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We are ready for the title: Black Rhinos Queens

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We are ready for the title: Black Rhinos Queens

Tinaani Nyabereka

GWERU – Zimbabwe Women’s Super League (ZWSL) side Black Rhinos Queens have expressed their confidence in winning the 2024 Super League.
The Club Coach Kudakwashe Matuwi told the media in the Midlands capital recently that they were confident of winning as the girls were ready for the title charge.
“This year we thrive to become the champions so that we represent the country. We made mistakes last time and failed to clinch the title but we attribute much to the fact that we were in transition period but I am confident now that our players have graduated from our developmental academy,” said Matuwi.
He said during the transition stage they were fusing old and new players with the likes of Talent Mandaza, Patience Mujuru and Rutendo Makore expected to hang their boots but the fact that they came second last season gives them confidence that they will be crowned champions this time around.
“Having a playdate year and assuming the second position behind Herentals last year was a big achievement and we aim higher this year and I am very confident of the team,” said Mutuwi.
He went on to say the task ahead was building player confidence and combination which he said was key in driving the team forward.
“We want to understand each other as players and build player confidence and combination as we restructure a strong squad that will be responsible for bringing the title home,” he said
The Club’s Assistant Coach Felistas ‘Figo’ Muzongondi said the pre-season camp in Gweru was key in pushing women football.
“We need to take women football to another level, and we cannot do it alone, we need the support of other stakeholders like media among others to achieve the vision.
Blach Rhinos has seen a number of players graduating from their developmental team including the likes of Kelly Chatyoka, Henrietta Chakomanapo, Tatenda Tembo and Caroline Mangwaya among others as the team is set to play other clubs like FC Platinum, Chapungu and Gweru based Chipembere Queens in this season.
Last month the Black Rhinos Queens conducted their pre-season preparations in Gweru as part of the team building process.

Zanu PF manipulates Govt structures to abuse public funds

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Zanu PF manipulates Govt structures to abuse public funds

…Zanu PF chair lies with a straight face, says council can pay councilors for party business
…“We were duped,” CCC councilors say

By Brighton Chiseva

Masvingo – The ruling party Zanu PF is allegedly using government structures to manipulate councils to advance the ruling party’s programmes.
This was evidenced by the mystery surrounding a meeting that took place at Masvingo Polytechnic on March 03 2024 where the party allegedly used government structures to call for a meeting to facilitate payment of allowances to people especially councilors who came for the meeting.
It is yet to be ascertained whether the meeting was solely a Zanu PF event or that the ruling party hijacked a government programme and turned it into party business as some voices of authority are conflicting.
More shocking however are the utterances made by Zanu PF Provincial Chairperson Robson Mavhenyengwa who, clearly grappling at straws tried to sanitize the blatant abuse of ratepayers’ funds by saying it was due procedure for councils and parliament to fund party activities.
“Councils are allowed to give councillors allowances when they attend such meetings and the same applies to parliament and senate,” said Mavhenyengwa
Opposition and independent councilors must have unknowingly or knowingly fallen into the trap, as they also collected allowances for a meeting they did not attend, but their principle fell short as they also partook in the fleecing of ratepayers just like their ruling party counterparts.
In composition of the invited people, it indicates that it was a government event since government officials like the District Development Coordinators (DDC) and local government officials were officially invited.
However, almost all councilors, MPs and Senators were wearing Zanu PF regalia, with the revolutionary party slogans being chanted throughout. Coupled with this was the presence of Mavhenyengwa on the programme, who gave welcome remarks, reinforcing the event being purely partisan.
One council official said his local authority was invited together with all councilors and procedurally they had to pay transport allowances but were shocked to arrive at the meeting only to see the majority of invited guests wearing party regalia and speakers chanting Zanu PF slogans.
“We received communication form the Provincial Development Coordinator (PDC)’s office in Masvingo that there was a government meeting where the Minister of Local Government wanted to see all councilors and management.
“Naturally, that’s council business and we had to pay our councilors’ travelling allowances, However, when we arrived we were shocked to see that people were wearing party regalia and there were slogans.
“We are not Zanu PF employees but local government employees, so we advance government programmes not party issues be it Zanu PF or any other party, so if it was party programme we would not have been invited.
“If it is the party that needed us they could have used their structures to invite us so that we decide whether or not we could go, but when you are invited from the PDC’s office there is no way you can avoid going,” said the official who refused to be named.
Permanent Secretary for Masvingo Provincial Affairs and Devolution (formerly Provincial Development Coordinator) Dr Addmore Pazvakavambwa said the meeting was a government programme, which was why the invitations were like that.
“The meeting was a government programme and was headed by the Ministry of Local Government and the guest-of-honor was its Minister Winston Chitando.
“President Emmerson Mnangagwa launched a programme called ‘Call to action,, no compromise on service delivery’ in Harare, so this meeting was a follow up to the national launch where the responsible minister was taking it down to the provinces so it was a government programme. I am however not privy to the details of who attended or who did not,” said Dr Pazvakavambwa.
Asked whether it was allowed for councils to pay allowances to councilors for party programmes, Dr Pazvakavambwa said that could best be answered by the responsible ministry, saying his office only links with Local Government Ministry on devolution issues since the projects are implemented by local authorities.
“The Minister of Local Government is the right person to answer that. However, I would want to believe that the councilors were paid because the programme was a government programme and that’s why the Minister of Local Government was the main speaker,” said Dr Pazvakavambwa.

Mavhenyengwa lies with straight face

Zanu PF Provincial Chairperson Robson Mavhenyengwa

When Mavhenyengwa was contacted for comment on the sidelines of the meeting last week, he told this publication that the meeting was purely Zanu PF where they were whipping their elected members to work hard.
He said there was no way CCC councilors would have been part of the meeting because Zanu PF only had authority over its members and did not have authority to whip people from other political parties.
With a straight face, the Zanu PF provincial chair went on to endorse the abuse of government structures by claiming that councilors were entitled to get allowances when they go for their party activities, further lying through his teeth saying that it was even legitimate at Parliament and Senate.
“The event was a Zanu PF program where we called all our councilors, MPs, and Senators among others, where we were whipping them into line and calling them to action.
“It is allowed for them to get allowances from council when they come for such meetings and the same happens even at Parliament. If the opposition employees got allowances for the same programme maybe they did not know because they were not needed, we cannot whip them because they aren’t ours,” said Mavhenyengwa.
Ironically, MPs and Senators who attended the meeting confirmed the lawmakers did not receive a dime in allowances from parliament as Mavhenyengwa purported, with one MP saying he only heard councilors were paid but they were not.
“No MP received any allowance. We attended using our own resources and we only heard that councilors received allowances from their councils. We did not bother also because we don’t know how they operate,” said the MP.

Correct position on payment of council allowances

Former Masvingo City Council Collen Maboke

Efforts to get a comment from the Minister of Local Government and Public Works Winston Chitando were futile as he instructed this reporter to send questions on WhatsApp but failed to respond to them until time for publication. Repeated efforts to call Chitando failed to yield results as he was not answering his cell.
Prominent lawyer and former Masvingo City Mayor Collen Maboke had however earlier told TellZim News that Mavhenyengwa was wrong in his assertions about policymakers being entitled to allowances when attending party activities, saying the Urban Councils Act was very clear on where and when allowances are to be disbursed.
“The Urban Councils Act is very clear on that. It’s illegal for councils to give allowances to councilors when they go for their party business. They only get allowances when dealing with service delivery issues which is council business. What the councils did was wrong because that is clear abuse of ratepayers money,” said Maboke.
He also said if the opposition councilors were aware that it was not government business they were not supposed to accept the money for them to be able to hold council to account but it was difficult now that they are accomplices.
Opposition councilors also further breached the law by not attending a meeting to which they had received allowances, on the pretext that it was a Zanu PF meeting, which defies logic as they just pocketed free funds.
To further expose the policymakers’ lack of integrity, one councilor said they claimed allowances because they believed it was a government program, but when they found out it was not, they did not make an effort to return the money.
“We are not allowed to demand allowances when doing any other business that is not related to service delivery. We get those allowances when traveling on council business. However, on this one, at first, we thought it was a government programme, but we later learnt that it was a party thing. In that case, who would return the money?” the councilor said.

Unsubstantiated claims of being ‘tricked’ by CCC councilors

CllrPhilemon Muchaindepi of Chiredzi

Opposition councilors were accused of aiding Zanu PF to abuse council and public resources after accepting the travel allowance to a meeting that they did not attend. Speaking to TellZim News, some of the councilors said they were tricked into believing that the meeting was a government meeting, only to realize later that they had been tricked after receiving the allowances.
Some even claim they only realized after getting to the venue, seeing the majority of guests clad in Zanu PF regalia that they had been tricked.
“We did not know it was a party function, we only realized when we got in town seeing our fellows from Zanu PF taking off jackets and revealing their party regalia. When we queried we were told that we should ask the Town Secretary or Council Chair which we did.
“They both said they received communication that said the program was a government programme. We then asked them to share the communication with us but they failed and we concluded that they had tricked us,” said Councilor Philemon Muchaindepi of Chiredzi.
Masvingo and Zaka RDCs’ opposition councilors however collected the allowances fully aware that the meeting was a Zanu PF event, as evidenced by Masvingo District Coordinating Committee Chairperson Tawanda Dube, who is also a councilor when he communicated in the council official WhatsApp group that the event was purely Zanu PF and everyone was supposed to come wearing party regalia.
The whole scenario has opened a can of worms on the state of affairs in local authorities, some of which have been caught on the wrong side of the law after allowing council resources to be used for partisan activities.
Former Chiredzi Town Council Chair Francis Moyo, who is currently under fire by graft body Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) once had the local authority probed by the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Public Accounts over his use of a council vehicle to attend former President Robert Mugabe’s birthday celebrations at Great Zimbabwe Monuments, after the vehicle got involved in an accident severely damaging it.
The local authority was said to have used council funds to repair the vehicle, an issue that became contentious during the oral evidence sessions conducted by the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee where officials from Chiredzi Town Council were called to give testimony.
Sources however said the issue was resolved after officials from the local authority shifted blame to the late Town Secretary Charles Muchatukwa whom they said had authorized the transaction.

Minister Mavetera, data must fall!

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Minister Mavetera, data must fall!

Ladies and gentlemen, the heat is not sparing us at all, and pfungwa dziri kundidya kunge katombo kapinda mubhutsu like Profet T. Freddy sang is the level of food shortages that is going to hit our country. Chete we all heard Minister Anxious Masuka vachipa ED report kuMushagashe paya kuyouth day kuti we are sorted panyaya dzechikafu, chatisingazozivi ndechekuti zvaiva zveparally here or what because we know zvinotaurwa parally manatsamukamwa harahwa kurota ichiyamwa, kkkkk. I heard kwedu kwaChirimudombo they are now surviving on nyii, kungoguruguda vomwa mvura vovata. On the other hand, prices that went up in January after what we thought was a moment of madness naMthuli when he introduced taxes ekupenga have not gone down. Yes, neUS$5 haumamwi mazoe orange crush,kkkk. Muchademba mapepsi aya amaidadira kurally last year. Speaking of Mthuli, is he still there? Is he still the finance Minister? He is quiet these days, we only feel his touch on these taxes. Kungonzwa Mabasa avo ivo vakati dii zvavo. Tikungonzwa ivo deputy mazuvano ndovari kungotubuka tubuka sehowa. I am sure Mthuli is now a minister in name but the ministry is being run directly from state house through Kudakwashe Trabablas, the deputy minister kkk. Nyika inovakwa, igotongwa, igonamatigwa nevene vayo, mamboti madiii kkk.
These days I am not spending much of my time near Mucheke river because nerima irori ndingapondwa zvangu, ko Zesa haisi kutomboda izvozvo manje. For the whole week and counting anongouya zvawo for a few minutes otoenda magetsi without notice, ko you would have exhausted your allocation for that day ka nhai, mochemei munyika yababa? Those who know magetsi are the ones who went offgrid, vane masolar system chaiwo chaiwo not zvemumikoto umu, but even those who have those small ones are better off because havazonhongani maziso murima, at least they will have lights. Everywhere mudzimba umu, hakuna asina some solar light of sorts. If it was not forced by circumstances it will be a good thing for the environment though, because solar energy is clean, manje vapedza kuona nelight resolar vanonobika nemoto wemaplastic panze mumalocation umu, polluting the air so it does not help. One thing I know though is that there are so many people with big solar systems that can feed their excess voltage into the national grid, votengesera Zesa. I really think if Zesa was serious with that program our power problems would not be as bad, but izvozvo ndozvavasingadi kunzwa izvozvo because they have devised ways to benefit through the system, so the introduction of new things will only mean devising new ways dzekudya nadzo, which might take time. Vakomana nemawandire ezuva iwaya ingadai tichigara murima here veduwe? Ukuwo Wicknell arikutenga mota sechingwa nemari yemasolar yaakapihwa hake neveZPC, ko ndiye adii, regai adye yemarema. Kuno kwedu kuMasvingo we saw Mai Phiri got yavowo mota, tingagoti chii, totongoti Masvingo wakarangarirwawo. I saw her pane imwe rally after that vava kuimbisa mabussed supporter’s ndikati right, energy yemunhu auya nechifambiso chine air conditioner, kkkkk. In all honesty, muno munyika if you want to be popular, nekuzodya zvemahara futi, zvechitendero zvinoti bhadharei. Musandipikisa, imi hamuoni vana Papa kuti vane bag? The other day we all saw manurse singing paairport, welcoming Twabam mheno kaibvepi. Ungazoti ndiwo here manurse aya akatrainer rough yavanoita vanhu kuzvipatara uko? I think Twabam kanenge kachiseka secretly kuti mabharanzi aya arikundibatsira kugadzira content yandichazononyepera vanhu nayo kuAmerica or in some other countries kwakanoita masaramusi ako kuti oo honhai ndakaitwa hero welcome kuZimbabwe. He always claims that he flies all the time, coming and going as he pleases, plus he also claims ane private jet, ko saka zvekuimbirwa nemanurse kuairport zvaazvipi like its his first time to fly? Baba vane drama vaya. Sometimes ndinombofunga kuti some people missed the opportunity yekuitawo baba kumahumbwe that is why they love attention so much because haa, it does not make sense. Ndoteam rainzi ita imbwa kana kuti ita muroyi kumahumbwe and they carried the bitterness into adulthood.
Ko kuPotraz uko chii nemi nhaimi? You know, privileged Zimbabwe, ndoreva those who eat nesystem always find a chance of mocking struggling Zimbabweans at every turn. Truly nhai VaMachengete you think you are the cleverest person when it comes to data usage online kudarika everyone who finds the cost of data too high? For context, dzinonzi Machengete ndiDirector General vePotraz, kureva kuti ndivo regulator vanaEconet neamwe mainternet service provider arikudai kuchomwira mari dzenyu semangai. In other words, hanzi navo shefu ivavo ruzhinji rweZimbabwe rwuri kutenga data rarwusingakwanisi, kureva iko kuti vanotenga data rinofanirwa kutengwa nemacompany makuru ivo vari maindividual consumers. Kudhomoka kwacho unotongoona wega kuti hapana chimwe, he obviously enjoys free internet because of his privilege. You also wonder kuti baba ava vanotomboverengawo here marankings enyika in terms of internet affordability because zvakazara pese pese kuti cost of data in this country is prohibitive, apa the internet yacho is very slow kunge yakadya kamba, rinongopera data racho pasina chawaita. How do we develop, even educationwise without affordable and accessible internet services? Ndopaya pamunozoswera muchigadzira zvimacurriculum zvisina nebasa rose because you do not want to do the needful and make internet services affordable. Handina kudzidza zvakanyanya hangu but my little knowledge tells me kuti there are some stringent measures anoiswa negovernment through ivava maregulator that make the operating landscape unfriendly, and the cost inongouya kunesu vanamusvuuganda. The economy itself now relies on mobile data; just look at the number of people using digital platforms like WhatsApp to sell their products, and you know it kuti Zimbabwe is largely an informal economy. Again it is the cheapest communication channel between families senge vaya vazara kudiaspora. Imi vacho henyu kumusoro ikoko you do not really use it for anything much except magirlfriends enyu emuwando, aah ndanga ndasiya nemaboyfriends nemaBen Ten, kkkk. Minister Mavetera uko, bataivo henyu mapenzi enyu kuPotraz uko and reign in on them data ridzike. High costs of bandwidth is making life difficult for any age group in this country. Musaita senge at some point tichazodzokera kunogara mumapako, hunting and gathering for a living takapfeka nhembe. The internet is here to stay and it is now a way of life, so kana muri munhu ane dhiri, itai plan. We know you did not have a smooth landing into your ministry, but mazuvano munotombotaura zvinonzwika wani, chero zvimwe zvacho muchizongodzamba dzamba henyu nekukanga kanga mashoko mukanwa. Dzonetsa technology idzi, dzinoda akati changamu, but please, data must fall. Mungakundwa naNero akapromisa gore riya kuti phone dzichatsvagisa mombe, and we lived to witness it, naYave zvakaitika madhongi achikuma. We hear Starlink might be on its way to Zimbabwe legally and officially, although we know hedu kuti kumagovernment department nekumasuburb kwneyu uko yangova asina irombe. Ko team reZanu iri rinoida kani soft life, regai vachizorambirapo nekuendorser zvisina basa. Kanyika kanonaka mhani kateapot-shaped country aka, enda paJongwe House unobvunza kana uchiti ndonyepa. Please Minister Tate, for once, do the right thing paStarlink, not zvatinonzwa zvekuda kunanzva mose mose padhiri one iroro, remember it is for the people. Ordinary people will immensely benefit, zvikasapindirwa nembavha, and it will also bring healthy competition kumaservice provider uko. I also foresee remote areas benefitting, because satellite can be way better for marginalized communities. Chembere dzinenge dzaakungoWatsapurawo sevamwe, and I see this as a big opportunity to combat misinformation and disinformation. Nhema nepropaganda dzinoita shoma mumaWhatsApp group umo, kkkkk, hama yangu Wezhira Munya apoo!
Regai ndinokanga maputi angu for lunch, mazuvano mabanana akaberekera zhara so azere arikuora nezuva iri. Asi Wicknell regai achizotukwa naOlinda, shuwa kubvisa Madzibaba Zakariya vakatirera hunhu kudaro, telling him to beg for a car, ko kungovapa? Mune syndrome baba imi, hameno kuti inonzi chii, that is why muchivirikidza bhutsu, potse potse munotokwesha musoro nedombo futi. You and Calaz wekuimba zvinoshata uyu are just the same pakunanzvana kwenyu ikoko, bva gore rino anoita danga radzo mota Calaz nekugona bootlicking. He must have copied Webster Shamhu weCremora. Iye kubva ati zii kudaro Shamhu, haa dzangova hari dzofanzirofa.
Is former VP Mphoko alive and well veduwe? If you see him, please tell him kuti hanzi naMapombi ndafunga mazuva aya amaigara pahotera musisadi kubva. Mboko imboko!

Bikita Minerals FC promoted to PSL after long suspense

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Bikita Minerals FC promoted to PSL after long suspense

Decide Nhendo

Bikita Minerals FC was finally crowned Eastern Region Soccer League (ERSL) champions of 2023 which means they get a ticket into Zimbabwe Premier Soccer League (PSL) following a judgment by ERSL disciplinary committee handed down on March 14 over a dispute between the Lithium Boys and Tenax FC.
Many soccer fans in the Eastern region were in suspense waiting for the judgment over the matter that was dragging for too long having started on November 20 when ERSL published that Bikita Minerals were ERSL 2023 champions.
Initially, the case between the two sides started last year when Tenax FC finished on the top of ERSL but the decision was rescinded after Bikita Minerals complained that Grayham FC had violated game rules in their encounter.
The ERSL went on to crown the Lithium Boys as champions after granting them three points from their match against Grayham whom they had accused of using an ineligible player. However, the celebrations were short-lived when Tennax appealed to ZIFA which nullified Bikita’s promotion and the matter dragged on for about two months with Bikita finally winning the battle.
In the hands of the ZIFA Appeals Committee, the case went for nearly two months without a solid ruling until a fortnight ago when the ruling referred the matter back to the Bikita vs Grayham case which advised the ERSL to constitutionally sit and appoint a disciplinary committee to work on the matter where Grayham was found guilty.
‘The defendant is found guilty as charged. The match which was played under protest between Complainant and Defendant is forfeited. The Defendant is declared to have lost 3-0 since the goal difference at the end of the match was less favorable to Complainant,” reads part of the judgment.
Bikita FC and Grayham FC were both part of the top four teams that played champion decider matches on Nov 18 2023 and ERSL management ordered the matches to be played on the same date, to commence at the same time to avert match-fixing.
At the hearing, that is where ERSL was found guilty of failing to convene a disciplinary hearing in terms of rule 16 of ERSL rules and regulations as Zifa managed to find out that ERSL executives met in Mutare on November 25 2023 and that’s where they finalized on their capacities to award Bikita FC 2023 ERSL championship citing use of unregistered player by Grayham FC in their deciding match, instead of forming a disciplinary committee to deal with the matter.

A CURRICULUM IS NOT LIKE A CUP OF COFFEE

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A CURRICULUM IS NOT LIKE A CUP OF COFFEE

NB- Views expressed in this column are solely his, and are not associated with the publication

By Aribino Nicholas

Developing a school curriculum is not like making a cup of coffee which is instantaneous, rather it is a multidimensional, multifaceted and complex process that calls for all hands to be on deck. A new curriculum should reflect a process of engagement from both distal and proximal stakeholders of the government through the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education. Any curriculum that comes without a process of interactive justice is bound to suffer tissue rejection at the point of service delivery and also on the plane of commerce and industry. Curriculum development and implementation are not like an immunization jab, they are processes that should be dynamic, context specific, complexly intersectional, gender sensitive and pregnant enough to address the disparate needs, rights and aspirational values of a people in a society and in society. This writer has been motivated to write this opinion piece against a background of a newly introduced Heritage Based Education Curriculum 2024-2030.
The time span for the Heritage Based Education Curriculum is only six years. What has informed the introduction of this new focus? Did the government carry out any impact evaluation to enable it to gather information to necessitate the transition from the Continuous Assessment Learning Activities (CALA) to the Heritage Based Education Curriculum 2024-2030? If evaluations were made, to what extent did they take into account cross cutting issues like gender, environment, global storms like climate change, citizenship education, peace education and disability? The above questions would then help to infuse into the new curriculum a balanced educational diet for all and sundry. The introduction of CALA met with stout resistance from key stakeholders like parents and civil society organisations that have a focus on education. The government did not give a hoot about the concerns that were raised by an array of stakeholders regarding CALA. When CALA came through, learners did not have the envisaged opportunities for research and development in areas of their predilections as projects were done by teachers for a fee and in every town young people with an eye for opportunities opened offices for CALA, as they would do projects for students. CALA did not benefit students in anyway, the 30% for CALA that was to be infused into the examination profile for students was, by and large a mark coming from street smart people.
With the introduction of the Heritage Based Curriculum 2024-2030, one wonders what the success goal of the government here is because in a period of six years what is there to measure? Performance measurement of the curriculum should be bench-marked against educational life cycles; from Early Childhood Development (ECD) to Grade 7, form 1 to form 4, form 5 to form 6 and ultimately the extent to which the graduates are employable nationally, regionally and globally or the extent to which the graduates can have expanded capabilities for innovation and industrialization. The life span of this new curriculum would take a child who is in Early Childhood Development at the material time to grade six by 2030. Would this time span provide a sound national measuring scoop for the desired educational outcomes? My thinking is that a national curriculum just like a constitution is a living document that should now and again be looked at in the light of shifting political, social, economic and environmental circumstances. Still with that understanding of a living document, a curriculum should be evaluated against an educational life cycle that gives a national outlook. Developing new curricula for Africa in general and Zimbabwe in particular should afford all stakeholders to look through the window for the ideas and ideas that they cherish and for Africa in-toto, Agriculture as a compulsory subject should stand out like a diamond in a coalfield given that African economies are largely agro-based.
New curricula for Africa should also prize gender studies, peace and citizenship education right from the outset (ECD level). Africa is a continent that is awash with civil wars that are arising from intolerance based on political repression, uneven distribution of resources, tribal, regional, and religious lines. There is a need for the embracement of one another as Africans first before we identify ourselves with our countries of origin. Children should be exposed to gender studies from the level of ECD unlike a situation where students start to learn about Gender Studies in colleges or universities. Although introducing Gender Studies may be problematic for those who wield political and patriarchal power because of its capacity to challenge the existing allocations of power, resources and also its capability to question cultural norms, there is a compelling need to conscientize children right from their formative years on the importance of co-existence between and among boys and girls.
The Heritage Based Curriculum 2024-2030 should be more than a slogan for our country, it should reflect time lines that would help Zimbabwe to do an impact evaluation tied to the national values and aspirations that cover intersectional issues discussed in this opinion piece.

ICAPA engages Masvingo leaders on women’s rights

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ICAPA engages Masvingo leaders on women’s rights

By Beverly Bizeki

Institute of Creative Arts for Progress in Africa (ICAPA) recently engaged women from Masvingo to discuss issues affecting women’s rights and their participation in politics and discuss possible solutions that can be drawn to address their plight.
Speaking at the event held at Harvest House Church, ICAPA Masvingo Coordinator Jonah Wakurawarerwa said the main idea was to bring together women with influence in societies to discuss issues affecting women’s rights as well as enlightening them on such.
“The programme is aimed at engaging influential women in societies and the programme will be rolled to political parties to ensure women’s rights are observed in all places. The programme is a continuation of various efforts by the organisation to enlighten women on their rights and comes after the citizen’s charter which focused on unpacking the Zimbabwean law in native language,” said Wakurawarerwa.
Harvest House International Church Pastor Sandra Hlomayi said the programme was one that dealt with women’s issues from the core including challenging them to pursue careers in politics and any other positions often tipped for men.
“We have had a chance to discuss challenges that women face in the political field and in life generally. Many women have been encouraged and challenged to understand and know their rights,” said Hlomayi.
One of the challenges raised by the attendees, Gilbert Mutubuki was the lack of men’s participation in women’s empowerment.
“There is need for us to rope in men when we do women’s rights programmes so that they too are enlightened on what it means to have women in higher positions. Most men think that women who rise to higher positions in politics are of loose morals or are lesser than their male counterparts but these are just myths that need to be debunked and allow men to support female counterparts,” said Mutubuki.
Another attendee Maryanne Manasidze said it was time that women learn to stand up for each other when one rises to power be it in society or in politics.
“It is high time that women start supporting each other. When one of us rises to a position of power, it is best that we support her for the greater good of womanhood. Some women fear to get into the playing field because of fellow women attacking us because in most cases because of the pull her down syndrome which is not good,” said Manasidze.
The programme is one of the many that is targeting to promote women’s participation in politics due to the low numbers of women in political positions. In Masvingo City Council where most of the attendees of the programme fall under, there is only one woman who was elected through the ballot that is ward 1’s councilor Sabina Chikwangwani with the other one, Shantiel Chiwara having been recalled.
The other three are councilors got in through proportional representation.

Urban local authorities top 2023 direct procurement stats

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Urban local authorities top 2023 direct procurement stats

By Beverly Bizeki

Procurement Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (PRAZ) has raised alarm over the 2023 purchasing methods statistics in which urban local authorities topped direct procurement methods with over 70 percent.
According to PRAZ, the figure is worrying if Zimbabwe is to achieve its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
According to statistics released by the regulatory board, city councils came top in direct procurements for USD purchases which amounted to US$106 612 141 out of a total of US$139 047 412.07 spent under this purchasing method in 2023 which translates to about 76 percent.
Of the 44 019 procurements made last year, urban local authorities accounted for 12 581 purchases, however, statistics for the ZWL purchases, the authorities used RFQs a purchasing method in which an enterprise asks a set of potential suppliers to give their price quotations and stand a chance to supply or provide goods or services.
PRAZ Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Clever Ruswa said the statistics were not pleasing and urged local authorities to use other methods of purchases for sustainability.
“Section 30 of the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Act gives the procurements methods to be used with the default being competitive tender which speaks to the objectives of the Procurement Act. Competition enhances farness and value for money but if one is going for direct procurement they are closing out all other players unnecessarily and the aspect of value for money is not realized.
“We allow direct procurement when necessary for instance in emergencies such as Cyclone Idai and Covid 19 and as a regulator we postponed all these other procedures but any other procurements which are not of proprietary nature we encourage competitive procurement. Unfortunately the statistics availed by this board shows that most of the urban local authorities are going for direct procurement which is not very ideal for sustainability,” said Ruswa.
In his speech Ruswa said the procurement practices they were urging local authorities to adopt had benefits such as realizing economies of scale, reducing costs, and increasing quality of goods and services procured.
“The procurement practices which we are encouraging you to do, play a pivotal role in achieving economies of scale, enhancing transparency, and fostering collaboration among local authorities.
By pooling your resources and expertise, you can leverage your collective strength to negotiate better deals with suppliers, reduce costs, and increase the quality of goods and services procured. This approach also promotes consistency and standardization, ensuring that best practices are shared across all local authorities, leading to improved overall performance,” he said.
Ruswa also urged local authorities to embrace the eProcurement system set by government to enhance fairness and competition in the procurement landscape.
“The electronic Government Procurement (eGP) system is a game-changer in our quest to evolve the procurement system in Zimbabwe by delivering efficiency, effectiveness and transparency. The eGP system will streamline workflows, reduce administrative burdens, and enhance accountability. The eGP system empowers both buyers and suppliers by providing real-time access to information, facilitating fair competition, and ensuring a level playing field. Moreover, it enables data-driven decision-making, allowing PRAZ to analyze trends, identify gaps, and continuously improve our procurement strategies,” he added.
Permanent Secretary in the Minister of State’s office Dr Addmore Pazvakavambwa who was representing the Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution Ezra Chadzamira also echoed the same sentiments on the shocking statistics on direct procurement.
“Statistics given by the CEO are quite shocking to realize how much we expend through RFQs and direct procurement disregarding other ways of procurement which are more sustainable so I would like to urge all local authorities to take the advice given on board to improve the way we are doing things.
“I reckon that PRAZ is doing much more with the president launching the e-Procurement system which is the way to go so that we do away with corruption around the area. We have heard of tenderpreneurship so all this can be done away with if we do things the sustainable way not only looking at today but in the future as well,” said Dr Pazvakavambwa.
Competitive tendering is a purchasing method in which potential suppliers bid against each other to win a certain contract.

Chiredzi RDC applauds farmers’ response to development levy debt

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Chiredzi RDC applauds farmers’ response to development levy debt

By Decide Nhendo

Chiredzi Rural District Council has applauded response by commercial sugarcane farmers to a 21-day ultimatum they were given from February 8, 2024 to clear their land development levies debt which was reaching up to US$2 million.
Following Chiredzi RDC’s last and final meeting held with commercial farmers where the farmers were informed on council’s decision to engage debt collectors to recover over US$1.5 million of land development levies which they had not been paying since 2017, farmers responded and came to council and made plans to cover their debt.
Chiredzi RDC Chairperson, Aspect Mashingaidze said he was happy by the response which he said farmers were responsible.
“I am happy because of farmers’ response to an engagement meeting we held around February 8 concerning their debt which was reaching nearly US$1.5 million, without wasting much time after the meeting the farmers started coming to council to settle their debts making payment plans,” he said.
“They came and left what they had since most of them said they did not have money since it is off season and we managed to get around ZW$200 million and US$30 000 which we are going to use mainly on maintaining their roads since the sugarcane harvesting season is just around the corner,” said Mashingaidze.
Mashingaidze said with the little farmers have paid to council they have engaged transport department to make sure they service council graders so that in the coming two weeks they will be running as council engineers were working to establish roads that needed more attention.
“Since we promised farmers that the development levies they are paying are for development, we have asked our transport team to fix three council graders and two are already running, our engineers are already compiling total kilometers of roads that need attention,” he said
He said the payment plan was going to work with stop order facility through which a letter is going to be sent to millers like Hippo Valley Estates and Triangle and when farmers harvest their sugarcane and receive their dues from millers a certain agreed amount will be paid direct to cover development levy debt.
He advised farmers to come to council and make council aware that they have artillery and are capable of maintaining their roads so that the council can chip in assisting with their machinery or fuel as common purpose is for development.
He also said farmers with private machines like dumper trucks and graders like Mkwasine Management Committee (MMC) must write to council so that council engineers will come and access cost of labor on certain projects they want to partake on as it will help those farmers to be excused from levies because of their development vision which is also council’s vision.
“Farmers who have own private machinery like MMC in Mkwasine who are determined to maintain their roads or do any other certain developmental projects must write to council making it aware so that council engineers can be sent to access value of cost they insert on those specific projects so that they can be given discounts when they pay development levies,” he said.
Most commercial farmers were dodging their bills from 2017 up to date except for an honest few who were paying from 2014, and each farmer must pay US$ 5 per hectare of which most farmers have 20 hectares which means they will only be eligible to pay US$ 100 per year.

Deportivo FC crowned 2023-2024 Mucheke Social league champions

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Deportivo FC crowned 2023-2024 Mucheke Social league champions

By Decide Nhendo

With three games to go, Mucheke Social League’s (MSL) Deportivo has already been crowned 2023-2024 champions as they are sitting on top by 14 points being followed by De Sisk FC who were last year’s champions.
It is week 35 with 35 games having been played and Deportivo are the champions as they have 28 wins, 7 draws and no loss collecting 91 points, on number two is De Sisk FC who have 24 wins, five draws and six losses with 75 points and on number three is Chesvingo All Stars football club which managed to collect 22 wins, nine draws and four loses with 75 points.
The bottom three consist of RCZ Dutch who have 22 points, Municipal Rovers with 19 points and carrying the table is Chiwororo FC who only managed to collect five points from 35 matches.
Morefire football club’s Allan Kurauone who is known for terrorizing the defence of opposition teams is the league’s top goal scorer with 37 goals in season 2023-2024 and is being followed by Hickoniko Victor who netted 26 goals.
Speaking to TellZim News Mucheke social league organizing secretary Radson Muzenda who is also Derpotivo FC coordinator said even though they already won the league, it was very competitive as all teams are well-built with competitive players.
Muzenda said he appreciates efforts being put in by certain individual well-wishers who are helping the league to thrive as it is playing a pivotal role in fighting social problems as well as community development.
“I thank the effort being put in by individuals like former mayor Collen Maboke, Allan Sibanda, Taurai Mudzviti and many others who are supporting teams and helping MSL to keep on running.
“These people are helping to fight problems affecting our community like unemployment, drug and substance misuse, and many other bad things harmful to people’s lives as there are more than 60 people mainly youth who managed to get employment through the social league,” said Muzenda.
Speaking to TellZim, MSL Secretary General Forbes Nota said many young talents benefitted from the league as they had a platform to showcase their talents and practise, as a result, they managed to be scouted by teams playing professional soccer.
“From this league, we have so many young talents who managed to realize their potential and as a result, they rose and are now playing for teams in Division 1 like FC Wangu Mazodze and some in premier soccer league like Bikita Minerals FC.
He also said season 2022-2023 champions DE Sisk FC did not get a trophy because of a lack of sponsorship and he called for the Masvingo community to chip in with anything they think can help to give to 2023-2024 champions.
He also said teams participating in MSL must keep on maintaining a good attitude as they were doing as the league is meant to bring people together to share ideas and opinions they think are helpful to the community.
“I insist that clubs in our social league must keep on upholding good behaviour and discipline as they have shown this season. This helps people in the Masvingo community to come together cordially for the betterment of the city.

Missing Great Zimbabwe University security guard found dead in Mucheke River

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Missing Great Zimbabwe University security guard found dead in Mucheke River

By Bright Zhou

A Masvingo man residing in Mucheke A who had gone missing after a fishing adventures body was found floating in Mucheke River by police on March 1, 2024.
Masvingo Provincial Police Spokesperson Inspector Kudakwashe Dhewa confirmed the incident and said investigations to establish the cause of death were underway and urged members of the public to value the sanctity of life.
“Investigations are still in progress and I urge members of the public to value the sanctity of life,” said Dhewa.
It is alleged that on February 28, 2024 at around 7.00am Misheck Muwandi went on a lone fishing adventure at Mucheke River.
On that very same day at around 2100 hours his wife Monica Chikava (40) tried to call him but his phone was unreachable She waited for him but he did not come back home.
The following day Chikava told Muwandi’s relatives that he was missing and a search party was organized at Mucheke River where they found his satchel along with a fishing rod.
Chikava reported the matter at Masvingo rural police station and CID detectives together with the police went to the scene where a satchel and a fishing rod were discovered near Mucheke River.
After searching, they discovered Muwandi’s body floating on top of the water and the body was retrieved.
The deceased’s body was taken to Masvingo provincial hospital for post mortem.

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