11 May 2009
The Zimbabwe Times

HARARE – Parliament has drafted in the third legislator to become joint chairperson of a recently established select committee which will see through the drafting of the first home-grown Constitution over the next 17 months.

Cabinet minister David Coltart was last week appointed to join Nyanga North legislator, Douglas Mwonzora, of the Morgan Tsvangirai-led Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) party and Zanu-PF’s Paul Mangwana, who represents Chivhi Central.

The move is an apparent attempt to replicate Zimbabwe’s compromise governing structure that has seen leaders of the country’s three biggest political parties leading a unity government.

Mwonzora and Mangwana, both lawyers, were appointed co-chairmen of the 25-member committee last month.

Coltart, the Minister of Education, Arts, Sports and Culture, and also a lawyer, is a senator with the smaller MDC led by Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara.

In an interview with The Zimbabwe Times Sunday, Mwonzora said the committee had also identified Mangwe legislator Edward Mkhosi, also a member of Mutambara’s MDC, to become Coltart’s substitute.
Mkhosi would step in when Coltart is engaged in his ministerial duties.

Mwonzora defended the new appointment, saying Coltart was chosen, despite his busy schedule as a government minister, because the committee wanted to tap into his rich legal background.

The appointments are still temporary as President Robert Mugabe and his colleagues Tsvangirai and Mutambara, are still to decide on whether to appoint a non-legislator to lead the crucial process.

This follows recommendations by parliament last month for the three political leaders to second a non-member of parliament who shall head the committee.

But in the absence of such candidate, the tripartite chairing system would proceed with its duties.
The select committee shall be responsible for the setting up of sub-committees to be chaired by a member of parliament.

The sub-committees shall also draw representatives from the civic society to assist the select committee in performing its functions.

During its tenure, the select committee shall conduct public hearings over the making of a new constitution ahead of its findings being tabled before two successive all stakeholders’ conferences.

The drafting of the new constitution will be succeeded by a referendum not later than July 13, 2010.

Both Zanu-PF and the Tsvangirai-led MDC have seconded nine of their parliamentarians to the committee while the Mutambara-led MDC has three of its members in the committee.

One member has been taken from the chiefs’ council while the remaining three have been chosen by presiding officers, whose functions are to supervise and monitor the work of the select committee and sub-committees.

This shall be done through regular feedback meetings in order to ensure that they adhere to the time lines laid down in the September 15, 2008 inter-party political agreement.

Meanwhile, the committee has raised US$3 million, less than a third of the targeted sponsorship, from international donors to finance the exercise.

Although parliament is still to finalise its budget, Mwonzora said more than US$10 million would be required to see the successful completion of the process.

ZimEye.org
By Moses Muchemwa
May 10, 2009

Harare (ZimEye) – THE government of Zimbabwe has failed to raise US$4 million to pay 2008 public examination markers, the ZimEye has learnt. This has in turn plunged into doubt the completion of the marking process.

Secretary for Education, Sports, Arts and Culture, Dr Steven Mahere confirmed that his ministry was broke and could not fund the marking of the examinations. Earlier this year his senior, David Coltart refused to take a government bought Mercedes benz citing that his ministry is too poor to afford such luxury.

“We have no money to pay the markers and we actually owe them money. If we can get US$4 million today I guarantee you that in two weeks those result will be out,” Coltart’s Secretary, Mahere said.
He said the ministry was scouting for potential donors who might be willing to pay the markers.
“We are talking with the donors and we hope to get the money this month in order to pay the markers. They are now holding us to ransom because we have failed to fulfill previous promises,” he added.

The Zimbabwe Schools Examination Council ‘s ‘Ordinary’ and ‘Advanced’ level examination script markers are still said to be unpaid.

The teachers were promised USd1 per script.

“We call on the schools to use a performance based approach when it comes to enrolling pupils for form 1 as well as the Advanced level. The process is already going on around the country and we hope they bear with us as we finalise the marking process,” noted Mahere.

The country’s education system is facing collapse due to mismanagement in the past 29 years under President Mugabe’s administration. David Coltart’s ministry has maintained its desperate cry for financial relief but to no avail.

Sunday News
News Editor
10 May 2009

THE Ministry of Education Sports, Arts and Culture requires US$4 million to finalise the process of marking last year’s public examinations, a senior Government official revealed last Friday.

The permanent secretary in the Ministry of Education, Sports, Arts and Culture, Dr Steven Mahere, disclosed in an interview with an online publication that the marking of scripts had been completed, but the final grading was yet to be done.

“We have no money to pay the markers and we actually owe them. “If we can get US$4 million today I guarantee you that in two weeks those results will be out,’’ said Dr Mahere.

He said the ministry was still negotiating with potential donors who might be willing to pay the markers.
“We are talking with the donors and we hope to get the money this month in order to pay the markers. They are now holding us to ransom because we have failed to fulfil previous promises,’’ said Dr Mahere. He however, declined to disclose the name of the donors.

The Zimbabwe Schools Examination Council’s Ordinary and Advanced Level examination script markers are still said to be unpaid despite Minister Senator David Coltart’s assurances last month that it would take UNICEF a few days to process payments. The teachers were promised US$1 per script.

Dr Mahere said the Ministry was in a quandary and had to come up with ways of ensuring enrolment of Lower Sixth Form students.

“We call on the schools to use a performance-based approach when it comes to enrolling pupils for Form One as well as the Advanced Level. The process is already going on around the country and we hope they bear with us as we finalise the marking process,’’ said Dr Mahere.

The teachers who had agreed to mark some scripts are yet to be paid. Some teachers are now accusing the Government of taking them for granted and promising them things they never fulfil.
The Government managed to avert a potentially devastating yet again educators’ strike during the second term.

The teachers’ unions in Zimbabwe — Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe and Zimbabwe Teachers’ Association (ZIMTA) — had negotiations with the Ministry of Education, Sports, Arts and Culture and successfully brokered a deal for teachers to go back to work as the Government looked into their problems. The Government agreed among other things to allow teachers’ dependents in state schools to be exempt from paying school fees, while banks were asked not to charge commission on civil servants allowances.

The teachers, according to ZIMTA president, Mrs Tendai Chikowore, want a basic pay of 15 000 rand per month, which some players in the education sector say is way above what even economic powerhouses in Africa like South Africa are paying their teachers.

The Standard
BY CAIPHAS CHIMHETE AND GEORGE MADEGA
9 May 2009

THE Zimbabwe Schools Examination Council (Zimsec) last week fired all its casual workers after they abandoned the processing of last year’s Grade VII examinations following an acrimonious dispute over pay.
The labour dispute, the latest hurdle for the beleaguered examinations body, has reportedly put paid to hopes the 2008 Grade VII results will be released anytime soon.

They were reportedly responsible for transcribing the results, a tedious process that takes weeks to complete, sources said.

Sources said it would be a “miracle” if the results are released because of the confusion caused by the dispute.

This has also disrupted the processing of Form IV and VI results, which have already been delayed.

Workers reportedly downed tools after the Ministry of Finance told them their salaries for April, which they had not received by last week, were released on time.

“There was a serious confrontation when the Zimsec management confirmed that indeed the salaries had been released by Treasury but there were no satisfactory answers why they had been delayed and workers not paid,” said a senior official at the examinations’ body.

All the 91 workers were immediately shown the door and replaced by another batch that was said to be still familiarising itself with the marking process.

Insiders said as a result of the chaos candidate numbers, marks and names of students for the Grade VII examinations were “so mixed up” that it was “impossible” to match the candidate to the marks.
“Grade VII results are in such shambles that there are no prospects of them ever coming out,” said one source.

“As we speak, the processing of the results has come to a standstill.”

The sources said unqualified staff such as security guards, drivers, receptionists, clerks and secretaries, were employed to mark the papers after teachers refused to do so due to poor remuneration.

The problems have also affected the processing of “O” and “A” level results, which Zimsec spokesperson Ezekiel Pasipamire had promised last week, in time for the start of the second term.

Zimsec director Happy Ndanga confirmed that the temporary workers had been fired following a salary dispute.

“These were temporary workers whose contracts had expired,” he said.

“We told them to go home and come and collect their money when we have it because we did not have it ready then.”

But he had no idea when the examinations results would be released.

“I can’t tell because we have not had electricity for some days now,” he said. “We are so computerised that the absence of power has seriously affected us.”

He defended the use of unqualified staff in the marking of examinations saying: “They were not marking but transferring marks.

“We call it clerical marking, where you don’t have to know the context but just tick or cancel.”
However, the sources warned the problems at Zimsec would have a serious impact on the credibility of the examinations system in the country.

In March, the government instructed schools to enroll students using mid-year examination results as it became apparent Zimsec had no capacity to release the results on time.

The new Minister of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture, Senator David Coltart had promised to mobilise international donors to fund the marking of the examinations. However, educationists described the move to allow students to proceed to another level without the proper qualifications as “a recipe for disaster”.

This was on the back of reports by the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) that only 20% of the country’s children attended school last year following a prolonged strike by teachers.

“Form 1 students were enrolled on the basis of mock results,” said another Zimsec official.

“Given that there was hardly any teaching, there is no guarantee that the Grade VII pupils ever sat for any credible tests.”

He said even Lower Sixth students were enrolled on the basis of the “same mock” examinations and it was difficult for students to pursue “A” level studies in subjects they were not even sure they passed.

“It won’t be surprising to discover that some or most Lower Sixth students are reading subjects they failed dismally at “O” Level,” he said.

Meanwhile, Coltart admitted that the examination process was in a shambles, a situation which he said was worsened by Zimsec’s financial crisis.

“The marking of the November 2008 examinations has been done, however the grading has not been completed because we don’t have funds,” Coltart said.

“November results are supposed to be out before the June exams are written because June exams are usually supplementary exams for those who would have failed in November.”

He said there was “no doubting that the integrity of the system has been damaged”.

Radio VOP
May 7 2009

HARARE,- The Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe says close to 35 percent of teachers failed raise money to return to their respective posts when schools opened this week.

Teachers this week called off a strike despite their wage demands not being met. Education Minister David Coltart said the government had no money to raise their salaries, but he had agreed to help teachers by giving their children free schooling.

Teachers’ groups said they accepted the government was struggling for funds and needed time to raise revenue. Teachers are paid a USd 100 allowance per month but unions wanted four times as much.

In an interview with RadioVOP, Takavafira Zhou, PTUZ president, said the majority of teachers had anticipated an industrial action and used the little money they had put aside for travel expenses and on other equally important commitments.

“I think about 35 percent of teachers have not managed to go back to their respective schools. The reality of the situation is that the majority of the teachers had entered into an industrial mood and had spent the little money that they had on other important commitments.

“When we then said teachers must go back to work following promises by donors that they would at least find something to enable us to make ends meet, a number of teachers were caught unawares, their plight is genuine and they have no money and all we can do as their representative organisation is appeal to teachers to continue looking for money to return to their respective schools.

Zhou also urged the responsible authorities not to adopt a hardline stance and punish teachers for their failure to raise money to cover travel expenses.

“Government must accept the authenticity of teachers’ plight. Industrial action may not necessarily bring something, as the government was inflexible and irresponsible, claiming that it has no money. We are hopeful that teachers still have an interest in carrying out their work; we hope that the majority of the teachers will manage to go back to their stations.

“What is doubtful is whether the donor community will provide the resources that they had promised because in the event that the donor community prevaricates and fails to perhaps to do something to lessen the plight of teachers by June, it will be difficult for those teachers who have returned to remain at those schools. So we are only hopeful that something meaningful will trickle to the teachers by June failure of which it will be difficult to assure donors and the nation that schools will remain open,” Zhou said.

Financial Gazette
Thursday 7 May 2009

ELLIS Robins Boys High School in Harare resembles the remnants of a long, forgotten ghost community in an old township. Burst sewer pipes have gone for weeks without being fixed; the school’s fish pond and swimming pool among other infrastructure at the school, all ceased functioning years ago.

The concrete precast wall and ceiling inside the school’s buildings are crumbling, while some of the toilets are in bad state. Many doors have no locks and the broken windowpanes sum up the deteriorating state of the school.

Ellis Robins, in the low-density suburb of Mabelreign, once an elite institution, is now a pale shadow of its former glory.

The state of affairs at this government-owned school is a microcosm of the situation at most of the country’s State-run educational institutions as Zimbabwe’s education system continues to crumble.
Analysts this week said the government needs a paradigm shift to save the educational sector from further demise in the face of myriad of challenges the country is grappling with, underlined by poor remuneration for teachers.

Harare lawyer Terence Hussein said the government must realise that it can no longer afford to run schools as it used to and should hand them over to communities, especially those in low-density areas.
“They have been in this revolutionary mindset that we are going to provide education to the people without counting the costs,” said Hussein. “What is needed is a paradigm shift. Those areas (communities surrounding the schools) must not only be encouraged, but required to take charge of educational facilities, including paying teachers’ salaries.”

Hussein added that the current wholesale funding of education by government results in two undesirable things: heavy taxation and dependence on donor funding.

“I say undesirable because heavy taxation makes Zimbabwe an unattractive investment destination while reliance on donor funds exposes the country to the whims of the donors,” he said.
As the country’s education woes continue to fester like a gapping wound, key players in the sector are pinning their hopes on external international assistance to survive the storm.

In an interview with The Financial Gazette this week, the president of the Zimbabwe Teachers Association, Tendai Chikowore, said the association held meetings with donors and there were encouraging signs that prompted the association to call-off a planned strike.

“We met donors together with the Ministry (of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture) and it was positive. Based on that, we realised that it is better for teachers to go back to work,” said Chikowore.
Chikowore said it was encouraging that such organisations such as the United Nations Children’s Fund had promised to work on a country appeal programme to rescue the nation’s education sector from the throes of collapse.

Although Education Minister David Coltart this week announced a drastically reduced provisional fees structure, Chikowore said there is need for further discussion since some of the provisions apply only to government-run schools.

Fees at primary schools in high-density and low-density suburbs have been pegged at US$5 and US$10 respectively while children attending high-density and low-density secondary schools will respectively pay US$10 and US$20 with teachers’ children being exempted from paying the new fees.
Political scientist John Makumbe, however, warned that the government must have a serious re-think on its priorities because as long as the outstanding issues arising from the Global Political Agreement (GPA) remain unresolved, donors will remain on the fence.

The GPA was signed last September between President Robert Mugabe’s ZANU-PF, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s larger faction of the Movement for Democratic Change and Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara’s MDC-M.

“The solution is for (President) Mugabe to resolve the outstanding issues. Right away, donor agencies will say there is meaningful progress and assist. Without that no one will ever come to our aid,” Makumbe said.

Despite the temporary understanding between the teachers and government to avert a looming strike, other analysts said for the education sector to fully recover, what needs to be done goes beyond the issue of salaries, citing other working conditions and the need for adequate learning materials.

This week Amnesty International said some teachers it interviewed had expressed fears that brutalities meted on them in the lead-up to last year’s polls still traumatise them and believe the atrocities would recur in future elections.

It added that in order to achieve stability in the education sector, the aggrieved teachers should receive compensation.

“Those found to be responsible should be brought to justice and victims should receive redress. Such measures would be a first step to ensuring the safety of the teachers and improving the environment in which they are working,” the rights group said.

Takavafira Zhou, the president of the Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe, said the poor working environment and the uncertainty in the education sector is illustrated by the fact that during the past eight years, 75 000 teachers left the country but only 500 have returned since the formation of the inclusive government.

He also blamed the slow rate of return of teachers to bureaucracy such as the requirement that those returning must be approved by the permanent secretary, Steven Mahere.

Blessing Vava the spokesperson of the Zimbabwe National Students Union said even though a strike has been averted, much more needs to be done besides the issue of salaries.

“There is need to improve the curriculum, laboratories and infrastructure. The infrastructure is dilapidated and there are no books,” said Vava.

The Herald
Alexander Kanengoni
7 May 2009

Harare — THE most dominant feature in Zimbabwe at the moment, straddling the political and social landscape of the country is the inclusive Government.

Different people perceive it differently, that is inevitable.

Some people see it as a monster foisted on us by outsiders that we are better off without. Others like myself see it as that largely unmarked path through thick jungle leading to a relief our beleaguered country desperately needs.

And more importantly, it is, as the English saying goes, the bird that we have in the hand. It is certainly worth much, much more than two — or even a dozen — birds still in the bush!

In my contribution to The Herald of 29 April, I mentioned a political meeting in Mt Darwin where an old man could not understand how working with Morgan Tsvangirai would be considered difficult if in 1980 we managed to work with Ian Smith.

In the heated discussion that followed, something else amusing was said.

A woman compared the inclusive Government to a wedding between Zanu-PF and the two MDC formations.

I did not agree with that comparison because a wedding is an occasion to cement a permanent arrangement; a marriage.

The inclusive Government is not a permanent arrangement.

It is a temporary agreement to achieve an immediate objective — a new constitution followed by an election.

During a keynote address to business executives at a local hotel in February, Prime Minister Tsvangirai gave the impression the inclusive Government was a permanent arrangement but President Mugabe quickly corrected the impression during his birthday interview the following week and said there would be elections.

But the question still remains, could there be things we are not being told?

Or was it, from the Prime Minister’s perspective, more like the Biblical story of Christ taking his apostles up a mountain and revealing to them the eternal beauty of the Kingdom of God that they refused to come down, preferring to stay pitched, forever soaked in that amazing splendor?

If the inclusive Government is a temporary vehicle to take us through to the next general elections, then three things are of critical importance: success and achievements of the inclusive Government, the new constitution, and outcome of the elections.

The fact that the inclusive Government has to succeed cannot be over-emphasised.

And it has covered considerable ground since its inception. The shelves of the supermarkets are full once more.

The introduction of the rand and the greenback has eased the transaction burden and people no longer have to spend countless hours at the bank.

Although the money is hard to get, at least people can buy food for their families that is readily available in the shops.

These are the bread and butter issues that eventually translate into votes at election time.
Therefore it’s not only in the interest of the people that the inclusive Government succeeds, it’s also in the interest of the different political parties that form it.

A party that is credited with the success of the inclusive Government will unquestionably reap the benefit at elections time.

That is why working against the success of the inclusive Government or merely assuming a stand-aloof position, as some Zanu-PF members seem to be doing, will ultimately work against the party.

There is need for all members of the party to come out and also claim ownership of the inclusive Government as members of the MDC are demonstrating otherwise they will walk away with all the credit for the achievements of the inclusive Government.

That is why I said in a contribution to The Herald earlier we should move beyond blaming each other over who is responsible for the mess that we are in.

Whilst some of us are expending all our energy witch-hunting and pointing fingers others are busy rectifying those mistakes of the past and taking credit for it.

The tragedy is we seem to believe bringing the MDC to admit it helped to bring upon the nation the scourge of sanctions is sufficient to win us the next general elections.

It won’t.

It’s flying around the world asking for re-opening of lines of credit as Tendai Biti is doing and sitting with teachers representatives and international donors to sort out the issue of teachers’ salaries as David Coltart is doing that will eventually translate into votes when the elections come.
It is the strategy that works.

That is taking ownership of the inclusive Government and not merely watching from the sidelines with folded arms, almost disclaiming it or wishing the temporary arrangement collapses.

To the people, the argument that it’s the opposition that helped to bring about sanctions is far-fetched and academic.

They are more interested in the removal of the effects of the sanctions on their difficult lives.
And it’s those who they see helping them to ease that burden who get the credit and their votes.
It is as simple as that.

There are also ministers in Zanu-PF who are claiming ownership of the inclusive Government and making sure it succeeds.

When Cde Herbert Murerwa goes to Chegutu farming area to find out what is happening on the ground, the farmers there feel they have not been abandoned.

When you suspect by reading the press that Cde Walter Muzembi might not be sleeping as he tries to make sure our tourist facilities are ready for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, you see commitment and a total desire to see the inclusive Government succeed.

The same applies to Cde Saviour Kasukuwere.

The strong empowerment drive with youths across the political divide across the country that he is undertaking is a robust claim of the ownership of the inclusive Government.

To me, that is the strategy that will eventually translate into votes when the time comes.

Besides claiming ownership of the transition Government and its subsequent achievements, Zanu-PF should avoid putting itself on the defensive that in most cases is needless.

Mikhail Gorbachov told us in that meeting in Holland that his strategy to manage the disintegration of the USSR and the eastern bloc was premised on openness and frankness (glasnost and perestroika).
Openness and frankness leaves no room for doubt and ambiguity.

That is why when we appear to be resisting a land audit because it is being called for by the MDC we are placing ourselves on an unnecessary defensive.

If we have always been saying we needed an audit to clear the dirt plaguing the way land was allocated during the Land Reform Programme, why should we be suddenly jittery when MDC calls to do exactly that?

Why should we appear guilty when we are innocent? Why do we see threats where there are none?
It’s a weakness that the MDC has noticed and it is capitalising on it to the maximum in order to get the credit for the success of the inclusive Government.

It is this unnecessary defensive mode that is inhibiting some members from claiming ownership of the inclusive Government.

If there is anything that we have learned from the inclusive Government, it is that all things are important depending on how you manipulate it.

Those portfolios that were considered less important and given away to the opposition have become talking points because the opposition is manipulating them with dexterity obviously eyeing the coming elections!

There are other issues standing in the way of the success of the inclusive Government like the issue of the appointment of provincial governors, ambassadors and permanent secretaries but one hopes they will be addressed soon.

The issue of ambassadors and provincial governors was an issue that kept coming up again and again during the Sadc-brokered negotiations and a commitment was made it would be resolved once the transitional arrangement was put in place.

VOA
By Peta Thornycroft
Harare
05 May 2009

Last week, the unions, two aligned to President Robert Mugabe’s ZANU-PF and one independent, threatened to strike if salaries were not increased beyond $100 a month.

But many teachers polled by VOA around Harare say they had no intention of going on strike. They say the call for a strike had come from ZANU-PF, not from the majority of teachers, who understand the government’s lack of funds.

Raymond Majongwe, president of the independent Progressive Teachers Union, says the threat of the strike was mostly being played out in the media and was fueled by statements from the ZANU-PF-aligned Zimbabwe Teachers Association.

He says a strike had not been widely debated and many teachers outside the urban areas did not know it was pending.

Majongwe told VOA that, before the formation of the unity government, the Zimbabwe Teachers Association had never spoken out on matters that affect the welfare of teachers. He says the union had remained silent when teachers, like himself, were persecuted by Mr. Mugabe’s government. ZimTA officials were not available for comment Tuesday.

Since the unity government was formed, teachers receive their pay in foreign currency. They now earn enough to buy food.

Education Minister David Coltart tells VOA that, before schools reopened for the current term, he and unions had agreed that teachers’ children would receive free education; banks would be encouraged to reduce their charges to teachers; and, they would negotiate a five-year benefits plan for teachers.
Coltart also says school fees will be dramatically slashed, but that parents will still have to pay a small amount each term.

Coltart says Zimbabwe’s education infrastructure is a national tragedy. Even first-class schools, which used to compete favorably with private schools, are now shells, without windows, chairs and desks. He says even plumbing no longer exists.

Coltart also tells VOA that few schools have text books and that, in his view, Mr. Mugabe’s ZANU-PF government severely neglected education for the last 20 years.

Zimbabwe’s tertiary education system is also in a state of virtual collapse. Less than 70 students registered for the second semester at the main University of Zimbabwe campus, last month, because students could not pay fees in American dollars. Students say not a single toilet is working on the large campus in Harare.

A large private university says its foreign funds were looted by the central bank, last year, and it cannot open for business this semester.