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OFCAD’s HIV & Aids battle taken to remotest Mwenezi

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OFCAD’s HIV & Aids battle taken to remotest Mwenezi

 

MSF initiated a community programme to improve access to ARVs in Mwenezi


Cephas Shava

MWENEZI – The Out of Facility
Community Art Distribution (OFCAD), a unique model pioneered by the Medicins
Sans Frontieres (MSF), known in English as Doctors Without Borders, is making drastic
changes in the lives of people living with HIV and Aids.

The project, by which village
health workers are trained and authorised to distribute ARVs right within their
local areas of residence, has made it much easier and more convenient for
patients to access anti-retroviral medication.

“As a volunteer I am
currently responsible for distributing antiretrovirals (ARVs) from right at my
homestead to a total of 37 patients; 21 of them being women. At first, I was in
charge of 15 patients but now they have increased to 37.

“Though the work comes with its
own challenges, I continue to voluntarily do my job with utmost zeal and
passion,” said Tsitsidzashe Marova a 41-year-old OFCAD member from Mutandavaze
village in Mwenezi West Ward 17 under Chief Mazetese.

The model was piloted in Chirindi
and Sovelele which are among the most difficult areas to reach in Ward 17.

MSF, which is an international
medical humanitarian organisation, officially handed over OFCAD to Batanai HIV
and Aids Services Organisation (Bhaso) and the Ministry of Health and Child
Care who are now in charge of the 11 OFCAD sites.

Under the programme, village
health workers are torchbearers in the fight against HIV through their mandate
at OFCAD sites.

People in the beneficiary
communities say the programme is contributing to the significant improvement in
Anti-Retroviral Treatment (ART) client retention in those remote areas.

In other remarks to TellZim News,
Marova said she was gaining more experience and passion in the contact of her
work such that she no longer minded the obstacles.

“I am doing this task
voluntarily without any monthly income. Whenever I run short of drugs at our
OFCAD site, I borrow a bicycle from other villagers and cycle to the nearest
clinic, Chirindi, where I get replenishments. I am glad because I have managed
to register more people for anti-retroviral treatment,” said Marova.

Chirindi Clinic is some 45km away
from Marova’s homestead, meaning she spends the greater part of the day cycling
to and from the clinic should she run out of stock.

The local ward councillor, Simon
Chabata praised the project which he said was contributing a lot of positives
in the fight against HIV and Aids in the area.

“Ward 17 is one of the
remotest places in the district such that before this programme, patients would
travel for about 65km and more to get to the nearest clinic to get their
provisions of ARVs. This saw many people failing to consistently adhere to
their treatment regimes. I am glad, therefore, because OFCAD has brought drugs
closer to those that need them,” said Chabata.

He added that government and the
donor community could find a way of incentivising the village health workers so
that their work becomes easier and enjoyable.

Bhaso director Simbarashe Mahaso said
there was need to create more OFCAD sites in other remote parts of the district
to improve uptake of ARVs among people living with HIV and aids.

“This is a very helpful project
and I think it would be helpful if more centres are created in other needy
places of the district. As Bhaso, we are pleased with our own contribution to this
project through our partnership with the National Aids Council (Nac) which has
enabled us to maintain and service the existing OFCAD sites,” said Mahaso.

Mwenezi District Medical Officer
(DMO) Dr Itai Matibiri said more and more patients were being referred to the OFCAD
sites since the project kicked off.

“The medication received at
these OFCAD sites is distributed by NatPharm (the state-owned pharmaceutical company)
to ensure quality standards. It is pleasing that many patients are being
referred to those OFCAD sites to collect their medication,” said Matibiri.

Chiredzi residents petition DDC over politicised food aid

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Chiredzi residents petition DDC over politicised food aid

 

Ronald Ndava

Clayton Shereni

Residents of Chiredzi Urban Ward
6 and 7 have petitioned the District Development Coordinator (DDC) over what
they see as unfair and biased distribution of World Food Program (WFP), TellZim
News has learnt.

This comes in the wake of
allegations that Zanu PF structures are manipulating the DDC’s office to
channel the assistance to wards with ruling party councillors.

In letter dated October 23 and
addressed to the Lovemore Chisema, petitioners allege that the distribution exercise
is being implemented in a politicised manner to exclude people from wards with
MDC Alliance councillors.

“Currently on the Plan International
and WFP urban assistance, Ward 6 and 7 are left out as if there is absence of
vulnerable families in these wards. This is a serious cause for concern as
vulnerable families believe that your office will intervene in the spirit of
equity and justice for all. For the vulnerable in Ward 6 and 7, our average
income is US$0.35 per day.

“It becomes a worry among us the
vulnerable families in Ward 6 and 7 when aid agencies continue excluding us
from these programs without a concrete reason from your office and team. The
general feeling in Ward 6 and 7 is that we are being persecuted for political
reasons as our councillors are from the opposition party,” reads part of the
letter.

When contacted for Chisema
dismissed the allegations saying the exercise was being implemented in a
transparent and systematic manner.

“When a program comes into an
area especially food aid, it comes targeting the most vulnerable person in the
most vulnerable ward. Beneficiaries are ranked according to their level of
vulnerability. The beneficiaries are chosen through a systematic method and
it’s nothing intentional,” said Chisema.

Chisema said wards 3, 4, 5 and 8 had
already benefitted while wards 1, 2, 6 and 7 were set to benefit depending on
the vulnerability rankings.

Zanu PF Masvingo provincial
spokesperson, Ronald Ndava also rubbished the allegations saying his party did
not have influence over the determination of beneficiaries.

“Our party is not involved in
distribution of food aid but there are government arms which work directly with
WFP in that programme. I don’t know why people drag Zanu PF into these kinds of
issues. We don’t fit anywhere there. There are people who just speak recklessly
to the media,” said Ndava.

WFP Zimbabwe country director and
representative, Francesca Erdelmann told TellZim News her organisation was
committed to the reduction of hunger in needy communities regardless of
political affiliation.

“WFP is committed to ensure that
food insecure and vulnerable households receive food assistance, independently
of political affiliation. This participatory process identified wards 3, 4, 5
and 8 as the most in need. WFP continues to monitor the food security situation
and if more resources become available, WFP will scale up its assistance
prioritizing the most vulnerable households,” said Erdelmann.

The Urban Social Assistance is
meant to benefit 10 000 vulnerable people from 2 000 households in Chiredzi.

The program is being run as a collaboration
between WFP and Plan International.

 

‘Prophets’ face mob justice over stock theft

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‘Prophets’ face mob justice over stock theft

 

The ‘prophets’ were severely assaulted by angry residents

Progress Chaya

Birchenough
Bridge residents last week stormed detained two Johanne Masowe self-styled
prophets and severely assaulted them on allegations that they were notorious
stock thieves running away from the police.

Madzibaba
Tarisai and his junior were severely assaulted by the angry residents after some
security guards reportedly found then selling stolen goats to butcheries and
individuals.

Some
residents claimed that they had lost their domestic animals and property to the
two so-called prophets

The
duo had allegedly fled from Gutu district after allegedly being involved with
several case of stock theft before they settled in Birchenough where they opened
a church.

Some
of the people who assaulted them claimed that the duo had recently raped a
grade 7 pupil.

 

Woman resurfaces after 40 years with mermaids

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Woman resurfaces after 40 years with mermaids

Cephas Shava

MWENEZI – An 8-year-old girl who was reportedly snatched away by a
mermaid spirit while bathing along a stream some 40 years ago has reportedly
resurfaced, TellZim News has heard.

Rowai Chihwakwa, of Matande
village under Chief Negari in Ward 2 of Mwenezi East, resurfaced a few days ago
after her family members engaged some traditional healers who performed intense
rituals at the scene of her disappearance for several days.

The now grown woman is said to
have disappeared while bathing along Matande stream which feeds into Runde
River.

In a phone interview with TellZim
News , Rowai’s brother Alfred Chihwakwa, who is MDC Alliance Mwenezi East
district chairperson, confirmed that her sister was indeed back from the
unknown spiritual world.

“It’s true my sister Rowai came
reappeared on Saturday (October 31) after we engaged the services of a woman
from Zaka. As I am speaking right now, I am with her but she is still
struggling to speak and eat. She does not look that old though. We hope that by
tomorrow she will be stable and as a family we will be able to divulge more information,”
said Chihwakwa.

The family refused to provide TellZIm News with a picture of the returnee, saying she was still under the care of traditional healers who needed to perform all the necessary rites first.

When contacted for comment Chief
Negari said he was aware that the Chihwakwa family had for several years been
making efforts to retrieve their relative.

“I heard about it last night
so I will look for more details about the issue. What I truly know is that the
family members engaged me and they informed me that they will bring some
healers who will retrieve the body of their daughter who disappeared several
years ago. I authorised them to go ahead with the programme because they had
been doing this almost every year,” said Chief Negari.

Former Masvingo Urban MP Matutu joins Zanu PF

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Former Masvingo Urban MP Matutu joins Zanu PF

 

… ‘the party has lost direction’

 

TellZim Reporter

Senior MDC official and former
Member of Parliament (MP) for Masvingo Urban Tongai Matutu has joined Zanu PF,
TellZim News can report.

Pictures of Matutu with President Emmerson Mnangagwa and his two VPs Constantino Chiwenga and kembo Mohadi are doing the rounds on social media.

Matutu confirmed the development
in a phone interview, saying he took the bold decision after serious self-introspection.

“My apologies to the MDC
grassroots. They stood by me but the problem lies with the leadership which
should now celebrate my departure because they did not want me. The party has lost
direction,” said Matutu.

He said the MDC leadership was
always fighting him and he felt that it was high time he found a new political
home where he could be fully-appreciated.

“I worked for the party over the
past 20 years but they seemed to take my commitment for granted. They
frustrated my every move at each and every turn and I was left with no choice,”
said Matutu, who left the then Morgan Tsvangirai-led MDC-T in 2014 during the
Tendai Biti led revolt.

He then became one of the most
senior Biti-led People’s Democratic Party (PDP) officials in Masvingo province
until the party became part of the MDC Alliance in the run-up to the 2018
general elections.

Matutu sounded particularly
bitter about the MDC Alliance’s decision to bar him from contesting for the
party’s Masvingo provincial chairmanship post during a chaotic elective
congress held at Masvingo Sports Club in early 2019. The race was won by James
Gumbi who defeated Simon Mupindu.

Matutu was prevented from contesting after the party invoked a clause in its constitution which required only those that had been consistent members for over five years to constest for leadership positions.

Asked how he had abandoned his
principles as an avid MDC member who invested so much time and effort in
fighting Zanu PF, Matutu said there were no longer any principles to talk about
in the MDC.

“What principles? The leadership
of MDC now is not principled at all and that is why you see Chamisa and Khupe
fighting. If they were principled, the party would not be where it is right
now,” said Matutu.

He criticised the Chamisa-led MDC
Alliance for its recent decision to remove Gumbi as the party’s Masvingo provincial
chair to replace him with ‘old and tired’ Misheck Marava.

 

 

 

21-year-old appointed headman in Zhombe

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21-year-old appointed headman in Zhombe

 

The new Headman Nduku

Tinaani Nyabereka

KWEKWE – Chief Cyprian Malisa under the supervision of the
District Development Coordinator (DDC) recently appointed 21-year-old Munashe Dube-Nduku
as Headman Nduku in Zhombe.

The
installation ceremony was held at Fafi Primary School in Zhombe, Kwekwe
district.

Dube-Nduku
(21) was nominated headman to replace his uncle John Dube-Nduku who acted as headman
for over 15 years after the demise of former headman Mike Dube-Nduku in 2004.

The Nduku
clan uses the linear
principle of succession in putting a legitimate heir to take over
the throne, meaning Dube-Nduku’s uncle was supposed to act for two years
as per the Traditional Leadership Act.

However,
acrimony in the royal family saw the acting headman holding the post for that
long after reportedly convincing government authorities and Chief Malisa’s
council that the rightful hear was dead, and he was therefore the only more
suitable candidate left.

Family sources also said the acting head also tried to distort the
history of the family tree by telling Chief Malisa and the DDA that all the
children of former headman passed on.

Addressing
members of the community at the installation ceremony, a family member said the
traditional leader’s family tree was always significant in
putting a legitimate heir.

“A headman
is appointed in accordance with Section 9 of the Traditional Leadership Act which
also makes provision for the appointment of headmen by the Minister of Local Governance from a
list of persons nominated by the chief of the relevant area,” he said.

The
minutes further revealed that John Dube-Nduku was appointed as a regent for a
period of two years from 2005 but his long stay was due to unclear
circumstances

Community gardens uplift hundreds of Gutu South villagers

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Community gardens uplift hundreds of Gutu South villagers

 

Cooperative gardens in Gutu South are uplifting hundreds of villagers

…as MP Togarepi introduces awards for best performers

Moses Ziyambi

Some 46 cooperative gardens
initiated by Gutu South Member of Parliament (MP) Pupurai Togarepi in the nine
wards of his constituency are helping to reduce extreme poverty among hundreds
of rural households, with a new award system now introduced to encourage
greater productivity.

This reporter had an opportunity
to tour some of the projects in Maungwa and Mukaro where cooperative members
are producing many type of vegetables including cucumbers, pumpkins, sweet
potatoes, onions, tomatoes, water melons and spinach.

Members of the cooperatives told
TellZim News that there was no better way they could have expected their MP to
uplift them than give them the means to fend for themselves.

“This is one of the most
underdeveloped part of Gutu district and since 1980, no leader had given us any
assistance to empower ourselves. We appreciate what our MP has done for us
because we now have more productive ways to spend our time even in the dry
season,” said Irene Makara, who is chairperson of the Manjengwa Cooperative
Garden in Ward 24.

Situated in Dzinopana Village a
few killometres East of Maungwa Business Centre, the community garden has 20
members most of them being women.

Towards the end of 2019, Togarepi
gave the members some barbed wire to fence a piece of land close to Munhivi
stream, and he also gave them seeds to start their project.

A year later, members are now
selling vegetables in bulk, and they are looking for new markets far and wide.

Engineers have been sought to
design a weir downstream where a pump will be installed to hoist water to a
tank being built close to the garden so as to eliminate the laborious use of buckets
for watering.

A similar set up exists at Haziyo
Cooperative Garden in Haziyo Village under Chief Mukaro where over 20 villagers
are supplementing their livelihoods in the garden.

At this place, an award ceremony
was recently held to honour those who managed their gardens well and produced
better yields. Being the overall winner, Haziyo won 25kg maize seed, 200kg fertilizer,
some vegetable seeds and pesticides.

Other gardens also received their
own share of the inputs depending on their level of performance, while
individual winners walked away with shovels, cooking pots, teapots and other
utensils.

The maize seed and fertilizer will
help cooperative members to diversify into maize production under the
government’s pfumvudza conservation farming method.

Togarepi is also sourcing sunscreen lotion for people with albinism in his constituency

The initiative has also branched
into pig and poultry production which has seen Togarepi donating dozens of
piglets and chicks from his own farm to many ward-based start-up farming projects.

So far, dozens of piglets and mature
pigs that have almost reached the age of reproduction, as well as thousands of broiler
and layer chickens have been donated to women and youth-led projects in the
wards.

Togarepi told TellZim News that
his target was to help make Gutu South a source of horticultural produce for
the whole of Masvingo province.

“It is possible for us to become
a source of all the vegetables for the whole province. I am pleased by the zeal
to work that I see among the people of Gutu South. Many people now have
something to trade so that they can earn money to pay their children’s school
fees and improve their standards of living. It is our duty as citizens of this
country to do our part in developing our own country,” said Togarepi.

He said his work was guided by
the desire to contribute to President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s Vision 2030 which
aims to make Zimbabwe an upper-middle class income economy by year 2030.

He thanked government for
increasing investment in agricultural extensions workers who are helping to
monitor and guide the projects.

Ward 24 Councillor Takawira
Rashai said the setting-up of gardens in his ward had given residents reason to
hope.

“We had always lagged behind in
terms of developmental projects but we are now seeing some changes thanks to Honourable
Togarepi who is often on the ground assessing the needs of communities all the
time. Our gardens are proof that our people do not need handouts, they just
need capacitation so that they can work for themselves,” said Rashai.

Under another programme to assist
people with disabilities, Togarepi is distributing sunscreen lotion to people
living with albinism in his constituency.

 

 

 

 

 

Truant Zanu PF MPs using Govt fuel on girlfriends: Matemadanda

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Truant Zanu PF MPs using Govt fuel on girlfriends: Matemadanda

 

Victor Matemadanda

Moses
Ziyambi

MASVINGO
–
Zanu PF national political commissar Victor Matemadanda has attacked Members of
Parliament (MPs) from his own party for lacking seriousness with parliamentary
business, saying many pieces of legislation were lagging behind schedule due to
absenteeism.

Speaking at a
Provincial Coordinating Committee (PCC) meeting in Masvingo today, Matemadanda,
who is also the Deputy Minister of Defence and War Veterans, said many Zanu PF MPs did
not deserve to be in parliament due to their unbecoming conduct.

“As Zanu PF, we are the
majority in parliament and we do not need anybody’s support to pass any law but
what is happening now is that many bills are behind schedule because we hardly
have the numbers in parliament at any seating.

“You give them fuel
coupons today, tomorrow you don’t find them. You give them the diesel that is
due to them, they take it away and use it on their farms or they use it to
drive to their girlfriends and boyfriends.

“At one moment the President
had to send me to talk to them but they did not change. The President then
asked me if he needed to go and do the whipping duties himself and I told him what
the MPs were doing was the result of the democratic space he opened up where
everybody does as they please,” said Matemadanda.

He said reaching a
quorum in parliament was always difficult despite Zanu PF commanding a
two-thirds majority.

“What happens now is
that we cannot pass laws as swiftly as we want because we don’t have a quorum.
The MDC Alliance has realised that weakness on our part and they take advantage
of that to stall the passage of laws that are ideal to our vision as the ruling
party,” lamented Matemanda.

He also sought to
defend President Emmerson Mnangagwa from what he indicated to be malicious
attempts to link him to alleged gold smuggler Henrietta Rushwaya who was
arrested in Harare recently.

“So here is a President
whose own police and intelligence services intercepted and arrested a gold
smuggler at the airport. How then do you pin the smuggler on him and create a
relationship between them? You say the smuggler is his relative, but who told
you that?” said Matemadanda.

There are many bills
that need to be debated and finalised, and these include the Zimbabwe Manpower
Planning and Development Bill, the Zimbabwe Media Commission (ZMC) Bill, as well as he
Cyber Security and Data Protection Bill.

Besides the alignment
of many laws to the constitution being long overdue, government is also
grappling with the Constitutional Amendment Bill Number 2 which seeks to do
away with many provisions of the constitution including the contentious running
mate clause which otherwise will limit the President’s powers over his Vice
Presidents beginning in 2023.

People to People give disabled children early Xmas present

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People to People give disabled children early Xmas present

 

Bethel Ndlovu receives her wheelchair from Zimbabwe People to People

TellZim
Reporter

MASHAVA
– The
Zimbabwe People to People Organisation on October 29 mobilised an early
Christmas present to three families by giving them brand new wheelchairs and
various grocery items to help them get by.

Each of the families;
two in Mashava and the other one in Chivi, consist of a physically-challenged
child who had been having severe difficulties moving about.

The grocery items
consisted of mealie-meal, rice, cooking oil, sugar and other goods that will
last the families for the rest of the year.

The handover of the
goods was done in the at the Ndovu homestead in the Mushandike area, Masvingo
Rural District, in the presence of the Minister of State for Masvingo
Provincial Affairs Ezra Chadzamira, Ward 5 Councillor Aleta Makomeke, members
of the charitable organisation among other people.

The beneficiaries of
the wheelchairs are Benjamin Green Tsiko, Bethel Abel Ndlovu, both of Mashava,
and Vimbai Takaendesa of Mbavari village in Chivi.

Other councillors of the
other two beneficiaries collected the goods for onward delivery to the
respective families.

Speaking at the event,
Chadzamira said it was encouraging that some journalists had realised that it
was not helpful to tell the stories only without doing something more practical
to contribute to the welfare of society.

“I am pleased that we
are here courtesy of Zimbabwe People to People, an organisation formed by
members of the media. They saw it fit to go beyond the usual boundaries of
reporting the story and moved towards contributing to the welfare of the less
privileged members of our communities in a more practical manner.

“Bethel here had been suffering
a lot as the family relied on this old wheelbarrow to move around. This is the mindset
we should encourage if we are to build our country together as responsible citizens
and their caring government,’ said Chadzamira.

Zimbabwe People to
People member George Maponga, who is a journalist with The Herald, said his
organisation will continue to identify more areas of severe need in order to mobilise
assistance.

 

“We expect these
wheelchairs to help the children go to school with much ease. We cannot simply
sit around and watch people suffering when we can do something to lessen the suffering.
We will continue putting together the little we have so that we help others
have a better life,” said Maponga.

 

 

 

Chamisa ‘fires’ Masvingo chair

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Chamisa ‘fires’ Masvingo chair

 

James Gumbi

 

…another
provincial congress on cards

 

Upenyu Chaota

MASVINGO— MDC Alliance leader
Nelson Chamisa, who in March this year suspended the entire Masvingo provincial
executive for fanning factionalism, has relieved provincial chairperson James
Gumbi of his duties replacing him with former senator Misheck Marava on interim
basis.

Four
provincial executive members were summoned to Harare for a hearing and only
Gumbi was suspended.

Provincial
secretary for information Derrick Charamba, provincial secretary Erium Musendekwa
and provincial treasurer Innocent Munhazo were reportedly pardoned.

Gumbi,
a man of means who helped fund party programmes in the province, told TellZim
News he accepted the decision and will work with the new leadership.

“The
party is bigger than me and I was informed of the decision which I am going to
follow. The party knows best and if they make a decision you will be obliged to
follow.

“They
want the party to move forward and I will work with the new chair to push party
programmes,” said Gumbi.

MDC
Alliance will have a provincial executive meeting at its provincial offices
this Sunday, November 01, where Gumbi’s fate will be formally communicated to
structures.

A
senior MDC Alliance official who spoke to TellZim News on condition of
anonymity said Gumbi was found guilty of dividing the party in the province and
was suspended and another congress will be done once all the modalities have
been put in place.

Chamisa
presided over the chaotic Masvingo provincial congress last year and the Gumbi
faction stood tall, much to the disgruntlement of a rival faction led by Simon
Mupindu.

The win
by the Gumbi faction and the disqualification of Tongai Matutu from the race
left deep fissures in Masvingo province, prompting Chamisa to suspend the
provincial executive a few months later.

“Masvingo
province had become a big problem to the president (Chamisa). The congress was
chaotic and the president thought that the rift would heal and people would
move on together but the situation deteriorated.

“The
president decided to suspend the entire Gumbi executive pending disciplinary
hearing and the hearing was conducted. The National Executive Council (NEC)
decided to keep Gumbi suspended and replace him with Marava pending a
provincial congress,” he said.

MDC
Alliance national organizing secretary Amos Chibaya, however, sang a different
tune when TellZim News contacted him for a comment, saying Gumbi was not fired but
was rather promoted to the national executive.

“What
actually happened was a promotion. Gumbi is now in the national executive and
he will have more power than he had. The national executive has more power and
Gumbi will be serving from there,” said Chibaya.

On his
part, Marava said he was yet to get official communication on his new assignment.

“I
heard that the NEC assigned me to be the interim chairperson but I am yet to
get official communication. I think it will be addressed at the meeting we are
having this Sunday,” said Marava.  

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