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Zanu PF
bigwigs
question
Mnangagwa
legitimacy

Page 2 News NewsHawks

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

OWEN GAGARE Zanu PF bigwigs question
Mnangagwa’s legitimacy
ZIMBABWEAN President Emmerson Mnan-
gagwa, struggling to consolidate and maintain l How, where and when did he get his mandate?
power at the volatile helm amid renewed internal
Zanu PF infighting and disintegration of the co- 21 November Parliament moved to impeach son. President Emmerson Mnangagwa
alition which drove his ascendancy, is tenuously him, forcing him to resign, to wild scenes of At the time, Mugabe was not able to convene
hanging onto his faltering position by his finger- jubilation. The next day Mnangagwa returned successor.
nails despite an aura of invincibility, top party from South Africa. Two days later, 24 Novem- the meeting as he was under military siege ma- Contrary to the claims by Mnangagwa and his
officials say. ber, he was inaugurated as president, sealing rooned at his Blue Roof home in Borrowdale,
Mugabe’s fate. Harare; Mnangagwa was in self-imposed exile in faction, as well as their supporters, Mugabe did
An investigation by The NewsHawks shows South Africa after he was dismissed as vice-pres- not want to be succeeded by his wife Grace, al-
Mnangagwa’s biggest problem is that he is lead- In the interregnum, there were serious illegali- ident on 6 November 2017; and Phelekezela though she showed a growing appetite for power
ing a divided party, which has an unresolved ties in Mnangagwa’s rise to power. Mphoko was out of the country. There was no at the height on the succession battles.
leadership issue, without a mandate from con- chairperson as the position was vacant.
gress, the supreme decision-making body of the Without any sense of irony, Mnangagwa had In what effectively became his political wa-
party. on 15 December during the extraordinary con- Party officials now complain that Mnangagwa terloo, Mugabe had in May 2017 came up with
gress spoken about himself ascending by follow- came in through a series of illegalities — from the Mexico Declaration — which catalysed his
“Legally, Mnangagwa has no mandate from ing the constitution and legal processes when he the coup, through blocking Mphoko from brief- succession war — to facilitate his retirement and
congress to currently lead Zanu PF,” a senior had grabbed power through a coup, convened ly acting as president after Mugabe was removed, let Sekeramayi take over. The deal was reached
party official said. the central committee improperly as the presi- the central committee meeting right up to the while he was visiting Mexico with senior minis-
dent and his deputies, including himself, were extraordinary congress. ters and party officials.
“He basically avoided the 2019 congress, not there, and suspended members had unlaw-
when it was constitutionally due, and postponed fully attended the meeting chaired by then party “His presidency is a product of power seizure Zanu PF officials say besides the legitimacy
it to 2022. Currently he is running on empty: secretary for finance Obert Mpofu, who had no and illegalities,” another senior party official said. issue, Mnangagwa is facing a brewing internal
the mandate he got from the 2017 extraordinary legal mandate to do so. “But the real problem now is that he is leading revolt, with his close allies now either facing pres-
congress expired. It was for the interregnum only. without a constitutional mandate since he avoid- sure to quit, battling removal or restless.
Subsequently, there was no other extraordinary Mnangagwa later rewarded Mpofu with the ed the 2019 congress.”
congress to allow him and all those in the struc- position of secretary for administration, but re- The sources say Chiwenga is “really fed up”.
tures elected in the last regular congress in 2014 moved him as Home Affairs minister in a bit- Zanu PF last held a regular elective congress Senior officials at party headquarters, mostly
to continue. It was an arbitrary postponement, ter-sweet deal. in 2014, where Mnangagwa ascended to the po- former ministers, are angry. The war veterans are
hence illegal arrangement. So his mandate is ille- sition of Vice-President at the expense of Joice also grumbling.
gitimate in terms of the Zanu PF constitution.” In terms of section 38 of the Zanu PF con- Mujuru, with Mphoko who was replacing the
stitution, the central committee meeting which late John Nkomo. In the dungeons of the deep state, the rank-
Mnangagwa was installed Zanu PF leader by “appointed” Mnangagwa party leader was not and-file within the military which carried him to
the party’s central committee on 19 November properly convened and constituted. The next congress was due in 2019. Mnan- the top is disgruntled; they have not shared the
2017 at the height of the military coup and con- gagwa avoided it, delaying it to 2022. spoils of the power seizure.
firmed through an extraordinary congress on 15 Central committee sessions are presided over
December 2017, where he gave a lengthy ad- by the president and first secretary of the party However, Mugabe had in October 2017 Strategic players within the police and intelli-
dress, saying he had been “appointed” into the or, in his absence, one of the two vice-presidents called an extraordinary congress for December gence community, Central Intelligence Organi-
position after the late former president Robert and second secretaries, or the national chairper- that year, where he had planned to install his sation mainly, are harbouring resentments over
Mugabe was toppled. then Defence minister Sydney Sekeramayi as his how they were treated during the coup. There
were serious purges in top police, intelligence
The Zanu PF constitution does not give pow- and army echelons after Mnangagwa took over.
er to the central committee to remove an elected
leader. If the position becomes vacant for what-
ever reason, an extraordinary congress is held to
fill it in.

In his long-winded extraordinary congress
speech — which had 3 167 words — Mnan-
gagwa said: “Comrades, today I address you as
a newly draped President and First Secretary of
Zanu PF, subject of course, to the ratification,
by this august gathering of the resolution of the
Extraordinary Session of the Central Committee
held on 19th November 2017, which appoint-
ed me to the helm of our Party. I feel the full
weight of this new role which is made lighter by
the wealth of experience and systems synthesised
into clear rules, procedures and traditions we
have built together as a Party over the years.”

This was in the aftermath of a dramatic series
of game-changing events which culminated in
Mugabe’s ouster and Mnangagwa’s ascendancy.

Following fierce clashes in the party spear-
headed by Grace Mugabe, the late authoritarian
Zanu PF leader escalated the fight and dismissed
Mnangagwa as vice-president on 6 November
2017.

Mnangagwa staged a great escape in the fol-
lowing 48 hours fearing arrest, detention and
murder by his mentor’s goons — that he direct-
ed for decades — ending up in Pretoria, South
Africa, at local businessman Justice Maphosa’s
home, via Beira, Mozambique.

Seething with rage, on 8 November Mnan-
gagwa issued a statement warning he would be
back in a fortnight to take over, which he did.

On 12 November, retired military command-
er General Constantino Chiwenga, fighting in
Mnangagwa’s corner, returned from China with
his adrenaline shooting up ready for combat. The
following day, 13 November, he threw down the
gauntlet at Mugabe.

On 14 November, the army moved in. By the
following morning, 15 November, it had taken
over. Sadc-brokered negotiations followed on 16
November, but immediately stalled.

Resultantly, demonstrations were organised to
force Mugabe’s hand on 18 November. The cen-
tral committee met to remove him a day after.
On that day, 19 November, Mugabe addressed
the nation, saying he was going nowhere. The
party then gave him an ultimatum to resign on
20 November, which he rejected. And then on

NewsHawks News Page 3

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

Meanwhile, Mnangagwa and those close to President Emmerson Mnangagwa (right) and Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga at Zanu PF conference in 2017.
him — his family, relatives and cronies — have
evidently become cash-rich through self-aggran- Lewis Matutu, while Godfrey Tsenengamu, over a month before the first post-2017 coup democracy.
disement deals and primitive accumulation. who has now formed a new party called Front general elections. “On the surface it appears Mnangagwa is
for Economic Emancipation in Zimbabwe, was
“They are not only making money, but flaunt- expelled. Mnangagwa, who escaped the attack which consolidating power; after all he seems to have
ing it with reckless abandon in a sea of poverty,” was an internal job by the skin of his teeth, went put Chiwenga into checkmate, Mohadi is down
a Mnangagwa ally said. “They are naïve. That is Zanu PF Politburo members Cleveria Chize- on to win the disputed presidential election by a and now on his side at the party headquarters,
political suicidal.” ma and the late Tendai Savanhu, Chiwenga’s al- wafer-thin margin. He won the July 30 election removed top army commanders who put him at
lies, were expelled for allegedly plotting the 31 with 50.8% of the vote, enough to meet the 50% the helm, liquidated the coup coalition, purged
Mnangagwa’s Midlands and Masvingo pow- July 2020 stayaway protest with the opposition. plus one vote threshold needed to avoid a run- police, intelligence and army bosses to coup-
er bases are in turmoil due to growing internal off against main opposition MDC Alliance lead- proof his regime and through political contingen-
strife. Provincial heavyweights are at war with Sources say Chiwenga is disgruntled over er Nelson Chamisa who garnered 44.3% of the cy key retired military figures, Perrance Shiri and
each other over positions and influence. Mnangagwa’s reneging over their coup gentle- ballots. Chamisa challenged the result in court, Sibusiso Moyo, king-makers of sorts, have died,”
man’s agreement that the President would serve but the Constitutional Court led by Chief Justice a top Zanu PF official told The NewsHawks.
In the Midlands, two factions within a faction one term and give him a chance in 2023; Mohadi Luke Malaba declared Mnangagwa the winner
have emerged and are slugging it out over who is upset he has been removed over sex scandals on 24 August 2018. “However, in reality there is no consolidation
should be the next chairperson. Incumbent Dan- when “everyone is doing it, in fact, others are to talk about. Mnangagwa is now surrounded by
iel Mckenzie Ncube is battling it out with State worse” and Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri is an un- Not only that, Malaba had prior to that ruled political upstarts and fortune-hunters. Most im-
Security minister Owen “Mudha” Ncube, in a happy figurehead at the party as chairperson and in court that Mugabe had resigned voluntarily, portantly and inevitably, he has lost control of the
wrangle that has sucked in the President’s closest Defence minister. thus Mnangagwa had gotten power legitimately. party. The evidence is there for all to see. Just look
allies now divided on either side. The then Judge President George Chiweshe had at what is happening in Midlands and Masvingo.
War veterans are also restless over welfare is- also claimed the coup was constitutional. Judges His strongholds are in turmoil and all he can do
There is also wrangling among Mnangagwa’s sues. Civil servants, especially teachers, have been are always an important player whenever there is is watch helplessly.”
allies over Kwekwe Central. fighting confrontationally for better pay and ben- a coup. Mnangagwa has since extended Malaba’s
efits. tenure by five years — changing the retirement This week, an extraordinary Zanu PF politbu-
Last October, Zanu PF primary polls to choose age from 70 to 75 years — through controversial ro meeting suspended provincial elections amid
a Kwekwe Central parliamentary candidate for The explosive leadership battle and resultant constitutional amendments that analysts say un- intensifying infighting, claiming it wanted to
a by-election turned bloody following intense political brinkmanship frequently explodes into dermine judicial independence, rule of law and pave way for structures to prepare for the annual
clashes between rival groups at Kwekwe district open deadly confrontation, as it did at White conference set to be held from 25-30 October.
offices. Police had to fire warning shots after be- City Stadium in Bulawayo on 23 June 2018, just
ing called to contain the situation which had spi-
ralled out of control as factions bludgeoned each Delegates attend Zanu PF conference in 2017.
other over the voters’ roll.

The primary election pitted Energy Ncube —
Mudha Ncube’s nephew — against Zanu PF’s
2018 losing candidate Kandross Mugabe.

The fight claimed the scalp of former Zanu PF
national commissar and deputy defence minister
Victor Matemadanda who was backing Mugabe.
Matemadanda, who had replaced retired Lieu-
tenant-General Engelbert Rugeje as commissar,
was removed and dispatched to Mozambique as
ambassador to defuse tensions in the region and
address complaints by Chiwenga’s faction that he
had failed.

Mnangagwa’s powerful allies in the Midlands,
including July Moyo and Mudha Ncube, and
elsewhere were swept aside in district coordinat-
ing committee (DCC) elections that left him
weaker. Chiwenga has gained ground of late.

DCCs had been unconstitutionally dissolved
by the central committee in 2012. However, as
amendments to the Zanu PF constitution by the
central committee are “subject to ratification by
congress”, DCCs should have continued to exist
de jure until such ratification.

The DCCs formed part of the congress and
should thus not have been excluded from the
congress prior to ratification of their disband-
ment. Similarly, DCCs should not have been
restored without ratification by congress.

Independent Norton MP Temba Mliswa
has publicly said that Mnangagwa’s close allies,
Moyo, Mudha Ncube and others, lost in the
DCC polls and no longer have political capital to
offer the President to ensure his and their survival
in 2023.

Mliswa is a Mnangagwa supporter.
In Masvingo, Provincial Affairs minister Ezra
Chadzamira is under fire over corruption charges
which have taken a factional dimension as the
Chiwenga camp now wants him out.
War veterans are leading the charge. Chiwenga
has previously been in Masvingo, where he chal-
lenged Chadzamira’s leadership and associated
decisions, especially on land distribution, which
The NewsHawks covered relentlessly.
Zanu PF officials say Chiwenga has been in-
tervening in Masvingo and nationally through
his key ally, Rugeje.
Since the watershed politburo meeting on 29
July 2020, where Rugeje challenged Mnangagwa
amid attempts by the President’s allies to round
on Chiwenga through sudden verbal attacks, re-
lations in the Zanu PF presidium have continued
to deteriorate.
Mnangagwa even brought CIO director-gen-
eral Isaac Moyo into the politburo to make an
indirect case against Chiwenga by attacking his
allies using an intelligence report presented by
Lovemore Matuke, party security head.
Factional clashes at the time led to the sus-
pension of youth leaders Pupurai Togarepi and

Page 4 News NewsHawks

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

INTENSE intra-factional fights to control Pres- Nasty factional fights boil
ident Emmerson Mnangagwa’s home province in Mnangagwa’s backyard
Midlands, pitting two rival groups backing State
Security minister Owen Mudha Ncube and the State Security Midlands
incumbent chairperson Daniel Mackenzie Ncu- minister Owen Province
be have reached fever pitch. Mudha Ncube chairper-
son Daniel
The two groups are both declaring their undy- Mackenzie
ing loyalty to Mnangagwa.
Ncube
Mackenzie Ncube is feeling the heat and on Minister
Monday released a statement slamming faction- of State for
alism in the province. Presidential
Affairs Joram
“As we are going into the provincial elections, Gumbo
we need a steady hand to guide the province.
A leader who is not associated with violence or Local
criminal activities, a leader who is peace loving Government
and a leader who is a unifier. Yes, we need a minister July
leader for the province who is loyal only to the
President, not to any other individual. For those Moyo
who are sowing seeds of division and disunity, be
warned. Your days in Zanu PF are numbered,” while McKenzie Ncube faced a “torrid time” having Mnangagwa retain the presidency. few weeks’ time we are going to have our internal
Mackenzie Ncube said in a statement. during the Mugabe era. “Our focus is on 2023 — which is the un- polls for provincial leaders. Those are the lead-
ers who are going to work in ensuring that the
The statement was seen as a veiled attack on They alleged that July Moyo, believed to be disputed win for President Mnangagwa,” he said President achieves his vision. Elections are usu-
Mudha Ncube, who is nicknamed the “Touch- Mudha’s ally, is the “mastermind” of political up- before emphasising that Zanu-PF supporters ally characterised by high emotions and tempers,
bomber,” and has been accused of shielding a heavals in the province. could only back Mnangagwa’s vision by being however, we have to know that what unites us is
grouping of Zanu PF thugs in the Midlands, Al- united. much more than what divides us. What unites
Shabaab, which has been accused of terrorising When asked if he was campaigning for the us, is us being Zanu PF. The Zanu PF culture
opposition supporters and controlling vast gold position by The NewsHawks last week, Mudha “The positive developmental fruits of the new emphasises unity more than individualism,” he
mining pits in the province. Ncube said “no”, although party members loyal despensation are there for all to see under the able said.
to him have launched a non-stop campaign for leadership of President Emmerson Mnangagwa.
Mudha Ncube has the backing of Local Gov- the State Security minister. We are indeed on course to achieve Vision 2030. He reiterated on his call for unity of purpose
ernment minister July Moyo, while Mackenzie We can only achieve that vision by mobilising in the province.
has an equally powerful ally in Joram Gumbo, Mackenzie Ncube, in his statement, called for and ensuring that His Excellency Cde Mnangag-
a minister of State for Presidential Affairs and unity of purpose in the province. wa secures a landslide in the coming polls. For “As a provincial leader my emphasis has been
Monitoring Implementation of Government every Zanu PF cadre, focus must be on ensuring and will be cohesion, unity, loyalty peace and
Programmes. “As Midlands province cdes we have to be a that the President is handed a landslide victory,” development. We are our brothers’ keepers in
shining light to all the provinces. This it the prov- he said. Zanu PF, united we stand divided we fall. We are
Traditionally, Moyo and Gumbo have been ince where the President is coming from, this is Zimbabweans first, as a provincial leader I have
fighting for political godfather status in their the province which produced a President for the He said the bigger picture is on securing maintained and I still maintain and I will main-
native Mberengwa, but their fights have now 2nd Republic. We are not only endowed with Mnangagwa’s victory. tain that no to tribalism — this is the Midlands."
spilled over to the wider province. mineral resources as a province but we are also
blessed to have the country’s leader,” he said. “As we are faced with our internal elections, — STAFF WRITER.
Before the eruption of fights between the we mustn’t lose sight of the bigger picture. In a
Gumbo and Moyo camps, there was a long-run- He said Zanu-PF supporters must focus on
ning battle for superiority between Rugare
Gumbo, the only surviving member if Zanu’s
Dare ReChimurenga liberation war council,
and Mnangagwa who is now President. Rugare
Gumbo, who was a vital cog in the Joice Mujuru
faction, was, however, expelled from Zanu PF in
2014, ahead of the party’s last elective congress.

The intra-factional fights in the Midlands have
also seen Mnangagwa spokesperson George Cha-
ramba positing on his Twitter handle @jamwan-
da2 his support for Mudha Ncube. Charamba
tweeted, “Mbudhlo Ndizvo”. Mbudhlo is yet
another of Mudha Ncube’s nicknames.

The fights have even spilled to the district lev-
els.

This week, factional fights in Kwekwe saw a
district coodinating committee meeting at the
Zanu PF district offices being abandoned after
rival groups clashed. Police officers were called in
to quell the violence.

In Kwekwe, the perennial fights are over the
Kwekwe Parliamentary seat which was left va-
cant following the death of MP Masango Mat-
ambanadzo last year.

Two rival groups, one belonging to local gold
magnate Kandross Mugabe, who is Mackenzie
Ncube’s ally and a losing 2018 parliamentary
candidate, and Energy Ncube, nephew of State
Security minister Mudha Ncube.

The fights are also playing out on social me-
dia with several WhatsApp groups being formed,
including “Midlands Youths”, “Endorsement of
Mudha”, and “Zanu PF Gweru Urban”.

Disinformation on social media has been rife.
Despite Zanu PF this week indefinitely sus-
pending the provincial elections, members have
continued using social media platforms to cam-
paign for the two.
As part of the propaganda campaign, Mcken-
zie Ncube is being accused of receiving money
from exiled G40 members to “further their in-
terests” ahead of the provincial elections and the
2023 general elections.
Mckenzie Ncube, however, denies the allega-
tions.
He is also being accused of failing to unify the
province.
But those opposed to Mudha Ncube have also
pointed to an alleged “gravy train follower”.
They claimed that at one point Mudha Ncu-
be called himself Mudha Mugabe (after the late
former president Robert Mugabe), an indication
that he opportunistically backs whoever is in
power. Mudha Ncube later became Mnangag-
wa’s enforcer.
In their writings, Mckenzie Ncube’s support-
ers said that during the G40 and Lacoste faction-
al fights, Mudha Ncube “was never arrested”,

NewsHawks News Page 5

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

Chiredzi war veterans tell
Chadzamira to quit post
notices to vacate their homes to pave way for new ber, who is aligned to the Mnangagwa faction,
MORRIS BISHI people,” he said. told The NewsHawks that the political tempera- Minister of State for Masvingo Ezra Chadzamira
tures within the ruling party in the province are
CHIREDZI war veterans have called for the re- “We approached the VP over this issue earlier high with a faction aligned to Chiwenga utilising
moval from office of minister of State for Masv- this year since we are the custodians of land in the all possible chances to have Chadzamira fired.
ingo Ezra Chadzamira, accusing him of corruptly country. We went to war for the people and we The official said Chadzamira, as a member of the
allocating land in the district to outsiders while cannot fold our hands while a handful of people provincial lands committee, only makes recom-
sidelining locals. are benefitting. Government should urgently ad- mendations although the ministry of Lands is the
dress this issue; if it means replacing corrupt lead- allocating authority.
The war veterans held a protest at Palm Tree ers, then let it be. We want all allocations which
Hotel in Chiredzi on Monday where Chadzami- were done without the approval of the district “Things are not well in our party in the prov-
ra and other ruling party provincial leaders were lands committee to be reversed with immediate ince. The faction aligned to the VP is utilising all
about to attend a meeting. effect.” chances available to nail Chadzamira but, truly
speaking, land allocations are done by officials
They also called for the removal of all the pro- Efforts to get a comment from Chadzamira, from the lands ministry. We will soon retaliate,
vincial leaders for working to enrich themselves who is also the ruling party’s provincial chairper- all these guys piling pressure on Chadzamira are
instead of serving the people. son, were fruitless as calls to his mobile phone was dirty and it is a surprise to see them sacrificing our
not being answered. leader,” the senior party member said.
The development came a few days after Chad-
zamira was briefly arrested by investigators from However, a senior provincial Zanu PF mem-
the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission
(Zacc) for alleged abuse of office involving the al- •
location of land in the province but the case was •
turned down by prosecutors after President Em- •
merson Mnangagwa’s intervention. •
•
Chadzamira is Mnangagwa’s political ally. •
The Mnangagwa faction believes a faction led
by Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga insti-
gated Chadzamira’s arrest as part of a ploy to oust
him from the provincial leadership.
Zimbabwe Liberation War Veterans Associa-
tion (ZLWVA) Chiredzi district chairperson Kill-
er Makuni confirmed the demonstration to The
NewsHawks.
He said the demonstrators, who wielded plac-
ards, are members of his association who are un-
happy with the parceling out of land in Chiredzi.
Makuni said the allocations were done without
input from the Chiredzi district lands committee
and should be reversed. He also confirmed that
war veterans had approached senior government
officials, including Chiwenga, to register their dis-
pleasure.
Chiwenga visited Chiredzi in April and ordered
Chadzamira to reverse the allocations following
complaints from war veterans and Chiredzi resi-
dents. Senior Zanu PF officials, their relatives and
security agents were among beneficiaries of the
allocations. The allocations were done after Chad-
zamira unilaterally dissolved the Chiredzi district
lands committee early last year.
Zacc in March dispatched a team to the area
to investigate the allocation of land and find out
if stipulated procedure was followed, with locals,
including government officials, telling the com-
mission that land was allegedly being distributed
by Chadzamira and provincials leaders to people
who were paying large sums of money.
Among the beneficiaries of the sugarcane plots
on schedule 17 of 2020 which The NewsHawks is
in possession of are Samora Mnangagwa, Tatenda
Matemadanda, Daniel Chadzamira, Masvingo
provincial development coordinator Jefter Sakup-
wanya, provincial medical director Amadeous
Shamhu, Mthandazo Ncube who is Chadzamira’s
security aid, Zaka West legislator Ophious Mur-
ambiwa, Muchareveyi Chamisa who is Zanu PF
provincial administrator, as well as ruling party
youths, war veterans and companies linked to
Zanu PF members.
The plots were developed for the government
by Tongaat Hullet under the Kilimanjaro Proj-
ect in Hippo Valley Estates at a cost of US$40
million. Dubbed “Kilimanjaro”, the project will
develop virgin land into sugar cane plantations
at Triangle and Hippo Valley estates in Chiredzi
as part of the firm’s drive to increase aggregate
sugar output while also empowering indigenous
outgrower farmers who will be allocated plots
on about 3 300 hectares being developed on a
cost-recovery basis.
Makuni urged the government to remove from
office all corrupt officials.
“Our members protested during a meeting on
Monday to show their displeasure on how land
is being corruptly allocated in Chiredzi. Land,
including sugarcane plots, is being given to out-
siders in our area. If you look at it, there are less
than 10% locals who have land. The other chal-
lenge is that we are now seeing people who were
allocated land during the land reform being given



















NewsHawks News Page 15

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

Drug menace needs multi-sectoral response

NYASHA CHINGONO who are struggling with addiction, but to be Drug activist and politician Linda Masarira menace with the hope of eventually winning
our neighbour’s keeper. Churches should have venting use of drugs and substances and how it the bruising battle.
ZIMBABWE’S fight against endemic drug awareness programmes on the dangers of drug affects their livelihoods and future,” Masarira
abuse requires all hands on deck, as substance and substance abuse. Schools should have mod- added. Wilson Box, director of the Zimbabwe Civ-
abuse continues to sweep across the country’s ules on teaching students about drugs and pre- il Liberties Drug Network, said citizens will
townships, analysts have said. Adopting the drug problem as a community play an important role in the fight against drug
vice would help raise more awareness on the abuse.
Substance abuse, which has been described
as a silent pandemic, has turned heads in gov- “Citizens can contribute to this crisis by
ernment, prompting cabinet action through an naming and shaming those in drug trafficking
inter-ministerial committee. and pushing on the government to act on this
menace,” Box said.
While government leads the fight through
policies that seeks to flush out drugs from the Following the setting up of an inter-ministe-
streets, the involvement of the community, rial committee on addressing the issue, cabinet
churches, and the media, among other stake- on Tuesday last week considered and approved
holders, is crucial if the thrust is to bear fruit. a report presented by Public Service minister
Paul Mavima.
Amid revelations that drugs like crystal
meth, commonly known as mutoriro and can- The report said a multi-disciplinary and
nabis cakes, are now sold in schools, it is appar- multi-sectoral approach has been adopted to
ent that a holistic approach is now required to arrest the situation. This includes intensifica-
deal with the growing problem. tion of prevention, harm reduction, treatment,
rehabilitation, reduction of demand and elim-
It is no longer business as usual and paying ination of supply and availability of illicit and
lip service will only aggravate an already dire over-the-counter substances and drugs on the
situation. market.

Communities, who are also culpable for the The capacities, efficiencies and activities of
growing problem, should now work with oth- the police, justice and customs department will
er critical stakeholders in society like parents, also be enhanced and strengthened to combat
churches, teachers and even traditional leaders. drug abuse, it said.

Owning the fight will unshackle many Cabinet said it noted with “satisfaction” the
youths gripped by the vice, especially if com- swift response by security forces which has re-
munities refuse to tolerate or harbour druglo- sulted in the arrest of over 200 culprits involved
rds embedded in society. in the trade in illicit substances and druglords.

With churches now gradually opening, they “These will face the full wrath of the law,”
should incorporate religious activities with it said.
drug campaigns to save many youths from the
menace. While it is commendable that authorities
arrested 200 druglords, it is however a futile
The government must be applauded for an- attempt because most of them are roaming the
nouncing that it plans to work with other par- streets pushing dangerous contraband.
ticipants in society in the war on drugs.
Cabinet rightly said the media can play a
A multi-faceted approach which holistically critical role in increasing outreach and aware-
addresses the causes, impacts and consequences ness raising through theatre, arts, edutainment,
is critical. music, and other multimedia platforms. It is
incumbent upon the communicators to raise
Some of the causes of drug abuse include so- public awareness by running the story more
cio-economic factors such as economic malaise, consistently.
unemployment, media influence, escapism and
peer pressure. These measures are significant, but they need
to go deeper and be sustained, not only acti-
This requires many actors to speak out and vated for electioneering purposes and other op-
take action on the growing problem. portunistic agendas. S

Families should not be left out as they are the ociety cannot just watch as drugs destroy a
legal guardians of drug users. They have borne whole generation of youths — the current and
the brunt of drug abuse. future leaders.

The NewsHawks has interviewed families that The community, churches and the media, among other stakeholders, are crucial in the fight against drug abuse.
are failing to deal with drug addicts, who have
either turned violent or are now petty thieves.

Going through the pain of taking care of
children hooked on drugs makes parents the
right candidates to lead initiatives against sub-
stance abuse.

With training from health officials, parents
would be better placed to deal with such situa-
tions at household level.

Laudable is the fact that the government
pledged to work with the community. The au-
thorities should walk the talk on this, as show-
boating and grandstanding would not help in
successfully fighting drug abuse.

Mubatirapamwe, a local non-governmen-
tal organisation working with communities,
believes society is a crucial stakeholder in the
drug war.

“Establishment of family support structures
and facilities to address the negative impacts
of substance and drug addiction on the imme-
diate and extended family, for example family
clubs, churches and faith-based organisations,”
Mupatirapamwe co-founder Savannah Mada-
mombe said.

Drug activist and politician Linda Masari-
ra said while the government response to the
growing drug problem has been slow, citizens
should be more active in dealing with menace.

She said members of the community should
speak out against druglords causing untold suf-
fering to families.

“The government’s response time is slow and
indeed they are late to the party and the little
we can do is to appreciate that they have come
on board. Citizens should be the community
watchdog and speak out against all shady activ-
ities in their communities and report all drug
dealers in their jurisdiction,” she said.

“We all have a responsibility to protect, and
it is time we stop shaming those with children

Page 16 News NewsHawks

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

Young girls fall prey to drug lords

AYESHA CHIDEMBO interview. Most school-going children were exposed to drugs and other dangerous substances during the long break from school due
Zimbabwe’s growing drug problem to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“I am in pain and my heart is bleeding.
I no longer have peace of mind,” Ne- has ravaged the country’s townships, ADVERT
liah Madziya (38) cries uncontrollably with girls eloping to stay with drug SPACE
as she narrates her ordeal. lords.
To place your booking contact
Sitting on a patched floor in her din- The NewsHawks has interviewed sev- Charmaine on 0735 666 122
ing room in Seke, Chitungwiza, about eral girls who have been abused in drug Email- [email protected]
20 kilometres from Harare, Madziya dens, popularly known as mabhesi. In Land line- (0242) 721 144/5
gazes into the rugged roof in melan- the drug houses, girls are forced to per-
choly. She is worried about her daugh- form vile sexual acts and orgies in the
ter Tandi (18) who eloped with a drug full glare of druggies.
dealer.
In places like Kuwadzana high-den-
Tandi got involved with a drug sity, girls as young as 14 are eloping to
dealer after writing her Ordinary Level stay with drug peddlers.
examinations last year. Stuck at home
with nothing to do, Tandi turned to Markie cannot pay lobola/roora for
smoking cannabis and other illicit his new bride and only has US$15 for
drugs with her boyfriend Markie. Tandi’s family. With that US$15, all
Markie is thinking about is to get an-
Her life has never been the same. other fix.
Raised in a religious home, where
her father is an elder in an apostolic Drugs have been a catalyst for social
sect, World Gospel Church, Tandi was ills, particularly early pregnancy, child
never exposed to drugs and smoking marriage and the girl child has borne
marijuana. the brunt of the country’s growing
Endemic drug abuse in Zimbabwe drug problem.
continues to affect people from differ-
ent social and religious backgrounds. During the long break from school
An introvert, Tandi had never due to the Covid-19 pandemic, most
shown signs of rebellion as she grew school-going children were exposed to
under strict biblical teachings. drugs and other dangerous substances.
“I never thought my daughter would
ever go against what we have taught Peer pressure has also been a ma-
her from a tender age. I raised her well. jor driver of teenage pregnancies and
After all the teachings, she decided to eloping. Drugs have been blamed for
elope,” Madziya tells The NewsHawks stimulating sexual hormones, leading
as she sobs quietly. to premature sex.
But Tandi’s relationship with Mark-
ie has changed the once sweet and “Peer pressure has led most of us to
well-mannered girl. drug abuse, doing nothing at home,
From a friendship that blossomed having and interacting with most of
into a love relationship, Tandi and the boys and girls who are always do-
Markie’s bond appears to have been ing drugs most of their time leaves you
fortified through substance abuse. with no choice, but to indulge in it to
Her neighbours have also expressed because to them one who does not do
shock over Tandi’s decision to elope. drugs with them is called a sellout. A
Family friend, Shylin Godhi (61) child, ‘mwana’, is what they call one
said Tandi had been driven into a life- when mocking us in their circles and
style of drugs due to peer pressure. no one likes to be called one,” one
“I would see Tandi on different woman said.
occasions with Markie, drinking and
smoking weed together. I noticed that “Drug abuse problem is now ram-
they would spend most of their time pant and parents are now helpless,” one
together and he was definitely the of the girls said.
wrong person for her,” Godhi said.
“Our children are being destroyed Tatenda completed school two years
by these drugs and something must be ago and now has started her own busi-
done.” ness of selling clothes.
Upon hearing that Tandi had
eloped, her family demanded that she Tandi, the younger sister, wrote her
come back to get tested for pregnancy Form Four examinations last year and
and HIV. did not come out with flying colours
Her enraged father has been de- and was apparently doing nothing at
manding to see Markie, while Tandi's home except helping her mother with
sister Tatenda is also worried about her house chores.
sibling’s addiction to drugs.
Tandi told The NewsHawks she was Endemic drug abuse in the country’s
living her best life and would never re- townships has caused social upheaval,
turn home. with families struggling to cope with
“I do not want anyone bothering the growing number of youths hooked
about my whereabouts. I am currently on crystal meth and other illicit sub-
living my best life and no one should stances.
look for me,” she said in a telephone
Crystal meth is sweeping across the
country and has been described as a si-
lent epidemic, threatening to destroy a
generation, amid calls for urgent action
to rescue suffering families.

Following a series of stories on drug
abuse, the government has set up a
ministerial taskforce to tackle endemic
substance abuse, amid calls for public
rehabilitation.

The NewsHawks @NewsHawksLive www.newshawks.com [email protected]

Drugs have been a catalyst for social ills.

NewsHawks News Page 17

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

BRIDGET MANANAVIRE Lack of funding stalls progress
on Mbuya Nehanda monument
FOUR months after the grand unveiling of the
Mbuya Nehanda statue in central Harare, work Four months after the unveiling of Mbuya Nehanda statue in central Harare, work on the monument is yet to be completed. — Pictures: Aaron Ufumeli
on the monument is yet to be completed, amid
indications that lack of funding has stalled the ment revealed that it was going to put up more portraying our true history and heritage through straight. As we do so, the determination to tell our
project. statues to honour fallen heroes. the correct glorification of our people has begun. own story from our own perspectives emboldens
This is factual history and we are setting the record and encourages use,” Mnangagwa said.
The City of Harare issued a statement that the “Under the second republic, the journey of
precinct will be opened to the public on Monday,
since the unveiling of the statue on 25 May.

The intersection of two of Harare’s busiest
roads, Samora Machel Avenue and Julius Nyerere
Way, had since then been closed off to vehicles,
contributing to traffic congestion in the city.

The statute missed its initial targeted date of
unveiling, 18 April, but was unveiled by President
Emmerson Mnangagwa on Africa Day, 25 May.

The work, being spearheaded by the Office of
the President and Cabinet, and ministries of Local
government and Public Works, Home Affairs and
Cultural Heritage as well as the National Archives
of Zimbabwe and Nations Monuments, began in
July last year. National Museums and Monuments
of Zimbabwe executive director Godfery Mahachi
told The NewsHawks that the Public Works De-
partment is putting final touch-ups to the project.

“The ministry of Public Works is completing a
few things. They have been asked to expedite the
work so that it can be open to the public,” Maha-
chi said.

The Local Government and Public Works min-
istry’s acting chief director of public works, Henry
Hungwe, said the delay was due to the late release
of funds.

“The City of Harare has to put road markings
and signage. Before approaching the sign, you
should know the height expected and that should
be expected to be competed soon. Yes, there has
been a delay in the release of additional funds,
but that is in order and the road will be open very
soon,” Hungwe said.

The government spent over R2 million
(US$136 300) to import galvanised steel for the
steel bridge from South Africa, sparking an up-
roar over misplaced priorities. According to a 17
November 2020 letter by the Zimbabwe Revenue
Authority (Zimra), the galvanised steel weighed
64 tonnes.

“It is hereby certified that the undermentioned
consumption materials and [. . .] goods are specif-
ically for use by the Zimbabwe CRSG Construc-
tion Pvt Limited and are also provided for in terms
of Statutory Instrument Number 154 of 2001,
Part XIII subsection 114G of the Customs and
excise and in terms of Section 137 of the Customs
and Excise (General Regulations). Accordingly, a
duty-free certificate for the following is granted,”
the letter read.

“Accordingly, the materials which are being im-
ported are 16 galvanised steel bridge, components
of 12 metres each, weighing 4 000kg each, while
weighing 64 000kg in total.”

During the unveiling of the statue, the govern-

Page 18 News NewsHawks

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

Special Covid-19
PANDEMIC coverage

Forced vaccination unhelpful: Doctors

BRIDGET MANANAVIRE The doctors said they respect public health in- munity in our local population,” the doctors said. in the workplace and enhancing surveillance for
terventions that are based on the most recent and This comes as there is no clear policy on the Covid-19, including testing, treating and isolat-
THE Senior Hospital Doctors' Association says credible scientific evidence and that there was no ing confirmed cases, and contact tracing.
the government’s stance of using force and in- evidence to suggest that the mandatory vaccina- vaccination of expecting mothers who have been
timidation to get more people vaccinated is ill tion of civil servants would prevent the outbreak left in a dilemma as there is no information. The senior doctors also called for “continued
advised, as it is not backed by scientific research. of further Covid-19 waves. vaccination with effective vaccines, publication
The government has issued contradicting of vaccine surveillance data to enhance public
This follows an ultimatum by the government They called for more investigations to be con- statements on the vaccination of expecting moth- belief in the safety o the vaccines”.
for civil servants to either get vaccinated or be ducted to asses the durability of vaccine-induced ers, with the government announcing in July that
banned from work with no pay. immunity in the Zimbabwean context. pregnant women could be vaccinated and now “The SHDA reaffirms its support for the
saying that the ministry was going to look at the containment of the Covid-19 pandemic and its
The authorities have also barred unvaccinated “The herd immunity thresholds for SARS- effectiveness of the vaccines on pregnant women. negative effects on healthcare delivery, and mem-
people from accessing churches and recreational CoV-2 remain a moving target worldwide due to bers will continue to provide quality healthcare
facilities. emerging variants of concern. There is also need The SHDA suggested a number of measures to services to the people of Zimbabwe despite the
to investigate durability of vaccine-induced im- control the pandemic, including strict observa- challenging circumstances.”
The government gave its employees until tion of infection prevention and control measures
mid-October to be fully vaccinated against the
coronavirus. Those who fail to comply will face
disciplinary action “for refusal to obey a lawful
instruction”.

Zimbabwe is rated among the top 10 best-per-
forming countries in Africa in terms of vacci-
nation coverage, but is now using intimidatory
tactics to force people to get vaccinated as it aims
to get 60% of the population inoculated by De-
cember 2021.

The doctors said whilst they believe that vac-
cination is critical in dealing with the Covid-19
pandemic, they are concerned that barring un-
vaccinated people from working might increase
scepticism, propagate vaccine hesitancy, and re-
duce uptake.

“We note with concern the lack of effort in
trying to understand the local drivers of vaccine
hesitancy, as well as the provision of clear data re-
garding the safety of the locally available vaccines,
especially in our population. Such information
would help in formulation of targeted mitigation
measures,” the senior doctors said in a statement.

“The SHDA does not support the excessive
use of force or coercion in approaching vaccina-
tion, but informed choices based on understand-
ing and appreciation of scientifically sound facts.

“Members of the public must be allowed to
choose whether or not they want to be vaccinated
after being provided with sufficient information
to make an informed choice, and those with oth-
er concerns regarding uptake of vaccines must be
appropriately supported.”

LIZWE SEBATHA Abuja Declaration on health fulfilled: Govt
said: “So much was expected of the 2021 nation-
FINANCE minister Mthuli Ncube on Wednes- Years of underfunding of the health sector laid bare the poor state of the public health sector when Covid-19 al budget, given the current Covid-19 pandemic
day claimed the government’s Covid-19 re- hit the country. after ZW$54.7 billion was allocated to health.”
sponse plan has resulted in the country meeting
the Abuja Declaration health budget targets, but reached that target. This year again we will ex- tor which is worst affected by the pandemic and Rusike argued that the allocation to health
public health experts said questions remain on ceed it,” Ncube told delegates attending a busi- of course acquiring more vaccines. Some of the is still heavily tilted towards curative care,
how this is being integrated into the broader ness conference at the Zimbabwe International IMF SDRs will be used to acquire more vaccines which attracted an allocation of ZW$38.1 bil-
health system. Trade Fair (ZITF) held under the theme “Em- as well as supporting the health sector to exceed lion, compared to policy and administration at
bracing the New Normal for Business and In- the Abuja targets.” ZW$10.1 billion and public health at ZW$5.3
In April 2001, the African Union member dustry: Realities and Opportunities.” billion.
states met in Abuja and pledged to set a target Zimbabwe recently received its allocation of
of allocating at least 15% of their annual budget Ncube made his presentation under the topic Special Drawing Rights (SDR) from the Inter- “While this represents good news for a mild-
to improve the health sector and urged donor “he Pandemic and the Economy: Business Recov- national Monetary Fund (IMF) amounting to ly Covid-19-stricken country, 42% of the vote
countries to scale up support. ery Support Initiatives — Fiscal Interventions and US$961 million. will go towards employment costs (this however,
Perspectives. excludes employment costs included in current
Years of underfunding of the country’s health However, Community Working Group on transfers to grant institutions and other statuto-
sector laid bare the poor state of the public “We have to support the social services sec- Health (CWGH) executive director Itai Rusike ry institutions) and 58% will be for non-wage
health sector when Covid-19 hit the country, expenditures. Capital expenditure represents
as the acute shortages of critical and lifesaving 30% of the non-wage expenditures, and 17% of
equipment such as ventilators and intensive care the total Health ministry budget,” Rusike com-
beds were exposed. mented.

Ncube, however, claimed the pandemic pro- “The budget is not very clear on how
vided an opportunity for the government to Covid-19 mitigatory measures and initiatives
re-commit to increasing healthcare funding by will be integrated into the broader health sys-
spending 20% of the total budget to health de- tems, and how the Covid-19-related assistance
spite presenting a number of challenges. both domestic and external, both monetary and
in-kind donations, and both government and
“So far we have spent about just over ZW$30 non-government will be integrated and reported
billion in that effort. It’s a huge commitment. within the budget.”
The Abuja Charter says we must spend at least
15% of our budget on health. Last year, our
budget on health was 20% of total expenditure.
We have exceeded the Abuja target. We have

NewsHawks News Page 19

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

Teen pregnancies rise in Africa during Covid

KUMBIRAI MACHINGURA

THE number of girls who dropped out of school Africa recorded an increase in child marriages and early pregnancies among school girls during the Covid-19 pandemic.
due to early marriage and teen pregnancy in-
creased by 11% in Africa during the Covid-19 “It is important for countries to include re- edge and Innovation Exchange (KIX) shows he said.
pandemic, an official has said. integration programmes for young women and that school policies in Africa should be flexible “For Africa to be globally competitive, chil-
men, by making sure that there are psycho-social enough to welcome young mothers and mitigate
This means millions of girls have been forced programmes for both students and teachers who against future disruptions of their learning by dren must not only stay in school, but must com-
out of school and Zimbabwe has not been spared. are having a difficult time during the pandemic. taking into consideration the need to implement plete their education.’’
Boys and girls have been affected by sexual vio- school schedules to cope with the child care de-
A protracted fight against Covid-19, which led lence so measures must be taken to ensure that mands and consistent psychosocial support ser- In Somalia, 73% of learners have not report-
to widespread closure of schools across the con- girls are protected, especially by the implementa- vices to manage any social stigma they may be ed back to school due to a range of reasons such
tinent, has caused a major setback on the gains tion of healing programmes,” she said. facing as teenage pregnancy and poverty, Nsenqiyumva
achieved before the pandemic with regards to said.
keeping girls in school. “Vulnerable learners who have faced extra bar- Albert Nsenqiyumva, executive secretary of
riers in returning to school such as refugee chil- ADEA, admitted that Global Partner countries Due to the devastating effects of Covid-19,
While the pandemic raged across Africa, an- dren, hard-to-reach children from low-income in Africa have also endured successive waves the United Nations Children’s Fund reports that
other epidemic was rocking the continent — an families, and girls must be targeted in back-to- of Covid-19, with 63% of countries opening many children will be forced to permanently drip
increase in child marriages and early pregnancies school campaigns,” Bissonauth said. schools after 200 days of closure. out of school, especially girls from disadvantaged
among school girls. backgrounds.
“Covid-19 should also be seen as something “African governments are aware of the critical
Rita Bissoonauth, director of the African positive as it is a time of reflection, to rethink need for policy reforms mechanisms, they must Zimbabwe has not been spared. A report pre-
Union’s International Centre for Women and the need of making the education system for the enact legislation to protect children from being sented to Parliament by Women’s Affairs minister
Girls Education (AU/CIEFFA), an African girls,” she added. excluded from school based on teen pregnancy Sithembiso Nyoni indicated that child marriage
Union specialised institution with a mandate and children being compelled to stay at home,” is on the increase, partly due to the Covid-19
of empowering girls and women in the area of A report which was presented by Knowl- pandemic. Nearly 5 000 girls risk permanently
education (AU/CIEFA), told a webinar discuss- dropping out of school after falling pregnant.
ing the impact of Covid-19 that fewer girls had
returned to school following the third wave of
infections.

She admitted that due to a sharp increase in
the number of teenagers who got married and
fell pregnant during the Covid-19 pandemic,
many girls had dropped out of school.

Bissonauth said as a result of policies that de-
prive girls from returning to school while preg-
nant, many girls will be deprived of education.

“Many countries do not allow pregnant girls
to resume schooling,” Bissonauth said during a
media briefing hosted by the Association for the
Development of Education in Africa (ADEA),
an organisation that acts as a catalyst for educa-
tion policy reforms.

Bissoonauth said the possibility of many girls
returning to school has become slim.

She added that poverty had hindered the re-
turn of girls to school, adding that countries
should invest in the education sector.

Bissoonauth said countries in the Global Part-
ner Education (GPE) had recognised the need
to invest heavily in the education sector and the
need for a transformative approach to gender
equality in learning.

For these countries, achieving gender equality
has been a top priority.

“US$4 billion of funds from GBE is expected
to be spent on girls in making sure that they are
not left behind,”she said.

While there are no actual studies to ascertain
the number of girls who had been forced out of
school due to early pregnancy or poverty, she said
there was a need for widespread reforms to en-
sure that girls return to class.

Only one in five girls in Africa is likely to com-
plete their education, with these figures likely to
worsen due to the pandemic.

NHAU MANGIRAZI HIV and Aids patients default on ARVs
but only 820 received their results.
MANY people on anti-retroviral therapy (ART) Hurungwe district Aids coordinator Rumbid- all stakeholders, including state security agen- ‘‘Our challenges are that as a district we still rely
defaulted on their medication during the Covid- zai Manatsa said travelling for health purposes cies who were manning the roadblocks. It was
19-induced lockdown in Hurungwe District. was not prohibited during the lockdown and said a reprieve to those who wanted medication as a on sending blood samples to Chinhoyi and Hara-
the defaults could be due to a lack of information. health right but, unfortunately, some were not be- re that are overwhelmed by other districts. Some
The default rate was high, particularly among ing honest enough. We hope in future the num- of the blood samples get lost, mixed up during
children and youths who rely on guardians and “Accessing ART or any HIV and Aids medica- bers of defaulters will decrease,’’ Manatsa said. transportation, therefore affecting our clients,’’
caretakers to collect their medication. tion was never barred under Covid-19 restrictions. Jawadu added.
People were free, as long as they had justification Jawadu revealed that during the time under re-
This was revealed by Hurungwe District Hos- on their travelling as this was communicated to view, 1 245 people had their viral loads collected Manatsa said there was a need to empower
pital staffer Umali Jawadu during a District Aids communities with information on HIV and Aids,
Coordinating Stakeholders’ Meeting in the farm- as well as Covid-19.
ing town of Karoi.
She said HIV and Aids, as well as Covid-19
“We had 33 defaulters during the time under were now twin global pandemics that are likely
review . . . It was one of the biggest challenges in to persist for a long time, hence the need for a
our health sector during the height of Covid-19. coordinated approach in fighting them.
We regret that the number looks small but a lot
needs to be done to avert these challenges as we “Let us get updated information on both pan-
fight HIV and Aids in our district,” Jawadu said. demics that have caused havoc to our well-being
but are now part of life. In this regard, all our ef-
“Those who failed to access medication cited forts must be centred on how best we can fight as
lockdown measures, among other challenges. a joint force in communities that we are working
in. some of the areas are hard to reach, but let us
The affected were adolescents below the age of complement each other as civil society in our spir-
24 years. The majority of them rely on collected ited goals for a healthy society,’’ Manatsa said.
medication by guardians and caregivers.
Hurungwe district has 4 158 people on
“We need to step up efforts so that they can life-prolonging anti-retroviral drugs.
be assisted although Covid-19 restrictions that
barred people from travelling were a major rea-
son. It is our hope that things will improve for the
better,’’ Jawadu said.

Page 20 Editorial & Opinion NewsHawks

CARTOON Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

Would a minister
survive on US$24?

AFTER decades of economic failure, inept leadership and cor- Malaba and the judicialisation
ruption-induced poverty, the chickens are coming home to roost of politics in post-coup Zim
for long-suffering Zimbabweans, who must now grapple with the
brutal realities of a shambolic social security system. CHIEF Justice Luke Malaba this week re- cution by angry mobs to resign — he did legal challenges to the unconstitutional
tained his strategic position at the helm of what usurpers usually do: use judges to en- overthrow of elected governments.
An entire generation of citizens faces the frightening prospect the judiciary following a bruising battle cul- sure legal legitimacy.
of reaching retirement age without a penny to their name. minating in the Constitutional Court set- These cases and incisive commentary
ting aside the judgement of the High Court Political legitimacy — Mnangagwa’s holy on them are set out in an interesting book
These people, who have borne the brunt of economic collapse, blocking his tenure extension by five years. grail — is a different issue and a story for by Professor John Hatchard and Dr Tunde
have no savings, no assets and no social safety nets to fall back another day. Ogowewo titled Tackling Unconstitutional
on. Who will take care of them? Certainly not their children, This means Malaba, who sits at the apex Overthrow of Democracies: Emerging Trends
who are also struggling to make ends meet. And certainly not the of the administration of the justice system Some usurpers just amend the constitu- in the Commonwealth.
clueless government which caused this monumental crisis and is in the country, will serve a controversial tion, change the law and cashier judges to
stubbornly refusing to take responsibility. tenure, which was extended for and to him protect themselves against prosecution for Hatchard and Ogowewo develop a new
effectively by President Emmerson Mnan- treason, incarceration or execution. theoretical construct — “the implicit bar-
Zimbabwe has been led by uncaring politicians since Inde- gagwa through unprecedented constitu- gain theory” — to explain the existing juris-
pendence in 1980. They have relentlessly raided the savings of tional amendments. In Zimbabwe it was Judge President prudence on coups.
hapless citizens, plunging law-abiding folks into crying poverty. George Chiweshe who first handled the
Wielding decrees, statutory instruments and sinister policies, the The move will further politicise the judi- coup issue. He ruled that Mugabe’s defen- Their study critically examines the evo-
heartless rulers have orchestrated currency heists, decimating ciary, and almost certainly judicialise poli- estration of his then deputy Mnangagwa lution of judicial decisions on the subject.
pensions and wiping out savings. When you add authoritarian tics, further undermining the judiciary, rule prior to his return to seize power was illegal. In doing so, it also evaluates jurisprudential
rule to this volatile mix, the end result is a traumatised society. of law and democracy. theories underpinning these judgements.
Then High Court judge Justice Charles
The social security time bomb is real. We are looking not only Judicialisation of politics — the reli- Hungwe also ruled that, effectively, the mil- The position of the Commonwealth, es-
at the large numbers of citizens who are nearing retirement age ance on courts and judicial intervention to itary intervention — coup — after Mnan- pecially given its strong stance against un-
but also the existing pensioners wallowing in misery. resolve political questions — is arguably gagwa’s dismissal was legal and legitimate. constitutional overthrow of governments,
one of the most significant phenomena in is clearly articulated. Ironically, the Harare
This week, the state-run pension fund, National Social Secu- Zimbabwean politics, yet under-studied Hawk Eye Commonwealth Declaration of 1991 and
rity Authority, announced it had increased the basic monthly and not adequately analysed. the subsequent Millbrook Commonwealth
pension payout to ZW$3 900. This is equivalent to US$45 at Dumisani Action Programme on the Harare Declara-
the official rate or US$24 on the parallel market. The Total Con- These developments reflect the demise Muleya tion (1995), cite coups as particularly grave
sumption Poverty Line stood at ZW$6 350 per person in August, of the “political question” doctrine, and violations of their principles. Zimbabwe
according to ZimStat. mark a transition to what is termed juris- Malaba dismissed an application by two is going back to the Commonwealth after
tocracy. fringe political outfits seeking nullification pulling out over a decade ago.
The ZW$6 350 poverty line represents the minimum income of Mnangagwa’s rise to power and incum-
needed for an individual not to be deemed poor. On a monthly When a military coup takes place any- bency which they had argued was unconsti- After the Harare coup, judges were on
payout of ZW$3 900, Zimbabweans cannot retire in dignity as where in the world, as it did in Zimbabwe tutional and illegal. Malaba said Mnangag- the frontline of events and debate. Hatchard
they are condemned to a life of untold poverty. in November 2017, the pillars of state — wa’s ascendancy was legal and procedural and Ogowewo explain why.
executive, legislature and judiciary — are as Mugabe’s resignation was free, voluntary
A two-litre bottle of cool drink costs ZW$450 in some su- usually shaken to their foundations, dislo- and in terms of the law. “To understand the nature of the exist-
permarkets. A pensioner who is paid a meagre ZW$3 900 can cated or collapsed. ing jurisprudence on coups, it is important
only dream of buying such a basic cordial. We must remember Most judges rely on the dodgy Dosso to understand what in fact produced it,”
that many pensioners are based in rural areas and must travel to This mostly has a chilling effect on the jurisprudence which can be traced to the Hatchard and Ogowewo write.
the nearest town to withdraw their payouts every month-end. fourth estate — the media. Typically, the judgement of the Pakistan Supreme Court
The transport cost alone, to and fro the bank, can take a huge executive and the legislature become the in State v Dosso, a decision that has been For this, a new theoretical construct —
chunk of their money. Why is the government unmoved by this first victims, as power becomes shared be- termed “a carte blanche for treasonable con- “the implicit bargain theory” — is intro-
suffering? tween the junta and judges. duct”. duced to tell the story.

Can a Nssa manager or a cabinet minister survive on a US$24 Even if they remain intact, they become Local judges almost certainly relied on “Judges are important players when there
monthly payout in this economy? pliable to the usurpers; controversial or ille- this and the doctrine of necessity to justify is a coup. The immediate effect of a coup
gitimate claimants to power. their decisions. is to eliminate two branches of government
Recommendations of the Justice Smith commission of inquiry — the executive and the legislature. The ju-
into pensions have largely been ignored. Nobody is saying any- The judiciary’s role after any coup is par- There is a rich history of case law within diciary is left intact.
thing coherent about the report. There is a conspiracy of silence. ticularly critical. That was also the case in the Commonwealth, where there have been
Even the political opposition and civil society are not paying Zimbabwe. “The judiciary is left intact for two rea-
enough attention to the important issue. sons. First, because judicial affirmation of
Soon after President Emmerson Mnan- the regime of usurpers confers legitima-
The first step towards ensuring that pensioners receive a decent gagwa took over power on November 24 cy on the usurpers. Second, because even
payout is to build a properly functioning economy. A dysfunc- last year — three days after the late former usurpers need to govern in a system char-
tional economy, as Zimbabwe has experienced in the past four president Robert Mugabe was pressured acterised by law and order, and an existing
decades but especially at the height of hyperinflation from 2000 under house arrest at gunpoint by the army judicial system — even if tweaked — is in-
to 2009, severely erodes pensions. and through threats of a Gaddafi-style exe- dispensable.”

The second imperative is to incentivise employers so that they
appreciate the importance of preserving and ramping up pension
benefits.

Thirdly, the government’s pension policy framework has left
ex-workers vulnerable. People’s welfare should be at the heart of
any public policy.

Fourthly, the legal framework has been found wanting. Many
pension funds have built multi-million-dollar shopping malls
and office blocks using money contributed by toiling workers.
When the time comes to look after the pensioners — who are the
real owners of those assets — the pension funds pay a pittance, if
anything at all. Meanwhile, the top executives of these criminal
enterprises are living large by buying themselves mansions and
luxury cars. The law must protect pensioners.

The government must launch an emergency fund to rescue
pensioners.

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MATTERSNewsHawks

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Rising fear as Zimdollar loses value

DUMISANI NYONI Zimbabwe’s local currency is trading at ZW$160 against the US dollar on the parallel market. that compensate for the expected loss of purchas-
ing power. Loans offered are also expensive and
FEARS of value destruction of the Zimbabwe low at about 46%,” it said. between the official rate and parallel market con- short term.
dollar balances — reminiscent of the 2009 pe- “Foreign currency (particularly US dollars) tinuous to widen despite some positive economic
riod — have re-emerged, driven by a weak lo- numbers,” the research firm said. “This is particularly prevalent amongst tradi-
cal economy and the negative impact of the is still considered a better store of value. Other tional banks as well as microfinance institutions.
Covid-19 pandemic, experts have said. alternatives include real assets such as property Morgan & Co said most credit terms offered Further, neighbourhood moneylenders (mostly
(stands and housing developments); and the gap by economic agents in Zimbabwe are at prices unregulated) typically charge exorbitant most-
The government re-introduced the Zimba- ly interest as high as 100%,” the report reads in
bwe dollar in 2019, a move which shocked the part.
transacting public, which had little faith in a local
currency. “Salaries and wages of most workers within the
private and public sectors are in Zimbabwe dol-
The local unit was abandoned in 2009 after lars. A deteriorating exchange rate implies that
hyperinflation hit 500 billion percent, while the the real value of incomes declines monthly. Cer-
exchange rate between the Zimbabwe dollar and tain sectors such as real estate (rentals and prop-
US dollar was pegged at ZW$35 quadrillion to erty purchases) are still pricing in US$ and this
US$1. Currently, the local currency is trading at implies further pressures on disposable incomes.”
ZW$160 against the greenback on the parallel
market. “This has created a situation in which salaries
and wages are linked to some form of index or
However, in its report titled Economic and US$ amount. This situation presents serious risks
Strategy Note: Zimbabwe Economic Outlook Post for companies given the pressure to continuously
the IMF SDR Allocation, research firm Morgan review salaries,” it said.
& Co said fears of value destruction of the Zim-
babwe dollar balances have re-emerged in the Morgan & Co, however, noted that inflation
broader economy. in Zimbabwe has been decelerating since the first
quarter of 2021 on the back of a tight monetary
“This has been driven by a plethora of factors, policy being implemented by monetary authori-
such as weak local economics and the negative ties and fiscal consolidation efforts.
impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. As a result,
economic agents are willing to pay huge premi- It said an inflation figure of 50.2% is still
ums to convert ZW$ bank balances to US dol- high (average inflation for 2021 is currently at
lars. This has an effect of putting pressure on par- 186.8%).
allel market rates that are currently at ZW$160,”
it said. The central bank expects annual inflation to
fall to between 25% and 35% by end December
Morgan & Co said the growing spread be- 2021.
tween the parallel market rate (US$1:ZW$160)
and the auction rate (US$1:ZW$85) has been a “A major risk is the limited liquidity flows on
concern. the official foreign exchange market. In some cas-
es, it has been taking a period of 8 to 9 weeks
“The triple digit inflation levels in Zimbabwe for companies to access foreign exchange on the
have led to deteriorating confidence in the local official market,” the report reads.
currency. This is evidenced by the stampede for
foreign currency from every corner of the Zimba- The firm said the foreign exchange auction
bwean economy given the need to preserve value. market also remains an efficient price discovery
Zimbabwe is a net importer of critical raw ma- mechanism, given the room for undesirable ar-
terials and local manufacturing capacity remains bitrage which has the potential to destabilise the
fragile economic stability currently being experi-
enced.

‘. . . confidence in local currency deteriorates’

BERNARD MPOFU stimulate exports. currency or based on the parallel market rate. market rate is around 1:160.
The auction system was then introduced at a Consumers and business now prefer to hold or “The sluggish movement of the auction rate
THE Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries transact in US dollars compared to the local
says confidence in the local currency is waning, time the Zimbabwe dollar had depreciated. Af- currency because of the widening market pre- is mainly due to the fact that the auction mar-
amid growing calls to liberalise the foreign ex- ter the outbreak of Covid-19 in 2020, the apex mium. The economy is re-dollarising, as more ket is no longer respecting the principles of a
change market, as most companies face bottle- bank relaxed exchange control allowing the use people shun the local currency. Confidence in true Dutch auction market, where the highest
necks in accessing the elusive greenback from of both the greenback and the local unit. the local currency needs to be restored quickly bidders win, while the lowest bidder has a high
the central bank. to reverse the trend.” chance of losing, hence creating moral hazard
“The dual pricing system becomes a problem behaviour among businesses. However, export-
Last year, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe for business when the exchange rate premium The widening of the parallel market premi- ers do not have the incentives to continue ex-
(RBZ) introduced a new auction system, in a (percentage difference between official and par- um is generally a result of the “rigidity of the porting due to currency distortions,” the CZI
bid to channel foreign currency to the produc- allel rate) is high. In August 2021, the exchange auction rate, which has barely moved over a said.
tive sectors of the economy. rate premium continued its upward trend and one year period,” the industrial lobby group
can be calculated at 63%,” the CZI said in its added. Last week, the Zimbabwe National Cham-
Since adopting the multi-currency regime in inflation and currency development update. ber of Commerce said growing mistrust over
2009, the country’s manufacturing sector — Official figures show that the auction rate in- the country’s official inflation figures and the
one of the most diversified in the region — has “Some of business costs are priced at the par- creased by only 7% between August 2020 and need to minimise exchange rate losses have held
been struggling to access concessionary fund- allel market and some at the official rate, which August 2021 to ZW$86 per US$1, while over back Zimbabwe’s financial institutions from
ing to retool and purchase throughput materi- makes the issue of pricing difficult for business. the same period the parallel market increased lending nearly US$2 billion.
als offshore. However, business is required to sell their prod- by more than 53%.
ucts at the prevailing auction rate, which be- The central bank has however maintained
In 2016, the government introduced bond comes a problem, as the cost structures and lo- Officially, the Zimbabwe dollar is trading at that it will maintain the current auction sys-
notes, which traded at par with the dollar to cal suppliers of raw materials charge in foreign 1:85 against the greenback, while the parallel tem.

Page 22 Companies & Markets NewsHawks

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

ZB Building Society faces turbulence

RONALD MUCHENJE

ZB Financial Holdings (ZBFH) says technical of the Covid-19 pandemic. While the market continued to have excess li- ence for the period ended June 2021 where the
processes to merge ZB Bank Limited and ZB These include credit risk following the quidity during the period and while the group overall claims ratio increased to 33% compared
Building Society are now at preliminary stage, has not been affected, it noted that mismatch- to 32% in December 2020. Current claims levels
with consultations still ongoing, as the building changed operating models and market dynamics es may arise between assets and liabilities due to have been in line with expected trends. Market
society risks failing to meet its capital target if it which are seen affecting the ability of borrowers changed business models for suppliers of critical risk — the valuation of equity investments may
continues to operate as a sole entity. to service their obligations. funding, thus the group will have to maintain a be affected through unfavourable underlying per-
significant liquidity buffer in the short term. formance fundamentals as a result of Covid-19.
The merger is earmarked for completion by In the statement, the group said it may be This may have an effect of reducing the carrying
year-end. forced to consider loan forbearance to mitigate “This may affect asset-creation activities in the value for investments designated as fair value in-
the risk of loss. short-term period. Insurance risk: — funeral in- struments. The group does not hold any deriva-
In 2014, the ZB Financial Holdings (ZBFH) surance claims remained very low on individu- tive instruments which may be exposed to sec-
board approved the group’s merger of two units Forbearance is when your mortgage servicer or al life products despite the advent of Covid-19. ondary risks related to Covid-19,” ZBHF said.
and then it was anticipated that the transaction lender allows you to temporarily pay your mort- There was a slight increase in the claims experi-
would be concluded by the end of June the same gage at a lower payment or pause paying your
year. mortgage.

The central bank last year mandated banking
operations — commercial banks and building
societies — to maintain a minimum capital level
of ZW$25 million and ZW$20 million respec-
tively as at 30 June 2021.

While ZB Bank Limited and ZB Building So-
ciety met these requirements as at the prescribed
date, the Monetary Policy Committee of the Re-
serve Bank of Zimbabwe revised minimum cap-
ital requirements for banking institutions with
effect from 31 December 2021.

The revised limit for tier-1 banks is the ZW$
equivalent of US$30 million and for building so-
cieties is the ZW$ equivalent of US$20 million
reckoned with reference to the exchange rate rul-
ing at that time.

“Based on the projected performance to 31
December 2021, ZB Building Society faces a
threat of failing to meet this capital target if it
continues to operate as a sole entity. A re-arrange-
ment of capital resources through the merger of
the group’s banking operation, namely ZB Bank

Limited and ZB Building Society is planned
for the optimisation of capital resources and
also address possible capital strain at a solo lev-
el for the subsidiaries. The proposed merger of
the group banking operations, namely ZB Bank
Limited and ZB Building Society, had not yet
materialised as at the reporting date. Stakehold-
ers’ consultation regarding the transaction is in
progress with the technical processes at a prelimi-
nary stage,” the group said in a statement accom-
panying financial results for the year ended 30
June 2021.

While aggregate risk has been assessed as a
whole, the group said other risks remained under
close monitoring as a result of the continuation

Funeral assurers refuse
to embrace reassurance

RONALD MUCHENJE ductibles. Ipec says the need for reassurance has become more apparent, given the strain on the sector players’
This means that funeral assurers are left exposed balance sheets.
THE Insurance and Pension Commission has
raised a red flag over the continued failure to to any form of risk. During the period, total technical liabilities for to exercise prudence in determining their reserves,
embrace reassurance by funeral assurers who sat “The commission is concerned that no funeral the funeral assurance sector increased by 354% to ensure that they are reflective of the various
on a reassurance ratio of 0% as of 30 June 2021, from ZW$247.80 million as at 31 March 2021 to risks that they are exposed to. In addition, players
despite the ravaging effect of the Covid-19 pan- assurer had reassurance arrangementsin place for ZW$1.13 billion as at 30 June 2021. in the funeral assurance sector offer benefit poli-
demic. the six months ended 30 June 2021, resulting in cies whose cost moves in line with inflation; hence
a reassurance ratio of 0%. The commission con- “Future policyholder benefits continue to be they should continuously review their reserves to
As late as 2015, about 90% of funeral assurers tinues to emphasise the importance of reassurance the major component of technical liabilities ac- align them with their liabilities,” Ipec said.
in Zimbabwe did not have reinsurance as a risk arrangements for funeral assurers so that they ef- counting for 99.86%, whilst unearned premium
management tool and, to date, the figure has shot fectively manage their risk exposures. Reassurance reserve, gross outstanding claims and incurred but Ipec said it was convinced that the develop-
up to 100%. arrangements are also important because they not reported claims accounted for an insignificant ment of mortality tables currently underway will
increase the sector’s capacity to write more busi- 0.14%. improve reserving, as well as pricing of funeral
Given the strain on the sector players’ balance ness,” Ipec noted. products by the sector.
sheets that is being caused by high claims expe- Funeral assurers are continuously encouraged
rience owing to the current Covid-19 pandemic, Ipec said the need for reassurance has become
the exposure has added uncertainty in an already more apparent, given the strain on the sector play-
fragile sector. ers’ balance sheets.

Ipec, in its half-year funeral assurance report, This is coming as all funeral assurers failed to
said it was concerned that no funeral assurer had comply with the minimum prescribed asset ratio
reassurance arrangements during the period, of 10% as stipulated by Statutory Instrument 206
saying the arrangements were important as they of 2019.
would increase the sector’s capacity to write more
business. Prescribed asset investments were insignificant
as they accounted for only 0.09% of the total as-
Reinsurance is insurance bought by an insur- set portfolio as the total amount invested in pre-
ance or assurance company to cover claims in scribed asset investments was ZW$1.98 million
times of distress while reinsurance risk retention against a minimum amount of ZW$225.74 mil-
measures the planned acceptance of losses by de- lion needed for the sector to comply with the 10%
minimum prescribed asset threshold.

NewsHawks Companies & Markets Page 23

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

BERNARD MPOFU Low prescribed assets appetite
among insurance companies
APPETITE to invest in prescribed assets in Zim-
babwe has remained low among short-term insur- Zimbabwe Stock Exchange exhibited a bullish trend, as equities continued to benefit from inflation hedge attractiveness.
ance companies as the sector’s regulator expedites
plans to turnaround this situation. by 35.94% from ZW$354.72 million as at 31 capital requirement (MCR) of ZW$37.5 million depreciation and uncertainties posed by the pan-
March 2021 to ZW$482.22 million as at 30 June as at 30 June 2021,” the report reads. demic on the economy continue to favour equi-
This comes after it emerged that less than half 2021. ties.
of the players have invested in the assets, a report On the other hand, the Zimbabwe Stock Ex-
has shown. “Only one (1) out of the eighteen (18) short- change, a major investment destination for in- Despite the current over-valuation on the ZSE,
term insurers was compliant with the minimum surance companies and pension funds, exhibited equities remain a better choice of investment for
With limited budgetary support, Treasury has prescribed asset ratio of 10% as at 30 June 2021. a bullish trend, as equities continued to benefit investors holding the local currency. The increase
turned to debt instruments such as Treasury Bills All eighteen (18) short-term insurers reported from inflation hedge attractiveness during the pe- in liquidity also continues to drive gains on the
and the insurance sector to bankroll key areas capital positions, which were above the minimum riod under review. Market watchers say currency market, analysts contend.
such as agriculture.

Despite registering improved performance for
the first six months to June, short-term insurers
remain risk averse to prescribed assets. This may
result in the underfunding of critical government
projects which depend on domestic funding.

According to the Insurance and Pension Com-
mision report for the second quarter ending June,
investments in prescribed assets by short-term
reinsurers increased by 14.63% from ZW$1.23
billion as at 31 March 2021 to ZW$1.41 billion
as at 30 June 2021.

“As at 30 June 2021, two (2) out of eight (8)
short-term reinsurers were compliant with the
minimum prescribed asset ratio of 10% and all
the registered short-term reinsurers reported capi-
tal positions that were above the minimum capital
requirement of $75 million,” the report reads.

“The Prescribed Asset Investments Working
Group is finalising its recommendations on the
prescribed asset framework that will take into
consideration sector needs to ensure the preser-
vation of value to both investor and policyholder
funds. In view of these developments, the com-
mission will escalate the enforcement of the pro-
visions of Statutory Instrument 206 of 2019 to
cause compliance, given the olive branch extend-
ed to the industry.”

Official figures show that total Gross Premium
Written (GPW) by short-term insurers amounted
to ZW$9.95 billion, reflecting a 262.84% nom-
inal increase from ZW$2.74 billion reported for
the comparative period in 2020.

The total business written by short-term rein-
surers increased from ZW$1.25 billion for the
period under review to ZW$5.22 billion for the
period under review, which is a nominal increase
of 317.60%.

Total assets for short-term insurers increased by
21.94% in nominal terms from ZW$11.44 bil-
lion reported as at 31 March 2021 to ZW$13.95
billion as at 30 June 2021. Investments in pre-
scribed assets by short-term insurers increased

Leading industrialist Moyo retires from PPC
DUMISANI NYONI sHawks, saying: “Corporate governance recom-
mends that directors should rotate after serving Todd Moyo
INDUSTRIALIST and Datlabs chief executive a board for about nine years as after that they
officer Todd Moyo has retired as Pretoria Port- should have their independence reviewed annu-
land Cement (PPC) non-executive director after ally.”
serving the regional cement maker for more than
seven years. “I would like to think that I gave this board
my best as you will see from the chairman’s com-
Moyo, who served on the nominations and ments on the annual accounts. I have also made
remuneration committees, joined the PPC myself available to assist the company outside
board of directors as an independent non-execu- the board whenever my services might be need-
tive director in November 2013. ed. I wish the company well as it consolidates its
operations in the region,” Moyo said.
“In compliance with paragraph 3.59 of the
Listings Requirements of the JSE Limited, Moyo, who is also Datlabs board chairperson,
Shareholders are advised that Mr Todd Moyo said he will remain, for the time being, on the
has retired as a non-executive director of PPC at local board of PPC Zimbabwe as chairperson
the AGM (annual general meeting),” PPC said and director, in order to attend to a few business
in a shareholder note. issues.

The AGM was held on 27 August 2021. He sits on the board of other institutions like
“The board has commenced the process of National Foods (chairperson and independent
appointing a replacement for Mr Moyo, the out- non-executive director), Delta (independent
come of which will be announced in due course. non-executive director) and other non-listed and
The board would like to thank Mr Moyo for investment companies.
his valuable contribution to the company and
wishes him all the best in his future endeavours,” Moyo also assists on the boards of Masi-
PPC said. yephambili Trust, Falcon College Trust and Ma-
Furthermore, the PPC board informed share- ter Dei Hospital Trust.
holders that it has resolved to consolidate its re-
muneration committee and nominations com- He is a member of both the Institute of Char-
mittee into a single committee. tered Accountants in Zimbabwe and the South
The consolidation will be effective on 1 Oc- African Institute of Chartered Accountants.
tober 2021 and the members of the combined
remuneration and nominations committee Moyo has experience in disciplines that in-
will consist of Nono Mkhondo as chair, Jabu clude sales, marketing and information technol-
Moleketi and Charles Naude. ogy, according to PPC.
They are all non- executive directors.
Moyo confirmed his retirement to The New- The South African company operates a clin-
ker plant at Colleen Bawn near Gwanda in
the southern part of the country, as well as ce-
ment-milling plants outside Bulawayo and Ha-
rare.

Page 24 Companies & Markets NewsHawks

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

Vicious tussle for Waverly empire rages on

BRIDGET MANANAVIRE They said they were surprised after receiving to himself and 145 to the late Cohen. Cohen respectively is null and void; that the CR2
communication that they had been kicked out The two sisters also wanted an order to remove return of the allotment is irregular and therefore
THERE is no end in sight to the battle for the of Waverly Plastics after their father’s death. They null and void; and consequently that the second
Waverly business empire, with the children, rel- allege to have further learnt that Vico was in the Vico as a signatory to the company’s bank ac- applicant’s (Waverly Plastics) shareholding did
atives and management continuing to tussle for process of taking over Waverly Plastics where the counts at First Capital Bank, Standard Bank and not change by virtue of these impugned issue
control in the courts. sisters held 33% stakes each. CBZ. According to a 12 May 2021 judgment by and allotment.”
High Court judge Jester Charewa, the matter be-
Accusations of fraud, corruption and perjury Vico is alleged to have unlawfully instructed gan as an application for a declarature that the “By judgment of this court on 13 November
have been thrown back and forth, with some AA Omar and Company to effect changes to Wa- “purported issue and allotment of 245 and 124 2019, the matter was referred to trial,” the judg-
members of the late entrepreneur Victor Cohen’s verly Plastics shareholding, allotting 255 shares ordinary shares to first defendant and one Victor ment reads.
family largely losing out. They are now left with
limited options, opting for private prosecution in On the other hand, Berkowirtz is now being
the matter. accused of perjury on allegations that she made
a false declaration under oath in relation to sub-
The family members have gone as far as ap- scription to the memorandum of association of
pealing to President Emmerson Mnangagwa the company. In December, Cohen’s daughters
to help resolve the dispute, accusing officials at were issued with a private certificate of prosecu-
some state institutions of ensuring they are de- tion to pave way for Vico’s trial.
nied justice.
Berkowitz had written to Prosecutor-General
The battle has been playing out in the Zimba- Kumbirai Hodzi seeking to institute private pros-
bwean courts for years between Cohen’s children, ecution after the state had refused to prosecute
management of one of the companies, including
a grandson of Cohen. Vico, citing lack of evidence.
In a letter to Mnangagwa at the end of 2019,
Cohen, whose empire included Waverly Blan- the sisters alleged that there were some officials
kets, Waverly Plastics and at least 11 other com- promoting corruption by working with the peo-
panies, died in South Africa in 2017, resulting in ple who were trying to grab their father’s estate.
a vicious fight for the control of his companies. “It is worrying that people who are supposed
to fight against corruption and fraud are the
At the centre of the battle are Cohen’s daugh- same people who are working with the people
ters Amanda Berkowitz nee Cohen and Belinda who are heisting our father’s companies. We have
Halfon nee Cohen versus their sister Debra Vi- reported some of the fraudulent activities to the
co’s son, Aron Vico, who is also managing direc- police and National Prosecuting Authority after
tor of Waverly Blankets. discovering fake documents and it is now more
than a year, but nothing is moving,” Berkowitz
Berkowitz and Halfon took Vico to court, said in the letter.
accusing him of pushing them out of Waverly
Blankets through corrupt means.

NewsHawks Stock Taking Page 25

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

Price Sheet A MEMBER OF FINSEC & THE ZIMBABWE STOCK EXCHANGE

Thursday, 23 September 2021

Company Sector Bloomberg Previous Last VWAP Total Total Price Price YTD Market
Ticker Price Traded (cents) Traded
AFDIS Consumer Goods (cents) Volume Traded Change Change (%) Cap
African Sun Consumer Services AFDIS: ZH Price 7500.00
ART ASUN: ZH 7500.00 816.92 15,600 Value ($) (cents) (%) ($m)
Ariston Industrials ARTD: ZH 800.15 7500.00 708.71 1,300
Axia Consumer Services ARISTON: ZH 700.00 820.00 338.41 8,600 1,170,000.00 - - 212.50 8,797.95
BNC AXIA: ZH 335.15 799.00 2420.21 8,200 10,620.00 16.77 2.10 380.54 7,039.99
BAT Consumer Goods BIND: ZH 2310.03 337.00 500.00 7,200 60,949.00 8.71 1.24 48.48 3,096.90
CAFCA Basic Materials 499.95 2770.00 129995.00 27,750.00 3.26 0.97 152.54 5,507.27
Cassava BAT: ZH 129995.00 501.00 17000.00 1,096,100 110.18 4.77 164.22 13,187.59
CBZ Consumer Goods CAFCA: ZH 17000.00 2300.42 - 174,255.00 0.05 0.01 31.58 6,249.28
Dairibord Industrials 2287.34 - 8300.00 - 5,480,554.00 136.35 26,822.54
Delta CSZL: ZH 8253.33 - 3690.18 - - 89.10 1,484.97
Econet Technology CBZ: ZH 3500.00 2400.00 9482.79 955,100 - - - 253.91 59,594.16
Edgars Banking DZL: ZH 9003.00 8300.00 4115.51 300 - 13.08 0.57 -2.88 57,040.23
FBC 3876.73 3690.00 385.00 21,971,280.00 46.67 0.57 181.69 13,210.88
Fidelity Consumer Goods DLTA: ZH 380.08 10000.00 2950.00 55,100 24,900.00 190.18 5.43 316.81 121,802.76
First Capital Consumer Goods ECO: ZH 2949.36 4125.00 900.00 119,700 2,033,290.00 479.79 5.33 335.50 106,615.45
FML Telecommunications EDGR: ZH 900.00 385.00 300.29 11,350,900.00 238.78 6.16 220.83 1,258.92
FMP Consumer Services FBC: ZH 300.00 2950.00 2800.00 94,300 3,880,925.00 4.92 1.29 96.49 19,822.52
GBH FIDL: ZH 2700.00 - 1450.00 53,200 204,820.00 0.64 0.02 371.95
Getbucks Banking FCA: ZH 1450.00 300.00 182.84 5,900.00 - - 172.99 980.31
Hippo Financial Services FMHL: ZH 184.96 2800.00 820.00 200 - 0.29 0.10 166.67 6,476.42
Innscor FMP: ZH 820.00 1450.00 18800.00 - 6,110,321.00 100.00 3.70 347.53 19,324.01
Lafarge Banking GBH: ZH 18800.00 182.00 12747.51 2,800.00 - - 661.83 17,953.28
Mash Financial Services GBFS: ZH 12100.00 - 9390.23 2,034,800 5,800.00 -2.12 -1.15 6460.00
Masimba HIPO: ZH 9390.23 18800.00 297.14 100 39,128.00 - - 108.89 981.10
Medtech Real Estate INN: ZH 290.09 13000.00 4000.00 400 - - - 244.25 9,537.57
Meikles Industrials LACZ: ZH 4000.00 - 21.00 864,800.00 647.51 5.35 878.15 36,287.87
Nampak MASH: ZH 21.14 280.00 10519.55 21,400 11,536,500.00 - - 219.51 71,994.93
NatFoods Financial Services MSHL: ZH 9799.92 4000.00 1150.76 - - 7.05 2.43 257.14 7,512.18
NTS Consumer Goods MMDZ: ZH 1200.00 21.00 62800.00 10,400.00 - - 165.82 5,524.05
NMBZ MEIK: ZH 62801.00 10700.00 800.00 4,600 60,000.00 -0.14 -0.66 378.06 9,666.15
OK Zim Industrials NPKZ: ZH 816.67 1150.00 1495.59 90,500 200,423.00 719.63 7.34 404.17
Proplastics Industrials NTFD: ZH 1300.00 62800.00 1774.97 17,115,300.00 -49.24 -4.10 944.93 638.35
RTG Real Estate NTS: ZH 1642.99 800.00 2500.00 - 1,814,750.00 -1.00 -0.00 2814.39 26,577.23
RioZim Industrials NMB: ZH 2500.00 1500.00 509.00 3,500 565,200.00 -16.67 -2.04 273.85
SeedCo Healthcare OKZ: ZH 509.00 1850.00 2803.28 1,500 5,600.00 195.59 15.05 97.22 8,695.70
Simbisa Industrials PROL: ZH 2800.00 2500.00 8007.98 954,500 406,800.00 131.98 8.03 190.37 42,955.27
Star Africa Industrials RTG: ZH 7501.83 509.00 4901.45 162,700 14,473,120.00 - - 165.45
Truworths Consumer Goods RIOZ: ZH 4489.80 2800.00 166.82 157,700 2,907,500.00 - - 87.49 2,030.98
TSL Industrials SEED: ZH 165.00 8020.00 200.00 509.00 3.28 0.12 248.17 6,044.75
Turnall SIM: ZH 200.00 5200.00 5000.00 900 171,000.00 506.15 6.75 307.85 22,130.55
Unifreight Banking SACL: ZH 4700.00 169.00 430.00 700 3,811,800.00 411.65 9.17 517.85 6,298.39
Willdale Consumer Services TRUW: ZH 420.00 200.00 2995.00 27,200 7,126,710.00 1.82 1.10 577.97 12,702.07
ZB TSL: ZH 2995.00 5000.00 311.38 815,400 1,468,372.00 - - 189.86 3,420.83
Zeco Industrials TURN: ZH 299.43 430.00 8000.00 116,300 200.00 300.00 6.38 362.37 3,438.83
Zimpapers Consumer Services UNIF: ZH 8000.00 - 100 25,000.00 10.00 2.38 16002.15 27,555.21
Zimplow WILD: ZH 330.00 0.12 6,100 23,220.00 - - 873.06 7,865.70
ZHL Basic Materials ZBFH: ZH 0.12 - 290.00 47,600 - 11.95 3.99 233.33
TOTAL Consumer Goods ZECO: ZH 290.00 - 1528.17 145,400 36,120.00 - - 500.00 768.14
Consumer Goods ZIMP: ZH 1513.75 290.00 330.17 880,200 - - - 195.92 17,855.12
Consumer Goods ZIMPLOW: ZH 330.00 1520.00 100 - - - 205.63
Consumer Services ZHL: ZH 330.00 500 6,090.00 14.42 0.95 2,120.07
Consumer Goods 5,400 6,843,145.00 0.17 0.05 5.32 3,188.90
1,171,780.00 5,536.34
Industrials - 123,198,531.00 14,015.25
Industrials 11,600
Industrials 0.56
- 1,670.40
Banking - 3,642.86
Industrials 2,100 6,004.65
Consumer Services 447,800 862,925.42
Industrials 354,900
Financial Services 8,708,900

ETFs OMTT.zw 250.00 250.00 249.97 138,894 347,195.00 -0.03 -0.01 149.42 199.98

Old Mutual ZSE Top 10 ETF

FINSEC Financial Services OMZIL 7100.00 7100.00 -- - 167.92 5,893.83

Old Mutual Zimbabwe

VFEX (US cents) Consumer Goods PHL:VX 30.00 - 30.00 - - - - -16.67 US$m
Consumer Goods SCIL:VX 26.00 24.00 24.00 1,000 240.00 -2.00 -7.69 33.33 52.56
Padenga 57.87
SeedCo International

Index Close Change (%) Open YTD % Top 5 Risers Price Change % YTD %
ZSE All Share 7,374.18 +3.11 7,151.79 +180.45 NMBZ 1495.59c +195.59c +15.05 +273.85
Top 10 4,134.50 +3.70 3,986.97 +149.89 Simbisa 4901.45c +411.65c +9.17 +307.85
Top 15 4,724.50 +3.66 4,557.81 +142.52 OK Zim 1774.97c +131.98c +8.03 +97.22
Small Cap +0.49 223,215.22 +1788.68 Meikles 10519.55c +719.63c +7.34 +378.06
Medium Cap 224,303.10 +2.33 17,541.40 +222.59 SeedCo 8007.98c +506.15c +6.75 +248.17
17,949.71

Top 5 Fallers Price Change % YTD %
Nampak
NTS 1150.76c -49.24c -4.10 +404.17
GBH 800.00c -16.67c -2.04 +2814.39
Medtech 182.84c -1.15 +661.83
NatFoods 21.00c -2.12c -0.66 +165.82
-0.14c -0.00 +944.93
62800.00c -1.00c

SALES & TRADING: Davide Muchengi: [email protected] | Lungani Nyamazana: [email protected] | Tatenda Jasi: [email protected]

RESEARCH: Batanai Matsika: [email protected] | Precious Chagwedera: [email protected] | Tafara Mtutu: [email protected]

Tel: (+263) 08677008101-2 | Email: [email protected] | Address: 1st Floor, Block D, Smatsatsa Office Park, Borrowdale, Harare

MORGAN & COMPANY has issued this document for distribution to its clients. It may not be reproduced or further distributed in whole or in part for any purpose. This document is not and should not be construed as
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Page 26 News Analysis NewsHawks

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

PALESA MUWANI Zanu PF ratchets up plot to sabotage
MDC Alliance ahead of 2023 elections
THE hijacking of    the name of
the  Nelson Chamisa-led MDC Alli- had his recall successfully rescinded by epidemic. for this weekend. It only postponed MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa.
ance  project by a little-known party, the courts. Chiwenga promulgated a statuto- them as a result of fierce jostling for is  unleashing those  as and when the
which is suspected to be  part of  Zanu positions driven by factional inter- situation demands and this is one of
PF’s underhand    tactics,    shows yet The US Senate Foreign Relations ry instrument amending the Public ests in the party which threatened to those situations,” Masunungure said.
again that President Emmerson Committee and the State Department Health (Covid-19 Prevention, Con- tear  the party apart ahead of its annu- “This is part of the manipulative strat-
Mnangagwa and his party will leave have since    expressed concern    over tainment and Treatment) Regulations al conference. egy to deny him (Chamisa) breathing
no stone unturned    in their bid to what they call  attempts by Mnangag- to enforce the ban. space.    The idea is to liquidate the
decimate the opposition ahead of the wa to decimate the country’s biggest Mnangagwa has also lured a num- MDC without necessarily clobbering
2023 general election. opposition party. This was after Zec had announced ber of MDC officials to defect to physically its leader and his support-
that by-elections would be held in Zanu PF, including Lilian Timveous ers. We don’t know    whether those
The MDC Alliance has been using “The recall of @Biti Tendai and December last year. and Blessing Chebundo. measures will be effective and whether
the acronym    Citizens Convergence other members of parliament in they can last  until the 2023 elections
for Change (CCC)  to drum up sup- #Zimbabwe last week is yet another “These regulations may be cited In a move to further weaken the and whether Chamisa and his party
port ahead of the crucial polls in less example of the systematic dismantling as the Public Health (Covid-19 Pre- Chamisa-led MDC Alliance’s run- are able to weave around those strate-
than two years’ time and the campaign of the elected political opposition and vention, Containment and Treatment ning of councils, Local Government gies and still emerge as  a serious con-
has gained traction, especially on mi- subversion of the will of the Zimba- (Amendment) Regulations pursuant minister July Moyo suspended Ha- tender for the 2023 elections.”
croblogging site Twitter. It is widely bwean people,” the committee said on to subsection (2), the holding of any rare mayor Jacob Mafume over alle-
believed the Chamisa-led formation Twitter earlier this year. by-election to fill a casual vacancy gations of corruption. This was after He said  one of the major problems
was planning to contest the 2023 gen- in Parliament or in local authority is Mafume was arrested over corrup- Chamisa faces is that his party has
eral election under the CCC name af- The recalls also mean the MDC for the duration of the period of the tion charges    in December last year. been heavily penetrated by Zanu PF
ter MDC-T’s Douglas Mwonzora laid Alliance has lost critical funding af- declaration of Covid-19 as a formida- Moyo has recently appointed a depu- but has failed to institute measures to
claim to the MDC Alliance name. ter    nearly ZW$60  million allocated ble epidemic disease, suspended, and ty mayor, the Zanu PF-aligned Kiven get intelligence on Zanu PF’s strate-
to political parties was handed over to if such vacancy occurred while such Mutimbanyoka,    despite not having gies and plans.
However, an obscure  political par- the MDC-T instead. declaration is in force, no part of the the legal powers to do so.   The MDC
ty  under    an equally unknown poli- period from the date of such vacancy Alliance now only has four councillors “There is an intelligence deficit  in
tician Varaidzo Musungo notified the It also lost its headquarters in the to the date of the end of declaration in the capital,  severely incapacitating Nelson Chamisa’s strategy. Chamisa
Zimbabwe Electoral Commission capital to the MDC-T, leaving the shall be counted for the purpose of its ability to provide basic services. does not know what Zanu PF thinks,
(Zec) by letter this week that it will MDC Alliance without a base. section (158 (3) of the Constitution,” but Zanu PF knows what Chamisa
contest the election under the CCC Statutory Instrument 225A of 2020 The hijacking of the name of the and his party think.
name. To ensure that the MDC Alliance reads. MDC Alliance project is part of a sys-
does not reclaim its seats through tematic process to eviscerate Chami- Zanu PF  has infiltrated every nook
In a letter to Zec dated 20 Sep- by-elections triggered by the recalls, This has not stopped    Zanu PF sa’s party ahead of the polls, according and cranny  of any  organisation that
tember 2021, the secretary-general Vice-President Constantino Chi- from convening countless meetings to to political analyst Eldred Masunun- is valuable politically,” Masunungure
of Musungo’s party, Farai Zhou, said: wenga, who is also Health minister, restructure the party. Despite keeping gure. noted. “The MDC Alliance and Cha-
“We can confirm that our party’s pres- late last year banned the holding of the ban in place and therefore  stifling misa have to come up  with a new, ef-
ident and 2023 presidential candidate by-elections to fill vacancies in Parlia- the MDC-Alliance’s impact, Zanu “I would suspect that Zanu PF has fective and sharp strategy that is also
is Ms Varaidzo Musungo. Our party ment and local authorities for as long PF had organised provincial elections a bag of tricks in its armoury and it based on iintelligence about its rivals.”
logo (is) as appears at the top and bot- as the Covid-19 remains a formidable
tom of this letter. In the interests of
better communicatio, we are sourcing
offices in Harare and will advise once
we have these.”

MDC Alliance spokesperson
Fadzayi Mahere  dismissed the move
as  inconsequential.

“It’s a non-event. We remain fo-
cused on our goal of securing six mil-
lion votes.

We are in the middle of a nation-
wide campaign. We have set in place
mechanisms to ensure the vote is pro-
tected,” she said.

However, this development shows
that the Chamisa-led party must gird
its loins in the face of a massive and
continuous onslaught by Mnangag-
wa’s regime as it goes for broke to win
the harmonised polls in 2023. Bearing
in mind that he won by a wafer-thin
50.6% in the  heavily disputed presi-
dential election in 2018, Mnangagwa
has used  various methods in  a bid  to
severely weaken Chamisa    ahead of
the make-or-break polls, particularly
using lawfare. Lawfare is the misuse of
legal systems and principles against an
opponent for the purpose of damag-
ing or deligitimising them.

A Supreme  Court ruling last year
recognised Thokozani Khupe as the
legitimate successor of the late found-
ing MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai
and interim leader of the party. Khupe
then lost the leadership to Mwonzora
during an extraordinary congress held
in Harare. 

At least 80 councillors have been
recalled by the MDC-T, drastically
weakening its control of city councils
in various cities.

This is in addition to 48  MDC  Al-
liance members of Parliament who
have been recalled since last year.

This includes the recall of six MDC
Alliance members of Parliament,
including its vice-president Tend-
ai Biti, at the behest of little-known
Benjamin Rukanda purporting to be
People’s Democratic Party (PDP) sec-
retary-general. However, Biti has since

NewsHawks The Big Debate Page 27

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

RWANDA has sent troops  to Mo- How big is the Islamist threat in Moza?
zambique to assist the government in And why are Rwandan troops there?
fighting against a four-year Islamist
militant insurgency. In this Ques- with Mozambique in recent years
tion-and-Answer (QA) session, Politi- has been the concern that Mapu-
cal scientist Phil Clark (PC) provides to had become a launching pad for
insights into the threat and why Rwan- exiled Rwandan dissidents. This has
da is supporting Mozambique. Clark included members of the opposition
is professor of international politics at Rwanda National Congress. Closer
London University’s School of Oriental security ties have included Rwanda’s
and African Studies. request that

QA: Do the insurgents in Mozam- Mozambique rein in opposition
bique represent a new front of Is- members on its soil.
lamic terrorism on the continent?
Kagame has for years lambasted
PC: Since 2017, jihadist militias in France for failing to apologise for its
the northern Mozambican province complicity in the 1994 genocide. It
of Cabo Delgado  have mounted  an therefore took some genocide sur-
armed insurgency against the Mo- vivors by surprise when he warmly
zambican government. Their  stat- welcomed  Macron’s remarks  on the
ed objective  is to instil Sharia law issue. They had misgivings about
across northern Mozambique. This is whether Macron had fully acknowl-
said to be in response to the region’s edged and apologised for France’s
chronic poverty, unemployment and role in the genocide.
weak public services under the Freli-
mo-led government in Maputo. Kagame’s warm comments preced-
The Mozambican insurgents rep- ed the announcement of a new €500
resent a new armed Islamic front, million (US$587m) French develop-
with  entirely local  motivations and ment package to Rwanda.
command structures. However, their
propaganda invokes common tropes
of regional and global jihad.
They often claim responsibility for
attacks using the name given to them QA: What are the implications of
by the local population, ‘Al-Shabaab’. its involvement?

But there is no evidence that they PC: The Rwandan forces have so far
have any direct links to Al-Shabaab proven effective in tackling the jihad-
in Somalia. ist insurgents. This has led the Mo-
Recently, Islamic State zambican government to claim that
(Isis) claimed responsibility for jihad- Rwanda’s entrance has fundamental-
ist attacks in Mozambique. ly altered the direction of the conflict
But, again, there appears to be and improved the security situation
little direct connection between the for civilians and foreign companies.
Mozambican jihadists and the Islam-
ic State. ISIS has previously attempt- The concurrent operations by
ed to claim responsibility for attacks Rwandan and Sadc forces, however,
by unassociated Islamist groups could pose problems in the coming
elsewhere in Africa, for example the months. Various Sadc leaders – as
Allied Democratic Forces in eastern well as Mozambique’s largest opposi-
Democratic Republic of Congo. Rwandan soldiers in Mozambique. tion party Renamo – have criticised
talions  operating  in the Central Af- the arrival of Rwandan troops. They
QA: How big a threat do they rep- South African special forces –  have Rwanda and South Africa about the rican Republic outside the broader argue that this should have been an
resent? deployed peacekeepers to Cabo Del- Cabo Delgado conflict in the months UN peacekeeping mission, similar exclusively Sadc effort.
gado. preceding their interventions in Mo- to Rwanda’s current support for Mo-
PC: Jihadists pose a significant zambique. This suggests close coor- zambican forces outside of Sadc. These issues were clearly on the
threat to local civilians and foreign This raises major concerns over a dination between Paris and these ac- mind of Rwandan Foreign Min-
economic interests in Cabo Delga- seeming lack of coordination among tors, reflecting the enormous French Alongside its humanitarian ob- ister Vincent Biruta who travelled
do. The four-year low-intensity civil these armed actors. interests at stake. jectives, the Rwandan government to Pretoria in early June  to discuss
war has killed more than 3 000 civil- QA: Why is the Rwandan govern- stands to benefit in security and dip- Rwanda-South Africa cooperation
ians, displaced 800 000 and caused ment getting involved? In May this year Macron  dis- lomatic terms from its involvement in Mozambique. This came shortly
widespread food insecurity. PC: There is vociferous debate about cussed military solutions to the crisis in Cabo Delgado. after Rwandan military chiefs con-
this. with a number of African heads of ducted their first reconnaissance trip
Meanwhile, the energy giants Exx- state at a summit in Paris. They in- The intervention fits a pattern of to Cabo Delgado.
onMobil and Total  have suspend- The Rwandan government frames cluded Mozambican President Filipe Rwanda’s ‘responsibility to protect’
ed  their liquid natural gas projects this  as a “responsibility to protect” Nyusi, South African President Cyril role in peacekeeping missions in But military force can achieve only
in Cabo Delgado. ExxonMobil  is mission. This, it argues, has been in- Ramaphosa and Rwandan President Darfur, Mali, CAR and Haiti. These so much. This has been made clear in
investing US$30 billion  and  Total spired by the international commu- Paul Kagame. have bolstered its international image comparable cases of Islamist violence
US$20 billion. nity’s  failure to protect  civilians in and afforded it considerable interna- in the Horn of Africa, Nigeria and
Rwanda during the 1994 genocide This was succeeded by similar talks tional leverage. For example, in 2010 the Sahel.
The insurgents have cited the per- against the Tutsi. with Kagame and Ramaphosa in Ki- when foreign donors considered
ception that local people will fail to gali and Pretoria several weeks later. prosecutions and suspending aid to Systemic political and socio-eco-
benefit from government deals with The Rwandan intervention in Mo- Rwanda because of its alleged crimes nomic interventions are necessary to
the multinational companies as one zambique came shortly after French Crucial to Rwanda’s involvement in eastern Congo, Kigali  threat- address years of Frelimo neglect in
catalyst for their attacks. President Emmanuel Macron’s visit in Cabo Delgdao are growing ties be- ened  to withdraw its peacekeepers northern Mozambique. These have
to Kigali in May 2021. Some com- tween Rwanda and Mozambique af- from Darfur. produced the deprivation and mar-
The combination of widespread mentators have suggested that ter the two countries signed a mem- ginalisation that underpin the insur-
violence and threats to foreign busi- orandum of understanding in 2018. The Cabo Delgado campaign is gency.
nesses have led to a patchwork of in- Rwanda,  funded by France, has also consistent with Rwanda’s recent
ternational military and security in- intervened to shore up France’s in- Earlier this year Nyusi made talk of  tackling Islamist threats at Mozambicans themselves are
terventions. This includes reports of: terests, principally the gas reserves a lightning-stop visit to Kigali to ask home and in the wider region. clearly the key actors in this situa-
the Mozambican government’s use of French-owned Total. for Rwanda’s military assistance in tion. Nevertheless, Rwanda and Sadc
of Russian and South African mer- Cabo Delgado. Nyusi had previous- In regional geopolitical terms, should use their diplomatic leverage
cenaries the presence of Portuguese The Rwandan government has ly  stated  his preference for bilateral Rwanda will have delighted  in re- to encourage Nyusi to address the
military trainers, and chafed against the claim that it is rather than multilateral military in- ports that its troops in northern Mo- structural causes – and not only the
simply doing France’s neo-colonial tervention. He is perhaps concerned zambique have  proven more effec- violent manifestations – of the con-
Total’s hiring of a former French bidding. It has stressed the humani- about ceding too much control to a tive  than those of Sadc, with which flict.
foreign legionnaire to coordinate se- tarian basis of its intervention. Sadc mission led by regional power- it has often had a testy relationship.
curity for its gas plant on the Afungi house South Africa. This includes ensuring that the
peninsula. There is scant evidence of direct Finally, Rwanda’s intervention immense natural gas wealth that will
French backing for Rwanda’s mili- He also noted Rwanda’s track re- bolsters its bilateral relations with flow once the conflict abates benefits
In addition, Rwanda and the tary campaign. Nevertheless, France cord of conducting highly disciplined Mozambique and France. A key cat- not only Nyusi’s government and
Southern African Development held a series of high-level talks with and effective peacekeeping missions. alyst for Rwanda’s diplomatic push multinational corporations but, most
Community (Sadc) –- including These have included Rwandan bat- importantly, everyday Mozambicans.

—The Conversation.

Page 28 Critical Thinking NewsHawks

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

THE Zimbabwean currency’s col- Zimbocash aims to solve Zim’s money
lapse in 2008 and record hyperin- problems using blockchain technology
flation are widely seen as textbook
examples of what can go wrong with
a centralised currency. For instance,
some cryptocurrency enthusiasts
— as well as opponents of the fiat
currency system in general — have
routinely pointed to the Zimdollar’s
collapse when arguing for an alterna-
tive monetary system.

In other instances, entrepreneurs
like those behind  Zimbocash, a de-
centralised currency and payments
platform for all Zimbabweans, have
already launched such an alternative.
They hope that this alternative to a
central bank-issued fiat currency will
demonstrate to all that sound money
which enables people to save is still
possible.

To learn more about this Zimbo-
cash system, Bitcoin.com News (BN)
reached out to Laswet Savadye (LS),
head of the Zimbocash subscriber
network. Below are Savadye’s re-
sponses to questions sent to him.

BN: Can you start by telling us
what brought about this idea?

LS:  We’ve been passionate about
sound money. Many in the team have
been exposed to Zimbabwe’s first hy-
perinflation and the pain of money
printing, and this was further rein-
forced with the book When Money
Destroys Nations. We are passionate
about solving the problems of mon-
ey printing with sound money. This
is the only way for there to be sus-
tainable savings, trade, and wealth
creation on a national scale.

BN: What do you hope to achieve
with the Zimbocash cryptocurren-
cy or Zash as it is also known?

LS:  Our broader goal is to establish respond to this? for a sound money token that has a BN: In your opinion, do these re- technology.
sound money for Zimbabwe — we LS:  We do not have two crypto- real peer-to-peer network will grow. marks by the minister suggest that Everyone in Zimbabwe — the
have created money that is fixed in currencies. We have one and it is These two will result in increased buy both the government and the cen-
supply but available to all Zimba- publicly available for all to see on: liquidity on the exchange and de- tral bank are now embracing cryp- government, businesses, and ordinary
bweans. Zimbabwe has an extremely tronscan  https://tronscan.io/#/to- creased sell liquidity. It is these two tocurrencies? people — should be able to rely on
weak currency and banking system, ken/1002984. Listing on the ex- forces that will enable us to increas- LS: It would be great if that was the the economic system. Otherwise, the
having suffered from hyperinflation change requires one to put an ex- ingly open up exchange transfers. case. This is currently a new technol- risk is that Zimbabwe gets trapped in
and economic malaise. We want to change float that will be used for ogy and no one else has successfully a global central bank digital currency
see the economy of Zimbabwe being buying and selling in order to come For that reason, we will be limiting enabled a blockchain with a fixed system that impoverishes the entire
transformed with sound money. up with a reference price. the amount that users can sell. We money supply for an entire nation so, nation.
BN: Still on the same issue, there want to see users make appropriate in many ways, this is an innovative BN: Do you see a CBDC as the
The goal is for trust to be restored seems to be some confusion regard- transactions, and we will be carefully technology. We believe that the gov- right solution for Zimbabwe’s cur-
in the money and banking system. ing the status of airdropped Zash monitoring the high-value individu- ernment is taking the right approach, rency problems?
The Zimbocash system is based on tokens. For instance, some holders als who have a lot of Zash — we want i.e. a wait-and-see approach. As the LS:  In many ways, the  RTGS dol-
a decentralized blockchain — a rev- of airdropped tokens claim these this to be used in daily trade. market grows we believe that there lar has been a form of a central bank
olutionary technology that enables a cannot be traded on Bithumb. Is will be appropriate engagement and digital currency. The two key issues
fixed supply of money and a reliable this correct? If so, why are you not That said, we are pleased to an- regulation from a point of greater un- are, can a CBDC be used to estab-
payments system. allowing holders of airdropped nounce that we have opened up derstanding. lish sound money where no one can
BN: Your head of corporate com- Zash tokens to trade these? transfers to the exchange for users BN: Many central banks in Africa increase the money supply, and can a
munications, Philip Haslam, re- LS: As part of that, we need a market who make the 10 most transactions are studying or are preparing to CBDC be created that isn’t ultimately
cently suggested that Zimbocash is price and we need to attract sufficient each month. This is a start, our goal launch central bank digital curren- controlled by offshore powers.
the solution to Zimbabwe’s collaps- liquidity on the exchanges to enable is to increasingly open up exchange cies (CBDC). In your opinion, are BN: Lastly, you have been on the
ing monetary and banking system. cross-border trade. Liquidity grows transactions gradually over time, central banks capable of issuing a ground for some time now. In your
Does this mean your cryptocurren- over time. It is fragile. There have rewarding those who make transac- successful or functional CBDC? opinion, are Zimbabweans ready
cy will be competing with the local been a few national airdrop systems tions. LS: CBDCs do not use the principles for digital currencies?
fiat currency? that failed because they didn’t take the BN: Zimbabwe’s Finance minister, of blockchain to fix the money sup- LS:  Zimbabweans are more than
LS: Zimbcash is not competing with time to build the payments network Mthuli Ncube, recently made some ply. These CBDCs will all be linked ready for digital currencies. RTGS
the local fiat currency. We believe directly and everyone sold directly on positive remarks about cryptocur- to global CBDCs and result in the dollars is digital and the people have
there is room for both to co-exist. the exchange pushing the price down. rencies. What are your thoughts on global control of the transaction. In had much-needed practice from
Zimbocash is not trying to replace We’ve got to work first on develop- what he said? a world where all transactions are using current mobile wallets such
the fiat currency, rather it comes in to ing a peer-to-peer trading network, LS: The Finance minister made sim- digital and governments around the as  Ecocash  and  Onemoney. We’re
complement by being an alternative and as liquidity grows, we can open ilar remarks in 2018, when he said world will resort to rampant mon- seeing a lot of excitement about the
currency that people can use. the exchange up slowly. As transac- “Zimbabwe should be investing in ey printing. It is a major global risk Zimbocash system and we believe
BN: There have been suggestions or tions increase, the demand locally for understanding innovations and often right now and our goal is to resolve we have an opportunity to establish
allegations that you essentially have Zash increases. Also, as transactions central banks are too slow in invest- this issue in Zimbabwe by fixing the something really unique in the world.
two cryptocurrencies, the one that increase, the demand internationally ing in these technologies.” We remain supply of money using blockchain —Bitcoin.com.
was airdropped to Zimbabwean us- supportive of the Finance minister’s
ers and the other one which is listed remarks.
on the South Korean cryptocurren-
cy exchange, Bithumb. How do you

NewsHawks Reframing Issues Page 29

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

SISHUWA SISHUWA Should Zambia’s new president
fire his predecessor’s appointees?
MANY are clamouring for President looted wealth. For this mission to be ceived political affiliation has unfor-
Hichilema to remove senior officials successful, it will require the coopera- Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema. tunately been commonplace in Zam-
appointed by Lungu. These demands tion of some of those who know where bia. Readers will recall that Michael
are understandable but misguided.  the bodies are buried, metaphorically approach. The expectation of rewards sic questions we must answer are: Are Sata and the PF did the same in 2011
speaking. Sacking them will not help. based on political affiliation is one the people appointed by Lungu able on replacing Rupiah Banda and the
The last few days have seen mount- reason why Lungu’s presidency was so to do their job? Are they competent, Movement for Multiparty Democra-
ing calls  from many  Zambians  for The second point relates to avert- disastrous, and his removal is a great experienced, and qualified profession- cy. Are we going to do this every time
President Hakainde Hichilema to ing potential chaos. The removal of positive outcome for all Zambians. als? If they are, and they have not been there is a change of government? Who
dismiss senior civil servants appointed almost all senior officials at the same We must not repeat the same mis- involved in blatant criminal activities, will want to work for government
by his predecessor. Those behind these time could effectively paralyse the op- takes. then there is no reason to fire them. knowing that their employment is
calls argue that such officials cannot erations of the state. However skilled Sacking people based on their per- only secure as along as their perceived
be relied upon to implement the new new appointees might be, it would In this debate, I believe that the ba- political party of choice is in power?
president’s vision because they were take time for them to settle in and
either complicit in the worst excesses master their briefs. It is heartening to see so many
of the previous administration or are Zambians engaging in the democratic
still loyal to former president Edgar Moreover, the incumbents in these process and holding Hichilema and
Lungu. positions are employees, mostly with his new administration to account.
contracts. Dismissing them at would In a sense, this renewed interest in
It is easy to sympathise with these cost the treasury a significant sum, governance issues demonstrates that
demands. Zambians generally agree which Zambia can ill afford. A better people are tired of the incompetence,
that Lungu’s presidency was an un- approach would be to either transfer venality, and waste that character-
mitigated disaster, hence  Hichilema’s the officials to different roles within ised Lungu’s time in office, and they
landslide election victory last month. the civil service or let their contracts, want change. At the same time, it is
The reason for the temptation to re- many of which may be set to expire important to bear in mind that Hich-
move the old administration’s appoin- soon, run down. ilema has been in office for less than
tees en masse and replace them with a a month. He cannot be expected to
new tranche of officials is clear. How- The third point is perhaps the most work miracles in that time.
ever, the case for a clear-out of Lungu’s important: political party loyalty
networks in the executive and civil should not determine somebody’s job. What Hichilema does need to do,
service is not clear-cut. I am painfully aware that under Lun- however, is to clearly communicate
gu’s rule, hundreds of Zambians lost his approach and explain his deci-
While superficially appealing, a their jobs for alleged association with sions. Otherwise, rumours and accu-
clear-out policy would present several the then opposition United Party for sations will start to fly. In my view, the
dangers. National Development (UPND). growing irritation against the contin-
ued presence of Lungu’s appointees in
The first is practical. We know from The worst-affected were Zambians government has little to do with the
successive Auditor General’s Office from Southern, Western and North- disapproval of Hichilema’s decisions
and Financial Intelligence Centre  re- western provinces – a factor that by his supporters; it has much to do
ports  that large amounts of money might explain why voters from these with the lack of clear knowledge and
were looted under Lungu’s rule. One areas emphatically rejected Lungu and understanding about what is going
of Zambia’s pressing issues is to get the Patriotic Front (PF). If the UPND on, why the president is taking his
this money returned so that it can be were to remove people from their jobs time, or the motivations behind some
spent on the many pressing issues that for suspected links to the political op- of his decisions. To avoid alienating
the country faces, but what we don’t position, they would be no different himself from his support base and to
know is where the stolen funds have from the PF on this score. help manage public expectations, it is
gone – that is apart from the appoin- important that Hichilema develops an
tees and senior government officials It is worth noting that many of effective public communication strat-
from the Lungu era. those demanding the removal of PF egy.--African Arguments.
appointees are UPND supporters
Unlike President Levy Mwanawasa who expected to be rewarded follow- *About the writer: Dr Sishuwa Si-
who focused on prosecuting suspect- ing Hichilema’s victory. They believe shuwa is a Zambian historian and
ed plunderers on coming into office it is their turn to eat and that they political commentator.
in 2002, Hichilema’s priority appears deserve political jobs because of their
to be recovering stolen funds. His ad- loyalty. This is completely the wrong
ministration may yet press criminal
charges, but with Zambia’s watchdog
institutions lacking investigative ca-
pacity and its judiciary compromised,
his approach for now seems to be cen-
tred on  creating fast-track courts  as
a more effective way of getting back

How to build a different Africa: Reflections on Zambia

DOLIKA BANDA rules of democracy have consistently security, and upward economic and thentic democracies, with democratic victory in Zambia – now embodied
prevailed, despite the myriad obsta- social mobility – these are the critical leaders at the helm, we would neces- by President Hichilema – to rec-
THIS week, Zambia’s newly elect- cles over the years. tenets of a sustainable democracy in sarily have a collective appreciation ognise that the power of the people
ed President Hakainde Hichilema is which the voice of the people carries that then drives leadership to have must rule the day.
canvassing the United Nations Gen- Perhaps more importantly – con- the day. For Zambia – and for Africa strategic plans that will counter these
eral Assembly – and later Washington sidering this democratic opening – writ large – to meet its vast poten- dynamic issues. We must constantly remind Zam-
DC – to discuss his vision for the we must look forward while drawing tial, then, a future must necessarily bia’s leadership that democratic rights
country following his landslide win on lessons of the past to build a Zam- be constructed upon a foundation in In other words: Democracy is not matter and that the youth generation
in an election that had a voter turn- bia that meets its potential. For Hich- which these values are not vested or a finite game. It is not static. And it is (who turned out in droves to vote)
out of more than 75%.  ilema and his new government, this otherwise dependent on an individu- never an individual’s game. must be included and empowered.
should start with replacing the poli- al, but rather ingrained in the ideolo- In this way, democracy will be insti-
Hichilema is on a mission to share tics of patronage in favor of a politics gy and philosophy of the governance Democracy, at its core, is an in- tutionalized for the long-term, stand-
his belief in the power of democracy of principle and ideology. You speak system. This is the major challenge finite exercise. The objective is staying ing the test of time well beyond the
and to entice the world to a Zambia to most Africans today and they will facing President Hichilema today, as in the game and continually pushing singular leadership of President Hi-
that is now open for business, follow- tell you that leaving their home coun- well as other upstart democratic lead- towards the goal post. It is a game in chilema.
ing years of corrupt and autocratic try is Plan B.  Plan A, on the other ers in the region. which the incumbent president of a
rule. Given what his administration hand, is to build a future in Africa country gives the electorate a licence It is up to all of us – as Zambians,
has inherited, Hichilema must also with their family, friends, and col- A related challenge for this type to operate and the power to speak out and as those concerned with democ-
convince Zambia’s global partners leagues. Unfortunately, however, Plan of governance is to both recognize against corruption and other forms of racy and development more broadly
that his government will once again B has too often and increasingly been and appreciate the interrelationship bad governance. By extension, there- – to jealously guard this victory but
be a stable, reliable partner in the upgraded to become Plan A. This is between the pressing global issues of fore, democracy cannot be anchored also to advance this crucial agenda for
realms of commerce and business, because many of Africa’s leaders, both today – climate change, the paucity around an individual.  Its innate pow- the long-term and for the benefit of
but also regional security and inter- past and present, have utterly failed of inclusion, the gender disadvantage, er lies in the exercised power of the the African continent.
national relations. its people. and forgotten youth populations – people, which, at its very best, exists
to democratic governance (or lack as an interplay with its elected lead- —Vanguard Africa.
Given Hichilema’s unprecedent- As is true for people across the thereof ). Democracy is the all-encap- ers.
ed upset victory – and the peaceful world — regardless of which con- sulating philosophical lever through *About the writer: Dolika Ban-
handover of power that has become tinent they call home — African which societies can most effectively Democracy is not owned by a gov- da is a member of Vanguard Afri-
the norm in Zambia – pundits of de- populations want a future that is pre- address these social ills, and others, ernment or by geopolitical partners.  ca’s advisory council, a longtime
mocracy should deeply examine this mised upon hope. Africans in Africa that inevitably lead to insecurity, for True democratic rights, and their good governance advocate, and a
country. There must be something hope for new beginnings that signify example. In Africa, if we had truly au- collective power, resides in a citizen’s renowned expert in development
special about a nation in which the opportunity, equality, transparency, ability to exercise it. finance and global capital market
development.
So, let us take stock of this major

Page 30 RTehfreaBmiginDg eIbssautes NewsHawks

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

The kaiser and the paperweight: How Cecil
Rhodes helped inspire the first world war

THE German monarch’s imperi- The paperweight featuring rock from Cecil Rhodes’ grave was given to the last German kaiser in his exile in Huis Doorn, the Netherlands. Photograph: Judith Jockel/The Observer
al ambitions were fuelled by the
British colonialist – as the story who was a close friend of Rhodes. German reich lived. very reverse which deeply grieves show.
behind a recently discovered relic The paperweight was regarded by If I could, I would hang Cecil us,” she said. Wilhelm would later tell his
reveals. Beit as a perfect gift for the Kai-
ser due to the depth of his deep Rhodes, but as that isn’t possible, The Boer war in 1899 only ministers that Rhodes had advised
It was discovered, dusty and personal appreciation of the colo- I shall make use of him cemented the distrust and enmi- him to regard “the acquisition and
damaged, on a warehouse shelf. nialist pioneer who had died three ty. Even at the time of Victoria’s opening up of Mesopotamia” as
years earlier. The kaiser, always ready to feel death in 1901, Wilhelm’s presence his “task”, and that he must “build
Recorded simply as a “paper- slighted by Britain, whose imperi- at the deathbed was resented by the railway through Asia minor to
weight” in the depot inventory, it Beit will have known that the al grandeur he coveted, was incan- her heir, Edward. the Euphrates – the land route to
was just one small piece among 30 strength of the relationship be- descent. He condemned Rhodes India”, which delighted the kaiser
000 personal items salvaged from tween the two men was in part as a “monstrous villain”. Such And yet Wilhelm was a suck- but dismayed the British, who did
Kaiser Wilhelm II’s palaces more due to it being forged out of a was his fury that Wilhelm spoke er for flattery. When, in 1899, not want German control of trade
than a century ago, and sent on common yearning for glory and of dispatching German troops to Rhodes sent the Kaiser two books routes to the Raj.
to him in a convoy of 64 railway power. But the first act in their Transvaal. “That would mean war with a letter lamenting the lack
coaches as he abdicated and fled story was marked by hostility, and with England,” his foreign secre- of appreciation among the Ger- Wilhelm would describe
to the Netherlands after Germa- indeed murderous intent on the tary said. The emperor responded: man population of the monarch’s Rhodes, to whom he gave a signed
ny’s defeat in the first world war. side of the German monarch. “Yes, but only on land.” genius, his head was turned, and portrait of himself, as “a most en-
a meeting was scheduled. “Well! ergetic man and marvellous or-
But Cornelis Van der Bas, con- In 1890, Rhodes was prime He was talked down – but Wil- It will create a splendid scandal ganiser … and that with a man
servator at the Huis Doorn mu- minister of British Cape Colony, helm sent a catastrophic congrat- among my dimwitted subjects like Rhodes for a minister (he)
seum, a mansion where Wilhelm today part of the modern South ulatory telegram to Paul Kruger, but I don’t care,” Wilhelm said. would do anything”.
reluctantly spent the last two de- Africa. But he had greater ambi- president of Transvaal, in which “If I could, I would hang Cecil
cades of his life in exile, had rec- tions: Rhodes wanted to bring the he applauded the success in re- Rhodes, but as that isn’t possible, He fuelled Wilhelm’s belief that
ognised the trinket in the archive, whole of southern and eastern Af- pelling the attempted overthrow I shall make use of him.” his reich had a historic role to play
inscribed “Von Cecil Rhodes rica under British rule. The first “without appealing for the help in the world, and should not be
Grab, December 1905”  (From step was to help overthrow the of friendly powers in guarding The reality, as chronicled by living in Britain’s shadow.
Cecil Rhodes’ grave),  as some- gold- and diamond- rich Boer re- the independence of your country Wilhelm’s biographer, is that the
thing more. “It had special mean- publics of Transvaal and the Or- against attacks from outside”. two got on famously during their Rhodes’ legacy was then per-
ing for him,” Van der Bas said. ange Free State, by encouraging a meeting in March 1899. Over haps even more toxic than once
revolt by British migrant workers The emperor’s intervention was dinner, Rhodes apologised for thought.
For Van der Bas, based on his there, known as the Uitlanders. a public relations disaster. The the Transvaal transgression, be-
subsequent research and the past British press attacked the kaiser fore filling Wilhelm’s head with The paperweight that bears tes-
work of scholars such as Wilhelm’s In December 1895, Rhodes’ for his thinly veiled threat, and ideas. He wondered why the kai- tament to the unfortunate meet-
biographer John CG Röhl, the friend, Leander Starr Jameson, Victoria gave her eldest grand- ser didn’t “go for Mesopotamia ing of minds will be on show at
relic, rediscovered in April, offers led a private army of 500 men, son a dressing down. “Our great [modern day Iraq] as a colonising the Huis Doorn museum from 1
a vital insight into the relation- including three serving British wish has always been to keep on ground to which [His Majesty] October as part of an exhibition
ship between the kaiser, a quixotic officers, into the Transvaal, a ter- the best of terms with Germany, replied that this was a project he on royal bereavement marking the
and vainglorious man, and Cecil ritory where 5,000 citizens of the trying to act together, but I fear had had for years”, the records 80th anniversary of the kaiser’s
Rhodes, the British imperialist your agents in the colonies do the death.
and one of the richest men in
the world in the late 1800s, that —The Guardian.
would soon have seismic repercus-
sions across the globe.

The story around the gift of the
paperweight to the kaiser reveals
that Rhodes was both a key fig-
ure in creating a violent breach
between the German emperor and
his grandmother, Queen Victoria,
and then a co-conspirator in Wil-
helm’s lust for conquest and terri-
torial expansion.

Rhodes’ little-told role in help-
ing to foment the conditions
that led to the first world war, in
which 40 million died, may even
offer further cause and power to
those seeking to bring down the
statues, remove the plaques and
terminate the scholarships that
bear his name.

The rediscovered paperweight,
due to be put on show for the first
time at Huis Doorn next month,
has a silver base with a glass top
on which two pieces of granite
are attached, taken from Rhodes’
grave in Matobo national park,

Zimbabwe, once known as
Rhodesia, the territory he had
claimed for the British crown.

It was given to the Kaiser on
28 December 1905 at his  Neues
Palais  in Potsdam by Alfred Beit,
a British-South African diamond
millionaire born in Hamburg,

NewsHawks Reframing Issues Page 31

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

Zimbabwe: Chronic shortage of 
clean water in the capital persists

RESIDENTS of  Zimbabwe’s  capi- Residents fetch water from unsafe sources.
tal, Harare, face a potable water cri-
sis three years after a deadly cholera Watch. “It is not clean. We cannot tion, which costs several thousand crisis. In Mbare, a high-density sub- we cannot drink that water, we only
outbreak, Human Rights Watch said drink it and, because it smells badly, US dollars per borehole. urb of Harare which has the coun- use it for washing. For drinking and
today. Zimbabwe’s central govern- we cannot use it to cook.” Under section 77 of Zimbabwe’s try’s biggest and busiest bus termi- cooking water, we [go to] boreholes
ment and the Harare City Council 2013 constitution, “every person has nus and a vegetable market visited where we wait sometimes four hours
should urgently act to ensure clean Common water sources, namely the right to safe, clean, and potable by thousands of people daily, water to get it.”
water for millions of people affected. shallow wells, taps, and many bore- water.” The government is obligat- and sanitation facilities are insuffi-
holes – deep, narrow wells – are of- ed to take reasonable legislative and cient, residents said. Those who have no access to tap
The water situation in Harare is ten contaminated, Human Rights other measures, within the limits of Blocks of “bachelor flats” in water rely on boreholes for all their
largely the same as in  2008, when Watch said.  available resources, to achieve the Mbare, built and designed for water. A 32-year-old mother of two
Zimbabwe experienced the most progressive realisation of the right one-person occupancy during colo- in the Highfields high-density sub-
devastating cholera outbreak in Afri- However, despite the known to water. Zimbabwe is also a party nial times, now house large families, urb said that her tap water was shut
ca in 15 years. The outbreak killed 4 risk of contaminated water, there is to African regional and international severely straining the limited water off after she failed to pay ZW$6
200 people and infected at least 100 no specific official information on human rights treaties that recognise resources. Because of the lack of wa- 000 (US$70) in water bills over six
000.  which water sources are safe, leaving the right to water and sanitation. ter, the flush toilets are severely in- months. Consequently, she depends
residents to take their chances. The government at the national adequate, unsanitary, and in many on the potentially dangerous water
Human Rights Watch found and local levels should urgently act cases as a result are non-functional. from the borehole. “Many people
that the city’s perennial water crisis, “The water that comes out from to ensure alternative sources of safe Both Harare and Chitungwiza have queue to get water from the bore-
which is linked to the cholera out- the taps is neither clean nor safe drinking water, such as safe bore- numerous open markets in which hole, but we do not know if the wa-
break, is the result of the city’s obso- to drink, so we have to depend on holes and protected wells, for the thousands of people set up stalls to ter is safe to drink,” she said.
lete water infrastructure,  a  balloon- borehole water, which we feel is bet- entire population, Human Rights sell meat, vegetables, fruit, and live-
ing population, severe droughts, and ter,” said a 46-year-old woman from Watch said. stock, but the markets lack adequate The boreholes are also not always
pervasive government corruption Harare’s Glen View suburb. “But we “Zimbabwean authorities should water and sanitation facilities.  reliable or accessible. A 56-year-
and mismanagement. Poor gover- know that even borehole water is not not wait for the next cholera out- For instance, at the Kamunhu old mother of three in the Budiriro
nance and disputes between the cen- safe for drinking.” break to provide access to safe drink- Shopping Centre, the Harare City high-density suburb said:
tral government and the Harare City ing water for everyone,” Mavhinga Council established about 2 000
Council have hindered efforts to ad- More affluent families in Hara- said. “The government should invest market stalls for traders, but it did In 2019, we had a borehole that
dress the problems. re’s low-density suburbs drill safe in low-cost water equipment and not provide running water. was working here in Budiriro 5. We
boreholes and purchase bottled wa- distribution systems to uphold the   Residents who at times get tap would spend over six hours waiting
“Harare’s long unresolved wa- ter, options not available to the vast right of millions of Zimbabweans to water described the water’s quality as for water, but it was better we had a
ter crisis is a ticking time bomb of majority of the population. The hu- potable water.” poor. A 53-year-old woman from the borehole nearby. The borehole broke
magnified health risks that forces manitarian organisation  Médecins The millions of residents of Ha- Mabvuku high-density suburb said down and has not been working for
residents to seek alternative, often Sans Frontières  (MSF, or Doctors rare and the surrounding areas have that: “Now we get water in our taps the last five months. We must now
unsafe water sources,” said  Dewa Without Borders) in Zimbabwe has been hard hit by the region’s water twice a week in the evenings, but walk a long distance to Mufakose,
Mavhinga, southern Africa director developed a method of protecting another residency area, sometimes at
at Human Rights Watch. “Zimba- new boreholes from contamination night, to fetch water from boreholes
bwean authorities at the national with sanitary seals, but local govern- there.
and local levels should work togeth- ments have not adopted this solu-
er to promptly and permanently end
Harare’s dangerous water problems.”

Human Rights Watch interviewed
85 people in October 2019 and July
and August 2021 water in five dense-
ly populated, or high-density, areas
(Budiriro, Glen View, Highfield,
Mabvuku and Mbare) who had no
access to safe drinking water: in Ha-
rare, the peri-urban informal settle-
ment of Epworth near Harare, and
the surrounding towns of Chitung-
wiza, Norton, and Ruwa. 

Human Rights Watch also inter-
viewed 11 central government and
municipal officials, public health
experts, legal experts, city council
employees, and staff of nongovern-
mental organisations and United
Nations agencies in Zimbabwe.
Human Rights Watch also reviewed
reports from the government, UN,
nongovernmental groups, and the
media on water issues in Harare.

The infrastructure for piped wa-
ter in Harare was developed in the
1950s, before Zimbabwe’s indepen-
dence in 1980, and designed for a
population of 300 000 people. 

Currently, Harare’s greater met-
ropolitan area has about 4.5 million
people, more than half of whom
have no access to clean water and are
at risk of water-borne diseases such
as cholera and typhoid.

The water crisis in Harare has af-
fected people’s rights to water and
sanitation as well as other related
rights, including the rights to life,
food, and health. “Sometimes we
get city council water in the taps,”
a woman from the high-density sub-
urb of Mabvuku told Human Rights

Page 32 Reframing Issues NewsHawks

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

The Chitungwiza municipality Harare City Council’s water de- PF-controlled ministry of Local assert that the Zimbabwean govern- Civil and Political Rights.
depends on treated water supplied partment uses 12 chemicals, includ- Government still enjoys superpow- ment was using its law enforcement Recommendations to govt
by the Harare City Council. The ing chlorine gas, aluminum sulfate, ers. It appoints all town clerks, chief agents to target council officials from
water supply in Harare directly af- sulfuric acid, sodium silicate, acti- executives, and other officials. This the MDC Alliance. Mafume’s case is • Implement legal and oth-
fects the Chitungwiza municipality, vated carbon, and hydrated lime, means they continue to sabotage our also still before the courts. er reforms to ensure the full
which gets rationed water as a result. to treat and purify water from Lake efforts for change. The government Legal standards on water promotion, protection, and
Epworth, an informal settlement Chivero. Most of these chemicals are still approves and limits our budgets. Zimbabwe’s 2013  constitution  pro- enjoyment of the right to wa-
adjacent to Harare, has no water imported and very expensive, creat- We are not able to determine rates, tects the right to water. Section 77 ter enshrined in section 77 of
infrastructure for its 120 000-plus ing a huge challenge for a country leaving us unable to make enough of the constitution states that every Zimbabwe’s 2013 constitu-
residents.  facing severe foreign currency short- money to provide adequate services.” person has the right to “safe, clean, tion and African regional and
ages. and potable water.”  international human rights
Instead, tens of thousands of Ep- The minister of State for Harare law;
worth residents have  depended on Ian Makone, a Harare city coun- metropolitan province, Oliver Chi- Under the constitution, the state
a dam  with stagnant, unsafe water cillor, blamed leakages in the old, dawu, said central government ac- “must take reasonable legislative and • Ensure residents’ access to
for more than three decades, even dilapidated, and inadequate water knowledged challenges of decentral- other measures, within the limits potable water either directly
though the water is unfit for human distribution network for the water isation and the water crisis, and is in of the resources available to it, to through central government
consumption. A 21-year-old woman crisis. “More than 40% of pumped discussions about long-term plans, achieve the progressive realisation of authority or by adequately
who has lived her entire life in Ep- treated water is not delivered due to including the construction of new this right.” empowering local govern-
worth without tap water said: leakages,” Makone said. There are dams, but said the major challenge ments;
cracks in both the water and sew- is funding. He said the government The African Charter on Human
I know that the dam water is not age pipes because of the city’s failure needs support from international and Peoples’ Rights, which Zimba- • Work with city councils to
safe to drink, sometimes we fall sick to replace decades-old pipes several donors to be able to have a compre- bwe has ratified, does not expressly develop and implement a sys-
after drinking the water, but I have years ago, causing flowing tap water hensive response to the water crisis. include the right to water.  tem, such as sliding scale fees,
no choice. I need the water to sur- to be mixed with sewage in several to ensure the delivery of af-
vive, and I have nowhere else to get places across Harare. Existing legislation makes it com- However, the African Commis- fordable and safe piped water
water. Clashes among authorities plicated and difficult for municipal sion on Human and Peoples’ Rights to low-income families;
Zimbabwe’s government has an ob- authorities to address problems like has  interpreted  the right to water
In Harare’s low-density suburbs in ligation under international human access to clean water, former Harare as being implied by various rights • Work with local authorities
the north and east of the city, more rights law to ensure that the right to mayor Herbert Gomba said.  codified in the African Charter, in- to ensure that all public bore-
affluent families have devised alter- water is met, regardless of whether cluding the right to “a general sat- holes are regularly tested for
natives, including drilling safe bore- the policies are carried out by the For instance, under the Joint Ven- isfactory environment” favourable water quality and that these
holes and using bottled water, which national government or delegated to tures Act, before the city can engage to peoples’ development, which is results are disseminated to
costs ZW$86 (US$1) for a one-li- local authorities. Political tensions a private company for services, it unattainable without access to water residents;
tre bottle. That is unaffordable for between the ruling Zanu PF party, must first send a resolution to the and sanitation. 
the vast majority of Zimbabweans, which controls the central govern- ministry of Local Government, • Provide regular, up-to-date
many of whom live well under the ment, and the opposition MDC which must then send a resolution The African Commission in 2020 information to residents on
poverty line. Alliance, which controls the Harare to the Office of the President and published  Guidelines on the Right the water quality of both taps
municipal government, has adverse- Cabinet for approval.  to Water in Africa, which it said was and boreholes in their areas
Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) ly affected water service delivery in grounded in regional treaties’ pro- so they understand the health
in Zimbabwe, which since 2015 has the region. The Urban Councils Act prohib- tection of economic, social, and cul- risks and benefits of available
worked to bring safe, clean water to its cities from borrowing money or tural development; health; access to water sources.
vulnerable communities, in 2017 The central government has entering into contracts without min- natural resources; the environment;
introduced new drilling and cemen- not fulfilled  constitutional provi- istry of Local Government authori- and food. • Upgrade the water infrastruc-
tation techniques, placing sanitary sions that allow for the devolution of sation. In addition, the Procurement ture in Harare and surround-
seals to protect newly drilled bore- power from the central government Act removed procurement powers In 2010, a total of 121 countries, ing areas; and
holes from contamination. MSF re- to the municipal level. Zimbabwe’s from local authorities and put the including Zimbabwe, voted in the
ported that tested water from  these Parliament has not enacted legisla- powers in the Office of the President United Nations General Assembly to • Take steps to reduce corrup-
boreholes showed “zero bacteriologi- tion to establish appropriate systems and Cabinet. recognise a freestanding right to wa- tion, including by developing
cal and chemical contamination.” and procedures to facilitate coordi- ter. In 2011, the UN Human Rights and enforcing transparency
nation between the central govern- The local and central governments Council  endorsed the right  to safe and accountability measures
MSF has since advocated drilling ment and local authorities.  have continued to blame each oth- drinking water and to sanitation as regarding the allocation of fi-
these safe boreholes to prevent con- er without resolving Harare’s water basic rights. nances and expenditures. 
tamination, including through the Thus, while the Harare City crisis.
dissemination of a  toolkit  on good Council has the responsibility to Corruption within government  The General Assembly adopted a Recommendations to HCC
practices in water, sanitation, and supply clean water to residents, the Public sector corruption and mis- resolution in 2015 that states that • Ensure residents’ access to
hygiene that explains how to protect central government, through the management at the local and central the right to water entitles everyone, potable water either directly
borehole water from contamination. Ministry of Local Government, government levels have exacerbated without discrimination, “to have through central government
However, the average cost is very wields the decision-making power. the government’s neglect of water access to sufficient, safe, acceptable, authority or by adequately
high, ranging from US$5 400 to At the same time, the central govern- infrastructure over the last two de- physically accessible, and affordable empowering local govern-
US$6 000 per borehole, and Harare ment is responsible for constructing cades, compromising access to safe, water for personal and domestic ments;
and surrounding towns have not ad- dams to provide water for cities, but clean water.  use.”  • Develop and implement a
opted the cementation technology. no new dams have been constructed system, such as sliding scale
Water crisis causes for Harare and Chitungwiza despite Transparency International’s 2020 The UN Committee on Eco- fees, to ensure the delivery
Several factors have contributed to the existence of such plans for de- Corruption Perception Index found nomic, Social, and Cultural Rights of affordable and safe piped
Harare’s severe water problems, in- cades. that corruption is extremely high has interpreted  international law water to low-income families;
cluding economic decay; perennial in Zimbabwe,  ranking it 157  out on the right to water, as well as state • Upgrade the water infrastruc-
droughts affecting Lake Chivero, Harare’s mayor Mafume told Hu- of 179 countries. Corruption is rife obligations, in its General Comment ture in Harare;
which is dammed to supply Harare man Rights Watch that inadequate in the central government as well as No. 15.  • Provide regular, up-to-date
with water; lack of maintenance of laws authorising the local govern- within the Harare City Council and information to residents on
the old water infrastructure; inabil- ment to provide water have ham- Chitungwiza Municipality, negative- The state’s minimum core obliga- the water quality of both taps
ity to procure the necessary chemi- pered the city council’s efforts to ly affecting service delivery. tions include ensuring people’s access and boreholes in their areas
cals to treat water sources; political address the water crisis and improve to sufficient, safe water and physical so they understand the health
struggles between central govern- service delivery for the metropolitan In July 2020 the anti-corruption access to water facilities or services risks and benefits of available
ment under the ruling party and the area.  unit in President Emmerson Mnan- that are a reasonable distance away. water sources;
opposition-controlled city council; gagwa’s office arrested the then may- • Ensure that all public bore-
and corruption. “Currently, we are unable to oper- or of Harare, Herbert Gomba and Zimbabwe has ratified interna- holes are regularly tested for
Dilapidated infrastructure  ate effectively because our hands are other top city council officials, on al- tional human rights treaties that water quality and that these
Harare’s water supply comes from tied by the ministry of Local Gov- legations of corruption and abuse of contain – explicitly or implicitly results are disseminated to
Lake Chivero dam water, which the ernment and the centralisation that office regarding approval irregulari- –   provisions on the right to water, residents; and
city’s mayor, Jacob Mafume, says is inhibits the operations of municipal- ties in the sale of land and alteration including the International Cov- • Take steps to reduce corrup-
so heavily contaminated with raw ities,” he said. “The mayors have no of plans.  enant on Economic, Social, and tion, including by developing
sewage that it requires many differ- real powers.” Cultural Rights, the Convention and enforcing transparency
ent chemicals to purify.  Gomba’s case is still in the courts. on the Elimination of All Forms and accountability measures
The MDC Alliance president Four months later, Mafume, who re- of Discrimination against Women, regarding the allocation of fi-
Nelson Chamisa  said: “The Zanu placed Gomba as mayor, was also ar- the Convention on the Rights of nances and expenditures.
rested on allegations of corruption, the Child, the Convention on the - Human Rights Watch.
prompting the opposition MDC to Rights of Persons with Disabilities,
and the International Covenant on

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NewsHawks Reframing Issues Page 33

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

ENESS PAIDAMOYO/ Zim had a bumper harvest: what
MUTSVANGWA-SAMMIE went right and what needs work

ZIMBABWE has  reported a Improved irrigation may provide Zimbabwe’s agriculture second as- sion services and increased inno- scheme, more than 10 000 have re-
bumper harvest of maize and oth- smallholder farmers with resilience sessment report, yields for small- vations. The government schemes portedly  not delivered produce to
er grains, capable of feeding the to adverse climate change impacts. holder farmers who practised this mentioned above are aligned with the Grain Marketing Board as re-
country’s 14.65 million people for Government programmes approach stood at 5.28 tonnes per this strategy. quired. This is largely because of
the next year. Government collaborations with hectare compared to 1.16 tonnes Challenges the abuse of inputs and the board’s
non-governmental orgasnisations, per hectare for farmers who used But critics have  pointed out  that reputation for long delays in pay-
According to Zimbabwe’s Sec- donor agencies and the private sec- the conventional tillage. Scaling the centralised input subsidy ments.
ond Crop and Livestock Assess- tor have led to various agricultural this technique up for larger pieces scheme (Command agriculture)
ment  report  and the US depart- schemes. of land will require mechanisation. has some major gaps and is unsus- Some of the yields are not reach-
ment of agriculture, the estimated tainable. First introduced during ing markets and food safety mea-
maize production for 2021 stands One of these is a scheme which This and other government the 2016/2017 cropping season, sures are not being applied. This
at  2.7 million tonnes. This maize focuses on the efficient use of re- smallholder programmes may con- the scheme is structured around calls for policy revisions.
yield is estimated to be triple the sources (inputs and labour) on tribute to the long term sustain- debt, which was estimated to cost
2020 harvest. The agricultural sec- small pieces of land. Known as ability and growth of maize and US$214 million in 2018. This year’s success can be at-
tor is projected to grow 34% this Pfumvudza/Intwasa, it was wide- grain production. tributed to a combination of driv-
year, more than three times the ly promoted during the 2020/21 The system doesn’t seem to have ers. But to sustain the momentum,
11% projected in the budget given cropping season. This farming Large scale farmers also benefit- measures in place to monitor and the Zimbabwean government has
at the end of last year. concept aims to provide food, nu- ted from the Command Agricul- evaluate the use of inputs during the challenge of addressing gaps
trition and livelihood security at ture scheme of subsidised inputs. the season. It does not ensure that remain.
The International Monetary household level. The scheme provided farmers with loan repayment and debt recovery
Fund reports that Zimbabwe is on seed, fertiliser, fuel and chemicals from defaulting beneficiaries. In —The Conversation
a path to economic recovery with Beneficiaries of the scheme had on loan. This may have also con- previous years there have been re- * About the writers: Eness Paid-
a growth forecast of 6% this year, to prepare their land early, in time tributed on overall production. ports of some farmers abusing the amoyo Mutsvangwa-Sammie is a
largely due to the maize harvest. for inputs and planting. This tech- inputs by selling them on the black FSNet-Africa post-doctoral re-
nique  addresses  many of the lim- Zimbabwe launched an Agri- market. search fellow at the University of
Zimbabwe was the single larg- iting factors of previous practices. culture and Food Systems Trans- Pretoria, South Africa. Talent N
est maize export destination for For example, it requires less labour. formation Strategy in 2020 with In 2017, out of the 50 000 Ndlovu, Tofara W Sammie, Ab-
neighbouring South Africa in the the goal of creating an agriculture small and commercial farmers who igal Mangena, Thulani Ndlovu
2020/21 market year. Of the 2.6 The approach can be used in sector worth US$8.2 billion by benefited under the maize input and Brilliant Nkomo also con-
million tonnes of maize that South marginal areas. According to 2025. The strategy is anchored on tributed to this article.
Africa exported, about  20% went climate-smart technologies, exten-
to Zimbabwe.

In May this year, Zimbabwe’s
agricultural marketing authori-
ty  announced  a complete ban on
maize imports, citing the expected
bumper harvest and surplus. The
Zimbabwean government expects
to save an estimated US$300 mil-
lion from the ban. The 2019/20
season was plagued by drought
and the country spent  US$298
million on maize imports.

The bumper harvest this year is a
welcome development for Zimba-
bwe. But it is important to know
what is behind this success and
what challenges remain. Maize
production is highlighted for pri-
ority investment in Zimbabwe ow-
ing to its strategic role in ensuring
food security and serving as a raw
material for agro-industrial pro-
cesses. The crop is grown by more
than 90% of the farming house-
holds in the country and contrib-
utes 14% of the country’s agricul-
tural gross domestic product.
Drivers
The country’s large production
output has primarily been attribut-
ed to favourable rainfall, supported
by government programmes which
ensured that farmers had adequate
inputs on time for the 2020/21
cropping season.
Rains
The Zimbabwe Meteorological
Services Department  records  in-
dicate that the country largely
received normal to above normal
rainfall during the past season.
Maize and grain production by
smallholder farmers is predomi-
nantly under rainfed agriculture.

But climatic conditions can’t
be controlled. Maintaining high
yields in the long term will prob-
ably require investment in water
harvesting interventions as well
as up-scaling irrigation systems.

Page 34 Critical Thinking NewsHawks

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

Shadow states are the biggest
threat to democracy in Africa
NIC CHEESEMAN/ H KWASI KREMPEH

THE capture of democratic political society and the media. have stronger formal political sys- profoundly shaped by transnational state’s political survival
systems by private power networks is The term is widely used in South tems. Good examples include  Ken- smuggling networks and  the activi- • creating monopolistic or oli-
arguably the greatest threat to civil ya and Zambia. ties of the security forces.
liberties and inclusive development Africa to refer to the undue influence gopolistic conditions that
in Africa. That is the conclusion of of special interest groups  over state In these cases, the shadow state is The situation in Zambia is also increase prices and enable
two new reports that address the is- institutions. more oriented towards hampering distinctive. Under former president companies with links to the
sue of threats to democracy on the the activities of opposition parties Edgar Lungu, the security forces were shadow state to make exces-
continent. Indeed what is striking about this and ensuring impunity for its mem- less relevant than the nexus between sive profits.
process is the well-structured net- bers. politicians, government officials and The result is that resources and in-
The first  report  is published by works that encompass a broad range Africa is not a country businessmen. This led to rampant vestment are systematically diverted
Ghana’s  Centre for Democratic De- of individuals from government to The nine case studies featured in the corruption and mismanagement. But into private hands.
velopment. It focuses on the capture the security forces, traditional lead- two reports show that the extent of it did not prevent a transfer of pow- In Uganda, Museveni issues  tax
and subversion of democratic institu- ers, private businesses, state-owned democracy capture varies significant- er in 2021. waivers  to business allies in return
tions in Benin, Ghana, Kenya, Mo- enterprises, and their family mem- ly. It is lower in states like Ghana, for election support. This denies the
zambique and Nigeria. bers. According to a separate study by where robust electoral contestation In contrast, in Zimbabwe the gov- treasury hundreds of millions of dol-
South African academics Ivor Chip- among rival parties has seen multiple ernment has been progressively  mil- lars in revenue.
These case studies reveal that even kin and Mark Swilling, what distin- transfers of power. It’s much higher itarised, penetrating further areas of In Zimbabwe,  companies in
in more democratic states such as guishes these actors is their privileged in states such as Zimbabwe, where the state and the economy. This rais- league with the ruling party and the
Benin and Ghana, ruling parties can “access to the inner sanctum of pow- the government has never changed es serious questions about whether military have used these connections
“hijack” democracy and appropriate er in order to make decisions”. hands. President Emmerson Mnangagwa – to establish near monopolies in key
its benefits. They do this by capturing or army leaders – holds real power. sectors of the economy that exploit
the institutions of democracy itself. One helpful way of conceptu- The shape and resilience of un- the public. In one case, this led to se-
This includes electoral commissions, alising these networks is the idea elected power networks also varies It is, therefore, important to map vere fuel shortages that artificially in-
judiciaries, legislatures and even the of  shadow states  developed by the in important ways. In Uganda, the the shadow state on a case-by-case flated prices.
media and civil society. influential political scientist William shadow state is run by an axis of basis because no two networks are When added to the billions of
Reno. President Yoweri Museveni’s family, a the same. The differences between dollars lost through straightforward
The net effect is to undermine “military aristocracy” and interlocu- them reveals who really holds power. corruption, theft and fraud, it is clear
transparency and accountability. This For Reno, a shadow state is ef- tors in the business community. The consequences that these processes represent one of
in turn facilitates the abuse of power, fectively a system of governance in Shadow states have a negative impact the most significant barriers to inclu-
especially in more authoritarian con- which a form of parallel government In Benin, President Patrice Tal- on democracy and accountability. sive development in Africa. Unless
texts. is established by a coalition of the on has exploited the weakness of But the damage they do goes well these networks are challenged, they
president, militias, security agen- the legal system, the judiciary and beyond this. It undermines inclusive will continue to keep citizens in pov-
The second  report  was curated cies, local intermediaries and foreign the legislature to expand his power. development through three related erty while enriching those connected
by Democracy in Africa and takes a companies. In extreme versions such Through this process he has turned processes: to the shadow state.
slightly different approach. It looks as Sierra Leone real power no longer one of the continent’s most vibrant
at how unelected networks can infil- lies in official institutions of govern- democracies into a near political mo- • creating a culture of impu- *About the writers: Nic Chee-
trate and subvert state structures. ment such as the legislature. nopoly. nity, which facilitates cor- seman is professor of democracy
ruption and diverts resources at the University of Birmingham,
In particular, it maps the emer- This kind of shadow state is char- The picture is different again in the from productive investments Britain. Professor H. Kwasi Prem-
gence of shadow states in the Dem- acterised by the existence of private DRC. International military allianc- peh, executive director of the Gha-
ocratic Republic of Congo (DRC), armies and a severely limited, almost es were critical to the way that former • manipulating government na Centre for Democratic Develop-
Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. imaginary, formal state. presidents Laurent Kabila and Joseph expenditure and other public ment, co-authored this article.
These case studies show that net- Kabila took and held power. This led resources and opportunities
works of unelected businessmen, civ- More recently, researchers have to a shadow state that has been more to sustain the patronage net-
il servants, political fixers and mem- identified manifestations of the works and ensure the shadow
bers of the presidents’ families wield shadow state in  countries  that are
more power than legislators. not in the middle of civil war and

By mapping how these networks
are organised across different groups
and countries, the report reveals
how influential and resilient certain
groups have become. It also shows
how many shadow states have been
integrated into transnational finan-
cial and – in some cases – criminal
networks.

This is not an “African” issue. Sim-
ilar processes have been identified
in a number of different countries
and regions. These include  Bangla-
desh, Brazil and the US. But this does
not mean that the need to recognise
and confront these issues is any less
pressing.

States with higher levels of democ-
racy capture are prone to becoming
more authoritarian, corrupt and abu-
sive.
Democracy capture and the shad-
ow state
According to politics professor  Em-
manuel Gyimah-Boadi, democracy
capture occurs when a few individu-
als or sections of a supposedly dem-
ocratic polity are able to systemati-
cally appropriate to themselves the
institutions and processes as well as
dividends of democratic governance.

In other words, democracy capture
expands the idea of “state capture” to
include all political institutions and
democratic activities including civil

NewsHawks Africa News Page 35

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021 How Morocco’s king dealt
a blow to political Islam
MOROCCO’S governing Islamist
party has suffered a shocking de-
feat in recent elections - a turn of
events reverberating across North
Africa given its pioneering role
for political Islam amid the Arab
Spring.

The Development and Justice
Party (PJD), which was the first
Islamist party to come to power in
an election in the region and the
wider Middle East, found its share
of the vote was decimated from
125 to a mere 12 seats.

Back in 2011 the sense of a new
beginning for many in Morocco
was real.

The rise of the PJD chimed with
the times.

The protests that erupted first in
Tunisia, later known as the Arab
Spring, were in full swing. Zine al-
Abidine Ben Ali of Tunisia, Hosni
Mubarak of Egypt and Muammar
Gaddafi of Libya were all toppled
that year.

Islamists parties were poised to
win elections in Egypt and Tunisia
and to change the course of histo-
ry, as many had hoped.

Morocco’s King Mohammed VI
saw where the wind was blowing
and acted swiftly to pre-empt any
similar upheaval that could threat-
en his throne.

He sacked the cabinet and dis-
solved parliament. To stem the tide
of rising protests he announced
plans to draft a new constitution
to put Morocco on a new path.

‘Cosmetic changes’ King Mohammed VI moved swiftly in 2011, amid the Arab Spring, to bring in constitutional changes.
It was later approved by a resound-
ing 98.5% of the vote, hailed as a while maintaining the strings of a controversial law introducing liament in March, also dealt a de- of PJD as the final nail in the cof-
game changer, and helped portray real power within its grip. two-year contracts for teachers, cisive blow to the party’s chances fin of political Islam.
the king as a benign autocrat will- robbing them of job security and of achieving another big electoral
ing to share power with the peo- The PJD further increased its is regarded by some as the first win. Lowering the benchmark for In Morocco, it is safe to argue
ple. share of the vote in subsequent step in privatising the education smaller parties, and counting the that the marginalisation of the
elections in 2016 to 125 seats to system. votes on the basis of all eligible PJD suggests that the makhzen
But the reforms promised by the spend another five years in power. voters rather than on only valid has now completely weathered the
king were dismissed as cosmetic Poisoned chalice On the question of the status of ballots, contributed to the party’s storm of the Arab Spring and its
by the February 20 Movement for Although almost everyone expect- the French language in education loss. immediate aftermath.
Change, the banner under which ed the party to shed some votes in - a particularly sensitive topic for a
demonstrations were organised the election last week, no-one pre- party that champions Arab-Islam- The party had contested these But the underlying tensions ris-
during the Arab Spring. dicted this crushing defeat - even ic identity in the former French changes, saying they were uncon- ing from the quest for truly repre-
the leader of the party and his colony - it failed to block a law stitutional, but had failed to block sentative and accountable govern-
It had taken to the streets de- deputy lost their seats, prompting that made French the language of them in parliament. ment, or from the desire to check
manding radical reform to turn their immediate resignation. teaching science in schools. the powers of the king - have not
Morocco into a constitutional On the face of it, the changes gone away.
monarchy, where the king would It is perhaps too early to fully Critics of the party say once were designed to allow for greater
“reign but not rule”, a symbol of account for the reasons of this dra- in power it became more royalist plurality, but in reality they fur- The man nominated by the king
the nation - more in line with Eu- matic fall. But observers concur than the king, taking the side of ther fragmented the political land- to form the new government, Aziz
ropean monarchies in the UK or that PJD has simply failed to de- the “makhzen” - the term Moroc- scape, a tactic that has long been Akhannouch, the billionaire lead-
Scandinavia. liver on its electoral promises. cans use to refer to the king and used by the makhzen, say analysts, er of the National Rally of Inde-
powerful courtiers and security to undermine political parties. pendents (RNI), which won the
In fact, the king had retained A party that has “justice” and agencies - against the people in Election charade? largest number of votes, has said
nearly all the powers he had held “development” in its name has key rights and labour disputes. Regionally, the news of the failure that his government will work to
in the past in the new constitu- failed to deliver either, they argue. was greeted with jubilation. “implement the strategy of the
tion. He continued to control for- Some commentators believe king”.
eign, defence and security policy. It had, for example, promised to that the party’s biggest mistake In Egypt and the Gulf the par-
lift more Moroccans out of pov- was assuming the responsibility of ty is viewed as the Moroccan ver- Commenting on the statement,
He also retained his position as erty, improve public education government without actually hav- sion of the Muslim Brotherhood, veteran Moroccan journalist, Ha-
the spiritual leader of the nation - and health, but failed to do any ing the real power, which rested a national and transnational polit- mid Elmahdaouy, wrote that all
he’s officially the “Commander of of that. On the contrary the gap with the king. ical-religious movement that has previous PM designates had said
the Faithful”, an historic descrip- between the rich and the poor has been designated as “terrorist” in the same thing. He wondered
tion used nowhere else today, and simply widened. It was like a poisoned chalice. some countries. what was the point of the election
is based on a claim that his dynas- All that said, the change to the musing whether “voting and the
ty is a direct descendant of Proph- Further, the party has alienated electoral law, not proposed by the Commentators regarded the fall whole election was a charade”.
et Muhammad. some of its base when it endorsed PJD but which was passed by par-
—BBC
However, the new constitution
held out the promise of a new be-
ginning to parts of the political
class, including the PJD.

The party seized the opportu-
nity and rode on the crest of the
wave of widespread discontent
with the old political parties.

And the king and his courtiers -
who had reluctantly tolerated the
Islamists - did not block their rise
to complete the democratic façade,

Page36 World News NewsHawks
THE US special envoy for Haiti has
resigned in protest over the deporta- US Haiti envoy quits over Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021
tion of Haitian migrants. ‘inhumane’ deportations
migrants in a camp in Ciudad Acuña
The decision to return migrants Images showed US Border Patrol agents charging at Haitian migrants by Rio Grande river that divides Texas and Mexico. are voicing concern about potential
fleeing an earthquake and political expulsions. “I have nothing in my
instability was “inhumane”, senior secure jobs or legal status. son thanked the ambassador for his dent Kamala Harris in charge of the country. What are they going to do?”
diplomat Daniel Foote said in a This year has brought further work, and insisted that the US re- issue in March. But critics say they one tearful Haitian woman asked an
damning letter. mained “committed to supporting have failed to come up with a con- AFP reporter.
hardship for the impoverished coun- safe, orderly, and humane migration crete plan for the near future, with
Last weekend, the US started de- try. In July, President Jovenel Moïse throughout our region”. the numbers of migrants coming Separately, nearly 19,000 mostly
portation flights from a Texas border was assassinated - and in August it into the country reaching record Haitian migrants are in Colombia,
town, where about 13,000 migrants suffered another deadly earthquake. But in a later statement, a depart- highs. waiting to cross the border with
had gathered under a bridge. ‘International puppeteering’ ment spokesperson hit back at Mr Panama on the journey to the US,
Mr Foote said Haitians needed “im- Foote’s claim he had been ignored On the US side of the Mexican officials say.
They have been waiting in a mediate assistance”, and criticised by officials. border in Del Rio, teams of police
makeshift camp in temperatures of the US and other countries for in- and National Guard agents have “We want them to let us cross,
37C (99F). terfering in the country’s politics. “It is unfortunate that, instead of “completely blocked off” the area, from here to Panama, before the
participating in a solutions-oriented according to immigrant rights activ- United States closes its border,” one
Local officials have struggled to “What our Haitian friends really policy process, Special Envoy Foote ist Jenn Budd, who is at the scene. migrant said. “They are going to take
provide them with food and ade- want, and need, is the opportunity has both resigned and mischaracter- away our dreams. I come from Peru,
quate sanitation. to chart their own course, without ised the circumstances,” Ned Price “You cannot breathe here with- I’ve been struggling.”
international puppeteering and fa- said. out law enforcement knowing what
Since Sunday, the US has re- voured candidates but with genuine you’re doing,” Ms Budd, a former As monthly border-crossings con-
turned to Haiti 1,401 migrants from support for that course,” he said. President Biden has been accused Border Patrol agent, told the BBC. tinue to surge, Joe Biden has been
the Texas camp on the border with of having an incoherent policy on caught between conservatives who
Mexico. Mr Foote has served in the role migration. On the campaign trail, he “They’re cleaning it up and get- say he is weak on undocumented mi-
since Moïse’s assassination in July. vowed to reverse President Donald ting rid of everything, and they have grants and liberal activists who view
In his resignation letter, Mr Foote Trump’s policies - which he deemed shut down access to the river itself.” his policies as too much like those of
said Haiti was a “collapsed state” A state department spokesper- too harsh - and he put Vice-Presi- his predecessor, Donald Trump.
that “simply cannot support the On the Mexican side of the river,
forced infusion of thousands of re- Now the criticism of Biden’s ac-
turned migrants lacking food, shel- ‘China’s low-level cyberwar tions are coming from inside his
ter, and money without additional, is becoming severe threat’ own administration - a development
avoidable human tragedy”. up on organisations that had not patched of cyber-attacks in the world”, underlying adopted a more overtly combative tone that could encourage more to speak
Exchange. Criminals, now aware of what the lack of agreement on the topic and towards Beijing. China, meanwhile, re- out.
White House spokeswoman Jen was happening, were able to exploit the touching on a genuine source of frustra- organised its hacking activities, taking
Psaki responded in a press confer- web shells, and in some cases they were tion in Beijing – that the US and other away global operations from the People’s The images of uniformed border
ence: “Special Envoy Foote had am- booby-trapped if deleted – a brazen aspect western allies have long engaged in tradi- Liberation Army and switching them to patrol agents on horseback accosting
ple opportunity to raise concerns of the hacking that surprised experts. tional political espionage against countries the MSS. black Haitians have drawn compar-
about immigration during his ten- like it. isons to dark chapters of slavery and
ure. He never once did so.” Ciaran Martin, the chief executive of In the west, the penny slowly dropped s discrimination in American history.
the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre Yet it was not meant to be like this: security agencies began to understand the Immigration activists say the bor-
Ms Psaki also described im- until last year, said: “What you saw here in September 2015, Presidents Barack impact of Operation Cloud Hopper, the der episode provides evidence of the
ages from the border - showing was real recklessness. The Hafnium attack Obama and Xi Jinping jointly announced name given to a sophisticated espionage harsher treatment dark-skinned mi-
horse-mounted US officers corral- on Exchange was in complete contrast to a cybersecurity agreement. campaign conducted against third-party grants receive in this country.
ling the migrants - as horrific and the Russian exploitation of SolarWinds IT services providers, with the aim of in-
said horses would no longer be used software for espionage purposes. “Both government will not be engaged filtrating them to steal secrets from a wide The US has a process by which
in the area. The widely shared pic- in or knowingly support online theft of range of corporates such as the Swedish it can give undocumented migrants
tures, taken by an AFP photogra- “In that case there was no collateral intellectual properties,” Xi said during a telecoms equipment maker Ericsson. “temporary protected status” from
pher earlier this week, have evoked damage – but as for Hafnium when they visit to the White House following similar deportation if government officials
grim comparisons to US slavery and realised they had been caught, the hackers language from Obama. An almost identi- The campaign may have run through- determine that it would not be safe
the country’s historical mistreatment booby-trapped the software on the way cal agreement was signed between the UK out the 2010s but by 2017 had become to return them to their home coun-
of black people. out.” and China one month later. increasingly visible to western intelligence, try.
revealing, as Martin observed, that “it was
That led to pressure on Presi- China, however, consistently denies At first the agreement had a deterrent clear with the deterioration of Sino-Amer- Haitians, as well as citizens from a
dent Joe Biden’s administration, being involved in hacking despite the at- effect, at least on the Chinese side, with ican relations China no longer felt bound handful of Central American coun-
and prompted calls from within his tempts by the US and others to embar- reports of hacking emanating from the by the agreement with Obama”. tries, enjoy this protection - and it’s
Democratic Party to give the Hai- rass it. In July, China’s foreign ministry country sharply reduced from what ex- cited as one of the reasons migrants
tians asylum rather than fly them accused Washington of “ganging up with perts describe as “loud, noisy” attempts to A year later, in December 2018, the brave the hazardous journey to the
back to their home country. its allies” and engaging in “smear and sup- steal intellectual property previously. US and the UK named a Chinese group US, even though new arrivals do not
pression out of political motives”. known as APT10 or Stone Panda as be- qualify for the protections.
Many Haitians left after a devas- But the situation changed after the hind the Cloud Hopper hacking. It was
tating earthquake struck the country It said the US was “the largest source 2016 election of Donald Trump, who Instead, the Haitians at the border
in 2010. A large number of those in are being sent back to a homeland
the camp had been living in Brazil or where, according to Daniel Foote in
other South American countries and his resignation letter, they face inhu-
travelled north after being unable to mane treatment and grave danger.
CHINESE state-sponsored hacking is at
record levels, western experts say, accusing —BBC.
Beijing of engaging in a form of low-level
warfare that is escalating despite US, Brit- the first time the British had accused the
ish and other political efforts to bring it Chinese government as being responsi-
to a halt. ble for a cyber campaign, saying that the
MSS was directing, or operating behind
There are accusations too that the the hackers.
clandestine activity, which has a focus on
stealing intellectual property, has become “In the past, Chinese groups were very
more overt and more reckless, although sensitive to indictment, to the name and
Beijing consistently denies sponsoring shame of public attribution,” said Collier.
hacking and accuses critics of hypocrisy. “Effectively when governments called
them out, you’d see relatively quickly after
Jamie Collier, a consultant with Man- those things happened, the activity would
diant, a cybersecurity firm whose work is drop off. But what we are seeing is that is
often cited by intelligence agencies, said no longer the case any more.”
the level of hacking emerging from China
in 2021 was “a more kind of severe threat Industrial espionage efforts from Chi-
than we previously anticipated”. nese actors often closely follow goals
announced in Beijing’s five-year plans,
That culminated, in July, with the US, Collier added, although British and other
the EU, Nato, the UK and four other intelligence agencies said there was a nota-
countries all accusing Beijing of being be- ble and unsurprising shift in focus to tar-
hind a massive exploitation of vulnerabil- geting vaccine development secrets at the
ities in Microsoft’s widely used Exchange early stage of the pandemic.
company server software in March. In
some cases they blamed China’s Ministry Another common tactic is to pose as
of State Security (MSS) for directing the recruiters on LinkedIn. A typical profile is
activity. It affected about 250,000 organi- a female trying to lure civil servants and
sations worldwide, allowing hackers from executives in key industries into revealing
a group, which Microsoft has named Haf- more about their work in exchange for
nium, to siphon off company emails for what turns out to be a bogus job offer.
espionage, with the help of an easy to use
“web shell” tool allowing anybody with The British domestic spy agency MI5
the right password to hack into a compro- estimated that 10,000 people had been
mised Exchange server. targeted over the past five years, in April
describing the activity as taking place on
Once Microsoft was publicly alerted to an “industrial scale”. Spy chiefs did not di-
the activity, attacks were rapidly stepped rectly accuse Beijing, but the view among
the Five Eyes intelligence agencies is that
this technique is dominated by Chinese
actors. —The Guardian

Porsche just got angrier Being a Fashion Model

&Life Style

STYLE TRAVEL BOOKS ARTS MOTORING

Page 37 Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

Wither Miss World Zimbabwe?

JONATHAN MBIRIYAMVEKA Miss South Africa Shudufhadzo Musida pictures. women who should be gracing run-
The tall and elegant Malaika, with ways in Milan, Paris, New York and
ON 16 October 2021, a new Miss a remarkable shade of dark skin, liter- London. But they have turned into
South Africa will be crowned at the ally won in every pageant she entered video vixens, appearing scantily
Grand Arena, Grand West, in Cape except one, Miss World. dressed in music videos.  
Town. She made it to the top 15 overall,
placing eight in the “beach beauty” While it is easy to blame every-
The event will be screened live segment, fourth in the “top model” thing on the Covid-19 pandemic for
from 5pm on M-Net (DStv Channel category and second in the “beauty changing people’s way of life, there is
101) and Mzansi Magic (DStv Chan- with a purpose” category at the Miss always a silver lining for some who
nel 161) and will also be streamed to World pageant. seized the opportunity to go virtual.
an international audience on MissSA. Then we have had other local beau-
live. ty queens who excelled in their own Unfortunately, this has not been
right on the Miss World stage: Car- the case with Miss World Zimbabwe,
The outgoing Miss South Afri- oline Murinda, Dionne Best, Vanessa which is yet to come out of its long
ca 2020, Shudufhadzo Musida, will Sibanda, to mention but three. slumber.
hand over the crown to her successor Oddly enough, in the last four
who will take home a package of priz- years, Miss World Zimbabwe, Belin- The NewsHawks could not get
es and sponsorships worth more than da Potts, who was crowned in 2018, a comment from the Miss World
R3 million (US$203 200).  has been holding on to the title. Zimbabwe Trust and was referred to
What an abomination to pageant- Marry Chiwenga, the outfit’s former
The new Miss South Africa winner ry in Zimbabwe where many young chairperson. 
and her runners-up will represent the beautiful girls still have hopes of be-
Rainbow Nation at either Miss Uni- coming the next queen.  The estranged wife of the country’s
verse 2021, Miss World 2022 or Miss Sadder still, Zimbabwe is endowed Vice-President Constantino Chi-
Supranational 2022. with beautiful and intelligent young wenga was however unable to re-
spond due to ill health.  
The organisation of the Miss South
Africa pargent is seamless, a glitzy Marry, a former Miss Zimbabwe
event that competes favourably with aspirant, stepped down from her po-
even those in the first world.  sition after running the Miss World
Zimbabwe pageant for six years
For Zimbabwe, sadly, beauty en- during which she worked hard to re-
thusiasts in this country will have to store the pageant’s once lofty status. 
watch the Miss South Africa pageant
as if it is their own. She took charge as chairperson
and patron of the country’s flagship
In the history of pageantry in Zim- pageant in 2012 but handed over the
babwe, there has never been a time beauty pageant to a nine-member ex-
without a queen. ecutive committee.

Fittingly, Zimbabwe also has a Although she remained the pag-
proud history at the Miss World eant’s licence holder, she had entrust-
grand stage. ed the executive committee to handle
the pageant’s affairs.
It dates back to Independence in
1980 where Shirley Nyanyiwa made “I have surrendered a huge respon-
history by becoming the first black sibility to the nine-member Miss
queen to represent Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe Trust executive committee
to run the country’s flagship pageant,
Nyanyiwa later on made headlines Miss World Zimbabwe, which also
for her celebrity marriage to the late comes with a huge responsibility of
long-serving Zimbabwean cricket also flying the country’s flag high,”
board chairperson Peter Chingoka, she said at the time.
the first black person from this coun-
try to make a name for himself in the “I just want to challenge the exec-
sport. She did exceptionally well at utive committee to do it better than
Miss World after her local conquest what I used to do with them so as
in 1980. to raise the pageant’s bar high. They
must remain focused and concentrate
Each year a new queen would be on the pageant’s purpose for it to re-
crowned amid glitz and glamour. main significant and relevant.”

The year 1994 was a memorable So far it appears the executive has
one. Angeline Hundah, nee-Musasi- not been up to the challenge as Belin-
wa, became the nation’s pride when da Potts has not had a successor for
she finished third at the Miss World the past four years.
pageant held at Sun City, South Afri-
ca. By and large, this was the best-ev- What this means is Belinda can-
er performance by a Zimbabwean not lead her private life as should be
beauty at the prestigious event. the case because as a beauty queen
she is not supposed to get married or
And at the turn of the millennium, get employed. On one hand, she has
Brita Masalethulini, a stunning beau- overstayed and her purpose as well as
ty raised on a farm, was crowned the relevance have since been forgotten.
inaugural Miss Malaika, a pan-Afri-
can pageant put together by Ernest On the other hand, the composi-
Coovi Adjovi. tion of the executive has also come
under scrutiny as most of the mem-
In 2011, an 18-year-old Malaika bers are either least qualified or have
Mushandu became the youngest-ever no knowledge of how pageantry
contestant to win the Miss Zimbabwe works.
title.

Page 38 Life & Style NewsHawks

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

How Covid-19 has impacted Shoko Festival

JONATHAN MBIRIYAMVEKA “Even for us it has been difficult to which influences musicians to go out The completely virtual festival ran jolt us into new ways of thinking and
say how many people have watched of their way to shoot videos outside for six days from September 20 to 25, acting. 
ON average, 10 to 15 people viewed the shows because it’s virtual and most of fancy houses, cars and scantily featuring diverse programming with
Women Create World, a programme people have been having challenges in dressed women and consider some- different events every night.  Wherever you are in the world,
which was part of this year’s 11th accessing the shows,” he said. where out there in the backyard. And tune in for what will be a powerful
edition of Shoko Festival themed: that is something we are proud of: to The Netherlands embassy in Ha- and innovative Zimbabwe-Nether-
“Shoko Universe”. He, however, said the majority of be able to offer alternatives to the way rare partnered with Shoko Festival to lands collaboration,” the Netherlands
viewers were urban youths who are in artists view art,” Monro said.  present a cutting-edge spoken word ambassador, Margret Verwijk, said
On the show held Wednesday fact their target audience.     programme.  ahead of the show. 
afternoon was Kudi Maradzika, a “The arts sector has really suffered
multi-award-winning development “The one good thing about the vir- because of Covid-19, including re- The shows also presented a unique Highlights at the 2021 festival in-
executive, producer and writer. tual experience is that it allowed cre- strictions on gatherings and the lack Holland-Zimbabwe collaboration for cluded Tocky Vibes, Feli Nandi, Voltz
atives to come out of their shells and of income for artists,” Shoko its spoken word programme as well as JT and Van Choga while internation-
The festival was livestreamed on offer an alternative experience which an innovative spoken word journey.  al headline acts included award-win-
Shoko Festival’s Facebook and You- we probably wouldn’t have thought Festival coordinator Kim Kute ning UK rapper Dizraeli.
Tube platforms. about. We have gone out of our way said.  The Lost - Spoken Word Journey
to deliver a show that is on a whole was held on Tuesday 21 September Another notable event was Mash-
Despite the programme being in- new level. “So our ‘Shoko Universe’ aims to with a never-seen-before creative col- Ups Night where Shoko Festival
formative on women in the creative give an out-of-this-world experience laboration between leading Dutch teamed up with Masofa Panze and
industry, the paltry number of view- “Since the previous edition, we to our audience and a very important spoken word artist Smita James and Djembe Monks to curate a night of
ers spoke volumes of how Covid-19 have delivered an excellent festival platform to our amazing artists.”  top Zimbabwean poet Shaldo. brand-new urban musical collabo-
has impacted on the successful host- rations including Dancehall Kedha,
ing of this year’s edition of Shoko The poets combined themes which Mimi Tarukwana, Sylent Nqo and
Festival. were performed virtually, exploring a GZE. 
world of violence against women, cli-
Over and above this, there were in- mate breakdown and rising author- The media were presented with
termittent interruptions on the lives- itarianism as they spoke hope and insights into investigative journalism
tream, which made it rather long and social justice.  by leading Zimbabwean investigative
tasking.  journalist Dumisani Muleya courtesy
The presentation of Lost – A Spo- of the Hub Unconference. 
Such shows would ordinarily draw ken Word Journey featured several
huge numbers with attendees from leading Zimbabwean poets perform- The conversations included the
greater Harare, including the mar- ing about the current Zimbabwean State of the Internet Address, a Cy-
ginalised ghettos youths in satellite political and economic situation – berLaws ZW discussion and the Info-
towns like Chitungwiza and Norton. packaged in an very creative manner. demic discussion. 

Now the festival is almost like an Among the featured poets were Shoko Festival is arguably Zimba-
elitist showcase where only those with Thando, Yanta Limie, Munyaradzi bwe’s most popular and longest run-
data have access to the festival. Bopoto, Kuda Rice and Banshee. ning urban culture festival. 

Apparently, this is the second year “We are thrilled to be sponsor- Shoko (word) is all about promot-
in which Shoko Festival, Zimbabwe’s ing the Spoken Word Programme at ing urban culture, free expression
urban culture fete, has been held vir- Shoko Festival 2021 that will include and positive activism. Over the years
tually and what a disappointment it so much Zimbabwean talent and also the festival has provided a platform
has turned out to be! renowned Dutch poet Smita James.  for hundreds of young Zimbabwean
rappers, comedians, musicians and
Festival director Samm Farai Mon- “The world is facing multiple cri- spoken word artists to perform, col-
ro AKA Comrade Fatso confirmed to ses – a pandemic, climate change, and laborate and express themselves. 
The NewsHawks that nothing beats a social inequality. These are problems
live experience. that affect us all and require collective Shoko also curates cutting-edge
action to resolve.  collaborations between local and in-
“In future we are going to look at ternational acts and builds interna-
ways to engage as many youths as “The role of art, such as the up- tional tours for young Zimbabwean
possible especially post-Covid-19 era coming spoken word collaboration artists. The festival also hosts free
because it is true not many people between Zimbabwe’s Shaldo and conferences, workshops and panels
have been able to view the shows on Smita James is to bring us together, on digital media, tech and the arts.
livestream. and to give us fresh perspectives and

Page 39 People & Places NewsHawks

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021

A collage of pictures from Zimbabwe International Trade Fair this week.

Property
NewsHawks

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021 PROPERTY INTERIORS ARCHITECTURE GARDENING Page 40

The home of prime property: [email protected]

ALEX MHANDU Prop market
subdued as
THE property market has remained subdued Covid-19
during the first half of the year on low demand as hits business
the economy is yet to fully recover, especially from
Covid-19 shocks, experts have said. The
picture
There has been a general supply-demand im- collage shows
balance in the country’s property sector, wors- ZB Life Tower
ened by the pandemic, which has seen corporates building, with
adopting remote working, while the reduced Eastgate office block
economic activity across sectors also added to the and mall in the
woes. background. —
Pictures: Aaron
Central business district (CBD) space ranks Ufumeli
among the top affected segments, together with
shopping centres in high-density areas. continued to struggle to meet their current lease of ZW$705 million from a profit position of comparable period.
obligations. ZW$5.7 billion and a basic loss per share of 0.57 FMP committed ZW$14.7 million towards
However, some corporates have maintained cents from basic earnings per share of 4.63 cents
their leases. A property market overview by list- “This resulted in the collection rate declining to during the same period last year. maintenance and ZW$15.76 million towards
ed property firm First Mutual Properties (FMP) 68% (half-year 2020: 77%), but an improvement improvements, in line with the group’s strategy
chairperson Elisha Moyo shows that transaction from 57% at Q1 (first quarter) 2021,” Moyo said. Total assets went down 14% to ZW$10 billion to enhance tenant experience by ensuring health
activities also remained depressed during the half- from ZW$11.6 billion achieved in the prior year’s and safety.
year to 30 June 2021, as property investors held The group recorded a loss for the period
on to real estate to preserve value. Real estate is
regarded as a safe haven for investors and a hedge
against economic uncertainties and turbulence.

“Space absorption remained subdued during
the period with continued supply- demand im-
balances, pending full recovery of the productive
sectors to support demand for space.

“The excess supply of space is mainly historical
space redundancy, with the sectors worst affect-
ed being the CBD offices, high-density suburban
shopping centres and the specialised industrial
sectors,” Moyo said.

During the review period, commercial devel-
opment activity also remained limited due to the
supply-demand imbalances.

The majority of development activity remained
in the industrial or retail warehousing sectors,
while there are limited owner-occupied office
park-style buildings.

However, demand for retail warehousing, light
industrial property and office park property re-
mains strong. Residential sector development ac-
tivity has also remained firm, mainly supported
by the informal sector of the economy and the
diaspora community

Moyo said: “Price discovery of rentals contin-
ues, with rentals predominantly indexed to for-
eign currency as landlords seek to preserve value
of cash flows. Transaction activity remains sub-
dued, as property investors hold onto real estate
to preserve value.

“There are limited options to recycle into new
assets as the current stock in the market has rel-
atively aged, requiring significant capital to up-
grade. Demand for quality real estate remains
high, with investor appetite skewed towards real
assets, as high inflation expectations remain.”

The FMP group is looking at more opportuni-
ties within the market to differentiate its property
portfolio, with additional strong emphasis on im-
proving the performance of the existing property
portfolio, and sustainably managing operating
expenses.

During the half-year, the group’s net proper-
ty income after administration expenses grew by
11% to ZW$43.14 million, driven by growth in
inflation-adjusted revenue of 45% to ZW$204.23
million. In historical terms, revenue grew by
369% ahead of inflation at 106%, driven by the
repricing of rentals during the period, with the fo-
cus on indexing rentals to foreign currency in line
with the provisions of Statutory Instrument 85 of
2020. Rental income growth has been sustained
by stable growth in the occupancy level, closing
the period at 89.48%.

“The Covid-19 pandemic continues to impact
business performance as the various lockdowns
during the period restricted our ability to com-
plete all rent reviews, while some of our tenants

NewsHawks Sport Page 41

Issue 49, 24 Sept 2021 ‘Go well, Jacko, fly high Taylor,
and rest in peace, Sable’ cricketer who
ENOCK MUCHINJO
In this team photo of the great Old Hararians club side, the late Jackson Muzawazi is sitting second from left, second row from the front. shone in a
AS ZIMBABWE’S 2023 Rugby World dull decade
Cup quest gathers momentum, one of some flak for the result. Muzawazi and a work, only to come into camp Thurs- wart of the glorious Old Hararians side of
the best local players never to play in the few other star players came on from the day, so I couldn’t start them. Maybe in the late 1990s into the early 2000s, under JOHN KELLEY
tournament, Jackson Muzawazi – who bench in that crucial tie. And is an honest retrospect we should have started them. Murambiwa and then John Falkenberg.
sadly passed away this week – has been expression of self-appraisal, Murambiwa We got permission to camp in Bula- AT a small bed-and-breakfast estab-
sent off by a touching tribute from a very – only the second black coach to take wayo early, so we ended up starting with It would be a fitting honour for Mu- lishment in Kwekwe, Brendan Tay-
important figure in his career. charge of Zimbabwe after naturalised (Mthokozisi) Ngwenya at centre. (Paul) zawazi, according to Murambiwa, if the lor was having eggs and bacon in
Englishman Collin Osborne – conceded Georgeou played with Darren Uys at present crop of Zimbabwe national team the pretty gardens, but there were no
Godwin “Jaws” Murambiwa, one of that the outcome would probably have locks and (winger) Karl Mudzamba flew players qualifies for the World Cup for smiles. He had just failed to make a
Zimbabwe’s best rugby brains and for been different had he fielded his best line- in 12 hours before (from New Zealand) the first time since the 1992 edition. decent score at the nearby Kwekwe
a sustained period Muzawazi’s coach up from the beginning.  “Namibia was and was jet-legged. That team did their Sports Club for local side Rhinos. 
for both club and country, hailed the always hard because they have made the best, bear in mind that we beat Namib- “This is the first time in a long time
Old Hararians and Sables legend for his art of bringing in their big guns last min- ia in 2001 for the first time in 10 years, where we have players that are condi- Expectations of big and dramatic
“beautiful heart” and gentlemanly de- ute,” said Murambiwa. “In 2002 it was after I took over as coach. In a space of tioned, skilled and playing competitive innings had not been met in these
manour in a sport identified by its brute tough to take, we had done everything to 12 months, they got their external players rugby,” Murambiwa said. “If we were very early days of his career.
nature.  qualify. But the last-minute preparations and beat us in Bulawayo.” to complement these players with local-
were not ideal. The late Jacko, Bright ly-based guys playing in a local competi- But I had seen instead the real
Stocky and rotund in build, Muzawazi (Brighton Chivandire), Beddy (Elimon At club level, Muzawazi – who could tive league, I believe they will get us over Brendan Ross Murray Taylor in the
looked more like a prop or hooker than ‘Bedford’ Chimbima) all didn’t start be- also play on the wing but was mainly pre- the line. We must do everything in our nets and his previous efforts. He was
what he actually was – a lively inside-cen- cause they stayed behind in Harare for ferred in the number 12 position because power to support the Sabes get over the suffering a setback. I joined him for
tre with an unbelievable turn of pace for of his solid defensive game – was a stal- line and qualify. 2023 is so near for the an off-the-record-chat and told him:
a man of his size – a firm fans’ favourite Sables.” “Don’t concern yourself with a poor
and one of the most entertaining Zim- start. Many of the world’s great bats-
babwean rugby players at the turn of the men have debuted with failures, even
millennium. ducks, yet gone on to fame and for-
tune. You have the technique and the
Muzavazi died this week, in his late attitude to succeed. So stick at it and
40s, plunging the rugby community of enjoy.” 
Zimbabwe into mourning.  
And so it came to pass. Taylor
“They say rugby is a hooligan’s game was not quite the sensation of Andy
played by gentlemen,” Murambiwa told Flower or Graeme Hick. But neither
The NewsHawks this week. was he a bread-and-butter player
somewhere above the rest. Instead,
“Well, Jacko, or Baba Rumbi as we he joined the very short list of great
called him, epitomised the ‘gentle’, a Zimbabwe wicket-keeper batsmen
soft-spoken and well-mannered man in a decade, together with Tatenda
with a beautiful heart. Put him on a rug- Taibu.  And he joined the additional
by field, he was fiercely competitive and list of prominent cricketers emerg-
feared by opponents, a trait rare in today’s ing from this country’s cricket histo-
professional era. Go well, Jacko, fly high ry, such as David Houghton, Colin
and rest in peace, Sable.” Bland, Joe Partridge, Pithey broth-
ers, Murray Goodwin, Heath Streak,
Beyond exemplifying sportsmanship, Andy Blignaut and others.
Muzawazi was also a role model in the
amateur era of rugby, a tenacious fighter A natural stroke-maker, Taylor
who encompassed all ethos of the game scored nearly 10 000 runs including
in those days. a dozen majestic centuries compiled
with power and elegance, turning
“As you know, back in our day, it was that Kwekwe B&B to a long distant
never about money,” Murambiwa com- memory.
mented. “I feel the effort in modern-day
rugby tends to try and replicate monies Like Andy Flower before him, he
available, which makes the game better. had the heavy responsibility of cap-
But it also loses that personal touch.” taincy, opening bat, wicketkeeper
and cheerleader to a mediocre and
19 years ago, a Zimbabwe side sometimes downhearted team. It was
coached by Murambiwa was just a win a burden borne, like Flower, with de-
away against Namibia from qualifying for termination to play a reliable role and
the 2003 World Cup in Australia, but the be pointed out as a role model.
Sables lost 31-22 to their biggest conti-
nental rivals at Hartsfield in Bulawayo in Consistency for an opener is dou-
a match that scrumhalf Ryan Bekker took bly difficult with the state of the pitch
unknown and international fast bowl-
This is how Zim would also feel, ers being fresh. The first 20 runs for
Ramiz, if Test status is taken away any batsman are far more difficult to
IN a game that has deep roots in diplo- and we tolerate their admonishments, but kistan, in a sporting world that has nobly cricketing nation already on life support achieve than other similar periods of
matic lingo, if not a tendency to sweep there is a lesson in this. That is, that from offered itself as a platform for equality and desperately needing the revenue of an innings. Taylor succeeded in those
dirt under the carpet, Pakistani legend now on we will only go as far as is in our and human dignity in the post-George Test cricket and the game-time to remain in greater proportion than most.
Ramiz Raja this week came out guns blaz- interest.” Floyd saga. But then, cricket is no longer alive?
ing with the kind of cash-talk not often It was an unprecedented rant by the the good old game we had become accus- His capabilities were enough to
heard from top cricket officials.  head of a national cricket board against a tomed to. Raja himself did not exactly When Raja made those remarks about catch the attention of Nottingham-
fellow member nation of the Internation- endear himself to a very important crick- Zimbabwe, he was still a commentator – shire County Cricket Club, who
Recently elected unopposed as chair- al Cricket Council (ICC) and, to be fair eting country of the developing world, one of the leading voices in the sport. Per- know a thing or two about class
person of the Pakistan Cricket Board to Pakistan, a lot of neutrals around the Zimbabwe, when the Pakistan great sug- sonally, I do admire pundits that are in- players – for instance Garry Sobers,
(PCB), the 1992 World Cup winner world will find Raja’s utter frustration dependent-minded, bold and speak their Richard Hadlee, Stuart Broad, Bill
threw down the gauntlet and sensation- justifiable. mind without fear or favour.  Vice and Harold Larwood. They also
ally trampled on the institutional niceties You cannot, of course, take chanc- gave a trial run to Zimbabwean Paul
associated with this game – launching es with the safety of your citizens, HawkZone Now as the boss of the PCB, somewhat Strang before.
a strongly worded verbal attack on the especially when terrorism is involved. of an ally of the Zimbabwean board, I am
boards of England and New Zealand for But Pakistani authorities must be not so sure that Raja can repeat the same His T20 innings were not too
pulling out of tours to the South Asian commended for taking a giant step sentiments of four months ago.  fruitful, this not being his natural de-
country on security grounds. England Enockforward in affirming the security of partment, but some of his towering
on Monday announced calling off next Definitely not against the same Zim- sixes were memorable, not least the
month’s tours of Pakistan, involving both visiting cricket teams.  babwe that in 2015 did the unimaginable two which won, in the final over, a
their men and women’s teams, three days MuchinjoWhen Zimbabwe took the huge when Pakistan was a no-go zone, handing tight international match at
after New Zealand decided to return the strife-torn country the huge favour of
home before the start of a white-ball series gamble in 2015 of becoming the first ending a tour boycott there by all interna- Harare Sports Club that caused
there. international team to tour Pakistan tional teams, six years after a terror attack some personal concern for safety in
in six years, the African team’s coach on the Sri Lankan team bus in Lahore in the Press box. He was leading Zimba-
“I am severely disappointed in En- Dav Whatmore, an Australian, re- 2009.  bwe’s scorer in the 2015 World Cup
gland’s withdrawal, but it was expected marked how the delegation “experienced gested in May that our team should not though, a success where it really mat-
because this Western bloc gets united un- what (the then United States President) be playing Test cricket at all after his fellow I doubt as well that the many happy tered.
fortunately and tries to back each other,” Barack Obama might go through.” countrymen toured here earlier this year faces among the sell-out crowds on that
fumed Raja. In contrast, Whatmore’s cross-Tas- and hammered the Chevrons twice by an tour, who hailed the African nation as a This most likeable person, so
man neighbours, New Zealand, clearly innings. great friend of the Pakistani people – in easy-going off the field, is still only
“So you can take any decision on the do not think much of Pakistan’s security Ramiz Raja is a global icon of the game, a heart-warming show of gratitude laced 35. That is perhaps four or five years
basis of security threat and perception. situation. If it is true that New Zealand a cricket man through and through. From with song and dance – would agree with too early for retirement, though well
There was a sense of anger because first abandoned the tour unilaterally and left a cricketing point of view, he is right to Raja on the idea of further pushing Zim- in time to launch a new career. It will
New Zealand got away without sharing without bothering to explain their secu- make those remarks about Zimbabwe.  babwe to the peripheries of world cricket.  be interesting to see just what that
information about the threat they were rity fears, then Raja will be thoroughly With each passing series, the Zimbabwean is. He refers to the need for financial
facing. Now, this (England) was expected justified in accusing the Kiwis of a rather team is sinking, deeper and deeper, into a For Zimbabwe, that would feel like stability. Whoever got that playing
but this is a lesson for us because we go condescending attitude.   nadir, an embarrassment to the game. what Raja and Pakistan themselves are cricket for Zimbabwe? So is it the
out of our way to accommodate and pam- Many people across the planet will be But as awful as we have been, what feeling right now after the actions of New IPL?
per these sides when they visit. And when nudged to emapthise with Raja and Pa- good does it do to alienate Zimbabwe, a Zealand and England.
we go there, we undergo strict quarantines
This, perhaps, is a price that cricket
is paying for choosing to remain a tiny
sport, trapped in its elitist mindset.

Sports How Covid-19
has exposed

Cristiano Ronaldo’s heartlessness
most ridiculous
and ineptness

Thursday 1rOectcoboerrd20s2!0

Friday 24 September 2021 @NewsHawksLive TheNewsHawks www.thenewshawks.com

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Ghana’s new coach$60Covid
tariff for
visitors &
tourists
Community
radio
regulations
under review

arrives amid haggling StoryonPage 3 Story on Page 8

ENOCK MUCHINJO Chamisa reac

WITH Zimbabwe having since fired out to Khupe
Zdravko Logarušić, Ghana’s own new
European expatriate coach is walking Unofficial president calls for emerge
into a delicate situation in which his
appointment was hotly disputed by the Milovan Rajevac.
president of the country in a classic case
of politics and football clashing over peo- the coach himself (Akonnor) is a strong the ruling government’s party. He was cians in the football arena.  What is interesting is that here in Ghana,
ple’s hearts.  NPP guy. (Ghana’s ruling party, the New paying his dues to them, and they were “You know, in Ghana football, the the politicians, they use football as means
Patriotic Party).” even giving him contracts. So the govern- politics is so amazing,” continued the of- to siphon the state off a lot of monies.
Ghana host Zimbabwe in the two Akonnor’s sacking, and the subse- ment wasn’t happy, I mean, because he ficial. “It transcends what you guys usu- For insistence, I’m sure you’ve heard that
teams’ next World Cup qualifier in Cape quent hiring of Rajevac, is the second (Appiah) is a party boy and this current ally see. You know what, when the NDC the government in collaboration with
Coast on 6 October before travelling to occasion in recent times that the GFA FA sacked him. So the government felt lost the last elections (in 2020), would the FA and other personalities are trying
Harare for the return leg four days later. – whose president Okraku is a supporter AL(thNSaaOtttiohnIisNacluSDrrIeDenmtEoFcAraptirceFsiiCdneoanntngirscesaesn) MNmDiannC,istyygorweueinbp-ebelioesovkeotuthhatatt$itt3hwe.2ays BschaioplultiulodrendgodinteothpeaoilrlsitotSotrasorsrfgouafnnGisdheasUnaS$to25wimnZitilhlmieonA'sffcoloarntthaenesdBtslualacbk-nd
of the main opposition party that was in c
While bottom-of-the-table Zimba-
bwe have replaced Croat Logarušić with power until 2017 – has defied the gov- and you know, they think that he is in lengths to ensure that they seize football sequently play in the semi-finals of the
former national team captain Norman ernment. a way trying to silence the NPP people in Ghana! So the government believe that upcoming World Cup. It’s so interesting
Mapeza, the Ghana Football Association “You know, the previous coach, Kwesi within the FA.” if the coach who is a Ghanaian, more- and you ask yourselves whether in reality
(GFA) has done the opposite following Appiah, he is also a strong NPP guy so A deep-rooted belief in Ghana is that over and NPP guy, is being allowed to be Ghana would really have a team that can
the sacking of local coach Charles Akon- when he was sacked, believe you me, the whoever wins the battle for control of sacked by the current FA president who compete to the extent of getting to the
nor last week.  government was so mad with the cur- the country’s most popular sport sub- prior to that had sacked Kwesi Appiah, semi-final stage of the World Cup. But
rent FA for sacking him because Appiah sequently controls the minds of people, another NPP person, it means that the the point is that it is strategy, you know,
The GFA went against the wishes of was contributing so much to the party, which explains the haggling by politi- current FA president is playing politics. to siphon the state off a lot of monies.”
the government and swiftly hired Milo-
van Rajevac, a Serbian who will earn a
monthly salary of US$45 000 on a two-
year contract. 

Without the full support of the state,
pressure will now be brought to bear on
Rajevac to deliver, not only by reviving
three-points Ghana’s World Cup bid, but
also go all the way to clinch the Africa
Cup of Nations title in Cameroon early
next year. 

“The issue has to do with the presi-
dent of the land (Nana Akufo-Addo),”
a top-ranking official in Ghanaian sports
told The NewsHawks this week.

“He is described as a true African. He
simply doesn’t want any foreign coach
to come on board. He has always been
consistently saying that we should always
oversee our own affairs, that a black man
is capable of handling his own affairs. The
government and the FA president (Kurt
Okraku) are on different wavelengths.
The president of the FA preferred a for-
eign coach to take over the mettle from
CK. The government preferred an in-
digenous coach to take over, they believe
that a Ghanaian or an African can also do
the job well. His (Akufo-Addo) mantra
has always been ‘we also have quality’. So
if it was left to the FA alone, they would
have sacked the coach (Akonnor) a long
time ago. But there were certain inter-
ventions from the part of the govern-
ment of the day, and I’m gathering that

ALSO INSIDE ‘Go well, Jacko, fly high and rest in peace, Sable’