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MDC Masvingo elections aborted amid violence

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MDC Masvingo elections aborted amid violence
….Terrified Kore distances self from chaotic poll

Moses Ziyambi
Apparently terrified by the rowdy
behavior of party members who quarreled over how the party should run the selection
of five people who will represent Masvingo in the party’s national executive,
MDC vice president, Lynette Karenyi-Kore has distanced herself from the
elections she was supposed to be presiding over.
Kore and her delegation arrived
at MDC Masvingo provincial headquarters at 32 Mukwa St, Rhodene, a while ago
amid hostilities from rival camps fighting to control the accreditation
exercise.
The short interregnum of courtesy
that the fighting camps gave Kore upon her arrival did not last long as the
hostilities flared yet again, forcing her to retreat into party offices where
she remained locked up with senior members of the provincial executive.
It was again not long before catapults
were pulled, punches were exchanged and bricks were thrown as disgruntled party
members accused provincial chairperson James Gumbi of trying to rig the poll in
favour of his acolytes.
When contacted for comment on her
phone, Kore, who was still holed up in the offices, said she was not
responsible for running the show even though she came from Harare specifically
for that task.
“No, I am not going to be
responsible for the accreditation exercise. Please talk to our provincial spokesperson
for more details,” said Kore.
Provincial spokesperson, Derrick
Charamba gave a curt response when contacted for comment, trying to feign
normalcy.
“The presiding officer is our VP
Kore and she is here. What disagreements are you talking about?” said Charamba.
Moments later, however, it was
announced that the proceedings had been cancelled.
A party youth who spoke to TellZim News said Kore was terrified of the violence and had chosen not to take sides with the factions.
“She read the mood and decided not to take over the accreditation exercise which was already being run by one of the camps as a way of maintaining a measure of neutrality. This was a new low for us as a party. How could we fight in front of our VP and disrespect her like that?” said the female party member.
[Read earlier story here https://tellzim.com/2019/06/violence-at-mdc-masvingo-provincial.html ]

Violence at MDC Masvingo provincial council elections

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Violence at MDC Masvingo provincial council elections

                  A mini-riot at the MDC Masvingo provincial headquarters

Moses Ziyambi

MDC Masvingo provincial chairperson, James Gumbi and other senior members of his executive have this afternoon locked themselves in the party’s offices in fear of being attacked by rowdy youths that are violently protesting alleged attempts to rig the selection of five members who will be deployed to the party’s national executive.

Many youths and other agitated party members are besieging the party’s provincial headquarters at 32 Mukwa Street, Rhodene, singing songs that denounce the provincial leadership.

Serious violence broke out after the Masvingo Urban youth wing began to conduct an accreditation exercise that others declared illegal.

Rivals said only the party’s vice president Lynette Karenyi-Kore, who by the time of writing had not yet arrived to preside over the elections, had the right to run the accreditation exercise.

The contested accreditation exercise disenfranchised some districts including Chivi North and Chiredzi West, in what many claimed was an attempt by Gumbi to victimise district structures perceived to be loyal to his rival Tongai Matutu.

One youth had his foot stuck under the heavy gate as people stampeded in the violence, and he pitifully wailed in pain.

Other people engaged in fist fights and scaled the security wall to force their way into the accreditation venue.

ZSMIWU denies funding Zanu PF

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ZSMIWU denies funding Zanu PF


Beatific
Gumbwanda
CHIREDZI–
Zimbabwe Sugar Milling Industry Workers Union (ZSMIWU) has dismissed as hearsay
claims by MDC leader Nelson Chamisa that the union is clandestinely sponsoring
Zanu PF using workers’ money.
Chamisa made the claims recently while addressing thousands of his party
supporters at a ‘thank you rally’ held at Tshovani Stadium.
Chamisa
said it was brought to his attention that ZSMIWU and Zanu PF were bed fellows
with the former using workers’ subscriptions to fund the ruling party.
ZSMIWU
secretary general Faster Gono said the claims by Chamisa lacked substance and
said the union’s books were open to audit which will be made public.
“Our
union does not meddle into politics using people’s money. The workers are
getting paid peanuts and we will not temper around with their hard earned cash.
“There
is no proof whatsoever to back Chamisa’s claims and we will remain apolitical
and professional with people’s money,” said Gono.
It
is alleged that Chiredzi West legislator, Farai Musikavanhu and his Chiredzi
North counterpart Roy Bhila are the ones who approach the union on behalf of
Zanu PF.
Gono
said they are willing to make public the audit into the union’s books done by,
Cardinal Chattered Accountants (Zimbabwe), from as late as 2015 to date.
“Our
books are always audited and we have audits from as far back as 2015 which we
are willing to make public should anyone feel the need to inquire on how their
funds are being managed.
“We
have never funded any political party and we will not do so especially
considering that the money we have is not ours. If we do that how then will we
account for the people’s money?
“Our
member should never lose sleep over claims made at a rally which lack
substance,” said Gono.

Fuel shortages plunge tourism sector into crisis

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Fuel shortages plunge tourism sector into crisis


Munyaradzi
Goche
MUTARE
– Hospitality
Association of Zimbabwe (HAZ) official Leonard Bwanya recently said that their
organisation is deeply concerned with the persisting fuel crisis as it has
negatively impacted the tourism industry.
Bwanya said most resort areas which are only
accessible by road are bearing the brunt of fuel shortages as tourist can no
longer travel and the Eastern Highlands have recorded a low number of tourists
and the numbers continue to decline.
Places like Mount Inyangani, Mutarazi Falls, Vumba
Mountains among others have become a no go area for the majority as the price
of fuel and its unavailability continue to bite.
“Fuel crisis is a major problem in the tourism sector.
People no longer travel as they used to. I was checking with other business
people and the situation is bad.
“Traffic is on the low and the number of people
visiting is on its lowest. Fuel shortage effects are now showing an effect of
the sector because people spend long hours in fuel queues and when they finally
find it, very few would want to burn in their localities.
“Someone cannot travel from Harare to see Inyangani
Mountains when they know it would be difficult for them to get fuel for the
return trip,” said Bwanya.
President Mnangagwa has tried to sweep the fuel crisis
with a new broom by reshuffling the former energy minister Joram Gumbo and
replacing him with Fortune Chasi.
The hospitality industry is also groaning under the
yoke of load shedding as power utility Zesa has embarked on longer hours of
power blackouts which has seen most resort areas opting to use generators which
are not sustainable because of the fuel challenges.
“We are now faced with another challenge of power
blackouts which has plunged the tourism industry into further crisis. Imagine
you run a lodge or hotel where there are few clients but you have to make their
stay comfortable so you have to use a generator which will add more burden
because the fuel is unavailable and expensive.
“This is why most hotels have hiked their prices,”
said Bwanya.

ED, Chamisa square off in Bikita by-election

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ED, Chamisa square off in Bikita by-election


…three
parties file for nomination

…
150 vote in MDC primaries
Upenyu
Chaota
President Mnangagwa and MDC leader Nelson Chamisa may
not want to be in the same room to dialogue the way forward for the economy but
will have a date in the ballot box as both their parties will battle it out in
the Bikita West Ward 31council by-election slated for July 13.
The council seat fell
vacant following the death of Zanu PF Councillor Patrick Marozhe on April 15
this year.
Three
political parties filed for nomination with Zanu PF being represented by Thomas
Mataga, MDC represented by Moses Maposa and National Constitutional Assembly
(NCA) represented by Peter Mavenga.
Zimbabwe
Election Commission (Zec) Masvingo provincial head, Zex Pudurai said it was all
systems go for the by-election which will be held on July 13.
“We
are happy with our state of preparedness. Three political parties have gone
through the nomination court and brought forward three candidates and we are
ready for other subsequent processes that need to be followed.
“We
are also pleased with the peaceful environment that we are seeing ahead of the
by-election,” said Pudurai.
The
opposition MDC held their primary elections at Mandadzaka Primary School last
week, May 29 and a paltry 148 members voted raising serious concerns on the
future of the party in the ward.
Presided
over by a national organising team led by Tamsanqa Dangazela and Farai
Chinobva, the primary elections were won by Maposa, who is the party’s district
chairperson.
“We
are already working hard to market our candidate to the electorate because he
is the best person to represent the interests of Ward 31 residents in council.
“We
are a party of excellence so the people of Ward 31 have the best candidate in
Maphosa,” said MDC provincial youth leader Kudakwashe Bhadharai, who is a
resident of Bikita East himself.
Maposa
served as MDC councillor in the same ward between 2008 and 2013.
Zanu
PF candidate Mataga, who last year contested in the party’s primary elections
for Bikita East and lost to current Member of Parliament (MP) Johnson Madhuku,
the election is just a formality as his party will walk over all the other
contestants.
“We
are ready for the challenge. As Zanu PF, we will launch our campaign on 09 June
at Mandadzaka Primary School and we will then be hard at work from that day
onwards. We are confident that we will retain our council seat because we are doing
many developmental projects in the communities,” said Mataga.
Mavenga
will represent the Professor Lovemore Madhuku-led NCA and the party’s district
chairperson Ernest Rambe expressed confidence in victory.
“The
people now know that only the NCA is capable of delivering on their needs
because it is a party founded on constitutionalism and good governance. We take
this by-election seriously because local governance is key to good service
delivery,” said Rambe.
Zanu PF last month lost another council by-election in
Mutasa constituency’s Ward 10 despite them being accused of employing vote
buying antics.

Zesa sues Chikombedzi Hospital for unpaid bills

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Zesa sues Chikombedzi Hospital for unpaid bills


Beatific
Gumbwanda
CHIKOMBEDZI–
It never rains but pours for Chikombedzi Hospital whose problems continue
piling up with the most recent one being a lawsuit by Zesa through which the power utility is demanding in excess of $120 000 in unpaid bills.
The
Free Methodist hospital established in the 1970s is faced with a myriad of
problems ranging from dilapidated infrastructure to serious financial
constraints and is on the verge of collapse.
The
hospital has not been paying its electricity bill for a long time prompting
Zesa to take legal action so as to recover the money owed to them.
Matron
Ruth Hlongwane told a delegation led by Chiredzi South legislator Kalisto
Gwanetsa that the hospital was crumbling down and they recently received a $120
000 lawsuit from Zesa over unpaid bills.
“We
have a lot of problems here and recently Zesa added to those problems by suing
us for $120 000 in unpaid bills.
“The
government had promised to pay but they have not done so and we plead with them
to come to our rescue,” said Hlongwane.
Gwanetsa
said he would bring the problem to government’s attention so that the people of
Chikombedzi will get better care at their hospital.
“I
have heard of the challenges and will lobby the government to act quickly and
bail out this institution because it is in a sorry state,” said Gwanetsa.
Chikombedzi
Hospital has no functioning ambulance, no running water, defunct mortuary and
cannot provide proper meals for patients who are said to be solely eating
cabbages.   

Zaka cop’s wife burns hubby over girlfriend

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Zaka cop’s wife burns hubby over girlfriend

Brighton Chiseva
ZAKA – A 24-year-old woman who is married to a police officer appeared
before resident magistrate Florence Nago last Friday and was convicted for
scalding her husband with boiling water over allegations of infidelity.
The accused, Progress Muchingami
pleaded guilty to the charges and was remanded in custody for sentencing.
According to the State papers, on
April 30, the complainant, Tafadzwa Webster Muchingami (37) went to take a bath
and left his phone behind. Muchingami then took her husband’s phone and
exchanged sim cards, inserting hers into his handset and his into her handset.
The complainant went to work
around 07:00hrs without noticing that the sim cards had been exchanged.
Around 19:00hrs, the complainant
came home and the accused sat beside him after putting a pot on the boil. She
later checked the water and put a cup on the other stove plate as if she wanted
to prepare tea.
She returned and sat beside the
complainant and started shouting at him claiming his girlfriend had been looking
for him and she spat on his face twice.
Muchingami tried to stop her from
spitting at him but she became even more cross and later took a pot from the
stove and threw the hot water on her husband’s chest.
The victim got scalded so badly
that that he had to be rushed to Ndanga Hospital where he got admitted.
Cuthbert Jandure prosecuted.

Granny past cow over witchcraft allegations

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Granny past cow over witchcraft allegations

Brighton Chiseva

Zaka – An elderly woman from Mharadza village, Headman Nyamutaki
under Chief Bota was recently fined a cow for accusing her village head of
bewitching her.
Ketsia Zuva appeared in the Zaka
Magistrates; Court at Jerera where she was convicted but spared jail.
Efforts to get a comment from the
village head were futile as his phone was not reachable but Headman Nyamutaki, real
name Maxwell Chaminuka, confirmed the incident.
“She was reported to the police and was taken to court but due to her advanced age, she was spared jail time. However, the village
head demanded that he be paid a cow and culturally that is the norm. She had to pay the fine,” said Nyamutaki.
Nyamutaki said the whole issue
started when the village head found human faeces in his house and called a meeting where he warned the culprit to come forward or risk
unspecified action.
“The next day, Zuva came forward
and said her grandchild was the responsible. The matter was brought to my court so I sought audience with both of them and the matter was resolved amicably.
After a few months’ time, Zuva had some problems with her leg and she accused the village head of bewitching her over the
previous incident and that is how the issue ended up in the higher court,” said Nyamutaki.

Madzibaba flees shrine after raping minor

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Madzibaba flees shrine after raping minor

Cephas Shava
MWENEZI – A
self-styled prophet of Madzibaba Enguvo Tsvuku church has disappeared after
allegedly raping a 16-year-old girl who had been consulting fo healing, TellZim
News has learnt.
The
prophet, popularly known as Madzibaba Joshua, could not be found at his shrine
at the growth point when people went there looking for him last week.
Ward
18 Councillor Albert Mashiri said women and children must be wary of dubious
churches sprouting everywhere and their so-called prophets.
“There
is a case of rape involving Madzibaba Joshua which is currently being
investigated by the police. When we heard about the matter, we visited the
victim’s place of residence together with a team from the department of social
welfare and the Justice for Children (JCT) and we compiled our own reports,”
said Mashiri.
The
victim, who is from Nyajena, is said to be a form three school dropout who was
employed as a housemaid at Rutenga.
“When
the girl first visited the prophet, she was told that she possessed some mermaid
spirits that required continuous exorcism. When she returned for the second
time, the rape ordeal began and lasted for a long time. The culprit would
always threaten her against divulging the abuse, warning that she would go mad
if she ever did,” said a source.
Other
sources said the matter came to light when prophets at the girl’s own church
asked her to confess the sin of adultery which they accused her of committing.
That is when the minor opened up about the rape ordeal, leading to a police
report being made.
TellZim
News managed to visit the shrine where the self-styled prophet used to conduct
his services and the place was completely deserted.
  

Citizens want resolution of Gukurahundi massacres, says NPRC

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Citizens want resolution of Gukurahundi massacres, says NPRC

Munyaradzi
Goche
MUTARE – Zimbabweans are
united in their call for the resolution of Gukurahundi atrocities to give
grieving victims and their families’ closure, the National Peace and Reconciliation
Commission (NPRC) heard during a meeting held in Mutare recently.
Speaking at a strategic and policy framework meeting
recently, NPRC commissioner Choice Ndoro said people in areas that they had
visited had demanded that the matter be resolved once and for all.
“People in Kitsiyatota (in Bindura) demanded that we deal with the
Gukurahundi issues in the name of Ubuntu. They said some fellow Zimbabweans in
Midlands and Matebeleland were grieving and wanted closure,” Ndoro said.
She said her commission was going to ensure that the
issue was handled with the guidance of the victims.
“The victims will need to guide us in tackling this
issue because each person was affected differently and would have their own
preferences in dealing with this,” Ndoro said.
She said they were preparing to consult widely in
order to deal with the issue that claimed over 20 000 lives and continues to
divide the nation close to four decades after independence. “We want to learn
from across the content; from the people of Sierra Leone, Rwanda and South
Africa as well as read about how Cambodia handled similar issues,” Ndoro said.
She noted that while the signing of the Unity Accord
in 1987 and the stability-inducing government of national unity in 2008 laid
some foundation for national healing and reconciliation, more still needed to
be done as that alone was not enough.
“Unity Accord and GNU did not resolve these issues….Yes,
something was done but was not enough. Part of the mandate of the commission is
to deal with the root problem which previous efforts did not deal with,” Ndoro
said.
She said there was need for people to always be
cautious of their actions as the country was still grappling with issues that
happened long before colonization.
“Before you think of doing anything remember you are
leaving a legacy for your children,” she said.

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