THE stage is set for rising South Africa-based Zimbabwean hip-hop artiste Ngonidzashe “King 98” Dondo’s debut album Francesca launch tomorrow at Wingate Golf Club in Harare.
The launch will be graced by two top regional music stars, Nigerian music icon David “Davido” Adeleke and celebrated South African rap superstar, Nasty C, who are expected in the country today.
King 98 collaborated with Davido on the single, No Bad Vibes, which was released as an appetiser ahead of the album launch, while Nasty C features on the forthcoming album.
The singer’s manager, DJ Simmz, yesterday told NewsDay Life &Style that everything was on point, with the performing artistes promising fireworks at the concert.
“Our Nigerian and South African brothers Davido, together with Nasty C, will be in the county tomorrow (today) for the much-awaited launch of King 98’s debut album, Francesca. Davido will be arriving at 9pm from America, while four of his team members will be coming direct from Nigeria, as Nadia Nakai and Nasty C will be arriving at 5pm,” he said.
“We are promising a bigger event as King 98 takes his career to another level with the launch of his debut album.”
DJ Simmz said they had made the launch a special event for the fans, allowing them to bring their own cooler boxes of beverages.
Apart from the international artistes, the launch will also feature an array of local artistes, among them ExQ, Nakai, Tammy Moyo, Shashl, Union 5 and wheelspinner Silence Dosh.
The concert’s advance tickets are available at all Jan Jam shops, Chicken Hut outlets and online on www.clicknpay.africa and are selling for US$10 general, US$20 for VIP, and US$50 for VVIP.
The youthful King 98, who is pursuing a degree in music and arts at the University of Pretoria, South Africa, has since engaged the services of two regional managers from South Africa and Nigeria to handle his affairs. Sam “Olofofo” Frank, who leads the talent management team at Davido Music Worldwide, will be managing the youthful crooner in Nigeria, while entertainment guru Faith Siphoro will be his manager in South Africa.
HWANGE Colliery Company Limited (HCCL) is demanding US$272 000 from former managing director Thomas Makore as restitution for alleged shady payments made to him during his tumultuous four-year tenure at the company, it has emerged.
This came after an internal audit revealed that Makore had benefitted from monthly payments made to him without valid reasons throughout the four years he was employed by the company.
HCCL was placed under reconstruction late last year. This also follows a recent external audit by Ralph Bomment Greenacre & Reynolds which revealed serious corporate governance rot and plunder of the company’s finances on Makore’s watch.
Makore was suspended in March last year by the then HCCL board led by Juliana Muskwe to pave way for the audit, but he immediately quit his job before the probe could be completed.
Mines minister Winston Chitando, in a move largely seen as aimed at blocking the audit, dissolved the board midway through the probe and placed the company under reconstruction on the pretext that it was the only way to set it on the path to recovery and profitability.
The internal audit revealed that Makore received huge payments for his domestic workers on his monthly pay cheque, while at the same time they would get separate monthly payments from the usual HCCL payroll.
Makore allegedly received substantial amounts of money in advance payments, which he never paid back, according to an internal audit report seen by NewsDay.
The company is also demanding repayments for an unsupported “housing allowance” amounting to US$18 000 and an outstanding vehicle loan of US$73 000. In addition, Makore got US$82 000 without any supporting documents.
“Following a request by management to verify the balances due to the former managing director Stenjwa Thomas Makore who resigned on 23 May 2018, audit findings show that Mr Thomas Makore owes HCCL an amount of US$271 841,99. This includes cash advances not recovered, allowances not recovered, earnings without supporting documents and balance on a motor vehicle loan. We recommend full recovery of the amount owed and that the company stop any further payments to Makore,” the audit report read.
Cash advance payments, which have not been recovered to date, amount to US$249 443,50, including a housing allowance valued at US$114 004,80.
Vehicle loan balances that Makore is expected to pay back to the company is US$81 996, having accrued from February 2017 to May 2018.
Makore would also pay his domestic workers from the HCCL account and allegedly prejudiced the company of US$17 869,50.
Vehicle loan balances and other allowances he got without supporting documentation amount to US$72 872 and US$81 996, respectively.
Makore declined to comment, saying: “I have not seen the report so, therefore, I cannot comment. If you want anything else you can speak to my lawyer,” Makore said.
HCCL was placed under reconstruction in October 2018 after it emerged the company had become technically insolvent after years of corruption and mismanagement.
AWARD-WINNING musician Jah Prayzah temporarily turned his performance at Queens Sports Club into a traditional ceremony after he performed at the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair showdown concert on Saturday night in Bulawayo.
There has always been speculation about the inspiration behind the song Goto, which often sees people in the audience going into a trance.
Backed by his Third Generation Band, Jah Prayzah’s performance of the song, Goto, briefly turned the concert venue into a traditional ceremony as many of his followers were caught in ecstasy and could be seen “appeasing” traditional spirits on stage and so did Jah Prayzah.
Meanwhile, award-winning Bulawayo singer Seagirl blasted her home town fans, accusing them of not supporting their own after she was pelted by rowdy and angry fans while performing her hit song — AEIOU, at the same concert.
The pint-sized singer’s performance came after a lengthy act by Jah Prayzah at a concert that also featured Winky D, Gary B and Templeman, among others.
Seagirl curtain-raised her act with the new track Bambelela. All hell broke loose after she performed the song AEIOU, which got her awards last year and this year.
Fans started pelting her, chanting unprintable words and demanding that she leave the stage.
In response, the musician told the fans off, accusing them of not supporting their own.
“I am disappointed with you, Bulawayo. I am your own, but you are not supporting me. Rather, you are booing and pelting me. Who else should support me if you don’t do so? Anywhere, I don’t care if you don’t support me as long as I have the money in my purse,” she shouted, before leaving the stage.
She left the fans angrier and throwing more bottles on the stage.
In a follow-up interview, Seagirl told NewsDay Life & Style that she was disappointed by her own people.
“Bulawayo people don’t support their own, but want to claim them when they are successful. They forget the same people whom they did not help grow,” she said.
“I was hurt and disappointed on stage when I saw people, — my own people — throwing missiles at me. It was the most embarrassing moment of my career, but I shall take this as a lesson and grow from it rather than letting it dampen my spirit.”
Seagirl was voted the outstanding female of the year at the Skyz Metro FM music awards in 2018. Her song, AEIOU, was voted the outstanding house song at this year’s Star FM music awards.
AN African-led first HIV vaccine trial has given hope to millions of people who will only need a few shots to be immunised against the virus.
The clinical trial, running from 2018 to 2022 and dubbed PrEVacc, is being conducted in four African countries that include Zimbabwe as Africa takes the lead in the fight against the pandemic. The trial will be one of the highlights at the upcoming 10th conference on HIV science in Mexico.
Aids and TB director in the Health ministry Owen Mugurungi said the impact of the vaccine is remarkable and would go a long way in stemming the spread of the disease. “A vaccine is the cheapest way to manage any disease. Immunisation is better than treatment which is more expensive,” he said.
Zimbabwe has over the years experienced severe and perennial outages of antiretroviral drugs, a situation which can easily be corrected by an effective vaccine which will lessen the demand for drugs. “Everyone is looking forward to an effective vaccine which will save many lives and billions of dollars which are being spent on treatment,” Mugurungi said.
Although HIV prevalence in Zimbabwe has declined from 26,5% in 1997 to 14,3%, it is still considered too high and stakeholders are calling for scaling up of HIV prevention efforts.
Meanwhile, PrEPVacc, which is European-funded, is the first vaccine trial that attempts to incorporate pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in a realistic way, according to Eugene Ruzagira, a senior scientist who is leading the PreVacc trial.
According to Ruzagira, the pilot test will evaluate two experimental HIV vaccine combinations for the prevention of HIV infection, each compared against a placebo.
It will also evaluate whether a new formulation of the drugs used for PrEP (Descovy: tenofovir sulfonamides, TAF, plus emtricitabine, FTC) is as effective as the current formulation approved for PrEP (Truvada: tenofovir disoproxil fumarate, TDF, plus FTC).
Participants will be offered PrEP throughout the study to cover the period spanning the first three immunisations because scientists believe this is the best way for PrEP to be applied in an immunisation programme – protecting people until the vaccines have started working. When assessing vaccine efficacy in the PrEPVacc trial, only HIV infections that happen after the first three vaccines (given over six months) will be counted.
PrEPVacc will inform the field about whether the vaccine regimens can protect against HIV infection.
However, one of the challenges is addressing HIV-related stigma that can make it very difficult to find enough people willing to participate in HIV prevention trials.
“HIV vaccine trial participants may have to attend clinics where people living with HIV are treated, and may fear that people will think that they have HIV. I have worked with participants who did not want to be seen with our research teams or at our research clinics – even if they were HIV negative,” Ruzagira said.
Air Zimbabwe has confirmed that one of the two engines on its Boeing plane caught fire during a flight from OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg, South Africa, to Harare on Sunday evening after developing a fault.
In a statement, the airline admitted that its plane had experienced some glitch in South Africa as it was departing for Zimbabwe.
“Air Zimbabwe wishes to inform the public that their Boeing 767-200ER servicing flight UM462 experienced a malfunction in one of its engines, which caused a ‘brief’ tailpipe fire,” part of the statement read.
The carrier said the malfunction did not threaten the continuation of the flight or the safety of the crew and passengers on board, and that the aircraft landed safely in Harare at 8:35pm.
Air Zimbabwe confirmed that their engineers have started investigations into the incident.
“We regret to inform our valued passengers that this incident may result in a disruption of our normal schedule,” the statement continued.
This came barely a day after the same plane was involved in a bird strike incident after take-off at the Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo International Airport in Bulawayo.
The plane, however, landed safely at Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport in the capital.
In March, the struggling national airline said it was using the aircraft, the only one in service, for all its routes.
STANBIC Bank Zimbabwe reported a 42% increase in after-tax profit to US$39,15 million in the year to December 2018, but the bank has warned that growth prospects for 2019 remain weak.
In a statement accompanying the company’s results, chairman Gregory Sebborn stressed that the bank had not been spared from the myriad of macro-economic challenges affecting Zimbabwe’s economy.
A pressing foreign currency shortage and resurgent inflationary pressures have dampened any growth prospects for the southern African economy.
“Economic growth prospects for 2019 remain weak as the current challenges described above are showing no sign of being contained in the near future. The situation is further exacerbated by the erratic rains during the 2018/19 agricultural season,” Sebborn said.
The growth in profit after tax was driven by growth in the net interest income and non-interest income of 26,44% to US$69,65 million and 25,74% to US$67,73 million, respectively. In 2017, the net interest income was US$55,08 million, while non-interest income ended the year at US$53,86 million.
The bank’s loan book grew by 17% from US$330,4 million in 2017 to US$387 million, reinforced mainly by new lending assets which were created in the period, combined with an improvement in facility utilisation by some borrowing clients.
Chief executive Joshua Tapambgwa said the bank had increased its deposit base from US$1,2 billion as at the end of 2017 to US$1,5 billion because of the worsening foreign currency shortages.
“Our depositors were unable to access their funds for the settlement of foreign obligations due to the scarcity of foreign currency, hence the growth in deposits,” Tapambgwa said.
Overall cash and cash equivalents grew by 27,8% to US$932,55 million for the period under review from a 2017 comparative of US$729,66 million.
The bank increased its holding of notes and coins by 85,95% to US$11,49 million, balances with the central bank by 15,4% to US$698,12 million and balances with other banks by nearly 90% to US$224,59 million.
Total operating expenses grew by 11% from US$64.1 million in the prior period to US$71,3 million.
Total assets increased by 26% to US$1,76 billion in the period under review, driven by the growth of cash and cash equivalents, loans and advances as well as financial investments.
After presiding over two training sessions and one match in the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League, newly-appointed Dynamos coach Tonderai Ndiraya has cast doubts over his team competing for honours this season given the low calibre of players in the squad’s ranks.
Ndiraya is working with a side that was assembled by his predecessor Lloyd Chigowe, who was fired last week after overseeing three defeats from their first four league matches.
While Ndiraya is prepared to put in extra work to help the team realise its full potential, he doubts that the current team can compete for honours this season.
His observation is that the team lacks experience, which is abundant in rival teams such as FC Platinum and Caps United, which makes the task of out-competing them a difficult one.
In his first match at the weekend, Ndiraya watched his team battle to a one-all draw against new-boys TelOne at Barbourfields Stadium despite playing about a quarter of the match one man down after captain Godfrey Mukambi had been sent off.
Dynamos faithfuls believe that Ndiraya can turn things around, but the former Dynamos midlfielder says he needs a transfer window for him to shop for the much-needed experience that can be blended with the youth that is at the club.
DeMbare lost all, but four players from last season, with most of their stars seeking pastures anew as the club struggled financially.
The club has since secured good sponsorship which could help them attract quality players, or at least compete for them with other well-resourced teams.
But to those that were hoping for immediate good results, Ndiraya delivered some hard truths.
“We have a bunch of players full of potential and unfortunately at a big institute like Dynamos potential alone doesn’t really work. You have to blend older and new players and also give the youngsters time to develop,” he said.
“You have to have a strong team that can compete against other big boys like FC Platinum, Caps United, Highlanders and others. My honest opinion is that at the moment, we don’t have the players who can play at that level.
“We have a team with potential and I am hoping that we work on them, their fitness and everything so that we somehow try to compete, but quite frankly we don’t have a team that can compete in the league.”
The coach added that he has been working on the players’ mental state more than physical.
“When I got there last week, I found the boys shattered, they were low in confidence, so for the two days I trained with them I tried to bring back the zeal and moral within the camp and I think it’s working well,” he said.
DeMbare supporters who packed the Mpilo end stand at Barbourfields on Sunday saluted Ndiraya and the players after the match, presumably in appreciation of the effort and hunger they had exhibited.
With a lot of young players in the ranks, DeMbare rely mostly on captain Edward Sadomba, Mukambi and Jimmy Tigere for experience.
Dynamos signed foreign players to try and help strengthen the side with Ngandu Mangala, signed from Division One side GreenFuels, having produced some brilliance though in flashes.
Cameroonian Claude Junior Nkahan, also known as Neymar, has also shown that he can light up the local top-flight, but he has been affected by injuries.
Apart from the foreigners, DeMbare did most of their shopping at Aces Youth Academy where they picked up some talented, but inexperienced players.
DeMbare fans will be looking forward to seeking the team picking up maximum points, but their next assignment is not an easy one as they face ZPC Kariba at home before they take on struggling Yadah.
IT is sad to hear that some widows of our war veteran brothers are being harassed and pushed off the land on which they had been resettled during the chaotic 2000 land reform programme. While these acts of cowardice are dastardly, in our view, they also speak to something gravely wrong with our land tenure system.
These black-on-black land grabs have, of late, been worryingly increasing, which is pointing to something fundamentally wrong with the country’s land occupation system. But even more worrying are the comments by some of our war veterans over the prevailing land grab issue.
“We get mad when we are denied what is rightfully ours. We claim what is ours. Our solemn liberation struggle pledge was to claim our land from colonialists and, therefore, to attempt to dispossess widows and children of departed liberation war heroes would be an affront to our cause. Anyone who tries this automatically becomes our enemy. We were trained to confront and kill the enemy,” are words of one of our liberators, Mudzingaidzwa Nyikadzino Mudarikwa, secretary general of the Mashonaland West war veterans association chapter.
We understand that he has been angered by the land grabs, but to then threaten to kill people for land, which we all believed is essentially State land, leaves us a little worried. In the same breath, we are also saddened to finally learn that the liberation struggle was wedged so that those who fought the bush war would solely benefit from the country’s land.
We wish to draw our leaders’ attention to this simmering problem that is principally a ticking time bomb. We have heard of 99-year leases and offer letters being the sole ticket for one to own a piece of fertile farmland. These 99-year leases and offer letters are free of charge and can be generated any time, which we believe herein lies the major problem with our land tenure system.
For many years, economists and well-meaning citizens have been calling for the return of title to land. We believe this is the best way to go. So we humbly propose that after government completes its land audit, it should re-demarcate all the country’s land into small, medium and large-scale, with occupants being offered to buy the land over a certain period so that they actually own it. This will rid us of these incidents of having widows of war veterans being kicked around as is the case right now.
If those occupying these lands are serious farmers, determined to own the land and lead this country to prosperity, they should be more than happy to work this land and make it productive. This business of having people sitting on productive land and claiming that it is rightfully theirs without them producing anything, will not get us anywhere.
Many people today own houses in cities and towns to which they have title deeds; so why should those occupying farms not be willing to have title deeds to that land? As long as people keep occupying land that belongs to an institution called the State, they might as well be prepared to be kicked out at any time, whether they are widows of war veterans or not.
ZIMBABWE Miners Federation (ZMF) president Henrietta Rushwaya is facing another court challenge after the Zvishavane-Mberengwa Mining Association (ZMMA) filed an urgent chamber application seeking to bar her from representing the interests of ZMF.
This was after she had appealed to the Supreme Court against a recent High Court order which stripped her of the presidency of the small-scale miners’ body.
ZMMA wants an interdict barring her from acting as the ZMF president until finalisation of her appeal by the highest court.
Rushwaya lost the presidency of the association after the High Court declared that the results and proceedings of the elections, which brought her to the helm of the small-scale miners’ body, were invalid.
She was elected ZMF president in June last year, but a group of small-scale miners under the ZMMA challenged her election.
In a case filed at the High Court in Bulawayo under case number 1652/18, the miners accused Rushwaya of using “unorthodox” means to take over the ZMF leadership.
Justice Nokuthula Moyo granted the order in favour of ZMMA. Rushwaya, however, appealed the judgment arguing that Justice Moyo erred at law and grossly misdirected herself on the issue of locus standi in failing to find and discounting that the deponents to the appellant’s founding papers were properly before the Court.
ZMMA on April 16 filed an urgent chamber application seeking to bar her from representing the interests of ZMF president until finalisation of her appeal.
In a founding affidavit, Thembinkosi Sibanda, on behalf of ZMMA, filed by their lawyer, Mutuso, Taruvinga and Mhiribidi Attorneys, said they had gathered that Rushwaya was representing ZMF at the just ended Zimbabwe International Trade Fair.
Southern Eye could not immediately verify the veracity of the allegations.
The matter had been set down last week on Thursday with Justice Maxwell Takuva, but was postponed.
“It has come to my knowledge that the respondent, on the 14th instant, officialised the national executive, which was allegedly nominated and appointed on the 14th of June to represent Respondent in the upcoming national events to be held at the ZITF, between April 22 to 27. This national executive is led by Henrietta Rushwaya and Wellington Takavarsha,” said Sibanda.
Justice Moyo, in her ruling said: “The court, being a court of law, cannot embrace a willy-nilly departure from one’s constitutional dictates. Not only is adherence to one’s constitution good for law and order, but it is also a good corporate governance principle.
“The reason why there is a constitution in the first place is so that the association or organisation operates within the confines of good order to avoid chaos.”
She said the court could not encourage organisations to breach their own constitutions and do as they wished, and thus the court could not lend a hand to allow an illegality to prevail.
THE human resources department has a role to play not only in protecting the welfare and safety of employees, but also in supporting organisational sustainability during an economic crisis. Why? The simple reason is that there is always a human side to every challenge that the organisation faces. Business cycles always pose a major challenge to business organisations, especially in an economic slump. Today’s turbulent business environment requires that firms continuously re-shape HR practices and strategies in order to sustain competitiveness within the market.
Thriving in a downturn requires greater diligence and more skills than during favourable economic times. The current economic crisis is making many organisations limp as there are a lot of uncertainties. So far, many organisations are facing challenges in swimming through the waves of this economic crisis and HR has its role also in helping organisations remain cost effective, competitive and to exploit opportunities presented by changes to labour markets. The human resource management is responsible for seeing that employees of an organisation are utilised in the most efficient and economical way possible. During a recession when budgets are tight, this vital human resource role becomes even more important to keep a company on track in all facets.
The current environment is an unfavourable period to many businesses. Most of the companies crave for a stable economic environment in which to plan and increase profitability, but under harsh conditions business cannot prosper. This crisis affects businesses across all sectors of production. Cost-cutting is also one of the HR challenges as it comes in the scenario when companies are not earning much.
At this time, a company may have to introduce Innovative ideas to reduce operating costs without affecting business. You should involve employees in the process and listen to their feedback and opinions. Normally, in times of uncertainty, companies may find themselves unsure of what strategies to employ. Some companies might have to restructure and remake their organisations to cope with the new business environment that the crisis has presented and some might have to lay off employees, but in all this HR practitioners play a key role.
Strategic role of human resource managers
The role of HR is vitally important to the realisation of a sound business strategy that will secure business success, and in certain cases the very survival of the company. A recession is an opportunity for HR professionals to step and contribute strategically to the success of their organisations. HR will need to maintain the balance of retaining key talent and reducing labour cost as well as managing the flow-on impacts on remuneration. Part of the new role of HR is providing advice and mentoring to managers in dealing with the HR implications of business decisions that will affect the organisation.
The points that have to be looked at by HR management during recessions include; to optimise the manpower strength, taking strategic initiatives to increase the productivity and efficiency of the entire organisation as well as working on compensation benefits, among others. On the other hand, it is also the HR management’s responsibility to find some innovative solutions during a recession, like identifying the real key employees and to induct them in the organisation as well as identifying the real top potentials and to strengthen their development programme for the benefit of the organisation.
Keeping workers motivated
Keeping employees motivated has never been as important as during the current economic downturn. Recession is a difficult period for employers too, but if you are at a higher position of responsibility, you should be able to motivate your team of workers in this time of crisis. As companies reduce their workforce, employers need to work at how best to ensure increased productivity and profitability. During harsh economic conditions, employees are worried about the safety of their jobs because the possibilities that their jobs are not safe seems to be high. This is especially true in the private sector than in public sector organisations.
A recession is, indeed, a difficult period as only the strongest fight to survive with less damage. Coping with recession requires teamwork and a positive spirit among employees. The key issue is to create an environment where employees genuinely feel engaged and involved, where there is a sense of collective responsibility and communication between the employer and the employees. By involving employees in problem-solving and by openly recognising their contribution, you will create a stimulating, progressive and inclusive workplace that is more likely to survive the bumpy roads and the harsh economic conditions.
Cost-cutting measures
It is known that to keep the profits at a viable level, you need to control costs. You need to control the cost of your business so that the costs will not exceed your revenues. In short, controlling cost is simply preventing you from losing your business. Managing the budget is a must in every business as you have to determine the allocation of your resources to maximise efficiency and profits of your business and prevention of possible loss. Cost-cutting measures may include reducing employee salary, closing facilities or unprofitable business outlets or eliminating outside professional services such as advertising agencies, among others. Cost-cutting measures are often employed to keep a business operating through difficult economic periods. In a downturn, cost control and cost reduction must be a prime focus of management who should start with a blank sheet.
Layoffs or reduction in manpower
Companies trying to reduce costs should use layoffs as a last resort. Ask any manager and they will probably tell you that one of the most difficult things they have ever had to do was let an employee go due to company downsizing. This is an especially tough situation because these could be loyal and productive employees who have done nothing wrong. Workforce reductions are often necessary to keep the company solvent during difficult times, but mishandling the process can make an already bad situation even worse.
The biggest mistake a manager can do is to lay off the employees for cost saving. In a recession, every company does the same. But the manager faces the problem when the market rises and the organisation wants a good employee. At this point of time the potential employees has been already laid off in the recession. This can be a mess later on if you discover that you have cut a critical employee. So, when a company is planning to go for a lay off it is better to lay off some highly-paid, non-potential and under-performing employees.
Job sharing
Job sharing or work sharing is an employment arrangement where typically two people are retained on a part-time or reduced-time basis to perform a job normally done by one person working full-time. This arrangement allows companies to reduce their labour costs as employees work fewer hours; however, it still allows the employer to maintain valuable skills and expertise. Job sharing allows employers to retain top-notch employees. For example, if a good employee was considering leaving the company because they felt their full-time workload was too much, job sharing would be a suitable alternative.
Human resources are the life blood of an organisation. HR combines other resources in the right mix to formulate appropriate strategies for the accomplishment of the desired objectives of organisations. This essential attribute of HR assists organisations to make rightful decisions and respond effectively to the threats and opportunities within the organisation. Organisations depend highly on their HR for success and survival.
