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By Irvine Mugwagwa

Sunday, 13 February 2011

THE issue of corporal punishment in schools has been debated for a long time. We had serious debates about it during our time in high school in the 80’s and up to now it is still a topical subject but with no solution found.

I agree in the analysis that people who were exposed to severe corporal punishment as children at home and in school are more likely to use violence later in life in an attempt to solve social problems.

It must be noted that to punish somebody is usually to cause that person to suffer for an offence. Punishment can therefore be referred to as the social disapproval of an undersirable act resulting in personal discomfort or pain.

Punishment is indeed a device to which parents or teachers resort to maintain discipline at home or at school. Itsmain purpose is to bring about a change for the better so that the offending individuals desist from activities that may be harmful to either themselves or others around them.

Corporal punishment should not be administered everytime  a child does something wrong. This can cause that child to develop resistance. The child may not see the reason for being punished. I support a statement by Education minister David Coltart that “corporal punishment should  only be administered when a child has committed a very serious offence”.

Corporal punishment should be  swift and painful.

Our country has a history of violence, especially towards elections. Youths are used by politicians to fulfil their political ambitions. With promises of money and employment, the youths are bombarded with manipulated political history which is distorted to project the party’s political aspirations.

Hate propaganda is infused  into the youths so that they think it is right  kill those holding different views to their own.

Many people become law- abiding citizens because they were moulded by ther parents and teachers to be responsible citizens.

People who are violent either grew-up in very abusive environments or were left alone to do whatever they wanted, with their parents and teachers failing to discipline them.

Zimbabwe as a country must have an established and predictable  pattern of behaviour. There must be rules, values and norms with which every law-abiding citizen must conform.

Sunday Mail

13 February 2011

By Gwendoline Mugauri

SOME day primary schools in Harare have come under fire for demanding school development levy top-ups in groceries from Grade One and Grade Zero pupils.

The grocery items — which include cooking oil, laundry soap, toilet detergent, exercise books, pencils, bond paper, crayons, newsprint, chair backs, pens and drawing pins — are, in most instances, valued at almost 50 percent of the stipulated levies.

North Park, Haig Park, Houghton Park, Southerton, Selbourne Routledge, Alfred Beit, David Livingstone and Emerald Hill primary schools are among those reportedly making such demands.

Education, Sport, Arts and Culture Minister Senator David Coltart immediately warned that authorities would move to ensure accountability at the concerned schools.

He said although his ministry allowed State-run learning institutions to source additional stationery from parents, transparency was still required. “If correctly analysed, the funding for education is never enough to cater for all schools as well as run the Education Ministry,” he said. “Sometimes the ministry fails to avail all the necessary stationery to schools and this disadvantages pupils. “We have, therefore, made provision for schools to ask parents to cater for some of the requirements like exercise books while we provide textbooks, chalk and other materials. “We require accountability and transparency so that parents know why they have to buy stationery and how it will be used.”

Parents who spoke to The Sunday Mail last week accused school authorities of ripping them off. They said all requirements should be factored into the school development levy. A North Park parent, who declined to be identified, said the school had requested each Grade One pupil to bring a box of bond paper.

“I understand that we have to buy books and crayons. However, asking us to purchase a box of bond paper is absolutely absurd!” said the parent.
“The Government should not allow such insanity to prevail.”

Another parent, also preferring anonymity, said: “I do not understand why these schools are ripping us off like this. “A child doing Grade One is expected to bring blue and red pens, why? “The entire list I got from Haig Park Primary School cost me US$50. One wonders what the purpose of levies is.”

North Park Primary School head Mr Wilson Chinhanga dismissed reports about his school, saying the institution provided all the necessary stationery for its pupils.
He called on parents to expose any members of staff who demanded additional material.

Senator Coltart, in turn, urged aggrieved parents to approach their respective education district officers for recourse. “Parents have the right to question transparency if they are suspicious. We actually urge them to do so,” he said. “In other cases, School Development Associations (SDAs) can request our approval to raise levies to facilitate the purchase of stationery. “They are, however, not supposed to raise levies and simultaneously ask parents to provide stationery. “Asking for non-learning material like cooking oil is going over the edge; that is not allowed.”

Newsday

By Owen Gagare

11 February 2011

President Robert Mugabe has refused to swear-in Welshman Ncube as Deputy Prime Minister insisting he wants Arthur Mutambara to remain in that position, MDC secretary-general Priscilla Misihairabwi-Mushonga revealed on Thursday.

Speaking after the party’s emergency national council meeting called in the wake of Mutambara’s refusal to be redeployed to the less prestigious Ministry of Regional Integration and International Cooperation, Misiharabwi-Mushonga also announced the former student leader had been expelled from the Ncube-led MDC.

The circus in the MDC took an interesting turn on Wednesday when Mutambara announced he was back at the helm of the party, a position he voluntarily relinquished last month, and that he had fired Ncube from the party.

Announcing Mutambara’s expulsion, Misiharabwi-Mushonga said the robotics professor could keep the DPM post because the party was convinced President Mugabe would not change his position.

Misihairabwi-Mushonga said her party had received information to the effect that President Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai had taken a position to protect Mutambara. The position, she said, had been taken at the GPA principals’ last meeting in December last year.

Ncube met President Mugabe on Tuesday and formally briefed him about the leadership change in the MDC and the standing committee decision to elevate him (Ncube) from Industry and Commerce minister to the deputy premiership.

Misihairabwi-Mushonga said Ncube had also advised President Mugabe of the party decision to move her (Misihairabwi-Mushonga) to Ncube’s Industry portfolio.

She said the President was not forthcoming and only indicated he would consult Tsvangirai.

They met again on Wednesday and President Mugabe said Tsvangirai was out of the country, but Ncube pressed for a response so that he could inform his national council.

“President Mugabe said ‘you can tell your national council that mina (me) as Robert Mugabe angifuni (I don’t want)’,” said Misihairabwi-Mushonga.

“The resolution by the national council therefore is that we understand the position of President Mugabe. We understand that there is not going to be a swearing-in of Ncube as the Deputy Prime Minister. We know that he (President Mugabe) has done it before and he will do it again.”

She said the President understood that a congress was held and that there was a leadership change but cited the same reasons given by Mutambara, including that the matter was in court, as reasons for his refusal to swear-in Ncube.

“Interestingly, he said go and fight and defeat him. When Ncube pointed out that Mutambara was defeated at congress, he said go and fight him in court,” she said.

“He said he wanted to work with Mutambara and said they have been working as a trio for a long time and have been working well.”

Misihairabwi-Mushonga said the party would not fight for the DPM post in court as it was aware that the process would take long, but said Mutambara was no longer representing the interests of the party.

She said the MDC was now convinced Mutambara had sold out to Zanu PF.

She said her party would propose an amendment to the GPA to make it clear that one of the DPM posts should now be filled by Zanu PF so that Mutambara would be formally accommodated in the inclusive government.

“We have effectively donated the DPM post and Mutambara to Zanu PF,” she said.

She said Mutambara was not his own man as it was clear he had been consulting and seeking advice from President Mugabe.

She also accused him of revealing intimate details of the party to the President, including the party strategies.

MDC secretary for legal affairs David Coltart said the party took the decision not to fight for the DPM post after the realisation that a buy-in from other GPA principals was needed if they were to remove Mutambara.

“Courts are also used as a delay mechanism to delay political goals,” he said.

Zimeye.org

11 February 2011

Grade one pupils are being punished for failing to draw President Robert Mugabe’s portrait and congratulatory massages below it.

ZimEye witnessed some grade one pupils at Admiral Tait Primary school in Harare being ordered by their teachers to draw the aging President’s portrait and inscribe: ‘21st Movement, happy birthday to you’ below the portrait.

Infants who fail to do the assignment are being delayed from their early breaking time. The teachers said the directive was coming from the Ministry Education that every grade one child should do the assignment which would be sent back to the ministry before Friday this week as Robert Mugabe’s 21st February birthday celebrations draw near.

“We were just told that we should make them draw the portrait and submit the drawings to the ministry this week. They said it’s a running competition,” answered one teacher who pleaded not to be named after ZimEye had asked the reason why the minors were being delayed.

In an interview on Thursday Education Arts Sports and Culture Minister David Coltart said politicians should leave the education sector.

“I have said consistently that schools should not be political battle grounds in any form or fashion, that is why I put bans on any political party using schools for political rallies; its illegal and unwarranted for politicians to coerce teachers, headmasters and worse still school children to provide money for any political party activities.

“I have always said this contradicts our fundamental educational policy,” he said.

ZANU (PF) youths teachers in Harare are also reportedly forcing teachers through their headmasters that they should leave at least two days a week for lessons about the liberation struggle.

The teachers said most headmasters who ignored the order were being victimised by the youths who went from school to school asking whether the children were, in fact, being taught about their party instead of being educated on Zimbabwe’s liberation struggle.

The teachers were also being forced to donate cash and in kind for President Robert Mugabe’s 87th birthday bash under the banner of the “21st February Movement”.

The movement was formed by the current Minister of Information and Publicity, Webster Shamu, and is meant to honour and praise the ailing President Mugabe annually.

Zimbabwe Independent

11 February 2011

By Paidamoyo Muzulu

THE MDC leadership wrangle took a new twist yesterday when the party’s national council expelled former president Arthur Mutambara from the party for having allegedly willfully conspired with Zanu PF in trying to resist his redeployment in government as proposed by the party’s standing committee.

The move comes hardly a day after Mutambara on Monday said he did not recognise the leadership elected at the party’s congress last month and subsequently fired Welshman Ncube from the party on Wednesday for allegedly causing confusion.

The party’s new secretary-general and Minister of Regional Integration and International Cooperation, Priscilla Misihairabwi-Mushonga, yesterday said the national council decision was informed by the discussion that took place between new Ncube and President Robert Mugabe on Wednesday on the party’s proposed deployment.

The national council unanimously resolved to summarily revoke Mutambara’s membership using Section 4.11 and 4.10 of the party’s constitution,” Misihairabwi-Mushonga said. “President Mugabe on Wednesday told Ncube that he would not swear him in as deputy prime-minister as he enjoyed a good working relationship with Mutambara.”

Section 4.11 says that the national council by a majority of two thirds of its membership can expel a member whose continued membership is detrimental to the party, while Section 4.10 says a member who joins or support any other party than MDC is automatically dismissed.

Mugabe is alleged to have said: “I, as Robert Mugabe, will not swear you, Ncube (in) as deputy prime-minister. I want to work with Arthur and we are a trio with Tsvangirai.”

Misihairabwi-Mushonga added that Mutambara last December before the party’s congress had sought and received an endorsement from the other principals in the inclusive government that he should not be removed from the position of deputy premier.

“Since December last year, Mutambara had a deal with the other principals,” she alleged, “They had a strategy to go to the courts and let the matter freeze there like they have done in the past. Mugabe had notes on all meetings that Mutambara had with senior party members, including details such as which restaurant we had coffee at when we discussed party matters.”

MDC leadership conceded that there was very little political room to move after Mugabe’s Wednesday position and resolved to give up the fight for the deputy premiership.

“Mutambara’s tenure depends on Mugabe. Politically there is little we can do,” party legal secretary David Coltart said. “We have a political problem and the courts will be used as a delaying tactic and the case will not move forward. So it’s a waste of time and resources.”

The party cited Mugabe’s refusal to swear in MDC-T’s Roy Bennett as deputy minister on legal grounds and the outstanding electoral petitions since 2000.

The national council resolved that they would write to the other principals and facilitator, South African

President Jacob Zuma, about Mugabe’s position and their resolve to amend Section 20 of the GPA to reflect the new political reality in the country.

“We will write to the facilitator and other principals that Mugabe has continued to violate the GPA by refusing to swear in our nominees just like he did on Bennett,” Misihairabwi-Mushonga said. “To that end we will propose the agreement be amended to say the other deputy prime-minister comes from Zanu PF since Mugabe wants Mutambara and will not respect MDC appointees.”

RadioVOP

11 February 2011

Harare. Education, Art, Sports and culture Minister David Coltart has condemned Zanu (PF)’s violent activities which have spread to the education sector where rowdy youths are demanding President Robert Mugabe’s birth day gifts from teachers and school children.

“I have said consistently that schools should not be political battle grounds, in any form or fashion that is why I put bans on any political party using schools for political rallies,” Coltart told Radio VOP on Thursday.

He said it was wrong to coerce teachers, headmasters and worse still school children to provide money for any political party activities. “I have always said this contradicts our fundamental educational policy,” he said.

“In a nutshell what I can say is that all political parties please stay away from schools, please stop intimidating teachers, and stop disturbing innocent school children, because you are spoiling their future,” he said.

Zanu (PF) youths have been going to schools in Harare asking innocent school children to donate US$1 each for President Robert Mugabe’s 87th birthday bash.

Minister Coltart admitted that the recent Harare political violence had affected the education sector.

“Yes I have received reports of sporadic disturbances caused by violence, incidences of teachers being forced to donate some cash, and it’s unacceptable.”

Coltart said continued disturbances in the country’s education sector would reverse the gains the country had achieved over the past three decades.

Zimbabwe has one of the best literacy rate records in Africa but analysts are worried that this impressive record could soon be thrown out of the window if the youths are allowed to continue terrorising teachers and headmasters.

Speech by Senator David Coltart

Greatness Career Conference

Harare: Celebration Centre 10 February 2011

Ladies and Gentlemen, young men and women,

Thank you, good morning to you all. I don’t know about you but I certainly want to be here this morning. This is not a ‘have to’ meeting for me at all. And I have to say as well that I consider myself incredibly blessed to have been given this opportunity at this time in our nation’s history to have this particular job, and to have the opportunity to be able to influence and help the coming generation. I consider it to be a great privilege. And because of that I am very supportive of this conference designed to explore career opportuntities. I am in fact delighted to be here today. And I want to congratulate Rabison Shumba and his Greatness Trust for organising this event. I think that the organisation of this event shows great vision on the part of Rabison Shumba and the team who support him. Because an event like this is incredibly important for the future of our nation. If this coming generation does not have a clear idea, individually and collectively, about what it needs to do for our nation then our nation is lost because it is true that any nation without a vision is doomed.

It is in my experience that children, the world over, battle with what is arguably one of the most important decisions in their lives – namely when they get to the end of their secondary schooling they battle with this decision of ‘what to do with their lives?’  And it can be incredibly confusing decision making process. There is a certainty that we enjoy in school. In primary school and secondary school we have a definitive path set out for us. We have a lot of assistance from parents and teachers who guide us in the decisions that we have to take and often we don’t have to take any decisions at all because those decisions are just made for us.  But when we get to the end of our secondary school education, we are sometimes confronted with a bewildering array of choices, and there is much confusion as a result. Sometimes we make these critical decisions in our lives based on, for example, romantic notions. I have to tell you friends this morning that although I made a decision to become a lawyer when I was just 14, and I had a very clear understanding that that was what I wanted to do, I didn’t make that decision to become a lawyer with any profound knowledge of what being a lawyer entailed. I made the decision on a romantic notion. My father had 2 friends who played Bridge with him every Friday evening and these 2 men impressed me greatly. Simply because of their character, without knowing anything about what they actually did, I decided I wanted to become a lawyer and that was the basis that formed my decision. Thankfully God took that decision and has used it. But I suspect when we joke about children who want to be firemen and nurses that sadly many children actually make their decisions without any real knowledge about what the career they are embarking on entails. And so that is why conferences like this are so important.

If we move away from the individual to the national collective choices facing  Zimbabwe and if we look at the state of our education sector and the role it plays in this process I think that we can all be proud of the education sector. Although it has been battered in the last 2 decades, what was established in the first decade, post independence, was something our nation could be truly proud of. The tragedy however from a career perspective is that what was built up in the first decade was an education system that was almost exclusively academically orientated. What do I mean by that? It was an education system that focused on academic subjects, such as maths, English and science. But it was exclusive in that focus. So what we found as a nation was that by the late 1980s and 1990s our education system was turning out some 300,000 graduates every year. People who had had a wonderful education – we were turning out that highest percentages per capita  in Africa of Maths and science and English graduates. But tragically our country’s economy only had a capacity to absorb a maximum of  some 30,000 of those 300,000 graduates. In other words our education sector was not preparing the vast majority of our children for what our country had to offer. And to that extent  our education system was deficient. And it was intensely frustrating for the vast majority of children who had worked so hard in primary and secondary school because they found that  when they got the end of their secondary education there were very limited opportunities for them. It was also a shocking waste of national resources. In fact the harsh reality if we consider our education system in Zimbabwe today is that we have developed an education system that has benefited the rest of the world far more that it has benefited Zimbabwe. Because the vast majority of children that have been generated by our magnificent schools, that have been nurtured by our magnificent teachers – and mark my words we have some of the best teachers in the world  in this country – still today –have not remained in Zimbabwe, have not benefited Zimbabwe. They have benefited Wall Street and London and Sydney and Johannesburg and businesses elsewhere in the world, not Zimbabwe. In the last 2 years, and it is almost 2 years to the day since I took over this job, we have been consulting widely in the education sector, with our international partners, with our teachers, with trade unions, with businesses, to understand the nature of problems facing the education ministry and the education sector. In the  last year we made some critical policy decisions to address the problem I have just outlined. I want to discuss two of these policy decisions briefly with you now because they are relevant to this conference – young men and women here today, they are relevant to your future and especially to the future of your younger siblings.

The first is that we realised that we have a lot of work to do regarding our current curriculum. It came as a profound shock to me when I took over as Minister to realise that Zimbabwe’s education curriculum has not been comprehensively reviewed or reformed for over 2 decades. We last comprehensively reviewed  our curriculum in the 1980s. Whilst individual subjects have been changed we haven’t looked at the curriculum holistically for over two decades. And we have now committed ourselves to do that comprehensive review and reform and we have started to put people in place to do that. It is going to take at least 2 years to conduct this exercise. But it is necessary and I on this point want to speak not so much to the young men and women here today but to the teachers, to the business community, to the churches, to every sector of society, to say that we need your assistance as we embark on this exercise. We need to build a curriculum in Zimbabwe which will serve Zimbabwe in future, which will be appropriate to Zimbabwe’s needs in future, a curriculum which is responsive to the needs of Zimbabwe, and important and responsive to the needs and aspirations of our young men and women. And so we are now embarking primarily on a process of consultation. We need your input; we need the input from business, from mining, from agriculture. We need input from the church and leaders such as Pastor Tom, whose words today were profound, and profoundly important for our nation, because our curriculum must look beyond just the technical teaching of Science and Maths and Geography. It needs to look at how we produce the coming generation – including what qualities and standards and aspirations that coming generation believes in. Because as Pastor Tom said today if we do not produce a coming generation that believes in tolerance, in non violence, in respect for fundamental human rights, in respect for all our people, then our nation is doomed. We can produce the finest scientists and mathematicians, but without a soul, without deeply ingrained principle, a nation is doomed. So we need your input, and we need your input young men and women here today. You have experienced our education system in the last 10 years. You know its merits, you know its deficiencies, you know what needs to be changed and we need your input.

The second key policy decision that we have taken is that we need to move away from this focus which concentrates on an academic education. We need to balance our education system. We need to recognise that God has given each person different talents. And whereas some people may be talented in Maths, that is not the only talent. Some people have been given amazing talent by God to use their hands, to create beautiful things. And that is an equal talent to someone who is a great mathematician or orator. Our education system at present does not recognise that. Our education system at present holds up people who are good at Maths and Science and English and geography. But it doesn’t nurture other talents as it should. Our great sports men and women, our great artists, our great carpenters, the people, who perhaps don’t use their mouths, but use their hands. And that is what we have to do to make out education system truly world class. Internationally the country which is recognised objectively as having the best education system in the World is Finland and Finland accords equal status to academic and vocational education. And that is what I aspire to in our nation. We need to ensure, for example, that sport and art should not be seen as mere extracurricular activities. Sport and art should be see as business, as careers for the future. We need to develop our education system to recognise that –  to identify all talent, to nurture it because that is the future of the world. Let me say this young men and women, that Zimbabwe in that regard has a unique advantage, a competitive advantage over so many countries in the world because we have some of the most supremely talented artists;  we have a climate and an attitude in our nation that can develop some of the best sports men and women in the world. And so friends a conference like this is so important because it can play an important role in informing that process of reform that we are embarking upon.

So you may say ‘well that’s the future but that about the present what about us today’. All of you here today are not going to benefit from these future plans, and I want to conclude by speaking to you today regarding matter which are directly relevant to you.

I want to start by asking a fundamental question of each one of you here today – and that is “where are you, in terms of geographical position, where are you going to pursue your career and your life?”

Tragically, so many of our young men and women think that there is no future in Zimbabwe, and think that to pursue a successful career they will have to go elsewhere. It is a fact that in the last 20 years, tens, possibly hundreds, of thousands of our brightest young men and women have left. I understand why that is. I understand that even the most determined people in the last 20 years may have struggled to stay in Zimbabwe and to get appropriate jobs. But I want to speak to you today as a patriot. As someone who deeply loves this magnificent nation that God has given us. For all its troubles, we need to be reminded that Zimbabwe is a country of enormous opportunity. It is a country with wonderful attributes. In fact those attributes are almost un-rivalled anywhere else in the world, in terms of our natural resources and our climate and our soils and our water, but most importantly our people. This country has lacked one ingredient, one vital ingredient since it was founded over 100 years ago. An ingredient that hasn’t just been missing the last 30 years, it’s an ingredient that has been missing for well over 100 years. That ingredient is democracy. When we instil  democracy in our nation, and by democracy I don’t mean something superficial, I mean something that is deeply felt, deeply rooted, that is democracy not just in our parliament, democracy in our homes. When we start to tolerate each other, respect each other irrespective of gender or race or ethnic background, mark my words – this country is going to boom. And I believe that we are now on the brink of that. You never arrive at democracy because it’s a process, a process that takes decades and centuries to evolve. It’s a bit like childbirth  – it’s painful, and even when a child is born it has a life to live, and there can be a lot of pain in that. But we have been through a great trauma in our nation and I believe that we are now on the cusp of the next stage in our nation’s progression and development. And when that happens, when we get to that next stage, mark my words there will be opportunity not just for all of you here today, but for every child in Zimbabwe. If you think that I am overly optimistic I want to challenge you. Let’s say that I am being openly optimistic – that this future is not as rosy as I would have you believe – and if that’s what you’re thinking then I want to challenge you. One of the verses in the Bible that has guided me very importantly is a verse found in 1 Corinthians 7.  Apostle Paul was writing to people in a very difficult situation, and he wrote the following words. “I would rather you remain in the situation God called you in”. That applied 2000 years ago but it has equal application today. In other words, our default as individuals should be to remain in the situation God has placed each one of us in. And as Zimbabweans that default is Zimbabwe. It’s not to say that some of us don’t get called to other nations, but our default should be our nation, come what may. Come trials, come hardship, God has placed us here with particular purpose. And yes we may face trials, but there are other verses that say we are to rejoice in our trials. Why? Because those trials refine us, and if we persevere they make us better people, they make for a better nation. Working through a problem is always better than running away from it. And my experience, friends, young men and women today, is that the most satisfying aspect of any career can be in fact confronting problems and working through them and that applies to us individually and to us all collectively as a nation.

So this is the first point I want to leave you with. As you think about your future career, think of committing yourself to Zimbabwe. Think of a career that is going to be the most appropriate in terms of giving back to your nation.

Secondly, and this follows on from the point I have just made about working through problems rather than running away from them.  I was delighted with that you had to say in this regard Pastor Tom. Tragically many of the decisions that all of us make in choosing a career are dominated by what will result in the most comfort for us as individuals. What job will pay the most; will get the biggest car; the biggest home; the most overseas holidays? Those considerations dominating our decision making process. Indeed our nation has been blighted by what I call the ‘get rich quick’ syndrome. We make our decisions not on what is on the basis of the good of the community, but what selfishly is going to be best for me. And we disregard principle and law -nad the interests of others, and especially the interests of the disadvantaged. And in that regard I want to come to what is in fact my favourite chapter found in Philippians chapter 4. The whole of Philippians chapter 4  is a magnificent piece of writing. But in verse 8 there are the following words: “Fill your minds with those things that are good and deserve praise,  which are true, noble, right, pure and lovely.” I believe that those verses, those principles, need to underpin whatever decision you make regarding the choice of a career. I challenge you to think of a career that will noblely help your nation – that will help your family, your community, not just you.

Finally, if you read on in that same chapter you will see the following words – Paul writes “I have learned to be satisfied with what I have. I have learnt to be content whether I am full or hungry.” Now how does this apply to us? That doesn’t mean to say that we should be complacent and be happy with a second rate job or career. On the contrary we need to strive for excellence. But in striving for excellence, in striving for the best possible career, what we need to understand is that the most important thing in the pursuit of any career path is satisfaction and acceptance of our current position. If we seize every opportunity, no matter what the circumstances, difficult or good, and that in that environment we strive for and achieve contentment, then mark my words,  irrespective of the career you chose, you will know happiness and fulfilment and satisfaction.

I wish you well in this conference, in these forthcoming two days. I hope Rabison, that this becomes an annual event that spreads to benefit not just Harare, but schools and cities throughout our nation. Because I have no doubt that if the coming generation understands not just what their career options are, but also holds to these other principles  we have discussed today, the prosperous future of our nation will then be assured.

Thank you.

New Zimbabwe.com

10 February 2011

ARTHUR Mutambara’s membership of the MDC was revoked at an emergency meeting of the party’s national council on Thursday, but the party resolved to let him stay on as Deputy Prime Minister in the unity government, but not on its ticket.

The MDC said it took the position after President Robert Mugabe told the party’s newly-elected leader Welshman Ncube “in no uncertain terms” on Wednesday that he would not swear him in as Deputy Prime Minister.

Now the MDC says it considers Mutambara a Zanu PF member, and would be seeking an amendment to the 2008 power sharing pact, known as the Global Political Agreement, to reflect that.

MDC secretary general Priscilla Misihairabwi, speaking after the party’s national council voted by a two thirds majority to expel Mutambara, said they would be writing to South African President Jacob Zuma – the regionally-appointed mediator in Zimbabwe – to seek the amendment.

Misihairabwi said Ncube met Mugabe a second time this week on Wednesday and the President made it clear he wanted Mutambara to stay.

“President Mugabe said ‘you can tell your national council that mina (me) as Robert Mugabe angifuni (I don’t want)’,” she said.

“Interestingly, he said go and fight and defeat him. When Ncube pointed out that Mutambara was defeated at congress, he said go and fight him in court,” she said.

She said Mutambara was not his own man as it was clear he had been consulting and seeking advice from Mugabe.

“We are now saying given Mugabe’s stance, they [Zanu PF] can have that position that was allocated to us, so that Mutambara becomes their Deputy Prime Minister. We have effectively donated the DPM post and Mutambara to Zanu PF,” she said.

MDC secretary for legal affairs David Coltart said the party took the decision not to fight for the DPM post after the realisation that a buy-in from other GPA principals was needed if they were to remove Mutambara.

“Courts are also used as a delay mechanism to delay political goals,” he said.

Misihairabwi said they would not be seeking to occupy the deputy premiership and would now focus on rebuilding their party and preparing for elections.

“We want to give Arthur the position that he so desperately wants and hopefully we will have less public fights than we are having because we know its driven by him wanting to be Deputy Prime Minister. He said it to me personally.”

The GPA, signed in September 2008, allocated Zanu PF the presidency and two vice presidents; the Morgan Tsvangirai-led MDC the premiership and a deputy premiership and the Mutambara-led MDC a deputy premiership.

The parties also allocated ministerial portfolios to reflect the March 2008 general election vote share, with Zanu PF getting 15, Tsvangirai’s MDC 13 and the Mutambara MDC three.

But with all the MDC’s three ministers — Ncube, Misihairabwi and David Coltart — at Thursday’s national council meeting, the party says Mutambara will not speak for it in government.

Only on Wednesday, Mutambara had tried to pre-empt his expulsion by purporting to fire Ncube. But it was immediately pointed out that he has no such authority under the party’s constitution.

Mutambara, who led the party since 2006, resisted attempts to move him over and make him Minister for Regional Integration, with Ncube replacing him as Deputy Prime Minister.

The robotics professor claimed that as a signatory to the GPA, his position was guaranteed and he should be allowed to stay on for the life of the unity government.

www.overtimeonline.co.uk

9 February 2011

His eyes betray him.  There is nothing there.  No emotion at all.  Yet the senator talks passion, seemingly oblivious of his all-too familiar bête noir, Robert Mugabe, glaring angrily down at him from the cover of a book.

The book sits awkwardly, as if out of place, alongside the hundreds of others that make the shelves bow from the weight.  It seems fitting that the biography of the man who ordered the senator’s failed assassination attempt four years earlier, is at odds with the thick leather-bound volumes that surround it.  His long bony fingers masterfully coax his well-worn phone into pirouetting on the arm of the mahogany sofa.  Behind him there is a window overlooking a large tree-filled garden that is protected by a concrete wall decorated with razor wire.  The inauspicious rasping of a grey-crested lourie, known for its cry as the go-away bird, cuts straight through the hot, still air.

“In the last six years we have lost so much,” says David Coltart, co-founder of the MDC, senator, and secretary of state for sport in Zimbabwe.  “We have lost talent in the form of Andy Flower and the likes which is sad, but more significantly, the up-and-coming younger players have been deprived of something they will never be able to get back.  The opportunity to be mentored by such experienced senior players.”

A glance at the hierarchy within Zimbabwe Cricket, the governing body of the sport in the country, immediately quells the fallacy that cricket and politics cannot be mixed.  They are inexorably linked in a nation where corruption, brutality and general mismanagement epitomises the power base of a state still run by the despotic Mugabe.  Not only is the tyrant a patron of Zimbabwe Cricket, but the chairman, Peter Chingoka and chief executive, Ozias Bvute, are political heavyweights.  And it is highly improbable that their appointments are coincidental to their party loyalties.  It was Bvute’s misguided hard-nosed policy on ‘racial integration’ that led to the exodus of 15 white players in the rebellion of 2004.

“It can be compared to Manchester United’s plane crash,” continues Mr Coltart.  “A large majority of the team was wiped out in an instant and suddenly there was a very young core of inexperienced players thrown in at the deep end.  The effects are still reverberating within the squad and this was highlighted by the recent series in Bangladesh.  I think you could argue that our players have a much stronger physical presence and greater ability, but mentally, they were just not up to the task and I feel that a lot of mental strength comes from mixing old and new.”

Stuck in Limbo

C.L.R James persuasively illustrated in Beyond a Boundary that the style of cricket played by a team often reflected the mood of the country.  Zimbabwe has been no exception to this notion in recent years.  It has suffered some heavy loses and the metaphorical blood spilt on the pitch draws parallels with the actual bloodshed on the streets. Wins over Sri Lanka and India last year –albeit against a heavily diluted opposition in both instances – have given rise to some optimism.  But crushing defeats at the hands of South Africa and Bangladesh have served as sobering reminders of the squad’s fallibility and they are team stuck in limbo.  Too much class for the associate teams; but struggling to mix it with the bigger guns.

Nonetheless, it seems, on the face of it, that cricket in the politically torn country is at least beginning to find its feet again.  Bvute has started to show signs of promise by saying and doing the right things on the international stage.  He is quick witted, smart and persuasive.  An asset for any organisation should he choose to execute his duties in the honourable fashion.  He has pushed Chingoka to the peripherals which can only be a good thing.  Even Olonga, who absolutely berates him in his autobiography, Blood Sweat and Treason, has softened his stance on Bvute’s character.

“He was probably forced into executing such a radical change in the side,” he said to me recently.  “At least the administration has finally come to its senses and stopped killing the goose that lays the golden egg.”

The appointment of Brian Lara as a batting advisor appears to be nothing short of a miracle and some of the ‘rebel’ cricketers have returned to fulfil various administrative functions.  The recent franchising of the provincial sides has given first-class cricket a much-needed boost, enticing names such as Jason Gillespie and Allan Donald into coaching roles.

Indeed, it is all a little perplexing that such a revival in the fortunes of the sport has occurred at all and it is in stark contrast to the rest of the beleaguered country which continues to languish in abject poverty.  Kingsley Went, former Manicaland and first-class player, explained to me what he believed kick-started the transition.

“The ICC gave Zimbabwe Cricket about $10 million as a non-repayable grant,” he said.  “As far as I’m concerned it’s an investment.  The ICC hope the money will enable the structures to be sufficiently supported and help Zimbabwe regain their test status.  Then they will easily recoup it through television rights.”

Money, money, money

The ICC duly obliged, and as if endorsing his foresight, a few days later, announced that Bangladesh would be visiting Zimbabwe midway through 2011 to play a test match in Harare.  So, as is so often the case, money seems to be doing the talking and lubricating the rusty cogs of progression that have been lying idle for so long.  But there has to be some reservations about the money running out.

“What you have got to understand is that our cricketing infrastructure is minimal and I suspect our overheads are nothing like the ECB’s for example,” explains Mr Coltart.  “There has been press speculation that Gillespie is being paid $20 000 a month and I can assure you, unequivocally, that it is nothing like that much. For him and Donald, these are relatively high-profile coaching jobs and can be useful stepping stones to bigger things.  As for Brian Lara, it is more of a symbolic thing than anything else and don’t believe the rumours that abound about what he is getting paid either.”

It makes sense.  And sure enough, Donald has already moved to greener pastures.  But once immersed in the murky world of politics, even a man of such integrity – a man who helped Olonga and Flower draft their statement to the press during the black-armband protest and a man who has campaigned so tirelessly against brutal human-rights abuses – can be prone to painting over the cracks with a glossy brush.  It is, after all, his job.  And by his own admission, he is not entirely au fait with the financial affairs within Zimbabwe Cricket.  Sadly, there are some indications that the money has already dried up.  A recent conversation with Tino Mawoyo, opening batsman for the Manicaland Mountaineers and named in the squad traveling to the imminent World Cup, revealed the potential extent of the financial woes.

“I am still owed my match fees from a game I played two months ago,” he said.  “As for bonuses, well no-one has seen one for about a year.  Forget about it, even if you score century after century, nothing comes your way.  Manicaland is a club that is in trouble.  But it is not just us.  I don’t want to move, but the lucrative overseas contracts are looking more appealing daily.”

Further bloodshed inevitable

If salaries are not being paid and greater fiscal incentives continue to be offered elsewhere, the inevitable drain of talent will ensure that the national side will never realise its true potential.  The World Cup will inject some short-term cash into the system, but that will not sustain the structures indefinitely.  Along with the rest of the country, the key to long-term success depends rather heavily on the departure of a certain dictator.  Investment would be forthcoming and relationships could be rebuilt.  There will be a small window of opportunity if elections do occur later this year, but gauging the current political mood and historical trends, it seems unlikely that the leadership will be conceded easily and further bloodshed is inevitable.  It makes one wonder why cricket should matter at all given the on-going humanitarian crisis.

“Because it can be a fantastic tool in facilitating racial harmony,” says Mr Coltart.  “It really does bring people of differing backgrounds together and if we can ensure that  cricket is played in every school in the country, then, it can only bode well for the future of this country.”

I thank the senator for his time and see myself out of his house.  Just around the corner, a sparkling new Mercedes Benz with tinted windows and a distinct lack of number plates lurks ominously.  It is almost certainly a government official of sorts and probably not someone I would care to meet.  The accelerator is pushed to the floor and the 20-year old Nissan skips over the potholes leaving the brand-new Mercedes in a cloud of dust to carefully negotiate the treacherous road.

Newsday

By Khanyile Mlotshwa

7 February 2011

A group of Zimbabweans based in the United States have set up a committee to help mobilise funds and partner with the Ministry of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture in rehabilitating the country’s education system, especially in the area of science subjects.

The group’s spokesperson, Thokozile Mkhwananzi, told NewsDay that their action was prompted by the low standards of science education in the Matabeleland region.

“We are concerned by the lack of students from these regions entering the National University for Science and Technology (Nust) to study science and technology. We would like to help them qualify for admission to any institute of higher learning by providing the needed resources and welcome the idea of the mathematics and science centres. We are prepared to commit resources to this effort,” Mkhwananzi said.

She said the proposed two centres per province is an encouraging start in line with the need for equitable distribution of resources, but given the fact that the Matabeleland and Midlands regions are already lagging behind, there is a need for further resources to be committed in these regions to bring them to par with other regions.

“We have a proposal to secure funding to improve Mathematics and science education in other schools so that they become mathematics and science resource centres in other parts of the region,” she said.

“We would like the Ministry of Education to partner with us by allowing us to have input in identifying schools to be made into resource centres and providing qualified mathematics and science teachers for those schools.”

Several qualified teachers, especially in sciences, left the country for the Diaspora at the height of the economic downturn.

Mkhwananzi said, as a committee, they believed that science and mathematics must be introduced at an early age and strengthened at higher levels.

“All high schools must have well equipped mathematics and science laboratories including computer laboratories. This will enable the students who graduate from the schools to compete on the global marketplace including colleges and universities,” she said.

Mkhwananzi said, as Zimbabweans based in the Diaspora, they had access to a lot of opportunities and felt they could extend some of these to help children back home. “We have untapped talent in our midst to assist in rebuilding the educational system and we hope the minister realises that there is significant overlap in what he plans for education in Zimbabwe and what we advocate for,” she said.

“Every school should have a fully-equipped, functioning library that provides support for all grades in that school. We are committed to assisting with the gathering of relevant textbooks, pens and pencils.”

Mkhwananzi said it is important that more secondary schools be established in Matabeleland to help students who currently have to walk long distances to school.

“We are also ready to establish secondary schools central to a number of primary schools so that children do not have to walk such long distances to school.

The Google earth-mapping of the existing schools in the country initiated by the Education, Arts, Sports and Culture minister David Coltart is a highly commendable exercise and would illuminate this issue even more,” she said.