Zim Independent
Dumisani Muleya
OPPOSITION political groups and civil society
movements have
started consultations to form a united front to support one
candidate in the
2008 presidential election, 23 months ahead of the crucial
poll.
Information obtained this week shows there have been
numerous
meetings among officials of factions of the divided Movement for
Democratic
Change (MDC), other opposition parties and civil society groups
in a bid to
form a broad united front against Zanu PF along the lines of
Kenya's
National Rainbow Coalition which brought President Mwai Kibaki to
power in
2002.
Apart from the MDC factions, other groups
involved in the plan
include the South African-based Zimbabwe Diaspora Civil
Society
Organisations Forum, which brings together a number of formations
and civic
organisations.
The Diaspora Forum was formed in
November 2005 as a network of
at least 20 local civic movements based in
South Africa working for a
democratic dispensation in
Zimbabwe.
The United People's Movement - a shadowy assemblage
of
disgruntled Zanu PF officials plus former Information minister Jonathan
Moyo
and ex-ruling party MP Pearson Mbalekwa - has also been involved in
efforts
to form a coalition to fight the presidential election with one
contender
challenging a Zanu PF candidate, possibly Vice-President Joice
Mujuru, in
March 2008.
Zanu PF has been contemplating
amending the constitution to
delay the 2008 election until 2010 when Mujuru,
who now seems to be destined
to take over from President Robert Mugabe,
would have consolidated her grip
on the ruling party and government. Since
she came into office in 2004,
Mujuru has been holding political road-shows
and rallies in a bid to build a
national profile and drum up support as
Mugabe's possible successor.
Sources said meetings have been
held since last July between MDC
officials, UPM members and civil society
leaders, including influential
church heads, to find a common strategy to
confront the current political
and economic crisis, as well as prepare for
the 2008 election.
"There have been a lot of meetings between
MDC officials, some
now aligned to the Morgan Tsvangirai faction and others
to the Arthur
Mutambara camp," a source said. "Various meetings have been
held between and
among opposition and civil society
leaders."
Sources said MDC officials from Tsvangirai and
Mutambara's
factions such as Paul Themba Nyathi, Gandi Mudzingwa, Nelson
Chamisa,
Renson Gasela and William Bango have had meetings with UPM members,
including Moyo and Mbalekwa, over the issue. The meetings have been running
since July before the MDC split in October last year and were currently
continuing. The involved officials were not available for comment
yesterday.
Moyo and others, sources said, were recently
invited to the
Tsvangirai faction's congress, to give a "solidarity message"
although the
move was later aborted as it was seen not to be strategic. The
source said
there has been a lot of SMS messages and phone calls flying
around among the
officials trying to come up with a united front against
Zanu PF.
The South African-based Zimbabwe Diaspora Civil
Society
Organisations Forum recently invited Tsvangirai, Mutambara and Moyo
to speak
at a public meeting which was expected to have been held on April
18 to
coincide with the 26th anniversary celebrations of Zimbabwe's
Independence.
Sources said Tsvangirai's emissaries had held
meetings with
Moyo, while Mutambara has also met Moyo twice this month.
There are efforts
to organise a meeting between Tsvangirai and Mutambara.
Founding MDC member
David Coltart said this week it was time the two met for
the sake of their
own political interests.
Both
Tsvangirai and Mutambara have been calling for the
formation of a united
front against Zanu PF.
Zim Independent
Dumisani Ndlela/ Shakeman Mugari
BELEAGUERED Air Zimbabwe staff this week expressed serious
misgivings over a
planned US$500 million deal between the country and Russia
for the import of
at least five Ilyushin and Tupolev aircraft from the
former communist
country.
The agreement was signed by the central bank
governor Gideon
Gono and Transport Minister Christopher Mushowe during their
visit to Moscow
earlier this month. A firm contract will only be signed in
July, according
to a report in the UK's Flight
International.
Mushowe flatly denied the government had made
an undertaking to
purchase aircraft from Russia, saying this was mere
speculation.
But the Zimbabwe Independent understands that
the deal has
caused jitters among the airline's pilots and engineers, who
have expressed
serious concerns over the technical quality of the aircraft.
The staff wants
the airline and its engineers to have greater say in any
planned
acquisitions following problems with recent plane acquisitions from
China.
Russian planes are notorious for technical faults and
failures
which have resulted in them being labelled "flying coffins" and
"death
traps".
One of the Chinese aircraft acquired last
year has been grounded
since delivery last year.
The deal
by Gono and Mushowe and their Russian counterparts
involves the acquisition
of five Il-96s, consisting of three 400T freighters
and two 400M passenger
aircraft. These planes have had many technical
problems over the past few
years.
Deliveries will start in 2008 from the Voronezh
Aircraft
Construction Company (Vaco) plant once the final deal is signed in
July.
Vaco is one of the biggest factories in Russia
producing
passenger and cargo aircraft.
The deal will be
financed by Ilyushin Finance Co, one of two
state-run Russian companies
involved in domestic aircraft construction and
sales
programmes.
Ilyushin Finance Co focuses on financing
Il-96-300, Il-96-400,
Tu-204-300 and An-148 aircraft.
Sources indicated that Air Zimbabwe employees were building
resistance to
the acquisition. They were however persuaded to accept the
deal at a meeting
held this week.
They allege that Air Zimbabwe was being
sidelined in the
acquisition of aircraft, and the role of uninformed
politicians in such
crucial acquisitions had cost the airline
dearly.
For example, one of the MA60 aircraft recently
acquired from
China had been grounded since delivery and politicians had
ducked tackling
the issue because of its potential to embarrass the
government's "Look-East"
policy.
But the new move could
prove even more disastrous to the
government and the airline, the sources
said. The aircraft from Russia were
of questionable quality, and Russia
might be ready to finance the
acquisitions because the aircraft had a very
limited market outside Russia.
Mushowe this week denied he had signed a deal
with Russians for the
acquisition of new aircraft, describing the reports as
"imaginary".
"I'm surprised because when we acquired the MA60
planes from
China last year, the nation knew about it; everybody was told.
So this is
imaginary. It's something I don't quite comprehend," Mushowe said
in
response to a question from the Zimbabwe Independent at a press
conference
on Wednesday.
Zim Independent
Clemence Manyukwe
POLITICAL uncertainty surrounds Justice
minister Patrick
Chinamasa amid reports that he and two intelligence bosses
are being
investigated by the police on allegations of trying to defeat the
course of
justice in a political violence case initially linked to Security
minister
Didymus Mutasa.
Sources said Chinamasa, the
Central Intelligence Organistaion
(CIO)'s provincial head in Manicaland and
the agency's district head in
Makoni identified only as Innocent Chibaya and
Masiya, were being
investigated for interfering with witnesses in a matter
they said reflected
Zanu PF's power struggles in the
province.
The case stems from the attack on a Zanu PF member,
James
Kaunye, in 2004 when he was campaigning to be a party candidate ahead
of
last year's parliamentary election in Makoni North where Mutasa was the
sitting MP.
It was the state's case that Mutasa and
Makoni North district
chairman, Albert Nyakuedzwa, led the attacks on Kaunye
and others, leaving
him unconscious.
Chinamasa is said to
have approached a state witness and Kaunye
at the Zanu PF people's
conference in Esigodini in December last year and
persuaded them to drop the
case.
Mutasa yesterday confirmed that the intelligence bosses
were
under investigation but referred all questions on Chinamasa to Home
Affairs
minister Kembo Mohadi.
"I know that the people
are being investigated," said Mutasa.
"The police should have talked to us.
They have not approached us and it
will not go anywhere."
Contacted yesterday for comment, Chinamasa said: "I am not going
to issue
any statement on that."
Mohadi said he was not briefed on the
matter.
The Attorney-General's office was also unable to
comment on the
case. Although Attorney-General Sobusa Gula-Ndebele could not
be reached
yesterday, last week he said he had
not received
any report on the matter.
Zim Independent
Augustine Mukaro/Shakeman Mugari
GOVERNMENT will have to print large sums of money to fund the
bill for
soldiers' and teachers' salary increments in view of its limited
$30
trillion budgeted for civil servants this year.
Experts say
government will need to print close to $60 trillion
to fund the salary hikes
announced on Wednesday which they say will see
inflation going through the
roof. The move is widely seen as an attempt to
pacify restless soldiers and
an army of civil servants who have been
complaining about low salaries and
poor working conditions.
They said the timing of the
increases was suspicious. It
appeared designed to prevent civil servants and
members of the uniformed
forces from supporting a possible call for mass
action by the MDC.
Morgan Tsvangirai has been using low
salaries as his trump card
in his nationwide campaign to drum up support for
mass protests. He even
paraded payslips for civil servants in his bid to
rally them behind him in
the proposed winter mass
protests.
"There is no point in continuing to watch with
trepidation a
small nationalistic class, aided by a corrupt and parasitic
bureaucracy and
supported by desperate opportunists wreak havoc on the
national cake,"
Tsvangirai said in his Independence Day
message.
Zimbabwe Defence Forces commander General
Constantine Chiwenga
and Police Commissioner Augustine Chihuri attended the
Wednesday press
conference at which salary increases were announced,
apparently to show
solidarity with government.
President
Mugabe has also heavily militarised government
operations with several
parastatals now led by army or ex-military
personnel.
However the salary increases that will stoke inflation.
Government has often
resorted to taking pre-emptive measures to prevent
protests. One such
measure was the widely condemned slum clearance Operation
Murambatsvina last
May.
Government also launched Operation Maguta to avert
possible mass
protests over food shortages created by its populist land
reform programme.
Zimbabwe's poverty datum line has risen to
$35 million after
inflation recently surged to 913% against a backdrop of a
wave of price
increases across the economy already reeling from shortages of
foreign
currency, fuel, electricity, food and basic
commodities.
Trebling of the salaries of soldiers and
teachers will multiply
by three government's wage bill which is already
unsustainable.
Government allocated $30 trillion for the
public service wage
bill this year and the salary hikes mean the bill will
go up threefold.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has
complained about
Harare's wage bill. Government's fiscal deficit widened
substantially in
2005 to 11,5% of gross domestic product from 4,7% in 2004
due to high
spending. The wage bill rose from 15,5% of GDP in 2004 to about
20% last
year, a level that is very high by international
standards.
Government will now have to print $60 trillion to
foot the bill.
Recently, the RBZ printed $46 trillion to pay
the IMF and
finance its operations, with President Mugabe's
blessing.
Economists have warned further printing of money
will increase
inflation to levels way above 1 000%. Imara financial services
group, a
regional firm, said this week Zimbabwe's inflation will reach over
1 000% by
the end of the month.
Opposition MDC defence
spokesman, Giles Mutsekwa, yesterday
accused government of raising salaries
of security forces and civil servants
to bribe them to thwart mass protests.
"We are not opposed to improving the
welfare of our civil servants,"
Mutsekwa said.
"We are just concerned about the timing and
the discrimination
in the whole process. If government is sincere about
improving the welfare
of workers, they should not wait for a crisis to
unfold for it to raise
their salaries."
Highly placed
sources in the ZDF said the urgency to increase
salaries took centre stage
three weeks ago.
Chiwenga reportedly told President Mugabe during
a briefing that
soldiers needed incentives to deal with the protests mulled
by the
opposition.
"Chiwenga presented a salary increase
proposal to Mugabe," a
source said. "The president endorsed the proposal
after realising how worse
off defence and other uniformed forces had
become.
"Following the endorsement, the increases were expected
to be
effected in April but were blocked at a ministers' caucus where
Education
minister Aeneas Chigwedere said his ministry was already broke,"
the source
said.
Zim Independent
Loughty Dube
THE self-appointed
mediator in the crisis-ridden opposition MDC,
David Coltart, has said that
if he fails to solve amicably the problems
affecting the fractured party he
will consider standing as an independent.
Coltart has over
the past four months tried without success to
get the divided MDC back
together. He has said that if the party fails to
reconcile itself then an
amicable separation that would see the two factions
agree on the party's
name, logos, slogans and property should be reached.
Coltart
this week further indicated that he still has four
options to raise his
political profile after he shunned both factions of the
divided
MDC.
"If the negotiations towards a reunification or amicable
separation of the party fail, then I will have to look at other political
options and the options include deciding whether to join the Tsvangirai or
Mutambara faction or to join Zanu PF which is highly unlikely or to stand as
an independent or quit politics altogether," Coltart
said.
Sources argued that the MDC cannot be dissolved without
congressional approval and since the issue of dissolving the party was not
raised at the two factions' separate congresses the issue of an amicable
divorce was out of the question.
"Coltart's negotiations
are out of context because he wants to
negotiate for an amicable divorce but
a party cannot separate or be
dissolved without the approval of
congress.
"He wants the two factions to share property
amicably but that
again cannot happen because the MDC, just like any
voluntary organisation,
has to donate its property if it is dissolved
according to Zimbabwean laws,"
said the source.
But
Coltart this week said he was not calling for a dissolution
of the MDC but
wanted to seek an agreement that would chart the way forward
for the two
factions.
"Neither side is talking of dissolution of the MDC.
The issue of
an amicable solution has to be tackled lest the dispute spills
into the
courts and such a scenario would not be good for the opposition in
this
country," Coltart said.
Questioned on the sharing of
the property, Coltart said most of
the MDC property was registered under
different companies and therefore
donating the property was out of the
question.
He said the whole negotiations of a mutual
settlement of the MDC
crisis, which would see the two feuding parties
continue to operate in the
country's remaining political space, was being
impeded by Morgan Tsvangirai
who has not responded to his letters.
Tsvangirai's spokesperson, William
Bango, when contacted, curtly said the
two feuding sides were in contact
without elaborating
further.
"Tsvangirai believes that the parties to the
conflict are in
direct contact," Bango said.
The MDC
split in October last year ostensibly over a decision on
whether to
participate in the senate election. But Coltart, in interviews
given to
South African radio over Easter, has made it clear that the issue
dividing
the two sides was the violent attacks in 2004 and 2005 on members
of the
party at Harvest House and the subsequent suppression of a report
into the
incidents.
Zim Independent
Ray Matikinye
MOVEMENT for
Democratic Change (MDC) leader Morgan Tsvangirai is
ratcheting up pressure
on his former colleagues now under Arthur Mutambara's
leadership after
defections by a number of top officials in the past two
weeks.
Former national chairman in the Mutambara camp
Gift Chimanikire,
the camp's former director of elections Blessing Chebundo
and deputy
director Sam Sipepa Nkomo, Binga legislator Joel Gabuza, together
with
provincial executives in Harare and Chitungwiza, crossed the floor last
week, creating a political dilemma in the Mutambara camp.
Defectors have claimed to be heeding the voice of their
constituents and
blamed lack of strategy to oust Zanu PF from power as
reasons for deciding
to dump the Mutambara faction.
The Zimbabwe Independent heard
that Tsvangirai has lined up
rallies in Nkulumane, Bulawayo South, and
Hwange East and West to exert
pressure on Gibson Sibanda, David Coltart,
Jealous Sansole and Thembinkosi
Sibindi.
"Tsvangirai has
decided to deal with the issue of his former
colleagues who broke away from
the mainstream MDC in a political manner
rather than engage in internal
mudslinging with them," a source said.
"He has raised the
stakes by seeking to isolate them from the
electorate and keeping the heat
on them by holding rallies in their
constituencies. He is whipping up
political emotions among his supporters to
remind his former colleagues of
the Gwisai scenario."
Former Higfield MP, Munyaradzi Gwisai,
lost his seat in a
by-election after a fallout with his
colleagues.
But Sibanda said he had not witnessed anything
unusual in his
constituency that would resemble preparations for a series of
rallies or
pubic meetings.
"I have no knowledge that
anything like that is being planned in
my constituency," Sibanda said
Wednesday.
"I was there this morning. Everything is
normal."
Sources told the Independent that Sibanda had sought
a meeting
with Tsvangirai last week to discuss the implications of his
populist thrust
and work out an amicable stand.
But
Sibanda denied this. "I have neither spoken to him or
arranged a meeting
with him. I see no need," Sibanda said.
Coltart said it was
the first time he had heard about the plan.
"If that is the
case they will be faced with a constitutional
problem. Their actions will be
meaningless in terms of Section 41 (1)(e) of
the constitution which requires
that the party informs the Leader of the
House that a sitting MP is no
longer their member," Coltart said.
He said he felt appalled
by such a scenario in relation to the
pressure it exerts on some
MPs.
"My case is different because of the type of electorate
in my
constituency. They have been supportive all along," Coltart
said.
Tsvangirai's strategy has made the situation in the MDC
camps
more fluid.
Further defections involving members
who earlier had signed a
petition to the Speaker of the House demanding a
change of portfolios held
by the opposition, particularly that of the
opposition chief whip, could
whittle down the Mutambara camp's claim of
holding a majority of seats.
Earlier attempts by Mutambara's
camp to effect these changes hit
a brick wall when the leader of the House,
John Nkomo, said parliament did
not recognise the split in the
MDC.
Justice and Legal Affairs minister Patrick Chinamasa
held the
same view when he handed over to Welshman Ncube, the party
secretary-general, $8 billion as part of the MDC's share of the funds
disbursed under the Political Parties (Finance) Act.
Before the defections, Mutambara's camp boasted 23 MPs to 18 in
Tsvangirai's
fold.
The Mutambara camp failed to expel Tsvangirai through
the courts
while Tsvangirai's attempt to expel St Mary's legislator Job
Sikhala was
also thrown out.
Coltart, who turned down
invitations from both camps, has been
making frantic efforts to broker a
pact for sharing party assets following
the acrimonious October 12
split.
Buoyed by the huge crowds that have been attending his
campaign
to drum up support for planned anti government protest, Tsvangirai
is taking
the battle to his erstwhile colleagues creating fears this could
further
enfeeble the Mutambara camp.
Pressure has been
intensifying on Sibindi after Joel Gabuza
crossed the floor to the
Tsvangirai camp at the behest of the electorate in
his Binga
constituency.
Zim Independent
MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai is in South Africa at the head of a
delegation
for talks with South African President Thabo Mbeki.
The
delegation left on Tuesday.
Sources in the opposition party
told the Zimbabwe Independent
that the meeting in Johannesburg was at the
invitation of the South African
president and was the first since the
October 12 split in the MDC
that saw the emergence two
factions.
The Mutambara faction has already met Mbeki after
Tsvangirai
spurned an earlier invitation before his camp's March
congress.
The meeting is expected to improve relations with
Mbeki, whom
Tsvangirai once referred to as "not an honest broker" in his
efforts to
initiate dialogue between the MDC and the ruling Zanu PF
party.
Sources say the visit is the first of a regional tour
that will
take the MDC delegation to Namibia for talks with Namibian
president
Hifikepunye Pohamba.
In February, Tsvangirai
and his delegation that included
national chairman Isaac Matongo,
information secretary Nelson Chamisa,
presidential spokesman William Bango,
was booted out of Zambia.
Meanwhile leader of the rival
faction Mutambara, accompanied by
his secretary-general Welshman Ncube and a
number of the camp's top leaders,
are scheduled to address rallies in the
United Kingdom and Ireland at the
weekend.
According to a
notice posted on the internet by Nobel Sibanda,
the information and
publicity secretary for UK and Ireland, rallies have
been scheduled for
Claremont Research Centre in Manchester.
Zim Independent
DELEGATES attending an international business
conference at the
ongoing Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF) have said
government should
resign immediately as it has failed to steer the economy
out of the current
crisis.
The delegates, who included
heads of parastatals and company
executives, took turns during the
question-and-answer session to lambast
government for policy failures while
others said it should quit altogether
and make way for an interim
administration.
"What is good for Zimbabwe right now is for
industrialists to
take care of this government," said one company executive.
"With this
current government in power, we are going to perish. People can't
continue
being suffocated, a caretaker government is needed
urgently."
Industrial Development Corporation boss Mike
Ndudzo, who was
moderating, tried to interject and to stop one delegate from
continuing with
his attack, but to no avail.
Another
delegate also took a swipe at Zesa saying the power
utility should have a
timetable for power interruptions and for
load-shedding.
A spokesman for one parastatal, who preferred to address the
business
meeting in his personal capacity after clearly stating that he
could be
fired for his views, blasted deputy Minister of Science and
Technology
Patrick Zhuwawo who had earlier told the business seminar that
Zimbabweans
should not just question issues but act.
"The problem with
you politicians is you tell us not to ask
questions because you act as if
you hold a monopoly to solving the country's
problems and you don't listen
to people's advice," he said.
Ruth Labode, a business leader,
told the conference to import
goods in bulk from China and export them to
Sadc countries, which Ndudzo
dismissed as a disastrous long-term solution to
the country's problems. The
meeting was attended by three deputy ministers -
Zhuwawo, Phineas Chihota
and Samuel Undenge with most ministers and
Vice-President Joice Mujuru in
Harare for a politburo
meeting.
The president of the PTA Bank of East and Southern
Africa,
Michael Gondwe, did not attend the meeting but instead a
representative
George Mudange stood in for him. - Staff
Writer.
Zim Independent
Loughty Dube
THE issue of a
successor to Vice-President Joseph Msika has
taken another twist with former
PF-Zapu members saying the disbanded party's
hierarchy should be observed in
replacing Msika.
Former Zipra military commanders and PF-Zapu
leaders who spoke
to the Zimbabwe Independent this week said according to
PF-Zapu's structures
the next in line for the country's vice-presidency is
former party
secretary-general Welshman Mabhena.
Several
people who include John Nkomo, Dumiso Dabengwa and
Industry and Commerce
Minister, Obert Mpofu, have been touted as likely
successors to Msika should
he leave office now.
Mabhena was dismissed from his job as
Matabeleland North
governor for speaking out against what he termed the
marginalisation of the
region by President Mugabe's
government.
"In terms of seniority in PF-Zapu, the next most
important
person is Mabhena and there is no way John Nkomo can claim to be
the most
senior member of PF-Zapu when people like Mabhena are still alive,"
said an
ex-Zipra commander who spoke on condition of
anonymity.
"He was not fired from PF-Zapu but he joined Zanu
PF at the
signing of the Unity Accord."
He said President
Mugabe should come out in the open and state
that Mabhena was fired from
Zanu PF so that all former PF-Zapu members come
to a common ground on who
should succeed Msika.
Max Mnkandla, the president of the
Zimbabwe Liberators Peace
Platform and a former Zipra cadre, said there was
no debate that Mabhena
should take over when Msika leaves the
vice-presidency position.
"John Nkomo was very junior to
Mabhena and he was not even in
the decision-making body of the party," he
said.
"At the Lancaster House talks, Mabhena was there and
always next
to Nkomo. We expect the former PF-Zapu leadership to make the
right decision
on who succeeds Msika and that decision should not be made by
Mugabe or any
other Zanu PF official," Mnkandla said.
When contacted to comment on the views from former colleagues,
Mabhena said
he was prepared to represent the people of Matabeleland and
Zimbabwe in
government.
"I am ready to serve the people of Zimbabwe.
There has been talk
that I was fired from Zanu PF but since joining the
party through PF-Zapu, I
have never been fired unless someone proves
otherwise," Mabhena said.
Efforts to get a comment on
Mabhena's status from Zanu PF
spokesperson, Nathan Shamuyarira, were
fruitless as he was said to be in
meetings.
Zim Independent
Clemence Manyukwe
ZIMBABWE'S appalling
human rights record has resulted in the
international community and donor
agencies snubbing appeals for food aid for
an estimated three million people
facing severe food shortages, a
parliamentary committee heard on
Monday.
National Association of Non-Governmental
Organisations (Nango)
advocacy and communications manager, Fambai Ngirande,
said this year's
consolidated appeal for US$276 million sent out by the
United Nations, NGOs
and church organisations in October 2005 had so far
received only US$9
million.
Ngirande was giving evidence
before the parliamentary portfolio
committee on Labour and Social Welfare
chaired by Zaka West legislator,
Mabel Mawere.
"Zimbabwe
is not a donor darling, donors are skirting Zimbabwe.
Inflows have been
substantially reduced," Ngirande said.
"Out of $276 million
requested, so far we have received only
US$9 million because of the
country's contentious human rights record."
He said apart
from mobilising funds for food aid, the
consolidated appeal also sought
funding for agricultural and livestock
assistance, home-based care for 55
000 HIV- positive people and education
needs for 93 000
children.
Ngirande suggested the NGO Bill had added to the
negative
perceptions of Zimbabwe. Declining economic performance, reduced
agricultural production and the HIV and Aids pandemic had contributed to the
numbers of people in need of assistance. The situation was worsened by the
government's controversial Operation Murambatsvina in May last
year.
A representative of Christian Care, Reverend Forbes
Matonga,
said there was need for politicians to act as national leaders
rather than
as representatives of their political parties to avoid
allegations of food
politicisation.
He said rising
inflation, the exchange rate and bureaucracy in
government institutions were
hampering the efforts of those intending to
offer food aid to vulnerable
groups.
"There is bureaucracy. When you want to import maize
you go to
the Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Health, Zimra (Zimbabwe
Revenue
Authority) people, the GMB. This is an emergency, by the time you
finish
with them you do not have resources," said Rev Matonga.
Zim Independent
Augustine Mukaro
ZANU PF
central committee member and one of the sitting
commissioners running
Harare, Priscilla Mupfumira, is tipped to succeed
chairperson Sekesai
Makwavarara who is reportedly facing eviction.
Makwavarara's
term of office which expires in June is not likely
to be renewed after
complaints from central government over her extravagant
lifestyle and
failure to deliver service to residents.
"Replacement names
are being tossed around with two of the
sitting commissioners, Mupfumira and
Viola Chasi, featuring prominently,"
sources said.
Mupfumira is a Zanu PF central committee member while Chasi
works for the
Jewel Bank.
Neither Mupfumira nor Chasi could be reached for
comment.
The Combined Harare Residents Association (CHRA)
condemned
Makwavarara's taste for luxury saying she does not deserve it
since she is
not an elected mayor.
"She is not Harare's
mayor; neither does she have the mandate of
residents to be at the helm of
the City of Harare."
CHRA said it was saddened by the trend
at Town House where
priority is given to peripheral matters ahead of refuse
collection, repair
of burst sewer and water pipes, water treatment and
supply, road repairs and
the plight of victims of Operation Murambatsvina
who continue to suffer,
almost a year after the demolitions and
displacements.
The removal of Makwavarara from the post of
chairperson would
strip her of the privileges of using the mayoral Mercedes
Benz, the mayoral
mansion and other council benefits.
Makwavarara, a political turncoat who arrived at Town House on
an MDC
ticket, undermined fired mayor Elias Mudzuri before defecting to Zanu
PF.
She has stirred a storm of protests in the past few months because of
her
extravagant lifestyle.
First was her proposal to furnish the
mayoral mansion at a cost
of $35 billion, followed by the acquisition of a
$103 million satellite dish
she had installed at the mayoral mansion without
approval. As if that were
not enough, Makwavarara proceeded to spend over
$175 million on groceries at
the commission's expense.
Only last week, the government blocked the sale of a council
house to
Makwavarara at a cost of $780 million.
Independent valuers
pegged the property at not less than $20
billion.
Zim Independent
Shakeman Mugari
A SIX-MEMBER
independent panel investigating the controversial
take-over of two
commercial banks' assets by the year-old Zimbabwe Allied
Banking Group
(ZABG) has presented its report to the central bank, now
expected to make a
ruling in a case in which it is an interested party.
The
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) is expected to make a ruling
within the next
two weeks, according to a private undertaking made by RBZ
governor Gideon
Gono to the panel, sources said.
The panel completed the
report on its findings on the dispute
last week.
The
panel's report will put to rest a two-year dispute between
the RBZ and the
collapsed Trust and Royal banks, which allege the central
bank facilitated
the illegal take over of their assets by ZABG, in which the
RBZ is the
controlling shareholder.
The RBZ was earlier this year forced
to appoint an independent
panel after the two banks challenged their closure
and forced inclusion into
ZABG.
They have since taken the
RBZ and the curators appointed to run
the commercial banks to
court.
The curators were accused of colluding with the
central bank to
sell their assets to ZABG.
The Supreme
Court last year ruled as "unlawful, null and void"
the disposal of Royal and
Trust Bank's assets by the curators.
Sources this week said
the panel had handed its findings to Gono
who is now expected to make a
determination on the issue within the next two
weeks.
The
source told businessdigest that the governor was now
planning a meeting with
the panel to discuss the contents and implications
of the
report.
That meeting is likely to take place next week when
South Africa's
corporate governance guru, Mervyn King, and former Zambian
central bank
governor, David Phiri, who were key members of the panel,
arrive in the
country.
King is currently in New York but
is expected in the country
next week, the same time Phiri is also expected
in.
"Once these two arrive, the full panel will meet with
Gono to
discuss the contents of the report," said the
source.
"The panel will give Gono a briefing on the
implications of the
findings. A determination is expected thereafter," a
source said.
Sources said indications were that the report
would recommend
the return of Trust and Royal banks assets, a move that
would put ZABG in
the lurch.
In any case, the Supreme
Court had already made the ruling in
favour of the two banks' shareholders.
The ruling said ZABG was operating
with assets unlawfully acquired from the
closed banks.
If ZABG is stripped off its assets, it would
become a shell
company and consequently close down, a prospect experts said
was unlikely as
it would spoil Gono's pride as the architect of the
project.
There was also a possibility that Trust and Royal
shareholders
could claim ZABG's profit made through their
assets.
The closed banks are already working on a
comprehensive
post-ZABG plan in anticipation of a favourable
outcome.
The two banks have already agreed on a new
shareholding
structure but say they will maintain the current workforce and
branches if
reopened.
The new entity would be known as
Trust-Royal Bank.
"ZABG has nothing. It has no assets of its
own," said one of the
sources involved in the talks.
Zim Independent
Dumisani Ndlela
THE Zimbabwe
Electricity Supply Authority (Zesa) has dealt a
body blow to the
government's rhetoric promising a successful winter wheat
crop this year,
saying the power utility was unlikely to meet farmers'
requirements for the
cropping season.
In a rare exchange between Zesa and the
Ministry of Energy and
Power Development, Zesa's corporate secretary, Pardon
Chakanyuka, insisted
the ministry had misled the nation when it announced
"uninterruptible power
supplies during the winter cropping season" on
national television.
"The board is quite concerned about the
announcement which was
made without its knowledge or Zesa having been
consulted to ascertain the
facts on the ground," Chakanyuka said in a
letter.
"The board is worried that the announcement exposes
the board as
it's generated a lot of expectations from Zesa's stakeholders
and in
particular the farming community," Chakanyuka
said.
Chakanyuka's letter was addressed to the ministry's
permanent
secretary, Justin Mupamhanga, who is also a board member of
Zesa.
In the letter, dated March 31, Chakanyuka noted that
Zesa had in
the past made commitments to the industry on the basis of the
central bank's
pledge to provide US$3,5 million in August last year but this
had not
happened, leaving Zesa "in an invidious and embarrassing position of
having
to explain continued deterioration of supply availability and
reliability to
customers", it said.
"It is against this
background that the board resolved to direct
the group company secretary to
write this letter to you so as to put the
record straight."
Zim Independent
Dumisani Ndlela
THE Reserve
Bank of Zimbabwe this week hiked the key
accommodation rate as it swung the
pendulum in its fight against inflation,
warning the market to brace for a
tighter monetary policy regime ahead of
record TB maturities in the next two
months.
But the central bank indicated it might not hike the
treasury
bill (TB) rate, saying its interest rates policy would be guided by
the need
to stabilise inflationary pressures wreaking havoc in the
economy.
"We once again call upon players in the banking
industry to
carefully calibrate their funding positions in a manner that
pitches their
sails strong enough to withstand the inevitable liquidity
storm that
ordinarily comes with the vigorous anti-inflation thrust the
Reserve Bank
will continue to maintain," said RBZ Gideon
Gono.
The market had been expecting the central bank's tight
monetary
policy to become overwhelmed by record TB maturities in May and
June,
expected to unleash $25 billion and $39 billion into the market during
the
respective months.
In a memorandum to bank chief
executives, Gono said his call to
the market was pre-emptive and had been
"made in the common interest of
balancing the dual virtues of inflation
reduction and maintenance of a
sound, stable, bankable and developmental
financial system".
Inflation soared to 913,6% year-on-year
for March, an all-time
high that surpassed the central bank's forecast,
indicating inflation could
peak at 800% in March before starting to fall
down. The RBZ increased the
overnight accommodation rates from 750% to 800%
for secured lending and from
785% to 850% for unsecured lending under
measures Gono said were meant to
fortify the central bank's framework for
achieving its anti-inflation
targets.
However, the TB and
open market operation (OMO) rates would not
be increased, Gono said, noting
that the market should not expect "a
one-on-one link between the
accommodation rate and the TB and OMO rates".
"The monetary
policy update to a certain extent put the market
at ease," said Washington
Mehlomakulu, an analyst with Highveld Financial
Services.
There had been uncertainty in the market after the RBZ kept the
market
uninformed over its policy position regarding interest rates after it
had
not hiked the key bank rates despite a rise in inflation.
The
RBZ has consistently raised the key accommodation rate in
line with
inflation, indicating its resolve to see positive real interest
rates in the
market as well as its intention to use the blunt money market
instrument to
curb credit expansion.
Mehlomakulu said the central bank's
resolve not to move TB rates
up had been informed by its view that current
rates gave real returns to
investors.
"The RBZ feels that
the yield, compounded quarterly, gives above
inflation returns," said
Mehlomakulu.
"The market will now closely watch the inflation
rate for April
to take a cue over where the central bank might be going in
terms of the TB
and bank rates. But current pronouncements do not preclude
it from
increasing the TB rate," Mehlomakulu said.
Gono
said the bank rate was purely meant to discourage borrowing
from the central
bank and was "a forward looking anticipatory policy rate
which seeks to
drive inflation from a priori expected levels".
"It should,
however, be noted that the policy framework will
continue to be that of
maintaining positive real rates on money market
instruments," Gono
said.
He warned the corporate sector to avoid borrowings that
could
destroy their balance sheets during its vigorous fight against
inflation.
"The high interest rate environment also calls for
corporates
and all other players in the economy's productive systems to
proficiently
realign their financing and capital structures in a manner that
minimises
the interest cost burden," Gono said.
Zim Independent
By Admire Mavolwane
TODAY marks the close of yet another
horrible month for a number
of players in the investment markets. Beginning
the second week of this
month, the stock market looked as if it had bottomed
out and was showing
signs of recovery but the last three days have put paid
to all the high
hopes.
Notwithstanding these mid-April
gains, the market is yet to claw
back the losses of 14,14% and 20,14%
incurred in February and March,
respectively. For the year to date the
industrial index is showing a 92,49%
gain some 53 percentage points lower
than the 144,95% recorded in January.
The problem, as we have
highlighted before, is that the bulk of
the losses are sitting with the
newer converts to the stock market who
bought in towards the end of
January.
It is this segment of investors that has been crying
out loud
and is seen holding calculators everyday, enumerating their
unrealised
losses and contrasting them with interest income foregone on the
money
market.
What this does ultimately is to undermine
confidence in the
share market if some of the not so quiet mumblings and
vows not to gamble
again are anything to go by. The positive correlation
between risk and
return is surely a hard lesson to learn.
The foreign currency "investor" is also singing the blues.
Notwithstanding
the acceleration of inflation from 585,8% to 913,6%, a
differential of
327,8%, the exchange rate has just about doubled from $100
000 to $210 000
to the green leaf.
However, working it out the other way
using the monthly
inflation rates of 18,6%, 27,5% and 19,8% for January,
February and March,
respectively, the dollar is still slightly ahead of the
81% compounded
monthly inflation rates.
Once we resort
to calculators and other mathematically or
scientifically elaborate
measurement of returns, it becomes apparent that
one is looking for
solace.
The only guys who have been smiling are those
investors who have
either a diversified portfolio made up of all three asset
classes or have
remained faithful to the short-term money market investment
duration.
The money market players have been enjoying high
interest rates,
which at some point peaked at 400% per annum on the short
end. A counter
argument against the latter category will be the negative
real returns that
they have endured since June last year. At the moment,
however, the three
markets are showing negative real returns so investors
are rather worse off.
The trouble with the money market is
that it is essentially a
zero sum game. Whenever the investor is being
enticed by a high interest
rate to invest his money, the institution looking
for money will be
sacrificing a good slice of its profit
margin.
The situation is made worse where an institution is
using the
deposit to fund a sovereign asset that is earning much less than
the deposit
interest rate. A question which might be asked then is; when did
banks start
practising GMB economics? Since late February into early March,
when the
central bank started issuing short dated treasury bills at
relatively high
yields when compared with the ones prevailing then, would be
the response.
To tighten the noose the central bank also
increased the
statutory reserve requirements, which saw huge outflows from
the market in
one day, at the same time hiking the overnight accommodation
rate to 750%
per annum compounded daily.
As with the case
of the state grain utility, this rather
unfortunate situation arises from
factors exogenous to the individual bank
itself and is a burden foisted upon
the sector by an external force.
Whereas the GMB can afford
to pass the buck on to the fiscus,
the banks cannot exactly do that. Their
recourse is to ask shareholders to
put up more money, but that could be
asking too much from an already
overburdened lot.
Many of the
institutions had forewarned shareholders that they
would be coming to the
market with rights offers and other capital raising
initiatives of some
kind. Initially, the idea was to top up the
distributable reserves already
sitting on the balance sheets but now they
have to raise more than
previously envisaged. Anyway, as they say: "Good
bankers, like good tea,
can only be appreciated when they are in hot water."
Bankers
do not cry, if they did, then there could have been a
lot of wailing in the
Reserve Bank auditorium after the presentation of a
memorandum statement to
banking sector chief executives by the governor on
Monday.
After much hullabaloo about private health institutions raising
their fees
and the intervention of government, a 70% increase was
granted.
Medical aid organisations immediately upped the
expected
contributions from members by between 70% and 85%. Not to be
outdone, the
government itself has reviewed fees at public health
institutions from
300 -by comparison, a piece of chewing gum costs $5 000 -
to between $800
000 and $1 million.
It is not necessary
to compute percentage increases in this
instance. No doubt, however, the
increase was long overdue but suffices to
say that this highlights the folly
of administered prices.
If the official who has the handle on
the fees is somehow
constrained, then frequent adjustments are
forgotten.
Large spikes are then experienced when the lid is
lifted. The
need to improve service was the rationale given this time
around which is
somewhat misleading and introduces an expectations gap
because it implies
that patients who were getting a $300 service should now
expect a $1
million-dollar service. Press headlines have this week been
dominated by
"Massive pay rise for teachers, armed forces"; "Hospital fees
skyrocket";
"Harare water charges shoot up"; "RBZ ups overnight rates" and
we expect
further such announcements in the coming weeks.
It appears everyone, everywhere, is playing a catch-up game.
Unfortunately,
the target keeps on moving. All these increases cause more
inflation but
have also been necessitated by inflation.
Essentially we now
have a classic chicken and egg situation,
what causes what. But the question
is when and what will break the circle,
if it ever will?
Zim Independent
WHILE Zimbabwe faces serious power shortages and
possible
blackouts, the authorities are busy squabbling ahead of a major
regional
energy crisis next year. Zesa has resorted to load-shedding after
failing to
access foreign currency to buy spare parts and refurbish its
power
generating plants. Senior business reporter Shakeman Mugari speaks to
Zesa
Holdings executive chairman Sidney Gata about the pending power crisis
and
other issues.
Mugari: Why are we having
load-shedding?
Gata: We simply do not have enough foreign
currency to import
spare parts to refurbish some of our plants like Hwange
Thermal Station.
Added to that is a massive shortage of diesel and coal. We
have managed some
refurbishments at Kariba but due to forex problems we
could not do the same
at Hwange. We are operating below capacity. But the
major problem now is the
uneconomic tariffs which we are
charging.
Mugari: What is this about
tariffs?
Gata: There has been a tariff freeze for the past
three years.
Also you need to remember that of all the four tariff increases
granted by
cabinet to Zesa, none of them was fully implemented. Only one was
partially
implemented.
Mugari: Why were they not
implemented after being approved by
cabinet?
Gata: They
were not implemented because of the intervention by
the central bank which
wanted to keep the lid on inflation. You are aware of
the recent
intervention by the central bank governor.
Mugari: Are you
saying that power cuts will stop if you get the
tariff increase that you
want? Will load-shedding cease as soon as there is
a tariff
increase?
Gata: Well, the situation will certainly improve
but that does
not mean load-shedding will stop. Load-shedding will remain
because power
supply is a function of many things that we are unfortunately
not able to
control like the supply of foreign currency, diesel and
coal.
Mugari: Are you therefore saying there will be more
power cuts
throughout the year?
Gata: Yes, because, as I
said, with that tariff increase we can
only manage to a certain extent. The
problem will be acute in winter. If we
get the tariff increase we will be
able to pay Hwange Colliery for coal
supplies. We will be able to pay the
National Railways of Zimbabwe. But the
truth is that even if we manage to
pay Hwange there is no guarantee that
they will be able to supply us because
their machines are too old. In fact
they are almost the same age as ours -
22 years. They also need similar
refurbishments. Tariffs alone will not
eradicate the problem of
load-shedding, there is need for a broader
approach.
Mugari: So when is load-shedding going to
stop?
Gata: When we have an economic tariff review, enough
forex to
refurbish our stations. We will also need forex to pay for our
imports from
regional supplies. We will need the whole system from coal
(Hwange Colliery)
and transport (NRZ). However, for this problem to go away
we need our own
new generators.
Mugari: When will that
be?
Gata: Preparations are underway but for Kariba we will
need 36
months and Hwange 42 months. And that's assuming all the proper
funding is
there.
Mugari: There are allegations that
while you are complaining
about (low) tariffs hurting your capacity, it is
said Zesa has been living
off government subsidies and funding for the past
few years. It's said you
are living off the fiscus.
Gata:
Those allegations are completely false. They are not true.
The government
has never given us any money. Even the rural electrification
programme which
has been taken out of Zesa has been surviving from
commercial lending and
levies.
Mugari: Are you sure that Zesa has never got a cent
from
government since 1986?
Gata: Not at all. Zesa has
not received a single dollar from the
government since 1986. Even in cases
where government got a soft loan from
bilateral funding, it has always used
commercial rates for on-lending to us.
All our projects have been
self-funded. We never got a dollar from the
government.
Mugari: So how much is needed for Zimbabwe's generating plants
to have
maximum capacity?
Gata: I would say US$30 million for us to
do refurbishments at
Hwange like the ones at Kariba. We will then need
enough coal and diesel for
the stations to start running. That also depends
on foreign currency and
Hwange Colliery's capacity.
Mugari: Does that mean you will be able to reopen Munyati,
Harare and
Bulawayo power stations which have been shut down for some time
now?
Gata: That should be possible.
Mugari: How about allegations that you are already stripping
parts from
these stations to repair the Hwange power station? I mean
cannibalising
them?
Gata: That is false.
Mugari: What is
correct then?
Gata: The truth is that this is not possible
because each
station has its own specifications. They are not like cars
where you can
strip one of parts and put on the other. We are not
cannibalising the
stations. Each station has special
specifications.
Mugari: Talking about power security, is
there a concrete
guarantee that Zesa will be able to provide sufficient
energy when the power
crisis starts next year?
Gata: I
think so, but the challenge is for us to renew our
contracts with some of
our suppliers in the region. I am sure we will
manage. We have since managed
to re-negotiate our contracts with Zesco of
Zambia and Snel of the DRC. If
we maintain those and other standing
contracts with HCB of Mozambique and
Eskom of South Africa that would be
sufficient to get us through the period
when the region has a shortage.
Mugari: You will however
admit that we are already behind on
preparations for the
crisis?
Gata: Yes we are behind, but if we can maintain those
contracts
then the situation would be under control.
Mugari: But some of those contracts are shaky. In fact, the
contract with
the Mozambican supplier is in danger because we still owe them
US$8 million.
We also risk losing the Snel contracts because we owe them
about US$7
million. Are you therefore sure that we will manage to hold on to
the
contracts?
Gata: If we manage to pay those suppliers then the
situation
will be under control.
Mugari: That is
understood but indications are that we are not
the only country in need of
power. Botswana imports, I think 75% of its
power. Is Zimbabwe therefore
assured that such countries will not snatch the
contracts if we fail to pay
on time, realising that we have forex problems?
Gata: Yes
they could, but as I said, we are working to make sure
that does not
happen.
Zim Independent
Dumisani Ndlela
ZIMBABWE'S
tobacco season got off to a bad start with muffled
protests from
predominantly small-scale growers bitter over a policy shift
by the Reserve
Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) on prices.
But large-scale farmers
said the move by the central bank was
positive "in broad terms", although
the exchange rate remained the single
major threat to
viability.
"In broad terms, the measures are positive because
tobacco
growers are this year getting the interbank (exchange) rate and the
RBZ is
rewarding early deliveries and quality," said Andrew Ferreira, deputy
president of the Zimbabwe Tobacco Association (ZTA).
"But
we're very shy on the viability model," said Ferreira,
referring to the
interbank Zimbabwe dollar exchange rate that has remained
fixed for the past
two to three months, weakening marginally on Tuesday.
Ferreira said the tobacco sector needed an exchange rate of $180
000 to the
US unit to ensure viability.
But the central bank's policy,
awarding a 35% bonus for early
deliveries, would ensure an effective
exchange rate of $134 000 to the
greenback, Ferreira
said.
"This is 25% shy of levels required for viability, but
this will
be counteracted by the fact that the Reserve Bank has said tobacco
production would be funded through Aspef," said Ferreira.
Aspef, the Agricultural Sector Productivity Enhancement
Facility, is a cheap
central bank financing facility extended to farmers to
enhance
productivity.
While the bigger and experienced farmers have
welcomed the new
central bank measures, small-and-medium scale farmers - the
majority of them
blacks given land under the government's controversial land
redistribution
exercise - were resentful over what they considered a
spiteful gesture to
the emergent black farmers by the
RBZ.
They said the policy rewarding farmers for quality
tobacco would
hurt their operations.
Zim Independent
By Chris Mhike
THE
Zimbabwe Independent's lead story of March 17 read:
"Government to spy on
phones, e-mails". This was in reference to the draft
Interception of
Communication Bill 2006.
Will it be just an executive peeping
or an ordinary exercise of
innocent governmental curiosity, as suggested by
the word "spy"?
If the draft develops to be a substantive
Bill, and subsequently
into a law, would such be constitutional? That is the
question.
Interception connotes interference, obstruction,
and stoppage of
flow, seizure and grabbing, among other negative processes.
Grabbing! After
they grabbed farms, implements therefrom, Daily News
computers and other men's
wives, now what is to be grabbed through this
communication law?
Communication involves the imparting or
exchange of information,
ideas, or feelings. This can be via verbal,
physical, electronic, written,
telephonic, virtual or other channels. The
draft Bill targets
"telecommunication, postal" or any other related service
system. The
discussion on the constitutionality or otherwise of the
provisions proceeds
here, from the premise that Zimbabwe is a free and
democratic society.
In 1980, the reigning jolly government
gained (not grabbed)
power via a democratic process. They claim today that
citizens freely and
democratically elected them into office. Freedom and
democracy are the
achievements that were celebrated through the gyrations
witnessed by both
the "equal" and the "more equal" comrades on the Zimbabwe
Oye night.
So, even if some "unpatriotic" Sekaurema was to
aver that the
democracy is in short supply in Zimbabwe, like many other
things, it should
remain true that a democratic dispensation is the one that
should be in
place, in the place of either the notional or the real
autocratic regime.
Even if it were to be proven that
governance in the country is
undemocratic, citizens would still have to
think like free people. They
would not leave the rogues to monopolise the
"grab" mentality.
The citizens would have to rightfully grab
back from the
"robber-grab-alls" whatever is at stake.
In
a democratic society, decisions, actions, plans, operations
(not necessarily
Murambatsvina and Garikai, but including them), laws and
regulations, have
to be constitutional. This means that they must all be
consistent with the
constitution of the country. Besides being
quantitatively consistent with
the constitution, they must also qualify as
being reasonable in a democratic
society.
The 21 sections of the draft Bill essentially and
precisely deal
with the activity described in the document's title - that
is, the
interception of communications.
And, the sections
of the constitution that deal with
communication include: the protection of
the freedoms of conscience,
expression and association, the protection of
the right to privacy,
protection of the right to personal liberty,
protection from inhuman or
degrading treatment, and protection from
deprivation of property.
The draft law certainly interferes
with citizens' consciences,
expression and association because all these
could be exercised through the
targeted forms of
communication.
Clearly, if any private correspondence
directed to one
particular person is intercepted, the right to privacy, or
choice as to whom
one should associate with and whom he should not, are
thereby severely
violated.
If sensitive information that
had been destined for someone ends
up in some stranger's hands,
embarrassment and dehumanising consequences
could follow for either of the
parties to the communications, or both.
Should mail containing personal
works of my creativity (intellectual
property) be seized, such seizure would
amount to deprivation of property.
The interception of mass
media-related communication would be
tantamount to the violation of freedom
of the press.
Acknowledged, it is widely accepted that in
enshrining
fundamental rights and freedoms in the constitution and in other
legal
instruments, drafters may formulate exceptions to the
rule.
But, where rights and freedoms are conferred on
persons,
derogations therefrom, as far as the language permits, should be
narrowly or
strictly construed. Wide and vague formulations are
unacceptable, and
therefore unconstitutional.
If derogation
has to be made, then it must be absolutely
necessary, justifiable or
"reasonable in a democratic society". If the
exception fails that test,
then what remains is for it to be struck down for
its want of reason. It
becomes unconstitutional.
The constitution itself already
carries exceptions to the rights
and freedoms clauses. This draft Bill seeks
to supplement the enshrined
exceptions, relating to
communications.
However, the authors of the draft Bill could
not conjure up any
justification for these bonus exceptions. According to
the memorandum
section of the draft, the "purpose" is simply "to establish
an interception
of communication monitoring centre" - that is, to intercept
for the sake of
interception.
These above-stated
violations of the constitution, and of the
principle of reasonableness,
therefore make the daft Bill inconsistent with
the constitution, and
unreasonable in a democratic society.
In the US, in
justifying a law that is similar to the one
envisaged in "our" draft Bill,
President George W Bush cited the need for an
effective tracking system for
terrorists, in light of 9/11, as the motive
behind the US Patriot Act
(2001).
To date, there is no evidence that the civil
liberties that were
grabbed from Americans through the law had been in any
way a barrier to Bush's
designs. But there was some attempt at logical
justification, unconvincing
as it might have been.
In
1985, an Interception and Communications Act was introduced
in the UK, to
replace the Royal Prerogative. Terrorism had not become a hot
topic then,
but again, the British executive proffered particular reasons
for the
promulgation.
Could Harare be following in the footsteps of
the "twin evils"?
If not, and there are no fresh circumstances in our "more
democratic"
African nation to justify interception, then why? Why this draft
Bill now?
Perhaps there are particular detractors -
individuals and
organisations - that are targeted. Or it could be
compliance with
international trends, never mind our own
constitution.
Besides the dreadful possibility of a purge, or
the daft copying
from Uncle Sam, Uncle Bob could simply be out to overturn,
in typical
patriotic fashion, a previous judgement. In 2003, the Supreme
Court struck
down two sections of the Postal and Telecommunications Act for
their
unconstitutionality.
The contested sections gave
powers to the president of Zimbabwe
to intercept and detain mail. They
empowered the same president to give
directions for interception and
detention to any "licensee". Then the Law
Society successfully argued that
the provisions were repugnant to the right
to freedom of
expression.
The Supreme Court accepted the argument and it
struck the
sections down as unconstitutional.
This draft
Bill, therefore, cannot escape the damnation of
unconstitutionality because
its effects are similar to those that arose from
the debunked sections of
the Act.
Whether the same unconstitutional provisions prevail
in the UK,
the US, or anywhere else on the globe, "our" draft Bill remains
unconstitutional and unreasonable in democratic Zimbabwe Espionage on
private communication, as championed in the draft Bill, is unconstitutional
and unreasonable.
* Chris Mhike is a Harare-based legal
practitioner.
Zim Independent
By Jonathan Moyo
THIS is the third
and final part of an article in which the
former Information minister
reveals details of Zanu PF's power struggle
which culminated in the
so-called Tsholotsho Declaration of November 2004.
ON
November 18 2004, the emergency politburo meeting started
just before
11:00am. President Robert Mugabe indicated that he had called
for the
meeting in response to concerns that some members of the politburo
had
raised regarding procedures for the nominations of the top leadership of
the
party scheduled for November 21 2004 ahead of the party's
congress.
In particular there were concerns that the
nominations were
supposed to be done by provincial executive councils, that
the position of
one of the vice-presidents and second secretaries had not
been reserved for
a woman as directed by Mugabe at the Zanu PF women's
congress in September
and that there had been reports indicating that some
provinces did not have
funds to facilitate the nomination
meetings.
Apparently, as it transpired, Nicholas Goche and
John Nkomo had
raised these complaints with Mugabe. Reports that there were
no funds for
the provinces to facilitate the nomination meetings were
clarified and shown
to be false.
Regarding the procedures for
the nominations, Emmerson Mnangagwa
as secretary for administration
explained that he had followed the
provisions of the party's constitution
and that he had consulted extensively
with Elliot Manyika - the national
commissar - and that he had sought
specific approval from Mugabe of his
letter of November 11 2004 spelling out
the procedures. Patrick Chinamasa,
then Zanu PF secretary for legal
affairs, also confirmed that Mnangagwa's
letter of November 11 detailing the
procedures for nominations was
consistent with the constitution.
When it became clear to all
and sundry at the emergency meeting
that the procedures for nominations in
Mnangagwa's letter of November 11
2004 were indeed in terms of the
constitution, those members of the
politburo who are associated with Solomon
Mujuru's camp demanded the instant
amendment of the party's constitution
there and then to accommodate their
interests and wishes.
Thus the provision requiring that nominations for the party's
top four
leadership positions be made by provincial executives in a secret
ballot was
amended so that the nominations would be done by provincial
coordinating
committees without a secret ballot. This ensured that
politburo members
would also participate in the nominations which members
who demanded this
amendment hoped to influence.
Even more shocking was that the
same members demanded an
amendment of the party's constitution to include a
provision requiring that
there be "four members being the president and
first secretary, the two
vice- presidents and second secretaries with one of
the vice-presidents and
second secretaries being a woman, and the national
chairman of the party".
Mnangagwa was directed to withdraw
his earlier letter of
November 11 on the procedures for nominating the top
four leadership
positions of the party and to issue a new letter dated
November 18 2004
based on the new amendment of the constitution by the
politburo. This
amendment was illegally effected on November 18 and
implemented immediately
by an organ of the party, the politburo, which has
no powers to amend the
constitution.
The purpose of the
illegal amendment was not just to attack the
constitution of the party but
to also give the impression that only one of
the top four positions, the one
previously held by the late Vice-President
Simon Muzenda, was vacant and
that it had to be filled by a woman.
Specifically the amendment was designed
to annul the decisions of the
provincial chairmen and provincial governors
meeting in Harare on August 23
and in Zvimba on August 30 under the
chairmanship of Manyika in support of
principles of what has become known as
the Tsholotsho Declaration.
During this politburo meeting, it
became clear that the Zanu PF
old guard in general, especially those linked
with Mujuru's camp, and Mugabe
in particular are not committed to democracy,
transparency and
constitutional procedures. Above all, it became clear that
there is a clique
in Zanu PF that unashamedly believes in the domination of
national politics
by one ethnic group under the cover of some self-serving
language of
revolutionary nationalism and the Unity Accord of
1987.
For example, under the Unity Accord, the ruling clique
in Zanu
PF has taken the view that former Zapu leaders are entitled to one
of the
positions of vice-president and that whoever occupies that position,
even if
they do not come from Matabeleland as is the case with Joseph Msika,
necessarily represents Matabeleland as if Zapu and Matabeleland mean one and
the same thing.
Zapu is no more while Matabeleland lives
with political
interests that must be addressed along with the interests of
other regions
in the country. Even worse, the ruling clique in Zanu PF has
interpreted the
Unity Accord to mean that the best that Matabeleland can
aspire to is the
vice-presidency. Such a view is neither revolutionary nor
national - it is
tribal, reactionary and wholly
unacceptable.
After the emergency meeting, Mnangagwa said he
could no longer
travel to Tsholotsho as he had to make and effect the
constitutional
amendments that had been illegally sanctioned by the
politburo. He asked
Chinamasa to represent him and to read his speech at
Dinyane High School.
So I travelled to Tsholotsho with
Chinamasa and we reached
Dinyane High School just before 5:00pm on November
18 2004 for an event that
had been scheduled to start at 10:00am. By the
time we got there six
provincial chairmen and other Zanu PF leaders who were
in attendance had
already gotten wind of the emergency politburo meeting
earlier in the day
and they wanted to get first-hand information about it
from Chinamasa who
told them to wait until after the Dinyane programme which
had to be rushed
through.
During the Dinyane programme,
nothing political was said or
expected. It was truly a speech and
prize-giving day during which a number
of the high-ranking guests pledged
support and gifts to the school, yet to
be honoured.
Because the event started late, it ended just after 7:00pm
following which
the visitors from outside Tsholotsho immediately left for
Bulawayo to have
dinner at the Bulawayo Rainbow Hotel and wait for Chinamasa
to brief them
about the decisions of the emergency politburo meeting. I
remained for a
little while with Chinamasa because the school authorities
wanted him to
inspect some facilities as the stand-in guest of honour.
When
Chinamasa and I got to the Bulawayo Rainbow Hotel we found
the six
provincial chairmen from Matabeleland North, Midlands, Matabeleland
South,
Masvingo, Bulawayo and Manicaland and other senior Zanu PF
politicians
including then Masvingo governor Josiah Hungwe, deputy ministers
Abednico
Ncube and Andrew Langa and minister Flora Bhuka, who had attended
the
speech and prize-giving day in Tsholotsho, and other Bulawayo-based
politicians who had been told that Chinamasa was going to give an informal
briefing on what had transpired at the emergency politburo meeting earlier
that day in Harare.
We joined them for dinner and later
around 11:00pm asked the
hotel staff to find us a conference room where
Chinamasa could give his
briefing.
Chinamasa explained in
detail how the emergency politburo
meeting had been called after complaints
to Mugabe by Nkomo and Goche over
the procedures for the nomination of the
four top positions in the
leadership of the party. He further gave a
detailed narration of how the
emergency politburo meeting had amended the
constitution and how it had also
directed that one of the positions for
vice-president and second secretary,
which was falsely presented as the only
vacant position, should be filled by
a woman and that the nominations should
be made by provincial coordinating
committees through consensus and not by
provincial executive committees in
secret balloting.
The
informal meeting's reaction to Chinamasa's briefing was of
animated anger
at, and contempt for, the politburo mainly because of a
widely held view to
this day that the politburo had no right or power to
amend the party's
constitution in the manner it did on November 18 2004.
The view of the
informal meeting was that the politburo had to be defied at
all costs
because it had blatantly violated the party's constitution.
Chinamasa, with my active support and intervention, cautioned
against this
view and strongly advised that even if the politburo had erred
by amending
the party's constitution when it did not have the power to do
so, loyal
party members were duty-bound to respect the decision of the
politburo and
to find other legal ways of registering their outrage at what
had
happened.
After a protracted debate that took about four
hours, the
meeting finally agreed to respect the politburo decision but
rejected the
view that the only vacant position was that previously held by
the late
Muzenda and that it had to be filled by Joice Mujuru as had been
widely
reported in newspapers since the women's congress in September
2004.
Various speakers at the meeting argued that all of the
top four
positions, including that held by Mugabe, were vacant and that
Mujuru was
not the most senior or most qualified woman to be nominated as
one of the
two vice-presidents and second secretaries of the
party.
It was proposed and agreed by all of us at the Rainbow
Hotel
meeting that the top four leadership positions of the party should
reflect
the regional diversity and ethnic balance of the country as a whole;
that
the elections should be democratic and held by secret ballot and that
the
constitution as illegally amended by the politburo should be reluctantly
respected in accordance with the guidelines in the letter of November 18
2004 from the secretary for administration which replaced the one he had
sent on November 11 2004.
More specifically, we proposed
to nominate Mugabe for the
position of president and first secretary coming
from the Zezuru ethnic
grouping; Mnangagwa for the position of
vice-president and second secretary
from the Karanga ethnic grouping;
Thenjiwe Lesabe for the position of
vice-president and second secretary
reserved for women from the Ndebele
ethnic grouping, and Chinamasa for the
position of national chairman from
the Manyika ethnic
grouping.
The Zvimba meeting in August had proposd the
nomination of
Mugabe, Msika, Mnangagwa and Nkomo for the top four positions.
Msika and
Nkomo fell off the equation at the Rainbow
meeting.
Chinamasa was nominated at Rainbow Hotel over
Didymus Mutasa,
who had also been proposed for the post, because it was
strongly felt that
the position of national chairman should be filled by a
qualified and
experienced lawyer who would respect the disciplinary
procedures in the Zanu
PF constitution, something which Nkomo had dismally
failed to respect or
understand.
The agreement reached at
the Rainbow Hotel in Bulawayo was
dubbed the Tsholotsho Declaration by those
opposed to ethnic balance in the
top four leadership positions in Zanu PF
selected through democratic
elections under a democratic
constitution.
This oral agreement was consistent with the
principles - which
are the pillars of the Tsholotsho Declaration - that
emerged from the long
debate, discussion and consultation within Zanu PF
that started soon after
the June 2000 parliamentary election when the need
for modernising and
democratising Zanu PF became as self-evident as it is
today.
The agreement was consistent with the deliberations
and
decisions of the provincial chairmen and provincial governors at the
three
meetings chaired by Manyika on August 16, 23 and 30 2004 - the first
two in
Harare and the last in Zvimba.
This position was
immediately communicated to all party
structures ahead of the nomination day
on November 21 2004. Even though
there was little time between the
communication and nomination day, the
results of the elections indicated to
any serious-minded person that the
principles of the Tsholotsho Declaration
about the need for balanced ethnic
representation in the top leadership that
is constitutionally and
democratically elected is very strong and widely
shared within Zanu PF and
that is why there are still very serious divisions
in the ruling party that
threaten to turn President Mugabe's succession into
a nightmare for the old
guard who have squandered all opportunities to
reform Zanu PF since the June
2000 election.
Therefore,
the principles of the Tsholotsho Declaration did not
carry the day on
November 21 2004 not because Zanu PF members are opposed to
them but because
the ruling hierarchy among the Zanu PF old guard which had
no shame in using
the politburo to illegally amend the party constitution
used some elements
of the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) to impose
the current top
leadership of Zanu PF whose composition is not reflective of
the regional
and ethnic balance of the country and is not based on merit in
terms of
performance.
Indeed, Mugabe boldly told me in the
one-and-a-half hour meeting
I had with him and Joice Mujuru on February 17
2005, which he has discussed
a lot in public at my expense, that if the
Tsholotsho Declaration had
succeeded through the party nominations and
elections, the leadership would
have rejected the result. This kind of
unbalanced leadership always ready to
use the hammer to crush democracy is
also bereft of a national vision and
lacks the representative legitimacy and
competence to deal with the
unprecedented economic and political problems
crippling the country today.
In his closing speech at the
December 2004 Zanu PF congress,
Mugabe angrily reacted to the principles of
the Tsholotsho Declaration by
attacking those whom he said were accusing him
of tribalism and charged that
he took exception to what he said was an
insulting accusation because he is
a revolutionary and not a
triballist.
Well, maybe so but there are no discernible
revolutionary
principles in corrupting the Unity Accord and mutilating and
personalising
the constitution of the party in order to end up with the
current situation
in which three of the top four leaders in Zanu PF and the
government,
Mugabe, Mujuru and Msika, come from one ethnic grouping not as
an outcome of
democratic elections but because of an imposition from a
deliberately
manipulated constitution, relying not on politics but on the
brutal use of
CIO agents.
Mugabe has been in power for
more than a generation and that is
destabilising to our nation and it is
against the national interest to
impose a successor from the president's
ethnic grouping under these trying
circumstances in our country's history.
Such attempts at ethnic domination
of the diversified nation by one group
through foul means are not different
from similar colonial and UDI attempts
that sought to impose racial
domination and failed.
It is
very ironic and rather sad that those behind the project
of ethnic
domination call themselves nationalist and anti-colonialists when
their
deeds tell a different story. The situation would of course be very
different if Mugabe had served for two or even three terms only and if the
country was not facing an economic meltdown underwritten by policy paralysis
in Mugabe's government.
Zimbabweans need and must have a
change of government not just
in terms of personnel in political leadership
but in ideological,
constitutional, structural and policy
terms.
As someone who was both in the Zanu PF leadership and
government, and who therefore must take some responsibility not only for the
failure of the Tsholotsho Declaration but also some of the policies that
have not worked well for our country, I can say without any doubt that
Zimbabwe today would be different and better off had the principles of the
Tsholotsho Declaration carried the day on November 21 2004. This is because
Zanu PF would have changed for the better and that change would have
impacted on the country's policies and institutions
positively.
The current political and economic problems
facing Zimbabwe are
due to the fact that the country is being ruled by a
hopelessly clueless,
tired and terrified undemocratic clique which
desperately wants to cling to
power by fair means or foul at the clear
expense of national interest.
Zim Independent
By Bill Saidi
IF Zimbabwe had
attended all the "classes" on how to succeed as
an independent African
country, it would not be in the political and
economic mess that it is now.
That, according to a liberal interpretation of
what Joshua Nkomo said on the
subject, has to be the conclusion of many
objective
analysts.
An estimated 45 countries were independent in
Africa before
Zimbabwe gained its own from the British in
1980.
Among the oldest were Liberia and Ethiopia, the newest
Mozambique, Angola, Cape Verde and Sao Tomé and Principe.
The last were handed their independence by the Portuguese after
a military
coup in Lisbon in 1974.
Ghana gained independence from the
British in 1957. In 1966,
Kwame Nkrumah was toppled by the army, plunging
the country into a long
period of instability. After its independence, again
from the British, in
1960, Nigeria faced a long period of coups and
counter-coups after the
assassination of its first federal prime minister,
Sir Abubakar Tafawa
Balewa.
There were lessons nearer
home which the Zimbabwean politicians
didn't bother to attend. Just before
its independence in 1964, Zambia sent
its soldiers into battle with a
fanatical religious sect, the Lumpa church
of Alice
Lenshina.
Lenshina was from Chinsali in the Northern province
which had
given the country its first black prime minister and later
president,
Kenneth Kaunda.
"She was not always like
this," Kaunda was quoted as saying
about Alice, with whom he had either
attended school or knew as a little
girl.
Zimbabwean
leaders also bunked a class in which they would have
learnt of Malawi's
birth pains in 1964. The autocratic Hastings Kamuzu
Banda, the leader of the
small poor country which, with the two Rhodesias,
had formed the Federation
of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, refused to listen to
criticism from his cabinet
colleagues on the way he was running the country.
The
dissidents were led by Henry Chipembere and Orton Chirwa.
The
dissenting cabinet ministers would not bend to the doctor's
whims and fled
the country. They launched a guerilla war which cost many
lives and
disrupted the economic development which the country would have
enjoyed had
there been political stability.
But even more salutary
lessons were provided by a country which
helped Zimbabwe fight a racist
regime - Mozambique. Its independence in 1975
was rendered utterly
meaningless as soon as the civil war erupted with the
dissident Renamo
group, aided and abetted by the South African apartheid
regime, for its own
purposes.
Angola, on the other side of the continent, plunged
into its own
civil war with Jonas Savimbi, backed by both the South Africans
and the
United States, struggling to defeat the government set up by the
MPLA, led
by Agostinho Neto.
The cause of all these
conflicts was greed and an insatiable
hunger for power. Clearly, the
sinister hand of the former colonial masters
or their sympathisers could be
discerned in all instances. What has not been
sufficiently debated is the
spinelessness with which the leaders succumbed
to the blandishments of the
pro-colonial plotters.
Was independence of such little value
and meaning to them? The
same question could be asked of the people who were
in power: would dialogue
have harmed their cause, specifically the cause of
the country's political
unity and stability? Were they too not blinded by
greed and the hunger for
power to hang on until their opponents had been
vanquished?
What would Jonas Savimbi have lost if he had,
right from the
beginning, allowed for a dialogue with Neto, to bring shame
to the
Portuguese, some of whom had plotted against granting the African
colonies
independence right from the beginning?
For that
matter, what would the Marxist Neto have lost if he had
accommodated
Savimbi's ambitions?
Which brings us, neatly, to Joshua
Nkomo's thoughts on the
lessons Zimbabwe ought to have learnt to avoid
messing up independence.
Nkomo, according to some of his
followers, decided not to be a
"Savimbi" after the outbreak of violence in
Matabelaland and the Midlands
involving the so-called dissidents or bandits,
depending on who you chose to
believe at the time.
Nkomo
returned from exile in the United Kingdom for this reason,
according to
sources. "Father Zimbabwe" would not conclude an illustrious
liberation
struggle career as a renegade, hunted day and night by government
soldiers,
some of whom had been inspired to join the struggle by his own
example.
Recently, the government TV has been showing
clips of Nkomo
speaking of how Zimbabwe had many "lessons" to learn from
countries which
gained independence before us. Some of them had made serious
mistakes, which
Zimbabwe would be mindful of avoiding as it consolidated its
own
independence.
Nkomo spent much time in Zambia, from
which his forces launched
the struggle. He was very close to Kaunda, whose
role in the struggle earned
him an accolade in the Silver Jubilee
celebrations last year.
What seems baffling is that neither
Nkomo nor Robert Mugabe,
whose Zanla forces fought the war from Mozambique,
appear to have taken to
heart the lessons they must have gleaned from
observing at close hand the
mistakes that both Kaunda and Samora Machel
made.
Not until Joachim Chissano came on the scene did
Mozambique's
economy begin to perform as robustly as it was entitled to.
Under Machel's
flirtation with Marxism, it had simply
stagnated.
Kaunda's nationalisation of the mines in 1968 was
to say the
least ill-advised, economically.
Similarly, in
Zimbabwe, the atmosphere which had, in the early
days of independence,
attracted foreign investors, was poisoned, almost
fatally, by Mugabe's
pursuit of political and economic policies steeped in
acrimony and
intolerance.
The most glaring example of politicians bunking
the lessons on
independence "mistakes" made by other countries was the
Gukurahundi
massacres.
All attempts at promoting a
dialogue failed. It seems that, for
their own reasons, certain politicians
believed that a dialogue would rob
them of their chances of rising to the
pinnacle of political success.
The hopes of a revival of
tolerance and amity between the
political parties were raised by the
so-called Unity Accord of 1987.
But intolerance crept in
again, so that by 1990 Edgar Tekere,
who some likened to what Simon Kapwepwe
was to Kenneth Kaunda before they
fell out over the thrust of the Zambian
economy, was speaking publicly of
"democracy" in Zimbabwe being in the
intensive care unit.
Nkomo constantly spoke of Zimbabweans
being "one people", black,
white and of all ethnic
groups.
For the government to believe, seriously, that the
slogan
"Sisonke" will attract Ndebele-speaking citizens to join Zanu PF,
rather
than any other party, demonstrates most eloquently just how many
lessons
that party has missed in learning how to consolidate our
Independence.
* Bill Saidi is editor of the banned Daily News
on Sunday.
Zim Independent
Dumisani Ndlela
GOVERNMENT'S
ambitious economic revival programme announced last
week in a bid to
alleviate the numerous hardships besetting Zimbabwe has
failed to find
buyers even among the most optimistic observers.
The
government's dismal policy record and the history of
economic programmes
clearly show that the critics of the National Economic
Development Priority
Programme (NEDPP) may well be justified in thinking the
latest initiative
amounts to more of the same.
Since Independence in 1980,
Zimbabwe has had no less than 10
economic growth and poverty
reduction-related programmes. These include
Growth with Equity (1981),
Economic Structural Adjustment Programme (1991),
Poverty Alleviation Action
Programme (1994), Zimbabwe Programme for Economic
and Social Transformation
(1996-2000), Zimbabwe Millennium Economic Recovery
Programme (2001), the
Ten-Point Plan (2002), the National Economic Revival
Programme (2003); and
Zimbabwe: Towards Sustained Economic Growth -
Macro-Economic Policy
Framework for 2005-2006.
The NEDPP launched last week
therefore adds to a plethora of
failed economic agendas the government has
embarked upon to rescue a
faltering economy.
The NEDPP,
sold as a joint economic revival effort by government
and the private
sector, is designed to create economic stability within the
next six to nine
months.
The challenges are enormous: Zimbabwe has experienced
a major
humanitarian emergency due to the deteriorating economy and immense
policy
constraints aggravated by the spread of HIV and
Aids.
Inflation reached an all-time high of 913,6%
year-on-year for
March, with what economists describe as "structural
unemployment" being
estimated at nearly 80%.
Major
foreign currency and fuel shortages have dominated the
crisis as well as
shortages of basic food commodities.
The NEDPP was formulated
by the government through the Zimbabwe
National Security Council (ZNSC),
chaired by President Robert Mugabe who in
July 2004 announced what he
described as an "evident revival of our economy"
during his
state-of-the-nation address.
Under the NEDPP, the government
plans to mobilise US$2,5 billion
within the next three months, boosting
efforts to stabilise the economy,
reduce inflation and increase agricultural
production.
What's more, the programme will help enhance
savings and trigger
investments inflows.
What is not
clear is how the programme will raise such a huge
amount of cash without
support from external financiers, and especially in
the absence of
balance-of-payments support from the International Monetary
Fund.
Indications are that the NEDPP, like its
predecessor programmes,
will fail simply because it has not dealt with the
basic reasons behind the
country's incredible economic
decline.
These include skewed economic policies, a breakdown
of the rule
of law, and government's destruction of the commercial farming
sector,
previously the bedrock of the country's economy.
The attitude of government, which became apparent at the launch
of Nerp, was
that sanctions targeted at President Mugabe and his inner
circle for alleged
electoral and human rights abuses, are the main cause of
the economic
crisis, which has seen gross domestic product contracting by a
cumulative
35% over the past six years.
The latest document does not
acknowledge that agricultural
production has shrunk because of government's
controversial land reforms,
which triggered a tail-spin of export
figures.
Gideon Gono, the once-affable-but-now-crabby central
bank
governor apparently put out by frustrations to his mandate to turn
around
the country's struggling economy, gave the programme an early
endorsement.
"This is different from previous initiatives,"
Gono told a press
briefing during the programme's launch. "We have a clear
vision of what
needs to be achieved and we have deadlines by which certain
deliverables
must be achieved," he said.
But Gono's
efforts towards economic revival have encountered
immense resentment from
top ruling party and government bigwigs, many of
whom have profited from the
crisis through abuse of access to fuel and other
commodities in short supply
which they have sold on the black market at
exorbitant
prices.
The RBZ, under the Agricultural Sector Productivity
Enhancement
Facility, disbursed $5,59 trillion to farmers to increase
productivity, but
most beneficiaries, among them ruling party bigwigs and
cabinet ministers,
did not utilise the cheap funds, attracting 30% interest,
for intended
purposes. Banks are charging interest above 800% for
borrowings.
A similar facility providing fuel to farmers has
been equally
abused, with top ruling party members and their cronies being
implicated.
Buying diesel at $23 000 per litre, they sold it
on the black
market for around $210 000 per litre. Two top ruling party
members,
including a central committee member, have been arrested for
abusing the
scheme, but cabinet ministers, some of whom received amounts
"large enough
to irrigate vast farmlands", have remained free despite being
implicated.
The party officials have also been given access
to mealie-meal
by the Grain Marketing Board, a government-owned company with
a monopoly
over the buying and selling of grain in
Zimbabwe.
After buying the mealie-meal or grain at subsidised
prices from
the GMB, ruling party and government officials resell the
product to
consumers at exorbitant prices, often on the black
market.
This has resulted in missed targets, increased money
printing
which has fuelled money supply growth and consequently
inflation.
Also, a major rift between Gono and Finance
minister Herbert
Murerwa became apparent after recent reports by the
Zimbabwe Independent
that the two had clashed over Gono's mandate in the
fight for economic
revival, with Murerwa alleging the governor was
encroaching on his mandate.
The latest programme seeks to
clip Gono's wings.
For example, the NEDPP was formulated by
the ZNCC chaired by
President Mugabe. The ZNCC will be supported by the
National Economic
Recovery Council, chaired by Vice-President Joice Mujuru,
believed to have
been a chief backer of Murerwa's motion limiting Gono's
influence in the
revival agenda.
The Nerc, with a
technical committee chaired by chief secretary
to the Office of the
President and cabinet, is composed of government and
private sector
representatives, and will take charge of the implementation
process of the
new economic programme.
Economic Development minister Rugare
Gumbo, said: "The
monitoring of progress in the implementation of projects
and programmes is
being effected at the highest level of government. The
management and
leadership skills in both the public and private sectors have
been fully
mobilised to ensure successful implementation of
NEDPP."
Gumbo said NEDPP would aim to restore investor
confidence, to
rehabilitate key infrastructure destroyed through neglect
during the current
economic crisis, drastically reduce government's domestic
and foreign debts
as well as restore a positive image of the country,
battered by reports of
the country's human rights record and political and
economic turmoil.
"We have the right formula," Murerwa said,
cognisant of the
failures of past programmes. But will he get it right this
time? Nobody is
holding their breath.
Zim Independent
Comment
LAST week we published a letter
from Morgan Tsvangirai's lawyers
to the Attorney-General asking what
progress, if any, was being made to
apprehend and bring to trial the alleged
killers of two MDC activists in
April 2000, Tichaona Chiminya and Talent
Mabika. The two were election
workers who were burnt to death in an attack
at Murambinda growth point,
Buhera North.
An employee of
the Office of the President, Joseph Mwale, was,
according to evidence heard
in an electoral petition and recorded in
judgement, "a principal offender
and ringleader in the assassinations" who
is still at
large.
The two victims were bludgeoned unconscious before
being burnt
alive. The judge, Justice Devittie, described the killings as
particularly
"cold-hearted, brutal, and politically-motivated". He said they
were a
"wicked act".
Despite this no warrant of arrest
was sought. Indeed, it would
appear Mwale was promoted. A record of evidence
in the hearing was stolen
from a locked room at the courthouse.
Nevertheless, the Attorney-General's
office required the Commissioner of
Police to investigate and make a report
about the murders to facilitate a
prosecution in terms of Section 76 (4a) of
the constitution. Such a report
should have been made and included in the
commissioner's annual report to
the minister to be laid before parliament.
Inquiries at
parliament have found no trace of such a report,
Tsvangirai's lawyers say.
When two suspects in the same case were eventually
arraigned, the AG's
representative advised the High Court that the delay in
bringing charges
against them was due to political interference. But no one
was charged with
obstructing or attempting to defeat the course of justice.
This is an emblematic case. Farmer David Stevens was murdered
the same
Easter weekend in 2000. The prosecution of his alleged killers
appears to be
stalled. He was seized by armed men from a police station to
be bludgeoned
and shot dead.
The government is proposing to set up a Human
Rights Commission
yet has failed to pursue cases involving its own senior
employees. There are
numerous other cases of individuals being assaulted and
tortured while in
custody where there have been no known prosecutions. The
cases of Gabriel
Shumba and Tonderayi Machiridza come to mind. Shumba
survived, Machiridza
didn't.
One of the functions of the
Human Rights Commission is to
investigate cases involving "state actors", we
are told. Why does the
government need a commission to investigate and
prosecute state employees
implicated in human rights violations? Why are
people like Mwale able to act
with impunity and then enjoy what looks very
much like state protection.
Torture and extra-judicial
killings such as happened in this
case are international crimes and a
violation of the Convention Against
Torture. They are also a violation of
United Nations and African Union
treaties to which Zimbabwe is a
party.
Six years since the double killings in Buhera,
described in the
letter to the AG as "showcase murders" committed in front
of witnesses,
there has been no progress in the case.
"The continuing failure to take any effective measures against
everyone
implicated," Tsvangirai's lawyers argue, "undoubtedly creates the
appearance
that some can get away with murder in Zimbabwe."
It also
suggests, they point out, ongoing political interference
and raises
questions about the role of the AG's office.
When the 18th
amendment is introduced before parliament to
establish the Human Rights
Commission, it is our sincere hope that civil
society and MPs will demand to
know why so many cases of torture and
killings have not been brought to
trial and why political killers roam free?
A Human Rights Commission in a
society where human rights are routinely
ignored or violated by the state
itself is pointless.
Zim Independent
Muckraker
SUNDAY Mail political
editor Munyaradzi Huni had a long
interview with Vice-President Joseph Msika
this week.
Despite strenuous attempts by Msika to claim that
much has been
achieved since Independence, it was hard to demonstrate that
people are
better off now. Instead it was a litany of "challenges"
throughout.
What we found most startling of course were the
contradictions
in the VP's responses to these challenges. He said the youths
should not
expect government to give them jobs but learn to be self-reliant.
Which we
thought was a sensible statement.
But then Huni
didn't ask why government embarked on Operation
Murambatsvina which
destroyed informal businesses, which were set up by the
youths in response
to the shrinking job market in the formal sector.
Asked why
previous government policies had failed, Msika said he
could not rule out
cases of human error in such failures. But the biggest
problem, came Msika's
revelation, was that our people did not love their
country. "Our people are
not patriots," he declared universally. "We don't
have young people who can
say we are patriots."
In other words there is nothing wrong
with those who fought in
the liberation war and are today responsible for
formulating wrong policies.
It is the youths who are to blame for
government's policy failures.
Asked why President Mugabe
couldn't fire non-performing
ministers in his government, and why those
engaged in corrupt activities
were not arrested, Msika said this would be
foolish. His solution is that
such people should be "conscientised",
including "making them do things
properly. Firing them is the last
resort."
Does somebody recall anyone being fired in the past
26 years?
And where is the incentive to perform when you know the worst that
could
happen to you if you fail to deliver is to be
conscientised?
While most observers of the Zimbabwe economic
scene are
understandably sceptical about the prospects of the latest
panacea, the
National Economic Development Priority Programme, that is not
true of Herald
reporters who are convinced that it is just what the doctor
ordered.
"Could this be just one of those ill-fated economic
blueprints
that have been launched with so much fanfare in the past but
failed to yield
the desired results?" Herald reporter Martin Kadzere asked
himself.
But no, after listening to Minister Rugare Gumbo's
outline he
had "good reason to believe Zimbabwe was on the threshold of a
new era".
Kadzere could barely contain his
excitement.
"As he went through the document all faces were
filled with
great enthusiasm. One couldn't help feeling that the new plan
would
completely change the face of the economy," Kadzere
gushed.
"I was filled with renewed hope that our economy can
be revived
within a very short space of time.The perceptions that I had
before have
completely vanished."
Kadzere felt up until
that point he had not been playing his
role either as a patriotic Zimbabwean
or as a journalist in reviving the
economy.
"Forget about
foreign currency shortages or inflation hovering
over 900%," he wrote, "our
economy is still vibrant and requires a little
push to bring it back to its
former glory."
Kadzere is evidently more than a little push.
He is a complete
push-over. After watching Esap, Zimprest, Merp and Nerp
disappear down the
tubes, he is perfectly prepared to believe that this
latest effort, NEDPP,
from the same team, is going to succeed where all the
others failed!
Just to illustrate the delusional thinking
behind this latest
scheme, President Mugabe says he thinks the economy will
grow this year
between 1%-2%. In other words the economy will recover in one
year the 35%
it has lost over the past six years! Has he considered for one
moment where
this growth will come from in the absence of any
investment?
And in the same speech in which he announced this
growth, he
confirmed the state's intention to take an unearned stake in the
mining
sector which will send every potential punter heading for the
exits.
Then the Herald is instructed to write something
helpful about
this Mission Impossible! So we end up with business
journalists saying it's
all goin' to be fine and dandy because those
responsible for driving the
programme "will be held accountable and have
promised not to let us down".
It is difficult to know whether to
laugh or cry!
Which brings us to Nathaniel Manheru who, while
claiming the
Zimbabwe Independent is wholly unimportant, devotes endless
column inches to
denouncing it every week. Any newspaper should be grateful
for this free
publicity even if it does involve a good measure of abuse and
wading through
paragraph after paragraph of pretentious literary verbiage
designed to
showcase the writer's brief British education which evidently
included words
like "shat" and "phat".
It is
extraordinary that at a time when government policies have
condemned 80% of
the workforce to unemployment, completely sabotaged
agricultural production,
scared off investors and stoked inflation of 1
000%, the Herald's Goebellian
inquisitor seeks to take us on a wild goose
chase to "prove" the Rhodesian
ancestry of people working at a local
newspaper. And in the best racist
tradition, he assumes blacks working at
the paper have no minds of their
own. Long-since departed Rhodesian ghosts
guide their word-processors, we
are led to believe. And he has an abiding
dislike of news editor Dumisani
Muleya over what appears to be inconvenient
disclosures of Manheru's role in
the Tsholotsho Declaration.
Meanwhile, we hope he will
disclose the circulation figures for
the Southern Times. We have heard sales
of 1 500 copies tops. Nobody, it
seems, wants to buy the dreary state-owned
publication. Instead of trying to
intimidate our staff, Manheru should
improve the appeal of a declining paper
for which he is directly
responsible. And we all had a good laugh over the
theory that the rooster
had become a national symbol "both by association
and semantic
reach".
Very convenient but definitely a case of over-reach,
we felt!
What's in a road you may ask? The Sunday Mail led
with a funny
little story on Malawi, the European Union and Robert Mugabe.
And then five
million Malawians.
The story: the Europeans
built their road in Malawi. It is not
clear what they wanted the road
called. But Malawi is a sovereign state and
it has decided to name this
European road "Robert Mugabe Road".
Now, you and Muckraker
know very well that Robert Mugabe and the
Europeans do not see eye to eye as
they say. Put differently, there is no
love lost between the two over human
rights and "illegal" sanctions. To then
turn their money into a Robert
Mugabe is the ultimate ingratitude and they
have made this known to their
hosts in Lilongwe. It is, to borrow an
expression by another European in
Kenya, to vomit on the shoes of your
benefactors.
But who
said dictators don't have admirers?
W