Radio VOP

19 June 2015

Harare, June 18,2015 – Chaos is reigning supreme within the Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA), the country’s soccer controlling body, amid indications it is just a matter of time before the Sports and Recreation Commission (SRC) dissolved the embattled Cuthbert Dube executive, risking the country’s isolation from international football.
But football experts suspect a hidden political hand behind the shenanigans at ZIFA.
Dube has been under-fire from critics since his controversial re-election in March last year who accuse him and his side-kick, Jonathan Mashikaidze, the ZIFA chief executive officer, of presiding over the dearth of local football.
There have been accusations of dilatory supervision of the local game and alleged bad governance at ZIFA House in Livingstone Avenue, charges Dube and Mashingaidze vehemently deny.
Critics calling for Dube’s head point at the always chaotic preparations of the country’s national teams ahead of crucial matches.
Just last week Warriors coach Calisto Pasuwa and national senior team players missed their flight to Lilongwe in protest over outstanding allowances.
Self-appointed prophet Walter Magaya later chipped in, hiring a bus and paying the players $200 each from his pocket.
This week the fixture against Comoros was in limbo as Pasuwa and his charges were reportedly reluctant to full-fill the fixture again due to outstanding allowances.
On their part, Dube and his executive, who are saddled with crippling debts, argue ZIFA is technically insolvent and blame some of the mounting debts to previous executives. Previously Dube has used his personal funds to bankrolling the national teams.
Be that as it may, the internecine fight for the control has created two distinct factions in support of or against Dube and his side-kicks.
Last month some ZIFA councillors allegedly led by his deputy Omega Sibanda passed a resolution to suspend the businessman and two other councillors thought to be in his pocket but move back-fired.
In a typical retributive and pre-emptive move, Dube has proceeding to suspend the 16 councillors, including his vice Sibanda, sparking further chaos at ZIFA. Sibanda and his faction have described their suspension as a nullity.
Apart from Bulawayo-based Sibanda, other Zifa officials suspended during a board meeting on Monday include board member finance Bernard Gwarada, regional chairpersons Musa Mandaza, Piraishe Mabhena (Eastern), Felton Kamambo (Central) and Willard Manyengavana (Northern).
Also suspended were Northern Region secretary Sweeney Mushonga and Matabeleland North provincial chairman Denis Tshuma.
The discord at ZIFA has attracted the attention of the Zanu PF administration with some influential ministers allegedly nudging the SRC to fire Dube despite likely FIFA threats of suspending the country from international football citing political interference.
The state media has been in the fore-fronting of wanting Dube’s executive shown the door like yesterday.
But a Sports Editor with an independent local daily newspaper, speaking strictly is not named due to the sensitivity of the matter, said the bigger problem is that ZIFA, from independence from Britain in 1980, has always been a Zanu(PF) front.
“But the same Zanu people have not been able to finance its operations,” he said.
Past leaders from Leo Mugabe, Vincent Pamire, Rafik Khan and Wellington Nyatanga are known Zanu (PF) functionaries or sympathisers.
Sibanda, Dube’s suspended deputy, is accused of is using Zanu to try and oust Dube. He, however, was not immediately available for comment.
But Jacob Mafume, the spokesperson for MDC Renewal who has a passion for local football, said the state needs to set aside a budget for football every year instead of sponsoring factionalism in soccer as it is the case at ZIFA.
“The minister of sports (Andrew Langa) seems to have forgotten soccer is a sport which needs funding not politics,” said Mafume.
David Coltart, a former Sports minister during the government of national (GNU) told Radio VOP it would not be surprising if the SRC dissolved Dube’s executive, pointing out the statutory body has the power to do so under the country’s statutes.
“The SRC has the power under the SRC Act to suspend any sports association, so it is clear that it has the domestic legal authority to do so,” said Coltart, adding that the consequences are not domestic but international.
“In the past FIFA have suspended countries from international football when government have “interfered” with national football bodies and so ZIFA, or whatever replaces it could be suspended from FIFA and as a result Zimbabwe suspended from all international matches. But given the turmoil within FIFA at present though, it remains to be seen whether they would act in this way now.”
Coltart added that whatever the case government needs to provide FIFA with compelling evidence why ZIFA should be suspended and in that regard would have to go on a major publicity drive.

News 24

19 June 2012

Zimbabweans have taken to Twitter to express their disgust after the country’s prosecutor general Johannes Tomana made comments that seemed to suggest that girls as young as 12-years-old should be allowed to have sex and get married.

According to a state-owned newspaper, the Chronicle, Tomana said girls as young as 12-years-old had a right to be listened to by the courts if they wished to start families with older men.

Tomana said, at this age, girls were capable of giving consent to sex.

A New Zimbabwe.com report said Tomana felt that young girls out of school and with no prospect in life because of the dire socio-economic conditions in the country should be allowed to have sex.

Alternative engagements

“We’ve 9-year-olds, 12-year-olds, 13-year-olds who’re actually not in school, who’re not doing anything for example. What are we saying to them?… We say you can’t even do this [have sex], when the environment is not giving them alternative engagements? What are we talking about?” Tomana was quoted as saying.

This, however sparked outrage on social media, with the former education minister David Coltart saying: “Tomana’s comments show that the girl child can expect very little sympathy in our prosecutorial system & predatory men the opposite”.

Coltart added: “In most democracies comments such as those made by Tomana would lead to them having to resign. #profoundlyshocked”

Chief K Masimba wrote: “No to Tomana’s Perverted Thinking Child marriage jeopardises efforts to improve maternal and infant health…”

‘Danger to our girls’

Another tweet from @Dambakuomnbera read: “Tomana is very good example why Zimbabwe needs leadership renewal.”

Nyradzai said: “Tomana is a danger to our girls. He is unable to protect them constitutionally. 12 can never be allowed as age of [consent].”

This comes as media reports last week indicated that there was mounting outrage in the country after two men aged 35 and 29 were acquitted of rape after they had sex with a 15-year-old girl at a house in Bulawayo. The magistrate said the girl “did not scream” and “knew what she wanted”.

The Zimbabwean law is not clear on the age of consent. A law expert, Alex Magaisa, told News24 recently that although the country’s criminal code appeared to set the age of consent at 16, the law only provided “absolute protection” in cases of rape to a child who is under 12″.

New Zimbabwe.com reported on Friday that most families in Zimbabwe were struggling to put food on the table and children were forced to drop out of school because parents could not afford to pay fees.

News24

June 16 2015

Harare- The fact that Zimbabwe has to find $300m to import food this year because of a massive drop in maize production is due to the ruling party’s ruinous agricultural policies, the main opposition party said Tuesday.

The situation in Zimbabwe could not be “more desperate than what it is right now”, said Obert Gutu, a spokesperson for the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) led by Morgan Tsvangirai.

Zimbabwe used to be known as the breadbasket of Southern Africa. On Monday, Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa said $300m was needed for food imports.

“For the record, I want to assure that government will do all in its power to ensure that no one starves and that everyone gets food of adequate nutritional value,” Mnangagwa told state-run ZBC radio.

Mnangagwa, who was speaking at the launch of a report by the UN World Food Programme, said maize production had decreased by 49% and hoped the next harvest would be “significantly better than this one”.

The US-funded Famine Early Warning Systems Network has warned that food shortages could reach crisis levels by July if there was no food aid.

President Robert Mugabe’s government insists that the poor harvests since the launch of a programme of takeovers of white-owned farms in 2000 were due to drought.

The 91-year-old however admitted earlier this year that some new black farmers were unable to manage their farms. Support had largely tailed off for small-scale farmers, who in the past produced sizeable maize crops.

Gutu said in a statement: “Robert Mugabe and his rogue administration are bankrupt and are unable to harness adequate financial resources in order to import the maize that is now urgently required.”

Former education minister David Coltart, a member of a smaller MDC grouping, said in a tweet on Tuesday: “Until we grant title to land holders and reverse ZANUPF’s destructive policy of making land dead capital we will never address food security.”

The official Herald newspaper said the $300m was being sourced “from different stakeholders”.

The Zimbabwean

15 June 2015

Former Education Minister David Coltart has accused flamboyant businessman Philip Chiyangwa of enriching himself at the expense of Zimbabwe’s working class.

In a recent interview with The Zimbabwean, Coltart said Chiyangwa, who has developed a taste for expensive cars and clothes, was behind the closure of most Bulawayo companies that he had taken over.

There is a new league of millionaires in Zimbabwe, most of whom have made their wealth through corruption and looting.

Bulawayo, which used to be the nation’s industrial hub, has been hit by massive company closures over the past 10 years – and even more so since the 2013 elections – resulting in thousands of workers being thrown into abject poverty.

Not related to Mugabe

Coltart took a swipe at Chiyangwa, who claims to be a cousin to President Robert Mugabe, posted a video on social media in which he was showing off his wealth. Chiyangwa’s actions also attracted the wrath of Mugabe’s cousin, Patrick Zhuwao, who in his weekly column in the state-owned Sunday Mail lashed out at the businessman for lying that he was related to Mugabe.

Said Coltart: “I have no problem when wealth is made as the result of innovation, hard work and ingenuity. However most of Zimbabwe’s millionaires have made their money off the back of the working class, through plunder, asset stripping and corruption. I do not know how Chiyangwa made his money save for what he did to a variety of Bulawayo-based companies that he took over and drove into the ground.

“I also have a concern when Zimbabwe’s wealth and precious foreign currency is spent on very expensive imports such as Bentleys, Rolls Royces and the like. Surely our foreign currency would be better spent on vehicles made either in Zimbabwe or at least South Africa, which is on the African continent.”

Failed to prioritise

Coltart, who served as minister during the inclusive government, also bemoaned the fact that government has failed to prioritise key sectors and instead spent millions of dollars on unnecessary foreign travel and enormous monetary allocations to the Office of the President and Cabinet – that are unaccounted for to the Auditor General.

“During my tenure in government there was disproportionate (not necessarily overspending) in some sectors such as foreign travel. One of my complaints was that the Ministry of Education received a relatively small percentage of its budgeted allocation in relation to other sectors such as the office of the President and Cabinet, the Ministry of Defence and the like,” said Coltart.

Mugabe’s office has come under fire for overspending. Opposition parties and critics are arguing that the frequent foreign trips by the nonagenarian are doing more harm than good to the country.

Chiyangwa was continuously unreachable for comment, but he is on record in the video he posted on social media claiming that he gets his money “from the people”.

Daily News

By Thelma Chikwanha

HARARE – “Dear God, I know that you will bring my father back,” is a prayer that Nenyasha, daughter of the missing journalist-cum-human rights activist Itai Dzamara recites every night before going to bed.

The three-year-old, who has not seen her father for almost 100 days, is obviously affected psychologically and emotionally by her dad’s absence. She is now looking to God for intervention as the State continues to profess ignorance on her father’s whereabouts.

Dzamara, who had fierce run-ins with authorities after staging a one-man protest against President Robert Mugabe in the Africa Unity Square, was abducted at a barbershop in the high density suburb of Glenview on March 9. He has not been seen since then.

All efforts to locate him have so far been fruitless. The courts have ordered the police to find Itai but there has been no progress so far.

Patson Dzamara, a brother to the missing activist, told the Daily News on Sunday last week that the family still had no idea where he is.

“Surprisingly, we have not heard from the authorities, the security agents and I really wonder what sort of an investigation they are carrying out without even trying to even find out some information from us, from the wife and from us as siblings or even the parents. None of us has been approached,” Patson said.

“As far as my understanding is concerned, this was supposed to be a back-and-forth kind of scenario but the only time we have interacted with them was probably the first week when Itai disappeared and all they did was take statements, so it’s really worrying to us why they have not engaged us officially as a family. We read a lot of stuff. As far as I know, no one in the family has been contacted in as far as the investigation is concerned.”

Patson narrated a heart rending tale of how his parents, especially his mother, had suffered untold emotional turmoil over Itai’s disappearance.

“Our mother…she’s distraught but of course there is a resonance of hope among us as family members,” he said. “Through our faith in God, we are still hoping that one way or the other, Itai will spring up.

“We are holding on to the belief and the theory that he is being held somewhere and we still believe contrary to other theory or reports or speculative stories we have heard, we are still hoping and believing that Itai is alive and one day he is going to come forth although the issue that this has been too long is worrying,” he said.

He said Itai’s 7-year-old son was deeply affected by his father’s continued absence.

“The boy is very inquisitive,” he said. “At times when he sees me, he asks; ‘have you come with my dad.’ It’s really not an easy scenario for me.”

Rights groups and the international community havecalled on government to ensure the safe return of the human rights activist.

A visiting delegation from the United States of America expressed concern over Dzamara’s disappearance.

The delegation included two senior US State department officials, Shannon Smith, who is deputy assistant secretary for African affairs and Steven Feldstein, the deputy assistant secretary in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labour.

“From the United States’ perspective, we have concerns about the human rights violations and that includes intimidation, harassment, torture and forced disappearances,” Feldstein said during a recent press briefing in Harare.

“We are also concerned about long-standing government restrictions, when it comes to the ability of civil society to operate, independent media, political parties, activists and regular citizens and we believe these long-standing restrictions do impede fundamental freedoms.

“We are now entering a third month into the disappearance of Itai Dzamara, he’s a civil society activist. His disappearance is something of a strong concern to the United States. We have raised the issue of his disappearance with the government and would welcome regular updates as to the status of the investigation as ordered by the High Court.”

The European Parliament strongly condemned the enforced disappearance of Dzamara and urged the government to comply fully with the High Court order directing it to search for him.

The bloc expressed concern at the reports by human rights organisations of increasing political violence and other human rights abuses and called for concerted action by the international community.

The Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (Zhlr) successfully filed a harbeas corpus application at the High Court, with Justice Mangota ordering Home Affairs minister Kembo Mohadi, police commissioner-general Augustine Chihuri, Central Intelligence Organisation director-general Happyton Bonyongwe and the State Security minister — listed as respondents in the application alleging State security agents had masterminded the abduction of Dzamara — to find him.
Police have also issued a statement saying they had opened investigations.

“The Zimbabwe Republic Police is appealing for information on the whereabouts of Itai Peace Kadiki Dzamara aged 35 years,” the police statement said.

“Anyone with information, please contact Officer Commanding Police (Law and Order Division), Assistant Commissioner Makedenge on (04) 251505 or the Officer in Charge CID (Criminal Investigations Department) Law and Order Harare.”

Makedenge says there has been no progress in the investigations.

Describing the abduction as “barbaric”, Zimbabwe Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa told Parliament two months ago that he could not admit that Dzamara was arrested or is in their custody, raising grave concerns for his safety.

Last week the Zimbabwe’s influential Catholic bishops called on the police to expedite the search for Dzamara.

Alexio Muchabaiwa, the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace (CCJP) chairman, said three months after Dzamara was seized by five armed men who shoved him into an unmarked truck and sped off, he has not been accounted for.

CCJP is a commission of the Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops’ Conference and Inter-regional Meeting of Bishops of Southern Africa (Imbisa) mandated to promote justice and peace guided by gospel values or social teachings of the church.

“His disappearance could be seen in a broader context of sustaining fear as a strategy of restraining freedom of expression, participation, association and democracy against the values and aims of our liberation struggle,” Muchabaiwa said.

Patson hailed the initiative by the church as positive development. He also expressed gratitude towards the Morgan Tsvangirai-led MDC which he says has been supportive throughout the trying time.

He said apart from frequent visits to Itai’s home by senior officials including Tsvangirai himself, the party also provides financial support.

“It’s something that we have also expected the State to be doing because he is also a citizen who is under the protection of who he is supposed to be under,” he said. “It’s really worrying that the State has not been forth coming in this regard.

“I even tried to penetrate and engage certain individuals in government to no avail. The fact that I’m a Dzamara and Dzamara had a principle that was against the policies of the government perhaps has precipitated their cold shoulder which I feel is immature at this point in time.

“At the end of the day, Itai Dzamara remains a Zimbabwean just like anyone else. And the State must be responsible and so to me, I would say that there has been some level of maturity especially from the guys in the MDC who have been forth coming.”

He added: “MDC chose to take it upon themselves to see to it that they attend to Itai’s family which I feel is key at this point in time.

“My parents contributed in as far as the liberation war is concerned and when I look at them and what has happened to their son, I do not think that’s what they had on their mind when they went to the bushes to fight for the liberation of Zimbabwe.

“I believe that there is more to it and I really implore the powers that be to probe into their conscience what’s prevailing. Is this what they fought for? I do not think that this is the representation of the freedom they fought for and so as such, I appeal to the authorities to make sure that Itai is released.”

There are a few high profile cases of enforced disappearances including the case of Rashiwe Guzha, a typist within the Central Intelligence Organisation who disappeared in May 1990 and remains missing, feared murdered; Edwin Nleya, Patrick Nabayana, the chief polling agent for opposition candidate David Coltart abducted in 2000 by men armed with AK47 rifles, body found a few months later; activist Paul Chizuze who disappeared in February 2012, remains missing, feared murdered; and army captain Edwin Nleya, who disappeared, feared murdered as well.

In the case of Zimbabwe Peace Project director Jestina Mukoko, she was abducted at her house on December 3, 2008, she was tortured by state agents and later handed over to the police.”

Dewa Mavhinga, senior researcher with Human Rights Watch, said the practice of enforced disappearances is widely used by government agents who do so with impunity as none of them are ever held accountable for their crimes.

“For the State agencies to profess ignorance as to Dzamara’s whereabouts is simply to hide behind a finger,” Mavhinga said.

“Outside of state involvement, people do not simply vanish from the streets of Zimbabwe without the police establishing what happened. As far as citizens are concerned, there is law and order in Zimbabwe, so when a disappearance occurs its either the state will know or is involved.”

– See more at: http://nehandaradio.com/2015/06/15/day-98-where-is-itai-dzamara/#sthash.nLsf7HK7.dpuf

VOA

June 6 2015

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama’s government that recently dispatched a high level delegation to Harare is now being urged to monitor the situation in Harare as there are fears the nation might degenerate into chaos.

In an article titled, Omnious Warning Signs Resurface in Zimbabwe, which appeared in the Foreign Policy Magazine co-authored by Jeff Smith of Robert F. Kennedy Centre for Human Rights and Todd Moss of Global Development, the two argue that, “the Obama administration will need to keep a keen and close eye on the ongoing events in Zimbabwe, including tasking the intelligence services for an assessment of the potential for mass violence.”

They add that this should include elevating the issue of Zimbabwe to the president’s atrocities prevention board, which can readily address the early warning indicators of mass atrocities.

“So the Obama administration has made preventing mass killing a priority of the administration, so they created a special board within the government, to identify potential mass killing and to try to take steps to prevent them before they happen,” said Moss

But why should Zimbabwe even be considered as a candidate?

The two argue that, “over the course of the past few months, we have witnessed an ominous series of warning signs: bitter political infighting within the country’s ruling party, the worsening of already deplorable economic conditions, the abduction and disappearance of a prominent human rights activist, and a surge of inflammatory rhetoric and political violence.”

Smith further said there are no signs the situation will improve.

“Zimbabwe’s history is replete with examples of these sorts of abductions and human rights abuses, and we’ve certainly seen it recently through April and May in Hurungwe West for instance, the coming by-elections, and many of these atrocities are happening in full view of the police, who have not intervened. So I think taken together, all these instances should be cause for concern.

U.S. RESPONSE

Moss concurs, adding that though there are many crises unfolding in many parts of the world, Harare must remain a top priority.

“There is no reason that the U.S. government can’t pay attention to Syria, and Burundi and other countries, and also keep an eye on potential problems in areas like Zimbabwe,” Moss

In a recent exclusive interview with VOA Studio 7, deputy assistant secretary of state for Africa, Shannon Smith, said Washington is keeping Zimbabwe on its radar

“Zimbabwe is not falling off the radar, it does matter. It matters to people in southern Africa, it matters to people here,” said Smith.

But on the question of possible intervention in Harare and possibility of chaos, Smith said Zimbabweans must control their destiny.

“The future of Zimbabwe is in its own hands clearly. Every country has processes to deal with those kinds of questions. Our emphasis is on adhering to the rule of law in such processes.”

OPPOSITION

Opposition political parties that have been warring recently are uniting to warn of a deteriorating situation in Harare. Opposition Movement for Democratic Change leader Morgan Tsvangirai said Zimbabwe is on the verge of disaster.

“I can tell you that in their preoccupation with intra-party fights, no one is paying attention to the erosion of the economic well-being of the people. And people cannot just watch, that’s the most dangerous thing. It will cause instability in the country.”

At the same time, MDC Renewal Team secretary general Tendai Biti said the ruling Zanu-PF has no clue in addressing some national issues, making the situation even more explosive.

“Clearly, clearly, we are ripe for an implosion, and naturally the African Union and all responsible authorities must watch Zimbabwe very closely, because all the ingredients that where in Rwanda in 1994 are in Zimbabwe at the present moment. Hate speech, and hatred toxicity, two, absence of opportunities, three a huge army of unemployed people and social crisis, four, political vacuum. Our president is now an occasional visitor to Zimbabwe, cabinet hardly meets. All these things create a shaky background. So my colleagues Todd and Jeff are definitely spot on.”

Legal expert David Coltart of the MDC formation led by Welshman Ncube echoes Biti’s sentiments, noting that Zimbabwe is headed for chaos.

“Part of the problem is that there is terrible political vacuum in the country. If you have a combination of a political vacuum, a country which is rudderless, which has a history of violence, a history of violent men being in control of weapons, then you have a recipe for a very serious situation.”

Smith and Moss also argue that, “just as important, authorities in the capital, Harare, must know that the world is watching.

ZANU-PF

But Zanu-PF politiburo member, Munyaradzi Paul Mangwana, said Zimbabwe is a sovereign state, is stable and there is no need for foreign intervention.

“That has always been their wish, that if they put us under sanctions, then the economy will meltdown and people will rise up against their government. Unfortunately, that will remain wishful thinking. The people of Zimbabwe support their government. They know that the Americans are the enemies of the people of Zimbabwe. And the government is in total control of this country.”

However, MDC- spokesman, Obert Gutu said the situation is really bad and points to the disappearance of human rights activist Itai Dzamara of Occupy Africa Unity Square.

Deputy Justice Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi said Harare is doing everything in its power to locate Dzamara.

Political temperatures have been on the rise in Zimbabwe, unemployment is estimated to be nearing 90 percent though the government officially puts it at 10 percent.

The recent threats that government will forcibly evict an estimated 5.5 million vendors from the streets have also stoked tensions in the country.

The Zimbabwe Independent

June 5 2015

EVELINE Girls High, a former Group A school situated in the heart of Bulawayo has, among a host of challenges, is reeling from a serious shortage of learning resources while the teachers’ morale, like elsewhere, especially at government schools, is low due to poor remuneration.

The situation has been exacerbated by Education minister Lazarus Dokora’s decision to ban monetary incentives.
Students share textbooks and in the case of the history department, it is common to see as many as 40 students sharing a single textbook.

For a government that prides itself for its victory in a protracted liberation war against the Rhodesian settlers of British origin, it is ironic that a good number of the books at the school are a throwback to the Rhodesian era — complete with the date stamps to prove it.

“We know very well that some of the books were inspired by the colonialist historiography and as such the information they contain may in some cases have been replaced by new thinking.

“Retaining such books is therefore unhelpful, especially in the context of the current demands of the Zimsec history syllabus,” said a Bulawayo teacher who refused to be identified for fear of victimisation.

“We need books and other learning materials.”

A similar situation prevails at Townsend Girls High and Luveve High — all government schools which date back to the colonial era which are, however, comparatively better resourced compared to the former Group B schools, especially those in the rural areas.

These are challenges which need the urgent intervention of Dokora’s ministry before they can even think of turning their attention to other initiatives such as introducing the teaching of a whole host of foreign languages in the country’s schools.

Dokora is fiddling while schools burn.

Schools such as Maqaqeni Primary School (40km north-east of Bulawayo in the Ntabazinduna area of Matabeleland North), Hope Fountain (where President Robert Mugabe taught before Independence, two kilometres from Bulawayo’s Waterford suburb) and Umguza (two kilometres outside Bulawayo) have dilapidated classrooms, staff and textbook shortages.

It is not uncommon to find a single teacher juggling the teaching of two grades in the same classroom.

“It is such challenges that need to be addressed before we can think of introducing these foreign languages. The truth is that we cannot afford such luxuries when we cannot even ensure that students have adequate as well as the right textbooks for the subjects that are already on offer. We are just spreading ourselves far too thin,” said another teacher.

In addition, there is the story of Binga (Matabeleland North)’s poor education infrastructure which has already been told many times before.

The infrastructure has remained unchanged over years for the district whose estimated population is 200 000 people but has 80 primary schools and less than 40 secondary ones.

Many of the teachers are untrained especially in primary schools, and the limited number of secondary schools vis-à-vis primary schools contributes to discontinued education for students who graduate from primary schools.

Thus many children are forced into exploitative labour and gender inequality despite strong advocacy against child exploitation by non-governmental organisations that include Unicef.

Against such a background, Dokora has announced plans for the compulsory teaching of Chinese, Swahili, French, and Portuguese in Zimbabwean schools.

“The draft framework for primary and secondary schools will guide learning and teaching during the next seven years and it will include expression to national efforts as reflected in ZimAsset (the country’s economic blueprint), the constitution, regional and international treaties to which the country is signatory,” Dokora said two weeks ago while announcing the decision.

One only has to set foot in a classroom at Eveline and experience first-hand the challenges teachers have in teaching the subjects already on offer in the Zimsec curriculum to realise that this new scheme is premature.

Apart from the personnel, infrastructure and resource challenges cited above, government appears to be biting more than it can chew as it still has to implement other recently adopted policies including the teaching of Tonga, Kalanga, Venda and other local languages besides Ndebele and Shona.

Little has been done to acquire resources and personnel to implement that decision save for recruiting a small number of students to train in the languages.

There are currently 250 students being trained at Great Zimbabwe University for the teaching of other local languages — but this figure is a drop in the ocean given the thousands of schools around the country which will require such personnel.

Moreover, the ministry is still faced with a huge challenge of serious shortages of both teachers and textbooks for the subjects that are already in the curriculum, to say nothing of the general poor infrastructure in schools.

Against this backdrop of more pressing needs in the education sector, many hope the decision on foreign languages was just posturing on the part of Dokora who appears to enjoy the media spotlight.

Dokora is the same minister who has already come under fire after removing teachers’ incentives which helped boost morale by cushioning against poor salaries.

Last year, he also made puzzling decisions to bar extra lessons for students and the results were there for all to see — a 13,23% drop in the 2014 June Ordinary ‘O’ Level school examinations pass rate when compared to the 2013 results.

As noted by Takavafira Zhou, president of the Progressive Teachers’ Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ), Dokora needs to consult more and actually implement recommendations at the proper time instead of acting unilaterally.

“Instead of steering the ship along the recovery path crafted by the previous Minister of Education, David Coltart, the new ministry regime erroneously believes that intelligence resides at Head Office and operates through unilateral policies formulated without teachers’ and stakeholders’ input, let alone consultation,” Zhou said.

Since 2000 Zimbabwe has had to grapple with multiple and complex challenges due to the country’s social and political instability amid economic implosion.

Reaching a meltdown in 2008, the meltdown left everything, including education, in tatters.

New Zimbabwe.com

May 19 2015

VICE PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa is a “callous and intolerant man”, the opposition MDC-T has said.

Party’s spokesperson Obert Gutu was responding to media reports that quoted Mnangagwa telling a weekend rally in Kwekwe that the MDC-T is a “satanic organisation” whose members needed deliverance.

“It is very unfortunate that a person who is the country’s vice president would utter these kinds of irresponsible and inciting remarks about a political party that is a legitimate and lawful organization in Zimbabwe.

“Ours is an organization with millions of supporters and followers and such kinds of crude and irresponsible remarks are a direct cause for political intolerance and violence in the country.

What Mnangagwa said in Mbizo at the weekend is not the kind of statement one would expect from someone who is not only the country vice president but also Justice Minister,” said Gutu.

Gutu warned Mnangagwa to “watch his tongue” given his status in society.

“This kind of statement is a clear indication of the fact that Mnangagwa is an inherently violent man with a loose and irresponsible tongue.

As the MDC we are fully aware of his direct link to the Gukurahundi genocide in the 1980s and as such he is a callous man with a tainted political reputation. If anything it is him who is satanic and needs repentance. The people of Zimbabwe need to pray for this lost soul,” the MDC-T spokesperson said.

Gutu said Mnangagwa’s utterances were a continuation of the ethnic intolerance within the ruling party given President Mugabe’s recent “anti-Kalanga slur”.

“We also see a link between these irresponsible remarks with the recent anti-ethnic remarks regarding the Kalanga people by Mugabe and that is the reason why we have argued for years that the faction ridden Zanu PF party is a threat to national security,” said Gutu.

Mnangagwa, appointed vice president late last year, is seen as Mugabe’s heir apparent as the 91 year-old leader battles age and ill-health.

The VP is reported to have told thousands of Zanu PF supporters at a rally in the Midlands city of Kwekwe that they needed to confess their sins after voting the MDC-T in 2013

“I am happy that you have come here today to confess to God that you have sinned because of the unholy alliance of moving… with sinners in the MDC. If you are here supporting Zanu-PF, your sins have been cleansed,” the country’s number two reportedly said.

Former education minister David Coltart said in a tweet: “This is not the first time that [VP Emmerson] Mnangagwa has parodied the scriptures.”

The human rights lawyer said that Mnangagwa had also parodied the Bible around the time of the Gukurahundi killings in Matabeleland in the 1980s, when up to 20 000 Zimbabweans were killed. Mnangagwa was state security minister at the time.

A South African news agency quoted Jeffrey Smith of the Robert F Kennedy Centre for Justice and Human Rights in Washington saying that “For many years Zanu-PF leaders have relied on this kind of hateful rhetoric. It’s a tried-and-true strategy.

“It’s meant to get inside the psyche of the people and it’s clearly in violation of a number of SADC’s own principles meant to ensure free and fair elections.”

In 2011, Genocide Watch named Mnangagwa as a genocidist for his role in the Gukurahundi massacres which killed about 20 000 Ndebele speaking people in the 1980s.

News24

May 18 2015

Harare – Zimbabwe’s vice president has reportedly told rally-goers in the southern town of Kwekwe that they will be cleansed of their sins if they vote for President Robert Mugabe’s party.

Former education minister David Coltart said in a tweet: “This is not the first time that [VP Emmerson] Mnangagwa has parodied the scriptures.”

Coltart said that Mnangagwa had also parodied the Bible around the time of the Gukurahundi killings in Matabeleland in the 1980s, when up to 20 000 Zimbabweans were killed. Mnangagwa was state security minister at the time.

The privately-owned Standard newspaper on Sunday quoted Mnangagwa as saying in Kwekwe’s Mbizo suburb, where a parliamentary by-election would be held next month: “I am happy that you have come here today to confess to God that you have sinned because of the unholy alliance of moving… with sinners in the MDC.”

“If you are here supporting Zanu-PF, your sins have been cleansed,” the paper quoted Mnangagwa as saying.

Jeffrey Smith of the Robert F Kennedy Centre for Justice and Human Rights in Washington told a News24 correspondent on Monday: “For many years Zanu-PF leaders have relied on this kind of hateful rhetoric. It’s a tried-and-true strategy.

“It’s meant to get inside the psyche of the people and it’s clearly in violation of a number of SADC’s own principles meant to ensure free and fair elections,” Smith said in a telephone interview.

The ruling party is campaigning for by-elections in 17 constituencies on June 10. The independent Zimbabwe Peace Project says there has been “intensifying violence” in one of the constituencies, Hurungwe West.

Although the main opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) is boycotting the polls, Zanu-PF still face a challenge from candidates supporting ousted vice president Joice Mujuru and others with links to the MDC who have opted to stand as independents.

Mnangagwa, 68, was only appointed vice president in December. He is rumoured now to be best-placed to succeed the ageing Mugabe.

But Mugabe has not confirmed this, and Zimbabwe’s information minister, Jonathan Moyo, said in a BBC interview broadcast on Monday: “He is an appointed vice president. [Mugabe] did not appoint him so he could succeed him.”

“Power in this country is acquired through a democratic election,” Moyo said.

On Twitter, Coltart quoted Mnangagwa as saying in 1983: “Blessed are they who follow the path of the government laws for their days on earth will be increased.”

The Standard

May 17 2015

VICE-President Phelekezela Mphoko is quite a curious character who appears unable to live without stirring controversy.

Almost every time he opens his mouth in the discharge of duty as bearer of the second highest office on the land, Mphoko lands himself neck-deep in controversy.

What makes his behaviour disturbing is that his pronouncements cannot always be blamed on the slip of a tongue, as happened two days ago when he let go a boob, chanting a slogan exalting former Vice-President Joice Mujuru when he meant to sing praises for First Lady Grace Mugabe.

Mphoko is in the habit of making disturbing statements that have raised a lot of questions about his character and his suitability for office.

Last week, he repeated his controversial claim that the massacre of thousands of civilians by government forces in Matabeleland and the Midlands provinces in the early 80s, was a “Western project”.

Mphoko said, without giving any supporting evidence that Mugabe who described Gukurahundi as “a moment of madness”, had nothing to do with the atrocities that were perpetrated by the North Korean trained 5 Brigade.

He piled blame on unnamed foreign powers without explaining what form the “Western conspiracy” took or how it led our own government to unleash terror and mayhem on its own people, including Mphoko’s former boss the late VP Joshua Nkomo.

Last week he also hogged the limelight for reminding an overzealous Pyschomotor minister Josaya Hungwe that he was not junior to Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa. Hungwe had introduced him as second Vice-President.

As a diplomat, Mphoko should know the importance of keeping his mouth shut, even if he holds strong views about a certain subject. Denying that Gukurahundi ever happened in Zimbabwe is “historical revisionism at its worst,” former Education minister David Coltart observed recently. Such an unwarranted statement is an insult to victims and to families that lost their loved ones when an estimated 20 000 innocent people were killed. Mphoko’s denial can therefore never be helpful in a country that is desperate for national healing.

As Vice-President, Mphoko should strive to heal wounds rather than to rub salt to the injury. We expect him to show leadership rather than to be perpetually seized with matters that have a potential to divide Zimbabweans.