By Cephas Shava

Mwenezi – Former Mwenezi district organizer of the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) then led by Nelson Chamisa, Tineyi Mapepa who has been facing charges of inciting violence was on Tuesday, July 16 sentenced to 36 months behind bars by Mwenezi Magistrate Conceptor Ngwerume after a full trial.
Mapepa (46) of village 4 Muzhanjire Ranch in Mwenezi District was being charged with incitement as defined in Section 187(1) of the Criminal Law Codification and Reform Act Chapter 9:23.
He was being represented by Noble Chinhanu of the Jiti Law Chambers and had pleaded not guilty to the charges but was, however, found guilty after a full trial.
Ngwerume sentenced Mapepa to 36 months behind bars of which 16 months were conditionally suspended and he will serve an effective 20 months in prison.
It was the state’s case as presented by Prosecutor Leyton Katsidzira that on July 23, 2023 while at Rutenga Business Centre in Mwenezi at around 1415hours Mapepa convened a meeting on behalf of the CCC party at the business center. The meeting was sanctioned by the police to start at 1400hrs and to end at 1600hrs.
The State argued that since Mapepa was one of the CCC leaders, at 1600 hrs he was asked by police officers to disperse the crowd but the accused reportedly refused as he allegedly started to tell people not to disperse and the crowd heeded up until 1700 hrs when a convoy of then party leader Chamisa arrived at Rutenga Growth Point.
The State further argued that police officers approached Mapepa and his crowd to try and disperse them but he and other members pelted them with stones, threatening to assault them. The officers later on managed to disperse the crowd.
Mapepa was then subpoenaed by police to attend court months after the incident, subsequently leading to his arrest, trial, and conviction for incitement.

By Brighton Chiseva

MASVINGO – After failing to fulfill most of its campaign promises, Zanu PF is worried by developmental activities being done by members of the opposition in the ruling party’s strongholds.
This was revealed by the party’s National Political Commissar Munyaradzi Machacha who said the party had noted a heightened number of activities by the opposition mainly the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) warning MPs to be alert lest they will lose in 2028.
“The party relies on you so that the party’s visibility in the constituencies remain high but some of you are now absentee MPs in your constituencies. Some of you could be on genuine assignments for parliament but remember our enemy is taking advantage of your absence.
“We are seeing heightening activity of the opposition especially CCC in our strongholds. They are organizing themselves doing meetings at their households. Some are organizing sporting tournaments while others are giving out mealie meal since there is drought. After winning, our MPs went to Harare and did not come back like they have gone to South Africa,” said Machacha.
Former Zanu PF stalwart Dzikamai Mavhaire’s son Moses Mavhaire who was representing the Nelson Chamisa-led CCC in Masvingo Central is one opposition member who has been organizing sport tournaments and donating food among other aid in the community.
Machacha said MPs should be visible to the electorate even if they do not have money to give them saying they needed to show love to their electorate if they are to make it in the next election.
“So MPs, we urge you to go back to the people even if you do not have money. It’s good to just pass through communities greeting people. It doesn’t mean that you have to go there when you have something to give them. They need love and advice, they have to come to you asking for advice and you refer them to responsible authorities. That is what they want, you are facilitating development that way,” said Machacha.
He said being absent would lead to the sitting MPs losing during primaries and that would mean that the party would have new faces in parliament every election which was costly for the party and government itself.
“We are having a challenge where we have new faces every time. The new MPs are elected, by the time they learn about their responsibilities and also deliver in their constituencies, the five year term would have lapsed and a new team gets in again. How will we return the experience and institutional memory every five years? The contacts you would have made will be lost and that is a disaster for Zanu PF. You have to be loved by the electorate because we need MPs who do at least 2 terms and that strengthens the party,” said Machacha.
Machacha said Zanu PF relied on Masvingo and had potential because of numbers and also had agricultural potential that if fully utilized it could feed the whole country and the rest of the southern region.
“No one can doubt that you want your President. You were blessed with Apostolic and Zion churches that promote child bearing so you have the numbers. However, in 2023 your votes decreased from 318964 in 2018 to 307383. However, even Chamisa’s fell from 171 438 in 2018 to 167814 in 2023 which shows there was a general apathy. However, we want to agree here that this will not happen again in Masvingo,” he said.
Machacha was responding to concerns that had been raised by the Provincial Chairperson Robson Mavhenyengwa who had said MPs were not supporting the party’s restructuring exercise and that was delaying progress.
Mavhenyengwa also asked for an extension of the timeframe to finish off the restructuring exercise.
He said they were facing challenges in areas where there were independent candidates saying people did not understand that standing as independent mean automatic expulsion and that was affecting the cell registration exercise.
“We have challenges in areas where there were independent candidates, Gutu East and Mwenezi West. There are some people who are failing to understand that an independent candidate expelled self by standing as such. There are also some of us who do not want to accept those who were following an independent candidate when they want to return,” said Mavhenyengwa
Mavhenyengwa also complained that they had fuel as well as transport challenges and said some MPs were forgetting that they came from the party.
“We have some MPs who are not helping, even when cell verification is done in their constituencies, they do not go there and do not even know the number of cells in their constituencies. They forget they come from the party. I got some names of those not taking part from the DCC chairpersons and we are going to call them and remind them that the positions they have belong to the party,” said Mavhenyengwa.

… as Masvingo pushes for Mnangagwa third term

By Brighton Chiseva

MASVINGO – The Zanu PF National Political Commissar Munyaradzi Machacha said Masvingo has put him in a tight spot after calls for the extension of Mnangagwa’s rule with another term.
Machacha was responding to calls made by speakers at a Zanu PF Provincial Inter-District meeting held at Masvingo Poly last Saturday where he said Masvingo had given him a huge task since Mnangagwa recently promised to retire in 2028.
“Everything starts in Masvingo. You once sang a song ‘Kumagumo kune nyaya’ and we saw it happening. Now the President spoke in Mutare and said when his two terms lapse he wants to go and rest. He said he would leave someone to finish his vision. Zvino Masvingo yati kwete, ngavarambe vachingotonga. Zvino ndondoti chii kuna President. Ndonoti President Masvingo yati ngavarambe vachingotonga. Ivo vachiti ndoda kumbozorora? Varume muri kundipa mutoro unorema. Zvisinei mutoro wacho ndichatakura. (Now Masvingo is saying no, he should continue ruling. So what am I going to tell him? Should I tell him that Masvingo is saying you should continue? You are giving me a burden, however, I will carry it),” said Machacha amid ululations and shouts.
The crowd shouted that Mnangagwa did not vote himself to be President but it was them who voted for him, so he should listen if they call for another term.
Provincial Chairperson Robson Mavhenyengwa told Machacha that Masvingo was united and whatever they declared would pass.
“Let me assure you sir that Masvingo is united. Everyone supports Zanu PF and President Mnangagwa. No one does anything without the other and if you want anything to do with Zanu PF come to Masvingo. If we say President Mnangagwa will still be there that means it’s a collective voice,” said Mavhenyengwa.
Other top leadership members who were present at the meeting included Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution Ezra Chadzamira, Minister of State in the President’s Office Lovemore Matuke and Zanu PF Secretary for Mines and Mining Development Paul Mangwana.
They all chanted the slogan ‘2030 VaMnangagwa vanenge vachipo’ although the president recently announced that he was going to step down at the end of his second term.
Everyone who spoke at the meeting did the same slogan except for Machacha, and every song that was sung there was an endorsement of Mnangagwa’s third term.
Earlier, soon after Mnangagwa announced that he was going to leave office in 2030, Mavhenyengwa told TellZim News that Masvingo was going to decide its position regarding the third term issue at the inter-district meeting.
Commenting on the issue, MDC party leader Douglas Mwonzora, who was co-chairperson of the 2013 constitutional-making board said there was no way Mnangagwa could secure a third term unless he had torn the constitution since it was designed in a way that any change to the term limit cannot benefit the incumbent.
“There is no way Mnangagwa can get a third term unless they tear the constitution. When we designed the constitution we took cognizance of issues like these and we made sure that no sitting President can benefit from any change of the constitution with regards to term limits,” said Mwonzora.
Another constitutional law expert Professor Lovemore Madhuku said it was not feasible to have the constitution changed for the President saying it was unconstitutional and already too late.
“That is irrelevant; the constitution cannot be changed now. Whether the President wants to or not, he has to step down. The announcement of his retirement is not a voluntary act but a constitutional dictate.
“The people who are pushing for his third term assume they have the power to change the constitution but it is too late for that now,” said Prof Madhuku.