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Woman dumps live owl, snake at Gutu RCZ church

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Woman dumps live owl, snake at Gutu RCZ church
Kennedy Murwira

GUTU-Tongues were left wagging at the Reformed Church in Zimbabwe (RCZ) church in Mpandawana town when a woman dashed into the church premises and dropped a live owl before running away in broad daylight recently.
Eyewitnesses who include some church members said the woman also tried to offload a huge snake from her handbag but the snake immediately slid back in the bag each time it was thrown on the ground. Upon realising that people were watching her, the woman put the snake in the bag and took to her heels leaving a live owl in the church premises.
The people at the scene were afraid to run after her and watched bewildered as the woman ran away.
RCZ Reverend Julius Mutumburanzou based in Mpandawana confirmed the incident saying he only saw the owl but he was not sure of what happened to it the following morning.
“I saw the owl last week …it was near the church and a lot of people were shocked. However, I am not sure what happened to it,” said Rev Mutumburanzou.

Other eyewitnesses said the owl had a red cloth on it.
TellZim News was informed that some prophets from Madzibaba Apostolic sect were hired to kill and burn the owl. To this day, no one really knows the intention of the woman who dumped the owl.
Debates are still going on in several church WhatsApp groups with a lot of people expressing shock over the incident.
“I saw it happening with my eyes at around 1630 hours last week and I can’t believe my eyes hey …people are now evil,” posted one of the congregants on Mucheke RCZ Varume Vesungano WhatsApp group.
Although everyone believed that the woman was a witch, a Gutu villager Everisto Nhamburo said it was unusual for witches to behave like that in broad daylight. Nhamburo believed the woman was having problems with her witchcraft paraphernalia and may have believed that dumping everything before a church would free her from witchcraft and absolve her of any wrongdoing.

Mujuru finally meets Masvingo executive in Harare

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Mujuru finally meets Masvingo executive in Harare
…PDP provincial executive abandons Biti ..… Chitando says it’s time to move away from small corners

Golden Maunganidze

At least 300 people in party structures from all seven districts of Masvingo province who were supposed to meet their leader, former Vice President Joice Mujuru at a secret venue in Masvingo last week finally made arrangements and went to Harare where they held a no-holds-barred meeting with Mujuru on Thursday last week, TellZim News has learnt.
The meeting saw almost everyone from Tendai Biti’s People’s Democratic Party (PDP) provincial leadership except the chairperson and his secretary going all the way to Harare where they pledged their support for Mujuru.
PDP national executive member and former Masvingo Central legislator Jeffryson Chitando confirmed that he attended the meeting in Harare saying it was high time they moved away from small corners and join the majority in fighting the Mugabe regime.


“I attended the meeting; in fact I was the one who gave the vote of thanks. We are saying to Biti, look, it does not help to fight from our small corner, let’s have Mujuru as our president,” said Chitando.
Chitando quoted the book of Isaiah saying there was need for people to come and reason together in order to defeat ZANU-PF.
“There is nothing to hide here, we are now People First. I am already mobilising in the constituency and we shall never be after positions. All we want is to remove Mugabe and his wife Grace,” said Chitando.
TellZim News also learnt that war veterans from all seven districts of Masvingo were at the Harare secret meeting.
One war veteran who attended the meeting and refused to be named said they were convening a provincial meeting where they will officially announce their support for Mujuru.


“We are convening an emergency meeting as war veterans so that we pledge our support for Mujuru. She is our Bishop because she is going to give us direction in as far as political leadership is concerned….we are tired with Mugabe and his wife Grace because they take us as children and yet we went to war for the liberation of all,” said one of the war veterans.
People First provincial spokesperson Kudzai Mbudzi confirmed the development saying the meeting had to be held in Harare for security and strategic reasons.
Mbudzi said people from Masvingo who attended the meeting unanimously called for the immediate launch of the party.
“The loud voice was that let’s launch the party now. Mai Mujuru accepted the call and promised that the party will be launched early next year. She also assured people that she (Mujuru) was not being pushed by anyone else … she had seen it fit to fight ZANU-PF,” said Mbudzi.
Mbudzi said it was all joy after the meeting when people from each district took turns to have photo sessions with Mujuru.
In his rating, Mbudzi said Masvingo province had the highest number of people who met Mujuru and the entire national leadership.
This publication was informed that former MPs who include Rensome Makamure, Oliver Chirume, Enerst Mudavanhu, Irvine Dzingirai, Kudakwashe Bhasikiti among others attended the meeting.
Prominent Masvingo lawyer, Rodney Makausi of Saratoga Law Chambers also attended the meeting.

Council signs US$73m deal with Chinese company

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Council signs US$73m deal with Chinese company
Upenyu Chaota
Masvingo City council has signed a $73 million deal with a Chinese company, CAMC Engineering Company Ltd, that is aimed at upgrading waste and water treatment infrastructure and facilitate effective service delivery in the city.
The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed in Harare during the state visit of the Chinese President Xi Jinpin to Zimbabwe.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Minister of State for Masvingo Provincial Affairs Shuvai Mahofa said that the deal will go a long way in making Masvingo a better city.

Masvingo Town Clerk (right) during the signing ceremony in Harare
“The implementation of this agreement will result in a bigger and better Masvingo. This occasion is historic for the signing ceremony has taken place during the state visit by the Chinese President Xi Jinpin to Zimbabwe.
“I am here representing the government of Zimbabwe to support the partnership between Masvingo City Council and our friends from China. This is a Public Private Partnership (PPP) which is in line with our Zimbabwe government policy,” said Mahofa.
She added that the signing of the deal shows that President Mugabe’s visit to China in 2013 was bearing fruits.
“President Mugabe was in China in 2013 looking for funding for infrastructure projects. We are happy that Masvingo City Council is heeding the Look East Policy,” she added.
Masvingo City mayor Hubert Fidze said the signing of this agreement will go a long way in making sure that service provision is improved in the city.
“I want to thank CAMC Engineering for attaching great value and importance to these projects. The level of acceptance and appreciation shows that the implementation of these projects will be a success. The success of these projects will lead to good service delivery and attract investment for the city,” said Fidze.
The signing of the agreement follows the signing of a similar agreement between City of Masvingo and CAMC Engineering in September this year for the upgrading of the city’s water supply and sewage system.

PTUZ gears up for annual conference

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PTUZ gears up for annual conference
Upenyu Chaota
The Progressive Teacher’s Union (PTUZ) will from the 10th to the 13th of December 2015 hold its annual conference at ZESA Training Centre in Harare where they will deliberate on issues that have affected the profession which they describe as ‘cold and calculated vandalism’.
This year’s conference will be running under the theme, “Education under Siege”.
PTUZ president Dr. Takavafira Zhou told TellZim News that the teaching profession has become a punching bag for every Tom and Dick and they are calling for immediate action to restore the dignity once associated with the profession.

          PTU president Takavafira Zhou
“A lot of things have happened without the teachers being consulted. All is dictated and they want teachers to say yes. Teachers have to be consulted on matters to do with their profession and be involved in all decision-making.
“Right now we have a defective curriculum and the government wants to give an impression that it is consulting yet they are not. They bring documents to us which they already have answers for. This is why we have chosen the theme “Education under Siege,” said  Zhou.
Zhou added that the government has lost all respect for teachers and it is stepping on the profession left, right and centre.
“Recently, the government sent an audit team to schools and a lot of teachers were affected. Genuine teachers could not receive their salaries for 3 months all because the audit was done by incompetent people.
“The Public Service wants to reduce its expenditure and teachers get caught up in the crossfire. Trainee teachers had their salaries cut by half and we ask why? There are trainee nurses, soldiers and police officers but we have never heard about them receiving half their salaries,” Zhou said.
He added that schools have been turned into war zones and there is no political will to invest in education.
“The 2016 budget does not cater for the education sector and much less for the well-being of teachers. Teachers haven’t been given any salary increment for years on end.
“Teachers are being asked to get their pay on weekends and not during the week. Public service inspectors are always in schools, creating a reign of terror in the education institutions. We never see these people in army barracks or police depots. This is why we say education is under siege,” added Zhou.
Zhou said that the conference will be attended by teachers’ unions from SADC which are affiliated to the Association of the Non Aligned Teachers’ Union of Sothern Africa (ANTUSA). The biggest teachers’ union from Britain, National Association of School Masters and University Women Teachers (NASMULT), will also send a delegation to the conference.

RCU Begins Construction of Main Campus

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RCU Begins Construction of Main Campus

The Reformed Church University (RCU), currently operating at Morgenster Mission in Masvingo, recently set itself on track to institutional growth and the provision of quality education with the beginning of the construction of its main campus, located approximately 7km outside Masvingo City along Bulawayo road.

Prof Wiseman Magwa
The infrastructural development project which according to the RCU Strategic Plan spans from 2015 to 2019, is in line with the advice of the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development which granted the RCU a licence in 2010.
Commenting on this development, RCU Vice Chancellor Professor Wiseman Magwa said, “In compliance with the requirements of our regulators, the Zimbabwe Council for Higher Education (ZIMCHE), the University shall develop infrastructure at its main campus in accordance with our strategic plan.
“To accommodate a growing student population, University operations are therefore expected to expand to cover the new campus during the period spanning 2015 to 2019. This development shall enable us to improve our service delivery, amplify our geographic footprint, and bring convenience to the majority of our existing and prospective students,” he added.
Professor Magwa further noted that RCU is at a crucial stage of growth and development, underpinned by a conscious effort to align all its operations to the niche of inclusive education as well as enhancing its capacity to deliver on its core mandate of teaching and learning, research and community service embedded in Christian values.”
Meanwhile, the RCU Business Development, Information and Public Relations department together with the University’s Fundraising Committee is intensifying RCU fundraising and resource mobilisation initiatives to augment existing infrastructural development capital.
The fundraising and resource mobilisation initiatives have seen a strong community response on the Founder Member Movement of the University through the Friends of the Reformed Church University (FRECU).
In a statement, Reformed Church University Deputy Director Business Development, Information and Public Relations, Stephen Chikozho, noted that the membership of the Friends of the Reformed Church University is open to all individuals and organisations who wish to support the construction of the University main campus.
“As part of our Building a Legacy campaign, invitations are being made to prospective and existing Friends of the Reformed Church University to develop the University by purchasing FRECU badges whose proceeds shall be used in the development of the University Campus in various aspects”, Mr Chikozho said.

Mujuru postpones Masvingo secret meeting

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Mujuru postpones Masvingo secret meeting
…opposition leaders scramble to get positions in People First

TellZim Reporter

Former Vice President and now People First leader Joice Mujuru who was supposed to hold a secret meeting with her top allies in Masvingo had to suddenly cancel the crucial briefing last week after it was realised that the planned meeting clashed with the First Lady Grace Mugabe’s Gutu visit, TellZim News has learnt.
Impeccable sources in the People First structures revealed that the organising committee in Masvingo had arranged a meeting which was going to see senior members from Tendai Biti’s People’s Democratic Party (PDP) being introduced to Mujuru.
Some of the former MDC MPs who are now in the PDP leadership (names supplied) were expected to pledge their support to Mujuru last Friday.
Over 100 position holders were expected to attend the secret meeting.
Although the People First provincial spokesperson Kudzai Mbudzi downplayed the issue of Mujuru’s secret visit, TellZim News understands that the Masvingo meeting was going to see members openly telling Mujuru – who they already call Mother Zimbabwe, that it was time they launched a political party with February 2016 being the latest time for the launch.
Some members were of the opinion that the party should be launched just before Christmas.

                              Joice Mujuru
“We wanted to tell Mujuru that we want the party to be launched before Christmas – we want an early Christmas present for Zimbabweans who have been patiently waiting for a change,” said a member who was supposed to attend the secret meeting.
Mbudzi requested for written questions from this publication but did not come back with responses by the time of going to press but he hinted that top MDC-T and PDP members had already joined People First.
“Well, I want to give you detailed responses therefore I request you to put your questions in writing. I can however confirm that people are flocking to our party especially former MPs from all political parties,” said Mbudzi.
Investigations by this publication reveal that around half of former MPs who are in PDP leadership have since joined People First.
One of the former MPs who refused to be named confirmed that he had since crossed the floor.
“The Masvingo meeting was going to be my second meeting with Mujuru. I have discovered that she (Mujuru) is very popular with the ordinary people and I have since decided to join her. It is premature to mention my name now because the party is not yet launched but I assure you that once the party is launched, we will all flock to People First,” said the former MP.
TellZim News could not establish the exact date that Mujuru will meet her supporters in Masvingo.

Council honours long serving employees

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Council honours long serving employees
Upenyu Chaota

Employees who served Masvingo city council for 10 to 30 years were all smiles last Friday after they received various prizes for their commitment and dedication to their work.
The workers received prizes and presents ranging from ploughs, wheelbarrows, pots, shovels and pick.
James Chibonga who was the longest serving employee after he worked for the council for 36 years walked tall after he received a plough, wheelbarrow, pot, pick and shovel, and certificate.
Acting mayor James Chiwara thanked the employees for their dedication to work.
“To the long service recipients, thank you for your commitment and dedication to the city of Masvingo. For those who have been here for more than 30years, it has been indeed a long association with the city of Masvingo. You have witnessed the growth of the institution as well as the many changes that have taken place here over the decades,” said Chiwara.

     Town Clerk  Adolf Gusha
“You have taken pride in your work and have gone the extra mile for your colleagues, your city and the public in general. You have exemplified our core values in your daily work and won the respect of your colleagues.Your strong sense of duty, tireless efforts and the sacrifice of your personal time has ensured the job is well done,” Chiwara added.
At least 32 staff members retirement awards while 12 employees received certificates for completing Red Cross first aid training.

Grace will never replace Mugabe – Mahofa

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Grace will never replace Mugabe – Mahofa
Increase Gumbo

CHIREDZI- Minister of State for Provincial Affairs for Masvingo, Shuvai Mahofa surprised hundreds of members of the Zanu-PF women’s league who gathered in Chiredzi showgrounds recently when she suddenly announced that the First Lady Grace Mugabe will never replace her husband President Robert Mugabe.
Mahofa was speaking at a function to celebrate Aliginia Samson’s co-option into the Masvingo provincial women’s league executive.
Mahofa said that she has never heard of a First Lady who replaced her husband as president.

                                   Shuvai Mahofa
She further asserted that people who do not understand politics and those who defected to People First were peddling unfounded rumours that the First Lady was eyeing the highest political office in the country in order to portray Grace as an unreasonable and greedy person.
 “I always mention it that Amai will never do that…only political novices think that she (Grace) wants to replace the President…No she does not harbour those ambitions.
“Where in the world have you ever seen the first lady replacing her husband? Go and read the constitution closely, nothing like that will ever happen,” said Mahofa.
However, members of the women’s league who attended the celebrations were not comfortable with Mahofa’s remarks on succession saying there was no need for her (Mahofa) to respond to rumours.
Mahofa – a well-known Grace ally, who has been in the press for dancing in front of Grace until she fainted, further said that the First Lady will not even be a Vice President (VP).
According to Mahofa, the two VPs were very senior in politics and Grace was only taking notes from them and not vice-versa.
“The VPs are her mentors. Amai is not that ambitious … do not be fooled by the Gamatox people who are circulating the rumours…do not be fooled please,” pleaded Mahofa.
Samson once contested in the 2008 harmonised elections for Chiredzi West constituency and lost to Moses Mare.

Masvingo RDC drags Rio Zim to court over 300k debt

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Upenyu Chaota
In a bid to recover an outstanding service charges debt from Rio Zim company which has ballooned to $300 000, Masvingo Rural District Council (MRDC) dragged the gold miners to court recently.
Masvingo RDC chief executive officer Martin Mubviro confirmed that Rio Zim owes them over $300 000 and hastened to say they have since taken legal action against the company.
“There are many institutions which owe the council but most of them have come up with payment plans which they are following religiously. The case with Rio Zim is totally different since they have failed to honour their payment plan.
“Rio Zim has not been forthcoming and they breached the payment plan we initially agreed on. Our coffers are dry and we rely on the rates paid by our people in order to improve the service delivery,” said Mubviro.
Councillors however, indicated during a full council meeting that they were not happy with the way the council lawyers, Mangwana and Partners have dragged feet over the matter. It emerged that the lawyers had been instructed to file papers but went for six weeks without taking any action.
 “Members were not happy with the way the lawyers were handling the debt collection for Rio Zim and agreed that debtors were supposed to be taken to court within a period of another 6 weeks. After some deliberations, members agreed that a letter should be written to Mangwana and Partners instructing them to take legal action against Rio Zim as soon as possible,” reads part of the minutes.
TellZim News was informed that a letter to Mangwana and Partners will however be accompanied by a delegation which was tasked to deal with the case.

Electricity scam: 145 Gutu farmers duped

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Electricity scam: 145 Gutu farmers duped
Kennedy Murwira

At least 145 farmers from Eastdale area in Gutu have vowed to engage the courts in a desperate bid to recover the money they were duped when they were asked to pay for an ill-fated electrification project in the area.
TellZim News was informed that it all started when a villager, one Masarira from Chiwara who has a plot in Eastdale area, convinced local farmers that he had received a loan to electrify his rural home but he needed their assistance so that they could also benefit from his initiative.
The farmers elected a committee to manage their funds and opened an account with the Commercial Bank of Zimbabwe (CBZ) under the name Eastdale Electrical Development Programme. They aimed to raise a total of 2,2 million dollars. The project was supposed to start in March 2014 and end in September 2014.
However, along the way the executive’s secretary general Josephat Zuvarigere, who is a headmaster at Taigara Secondary School proposed that they withdraw the money from the account so that they would venture into pen-fattening as a fundraising strategy aimed at boosting their financial base.
The farmers’ spokesperson Morgan Masheka said the pen-fattening project did not take off and they are now suspecting that the executive squandered the money.
Suspecting that their money is being abused, the farmers together with six schools namely Taigara Primary and Secondary Schools, Chikwiza, Rusununguko, Tashinga and Chivake schools are already engaging lawyers to seek redress from the courts.
Apparently, Zuvarigere is running a flourishing poultry project with about 3000 birds at the point of laying.
“Our money was stolen; we want to get our money back. We have since started the process of getting our money back and we are looking for lawyers to help us out of this mess,” said Masheka.
However, Zuvarigere has refuted the allegations saying his poultry project had nothing to do with the money contributed by the members.
Quizzed to elaborate on how they were using money, Zuvarigere said he had since resigned from the post of project secretary general.
 “I resigned four months ago…I have nothing to do with that project,” said Zuvarigere.
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