Tinomutenda Midzi

MASVINGO – Police officers from the district anti-stock-theft unit have urged people to embrace the use of branding irons, which include detachable iron cast alphabets, to limit stock theft cases in the province.
Speaking at a meeting between Montana Carswell Meats (MC Meats) and its producers last week, Constable Winston Mabeka from the Business Against Stock Theft (BAST) forum, pleaded with the farmers to use branding irons saying it is for their own good.
“We all know that Masvingo has high rates of stock-theft and using branding irons can be a panacea to this ongoing theft crisis. Branding helps to search the owners of the beasts and by doing so, we will not have stray animals,” he said.
Branding is done in three categories namely provincial, district and personal branding.
To brand livestock, an application has to be done to the Provincial Administrator (PA) and District Administrator (DA).
Constable Mabeka said it is important to have all three brands per livestock.
“Having all the three brands per livestock is advisable. When we want to know the owner of a beast, we first check the provincial brand, the district brand and finally the personal brand and this perfects the owner of the beast,” Mabeka said.
This comes after the idea by police national anti-stock-theft co-ordinator, Assistant Commissioner Erasmus Makodza, who in August this year said people should brand their livestock as proposed by law enforcers to fight stock-theft.news

Jubilee Mahlamvana

ZVISHAVANE – The Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) and the Vehicle Inspection Department (VID) are now sniffing each other’s scent in a bid to respond to corruption outcries in the law enforcement sector.
This comes amid reports that police officers own the majority of ‘Fun Cargo’ vehicles that cause many accidents in towns and cities, including Zvishavane.
Zvishavane has recorded several cases of Fun Cargo-linked accidents, claiming many souls, the majority of which are said to belong to police officers.
Sources say a high-ranking delegation from ZRP visited Zvishavane last week to investigate the goings-on in and around the town with regards to traffic law enforcement.
The move is said to be a result of a Criminal Investigation Department (CID) officer (name withheld) who ferried people from Zvishavane to Mberengwa in a Fun Cargo and was involved in a fatal accident which claimed two lives while three other people got badly injured.
Close to 30 vehicles were impounded by the VID last week Thursday when eight VID vehicles from Gwanda and Bulawayo unexpectedly stormed Madeira complex, targeting ‘mushikashika’ operators who use Fun Cargos to ferry people in and around Zvishavane.
Sources said several of the impounded pirate taxis were then discovered to be owned by police officers.
“We heard that most of the Fun Cargos that are causing accidents here belong to police officers and we have come specifically for them,” said one officer who was part of the team that visited the town from Harare.
The officer is well-known for handling tough traffic problems and has promised to work hard to bring the culprits to book.
Many road users, however, criticised what they called an indiscriminate seizure of all Fun Cargo vehicles regardless of their ownership and business on the road.
Another motorist said the operation was very crooked since it victimises those who innocently hustle for a living.
“This is very unfair because we are being bombarded left, right and centre with the police on roadblocks everywhere slapping us with US$50.00 tickets to pave way for their vehicles to make money,” said the motorist.news

Increase Gumbo

CHIREDZI – In an incident that left Chiredzi residents shell-shocked, a 33-year-old police officer allegedly raped a 21-year-old pregnant Mozambican woman who was locked in the charge office for an alleged theft incident.
He was remanded in custody to October 24, for continuation of trial after he appeared at the magistrates’ court.
The court, led by Magistrate Tafadzwa Mhlanga, heard that the victim – a Mozambican lady who was presently staying in Chiredzi on an unidentified address – was in police custody after she was arrested for theft.
It is alleged that the police officer, Alec Mhlanga, who was doing charge office duties, allegedly raped the woman once without protection.
It is the State’s case that on October 11, 2016, the complainant was arrested and taken to Chiredzi police station facing charges of theft.
At the police station, she was handed to Mhlanga and the other police officer who was on duty because her condition was not proper for her to be locked in police cells.
The court also heard that during the night the complainant requested to use the toilet and she was escorted by Mhlanga while the other constable remained in the charge office.
After using the toilet, the woman was taken by Mhlanga to the investigations room where he told her that she was facing a very serious charge and the only way out was to have sexual intercourse with him so that he would facilitate her release from custody.
The court also heard that Mhlanga then ordered the complainant to hold the bench and raped her once without protection and ordered her not to tell anyone.
It is alleged that Mhlanga then took the lady back to the charge office where she spend the rest of the night.
The matter came to light the following morning when the complainant realised that Mhlanga had done nothing to facilitate her release and she later reported the case to the Constable who had taken over from Mhlanga in the morning, leading to his arrest.
Mhlanga is facing two charges, one of rape as defined in section 65 of the Criminal Law Codification and Reform Act and the other of abuse of duty as a public officer as defined in section 174 of the same act.
Liberty Hove prosecuted.                                                                                                                                             news

Isabel Ndlovu

ZVISHAVANE – Lot Sibanda of Mandava in Zvishavane was recently dragged to the Zvishavane Magistrates’ Court facing charges of deliberately destroying a colleague’s car.
He appeared before magistrate Peter Madiba accused of hiring a person to damage Admire Mayenga’s car and was remanded out of custody since the magistrate found it necessary for him to undergo psychiatric tests before standing trial.
Prior to his appearance, Sibanda had behaved weirdly; refusing to pay for a soft drink and some biscuits he had taken from a vendor outside court.
After eating, he said he did not have any money, and was put under police custody until his wife rescued him by paying.
In court, Sibanda stood accused of assigning an unidentified person to go and cut up Admire Mayenga’s car with a chisel.
The assigned person allegedly went to where the car was parked and did as he was told to do but the victim was later notified about the incident and he went to the police station to make a report.
When the police attended the scene they found the car in shambles.
The roof, door and the bonnet had been completely hacked off.
In his defence, Sibanda said he was tasked by council to clear all the scrap in Mandava as part of his campaign to stand as a Ward Councillor candidate in the 2018 elections.
He said he thought Mayenga’s car was scrap.
Talent Tadenyika stood for the state.news

file pic

CHIREDZI – The Lowveld Youth Development Services Association (LYDSA) last week rejected the Chiredzi’s 2017 draft budget at a consultative budget meeting held in Tshovani saying the draft does not create new revenue streams for the town.
Aleck Macharaga, the youth organisation’s chairman for Chiredzi ward 4, said the budget lacks provisions for projects that will bring new revenue to the council.
He said authorities must have explored other avenues of earning new revenue rather than rely solely on residents’ water bills.
“Council should consider other possible ways that can bring revenue to Chiredzi for instance the Chitsanga Hall where people used to come and pay to watch movies every Thursdays. We also have swimming pools that need renovations for them to attract paying swimmers,” Macharaga.
Another member of the LYDSA, Lloyd Simango also criticised the budget saying it does not provide for infrastructural upgrades and renovations.
“Let’s not rely on water revenue alone because, after all, proposed improvements of the Magwaza water systems in previous budgets have yielded nothing. Council has been budgeting for that project for a long time now but no change has been made. We are tired of empty promises,” said Simango.
Other young people who attended the meeting also criticised council plans to lease Chigarapasi beer hall saying the move would deprive the town of an important revenue source and worsen service delivery.
“Council should renovate Chigarapasi beer hall so that it regains its status as a thriving business that make money and pay the salaries of workers. We must follow the contemporary trends and install new technologies there; people no longer want to watch a soccer match on a small screen,” said one attendant.news

Brighton Chiseva

ZAKA – Jonah Mugarajira Mushaya, who is Headman Mushaya, has attacked the apostolic sects known as Madzibaba for their practice of tying red and white cloths to trees, which he claimed offended members of other church denominations as well as non-believers.
Speaking at the burial of Muringidzi Hurudza in Chivhuru village, the headman demanded that the practice immediately stop saying if it is part of worshipping, those who practice it must then do it at their places of worship and not everywhere along the roads.
“Kana chiri icho chitendero chenyu itirai pamba penyu kwete panzira kana pane dzimwe nzvimbo dzeruzhinji (if it is your belief, do it at your own places and not everywhere),” said Mushaya
He rebuked the ‘kushandirwa’ practice which sometimes involves the dumping of broken pieces of clay pots at junctions as barbaric and said it was not welcome in his area.
“Zvekunyora mazita evanhu pachipepa mosunga netambo tsvuku mokanda muhari motsveta munzira handidi kana kuzvinzwa.
“I will send my advisors to investigate and if you are found, you must know that you will pay a heavy fine for it,” warned the chief.
Mushaya also said all people in his area should build toilets at their homes and declared that open defecation was punishable in his area.
He urged his people to move with time and stop using bush toilets so as to preserve their health and said he was giving those without toilets a short period to build before he starts punishing those without toilets at their homesteads.
Recently, Chief Marozva of Bikita threatened to impose a fine in the form of a goat on every homestead that does not have a proper toilet.news

City of Masvingo has erected solar-powered traffic lights at the intersection of Robert Mugabe Road and Leopold Takawira Street in the CBD.
The intersection is one of the busiest in town and has seen a number of fatal accidents over the years.
Residents were pleased by the prospect of safer passage through the intersection with lower chances of getting involved in accidents.
“The place was a black sport. Motorists were prone to accidents at that place. Last Saturday evening, two cars collided at that spot and it was fortunate that nobody got hurt,” said one taxi driver.
Other motorists urged council to erect more traffic lights in the city saying there are other dangerous intersections that cannot be ignored any longer.
“The intersection of Robert Mugabe and Simon Muzenda close to Puzzey and Payne is quite dangerous. Let’s have traffic lights there,” said one motorist.news

CHIREDZI – The Chiredzi Town Council is planning to lease Chigarapasi beer hall, a move which has divided opinion within the local authority as others stand opposed to the idea on the grounds that they consider the beer hall one of the most significant revenue earner for the town council.
Samuel Mashonganyika, the town council’s financial committee chairperson and ward 7 councillor, confirmed the move during a recent full council meeting saying running the beer hall was no longer sustainable.
Chigarapasi is one of the biggest council beer halls in the country but is understood to be making vast losses and authorities are now eager to dispose of its interests in the business.
“We are making losses so we feel we should put the bar on rental rather than for us to keep operating it. We would be wasting money.
“Some council beer halls are now crèches and some are lying idle. For long, we have been putting money into the beer hall but at the end, we fail to pay the staff,” said Mashonganyika.
Chigarapasi operates 24 hours a day and is an entertainment hub for low income earners in Chiredzi; where many workers of the town’s sugar plantations converge for drinks.
Another ward councillor, Blessings Mazinyane was however not pleased by the new plans saying council should look for creative ways of sustaining the beer hall without disposing it.
“It is better for us to take a closer look and find where we are losing control resulting in the losses. Let’s try by all means to see how we can improve our management for we are the leaders of the day and make sure we put an extra effort to make the business viable,” said Mazinyani.
“So many activities are done at the place and people are making a living out of it. It’s better we try and manage the finances better,” he added.news