Thabiso Nxumalo

Radio listeners in Manicaland received a major boost after the Broadcasting Services Authority (BAZ) awarded three community radio station licenses out of the eight stations countrywide on September 15, 2021.
According to a press release by BAZ on September 15, Manicaland got the biggest chunk after three stations were awarded licenses to add up to the province’s sole station Diamond FM making it four stations covering the 1.8 million population in seven districts.
“The three stations given the green light are Chimanimani Community Radio Station Trust which covers CRS 4A: Chimanimani, Gwendingwe and Rusitu. While Vemuganga Community Radio Trust covers CRS4B: Chipinge-Checheche and Chibuwe. Ndau community Radio Trust covers CRS4C: Mahenye (Garahwa),” reads part of the press release.
This move comes as a boost to communities such as Checheche who would get the opportunity to air their voices concerning issues like service delivery at community level before relaying them to national level.
Vemuganga Radio Production Officer Effort Manono expressed jubilation and says the sky is the limit for the community as they would broadcast mainly in their vernacular Ndau.
“We are very much pleased for such an opportunity. It has been long coming, we are raring to go and as such we are promising our listeners the best programming in Ndau language,” said Manono.
Ndau Community radio chairperson Donald Kumbana also was in high spirits and said the community had waited so long for this to happen hence they are moving as fast as they can to complete building the station and promised to give update upon completion saying this was a great way of communicating given to them by BAZ.
“In our area, network is a big problem and on behalf of the whole community we are very grateful for this opportunity because communication will be made easy and our voices will be heard for once.
“Yes, we will broadcast mostly in Ndau but we are very diverse we will by all means get to accommodate other ethnic groups in the country. We are working full time ahead in our station building project and now that we have been granted the license, I am positive that all stakeholders involved are more than encouraged,” said Kumbana.
Such advancements have been described as an asset to communities in times of crises such as the 2019 Cyclone Idai whose far-reaching effects included the sweeping of over 400 people and displacement of tens of thousands, which could have been minimised by community radio stations.

… likely to receive pauper’s burial as no relatives are showing up for him

Melody Musuva

CHIREDZI-Former Hippo Valley Estates employee and newspaper vendor popularly known as ‘Dzungu’ or ‘Chauke’ was recently hit by an unlicensed biker and later died at Chiredzi General Hospital after sustaining head injuries.
The Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) are still gathering more detail about him since he had no national Identity Document and known relatives as he was living in the streets.
ZRP are yet to establish proper documentation for Dzungu as he had no registration certificates or known relatives but this publication established that he was known as Solomon Chauke and is remembered for pioneering newspaper vending in Chiredzi in the early 90s after he parted ways with Hippo Valley Estates.
Masvingo Provincial Police Spokesperson, Inspector Kudakwashe Dhewa said Dzungu was hit by an unlicensed biker, Tafadzwa Muperi (26) at around 1200 hours along Lion Drive in Chiredzi.
“Dzungu, who was more like a street man as he had no fixed residential address, was hit by Tafadzwa Muperi with a motorcycle and the biker had no license. Dzungu died at Chiredzi General Hospital a few minutes later and since then nobody has claimed his body,” said Dhewa.
District Social Welfare Officer, Admire Emmanuel also said that there is little information pertaining to relatives, real name and age for the deceased as he did not even had a National Identity card or known relatives.
“Dzungu was known by many in the streets of Chiredzi by selling newspapers and begging for help but there is little information of his life history including relatives, date of birth and National Identity card. Many myths are surrounding him as some are saying he came from South Africa while others are saying he came from Malipati,” said Emmanuel.
Dzungu was well known for inflating newspaper prices and his target market were known businessmen who could not question his pricing system.
Before Covid-19, Dzungu was known for drinking ‘Black Label’ lager at supermarket entrances before he shifted to Eagle and later Cane Spirits as his revenue base was shut down due to the pandemic, and was arrested multiple times by police officers who were not familiar with him.
Though Dzungu was well known for selling newspapers, he was illiterate and could not read what he was selling but had a tactic to find someone explain him the contents of every front page stories which he could master in order to lure his customers into buying.

Rumbidzai Muswera

CHIREDZI-The story of a Malilangwe Conservation Trust’s ecologist, Doctor Allan Tarugara (34), who began working as an assistant bricklayer in 2008 at Malilangwe and rose through the ranks by attaining a doctorate degree in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation as well as a permanent job in one of the Zimbabwe’s most celebrated wildlife conservancy is one that is inspiring. Malilangwe.
Dr Tarugara began working as an assistant bricklayer for a construction company that was doing renovation work at one of Malilangwe’s tourist lodges then shifted to leopard habituation working as an assistant for a resident wildlife filming crew before he got a scholarship through Malilangwe’s staff development program.
Doctor Tarugara, who comes from Zaka District, grew up in Chiredzi.
“I started as a general hand for a construction company that was doing renovation work at one of Malilangwe’s tourist lodges. I then went on to do leopard habituation work as well as being a lighting assistant for a resident wildlife filming crew that worked at Malilangwe,” he said.
“I got a scholarship through Malilangwe’s staff development program for a Bachelor’s Degree in Forest Resources and Wildlife management at the National University of Science and Technology (NUST) from 2012-2016 and a Master’s Degree in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation at Chinhoyi University of Technology (CUT) from 2017-2019 which he then upgraded to a doctorate between 2020 and 2021,” he added.
Malilangwe Conservation Trust General Manager, Mark Saunders also confirmed that Doctor Allan Tarugara rose through the ranks to be a doctor by utilizing the organization’s scholarship through staff development programs.
“We have a guy who began as an assistant builder and rose through the ranks by utilizing one of our scholarships for staff development and now he is permanently employed with us as an Ecologist,” said Saunders.
Currently Tarugara is working under Malilangwe’s Reasearch Department with keen interests in Terrestrial and Aquatic ecology.