RadioVOP Zimbabwe

By Sij Ncube

18th November 2015

HARARE, November 18, 2015 – PRESIDENT Robert Mugabe is on Friday and Saturday expected to cap thousands of graduates at Bindura and Midlands’ state universities as more and more learned youths join the ranks of unemployment amid fears of increased company closures and job losses next year due to the comatose economy.

The months of October and November have in fact been hectic for Mugabe (91) as has officiated at more than six state universities and other state-run institutions of higher learning, capping graduates.
Last week Friday he was in at the National University of Science and Technology in Bulawayo while the previous week he officiated at the Harare Institute of Technology after having dealt with the University of Zimbabwe earlier.
Information obtained by Radio VOP indicated the Zanu PF leader, who to his credit holds more than seven degrees and is an advocate of education, has been pencilled to cap graduates on Friday at Bindura University of Science Education before proceeding to do the honours at the Midlands State University in Gweru on Saturday.

The following week he is due to perform the same rituals at Lupane State University in Matabeleland North, among other pending graduations.

But critics say the new graduates are destined to swell the ranks of unemployment, probably as vendors of airtime and other products peddled in the streets, in a country where unemployment is estimated at over 90%. The critics are adamant Mugabe’s much-hyped Zim-Asset, the Zanu-PF economic blue-print taunted as the panacea to Zimbabwe’s economic problems, has failed to create any jobs.

Under Zim-Asset, Zanu PF envisaged creating more than 2 million jobs by 2018 but the critics say it is impossible citing policy inconsistencies in government, the economic melt-down, corruption and the resurgence of political violence ahead of the next general elections.

More than 20 000 workers were retrenched since the July 17 Constitutional Court ruling which allowed employers to terminate contracts of workers after three months’ notice.

The government then rail-roaded amendments to the Labour Act, which among other things, directs employers to pay the retrenched workers two weeks’ salary for every year served but the employers have appealed against the amendment, arguing companies have no money to pay retrenchees due to the harsh economic environment.

But questions abound where jobs would come from for the new university graduates at a time companies are operating at less than 30% capacity and battling to finance operations amid a renewed economic melt-down.

Former education minister, David Coltart told VOP that the fundamental problem with Zimbabwe’s education sector for more than 2 decades is that the entire system is lopsided in favour of academics. “We have produced hundreds of thousands of graduates with excellent academic qualifications with very few jobs to accommodate them. Nothing much has changed and so the future in the short term for most of these graduates is bleak, with little prospect of employment for most,” said Coltart.

“Until there is a radical change in government policies that situation won’t change; and even when the policy changes are made it is going to take about a decade for the full benefits of the change to be realised. Sadly neither Mugabe not ZANU PF generally has a solution to the crisis because they are locked in the past and do not have the capacity to mobilise the massive international funding required transforming our education sector,” he added.

Promise Mkhwananzi, the director of Zimbabwe Informal Sector Organisation (Ziso), charged that the only solution Mugabe has for Zimbabwe is to step down. “As Ziso we are receiving jobless graduates every day in the informal sector which in itself is not only already saturated but barely able to provide the basic needs of the players in the sector due to government’s warped policies and ignorant approaches and attitudes towards the informal sector,” said Mkhwananzi, a former student leader.

Makomborero Haruzivishe, an executive member of the Zimbabwe National Students Union, concurred, saying there is no future to speak of for these new graduates.
“There is a clear dereliction of duty and responsibility by Mugabe on the issue of providing living opportunities for these graduates. Employment is an empowerment process that involves individual discovery and change. Millions of youth are denied these opportunities. As such the only solution Robert Mugabe has is to step down and give way to socio economic transformation,” he said.

Blessing Vava, a political analyst and former student activist, agrees the future looks bleak for the thousands of graduates being churned out from institutions of higher learning.
“There is no job market to consume them and this is mainly caused by the economic decay, which in fact had caused unemployment levels to rise. Most of the graduates will find themselves in the streets. Mugabe has failed this country, he has destroyed hope especially for the young people,” said Vava.

“The young people no longer have any ambitions to pursue their dreams, when we were growing up we would say I want to be a doctor, a pilot. Nowadays those ambitions and wishes are gone.”

RadioVOP Zimbabwe

16th November 2015

By Sij Ncube

HARARE, November 16, 2015 – DIE-HARD white former Rhodesians domiciled elsewhere in the world nostalgically marked the 50th anniversary of Ian Smith’s UDI Wednesday last week much to the chagrin of Robert Mugabe’s administration but former Rhodesians still domiciled in the country agree old Smithy “did a silly thing”.

Most Rhodies, as the former Rhodesians under Smith are known, took the gap soon after Mugabe assumed the reigns at in 1980, finding sanctuary in far flung places such as Australia, New Zealand and Britain, Zimbabwe’s former colonial master.

Last week some of them lined up events to commemorate Smith’s UDI as they remember the “good old days under Dear Old Smithy and his Super Rhodesia, raising anger within Mugabe’s Zanu PF who view some whites Zimbabweans of being unrepentant 35 years into independent.

But the few former white who lived and served under Smith’s UDI but stayed on to live under Mugabe’s controversial rule, took note of the 50th anniversary in Zimbabwe albeit without any fun-fare.
However, the few whites still domiciled in Zimbabwe say they have embraced Mugabe’s rule and are in agreement UDI was fundamentally flawed when Smith unilaterally declared it in 1965.

David Coltart, a celebrated human rights lawyer who served as a policeman under UDI and is also a former cabinet minister under Mugabe during Zimbabwe’s ill-fated government of national unity, is presently writing a book chronicling life under Smith’s UDI.

Coltart, considered a fiery critic of Mugabe’s rule since independence, hopes to publish the book early next year.

“Despite the worries of people like my parents and last minute efforts of the British Government to dissuade them, the RF (Rhodesia Front) continued with its helter-skelter policy to declare independence. Somewhat disingenuously at 11am on November 11 1965, Armistice Day, during the traditional two minutes silence to remember the fallen in the two World Wars, the Rhodesian Cabinet gathered around Smith as he signed the Declaration of Independence. The declaration itself and the ceremony was modelled on the American declaration but omitted two keys phrases, that “all men are created equal” and the “consent of the governed”.
“The timing was made to emphasise the sacrifices that Rhodesians had made for Britain. Attached to the declaration was an amended version of the 1961 Constitution severing all ties to Whitehall and creating a separate Rhodesian monarchy (making Elizabeth II “Queen of Rhodesia”, a title which she was never well disposed to take up).

“As was his custom, my Father came home for lunch that Thursday. The Rhodesian Broadcasting Coporation had announced that the Prime Minister would be addressing the Nation at 1.15pm. After a quick lunch we moved to my Father’s study to listen to the radio. I sat on my father’s lap with my Mother alongside. Smith announced what he and the Cabinet had done in his clipped Rhodesian accent. My Father shook his head throughout the broadcast and at the end turned to me and said in his lilting Scottish accent “Oh Davie boy – Mr Smith has done a very silly thing”, reads part of an extra from Coltart’s forthcoming book.

John Robertson, a respected Harare-based economist and economic commentator who also lived and served under UDI, says the UDI made life tough for the country as it dependent heavily from outsider assistance.
“Our Declaration of Independence made us anything but independent. We soon became totally dependent on South Africa and Portugal and on just South Africa after 1975. The claim that UDI spurred Rhodesia’s industrialization ignores the large industrial foundation that was built even before the Federation started,” said Robertson.

“The country has never recovered from those 15 years of isolation, despite the many remarkable successes of people who loved the country, even though a high proportion of them were very critical of the RF government.”
But Mugabe’s supporters are adamant there are unrepentant whites outside Zimbabwe who still cherish UDI 50 years later after the Zanu PF leader instituted land reform.

Mugabe’s controversial land reform has largely been perceived by the outside world as reverse racism after he seized farms for redistribution to landless blacks. But seizures of white held farms appear to be escalating ahead of the 2018 polls. For instance, in Matabeleland South, poplar farmer David Connolly is desperately fighting the take-over of his farm in Figtree by Mugabe’s aide Ray Ndhlukula, the deputy chief secretary of cabinet and President’s Office.
Despite several court rulings, Ndhlukula has refused to leave the farm, giving credence to assertions Mugabe wants to flash out of Zimbabwe the few remaining white former Rhodesians.

Giving his perceptive published on an Australian website rhodesia.com.au last Wednesday to mark the 50th anniversary of UDI, Mark Dale, a reservist who had a modesty experience in the bush war in former Rhodesia, attributed Zimbabwe’s present political and economic quagmire squarely on Mugabe leadership.

“Rather than make the effort of running the complex modern economy and efficient infrastructure that Mugabe inherited, “he (Mugabe) preferred to become a paramount tribal thug similar to many of the tyrants found elsewhere in Africa. He ran a kleptocracy based on patronage. The web that held the hierarchy together was corruption. Corruption is essential so that the leader has a hold over his cronies,” wrote Dale.
“Mugabe sent his infamous North Korean brigade to the west of the country to slaughter thousands of Ndebele. He sent the national army to the Congo in search of loot. Meanwhile at home the country spiralled into impoverishment. He printed money that led to inflation that surpassed even that of the German Weimar republic.”

Dale notes that a significant proportion of the population is now outside the country seeking work and “an existence at least marginally better than poverty and hopelessness at home.”
“There is always enough for the favoured few at the top of the dung heap. Mugabe and his Close cronies have enjoyed lavish lifestyles for decades. Intriguingly Mugabe, now 90 years old, looks and sounds little different from the Mugabe I left behind 35 years ago. He is a little bulkier round the middle but I put that down to a bullet proof vest under his stylish suit. If I believed in the supernatural I would say he had sold his soul to the devil.”

Sunday News

By Mehluli Sibanda

15th November 2015

FORMER Education, Sport, Arts and Culture Minister David Coltart recently came under heavy attack from Zimbabwe Cricket after he had taken to Twitter and Facebook lambasting the Zimbabwe Cricket leadership led by Tavengwa Mukuhlani while glorifying former head of ZC Wilson Manase.

Sunday News senior sports reporter Mehluli Sibanda (MS) spoke to Coltart (DC) based on the statement released by ZC. Below are excerpts of the interview.

MS: Wilson Manase was part of the ZC board that was led by Peter Chingoka and was vice-chairman from 2011 until he took over as interim chairman from Chingoka in July last year. How can he be dissociated from the decisions made by the previous ZC board he was part of?

DC: Manase was vice-chairman in the Chingoka board and to that extent shares responsibility for the decisions it made. However, during my time as minister I always found Manase a constructive force who tried to persuade the Chingoka board to act responsibly.

MS: Manase was once your subordinate at Legal Resources Foundation, could this be the reason why you have gone all out to glorify him on social media? Manase was outvoted for the ZC chairmanship, why don’t you seem to respect that and if he had done such a wonderful job during his time as interim chairman how come he could not even get onto the ZC board?

DC: Manase was never my subordinate in the LRF. He was director of the Harare Legal Projects Centre when I was director of the Bulawayo Legal Projects Centre. He later became national director of the mother body the Legal Resources Foundation. I have no idea how Manase lost the vote. From an objective outsiders position it seemed to me that he had done a good job in turning Zimbabwe Cricket around so I was surprised that he lost. I am afraid that the new Zimbabwe Cricket constitution can hardly be viewed as the epitome of democracy. Ever since it was changed by Chingoka’s board it has generally prevented people who enjoy the support of the players and the cricketing public from securing high office. The reality is that cricket in Zimbabwe is now controlled by a small Harare based clique who do not have the national interests of the game at heart. The fact that Bulawayo has not hosted a Test playing nation for well over a year is adequate testimony of that fact.

MS: Is there any truth in that Manase took orders from you when he took over as ZC interim chairman? Did you ever send him a lengthy e-mail with a four point plan soon after he took over from Chingoka, the action plan starting with the sacking of Stephen Mangongo as national team coach just before the World Cup?

DC: There is no truth in that allegation. Being friends we exchanged e-mails but he is his own man and at no time did I ever give orders, nor did he ever act on any other basis than what he viewed as best for cricket. I think the sacking of Mangongo was the result of the utterly disastrous tour of Bangladesh last year and growing dissension in the ranks of the players who thoroughly disliked his management style. Many national players, of all races, have confirmed that to me. Mangongo’s sacking therefore had nothing to do with any views I may have had, which in any event were informed by the sentiments expressed to me by many of the players.

MS: If you were really sincere about fighting racism in cricket, how come you were silent when former national team player Mark Vermeulen called black people apes?

DC: I was not silent when Vermeulen made his disgusting remarks. My Twitter feed is ample evidence so any allegation that I was silent is an absolute falsehood.

MS: You vigorously fought against England, Australia and New Zealand coming to Zimbabwe citing human rights abuses in the country, was denying the cricket loving public in Zimbabwe watching the top cricket playing nations in itself not a human right violation on your part?

DC: Once again this is a shameful falsehood. I have never tried to persuade any of these countries not to come to or play against Zimbabwe – in fact the record shows the complete opposite. If you read Henry Olonga’s book you will see that in 2003 I met with the English team to persuade them to fulfill their obligation and to come to Zimbabwe. Duncan Fletcher’s autobiography I think confirms that too. If you need confirmation of this stance speak to both Olonga and Flower who were present in the meeting which took place in the Cullinan Hotel in Cape Town in February 2003. When I became minister I almost singlehandedly restored cricketing ties between Zimbabwe and England, on the one hand, and Australia, New Zealand and Ireland, on the other hand. In June 2010 I travelled to Australia and New Zealand and persuaded them to restore cricketing ties with Zimbabwe which resulted in both countries touring Zimbabwe again. In August 2010 I flew to Belfast and persuaded the Irish team to tour which they did shortly after. During the same period I met with both the Scottish and English to persuade them to come but my efforts were blocked by Whitehall.

MS: You accuse the ZC board of racism in sacking Andrew Waller as national team batting coach and post glowing batting statistics for batsmen since Waller took over but have all those statistics contributed to Zimbabwe winning matches?

DC: Sadly these statistics have not contributed towards Zimbabwe winning matches because in most of our losses, since Waller started, the side has been let down by very poor bowling performances. In fact under Waller the team has scored some of its highest totals ever which its bowlers have been unable to defend – here are a few examples:
– 277 all out against South Africa in World Cup, 286/6 against the UAE in World Cup
– 289 all out against the West Indies, 326 all out against Ireland, 287 all out against India, 334/5 v Pakistan in the first ODI, – 268/7 in the second ODI while the third ODI was disrupted by rain, 251 against India in the first ODI, 304/3 in the first ODI against New Zealand.

Match winning total of 276/6 against Pakistan in September. I would argue that Zimbabwe hasn’t consistently scored better than this in a long time. But during the same period our bowling has been abysmal. It is inexplicable that Waller should be fired but the bowling coach Hondo appears to have been kept on.

MS: Do you want to be consulted by ZC when they are firing and hiring coaches?

DC: Of course not. However, I am a Zimbabwean citizen with a lifelong interest in the game and it is my right to speak out when I see the game being destroyed.

MS: Before you accuse the Mukuhlani led board of racism, are you aware of the following proposals for appointments that the same board you accuse of destroying cricket: Trevor Gripper to be on the cricket committee and he turned down the offer, Ray Price to be on the cricket committee and to be the U19 specialist bowling coach and he turned down the offer, Whitestone Primary School of Bulawayo were approached to give representation on the development committee and the offer was turned down, Ruzawi have declined to give ZC their coach for national under-13, St George’s College declined for their school to serve on the development committee, Gregory Lamb was offered the appointed U-19 batting coach post and he has taken up the position.

DC: See above. I have no idea about whether what the ZC board has told you is correct or not. If it is correct then they should make this public and also explain why they have sacked Waller. I see no evidence before me which suggest that Waller was fired on the basis of cricket. It is incumbent on ZC to explain on what cricketing grounds Waller was fired.

MS: The question that still remains unanswered is in what capacity did you send that email to Wilson Manase, were you a consultant for Manase?

DC: No I was not a consultant and did not write in any formal capacity. Manase and I have been friends and colleagues for some 30 years and he wrote asking for my opinion. If you look at the e-mail published in The Herald you will see that I was responding to his request.

MS: Does it mean any ordinary Zimbabwean can write to the chairman of the ZC board and have their views actually implemented?

DC: If any person has the 30 year friendship I had I suppose so. But what is not being stated is that Manase only implemented some of my suggestions – for example he disregarded my views regarding Makoni?

MS: Did you play a part in the tour to Pakistan as well where Manase defied the Sports and Recreation Commission and Government in embarking on such a risky tour to a civil war ravaged country?

DC: No I had no role of any sort in that decision although I supported the tour.

MS: You championed the #Bringackwilsonmanase to #Zimbabwe #cricket campaign on social media yet Manase lost an election to Tavengwa Mukuhlani so how are you going to bring back Manase to cricket and through which means?

DC: I am a citizen and it is my right to use whatever influence I have to persuade the cricketing public to support my views.

MS: If Manase was indeed the man for the job why did he lose to Mukuhlani, Manase was within while Mukuhlani was outside the ZC structures yet he lost.

DC: I have no idea but am aware that Manase was trying to deal with cricket’s murky past and powerful forces were activated to make sure he was stopped in his tracks.

MS: How come you are not as vocal on other sports which are not doing well in Zimbabwe, you are only vocal about cricket yet other sports codes are going down in this country?

DC: Cricket has always been a particular passion of mine – the only other sport I have a similar interest in is golf.

MS: The looting story that was published on ZC you have not acknowledged that it was for December 2014 when Wilson Manase was ZC interim chairman?

DC: I have always acknowledged that Manase was vice-chairman when the ICC loan scandal took place but have seen no evidence that he was personally involved. As stated before I found Manase cooperative when I was minister.

The Standard

By Blessed Mhlanga

15th November 2015

Tapiwa Nyamweda raises her hand timidly to respond to questions while seated on baking sands in what passes for a classroom at Dambudzo Primary School.

Dambudzo is a council-owned school in Kwekwe’s high-density suburb of Mbizo.
For Nyamweda, school starts at 12pm, by which time her peers from other schools in the low-density areas would be starting swimming, tennis or hockey lessons.

Dambudzo Primary School, with an enrollment of 1 417 pupils, is not the only school which has to conduct classes under trees in this mining town.

Several other schools have also resorted to this “hot-sitting” arrangement in order to cope with the influx of students that continue to pile pressure on the few inadequately resourced schools.

The schools do not receive any funding from government and depend on levies collected from the poor parents in the community of Kwekwe, where people are losing jobs in their hundreds as companies continue to close.

According to Midlands education director Agnes Gudo, educational infrastructure in the province is in a sorry state.

Some schools, she said, especially in the rural areas, did not even have critical facilities like toilets.
She said Early Childhood Education (ECD) was especially compromised because of this lack of adequate infrastructure.

“We also do not have resources such as vehicles to effectively run these institutions because government has failed to provide them,” Gudo told Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa recently.

Midlands has 637 primary schools, 132 of them being satellite schools found on farms expropriated from white farmers at the height of the controversial land reform programme.

About 32 of them have had to enrol students that double their capacity, resulting in the hot-sitting programme being initiated to accommodate the many children.

During a visit at Zivombvu Seconday school in Silobela in the inclusive government era, then minister of Education David Coltart was shocked to find a single two classroom block housing nearly 150 students from Form 1 to 4.

Coltart then said he had sourced over $60 million to build infrastructure, mostly in rural schools in order to improve the quality of learning.

But the situation at Zivombvu is still bad, so much that when it rains, students cannot attend classes as the entire student population, together with their teachers must find shelter from the rain in the two classrooms.

There are no textbooks at most of the satellite schools, just as qualified teachers are equally scarce.

Kwekwe mayor Matenda Madzoke lamented the sorry state of schools in the town, saying lack of investment spelt doom for future generations.

He said the shortage of formal schools was the major reason for the mushrooming of unregistered colleges.

“The shortage of learning facilities in Kwekwe has forced many of our pupils to fall victim to illegal colleges, which do not even have basic facilities,” Madzoke said.

At Riverside Primary School — 10km outside Kwekwe — lessons are conducted in what used to be an ostrich meat butchery and a workshop.

According to officials, the pass rate at the school is very low as many pupils fail to attend school during the rainy season and in winter.

Midlands province recorded a 48,3% pass rate for Grade Seven results in 2013 and 55,5% in 2014, but critics said the results did not reflect the true picture of the state of education in the province.

Gudo said Midlands was also facing a serious shortage of science and maths teachers.

She urged the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education to roll-out the teacher capacity development programme in order to address the problem.

Primary and Secondary Education minister Lazarus Dokora has urged his staff to stretch themselves and achieve high-quality results, even with the little resources at their disposal.

School development committees (SDCs) have been the engines of development at various schools but their work is often hampered by ill-advised government directives.

Rio Tinto SDC secretary, Owen Matava said the freezing of school fees at a time when water, electricity, building and learning material costs were going up, did not serve the interests of the schools.

“Government has said parents should run these schools; they should therefore allow us room to do what’s best for our school,” he said.

“We cannot improve infrastructure and quality of education if the fees being paid are low and government is not subsidising anything. It is therefore government’s fault that most schools are in a sorry state,” he said.

After winning the 2013 elections, Zanu PF imposed a ceiling on school fees, accusing schools of burdening poor parents.

Eye Witness News

By Thando Kubheka

14th November 2015

JOHANNESBURG – African Union (AU) chairperson, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, has sent her condolences and solidarity to French President Francois Hollande and the people of France following the deadly mass attacks in that country.

At least 125 people are now known to have died in the attacks, which were the worst terror attacks in France’s history.

The Islamic State has since claimed responsibility for the attack.

The Bataclan music hall where California rock band Death Metal was performing, the Stade de France where French President Francois Hollande was among soccer match spectators and a number of restaurants in Paris came under attack.

The AU chairperson says she has learnt with shock and disbelief of the attacks in Paris.

Dlamini-Zuma has condemned the mass killings in the strongest terms, calling the acts despicable and barbaric.

She has called for swift action in the search for those behind the attacks and says they must be brought to book.

Dlamini-Zuma has also wished a speedy recovery to those wounded and says the AU stands in solidarity and in full support of the people of France.

ZIMBABWE TOP OFFICIALS ADD TO CONDEMNATION

Top officials in Zimbabwe have been adding their voices to the condemnation of the attacks in Paris last night.

Local government minister Saviour Kasukuwere tweeted that terror was unacceptable and despicable.

His remark echoed that of David Coltart, the lawyer and former education minister from the opposition MDC, who said that terrorism and violence in any form was evil.

Revulsion to these attacks has been voiced by Zimbabweans on many social media platforms.

Higher Education Minister Jonathan Moyo pointed out on Twitter that this attack in Paris was an attack on humanity and didn’t just affect the French.

Zimbabwe has its own high level UNESCO delegation in Paris at the moment, attending the UN body’s general conference.

The Chronicle

3 November 2015

FORMER Education and Sports Minister David Coltart stands accused of having wielded so much influence in the administration of Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) that he even triggered the axing of Stephen Mangongo as the senior national team coach ahead of the 2015 Cricket World Cup. Mangongo was axed in dramatic fashion in December last year, just a few weeks before the Chevrons embarked on their World Cup tour in New Zealand and Australia, and was replaced by Aussie coach Dav Whatmore.

The Chevrons lost five of their six group games – going down to South Africa by 62 runs, West Indies by 73 runs, Pakistan by 20 runs, India by six wickets and Ireland by five runs – while only beating Associate nation United Arab Emirates. The senior national team has also slumped to an embarrassing home series defeat, in both the One-Day Internationals and Twenty20 internationals to Afghanistan.

Amid an explosion of the usual boardroom battles at ZC, Coltart is now being accused of exerting his influence to shape the game, and triggering the axing of Mangongo and remote controlling the running of domestic cricket. Coltart has always been a fierce critic of Mangongo and Givemore Makoni, the former ZC convener of selectors, with the two accusing the former Sports Minister of pushing a racist agenda to weed them out of the game.

The Bulawayo-based politician, who was accused of playing a leading role in smuggling the political baggage which the game was forced to carry ahead of the 2003 World Cup, including allegations that he flew to Cape Town to persuade England not to fly to Zimbabwe for their match, has also been a fierce critic of former ZC managing director Ozias Bvute.

Now, it has been revealed that Coltart played a key role in the axing of Mangongo. An email that he wrote to former ZC chairman Wilson Manase reveals that Coltart badly wanted Mangongo to be removed from his post.

“You have asked what needs to be done and I suggest the following:
1) At the very least Mangongo must be removed as coach of the national team. When a coach loses the respect of players it is very difficult to regain that trust. I know it is hard doing this so close to the World Cup but I don’t believe you have any other choice. Of course, it will be difficult to get a replacement at such late notice but I am sure that any number of former players would step into the breach — what you need is a good man manager as our lads already have superb talent. I think that Douglas Hondo, Wayne James and even Ray Price would do a good job.

2) You need to at the very least get more balance in selection – I recognise that, politically, it may be hard to sack Makoni and Mangongo at the same time, but Makoni works closely with Mangongo and has lost the respect of the vast majority of players – he uses similar tactics to Mangongo. I am aware that he is not listening to either the wishes of (Elton) Chigumbura or (Brendan) Taylor and they were astonished by some of his choices. Ideally, he should be removed but if you can’t go that far now, then I think you need to create a panel involving former players – bring in (Tatenda) Taibu as a selector so that the race card cannot be played and perhaps another former player and state that the majority must prevail. Then in the World Cup don’t send the convener of selectors (that often happens with other Test teams) and leave the day-to-day selection at the World Cup to the coaching team and captain.

3) Those are the immediate things you need to do in the run up to the World Cup but you should go further. The tragedy of ZC is that there are many non-racist whites who genuinely want cricket to flourish among all races. You should identify those people and bring them into your structures as they will help you, not work against you. There are obvious people like Heath Streak but there are others out there. Stuart Carlisle is one but I am sure that people like John Rennie and Ray Price would get involved in the franchises if you asked them to. I know this is a balancing act – you don’t want to be accused of being an Uncle Tom and no one wants to see cricket return to the days of white dominance – we need a partnership and I think that there are many whites and Asians who would work under you helping implement your vision, not some racist agenda. I think you would be surprised how much goodwill there is out there amongst people who just want Zim Cricket to thrive – they don’t care whether it is Vusi Sibanda or Sean Williams scoring runs – they just want the team to perform to its best ability.

4) Then I think you need to deal with the fraudulent past. I know this is a tough call but those who have looted the coffers, at the very least, should be excluded from further involvement and ideally held to account. Until you do so you will battle to get the corporate support you need because the perception in the business community is that Zim Cricket is a bad brand – and they don’t want their companies associated with it. You can only deal with that perception by taking some symbolic steps.

“There is more but that is enough for this evening. I recognise you have a tough job. No matter what you do you will be attacked for taking a stand. But one thing is clear, if you do not act, then cricket, as we know it today, or rather yesterday, in Zimbabwe, will die.

“I spoke to Alvord Mabena on Sunday about the state of the NRZ and he was speaking about just how hard it is for him to try to turn the organisation around now as chairman because so much of the institutional memory of the organisation has been lost. A similar danger faces ZC – if we lose the current crop of players, it will be hard to retain Test status and we may become (an) Associate member or simply a Test member who no-one plays against.

“If that happens we will go the way of Kenya and sadly you will be the person accused of causing its demise because it will happen during your watch. “However, if you act boldly and turn it around you will get the credit.”

New Zimbabwe.Com

By Tavengwa Mukhulani

2 November 2015

Below is an article by Zimbabwe Cricket chair Tavengwa Mukhulani on former sports minister David Coltart’s continued involvement with the sport.

ZIMBABWE Cricket and I have noted with serious concern David Coltart’s unfortunate remarks in a Facebook post accusing ZC of racism for making changes in the senior national team’s backroom set-up that resulted in batting coach Andy Waller losing his job while bowling coach Douglas Hondo was redeployed to the Zimbabwe A side.

Coltart’s views are misplaced. We are not in the business of rewarding effort, we reward results. We do not consult him who we hire and fire. And as a matter of policy, we do not discuss employee issues in the media beyond making necessary announcements. Coltart does not need to be satisfied by our actions. The statistics he is quoting, are not good enough to win us games. They are just numbers. They may be right in term of statistics, but that does not win us matches.

The scurrilous allegations that Coltart has made will not force us to deviate from the norm. Suffice to say, we as the custodians of the game of cricket in Zimbabwe have the prerogative to make decisions that we believe will take the sport forward.

And when we make changes to our coaching structures, we do not consider one’s skin colour as Coltart alleges. ZC has approached Grant Flower to come back home and take up the batting coach position. Grant, however, indicated that he was serving his contract in Pakistan until July 2016. And again we do not need to seek Coltart’s approval on that. And it must be noted that when he left ZC, the Board did not get rid of him as is being alleged by Coltart. He resigned to take up a coaching position in Pakistan.

Alistair Campbell resigned according to the communication that he sent. He had personal frustrations stemming from unfulfilled promises that had been made to him by then chairman Wilson Manase. He said the final nail on the coffin was that his son had not been selected in the Under-19 squad for the World Cup. He was also frustrated that ZC had not appointed his son’s coach within its structures.

Campbell then proposed to be a consultant to ZC, working three months in a year earning a huge monthly salary, with school fees being paid for his children at Falcon, three regional trips and three international trips per year. This proposal was denied by ZC.
Coltart claims that the current board removed key responsibilities from Campbell. The only change is that domestic cricket was assigned to the Game Development department and rightfully so because domestic cricket falls under development.

The Manase board had created the post of Director Game Development without assigning the responsibilities. And, so when the new board came in, it had to assign the domestic cricket function to the new director of Game Development. The commercial aspect was never taken away from him. Even if any responsibility had been taken from Campbell we cannot work on the basis of comments from the gallery.

ZC must be able to evolve on its own. All the black players that Coltart boasts were coached by Stephen Mangongo and simply because Mangongo is black he cannot give him that credit. Taibu, Chigumbura, Masakadza, Sibanda, Utseya, Chibhabha were coached by Mangongo.

Coltart only knew them when they were in the national team whereas Mangongo knew them when they were in Grade Three facing resistance from the same people that he said should take over ZC.

And where was Coltart? Are these players not a product of a sound development system?

The problem with Coltart is that he thinks an ex-cricketer is only a white player. For instance he gave the famous interim chairman Manase the instruction to engage Stuart Carlisle, John Rennie, Ray Price, Heath Streak, Wayne James.

Any names suggested outside Coltart’s bank of white cricketers is incompetent, not good enough. In one of his instructive emails to Manase, he suggested that Taibu be brought in as a selector so that the race card would not be played and that Manase would not appear to be an Uncle Tom.

Manase was on the ZC board since 2006. He became vice-chairman in 2011 and interim chairman in July 2014. How is it that all of a sudden Manase was never part of the decision-making process for all this time he was on the ZC board? How does he, all of a sudden, become dissociated with all the decisions of the previous boards?

The only reason why Manase would be a good chairman is that he took orders from Coltart. For example, soon after his appointment as interim chairman of the ZC board he was given a four-point action plan by Coltart through a lengthy email which is in my possession.

The action plan started by firing Mangongo, then national team coach, before the World Cup. Manase worked as Coltart’s subordinate at Legal Resources Foundation and as his protégé he can only believe in him and no one else. If Coltart is sincere about fighting racism in ZC we would have expected to get a similar lengthy article from him responding to Vermeulen after he called black cricketers ‘apes’.

Queens Sports Club and Harare Sports Club immensely benefitted from hosting the 2003 World Cup but surprisingly the person who claims he stands for cricket vigorously fought for New Zealand, Australia and England not to come and play here citing human rights abuses as if denying the locals from watching cricket played here was not in itself an abuse of human rights.

The current board, which he points as racist and claims wants to destroy cricket, made the following proposals for appointments:

1 Trevor Gripper to be on the cricket committee and he turned down the offer.

2 Ray Price to be on the cricket committee and to be the Under-19 specialist bowling coach and he turned down the offer.

3 We have approached Whitestone primary school to give us representation on the development committee and the offer was turned down.

4 Ruzawi has declined to give us their coach for national Under-13.

5 St George’s declined for their school to serve on the development committee.

6 Gregory Lamb was offered the appointed Under-19 batting coach post and he has taken up the post.

It would appear that to Coltart the only thing that is deemed correct is when a black man appoints a white man. Racism is only racism when Coltart feels that a white man has been hard done.

He has been silent about Prosper Utseya and Vermeulen. Can Coltart become just an ordinary cricket fan like everyone else and stop being an administrator, coach and selector? He quotes many times that he has been advised — as who?

Coltart is at liberty to contest in any portfolio and become an administrator or apply for these jobs rather than make unjustified conclusions.

Tavengwa Mukhulani is the chairman of Zimbabwe Cricket board.