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Mid-Year Budget Review ignores informal sector: VISET

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Mid-Year Budget Review ignores informal sector: VISET

TellZim Reporter

The Vendors Initiative for Social
and Economic Transformation (Viset) has criticised the Mid-Year Budget Review recently
presented by the Minister of Finance and Economic Development Prof Mthuli Ncube,
saying it pays lip service to the struggles faced by people in the informal
sector of the economy.

In a statement released in the
wake of the budget statement, the organisation criticised many aspects of the
budget review including failure to release money for disbursement to the most
economically vulnerable citizens.

“It is saddening to note that to
date there has been no meaningful disbursements of the cushioning allowance for
informal traders that was announced back in April. The Minister, in his
presentation, spoke only of a harmonised social cash transfer that is said to
be targeting the poor in 23 districts, with 63000 households benefitting.

“In the interests of
transparency, it would be proper to disclose the quantum that these households
are receiving and through what payment method given the restrictions on bulk
payments by mobile service providers,” Viset says in the statement.

The organisation also expressed
displeasure that the money that government claimed to have set aside for social
welfare grants back in April has not been reviewed upwards despite the ravages
of inflation.

“There was no revision to the
amount previously announced as a stimulus package for business of ZWL 18.2
billion despite the fact that inflation has already decimated this amount
before we have even heard of any disbursements having been done.

“In light of the Minister’s own
acknowledgment that all sectors of the economy will record declines in
production, with the manufacturing sector in particular recording a -10 percent
drop, it is folly that not more resources were channelled in order to boost
production and food security,” the statement reads.

“With regards taxes, the
Intermediary Money Transfer Tax (IMTT) free threshold was raised from ZWL 100
to ZWL 300, in total disregard of the inflation rate reported to be north of
750 percent. The pay as you earn tax free threshold was raised from ZWL 2000 to
5000 but will however be insufficient to boost disposable incomes,” it further
reads.

 

High Court grants Kurauone bail

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High Court grants Kurauone bail

Virginia Njovo

MASVINGO – The High Court today granted MDC Alliance national youth
organising secretary Godfrey Kurauone $1000 bail, ending his 10-day long
languish in remand prison.

Justice Neville Wamambo concurred
with defence lawyer Martin Mureri, who is acting on behalf of the Zimbabwe
Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR), that Kurauone was not a flight risk.

The Masvingo Urban Ward 4 councillor
reported to the Masvingo police Law and Order Section on July 06 in the company
of Mureri and was immediately arrested for allegedly undermining the President.

He was taken to the Magistrates’ Court the next morning and was denied bail and spent all the following days at
Masvingo Remand Prison.

His arrest came in
the wake of the arrest of his alleged accomplices Ephraim Mutombeni and Godfrey
Mtimba on similar charges.

While Mtimba has been waiting to be informed about his court appearance date, Mutombeni was released
on bail on July 06 after languishing in remand prison for a week.

 

Police almost completely lockdown Masvingo

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Police almost completely lockdown Masvingo

Ratidzo Munembi

Residents in Masvingo today woke
up to an almost completely locked down city, with police mounting serious roadblocks
on the main roads leading into the CBD.

Close to Mucheke Bridge on the
main road leading to the high density suburbs, the police maintained a heavy
presence at Crafts Centre.

Many people were forced to
disembark and crossover into town on foot while some motorists simply turned
back in frustration.

The situation was similar along
all the other main roads getting into town, with police saying people should go
back home as only those providing ‘essential services’ were being allowed free
passage.

Masvingo provincial police spokesperson
Chief Inspector Charity Mazula told TellZim News the heightened lockdown was to
discourage unnecessary movement into town in light of the rising cases of
coronavirus.

“This is being done to limit the
number of people getting into town. As we all know, cases of coronavirus are
rising in the country and we want only people with good reasons to move around
to do so,” said Mazula.

She dismissed rumours that police
were reacting to expectations of politically-motivated demonstrations in light
of the street protests that opposition parties and some activists have slated
for July 31.

 

 

 

Covid-19 positive woman gives birth to healthy baby

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Covid-19 positive woman gives birth to healthy baby

Virginia Njovo

A female Covid-19 case isolated at Rujeko Clinic in Masvingo on Sunday,
July 12 delivered a healthy baby boy with the assistance of a team of dedicated
City of Masvingo nurses, TellZim News has learnt.

The woman came from South Africa and she was quarantined at Masvingo
Teachers College with the last group before the college was decommissioned as
quarantine center at the beginning of June.

After testing positive to coronavirus, she was moved to the isolation
centre where she remained relatively stable under monitoring from health
authorities.

“Assist me in thanking the Masvingo City Matron and nursing staff for
safely managing the Covid-19 positive woman to deliver a bouncing baby,”
said City of Masvingo Town Clerk Edward Mukaratirwa in a statement.

Masvingo Provincial Information Officer (PIO) Rogers Irimayi said the nursing
staff had done their best to ensure the safe delivery of the baby.

“The baby was delivered during the night and I am pleased that both mother
and daughter are safe and sound. We thank everybody involved for the great work
done,” said Irimayi.

 

 

 

Activist Mtombeni further remanded

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Covid-19 starvation: Isolated woman gets aid after TellZim story

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Covid-19 starvation: Isolated woman gets aid after TellZim story

Moses Ziyambi

A coronavirus positive Bikita
woman who was on the verge of starvation has finally received food aid from the
local Member of Parliament (MP) after TellZim told her story.

A relieved Edith Chisirimunhu,
who has been in self- isolation at her homestead in Chirume Village under Chief
Mabika since the beginning of June, called TellZim News soon after Bikita East
MP Josiah Sithole and Ward 1 Councillor Teserai Makhado visited her on July 11.

She said she was grateful that
her story had been reported and shared widely on several platforms, resulting
in the response.

“I am probably one of several
people facing hunger in isolation but I am fortunate that you covered my story
and I received some help less than a week later,” said Chisirimunhu.

She received a 50kg bag of rice,
sugar, creamer, cooking oil, washing powder, bars of laundry soap, Mazoe
cordial and salt.

Sithole also called TellZim the
following day to express gratitude for helping to highlight what he described
as a desperate case which required urgent help.

“I am glad that we have all
played our part to help this Covid-19 positive case. I gave her what I obtained
using my own resources and I will work to source more food for her. In
parliament, I have asked the portfolio committee on social welfare to find a
way to cater for such cases,” said Sithole.

He said he was saddened by the stigmatization
that Chisirimunhu’s family was suffering in their community.

“I took time to discuss with them
the challenges they will always face and I encouraged Edith to remain strong
while helping to protect her family members from contracting the virus,” said
Sithole.

Read the original story here [ https://tellzim.com/2020/07/covid-19-woman-endures-starvation-in.html
]

 

 

  

 

 

 

Masvingo Hospital accountant accused of fleecing employer

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Masvingo Hospital accountant accused of fleecing employer



… takes payment through personal EcoCash number 

Brighton Chiseva

MASVINGO – Some patients who have been attended to at Masvingo
Provincial Hospital have alleged that an accountant employed at the institution
is stealing from his employer by using his own personal EcoCash number to
receive payment for hospital fees.

A number of patients confirmed
having been asked to pay the money into Semucle Ganyani’s EcoCash number.

“When I got to the accounts clerk
to pay for the services, I was told that the EcoCash POS machine was not
working but I could send the amount to his cellphone number and he will later
use his own bank card to make the payment to the hospital.

“He gave me a card with his
number and name and I transferred the money and he gave me a receipt. I was
suspicious of the receipt book though everything seemed normal at the surface,”
said one source

Another source said she also
experience a similar incident with Ganyani and was asked to pay the amount due
to his own EcoCash number on the pretext that the EcoCash POS machine was
faulty.

“I did not suspect anything until
many other people began to talk about it. Two other patients who shared a ward
also paid different amounts into his EcoCash number. One of the patients wanted
to pay half his bill amounting to $1 500 using a bankcard but he was asked to
rather use EcoCash as the hospital ostensibly did not allow half payments to be
made by card,” said the source.

When contacted for comment
Ganyani confirmed that he indeed asked some patients to transfer money in his
personal EcoCash wallet but said he only wanted to some mobile money so he
could conveniently buy airtime.

“Sometimes we have problems with
our POS machines and we cannot give receipts when the machine has not produced
proof of payment. So to help patients are in a hurry, I ask them to transfer
the money into my mobile money wallet which I use for airtime and I swipe for
them later,” said Ganyani.

However, a fellow employee said
the hospital had an EcoCash merchant code 74684 through which bills could be
settled even if the POS machine malfunctioned, with handwritten receipts given
once the patient has received the SMS notification with confirmation of the
payment.

When contacted for comment the
Hospital Medical Superintendent Dr Julius Chirengwa said he had not yet heard
about the issue and referred further questions to General Surgeon Dr Noel Zulu who
could not be reached for comment by the time of writing.

 

 

Riverton Academy reopens despite lockdown

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Riverton Academy reopens despite lockdown

TellZim Reporter

Reports that Riverton Academy has
opened its doors for pupils some two weeks before the official dates has surprised
many people, with some parents saying the rules were not being applied evenly.

Some Riverton Academy pupils in
examination classes are said to be already settled at the school and are conducting
lessons.

Parents who spoke to TellZim News
said they were concerned that their own children in other private schools were
losing out.

“If Riverton was allowed to
reopen, why can’t other schools do what is required for them to be allowed to
open early? It now feels like I enrolled my child at the wrong school,” said one
parent with a daughter at a different private school.

Another parent, however, felt it
was unwise to reopen the school when everybody else remained shut as it
promoted a culture of impunity.

“I thought the lockdown applied
uniformly to all and sundry so it is surprising that some schools are already
up and running.  It won’t end well if we
are to have an outbreak of coronavirus at the school,” said the parent.

Riverton Academy board
chairperson Philemon Mutangiri, however, rubbished the reports as social media
gossip, saying his school had only allowed children who came to register for
their final examinations.

“Those reports are all social
media falsehoods. We only had pupils registering for their final exams and some
of them met their teachers and asked questions. You can’t expect pupils not to
ask questions and get clarifications from their teachers if they got an
opportunity to do so,” said Mutangiri.

Masvingo Provincial Education Director
(PED) Zedius Chitiga said he had not authorised any school to open outside of
the stipulated dates.

“We expect schools to open on 28
July for examination classes only.  I will
investigate to get to the bottom of the matter,” said Chitiga.

High Covid-19 recoveries ignite hope

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High Covid-19 recoveries ignite hope




 …only two active cases remain in Masvingo

Moses Ziyambi

Only two of Masvingo province’s
53 confirmed cases of coronavirus are still active, after most of them were
certified fully-recovered mostly in terms of the World Health Organisation
(WHO) new guidelines on determining recovery.

On July 08, the province set on
34 active cases, only for the number to drop to two the following day after
government published the cumulative national recovery tally which stood at 306.

The previous day, the national
recovery tally had been recorded at 206.

Other provinces with relatively low active
and high recovery cases as on July 10 are Mashonaland Central (4 recovered and
6 active) Matabeleland North ((13 recovered and 10 active) and Manicaland (13
recovered and 17 active).

Harare remains the epicenter of the
virus with 206 active cases against 76 recoveries followed by Bulawayo with 125
active cases and 25 recoveries.

According to the new WHO
guidelines which were adopted by cabinet this week, those with symptoms will
spend a minimum of 13 days in isolation while those with no symptoms spend a minimum
of 10 days instead of the 21 days following two consecutive negatives PCR
results that are 24 hours apart.

Symptomatic patients are
discharged after a minimum of 13 days which include a minimum of 10 days after the
onset of such symptoms as fever and respiratory symptoms, and an additional
three days without symptoms.

For those without symptoms can be
discharged 10 days after testing positive.

In other words, patients who show
no symptoms 10 days from the day when the symptoms first show, plus at least
three additional days without symptoms including fever and respiratory
troubles, should be considered as having recovered.

For asymptomatic cases, that is
patients who test positive but show no symptoms, recovery is confirmed 10 days
after the initial positive test for Covid-19.

Zimbabwe had been following an
earlier WHO recommendation to confirm clearance of the virus, which saw people
being forced to self-isolate for an average 21 days. This required a patient to
be clinically recovered, that is show no symptoms, and to have two negative
Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) results on samples taken at least 24 hours apart.

 

Drama at Chamisa mother’s funeral

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Drama at Chamisa mother’s funeral
Chamisa tries to reason with agitated party supporters at his mother’s funeral

…as Starman whips up emotions against Khupe


…Madhuku forced to recognize
Chamisa as president

Upenyu Chaota

Tempers flared up in what should
have been a somber moment when MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa was burying
his late mother in Gutu on Tuesday.

Chamisa’s mother collapsed and
died in her garden on July 06, with her burial on July 08 being turned into a political
battlefield after angry mourners tried to charge towards Khupe’s vehicles as
she arrived to pay her last respects.

The mob blocked Khupe from
entering the gate but allowed Lovemore Madhuku whom they later forced to
address Chamisa as president.

In the wake of the fracas,
Chamisa sent Murisi Zwizwai to talk to the visibly angry mourners who were
throwing vitriolic words against Khupe and labeling her a Zanu PF agent.

Murisi, however, failed to
control the mob and reported back to Chamisa who then sent his national
organizer Amos Chibaya to try and calm the storm but to no avail.

Chamisa then went to the gate and
tried to address the mostly youthful mobsters, telling them to be more tolerant
as the funeral was not a political event exclusive to MDC Alliance
sympathisers.

They paid some deference to
Chamisa’s intervention but only to get re-agitated when Khupe tried to pull
back towards the gate again, and Chamisa had to personally go and talk to her
from outside the yard.

Chamisa addressed mourners who
were largely members of his party and expressed his anger and frustrations over
the manner in which the youths had handled themselves.

“We should be more tolerant
because this is a funeral and not a political rally. We have to come together
during mourning and I am disappointed by the behavior showcased by some of you
towards my sister Thokozani Khupe.

“A lot of people are coming here
to pay their respects to Mbuya Chamisa and you should be welcoming. Even my
brother Emmerson Mnangagwa may come here and there will be no need to heckle
him because this is a time for grief and mourning. Let us show maturity and
love because that is what we stand for as a party,” said Chamisa.

However, Chamisa’s brother
Starman was heard swearing against Khupe and telling mourners that he did not
want her at the funeral.

When Madhuku was given a platform
to speak, he was heckled until he relented and addressed Chamisa by the title
‘president’.

Party youths who spoke to TellZim
News had no kind for Khupe whom they said had showed ‘too much guts’ turning up
at an event she definitely knew would treat her with hostility.

“How dare she comes to the
funeral? That is more than an insult to us after what she did. She has gone to bed
with Zanu PF and still retains guts to come and show her face here. We respect
president Chamisa but on this one, we had to defy him. Khupe is working with
our enemies to destroy the party so why should we accommodate her?

“We were respectful enough to be non-violent.
She should be grateful we did not get physical with her. We do not want
anything to do with Khupe and no one will make us respect her unless she stops
her madness. She did not come here to mourn Mbuya Chamisa but she came to
provoke us into becoming violent with her but we were smart enough to avoid
that,” said one youth.

Working with Douglas Mwonzora and
Morgan Komichi, Khupe has recalled several MDC Alliance MPs, senators and
councillors using a controversial Supreme Court judgment which purportedly gave
her leadership of the party.

She has also moved on to seize
the MDC Alliance headquarters in Harare with the aid of soldiers and police
officers.

 

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