NewsHawks 2 June 2023

Price US$1 Friday 2 June 2023 NEWS Faz casts dark cloud over Zim polls Story on Page 4 NEWS New criminal code clauses complicate anti-graft fight WHAT’S Story on Page 10 INSIDE SPORT Nakamba brings meaning to the Zim way of life in Luton Story on Page 50 ALSO INSIDE Mnangagwa’s five election hurdles CIO-linked Faz seizes control of elections

Page 2 News NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023 MORRIS BISHI THE shadowy Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO)-run Forever Associates Zimbabwe (Faz), which has unconstitutionally seized control of the running of the 2023 elections to retain President Emmerson Mnangagwa and Zanu PF in power, has deeply penetrated communities and tightened its grip on the electoral process, an investigation by The NewsHawks shows. While Mnangagwa and Zanu PF leveraged the military to win the 2018 elections and other previous polls, this time round the CIO, working with other state institutions, is running the show to ensure Mnangagwa’s re-election amid fears of internal sabotage. Sidelined army commanders aligned to Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga, who ran the last elections and previous ones under the late former president Robert Mugabe, are sulking and furious about this strategy. The investigation, carried out in collaboration with Information for Development Trust under a project probing corruption, bad governance and electoral manipulation, revealed that the CIO-controlled Faz has spread its tentacles to every ward in the country, collecting vital voters’ details right down to household level using an army of 5 910 information gatherers. The information gatherers — three in each of the country’s 1 970 wards — are working under the close supervision of their CIO handlers. Each information gatherer is being paid US$380, meaning government is spending US$2 245 800 monthly on unbudgeted salaries. They are also getting generous portions of the local currency as part of their salaries. In previously elections Zanu PF has received election funding from dodgy business people and the sale of minerals, such as diamonds, whose funds are not sent to Treasury. The scientific-like CIO strategy enables Zanu PF to control the electoral process in terms of structures, numbers of registered voters and the actual voting process, as well as polling stations. It also promotes systematic voter intimidation and victimisation, especially at ward level. An operational Faz document titled Faz Campaign Scope, seen by The NewsHawks, says the organisation has penetrated all provinces up to household level through several tactics, leaving voters vulnerable to abuse during the 23 August elections. “Once the party has access to the voters’ roll, preferably broken down to constituencies and even to polling stations, volunteers must keep in touch with registered voters through texting and phoning. This must be done almost intrusively, as a way of maintaining intimacy. Volunteers should be in the habit of checking on the health and well-being of voters as a way of showing the party’s and candidate’s concern. This can also be used for reminding voters of important election-related events and issues, while also keeping them up to date on key developments,” the document reads. “Faz volunteers are required to intrusively access party cell registers, from party cell chairmen, and check and verify their accuracy and integrity. To this end, Faz then discretely conducts a head count of cell members, checking if they are registered to vote. If any party members or holders of positions of leadership are found not to have national documents or registered to vote, Faz, therefore, will handhold and assist all those to rectify the discrepancy under supervision. “Volunteers must be available to furnish voters with the party’s and candidate’s campaign literature in their homes and workspaces. This will be done door-to-door or at community gatherings. Literature will also be distributed at markets, bus termini or shops, thus helping to expand the campaign to voters outside the volunteer’s immediate area of responsibility.” Volunteers were also tasked with administering voter education, assisting undocumented or aliens to acquire national registration documents and to register to vote. “These interventions, which are already taking place in all constituencies nationwide, should result in a significant surge in registered voters who attribute that achievement to President ED (Mnangagwa) and Zanu PF. Volunteers must maintain contact with people they would have assisted to register to vote or to acquire national documents so that they are not won over to the opposition’s poisonous narratives,” the document reads. Critical information being collected by the agents and informers includes names, addresses, identity numbers and voter registration details at polling station level. Faz is also counting people at household level before recording the information on their tablets and smartphones. The information which will be computed, condensed into data and processed will be crucial in influencing and manipulating the electoral process in favour of Zanu PF through a combination of tactics, including persuasion and intimidation, in some cases. It is also being used to predict potential outcomes, using real figures, so that Zanu PF knows which constituencies and wards to put campaign resources in or activate its coercive machinery. Faz, which is registered as a private organisation focusing on philanthropic work, is led by CIO co-deputy director-general retired Brigadier-General Walter Tapfumaneyi at national level. The NewsHawks has previously gathered and reported that Faz received an initial disburseCIO-linked outfit takes over ahead of watershed elections FOREVER Associates Zimbabwe (Faz) is a Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO)-led outfit which has secretly taken over the running of national elections with the aim of manipulating the process in favour of the incumbent President Emmerson Mnangagwa and Zanu PF. The organisation, headed by CIO co-deputy director-general retired Brigadier-General Walter Tapfumaneyi, has representatives in every ward across the country. The takeover of electoral business is not a constitutional or official arrangement, but an underground operational unit campaigning for Mnangagwa and Zanu PF in the 23 August general elections. As a result, Faz has now displaced the army’s structure called Heritage that used to perform a similar role and other functions. In 2018, the army ran elections through Heritage and Africom, a converged communications service provider. Sources say, so far, Faz has received US$10 million and 200 cars to run its affairs in preparation for elections. More resources have been promised to capacitate the secret structure. Faz’s mandate, working together with the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission and its chair Justice Priscilla Chigumba, is to coordinate logistics and decisive forces to retain Mnangagwa in power. On its website, Faz says it is a private organisation that contributes, through active mobilisation, to win the hearts and minds of the electorate, to maintain Zanu PF’s governance. The group says it was formed in 2010 by students at Solusi University, an institution run by the Seventh-Day Adventist Church, to access business and empowerment opportunities then offered under the government’s Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Programme. Faz says it registered as a trust, with the support of the then ministry of State for Presidential Affairs. However, it says that its aspirations were thwarted by the “retrogressive internal competitive silo-like character of the Inclusive Government of National Unity that was in office from 2009-2013”, leading to its disbanding. The group says it relaunched in June 2022, and submitted its application for affiliate status in Zanu PF two months thereafter, a decision that it says is still pending. Faz has also denied any links to government. It has however taken over the chaotic voters’ roll inspection process and in April took over the running of Zanu PF’s primary elections. Faz profile . . .

NewsHawks News Page 3 Issue 134, 2 June 2023 ment of US$10 million and 200 cars to run its affairs in preparation for elections. Additional resources have been promised to capacitate the secret structure. The mandate of Faz, working together with the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission and its chair Justice Priscilla Chigumba, is to coordinate logistics and decisive forces to retain Mnangagwa in power. The NewsHawks investigation, which also focused on Masvingo, also established that Faz has structures at national, provincial, district, constituency and ward levels — where minute details are collected for use in the electoral process. The organisation is visible countrywide and has been sending shivers down the spines of many, especially opposition supporters, particularly in rural areas. Faz has now displaced the army’s structure called Heritage which used to perform a similar role and other functions. In 2018, the army ran the elections through Heritage and Africom, a converged communication service provider. With its members spread across provinces, Faz rose to prominence last year by playing a pivotal role in making Zanu PF cell registers before running Zanu PF primary elections this year. The organisation also mobilised people during voter registration and they caused panic due to their presence at Zimbabwe Electoral Zec centres during the recently held voters’ roll inspection exercise. How Faz operates Information gathered through interviews and reading an operational document shows provincial coordinators report to Tapfumaneyi. The provincial coordinators have teams in each district countrywide, led by district intelligence officers. The CIO structure include directors and branches they run at the top at its Chaminuka Building headquarters and its sub-offices in Harare; provincial intelligence officers and district intelligence officers. There also several other departments involved. So district intelligence officers and coordinators oversee operations in constituencies. At ward level, Faz has recruited and trained three Zanu PF-aligned members to collect information under the supervision of CIO operatives. A Faz operational document calls the three civilians in each ward “volunteers”. Zimbabwe has 1 970 wards, meaning Faz has recruited 5 910 volunteers who are part of its machinery to run the elections. In Masvingo province, which has 242 wards, there are 726 Faz volunteers in total. The volunteers report to CIO operatives who manage intelligence at constituency level and their information is transmitted through applications on their phones provided by Faz. They also collect GPS coordinates for each household and monitor political activities of people in their respective areas. The approach and systematic use of data for political and electoral purposes amounts to an illegal mass surveillance and data collection technique, an intricate “watch over” of people, in this specific case in Masvingo using technology and other means. CIO operatives and Faz volunteers attend most Zanu PF events and their presence is usually acknowledged by ruling party officials. Faz has a specific mandate to undermine the opposition. “The message must seek to thoroughly discredit the opposition and its candidate, rendering them unelectable. This includes anything that makes their candidate stink to the heavens, and speaking against their party’s anarchic, subversive, treasonous, undemocratic and terrorist pedigree and related actions,” the document reads. The document also carries the code of conduct for all Faz members which urges members to be ambassadors of Zanu PF who should only represent the interests of the party. “We do not and shall not claim to have any other identity than that we are members of Faz Trust, a private organisation, which is an affiliate of Zanu PF. We are as individuals, proudly members of Zanu PF and are unapologetic about this reality,” reads part of the code of conduct. The main opposition party, CCC this week wrote to ZEC complaining about Faz’s activities among other things. In a letter dated 29 May, addressed to Zec chairperson Priscilla Chigumba, senior party official Ian Makone. “The presence of FAZ organisation at the inspection centres must be explained because in some instances Faz officials are interfering with, and even controlling the process. We cannot have an illegal body overriding the operations of a Constitutional body,” wrote Makone. FAZ in Masvingo Investigations by The NewsHawks established that the leader of Faz in Masvingo is a CIO operative called Jacqueline Moloyi stationed at the spy organisation’s provincial offices at Nssa Building in Masvingo town. District Intelligence Officers (DIOs) coordinate Faz activities in districts and operatives in charge of constituencies coordinate operations of the organisation in constituencies. Faz members are receiving salaries which are higher than those of most civil servants. They are getting a monthly salary of US$380 and a generous portion in local currency. They also get other benefits which include phones (tablets) which they use to submit their reports. Efforts to get a comment from Moloyi were fruitless as she was continuously unreachable on mobile phone. A Faz insider told The NewsHawks that members were given tablets similar to those which were used by Zec officials during voter registration, so that they can use GPS coordinates, to make it easy to locate various people. “This thing is being run by our office. There is nothing like Faz as a non- governmental organisation since it is being funded by government. Our agents are in control of it, all the information being collected is coming to our offices for action. Have you noticed that Faz members are using tablets and those tablets are carrying various applications which use GPS for easy reporting? This is meant to drum up support for the President during the coming elections, that’s why the team is being paid handsomely,” said Faz member. Identify opposition members Faz members say they can easily identify non-Zanu PF members because they have access to Zanu PF cell registers. “The assumption is that one is either an opposition supporter or an undecided voter, if they are registered to vote but do not appear in Zanu PF structures. So, there is a deliberate effort to recruit from this pool and that’s where persuasion and propaganda come in,” said a Faz member. “Of course, some are known opposition activists or sympathisers. Intimidation is then deployed on such people. In rural areas, the message has been clear to such people that they are viewed with suspicion because they are not in party structures.” Zanu PF Masvingo provincial spokesperson Pepukai Chiwewe said his party does not work directly with Faz, which he said is just an affiliate of the party like other affiliates. Chiwewe said Faz members may campaign for Zanu PF, including attending party events, just like what state security agents do. “Faz is just an affiliate of Zanu PF and none of our members submit reports to it. Its members, just like any other security organisation of the party, are allowed to attend our events and we are not aware of where they submit their reports,” he said. Zaka rural district councillor for ward 19 Peter Imbayarwo (CCC) said Faz members have been intimidating people living around Jerera Growth Point by visiting homes. The NewsHawks visited Zaka South’s ward 24 during the process of voters’ roll inspection over the weekend and witnessed Anita Paidamoyo Chivingwi, a Faz member, sitting a few metres away from the centre, taking down details of all those who inspected the voters’ roll. Faz was deployed round the country to monitor the voters’ inspection process. Their presence was visible in Harare and Bulawayo, for instance, this week. Independent electoral experts and journalists saw and reported Faz activities. CCC also publicly complained about Faz. Independent Norton MP Temba Mliswa has made the loudest protests about Faz activities yet. A traditional leader said Chivingwi has been threatening opposition supporters with death before elections if they continue to support CCC. Former legislator and CCC senior official in Chiredzi Machirairwa Mugidho told The NewsHawks that Faz members working with CIO agents are violating fundamental human rights and constitutional freedoms. She said her party reported to police several cases of Faz members in Zec centres during inspection of the voters’ roll. “We are worried by activities of Faz members who are moving around threatening our people. They are doing this with support from CIO and this violates one’s freedoms as enshrined in our constitution. We witnessed several cases of Faz people taking details of voters at Zec centres and we reported the cases. In other instances, police chased them away, but they continued,” said Mugidho. Susan Mabunda, a single mother from Chilonga in Chiredzi South, said people in her community, especially women, are no longer free to participate in political activities due to the continued monitoring by Faz members who are forcing them to support Zanu PF. She said Faz members have been listing the names of CCC supporters and those attending the opposition party’s rallies and other political events, including the nomination process. “Faz is limiting our freedoms. Our area is less developed, maybe because we are the (minority) Shangaan people. This can be addressed only if we vote for a new government, but our political movements are being monitored by Faz members who are in our communities,” she said. While Mnangagwa and Zanu PF relied on the military to win the last elections, this time round Faz — a CIO-run shadowy outfit — is running the show and pulling out all the stops to deliver victory by fair means or foul. CIO co-deputy director-general retired Brigadier-General Walter Tapfumaneyi

Page 4 News NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023 NATHAN GUMA THE involvement of parallel structures in the running of elections has raised alarm, with main opposition official Tendai Biti demanding that Defence minister Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri present a ministerial statement on the role of the shadowy Forever Associates Zimbabwe (Faz) outfit in electoral processes. Controversy has risen over the establishment of Faz which, as previously reported by The NewsHawks, has taken over electoral processes. The organisation is led by Central Intelligence Organisation co-deputy director-general retired Brigadier-General Walter Tapfumaneyi. The outfit is not a constitutional or official arrangement, but an underground operational unit campaigning for Mnangagwa and Zanu PF in the 23 August general elections. Faz has now displaced the army’s structure called Heritage that used to perform a similar role and other functions. In 2018, the army ran elections through Heritage and Africom, a converged communications service provider. Legal experts say the CIO move and channelling of public resources to its shadowy structure is unconstitutional. Sources say, so far, Faz has received US$10 million and 200 cars to run its affairs in preparation for elections. More resources have been promised to capacitate the secret structure. Faz’s mandate, working together with the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission and its chair Justice Priscilla Chigumba, is to coordinate logistics and decisive forces to retain Mnangagwa in power. This week in Parliament, Biti said said the Defence minister should come to parliament and bring clarity on Faz’s involvement in the elections. Deputy speaker Tsitsi Gezi said she will ask the minister to bring the statement. “I thank you for allowing me to raise a point of national interest. In terms of chapter 11 of the constitution of Zimbabwe, our constitution recognises our security forces and security agents, which consist of the military, police, prisons and correctional service and intelligence. “We respect these institutions and we are proud of these institutions who by virtue of section 208 are bound to respect this Parliament as an elected civilian authority. During this current ongoing voters’ roll inspection exercise, we are seeing at polling stations a creature and individuals coming from a creature called Faz. “They are virtually in every polling station. We read that they purport to come from the intelligence service but we know the intelligence service and our intelligence authority,” Biti said. Biti said creation of parallel structures managing elections is brewing disaster, and incubating future military coups. “What is this creature called Faz, why is it interfering with our elections? I know from the ruling party Zanu PF that Faz even interfered in their primary elections. “Madam Speaker, if we create parallel structures, it will lead to disaster and military coups. May the minister of Defence come and explain what Faz is doing in our polling stations when in terms of the law only Zec officials, political parties and candidates are allowed to be in the polling stations. I thank you,” Biti said. Faz was also responsible for handling Zanu PF's primary elections, characterised by violence which necessitated run-offs in some constituencies. As previously reported by The NewsHawks, Zanu PF’s cell registers were managed by Faz throughout the country. Several members failed to locate their names on the registers, fomenting a lot of confusion. Faz casts dark cloud over Zim polls Former Finance minister Tendai Biti Defence minister Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri

NewsHawks News Page 5 Issue 134, 2 June 2023 BRENNA MATENDERE FOREVER Associates Zimbabwe (Faz), a state intelligence front, has invaded polling stations in Gwanda Central and Gwanda South constituencies in an intimidation exercise in members of the shadowy outfit are camping at the entrance of polling stations, forcibly drafting jittery villagers into ruling party cell registers. The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) this week opened its last window of voter registration blitz before President Emmerson Mnangagwa proclaimed 23 August as the election date for the next general election. However, a snap survey by The NewsHawks in Gwanda revealed that Faz members in the two constituencies in the district are taking turns to camp at polling stations, demanding personal details of villagers seeking to inspect the voters' roll. They then incorporate the voters to the Zanu PF cell registers without their consent. In Gwanda Central, which was renamed Gwanda-Chitaudze after the delimitation exercise, the Faz members are camped at a polling station for Dwala Resettlement area which is ward 22 of the constituency. The notorious Faz members are also camped at Moodsriuyt which is located in ward 13. Fisani Moyo will represent Zanu PF in the constituency. A villager who spoke to The NewsHawks about 100 metres away from the polling station said she and her two siblings were shocked that their details were recorded by the Faz members. “They asked for our physical addresses, next of kin, mobile phone numbers and full names. After that they openly said we had been automatically drafted into the cell register for Zanu PF in the area and told us that we will be tracked on voting day to see if we would have come to cast our votes. “In no uncertain terms, they said we should vote for Zanu PF and its presidential candidate Emmerson Mnangagwa whom they described as shefu. No consent was sought from us on that development,” said a villager who requested anonymity. A member of Faz who declined to reveal his identity at Dwala polling station said there was nothing wrong his team was doing in forcibly registering voters in Zanu PF cell registers without their consent. “We have blessings from the top hierarchy of the party to do what we are doing. Who are you? Please kindly leave. Please don’t take any photos, you will be in trouble,” he said before alerting his colleagues to the presence of this reporter. In Gwanda South, The NewsHawks discovered that the same trend was observable at three polling stations. These are Fumugwe polling station in ward 17; Buvhumba in ward 18 and at Manama in ward 17. Ompile Marupi shall be Zanu PF’s candidate in Gwanda South’s parliamentary election. A villager who spoke to this publication after having been forced to be drafted into the Zanu PF cell register for Buvhumba ward said she felt intimidated. “Somehow they said they will be able to track our voting patterns and see whether we voted for Zanu PF since they would be working with traditional leaders ahead of the polls. It removes the aspect of voting freely. It is unfair,” said the villager. Citizens' Coalition for Change (CCC) deputy spokesperson Felix Magalela Sibanda said instances of villagers being forcibly drafted into Zanu PF cell registers were reflective of yet another rigging tactic by Zanu PF which must be exposed. “Joining a political party must be voluntary. What is happening in Gwanda is pure rigging because people are being forced not to exercise their true will on election day. It must be condemned because it does not reflect an environment for free and fair elections,” he said. Shadowy group invades Gwanda polling stations

Page 6 News NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023 NATHAN GUMA 2000 Parliamentary elections IN the run up to the June 2000 Parliamentary election, there was noticeable intervention of the army, and alleged war veterans. The election also came after the formation of the MDC, which fielded candidates in all the 120 constituencies, presenting a serious challenge to the ruling Zanu PF There were high levels of violence, intolerance and intimidation, with at least 500 cases of severe injuries, 31 deaths and 70 abductions recorded after the election. This extensive violence resulted in over 10 000 peasant farm workers and rural-based professionals fleeing from their villages, after threats and violence from alleged war veterans. 2002 Presidential Election Service chiefs were largely involved in the 2002 election. MDC was gaining popularity, riling Zanu Pf. In 2002, the service chiefs led by the late Commander of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces Vitalis Zvinavashe in a joint Press conference, said they would not salute anyone without liberation war credentials. “Let it be known that the highest office on the land is a ‘straight jacket’ whose occupant is expected to observe the objectives of the liberation struggle. “We will therefore not accept, let alone support or salute anyone with a different agenda,” Zvinavashe said. Serious violence was recorded, and according to the Zimbabwe Electoral Support Network (Zesn) 945 incidents of torture and 54 deaths were recorded. 48 school closures, 229 intimidations and 214 kidnappings were also recorded. 29 disappearances, 5 rapes, 241 property damages were recorded, including 248 unlawful arrests. More abuses were not captured. 2005 Parliamentary Election Ex military official Douglas Nyikayaramba retired from the army to become chief elections officer of what was then called the Electoral Supervisory Commission for the chaotic 2002 and 2005 polls. However, he returned as commander of 3 Brigade in Mutare after his mission at the elections body had been accomplished. Both elections were won controversially by Zanu-PF. In 2005, George Chiweshe, a retired army brigadier general, was appointed elections commission chairperson, which he was for the 2008 poll. The elections were also underlined by serious violence, particularly in the countryside, where MDC was penetrating. 2008 Presidential election Following the defeat of the late Robert Mugabe by opposition Morgan Tsvangirai of the MDC, the army overtook and became arbiter of Zimbabwe’s fate during this period, playing the of political commissar of Zanu PF. A bloodbath and murders of opposition activists would follow after Mugabe’s shocking defeat. In an attempt by the military to reverse Mugabe’s defeat by Tsvangirai, the military effectively overthrew the electoral process and unleashed violence and intimidation on a wide scale, after a run off. Top military commanders accused of masterminding Mugabe’s stay in power include Air Vice Marshal Henry Muchena, Air Commodore Michael Karakadzai, Air Vice Marshal Abu Basutu, Major General Engelbert Rugeje, Retired Major General Gibson Mashingaidze and Brigadier General Douglas Nyikayaramba. The CIO was also largely involved. However, the army has denied playing any role in the bloody election. 2013 Presidential election Mugabe emerged victorious in the 2013 polls, overseen by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec), highly militarized, and dominated by serving and former officers of the military, police and intelligence service, well-known allies of Zanu-PF. Mugabe won amid rigging concerns aided by Israeli security company Nikuv International Projects (NIP), which managed both the lists of registered voters and the handling of election results in Zimbabwe. The company, used several methods to fix the elections in favour of Mugabe and his ruling Zanu PF party. The company has several offices, for instance the army’s Josiah Magama Tongogara barracks and one of the offices was located in the same building as Mugabe's Registrar-General, Tobaiwa Mudede. Mudede, who sat in the Joint Operations Command (Joc), which brings together army, police and intelligence chiefs. JOC is said to have been instrumental in Nikuv in 2000. 2018 Presidential election The 2018 election was largely run through Heritage and Africom, a converged communication service provider. An investigation by The NewsHawks last year shows that Africom hosts Zec’s server, bought fit by the United Nations Development Program before the 2018 general election. While Zec has been refusing ownership of such, in May last year, the UNDP confirmed purchasing the server for Zec. High-level government sources said the server bought by the UNDP using European Union funds was then used to manipulate the 2018 elections after the military seized control of it through Africom internet service provider. Concerns arose over the militarisation of Zec, housing ex-military officials like Utloile Silaigwana, who has been recycled since the 2008 chaotic elections. Silaigwana is currently chief elections Olofficer. 2023 Presidential Election The election, to be held on 23 August this year, has been taken over by the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO), through Forever Associates Zimbabwe (Faz), led by CIO co-deputy director-general retired Brigadier-General Walter Tapfumaneyi. The organisation has three representatives in each ward across the country, and has taken over the voters’ roll inspection process, displacing the army’s structure Heritage. The takeover of electoral business is not a constitutional or official arrangement, but the underground operational unit campaigning for Mnangagwa and Zanu PF in the August general elections. Sources say, so far, Faz has received US$10 million and 200 cars to run its affairs in preparation for elections. More resources have been promised to capacitate the secret structure. Army, CIO involvement in voting

NewsHawks News Page 7 Issue 134, 2 June 2023 BERNARD MPOFU LOCAL bankers are up in arms against Finance minister Mthuli Ncube following his latest policy intervention to stabilise the economy which has inadvertently left financial institutions facing serious difficulties in servicing their foreign loan obligations and new liquidity challenges, banking sources told The NewsHawks. Ncube issued the controversial measures on 29 May for immediate implementation in a bid to address deteriorating economic problems characterised by currency and exchange rate volatility — with attendant soaring inflation. Officially, Zimbabwe's annual consumer price inflation rose to 86.5% in May, up from 75.2% in April, marking a deviation from the downward trend recorded since the beginning of the year. However, independent economic analysts say in real terms inflation is now 761% for May — the peak it reached in August 2020 in the post-hyperinflation era. Ncube’s policy interventions are also meant to address a heightened emergency to service the country’s foreign debt and arrears which have been neglected. The measures which bankers are protesting about include the decision by Treasury to assume responsibility of repaying all foreign currency-denominated loans contracted through the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ). The latest applicable measures from 1 June which have riled bankers entail: l Treasury will now fund the Zimbabwe dollar component of the 25% foreign currency surrendered by exporters, in order to eliminate the creation of additional money supply; l The foreign currency collected from the 25% that is surrendered, will now be collected by Treasury and utilised in servicing the foreign currency loans assumed from the RBZ. Banks will no longer withhold any foreign currency surrendered by exporters, and all the liabilities to the banks will be settled through Treasury; l Introduce a 1% tax on all foreign payments; l Maintain the US dollar cash withdrawal tax at 2%; and l All export proceeds that remain unutilised after 90 days will be liquidated onto the interbank market. Sources say these measures shocked bankers and jolted them into action. On Wednesday, members of the Bankers' Association of Zimbabwe met RBZ governor John Mangudya to express their outrage. The RBZ also met the Accountant-General over the issue. Bankers say by taking over the 25% foreign currency receipts under the surrender policy, the Finance ministry was leaving banks exposed to failure to meet their foreign loan obligations as they are under the RBZ jurisdiction in terms of the law, thus are unable to engage Treasury directly. “This issue has been hotly-debated in the past few days since last week. Mnangagwa and Ncube discussed the issue of paying debts and arrears in Sharm El-Sheik where there was a day reserved to assess Zimbabwe’s debt resolution and clearance strategy,” an informed source said. “Ncube and his economic advisers lobbied Mnangagwa in Egypt to charge a new 10% tax on mining exports to pay arrears. Mnangagwa rushed back home to discuss the issue further. He summoned ministry of Finance and RBZ officials to meet him over the issue. That was Thursday last week. “During the Thursday meeting, there was no consensus on the 10%. So officials met again before going to see Mnangagwa on Sunday. At the Sunday meeting, Mnangagwa took the position that the 10% shouldn’t be implemented. He was supported by the RBZ officials. “In reaction, Treasury seized the 25% foreign currency surrender receipts. Ncube went on to issue a statement saying government shall create a debt redemption fund to service other external liabilities in line with the arrears clearance programme. Since Treasury had no budget for this, it said the new arrangement will be funded through new levies and other resource mobilisation initiatives. This means banks can no longer go to the RBZ to get cover and forex to pay their foreign obligations, but to the ministry of Finance even though the issue is under the central bank jurisdiction. This disrupts banks’ foreign loans obligation payment plans and other financial arrangements.” Bankers say since Treasury does not have the Zimbabwe dollar budget to pay for the 25% forex surrender requirement, it would still go back to the RBZ and commercial banks for funding. Ncube said he would raise the money through new taxes, which means taxing Zimbabweans to the bone. Another banker said: “Ncube also came up with other supportive policy measures for immediate implementation. Now all export proceeds that remain unutilised after 90 days will be liquidated onto the interbank market. The weekly auction will be limited to a maximum of US$5 million. All public foreign currency debts will be contracted by government and will be the responsibility of Treasury. “This is unhelpful. The 90 days given to exporters to utilise their forex, for instance means that the money is now transitory. This will fuel liquidity problems. It will also promote financial disintermediation, among other things.” Mnangagwa is under pressure to service Zimbabwe’s debts and arrears, especially now given the ongoing debt resolution and clearance negotiations and the upcoming general elections on 23 August. In December last year, the government established a structured dialogue platform with all creditors and development partners to institutionalise talks on economic and governance reforms to underpin the arrears clearance and debt resolution process. Zimbabwe’s total consolidated debt stands at US$17.5 billion. Debt owed to international creditors is US$14.04 billion, while domestic debt is US$3.4 billion. Debt owed to bilateral creditors is estimated at US$5.75 billion. Multilateral creditors are owed US$2.5 billion. The country is in arrears for servicing its debt, with arrears to multilateral development banks, including the African Development Bank (AfDB), the World Bank, and the European Investment Bank. Zimbabwe has paid its arrears to the International Monetary Fund. Zimbabwe’s debt clearance process is being championed by AfDB president Akinumwi Adesina and former Mozambican president Joaquim Chissano, who has been designated as high-level facilitator. The two were in Harare for a high-level debt resolution forum on 15 May led by President Emmerson Mnangagwa. Mnangagwa appointed Adesina as the champion of the process in July 2022. The debt forum has been focused on three policy reform matrices, presentation of the way forward and a tentative roadmap. Several meetings have already been held to deal with the issue, including some at the annual AfDB meetings in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. The theme of the 2023 annual meetings was Mobilising Private Sector Financing for Climate and Green Growth in Africa. It provided a framework for AfDB governors to share experiences on galvanising private financing domestically and internationally and harnessing natural capital to bridge the climate financing gap to promote transition to green growth in Bankers rise up in arms against Finance minister Finance minister Mthuli Ncube

Page 8 News NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023 Africa. Zimbabwe featured prominently at the AfDB meetings as delegates discussed its debt resolution and clearance strategy. On 24 May, Mnangagwa addressed delegates at a roundtable meeting on Zimbabwe’s debt and arrears issue. He also spoke to the media about the issue on Africa Day — 25 May. Mnangagwa said in February his government is committed to a plan to clear more than US$6 billion external debt arrears which are a drag on the economy and are hindering Zimbabwe’s access to badly needed new funding and lines of credit. Zimbabwe, whose foreign debt is over US$14 billion, has not been able to secure financing from international financial institutions, including the International Monetary Fund, World Bank and AfDB, in more than two decades due to its arrears and Western financial restrictions. While in Sharm El-Sheikh, Mnangagwa and Ncube had discussed how to service the country’s debts and arrears. Ncube had suggested imposing a new 10% tax on mining exports to raise money to repay foreign obligations. When Mnangagwa returned he urgently convened meetings, starting Thursday last week. The emergency meetings were attended by Mnangagwa, Ncube and Treasury officials, including permanent secretary George Guvamatanga, and Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) authorities led by governor John Mangudya. Four critical meetings were held to deal with the problem between Thursday and Sunday last week. Mnangagwa had come back home rushing from the AfDB annual meetings in Sharm ElSheikh, Egypt, which ran from 22-26 May, to address urgent economic issues, including the matter of paying arrears. After his 10% tax on mining exports proposal was shot down by Mnangagwa following guidance from some of his economic advisers who had warned that the move would be tantamount to sabotaging exports and fuel a foreign currency liquidity crunch, Ncube issued urgent policy interventions to address the debt and arrears crisis, while also trying to shore up a fast-deteriorating economy. In a bid to calm the markets, Mangudya issued a statement on 31 May saying despite Ncube seizing control of the 25% surrender portion of export proceeds, the RBZ would still play a “pivotal statutory role of intermediation between banks and the Exchequer”. Diplomatically, the RBZ statement suggested the minister had effectively changed statutory requirements, while merging fiscal and monetary policy issues, thus creating confusion. The statement also dealt with the funding aspect and loans. “Government will alternatively use own foreign exchange resources to settle the said loans,” the RBZ said. Finance minister Mthuli Ncube’s 29 May statement Introduction 1. Under the National Development Strategy 1, Government has made considerable progress in fostering domestic macroeconomic stability by implementing a broad range of fiscal and monetary stabilisation measures. 2. In order to continue on the macroeconomic stabilisation front, Government on the 21 of May 2023, introduced the following additional measures to curb the further depreciation of the local currency and increases in prices marked in domestic currency: l Increasing the retention on domestic foreign currency sales to 100%- This has resulted in domestic businesses accessing more foreign currency from the market and this potentially translating into additional US dollar deposits in the banking system; l Adoption of all external loans by Treasury — This process is well under way and will result in all external liabilities being funded transparently through the National Budget; l Increasing Consumers’ Access to Basic Commodities- Lifting all restrictions on importation of basic goods which has promoted competition thereby resulting in a reduction in prices; and l Promotion of use of domestic currency by Government Agencies which is expected to further increase the demand for the local currency. Following on the decision for adoption by Treasury, conferring full responsibility on it, of repaying all foreign currency denominated loans contracted through the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, Government announces supportive measures as follows: Government will implement the following measures as from 01 June 2023: l Treasury will now fund the Zimbabwe Dollar component of the 25% foreign currency surrendered by exporters, in order to eliminate the creation of additional money supply. The foreign currency collected from the 25% that is surrendered, will now be collected by Treasury and utilised in servicing the foreign currency loans assumed from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe. Banks will no longer withhold any foreign currency surrendered by exporters, and all the liabilities to the banks will be settled through Treasury. l Introduce a 1% tax on all foreign payments. l Maintain the USD Cash withdrawal tax at 2%. l Through Fidelity Gold Refinery, introduce a system to manage traceability of gold from its origin, both commercial and small scale, in line with international standards. l All excise duty on fuel will now be paid for in foreign currency. 3. In order to encourage banking of foreign currency, which is mainly in the informal sector, while promoting use of the local currency Government will: l Reduce the local interbank foreign transactions IMT tax to 1% ; l Reduce the POS IMT tax in foreign currency to 1%; l Promotion of use of the domestic currency: i. All Government Agencies including Parastatals will substantially now collect their fees in local currency; ii. Payments to ZESA by non-exporters will be made in the local currency; and iii. All Customs Duty to be payable in local currency, with the exception of designated or luxury goods. and where the importer opts to pay in foreign currency. 4. Treasury will assume all foreign currency debts from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe on 01 June 2023. 5. Government shall create a debt redemption fund to service other external liabilities in line with the arrears clearance program. These will be funded through new levies and other resource mobilisation initiatives. Other Supportive Policy Measures for Immediate Implementation 6. The above will be supported by the following policy measures: l All export proceeds that remain unutilised after 90 days will be liquidated onto the interbank market. l The weekly auction will be limited to a maximum of US$5 million. • As from 1 June 2023, winning bids at the auction will be paid within 24 hours of award. l All public foreign currency debts will be contracted by Government and will be the responsibility of Treasury. l There will be tightening of monetary policy in order to reduce lending and hence money creation by banks. l All manufacturers selling general goods, such as cement, milk, soft drinks, etc for the export market, will now be required to charge VAT, which is refundable by ZIMRA after exporting. 7. Government will continue to sterilise excess liquidity already injected into the economy through issuance of Treasury bills, whilst the Reserve Bank will also continue to sterilise through appropriate monetary policy tools. 8. With regards to externalisation of funds and transfer pricing, Government will strengthen surveillance and monitoring, complemented by a robust foreign currency payment system and information sharing system between financial institutions and ZIMRA. 9. Government will continue to review Civil Servants salaries and allowances in line with the above developments and policy measures, including increasing the threshold of the local currency IMT tax. Conclusion The assumption of the external obligations by Treasury and implementation of non-inflationary financing of the liabilities, coupled by sourcing of additional resources. will go a long way in reducing money supply growth and its impact on exchange rate depreciation and price increases. Government remains firmly committed to the maintenance of macro-economic stability, the preservation of the purchasing power of the Zimbabwe dollar and the restoration of trust and confidence in the economy. RBZ governor John Mangudya

NewsHawks News Page 9 Issue 134, 2 June 2023 NATHAN GUMA LEGISLATORS have challenged Finance minister Mthuli Ncube to present a ministerial statement on the erosion of salaries and the incapacitation of many workers amid skyrocketing inflation. Zimbabwe’s economic woes are continuing to mount with the country currently battling rising food prices, inflation and unemployment. Although Zimbabwe’s inflation is officially 75.2%, an independent estimate puts it at 791%. Many workers are being paid in local currency, but wages have been eroded, with over 70% of transactions now in United States dollars, according to the Zimbabwe National Statistical Agency (ZimStat). This week, the Zimbabwe dollar hit a 14-year low of ZW$3 600 against the United States dollar on the parallel market and has lost 93% of its value against the greenback since January 2022. The country has also topped economist Steve Hanke’s Annual Misery Index, both in sub-Saharan Africa and worldwide. This week in Parliament, opposition Citizens' Coalition for Change (CCC) chief whip Prosper Mutseyami challenged Ncube to respond to questions surrounding inflation and worker incapacitation. “Questions have been put across. My prayer is for the honourable minister to come up with a ministerial statement so that members will interrogate the honourable minister, one-on-one, over various issues to do with the salaries and the incapacitation that has been caused,” Mutseyami said. Deputy Speaker Tsitsi Gezi said Parliament will convey the message to Ncube. Norton independent MP Temba Mliswa said inflation has also been blighting Constituency Development Funds (CDF) disbursed to legislators. “It is more of the same with honourable Mutseyami, but the Speaker ruled that the minister of Finance would be here to respond to these issues. We see him globe trotting in the shops instead of coming here to answer questions. We want him to come and answer questions which the Speaker has spoken about. We were assured by the Speaker that he would come,” Mliswa said. “We were given Z$11.4 million for CDF when the rate was US$1:Z$1 000 and now it is Z$3 500. If you look at the ZW$11 million, it is about three or four thousand. What are we going to do with that? Already we are going towards elections and we had promised the electorate boreholes and other programmes. “Now you cannot even do them. What is the point of giving us the money? If we are to be given that money, can we have a top-up to deal with the inflationary environment which is there. Otherwise for me, I am not touching the money and my electorate must know that. It will make me lose. “What do I do with US$3 000? No wonder why these members of Parliament, especially from Zanu PF lost in the primary elections. It is because of inflation. They were telling people that they would do a, b, c and d. They never did it and they lost. The person who won against them came and did exactly what they did not do. You cannot blame them for losing. It is the system which is fighting us,” Mliswa said. Mliswa said Ncube should come to the House as a matter of urgency. “The minister of Finance must come here. It is a national issue which honourable Mutseyami brought up. Why is he quiet? If we are going to dollarise, let us dollarise. The RBZ has been selling US dollars on the auction market to perceived businesspeople for purposes of importing goods to make sure that there is increased production through the availability of cheap foreign currency to those people. “It has however proven that there has not been an increase in production in the various sectors, which may indicate that the people who have been getting that money might have possibly been using that system to obtain money at a cheaper rate. “They would then syphon it through using false invoices for purposes of fake imports, thereby fueling the parallel market rates by selling the US dollars through the parallel market, instead of using that foreign currency to benefit the nation. Particularly in the sense that we have not seen the increase in the production which was supposed to be exhibited directly by the reduction in the price of bread but it is increasing. “All other materials including building materials are increasing in price, which means there has been no benefit. So, it is my plea that the honourable minister comes to this august House and give a ministerial statement giving an audit trail on how from day one to date, the auction system has benefitted anyone other than actually supplying US dollars to the parallel market and fueling inflation,” Dube said. Economic rot: MPs demand answers Many workers are being paid in local currency, but wages have been eroded, CCC chief whip Prosper Mutseyami

Page 10 News NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023 NATHAN GUMA ZIMBABWE’S anti-corruption fight has a mountain to climb, following the National Assembly’s approval of clauses to the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Amendment Bill which make it difficult for the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (Zacc) to secure convictions, The NewsHawks has learnt. This week, Parliament approved Clause 5 of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Amendment Bill, amending the Act which was first published in the Government Gazette on 23 December last year. The amendments in Clause 5 water down the Act by amending section 174(1), making it easier for public officials to get away with criminal abuse of office. Zacc commissioners and other stakeholders believe securing convictions will be made harder, given that the amendment will require prosecutors to prove that a public official had knowledge that his or her conduct was illegal. The amendment provides room for public officials to get away with corruption on the grounds that they made honest mistakes. Zacc commissioner Jessie Majome is among those who have spoken out against the proposed amendment, which she says will weaken the fight against corruption, given that current laws are already weak. As previously reported by The NewsHawks, Majome spoke out against the amendment at an Integrity Summit organised by Accountability Lab in April this year. Section 174 deals with criminal abuse of duty of public officers. “At that meeting, I raised alarm over the ill-advised and unwarranted attempt to amend by repeal section 174 (1) of the Criminal Codification (Law Reform) Act [Chapter 9:23] (The Code) by Bill H.B.15,22 which is pending before Parliament,” Majome said. “I commented that the section creates the offence of criminal abuse of duty by a public officer, which is the charge most resorted to by Zacc because of the lack of other useful offences in Zimbabwe’s legislation. I advised the meeting that the proposed amendment seeks to introduce a defence of lack of actual knowledge of the duty by the concerned public officer. I decried how this would further weaken and further blunt the already weak provision and further reduce chances of convictions regarding corruption. “I also pointed out that it is not good to amend the law purely in order to create a loophole. I remarked that if any amendment is to be made to the code it should instead broaden the definition of ‘public officer’ to include officials of parastatals and private companies in which the state holds stake, as they are currently not specifically mentioned by the definition of it in section 169. The courts are letting them off the hook on the basis of that technicality as they interpret them not to be public officers.” Majome instead called for the improvement of a legislative framework to create more criminal offences of corruption, including the repeal and replacement of the present Anti-Corruption Act by a more robust and constitutionally up to date framework such as that proposed by the Zacc Lay Bill. Section 174 currently reads:“(1) If a public officer, in the exercise of his or her functions as such, intentionally; (a) does anything that is contrary to or inconsistent with his or her duty as a public officer; or (b) omits to do anything which it is his or her duty as a public officer to do; for the purpose of showing favour or disfavour to any person, he or she shall be guilty of criminal abuse of duty as a public officer and liable to a fine not exceeding level thirteen or imprisonment for period not exceeding fifteen years or both. “(2) If it is proved, in any prosecution for criminal abuse of duty as a public officer that a public officer, in breach of his or her duty as such, did or omitted to do anything to the favour or prejudice of any person, it shall be presumed, unless the contrary is proved, that he or she did or omitted to do the thing for the purpose of showing favour or disfavour, as the case may be, to that person. “(3) For the avoidance of doubt it is declared that the crime of criminal abuse of duty as a public officer is not committed by a public officer who does or omits to do anything in the exercise of his or her functions as such for the purpose of favouring any person on the grounds of race or gender, if the act or omission arises from the implementation by the public officer of any Government policy aimed at the advancement of persons who have been historically disadvantaged by discriminatory laws or practices.” The section is however amended by the repeal of subsection (1) and the substitution of — “(a) if he or she does anything which he or she knows is contrary to or inconsistent with his or her duty as a public officer; or “(b) he or she omits to do anything which he or she knows it is his or her duty to do; with the intention of conferring an undue or illegal benefit on someone else or of unfairly or illegally prejudicing someone else, he or she shall be guilty of criminal abuse of duty as a public officer and liable to a fine not exceeding level thirteen or imprisonment for a period not exceeding fifteen years or both.” Zacc commissioners say the amendments will make it harder to secure convictions. However, Veritas, a legal think-tank that provides information on the work of Parliament and the laws of Zimbabwe, believes the move is positive. “This clause amends section 174(1) of the principal Act. The current framing of the offence of criminal abuse of office as provided for in terms of section 171(1) is very broad in its scope in that it gives room for public officers to be prosecuted for honest mistakes made during the course of their duties. Hence the amendment will limit the crime to include an essential element of knowledge on the part of a public official that his or her conduct was illegal,” Veritas said in a commentary. Three other clauses to the Act; Clause 2, 3, and 4 were also approved by the National Assembly on Wednesday. Clause 2, known as the "Patriotic Bill", criminalises fundamental freedoms of association, assembly and speech of any citizen who holds meetings with foreign diplomats or any other foreigner, plunging the country into the dark days reminiscent of the oppressive Rhodesian colonial era. Zacc commissioner Jessie Majome New criminal code clauses complicate anti-graft fight

NewsHawks News Page 11 Issue 134, 2 June 2023 EFFORTS by the state-owned Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company (ZCDC) to evade paying a US$10 million debt have hit a brickwall after the High Court ordered execution of a judgement handed down against it earlier this year. The ZCDC was ordered to pay Adlecraft Investment US$10 718 373.51 by the High Court following a breach of contract in a mining deal. The material facts from which the dispute between the parties arose are as follows: In February 2016 the parties entered into a written agreement to which there was a third party, New Era Diamonds Limited, which is a sister company of Adlecraft. New Era Diamonds Limited is a foreign-registered company. In terms of that agreement, Adlecraft was to provide contract mining services to the ZCDC. Services included supplying the ZCDC with daily ore, whose tonnage is specified in the agreement, extracting the ore, hauling it and stockpiling it at designated points. The ZCDC, cited as the respondent in court papers, was enjoined to sell all its Boart Diamonds Limited during the subsistence of the agreement. The details of how Adlecraft was to be paid as well as the applicable rates were specified in the written agreement. The initial duration of the contract was 12 months from the date of signature. The agreement was subject to renewal on condition of satisfactory performance. After the initial 12 months, the applicant continued to render services as per the agreement, pending negotiations on the contract rate to be applied. "Owing to the failure to reach agreement on new contract rates the respondent terminated the agreement in April 2020 according to the letter dated 13 April 2021 . . . By letter dated 13 April 2021, the respondent acknowledged liability of the applicant in the sum of US$I 979 590.65. In a letter of demand dated 14 December 2022 the applicant through the deponent to the founding affidavit, wrote a letter of demand to the respondent in which it acknowledged that a sum of US$1 300 486.67 had been paid leaving a balance of US$679, 103.98 from the admitted US$I 979 590.65," reads the court document. Two days later, on 16 December 2022, another letter was addressed to the ZCDC on behalf of Adlecraft stating that the outstanding amount as at 31 December 2019 excluding interest was the sum of US$4 344 965.67. The letter stated that when interest is factored in, the balance due would be US$13 824 163.22 as at 31 December 2022. Adlecraft then asked the ZCDC to deposit the amount into the same account furnished by the letter of demand of December 2022. "The two letters of 14 and 16 December 2022 were delivered to the respondent on the same date 19 December 2022. "The two letters were followed by a series of email correspondence in which the respondent advised that the parties needed to agree on the exact figure or amount that remained outstanding." Justice Happias Zhou, presiding over the matter, ordered the ZCDC to pay Adlecraft US$10 718 373.51 and interest at 2% per month from the date of the judgment. The ZCDC was also ordered to settle costs of suit on the attorney-client scale. Disgruntled by the court order, the ZCDC noted an appeal to the Supreme Court. It said the High Court grossly erred in assuming jurisdiction where the urgent court application filed on behalf of the respondent was invalid for want of compliance with rule 59(6) of the High Court Rules 2021 in that it called upon the appellant to file opposing papers within a period of two days with no court order having been obtained to permit the limited period to file opposing papers. "The High Court further grossly erred in finding that commercial agency had been established by the respondent when it was apparent that the debt sued for arose from about 2018 and there was no basis for concluding that the alleged debt was the cause of the alleged insolvency of the respondent. "The High Court further grossly erred in dismissing the point in limine that there were material disputes of fact which could not be resolved on the papers and at the same time, without an application from any party directing that oral evidence should be led to resolve material dispute of fact..." complained the ZCDC. The ZCDC also said Zhou grossly errred in finding that the debt which was sued for, other than the admitted amount, had not been extinguished on account of extinctive prescription it having been from as far back as the year 2018. The High Court was further accused of irregularly awarding costs against ZCDC on an attorney- client scale where there was no justification for such an order. On the other hand, in a bid to secure the judgement debt, Adlecraft filed an urgent chamber application seeking for leave to execute the judgment under HC 723/23 granted in its favour by Zhou pending appeal. During the hearing, Advocate Thembinkosi Magwaliba, representing the ZCDC, raised a preliminary point of lack of urgency. He also argued that the application was manifestly invalid. Magwaliba argued that the certificate of urgency prepared by Gwinyai Ranganayi was undated and one cannot tell whether it was prepared before or after the founding affidavit was presented to Ranganayi. "The same certificate of urgency wrongly spells out that the present application was filed on 6 March 2023. The certificate of urgency does not deal with the question of commercial urgency upon which the application is based." The lawyer also said, in any case, financial prejudice alone is not enough to found urgency. He said there should have been evidence presented to demonstrate that Adlecraft faces possible liquidation and also the existence of pressing creditors. But Adlecraft said its application was for leave to execute pending appeal. Adlecraft argued that urgency was already dealt with by Zhou. The lawyer so said in any case the issue of commercial urgency is raised on the notice of appeal and is to be fully ventilated before the Supreme Court. Ndlovu representing Adlecraft also said the court is not bound by a certificate of urgency. "The correctness or otherwise of a certificate of urgency should not concern the court. There is a valid certificate of urgency deposed to by an officer of court. There is no requirement in the rules that a certificate of urgency must be dated. A certificate of urgency is in any case different from an affidavit. It is not made under oath. An application for leave to execute pending appeal is almost always heard on an urgent basis," he said. In coming up with the present ruling, Justice Neville Wamabo sitting at the Harare High Court said the nature of the instant application deserved close attention. "It is an application to enforce an order already granted albeit there being an appeal noted. "The order was granted under urgent notice. By the very nature of the instant application, I am inclined to treat it with urgency. "The appeal itself may be adjudicated upon before this application if not treated with urgency," he said. Wamambo said the ZCDC should pay Adlecraft even though a hearing before the Supreme Court was pending. "Having read both documents I am of the view that the certificate of urgency highlights in the main the issue of urgency. "The deponent to the certificate of urgency is indeed a practicing legal practitioner and this has not been disputed by respondent. "There are some errors in the certificate of urgency but not sufficient to render the whole document as invalid. Without encouraging legal practitioners deposing to certificates of urgency not to focus and include appropriate and correct details, the errors may indeed be attributed to human error. Contrary to what I understand to be a submission by respondent's counsel that the certificate of urgency does not address financial or commercial prejudice, it actually does in the aforementioned para(s) 1.6. to 2 of Gwinyai's certificate of urgency." The judge said sight should not be lost that the debt in question amounts to US$10 718 373.51, adding that the amount is substantial. ". . . and I take judicial notice that such an amount will negatively impact on any business enterprise. "In the circumstances I am satisfied that urgency has been established. Further that ownership of applicant is suffering from ongoing disputes and there may be competing claims by the individuals engaged in the dispute of ownership of applicant. "In any case it has not been shown to me that the harm potentially to be suffered by respondent if any is irreversible. The fact that respondent has no judgment in their favour follows from the nature and tenor of such an application. "In this regard I find that the potentiality of irreversible harm to respondent is minimal." The judge said the potentiality of irreparable harm to Adlecraft if the application was refused, the long history of the litigation, the fact that the ZCDC has indeed owned up to owing a substantial amount to the firm, coupled with the fact that Adlecraft is holding a judgment in its favour, all tilt the scales of irreparable harm to be high on its side. "The fact that applicant is a business enterprise which it is common cause expected services for substantial sums of money from respondent demonstrates potentiality of irreparable harm to applicant if the judgment is not executed and the delay will cost applicant financially," he said. The judge said he is alive to the fact that the Supreme Court may come to a different conclusion on findings of the court, but however noted that he considered the grounds of appeal by the ZCDC and thinks that the appeal may have been lodged for some other purpose. "I am of the view that the chances of success on appeal appear slim." He ruled:"The application for leave to execute the judgment of the Honourable Court granted on 15 March 2023 in the matter under HC 723/23 pending appeal against the judgment noted by the first respondent under SC 201/2023 be and is hereby granted. "Consequently, the applicant be and is hereby granted leave to carry the judgment of this court in HC 723/23 into execution notwithstanding the appeal filed by the respondent. "The respondent shall pay the applicant's costs." — STAFF WRITER. ZCDC bid to dodge US$10m debt fails

Page 12 News NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023 NKOSANA DLAMINI REDWING Gold Mine, once touted as a giant gold mining venture capable of transforming the quality of life in the Penhalonga area of Manicaland province and a cash cow for the national economy, has become a sad story of failed investment by British-registered Metallon Corporation. Metallon’s vast Zimbabwe mining portfolio extends to subsidiary firms, Shamva, Mazowe and How Mine. The gold mine, situated 50 kilometres west of Mutare, had a resource of 2.5 million ounces of gold, according to the Mineral Reserve Statement of December 2016. In its heyday, the mine played a major role in economic stabilisation and domestic resource mobilisation, producing 1.1 million ounces of gold between 1966 and 2004. But the story has changed to that of dismay; manifesting in death, massive environmental damage, infrastructural decay, labour rights abuses, crime and sleaze — all in one. Civil society groups say more than 100 people have died at the mine since 2020, with 26 dying in January this year alone. The rot does not end there, as there has been flagrant disregard for mining statutes through political patronage, tax evasion, mineral smuggling, and human rights abuse, according to civil society groups closely monitoring the situation. An investigation by ZimLive in collaboration with Information for Development Trust (IDT), under a project meant to support investigative reporting focusing on the accountability and governance of foreign interests and investments in Zimbabwe and southern Africa, confirms the rot, at the once-thriving mine, which has been hijacked by politically connected individuals. Ownership Under the Metallon family, Redwing is owned and operated by United Kingdom-registered King's Daughter Mining Company Limited, which holds 100% shareholding in the firm. The company is run by South African business mogul Mzi Khumalo. Mismanagement and litigation Owing to a litany of mismanagement practices that placed the once thriving business on the edge of a precipice, Metallon Gold subsidiaries Mazowe, Shamva and Redwing Mine were placed under corporate rescue by the High Court in July 2020 after workers' unions and creditors successfully sued for failure to honour wages and contractual payments amounting to millions of US dollars. Under High Court 2619/19, company creditors Shatirwa Investments sued Metallon Gold, Gold Field of Mazowe and Goldfields of Shamva claiming it was owed US$6 394 232. “The 1st and 2nd Respondents are jointly and severally liable to the applicant in the sum of US$6 394 232.00 in terms of court order in HC 6197/18…” read the application in part. The debt arose after Shatirwa Investments had rendered mining services to Metallon Gold and Mazowe Gold for operations between August 2016 and February 2018 which were never paid for. Reggie Saruchera of Grant Thornton was appointed corporate rescue partner. Associated Mine Workers' Union of Zimbabwe (AMWUZ) filed a concurrent suit against Metallon Gold and Redwing Mine under Mutare HC99/2019. According to lawyer Reynos Gumbo, Redwing Mine owed AMWUZ US$29 500 in outstanding union fees. “Fees were deducted from the workers’ salaries but were not remitted to the union,” Gumbo said. Redwing workers also said they were owed in excess of US$4 million in outstanding wages as of 14 August 2019. Wage arrears had accrued over four years. According to Gumbo, Redwing failed to remit fees to the Mining Industry Pension Fund (MIPF) for six years. The company was also not making National Social Security Authority remittances although it was effecting deductions from wages. In addition, Redwing was holding on to pension and funeral services payments for workers despite effecting deductions. “The company was deducting employees’ monies but not remitting them to MIPF and owed other creditors various amounts of money,” Gumbo said. However, the corporate rescue order was successfully appealed on a technicality through the Supreme Court after Metallon challenged the locus standi of the litigants, arguing they did not sufficiently satisfy the “affected persons” clause stipulated in the Insolvency Act for one to sue. Under the Insolvency Act of 2018, affected persons who include shareholders, and trade creditors can apply for corporate rescue if the company is in financial distress. The Supreme Court did not go into the merits of the application. Redwing Interim Corporate Rescue Partner (ICRP) Knowledge Hofisi had already come up with a rescue plan which included the settlement of proven liabilities, reconstructing the balance sheet, resumption of underground mining, security of employment to ensure optimal benefit to the economy. The arrangement entailed that proceeds from the distressed firm would accrue to the account of the corporate rescue manager who, in turn, would pay workers. Hofisi was quoted by local media as saying the company needed US$6 million to restart production by bringing new investors into the business. Scott Sakupwanya takes advantage of confusion The initial granting of corporate rescue allowed politicians, particularly Zanu PF’s Pedzisai "Scott" Sakupwanya and his Better Brands Mining to annex the mine in 2019 under an opaque Tributary Agreement controversially facilitated by Hofisi. The agreement is under challenge by workers who now report that they have been barred altogether from the processing plant. Workers have also flagged the arrangement for failure to have a rescue plan to pay creditors and any job security guarantees. Speaking on condition of anonymity, mine workers also accused company directors of individually benefiting from the secret arrangement, hence their lack of enthusiasm to pursue the restoration of company operations still in the hands of Better Brands. Sakupwanya’s mobile phone was not reachable for comments. He did not respond to text and WhatsApp messages. Redwing human resources manager Oscar Madhume refused to entertain questions when called to shed light on the dictates of an agreement. “Who gave you my number?” Madhume responded when called on his mobile. “I am sorry I cannot entertain you on the phone.” Madhume was not forthcoming either when subsequent efforts were made to secure an appointment over the matter. A tributary agreement is an instrument by which the holder of a claim or mining lease agrees to allow another person to work the claim or lease, or part thereof, in return for a proportion of the value of production or profits of working. Because it does not have equipment to pursue underground mining, Better Brands unlawfully partnered small-scale miners, known as sponsors, to perform unsafe surface mining, resulting in chaos. Farai Maguwu, director of a prominent environmental rights lobby, the Centre for National Resources Governance (CNRG), described Sakupwanya’s entry as more inclined towards serving political as opposed to business interests of the company. “It was very political; the way they came there. Initially they claim they wanted to revive Redwing Mine,” said Maguwu. “No sooner had they taken over the mine than they started operating the 134 tributary claims of Redwing Mine. So, they shifted the methods of operations from underground mining to artisanal mining. “That is when they brought an army of makorokoza (gold panners) to start operating in the 134 tributary claims. “The result has been ecological disaster; there has been social disaster there. People have been dying like flies because Better Brands is not a mining company. It is simply someone who has political power and using that power to coordinate makorokoza to operate at a colossal mine. They don’t have the capacity. “The shoes left by Mzilikazi Khumalo are too big to be filled by Scott Sakupwanya. He does not have the capacity to operate that mine any further. Operations by Scott Sakupwanya are simply sacrificing other people’s children for him to be rich.” The gold sold to the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe through Fidelity Printers and Refiners is also considered dirty gold because of the problems associated with the manner in which Better Brands is producing the precious mineral. The country is losing gold through leakages Redwing: A tale of plunder, impunity, chaos and death ….failed investment sparks mayhem

NewsHawks News Page 13 Issue 134, 2 June 2023 whereby the metal, instead of going to Fidelity — government’s designated  buy  of bullion — finds its way into the parallel market. Who is Scott Sakupwanya? Known by his moniker, Mr Gold, Pedzisai "Scott" Sakupwanya is the wily gold baron whose claim to fame does not extend further than his links to President Emmerson Mnangagwa and family. The flamboyant Zanu PF politician fits the label of mbinga, street lingo for wheeler-dealers who flaunt impressive bling but with no traceable sources of riches except their proximity to influential politicians on whose behalf they act as fronts for opaque deals. Sakupwanya has no traceable mining history and, by his own admission in Al Jazeera’s “Gold Mafia” documentary aired in April, acts as a middleman for gold dealers. "I collect money from investors, buy gold and sell to RBZ (Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe) and then make a profit, and you get 10%. The money will be deposited wherever you are around the world,” Sakupwanya said. Sakupwanya is accused of abusing gold licences, buying gold and delivering less than 50% to Fidelity Printers and Refiners, and smuggling the rest to other countries. His company delivered 19 tonnes to Fidelity last year. A visit to the mine reveals chaos, decay A visit to the mine shows a landscape cluttered with makeshift plastic structures and hordes of youths, some as young as 17. The shacks were erected by artisanal miners. Under the shacks are very deep pits. There are five sections designated and managed as mining sections by Better Brands and sponsors. Sponsors, the middlemen between Better Brands and artisanal miners, supply plastics, timber, generators, food, blowers, worksuits, gumboots and pit registration for the miners. There is a semblance of control as each pit has a peg number pasted against the shacks. Sections designated as mining areas are Nhasi Nhai, Rezende, Tylor, Tsapauta but there are hordes of other youths who have invaded the landscape outside the controversial arrangement to dig for the precious mineral. Meandering footpaths leading to the pits is dicey as it is easy to plunge into deep holes dug and abandoned just on the verges of the paths. Moving around the area is not the most comfortable experience for a newcomer as one is greeted with curious eyes of soiled miners, some taking a nap on piles of timber to ease fatigue exerted by the energy-sapping job. It is easy for them to sniff out a stranger because locals wear soiled clothing which is now some kind of de facto uniform and symbol of identity for the miners. The area is a cacophony of shouts and roaring generators, used to blow oxygen into the mine shafts, some as deep as 50 metres. Under cover, this reporter saunters into one of the shades asking if they could offer his sibling a job, to which one of the miners excitedly responds in the affirmative but emphasises that the prospective employee should be tough enough for the gruelling job. “If you are really interested, please do that fast because we don’t recruit lazy people. We need people who dig. Can you see this hole, I dug it only in five days,” says an unidentified artisanal miner while showing off a hole he claims to be 22 mitres deep and a shaft that is eight metres long. He continues: “The underground is so free that you may think that it is a real home. You can easily spend the entire day underground and not even sense it that you are beneath earth.” For toilets, he said, a small plastic container is lowered to workmates under the earth to fill up with urine which is then hoisted to the surface and deposited in the immediate environment. The makeshift plastic shelter is used as a bedroom, storeroom and cover against rain and avoid water filling into the pits. Vendors, some from as far as Mutare and Mozambique, also crisscross to and fro the various mining sections selling braziers, soap, towels and food, among some items. There are no toilets on site. Operations spur environmental damage, social ills and death According to CNRG, Better Brands is responsible for at least 5 000 open pits that it is not reclaiming. There are over 2 000 miners at any given time, each of them having a pit. Better Brands employees have also contributed to some of the social ills seen through illegal mining, gold leakages, land degradation, pollution of Mutare river and an increase in criminal activity as the panners, when they get broke, often become a menace through committing robberies in the Penhalonga area. Most of the Illegal miners are undocumented, hence difficult to track when they commit the crimes. A report by Mutare City Council last year confirmed water in Mutare River contains samples of cyanide. Mutare River is a source of water for Redwing Mine compound, home to over a hundred residents. Previous investigations have shown that Better Brands’ operations were in violation of Statutory Instrument (SI) 258 of 2018 Environmental (Zimbabwe) management (Control of Alluvial Mining) (Amendment) Regulations, which outlaws the setting up of washing plants, ore stockpiles, slime dams or mining ponds within 500 metres from a river bed. Some of the social ills include child pregnancy and school dropouts. Speaking at a recent Press conference, Penhalonga Youth Development Trust director Clinton Masanga said: “There are people who have set up several illegal hammer mills leading to cyanide and mercury pollution. As a community group, we are advocating for good governance in natural resources. “Mutasa Rural District Council has no source of revenue except taxing residents when we have big projects like Redwing. We are calling for a structure where the community benefits.” Masanga said gold leakages at Redwing Mine had reached levels where there are now more than 522 illegal gold hammer mills and 10 cyanidation sites on the steep slopes and river valleys of Penhalonga, processing an estimated seven kilogrammes of gold on a daily basis. “It is alarming to note that all these processing sites are not mining gold at their claims. They receive stolen gold ore from Redwing Mine day and night. “Sources at Redwing alleged that mine officers were operating illegal hammer mills outside Redwing Mine hence the laxity of security at the mine. “An expert calculation of an average of 2 000 bags of ore being transported from Redwing Mine said the output is an average 7kg of gold,” said Masanga. He further noted that Redwing Mine, at its peak in the early 1980s, produced between 35kgs and 45kgs and the community benefitted through employment opportunities. Masanga said the company is not playing its role in enabling responsible mining. “There is chaos and what we seek is sanity. We want the project to resume underground where it is safe and does not disturb the ecosystem or environment with no land degradation,” he said. “Surface mining being undertaken is not sustainable and some geologists have confirmed our fears because the ground is putting people in danger.” He said some people who lost their lives at the mine were from neighbouring Mozambique. According to CNRG, over 26 deaths were recorded by civil society groups in January 2023 alone, as miners risk lives by plunging into unsafe disused tunnels. In a joint statement in January, CNRG, Zivai Community Empowerment Trust, Penhalonga Youth Development Trust and Penhalonga Residents and Ratepayers Trust, said over 100 artisanal miners have died at the mine since 2020. In its operations, Better Brands is accused of recruiting some workers who do not have national identity cards. Their origins cannot be traced. Some of the people who lost their lives at the mine are believed to be from neighbouring Mozambique. CNRG last year filed a petition to parliament demanding to know if the Ema is properly executing its mandate of monitoring environmental management and compliance at the mine. By its own admission, Better Brands acknowledged surface mining has brought a lot of challenges. In January this year,  the company announced a suspension of operations in compliance with Ema’s directives. In a letter dated January 20, Better Brands said it would suspend operations at Redwing Mine, temporarily, until matters of increased number of fatalities, environmental degradation and constrained access controls are resolved. “Better Brands mining hereby advises its valued stakeholders that all surface mining operations shall be suspended with immediate effect; mainly due to concerns in the increased number of fatalities, environmental degradation and constrained access controls,” general manager Cuthbert Chitima announced. “Better Brands Mining shall take this opportunity to restructure and rehabilitate the mining field in preparation for resumption of surface and underground mining operations.” But civil society groups say the company, which enjoys impunity because of its owner’s proximity to the ruling elite, did not close shop as instructed and as announced. This has heightened anger and impatience with the company among workers and the community. While Better Brands, is officially selling to the RBZ, there are strong suspicions by community based interest groups that some of the gold it produces through artisanal miners is illicitly finding its way into the world market as laundered gold. We are living in poverty: workers Phanuel Mukadiweyi, who chairs a workers' committee, says workers are living in abject poverty and have nowhere to start. “No one seems interested in the proper re-opening of the mine," Mukadiweyi said. The proper re-opening of the mine should start with de-watering. Nothing is happening now. We are living by the grace of God. “Better Brands is using a tributary agreement which was scrapped by the court. They are still on the ground anyway but do not have any meaningful contract that binds them to remit any payments, they just bring money as and when it is convenient for them, unlike the first contract last time. “The situation has worsened. Since it was removed from corporate rescue, no operations are taking place, Better Brands is operating and we continue to sink deeper into financial doldrums, failing to pay dues to trade unions.” A section of the company workforce led by Peter Zheke, Victor Zivanai and Peter Chirakaraka has since re-opened their bid to seek corporate rescue under Commercial Court Case HC250/2022. They argue that the company must be placed back into corporate rescue under Hofisi so that they are paid their outstanding salaries. The matter, due for initial hearing on 5 June, 2023, was filed under Kadare Legal Practitioners. Kadare adamantly refused to share details of the matter, saying it is still before the courts of law. “I am not at liberty to disclose anything for now because the matter is sub judice. Until such a time when the matter is finalised then it can become public,” said Kadare. Efforts to seek a response from Metallon Gold did not yield any positive results as the company failed to respond to written questions sent through company public relations manager Ranga Mberi. Repeated reminders were sent to Mberi who kept pleading for patience with this reporter for over a fortnight. Mberi said questions were relayed to company management which was preparing a “comprehensive” response. “Team is working on it. Hope to have something for you asap,” Mberi wrote to this reporter on 19 May. Another follow-up was made on 25 May with Mberi saying, “They have promised they are working on a detailed response my brother. Waiting patiently. Thanks for your patience.” We are happy: Zanu PF Despite the evident rot brought by the entry of Better Brands, local Zanu PF legislator Moses Mugadza said the local leadership was monitoring progress at the mine to ensure that the Ema directive is followed. “We are satisfied with the progress that the investor has made in rehabilitating the mine as prescribed by Ema and I think the progress recorded so far is at 90%. We expect the mine to start operating soon under the conditions prescribed by Ema,” he said. The Penhalonga community and civil society groups however remain concerned by deaths, environmental damage, social ills, crime and the impunity at Redwing.

Page 14 News NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023 NATHAN GUMA THE Kimberley Process Civil Society Coalition (CSC), an umbrella organisation that acts as an observer of the Kimberley Process (KP) on behalf of civil society, says trust in the Kimberly Process Certification Scheme is slowly eroding due to the organisation's failure to deal with conflict in diamond-mining regions across Africa — Zimbabwe included. Zimbabwe was slammed for failing to fulfill promises made to villagers forcibly moved from the Chiadzwa diamond fields to pave way for mining. The coalition, which represents communities affected by diamond mining and trade, includes representatives from Cameroon, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Lesotho, and Sierra Leone. The Kimberley Process, currently chaired by Zimbabwe, is a multilateral trade regime established in 2003 with the goal of preventing the flow of conflict diamonds from the global supply chain. While the Kimberley Process marks its 20th anniversary this year, the CSC says there is little to celebrate with the process overlooking human rights abuses in diamond mining areas. “This year is the 20th anniversary of the Kimberley Process (KP) certification scheme. There is, however, little reason for celebration as trust among participants is at an all-time low,” said Dr Michel Yoboue, CSC coordinator in a statement. “We repeat again how the failure by the KP Certification Scheme to discuss today’s conflicts and violence erodes the credibility of the certification. This includes the aggression of one KP participant by another to which the lucrative diamond trade contributes. “As we speak, the G7 countries are discussing a common diamond traceability framework to drain this conflict financing,” Dr Yoboue said. The coalition said the Kimberly Process has been ignoring victims of abuse in diamond mining areas. “The long overdue expansion of the KP’s conflict diamond definition should include diamonds associated with widespread or systematic violence and serious violations of human rights, regardless of whether they are committed by rebel groups, criminals, terrorists, private or public security forces or any governmental actor. “Communities affected by diamond mining know very well that conflict is a lot more than just rebels fighting legitimate governments. When things go wrong, it is communities that face violence and human rights violations. The KP should be there for them as well. The diamond sector faces many challenges in living up to its full potential as a driver of peace and of development. “These include issues of human rights, labour rights, environmental impact, fair distribution of benefits, corruption, money laundering, terrorist financing, and so on. We urge the KP to help the diamond sector to live up to its potential and adopt an ambitious definition that addresses real needs and real-life challenges of communities affected by diamond mining,” Dr Yoboue said. The organisation also highlighted that the Kimberly Process has been neglecting people, including persons relocated from Chiadzwa. “The KP needs to put people first, it has the leverage to do that, and it would make diamonds shine brighter. Here in Zimbabwe, 15 years ago families were displaced from their ancestral homeland in Marange to a government farm called Arda Transau. “The promises that were made for piped water, electricity, land for cultivation, good schools and accommodation for teachers were never lived up to. Today the displaced families are drinking water from an unprotected well. “The houses they live in are life threatening due to wide cracks that have developed. The families have no alternative livelihoods. The KP Civil Society Coalition (CSC) is deeply concerned with the living conditions of the displaced families and with the lack of development in Marange itself,” read the statement. The Centre for Natural Resource Governance (CNRG) has also highlighted the plight of people staying at Arda Transau. For instance, after the relocation, each family was to occupy a three-bedroomed electrified house with clean, treated piped water from taps situated at each house. However, a lack of access to social amenities like water has seen living conditions resembling a concentration camp, according to CNRG. “School-going children were to benefit from the provision of school fees, uniforms, footwear, and books. Schools were to get furniture from the companies and teachers’ houses were to be built near the school. Fast forward to 2023, Arda Transau resembles a concentration camp, with shocking levels of poverty and an apparent humanitarian crisis unfolding,” reads a report by CNRG. “One of the major challenges facing the Arda Transau community is access to water. The taps dried up sometime in early 2022. The community has now resorted to fetching water at an unprotected well on the outskirts of the settlement. “The water slowly springs from the ground, requiring at least 20-30 minutes for one to fill a bucket. In the evening, long queues form at the well where residents, mostly women and children, spend hours awaiting their turn to fetch water for domestic chores,” reads the CNRG report. People in the area have been getting water from unprotected sources, raising fears of waterborne diseases. “The tiny well is less than five metres from a swamp that has become the source of water for laundry for the community,” the report reads in part. “CNRG witnessed women washing clothes about five metres from the well where others were gathered to fetch water for domestic consumption. Livestock also drinks from the swamp. The community is in danger of drinking contaminated water as laundry water can easily contaminate the drinking water." Government is neglecting villagers at Arda Transau Government neglected villgers at Arda Transau

NewsHawks News Page 15 Issue 134, 2 June 2023 BERANRD MPOFU AFTER days of political drama, anxiety and bated breath, President Emmerson Mnangagwa proclaimed the election date, setting the stage for a season of intrigue, joy and heartaches. Zimbabwe decides on 23 August and the country’s commitment to democratic principles will be put to the test. Using his power of incumbency, Mnangagwa launched his election campaign ahead of schedule. Running under the theme Nyika inovakwa nevene vayo/Ilizwe lakhiwa ngabanikazi balo (loosely translated to mean a nation is built by its people), the campaigns have been running on public radio and television, extolling the virtues of the "second republic", a euphemism for Mnangagwa’s administration. The framing of the message subtly amplified the brand of monolithic strongman politics associated with Mnangagwa. Now it is gloves off. The mudslinging season in which promises and lies are made all in the name of political expediency is upon us. He faces a rival — Nelson Chamisa — he knows too well and that adds to the drama. While Mnangagwa’s administration has been hyping up public projects such as the upgrade of the Harare-Beitbridge highway as practical demonstrations of his leadership efficacy, there has been growing resentment as the economy implodes. Other projects which have been amplified on national radio and television are the expansion of the Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport, Lake Gwayi-Shangani, and Hwange Thermal Power Station expansion, among others. But not many are sure that these will bring food to the table. Here is what will confront Mnangagwa as he travels the length and breadth of this country during his campaign trail. Confidence While the government and Zanu PF have been projecting Mnangagwa as a reformer, his popularity ratings have been heading south since he took over from his predecessor through a military coup. According to the latest Afrobarometer survey, confidence in Mnangagwa's administration has been going downhill despite the euphoria which engulfed the country after the ouster of long-time leader Mugabe. Data from the Round 9 survey in Zimbabwe showed that 72% of citizens say Zimbabwe “is going in the wrong direction.” 83% of the citizens also indicated that they vote for candidates whose policies they agree with, rather than candidates who give them gifts and money. Critics say while Mnangagwa may be aware of his dimming star, he may revert to Machiavellian politics to claw back support. How? Simple, it is better to be feared than loved. The extended incarceration of Citizens' Coalition for Change senior official Job Sikhala, who is now clocking one year behind bars over what critics have described as political persecution and the jailing of opposition leader Jacob Ngarivhume and most recently the passing of the "Patriotic Bill" in Parliament have all had a chilling effect on many government critics. Ahead of the watershed election, critics say this may be advantageous to Mnangagwa as it will limit civil liberties. The country has plunged into darkness and many will endure the frigid conditions without power this winter. Experts say years of neglect of power plants and limited investment by the private sector due to unviable tariffs have stopped new energy projects from taking off in the country. Currency In a country where politics of the belly or rather bread and butter issues are at the centre of electoral messages, the current state of the economy presents enormous challenges to Mnangagwa’s administration. The Zimbabwe dollar has collapsed and Mnangagwa knows that. He blames Western economic sanctions and the invisible hand for this. But the electorate wants answers not problems in this race. This week, he made an ominous warning that government is considering banning the use of foreign currency. On the official market the local unit suffered heavy losses after Finance minister Mthuli Ncube announced more fiscal and monetary measures to save the domestic currency. The Zimbabwe dollar is now trading at US$1: ZW$2 500 on the formal market while one now requires up to ZW$4 000 to buy the greenback on thr parallel market. “There is no country that can develop without its own currency,” Mnangagwa said this week in an interview shared by his office on Wednesday. “So we reached a stage now where we must have our own currency but it is under serious attack but we will never abandon it. What we might do is to legislate against foreign currency to make sure we use our own currency. So our people must know that our currency is there to stay.” For many this evoked yesteryear memories when the state raided foreign currency accounts at the height of an economic implosion. The aftermath was catastrophic. Debt Zimbabwe is in debt distress and the southern African nation cannot access concessional funding. Like his predecessor, Mnangagwa has crafted a new arrears and debt plan to break the cycle. But without political governance and economic reforms, critics say the plan may be an exercise in futility. But the lack of political governance reforms remains the biggest shortcoming. African Development Bank president Akinwumi Adesina recently flagged this when he said: “The most difficult and more sensitive reforms are the governance reforms . . . As I mentioned during the second high-level dialogue and in my discussions with H.E.” “President Mnangagwa, development partners and other creditors, it is important that we find a mechanism to try to fast-track and frontload the payment of these compensations. Hope delayed makes the heart go weary. Further delays in paying the compensations could erode trust and confidence,” he said. Youth unemployment High unemployment is triggering a wave of migration and drug abuse. According to a policy paper done by the Health ministry, six out of 10 patients admitted to Zimbabwe’s mental health institutions have drug-related problems as the wobbling economy fuels substance abuse. With independent statistics showing that Zimbabwe’s unemployment level is hovering around 80%, unemployed youths are now turning to drug abuse as a form of escapism from the harsh realities. According to the latest Zimbabwe National Drug Master Plan, the government has adopted an integrated and comprehensive approach that will address a range of drug-related issues. Corruption Hot on the heels of the Al Jazeera Gold Mafia which implicated President Emmerson Mnangagwa and his close associates, Harare’s commitment to fighting corruption remains under scrutiny. While the authorities may attempt to sweep the findings under the carpet, the world is watching. There is belief among Zimbabweans that high-level corruption is responsible for the bulk of the country’s problems. Very little action has been taken to address the cancer. After Zimbabwe was removed from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list following an on-site evaluation exercise carried out last year, the southern African nation risks backsliding. Zimbabwe was placed on the FATF grey list in 2019, following a mutual evaluation (assessment) process that identified a number of deficiencies in the country's implementation of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Financing of Terrorism (AML/CTF) Standards. Issues relating to illicit financial flows can no longer be treated as domestic policy and so Mnangagwa's response to this may shape his interactions with international institutions. Already, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe's Financial Intelligence Unit has undertaken to deal with the issue, but the proof of the pudding is in the eating. The jury is out. Mnangagwa’s five election hurdles President Emmerson Mnangagwa

Page 16 News NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023 RUVIMBO MUCHENJE REGISTERED voters whose names are missing from the voters' roll and those moved to other polling stations or constituencies have to continuously check if corrections have been effected on the mobile USSD code *265#, Zimbabwe Electoral Commission’s chief elections officer, Utloile Silaigwana, says. Scores of people, including former Primary and Secondary Education minister David Coltart and Citizens' Coalition for Change deputy spokesperson Gift Siziba took to Twitter during the voters’ roll inspection period of 29 May 2023 to 1 June 2023, to reveal that their names are missing from the vote register. Asked whether the people will have a chance to inspect the voters’ roll before polling date to check for corrections, Silaigwana said they can use the digital platforms. “What I can tell you is that they must continue checking using platforms like *265# or our website which is www.bvrinspection.zec.org.zw. We have advertised all these platforms. They can continue, there are several platforms to check on that,” said Silaigwana. He said he was not sure why the names were missing from the roll. “You are talking to me now and I am not sure of the exact number of people who are missing from the roll and why. Whether the one has transferred or not because some of things we are witnessing are that for some people, they have been voting at one polling station for the past three elections then they transfer and for by-elections like the one we had in March 2022 and then forget that they have transferred. But I would not want to comment on that because I do not know why the names are missing. Is it because they transferred or they did not register to vote," asked Silaigwana. In the cases that The NewsHawks has seen, the affected voters say they did not transfer and are registered voters. Coltart says he has been voting at Burnside garage for 23 years but has been moved to a polling station six kilometres from his home “On Monday morning I went to the polling station we have voted at for the last 23 years — Burnside Garage. My name was not on the roll there. Note this for later. My details were written down on a piece of scrap paper — I was not given any receipt showing I had been there,” he said. “At 4pm on Monday I decided to try *265# again. For the first time it worked and said that I was registered at Hillside Bowling Club which is a considerable distance from my home. It is about 6kms from my home as opposed to Burnside Garage which is just 2kms from my home.” Another voter who spoke to The NewsHawks on condition of anonymity said her name was missing from her usual polling station and *265# was not working. “I voted in the previous elections, but my name is not on *265# anymore, but last week it was there. They said they are working towards fixing the problem, we might have a new voters' roll. So they took my number and details, said they will call once everything is in order,” she said. With Zec accused of poorly running past elections, the missing names have raised alarm. Silaigwana however assured the people that there is nothing amiss and that the intention of inspecting the voters’ roll is to check for anomalies and fix them. “We put the voters’ roll out there so that people can check for their names and will have everything fixed,” he said. The harmonised elections will be held on 23 August this year as proclaimed by the President in Statutory Instrument 85 of 2023. Check your details on voters’ roll

NewsHawks News Page 17 Issue 134, 2 June 2023 NATHAN GUMA ZIMBABWE is likely to head into the 23 August general elections with serious unresolved issues, putting the credibility of the poll at stake, The NewsHawks has learnt. The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) opened the voters’ roll for inspection this week, resulting in chaos. It emerged that the vote register has serious anomalies, with a number of registered voters missing from the roll, raising public outcry. This has cast doubt over the integrity of the election, three months before polling day. The main opposition CCC this week wrote to Zec demanding a searchable voters' roll, which the electoral body has been refusing to provide. In a letter dated 29 May addressed to Zec chairperson Justice Priscilla Chigumba, senior opposition official Ian Makone wrote to Zec highlighting some of the anomalies within the voters’ roll and the electoral system, which should be addresses before the polls. The party requested a meeting with Zec to iron out the issues. “As the Citizens' Coalition for Change, we have noted serious anomalies in the voters’ roll that has been laid out for inspection by the public. A reflective sample across all the 10 provinces in the country have indicated numerous errors of commission and omission which indicate deviations from the constitutional standards of a credible voters’ roll,” read the letter. The main issues raised by the CCC arising from the preliminary reports received from the inspection process include missing names of voters, some of which had voted in 2018 and others in the March 2022 By-elections. For instance, in ward 25 of Gokwe Nembudziya constituency, all surnames starting from (AMu) are missing from the ward voters, said the opposition in the letter. “Registered voters who have been appearing on the Biometric Voter Registration (BVR) online inspection platform are suddenly missing their names from the current online platforms and the voters’ roll under inspection. The voters’ roll under inspection seems not to be synchronised with the new delimitation boundaries. Resultantly, prospective voters have been displaced from their wards of residence. “Some registered voters have been moved several kilometres away from their polling stations and even to different wards, a deviation from what Zec indicated to stakeholders that it will reorganise the delimitation boundaries using polling areas,” reads the letter. The CCC also raised concern over the presence of CIO-run Forever Associates of Zimbabwe (Faz) Trust at inspection centres, which has also sparked an outcry. FAZ, led by CIO co-deputy director-general retired Brigadier-General Walter Tapfumaneyi, has also secretly taken over the running of national elections — designed to manipulate the process in favour of the incumbent President Emmerson Mnangagwa and his government — from the military. Sources say, so far, Faz has received US$10 million and 200 cars to run its affairs in preparation for elections. More resources have been promised to capacitate the secret structure. “The presence of Faz organisation at the inspectionCentres must be explained because in some instances Faz officials are interfering with, and even controlling the process. We cannot have an illegal body overriding the operations of a constitutional body,” wrote Makone. On its website, Faz says it is a private organisation that contributes, through active mobilisation, to win the hearts and minds of the electorate, to maintain Zanu PF’s governance. “We cannot have an illegal body overriding the operations of a constitutional body. Finally, we restate our demand for a searchable, analyzable and auditable voters’ roll. A voters’ roll which will be certified and signed off for use on election day,” read the letter. “In the circumstances, we request an urgent meeting to address these issues.” Zec has also been under fire over a chaotic delimitation process that has been riddled with errors, and has widely been criticised for its serious shortfalls that include gerrymandering in favour of Zanu PF. Analysts have also expressed concern over Zec’s decision to retain flaws flagged in the preliminary delimitation report presented to President Emmerson Mnangagwa in December last year. The report also resulted in divisions among commissioners, with seven commissioners speaking out against the delimitation report effectively opposing chairperson Chigumba. As a result of the fallout, Chigumba removed Commissioner Jasper Mangwana and his deputy Catherine Mpofu from their roles as spokespersons of the election management body. Lack of reforms sabotage elections

Page 18 News NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023 ZIMBABWE’S Parliament this week passed another draconian law that seeks to stop criticism of the government while hiding behind patriotism, according to critics. The Criminal Law Code Amendment Bill, also known as the "Patriotic Bill" sailed through the National Assembly on Wednesday night and is now expected to go before the Senate before presidential assent. This Bill sets out that Zimbabwe’s constitutional order that is based on parliamentary democracy affords many avenues for aggrieved citizens to redress their wrong internally, including against the state. “It is therefore improper for citizens and residents of Zimbabwe by recourse to foreign countries to seek to implement measures that undermine our sovereignty, dignity and independence as a nation,” reads part of the bill. Therefore, the Bill will create the crime of “willfully damaging the sovereignty and national interest of Zimbabwe.” This is the “patriot” part of the Bill. It will be an offence for a Zimbabwean, to take an active part in a meeting involving or convened by an agent of a foreign government, if the citizen or resident knows or has reason to believe that the object of the meeting is to consider or plan armed intervention in Zimbabwe by the foreign government, or to subvert or overthrow the constitutional Zimbabwean government. One will be under fire if the meeting is found to have been aimed at implementing or extending sanctions or a trade boycott against Zimbabwe,an individual or to an extent that it will affect a substantial section of the people of Zimbabwe. “This Bill may hurt other people but it is a noble Bill with good intentions. The Bill encourages us to be patriotic about our country irrespective of our party affiliations,” said Zanu PF lawmaker Joseph Chinotimba. “This Bill is not meant to curtail the existence of political parties but it is there to encourage the people of Zimbabwe to love their country and stop denouncing it.” “The Bill seeks to discourage those people who go about saying bad things about their country.” “As such, this Bill discourages all those people to say bad things about their country. The Bill wishes to impart a sense of belonging and love for one’s country,” he said. However, government critics feel the Bill was designed to silence civil society organisations ahead of the 2023 plebiscite. They also feel the Bill was designed to punish citizens in general hiding behind patriotism. “It is an unconstitutional law. It’s a bad law and it infringes on freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, freedom of association …all sorts of civil and political rights are infringed by this type of Bill. “In my estimation, this Bill is the most draconian law that we have seen in Zimbabwe,” said Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum director Musa Kika. The penalty for meetings considered to be offensive will differ according to the object of the gathering. If the object of the meeting is to consider or plan armed intervention, the penalty for participating in it is the same as for treason. The penalty, according to the Bill, includes a death sentence or imprisonment for life. If one attends a meeting which will be considered to have been driven by an intention to subvert or overthrow the government, one will face up to 20 years. If the meeting is about sanctions or a trade boycott, the penalty for participating in it is a fine of up to ZW$200 000 or imprisonment for up to 10 years or both. According to the Bill, if the crime is committed in aggravating circumstances and if the prosecutor so requests, the court may impose any of the following penalties including deprivation of citizenship, if the convicted person is a citizen by registration or a dual citizen. The penalty will also include cancellation of residence rights, if the convicted person is a permanent resident of Zimbabwe, prohibition from being registered as a voter or from voting, for a period between five and 15 years, or prohibition from holding public office for a period between five and 15 years. The majority of MPs from Zanu PF voted yes for the Bill while only 17 opposition lawmakers voted no. Tempers flared during the debate and resulted in independent lawmaker Temba Mliswa being kicked out. “I just want to say people do not know what is going on. As for me, as an independent member, these are party people. “I will pack my bags and go. Let history be known that I was not part of this commotion and circus, ever. So, I wish you all the best in signing this Bill. “I am not part of this Bill, and will never be part of this mess that has happened today, it is a waste of taxpayers’ money. No wonder why some of you did not come back, you are useless. No wonder why you were voted out, you did nothing to this Parliament,” said Mliswa. Commenting on the development, Citizens' Coalition for Change (CCC) spokesperson Fadzayi Mahere said the passing of the dangerous and unconstitutional Patriotic Bill proves beyond doubt that Zimbabwe is currently reeling under a dictatorship far worse than Robert Mugabe. “Zanu PF has reduced our great nation into an outpost of tyranny. They are in panic mode and on an unbridled crusade to close the democratic space completely. “Zanu PF is painfully aware that it can never win a free and fair election in Zimbabwe. The citizens are unequivocal in their demand for change so they are retaliating with repressive legislation, weaponisation of the law, abuse of the police service and muzzling critics. “None of it will work because Zimbabweans go to the polls with one mission — to win Zimbabwe for change. No amount of panicky despotism by Zanu will stand in the way of change whose time has come,” she said. Meanwhile, the Bill, among other outcomes, amends section 65 of the principal Act to set 15 years as the minimum mandatory sentence for rape. This follows a realisation of the widespread concerns over the rising incidents of the heinous crime of sexual violence and rape, and it has been seen fit that more deterrent measures should be put in place to stamp out the crime. MPs pass gagging law Norton MP Temba Mliswa Zimbabwe Parliament

NewsHawks News Page 19 Issue 134, 2 June 2023 NATHAN GUMA LABOUR rights activist and trade unionist Obert Masaraure says the state seeks to silence dissenting voices in a desperate bid to cover up economic failure, which has seen a sharp decline in the quality of life. The state this week resuscitated a case in which Masaraure is being charged with obstructing the course of justice. Masaraure, who is represented by Tapiwa Muchineripi of the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR), is also charged with incitement to commit public violence as defined in section 187(1)(a) of Criminal Code as read with section 36(1)(a) of Criminal Code. Prosecutors allege that he authored a statement which he published on Twitter and on the Amalgamated Rural Teachers' Union of Zimbabwe website, which was meant to prejudice his pending trial while persuading union members and the public to commit violence. His trial will now commence on 30 June after it was postponed because the trial magistrate was not available. Masaraure says the government is using persecution to cover up its failure to solve the economic crisis. “The state is heavily investing in silencing all dissenting voices. The ruling elites have failed to deliver food on the table for the common man,” Masaraure told The NewsHawks. “The working people are at the receiving end of a dire economic crisis born out of massive looting of national resources, incompetence and failed neo-liberal policies. Having realised that people are hungry and angry, the state is now deploying state institutions against perceived enemies.” Zimbabwe’s annual inflation has raced 11.3 percentage points from April to 86.5% in May, while monthly inflation skyrocketed from 2.5% to 15.7% in May, according to the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency. Numbers from the national statistical agency also show that over 70% of transactions are now being done in foreign currency, which is out of the reach of workers. “Mnangagwa wants to use the likes of Jacob Ngarivhume, Job Sikhala and myself as examples to deter other citizens from speaking out against misgovernance,” he said. In May, Zengeza West legislator Job Sikhala was convicted, almost a year after his arrest, and slapped with a suspended six-month custodial sentence and a US$600 fine. He has however not been released from custody, despite spending over 340 days in prison, with the state arguing he has outstanding cases. Opposition Transform Zimbabwe leader Jacob Ngarivhume was arrested for leading and organising the 31 July 2020 protests. He was convicted by magistrate Feresi Chakanyuka and sentenced to 48 month in prison, with 12 months suspended. Masaraure said the persistent persecution has been taking a toll on his family. “My family is traumatised; they are scared of the state which has consistently unleashed terror only family and myself,” he said. “The persecution has strengthened my resolve. I am ready to face any form of persecution in pursuit of the ultimate price, freedom for the working class. I am however lucky to have strong support systems that have kept me going.” Masaraure’s persecution has sparked international outrage. For instance, when the state pressed the 2016 murder charges against him in June last year, the action was met with global outrage. Masaraure was arrested on 14 June 2022 and charged with the murder of Roy Issa when he went to Harare Central Police Station for his routine remand bail hearing. Issa died in 2016 when he fell from the 7th floor of a Harare hotel. In June last year, the American Federation of Labour and Congress of Industrial Organisations, which has a membership of 12.5 million, wrote to President Emmerson Mnangagwa demanding his unconditional release, while a South African-based pressure group also petitioned Southern African Development Community (Sadc) leaders over the matter. During the same period, another international organisation, Frontline Defenders, petitioned Sadc’s executive secretary, strongly condemning Masaraure’s arrest and urging the bloc to intervene and guarantee his release. Frontline Defenders is headquartered in Dublin, with a European Union office in Brussels, and has regionally-based field staff in the Americas, Asia, Africa, Europe, Central Asia, and the Middle East. Last week, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights, Mary Lawlor, who is based in Ireland, flagged Zimbabwean police over arbitrary arrests, excessive use of force and ill-treatment of opposition activists and leaders. Lawlor said Zimbabwe’s bad human rights record has been worsening from the time she assumed office in 2020. She expressed concern over the treatment of Masaraure, who has faced multiple arrests and charges, as well as torture, for participating in a protest. State power abused to silence dissenting voices: Masaraure Trade unionist Obert Masaraure

Page 20 News NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023 NATHAN GUMA WHILE the Zimbabwean delegation a fortnight ago told the 75th Ordinary Session of the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights (ACHPR) that Zimbabwe is upholding economic and human rights, this is contrary to what has been obtaining in the country, the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) has said. The ACHPR, inaugurated in 1987 in Ethiopia, looks into the protection of human and peoples' rights across the continent. Zimbabwe’s deteriorating human rights situation and unsustainable debt have seen it fail to get lines of credit from international financial institutions like the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF). Human rights have been cited as an important anchor in servicing national debt. New details have shown that the Zimbabwean delegation which attended the ACHPR conference tried to paint a rosy picture of the country’s economic and human rights situation, in response to a submission by ZLHR. ZLHR’s scathing submission was made against a backdrop of escalating food prices, and the downward spiral of the Zimbabwe dollar. “ZLHR is concerned that the Government of Zimbabwe is still failing to control the economic abyss. Zimbabwe’s parallel foreign currency market, and the use of different exchange rates and arbitrage have exacerbated the economic decline and resulted in extreme poverty and food insecurity,” said ZLHR in its submission seen by The NewsHawks. “Prices of basic commodities have not stabilised, and the majority of citizens are living below the poverty datum line. The country is losing revenue due to corrupt activities and money laundering. “There are allegations of illicit gold exports by top government officials reported in an Al Jazeera documentary. As a result of economic hardships, Zimbabwean citizens continue to flee the country to neighbouring countries as undocumented economic refugees and overseas, mostly to the United Kingdom and Canada.” In response, the delegation said the situation has been exaggerated. “Lawyers for human rights presented yesterday in terms of various allegations that were made against government. The first topic, I will refer to allegations against handling of the economy. This is a basic human right, and we are expected to handle the economy in a manner that is beneficial to all citizens in the country,” said Tabani Mpofu, head of Zimbabwe’s Special Anti-Corruption Unit (Sacu), also part of the delegation. Sacu, is housed in the Office of the President and Cabinet (OPC). “But on this score, I'm happy to quote the performance of my country under the tutelage of government. I am referring to the World Bank. In their recent statement, they said Zimbabwe has laid strong foundations for accelerated future economic growth and improvement of living standards of its people. This is a comment made after a professional analysis of Zimbabwe’s government. “This demonstrates how government through the National Development Strategy (NDS) 1 is working towards key economic issues in order to attain an upper middle income by 2030. IMF reported that Zimbabwe performed strongly in 2022, growing by a huge 6.1% due to increased agricultural productivity, high commodity prices and improved capital utilisation in the manufacturing sector. Increased agricultural production has led to high yields of wheat, which last year attained a record that has been standing for over 50 years,” said the delegation in a statement. The delegation’s response has also been divorced from reality because the figures were revised downwards. For instance, while it said the IMF forecast Zimbabwe’s GDP growth rate at 6.1% in 2022, the financial institution has projected Zimbabwe’s real GDP growth rate to decline to about 3.5%, owing to internal and external shocks, electricity shortages and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Last week, the African Development Bank (AfDB) further downgraded Zimbabwe’s growth to 3.2%, between 2023 and 2024, owing to external shocks, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and a slump in South Africa’s economy. This week, economist Steve Hanke measured Zimbabwe’s inflation at 791% per year, the highest in the world. The ZLHR says the government delegation has been misleading people on the Private Voluntary Organisations (PVO) Bill which has continually shrunk the civic space. Findings by the Zimbabwe Democracy Institute (ZDI) show a drastic fall in civil liberties during the political tenure of Mnangagwa, compared to that of the late Mugabe, which they say is likely to increase if the PVO Bill is signed into law. The organisation made an analysis of the civic space between 2014-2021 by contrasting Mugabe’s final four years in power ahead of the 2018 elections, and Mnangagwa’s initial four years into power ahead of the 2023 elections. The findings showed a 2% increase in the civic space and state freedom during Mnangagwa’s first year in power, compared to Mugabe in 2014 after the 2013 general election. However, 2019 saw state freedom fall by 13% to 31% compared to 44% in 2014 recorded under Mugabe, showing shrinking of the civic space. The ZLHR recommended that the ACHPR urge the government to desist from enacting the draconian PVO Amendment Bill. In response, the government delegation said the PVO Bill acts in the public’s interest, contrary to what civil society organisations have been calling for. “I want to turn your excellencies to the PVO Bill which is raised in every forum that I have attended. There is an observation that we made. This current Bill, instead of being subject to objective analysis, it has become victim of understanding and regrettably misinformation,” Mpofu said. “The impression that has been given is that it has been roughly done. I would like to indicate to you that there has been thorough and wide consultation on the Bill. On the 17th of March, the President (Emmerson Mnangagwa) invited to State House CSOs, where there were deliberations in an atmosphere of cordiality. “This is not an isolated situation. Consultations with civil society organisations have been occurring constantly and regularly since 2019. “Under the current regulatory landscape with the current Act (PVO), the minister has unilateral powers to suspend a CSO. In the current regime being proposed, judicial oversight has been introduced, so in the proposed Bill, the minister has to approach the High Court (before suspending).” Mpofu also said the government has done a stellar job in rolling out environmental justice. “We were also referred to the issue of re-settlements in which we were told government has been improperly resettling people. This is untrue. In all situations, when relocations are done, the disadvantaged are given fair compensation,” he said. However, CSOs have been condemning government over its failure to provide adequate relocation packages for people displaced by environmental activity. For instance, government has been at loggerheads with displaced families over relocations and meagre or no compensation. Africa misled on human rights crisis

NewsHawks News Page 21 Issue 134, 2 June 2023 IN a chilling attempt to muzzle the media, National Social Security Authority (Nssa) boss Arthur Manase — who was put on leave of absence in July last year — which is tantamount to a suspension under a cloud of corruption investigations — has reported The NewsHawks to the Commissioner-General of police to deal with it for allegedly defaming, cyberbullying and harassing him. Manase, who denies he was suspended amid corruption allegations at Nssa, was put on leave of absence to facilitate a “comprehensive investigation” into allegations of corruption at the US$1.2 billion statutory pension fund. In his frantic lobbying of police for punitive action against journalists, Manase did not only demand that law enforcement agents descend on The NewsHawks, but also wants the Office of the President and Cabinet to tale action. While he denies it, Manase was practically suspended under a cloud of corruption as the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (Zacc), Nssa board and the Corporate Governance Unit, a department within the Office of the President and Cabinet set up in terms of the Public Entities Corporate Governance Act, [Chapter 10:31], investigated Nssa. Zacc even camped at Nssa Building conducting the probe. By his own admission, Manase was probed by Zacc and supposedly cleared, meaning there were issues arising with regards to him. When Manase was sent home in July last year, Nssa was facing “multi-layered challenges attributable to a variety of factors”. “A comprehensive investigation has been instituted to get to the bottom of the matters. To support this and ensure that the exercise is conducted in an independent and transparent environment, the board is sending the General Manager (Manase) on leave until the exercise is complete,” a board statement by former chair Percy Toriro said. “The board fully supports all investigations as it believes this will restore confidence in Nssa.” Toriro has since resigned and replaced by Emmanuel Fundira as board chair. In a six-page letter to police Commissioner-General Godwin Matanga, Manase, through his lawyers Rubaya & Chatambudza, says police must investigate and deal with The NewsHawks under the Data Protection Act, [Chapter 11:12]. On 3 December 2021, Zimbabwe enacted its first data protection law, the Data Protection Act [Chapter 11:12], which addresses the control, processing, and cross-border transfer of personal data. The law establishes the Cyber Security and Monitoring Centre, while it grants data protection authority to Zimbabwe’s existing telecommunications regulator, the Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (Potraz). It also imposes various requirements on data controllers, including mandatory notification to Potraz within 24 hours of a data security breach. The Act amends cybercrime laws, including Zimbabwe’s Criminal Law (Codification and Reform Act) and the Interception of Communications Act, and imposes penalties for data offences, depending on the crime, which include fines and multi-year imprisonment. “We urge you to consider Section 164B, 164C of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act (Chapter 9:23) as amended by the Cyber and Data Protection Act (Chapter 12:07) to investigate The NewsHawks newspaper,” Manase says. Manase claimed he was subjected to “cyberbullying, harassment and transmission of false data messages intending to cause harm” at the hands of The NewsHawks. “Our client and his family fear for their safety due to the threatening activities of The NewsHawks and seek the law protection,” Manase said. In the process, he also sought to curry favour with Public Service minister Paul Mavima whom he claimed was a stumbling block to a faction of two Nssa directors who want to take control of the organisation with the support of The NewsHawks. Mavima was recently embroiled in a corrupt US$400 000 Borrowdale house scandal. In the same letter to Matanga, Manase claims The NewsHawks was writing Nssa stories because its editor was connected to some two directors currently out on bail on fraud charges who want to take over the managerial leadership of the organisation. “Our client’s continued stay at Nssa has been construed as militating against the interests of those two (unnamed), The NewsHawks newspaper being used as part of their strategy to destroy our client and the honourable Minister Professor Mavima who is seen as a stumbling block to their agenda,” Manase said. The sidelined Nssa boss goes on to curry favour with President Emmerson Mnangagwa, complaining on his behalf — yet the head of state has not raised any issues himself. “The name of His Excellency the President is being abused and smuggled into the articles by The NewsHawks as a way of pressuring him to act according to their agenda,” he said. “In the light of the above, our strict instructions are to request your office (Matanga) to act on our client’s complaint in investigating the potential accused persons on the basis related to above.” In Zimbabwe, the delict of defamation — deemed justifiable in a constitutional democracy as it safeguards the right to privacy which also forms the cornerstone of human rights — is a civil matter, not a criminal one. While Manase seems bent on criminalising journalism through his letter to the police boss, the offence of criminal defamation was abolished in Zimbabwe after the Constitutional Court found it to be unconstitutional in the case of Madanhire & Anor v The Attorney General 2014 (1) ZLR 719 (CC). Essentially the court found that the criminalisation of speech that carried with it a threat of imprisonment for offenders had a stifling effect on free speech and it was a disproportionate instrument for protecting reputation, especially because there was an alternate civil remedy available. This offence was not one which is reasonably justifiable in a democratic society. However, there are still other criminal laws that have a highly constraining effect upon the freedom of the media like the ones that Manase is wielding over the media. One of these is the criminal offence of publishing or communicating false statements prejudicial to the state. In the case of Chimakure & Ors v The Attorney-General of Zimbabwe CCZ-6-2014, the court declared section 31(a)(iii) of the Criminal Law Code to be unconstitutional and null and void. This provision deals with publishing a false statement which is wholly or materially false with the intention of undermining public confidence in a law enforcement agency, the Prison Service or the Defence Forces of Zimbabwe. The challenge to the constitutionality of this provision was made under the Lancaster House constitution that was in effect prior to the new 2013 one. The Constitutional Court decided that this provision violated section 20(1) of the pre-2013 constitution. The effect of this ruling is that no prosecutions can now be brought under section 31(a) (iii) as currently worded. The court decided that the restrictions that this provision imposed on freedom of expression were not reasonably justifiable in a democratic society. On substantive issues, Manase says he was not suspended. He is on leave of absence, which stopped or suspended him from going to work. He denies that he has received any benefits in terms of allowances more than what he was entitled and also claims he regularised his cars problem. Although he makes noise about it, the Borrowdale house — No.49A Borrowdale Road, Harare — was indeed renovated for him. — STAFF WRITER Suspended Nssa boss begs police to crackdown on The NewsHawks Suspended Nssa boss Arthur Manase

Page 22 News NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023 NATHAN GUMA SPEKE AVENUE, a road that links the central business district to Copacabana bus terminus in central Harare, is one of the busiest roads in the city, bustling with people, day and night. At dusk, the area near the footbridge along Speke Avenue lights up, as vendors holding portable florescent torches light mounds of well-stacked foodstuffs. Bargain hunters have been thronging this area and other areas in downtown Harare in search of foodstuffs from tuckshops and vendors while avoiding major shops within the central business district, whose prices are ever-rising because of runaway inflation. Although Zimbabwe’s year-on-year inflation is officially 75.2%, one independent estimate puts it at 717%. Crossing Leopold Takawira Street, into Speke Square, in the area close to Harare City Council’s Department of Works building, one sees individuals selling a variety of groceries, including commodities such as cooking oil, sugar, rice, and soap. The groceries are placed on sacks, cardboard boxes and wooden stalls — or anything that can be used. Business is evidently brisk, given the number of transactions taking place. During this time of day, the area is teeming with customers looking for foodstuffs sold at relatively lower prices compared to supermarkets. For instance, foodstuffs like flour, rice and cooking oil have been costing US$2, US$2 and US$4.50 in tuckshops, while sugar costs US$2.20 and US$2.50. Prices pegged in United States dollars have been relatively stable amid the blight of inflation. The prices are also lower, as informal vendors neither pay tax to the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra) nor to Harare City Council. In addition, some of the stock is smuggled into the country. As part of measures to increase competition, Finance minister Mthuli Ncube scrapped duty on imports of all basic commodities. This is good news to basic commodity vendors and tuckshop operators, some of whom were surviving on smuggling. In major shops, prices have been skyrocketing beyond the reach of many. For instance, cooking oil now costs ZW$11 679 (US$5) using the ZW$2 350 rate, up from ZW$10 989 last week. White sugar has been costing ZW$7 459 (US$3.20) while two kilogrammes of rice costs ZW$6 779 (US$2.90). The prices have been rising faster than salaries, resulting in workers struggling to put food on the table. Even people from affluent suburbs are thronging tuckshops for cheaper shopping as the economy bites. Some remain in their cars and hand over grocery shopping lists to their maids or gardeners who do the shopping on their behalf. Although some grocery vendors operate by day, playing cat-and-mouse with municipal police, most vendors come into town in the evenings when the marauding municipal police officers would have knocked off. In the evenings, they sell groceries without having to worry about the menacing law enforcement agents, who often confiscate wares and demand bribes. During the day, it is trickier, but there is always a way. Most display limited quantities with the bulk of their goods hidden in parked cars or shops. “Whenever raids occur, it is easier to move my stock. But, it is difficult to run with large stock. So, I try to make sure that I sell fruit during the day. However, when my colleagues come at dusk, I have to sell basic commodities as people will be going home. “It will be a waste selling bigger products during the day as the council police will be moving around. Also, people will be downtown where there are cheaper products. We will be waiting for customers that fail to get an opportunity to buy during daytime due to work and other commitments,” said a vendor who stays in Kuwadzana suburb but sells in town daily. While the Zimbabwe National Statistical Agency (ZimStat) in its latest report says food insecurity in urban areas has remained constant at 8% from March 2021 to January 2023, this has largely been dwarfed by current inflation which has worsened food insecurity. Informal grocery tuckshops have continued to throw a lifeline to poverty-stricken citizens who cannot afford the crazy prices charged by supermarkets. As dusk sets in, pavements change to grocery shops

NewsHawks News Page 23 Issue 134, 2 June 2023 BRENNA MATENDERE TEACHERS’ unions have roundly condemned plans announced by cabinet on Tuesday for the establishment of the Teaching Profession Council that will act as a regulatory body for the educators, saying the employer cannot form an entity to regulate employees but must allow the creation of an independent institution. It was announced at a post-cabinet briefing that the government had approved principles of the Teaching Professional Council Bill as presented by the minister of Primary and Secondary Education, Evelyn Ndlovu. She said the objectives of the council would be to “professionalise the teaching service and enhance the public standing of teachers; provide an independent, representative and self-regulated board to champion issues around the teaching profession; improve and maintain high quality professional standards for teachers; strengthen the professionalism in the education sector; and promote the Zimbabwean philosophy of unhu/ubuntu and holistic education.” However, in separate interviews, Amalgamated Rural Teachers' Union of Zimbabwe (Artuz) president Obert Masaraure and Takavafira Zhou who leads the Progressive Teachers' Union of Zimbabwe said the proposed plans are far from serving the interests of educators. They accused the government of attempting to create a body that will largely work to suppress demands for better working conditions as well as victimise those who stand against the suppression. The union leaders both reiterated that the way forward is self-regulation, not government regulation. Masaraure said: “The outlined principles and objectives of the Teachers' Professional Council Bill are couched to deceive teachers who have been calling for an independent self-regulatory body. “In reality the employer seeks to create a body filled with representatives of the employer and token representation for teachers. “Such a body will be deployed to frustrate efforts towards enjoying collective bargaining rights. Artuz will join hands with other unions to demand a TPC for teachers by teachers.” Zhou also questioned why government was not interested in allowing professionals in the teaching industry to regulate themselves. “The government should have simply told teacher unions to organise themselves and form a self-regulating body. The lawyers have the Law Society of Zimbabwe and doctors have their own independent regulatory body. That is what must be allowed to happen to teachers. Where on earth has the employer formed a body that regulates their employees? It is absurd,” he said. Teachers have for long been at loggerheads with government over poor remuneration and working conditions and fears are high the state now wants to create a body that will manage the restive educators. This year, teachers went on strike at the beginning of the first term and declared incapacitation in the preceding opening days of subsequent terms. They are demanding that government revert to paying them their last United States dollars-indexed salaries pegged at US$540 but the government is digging in, saying it can only pay salaries in the moribund local currency that has been made valueless by ever-galloping inflation. On the other hand, prices of basic food commodities and general living expenses have shifted beyond the reach of most civil servants in the last three weeks, setting the stage for confrontation between the government and its employees. Teachers reject govt regulatory body Primary and Secondary Education minister Evelyn Ndlovu Progressive Teachers' Union of Zimbabwe president Takavafira Zhou

Page 24 News NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023 A SEVERE cholera outbreak and a spike in HIV cases have hit Beitbridge, jolting the border town’s municipality to partner with the National Aids Council (NAC) and Unicef to combat the twin perils. The first case of cholera in Beitbridge this year was recorded on 12 March, a baby girl from Kwaru area, where there is an acute water crisis. However, in the past two weeks alone, the cases have risen to 233, with six deaths being recorded. On the other hand, an HIV crisis is unfolding in the border town where 18 946 people are HIV-positive, a worrisome situation, particularly in view of the cholera outbreak. The prevalence of HIV in Beitbridge stands at 11.76%, while the number of sex workers who raise the risk of contraction of the pandemic is 800, with 350 of them having already tested positive. The majority are on anti-retroviral treatment (ART). The development has seen the town’s municipality, NAC and Unicef entering into a partnership to combat the cholera outbreak as well as fight HIV. Beitbridge District Aids Coordinator (DAC) Edward Mlauzi told The NewsHawks on Thursday at the town’s major hospital in Dulibadzimu that his organisation has enrolled cholera and HIV focal persons who were trained on Wednesday with funding from Unicef. They will conduct door-to-door education awareness so that the local community may be capacitated on how to manage the health crisis. He said the focal persons are targeting to reach out to 400 households in the first phase of the campaign that is expected to immediately kick off. “As you know, people with HIV have a relatively weaker immune system which means their bodies do not have full strength to fight emerging diseases. So with the emerging of cholera in Beitbridge, what it means is that people living with HIV are at a higher risk if they contract cholera. Accordingly, we are now working with the municipality and Unicef to heighten awareness of the situation mostly among people living with HIV who are at a higher risk. “Unicef is providing funding for the moblisation of cholera and HIV focal points while the municipality is doubling efforts to improve sanitation and water services,” he said. Pio Muchena, the Beitbridge municipality’s senior environment officer, said the partnership is designed to reduce the effect of the health crisis. “What caused cholera is that we have a new area that is under housing development and therefore water services there are still poor. They are yet to finish installation of sewer lines and there are now illegal connections. “Cholera is mainly caused by water contaminated with human waste and so due to the situation I have explained, the outbreak occurred. We are trying to save people, mostly those with HIV because they are at a higher risk. So, as we speak, as the municipality, we have already begun efforts to improve sanitation and water services. We have some companies that are pledging to supply mobile toilets and this is part of the efforts we are making to manage the crisis,” he said. Being a border town, Beitbridge is frequented by people from different places in Zimbabwe and neighbouring countries. If the twin cholera and HIV crises are not contained, they could spiral into public health emergencies, burdening an already crumbling healthcare system. — STAFF WRITER Cholera, HIV ravage Beitbridge The prevalence of HIV in Beitbridge (below) stands at 11.76%, while the number of sex workers who raise the risk of contraction of the pandemic is 800.

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Page 26 LATVIAN investigators suspect the owner of “Clean World,” a well-known cleaning business that stretches across Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus, of using the notorious bank to launder tens of millions of euros. Reporters looked into Eduard Apsit and his business. In the early 1990s, a round-faced young man with a quiet smile set out to make his fortune in the new world of capitalist commerce that was overtaking his native Belarus. After first trying his hand at a computer business, he went in a different direction at the suggestion of his mother-in-law: cleaning. Starting with the equivalent of just a few hundred dollars in seed funding, he and his wife Elena launched a small dry cleaning operation in 1994. “It started as an experiment that didn’t carry much weight, but as often happens, the endeavor grew along the way,” Eduard Apsit would later tell an interviewer. He was being modest. The business grew to become one of the biggest facilities management and cleaning services in the region, and Apsit became a wealthy man, with a stately home in the luxurious Latvian beachfront neighborhood of Jurmala, property in Cyprus, and tens of millions of euros in the bank. Best known under the brand name Clean World, his business landed impressive clients, including Belarus’s National Library and main railway. In the late 1990s, it expanded to Russia and Ukraine and won even bigger contracts: Russia’s Supreme Court, Central Bank, and even the Kremlin’s concert hall. But according to court documents unearthed by OCCRP partner Re:Baltica, Latvian financial investigators have frozen some 40 million euros ($42.8 million) they suspect Apsit of laundering through ABLV bank, which was one of Latvia’s largest lenders until it was shut down in 2018 for large-scale money laundering. Investigators froze another 33 million belonging to a Ukrainian man investigators believe is Apsit’s proxy. Apsit came to investigators’ attention while they were digging into ABLV’s finances. They noticed that millions of euros belonging to him had been moved as loans among many different offshore companies, “without economic logic,” in an effort to obscure their origins. Their investigation led them to conclude that, starting in around 2013, ABLV created a purpose-built money laundering scheme — known as a “laundromat” — for his benefit. Apsit has not been charged with any crime, but prosecutors have the option of pressing charges against him or others later as their larger investigation into his alleged money-laundering scheme progresses. In Latvia, money suspected of having been laundered can be frozen without any predicate crime being established. In response to questions about the case, Apsit’s lawyer said he had never been the subject of any criminal case in Russia, Belarus, or Latvia. He declined to comment on the Latvian asset freeze since it was still under judicial review. From publicly available sources, Latvian investigators learned that in Russia in 2014, one of his companies had been accused of illegally employing migrants from Uzbekistan under slave-like conditions. And five years later, a director of the Belarusian cleaning company owned by Apsit’s wife was caught up in a bribery investigation for allegedly offering $2,500 to an official at a Russian state-owned bank to win a cleaning contract. But neither Russia nor Belarus has fully cooperated with Latvian authorities’ attempts to learn more about Facilicom, Clean World, or Apsit, International InvestigativeStories Cleaner and laundromat: Belarusian cleaning magnate laundered millions through Disgraced Latvian Bank Eduard Apsit (left) attends a court hearing in Riga, Latvia in mid-May 2023. International Investigative Stories NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023

International Investigative Stories News Page 27 making it difficult to continue investigating the origin of his millions. While Latvian investigators have struggled to learn more about Apsit, journalists from Re:Baltica, IStories, the Belarusian Investigative Center, and Slidstvo.Info have managed to learn more about how his business worked by poring over procurement contracts in Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine. They found that Apsit’s holding company Facilicom had spawned dozens of other companies in the three countries, either direct subsidiaries or subcontractors that were allowed to use the Clean World brand name. These companies won state cleaning tenders worth at least 120 million euros ($128 million) in Russia and over 40 million euros ($42.7 million) in Belarus, as well as at least 7.5 million euros ($8 million) in Ukraine. In many cases, they did it by bidding against each other for the contracts. Under Latvian law, the 73 million euros belonging to Apsit and his alleged proxy, a Ukrainian citizen named Sergei Semeniuk, can still be confiscated as alleged proceeds of crime if he cannot prove that they were legally obtained. Although he is fighting their seizure in court, he has not yet been able to explain to investigators how he earned so much money, according to court documents obtained by Re:Baltica and OCCRP. When Latvian investigators queried him about the large sums entering the accounts of one of his offshore companies, which had received payments from a number of other offshores, he said he couldn’t explain them because the companies were supervised by one of his business partners. He said “most likely” those funds had a legal origin, but he could not say more as these transactions were under the supervision of a business partner who was responsible for subcontractors. “[The case you describe] doesn’t surprise me,” said Tom Keatinge, director of London-based Centre for Financial Crime and Security Studies. “It is consistent with the reputation ABLV has developed.” “ABLV bank is an unfortunate case for Latvia,” he added. “It was facilitating the entry of criminal money into the international financial system … As a result, it affected not only the Latvian but the global financial economy, too.” Procurement — the Clean World Way By 2011, Apsit was successful enough to be featured in a lengthy interview on a Moscow radio station. His hosts were impressed with the scope of his business — “Eduard is like a little republic!” one exclaimed about his thousands of employees — and questioned him for nearly an hour about how he achieved his success. Apsit was genial and earnest, using his experience to underscore the challenges of building a modern company in an economy that was still recovering from decades of Communist rule. “If you compare to a more established economy, in places like the Netherlands or the United States, the middle management is head and shoulders above ours,” he said. “We don’t have any fewer smart people — maybe more! — but we’re in a transition period. A country needs a lot of managers … we don’t have such an army.” It was a week he spent in the Netherlands, Apsit said, that had really opened his eyes to what was possible. Taking advantage of a European program that sought to help former Soviet countries build market economies, he learned from a Dutch entrepreneur how a modern business works from the inside. “When you open a little window [to the West], you see how it can be in Russia in five to ten years,” he said. But what reporters found when they looked into Apsit’s practice of pitting his own companies against each other had little to do with modern management techniques. In one case in Ukraine, two different companies co-owned by Apsit, one called Clean World Trade and one called German Washing Equipment, bid on the same 2016 tender to supply a 4,500-euro washing machine to Ukraine Railways. When the scheme came to light the following year, Apsit was fined 2,000 euros by the Ukrainian anti-monopoly service. (The companies blamed mistakes by staff.) Companies linked to Apsit won at least nine tenders worth a total of around 755,000 euros in Belarus in a similar manner. In each case uncovered by reporters, the only bidders were Facilicom and Clean World Plus, which are both owned by Elena Apsit. (Belarusian government tenders are required to have at least two bidders, but there is no law prohibiting these bidders from being affiliated, although experts have criticized the practice: “It’s like a competition between the left and right pockets of my pants,” said Uladzimir Kavalkin of opentenders.by, which advocates for more transparency around procurement processes.) But it was in Russia where Apsit’s company did most of its business. Starting in the early 2000s, his holding company, Facilicom, began issuing licenses to other companies around the country to use its trademark. Many of these companies then bid against each other to win tenders from state institutions, including the Ministry of Defense, creating the illusion of competition. In total, journalists found this group of companies won around 600 tenders worth around 120 million euros, according to current exchange rates (around $128 million). Although many of these companies used the name “Clean World” or variations on the English word “clean,” like “Cleanup” and “Cleaning Progress,” neither Apsit nor his wife appeared in their ownership structures. However, they had multiple staff and directors in common, and some of the companies also appeared to use Facilicom email addresses or phone numbers. After Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, the country’s Defense Ministry opened bidding on seven tenders worth 49 million euros (around $58 million at the time) to clean the barracks now occupied by the Russian Army and the Black Sea Fleet on the peninsula. All seven were won by a single company licensed by Facilicom, Flagman Clean, whose director and shareholder, Galina Sirotinina, was a former employee of two other companies created by Apsit. A contact email address for Flagman Clean listed in one of the procurement documents was for an employee of Facilicom. (Three tenders were later terminated because cleaning was no longer needed, meaning that Flagman Clean would have earned around 27.4 million euros in the end.) But when an IStories journalist looked back at the bidders for these seven tenders, it became clear that most of the participants were connected to each other: They were either companies operating under a license from Facilicom, or their employees or owners had worked for companies that used the brand. For example, two of the losing companies in the Crimean bids, Constructor of Cleanliness and Active Reserve, were also Facilicom licensees. A Link to ‘Putin’s Chef’ While analyzing the tenders won by these companies, reporters also discovered an intriguing link to a major Russian procurement fraud scandal. In 2017, anti-corruption activist and opposition politician Alexei Navalny uncovered what he described as a massive “cartel” that had been earning hundreds of millions of euros from Russian Defense Ministry contracts. Orchestrated by Yevgeny Prigozhin — who had won so many government catering contracts that he became known as “Putin’s chef” — this cartel consisted of multiple interrelated companies, some of which were created “on the fly” to bid for specific defense contracts. Later, Russia’s anti-monopoly agency confirmed Navalny’s findings and said it had also uncovered three other linked companies that were submitting fraudulent bids to provide housing and sanitary services for military camps: Millennium Clean, White Bear, and Coralclean. The agency never publicly revealed who was behind these companies, but they were fined 360,000 euros for their anticompetitive behavior. Now, journalists have found that all three were owned by people with ties to companies in Apsit’s orbit. They weren’t explicitly licensed by Facilicom, but five of their managers and shareholders had been involved in Facilicom-licensed firms. Millennium Clean and White Bear were also bidders in the tenders to clean the Crimean barracks. All three companies have now been shut down and reporters could only reach the former owner of one of them, Coralclean. The ex-owner, Ludmila Chokoraya, was also previously the head of a cleaning company that had operated under the Clean World trademark. Chokoraya confirmed that she had worked for companies in the Facilicom group, but said she knew nothing about a cartel. “We each had our own duties, our own functions, and I had nothing to do with such events. I can’t explain anything about this,” said Chokoraya by phone. Through his lawyer, Apsit told reporters that none of his companies had received money from the Russian Ministry of Defense and he had nothing to do with the operation run by Prigozhin. A Ukrainian Proxy? Latvian investigators have also opened an asset seizure case related to a Ukrainian man they believe was acting as Apsit’s proxy. Serhiy Semeniuk — whose funds have also been frozen by authorities — had around 33 million euros in ABLV accounts held by offshore companies, including one called Wondermax Sales Inc. But Latvian authorities believe that this group of companies, which they refer to as the Wondermax holding, was really controlled by Apsit, who also appears to have transferred many of his Russian business interests to Semeniuk after Russia’s 2014 invasion of the Crimean peninsula. After the invasion, new legislation discouraged Ukrainian state enterprises from doing business with Russian people or companies involved in any aspect of the annexation. However, during this period Facilicom-affiliated companies were bidding on — and winning — cleaning contracts in occupied Crimea. “Any economic activity of any persons in the occupied territories is recognized as illegal according to the laws of Ukraine,” the Latvian investigators wrote, noting that Apsit and Semeniuk only began moving money through ABLV in suspicious ways after the invasion in 2014. They suggested the two men may have done this to obscure the origin of funds earned by companies in the Facilicom network that were making money from Russian government contracts, especially in occupied Crimea. “It is highly probable that after the occupation of Crimea the business was expanded and a new holding infrastructure was created in the interest of Eduard Apsit,” Latvian investigators concluded. “Likely de jure it was transferred to Sergei Semeniuk, but de facto it was controlled and managed by Eduard Apsit.” Like Apsit, Semeniuk is not himself accused of committing a crime. He told Ukrainian police — who interviewed him on behalf of the Latvian investigators — that he had purchased Apsit’s Russian businesses from him for 93 million dollars, but the Latvian investigators concluded that there was no evidence he ever actually made the payments. Investigators also pointed to indirect evidence that the two men were financially intertwined, including that Semeniuk had managed Clean World in Ukraine, and that Apsit used payment and credit cards from Wondermax Sales Inc. for his own personal use. In response to questions from journalists, Semeniuk said he was an old acquaintance of Apsit’s who purchased some of his cleaning companies in the 2000s as a business proposition, not because he is a proxy. He accused Latvian investigators of freezing his funds without any evidence. “The investigation in the case of my companies has a pile of conjectures and fantasies in which they are trying to justify their main mistake: They confused cleaning with laundering.” “This is, of course, a joke, but the only thing the investigation is interested in is taking away my money. They don’t give a damn about Crimea, Ukraine, and even money laundering — if it even existed.” Apsit, too, is engaged in a legal battle to regain his frozen wealth. Before a closed-door hearing in May, OCCRP reporters approached him and his lawyer, Ilia Merkouchev, outside a Riga courtroom and asked for comment. “No black money exists — it is a fiction,” Merkouchev said, blaming the Latvian justice system for adopting “Soviet-style legal mechanisms that have been twisted by implementers — investigators, prosecutors, and judges.” He said there would be no comment about the cleaning business. Beside him, a silent Apsit kept his eyes glued to his phone. NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023

Page 28 THE month of May was very eventful in both the monetary and fiscal sectors in Zimbabwe. Several policies and measures were announced as the authorities try to curtail the galloping inflation and stabilise the exchange rate in their efforts of yet again trying to resurrect the Zimbabwe dollar. Both the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) and the ministry of Finance made some interesting policy pronouncements in the month of May. The RBZ introduced a digital token backed by gold while the Finance ministry issued a policy statement armed with both monetary and fiscal measures that stirred a lot of debate among economic agents. The RBZ further responded to the minister’s statement with only one key takeaway: “We are not going to be moved”. But they all have one goal, to bring the Zimbabwe dollar back from its death bed. The Finance minister's stabilisation measures and the RBZ’s implementation plan sound political rather than key policies that are worth analysing. As such, only one key intervention stands out: introduction of a digital currency, the digital token backed by gold. As the saying goes, it is money that makes the world go round. But that is not true. It is actually trust that makes the world go round. As many countries around the world pilot central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), like what the RBZ is doing with the digital token backed by gold, there is urgent need for caution and a back-to-basics approach by focusing on CBDCs’ purpose, mitigating their risks, and implementing a high bar for their technology. With so many countries planning and piloting central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), that trust is crucial because of the role this new money will have in terms of financial stability. Why mention this? Actions of the minister of Finance through his stabilisation measures seem like he is overriding the RBZ and the issue of the central bank's independence re-emerges. It is trust that makes the economy go round and it is our institutions and governance that build that trust. Excessive intervention by a partisan institution in the form of the ministry of Finance in monetary affairs destroys the little trust and confidence that the RBZ was trying to rebuild through issuance of a digital currency.  The RBZ was spoton in diplomatically dismissing the minister's statement. Let monetary authorities deal with monetary issues and play their role of being advisers to central government while fiscal authorities concentrate on fiscal issues obtaining advice from monetary authorities. Financial stability is of the essence in this disruptive environment precipitated by new technologies. Focusing on the digital token, the recent run on Silicon Valley Bank, as well as the collapse of the terraUSD stable coin, is a reminder that runs on deposits in the future could be exacerbated by new technology and new forms of money. Money is the core of any financial system and relies on broad-based trust. A central bank digital currency is no exception. As such, there is need to focus on the fundamentals and there are three principles that should inform the design of CBDCs. Firstly, there needs to be a focus on the purpose and objectives and an avoidance of "mission creep". Secondly, the financial stability risks should be identified and effectively mitigated. And lastly, there should be a high bar set for the technology used for CBDCs. With the first principle of purpose, there needs to be a focus on the problem that is being solved. What is the problem being solved by a digital token in Zimbabwe? One may say that everyone needs to access gold and making it digital allows divisibility. Another key motivation is the safety the central bank money provides because it is viewed as a safe and trusted asset. Cash under normal circumstances serves that purpose because it is issued by the central bank and backed by the state. However, this is not the case with Zimbabwe as Zimdollar cash has lost favour, with the majority preferring to hold other forms of money, a key motivation for digital tokens. This is also true in most countries that are piloting CBDCs as the use of cash is declining. So many central banks are designing CBDCs, to ensure that central bank money can remain available and useful in a modern economy in order to support monetary sovereignty and financial stability. On the second principle of identifying and mitigating financial stability risks, there is the question of whether a CBDC such as the digital coin would challenge the commercial banks and ultimately disintermediate them if it becomes more popular and individuals choose to hold more value of it in their accounts over regular bank deposits. This could impact on deposit levels at commercial banks as well as their ability to lend. Also, with more money held in the form of a digital token, monetary policy could also be impacted. If – unlike cash – a digital token is remunerated and can earn interest then a central bank may have more direct control over its monetary policy, for example. Base rate changes would be directly passed on through its own money, rather than the central bank relying on commercial banks to pass on the rates. There are particular concerns about how this kind of scenario would play out during a crisis, and whether the digital token – and its accompanying policies of bank liquidity regulations – would be a stabilising factor when the system is under stress. And on the third principle of the choice of technology, here the bar must be set high, particularly given the central role a digital token would have in the financial system and the reputational implications for the central bank of any flaws. So far, we are not aware of the technology being used to roll out the RBZ’s digital token backed by gold. Once the initial model has been decided — such as a "platform" or "two-tiered" model — the highest standards need to be implemented for privacy, security, resilience, performance, extensibility and energy use. All of these have serious challenges that need to be addressed. As with the first two principles, these issues need to be thought through clearly to ensure that the trust in central bank-issued money is maintained. And with trust, perhaps one day it will be the RBZ’s digital token that will make the Zimbabwean economy go round. Trust can back money more than gold. *About the writer: Kaduwo is a researcher and economist. Contact: kaduwot@ gmail.com, WhatsApp +263773376128 New Perspectives Finance ministry, RBZ must focus on fundamentals Econometrics HawksView Tinashe Kaduwo Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023

Page 29 The NewsHawks is published on different content platforms by the NewsHawks Digital Media which is owned by Centre for Public Interest Journalism No. 100 Nelson Mandela Avenue Beverly Court, 6th floor Harare, Zimbabwe Trustees/Directors: Beatrice Mtetwa, Raphael Khumalo, Professor Wallace Chuma, Teldah Mawarire, Doug Coltart EDITORIAL STAFF: Managing Editor: Dumisani Muleya Assistant Editor: Brezh Malaba News Editor: Owen Gagare Digital Editor: Bernard Mpofu Reporters: Brenna Matendere, Ruvimbo Muchenje, Enock Muchinjo, Jonathan Mbiriyamveka, Nathan Guma Email: [email protected] SUB EDITORS: Mollen Chamisa, Gumisai Nyoni Business Development Officer: Nyasha Kahondo Cell: +263 71 937 1739 [email protected] Subscriptions & Distribution: +263 71 937 1739 Reaffirming the fundamental importance of freedom of expression and media freedom as the cornerstone of democracy and as a means of upholding human rights and liberties in the constitution; our mission is to hold power in its various forms and manifestations to account by exposing abuse of power and office, betrayals of public trust and corruption to ensure good governance and accountability in the public interest. CARTOON Voluntary Media Council of Zimbabwe The NewsHawks newspaper subscribes to the Code of Conduct that promotes truthful, accurate, fair and balanced news reporting. If we do not meet these standards, register your complaint with the Voluntary Media Council of Zimbabwe at No.: 34, Colenbrander Rd, Milton Park, Harare. Telephone: 024-2778096 or 024-2778006, 24Hr Complaints Line: 0772 125 659 Email: [email protected] or [email protected] WhatsApp: 0772 125 658, Twitter: @vmcz Website: www.vmcz.co.zw, Facebook: vmcz Zimbabwe Editorial & Opinion FAZ: Election rigging underway Dumisani Muleya Hawk Eye NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023 THE threat by President Emmerson Mnangagwa to ban foreign currencies which are legal tender in Zimbabwe is illustrative of his government’s failure to provide prudent economic leadership at a time when the beleaguered local unit has plunged into a catastrophic spiral. Mnangagwa claims the increasingly worthless Zimbabwe dollar is “under serious attack”. Curiously, he does not care to explain to the nation why the Zimdollar — of all currencies under the sun — would be singled out for attack by invisible forces. Is he saying these nameless mysterious forces are locked in a deadly wrestling match with the Zimbabwe dollar while allowing the Chinese yuan and the Russian rouble to enjoy life unmolested? Who are his economic advisers? Mnangagwa proceeds to make a telling remark: “There is no country that can develop without its own currency.” While there is truth in that assertion, it is only logical to add, by extension, that there is no country which can develop without competent leadership. There is no substitute for good governance. Everyone remembers that it is this same government which tried to trick the world into believing that the Zimdollar is at par with the United States dollar. Citizens were sold a dummy; the 1:1 exchange rate was pure fiction. In a ridiculous ploy to hoodwink the gullible, Afreximbank was even roped in to “guarantee” the ludicrously artificial exchange rate. Who is fooling who? The brazen manner in which the Zanu PF government has in the past raided nostro bank accounts does not inspire confidence. There is a suffocating sense of impunity. How many times should our poverty-stricken society lose hard-earned savings, salaries, investments and pensions? When a head of state speaks out in such an ill-advised manner on a matter that is at the heart of devastating economic turmoil, the markets are bound to react adversely. Spooking the markets is the last thing any government would want to do in such a precarious situation. By now, President Mnangagwa ought to know that the economy does not respond favourably to political intimidation. Zimbabweans have suffered countless times from the backlash occasioned by ill-thought-out pronouncements. “What we might do is to legislate against foreign currency, to make sure we use our own currency. So our people must know that our currency is there to stay.” With respect, this postulation is not grounded in scientific reasoning. It is trite economics that the Zimdollar has been rejected by the market. Instead of legislating against foreign currencies — as Mnangagwa is threatening — the government should be taking remedial policy action to instil trust, confidence and legitimacy in a local unit whose utility as a store of value has hit rock bottom. The excessive printing of money has been instrumental in fuelling the Zimdollar’s depreciation. You cannot print money without ensuring an equivalent increase in the country’s productive capacity. Most importantly, political instability and corruption are serious problems that require decisive attention in the national interest. Legitimacy is derived from the consent of the governed. Yet another bogus election on 23 August can only pour petrol into the raging inferno. Here we go again, threats!

Page 26 NewsHawks Issue 76, 15 April 2022 Business MATTERS NewsHawks CURRENCIES LAST CHANGE %CHANGE USD/JPY 109.29 +0.38 +0.35 GBP/USD 1.38 -0.014 -0.997 USD/CAD 1.229 +0.001 +0.07 USD/CHF 0.913 +0.005 +0.53 AUD/USD 0.771 -0.006 -0.76 COMMODITIES LAST CHANGE %CHANGE *OIL 63.47 -1.54 -2.37 *GOLD 1,769.5 +1.2 +0.068 *SILVER 25.94 -0.145 -0.56 *PLATINUM 1,201.6 +4 +0.33 MARKETS *COPPER 4.458 -0.029 -0.65 BERNARD MPOFU THE decision by Finance minister Mthuli Ncube to announce fiscal and monetary policy measures to save the Zimbabwe dollar from collapse has raised eyebrows over Treasury’s overlapping roles on traditional central bank duties. Desperate to save the domestic currency from collapse ahead of the general elections, Ncube this week announced several interventions aimed at stimulating growth. The Zimbabwe dollar is now trading at US$1:ZW$2 500 on the formal market while one now requires up to ZW$4 000 to buy the greenback on the parallel market. Among the measures, Treasury will now fund the Zimbabwe dollar component of the 25% foreign currency surrendered by exporters, in order to eliminate the creation of additional money supply. The foreign currency collected from the 25% that is surrendered will now be collected by Treasury and utilised in servicing the foreign currency loans assumed from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe. Banks will no longer withhold any foreign currency surrendered by exporters, and all the liabilities to the banks will be settled through Treasury. Economic analysts flagged this development, querying why Ncube had sidelined Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe John Mangudya in announcing monetary policy-related measures. Gift Mugano, an adjunct professor of economics at Durban University of Technology in South Africa, questioned why Ncube was announcing monetary policy-related issues such as the exchange rate. “Few questions to @MthuliNcube on today's (Monday) press statement: Since treasury didn't budget for the payment of the 25% export retention, where is the money going to come from?” Mugano tweeted after the measures were announced. “Why is Treasury making policy pronouncements under the purview of the RBZ? In view of the fact that the auction system has been reduced to US$5m per week, isn't this clear evidence that the economy has dollarised? Why can't govt just accept this new reality?” Leon Africa chief executive Tinashe Murapata said Ncube’s announcement signalled a tussle between Treasury and the central bank. “What do we learn from the tussle between RBZ and Treasury?” Murapata queried. “What is evidently clear is that GOZ [government of Zimbabwe] doesn’t have enough money. Worse, going into an election. Treasury had taken unprecedented steps to force Exporters to pay directly surrender proceeds into its accounts in its statement. As one would, when they pay taxes. Effectively fiscalising monetary matters. “Treasury had then claimed that it would settle the 25% surrender receipts with its own ZWL collections. Having witnessed contractors and wheat farmers delayed payments, the market wondered where treasury would get the money. Even today, the market is wondering where Treasury will get the money to pay the 'foreign debts' it has assumed. Despite the propaganda of retaining ZWL, the tussle reveals what is most valuable. American dollars.” Treasury sees the country’s Gross Domestic Product expanding by 3.8% this year underpinned by favourable international commodity prices, normal to above normal rainfall, and continued use of the multi-currency system. Analysts say achieving this growth is going to be an uphill battle, given the country is currently facing power shortages, inflation and depreciating local currency. Annual inflation has generally been on an upward trajectory despite the rebasing that took place in February. In February, annual inflation was reported at circa 80.71% with month-on-month inflation recorded at -1.61% for the same period. Annual inflation closed March and April at 87.60% and 75.23% respectively. Policy coherence? Last November, Mangudya, the country’s central bank chief, told The NewsHawks that policy coherence between fiscal and monetary authorities would stabilise Zimbabwe’s floundering economy. “Let not their hearts be troubled because right now there is coherence and well-coordinated approach between the government and the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe,” Mangudya said. “Those are two different entities; the Reserve Bank has the purview over the monetary policy of the country and government through the ministry of Finance has the fiscal policy purview of this country and therefore people who are afraid of fear factors — their hearts should not be troubled because right now there is a well-coordinated approach, which means the government will not unnecessarily put in too much money into the economy because of this funding season. The role of banks is to provide funding to the economy for farmers or industry themselves. So when they go to the market this won’t cause inflation. “Our job is to provide advice to government on financial matters as enshrined in the RBZ Act. We continuously advise and our advice has so far been taken, that is why we’re so bullish that it is well coordinated. The minister of Finance knows exactly that if he puts too much money into the economy — whether he is going to buy wheat or soya bean from the money that is in his account. Because of coordination that is there, we do believe that the people’s concerns which are genuine are being addressed by the ministry of Finance. ” What is monetary policy? Monetary policy is a set of tools used by a country’s apex bank to control the overall money supply and promote economic growth and employ strategies such as revising interest rates and changing bank reserve requirements. Central banks use monetary policy to manage economic fluctuations and achieve price stability, which means that inflation is low and stable. Central banks in many advanced economies set explicit inflation targets. Many developing countries also are moving to inflation targeting. Mthuli Ncube usurps central bank functions Finance minister Mthuli Ncube

NewsHawks Companies & Markets Page 31 Issue 134, 2 June 2023 THE African Development Bank (AfDB) says it provided guarantees to the tune of nearly US$43 million to Zimbabwe and three other African countries as the regional financier pushes for the industrialisation of the continent. Experts say despite the small number of African countries with sophisticated manufacturing capabilities, many have made solid progress towards establishing industrial sectors. As firms gain greater access to financial services, they are able to increase the share of manufactured goods in their exports. Unmet financing needs for African enterprises according to the AfDB reached an estimated US$416 billion in 2017, with Nigeria alone representing 38%. “In 2022 for example, the Bank operationalised its Transaction Guarantee Product, an unfunded instrument that provides up to 100% non-payment risk cover to Confirming Banks for trade finance transactions of eligible Africa-based Issuing Banks,” the AfDB says in its 2023 Annual Development Review. “By covering up to 100% non-payment risk, the Transaction Guarantee will enable the Bank to support local African banks operating in Africa. In 2022, four Transaction Guarantees were approved for a total of $42.5 million in four countries: Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Angola, and Mauritius.” The AfDB’s Industrialisation Strategy for Africa 2016-2025 is designed to support the continent’s industrialisation efforts. The strategy comprises six flagship programmes, which are intended to: foster successful industrial policies, attract and channel funding into infrastructural and industrial projects, develop more liquid and effective capital markets, promote and drive enterprise development, promote strategic partnerships, and develop efficient industry clusters. The World Bank says Zimbabwe’s exports declined over the last two decades, dropping to an average of 25% of gross domestic product in recent times from 33% at the turn of the millennium, as local firms became less competitive in the region. A drop in exports has piled pressure on the authorities to defend the value of the domestic currency against the backdrop of spiralling inflation. According to the World Bank Country Economic Memorandum, lowering tariffs on intermediate and capital goods, and tackling trade facilitation issues would help ensure that the country benefits significantly from the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). Despite being signatory to several regional trade agreements, high tariffs and trade facilitation hurdles continue to constrain trade. Experts say high tariffs on intermediate inputs and capital goods limit value addition and the diffusion of technology, while duty concessions distort economic incentives. “Trade is a driver of economic diversification, productivity, and economic growth. However, Zimbabwe’s exports of goods and services have been underperforming over the past two decades, falling from an average of 33% of GDP between 2002 and 2009 to 25% of GDP a decade later (2010-19),” the World Bank says. — STAFF WRITER. ZIMBABWE’S insurance sector has been hit by a high policy default rate, prompting the government to gazette a statutory instrument compelling insurance companies to provide cover to active accounts. The country is battling rising inflation, a weakening domestic currency and high levels of unemployment. The economic environment has forced some companies to scale down operations, retrench or default on insurance and pension premiums. According to the new directive, the objective of the statutory instrument is to restrict the issuance of insurance policies on credit owing to the non-payment of premiums in the event of no claim, thereby resulting in an increase in premium debtors, which affects the financial standing of the industry and settlement of claims. Agricultural insurance is exempted from complying with the statutory instrument “The receipt of an insurance premium shall be a condition for a valid contract of insurance and there shall be no cover in respect of an insurance risk unless the premium is paid in advance,” reads Statutory Instrument 81 of 2023. “Subsection (1) does not apply to the insurance of crops in terms of the Farmers Stop Order Act . . . Subject to subsection (2), every insurer which issues an insurance policy on credit must record on the policy document that the policy is on credit. “Every policy owner of an insurance policy issued on credit shall be entitled to the full value of the claim less premium due for the insurance policy on credit.” The Insurance and Pensions Commission (Ipec), the statutory body, has warned that it could suspend the licence of an insurer who fails to comply with the directive. Ipec will also penalise players through fines or imprisonment for contravening the statutory instrument. — STAFF WRITER. AfDB provides guarantees to Zim Policy default rate shoots through the roof

Page 32 NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023 Companies & Markets BERNARD MPOFU ZIMBABWE has laid out an ambitious plan to roll out electric public transport by 2040 as the government seeks to cut carbon emissions, a new report has revealed. The southern African nation has an inefficient public transport system and has largely depended on second-hand cars mainly from Japan. According to Zimbabwe’s Fourth National Communication to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the country’s net Greenhouse Gases (GHG) emissions are dominated by the agriculture, forestry and other land use (AFOLU) and energy sectors respectively, followed by industrial processes and product use (IPPU), and waste. The transport sector, according to a new government policy on carbon credit, is a top priority for carbon credit trade. Carbon tax was introduced in 2001 to address emission concerns. The country needs to invest in electric vehicles and battery charging stations. Increased distances travelled by mass vehicles and the inherent congestion in the traffic in cities, means more burning of fuel and increase the levels of pollution. “GHG emissions in Zimbabwe are projected to increase across all sectors through 2050. The AFOLU and energy sectors present a huge potential for climate change mitigation in Zimbabwe,” the country’s carbon credit framework for Zimbabwe April 2023 reads. “Achievement of the country’s mitigation targets is faced with a number of challenges, mainly climate finance and limited access to abatement technologies. “The following can be considered for carbon trading in this sector: Reduced carbon intensity by shifting away from passenger car use to modern electrical buses and nonmotorised transport (NMT); electric and hydrogen vehicles especially in the mass public transport systems with targeted emissions reduction of gasoline and diesel by 2040.” Experts say Zimbabwe is vulnerable to climate change shocks and impacts. These include recurrent droughts and mid-season dry spells which have an impact on the agricultural sector and associated livelihoods, as well as the production of hydroelectric power which has impact on all sectors. The country is witnessing more frequent occurrence of tropical cyclones resulting in the loss of lives and destruction of property and infrastructure, hampering economic growth and displacing thousands of people. A carbon credit is a tradable certificate representing one metric tonne of carbon dioxide (CO2 ) equivalent that is either prevented from being emitted into the atmosphere and/or removed from the atmosphere as a result of climate change mitigation actions. The credits are a financial instrument that are traded and/or banked over a specified period. These are kept in approved public or private registries that are linked to financial systems. Carbon credits are generated through registries and can either be issued by the government, or auctioned off and/or are developed at some benchmark. The report also shows that the energy sector is currently the second-biggest contributor to total national GHG emissions in Zimbabwe, accounting for 33% of GHG emissions in 2017. The main source of GHG emissions in the sector is thermal power generation (37.71%), followed by residential (19.08%), road transportation (15.48%) and agriculture (13.84%). The sector is highly dependent on coal and petroleum products for power generation giving greater scope for investments in cleaner technologies and renewables. BERNARD MPOFU THE value of tobacco delivered to the Zimbabwe’s auction floor marginally declined by 3.5% to US$108 million from US$112 million in the prior comparative period, a new Treasury report has shown. Tobacco has been on the rebound in Zimbabwe after plunging to less than 50 million kilogrammes in 2008 from a peak of 260 million kg a decade earlier. The cash crop is one of Zimbabwe’s biggest earners of foreign currency alongside minerals such as gold and funds sent by Zimbabweans living outside the country’s borders. According to Treasury’s first-quarter bulletin, the area planted under tobacco increased by 19% to 131 656 hectares compared to 110 770ha planted during the 2021/22 season. The increase is partly attributed to early commencement of the season in some parts of the country compared to the previous season. In terms of marketing, the auction floors were opened on 8 March 2023 with deliveries of 48 938 kgs at average price of US$2.56/kg. “The crop delivered on the first day was, however, lower compared to the 94 453 kgs delivered on the first day in 2022 at average price of US$2.58/kg, the report reads. “As at 31 March 2023, cumulative tobacco deliveries to the auction floors were 36.1 million kgs at an average price of US$3/kg compared to the 38.5 million kgs at an average price of US$2.91/kg delivered in 2022. “Consequently, as at the end of the first quarter, the value of tobacco delivered to the auction floors was lower by 3.5% compared to the same period last year.” Looking ahead, Treasury sees Zimbabwe’s economy improving on improved power generation although analysts say the weakening domestic currency and rising inflation will retard growth. “During the first quarter, the economic activity was slowly picking, notwithstanding both domestic and exogenous challenges facing the economy, especially in the currency front,”´ the report reads. “The economic activity is expected to improve in the outlook as the power supply situation improves with the commercialisation of Hwange 7 and 8 units.” Tobacco sales volume falls Zim unveils plan for electric public transport

Page 33 NATHAN GUMA THE chaotic voter inspection and delimitation processes erode the credibility of the 23 August general elections, and reveal how institutions have been working to tilt the poll in Zanu PF’s favour. This week, the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) commenced the voter inspection process that initially ran between 27 May and 31 May, and was extended to 1 June after Zec encountered logistical problems which resulted in the process starting late in several areas. Several people, among them prominent opposition leaders, could not find their names on the voters’ roll released by Zec for the inspection process, raising concerns over and integrity of the election. Zec said it would investigate incidents involving people failing to find their names on the voters’ roll. Several people have also failed to confirm their registration details online. The *265# shortcode for use by Econet and NetOne users has failed to deliver the registration details of voters, in some instances. In other cases, voters have successfully checked their details. There were also problems with the delimitation process, which has largely been criticised for serious shortfalls that include gerrymandering in favour of Zanu PF. Analysts have expressed concern over Zec’s decision to retain flaws flagged in the preliminary delimitation report presented to President Emmerson Mnangagwa in December last year. The report also resulted in divisions among commissioners, with seven commissioners speaking out against the delimitation report effectively opposing chairperson Justice Priscilla Chigumba. As a result of the fallout, Chigumba removed Commissioner Jasper Mangwana and his deputy Catherine Mpofu from their roles as spokespersons of the election management body. Opposition leader Douglas Mwonzora has challenged the delimitation process in court. Political analyst Rashweat Mukundu says chaos over the electoral process has been deliberate and calculated to fell the opposition ahead of the 23 August general elections. “I think the whole voter inspection process and the planning towards elections has been chaotic. But, I do not think this is chaos but lack of awareness of what the law and constitution say. It is not chaos out of lack of understanding of democratic principles, but this is manufactured chaos. “This is deliberate and is meant to confuse the opposition, the voters and civil society and is meant to keep Zanu PF on top of the political game by manipulating these issues for the benefit of Zanu PF. “Zanu PF does not at all have issues around the voters' roll or delimitation report, because these are documents that they have produced and of course passed on to Zec to then put its name and stamp the same documents,” Mukundu says. Mukundu says Zec has also lost control over the election process, which has seen state institutions running the show. “So, there is absolutely no doubt that Zec has lost control to Zanu PF and to the Forever Associates of Zimbabwe (FAZ), the CIO and the military intelligence. These are the people that are in charge of electoral processes. Anything else is just fooling ourselves, but this is an election that is being run from Zanu  PF  headquarters,” Mukundu told The NewsHawks. As previously reported, senior security sources told The NewsHawks that the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO), through FAZ led by CIO co-deputy director-general retired Brigadier-General Walter Tapfumaneyi, has secretly taken over from the military, the running of national elections — designed to manipulate the process in favour of the incumbent Mnangagwa and his government. This is not a constitutional or official arrangement, but an underground operational unit campaigning for Mnangagwa and Zanu PF in the August general elections, which is likely to shred electoral integrity. Faz also took over the running of Zanu PF primary elections. Political analyst Vivid Gwede says the inspection process exposes News Analysis Chaotic vote register inspection further dents elections Zec, which has been secretive about the voters’ roll. “The voter inspection process has revealed worrying anomalies, which all point to the questionable state of the voters' roll. Rather than continuing to be secretive about the voters' roll, which is against best practice and principles transparency, Zec should avail the full voters' roll to ally fears that it is shambolic and not fit for purpose. “This is becoming a crucial determinant of the credibility of the polls. Stakeholders such as political parties and civil society should be able to independently analyse it. Otherwise, there are fears that on voting day we could witness a chaotic situation of people being turned away. A voters' roll with such anomalies coming after a controversial delimitation exercise is building a sad electoral  story,” Gwede said. As previously reported by The NewsHawks, the main opposition CCC has been challenging Zec’s posture over the electronic copy of the voters' roll. Zec has maintained that the CCC can use the online portal. However, the CCC says USSD voters’ roll can neither be audited nor analysed, hence it is unreliable in giving accurate outcomes of the delimitation process. “An audited voters’ roll used for delimitation would authenticate if the voters are appropriately placed at their rightful polling stations, hence the absence of that makes it practically impossible for the publics to measure the validity and accuracy of the delimitation process,” said Ellen Shiriyedenga a senior elections officer of the CCC. Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition (CiCZ), a grouping of civil society organisations, this week said the inspection process needs more time than has been allocated by Zec. “CiCZ is gravely concerned about ongoing anomalies that have arisen during the nationwide inspection of the national voters' roll, which was due to commence on May 27th, 2023. “It appears that the current inspection process was inadequately prepared for by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission and, as a result, is being conducted in a haphazard manner, which is hardly satisfactory. This is alarming. “Reports suggest that many citizens are unable to verify their voter registration details through the online and mobile phone inspection system. Moreover, some have been unable to visit inspection centres physically due to the system's erratic nature,” CiCZ said in a statement. The organisation said the short inspection does not take into consideration the largely informalised economy, which requires people to fend for a living daily non-stop. “Zec is constitutionally mandated to compile a credible voters' roll, as outlined by sections 239(c, d, e) and section 155(2) (b) of the constitution. These are the bare minimum conditions for the conduct of a credible election. “The five-day voters' roll inspection period is too short and seems not to consider the extent of informalisation of the Zimbabwean economy. The majority of citizens have little time to inspect the voters' roll within the stipulated timeframe. “Furthermore, there have been reports of meddling in the exercise by members of Forever Associates Zimbabwe (FAZ), a shadowy extension of the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) intimidating people who have turned out to inspect the roll mostly in some rural parts of Zimbabwe,” CiCZ said. Said CiCZ: “The Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition implores Zec and the government of Zimbabwe to promote and uphold transparency, encourage the full participation of all citizens, and ensure access to relevant information by citizens. “Finally, Zec and the government of Zimbabwe should extend the period for inspection of the voters' roll, increase publicity around the exercise, and allow civil society organisations to freely operate in supplementing the voter education efforts. “The voters' roll remains a secretive and controversial document, and this continues to dent the chances of credible elections in Zimbabwe. Zec will continue to closely monitor the situation and advocate for fairness and transparency.” Zec chairperson Justice Priscilla Chigumba NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023

Page 34 Critical Thinking RINGISAI CHIKOHOMERO ZIMBABWE is once again trying to engage its creditors, including Bretton Woods  institutions  and the Paris  Club, in negotiating a reprieve around its debt arrears and unblocking access to credit. As a condition for debt dialogue, lenders insist the government embarks on a process of reforms. The country owes around US$17 billion in public debt, the vast majority of which (US$14 billion) is external debt. Sixty percent of this external debt is arrears or interest incurred by non-payment.  The country’s currency is in free fall, losing over 90% of its value on the parallel market, and the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe auction rate plays catch-up daily. Inflation is galloping at over 700% a year, and citizens are poor. This time, the government has roped in major figures in global finance and politics. African Development Bank (AfDB) president Akinumwi Adesina is championing the process, and former Mozambican president Joaquim Chissano is high-level facilitator. The initiative is as much about politics as finance and economics. Chissano’s involvement is intended to convince his liberation struggle comrades in the ruling Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (Zanu PF) to begin the reform agenda in earnest. Some believe the process could lead to genuine re-engagement and offers the best chance of addressing the economic governance and political deficits of President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s administration. The process has one thing going for it: goodwill from the United Kingdom and the European Union. A series of related meetings kicked off in December 2022. On 11 May, Zimbabwe’s finance ministry convened the  fourth  Structured Dialogue Platform with creditors and development partners. This was followed on 15 May by the High-Level Debt Resolution Forum attended by Adesina and Chissano. The high-level forum is the face of the process, while the dialogue platform is tasked with the technical nuts and bolts. Key issues such as the reform matrices, scope of contentious matters and outputs are discussed and hopefully, agreed to, by the forum. At the technical level, working groups provide input on economic, governance and land tenure reforms. To highlight the matter’s urgency, another discussion was convened on the sidelines of the AfDB 2023 annual meetings in Egypt from 22-26 May. No official document from the latest Structured Dialogue Platform has been shared. Updates from the AfDB website  sugCould this round of debt dialogue push Zim reform? For the High-Level Debt Resolution Forum to work, the Zanu-PF government must commit to significant governance reforms. gest progress around agreeing on definitions and criteria for measuring milestones. Confidence in the process necessitates greater transparency. Interested parties, including the Zimbabwean public, must be able to track the gains using indicators for economic, governance and land reforms. Adesina’s latest  speeches  provide insight into the sticking points. He has kept the highly politicised, interrelated issues of sanctions, land reforms and governance on the table. The forthcoming polls, according to Adesina, will indicate the government’s commitment to resolving governance and political problems. Much depends on free, fair and credible elections. However, much depends on how and who will adjudicate whether the polls reflect progress or regression. Several observer  missions  gave the 2018 elections a clean bill of health, as did the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) and Zanu PF. But the process and results were rejected by the mainstream opposition, several domestic and international observer  missions  and domestic civil society groups. Views on the 2023 polls are already polarised  and contested, as they have been in every election for the past 23 years. Adesina said the working groups and high-level dialogues agreed on six areas for reforms: the judicial sector; public sector transparency and accountability; combating corruption; human rights promotion; electoral; and national unity, peace and reconciliation. Security sector reforms don’t feature, despite their distinct influence in the political arena. He says the government has pledged to bring greater clarity and coherence to Zimbabwe’s financial and economic sectors. This includes eliminating multiple exchange rates, introducing an enhanced foreign exchange auction market, and avoiding off-budget financing. The AfDB process hinges on the government’s commitment to walk the talk. However, the ruling party’s stance on governance and economic management gives little indication that it will follow through with reforms. Zanu PF’s command-and-control approach is antithetical to the market economy imperatives that AfDB is encouraging it to adopt. Despite having had five years to liberalise the exchange rate and rein in fiscal indiscipline, government has little to show. While there is hope, there’s also considerable scepticism. Promises to compensate white farmers, for example, haven’t resulted in significant action. Adesina says further delays in paying compensation could erode trust and confidence, which must be built with several stakeholders. The United States, though participating, is approaching the high-level forum with guarded optimism. As required by their legislation, the Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act, they would need to see concrete reform progress before entertaining a removal of sanctions. Most Zimbabweans aren’t holding their breath. There has been no progress on resolving the debt crisis, despite the government’s promises of arrears clearance made to creditors in Peru in 2015. In 2021, the Zimbabwe Debt Management  Strategy  died a natural death due to inaction. So did the Zimbabwe Accelerated Arrears Clearance, Debt and Development Strategy and the 2011 Zimbabwe Accelerated Re-engagement Programme. The government needs to build trust with its internal stakeholders. If this can be done, the High-Level Debt Resolution Forum could work, unencumbered by political agendas. Right now, the process is the only game in town that could engineer a meeting of minds and actionable deliverables. At the very least, it should foster a candid discussion on much-needed governance and economic reforms. — ISS. *About the writer: Ringisai Chikohomero is a researcher at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) in South Africa. President Emmerson Mnangagwa with former Mozambican president Joaquim Chissano (left) and African Development Bank president Akinumwi Adesina (right) NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023

NewsHawks Reframing Issues Page 35 Issue 134, 2 June 2023 STEPHEN BUCHANAN-CLARKE/ SIKHULULEKILE MASHINGAIDZE AN obscure mining company has applied for a licence to prospect for oil and natural gas in one of Zimbabwe’s premier wildlife conservation areas. The Zimbabwean ministry of mines and mining development published the notice for public comment on 28 April in a government gazette. It details an application by Shalom Mining Corporation Limited for exclusive prospecting rights to an area of about 130 000 hectares along the Zambian border in Hurungwe Safari Park and Mana Pools National Park, south of the Zambezi River. When questioned about the credentials of Shalom Mining, the permanent secretary of mines and mining development, Pfungwa Kunaka, stated only that it is based in Zimbabwe. But little else is known about the company and an internet search showed no track record, public profile or website. In the wake of Al Jazeera’s Gold Mafia  documentary series, civil society is rightly concerned about deals that lack transparency and are not subject to public scrutiny when the public interest is clearly at stake. Proximity to the political elite often determines who gets a mining licence in Zimbabwe. In this respect, a company without a public face raises red flags. The window for submitting a formal objection to the application closed on 19 May. Several local safari camps and civil society organisations have done so,  citing  potential adverse effects on the environment and tourism. Mana Pools National Park, a Unesco World Heritage site, is known for its exceptional biodiversity. The floodplains and forests are home to large mammal populations, including elephant, buffalo, wild dog, cheetah and spotted hyena, as well as to rich migratory birdlife. Plant and forest biodiversity commonly found around flood plains are important  sources  of carbon sequestration and their protection is one of the most effective ways to combat global warming and climate change. The site has remained largely pristine because of its remoteness. And about 7 000 tourists visit every year, generating millions of dollars in revenue. But news of Shalom Mining’s application comes in the wake of a recent decision by the Zambian government to give the go-ahead on the development of a large-scale open-cast copper mine in the Lower Zambezi National Park, directly opposite Mana Pools. The Kangaluwi mine site, spanning 1 200 hectares, is situated between two seasonal rivers that discharge directly into the Zambezi River. President  Emmerson Mnangagwa has sought to frame Zimbabwe as “open for business” since coming to power in a 2017 coup ‘d’état and has sought to attract international investors to address the country’s protracted economic crisis. This has included passing  legislation  designed to relax indigenisation laws and to simplify bureaucratic procedures. In 2021, Zimbabwe’s mining industry contributed about 16% of the country’s GDP and 60% of the country’s foreign currency earnings. In 2020, the government set an annual revenue target of US$12 billon for the sector by 2023. Efforts to boost the sector’s profitability have led to a rush of mining companies in search of oil, gas, and other mineral reserves. While Mutuso Dhliwayo, director of the Zimbabwe Environmental Law Association,  asserts that increasing mining exploration in protected areas such as the Mana Pools is in part because many of the country’s most mineral-rich districts have been pegged by multinationals decades ago, thus leaving protected areas for new entrants. The government previously banned mining in Zimbabwean national parks. It is therefore unclear why Shalom Mining’s permit application is being considered by the ministry. In 2020, the Zimbabwean government gave special grants under the Mines and Minerals Act to two Chinese firms to prospect for coal in the country’s Hwange Game Park. The decision was met by a public outcry and a concerted campaign, which eventually led to a ban on mining in national parks. But there is still no legal clarity on the specifics of the ban. Furthermore, the recently announced concession area falls only partly in Mana Pools National Park. Regardless of the legality of the application or credibility of the applicant company, oil and gas prospecting in Mana Pools poses significant environmental and economic risks.  Just the exploration phase of such a project entails the construction of infrastructure, including roads and drilling platforms, which would fragment animal habitats and disrupt sensitive ecosystems. To attain  World Heritage Status, a country must make an “inventory” of its most important natural and cultural heritage sites located within its boundaries and submit this file for nomination by the Unesco World Heritage Committee. The granting of an exploration permit in Mana Pools would risk losing this status and raises critical questions around the Zimbabwean government’s role as custodian of the country’s natural heritage. Investing in the oil and gas sector is especially risky at present, given the possibility of  stranded assets  as fossil fuel divestment gains global momentum and companies such as Shell come under intense scrutiny for reckless operations in places like the Niger Delta in Nigeria. The global transition to clean energy sources may also lead to future financial losses.  The industry is subject to price fluctuations in global markets, making economies heavily invested in them vulnerable to sudden price shocks. Even if the future of oil revenues was guaranteed, governments in fragile or weakly institutionalised contexts tend to become over-reliant on oil rents at the expense of investing in broad-based economic growth. Oil rents also typically enable state repression of dissenting voices or the co-optation of opposition parties. With Zimbabwe’s  track record in this domain, there is no good reason to believe that oil rents will be well governed or allocated towards the provision of public goods for Zimbabwe’s already-beleaguered citizens. Given that Mana Pools is such an important environmental region and already supports sustainable job creation and revenue generation through ecotourism, the potential rewards of prospecting do not seem to outweigh the risks, particularly if this decision opens the door to further exploration in protected areas. — Mail & Guardian. *About the writers: Stephen Buchanan-Clarke is a political and security analyst with a focus on transnational security threats in Africa. He serves as head of Good Governance Africa’s human security and climate change programme. Sikhululekile Mashingaidze is lead researcher on human security and climate change at Good Governance Africa. Oil exploration in Mana Pools threatens Unesco World Heritage Site

Page 36 Reframing Issues VERITAS RELAXATION of Covid lockdown, Waiver of import restriction, Cancellation of carbon credit agreements: What about the rule of law? The basis of the rule of law is: No one should be above the law.   Everyone, including the ķovernment, should be ruled by the law and obey it. There are further elements or subrules, all of which arise out of the basic rule.  They include these: The law must be accessible and so far as possible clear and predictable, so that people can find out what the law is. Questions of legal rights and liabilities should normally be resolved by applying the law and not by the exercise of discretion by a Minister or public officer. The law must protect fundamental human rights. The law must generally take effect in the future, i.e. it should not be retrospective. Ministers and public officers have no inherent power to suspend laws or to exempt people from complying with them.  In particular, they have no inherent power to waive the payment of taxes and duties. Three recent government announcements have raised questions about how far the rule of law is understood, much less respected, in Zimbabwe.  The first was the announcement by Cabinet that the remaining restrictions imposed during the Covid-19 pandemic had been lifted.   The second was the announcement by the minister of Finance and Economic Development that import duties and restrictions on basic commodities had been waived for six months.  The third was a declaration by Cabinet that all existing carbon credit agreements were null and void. 1. Relaxation of Covid restrictions At its meeting on the 9th May, the Cabinet noted that the World Health Organisation had released a statement indicating that Covid-19 no longer constituted a public health emergency of international concern.  Accordingly Cabinet issued the following directives: • that the mandatory wearing of face masks be lifted, that all border measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19 be lifted with immediate effect, and • that tourists should no longer be required to produce Covid-19 vaccination certificates at ports of entry or at tourist resorts around the country. The Covid restrictions were imposed by regulations and orders made under the Public Health Act.  The main order, the Public Health (Covid-19 Prevention, Containment and Treatment) (National Lockdown) (No. 2) Order, 2020 has been amended 43 times and is now difficult to follow [thereby violating the first of the sub-rules of the rule of law that we listed earlier.  Even so it is clear that the order still requires face masks to be worn: • outdoors in public places, by people who have not been fully vaccinated • indoors, at workplaces and in public places, by everyone, and • by all passengers on public transport. The order also obliges travellers to present a negative PCR test certificate on entry into Zimbabwe.   Visitors who fail to do so must be denied entry and returning residents who fail to do so must be quarantined. That is the law.  A cabinet directive cannot change it because, as we have said, Ministers have no power to suspend laws or to exempt people from complying with them – unless the laws themselves give them that power.  And in this case, the law doesn’t. 2. Relaxation of import restrictions On the 11th May the Minister of Finance and Economic Development announced measures to boost the economy.  One of the measures was: “In order to enhance the supply of basic goods to the public, all basic goods will no longer be subject to import licences, and will also come into the country free of import duties and taxes.” This was to last for six months.  It was later announced that the basic goods covered by the measure were maize meal, rice, milk, flour, salt, cooking oil, petroleum jelly, toothpaste, bath soap and washing powder.  The Permanent Secretary for Finance and Economic Development directed the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority to: “urgently draft the necessary legal instrument and implement the duty suspension with effect from 12 May 2023.” He also said: “Furthermore, the Ministry of Industry and Commerce is expected to complement the measure through the inclusion of the above goods on the Open General Import Licence.” Both the Minister’s announcement and the Permanent Secretary’s statement show a complete disregard for the rule of law. Customs duties are imposed by regulations and notices under the Customs and Excise Act, and they cannot be lifted or altered except by formal amendments to those regulations and notices – and moreover the amendments have to be confirmed by an Acq [section 225 of the Act]. Regulations under the Control of Goods Act require import licences to be obtained before most goods can be imported, except the goods listed in the Control of Goods (Open General Import Licence) (No. 2) Notice of 1996 [A notice which was purportedly repealed in 2017 but has been amended several times since then.  The confusion and uncertainty this has created violates the important sub-rule of the rule of law which we mentioned earlier, that laws must be clear].  One thing is clear, however:  the Minister of Finance has no power to alter the licensing requirements through press statements or even statements in Parliament. Not until eight days after the Minister’s announcement were regulations issued under the Customs and Excise Act suspending duties on the basic goods concerned.   The suspensions were retrospective, violating yet another sub-rule of the rule of law.  The Open General Import Licence has not yet been amended. Cancellation of carbon credit agreements The press briefing document issued after last week’s cabinet meeting contains another example of disregard for the rule of law.  It outlines plans presented by the Minister of Finance for a Carbon Credit Framework for Zimbabwe, which includes setting up a National Carbon Credit Registry and a National Climate Change Fund and regulating carbon credit agreements.  The press briefing contains the following rather disturbing passage: “No entity, including Local Authorities, is allowed to enter into Carbon Credit Agreements with international agencies or organisations without the approval of Government.  Accordingly, all such previous agreements entered into are hereby declared null and void.” Ministers have no power to declare agreements concluded by non-government entities to be null and void, and they have no right to cancel government contracts except on recognised legal grounds such as breach of contract.  Section 3(2)(k) of the Constitution states that respect for vested rights – which include contractual rights – is one of the elements of good governance, a fundamental constitutional value. Consequences of disregard for the Rule of Law The first two governmental actions we have dealt with in the bulletin are legal nullities because they were not done properly according to the law;   the third is legally meaningless because the cabinet has no power to nullify contracts.  Such actions are not without precedent in Zimbabwe, unfortunately.   What is remarkable about these three is the blithe disregard for the rule of law with which they were carried out, the implicit assumption that Ministers can change the law by decree or public announcement.  The Secretary for Finance, for example, called on the Ministry of Industry and Commerce to “complement” his Minister’s measures by amending the Open General Import Licence.  He did not seem to understand that his Minister’s measures could have no legal effect until the Open General Import Licence was amended.  Compliance with the law was an afterthought apparently, a tidying-up exercise to be done at some future time rather than an essential step that should have been completed before or at the same time as the Minister made his announcement. Respect for contracts is important for economic development.   Foreign investors will not risk putting their money into Zimbabwe unless they are reasonably confident that their contracts will be respected by the Government and enforced by our courts.  Local businesspeople will not risk expanding their businesses and developing their assets if they fear a Minister will issue a decree nullifying their rights.  The mantra “Zimbabwe is open for business” becomes meaningless if contractual rights are not respected. The rule of law is essential to good governance and economic progress.  Zimbabwe cannot be a law-based society until Ministers and all public officers recognise that they are all subject to the law and act accordingly. *About the writer: Veritas provides information on the work of the Parliament of Zimbabwe and the Laws of Zimbabwe and makes public domain information widely available. Veritas makes every effort to ensure reliable information, but cannot take legal responsibility for information supplied. Minister of Finance and Economic Development Mthuli Ncube Disregard for the rule of law NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023

NewsHawks Reframing Issues Page 37 Issue 134, 2 June 2023 OLIVER MUTANGA THE notion of  inclusive education  began to emerge during the 1950s and 1960s. At first it focused on integrating students with disabilities into mainstream classrooms, but it evolved over time. Now it’s about including students with diverse backgrounds and abilities, such as those with emotional or cognitive challenges whose disabilities are often “invisible”. Global  initiatives  emphasise  that integration is key to creating educational opportunities for all pupils and to combating stigma and discriminatory attitudes. The problem is that the concept of inclusive education — and ideas about what it takes to make schools inclusive — was developed in the global north. It doesn’t take into account the fact that schools in countries with lower incomes and fewer resources cannot always afford the physical infrastructure to drive inclusion. And teachers may not think of inclusive education as a priority when they are contending with low salaries and waning motivation, teaching materials are lacking, physical structures are deteriorating, classrooms are overcrowded, and students are finding it difficult to pay school fees. In fact, they may not think about inclusive education at all. I am a researcher focused on diversity and equity issues. I wanted to understand what in-service teachers and trainee teachers in Zimbabwe know about inclusive education. Globally,  about 50%  of children with disabilities in low- and middle- income countries are not in school. While there are no precise statistics for Zimbabwe, it is a low income country and, so, it is very likely that a large number of its disabled children are not in school. Anecdotally, some of the teachers I interviewed knew of children with disabilities who had left school because of problems with accessibility. I also wanted to explore whether the southern African philosophy of unhu, also called ubuntu, could contribute to an understanding of inclusive education and potentially inform the creation of alternative inclusive policies. Ubuntu is a concept that emphasises the importance of including everyone and building a strong community. Knowledge gaps As case studies, I selected two rural schools and two teacher training colleges that supplied these schools with teachers. The schools were in remote areas; many families ended up there after losing their land during colonial times. I chose this region strategically for its history of displacement, which offered insights into the community’s adaptation mechanisms. I was able to explore the enduring effects of colonial displacement on the community’s present socio-economic conditions and their approach towards inclusive education. Both in-service and trainee teachers described numerous barriers to inclusive education. “When we are taught about inclusive education, they only focus on students with visible disabilities - hearing impairments and visual impairments. As a result, we are rushed to understand some basic braille and sign language. Other complicated and invisible disabilities are never taught in that module. (Trainee teacher) And, while there was some discussion in training about students with visible disabilities, in reality they were not accommodated in schools. A primary school teacher told me: We have pit latrines here and only one modern toilet. We are not capable of enrolling students with severe disabilities. One student who was so severely disabled that she moved around by “crawling on the floor” dropped out in the third grade, the teacher said. Even teachers who knew about and valued the ideals of inclusive education struggled to implement it in the face of daily realities. A secondary school teacher explained: Paying attention to each student is challenging. It drains me. I have a big class and the (Education) Ministry does not recognise my inclusive practice efforts but the academic achievements of students, so I move with those that are quick in grasping the subject. Overall it was clear that there’s a big gap in knowledge and training for both working and trainee teachers when it comes to inclusive education. There was a real sense of powerlessness among the teachers. They cannot fix infrastructure — and shouldn’t have to, since this is not their job. This is where ubuntu/unhu comes in: I believe its tenets can be harnessed to help teachers think about what they can do. The role of ubuntu The unhu/ubuntu philosophy has already been applied elsewhere to encourage inclusive education. Obuntu balumu is a peer-to-peer support initiative in Uganda. It has been studied and  found to materially improve  the participation and inclusion of children with disabilities, including less visible ones. As the Obuntu bulamu project shows, underpinning learning with an ubuntu/unhu philosophy promotes positive cultural practices for inclusivity. At the same time it requires state actors to make decisions based on respect and solidarity. It also encourages innovative, contextual solutions for resource constraints and accessibility issues, such as parent training or home visits for students with disabilities. All of this drives inclusive education. The teachers I interviewed recognised this and offered some ideas about how ubuntu could help them to promote inclusive education. A primary school teacher said: Ubuntu is about fostering community support, an element that aligns perfectly with our context. For instance, we could use our current understanding of inclusive education to create a concise, locally relevant handbook on the subject, and distribute it to students to share with their parents and guardians. This handbook would provide insights into disability and its implications. This teacher also suggested athome tutoring and training other students to support those with disabilities as ways to embed ubuntu in their practice: Alternatively, we could make regular trips to nearby villages, providing a few hours of instruction to those unable to attend school during the week. By doing so, wouldn’t we be practising ubuntu? Adopting the unhu/ubuntu philosophy can help create a more inclusive and supportive educational environment for all students, going beyond western ideas and reflecting a more locally relevant understanding of inclusive education. — The Conversation. *About the writer: Oliver Mutanga is assistant professor at Nazarbayev University in Kazakhstan. Education in Zimbabwe should strive for inclusion — How the philosophy of ubuntu can help Inclusive education is about far more than accommodating learners with disabilities, but teachers don’t seem to know this. Wilfred Kajese/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Zimbabwean founding father, Ndabaningi Sithole, has largely been edited out of the country’s history. But thanks to the tremendous archive of writing Sithole left behind, we can edit him back in. TINASHE MUSHAKAVANHU IN the fall of 2019, I visited the Library of Congress in Washington DC with a specific mission. At the time, I was researching and interested in the idea of encountering Ndabaningi Sithole, one of the founders of the modern state of Zimbabwe, at his peak. For hours I watched videos of Sithole as a young politician, and I was there to witness the unfiltered evolution of a political figure who remains at the margins, unrecognized and uncelebrated. I listened to radio interviews of Sithole articulating the roots of the liberation struggle. The myth of Robert Mugabe as the most eloquent political actor in Zimbabwe is just that. Sithole, who died in 2000, did not have the benefit of Google. He was frozen in time, at the twilight of his life. For a long time on YouTube, the only clips of Sithole were of an aging man, hobbling to court, fighting for his life after being accused of treason and attempting to kill his rival, Mugabe. The accusations were a shoddy plot by the central intelligence office to ensure that Sithole spent his final years fighting for his freedom. As the journalist Bill Saidi reported in  The Daily News: “The plot was so incredible, it would have qualified for a hilarious spoof: ‘The Gang That Couldn’t Shoot Straight.’”  The political tensions between Mugabe and Sithole, it was clear then, did not end with the war, as this trial demonstrated. The Sithole I encountered in old black and white videos was as eloquent, confident and appeared like a future black leader of independent Zimbabwe. He was a charismatic figure with a preacher’s sweeping rhetorical gifts. Unfortunately, this visual archive remains hidden in an American basement and a young generation of Zimbabweans don’t have the benefit of seeing and learning from one of their national liberation heroes. Because Sithole has been reduced to a “minor” historical figure, there has been no interest in opening this archive to a broader public. The story of Ndabaningi Sithole has been very much dependent upon his own writings, both published and unpublished, but this material has never been easily accessible. His books, published since 1956, were banned in then Rhodesia. And by the time independence arrived in 1980, Sithole had been displaced from any form of moral or political Page 38 Reframing Issues NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023 leadership. There was no desire from the new government to repatriate his books or republish them for the benefit of a new generation of Zimbabweans. Sithole’s books, now out of print, are available in libraries and archives around the world, yet not in his home country. In order to write the book  Ndabaningi Sithole: A Forgotten Founding Father (pictured), I had to seek the subject in basements, summon books and documents hidden in off-site storage facilities. Sometimes, I had to speak to people who knew him personally, such as his family or other political actors. I also had conversations with historians and archivists who offered their opinions about Sithole and nationalist history in Zimbabwe. I made a trip to Chipinge where Sithole is buried, and to Matabeleland, a region that had a profound influence on his writing, all in order to make sense of a political and intellectual figure who has remained submerged in the past. And my parents, both retired, were more than supportive in the research of the book. They were my resident librarians, keepers of my Zimbabwean library, and with short notice scanned newspaper articles and book chapters, or bought books in aid of my work. At some point, work on the book stalled. When I first approached the HSRC Press (who published the book as part of the Voices of Liberation series) there was no urgency to do this project. Frustrated, I decided to write a short piece on Sithole for The Conversation  as a way to test out this theory, but also to investigate how he would be read through the prisms of contemporary Zimbabwean politics. Three weeks after my article was published, President Emmerson Mnangagwa used the occasion of Heroes' Day to posthumously declare Sithole a national hero among others who had been shunned by the previous regime. This was no coincidence. But it signaled a radical break from Mugabeism by the new dispensation. The discourse about heroes and heroism had been opened up. I knew then that the impulse to bring to surface Sithole’s writings was urgent and timely. The coup d’etat of November 2017 empowered young people in Zimbabwe to ask questions about their history. Though Sithole is mostly known as a politician, he was the founding president of Zanu in its first decade (1964-1974), and the inaugural commander of the second Chimurenga but was later replaced by his once secretary general, Mugabe. Indeed, Sithole is fascinating and confounding. He was an ordained minister and a teacher. But perhaps, his most important contribution to Zimbabwe was through his writings. He was the author of poetry, polemics, and fiction. In the 1960s and 1970s, Sithole was one of the most prolific black writers in Rhodesia alongside Stanlake Samkange, Lawrence Vambe, and others. His books were published in Dar es Salaam, Cape Town, London, Nairobi, New York, and various other locations. In large part owing to the success of African Nationalism  (published in 1959), Sithole was the most translated Zimbabwean author of his time. His book was translated into more than a dozen languages including Arabic, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Spanish, and Swedish. Despite this success, Sithole was not read as a writer but as a politician. Yet, he wanted politics to have a literary quality. He had a high regard for language, which he believed was an instrument for tearing people out of their ordinary perceptions and forcing them to see and feel. He knew that history does not exist except as it is composed. However, Sithole also wrote as a teacher; his books are didactic, with a mission to educate. It is ironic that most of his books remain unavailable in Zimbabwean libraries and bookshops. Sithole published the first Ndebele novel in Zimbabwe,  AmaNdebele ka Mzilikazi in 1956, which was republished a year later as Umvukela wamaNdebele. Sithole also wrote the first novel in English serialized in  African Parade  between 1959 and 1961. And his most famous book, African Nationalism, was the first autobiography by a black political figure of his generation. In that sense he was a trailblazer. Sithole also knew that fighting colonialism was an intellectual battle. Sithole’s tenure as leader of Zanu was mostly from prison. It was a treacherous time. Most of the black political leaders in Southern Rhodesia had been rounded up, detained, killed, or forced into exile. While in detention, Sithole was never inactive. He directed Zanu’s insurgent activities from his prison cell and used this downtime to further develop his thoughts on the philosophy of the liberation struggle. Sympathetic prison guards and young members of the nationalist movement smuggled his manuscripts out of prison to be later published overseas. In the University of Oxford Press archives more manuscripts are mentioned to have been submitted for consideration, but only a small fraction of these were published. As if he knew history would not be kind to him, Sithole coordinated the liberation struggle through the barrel of the pen. His writing is preemptive; he writes himself into history, not only as a chronicler of the liberation struggle in real-time, but also as an archivist for the future. And it is the archive that informs the basis of this book. It was only possible because of the archive that Sithole left behind. It is important to examine Sithole’s biographical and intellectual accounts and historicise him in relation to the complex social and political history of Zimbabwe. Few works have critically engaged with Ndabaningi Sithole’s writings; he is just a footnote in published historical narratives. And yet, to deny his contributions to the struggle undermines the struggle itself. — Africa Is A Country. *About the writer: Tinashe Mushakavanhu is a junior research fellow in African and comparative literature at St Anne's College, University of Oxford, Britain. Ndabaningi Sithole has been edited out of Zimbabwe history but key

NewsHawks Reframing Issues Page 39 Issue 134, 2 June 2023 FRANZISCA ZANKER THE forced return  of migrants from the European Union (EU) to their countries of origin continues to be a source of major tension in African countries as well as EU member states. The result has been that the EU – and individual member states – have been scrambling to come up with ways to improve cooperation on migration. What EU countries want is for countries of origin to take back migrants that are not able to live legally in Europe. But return rates from the EU to Africa are the lowest compared to other world regions and have even decreased in the last decade. For example, only 9% of Senegalese  with an order to return from the EU did so between 2015 and 2019. In other words, of the 30 650 Senegalese migrants who received an order to leave from a European country between 2015 and 2019, only 2 805 did. Forced return necessitates the cooperation of countries of origin through for example issuing travel documents or allowing flights to land. Based on my recent  work  and broader  research project, I argue that returns are so low in part because European policymakers ignore the competing issues and interests African stakeholders face. I also show how West African states resist cooperating on returns. Their strategies range from reluctant compliance with deportations of their citizens to proactive noncompliance, which has included incidents or threats of violence. My findings help explain why current migration partnerships continue to have little effect on returns. Migration partnerships coming up empty Apart from Rwanda, which has signed a deal with the UK to take in asylum seekers, not yet implemented, returns from European countries are hugely unpopular in most African countries. The  EU’s Partnership Framework  was established in June 2016. It sought to mobilise the instruments, resources and influence of both the EU and member states to establish cooperation with partner countries in order to “manage” migration flows. It stated that the priority was to achieve fast returns. It named five priority countries for this approach: Ethiopia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, and Senegal, seeking to establish tailored migration compacts with them. This framework has so far largely failed to achieve better migration cooperation. The same applies to the  New Pact on Migration and Asylum from 2020, and a revised visa code which allows visa restrictions for countries not adequately cooperating on returns. Forced returns, especially back to west Africa, remain low as noted above. There are a number of reasons for this. Firstly, deportations are often  violent and traumatic events  for those being returned and involve serious human rights violations. For example, a Senegalese migrant rights group recently documented a case of a person who was deported from a closed psychiatric institution in Germany without medication, medical records or telephone and other personal belongings and was left to fend for himself on arrival. Governments wanting to  take care of their citizens will want to avoid this. Secondly, returns can come at the cost of important remittances (often higher than development aid). For  example, Nigeria is the largest net remittance-recipient country in sub-Saharan Africa. In 2017, the country received US$22 billion in official remittances, representing 5.9% of Nigeria’s GDP. In comparison, official development assistance came to US$3.36 billion, only 0.89% of GDP. Thus, countries calculate that returns could reduce remittances. And reintegrating deportees comes with  social  and  economic costs. Thirdly, countries feel that they are badly treated by their European counterparts. Legal migration pathways are limited and the EU approach has become increasingly punitive. There are stricter visa conditions for countries not seen to be adequately cooperating on returns, like The Gambia or Senegal. Governments respond in various ways to return pressures from the EU. A range of responses The research considered the interests of governments in Nigeria, Senegal and The Gambia. It built on 129 interviews with policymakers, politicians, civil society activists and academic experts in these countries and in the EU. Countries’ responses range from reluctant compliance to reactive and proactive non-compliance. They are likely to use all these strategies at different times, sometimes simultaneously. Responses are influenced by the often conflicting pressures governments face domestically and externally. Reluctant compliance is when countries comply with deportations, but only reluctantly. For example  informal return agreements signal compliance to international partners but attract less scrutiny from parliamentary oversight bodies or the general public. This strategy can, however, backfire and cause distrust and outrage from citizens. Reactive noncompliance  includes calling out technical issues and causing delays in return operations. States may fail to identify whether migrants are their citizens, or fail to issue travel documents  of migrants awaiting deportation. This can be a less costly strategy than outright refusing deportations, while increasing domestic approval. Proactive non-compliance  is the most extreme response. This is when states are more direct in their refusal to cooperate with returns. It includes, for example, stalling on negotiations for a formal return agreement.  Senegal  and  Nigeria  have taken this route. The Gambia even implemented a  moratorium  on all (chartered) deportation flights for a few months. Proactive noncompliance holds the most potential for governments to improve their domestic legitimacy – especially during elections. But it can come at the cost of international support. In the case of The Gambia, for example, the EU has imposed  visa sanctions. Way forward EU stakeholders could do more to consider the interests that African countries have when it comes to accepting returnees. Ratcheting up the pressure will produce more resistance. Rather, the EU should focus on repairing relationships. One way would be to offer migration pathways that are accessible, visible and credible. Tying this to return pressures is not likely to work, and will not improve relationships in the long run. — The Conversation. *About the writer: Franzisca Zanker is a senior research fellow at Arnold Bergstraesser Institute in Germany. Forced return of irregular African migrants from Europe is affecting political relationships in the two regions. GettyImages African migration to Europe: Forced returns run into resistance

Page 40 Reframing Issues NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023 There is no path to a green, just, and prosperous shared future that does not have Africa at its core. That is why it is in the world's interest to support the continent, not through charity, but by backing African-led solutions, particularly by removing financial inequities that impede much-needed investment. AMADOU HOTT/ MARK MALLOCH-BROWN AFRICA bears virtually no responsibility for the greenhouse-gas emissions driving the climate crisis. It is not responsible for the conflicts or supply-chain disruptions that have driven global inflation. Nor did it trigger the spread of Covid-19, let alone cause the pandemic’s economic fallout. And yet the long-term effects of this trio of crises are being felt perhaps more acutely in Africa than anywhere else. The International Monetary Fund has estimated that Africa’s additional financing needs resulting from the pandemic will amount to US$285 billion over the four years ending in 2025. But with inflation, exchange-rate pressure, and unmanageable debt levels eroding the already-limited room governments have to make the needed short- and longer-term investments, Africa’s real needs are likely much greater. Despite the remarkable resilience that the continent has shown, anemic economic growth is compounding the challenge. Sub-Saharan Africa endured recession in 2020 for the first time in 25 years. And, according to the African Development Bank (AfDB), the region’s annual growth rate fell from 4.5% in 2021 to 3.5% in 2022. It is expected to amount to just 3.8% this year. Behind these figures are countless ruined lives. The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa  reports  that 18 million more Africans slipped into poverty last year. Hard-won progress toward the UN Sustainable Development Goals has been reversed. Conflicts and climate-related disasters – such as protracted droughts, extreme rains, and flooding – are contributing to East Africa’s worst hunger crisis in decades. The human cost is horrifying, with one person predicted to die of hunger every 28 seconds from this crisis alone. This ought to concern the international community – and not only for humanitarian reasons. The world needs Africa. There is no path to a green, just, and prosperous shared future that does not have Africa at its core. So, it is in the self-interest of the rest of the world to support the continent, not through chariLeveling the financial playing field for Africa ty or handouts, but by backing African-led solutions, especially those focused on leveling a playing field that is currently tilted to the continent’s disadvantage. The allocation of special drawing rights (SDRs, the IMF’s reserve asset) exemplifies the problem. The IMF created SDRs to supplement governments’ currency reserves. But, because SDRs are issued in proportion to countries’ IMF quotas, poorer countries receive the smallest allocations, despite having the greatest need. Wealthier countries – which have far less (or no) need – get the largest shares. In 2021, the G20 countries promised to channel at least 20% of their SDRs toward Africa. But their promises have yet to be fully realized. Faster progress on this front would go a long way toward helping African governments in the near term, especially if the recycled SDRs are channeled through multilateral development banks such as the AfDB. These institutions could then leverage their own AAA ratings to scale up the capital mobilized by a factor of three to four, transforming, say, US$20 billion in SDR-funded projects into US$60-80 billion, with significantly better terms than those offered in commercial markets. Of course, a more dynamic and expansive private sector would provide a longer-term solution. But, as it stands, African governments are at a grievous disadvantage in private markets, where they face higher capital costs, not least because of subjective, discriminatory considerations. Comparing the risk premia of African and non-African states with similar credit ratings, one finds differences ranging from 150 basis points to more than 650 bps, sometimes reflecting a lack of on-the-ground knowledge and subjective judgment. A conference of credit-rating agencies, investors, and African governments is urgently needed to address this intolerable discrimination – which amounts to a powerful brake on progress – once and for all. Again, this would not amount to charity or special treatment; rather, it would be a step toward leveling the playing field, so that African-led solutions can succeed. Removing the “Africa risk premium” would unlock much-needed capital to invest in green development, including the clean-energy transition. The Alliance for Green Infrastructure in Africa is one African-led initiative that would advance this goal. Unveiled by the AfDB, the African Union, Africa50, and other partners at last November’s UN Climate Change Conference in Egypt (COP27), the AGIA seeks to raise US$500 million in grants, concessional resources, and blended and commercial finance to provide early-stage project preparation and development capital for green initiatives. By mitigating high interest rates and the lack of risk appetite for Africa, this would result in the rapid creation of a strong pipeline of bankable green projects. The AGIA aims to unlock at least US$10 billion in green infrastructure investments. Similar efforts are underway elsewhere. One notable example is the ambitious Bridgetown Initiative launched by Barbadian Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley  to create additional fiscal space for development, as well as climate mitigation, adaptation, and loss and damage. Another is the V20 group of climate-vulnerable developing countries, currently chaired by Ghanaian Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta. The coming months offer several opportunities for breakthroughs. The just-completed AfDB meetings in Sharm ElSheikh last week were an important starting point. Next month comes the Summit for a New Global Financing Pact, a major international conference on funding for development and green investment. And September will bring the G20 Leaders’ Summit in New Delhi, an event to which Africa still relies on an invitation, though its economic and demographic weight entitles it to permanent membership (represented by the chairs of the African Union and the African Union Commission, as with the European Union today). These gatherings have the potential to put Africa on a new course. International support is crucial, but that course must be charted and led by the continent itself. — Project Syndicate. *About the writers: Amadou Hott is special envoy of the president of the African Development Bank for the Alliance for Green Infrastructure in Africa.Mark Malloch-Brown, a former deputy United Nations secretary-general and co-chair of the UN Foundation, is president of the Open Society Foundations.

NewsHawks Reframing Issues Page 41 Issue 134, 2 June 2023 Convention on the rights of children MATTHEW MARE THE Convention on the Rights of Children (CRC) is a treaty that lays out the rights of children and standards that every state must aspire. Thus, the convention thrives to ensure that the best interest of the child is always primary, especially the right to survival and development as well as the protection against abuse and neglect. If many countries have signed and ratified the CRC, why children’s rights still being violated and a topical issue globally, raising issues of the effectiveness of the Cedaw in addressing the issue of children. The United States is a very influential member and powerhouse within the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), but interestingly she is not a signatory to the CRC. Being a global powerhouse and enforcer of fundamental human rights, the US’s non-membership or omission to CRC does impact on children’s rights. It is the view of this study that the same manner powerful states are enforcing conflict resolution, fight human rights violations and terrorism amongst others, they can also be able to protect women and children within the religious sphere. While the convention on children’s rights is there to advance the rights of children there is no agreed age on who is a child. The rights of the children are an entitlement but they are being violated throughout the world on a daily basis. This generates more questions than answers. Who makes international laws on children and to what extent are they consulted since they are the ones being affected? Around the globe, over 300 000 children are actively participating in more than 19 armed conflicts as child soldiers with some being sex war objects ,for example, Chibouk children in Nigeria. In addition, there are approximately 150 million street children worldwide between the ages three and 18, and about 40% of these children are homeless which is an unprecedented number in history and this is being done in countries where the aforesaid states are signatory to UNCRC. The study noted a novel form of human rights abuse, where in Africa parents express themselves through names they give to pets, children and livestock. Some of such names affects the child’s sense of dignity and self-esteem. This study noted that most names given to children in Johanne Marange Apostolic Church (JMAC) have derogatory connotations. In African Independent Churches (AICs) a majority of the names given to children by parents have been noted in this study as another form of Human Rights abuse. In this regard, since in AICs women do not make decisions and neither are they expected to speak in the presence of men, the names they given to their children illustrate their resentments. The UNCRC also failed to address issues to do with names, nomenclature, ethnicity and nationality, especially in Africa where names speak volumes about something. For example, some parents give names to their children in order to express anger, for example, rufu meaning death, nhamo, Tambudzai, meaning poverty. In addition, there is a confrontation between rights denial and socialisation, for example, some tenets of child labour like house chores are in fact socialisation in preparation of the future. The study noted that the UNCRC which is an important document that addresses the rights of children has not been effective in addressing Human Rights abuse by the church. It assumes that, globally, almost every individual follows a certain religion and tradition which give them a sense of identity, thus, fighting cultural and religious practices is a mammoth task. In relation to the rights of children, the JMAC church does not permit any teaching outside the doctrine of the church. Thus, it is closed from the outside world for the fear of interference in parental child rearing. Non-Governmental Organisations and Civil Society Organisations are not allowed to interact and enter their shrines. JMAC fears interference especially on child rights, marriage and polygamy, especially at Marange in Bocha where there is a gate where people are screened. Article 9: Freedom of Thought, Conscience and Religion: The charter states that children have the right to freedom and right of thought, conscience and religion. parents are obligated to provide guidance and direction towards the best interests of the child. Parents must ensure that, parents must ensure that, children enjoy their full rights and benefit from national laws and policies. Article 16: Protection Against Child Abuse and Torture: The signatories to the charter must ensure that, children are fully protected from all forms of torture, degrading or inhuman treatment, physically and mental abuse. The charter also prohibit neglect, maltreatment, sexual abuse of children under ones’ care. State parties are expected to monitor, support, prevent, identifies, report, refer and follow up on any form of child abuse and neglect. The article made the right to education compulsory. Its decree that African states must ensure that the talent, mental and physical abilities of the children is natured and their rights fully respected and adhered to. It demands that state parties observe people’s and international human rights conventions and declarations. It went on to state that, African culture on children must promote, their morals, values and cultures. The child is expected to grow in an environment that is free, tolerant, mutual respect, friendly, understanding, regardless of ethnic, tribe and religious groupings. Additionally, a child must have access to natural resources and primary health care. The article on protection against harmful social and cultural practices demand that state parties eliminates harmful cultural and social practices that affects the dignity, well-being, welfare, development and the normal growth of the child. The article outlawed child marriages, it demands the setting out of minimum age of marriage to be 18 years and registration of all marriages in an official registry compulsory. On sexual exploitation, the article prohibits all forms of child exploitation. The inducement, encouragement and coercion of children into any form of sexual activity was prohibited. The use of children in any sexual practices was criminalised. The section on International Treaties and Convention on Women and Children’s Rights reviewed various treaties and conventions and identified legal gasps that can be exploited in violating the rights of women and children. This is important in that most state use domestics laws, treaties and conventions to which state parties are signatories to when interpreting their laws. This principle applies to Zimbabwe where the constitution at declarative level stated that, it recognises treaties and conventions to which Zimbabwe has signed and ratified. The study reviewed the 1949 Convention on the Suppression of Trafficking and Prostitution, the convention helps the study to observe the nature of rights that women enjoy at the formation of the UN. The convention only addressed three key aspects of the rights of the women: first the general antitrafficking management where states were expected to formulate antitrafficking policies and laws; secondly, the state to enforce specific antitrafficking measures for example deportation and exchange of information between UN member states on traffickers to avert harbouring of criminals; and thirdly, to come up with rehabilitation tools for example social welfare services. The third variable is relevant to this study in that it talks of rehabilitation in light of the alleged cases of abuse of women and children in JMAC as is reflected in its theology. The government of Zimbabwe through the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare, in accordance with the precepts of this convention, should roll-out programmes in response to Human Rights concerns in AICs in general and JMAC in particular. These are some of the research gaps identified by the research. The Convention on the Suppression of Women and Trafficking of Children was reviewed to demonstrate the evolution of women and children’s rights over time. The convention encouraged states to formulate laws and mechanism to punish the legal defaulters. This is not withstanding the fact that this piece of convention only catered for white women and children leaving out non-white. The convention, however, has managed to spell out who should be punished by the law even though it did not specify the nature of punishment to be administered on the offenders. It also reviewed this convention as it helps the study to specify that the responsibility to administer punishment on those who violate the rights of women and children. In the case of JMAC, the government of Zimbabwe should be made to account for the failure to discharge its lawful duty, of protecting women and children in JMAC. However, some tenets of this convention are not applicable in this study, for example, trafficking is not the principal challenge facing women and children in JMAC. The 1952 Convention on Political Rights of Women is perhaps the first international legal instrument on women’s participation in politics. The Convention falls under the civil and political rights. It advocated that women must be given equal political rights to those of men. These rights include, voting rights and political participation. Through this convention, women are now entitled to participate in public life and occupy public political offices without being discriminated against on the basis of their gender, ethnicity, race, status and religion, among others. This convention is relevant to this study because it helps the researcher to inquire if women in JMAC are allowed by the church’s theology to vote, participate in politics of the country, occupy political public office, and participate in policy formulation within a state. It is the position of this study that women in JMAC support their husbands’ political affiliation, no woman is allowed to participate in active politics because politics is associated with prostitution and JMAC directs its members on which party to support and vote for. There is no political self-determination. This is not limited to Christianity, but also applies to other religions like Islam. In the contemporary world, ICT is playing a role in political socialisation through such platforms like WhatsApp, Twitter and Facebook amongst others. The study noted that there is less usage of these social media platforms due to high illiteracy rate. The other elements noted were that poverty, data and smart phones costs, poor network in rural areas, jealous and protectionist draconian measures on married women, and the association of social media with worldliness has seen members of JMAC shunning these social media platforms. Social media is an important tool that transforms society through information dissemination. Through social media, ideas, views, analysis, news are shared and knowledge is exchanged, making it the ligament which connects the world into a global village. In some AICs access to other channels other than those provided for by the church is restricted, for example, Paul Mwazha Faith Apostolic Church, where adherents are restricted from watching television. These platforms are referred to as vemunyika meaning worldly, thus the church teaches that they should not interact with the worldly people inclusive of their own relatives. The important research gap identified by this study is a dark patch in research where there is no literature that explicitly explains the position of JMAC theology with regard to access to social media information. *About the writer: Matthew Mare is a Zimbabwean academic who holds two bachelor’s degrees, five master’s qualifications and a PhD. He is also doing another PhD and has 12 executive certificates in different fields. Professionally, he is a civil servant and also board member at the National Aids Council of Zimbabwe.

Page 42 Reframing Issues NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023 Being queer in Africa: The state of LGBTIQ+ rights across the continent In recent years several African countries have  decriminalised  same-sex relationships. But they’re not representative of the continent. In fact, queer rights at times appear to be eroding in much of the continent, with  Kenya  and  Uganda  most recently in the news for harsh laws and violence against members of the LGBTIQ+ community. We asked sociologist and queer studies scholar Zethu Matebeni five questions. How would you describe the state of LGBTIQ+ rights? The state of LGBTIQ+ rights on the continent could be described as being on a continuum of seven possible stages, as suggested by US legal scholar Adam Kretz. These move from total marginalisation to cultural integration. The position in the continuum is determined by a country’s laws and its political, social and cultural conditions. There are countries – such as Nigeria, Mauritania, Sudan, and Somalia – that impose bans, lengthy jail terms, ostracism, or a death penalty on anyone displaying same-sex affection and lesbian, gay or transgender identity or existence. Most countries – such as Algeria, The Gambia, Malawi, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe – remain in the second stage of the continuum, maintaining criminalisation of LGBTIQ+ persons. There are also a number of African countries – such as Angola, Cape Verde, Gabon, Cote d'Ivoire, Lesotho, Rwanda, to name a few – that have reached the third stage of decriminalisation of non-heterosexual sexuality. This makes it possible for LGBTIQ+ persons to attain rights and work towards changing societal attitudes. Only a handful of countries – such as Mauritius, Botswana, Mozambique, Seychelles and South Africa – have codified their laws to make sure that LGBTIQ+ people are protected against discrimination. Although no African country has reached the end of the continuum – cultural integration – there are some that are trying to establish positive rights and full legal equality. Non-heterosexual acts have  always been part  of the African fabric and  ways of being. Colonial  laws  have ensured they are considered un-African, against the order of nature and criminal. Where is it safest to live as a queer person – on paper? Queer people are everywhere and try to create safe spaces for themselves wherever they are. Safety is not only about what rights exist on paper. It’s also about social conditions and attitudes of others about LGBTIQ+ people in that society. Take South Africa as an example. It might be easy to say it’s safer, on paper, to live there because of its laws and the rights given to LGBTIQ+ persons. But the reality may be different. Racial discrimination, economic insecurity, being considered a foreigner, sexual violence and many other factors contribute to making a place unsafe. The country’s high rates of femicide and sexual violence against women, girls and queer persons make it an unsafe place to live as a black and African queer person. Similarly, while South Africa may be ahead of others in the continent because of laws which allow a person to change their sex, these laws still carry certain conditions. These make it difficult for many transgender and intersex persons to live their full lives. Where is it least safe? In over 30 countries in Africa LGBTIQ+ people would face imprisonment. It is difficult to live in a place where you are not wanted and constantly face arrest, violence, torture and persecution. Uganda has just  signed into law  the most extreme legislation against the LGBTIQ+ community, the  Anti-Homosexuality Bill. This imposes the death penalty, life imprisonment or between 10 and 20 years in prison for “attempted homosexuality” and “promotion of homosexuality”. Why do these rights matter? LGBTIQ+ rights matter because they are fundamental human rights that ensure that every person is treated with dignity and respect regardless of their sexual orientation, gender identity, or expression. Ensuring that LGBTIQ+ individuals have access to basic human rights such as the right to freedom of expression, assembly, and association promotes democracy, heterogeneity, social justice and equality. LGBTIQ+ rights matter because they recognise that everyone has the right to live their lives without fear of harassment, violence or persecution. With these rights it would be possible to fight discrimination, inequality and injustice in many societies while ensuring that everyone benefits from full access to rights. What needs to be done about it? Legal, cultural, social, political and economic barriers would need to be lifted to advance LGBTIQ+ rights and promote greater inclusion. For many countries that are still in the first and second stage of the continuum, legal reform would need to be prioritised. Cultural and social factors to be addressed would include educating the public about diversity and difference. Activists are already doing a lot, some with limited or no resources. Support of activist initiatives and organisations working on LGBTIQ+ issues, health issues, gender equity, advocacy for equality and social justice would need to be strengthened. This would ensure that these activities speak directly to policy issues. Other African countries needed to put pressure on the Ugandan government to stop its deadly new bill, which has since been signed into law. It’s possible that whatever gains have been made elsewhere will be threatened by the actions of parliamentarians and homophobic citizens in Uganda. It has been noted that US Christian fundamentalists  have been behind  anti-homosexuality bills in west African countries, under the guise of protecting the family. These ideologies are spreading and fuelling deep hatred, promoting harmful  conversion therapies  for LGBTIQ+ persons. Religious ideologies could have spill-over effects in other African countries. The battleground has shifted. Queer Africans, together with their governments, have to show their resilience and resistance against the neocolonial power dictating how life and family should be experienced in Africa. This article was updated to reflect developments in Uganda. — The Conversation. *About the interviewee: Zethu Matebeni is South African research chair in Sexualities, Genders and Queer Studies at the University of Fort Hare. A member of the gay community poses with the rainbow flag (file photo).

NewsHawks Africa News Page 43 Issue 134, 2 June 2023 China in Africa: Kenya railway study shows that investment projects aren’t a one-way street GEDIMINUS LESUTIS/ ZHENGLI HUANG CHINA is an important economic player in Africa. In 2021 alone, China accounted for nearly US$5 billion  in foreign direct investment in African countries. The rapidly increasing Chinese presence across Africa has become a contentious issue both for Beijing and African governments. In particular, mega projects funded by China have resulted in public controversies about the relationship between external investments and public debt. China is Africa’s biggest bilateral lender. In 2020, it held over US$73 billion of Africa’s public debt and nearly US$9 billion of its private debt. Due to this, US Treasury secretary Janet Yellen has  accused China  of leaving countries “trapped in debt”. Kenya has been  no exception. China’s involvement in the construction of Kenya’s  Standard Gauge Railway is a typical example of controversies brought by China-supported investments. These include issues of increasing socio-economic inequalities  between different population groups advanced by large-scale investments,  local labour mistreatment  by Chinese managers,  accusations of neo-colonialism, and the long-term  sustainability of loans issued by the Exim Bank of China for projects. In 2022, with  a total debt of US$6.83 billion, China was Kenya’s biggest bilateral creditor. Out of this amount, US$5.3 billion  was advanced by the Exim Bank of China to finance the Standard Gauge Railway. It is against this background that  our study  asked if Chinese actors indeed determined how mega-infrastructures are realised in African countries. We examined the specific ways in which Chinese state-owned enterprises are involved in the construction of Kenya’s Standard Gauge Railway. We analysed how infrastructure development was realised on the ground and how Chinese construction companies shaped the process. The study showed that the decisions of Chinese state-owned enterprises in Kenya do not necessarily present  a grand Chinese strategy. Instead, they result from changing political  and economic circumstances  in China, and reflect both state and private Chinese interests. Acknowledging these dynamics is important because it demonstrates how narratives about China’s involvement in mega-infrastructure development might overemphasise the power of the Chinese state. Simultaneously, this highlights that African governments have more power to influence their industrial development and the sustainability of large-scale projects than mainstream narratives acknowledge. Flagship projects Alongside other large projects, such as the Lamu Port-South Sudan-Ethiopia Transport Corridor, the Standard Gauge Railway is central to Kenya’s national development programme  Vision 2030. This is supposed to industrialise the country and advance socio-economic development. But the sustainability of the railway project and its  contribution to government debt has been widely debated. In 2022, according to the National Treasury, Kenya’s debt stood at KSh9.15 trillion (US$74.1 billion),  equivalent to 67% of the country’s GDP. There are also concerns whether Chinese contracts  protect national interests. We took a closer look at the project to see if these fears were well founded. Between May 2019 and September 2020, we conducted interviews during multiple visits to Chinese construction camps alongside the railway construction sites. We interviewed managers and employees in construction and operational departments of China Road and Bridge Corporation, the main railway project contractor. We interviewed informants from the public sector in Kenya, including from Kenya Railways Corporation and Kenya Ports Authority. We also spoke to local government workers, private sector representatives, lawyers and scholars. Our research is unique because we directly engaged with the Chinese actors that built Kenya’s new railway. Their perspectives have been lacking in both public and academic debates. This is because public engagement of Chinese contractors is usually strictly guarded  due to the state ownership of these enterprises. Our interviews revealed that in Kenya, China Road and Bridge Corporation constantly shifted its strategies. It also adapted to local circumstances in the country and across East Africa, rather than only imposing its strategic priorities. This compromised its own interests of economic productivity and its public image. Our finding runs counter to any grand visions of transformative infrastructure development, the lens through which Kenya’s rail project has been interpreted. Railway – not just the construction contractor. According to our interviews, operating the railway would not benefit the company financially. But the stakes were too high to leave it to chance. Operational challenges that a new company could experience might have affected the public image of the project, as well as the corporation itself. Therefore, the company had to balance its short-term financial interests with long-term reputational concerns. So far, there has not been clear evidence of the Standard Gauge Railway contributing to Kenya’s  national economic development. The current investment in the railway between Mombasa and Naivasha (120km away from Nairobi) is not enough to boost the economy. This could only be realised if the railway connected global maritime trade to the hinterland of East Africa, to accelerate  transport efficiency  at a regional scale. But the Kenyan and Ugandan governments  did not manage to agree on financing terms to extend the project. For this reason, in 2018, the Exim Bank  discontinued funding for extending Kenya’s railway line to Uganda. This shows that Beijing’s strategies of infrastructure development are not set in stone but change, and can even be reversed, due to shifting circumstances in overseas regions. Still, there are clear winners. Though the long-term profitability of Kenya’s Standard Gauge Railway remains in question, China Road and Bridge Corporation managed to  enhance its global market position. In Kenya alone, despite the controversies that surround the new railway, the corporation was given  new tenders  to complete other key national projects, such as the Nairobi Expressway. As we show in our study, this is not necessarily an outcome of a grand strategy in Beijing. Instead, this is a result of dynamic and ever-changing efforts of Chinese companies that try to align multiple demands between their own economic interests and various political priorities in China and across Africa. This highlights that African countries are not passive recipients of Chinese-funded projects. They have an important role to play in counterbalancing Chinese actors to shape how these projects are realised on the ground. — The Conversation. *About the writers: Gediminas Lesutis is a Marie Curie Fellow at the University of Amsterdam in the Netherlands. Zhengli Huang is a post-doctoral researcher at Tongji University in China.

Page 44 World News NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023 America and China on collision course The G7 countries may have set out to deter China without escalating the new cold war, but the perception in Beijing suggests that they failed to thread the needle at their recent summit in Hiroshima. It is now clear to all that the United States, its allies, and any partners they can recruit are committed to containing China’s rise. NOURIEL ROUBINI FOLLOWING the May G7 summit in Hiroshima, United States President Joe Biden claimed that he expects a “thaw” in relations with China. Yet despite some recent official bilateral meetings – with US secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen  expressing hopes  for a visit to China soon – relations remain icy. In fact, far from thawing, the new cold war is getting colder, and the G7 summit itself magnified Chinese concerns about the United States pursuing a  strategy  of “comprehensive containment, encirclement, and suppression.” Unlike previous gatherings, when G7 leaders offered mostly talk and little action, this summit turned out to be one of the most important in the group’s history. The US, Japan, Europe, and their friends and allies made it clearer than ever that they intend to join forces to counter China. Moreover, Japan (which currently holds the group’s rotating presidency) made sure to  invite key leaders  from the Global South, not least Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In reaching out to rising and middle powers, the G7 wants to persuade others to join its more muscular response to China’s rise. Many will likely agree with the depiction of China as an authoritarian, state-capitalist power that is increasingly assertive in projecting power in Asia and globally. While India (which holds this year’s G20 presidency) has taken a neutral position on Russia’s war in Ukraine, it has long been locked in a strategic rivalry with China, owing partly to the fact that the two countries share a long border, much of which is  disputed. Thus, even if India does not become a formal ally to Western countries, it will continue to position itself as an independent, rising global power whose interests are more aligned the West than with China and China’s  de facto allies  (Russia, Iran, North Korea, and Pakistan). Moreover, India is a formal member of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, a security grouping with the US, Japan, and Australia whose explicit purpose is to  deter China; and Japan and India have  longstanding friendly relations  and a shared history of adversarial relations with China. Japan also invited Indonesia, South Korea (with which it is pursuing a  diplomatic thaw, driven by common concerns about China), Brazil (another key Global South power), African Union Chair Azali Assoumani, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The message was clear: The Sino-Russian friendship “without limits” is having serious consequences for how other powers perceive China. But going even further, the G7 devoted a substantial portion of its final communiqué to explaining how it will confront and deter China in the years ahead. Among other things, the document decries Chinese policies of “economic coercion” and stresses the importance of an Indo-Pacific partnership to thwart China’s efforts to dominate Asia. It criticizes Chinese expansionism in the East and South China Seas, and it includes a clear warning to China not to attack or invade Taiwan. In taking steps to “de-risk” their relationships with China, Western leaders have settled on language that is only slightly less aggressive than “de-coupling.” But more than the diplomatic argot has changed. According to the communiqué, Western containment efforts will be accompanied by a policy to engage the Global South with large investments in the clean-energy transition, lest key countries there be drawn into China’s sphere of influence. No wonder China could not contain its rage against the G7. As well as overlapping with a Quad meeting, the Hiroshima summit comes at a time when Nato has begun its own pivot to Asia, and when the Aukus alliance (comprising Australia, the UK and the US) is gearing up to confront China in the Pacific. Meanwhile, the Western-Chinese tech and economic war has continued to escalate. Japan is imposing restrictions on  semiconductor exports to China that are no less draconian than those put in place by the US, and the Biden administration is pressuring Taiwan and South Korea to follow suit. In response, China has  banned  chips made by US-based Micron. With the US chipmaker Nvidia quickly becoming a corporate superpower — owing to surging demand for its advanced chips to power AI applications – it, too, will likely face new constraints on selling to China. US policymakers have made clear that they intend to keep China at least a generation behind in the race for AI supremacy. Last year’s CHIPS and Science Act introduced massive incentives to reshore chip production. The risk now is that China, at pains to close its tech gap with the West, will leverage its dominant role in producing and refining rare-earths metals – which are crucial for the green transition – to retaliate against the US sanctions and trade restrictions. China has already increased its exports of electric vehicles by almost 700% since 2019, and it is now starting to deploy commercial airliners  to compete with Boeing and Airbus. So, while the G7 may have set out to deter China without escalating the cold war, the perception in Beijing suggests that Western leaders failed to thread the needle. It is now clearer than ever that the US and the broader West are committed to containing China’s rise. Of course, the Chinese would like to forget that today’s escalation owes as much, if not more, to their own aggressive policies as to US strategy. In recent  interviews  marking his 100th birthday, Henry Kissinger – the architect of America’s “opening to China” in 1972 — has warned that unless the two countries find a new strategic understanding, they will remain on a collision course. The deeper the freeze, the greater the risk of a violent crack-up. — Project Syndicate. *About the writer: Nouriel Roubini, professor emeritus of economics at New York University's Stern School of Business, is chief economist at Atlas Capital Team. China’s President Xi Jinping (left) with U.S. President Joe Biden. AFP via Getty Images

NewsHawks World News Page 45 Issue 134, 2 June 2023

NewsHawks Reframing Issues Page 53 Issue 133, 26 May 2023 JONATHAN MBIRIYAMVEKA UB40 have sensationally distanced themselves from a show that took place in Harare last week, saying singer Ali Campbell, who performed in the Zimbabwean capital, is no longer part of the group so cannot use its name. The English songwriter, who was UB40’s lead singer before leaving the British pop and reggae band in 2007, performed at Old Hararians Sports Club on Africa Day. The show, which drew a cosmopolitan multi-racial crowd, was “dubbed UB40 featuring Ali Campbell,” which has infuriated the 64-year-old composer, once the face of the globally popular outfit. Matt Campbell, part of UB40’s management and son of Ali’s brother Robin Campbell, came out guns blazing in messages seen by The NewsHawks this week. Three brothers – Ali, Robin and Duncan – are founding members of UB40. Ali and Robin do not see eye-to-eye, and the sour relationship has been adapted by Ali's nephew Matt. “I'm writing to you because it has come to my attention that the article that your publication has published is full of inaccuracies and misleading information,” wrote Matt Campbell. “The article in question refers to a UB40 concert that is due to take place in a matter of weeks, which in fact is a concert by Ali Campbell who's an ex-member of UB40, a band he left 15 years ago. He legally cannot be referred to as simply UB40 as the band UB40 still exists. “There is several references to the original band UB40 which states the dates when the band first appeared in Zimbabwe back in the early 80s . . . again, this has nothing to do with Ali Campbell's band who doesn't feature a single member of UB40. Just the title of the article 'UB40 breath of fresh air' is completely misleading. “I ask that swift action be taken on the matter, or we will be forced to react legally. I hope this matter can be resolved amicably.” Reached for comment on whether the show promoter deliberately used the name UB40 via billboards to dupe or mislead Zimbabwean fans, Walter Wanyanya said they were clear from the outset that it was Ali Campbell coming to Harare. “Yes, from the outset, we have been saying UB40 featuring Ali Campbell because we were fully aware of the split and also this happened not a week or month before the show but 15 years ago. This is why we never said UB40 was coming,” Wanyanya explained. The issue of UB40 is a bit complex but largely a question of huge egos. Almost like a family institution, UB40 was formed with brothers Ali, Robin and Duncan as its founding members. As UB40 the group was so solid to the point that everyone could sing, play instruments and compose songs. Ali left the group to pursue a solo career but then it turned out that one of the reasons for his departure was the management and of course, remuneration. He then left together with Astro ( now late), while the other members remained. The problem came when Ali started using the name UB40 for his shows. A court case was opened and it was then agreed that both groups had a right to use the name UB40. So, Ali would use "UB40 featuring Ali Campbell" while the other group identified itself as simply UB40, with Duncan at the helm. When it comes to sound and instrumentation, Ali falls short, but since he used to lead in vocals for the original UB40, his vocals are on point while the other UB40 is a bit compromised on vocals but good on sound. The last time UB40 performed as a solid group in Zimbabwe it was in 1982, just two years after attaining Independence on 18 April 1980. Back then, UB40 was still intact, with Ali and Robin Campbell, Earl Falconer, Mickey Virtue, Brian Travers, Jim Brown, Norman Hassan and Astro as its original members. So, when news that UB40 was coming back to Zimbabwe spread all over the internet, it sort of ignited an old grudge between the two warring groups. For those not in the know, Robin had a fallout with Ali and the two’s beef played out during the Africa Day Old Hararians Show. And this is not the first time the splinter groups have fought over the use of the name UB40 by Ali Campbell. In a video posted by Matt titled: “Ali Campbell Exposed on His Lies on leaving UB40”, Robin said they were disappointed about the split but wished Ali well, adding that “UB40 has always been a band not individuals.” In the video, Robin said Ali had been unhappy for long and it was also said Ali without the name UB40 was finding it hard to go it alone. STYLE TRAVEL BOOKS ARTS MOTORING Porsche just got angrier Being a Fashion Model Life&Style Page 46 Issue 134, 2 June 2023 Furious UB40 say they didn’t come to Zimbabwe: ‘It’s a lie and misleading’

Poetry Corner Title: The Last Stand Poet: Gift Sakirai At two I knew not what they taught Daily, I stayed indoors \doggedly pursuing mother to a fault. Snotty-nosed and recalcitrant, I threw tantrums to my mother's consternation. At five, I left the comfort that home guaranteed and found my personage in the midst of people unknown. Fear thus a friend of mine became in that class of peers unforgiving. I learned mostly from a curriculum unofficial, kicks and fists thus my friends became and homeward I took nosebleeds like homework daily. At fifteen I loved my first love, a gem of a girl whose smile was the envy of many a teenager. I mumbled in her presence daily for words would fail me always. This it was for a whole year until like a bird in flight she flew out of my life. At twenty I stumbled into university, having scrapped by my studies. Therein all hell broke loose for what mother had taught was useless thus rendered. I partook in pomp and fanfare. By chance it was that I finished my studies, only to be accosted by a job market unforgiving. At thirty-five I decided to take the plunge after years of a hesitation acute and hitched myself to a woman who had thus been a decade patient. Therefrom, I second guessed myself into fatherhood, and bumbled along in a world where I was a stranger unwelcome. At sixty-four with hair turned grey I'm still waiting to exhale and for once have a momentary relief from a life vengeful a year before I'm put out to pasture like a heifer overworked. I know not what the twilight years will my way bring a mystery it was in childhood, a mystery it still is in old age. A hustle death will have in taking me to the world beyond though. Having been short changed many times over in life, I swear my fall won't be as easy as that. This time, I won't go down without a fight. Death, beware! ***************************************************** Title: Death is a Brothel Poet: Farai Chinaa Mlambo My brother died peacefully in a brothel. He took his lust breath At his favourite venue kumaAvenues. He died of erotic sweetness — Sent straight to heaven From the least expected of havens. His head lay limply On the curvy thighpreneur's lap Like an overfed, spoiled toddler's. His slightly protruding perverted tongue Lay on his mouth's side Like one who'd suckled the tip of cyanide's nipple. His shiny eyeballs ballooned from their sockets And fixated on the narrow space betwixt her boobs; Like one reading footnotes to a romantic epic; They betrayed the lasciviousness With which the casualty, like a trampled ant, Had met his unlikely end. He drowned at the scene my brother, Baptising himself in oasis waters. The unenviable task of unwrapping him From his empress' tight embrace And ferrying him to the funeral parlour Had to take men and women of valour. Suddenly, what started off As a morning of wanton moaning Turned out to be a day of wild mourning; With some cursing the brothel owner, While others blamed the dead man for a death without honour. ************************************************* Title: On Stoeps Of Understanding Poet: Andy Kahari I have not wanted to wet my thoughts with such liquid thinking. But when the soul thirsts to know, I cannot but drench and drown till am submerged In such submarine thoughts. I have manoeuvred and still do; Deep ocean, Up and down abyssal hills overriding sea mounts of thoughts. And high perched on waves of knowledge quest, Question do IFear and pain, Existence and death? I have thus known; It is pain I fear, For my flesh has cannibalized it before. But death! Why should I fear that which I do not know? And so I have embraced it and waited for its dawn. For to think of my gone father, Has been knowledge of many before, Who, as him have gone and not returned. So I have wandered in my thinkingWhat if when I is gone, I stand on stoeps of understanding to understand: I is where I ought to be? Or worse still I become more of nothing I always have been in this miserable life, I hide behind religion, politics, business and sex. When all it is, was and will be: Vanity and vanity! I have thus put my soul to think and think, Till my soul was transcended to be my thoughts again drowning me. And in my quest to rise, I have bubbled through bubbles, And found air Where I ought not have found molecules. And so a mule I have been in all this puzzle and experimented upon is all I saw is I. Thus fleshly wounded and solely broken down have I been, For this soul of mine to dwindle, And see, nothing is who I is in this puzzle, I for so long have laboured to piece together. And yet to piece is supposed to be: To knit and be neat in thoughts; For that I would have thought a crochet hook or knit stick would have weaved and ticked my thoughts virtuous. But that never could do a victorious tango, To a man such as I, imbued in easily torn flesh. Any and every poke in crotchetiness has been a strike birthing innumerable soreness, To a life already in inestimable sorrowness. So in a life of gods I have sought it augmentable to my days, If only I could find a nest in this tree before it’s fallen and rotten. But what I crave to receive: Live and leave to anywhere at any desirable time, And perhaps be desiderata to falling daffodil petals; So I too as the daffodils would be left in hope of what if, Fallen, I had not and would not in any approaching new suns? Is all a life gone too, to not return too when I wished it be I then, here and there! But to not return is it not to be a god? For is it not rotten leaves that begat life to a rotten stump? So in going would I not be a begotten fire ball amidst the rolling waves boiling the oceans? So in dying do I not become death and it never I? For had it become I Banish and puke, It would have done I long ago. For who can stand the bickering man, And all his ceaseless life taking diseases? Thus I have known to die is to become and defeat death, Conquer and rule over it. Death I have thus not feared! *********************************************** NewsHawks Page 47 Issue 134, 2 June 2023

Page 48 NewsHawks Issue 134, 2 June 2023 People & Places Mnangagwa visit to Malawi in pics

NewsHawks Page 49 Issue 134, 2 June 2023 be doing. 20-year-olds should be signing professional contracts. So there is nothing bad with playing a senior guy who is at OH (Old Hararians). I don’t see it as dangerous. It is senior rugby, they are Under-20 men. So that’s why they are categorised as men, not schoolboys, not boys. So it is the right thing. Playing the Goshawks, for us, is a good thing. People don’t see the bigger picture. How many guys who left the under-20s last year are in the Goshawks right now? So it’s a three-yearyear window at most. We have guys who played in my 2021 team, ana (the likes of Aaron) Juma, Scotty (Patson), Chief (Tinomukudza Chifumbu). Then last year’s group ana (Ben) Pattenden, (Takudzwa) Musingwini and Dwadwa (Tonderai Chiwambutsa) was the year before in 2020. So I don’t understand what they are talking about. People are just oblivious to the game. We need the physicality. If we were going to play SA, we were probably going to get pumped 20, 30 points. Because of the level they are at, they are playing against their seniors, week in week out. And we are not. So we need that physicality, that’s why we have been asking to play (Harare) Sports Club, OGs (Old Georgians), OH, the club teams. Because we can test ourselves physically and defensively and get our defensive systems in check, and try our attacking strategies. So playing against Goshawks is actually a need and necessity. When we played in the Zambian series in 2021, we played the Zambia national team, or second team. What was wrong with that? We pumped them three games in a row. So what’s the difference? I think we need to see the bigger picture, where this team is going. If we are going to play in the Junior World Championship tier, we need to focus where we need to be in the next two years. If we are trying to get into the Championship tier, we need to be competitive at a higher standard, week in week out. Last week, I played our academy players. I’m trying to work on a strategy that works, that has a two-year, three-year plan. It’s a pathway, it’s not an event, it is a process. It's new to them (the players), it’s new to me, so I’m trying to put in place a system that works. We are developing a blueprint to see what’s working, what’s not working. Then 2027 World Cup we will be looking at a different story and different composition. SUCCESS brings attention, and Zimbabwe’s two-time African champions have drawn a lot of it after winning the Under-20 rugby title in April for the second time on the trot. The Young Sables will be playing in the World Rugby Under-20 Trophy tournament in Kenya next month, opening against Scotland on 15 July. The team that wins the tournament gains promotion into the World Rugby Under-20 Championship, which is the first-tier competition in global youth rugby. In preparation for July’s tournament, Zimbabwe’s Under-20 team has been playing matches against local clubs. Before departure for Kenya, the Young Sables will also play against the country’s unofficial Test team, the Goshawks, which this year is a largely developmental side, and has been taking part in the Currie Cup First Division. There has been debate over the pros and cons of the youthful side playing against older players, with a certain school of thought suggesting the young players should not be pitted against older opposition. SHAUN DE SOUZA, the Young Sables coach, reacts in this conversation with ENOCK MUCHINJO. I don’t understand when guys are saying guys are young and can’t play seniors. If you look at South Africa, how many under-20s are already playing Currie Cup? How many are playing United Rugby Championship? The 20-yearolds are already the ones making the footprint into those senior teams, the franchises in SA. When they are 19, they are still knocking on the doors. 20 years that’s when they make their names. So I don’t know what people want. Even Scotland, one of the teams that played in the (Under-20) Six Nations, and we will be facing them. How many of their guys are playing top-flight rugby in a professional league in senior rugby? TJ Maguranyanga is playing in the French league. He’s 21, last year he was 20. People don’t understand what 20-year-olds should Sport ‘They are men, not boys’: Young Sables coach says players must test themselves against seniors Shaun De Souza

LUTON is a very special place for Zimbabweans, for many of us settled here during the first waves of immigration to the United Kingdom. So, the analogy of “The Seven Ages of Man” is a good introductory point of this Zimbabwean Lutonian's story I’m sharing with you in The NewsHawks. Telling a story of a young man whose dreams were shattered at a schoolboy age and in his melancholy became spiritual, finding his peace and revival in choral music at a local Anglican Church. A place where he found a new family that imparted Christian values to his broken heart and soul. Such is the background of my move from the soils that raised me to the United Kingdom and becoming a young father. As per the analogy noted in the preamble, I had to be a soldier early as I had no time to be a lover but a very young father in a foreign land where dynamics were different from most Zimbabwean social settings. Fortunately my new home was to be a town not so far from the UK capital London, called Luton. In this town there was a growing network of Zimbabweans, in spite of uncertainties of being a foreigner and our nature of being reserved and respectful. Looking back, I am grateful that it was Luton that fate took me to, as my new home is a place that values diversity and difference. Our cultural and religious values are respected, although we have had to prune some of our bad habits which are taken seriously by the colourful town that welcomed and embraced us and its laws. It is in Luton where I finally had my knee reconstruction and a couple of less serious surgeries on both knees allowing me to get involved in social football, where I connected with some former footballers who had moved to Luton. Many Zimbabweans in the UK have a connection with Luton that when Marvelous Nakamba joined the local team in the Championship, the bond intensified. Most Zimbabweans I know are now behind the football team due to our history and the Nakamba factor. A sense of pride because Luton welcomed us with open arms, and allowed us to make it our new home away from our beloved Zimbabwe. The other source of our pride is the conduct of Nakamba at Luton Town FC, where he is an absolute darling. We are glowing with pride as we are well represented by Nakamba. This is why I see his success as a glossy finish applied to the image of a Zimbabwean in Luton and anything connected to it. I attended the open bus parade on Sunday and I met a lot of Zimbabweans. What touched me was the fact that some were people I would not call football fans. The exploits of the team’s achievements with our boy attracted people beyond the sport and brought Luton closer together and revitalised the sense of pride and belonging. That moment when social media dramas that dent our image are overpowered by the goodness of sport. I hope that Marve stays, but if he goes, I know the young man from my home is forever a hero in Luton. They do not forget his kind in these parts of England. In conclusion, I say Zimbabweans all over the world, let us stay connected and be supportive of each other. Let us invest more in elevating each other rather than breaking each other. May God bless you all! May God bless our Zimbabwe! TOGETHER WE RISE! *Guest columnist Jirvas ‘Jirvaldo’ Munyaradzi Gwanzura has lived in Luton since 2002. He was a keen footballer back in the days at Churchill High School in Harare. He is the founder of 263Rise, which promotes music, arts and footballing talents. 50c PRICE SPORT Zim Cricket launches Premier League NEWS $60 Covid tariff for visitors & tourists CULTURE Community radio regulations under review @NewsHawksLive TheNewsHawks www.thenewshawks.com [email protected] Thursday 1 October 2020 WHAT’S INSIDE ALSO INSIDE Finance Ministy wipes out $3.2 Billion depositors funds Zim's latest land controversy has left Ruwa farmer stranded Story on Page 3 Story on Page 8 Story on Page 16 Chamisa reaches out to Khupe Unofficial president calls for emergency meeting +263 772 293 486 Friday 2 June 2023 ALSO INSIDE They are men, not boys: Young Sables coach Sports World Athletics ban transgender women from competition Juju nonsense: It’s never too late to say enough is enough Nakamba brings meaning to the Zim way of life in Luton Jirvas Gwanzura gets Marvelous Nakamba's attention during Luton Town's victory parade. Jirvas Gwanzura HawkZone