By SIMBARASHE SITHOLE

ZIMDANCEHALL chanter Arrival 55’s much-awaited seven-track album, Chibharanzi Chinobhadhara, fetched US$300 after music promoter Monica Mabhena bought a copy during its official launch on Sunday.

The album, which was recorded at Mount Zion Records by DJ T Man, found many takers at Guruve Hotel who jostled to buy the disk by one of their own.

Mabhena was the highest bidder after forking out US$300 for the new album which she said was competitive in Zimdancehall.

“As a promoter, I felt I should give value to hard work by buying the disc at US$300, although ordinary discs were selling at ZWL$30. But hard workers should be rewarded. This album is very competitive and, I assure you, the track Chibharanzi will be a hit,” she said.

The artiste has since called on other upcoming musicians in Mashonaland Central to support each other and so far he has partnered with Mvurwi-based Ding who did not disappoint during the album launch.

“I am receiving overwhelming support from Mashonaland Central, Guruve mostly, hence I should also extend that generosity to other upcoming artistes and so far we are conducting shows with Ding from Mvurwi,” Arrival 55 said.

Arrival 55 and Ding said they were currently on a provincial tour in Mashonaland Central with Mvurwi and Bindura towns being their next targets.

“We have started with Guruve today as partners and we are on a provincial tour before year end, Mvurwi and Bindura are our next targets,” Ding said.

BY GARIKAI TUNHIRA/RUVIMBO MUCHENJE

A ZIMBABWEAN living in the diaspora has castigated government’s move to fire nearly 300 medical doctors from their jobs.

Netsai Makarichi, a Zimbabwean based in the United Kingdom, said the move vindicated their demonstration against Foreign Affairs minister Sibusiso Moyo in July this year.

“When we demonstrated against SB Moyo, people thought otherwise,” she said.

“The firing of the doctors shows the regime is not for the people. Instead of talking with the life savers, the government is busy firing them from their jobs. The government is worsening the situation in hospitals. What is happening is a soft genocide.”

In July, Moyo, who was in the company of Information permanent secretary Ndavaningi Mangwana and other officials, scurried for cover into their waiting vehicle as protesters, some carrying Zimbabwean flags, hurled insults and pelted them with various items while others, sprayed water.

The visibly-shaken delegation was coming out of Chatham House, where Moyo had just given a presentation.

Makarichi said President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s administration had committed murder against its citizens and, therefore, should be tried at the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

“They shot and killed innocent civilians last year and this year, they have done more. They should be tried at the Hague,” she said.

“We love our country, but when leaders turn against their own people, then there is a problem. I am a victim of Zanu PF, which claims to be democratic. I had to find a new home here in the UK after Zanu PF activists hounded me.”

Doctors have been on strike for more than 60 days citing incapacitation owing to poor salaries and working conditions.

Government last week fired over 200 doctors on allegations that they failed to report for duty.
Zimbabwe has about 1 600 doctors, and at least 516 of them face the axe in a country with a population of 15 million.

Meanwhile, the Zimbabwe Hospital Doctors Association has alleged that student doctors were forced to sit for examinations unprepared as their supervisors have not been reporting for duty for over 60 days after declaring incapacitation.

In a statement, the association accused government of trying to replace the fired and striking doctors with this batch of students.

“We believe this is a well-thought-out move by government to fast-track the release of our juniors into the field,” the striking doctors said.

The doctors argued that this would bring out half-baked graduates with inadequate training to deal with the lives of the people.

“This also affects the credibility of the degree programme, the quality of doctors produced and subsequently the quality of care provided to the patients,” the doctors added.

Student doctors have not had lectures since September when the senior doctors downed tools demanding an increase in salaries.

It is against this background that the association says the student doctors are not ready for the examinations.

“The juniors last week stressed that they had not received enough training due to the ongoing impasse which has resulted in them not having seniors to teach them and patients to learn from,” ZHDA said.

The association urged the Medical and Dental Practitioners Council of Zimbabwe and the University of Zimbabwe to guard against the “terrible” practice.

Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights board spokesperson Fortune Nyamande urged government to reconsider its decision to fire doctors.

“Both parties must be alive to the need for dialogue over escalation, and achieving a functional health delivery system in the shortest time framework possible. The right to health and sanctity of life must be the guiding principles in this dialogue,” he said.

Own Correspondent

EcoCash today announced a major upgrade of its platform scheduled for the weekend, which will result in a 24-hour downtime of all EcoCash services.

Announcing the upgrade – which is set to take place between 9pm on Saturday (November 16) and 9pm on Sunday (November 17) 2019 – the company said the upgrade is meant, among other things, to improve the mobile money platform’s performance by increasing capacity, enhancing security and offering more automated selfcare services for its clients.

“The EcoCash system upgrade, for which critical work has been going on over the past several months, will commence on Saturday evening, and is scheduled to be completed on Sunday evening,” a company spokesman said.

“The upgrade will result in improved platform performance, increased system capacity, enhanced transaction security and many other enhancements to the current system,” the spokesman said.

“We kindly urge our customers to make all their critical transactions before the upgrade, to avoid the inconvenience of falling to transact during the upgrade period on Saturday night and on Sunday. We sincerely regret any inconvenience the upgrade downtime will cause to our valued customers,” the spokesman said.

EcoCash handles millions of transactions per day and is the largest mobile transacting platform in the country.

It is a part of Cassava Smartech Zimbabwe, the fintech and digital smartech company listed on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange.

The internet is a pretty impressive thing and through modern technology it has evolved and along with it one of the biggest industries to benefit from this evolutionary forward-thinking movement is casino gaming. Slot games are a massive category within casino gaming so naturally we can see how slot games are evolving and this is everything you need to know about it.

It’s All About Gamification

If you haven’t heard of it yet, there was never any doubt you were bound to at some point as an online casino player. Slot games have recently taken on a new form which has been made possible through development known as ‘gamification’. This brilliantly innovative concept is being adopted by leading gaming software developers and changes the entire gaming experience of enthusiasts. So what is gamification? In essence it is the transformation of slot games into actual games that are available through consoles. Rather than a standard 5 reeled video slot you may be offered a game where there are various levels and you unlock bonuses through each stage. It’s really some innovative stuff!

Tailored Gaming Experiences

Personalized gaming experiences have changed the way slots players choose their games. The best online casino bonuses are what have mainly made the transitional evolution of slots games a most welcome one. Through these bonuses, players are able to simultaneously save money and accumulate winnings in a fun and modern way. In fact, these bonus offers are so unique; some players actively seek them out before choosing to sign with casinos that don’t offer bonus offers. You can see this kind of approach has been critical to the success of gaming evolution and only benefited online casinos as well as their newly signed paying customers. A tailored gaming experience is one of the very many reasons why land based goers choose to explore the online gaming experience and have evolved slot games.

Higher Quality for the Ultimate Gaming Experience

As one can imagine the evolution of slots gaming has to have some kind of face value and slot gaming has certainly been face lifted. The graphics are getting better and better, the sound quality has improved and even been adjusted to suit the gaming preference of the user. With technology evolving and developers competing to win over more players, the benefits are extended to the players and there is nothing better than a perfect gaming experience which is what you can find when gaming as a slot player.

Better Options

It takes a creative genius to understand the complexity of player’s needs but thankfully it is possible thanks to evolutionary technology players are treated to a wide range of themes, paylines, wagers, and bonus rounds. It goes without saying that this is indeed positive for all players.

The ultimate gaming skill can be created through slots gaming but it’s the evolution of these games that have impacted the way players approach online slots. The dynamic evolution of these games is exactly why we can foresee a solid future for the iGaming industry and even look forward to more changes that improve our experiences.

BY MTHANDAZO NYONI

NEGOTIATIONS between the Bulawayo City Council (BCC) and international hotel group, Radisson Group, for construction of an upmarket hotel in the second city have started in
earnest.

Radisson Hotel Group, which has more than 1 400 hotels worldwide, recently approached the local authority through Mkhuze Global Investments (Mkhuze), a special purpose vehicle that looks at various investment opportunities in the Sadc region, expressing interest in developing a hotel in Bulawayo.

According to the latest council minutes, negotiations have started with an interdepartmental committee having been set up and negotiations having been held on September 3, 2019.
Several factors were discussed and a formal draft offer was then submitted by the company, part of the minutes say.

According to the mulled offer, the company proposed a minimum of a 50-year lease plus an automatic 30-year renewal as well as a renewal clause that has first right of refusal to the current head-lease owners.

It said BCC would have a revenue or turnover based rental charge levied to the head lease holder and on all the tenants on the development.

“Should the land lease holder change during the lease period, the city will be entitled to renegotiate a nominal percentage of the gross sale price (this fee to be pre-agreed together with this lease). The city agrees to no charges or a nominal charge (for example $1 per annum — to be discussed) to the vacant land lease agreement with Mkhuze Global Investments (Pty) Ltd,” part of the proposal read.

“Mkhuze Global Investments (Pty) Ltd agrees to a minimum of 75% local participation on all skilled and unskilled labour. Mkhuze Global Investments (Pty) Ltd will ensure 100% training of all service staff and engineering services staff locally (for example Nust).”

Mkhuze will allow the city to have one seat on the board and all material development changes will be subject to the city’s approval.

In return, BCC came up with a set of conditions to be fulfilled before the deal is concluded. These include that the stand shall be used for the establishment of a hotel and ancillary uses, non-title survey costs shall be availed upon request and Zesa Holdings’ general servitude covering the property shall be observed.

BCC also said the stand shall not be occupied until approved sanitary and ablution facilities have been installed thereon and any development on the stand should be in accordance with the approved plans and relevant council by-laws.

“The hotel shall be registered with the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority prior to its commencement of operations. The city valuer’s recommended monthly rental is $30 000, subject to review at the pleasure of council and the minimum building clause shall be 3 000m2,” the minutes further read.

BCC said the offer was subject to a change of reservation by the ministers of Local Government and Public Works and that of National Housing in terms of section 49(4) of the Regional, Town and Country Planning Act Chapter 29;12 1996.

BCC is facing a serious shortage of hotel accommodation and the successful implementation of the project will go a long way in solving room deficiency in the
city.

BY STEPHEN CHADENGA

A 35-YEAR-OLD Gweru man was last week acquitted on charges of illegally dealing in foreign currency.

Paradzanai Hamanu of Mkoba 11 appeared before magistrate Edwin Marecha facing a charge of illegally dealing in foreign currency.

Allegations were that Hamanu was seen by detectives holding wads of bond notes, United States dollars and South African rand which he was reportedly trading on the streets.

Through his lawyer, Nomore Hlabano, Hamanu denied the charge and said police officers forcibly took the money from his vehicle, which (money) he intended to pay the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority for the house he had bought and that part of the money was paid after his car had been hired.

He told the court that he had CCTV footage which showed the police randomly searching his car before taking the money.

Marecha ruled that the State had failed to prove its case before acquitting Hamanu.

The State’s case was that on August 20 this year at around 3pm, detectives, who were on patrol, saw Hamanu holding a bunch of currencies and saying in vernacular, “tinochinja mari pano (we exchange money)” to passersby.

Police approached and arrested him and recovered $2 000, R5 680, US$161 on his person and a further $2 880 from a satchel stashed in his car.

editorial comment

IT comes as a seriously embarrassing affront to the Zimbabwe nation State that we are condemning hundreds, if not thousands, of fellow brothers and sisters to Statelessness simply because one or both their parents are unknown to them, which makes it impossible for them to obtain identity documents (IDs) under the country’s very strange laws that unashamedly trample on basic human rights. Having an ID is one of the most basic human rights that should not be so complicated and made to appear to be so sacred that a whole nation conspires to deny fellow citizens the right to belong somewhere.

Inquiries by the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission (ZHRC) have so far revealed that there are thousands of Zimbabwean citizens out there with neither birth certificates nor any other form of ID, with some of these hapless souls now being condemned to rot in jail simply because they cannot be pardoned since they have never obtained a birth certificate. The failure by fellow citizens to get IDs is exposing the southern African nation’s appalling human rights record. Little wonder Zimbabwe is struggling to understand why the community of nations has kept its doors slammed shut on it. Our human rights conditions are simply dreadful! And it is such basic things like failure to access IDs that are contributing to our outrageous human rights record. Indeed, everyone of us have to be very ashamed of ourselves for being part of a people nurturing such awful human rights conditions which have seen us not being bothered to treat fellow human beings with the dignity they deserve regardless of their unfortunate circumstances.

A Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services chief correction officer, Gilbert Munemo last week exposed the atrocious level of the country’s human rights record when he appeared before the ZHRC saying: “According to a recent survey we conducted in Mashonaland West, it was observed that many inmates do not have birth certificates and national identity documents.”

Munemo further told us that since these prisoners are termed “Stateless” they have no right to Presidential amnesty because their ages cannot be determined. They also are said to have no right to sit for educational or professional examinations. Simply put, they don’t exist just because they don’t know any relative who can help them get an ID.

“Presidential pardons come with certain specific conditions such as age, hence due to the fact that some inmates do not have birth certificates and identity cards, they do not qualify,” Munemo told us. It is astounding that in this day and age – when science is now so advanced that humankind is now able to do amazing things such as penetrating space into the yonder galaxies millions of lights years away — the State cannot or is not interested in establishing those inmates’ ages.

Munemo makes it sound as if it is virtually impossible to determine someone’s age from scratch when science has become so cutting-edge that such disciplines as carbon dating are now stuff for kindergarten learners who now know that age can simply be determined by one’s teeth, bone structure and sexual characteristics. We hope that by the time the ZHRC is complete with its inquiries, the country will treat this matter with the seriousness it deserves for the sake of saving our degraded dignity as a people.

BY CHELSEA MUSAFARE

RISING gospel artiste Emmah Mtisi is on Thursday this week set to release a new nine-track album, Mwari Vanonzwa, which largely encourages the nation to be prayerful in the face of challenges facing the country.

Speaking to NewsDay Life & Style recently, Mtisi said her music was inspired by the Holy Spirit and the word of God.

Mtisi, who will be launching the new album at Hevoi FM in Masvingo, said she opted to use radio as it reached a wider audience.

“People do not have to travel to attend the launch, but can listen in the comfort of their homes and workplaces. Also considering the economic situation, it has less costs than launching at a specific venue, which would need the whole band, MCs and refreshments,” she said.

The musician said her new offering was produced and recorded by Blessing Masanga at Bishy Music in Harare and Olin Anderson at Kunashe Studios in Mutare. She said her music was designed to inspire people to press on in faith because every problem had an expiry date.

She added that her forthcoming second production was different from the previous offering because it carried a new message.

“My first album Usacheme focused on problems faced by individuals, but this one Mwari Vanonzwa is focusing mainly on hope, faith and perseverance,” Mtisi said.

The singer said she has five videos from her first album and has featured Blessing Shumba on one of her songs, Chiedza, which has commanded a huge following on social media platforms.