Southern Eye

By Dumisani Nkomo

25 September 2013

ZIMBABWEANS from all walks of life face a formidable challenge in the next five years. They have to decide whether to support Zanu PF or the opposition.

The economy remains the single largest challenge that the government will face and any lack of wisdom in this sphere may have dire consequences. Unfortunately, not all of us can relocate to South Africa or Europe or any other part of the world.

Pressures of global recession are also presenting themselves in those countries, with rising unemployment in South Africa and other countries.

We cannot simply wish for the economy to collapse so that our political interests are advanced as this would be selfishness of the highest order.

We all have to work for the betterment of Zimbabwe — friend and foe, victor and vanquished. While it is tragic that Zanu PF won by such a wide margin, it will be immature to bury our heads in the sand and hope that when we finally pull our heads out of the sand things would have magically worked out for us.

It is thus essential to engage the new government and bring it to account for its policies.

Zanu PF has to move away from election mode and realise that it is governing Zimbabwe and not the party.

This requires them to embrace the opposition as a critical component of democracy.

The government has to move away from insane populist policies and focus on rational socioeconomic policies. They should put national interests ahead of party interests.

It is essential for Zanu PF to realise that the war ended in 1980.

I do not think any progressive Zimbabwean wishes the economy to collapse so that they gain political mileage because we all know that it is the ordinary Zimbabweans who will bear the brunt.

It is positive to hear that the government has produced a new economic blueprint named Zimpset (Zimbabwe Programme For Socio-economic Transformation).

I wonder, however, whether it is poverty of ideas or mere coincidence that the programme sounds like the 1996 government economic blueprint Zimprest (Zimbabwe Programme for Economic and Social Transformation).

Our previous experience with so-called new economic blueprints is that they are launched to much pomp and ceremony, but within months, they gather dust in some God forsaken civil servant’s office.

These blueprints, therefore, end up becoming mere public relations stunts. There should be an audit of government economic policies as the country has produced countless blueprints with little results.

Just to mention a few, we have had Growth With Equity, Economic Structural Adjustment Programme, the Zimbabwe Programme For Economic and Social Transformation, the Millenium Economic Recovery Plan, the National Economic Recovery Plan, the inclusive government’s Short-Term Emergency Recovery Programme (STERP) and the Medium-Term Plan and now we have Zimpset.

The only thing that seems to change is not the quality of the lives of Zimbabweans, but the acronyms and spellings of these fancy programmes.

Some of the positives in the blueprint include a framework for private public partnerships in infrastructural development, service delivery linkages with information communication technology and service delivery. However, very little consultation was done in producing this new blueprint and this could affect ownership and impact of the process.

The government has always been poor on policy implementation whether it was a Zanu PF-led government or indeed the inclusive government which missed most of its STERP targets.

It is, therefore, imperative that the government is brought to account for its economic policies and civil society is able to provide space for citizen engagement with the government.

Some of the laws due for debate in the august House include bills on consumer protection, private public partnerships, pensioners and mineral development.

There is a lot of positive input that can be made into such laws if legislators act maturely and there is consensus on laws that build social capital regardless of political affiliation.

Critically, opposition members of Parliament need to be robust in pushing for legislation enabling devolution of power through provincial councils as this is not on the current legislative agenda of Parliament .

The new government should build on and not destroy the efforts of Cabinet ministers such as Tendai Biti, Welshman Ncube, Samuel Sipepa Nkomo and David Coltart, who between them made great strides in stabilising the economy engaging new investors for the iron and steel industry, securing funding for water projects and education.

Elton Mangoma did a sterling job in energy development together with some ministers such as Walter Mzembi, Sithembiso Nyoni and Francis Nhema.

The government should build on the gains made by these ministers and indeed other gains of the inclusive government such as constitutional reform.

The opposition parties have a role in ensuring legislative accountability and financial probity while civil society has a role in influencing policies, articulating concerns of grassroots communities, defending and promoting rights while bringing whoever is in the government to account. It is about principle rather than persons or parties.

Dumisani Nkomo is an activist and opinion leader

SW Radio Bell

By Alex Bell

25 September 2013

Former Education Minister David Coltart has called for the lifting of the targeted sanctions still in place against key members of the Robert Mugabe regime, saying the measures have provided ZANU PF with a scapegoat for its failures for too many years.

The ZANU PF rhetoric about the targeted, restrictive measures has been relentless in recent weeks, with the Western imposed restrictions being blamed for everything from hyperinflation to, most recently, the poaching crisis in the Hwange National Park.

Indications from the Western nations, including the US and the European Union (EU) are that the measures will not be lifted until real democratic reforms are achieved in Zimbabwe. The US, the EU, Britain and Australia have also all raised concerns about reports of vote rigging during the July poll, and have refused to follow in Africa’s footsteps in endorsing the contested election results.

According to Coltart, who is also the Secretary for Legal Affairs for the Welshman Ncube led MDC, the presence of the targeted sanctions will further hinder any hope of democratic progress.

“With ZANU PF having engineered fraudulent election results in its favour and in doing so made all these promises of job creation and so forth, ZANU PF realises they now have to deliver and they know it will be difficult because most of the promises were false,” Coltart told SW Radio Africa.

He added: “So they need scapegoats and excuses. And sanctions present them with a very good excuse.”

Coltart explained that it would be better for Zimbabwe in the long term if the measures were lifted, “so that ZANU OF can no longer use the propaganda line that sanctions are to blame.”

He however acknowledge that it is “problematic in the short term”

“If they (the West) lifted all the sanctions now, ZANU PF will trumpet that as proof that they agree that the elections complied with democratic laws and our constitution, which they didn’t So clearly it would be a propaganda victory for ZANU PF in the short term,” Coltart said.

But he continued: “In the run up to the next election, it is critical that ZANU PF not be given the slightest excuse not to deliver on their promises.”

“They destroyed the economy long before sanctions were imposed and unless they undergo a miraculous transformation, the chances are they will continue to mismanage our economy. We simply cannot allow them to have this excuse of sanctions in the run up to the next elections. They must be exposed for who they are, as people who have a history of being corrupt and a history of misgoverning the country, so that the electorate can then know very clearly that if they want to take the country forward, they will need to vote for someone else,” Coltart said.

Political analyst Clifford Mashiri disagreed with Coltart’s assessment, saying that nothing has changed to justify the lifting of the targeted measures.

“Now is not the time to do it. It would be giving into ZANU PF propaganda and blackmail. Those measures must remain until the reasons for their imposition have been addressed,” Mashiri said.

David Coltart’s Blog – Next climate change will be blamed on sanctions! 

24 September 2013

I see that Zanu PF now argues that sanctions are responsible for poaching in Hwange! At this rate sanctions are going to be blamed for climate change.

Give us a break – that is just ridiculous. National Parks have been starved of funds for decades. Instead of buying brand new Mercedes Benzes and luxury Toyota Landcruisers for Ministers had that money been applied to buying Landrovers for National Parks our Parks staff would be much better able to combat poachers. Instead of turning a blind eye to rampant corruption in the diamond sector had diamond receipts been applied to National Parks then they would have had the wherewithal to run the Parks properly.

Furthermore our law enforcement agencies have had other agendas for over a decade allowing criminals in our midst to run wild. Had the Police been focussed on catching crooks instead of supporting Zanu PF, poachers would have been arrested by now. Had the Attorney General’s office been focussed on prosecuting criminals instead of persecuting human rights defenders then poachers would have been behind bars by now.

Had Zanu PF not allowed rampant lawlessness to prevail in their land reform programme the hundreds of thousands of plains game in former commercial farming areas and conservancies would not have been poached out.

Instead of hiding behind the stale sanctions argument Zanu PF must now apply sufficient national resources and political will to tackling this scourge which threatens to destroy one of our principal national assets.

http://www.herald.co.zw/sanctions-untold-story-behind-the-hwange-ecological-disaster/

Southern Eye

By Nduduzo Tshuma

24 September 2013

BULAWAYO-born journalist and South Africa’s eNCA East Africa bureau chief Robyn Kriel has been hailed for her coverage of the bloody shooting of civilians at a busy Kenyan mall by Somali militants.

Former Education minister David Coltart congratulated the journalist for hoisting Zimbabwe’s flag: “Very proud of Bulawayo’s Robyn Kriel reporting live for eNCA from Nairobi at the Westgate Shopping Mall terrorist attack.

Be safe Robyn flying the Zimbabwean flag so well,” Coltart posted on Twitter.

According to eNCA website, the Nairobi-based Kriel, holds degrees in broadcast journalism and musical theatre from Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas, United States. In 2011 she was credited by First Lady Michelle Obama for her “courageous reporting from Zimbabwe”.

Meanwhile, thick smoke poured from the besieged Nairobi mall where Kenyan officials said their forces were closing in on Islamists holding hostages yesterday, three days after a raid by Somalia’s al-Shabaab killed at least 62 people.

Southern Eye

By David Coltart

23 September 2013

IT HAS been noted that on September 17 2013, the European Union agreed to lift the restrictive measures imposed on the Zimbabwean government mining parastatal the Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation (ZMDC).

Pursuant to Article IV of the Global Political Agreement (GPA) signed on September 15 2008 all the signatories to that agreement consented all forms of restrictive measures and sanctions against Zimbabwe be lifted.

Acting in good faith we (as the MDC) immediately and consistently thereafter called for the lifting of all these measures and sanctions.

At the time we stated that, the reason for this was not solely because of our moral obligation to do in terms of of Article IV, but because we believed that it was necessary to take the wind out of Zanu PF sails in its argument that sanctions were responsible for the destruction of Zimbabwe’s economy.

Zanu PF has tried through its propaganda machine to blame virtually all Zimbabwe’s ills, including the collapse of its economy and its education system, on the restrictive measures imposed on a few individuals and companies responsible for gross human rights abuses and corruption in Zimbabwe during the last decade.

All people in possession of the facts know that these measures had little impact on the economy and that the primary reason for the collapse of the economy was Zanu PF’s abuse of the rule of law, rampant corruption, chaotic land reform and the irresponsible printing and corrupt distribution of currency.

However, given that Zanu PF had exclusive access to State electronic media and that there are no independent radio or television stations in Zimbabwe, the sanctions argument could not be rebutted and was taken as truth by many Zimbabweans, especially rural dwellers, who had no access to an alternative view or the truth.

It was therefore our view that all sanctions should be lifted so that Zanu PF could no longer use this propaganda line.

By and large, we were not listened to by Western governments and Zanu PF were able to blame their poor historical performance on sanctions in the last election.

The highly contentious general election of July 31 2013 has come and gone.

Some would argue that because of the fraudulent nature of that election, both the moral obligation (in terms of the Article IV) and the political justification for sanctions to be lifted have both gone.

Whilst there is no doubt with the termination of the GPA there is no moral obligation on the two MDC parties to continue to argue for the lifting of sanctions, the political justification for the removal of sanctions remains.

That justification certainly does not hinge on the credibility of the elections.

In fact on the contrary the fraudulent abuse and violation of both the Electoral Act and Zimbabwe’s new Constitution should if anything act as justification for the continuation and indeed extension of restrictive measures and sanctions against those response for this subversion of democracy.

Indeed the timing of the EU’s lifting of restrictive measures against the ZMDC is unfortunate because it will no doubt be trumpeted as an indication that the EU now concedes that the elections were free, fair and credible.

However, when all is said and done we still believe that all restrictive measures should be lifted for the following reasons:

• No amount of sanctions or rhetoric will change that fact. They must now govern and deliver on their promises to the Zimbabwean electorate.

•   Those opposed to Zanu PF and committed to a new democratic and lawful order in Zimbabwe now need to reorganise and prepare to fight the next general election. Given Zanu PF’s record of mis-governance during the last 33 years it is unlikely that they will be able to deliver on their promises.

The one thing we do not need as we prepare for the next election is Zanu PF being given an excuse to explain why it has failed again. If restrictive measures and sanctions remain in place there is no doubt that they will be the centerpiece of Zanu PF’s propaganda campaign.

• There is little likelihood of Zimbabwe’s electronic media being opened up so the vast majority of the electorate will be subjected to this lie and excuse. In a recent meeting of civic leaders with a key Zanu PF strategist the strategist admitted that Zanu PF always needs an enemy to fight.

This is of course a classic tactic of fascist parties down the ages to remain in power; enemies are needed to unite people against a supposed external evil force and to divert their attention away from the real reasons behind their poverty, namely mis-governance.

This particular “enemy”, namely sanctions, must be removed as soon as possible to remove that lie from our political discourse.

•   Sanctions and restrictive measures have been particularly used in the diamond sector to facilitate and cover up massive corruption.

In the last four years in Cabinet whenever we tried to investigate diamond receipts these efforts were always met with the excuse that there was a need for “secrecy” because of sanctions; that if there was a truly transparent process that that would be used by hostile Western governments to stop the export of diamonds from Zimbabwe and in so doing have a dramatic negative effect on our gross domestic product and revenue flows to Treasury.

Of course it was just another lie because all the secrecy did was to enable a few to enrich themselves at the expense of the general public and the fiscus.

A classic example of this is the statement made on Tuesday the September 17th 2013 by none other than President Robert Mugabe in which he alleged that the former chairman of the ZMDC Godwills Masimirembwa had received a bribe of $6 million from a Ghanaian diamond mining house.

This is just the tip of the iceberg.

In truth the restrictive measures have allowed corrupt Government officials and ministers to milk our diamond revenues for their own benefit.

Some senior people have become obscenely wealthy in the last five years.

It was because of this that former Finance minister Tendai Biti called for the lifting of restrictions several years ago so that at least our diamonds could be sold through traditional, lawful diamond dealers and also that would mean that Zimbabwe would get the best prices for her diamonds.

Nothing has changed in this regard and so as regards diamonds at least, these restrictive measures should be lifted.

In stating this we are not naive regarding the fact that corruption will continue to plague this sector but at least the lifting of sanctions will remove the excuse that there is some justification for keeping our diamond dealings secret.

Their removal will also at least mean that Zimbabwe will get better prices for her diamonds.

It is important to remember that the restrictive measures were just that – they were directed at a few individuals and were restricted in their application, largely confined to travel bans and asset freezes.

Their primary benefit was to stigmitise those responsible for gross human rights abuses and corruption. The objective of stigmitising these individuals has been achieved; never again will those responsible for these crimes be considered as statesmen or paragons of virtue.

However the equal reality is that the measures themselves have done little to trouble those targeted. In all the circumstances while the timing is most unfortunate at present all sanctions and restrictive measures must be removed as soon as possible by those countries still applying them.

-Coltart is MDC secretary for legal affairs and former Education, Sport and Culture minister

1. Zanu PF are now the de facto rulers of Zimbabwe and will be so for the next 5 years. No amount of sanctions or rhetoric will change that fact. They must now govern and deliver on their promises to the Zimbabwean electorate. Those opposed to Zanu PF and committed to a new democratic and lawful order in Zimbabwe now need to reorganise and prepare to fight the next general election. Given Zanu PF’s record of mis-governance during the last 33 years it is unlikely that they will be able to deliver on their promises. The one thing we do not need as we prepare for the next election is Zanu PF being given an excuse to explain why it has failed again. If restrictive measures and sanctions remain in place there is no doubt that they will be the centerpiece of Zanu PF’s propaganda campaign. There is little likelihood of Zimbabwe’s electronic media being opened up so the vast majority of the electorate will be subjected to this lie and excuse. In a recent meeting of civic leaders with a key Zanu PF strategist the strategist admitted that Zanu PF always needs an enemy to fight. This is of course a classic tactic of fascist parties down the ages to remain in power; enemies are needed to unite people against a supposed external evil force and to divert their attention away from the real reasons behind their poverty, namely mis-governance. This particular “enemy” , namely sanctions, must be removed as soon as possible to remove that lie from our political discourse.
2. Sanctions and restrictive measures have been particularly used in the diamond sector to facilitate and cover up massive corruption. In the last 4 years in Cabinet whenever we tried to investigate diamond receipts these efforts were always met with the excuse that there was a need for “secrecy” because of sanctions; that if there was a truly transparent process that that would be used by hostile Western Governments to stop the export of diamonds from Zimbabwe and in so doing have a dramatic negative effect on our GDP and revenue flows to Treasury. Of course it was just another lie because all the secrecy did was to enable a few to enrich themselves at the expense of the general public and the fiscus. A classic example of this is the statement made on Tuesday the 17th September 2013 by none other than President Mugabe in which he alleged that the former Chairman of the ZMDC Mr Godwills Masimirembwa had received a bribe of US$ 6 million from a Ghanian diamond mining house. This is just the tip of the iceberg. In truth the restrictive measures have allowed corrupt Government officials and Ministers to milk our diamond revenues for their own benefit. Some senior people have become obscenely wealthy in the last 5 years. It was because of this that former Finance Minister Tendai Biti called for the lifting of restrictions several years ago so that at least our diamonds could be sold through traditional, lawful diamond dealers and also that would mean that Zimbabwe would get the best prices for her diamonds. Nothing has changed in this regard and so as regards diamonds at least, these restrictive measures should be lifted. In stating this we are not naive regarding the fact that corruption will continue to plague this sector but at least the lifting of sanctions will remove the excuse that there is some justification for keeping our diamond dealings secret. Their removal will also at least mean that Zimbabwe will get better prices for her diamonds.
3. It is important to remember that the restrictive measures were just that – they were directed at a few individuals and were restricted in their application, largely confined to travel bans and asset freezes. Their primary benefit was to stigmitise those responsible for gross human rights abuses and corruption. The objective of stigmitising these individuals has been achieved; never again will those responsible for these crimes be considered as statesmen or paragons of virtue. However the equal reality is that the measures themselves have done little to trouble those targeted. Most of them had wind of the measures before they were implemented and managed to move their foreign assets to countries which had not imposed such measures. Travel bans have been circumvented through UN protocols. Furthermore the measures have not prevented the massive and illegal accumulation of wealth in Zimbabwe by the individuals targetted or for that matter their retention of raw power. If anything these measures have won these individuals sympathy from some African Governments who believe that they have not been uniformly, consistently or fairly applied by Western Governments. There is no doubt that this sympathy influenced some SADC Governments to look the other way in the face of brazen abuses of Zimbabwe’s electoral laws and Constitution in the last election. To that extent at least the retention of sanctions has actually  helped Zanu PF.

The Financial Gazette

By Financial Gazette Reporter

19 September 2013

BULAWAYO — With a new Cabinet now sworn-in by President Robert Mugabe, the country’s second largest city is waiting with bated breath to see how the new ZANU-PF government will deal with the city’s multi-faceted challenges.

While some say nothing much will improve in Bulawayo, affectionately known as the City of Kings and Queens, others believe ZANU-PF could confound its critics and deliver ahead of the next elections in 2018.

City of Kings and Queens residents and the ruling ZANU-PF have had a tumultuous relationship since the country gained independence in April 1980.

Residents of Bulawayo accuse ZANU-PF of deliberately pursuing a policy of marginalisation, an accusation persistently denied by the party.

As a result, ZANU-PF has persistently been punished at the polls by voters from the province, who have instead backed the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC-T) led by Morgan Tsvangirai.

In the July 31 elections, the MDC-T won all 12 National Assembly seats and 29 council wards, leaving ZANU-PF with egg on its face.

ZANU-PF succeeded, however, in making inroads into other perceived MDC-T strongholds such as the Manicaland, Matabeleland North and South provinces.

Included in President Mugabe’s Cabinet line up are long serving ZANU-PF bigwigs, among them Emmerson Mnangagwa and Sydney Sekeramayi who have served in government since the 1980s.

Interestingly, there is no Minister in the current Cabinet from Bulawayo, whereas under the unity government the province was represented by David Coltart, Welshman Ncube, Gorden Moyo and Samuel Sipepa-Nkomo.

Political observers believe the new Cabinet, dominated by the old guard, offers little hope of either making a change or causing a radical shift in policy.

They do not see the new administration expending its energy and focus on the crisis gripping the Matabeleland region.

Bulawayo has suffered massive de-industrialisation, persistent water shortages and a looming hunger season which is likely to affect most parts of Matabeleland South.

Once the industrial hub of Zimbabwe, Bulawayo is almost on its knees. Since 2000, it has been dealt a body blow by de-industrialisation with nearly 100 companies having either closed shop or relocated to Harare, translating into the loss of an estimated 20 000 jobs.

The massive migration of people from the southern parts of Zimbabwe into South Africa and Botswana has also been blamed on company closures in Zimbabwe’s second largest city. Both industry players and residents of Bulawayo had pinned their hopes on the just-ended inclusive government turning around the fortunes of the city but that was not to be as company closures and  the streamlining of operations remained the order of the day with no end in sight.

The US$40 million Distressed Industries and Marginalised Areas Fund (DIMAF) earmarked for the city’s ailing industries since 2011 has not yielded much fruit.

In fact, some companies have either shut down or been placed under judicial management while queuing to access the fund.

There was finger-pointing in the former government regarding the ineffectiveness of DIMAF and other strategies adopted to bring back Zimbabwe’s economy on track. The ZANU-PF side of the government put the blame squarely on then finance minister Tendai Biti (MDC-T) whom they accused of deliberately sabotaging the economy.

Just before the July 31 polls, ZANU-PF promised to take measures to bring back Bulawayo to its former status as the industrial hub of the country, once elected into government.

President Mugabe, who on his inauguration, acknowledged that Bulawayo had been reduced to an “industrial scrapyard” has repeatedly said his government would move in to rescue the city from distress.

All eyes are therefore now fixed on the new Industry and Commerce Minister, Mike Bimha and his Finance counterpart, Patrick Chinamasa to deliver on promises made in the run-up to the elections.

Political analyst, Dumisani Nkomo, said the incoming government might starve council of resources and instead channel these through Provincial Minister Eunice Moyo, so as to discredit the MDC-T.

“ZANU-PF is looking at the bigger picture which is 2018 and they may pour in resources from the Chinese or diamonds so as to win Bulawayo in the next elections.They will starve the Bulawayo City Council and fund Provincial Minister Eunice Moyo, so as to discredit the MDC-T,” said Nkomo.

Vivid Gwede, a political commentator, said President Mugabe’s new Cabinet has the old stains of patronage, duplication of ministries, and is unnecessarily large.

“There is also the creation of dubious provincial ministers to usurp the power of the provinces in line with his desire to limit devolution and de-centralisation of power,” said Gwede.

“That aspect of doing away with devolution shows early signs that President Mugabe has many tricks of evading the spirit of the new Constitution, which the people of Bulawayo want.”

Rashweat Mukundu, chairperson of the Zimbabwe Democracy Institute, said Bulawayo’s fortunes would not be improved by the new ZANU-PF government.

“This is so because there is no investment taking place or likely to take place which will even trickle down to Bulawayo.

“With the ZANU-PF government sticking to its guns on indigenisation, we will see more industries shutting their doors, streamlining operations and shifting to Harare. So far what we have from ZANU-PF is rhetoric and a wish list on resuscitating Bulawayo and no concrete plans,” said Mukundu.

Another school of thought contends that the challenges facing the city could present an opportunity for ZANU-PF to turn things around.

Although it is hard to believe, Khanyile Mlotshwa, a political commentator based at Rhodes University, sees possible revival of the city under the new administration for several reasons.

“Firstly, ZANU-PF would like to prove themselves and create the impression that the unity government was the worst thing ever to happen to Zimbabwe.

“Secondly, the idea is that in Zimbabwe we are perpetually in an election mood, so everything is politicised and ZANU-PF will try to do its best to put itself in good books with the people of Bulawayo for the next election in 2018. I foresee Saviour Kasukuwere, the Environment and Water Minister coming out and working hard on the issue of water challenges facing the city and in the process setting the stage for the revival of the industries,” said Mlotshwa.

Cletus Moyo, president of the Matabeleland chapter of the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI), said they would want promises made during the campaign period delivered as soon as possible.

He said CZI had since written congratulatory letters to both Chinamasa and Bimha in which they also requested a meeting with them in order to hear from the horses’ mouth how they intend to take the country’s economy forward.

“However, the first thing we would want them to do is to ensure that the few companies that are there in Bulawayo remain operational and ensure there are no further closures,” he said.

Moyo said the new government should also help struggling companies to attract investment before moving on to resuscitate some of those that collapsed.

He, however, acknowledged that not all of the collapsed companies were worth reopening arguing that some had already been overtaken by technological advancements.

“It is indeed a welcome development that the Cabinet has been set up and we will now be knocking at their doors,” said Lucky Mlilo, chief executive officer for  the Association of Business in Zimbabwe.

Mlilo said the government needed to immediately capacitate economic enablers such as ZESA Holdings, Hwange Colliery Company and the National Railways of Zimbabwe to pave way for reindustrialisation of Bulawayo.

Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce (ZNCC) Bulawayo chapter first vice chairperson, Tshidzanani Malaba, said they were taking the government at its word regarding the promises it made to industry and were also eagerly awaiting their fulfillment.

Bimha last week vowed he would implement the promises his party made regarding Bulawayo industries during the election campaign.

“Resuscitating industries in Bulawayo is a priority because this city used to be the country’s industrial hub,” said Bimha.

“Our party (ZANU-PF) campaigned on the basis of a manifesto and when people give you the mandate you have to deliver. I will look at how best to ensure the promises we made are realised. Sourcing funding for the recapitalisation of companies is a major issue and that will be our focus.”

Chinamasa, a former Justice Minister in the inclusive government, this week said he would not say anything on how he intends to take forward the country’s finances, arguing he needed to be first briefed by officials in his new ministry before making public pronouncements.

The Financial Gazette

By Financial Gazette Reporter

19 September 2013

AS he hits the ground, hopefully running, in his capacity as the new Minister of Primary and Secondary Education, Lazarus Dokora has a key decision he needs to make and urgently.

Dokora will need to decide whether or not he uses the Educational Transitional Funds (ETF), which his party ZANU-PF previously called “illegal”.

Established in 2009, at the depth of the near collapse of the education system, with support from donations by several donor countries and organisations, the ETF, managed by the United Nations Children’s Fund, currently has US$160 million available for use by the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education.

“Dokora needs to make a key decision as to whether or not this money is legal. ZANU–PF has called it illegal in the past,” said former minister of education sport, arts and culture, David Coltart.

“If he decides it is legal to use it, then he will use it, if he decides it’s not then I guess he won’t. At US$160 million the fund will give him a substantial amount to work with.”
The ETF has provided a major lifeline for the education sector since 2009.

The fund has been used for, among other projects, the textbook purchases which saw the textbook to pupil ratio improve to 1:1 from no textbooks at all in some schools; computerisation of the ministry head office, provincial and district offices and curriculum review.

At its most, the fund stood at over a billion dollars. Conditions of use for the fund are that it not be used for salaries but for text book purchases and printing, training and computerisation among others.

Commitments for funding by the donors have already been secured and the funds are good till to about a year.

“If he decides to use the fund, Dokora does not have any urgent need for other international funds,” Coltart said.

Efforts to reach Dokora yesterday were not fruitful.

Southern Eye

By Dumisani Nkomo

18 September 2013

WHEN President Robert Mugabe finally announced the much-awaited Cabinet, I did not know whether to laugh or to cry.

One can only sum the Cabinet as a mixture of tragedy and comedy because some of the characters and names of ministries evoke comic relief, while others are a sure sign of tragedy in the making.

If anything the Cabinet could pass for a glorified circus with tested and gifted clowns, some of whom presided over some spectacular failures in various areas.

I was intrigued by the addition of the Courier and Postal Services portfolio to the ministry of Information Communication Technology.

I am sure Webster Shamu may be more inclined to Postal and Courier Services compared to the more information technology-conscious Nelson Chamisa.

What will such a minister do on a day-to-day basis? Possibly he could supervise postmen and ensure that our national courier service companies deliver gifts, flowers and other urgent mail.

Simon Khaya Moyo has landed the very high post of Senior Minister Without Portfolio. As to whether he will be senior, there is no doubt, but his day-to-day job description leaves much to the imagination.

He joins the likes of late greats such as Joshua Nkomo and Eddison Zvobgo who were once ministers without portfolio.

To add to the stroke of humour and comic relief, we have the incredible Minister of State Responsible for Liasing On Psychomotor Activities in Education (Vocational Education). I am sure a lot of employees in that department will be fired for failing to remember the full name of that ministry. One is reminded of William Shakespeare who speaks of a “tale told by an idiot full of sound and fury signifying nothing” when one thinks of elaborate the name given to the ministry and the depth, or lack thereof, of the job description.

Saviour Kasukuwere is the new Water, Climate and Environment minister and there is a strong possibility that he will indigenise both the water and the climate.

Then there are two Agriculture deputy ministers, but the one which stole my attention and had me in peels of laughter is the Agriculture deputy minister responsible for livestock.

A whole person and a whole minister presiding over cattle and goats, how interesting! What a brilliant stroke of comic relief?

I am sure many Cabinet ministers privately chuckle at the names of some of the ministries. You then have the endless array of Ministers of State, some in the President’s Office, one in charge of Presidential Affairs (whatever that means) and others in the Vice-President’s Office .

The minister responsible for Presidential Affairs, Didymus Mutasa, was once known as a credible speaker of Parliament, but more recently has gained national, if not international fame, or is it notoriety? for leading a high-powered delegation on a comical trip to a n’anga to extract diesel from a rock.

I don’t know how a whole country, with whole ministers who think diesel can be extracted from a rock, could expect to prosper with individuals credited for their naïvety, ignorance and propensity for superstition.

Tragedy
On a more sober note, the marginalisation of women in the Cabinet is a cause for concern and a tragic reflection of embedded patriarchal attitudes which relegate women to traditional roles in the kitchen and or bedroom.

One would have expected tried-and-tested ministers such as Olivia Muchena, Sithembiso Nyoni and Flora Bhuka to be given more meaningful Cabinet posts instead of being reduced — in the case of Bhuka — to an extension of office furniture and fittings in the Vice-President’s office.

The new Constitution is clear that there should be gender and regional balance in the Cabinet thus making the suggestion that there are not enough experienced or qualified women in a country with 13 million people a monumental scandal!

Whereas the last Cabinet had the likes of Gorden Moyo, Welshman Ncube, Samuel Sipepa Nkomo and David Coltart, there is only one minister from Bulawayo in the Cabinet — Eunice Moyo (Provincial Affairs).

We can assume that others such as Simon Khaya Moyo, Obert Mpofu, Jonathan Moyo and Kembo Mohadi are not from Bulawayo since they did not contest in Bulawayo, but either in Matabeleland North or South.

Harare has Tendai Savanhu who was once accused of sponsoring the notorious Chipangano.

The reintroduction of Jonathan Moyo is a disaster for freedom of speech while the retention of the likes of Joseph Made (Agriculture) and Ignatius Chombo (Local Government) is an indication that there is no serious policy shift or drift.

The appointment of the moderate and shrewd Francis Nhema is one of the new positives in a Cabinet which is composed of largely “have beens” and a couple of “wannabes”. The creation of the Sport, Arts and Culture ministry is noble, but there are serious doubts about the credentials of the holder of the post Andrew Langa.

The appointment of ministers responsible or provincial affairs is a clear attempt at derailing and undermining the concept and practice of devolution of power as outlined in Chapter 14 of the Constitution.

The tragic reality though is that whether we like it or not, that is the Cabinet and the government we have.

We may have to live with this cabal for the next five years if there are no more reshuffles.

We may have to engage this Cabinet and bring it to account for its actions, whether or not it is a glorified circus presided over by experienced clowns or it is a demonstration of the theatre of the absurd.

Dumisani Nkomo is an activist and opinion leader