CHIREDZI West legislator Farai Musikavanhu has allegedly withdrawn hospital beds and other medical ancillary supplies donated to Chiredzi Polyclinic by opposition MDC losing parliamentary aspirant John Mangange, and dumped the goods outside the council offices.

BY GARIKAI MAFIRAKUREVA

Musikavanhu reportedly roped in State security apparatus to order the removal of the donations from the clinic.
Mangange, who is based in the United Kingdom, donated an ambulance, 30 wheelchairs, three 5 000-litre water tanks, 10 electric operated beds, BP testing kits and various other items to the Chiredzi Town Council-run polyclinic in a bid to ease congestion at Chiredzi General Hospital maternity ward.

He also helped with the refurbishment of the clinic’s buildings. The donations worth thousands of United States dollars were recently handed over to Chiredzi Town Council in the presence of Masvingo Provincial Affairs minister Ezra Chadzamira.

However, Manganye’s nemesis Musikavanhu teamed up with State security agents, forcibly removed the donations from the clinic last week and dumped them at the council workshop backyard.

Southern Eye visited the workshop on Monday, and found the beds strewn all over the yard, while the clinic’s labour ward only left with two beds. The ambulance had also been removed from the premises.

Musikavanhu referred all questions to council chairperson Gibson Hwende.

“May I suggest to you that you ask the council chair and town secretary,” Musikavanhu said.

Hwende said he was not aware that the donations had been removed from the clinic.

“I am not aware, will check and give you feedback on that,” he said.

Former Chiredzi West MP Darlington Chiwa (Zanu PF) described Musikavanhu’s action as political suicide, adding the move would cost the ruling party dearly in the 2023 election.

“If this was the idea of (President Emmerson) Mnangagwa and his wife’s (which I doubt) way of thinking; then they are not fit to rule this country. Zanu PF should thoroughly vet some of their candidates, otherwise some are just in there to destroy the party from within,” Chiwa said.

“On the other hand, we have overzealous State security agents in Chiredzi that is why some are now playing the part of bodyguards to certain individuals, or harass ordinary citizens over petty issues, while some are now involved in food distribution.

“I don’t think their headquarters is even aware of such behaviour that is reducing the respected intelligence department to mere police constabularies bereft of elementary professional ethics.”

Chiwa added: “I am sure the donations were going to benefit all and sundry regardless of their political affiliation. Even Manganye made the donations without a political jacket. This is what Mnangagwa is looking for from those in the diaspora. That is why the Minister of State was even involved in the clearing of those donations at Beitbridge Border Post. He played his ministerial and fatherly role.”

ZIMBABWE’S credit only microfinances advanced loans amounting to $18,5 million in the first quarter, growing the sector’s loan book from $207, 3 million as at December 31, 2018 to $225,8 million as at March 31, 2019 .

BY BUSINESS REPORTER

According to the Zimbabwe Association of Microfinance Institutions’ first quarter report, the sector registered an aggregate net profit of $4,5 million for the three months period, compared to $2,7 million recorded during the same period last year.

Total income from interest and fees amounted to $30,2 million against a total cost of $25,6 million leading to an operational self-sufficiency ratio of 117% as at March 31, 2019.

Return on equity and assets improved significantly to 24% and 8% respectively, compared with 16% and 5% as at December 31, 2018. The top five MFIs accounted for 76,1% of the total loans, while the largest MFI, with a total loan book of $74,6 million, had a market share of 33,2%. Credit risk as expressed by the ratio of portfolio at risk (PAR >30DAYS) in the microfinance sector has significantly deteriorated from 7% in December 2018 to 11% as at March 31, 2019. This is way above the 5% benchmark, and as such poses a threat to the commercial viability of many MFIs in the sector.

“Since most loans in the sector are unsecured, their delinquency levels, unless attended to swiftly and decisively, may have a contagious effect of affecting both the profitability and capital levels of some MFIs,” the report read.

“The short to medium term solutions lie then in controlling the level of credit risk through the adoption of preventive credit risk mitigation measures such as the re-designing of loan products that meet client needs, tightening client screening systems as well enhancing the role and technical capacity of loan officers and committees engaged in approving credits before disbursements”.

In Zimbabwe, where the majority of citizens have no access to formal banking facilities, the MFI sector plays a significant role in the financial inclusion agenda and the attainment of Sustainable Development Goals.

NORTON MP Temba Mliswa (Independent) yesterday raised a matter of privilege with Speaker of the National Assembly, Jacob Mudenda, over the recent importation of a US$250 000 Lamborghini vehicle by Gokwe Nembudziya MP Justice Mayor Wadyajena.

BY VENERANDA LANGA

Although it was a private acquisition, Mliswa wanted to know whether Wadyajena managed to import his luxurious vehicle using tax rebates enjoyed by legislators.

“While MPs enjoy tax rebates on vehicles, it is important to understand what kind of vehicles MPs are entitled to,” Mliswa said.

“Are MPs entitled to vehicles that can get to their constituencies and not Lamborghinis, because a Lamborghini doesn’t get to rural constituencies? The public are now asking questions about the vehicle and your guidance, Mr Speaker, is sought on the types of vehicles we must get as MPs,” he said.

This did not augur well with Wadyajena who shouted back at Mliswa, saying: “You are an embarrassment. Why are you so jealous?”

Mudenda then ruled that if Mliswa needed clarity on which type of vehicles MPs could import on tax rebates, then he should approach Parliament administration to get guidance.

In an unrelated issue, Buhera South MP Joseph Chinotimba asked the Speaker to send a delegation of 10 opposition MPs and 10 ruling party MPs to South Africa to compare prices.

Chinotimba claimed that goods were generally cheaper in Zimbabwe than in South Africa, saying the only problem was workers’ poor salaries.

“Our diesel at ZWL$5,07 is cheaper than in South Africa where diesel costs R16 per litre. It means our diesel is cheaper by far and people outside the country are coming to buy our fuel.A loaf of bread in South Africa costs R15, while ours costs ZWL$3. What I have noticed is that our salaries are low and are being rated at 1:1 to the United States dollar,” Chinotimba said.

STAND-UP comedian Learnmore Mwanyenyeka — popularly known as Long John in comedy circles — said he has hit a purple patch in his career as an entertainer with performances in several African countries.

BY PRECIOUS CHIDA

This year alone, the award-winning jest master has represented Zimbabwe at big comedy fiestas including the Kigali International Festival in Rwanda, Kampala Comedy Festival in Uganda, The Churchill Show in Kenya and the Laugh Festival in Zambia.

Long John has also featured in Showmax original shows, Funny People Africa and The Last Laugh.

The comedian told NewsDay Life & Style yesterday that his decision to create his own work opportunities had given him the breakthrough.

“I don’t wait for an opportunity. I create my own opportunities because if you wait for a call, it will never come,” he said.

“The main key in my life is networking. I talk and create working relationships with other comedians and promoters from around the world and I have taken precedence in making myself a professional comedian.”

Several local comedians have found the going tough as there are very few promoters interested in comedy.

The Chimanimani-bred Long John, who broke into the South African comedy circuit, performing at prestigious events and venues such as Oppikkopi Festival, Park Acoustics, Mieliepop Festival and Jo’burg Theatre, said he would continue on that trajectory.

Long John’s breakthrough on the mainstream comedy circuit came in 2012 during his performance at Simuka Comedy Night at the Book Café in Harare. Since then, he has carved out a slot for himself on the local and African scene.

The joker said he would be launching his one-man show, The Village Boy, in August at three different places in Harare ahead of his tour of Chicago in the United Sates later this year.

HARARE football giants Dynamos have received a major boost ahead of their trip to Barbourfields for a blockbuster Castle Lager Premiership tie against old rival Highlanders on Sunday after their injured captain Edward Sadomba and three foreign imports returned to training this week.

BY TAWANDA TAFIRENYIKA

Sadomba missed last week’s 0-0 draw against Manica Diamonds due to injury, while the foreign trio of Cameroonians Vincent Mbega and Claude Ngahan Junior, nicknamed Neymar and Ghanaian Robert Sackey have also been on the sidelines for quite some time nursing injuries.

Dynamos coach Tonderai Ndiraya has even complained about the foreign players’ lack of involvement in value creation in the team as they continuously pick injuries.

Nevertheless, the foreign contingent got back to training this week as they prepare for the weekend showdown against Highlanders.

Team manager Richard Chihoro confirmed the development.

“The team captain Sadomba is back at training with the team so are the foreign players Mbega, Ngahan and Sackey.

They have been involved in training this week and it’s up to the coach to decide whether they will play. The good thing is that they are all available for selection,” Chihoro said.

With both the Harare giants and their hosts Highlanders demanding positive results after indifferent performances, which have seen both sides struggle at the lower echelons of the table, it’s sure to be a fascinating encounter.

Highlanders and Dynamos have been strikingly in similar circumstances, where the Harare giants had a sluggish start to the campaign under former coach Lloyd Chigowe before Ndiraya took over, while Highlanders have also been poor.

Both can ill-afford another defeat at this stage and certainly not in this fixture, almost guaranteeing fans a thriller.

Madinda Ndlovu’s men are entangled in the drop zone, lying in fourth position from the bottom with a paltry 11 points out of a possible 33 points. They have won just two, drawn five and lost four.

Their strikeforce has scored just five goals — the worst scoring rate in the topflight which they share with TelOne.

Highlanders are also coming from a dispiriting 1-0 defeat to Yadah FC and will be determined to bounce back.

Dynamos might have undergone a major transformation under Ndiraya and have, at times, exhibited some battling qualities which have seen them posting some good results including a memorable victory over defending champions FC Platinum, but their coach is demanding more from his charges.

PSL weekend fixtures
Saturday: Bulawayo Chiefs v FC Platinum (Luveve), Chapungu v Yadah (Mandava), Black Rhinos v ZPC Kariba (NSS), Harare City v Herentals (Rufaro).

Sunday: Caps United v TelOne (NSS), Triangle v Chicken Inn (Gibbo), Mushowani v Hwange (Rufaro), Highlanders v Dynamos (Barbourfields), Manica Diamonds v Ngezi Platinum Stars (Vengere)

When the news that the Association of Rural Teachers of Zimbabwe (Artuz) boss, Obert Masaraure had allegedly been kidnapped, brutalised and left for dead first filtered in, the government and by extension Zanu PF’s response was predictable; they would deny everything and if possible, blame the victim and true to form, that is exactly what they did.

Probably, the best response would have been for the police — not the government through Information and Publicity secretary, Ndavaningi Mangwana — to say they are investigating the issue and would seek to speak to Masaraure first to ascertain the details of the case.

Instead, they resorted to a crass knee jerk response that has become the hallmark of Zanu PF governments right from 1980.

Zanu PF’s approach to governing is simple, particularly when confronted with a difficult issue — deny, deflect and divert.

Not much thinking is involved in this; it just kicks in, like it is second nature and they move on like nothing ever happened.

It is not just about politics, but it is about every sphere of life.

For example, when rumours that a fuel price hike was in the offing in January, the Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority (Zera) flatly denied that any such thing was going to happen.

However, a few hours later, President Emmerson Mnangagwa announced new fuel prices.

Did Zera apologise or explain the contradiction? No, they just went on like nothing ever happened.

The same thing happened in May, where again reports of a fuel price increase surfaced and true to form, Zera once again denied that.

You would expect that they had learnt something from the episode since they were once beaten, but not with this lot.

Neither did they apologise nor explain why there was miscommunication, instead, for them, life went on and I am sure the list of people that still trusts Zera is not a very long one.

The default mode, that is the easy thing out for this government, is to go into denial mode.

It is like they do not even have to apply their minds to it, it just comes naturally.

Denial is a second nature to this government, right from 1980 to date. They never take responsibility; they do not want to be held accountable and they will deny just about everything.

To this day, nobody wants to take responsibility for Gukurahundi. Authorities have gone from denying that it ever happened, to trying to deflect and place the blame on dissidents, thereby evoking the national security question.

Neither President Emmerson Mnangagwa nor his predecessor, Robert Mugabe, have in any way or form sought to address this issue meaningfully and have so far only offered piecemeal solutions, with their tried and tested response being to deny, deflect or divert.

The modus operandi is the same right through to the shootings of August 1 last year and January this year.
For a while, following the killings in August, the government had managed to move the debate away from the deaths to the rather inane issue of who had deployed the army on that day.

Then there was a time when former Home Affairs minister Obert Mpofu came up with an Alice in Wonderland narrative, claiming he had seen snipers on buildings and these were responsible for the August 1 2018 killings.

A former army boss, Anselem Sanyatwe then claimed that a soldier who was accused of shooting into the crowd, had, in fact, shot at a 45 degree angle.

They followed the same script in January this year, denying that the security forces had killed anyone and we were instead introduced to a new term – rogue soldiers.

When foreign television crews, who do not have the same fear as local journalists and whose first instinct is not to censor themselves when reporting, started following up on multiple rape allegations and filmed violent acts, the government responded in a manner they best know how to — deny.

All manner of theories and scenarios were postulated by ranking government officials, with all of them having one theme, no one took accountability nor responsibility.

Instead, the government went for another tried and tested method, that is to deligitimise either the accusers or the media houses that carried the stories.

Together with deligitimisation, they used diversion tactics, accusing the media houses of being part of an age old imperialist plot to unseat the government and the people who had either been allegedly assaulted or raped of being opposition activists hellbent on seeing the government’s back.

So, instead of addressing the allegations, the debate moves to either the foreign media’s lack of sincerity or questioning their interest in Zimbabwe.

Again, what was missing from this narrative is a simple apology or a promise to investigate the claims, but all these seem to be beyond the government.

Then there is the sanctions issue. I have promised not to debate it and am not about to, but allow me to touch briefly on it.

That this government is failing economically is not a secret, but instead of trying to fix their faults, they have dusted up Mugabe’s book of excuses and picked up the most convenient one, that is to blame every failure on sanctions.

When Zanu PF made all those election promises last year, they knew the sanctions were a reality, but they still promised affordable healthcare, housing, better education and more jobs.

A simple reading of this would say that Zanu PF knew they were hamstrung by the sanctions, but they would come up with innovative ways and solutions to circumvent the embargo and ensure that they deliver on their campaign promises.

Mnangagwa was even quoted as saying “we have sanctions, but if we are going to cry about sanctions throughout, then we will not grow”, showing that the government was confident it would thrive in spite of the sanctions.

Therefore, to turn around and blame sanctions today for economic failures is disingenuous; it is dishonest and is an admission of failure.. What Zimbabwe needs is an honest government that is able to accept its flaws, take responsibility for its shortcomings and is accountable to its citizens because without this, we are wasting our time and going nowhere.

 Nqaba Matshazi is AMH head of digital. He writes this in his personal capacity. Feedback nmatshazi@alphamedia.co.zw Twitter: @nqabamatshazi

A WOMAN believed to be the daughter of Zimbabwe ambassador to Belgium, Tadeous Tarirenyika Chifamba, was allegedly duped of US$2 000 after being promised a contract to supply uniforms to the Zimbabwe Prison and Correctional Service (ZPCS).

BY DESMOND CHINGARANDE

Kudzayi Chifamba, who owns Global Eye Investments, reported Chamunorwa Shumba Baye to the police after he allegedly swindled her of her $2 000, purportedly to bribe ZPCS Commissioner-General Paradzai Zimondi.

Baye (37) appeared before magistrate Barbara Mateko, charged with extortion.

Global Eye Investment is in the business of supplying goods and services to government departments and intended to supply uniforms, worksuits, prisoner’s clothes and overalls to ZPCS.

The company consulted one Michael Kutsoko who, in turn, connected them to Baye.

It is alleged sometime in October last year, Baye met Chifamba at Kutsoko’s workplace. Baye confirmed that he had the capacity to facilitate the awarding of a government tender to supply uniforms since he was purportedly well connected to Zimondi.

The State alleges Baye then demanded a facilitation fee US$5 000, which he promised to deliver to Zimondi.
Chifamba, however, failed to raise the money and as a result Baye allegedly continued to pressure her by phone so that she pays the required amount or risk losing the tender.

It is alleged later that month, Chifamba managed to raise US$2 000, which she gave to Baye in the presence of Michelle Gwatimba, Tatenda Chidzidzi and Kutsoko.

The State alleges after paying the money, Chifamba patiently awaited the greenlight to supply the uniforms to ZPCS, but to no avail.

It is alleged the offence came to light when Chifamba visited Zimondi’s office and was advised that ZPCS makes its own uniforms and did not need any suppliers in that regard.

On discovering that, Chifamba reported the matter to the police, leading to Baye’s arrest.

Director of Organs Resources Company, Korbs Korbie Mutandiro, who last year appeared in court on charges of swindling the Grain Marketing Board (GMB) of over US$1 million in a botched land deal is now embroiled in a nasty divorce with his estranged wife Lavin Chitsidzo Mutandiro.

BY CHARLES LAITON

Mutandiro instituted divorce proceedings against Lavin five year ago, accusing her of throwing him out of the matrimonial house, resulting in him losing love and affection for her.

In his declaration, Mutandiro said he moved out of the house on September 14, 2014 after Lavin locked him out and restricted him from accessing his matrimonial home, but his wife dismissed his claims, saying he voluntarily left due to his adulterous behaviour.

“While it is admitted that the marriage relationship has broken down as alleged, it is not true that defendant (Lavin) restricted plaintiff (Mutandiro) from accessing the matrimonial home by changing all locks to the house as alleged,” she said.

“The reason why the relationship has broken down is that the plaintiff engaged in an adulterous relationship with a certain woman which led to a child being born on January 19, 2011. The plaintiff went to stay with the woman as husband and wife after defendant obtained an order of adultery damages against the woman under case number HC1873/14.”

Commenting on the distribution of property, Lavin said her husband had understated the number of their immovable properties.

“While it is admitted that the parties acquired the property listed, it must be noted that the plaintiff omitted to list two other immovable properties being house number 23 Sloane Road, Highlands, Harare…(which was lost in a civil dispute) and house number 18 Hodgson Avenue, Alexander Park registered under Morning Produce (Pvt) Ltd,” she said.
But, Mutandiro indicated that he has since formalised his adulterous relationship by customarily marrying the woman who led to the break-up of his family, adding he cannot move out of their Alexander Home because the property was his home.The matter is set to be heard by High Court judge Justice Ester Muremba on Thursday.