By Beatific Gumbwanda

CHIREDZI- There is little hope for the construction of the Chilonga bridge as the government through the Deputy Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Development Joshua Sacco said they had since identified four sites for the bridge and investigations to establish the most convenient one were underway.
Sacco was responding to questions raised by Chiredzi Central Member of Parliament (MP) Ropafadzo Makumire who quizzed him on when the government was going to address the Chilonga bridge issue that was causing the death of people every rainy season.
Makumire probed the minister to explain the delays in the rehabilitation of the bridge, which connects southern rural Chiredzi and Chiredzi Town, and to further explain when construction works on the bridge will resume.
“I want to ask the Minister whether we have a time frame for the completion of Chilonga bridge because it was washed away in 2000, and since then people from communities that are across the bridge find it difficult to access help from the other side,” quizzed Makumire.
Sacco responded saying they were doing investigations on the proposed sites and when done they would then request funds from the Ministry of Finance.
“My answer to Hon Makumire is that we have found proposed sites which we identified at the moment, we are looking at site 4 so that we investigate how much it would cost to put a bridge there.
“Those investigations will look at geological formations which will give us guidance on the amount of money that is needed for that bridge to be constructed. After those investigations, we will come up with an estimated cost and that is when we will look for that money from the Ministry of Finance so that our bridge will be built,” said Sacco.
Makumire also raised the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructural Development to explain to the house the delays in the completion of roads in Chiredzi, particularly the Inyathi Road, and to further state when it is expected to be completed.
Sacco responded saying the contract was terminated after the contractor left the site over payments and showed no interest in coming back when the funds were availed.
“Under the Emergency Roads Rehabilitation Programme Phase 2 (ERRP 2) which is being implemented through our Ministry, and whose mandate is to restore the navigability of roads, works are underway on the completion of Inyathi Road.
“To date the contractor has made significant progress on the project as the works were above 80 percent before being suspended.
“The works were suspended by the contractor who abandoned the site in July 2022 due to delays in payment of outstanding obligations.
“For the past few months the treasury has made significant efforts in clearing the outstanding payments but the contractor was not willing to go back on site, hence the contract was terminated mutually,” said Sacco.
Makumire however disputed that the works were ever on 80 percent.
Makumire asked when the government was going to put in place funds to rehabilitate Chivhu-Gutu/Chiredzi Road as well as the government policy on the deployment of dedicated electrical power lines to essential social services facilities like water treatment plants and government hospitals, in exempting them from load shedding to guarantee efficient and sufficient service delivery.
Chilonga Bridge plays a pivotal role in the development of Chiredzi District as it connects Chiredzi South with the Central Business District (CBD), creating the shortest route from Chiredzi Central to Maputo through Sango Border post in Chiredzi South, where Joey Sithole is the Member of Parliament.
The Chilonga causeway claims at least five lives each rainy season since 2000 when Chipinda Bridge was washed away by Cyclone Eline.

By Staff Reporter

ZVISHAVANE – There are hopes for better service delivery mainly in terms of refuse collection as Zvishavane Town Council recently commissioned two refuse trucks.
The trucks which were bought to the tune of US$276 000 were supplied by a company called Conplant and landed in the town a few weeks ago.
Zvishavane Town Council Chairperson Takarangana Keta said the funds used to purchase the two important vehicles were internally generated and were aimed at maximizing service delivery for the benefit of the ratepayers.
“We are proud of the latest development where we purchased two refuse trucks using internal funds, these trucks will improve refuse collection in the town and we want to make sure that our ratepayers get the services they deserve,” said Keta
He went on to say the town council had only two trucks which made it difficult to meet the demand but now they will be able to offer the service as per schedule.
“Before this delivery, we had two trucks which are old, so with the new development, we are now able to constantly collect refuse daily in town and weekly in all residential areas,” said Keta.
The mining town recently commissioned a fire tender and four other service vehicles that were bought through devolution and the vehicles are anticipated to promote efficiency in service delivery.
The development has brought relief to residents of the mining town some of whom lost property due to lack of fire-fighting equipment.
The fire tender vehicle is among a consignment that the government bought on behalf of the country’s 92 local authorities using part of 2021 devolution funds and it was commissioned together with the service vehicles by the Midlands Provincial Affairs and Devolution Minister Owen Ncube.
Several local authorities were operating with very old or no fire engines putting residents at risk of losing properties in case of fire outbreak.

…as Uhuru celebrations draw closer

By Courage Dutiro

Buhera Rural District Council (RDC) is anticipating that this year’s national Independence celebrations the district is hosting will unlock some economic fortunes for the locals especially those in businesses like food outlets, beverages and the hotel industry.
This year’s main celebrations will be held at Murambinda B Secondary School with Murambinda A Primary School hosting the children’s party and Murambinda B Primary School hosting the independence anniversary Gala.
The Rural District Council Chairperson, Thomas Matsenhura said the influx of visitors during the celebrations presents a golden business opportunity to local people that could leave them counting fortunes.
“We are expecting that local business people will benefit from the event as the whole nation will be here. Some villagers may benefit through selling local delicacies like nyii, mauyu, and other wild fruits found around Buhera,” said Matsenhura.
He also said with preparations for the event now at an advanced stage, they are already witnessing an influx of entrepreneurs setting up markets in Murambinda.
“People are already flocking into the district to look for places to set markets so that they make money during the celebrations,” he said.
The 2024 Independence Anniversary Celebrations will run under the theme “Zim@44: Unity, Peace and Development Towards Vision 2030.”
As usual Highlanders and Dynamos Football Clubs will compete for the President’s Independence Trophy while Manica Diamonds Football Club (Manicaland Province) will take on Simba Bhora Football Club from Mashonaland Central Province after the Children’s Party.

By TellZim Reporter

CHIREDZI – It was a hive of activity at this year’s Annual Career guidance exhibition held at Hlanganani High School in Chiredzi East Constituency on Friday, March 22, 2024.
The event which was attended by over 10 schools both primary and secondary in the constituency attracted a variety of career exhibitors from different walks of life.
Among the exhibitors were those from education, veterinary services, entrepreneurs, agriculture, cosmetology, construction, police and the media.
The hosting school head Alington Matsilele said such events empower learners to make informed decisions about their future careers before they leave school.
“The event is important to learners as it helps them to make informed decisions when choosing career paths in life. I encourage learners to attend such activities as they are important,” said Matsilele.
Entertainment was given by young poets like Lorraine Mujaki and Junior Councilor Nicole Gunda.
Learners from various schools were happy to learn about different career prospects and opportunities.
Among the primary schools which attended were Jekero, Mupinga, Mutapurwa, Machoka, Nyahanga, Muteyo and Mwenje.
Secondary and high schools that participated in the event were Sangwe, Dumisani, Mupinga, Ndali, Save Adventist, and the host Hlanganani High School.

By Beverly Bizeki

The just ended Annual General Meeting (AGM) at Victoria Primary School and election of a new committee despite marred with clashes between the administration team and School Development Committee has attracted negativity within the education sector with analysts saying the meeting was not procedural.
Speaking to TellZim News, Progressive Teacher’s Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ) president Dr Takavafira Zhou said the previous committee was right to ask for an extension of the AGM date to create time for resolving pending issues and said the training mentioned was just an excuse to get things done the admin’s way.
“The appointment of a new SDC must never be the prerogative of the admin but parents. This does not mean the SDC must extend its term of office but that there was nothing wrong to extend the AGM to April more so because there were outstanding issues that need to be resolved. The training by Ministry (MoPSE) is just an alibi,” said Dr Zhou.
Dr Zhou further said the contentious supplier’s excuse of having been robbed was no justification for failing to deliver as expected, blaming the admin of taking over the roles the SDC in managing the school’s accounts.
“The theft suffered by the supplier is no excuse to fail to meet a contractual agreement. The procurement seems to have been defective, with ex officio, head and deputy playing roles they should never have played. It is the SDC that manages the accounts but the admin seems to have usurped the powers of a substantive SDC.
“There is no way a new substantive SDC can be appointed without the chair and treasurer of the previous SDC who ordinarily must chair the meeting and present reports before resolution and appointment of the new,” he said.
Former Treasurer of the committee Jonah Wakurawarerwa concurred with Dr Zhou and said the meeting was shroud and questioned why the head continued to protect the supplier.
“Indeed the meeting was not procedural. We can provide details of how we tried to postpone the meeting on the 13th and 15th after receiving communication that I as a treasurer had an exam on the 26th. We tried by all means to have this postponed. The handbook clearly states that all members must be present at an AGM and it is a must that the treasurer present financial report which is the reason why we wanted it postponed. We were going to the AGM even if the contractor had not supplied but we hoped that the gathering of the parents will rectify the challenge but we failed to attend. I communicated with the chairperson on the 11th that I had exams and tried to push for a postponement to no avail.
“The meeting was a nonevent and what worries me most is why the head is protecting the contractor and the gathering. Surprisingly, the clerk who is supposed to be the paymaster is the one who presented the financial report which is wrong,” said Wakurawarerwa.
Commenting on the matter, Masvingo District Schools Inspector Ishmael Chigaba said it was only right that the meeting was conducted on the same day that had been given and argued that the same committee had set that date.
“A meeting cannot be postponed on the last minute after summoning parents and notifying them to attend the meeting on that date. The same SDC sat together and came up with the minutes and agreed on that date for the meeting which they could not attend again. They knew that the meeting had to be done on that day and the headmaster could not call off a meeting that was attended by over 400 parents,” said Chigaba.
Chigaba said Victoria Primary was one of the two outstanding schools which had not held their AGMs to elect a new committee and said this was delaying the induction process to be held by the ministry.
“The induction of SDC members is not something new to the ministry, last year we held such a training and we exchange DSIs from several districts. The induction of SDCs is done at provincial level and this was one of the schools that was lagging behind. It is only proper that members go through an induction to familiarize them with the systems. We want to avoid conflicts at schools,” he said.
On the issue of the supplier getting paid before delivery of materials, Chigaba said he had not received such a report.
“I haven’t heard about the issue of payment to a supplier before delivery of materials if there is such a case then we can always send a team of auditors from the ministry. It must be noted that a handover takeover can be done where there are some unfinished projects,” Chigaba said.
Some sources who commented on this publication’s WhatsApp platforms said there were suspicions of corruption going on at the school.
“There is also preference to a single supplier of the majority of these goods. Heard there is a classroom block that was condemned by the ministry of public works due to use of substandard bricks. It is said the block endangered the life of occupants once commissioned,” said some of the participants.
The two parties were divided over a number of issues including the incompletion of some projects under the SDC and unavailability of some members in the committee on the advised date with the admin stating that the tenure of the committee had long expired.
The school head Dr Rameck Mashuro said the AGM was not rushed saying they had agreed on the date but the committee later started giving excuses.
On the issue of undelivered materials he said they were already at the school and said it was the committee that forced the accounts clerck to pay the supplier before delivery in order to campaign for another term.
“We did not rush the AGM but we had agreed with the previous committee on the date and they only started giving excuses after we had been done with the minutes.
“There is no corruption because they are the ones who forced the accounts clerk to pay the supplier before delivery. They were doing this in order to campaign for another term because the AGM was fast approaching.
“As it is all the materials have been supplied you can come to see at the school. The challenge is that they were not prepared to leave their positions as of yet. I don’t know why they wanted to insist on remaining in the committee panodyiweiko pano paVictoria Primary? It is just voluntary work but they did not want to let go. The new committee was appointed by ministry on April 5. The previous committee was indeed troublesome as they would always roam around the school disturbing our work,” he said.
The tension was put to an end after the school conducted its AGM on March 26, 2024, which dissolved the old committee.