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I won’t get fair trial in Masvingo: Taxi driver ‘killer’

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I won’t get fair trial in Masvingo: Taxi driver ‘killer’

Tendai Mange

The
man who was arrested a few weeks ago in connection with the brutal murder of taxi
driver Josiah Rimai at Backpackers Rest lodge in Masvingo has requested that he
be tried outside of the city, claiming that it was impossible for him to get a
fair hearing in local courts.
Chakanetsa
Kambarami made the request when he appeared before magistrate Dambudzo Malunga last
week.
He
claimed that no lawyer was willing to represent him and that members of the
public were victimising his relatives who come to check on him.
Kambarami
claimed that his family members were no longer free to attend his trial in Masvingo,
making it difficult for them to render him the morale support he said he
required.
“My
relatives are no longer coming to Masvingo without police protection as they
fear getting harassed by the public. It will not be fair for me to stand trial
without their support,” said Kambarami.
He
said because the case received wide media coverage and that a large group of
protesters had tried to storm the police station on 05 June ostensibly to harm
him, all the lawyers that had indicated a willingness to defend him in court
had hastily retreated.
He
also told the court that he will be glad to stand trial in any other place
outside of Masvingo.
It
is the State’s case that Kambarami murdered Rimai at Backpackers Rest and dumped
his body in the bushy area near The Sundowners lodge.

Tales around the tale: Realities & myths about gomalungundu

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Tales around the tale: Realities & myths about gomalungundu

Elizabeth
Duve Dziva
Ngomalungundu
is believed to be a powerful cultural drum with remains resembling it once
housed in the Zimbabwe Museum of Human Sciences in Harare. A month ago, Esther
Chipashu a curator of Ethnography at the Zimbabwe Natural History Museum in
Harare presented about the drum in question at an event in the United Kingdom.
Chipashu
said the drum was taken for custody by the Zimbabwean government since it
attracted a lot of attention from varied ethnic groups in Zimbabwe and Jewish
researchers from outside the country. Apparently, the drum is associated with
some intangible spiritual value.
Oral
tradition has it that the drum was used during rainmaking ceremonies and other
important cultural rituals. In fact, the Ngomalungundu is said to have been a
strong magical drum with extraordinary powers. Whatever the myth surrounding
the drum is a cause for interest since it involves our very own country and who
knows the fate or fortunes it carries.
Ownership
of the drum has been a controversial issue among many ethnic groups which want
to associate themselves with it. Among them are the Lemba (VaRemba) people who
a minority group of the zhou totem found predominantly in Maberengwa, the Venda
people in Matabeleland South province and the National Museums and Monuments of
Zimbabwe (NMMZ) which is the current custodian of the drum.
The
million dollar question is who is the rightful custodian of the drum? Is it
national heritage or heritage of a particular group of people with intangible
aspects that need the rightful people to conserve and preserve? Besides, will
the descendants of those who invented the drum and its magic be able to access
and use the drum accordingly? Culturally, it does not necessarily mean that the
drum has ceased to carry its spiritual value regardless of how worn out it has
become. Most people seem to deliberately avoid the subject for, not only
because it leads to more questions than answers but also because it stirs acute
controversy. It, however, still worthy the discussions and literature since ignorance
of one’s distant past leads to stagnation in knowledge accumulation.
The
VaRemba people, also known as the black Jews, claim that their ascendants
migrated to Zimbabwe with the drum in question. There is a hypothesis that the
Ngomalungundu is the Biblical Ark of Covenant which Moses was instructed to
build at Mount Sinai as he led the Israelites out of Egypt.
The
VaRemba, also known as Mwenye people, are an ethnic group that speak Bantu
languages spoken by their geographical neighbours whom they even resemble
physically yet they have some religious practices and beliefs similar to the Biblical
Jews. They observe practices like circumcision; place a Star of David on their
tombstones and many other practices.  The
fact whether these people are really Jews, and even more are the actual owners
of the Ngomalungundu is more apparent than real 
because it seems as if since they are a minority group, maybe they are
only trying to draw attention for the sake of greater recognition in the
nation. Their Jewish ancestry is controversial since the evidence is only
attained from oral tradition which has a number of weaknesses as a historical
source. Research shows that DNA in 2000 people of the society did not support
claims for a specifically Jewish genetic heritage. Somehow, the stories do not
tally, there is something missing and one may ponder their real association
with the Ngomalungundu.
According
to the Jewish hypothesis, the drum was last seen 2500 years ago in Jerusalem.
It was then found by a Swedish missionary, Von Sicard in the early 1940s at
Dumbwi Mountains in Mberengwa. It was taken to the by then National Museums and
Monuments of the colonial Rhodesian government.
It
was rediscovered in 2007 in a forgotten shelf in the Zimbabwe Museum of Human
Sciences in Harare by a British Professor Parfitt. In 2010, an unveiling
ceremony was held in Harare with that government officials, National Museums
and Monuments and some members of the VaRemba ethnic group. The drum has been
taken by NMMZ on tours to other parts of the country but it is queer that it
has never been taken to Mberengwa where it supposedly belongs, where the black
Jews are found today.
The
Venda hypothesis has it that the Ngomalungundu, which in their native language
is known as the drum of the dead, was brought to its present location by the
Senzi people, present day Venda. According to them, the Ngomalungundu was the
drum of Mwali, the ancestor God of the Venda and the Kalanga people. It was the
voice of the great god (Mambo weDenga). The drum was seen and beaten by no one
except the high priest Dzomo la Dzimu and Mwali, the king whom they now regard
as their great ancestor. The Venda say king Thohoyandou disappeared with the
drum and nobody knew about its whereabouts until something with remains that
resembles it was found in Mberengwa.
The
puzzle pertaining Ngomalungundu remains debatable though over and above, there
is need to preserve it. Apart from conserving and preserving the aesthetic and
economic value of cultural objects, their spiritual value should never be
ignored for we should consider that such artefacts have their essential role;
they are our grounding and they make us who we are.
Elizabeth Duve Dziva is an archaeological and
cultural heritage practitioner who presently teaches at Errymaple High School
in Zvishavane. The views and opinions expressed in this article are purely the
author’s in her own capacity and do not necessarily represent any organisation
duveelizabeth@gmail.com

New gender-focused CBO launched in Masvingo

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New gender-focused CBO launched in Masvingo

                                                     Evangelist Mazhara

Precious
Marecha

An organisation concerned with domestic welfare has
been launched in Masvingo with the objective of finding solutions to some of
the most common problems affecting couples and those that lead to gender-based
violence.
The Women on A Mission Organisation (WOAMO) aims to
improve peace in the domestic set-up while offering effective counselling where
it is needed.
Formed by Evangelist Romina Zinyoro Mazhara, the
organisation is working to spread its services to all districts of the
province.
Running
with the motto ‘Women On a Mission Where You Will Never Shed a Tear Again – Stress Free Zone’, the
organisation offers counselling to people who feel burdened in marriage as well
as those facing various other social challenges.
Mazhara
says her personal life experiences in marriage provoked her to work towards
peaceful families by addressing challenges faced by couples, single mothers and
young people.
“I
have faced all challenges in marriage and this inspired the formation of WOAMO.
I prayed and fasted and it worked wonders in my life.
This
is when I realised that there is no situation that God can never change. With
all the experiences I encountered, I realised the mistakes, strengths, dos and don’ts
of marriages. I want to share that rich experience with others,” said
evangelist Mazhara.
She
said marriage was a small entity which however affects a larger space in society.
For people to work effectively, they must come from peaceful marriages and for
youths to achieve greater goals, they must come from stable families.
She
said she believed there was no way one could talk about anything without
factoring in the spiritual side.
“We
are the result of the spiritual world so our problems must be addressed
spiritually if we are to change physically, Hatingatizi
kuti kune varoyi kana vanosundira mhepo zvinogona kuparadzisa dzimba dzevanhu
(we cannot logically deny the
existence of evil spirits that affect the living) and that
is why we must address both the spiritual and the physical life,” said
Evangelist Mazhara
WOAMO,
however, has a broader mandate which spreads to addressing the financial aspect
of people’s lives which arguably is the singular most pervasive source of
instability in marriages.
The
organisation, therefore, addresses financial problems through talent
identification and nurturing financial literacy.
One
of WOAMO members, Tavonga Marumbei said she was pleased with the rate at which
the organisation was growing.
She
said she encountered great changes in her family life through Evangelist Mazhara’s
counselling.
“My
sisters and I have been through a lot of challenges in our marriages but
through Evangelist Mazhara’s counselling, we are seeing changes and it’s true
that WOAMO is a stress-free zone,” said Marumbei.
A
holder of a social sciences degree from Great Zimbabwe University (GZU), Evangelist
Mazhara was born at Mukaro Mission Hospital in Gutu. She did her ‘O’ and ‘A’
level at Mwenezi Government High School.
An Evangelist at Saved to Save Elshadai Ministries, she is married to Aaron Mazhara and
is blessed with three kids.
The
organisation was formed in May 2018 and it operated without offices but is now located
at 7150 Bradburn Extension Road between Chitima market and Printflow. 

Zaka East MP Gumbwanda dies

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TellZim Reporter

Zanu PF Member of Parliament (MP) for Zaka East
constituency, Caston Gumbwanda has died.
Gumbwanda died today at a medical facility in Harare where
he had been admitted after suffering from pneumonia.
Zanu PF Masvingo provincial chairperson, Ezra Chadzamira,
who is also the Minister of State for Masvingo Provincial Affairs, confirmed the
loss.
“We received reports yesterday that Cde Gumbwanda was
admitted at Chiredzi Hospital after suffering from pneumonia.  He was then transferred to Harare where he
died. This is a big loss to us as a party,” said Chadzamira.
Gumbwanda is said to have suffered from the disease after
travelling all the way from Harare at the back of a pick-up truck.
“He had left his car in the constituency and he decided to
hitch-hike back home,” said a source.
Gumbwanda’s predicessor, Samson Mukanduri also died last year before finishing his term.

 More to follow…

Masvingo receives $31 million devolution money

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Masvingo receives $31 million devolution money

…Chiredzi RDC gets lion’s share of funds
TellZim
Reporter
The government has released about $31 million of
devolution money to Masvingo province with Chiredzi and Mwenezi Rural District
Councils (RDCs) getting the biggest chunk of the money, TellZim News has
learnt.
Allocation of the money to districts was done with
close attention to various economic considerations including population indexes,
poverty levels and unpaved infrastructure size.
Of the $31 million, $9 million has been set aside for
the provincial council which is, however, yet to be operationalised.
Masvingo Provincial Administrator (PA) Fungai Mbetsa
said he expected money to improve living conditions through improved service
delivery.
“We have received our second tranche of devolution
money and it was shared amongst all the nine local authorities in the province.
The rationale behind the allocation was largely based on population, poverty
and infrastructure indexes. We appreciate the work being done by the government
and we will make sure that the money is put to good use,” said Mbetsa.
Chiredzi Rural District Council received $3 211 876.51
followed by Mwenezi with $3 044 337.54. Other local authorities received $2 892
547.40 for Bikita, $2 877794.38 for Gutu, $2 931 952.88 for Zaka, $2 726 580.37
for Masvingo Rural and $2 832 894 for Chivi.
Masvingo City Council and Chiredzi Town Council
received $1 779 826.58 and $1 870 792.22 respectively.
Mbetsa said $9 million has been given to the provincial
council so that its operationalization can finally become a reality.
“The provincial council is yet to be operationalised
and the $9 million has been given for that purpose and we hope to see the
provincial council sitting soon,” said Mbetsa.

Chiwenga breaks pre-coup promise to Gezani community

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Chiwenga breaks pre-coup promise to Gezani community

Chiwenga performs a ground-breaking exercise at the site of the intended projects weeks before he staged a coup which overthrew Robert Mugabe
Beatific Gumbwanda

CHIKOMBEDZI
– A
promise made to the Gezani community in Chiredzi South by then Zimbabwe Defence
Forces (ZDF) commander and now Vice president Constantino Chiwenga some weeks
before he launched a coup that toppled Robert Mugabe seems to have been
forgotten.
Chiwenga seconded one of his then
juniors, Brig Gen Trust Mugoba to represent him at the funeral of late Headman
Gezani, Simon Chauke.
During his speech, Mugoba spoke
glowingly about the late traditional leader saying the Gezani family was one of
heroism as his late father had also assisted Chiwenga during the liberation
struggle.
“General Chiwenga is saddened by
the death of Headman Gezani because that’s where he was kept during the
chimurenga time,” said Mugoba.
He said the army wanted to pay
tribute to the contributions made by the Gezani family to the liberation
struggle by constructing a clinic or a school in the area.
“We want the community to
identify two or three projects in this area which the ZDF will undertake for
you. Give us a school, clinic or anything of your choice and we will send our
team of engineers and builders to do it for the community this year.
“We want a team work; we have
partners who we are working with at Dumisa Primary School which are CBZ Bank
and FBC Bank. Even the community, you must be active so that our development
projects will be completed quickly,” he added.
In October of the same year,
Chiwenga visited Makhanani Primary School and participated at a ground-breaking
ceremony for a new clinic project.
“You made two requests, one, for
us to construct a clinic and the need to have mobile networks in this area. I
had to recall your contribution during the war and I then saw it fit to have a
hospital constructed in this area. I know Headman Gezani is no longer with us,
but he would be pleased to see these developments taking place in this area,” Chiwenga
said then.
However, nothing has been done on
the site of the projects and the issue is not even being talked about despite
that Chiwenga is now in government and is arguably the second powerful man in
the country, with even greater leverage to influence government policy.
Auspicious Ndlovu, a social
activist from Chiredzi South, said Chiwenga should urgently move to fulfil his
promises in an area considered to be among one of the most marginalised in the
country.
“We still feel short-changed.
Since he was elevated from army general to Vice President, he has totally
forgotten us and the clinic which he promised is nowhere to be seen,” said
Ndlovu.
Headman Gezani’s phone was not
reachable for comment.
.

First lady in Chiredzi children rehab centre

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First lady in Chiredzi children rehab centre

….
as Govt gets nervous about street demos
Beatific Gumbwanda
CHIREDZI – First
lady Auxilia Mnangagwa was in Chiredzi this week assessing progress in the work
being done to upgrade Chambuta Children’s Home into a National Rehabilitation Centre
where orphans and street kids will be trained with life skills.
She
urged local companies to invest their own resources towards making a success of
the project; claiming she alone could not afford it.
The
phenomenal increase in the number of children living on the streets has come
with both social and political implications, with some of them reportedly being
used to front demonstrations against the government.
Speaking
during a briefing at Chambuta, Mnangagwa said she was on a mission to decongest
street kids from the streets of Harare.
“We
need to move in about a 1000 street kids and provide them with projects they
can live on. So we are upgrading Chambuta to a national rehabilitation centre. I
am aware that it will be a mammoth task to move street kids as some will refuse
but we will focus on those that are willing,” said Mnangagwa.
Chiredzi
East Member of Parliament (MP) Denford Masiya welcomed the move, saying he was
also working hard to make the project a success.
“We
are really behind your projects and we welcome those children. Let them come
and be kept here since you want to upgrade it to a national rehabilitation
centre,” said Masiya.
However,
a source privy to the developments said the project was part of broader plans
to prevent civil society and the opposition from using homeless children during
demonstrations.
“It’s
all about dealing with demonstrations since street kids are thought to be so
reckless and fearless that they would not mind participating in demonstrations
right from the front,” said the source.

Elderly Bikita pervert rapes 15-year-old sister-in-law

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Elderly Bikita pervert rapes 15-year-old sister-in-law

Tendai Mange
An
elderly Bikita man recently appeared before Masvingo magistrate Dambudzo
Malunga for allegedly raping his 15-year-old sister-in-law.
Erasmus
Mudadi (82) of Muredzi Village, Chief Ziki pleaded guilty to contravening
Section 65(1) of Criminal (Coordination and Reform Act) Chapter 09:23.
He
was remanded in custody until June 27.
It
was the State’s case, as presented by Richard Nyaruomba, that sometime in
January, the complainant started living with her sister who cannot be named to
protect the victim’s identity.
One
day, Mudadi called the girl into his bedroom where he raped her.
After
committing the offense, he threatened the 15-year-old minor against revealing
the offence.
The
abuse became habitual from that day onwards, with the abuser continuously
threatening her against speaking up.
The
matter, however, came to light when an adult relative questioned here after
noticing some strange behaviour in the child.
The
juvenile was referred to the hospital for medical examinations and the results were
presented in court as evidence.

Adherence to Campfire principle benefits tourism

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Adherence to Campfire principle benefits tourism

                                             Mark Saunders
Stephen Ephraem
CHIPINGE – A call has been made to adhere to Communal Areas
Management Programme for Indigenous Resources (Campfire) principles in order to
benefit tourism.
This came out at an Environment and Tourism Indaba
that was organised by the the Ministry of Environment, Tourism and Hospitality
Industry.
Campfire is a concept in which communities surrounding
wildlife areas are given 15 percent of revenue generated from tourism. The
funds are managed by rural district councils on behalf of CAMPFIRE Association.
The communities are then given their dividents by the end of each financial
year.
Presenting the challenges that tourism is facing in
the South East region of Zimbabwe, the Director of Malilangwe Conservancy, Mark
Saunders said Campire helps communities to reap benefits from their natural
resources.
“The region is losing 409ha of forest per year
due to encroachment. This should stop so that people protect their landscapes
so as to attract tourism investors in the communities. When people are
benefitting from Campfire the people might also stop ttrekking to neighbouring
countries to seek employment,” said Saunders.
He also revealed that Gonarezhou National Park, which
is Zimbabwe’s second largest public park after Hwange, has an excess of 11 000
elephants and that the excess has a negative bearing on Gonarezhou environment.
The Malilangwe Conservancy director challenged the
ministry to consider having an international airport for the Lowveld.
“In 2015 Malilangwe and Tongaat Huletts
refurbished Buffalo Range Airport so as to increase air traffic to the region.
We ask for the airport to be given international status.
“The region has all what is needed to have
international tourists come directly to the Lowveld. We have the Save, Runde
and Limpopo rivers in addition to all the beautiful landscapes and wildlife
heritage found here. The region can compete with Victoria Falls if given the
same level of attention,” he added.
From the mid 1980s when Zimbabwe adopted the CAMPFIRE
concept, it was mainly biased towards consumptive tourism that promoted spot
hunting in safari areas around national parks. A decade later, green groups
through Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species (Cites)
advocated for the abolishment of consumptive tourism in favour of consumptive
one which means the animal must be shot by a camera trigger than the bullet.
This saw the African elephant categorised as
endangered and could not be traded. Debate is still hot whether consumptive or
non consumptive tourism is the in thing for Zimbabwe.

Senior Masvingo cop Ncube calls it a day

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Senior Masvingo cop Ncube calls it a day

Moses
Ziyambi
Superintendent Phillip
Ncube of the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) Masvingo Central District has
retired after serving the force for close to 32 years.
Ncube officially left
office on June 17 after reaching the mandatory pensionable age for members of
the security forces.
He joined ZRP on
January 13, 1988 as a patrol officer and was posted to Nyamandhlovu in August
1988. Between 1991 and 1994, he was posted to ZRP Mbembesi before being transferred
to Nkayi where he served from 1994-1996.
In 1996, Ncube was promoted
to assistant inspector and he worked as Member in Charge ZRP Gwelutshena until
2000. He was posted to ZRP Hwange as Member in Charge Crime from 2000 -2001.
From 2001-2002, Ncube
served at CID Hwange and left after being promoted to detective inspector to
serve as Officer in Charge at CID Marondera in May 2002.
In August 2002, on
request, Ncube was transferred to CID Masvingo as Officer in Charge, and was promoted
to detective chief inspector in 2004.
 In 2005, he was promoted to superintendent and
was posted at CID Serious Frauds Squad investigating such high profile cases
that of the State vs Charles Nherera and Bright Matonga (the ZUPCO Saga).
In Dec 2006, Ncube was
transferred to Mutare as Officer Commanding CID Law and Order Manicaland
province but was transferred back to Masvingo Central District the following
year but this time to work as Supt Crime. In 2008, he worked as Supt Admin, in 2010
as Supt Operations and in 2012 as Supt Crime.
In 2015, Ncube served
as Supt Admin, as Supt Crime in 2018 and later worked as Supt Admin (Masvingo
Central District) before his retirement.
“I have no plans after
retirement but I am still fit to serve as a security practitioner for the next
four or five years. I will also be doing farming since I benefited from the
Land Reform. I have a four-hectare A1 piece of land at Sanangwe Farm,” Ncube
told TellZim News in an interview.
When asked about his
impression of the police force in the ‘new dispensation’, and whether or not it
was fulfilling the expectations of citizens, Ncube said there were notable
achievements to note.
“I applaud the new
dispensation because there is an improvement in the public’s perception of the
police force. Government is also doing its best to improve conditions of
service and create a world-class police service,” said Ncube.
Ncube, however, said
government should seriously look at providing more resources to capacitate the
police to provide better services.
“Some stations like
Masvingo Rural which cover farming areas have no motor vehicles. All the five
bases; Farmers Hall, Zimuto, Chidzikwe, Nemanwa and Bondolfi are poorly
equipped. Most of the time, members use their own resources to accomplish
organisational tasks.
“Supervision needs to
be enhanced by commanders and supervisors to ensure operational efficiency.
There are no vehicles for senior officers and officers-in-charge. If police
could be allowed to retain a certain percentage of revenue accrued and channel
it towards operational efficiency, we would be able to have a police force that
is more responsive to the needs of citizens,” said Ncube.
He said a
poorly-remunerated police force was a breeding ground for corruption hence the
need to improve salaries to create a sense of honesty in police officers.
“Police members
interact with the elite and rich people yet they earn low salaries thus
creating a fertile ground for corruption. There is also need to improve
accommodation so that such staff as disaster management officers can be found
at one place. There is need for continuous training and for the Client Charter
to be followed to the letter.
“The corporate world can
also assist by coming up with such initiatives as business against crime forums
and crime consultative committees. The community must take more interest in
such initiatives as neighborhood watch committees, crime watch committees and
anti-stock theft committees,” said Ncube.

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