education is the only sector more important than any other government departments. The truth of the matter is that all Zimbabweans black or white at the moment are reeling under the marauding effects of the economic recession and therefore it is unreasonable for the ministry of education to sanction what Minister David Coltart calls incentives for teachers yet he forgets that it is not the education sector alone that makes government business tick.

This said, we need to look at other civil servants who are equally important if we are to build a healthy and prosperous Zimbabwe.

This is like commissioning corruption in the education sector because remedial lessons have always been there in all schools for all pupils at no extra cost. Most parents are burdened by other commitments such as exorbitant schools fees, health care fees and rentals yet their salaries are just meagre.

In rural areas, the effect of droughts in the previous two years’ farming seasons also dampened hopes for the farmers for better harvests.

Many parents will agree that teachers are holding children, parents and the nation at ransom in a mafia-style of the Somali pirates who have over the years derailed trade and commerce Eastern Africa and the rest of Southern Africa who are heavily dependant on these ports.

If we are fair enough as a government, what are we saying to other civil servants like nurses, soldiers, police officers, Arex officers and many others not mentioned?

In order to achieve fairness, we will end up with a scenario where a new farmer should pay an incentive each time he or she calls an Arex officer to his farm, so should the police officer handing the a criminal case, the public prosecutor, the road engineer, and immigration officer. The plight of children should not be used as a tool to wage a war like the biblical ruthless Harold who ordered all first born baby boys to be killed fearing his throne could be taken. If the Commissioner-General of police, Augustine Chihuri said they want to rid of corrupt police officers to have a credible police force, are we saying teachers, nurses, soldiers and Arex officers are exempted from the rule?

A few years back most children in Harare were made to roam the streets begging for alms, which they called “sponsoring”. These were deplorable practices and I remember the director of education for Harare Province Mr Tomax Dhoba describing them as unacceptable.

In retrospect, when we went to school in the late 70s to early 80s it was optional or compulsory for pupils to attend lessons during or towards examination calendar in order to boost chances of passing examinations. Therefore if teachers find the working conditions unsuitable the option is to take their employer to the labour court, to resign or lobby for better working conditions or find other jobs that suit their whims rather than looking for a soft spot to victimise children.

At one school, in Mufakose, a teacher allegedly created two groupings in a class between those who paid his fees and those who did not pay and paid special attention to those greasing his palms. A good number of schools around Harare mostly in high-density suburbs have intensified this practice.

Many parents have expressed their displeasure over this practice. In 2007, a respectable educationist, Mr Jigu Katsande, from Women University in Africa wrote in The Herald weighing the pros and cons of this practice and the outcome was that demerits outweigh the advantages.

For example pupils in Grade 1 to 5 cannot cope with the load of the whole day but are made to stay for extra lessons. The children get tired and do not benefit from the extra lessons.

We cannot pretend to fight corruption in one sector, while sanction it the other way. What type of policy is this? The defence and police forces have over the years complained about poor working conditions and remuneration hence we have never as a nation sanctioned corruption as an incentive to keep them working for the nation. We have condemned it right away.

Imagine that these tutorials are levied per child as young as Grade 1. Does his/her mind sincerely have to be burdened with loads of work at such a tender age?

But we see them going up to 4pm in class. Can the minds of these toddlers still be able to grasp or it’s sheer greed and a waste of resources and energy. In most cases, parents help their children through the night to do the homework they are given at school.

Laterally, government policy states that no civil servant shall engage in other business without declaring to his superiors yet is done on the school premises. There is no evidence of teachers paying rent for using the school resources?

There is no difference to the scenario with the rebels who capture women and children to force government to submit to their demands. During the liberation of these country we, never saw such a practice where guerrillas captured white women and children to force the Smith regime to submit, that the war was fair, those who lost gave up.

Under the UN, Convention of the rights of a child, Article 28, states that it is the right of every child to go to school. But what are we saying to parents who cannot afford paying school fees, yet alone the extra lesson fees? What about orphans? This is another form of denial, in a discriminatory system against children well calculated and administered under the eye of a Minister in a Zimbabwean Government.

In vein this is not what the people fought for- education for all hence discriminatory system are creeping into the fore.

As we look into the future of our children, this practice will eventually create foes and the Berlin wall between parents and teachers.

Newsday

By Veneranda Langa

12 March 2011

Education, Sport, Arts and Culture, minister David Coltart has warned war veterans to desist from entertaining the idea of invading classrooms to teach history because they would face the wrath of the law.

Coltart told Parliament during the question-and-answer session in the House of Assembly that the Education ministry should be the least politicised ministry in the government and war veterans should not try to disturb the quality of the education system in the country by pretending to be teachers.

He was responding to a question raised by Mazowe Central MP Shepherd Mushonga who sought clarification from the minister over government policy regarding reports that war veterans were being prepared to teach history at schools.

“What is government policy with regards to the current training of the youth brigade members at rural primary and secondary schools and also the teaching by war veterans of war history at primary schools, which is being conducted in Mashonaland Central, particularly in Mazowe Central?” asked Mushonga. “I have a letter which was written by youth officers to the headmaster of Kakora Primary School to the effect that the training is starting this week.”

Coltart said contrary to plans by war veterans, the policy of his ministry was that only qualified teachers and those accepted by the Public Service Commission were entitled to be at school premises to teach children.

“If there are any instances where people are not qualified — are not accepted as teachers in terms of our Education Act — action will be taken against those people. Regarding the issue of reports of war veterans teaching history in schools, the same applies that only teachers who are qualified to teach any subject should teach, and I have made my position very clear in this regard,” said Coltart.

He said if schools were to be turned into partisan institutions, the future of the children of Zimbabwe would be destroyed.

“There should be no partisan, political activities that take place in any of our schools. That is also the teaching by war veterans of war history at primary schools, which is being conducted in Mashonaland Central, particularly in Mazowe Central?” asked Mushonga.

“I have a letter which was written by youth officers to the headmaster of Kakora Primary School to the effect that the training is starting this week.”

Coltart said contrary to the plans by the war veterans the policy of his ministry was that only qualified teachers and those accepted by the Public Service Commission were entitled to be at school premises to teach children.

“If there are any instances where people are not qualified — are not accepted as teachers in terms of our Education Act — action will be taken against those people. Regarding the issue of reports of war veterans teaching history in schools, the same applies that only teachers who are qualified to teach any subject should teach, and I have made my position very clear in this regard,” said Coltart.

He said if schools were to be turned into partisan institutions, the future of the children of Zimbabwe would be destroyed.

“There should be no partisan, political activities that take place in any of our schools. That is why I have announced on several occasions that no schools should be used anywhere for partisan political activities,” said Coltart.

He said there had been alarming reports and statistics produced last year involving the intimidation of teachers, which resulted in the reduction of qualified teachers in rural schools because they had ubsequently asked to be transferred to other areas.

Coltart told MPs that this had resulted in a drop in the number of teachers, as well as a drop in the pass rates for Grade 7 examinations at those schools.

He said MPs should ensure schools were politics-free zones, where there was no intimidation.