NewsHawks 2 December 2022

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WHAT’S INSIDE Friday 2 December 2022 NZaEcWc Srecords STPatOeRndTa Taibu:
US$23 million ‘In T10 one
MNEnWanSgagwa corruption over can be
pampered MPs, cases game over’
ministers for
political survival Story on Page 15 Story on Page 56

Story on Page 4

Zim govt
to spend
US$100m
on 2023
elections

ALSO INSIDE Zimbabwe braces for dark Christmas

Page 2 News NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

OWEN GAGARE 2023 elections cost US$116m

ZIMBABWE’S 2023 general elections are ex- Finance minister Mthuli Ncube
pected to gobble up ZW$76 billion (US$116
million). ers’ roll. to ensure the candidates were nominated by the Electoral Act it was entitled to have access
The NCA said it intended to field candi- registered voters as required by the Electoral to a copy of every voters’ roll to be used in the
The country will hold presidential, parlia- Act. election, either in printed form or in electronic
mentary and local government elections simul- dates to contest the 2018 elections but could form.
taneously, most likely on a date in July or Au- not go ahead without a copy of the voters’ roll The party said in terms of section 21(4) of
gust according to estimates by the Zimbabwe
Electoral Commission.

Finance minister Mthuli Ncube set aside the
amount when he presented the 2023 national
budget in Parliament last week.

“The country will hold harmonised elec-
tions in 2023, as enshrined in the constitution.
The preparations have already commenced,
which include the delimitation exercise, voter
registration and voter’s role inspection,” Ncu-
be said.

“The 2023 National Budget is setting aside
resources to cover voter registration ZW$12
billion, voter inspection ZW$11 billion
and actual election conduct ZW$53 billion,
among others.”

Zanu PF insiders last month told The New-
sHawks that President Emmerson Mnangagwa
wanted elections as soon as they are constitu-
tionally due.

Zec in October advised that the election
is likely to be held in July or August, while
announcing the suspension of National As-
sembly and local authority by-elections for
vacancies that would occur with effect from 1
November, pending the conduct of the general
elections.

“Section 158(3) of the constitution provides
that polling in by-elections shall take place
within ninety days of the vacancies occurring
unless the vacancies occur within nine months
before a general election is due to be held. The
last general election held in 2018 was held on
the 31st July 2018,” Zec said.

“It is therefore anticipated from a reading of
section 158(3) of the constitution that general
elections will be held on a date to be set during
the month of either July or August 2023.

“Members of the public are thus notified
that the filling of vacancies that occur on or
after the 1st of November 2022 will be sus-
pended pending the conduct of the 2023 gen-
eral elections.”

The poll preparations are taking place at a
time Zimbabwe’s main opposition party CCC,
and some civil society organisations have ex-
pressed concern over Zec’s failure to avail the
physical copy of the voters’ roll at a reasonable
price. Zec is charging US$187 000 for persons
or institutions to access the voters’ roll.

There are concerns that the voters roll is in
shambles amid revelations that in many cases
people with identical names and identity num-
bers are registered in different constituencies,
while in many cases an unusually high number
of people are sharing one address.

In some cases, large numbers of people are
registered at commercial premises, which do
not provide accommodation at all.

Some of the anomalies in the voters’ roll
have been exposed by Team Pachedu an online
based group trying to promulgate a culture of
transparency, responsibility and accountabili-
ty.

CCC has repeatedly demanded an indepen-
dent audit of the voters roll after several anom-
alies were unearthed.

Last month, the Election Resource Centre
(ERC) took Zec to court in a bid to force the
elections management body to review its exor-
bitant fees for accessing a physical copy of the
voters’ roll.

Zec said it will not avail the voters roll
through a portable electronic mode to protect
it from possible tampering.

“The cost of the voters roll is ridiculous, un-
justified and unreasonable. ERC with the

Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights
(ZLHR) has initiated litigation,” the ERC’s
Takunda Tsunga said ahead of the court ac-
tion.

Zec has activated statutory instrument 145
of 2022 which states that “a hard copy of a
monochrome copy of the voters roll shall be
one United States dollars per page of the na-
tional voters roll.”

In 2018, the Lovemore Madhuku-led op-
position National Constitutional Assembly
(NCA) petitioned the courts seeking an order
compelling the Zec to avail a copy of the vot-

NewsHawks News Page 3

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Ministers’ US$20m controversial
allowances weren't budgeted for

OWEN GAGARE vate accommodation at the aforesaid rate with ef- about basics for MPs here. As for ministers, that is Norton MP Temba Mliswa
fect from 21 November 2022. To that end, I will a different issue. Their situation borders on luxury ins who gives more and gets less in return really.
CONTROVERSY over the huge housing allow- be submitting my claim at the end of this month.” — a housing allowance for US$500 000, it’s not How can we be effective in positions of oversight
ances for Zimbabwean ministers and deputy min- justified in this situation.” over the executive and other arms of gvt when we
isters has deepened amid revelations the money While some people agree MPs need accommo- are not capacitated? Look at what the judiciary
was not budgeted for in the first place. dation, cars and sitting allowances, the majority Ministers and deputy ministers together drew and the executive gets. How do you oversee such
disagree. over US$20 million from the fiscus. arms of gvt from a position of dire poverty?”
This is according to chairperson of the parlia-
mentary welfare committee Temba Mliswa, who They are opposed to profligacy while people are MPs got US$14 million, but if ministers and He added: “It's also unfortunate that people
is also Norton independent member of Parlia- suffering and critical professionals like doctors, their deputies are subtracted from the MPs to operate with a mindset that MPs shouldn't be
ment. nurses and teachers are struggling as they earn avoid double-dipping, the amount goes down to supported in accordance with their offices and
peanuts. US$12.7 million. obligations. Every role and job has conditions of
“In terms of utility, there is no problem with service. These are part of that. Why should the
MPs getting US$40 000 housing allowances as MPs, however, feel entitled to what they are In a series of tweets over the issue, Mliswa said: role of being an MP be dangerous, risky & yet
part of their packages because it’s entirely neces- demanding. “MPs are the headmasters who watch over oth- thankless?
sary for them to carry out their duties. MPs work er arms of state. Why are we unsettled with their
hard looking after their constituencies and their “Do MPs need accommodation during the lesser benefits even against the humongous alloca- “Again, initially and as approved in the budget,
people, passing laws and budgets for the country course of doing public business? Yes, they do. Do tions for ministers & dep ministers US$500K & MPs had been given US$80 000 for cars. Howev-
to move forward,” Mliswa told The NewsHawks. we need cars to visit our constituencies and attend US$350K respectively? Certain things are obliga- er, they acquired vehicles for US$50 000, leaving
parliamentary business? Yes, we do. Do we need tory for certain positions! It's paradoxical that we a US$30K change. It's part of that figure. Just
“In the process, they spend hours at work and to be paid sitting allowances? Yes, we do,” one MP require effective representation, but are not will- want to provide context and an explanation about
travelling on duty. So they deserve to be reward- told The NewsHawks. ing to fund it. Again, not all MPs are personally the US$40 000 to be given to legislators. I'm the
ed, especially given that they earn ZW$75 000 a capacitated to function using personal resources. chairperson of the welfare committee pressure
month (US$100 in real terms). They are strug- “But the problem seems to be that people are They need it. group. That figure isn't a gift, but it's a loan.”
gling. I speak with authority because I know the quarrelling with the type of cars we buy and the “We are on PSMAS medical aid and it doesn't
situation as chairperson of the parliamentary wel- amounts we get. However, I agree with Mliswa work. Fees we pay for ourselves. Ministers got However, main opposition CCC leader Nelson
fare committee. that we deserve the payments. Yes we understand US$500 000, deputy ministers US$350 000. We Chamisa has slammed MPs over the issue. Mem-
the people are suffering out there, but condemn- get US$40 000 and suddenly everyone is an econ- bers of the public also condemned MPs for seek-
“It is not all of them who are like me; with a big ing MPs deeper into poverty is not going to make omist attacking us! We are the poor and dull cous- ing luxury and being creatures of comfort, while
house, a farm and doing business. Some are real- the people’s situation any better. What is wrong people are suffering.
ly struggling. How do you expect them do their is profligacy or wastefulness, but we are talking
work if they are not looked after by government?”

However, Mliswa said the case of ministers is
different from that of ordinary MPs.

“Ministers got US$500 000 and deputy minis-
ters US$350 000, but that was not budgeted for.
MPs' allowances were budgeted for. Besides the
US$40 000, MPs also got US$50 000 for cars.

We were supposed to get US$80 000, but we
were given US$50 000. That means there is a
balance of US$30 000. The accommodation is-
sue for MPs is a serious matter that needs to be
addressed.

“People must remember that for MPs this is
not free money. These are loans guaranteed by
our pensions. If you don’t pay back, you lose your
pension. But for ministers, it’s a different story;
that was not budgeted for.”

While the President enjoys use of Zimbabwe
House as his residence and State House in Harare,
vice-presidents also get houses (when they were
still two).

President Emmerson Mnangagwa had a house
built for him in Borrowdale, but it was aban-
doned before completion. The incomplete house
is at the corner of Crowhill and Wheeldon roads
in Borrowdale suburb.

Mnangagwa relocated from 355 El Shaddai
Road in Helensvale to Zimbabwe House, oppo-
site State House.

Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga got a
house built for him at Carrick Creagh Estate in
Borrowdale. Former co-Vice-President Kembo
Mohadi lives on Folyjon Crescent in Glen Lorne
suburb, Harare.

MPs say the US$40 000 they got is not enough
to buy a house, especially in Harare and Bula-
wayo, so they will use the money to buy stands
to build houses.

Legislators also get sitting allowances and
US$150 per day for hotel accommodation, but
some want that in cash to make alternative lodg-
ing arrangements. Their sitting allowances were
not being paid until recently when Zanu PF MPs
went to meet Mnangagwa at State House over the
issue.

In a letter dated 23 November to the clerk of
Parliament, Mliswa says some MPs have opted to
get the US$150 a day hotel allowance to stay in
private accommodation.

“As you may be aware, the Minister of Finance
and Economic Development, Hon Mthuli Ncu-
be has announced at the pre-budget seminar that
Honourable Members of Parliament may opt
to stay in private accommodation at a rate of
USD150 per day,” the letter says.

“This letter serves to officially inform you that
as an honourable member, I have opted for pri-

Page 4 News NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

BRENNA MATENDERE Mnangagwa pampered MPs,
ministers for political capital
PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa pam-
pered legislators and his cabinet ministers difficult for them to attend to parliamentary busi- xxxx
with loans ranging between US$40 000 and ness such as debates and participation in Monday Zanu PF chief whip in Parliament Pupurai Togarepi
US$500 000 in order to avoid protest votes, committee meetings.
commonly known as bhora musango, from within
Zanu PF as well as win over the delicate intra-par- They said the development was worrying
ty factional fight with his deputy Vice-President ahead of the 2023 general elections.
Constantino Chiwenga, Zanu PF legislators say.
“So, these loans are a result of that meeting.
CCC president Nelson Chamisa, who has de- CCC legislators benefitted of course, but in the
scribed the loans as bribes, also says the loans are greater scheme of things, they do not matter,”
Mnangagwa’s attempt to appease Zanu PF MPs said a Zanu PF legislator.
ahead of next year’s general elections. He said the
money is meant to silence legislators from speak- Pupurai Togarepi, the Zanu PF chief whip in
ing out against rampant corruption. Parliament, denied that there were fears of inter-
nal sabotage targeting Mnangagwa by Zanu PF
“You will be shocked to look at the money MPs.
that they have been doling out and the trinkets
that they have been giving, but, to silence mem- “Zanu PF MPs are solid behind President ED
bers of Parliament they have had to give them Mnangagwa. MPs are ware that they are deployed
US$40 000 each, but it is not so much about by the party from a pool of thousands of aspiring
the CCC, it's actually so much about Mr Mnan- members,” he said.
gagwa trying to avert a bhora musango (internal
sabotage) within Zanu PF because he feels that Togarepi, who is the former Zanu PF sec-
the MPs are going to vote for themselves, not retary for youth, also said the party had settled
campaign for him, but campaign for mukomana on Mnangagwa being its 2023 presidential can-
(Chamisa). But, to avert that, they have had to didate and all structures were undivided in their
try and oil the palms of the members of support for him with no chances of sabotage
from current MPs.
Parliament and they couldn’t do it for Zanu
PF only. From what I have investigated, they had “Zanu PF is driven by its membership, not by
to also do it for CCC,” Chamisa told a Zoom MPs. Congress has elected President ED Mnan-
meeting organised by the party’s fundraisers on gagwa as its candidate for 2023 and anyone who
Wednesday. wants to come back to Parliament should rally
behind the chosen one otherwise the masses will
The government recently gave legislators dump them. It's naivety for someone to think
US$40 000 loans each while deputy min- Zanu PF would bribe a few individuals (Zanu PF
isters pocketed US$350 000 and ministers MPs) especially at the end of the term. All our
US$500 000. MPs are cadres and are loyal to the President and
the party,” he said.
Sources told The NewsHawks that the loans
— far from cushioning MPs let alone the min-
isters who already enjoy hefty perks that include
an all-terrain vehicle and a Mercedes-Benz sedan
— are designed to achieve a sinister political pur-
pose.

“It is all about the 2023 elections and num-
ber one’s (Mnangagwa) political strategy to hold
onto power and push back any attempts at bhora
musango (internal sabotage) by disgruntled MPs
who have for long complained about poor condi-
tions of service,” said a Zanu PF legislator.

“There were fears in number one’s mind that
the Zanu PF MPs with influence from the Chi-
wenga camp would campaign just for themselves
and encourage protest votes for him. The Chi-
wenga faction wanted to pursue this line by con-
vincing the MPs that there was no point in sup-
porting a leader who only cares for himself and
his children who are into various corrupt deals
than them at Parliament and cabinet.

“This becomes clearer if you look at the timing
of the so-called loans which are coming barely
a month after the party congress which further
widened fissures when Chiwenga was totally shut
out, leaving out his supporters seething with an-
ger. So it is in two ways, to avoid the bhora mu-
sango by appeasing the MPs and again winning
over Chiwenga supporters themselves and those
sitting on the fence by projecting number one as
caring for them than their factional leader (Chi-
wenga),” said a source.

In October this year, the disgruntled Zanu
PF members of Parliament met Mnangagwa
and Chiwenga at State House, where they com-
plained bitterly about their incapacitation due to
erratic payment of salaries, allowances and the
non-provision of fuel.

The MPs said the challenges they were facing
were hindering their work and hampering visibil-
ity in their constituencies.

The legislators also complained bitterly over
Finance minister Mthuli Ncube’s perceived hos-
tility towards them.

Parliamentary sources made it clear to The
NewsHawks at that time that Mnangagwa and his
deputy were told that the visit was not a form of
revolt but to tell them that they were incapacitat-
ed and financially paralysed, such that they could
not effectively work for the President in their
constituencies.

The MPs brought to the attention of Mnan-
gagwa and his deputy that their car loans had
been unilaterally reduced from US$80 000 to
US$50 000 by Ncube.

The legislators also said they wanted assistance
in acquiring houses or stands, given that minis-
ters and deputy ministers had such privileges.

In addition, they complained about the gov-
ernment’s failure to provide accomodation to leg-
islators coming from outside Harare, making it

NewsHawks News Page 5

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

RUVIMBO MUCHENJE Chamisa slams CCC MPs
for getting US$40 000 cash
CITIZENS' Coalition for Change (CCC) lead-
er Nelson Chamisa says the US$40 000 loans Chamisa said the loans are bribes to silence feels that the MPs are going to vote for them- CCC leader Nelson Chamisa
given to legislators were in fact bribes to stop legislators from speaking against corruption in selves, not campaign for him but campaign for courage it, I do not support it. I do not believe
the MPs from speaking out against ongoing the government. mukomana (Chamisa). But, to avert that, they that people must be talking about their welfare
looting. have had to try and oil the palms of the mem- when the nation is struggling, the way we are
“Normally when they smear porridge around bers of Parliament and they couldn’t do it for struggling,” said Chamisa.
He says action will be taken against party leg- your mouth you will not have eaten and that is Zanu PF only. From what I have investigated,
islators who accepted the funds. what has happened. Zanu PF people have been they had to also do it for CCC,” he said. He added that the funds could be diverted to
giving themselves a lot of money; ministers, the health sector, which is in dire straits.
Speaking during a Zoom meeting organised deputy ministers. You go to the judiciary; you He added that the party MPs should not
by the party’s fundraising team on Wednesday, go to the other organs of the state; I will not have taken the loans. “If you take US$40 000, I went to a hospital
Chamisa said he was unaware of the offer made mention, but, I have got all the details. You will just this week, US$40 000 will do so much just
to legislators until after they had put pen to pa- be shocked to look at the money that they have “. . . but CCC were not supposed to drink to transform the outlook of our hospitals, in
per. been doling out and the trinkets that they have from this poisoned chalice. They have joined terms of linen, in terms of the beds that are bro-
been giving. But to silence members of Parlia- the pioneer column, they have joined the gravy ken. It’s a pathetic situation. The toilets are not
“That takes me to the issue of the MPs. ment they have had to give them US$40 000 train and they have crossed the line. functioning, there is nothing, not even bore-
When we say citizens first and citizens at the each, but it is not so much about the CCC, it's holes, there is no water, but if you take US$40
centre, it is not just a slogan; it is not just a actually so much about Mr I told them that if you don’t act accordingly, 000 it will do wonders just for a member of
mantra; it is a way of doing things. Anything you know what it means. The citizens are wait- Parliament and for Parliament to then behave
that does not put the citizens first will not at- Mnangagwa trying to avert a bhora musango ing for you and they are going to punish you like it’s a bank or government has turned itself
tract an endorsement. I have already communi- (internal sabotage) within Zanu PF because he and punish you heavily so that one is already into a bank that is giving loans for me (it) de-
cated to the MPs to explain, because I was not catered for, I do not agree with it, I do not en- feats logic,” he said.
aware that they had contracted themselves into
this agreement; that they had signed. In fact,
they did not even indicate to me when I had a
caucus meeting with them. They were supposed
to come up front. They tell me that, ‘no it was
an event that happened after our meeting at the
caucus’ so we did not have an opportunity to
tell them,” said Chamisa.

He promised to take a tough stance against
the MPs after meeting the party’s chief whip,
Prosper Mutseyami.

“It is a big issue on the part of the chief whip
Mr Mutseyami, he has to explain. So, I have
summoned him for a caucus tomorrow and we
are going to read the riot act. We don’t do things
that way. You do not prioritise self when you are
in public office. Never ever make a decision that
gives yourself first advantage, before you think
about the people you serve,” said Chamisa.

The loans total US$14 million for all the 350
legislators.

Citizens and political analysts have criticised
the opposition MPs for jumping onto the Zanu
PF gravy train.

Pedzisai Ruhanya, an analyst, accused leg-
islators of jostling for inclusion at the feeding
trouugh instead of fighting the system.

“The behaviour of CCC MPs speaks clearly
to what they want — not to change the system,
but to join the gravy train and loot more,” he
tweeted.

Chamisa said the move shows lack of princi-
ple, adding that during his time MPs got resi-
dential stands, but, he declined because accept-
ing the stand, was 'against principle'.

“We have had instances in the past and I
can tell you this because it’s a Zoom platform.
When I was in Parliament, they gave stands to
all members of Parliament. I was in the SROC
(Standing Rules and Orders Committee) as the
head of legal and procedural affairs. SROC is
the decision-making board, the leadership body,
within Parliament. I opposed it,” said Chamisa.

“I was in the minority because Zanu PF sup-
ported it; Mudenda and others. But when we
opposed it, I went on to say ‘look I will not
take this’. Forms were supposed to be filled in at
CBZ, up to this day I have not taken that stand
and I will not take that stand because from a
position of principle, you can never be attracted
to trinkets, because one way or the other it is
always a danger.”

Chamisa was a cabinet minister during the
Government of National Unity (GNU) be-
tween 2009 and 2013.

Parliament has over the years facilitated loans
for legislators. Current MPs also received vehi-
cle loans in 2018.

The loans fall away after the completion of
a term unless legislaors fail to complete their
terms due to death or party recall.

In 2017, Parliament sought a stop order
from the High Court to recover US$258 809
in loans tendered to MPs that had been recalled
from the 8th session of Parliament before com-
pleting their terms.

According to the summons, former MP for
Mwenezi East Kudakwashe Bhasikiti owed
US$33 000, former Masvingo Central MP
Dzikamai Mavhaire US$33 221 former Mab-
vuku-Tafara legislator, Moses Manyengavana
US$22 384, former Mpopoma MP, Bekithem-
ba Nyathi US$15 749), former Masvingo MP,
Judith Mazhawazhi US$13 771, former En-
tumbane MP, Gladys Mathe US$14 064 and
former Pumula South MP Albert Mhlanga
US$19 988.

Page 6 News NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Govt takes huge risk at Lake Kariba

RUVIMBO MUCHENJE

DESPITE being warned of the dire consequences Zimbabwe has a bad record of settling power import debts from South Africa.
of continuing to generate electricity at Kariba Hy-
dro-Power Station, Zimbabwe, which is desperate reservoir, ZRA is left with no choice but to firmly power producers) to mitigate the challenges. In Power Station to average 400MW, small thermals
to keep the lights on, is continuing to generate guide that ZPC immediately ensures that genera- the immediate term, Zesa is currently negotiating to produce a combined total of 45MW, support
power at reduced capacity. tion activities at the South Bank Power Station are for additional imports from the current suppliers. will be given to IPPs to enable them to produce at
wholly suspended henceforth, until January 2023 More power will also be secured through SAPP maximum capacity,” said Zhemu.
The Zimbabwe Power Company was last week when a further review of the substantive hydrolog- (Southern African Power Pool) market,” said
told by the Zambezi River Authority to immedi- ical outlook at Kariba will be undertaken.” Zhemu. He added that Hwange Unit 7 will start con-
ately stop electricity generation until January, after tributing to power supply later this month and the
exhausting its water allocation of the year. Other than continuing to generate power at The Kariba plant has been generating 572 commissioning of Unit 8 would follow.
Kariba, Zhemu also said Zimbabwe would also megawatts (MW) of the 782MW of electricity
Energy and Power Development minister Soda rely on imports, among other sources, to avert the produced in the country, according to the website “Unit 7 of Hwange is undergoing commis-
Zhemu however revealed the power station would energy crisis. of the state-run Zimbabwe Power Company. sioning and will start feeding power into the grid.
continue operating, producing 300MW of elec- Soon after, commissioning of Unit 8 will follow,”
tricity daily while other measures are being pur- The Kariba South Bank plant provides the na- Although imports were the first of the many he saidZhemu urged consumers to reduce con-
sued to boost supplies. tion with around 70% of electricity and has been measures announced by the minister, Zimbabwe sumption for this period.
producing significantly less than its capacity of 1 has a bad record of settling power import debts
“ZPC has indeed exhausted its water allocation 050 megawatts in recent years due to a declining from South Africa. “The ministry urges all consumers to reduce
for the year. However, Kariba Power Station will water level caused by droughts. load by employing energy conservation and effi-
not shut down completely, rather it will contin- In March 2020, Finance and Economic De- ciency measures.
ue to generate, but at a reduced capacity of up to Addressing the media in Harare yesterday, velopment minister Mthuli Ncube paid the last
300MW daily average pending a review of the Zhemu said the country, through the Zimbabwe US$890 000 of a US$3 million debt to Eskom. Lights must be switched off in all offices at night
water situation at the dam in January 2023. This Electricity Supply Authority (Zesa) Holdings, will and other measures like right sizing of equipment,
means that the power station has the latitude to import electricity from the region. Other measures announced by Zhemu include use of energy savers,” he added.
vary its capacity as long as it maintains the re- increasing production from local power genera-
quired average capacity.” “The ministry has come up with measures tion installations The government will also embark on a solar
through its utility Zesa and IPPs (independent power plant at Caledonia Mine/Blanket 12MW,
Zambia, which has several other sources of pow- “ZPC will ramp up production at Hwange Richo Solar 1.3MW and Guruve 1.2MW.
er, has not exhausted its quota, but has reduced
electricity generation at Kariba to 800MW per
day. Other than the Kariba North Hydro-Power
Station, Zambia has other hydroelectric stations,
including Victoria Falls, Small Hydros, Kafue
Gorge and Kafue Gorge Lower power stations.

ZRA last week said ZPC should stop generating
power because of low water levels in the dam and
the fact that it had surpassed its yearly allocation.

“As of November 25, 2022, Kariba South Bank
Power Station had utilised 23.89 billion cubic me-
tres (BCM) of water, accounting for 1.39BCM or
6.16% above the 2022 water allocation of 22.50
BCM,” the ZRA said.

“. . . Guided by the Water Purchase Agreement
and the provisions of ZRA Acts, as well as the
Agreed Operational Framework under the Joint
Technical Committee, where the authority and
the two Kariba power generation utilities are ob-
ligated and have agreed to sustainably operate the

NewsHawks News Page 7

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Zim braces for dark Christmas

NATHAN GUMA

ZIMBABWEANS have to brace for a dark Christ- The Zambezi River Authority ordered suspension of power generation at Kariba Hydro-Power Station last week.
mas, with power outages projected to persist until
February next year when the water level at Lake at around February and March because we collect Lake Kariba are designed at 13 metres below max- expansion project, which is seen adding 300MW
Kariba is expected to rise, The NewsHawks has from the northern basins like the Democratic Re- imum water levels, in order to avoid mud which into the national grid.
learnt. public of Congo (DRC). would clog the power generation facilities.
The project, now at pre-commissioning stage,
Load-shedding has been persistent country- “That water will stream into the Kariba Dam This means that only a certain amount of water is expected to add 300MW. A further 300MW is
wide, with some residential areas experiencing around January and February, and that is the time is accessible for power generation, which is also expected to be added in March.
rolling power cuts of up to 18 hours, following the our hydro-power electricity generation will im- known as live water.
suspension of electricity generation at the Kariba prove.” “Then, that is projected to make the situation
Hydro-Power Station last week. Although power cuts are expected to contin- better because in total, we will have 600MW from
According to an educational video produced by ue throughout the festive season, they could ease the new plant, plus the existing 400MW, which
The Zambezi River Authority (ZRA), a bi-na- ZPC, the water intakes for power generation at with the injection of electricity from the Hwange will bring the total to 1 000MW.”
tional organisation overseen by Zambia and Zim-
babwe, last week ordered suspension of power
generation at Kariba Hydro-Power Station, until
January 2023, after Zimbabwe exhausted its allo-
cation of water.

The ZRA revealed that the Kariba South Bank
Power Station (KSBPS) had utilised 23.89 billion
cubic metres (BCM) of water, accounting for 1.39
BCM (or 6.16%) above the 2022 water allocation
of 22.50 BCM.

The KSBPS, Zimbabwe’s largest power plant,
has been producing less than a third of its total
generation capacity of 1 050MW.

Zimbabwe’s power stations, namely Hwange,
Kariba, Munyati, Harare and Bulawayo, are ham-
strung and were producing a combined 561MW
on Thursday, against a demand of 2 200MW.

Hwange was producing 294MW, followed
by Kariba at 253MW and Munyati at 14MW,
according to statistics availed by the Zimbabwe
Power Company, a subsidiary of Zesa responsible
for power generation. Harare and Bulawayo ther-
mal stations are not producing any electricity at
the moment.

Officials says the country will have to brace for
more power cuts, with normalcy being expected
in February.

“Unfortunately, that is the situation on the
ground,” said an official.

“Kariba is one of our biggest suppliers that
could supply us with 1 050MW. There has not
been rains, so we cannot produce much from it.
So we might start bracing for more power cuts,
because we usually start getting water from Kariba

Page 8 News NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Paying price for shoddy energy deals

NATHAN GUMA

ZIMBABWE is paying the price for failure to Zimbabwe’s electricity generation has been dogged by several challenges, including obsolete equipment and infrastructure.
tap into renewable energy, as climate change is
hindering power generation at Kariba Power This includes major coal projects that were babwe, so what we currently have is coal. We when we are affected by droughts, we can rely
Station — the country’s largest electricity gen- in the pipeline, including the US$3 billion 2 need to build more on coal,” said an energy on the available base load,” said the source.
erating plant — while jeopardising long-term 800MW thermal power plant in Gokwe that expert from the Zimbabwe Power Company
power prospects. RioZim Energy was building with engineering (ZPC) who spoke to The NewsHawks. Environmental law experts say while the
and financial support from China Gezhouba Zimbabwean situation shows how unsustain-
The country recently depleted its allocated Group Company. A base load is the minimum level of electric- able hydro-electric energy is becoming, there is
water for power generation at the Kariba hy- ity demand required over a period of 24 hours, need for more research before taking a plunge
dro-electric power station, which has seen the “It must be noted that the economies of which is needed to provide power to compo- into renewable energy.
Zambezi River Authority (ZRA) suspending the countries such as Botswana, South Africa and nents that keep running at all times.
plant’s operations, erasing at least three-quarters Zimbabwe were constructed on fossil fuel as the “We have to look at some critical questions.
of national power supply. primary energy source,” Gata said. The expert also said it is important for the Have we done enough research to determine our
country to invest more on carbon suppressant capacity and technology? Or, we are just talking.
Dam levels have been drastically falling over “The economy of Zimbabwe has been tout- technologies, in order to create base load to back
the years, reaching a paltry 3.7% from 27% and ed as the fastest growing economy in Africa by up power generation, which would make it eas- “Our main focus has been coal, but our
86% recorded in 2018 and 2019 respectively, the IMF and the World Bank. This growth was ier to adopt clean energy. funders, mainly the Chinese, are only ready to
hampering power generation. based on a fossil fuel economy. Hence decisions fund renewable energy projects. If it was not for
to cut funding on fossil fuel energy will leave a “We need to build more on coal technolo- last year, when they cut funding on the US$3.2
Domestic electricity generation has also been profound gap in the economic and social stabili- gies, then use other new technologies to reduce billion project, it would have been better. There
dogged by several challenges, including obso- ty of the Sadc countries. Their targets for United nitrogen, sulphur oxide and other sulphur com- were plans to draw water from Zambezi to Gok-
lete equipment and infrastructure, inability to Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals pounds. There are new technologies that reduce we, a distance of over 300 kilometres,” said en-
attract significant private sector investment, and (SDGs) will be missed, as all the SDGs are pred- such. vironmental lawyer Darlington Chidarara.
other financing instruments, leading to drastic icated on electricity supply which is available,
load shedding. accessible and affordable.” “So, as developing countries, we need to use Chidarara also said there is a need for trans-
the resource we have in abundance, that is coal, parency in investments that are made in the en-
In an interview with South Africa's News24, Zimbabwe is now prospecting the renewable then we use other technologies to reduce the ergy sector to support the transition, should it
energy expert Victor Vutedzi said Zimbabwe has energy space, and has licensed more than 60 in- emissions that we produce that will destabilise happen.
to improve the business environment to attract dependent power producers (IPP) in the renew- the climate,” said the source.
investors who can fund renewable energy proj- able energy space, with a collective capacity to “Can we say we are sincere to start talking
ects. generate 2 000MW. Some developed nations have been using about renewable energy, or we are just riding the
nuclear and coal as back-up power facilities, wave? Can we also account for the investments
Vutedzi has in the past worked with pow- However, the projects’ take-off has been slow making it easy for them to rely on renewable that are made? It also goes to our basic gover-
er projects that have an installed capacity of on account of viability issues, according to the energy like wind and solar as a long-term power nance systems. Are we ready to be trustworthy
6 000 megawatts (MW), and various other proj- 2023 National Budget. solution. in terms of whom we contract, and how we deal
ects in Africa. with everything?
Energy experts say Zimbabwe lacks the ca- “To us, solar has its challenges. It needs sta-
“Each government is faced with the power pacity to make a quick transition to renewable bilisers in terms of battery capacity. It is quite “Even the fund which is coming under cli-
crisis in its territory. They need to satisfy grow- energy as it has limited base stations to beef up difficult to have battery capacity for a whole na- mate change adaptation, if it is channelled to
ing domestic needs and then export. The solu- power supply. tion. So, we will have solar systems feeding di- energy, will we be able to account for it?” he
tion is in improving the ease of doing business rectly into the grid, but if there are disturbances said.
in the country. “We are still a developing nation. We do not — changes in weather and others — production
have a sufficient base load for us to focus on go- levels will also drop. ZPC in 2015 laid charges of fraud against
“Investors here have the same concerns ev- ing green, as has been said during Conference of businessman Wicknell Chivayo, accusing him
erywhere — Is my money safe?, and Will I be Parties (Cop) summit commitments. “With hydro, if there is a drought, produc- of pocketing US$5 111 224 paid to him for
able to get it at market prices?". Capital is al- tion will fall. So we actually need to build more pre-commencement works on the 100MW
ways looking for the safest and most profitable “We still need base loads, and our base loads on the coal side, then we see how we can reduce plant meant for the Gwanda Solar Project. The
environment. Neighbours are competing for the come from other alternative power sources like emissions so that we may have a stronger base project has failed to take-off, raising serious
same pool of capital,” Vutedzi said. gas and nuclear energy. Unfortunately, we do load. Once we have that, we can now venture questions on the government's commitment to
not have gas or nuclear power stations in Zim- into hydro-electricity and several others, so that transition to renewable energy.
While Zimbabwe has been relying on import-
ing energy to bridge the power deficit, South
Africa, the region's economic powerhouse, has
been equally hamstrung.

As of Thursday, the country’s power sta-
tions had produced a total of 561MW against
a national demand of 2 200MW, according to
an update by the Zimbabwe Power Company
(ZPC).

The future is also becoming bleak for Zim-
babwe’s long-term power prospects – based on
coal — as the world is drifting away from the
energy source due to its contribution to the cli-
mate crisis.

Researchers say coal combustion still ac-
counts for 40% of global CO2 emissions from
energy use, hence the need to stop using it – un-
less with carbon capture and storage technology.

Zimbabwe, on the other hand, has large coal
deposits which it is banking on to maximise
power generation.

The country’s proven reserves are equiva-
lent to 163.3 times its annual consumption. It
consumes 3 388 555 tonnes of coal per year,
ranking 53rd in the world for consumption,
accounting for about 0.3% of the world’s total
consumption of 1 139 471 430 tonnes.

Zimbabwe consumes 241 516 cubic feet of
coal per capita every year or 662 cubic feet per
capita per day.

This means it has about 163 years of coal left
(at current consumption levels and excluding
unproven reserves).

China, Zimbabwe’s largest energy financier,
last year announced its commitment to reduce
funding for coal-fired projects outside its main-
land, which has worsened the situation.

President Xi Jinping’s United Nations Gen-
eral Assembly announcement last year has been
projected to affect at least 54 gigawatts — which
involve Zimbabwe’s projects of proposed Chi-
na-backed coal plants.

Zesa Holdings executive chairperson Sydney
Gata last year told journalists visiting Hwange
Thermal Power Station that China’s decision
had instantaneously affected two major projects
in Zimbabwe.

NewsHawks News Page 9

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Power projects doomed on arrival

OWEN GAGARE to ZETDC which is selling electricity at a loss? Hwange Power Station. Zesa executive chairperson Sydney Gata
When you come to currency risk, the lender The low water levels at Kariba Hydro Power 2023, plunging many parts of the country into
OTHER than the failure to invest in electricity will say ‘how can I lend in US dollars if you are darkness.
generation projects over the years — save for collecting RTGS to repay the loan?’.” Station have aggravated the situation.
the expansion of the Hwange Thermal Power The Zambezi River Authority (ZRA), a ZRA said the Kariba South Bank Power Sta-
Station and the Kariba South power extension Zimbabwe has a deficit of over tion (KSBPS) had utilised 23.89 billion cubic
project — Zimbabwe is in a quandary as the 1 000MW of electricity due to reduced power bi-national organisation overseen by Zam- metres (BCM) of water, accounting for 1.39
majority of the projects which were mooted generation, as well as antiquated equipment at bia and Zimbabwe, ordered suspension of the BCM (or 6.16%) above the 2022 water alloca-
over the years were doomed from the word go. Kariba Hydro Power station, until January tion of 22.50 BCM.

As revealed by Zimbabwe Electricity Supply
Authority Holdings (Zesa) executive chairper-
son Sydney Gata in October last year when
the country’s editors, including those from The
NewsHawks, visited Hwange Thermal Power
Station last October, more than 100 projects
have failed to take off over the years.

The projects are failing to take off due to
country and currency risks, policy mis-steps
and lack of bankable feasibility studies.

Projects by independent power producers
(IPP) have also been affected.

The Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority
(Zera) has in the past five years licensed more
than 100 small IPP projects with a capacity to
produce around 1 300 megawatts (MW), but
most of them remain non-operational.

One such project is the US$183 million
Gwanda Solar Project awarded to controversial
businessman Wicknell Chivayo.

The Gwanda project has been the subject of
court battles after Intratrek Zimbabwe failed to
deliver within the agreed timelines. The con-
tract was signed in 2015.

In September 2020, Zesa abandoned its Mu-
tare Peaking Power Station project, which was
supposed to be completed in 2022. Zesa said
it abandoned the project, which was envisaged
to contribute as much as 120 megawatts to the
national grid, because using diesel to generate
electricity was costly.

The 100MW Dema Emergency Power Plant,
powered by diesel and built in 2016 by Sakun-
da Holdings, has also been abandoned.

According to Gata, the failure of several oth-
er power generation projects to take off is not
surprising mainly because they were either not
bankable or were undertaken without due dili-
gence and feasibility studies.

“We have a number of projects that have
been reported in the media, but they have not
proceeded because I believe as a nation we still
have to learn a lot about what is called country
risk,” Gata told editors during the visit.

“Quite a number of these (projects) were
white elephants at birth. They were born de-
formed. If we are developing a project such as
in Hwange here, there are phases that are man-
datory to be followed and to be appreciated for
their importance in the project development
programme.”

China’s SinoHydro Corporation is under-
taking the expansion project. The firm began
working on Hwange’s units 7 and 8 in 2019.

Pre-commissioning tests at Hwange are ex-
pected to commence this month and, if suc-
cessful, 300 megawatts could be added to the
national grid, while another 300MW could
come on board upon completion of the project
in March next year.

China’s Export-Import Bank is providing a
loan for the project, 80% of it at concessionary
rates and 20% at commercial rates.

“Here is a list of projects that went ahead
without bankable feasibility studies: Batoka
Hydro; Mutare Peaking, which has been can-
celled; Gwanda Solar, which is in difficulties;
Dema, which has been cancelled; then we also
have project start-ups without policy support,”
Gata said.

“We have over 100 IPP projects that have
been licensed that are paralysed because policy
does not carry them. In the normal progression
of what I call the development phase, before
the joint development agreements, you are syn-
dicating the equity and bringing investors in
the process.

“In the projects that I listed, what killed
them, those that were killed, is lack of market
due diligence. We have a list of projects that
the banks, all these big banks, are not coming
to the party because they say how can we lend

Page 10 News NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Lake Kariba water crisis rocks Zambia

NHAU MANGIRAZI Zesco plans to optimise generation at all its hydro-power stations in Zambia.

ZAMBIA is introducing load-shedding while
optimising power generation at its hydro-pow-
er stations following the directive by the Zam-
bezi River Authority (ZRA) to reduce power
generation at Kariba, as water levels are con-
tinuing to drop.

The country and Zimbabwe share Lake
Kariba for power generation and have sta-
tions that have a combined capacity of
2 080 megawatts (MW).

This week, the ZRA called for suspension
of power generation at Kariba South Power
Station, which is run by Zimbabwe, due to a
fast-receding water level, which can be detri-
mental to power generation.

The Zambian government has proposed a
load-shedding schedule from 15 December,
while scaling up power generation, to avoid
shutdown of its hydro-power station.

Zimbabwe, on the other hand, has already
been on a long load shedding schedule which
has seen residential areas going for over 18
hours without power.

“The low water level situation in the Lake
Kariba threatens the power generation for both
the Kariba North Bank Hydropower station
(Zambian side) and Kariba South Bank Hydro-
power station (Zimbabwean side).

“ZESCO will implement a load manage-
ment regime aimed at rationing power genera-
tion at the Kariba Complex to avoid a complete
shutdown. This will be done with the view to
minimise the impact on key economic sectors
as well as preservation of the integrity of gener-
ation units at the Kariba Complex.

“We anticipate that based on the water lev-
els, this will translate into a load management
regime starting on 15th December 2022 of up
to a maximum of six hours daily until the wa-
ter levels improve,” said Peter Kapala, Zambian
energy minister, while addressing Parliament.

Kapala also said Zimbabwe's northern neigh-
bour will fast-track power generation projects
to back up the hydro-power station while in-
creasing resilience to climate change which has
seen suspension of operations on the south
bank power station operated by Zimbabwe.

‘‘Projects such as the Global Energy Trans-
fer Feed in Tariff (GET FiT) Zambia that has
a bankable portfolio of six solar Photovoltaic
(PV) projects amounting to 120MW peak and
the recently advertised 3x50MW peak of solar
power plants.

“We shall also tap from existing generation
which are operated by private players with the
view to optimise power dispatch to mitigate
the impact of the reduced generation from the
Kariba Complex. Additionally, should the situ-
ation warrant it, consideration shall be made to
import power from the Southern African Pow-
er Pool (SAPP) when available,” he said.

Kapala said Zesco will optimise generation
at all its hydro-power stations in Zambia to
(Kariba North Bank, Victoria Falls, Small Hy-
dros, Kafue Gorge and Kafue Gorge Lower
power stations).

‘‘It is expected that this will complement
the generation from the Kariba Complex to
Mid-January 2023 when the water inflows are
expected to start improving in the Kariba res-
ervoir,’’ he said.

Lake Kariba is the largest man-made reser-
voir in the world, with a holding capacity of
181 billion cubic metres of water.

In 2022, the ZRA allocated a combined total
of 45 billion cubic metres (45 BCM) of water
to Zesco and ZPC for power generation at the
Kariba Complex, which has been shared equal-
ly between Zesco Limited and Zimbabwe Pow-
er Company (ZPC) with each utility to utilize
22.5 billion cubic metres of water respectively
for the year 2022.

After depleting its allocation, Zimbabwe is
likely to endure a dark Christmas, with ener-
gy experts predicting a return to normalcy in
March after a projected increase in water in-
flows into Lake Kariba, and completion of the
Hwange Thermal Power Station expansion
project.

NewsHawks News Page 11

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Kariba fishing industry faces collapse

Fishing boat in Lake Kariba.

BRENNA MATENFDERE has worsened the plight of the industry. US$438.59 billion by 2026, but the situation ob- Kariba breams.
“The government should do something be- taining on Lake Kariba looks bleak. Kariba Dam was constructed on the orders of
THE Kariba fishing industry is on the brink of the government of the Federation of Rhodesia
collapse due to the record low level of water in the cause of the costs of fishing permits. Per year we The development comes at a time when there is and Nyasaland, a federal colony within the British
world’s largest man-made lake. are paying US$1 200 but many people are no already an expanding demand for a variety of sea- Empire. It has a double curvature concrete arch
longer affording that because the business has food which is heightened by increasing awareness dam that was designed by Coyne et Bellier and
Some fishing boats are now literally docked on declined. I think we need to engage the govern- about its health benefits. constructed between 1955 and 1959 by Impresit
land in areas that used to have very deep waters ment on that one. That figure is no longer viable, of Italy at a cost of US$135 000 000 for the first
near the centre of the lake. considering the low catches that we are getting,” Lake Kariba, shared between Zambia and Zim- stage with only the Kariba South power cavern.
he said. babwe, was created in 1958 when a section of the Final construction and the addition of the Kari-
The record low water level at Kariba Dam has Zambezi River was dammed. ba North Power cavern by Mitchell Construction
also affected power generation, a situation that According to the Commercial Fishing Indus- was completed in 1977 for a total cost of US$480
has resulted in rolling 18-hour power outages in try's Global Market Outlook, the global com- On the Zimbabwean side, the lake is divided million. During construction, 86 men lost their
Zimbabwe. mercial fishing industry market accounted for into five hydrological basins: Basin 1 (Mlibi- lives.
US$240.99 billion in 2017 and expected to reach zi), Basin 2 (Binga), Basin 3 (Sengwa), Basin 4
Nesbert Mapfumo, the secrerary-general of the (Bumi/Chalala) and Basin 5 (Sanyati).
Kapenta Producers' Associations of Zimbabwe,
told The NewsHawks almost 80% of big fishing
companies that operate in Kariba have virtually
shut down and closed shop.

“The water has gone down to such worrying
levels. We are affected by quite a number of is-
sues in terms of the depth of water. We are not
allowed to fish in areas with water that is less than
20 metres deep. The area we are supposed to fish
in is getting narrower, smaller and smaller such
that it is likely to cause deep depletion of fish,”
Mapfumo said.

“It means the boats will now be concentrated
in a very small area. If you go to many areas where
we used to fish, there is no more water and it is
now considered shallow ground. From the shore
line to inland, we are supposed to fish two kilo-
metres from the shore line.

“So, with this low level of water, that means the
area we are now fishing on is too small and the
boats are now concentrated on small areas hence
most of the companies are now closing.”

Mapfumo revealed that most of the boats that
used to be anchored in water depth exceeding 20
metres are now sitting on dry land and mud.

“Most of the boats are now in mud and dry
land because the owners find it too expensive to
retrieve them from those areas to places where
there is plenty water,” he said.

“People are failing to remove the boats from the
mud or dry land because the expenses involved
are just too much. It's now no longer viable for
people to concentrate on resuscitation of those
boats because of the expenses and the catches that
we are experiencing.”

Mapfumo, a seasoned fisher who has been in
the trade for a long time, also revealed that the
cost of the yearly permits from the government

Page 12 News NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

RUVIMBO MUCHENJE Zhemu banks on power imports

ENERGY and Power De- Energy and Power Development minister Soda Zhemu
velopment minister Soda Kariba South Bank plant provides the country with around 70% of electricity.
Zhemu says the nation will
now rely on power imports,
among other sources, to avert
the energy crisis worsened by
the fast-receding water level
at Kariba South Hydropower
Station.

The Kariba South Bank
plant provides the nation with
around 70% of electricity and
has been producing signifi-
cantly less than its capacity
of 1 050 megawatts in recent
years due to a declining water
level caused by droughts.

Addressing the media in
Harare yesterday, Zhemu
said the country, through the
Zimbabwe Electricity Supply
Authority (Zesa), will import
electricity from the region.

“The ministry has come
up with measures through
its utility Zesa and IPPs (in-
dependent power producers)
to mitigate the challeng-
es. In the immediate term,
Zesa is currently negotiating
for additional imports from
the current suppliers. More
power will also be secured
through SAPP (Southern Af-
rican Power Pool) market,”
said Zhemu.

The Kariba plant has been
generating 572 megawatts
(MW) of the 782MW of
electricity produced in the
country, according to the
website of the state-run Zim-
babwe Power Company.

Although imports were the
first of the many measures
announced by the minister,
Zimbabwe has a bad record of
settling power import debts
from South Africa.

In March 2020, Finance
and Economic Development
minister Mthuli Ncube paid
the last US$890 000 of a
US$3 million debt to Eskom.

Other measures an-
nounced by Zhemu include
increasing production from
local power generation instal-
lations

“ZPC will ramp up pro-
duction at Hwange Power
Station to average 400MW,
small thermals to produce a
combined total of 45MW,
support will be given to IPPs
to enable them to produce
at maximum capacity,” said
Zhemu.

He added that Hwange
Unit 7 will start contribut-
ing to power supply later this
month and the commission-
ing of Unit 8 would follow.

“Unit 7 of Hwange is un-
dergoing commissioning and
will start feeding power into
the grid. Soon after, commis-
sioning of Unit 8 will follow,”
he said

Zhemu urged consumers
to reduce consumption for
this period. “The ministry
urges all consumers to reduce
load by employing energy
conservation and efficiency
measures. Lights must be
switched off in all offices at
night and other measures like
right sizing of equipment, use
of energy savers,” he added.

The government will also
embark on a solar power plant
at Caledonia Mine/Blanket
12MW, Richo Solar 1.3 MW
and Guruve 1.2MW.

NewsHawks News Page 13

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Redcliff in murky land-for-cars deal

BRENNA MATENDERE

REDCLIFF Municipality is in the eye of a US$21 773. 2015, warned the municipality to desist from Redcliff Municipality
storm after it failed to reverse a murky arrange- The Toyota Quantum on the purchase utilising land for recurrent expenditure but “These irregularities and clearly corrupt
ment to acquire posh motor vehicles and cell- investigations confirm that the local authority dealings have been the main cause of poor
phones for senior managers in a swap deal for agreement was invoiced US$41 034 which lat- ignored the word of caution. service delivery in Redcliff. We have endured
land with a Chinese company despite having er shot up to US$50 465 on actual payment years of lack of reliable water supply; at the
been red-flagged by Auditor-General Mildred made, showing a US$9 431 variance. Redcliff mayor Clayton Masiyatswa defend- best of times we would only receive water for
Chiri. ed the failure by the municipality to rectify the two hours in the morning (5 to 7 am). But now
The NewsHawks also found out that a com- irregular deals and said as far as he was con- it's nearly a year in Redcliff suburb without
An investigation by The NewsHawks also es- pany called Storey Marketing Hardware, which cerned, what they did served the purpose of anything.
tablished that the municipality eventually gave supplies protective clothing, wrote a letter to developing the municipality. “Street lights go unfixed, refuse remains un-
the company more valuable land after issuing the municipality requesting the amounts owed collected, and roads that were not rehabilitat-
invoices above quoted prices. to it to be paid by allocation of stands, and the “Yes, everything was done above board and ed through ERRP2 [Emergency Recovery and
local authority agreed. the land sale was done during the hyper-infla- Reconstruction Project] are a danger to our
Chiri in her 2021 audit report for local au- tion period and what we did during that period vehicles, whilst some homes have burnt to the
thorities highlighted that the arrangement was The value of the transaction was ZW$537 was in the best interest of our town,” he said. ground due to inadequate fire services.
irregular as it violated procurement regula- 113 and a low-density residential stand num- “Yet, the local authority is able to mortgage
tions. ber 3929 measuring 1 300 square metres was Town clerk Chakanyuka was ducking and land mainly for luxury cars and mobile phones
allocated. diving when contacted for comment. for top officials — which they even have prior-
She noted that Redcliff Municipality en- ity over service vehicles — whilst totally ignor-
gaged Livetouch Investments to supply vehi- The municipality also paid a company called Responding via WhatsApp message, he said: ing the plight of residents.
cles and earthmoving machines in exchange for Classic Mobile on 31 August 2021 using stands “Please can you write an official letter with “There is need for accountability on how
land measuring 21 hectares which the compa- with an offer letter dated 26 October 2020 val- your questions so that I also respond to you in our land ended up being swapped for cars and
ny could sell as residential stands. ued at US$13 348 for the mobile phones the a formal manner,” he said. mobile phones, and those involved brought to
dormitory town had acquired. book. Our land is our heritage, and it cannot
The deal in total amounted to US$847 962 However, when the written questions were be simply disposed of for such things as cars
and Chiri said it was scandalous. No repayments have been made to date to sent to him, he did not respond. and phones,” said the source.
the estates fund account for the noted trans-
“The Municipality entered into an irregu- actions. An official at Redcliff Municipality told The
lar agreement with Livetouch Investments for NewsHawks that corruption
the supply of vehicles and equipment valued The ministry of Local Government and Pub-
at US$847 962. The equipment was full con- lic Works, through a letter dated 21 September at the local authority was causing a decline
sideration in exchange for 21 hectares of land in service delivery in the dormitory town.
by Council to Livetouch investments. I noted
that the agreement with Livetouch was entered
into without going to tender, contrary to the
provisions of the Public Procurement and Dis-
posal of Assets Act [Chapter 22:23]. Section
2.2 to 2.4.2 of the agreement provided that
Livetouch would deliver the equipment and
vehicles,” said Chiri.

The vehicles involved in the transaction were
four Toyota Hilux, one Toyota Fortuner, one
backhoe loader, five Nissan NP300 trucks, one
grader, one skip bin loader, Toyota 18-seater
bus, one Toyota Quantum ambulance and a
fire tender.

The the purchases not only flouted the pro-
curement regulations but also violated a gov-
ernment directive issued on 20 March 2018
regarding conditions of service vehicles for
executive management of local authorities, in-
dependent commissions, state enterprises and
parastatals (SEPs) which stated that applica-
tions to buy such cars should be done through
their line ministry for onward scrutiny by the
Office of the President and Cabinet (OPC)
and approval by Treasury prior to the confir-
mation of any purchase order.

Investigations by The NewsHawks at Redcliff
Municipality revealed that despite the Audi-
tor-General’s red flag on the land swaps, the
local authority has not rectified the bungling
by way of cancelling the deal and making a
re-payment into the estate funds account for
the lost land as specified by section 300 of the
Urban Councils Act [Chapter 29:15].

Top council officials are in possession of the
vehicles.

Director of engineering Thembelani Kundh-
lande and director of housing Christine Cha-
gwiza are using the Toyota Hilux GD6 double
cab vehicles they obtained through the land
swap deal while central administrator Nyarai
Gomba has also retained her vehicle.

Town clerk Gilson Chakanyuka, who gift-
ed himself a Toyota Fortuner from the land
deal, only stopped using the vehicle last month
when he was involved in an accident on his
way from Gweru.

The vehicle was badly damaged in the acci-
dent and is a write-off.

Section 2.7 of the agreement between Red-
cliff and Livetouch Investments provided that:

“The purchaser shall be responsible for any
cost incidental or otherwise which is not ca-
tered for in the purchase price . . .”

The NewsHawks noted that the town clerk’s
Toyota Fortuner as well as a Toyota Quantum
vehicle were later invoiced different amounts
in excess of the agreed values as per the pur-
chase agreement.

The Toyota Fortuner on purchase agreement
was invoiced US$61 727 but the council in-
voiced US$83 500, resulting in a variance of

Page 14 News NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Hot pursuit of justice: Harare tycoon
Matsika takes his battle to ConCourt

BRENNA MATENDERE Businessman Farai Matsika Rule 32 of the Constitutional Court Rules tutional matters in the court a quo. First, an
the-art equipment manned by highly qualified 2016 for leave to appeal the whole judg- application under section 175(4) is a constitu-
JUST when it appeared he had run into a legal technicians who benefit from training provid- ment of the Supreme Court handed down by tional matter. Everything about it is of a con-
cul-de-sac in his mortal combat with his el- ed by the various franchises locally, regionally Gwaunza, Musakwa and Mwayera in Harare stitutional nature. The court a quo’s decisions
der cousin brother Moses Chingwena over the and overseas. on 19 October, incorporating an order made in respect of the applicant’s request for a refer-
ownership and sharing of spoils of a busines on 17 October refusing a request to refer the ral under section 175(4) of the constitution
empire — Croco Holdings — they built to- Further, during the course of previous pro- matter to ConCourt. are decisions on constitutional matters.
gether, Harare auto tycoon Farai Matsika is ceedings before the court a quo, Matsika and
not giving up. his company invoked section 175(4) of the “The applicants are litigants within the con- “Secondly, on the merits of the application
constitution and sought to request a referral templation of Rule 32(2) of the Constitution- for review, the court a quo interpreted section
He tenaciously remains in hot pursuit of of two constitutional issues to the ConCourt. al Court Rules, 2016, in that they were ap- 176 of the constitution and held that the
justice. plicants in the Supreme Court in SC 30/22,” aforesaid section 176 did not give jurisdic-
The two constitutional questions that the Matsika’s application says. tion to review the decision of a single judge
After losing a series of cases, the last one applicants requested the court a quo to refer in chambers.
being in October, Matsika is taking Chingwe- to the ConCourt are: “The application in SC 30/22 raised con-
na to the Constitutional Court (ConCourt). stitutional issues. It was an application for re- Matsika continues: “I’m advised further
He says he has a constitutional case seeking l Whether or not section 176 of the con- view by the full court of a judgment of a single that in determining whether or not there was
leave to appeal which he believes is of huge stitution of Zimbabwe gave jurisdiction to the judge in chambers, the judgment by the single a constitutional matter in the court a quo all
public interest and has reasonable prospects of full court to review judgments of individual or judge being judgment No. SC 144/21. The that is relevant is the following: Was the court
success. single judges in chambers; and application was filed in terms of section 176 a quo called upon to determine constitutional
of the constitution of Zimbabwe as read with issues? If the answer to the above question is
In the last case, Matsika had his Supreme l Whether or not section 25(3) of the Su- section 6 of the Supreme Court Act (chap yes, then there was a constitutional matter in
Court appeal on Croco Motors declined again preme Court was constitutional to the extent 7:13).” the court a quo.
for lack of jurisdiction. to which it is interpreted to prohibit an appli-
cation for review by the full court of a judg- Matsika is basically seeking leave to appeal “Regarding prospects of success, I believe
Matsika had filed an appeal in the Supreme ment of a single judge in chambers. in terms of Rule 32 of the ConCourt Rules there are reasonable prospects of success.”
Court following the dismissal of his other ap- 2016.
peal at the same court in a case where he was Matsika and his company say the Supreme At the centre of the dispute is a sprawling
fighting for control of Croco Holdings with Court had not acted appropriately by refusing “I have been advised that to succeed in ob- business conglomerate they built from scratch
Chingwena following a High Court ruling to allow him to file a written application for taining the leave to appeal that we are seeking, from the small lowveld town of Chiredzi be-
against him. referral to the ConCourt under section 175(4) I have to show that it is in the interest of jus- fore spreading wings to the capital Harare and
of the constitution, and instead ordered them tice that leave to appeal be granted. In doing dominating the market hitherto controlled by
Supreme Court Justices Elizabeth Gwaun- to make an oral application in the process. so, I have to satisfy two main requirements as old capital with colonial roots in the post-in-
za, Joseph Musakwa and Hlekani Mwayera follows: dependence era.
presided over the case. The oral application was made, but was also
dismissed with full reasons to follow. “That there was a constitutional matter in Even though people may not pay much
In another ruling, Supreme Court Justice the court a quo and the proposed grounds of attention to it, Croco Holdings is one of the
Chinembiri Bhunu upheld High Court Jus- On the merits of the review application, the appeal raise constitutional issues; that there most significant businesses built by indigenous
tice Owen Tagu’s judgment against Matsika, Supreme Court held that it had no jurisdic- are reasonable prospects of success on appeal people since Independence in 1980 when the
saying he had put nothing before the courts tion in the matter, and particularly that sec- should leave be granted. old colonial order was dismantled for a new
to prove his 30% ownership claims of Croco tion 176 of the constitution did not give it ju- one run by the majority.
Holdings, which is the heart of the matter. risdiction to review decisions of its individual “I’m advised that there were clear consti-
judges in chambers.
Matsika had put documents before the
court which he said proved his case, but they Matsika’s application is made in terms of
were dismissed amid allegations of forgery.

Bhunu ruled it was Matsika’s obligation to
convince the court he owned 30% of Croco
Holdings, but it was clear he had submitted
“doctored documents” which made it difficult
for him to be believed.

However, Matsika believes his case has not
been handled professionally, competently and
on merit since he has no doubt Chingwena
had given him 30% of the company.

As result, he is appealing to the ConCourt
to seek leave to appeal the Supreme Court
judgment.

The application is handled by law profes-
sor Lovemore Madhuku whose premise is the
constitutional issue regarding the interpreta-
tion of section 176 of the constitution, with
the applicants — Matsika and his company
Fairgold Investments (Pvt) Ltd — contending
that the section in question gave the full Su-
preme Court the power and jurisdiction to re-
view and correct decisions of individual judges
in chambers.

The respondents in the case are Chingwena
and 37 other entities linked to him and Croco
Holdings, showing how big the company and
its subsidiaries have become.

Croco Motors — synonymous with Ching-
wena and Matsika — is the flagship subsidiary
of Croco Holdings which it owns 100%.

Some of the operations Croco Motors op-
erates include the Ford, Mazda, UD Trucks,
KIA, Eicher and Volvo franchises.

The company is also a dealer for Nissan,
Datsun, Toyota, Higer and Yutong. Croco
Motors’ key product segments are new vehi-
cles and approved used vehicle sales, automo-
bile service and sale of spare parts and acces-
sories.

Other value-added services offered include
tyre fitment, wheel alignment, wheel balanc-
ing and rhino lining. Key divisions are Cro-
co Ford and Mazda, Croco Nissan and Croco
Toyota, Croco Comercial Auto Body Centre
and Pitstop).

Croco Motors has operations in Harare,
Bulawayo, Masvingo, Chiredzi, Selous, Mu-
tare and Victoria Falls. The company’s work-
shops are equipped with modern, state-of-

NewsHawks News Page 15

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Zacc records US$23m corruption cases

BRENNA MATENDERE

THE Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission small-scale tobacco farmers. of fraud and failing to declare interest to an au- Zacc chairperson Justice Loice Matanda-Moyo
(ZACC) has handled cases of corruption with ac- The value of the inputs was US$2.9 million. thority.
cumulative value of assets amounting to US$23 Gudu was jointly charged with his predecessor Gokwe-Nembudziya MP Justice Mayor Wadyajena
million in 2022 and the National Prosecuting This was after he allegedly misrepresented to ria Falls to investigate allegations of corruption
Authority (NPA) is now seized with issuing for- Andrew Matibiri and former TIMB head of spe- the council and applied for a stand using the against town clerk Ronnie Dube, unearthed the
feiture orders for the properties, The NewsHawks cial projects Stuart Shanyika. name of a resident knowing he was not eligible alleged scandal involving a stand valued at over
can report. since he had benefitted before. US$90 000.
In October, Victoria Falls mayor Somveli
The revelations emerged on Thursday during Dlamini (53) was arrested by Zacc on allegations Zacc, which visited the resort city of Victo- Several other cases have been recorded by Zacc
the steering committee meeting of the National in which public officials were arrested for corrup-
Anti-Corruption Strategy (NACS) held in Hara- tion.
re.

The NACS is divided into several sub-commit-
tees mandated with fighting corruption in Zim-
babwe and they present reports to the steering
committee meeting held very three months.

Each committee is constituted with govern-
ment institutions, non-governmental organisa-
tions and other independent associations that
deal with corruption.

Sub-committee five which revealed the corrup-
tion statistics is titled Law Enforcement Agencies
(LEA).

It consists of the Zimbabwe Republic Police
(ZRP), Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zim-
ra), Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe’s Financial In-
telligence Unit (FIU), Asset Management Unit
(AMU), National Prosecuting Authority (NPA),
Bankers' Association of Zimbabwe and Zacc.

In the LEA report, Zacc revealed that it had
received 25 cases of corruption between July
and September with the value of assets totalling
US$650 000.

However, the anti-graft body said since Janu-
ary the total value of assets in all the cases com-
bined which have since been referred to the courts
through the NPA stands at US$22 996 600.

Zacc, led by its chairperson Justice Loice
Matanda-Moyo, said most criminals involved in
the cases had developed cunning ways of evad-
ing the law and recommended advanced ways of
dealing with that.

“Most criminals are now registering property
in trusts and it is very difficult to trace the names
of the trusts against the beneficial owners as the
same are registered in other names. There is need
to migrate to registration of all title deeds and
trusts,” said Zacc.

The anti-graft body also recommended that
valuators be recruited as they are crucial in the
execution of asset recovery investigations and for
the valuation of seized assets awaiting determina-
tion by the High Court.

Currently, the ministry of Local Government
and Public Works is mandated with evaluating
properties that will have been stolen, but there
are concerns that its under-paid workers do not
conduct fair evaluations as they are bribed by
criminals to reduce values to low levels in order
to weaken cases.

Zacc, in its report, called for stakeholder co-
operation and training of both financial crime
investigators and prosecutors in order to deal ef-
fectively with corruption.

The body also recommended the capacita-
tion of all stakeholders in the asset recovery val-
ue chain, saying resources are needed in order to
effectively carry out investigations ranging from
technical skills, vehicles, laptops and drones.

Although Zacc did not specifically mention
people who are involved in the cases of corrup-
tion it is handling, in August the body swooped
on Gokwe-Nembudziya MP Justice Mayor
Wadyajena and Cottco officials Pius Manamike,
Maxmore Njanji, Fortunate Molai, and Pierpont
Moncroix director Chiedza Danha on fraud and
money laundering charges involving US$5 mil-
lion.

Wadyajena and the Cottco bosses were alleged
to have converted money meant for the impor-
tation of bale ties to buy 25 trucks through the
Zanu PF MP’s Mayor Logistics Company.

Zacc went on to confiscate the MP's two sleek
cars at Beitbridge Border Post which were des-
tined for South Africa and withheld them as evi-
dence of property brought through the proceeds
from crime.

In September this year, the body also arrested
Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB)
chief executive Meanwell Gudu on charges of
diverting to large-scale farmers inputs meant for

Page 16 News NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

BRENNA MATENDERE Chihuri properties seizure —
PG wants graft law amended
PROSECUTOR-GENERAL Nelson Mut-
sonziwa has called for the amendment of cor- Former police commissioner-general Augustine Chihuri
ruption laws to plug loopholes being used by
“criminals” to keep hold of ill-gotten property gated and walled. The former police boss is contesting court High Court involving 12 women and 16 men
as the state pushes for the seizure of assets con- The state is also seeking answers on the sale orders allowing the state to forfeit his proper- while matters of extraterritorial money laun-
troversially acquired by former police commis- ties. He argued that he was gainfully employed, dering in the same period stood at 98.
sioner-general Augustine Chihuri. of five properties that were part of the family’s having risen through ranks in the police force
large property portfolio despite that they had and also argues he was a successful farmer. In terms of value of the cases of corruption
The call to amend corruption laws was made been placed under the Asset Management Unit. the NPA is handling at the courts, the body
in a report tabled by the PG before the Nation- Mutsonziwa at the Thursday meeting also revealed that it has finalised forfeiture orders
al Anti-Corruption Strategy (NACS) Steering Chihuri is alleged to have sold five proper- revealed that between July and October 2022, totalling US$5.6 million while those that are
Committee meeting in Harare on Thursday. ties between 2017 and 2018 after his departure the NPA had filed 10 cases of corruption at the pending are valued at US$23.7 million.
from his plum job.
Mutsonziwa, who is a former state attorney,
said some sections of the law are hampering
the NPA’s fight in corruption cases at the High
Court.

He cited section 79 (2) of the Money Laun-
dering and Proceeds of Crime Act which says
that orders for civil forfeiture may not be grant-
ed with respect to property acquired or used
before the law came into force.

The law, which came into force in 2013,
does not apply to persons who acquired prop-
erty before then.

Mutsonziwa said the section of that law must
be amended so that it specifically states that it
shall apply with retrospective effect so that it
covers cases of stolen property which happened
before it came into force in 2013.

“In a recent judgment in Prosecutor-General
versus Tapiwa Chidemo and others HH 416-
22, the court ruled that the section precludes
the forfeiture of property acquired before the
Act came into force i.e 2013,” Mutsonziwa
said.

“The interpretation by the court undermines
efforts to fight crime and corruption as it pre-
cludes the state from seeking the forfeiture of
property acquired before the Act (came) into
force even if such property is tainted property.

“. . . Section 79 (2) of the Money Laun-
dering and Proceeds of Crime Act (must) be
amended to specifically state that it shall ap-
ply with retrospective effect. The reason being
above,” said the PG.

Mutsonziwa also called for the amendment
of a law that applies to unexplained wealth.

Currently, Statutory Instrument 246 of
2018 (Presidential Powers (Temporary Mea-
sures) (Amendment of Money Laundering and
Proceeds of Crime Act and Exchange Control
Act) stipulates that the minimum threshold of
unexplained wealth is US$100 000.

This implies that wealth below that figure
cannot be questioned even if there is a need for
an explanation by the owner to clear suspicions
that the assets were stolen.

The PG wants the law to be amended so that
the threshold is reduced to US$20 000.

He said the current US$100 000 threshold is
too high and promotes corruption.

“We are of the view that this (US$100 000
threshold) promotes crime and corruption and
goes against our goal of disgorging criminals of
the fruits of their criminal enterprises,” said the
PG.

The Supreme Court last month struck off
the roll an appeal by NPA which sought an
order for the forfeiture of Chihuri’s properties.

The state is seeking an explanation on how
Chihuri managed to acquire his wealth and
wants to forfeit some of his properties, includ-
ing houses and vehicles, in a bid to recover
US$32 million allegedly lost through corrupt
practices.

The matter spilled into the courts after the
then prosecutor-general, Kumbirai Hodzi,
checked with the Deeds Office and established
the rushed disposal of assets by Chihuri and his
wife.

This resulted in him being granted powers to
freeze the properties and assets.

The state alleges on 17 July 2018, Chihu-
ri’s wife, Isobel Halima Khan Chihuri, sold
stand 1421 Gletwyn Township, which was
walled, gated with a borehole, water tank, tank
stand, and wooden cabin to Brian Chijaka for
US$130 000.

Her brother, Aitken Khan, had her power
of attorney to make the transaction, reads the
application.

On 21 March 2018, Khan sold 8 St Aub-
in’s Chisipite in Harare on behalf of the own-
er, Chihuri’s daughter Samantha to Erinah
Muchingami for US$365 000.

The property, measuring 9 094 square me-
tres has a four-bedroomed house. It was also

NewsHawks News Page 17

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Govt shells out ZW$4.6bn to war vets

RUVIMBO MUCHENJE War veterans have over the years been demanding gratuities for their role in the attainment of Independence.
Finance minister Mthuli Ncube
IN a bid to appease war veterans, who play a cru-
cial role in Zanu PF election campaigns, the gov-
ernment has set aside ZW$4.6 billion to invest
in farms, mining and tourism.

Finance and Economic Development minister
Mthuli Ncube made the announcement when
he presented the 2023 National Budget in Par-
liament last week.

Ncube said the liberation war fighters’ welfare
remains of uppermost importance to the govern-
ment.

“The welfare of the veterans of the liberation
war remains a priority, with the 2023 Budget
setting aside ZW$4.6 billion towards their mon-
etary and non-monetary benefits, as well as cap-
italisation of their investments in mining, tour-
ism and farms,” Ncube said.

War veterans have over the years been de-
manding gratuities for their role in the attain-
ment of Independence.

In 1997, the government paid out unbudget-
ed lump sums of nearly ZW$50 000 (US$4 300
at the time) to war veterans following months of
protests. This led to the collapse of the local cur-
rency which has never fully recovered.

In May 2022, the Zimbabwean government
announced plans to pay one-off rewards and
monthly pensions to a new batch of 160 000 war
veterans, war collaborators and ex-political pris-
oners who missed out during the first round of
compensation in 1997.

Despite sometimes complaining of being ne-
glected, war veterans have often played a crucial
role in elections.

They have always been used by Zanu PF as
part of the commissariat, especially in rural areas
where they have been involved in campaigns.

On many occasions, war veterans have been
implicated in the intimidation and harassment
of opposition members, especially during the
election period.

They led farm invasions during the land re-
form programme, targeting white farmers, some
of whom were killed.

Page 18 News NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

BRENNA MATENDERE Chinese lithium project
spurs health catastrophe
HEALTH authorities say a lithium project in
Goromonzi is posing a health crisis after employ- A lithium project in Goromonzi has attracted a large number of sex workers (below).
ing over 4 000 workers without establishing a
static clinic at the plant which has resulted in an The groundbreaking ceremony for the Arcadia The lithology of the Arcadia lithium project serves of 37.4 metric tonnes, grading at 1.22%
upsurge of sexually transmitted infections in the lithium project was held in December 2018. The includes greenstone rock units of the Arcturus Li₂O and 121ppm Ta₂O₅, according to the up-
district. mine produced an average of 212ktpa of spodu- formation, a part of the Harare Greenstone Belt dated DFS. It is estimated to contain 1.12Mt of
mene and 216ktpa of petalite in 2019. (HGB). The greenstone belt is a complex re- lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE).
A large number of sex workers have also folded synformal structure, cropping out as two
camped in the area, aggravating the situation. In December 2019, Prospect released an up- major limbs, including an east-west trending Arc- The government selected the Arcadia lithium
dated definitive feasibility study (DFS) based on turus Limb and a north-south trending Passaford project as a priority under its Rapid Results Ini-
Located 38 kilometres from Harare, Arcadia the proposed 2.4Mtpa mining and processing Limb. tiative (RRI) in January 2018. The RRI is primar-
Lithium Project, which is located in the moun- operation. ily aimed at improving the ease of doing business
tainous Goromonzi area, is owned by Honayou The Arcadia project is estimated to contain in the country and reducing complex administra-
Cobalt which bought out Australian investors The DFS reports an estimated mine life of JORC-compliant proven and probable ore re- tive procedures for the development of projects.
Prospect Resources for US$422 million in May 15.5 years.
last year.

Soon after taking over the lithium-mining op-
erations, the company embarked on a massive
drive to recruit workers from across the country
to fill vacancies like mobile equipment operators,
tipper truck drivers, drilling machine operators,
steel fixers, filter machinists, water cart operators,
milling machine operators and diesel plant oper-
ators, among others. The workforce now stands
above 4 000.

However, the large numbers that have flooded
Goromonzi have resulted in a spike in diseases —
notably STIs — due to the absence of a health
centre that can provide services for the prevention
and treatment of the ailments.

Grayham Mafoke, the National Aids Coun-
cil’s Goromonzi district Aids coordinator (DAC),
told The NewsHawks during a visit of the Arcadia
Lithium

Project on Tuesday that in the third quarter of
this year, STI cases rose sharply in the district.

“In the whole of Mashonaland East province,
Goromonzi district now has the highest cases of
STIs. By the end of the third quarter, we had re-
corded 1 800 cases of STIs. This is because com-
mercial sex workers from as far afield as Chitung-
wiza and Harare are now flocking the area to lure
the workers who are making money yet when
they fall sick, there is no permanently located
clinic or health centre to assist leading into spread
of the diseases.

“The lithium project employs about 4 000
workers and 95% of them are male, mostly from
Harare who come to work leaving their families
in the capital city in what we call spousal sepa-
ration which is driving the rise of the ailments.
So without a static health centre around we have
seen this increase of diseases that are transmitted
sexually in communities where the mine workers
are staying,” he said.

Mafoke also revealed that there has since been
an emergence of hot-spots in the district at most-
ly growth points like Juru, Mverechena, Mutan-
gadura, among others.

“In the event that people here want services
like treatment, they have to travel to Harare
mostly and so you will find out that most people
find the distance too long and so if there is an
STI that emerges, it circulates more within the
community because of lack of treatment,” said
Mafoke.

He however revealed that the Health ministry
through NAC and other arms, has since planned
to have mobile clinics in the area but they are not
very effective as they are not static or permanently
located.

NAC has also deployed a peer mentor at the
mining plant, Sandra Masamba who is helping
with having the workers change their behaviour
and scale down cases of STIs.

In an interview, she said the plant had become
a haven for sex workers and all was being done to
try and contain the situation through the provi-
sion of contraceptives and HIV self-testing kits.

“When the mine workers finish work and go
into the communities, they are taking on STIs
as some commercial sex workers are targeting
them. We are also on the highway corridors and
so the ladies come here a lot so there is need for
increased healthcare services,” she said.

Arcadia Lithium mine manager George Tog-
ara and deputy general manager Trevor Bannard
could not be located for comment, as they were
said to have been away from the plant during the
visit while efforts to locate them thereafter did not
succeed. The company however has a trailblazing
record of production and government support.

It estimates to produce an average of 75,z000
tonnes per annum (tpa) of spodumene and
155,000tpa of petalite concentrates during its
20-year mine life.

The pre-feasibility study (PFS) of the project
was completed in June 2017.

NewsHawks News Page 19

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Resettled farmers face relocation

MORRIS BISHI

SCORES of resettled farmers in wards 8 and 32 tween the community and officials from Trim- He said their presence is lawful since they ap- Chief Bornface Musara
of Masvingo North constituency are facing relo- inZim since the officials told them that all the proached all relevant government offices which
cation if a Canadian-linked company, TriminZim procedures were followed and there was no need granted them permission to do what they are do- Mines minister Winston Chitando
(Pvt) Ltd, is given the greenlight by the authori- to talk to people. ing. He also said community engagement meet- false information about our presence in that area.
ties to mine for minerals in the area. ings will be held very soon through the office of All we are doing is above board, we have approv-
A geologist from TriminZim Raymond Chive- the district development coordinator. als from all relevant offices, including that of the
TriminZim (Pvt) Ltd was granted exclusive te told The NewsHawks that people should not President and minister responsible for minerals.
prospecting order (EPO) number 1790 in March panic over their presence in Masvingo North. "I think there are people who are spreading We are still prospecting and, if we get what we
2021 to prospect for gold, nickel and copper in want, there will be processes to be followed before
Masvingo. The activity will be undertaken in the actual mining."
area stretching from Makurumidze River near
Masvingo city to Mbungo Estates on both sides
of the Masvingo-Mutare highway.

Two weeks ago, officials from the mining
company were seen by locals moving around
the area and, after being questioned, the officials
produced letters from Mines minister Winston
Chitando and permanant secretary for Masvingo
Jefta Sakupwanya, but the issue forced the com-
munity to chase them away from the area.

On 16 November 2022, Sakupwanya wrote a
letter to Masvingo district development coordi-
nator Richard Hove, informing him that Trim-
inZim was granted authority to prospect for min-
erals in wards 8 and 32 of Masvingo North, but
reiterated that there should be stakeholder en-
gagement to get approval from the community.

"His Excellency the President of Zimbabwe
approved the granting of Exclusive Prospective
Order number 1790 to TriminZim (Pvt) Ltd for
a period of three years with effect from 12 March
2021. The EPO number 1790 is to prospect for
gold, nickel and copper in Masvingo district. The
prospecting activity will be undertaken in the
area stretching from Makurumidze River up to
Mbungo on both sides of the Masvingo-Mutare
Highway"

"Please give them all the support they will need
in carrying out the prospecting activities, includ-
ing, but not limited to stakeholder engagement
to get the community buy-in to this nationally
important project" reads part of Sakupwanya's
letter read by The NewsHawks.

Efforts to get a comment from Sakupwan-
ya were fruitless since he said he was attending
a strategic planning workshop out of Masvingo
and was not in a position to comment on the
manner.

Chief Musara, born Bornface Musara, told The
NewsHawks that it is not proper for government
to offer mining rights to a private company us-
ing survey maps left by colonial governments in
areas which are now occupied by thousands of
people. He said community engagement through
local leaders should have been done first, instead
of subjecting the community to the spectacle of
prospectors roaming around homesteads and
farming areas.

"We are not against government programmes,
but procedure should always be followed. It was
known that minerals are in abundance in this
area way back when these people were settled in
the early 2000s but the issue of minerals were su-
perceded by the need that people should get land.
We were never told that there are people who will
come to our area for minerals. Community en-
gagement should be the first thing. I think they
should start this process afresh and consider the
life of those already on the land" said Musara.

Masvingo Rural District Council chairperson
Albert Mangena, who is also the councillor for
ward 8, told The NewsHawks that his council
was instructed by the authorities from above to
approve the EPO for TriminZim and there was
nothing they could do although the mining ac-
tivities will affect thousands of people in an area
covering more than 50 kilometres.

According to minutes of a Masvingo RDC
environmental committee meeting held on 13
September 2022, the EPO issue was discussed
and one Mr Dzvairo, an executive officer for en-
vironment told the meeting that the order given
to TriminZim gave the company exclusive rights
to explore minerals in wards 8 and 32. Members
of the committee felt that since it was a directive
from the government there was no much to dis-
cuss but to accept.

Ward 32 councillor Stephen Munyenyiwa said
officials should come clean and tell the commu-
nity what will happen to them so that they know
their fate. He said there was a confrontation be-

Page 20 News NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Chissano handles Zim debt talks

BERNARD MPOFU

FORMER Mozambican president Joaquim Chis- beneficiary countries and non-HIPC initiatives. country’s champion of arrears clearance and debt Former Mozambican president Joaquim Chissano
sano has been appointed to facilitate Zimbabwe’s Presenting the 2023 National Budget last resolution process with the IFIs and bilateral is in the process of establishing and formalising
first dialogue with its creditors as the financially creditors,” Ncube said. a structured Dialogue Platform with all creditors
beleaguered nation seeks to normalise relations week, Finance minister Mthuli Ncube told law- and IFIs, leading to the convening of a High-Lev-
with the international community, The News- makers the government has intensified its re-en- “The African Development Bank (AfDB) has el Debt Resolution Forum with all creditors in
Hawks has established. gagement with creditors. also extended a US$3 million grant for techni- early 2023. The aim is to build consensus among
cal assistance to Zimbabwe under the Arrears all creditors and stakeholders on the reform agen-
Following several failed attempts to settle ar- “As part of actualisation of the ACDRR Strat- Clearance and Governance Enhancement Proj- da the options, process and procedures of resolv-
rears with international financial institutions egy, the president of the African Development ect. With this technical assistance, Government ing the country’s external debt overhang.”
(IFIs) such as the World Bank, International Bank Group (AfDB), Dr A. A. Adesina is the
Monetary Fund and the African Development
Bank, which all enjoy preferred creditor status,
Zimbabwe, which has been struggling to access
long-term concessional capital, is considering a
change in tack.

Official figures show that Zimbabwe’s total
public and publicy guaranteed debt stock in-
creased from ZW$1.9 trillion as at end December
2021, to ZW$10.97 trillion as at end Septem-
ber 2022, representing a 477% increase, mainly
on account of the 2 depreciation of the ZW$
against the US$, which depreciated from US$1:
ZW$108 as at end December 2021, to US$1:
ZW$622 as at end September 2022 (476% de-
preciation).

Chissano, a politician who served as Mozam-
bique’s second leader from 1986 to 2005, took
for over from Samora Machel is who was killed
in a plane crash.

Chissano is credited with transforming the
war-torn Mozambique into one of the most suc-
cessful African democracies. After his presidency,
Chissano became an elder statesman, envoy and
diplomat for both his home country and the
United Nations. Chissano also served as African
Union chair from 2003 to 2004.

Sources familiar with the developments told
The NewsHawks that following the drafting of
Zimbabwe’s debt and arrears clearance plan early
this and the assumption of African Development
Bank president Akinwumi Adesina as the team
leader of Zimbabwe’s quest to break its debt cy-
cle, a lot has been happening in the background.

“The government of Zimbabwe was supposed
to have the first dialogue meeting with its cred-
itors on December 1 and that has since been
re-scheduled. Former president of Mozambique
Chissano has been appointed as a facilitator,” one
of the sources said.

Just last week, the European Investment Bank
(EIB), one of Zimbabwe’s multilateral creditors,
says it is keen on working with the southern Afri-
can nation as it seeks to settle its arrears.

According to the new debt plan, Zimbabwe is
exploring traditional debt relief options, especially
the Highly Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) Ini-
tiative, which provides maximum debt relief for

The World Bank

NewsHawks News Page 21

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Police ignore Gutu Zanu PF violence

MORRIS BISHI Sesel Zvidzai
The CCC Gutu cluster leadership says it is worried by the continued reluctance by police to arrest perpetrators of political violence.
GUTU district has become the epicentre of politically
motivated violence in Masvingo province, with mem-
bers of the opposition Citizens' Coalition for Change
(CCC) being brutalised by known Zanu PF activists,
who are, however, walking scot free.

In a letter dated 22 November 2022 addressed to
the district police command, the CCC Gutu cluster
leadership said it was worried by the continued reluc-
tance by police to arrest perpetrators of political vi-
olence, who continue to commit similar crimes time
and again.

In the letter, which was signed by Sesel Zvidzai and
Evelyn Masaiti, the opposition party highlighted cas-
es which have been reported since October last year
without action being taken. The recent cases came a
fortnight ago when three CCC activists were assaulted
at Gutu Growth Point. Health officials in Gutu were
later instructed not to attend to them.

"We observe with concern the escalation of target-
ed political violence, intolerance, selective use of the
law and repression caused by a certain political party
as the country heads towards the 2023 elections. We
have come to you, after observing in vain the blatant
disregard of the common law of peaceful engagement
by a certain political party, who hire trucks and ferry
supporters to denounce members of our political party
at their places of residence, business places, chanting
slogans that threaten people's lives.

"The violence that escalated at the House of Coun-
cillor Bernard Chimwango of CCC on 14 November
2022 and at Tachi Business Centre on 20 November
2022 are two recent cases in point. Mpandawana
Growth Point/Town is becoming a red spot for polit-
ical violence that has resulted in unnecessary injuries
and death of innocent people," reads part of the letter.

Last Wednesday, the officer-in-charge of Masvingo
East district, Chief Superintendent Joachim Mambu-
re, convened a multi-party liason committee meeting
at Gutu Police Station where he told participants that
police will not arrest perpetrators of recent violence but
will arrest those who will commit violence in future.

Speaking to The NewsHawks, Mambure said he
called the meeting to urge political parties to desist
from violence. He said he was not priviledged to speak
on why police officers were not arresting violent Zanu
PF activists in Gutu.

"I am the one who convened the meeting on Gutu
and we wanted to urge political parties to desist from
engaging in violent activities. I cannot tell you the
proceedings of the whole meeting, but that was the
agenda. On why violence perpetrators are not being
arrested, you can talk to our spokesperson, he is the
one who can answer that question," said Mambure.

A CCC activist from Gutu, Admire Wakurawar-
erwa, who also attended the multi-party liaison com-
mittee meeting on Wednesday, told The NewsHawks
that his party provided names of perpetrators and even
brought the injured to the meeting, but Mambure dis-
missed them, saying he was not aware of the violence.

"We provided them with names of perpetrators, but
they dismissed us. The Gutu DCC chair, Josphat Sa-
rukore, is the one who is leading this orgy of violence
together with his team including Admire Chimuka,
Tawanda Sarukore, Sylvester Mashamba, Samson
Sarukore and Joseph Mudziwapasi and many others.
They are imposing curfews in most parts of Gutu and
terrorising known CCC activists without any fear and
police are not arresting them," alleged Wakurawar-
erwa.

The CCC Masvingo provincial spokesperson, Der-
ick Charamba, told The NewsHawks that his party is
against violence and it is disturbed by the manner in
which political violence is being perpetrated and the
spring board is Gutu district in Masvingo province.
He said it is worrying that police are ignoring calls to
arrest perpetrators despite being provided with names
and the current scenario is pointing to more political
violence in 2023.

Zanu PF Masvingo provincial spokesperson Pepu-
kai Chiwewe said the ruling does not condone vio-
lence. He said those who committed political violence
in Gutu were not members of Zanu PF.

"It is part of our policy as Zanu PF that we should
not engage in violent activities. You always hear or
President talking about that, we are a non-violent
party and we don't condone violence. Those who as-
saulted CCC activists in Gutu are not our members,
they are not on our structures and people should not
associate them with our party," said Chiwewe.

Page 22 News NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Karoi council unaudited for 3 years

Karoi Town Council

NHAU MANGIRAZI Former Karoi town secretary Wellington Mutikani

KAROI Town Council has clocked three years
without audited financial results, The News-
Hawks has established.

The town council has in the past three years
been probed by the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption
Commission over various allegations, while sev-
eral officials have been suspended.

Among the key officers suspended on full
benefits are former town secretary Wellington
Mutikani, housing director Sibongile Mujuruki,
acting housing director Hastings Makunda, for-
mer finance director Tongai Namusala, who was
elevated to acting town secretary before he was
suspected.

They all face various charges from criminal
abuse of office and financial abuse but no trial
dates have been set in their cases.

Town chairperson Abel Matsika this week
confirmed that council books have not been au-
dited. He however said books for the 2020 finan-
cial year were ready for auditing.

‘‘It is true that as a council, we have faced
challenges to have updated financial accounts as
required by law. We are ready to be audited for
2020 as our accounts are ready. We are expecting
the Auditor-General anytime,” he said.

“We are busy preparing the 2021 books in a
bid to catch up with time. We have had a myriad
of challenges such as the Covid-19 pandemic and
high staff turnover,’’ he said in a written response.

Matsika added that he is very optimistic that
the audits will be up to date by mid next year.

But Karoi Residents Trust director Travo Chi-
wanga said audit reports should be timely availed
in order for the local authority to make correct
decisions on time.

‘‘Our council must ensure and measure the ef-
fectiveness of its policies and decisions through
audited accounts. It is the best barometer of pro-
fessionalism. Any delay in having timely audited
books of account is a deliberate attempt to tacti-
cally delay accountability and transparency,’’ said
Chiwanga.

‘‘Audited accounts are an important tool of an
organisation’s financial status and our town poli-
cymakers have left this for too long.’’

NewsHawks News Page 23

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Fresh turbulence buffets MDC-T

RUVIMBO MUCHENJE Norest Marara national council meeting that unanimously dered a return to the 2014 structures and that
MDC-T president Douglas Mwonzora seconded him for ascension to the presidency. congress be convened to elect the party presi-
FRESH turbulence has rocked the MDC-T 2018, when the latter took over the reigns of dent within four months.
cockpit as party secretary Witness Dube re- the MDC after the death of founding leader High Court judge Edith Mushore then or-
ports a presidential hopeful, Norest Chiureki Morgan Tsvangirai. Chamisa had convened a
Marara, to the police for allegedly seeking to
steal money from party members.

The police report comes after Marara took
party president Douglas Mwonzora to court
for blocking his nomination and consequently
participation at congress.

In a memorandum dated 2 December 2022,
Dube accused Marara and Edward Vakai of
seeking to fleece members to fund his court
application that has nothing to do with the
party.

“A fraudulent poster co-authored by Mr Ed-
ward Vakai and Norest Marara seeking dona-
tions from party members to purportedly fund
a desperate and frivolous case is being circu-
lated. The party has since lodged a report with
the ZRP, Harare Central Police Station against
these impersonators and constitutional deli-
quents and the law will take its course,” read
the letter penned by Dube.

He added that the poster bearing MDC-T
symbols is an attempt to dupe unsuspecting
party members.

“Both Mr Marara and Vakai were neither
asked to raise any funds for the party nor to
use the party name, logo and symbol in any of
their communications. Their communique is a
deceptive scam designed to fleece unsuspecting
members of the party and should be treated
with the contempt it deserves,” said Dube.

Marara is seeking the overturning of the
MDC-T national council’s decision to have
Mwonzora as an uncontested presidential can-
didate at the party’s elective congress sched-
uled for 18 December 2022.

“The decision of the National Council in-
fringes upon the rights of the applicant to par-
ticipate in the electoral processes of the MDC
party which rights are guaranteed by the MDC
constitution,” reads part of the application.

“Unless he fears losing, the second respon-
dent (Douglas Mwonzora) stands to lose noth-
ing if the applicant is allowed to participate in
the election and contest the position of Presi-
dent,” read the application.

The uncontested nomination of Mwonzora
in the national council meeting of 20 Novem-
ber 2022 was hotly contested as eye witnesses
say there was a lot of intimidation from a hired
crowd and muscle men that were chanting
pro-Mwonzora songs in the meeting.

The motion to nominate candidates for
congress was not part of the agenda, but the
rowdy hired crowd forced the national chair-
person and meeting attendees to concede to
their demands.

Khalipani Phugeni dismissed Mwonzora's
nomination as a process that disenfranchised
others.

“It is not a contest, if you are going to be
involved in a contest there will be rules, there
will be time for everyone to campaign and ev-
erything. How do you think I will participate
in a ccontest that already has people nominat-
ed before there is an established process? If you
have a process that is fair, that gives everyone
equal opportunity. So we can’t get into a race
that is almost determined,” said Phugeni.

Asked whether he was interested in contest-
ing at congress, Phugeni emphasised the im-
portance of fairness.

“What was happening was —when the
whole thing was mooted — was that everyone
has a fair opportunity. You could assess wheth-
er you are interested depending on how many
people would have said you are the right per-
son, but the process does not allow for that.

Even if people were to say now come, which
people? Because the process is not the tradi-
tional process that we all know and I do not
think it gives everyone a fair opportunity,” he
said.

He insists he will remain in the party as he is
a member of the institution.

Analysts say what is happening to Mwon-
zora is what happened to Nelson Chamisa in

Page 24 News NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Fight against child marriages heightened

ADMIRE MASUKU The inforgraphics represent the number of girls and women of all ages who were first married or in union ECM and FGM.
before age 18 globally and in Southern and East Africa. By March 2023, the AUC and its partners aim
IN July 2021, Anna Machaya, a 15-year-old girl
from Zimbabwe’s Manicaland province, died been doing a sterling job exposing violence similar other cases. Equally, the media has retreat- to have trained a total of 60 media professionals
while giving birth at an Apostolic sect shrine, against girls. ed to its usual posture — covering politics, sex leading to quality reporting in the worst affected
315km from the capital, Harare. and the hamstrung economy. countries.
“The issue of child marriage has been exten-
She was married off at the age of 12 to a mem- sively covered; largely by the print media,” Mas- Even the noise by child rights activists that Before this initiative, there was a disconnect
ber of the sect, 15 years older than her age. ters says. awoke the country to the unfortunate incident between the continental standards and the prac-
has been reduced to "whispers" at workshops. tices at national level.
Her death sparked a nationwide outcry which However, more needs to be done to ensure The perpetrator is on the run. The case is slowly
reignited calls to end early child marriages quality, responsible human rights journalism. dying. “We believe this continent-wide network will
(ECMs). The incident jolted child rights activists Some stories, produced for an attention-starved drive action and impact through storytelling
and government agencies to descend on Marange audience and a browsing generation, is typical of It seems this is the nature of the child violence right from the grassroots to the national level,”
village in droves. It was a fashionable newsjacking sensational, shallow and touch-and-go journal- campaign cycle. It is sparked by extreme inci- says Nena Thundu, the coordinator of the AU-
moment. ism. dents (death), buoyed by public outrage and kept HPU.
alive by commemorative events.
Some commentators say politicians are com- The stories “often lack context and in-depth Dr Edward Addai, the UNICEF Representa-
plicit in the commission of child marriage related information,” says Masters. “They hype up the AU’s intervention tive to AUC and the UN ECA, says the media are
crimes by members of some religious groups. age and horror . . . focus on the age, the girl and The African Union Commission's Health helping to shine light on harmful practices and
the community and are meant to shock not inter- Humanitarian Affairs and Social Development helping policymakers and programmers design
“In Zimbabwe, we have politicians and their rogate. There is a need to expose the perpetrators Department (AU HHSD), through its Ending interventions to change the narrative.
political parties who refuse to censure those sects and advocate for corrective measures.” Harmful Practices Unit (AU-HPU), believes the
known for abusing minors,” says Njabulo Ncube, solution could come from capacitating the media Chavala Madlena, the lead trainer from the
the coordinator for the Zimbabwe National Edi- Cases such as Machaya’s do not outlive the to report responsibly. Global Media Campaign (GMC), an interna-
tors Forum (Zinef). departure of "political shadows" and "gods" of AUC HPU, with support from the Spotlight tional media organisation that supports locally
sponsored content. Initiative Africa Regional Programme (SIARP) empowered media campaigns to end ECM and
Anna’s story is, therefore, seen as a case of an through the UNFPA-UNICEF Joint Programme FGM, says “There was a gap in the ecosystem of
old practice that unexpectedly leapt out of con- In most cases, such stories are elitist, episodic on the Elimination of Female Genital Mutilation behavioural change campaigns . . . Efforts to end
cealment. and memorial. Experts warn by doing so the me- is running a training programme for journalists harmful traditional practices were loosely coordi-
dia is failing the victims. and journalism lecturers. The programme is tar- nated and rarely included the media in designing
But, Sithembiso Nyoni, Zimbabwe’s minister geting least 22 member states currently imple- interventions.”
of Women's Affairs, Community, Small and Me- According to the 2022 World Health Organ- menting campaigns.
dium Enterprise Development, says it is a case of isation (WHO) guideline for journalists, media The countries — Malawi, Somalia, Uganda, For the past years, AU programmes on ending
a few misfits. fails to describe the impact of violence “through Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Ethiopia, South harmful practices targeted campaigners and ac-
the eyes that matter most: those of the child.” Sudan, Zimbabwe and Zambia in East Africa tivists. To help end harmful practices, journalists
“Culture and religion have never tolerated the and Niger, Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Le- need to be vigilant.
abuse of children, but there are individuals who The media, especially social media, is buoyed one, Senegal, Mauritania, Djibouti, Mali, Egypt,
hide behind the two…for them to abuse chil- by sensational content and clicks. DRC and Chad in West, Central and North Af- Tiwonge Ng’ona Kampondeni, the editor of
dren,” Nyoni said. rica — have the highest reported incidences of Africa Brief in Malawi, says “Journalists need to
It “often ignores the deeper aspects of abuse, be pro-active, seek more knowledge about harm-
ECM stories have the face of a young girl as prioritising sensationalism over substance,” reads ful practices and take up the role of activists . . .”
a victim and the face of a religious leader, a rela- part of the WHO guideline.
tive, a village leader and a powerful politician as Naimah Hassan, the director of programmes,
a victimiser. This is quite common. Indeed, the hysteria Global Media Campaign (GMC), concurs:
over the death of Machaya has died down like “Journalists should keep the momentum, and
Globally, poverty, harmful traditional and re- continue to debate on harmful practices.
ligious practices have been identified as some of
the causes of ECM. “It is not enough to flag the issues and scratch
on the surface.”
Reyhana Masters, a media expert, says culture
is grossly misunderstood. Joseph Kizza, a journalist with the New Vision
Group in Uganda, says collaborations can help
“We use culture to pass off harmful behaviour.” improve the quality of stories.
she says, “The growing increase in men; decades
older, marrying young and underage girls is not “There is no way we can work in silos,” he says,
culture.” “We are in a global world that calls for global
solutions.”
Failure to correctly interpret culture and myths
associated with sleeping with minors have result- Journalists should continue to seek knowledge
ed in rising cases of child abuse. and expose crimes against young girls. Nyaradzo
adds: “There is a need to engage in sustained
“This is an extreme form of patriarchy,” says campaigns and to train budding journalist, in-
Masters. “Some of the acts are supposedly mo- cluding socialites, influencers, bloggers and own-
tivated by beliefs linking the rape of minors to ers of online platforms to ensure that the media
lucky charms or exorcism of bad spirits.” do no harm.”

The authorities are looking for ways to deal A continental problem
with the challenge. Zimbabwe has outlawed In Africa, the challenge of ECM and FGM is a
child marriages and set the age of consent at 18. crisis backed by alarming statistics.
The government recently approved the Criminal According to UNICEF, between 2020 and
Law and (Codification Reform) Bill, 2022 that 2021, in Ethiopia 25 million girls and women
provides for a mandatory sentence for rape. De- underwent FGM, in Kenya 4 million girls and
spite the interventions, more and more cases are women, and nearly nine out of 10 girls and wom-
emerging. en in Sudan had underwent FGM.
In Guinea-Bissau, over 400 000 girls and wom-
Latest cases involve a nine-year-old girl from en had underwent FGM while in Mali, the figure
Tsholotsho in Matabeleland North province who stood around 8 million. West and Central Africa
“was assisted to deliver her baby”; a 13-year-old has the highest prevalence of child marriage in
Victoria Falls Grade 7 pupil who wrote her exam- the world and is home to nearly 60 million child
ination in a hospital ward; a 15-year-old Norton brides, according to a report by UNICEF (2022).
girl who died giving birth at a church shrine in From southern Africa to East Africa, from East
Bikita; and a nine-year-old Bindura girl who fell Africa to West Africa, the plight of young girls
pregnant from a rape ordeal. subjected to abuse is crayoned with sad tales of
misery.
“This kind of immorality and cruelty cannot A global problem
be allowed to go on in our society,” says Nyoni. Although ECM and FMG cases vary from
“As a country, we need to deal decisively with country to country, culture to culture and reli-
such moral degeneration . . .” gion to religion, they represent a global problem.
According to the UNFPA, worldwide, more
Weak legislation is seen as one of the challeng- than 75 million young women aged 20 to 24
es in the fight against child marriages. years, a quarter of them in Africa, were married
before they celebrated their 18th birthday; and
“While child marriage cases have been exten- about 12 million girls aged below 18 years are
sively reported on in Zimbabwe, what remains is married each year.
the implementation of the law,” says Nyaradzo A recent study by the WHO found that up to
1 billion children are affected by violence each
Mashayamombe, a human rights advocate. year. For this reason, the UN is nudging member
“Journalists can report, but if the justice system is states to eradicate all forms of harmful practices
weak” there are bound to be problems. by 2030. Equally, the AUC HPU programme is
working with member states to commit resources
The four cases involving minors represent a and design interventions to end harmful tradi-
trend that cuts across most parts of Africa. tional practices.
l The article represents the views of the au-
Sadly, only extreme cases reach the doorsteps thor and not AUC or UNICEF.
of the media or feed into statistical data.

It is a cause for concern.
“We cannot progress as a nation if we continue
to ignore such behaviours that deprive girls of the
future . . .,” says Nyoni. “These cases are an indi-
cation of a much bigger rot because most of the
cases go unreported.”
Notwithstanding challenges, the media has

NewsHawks News Page 25

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

ADMIRE MASUKU Zimbabweans among Rhodes’
50 most distinguished alumni
ZIMBABWEANS making an impact on the
global map of excellence and innovation are Admire Mare “He has cut a niche for himself as a prolif- studies head of department at the Cape Pen-
growing in numbers and across disciplines. Nomvuselelo Nyathi, an alumnus of the Rhodes ic journalism and media scholar with diverse insula University of Technology, Dr Blessing
Journalism School. “He is always broaching the interests,” says Dr Jacinta Maweu, an alumnus Mukwambeni, describes Mare as an enterpris-
From Maxwell Sangulani Chikumbutso to next frontier. His scholarship is not rooted in of the Rhodes School of Journalism and senior ing academic.
Danai Gurira, to Dr Sikhulile Moyo, Stepha- ivory tower thinking but tries to engage with media lecturer at the University of Nairobi.
nie Travers, and Professor Tawana Kupe, the the realities of the continent.” “Mare has a great work ethic . . . He is a
Vice-Chancellor of the University of Pretoria Doc Maweu and Prof Mare have co-edited a trailblazer and one of the leading voices and re-
— Zimbabweans are creating an impressive Mare is a strong believer in the above phi- book titled Media, Conflict and Peacebuilding searchers in the field of journalism and media
profile around the world. The latest in the long losophy and his influence, especially in digital in Africa. studies in the Global South.”
list of the country’s flag wavers in the media are journalism and social media cultures, is widely
Professor Admire Mare, Marshall Patsanza and acclaimed. Former classmate, senior lecturer and media In terms of community projects, Mare pio-
Harugumi Mutasa. neered youth-led initiatives such as the media
entrepreneurship pitch nights at the Namibia
The trio have been named among the Rhodes University of Science and Technology (NUST),
University School of Journalism and Media a programme that incubates start-up ideas by
Studies’ top 50 most distinguished alumni since journalism students.
its establishment in 1972. It is a milestone!
Also, he has set up mentorship platforms for
Mare, Mutasa and Patsanza appear alongside early career researchers and academics in the
some of Africa’s finest media luminaries and three countries in addition to starting Dinari
thought leaders, including Stephen Grootes, Mentorship Programme (DMP) that nurtures
Michael Markovitz, Lindile Mpanza, Marga- talent for students in primary, secondary and
ret Jjuuko, Peter Bruce, Yolisa Njmela Zikhali, tertiary institutions.
Deidre Uren, Krivani Pillay, Phillip Yaa de Vil-
liers and filmmakers Jin Joen. Apart from Mare, another Zimbabwean
among the alumni who has distinguished her-
The criteria for choosing awardees involved self is Mutasa. She graduated in 2005 and was
reviewing over 5 000 students who have passed hired by Al Jazeera when the news network
through the school since 1972 and inviting launched its English-language channel.
alumni to make nominations.
Since then she has worked hard to establish
Mare, an associate professor in the depart- herself as one of the most adventurous female
ment of communication and media at the Uni- journalists renowned for covering conflicts,
versity of Johannesburg in South Africa, was elections and humanitarian crises in African
honoured for his commitment to media stud- countries including the Islamist invasion of So-
ies, innovation and his contribution to youth malia, post-election violence and civil wars in
empowerment. countries such as the Ivory Coast and South
Sudan.
Mutasa was recognised for her coverage of
conflicts and humanitarian crises in Africa, According to a citation published by Rhodes
while Patsanza distinguished himself working JMS, Mutasa says her extensive work in Africa
for the International Organisation for Migra- has given her a unique outlook on reporting the
tion (IOM) responsible for championing mi- continent, and she has had to “learn how to ne-
gration and human traffic issues around the gotiate with rebels, soldiers, child soldiers and
world and creating multimedia content. key officials in governments.”

“We work hard and think nobody cares,” says “For me, the point I remember most is when
Mare, “But when you get recognized you real- she covered the Burundi election and was al-
ise that someone somewhere is watching your most stabbed by a panga-wielding man,” Mare
progress. This also demonstrates that Zimbabwe says, “She’s a determined woman.”
has trained people who have gone on to have an
impact beyond its borders.” Patsanza has become an influential multi-
media journalist working for the International
Rhodes University Vice-Chancellor Sizwe Organisation of Migration (IOM) on migration
Mabizela told the alumni who gathered in Jo- and human trafficking matters.
hannesburg’s Wanderers Club for the final
awards ceremony that they “represent what is He is currently the head of global social me-
best about South African journalism". dia for IOM.

He added: “Through you, we celebrate and Harugumi
honour all journalists and other media practi- Mutasa
tioners in our country and beyond . . . We also
honour the memory of all journalists and prac- Marshall Patsanza
titioners in our country and beyond who have
lost their lives in the line of duty.”

The journalism school believes the awards
will re-energise the alumni and challenge them
to set for themselves new horizons.

“We hope that our recognition of their out-
standing contributions will encourage them
to continue the excellent work that they have
done,” says Dr Priscilla Boshoff, a senior jour-
nalism lecturer at the Rhodes School of Journal-
ism and Media Studies.

“Rhodes School of Journalism seeks to pro-
duce self-reflexive, critical, analytical graduates
and media workers, whose practice is probing,
imaginative, civic-minded and outspoken.”

The Rhodes JMS is internationally renowned
as Africa’s pre-eminent education institution
since 1972.

The school is the home of the Sol Plaatje In-
stitute for Media Management, the Highway
Africa Conference, the South African Reserve
Bank Centre for Economic Journalism and the
Public Service Accountability Monitor.

Dr Mabizela says the institution provides an
“intellectually rich and stimulating environ-
ment.”

Mare agrees: “The environment allowed us to
network with a lot of people. It was a multina-
tional environment.”

Apart from a conducive learning environ-
ment, Mare says many other factors account for
success in journalism.

“You need to put all your effort,” he says,
“Create a niche for yourself; and leave foot-
prints, wherever you are. Be different and look
at yourself as a brand.”

Beyond Rhodes, Mare has built an enviable
profile among fellow academics, and early ca-
reer academics in Zimbabwe, Namibia and
South Africa.

“Mare has been a consistent scholar,” says

Page 26 International Investigative Stories NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

InInvteesrtniagtaiotinvaelStories

Fake ‘Rothschild’ was chased by Russian
organised crime when she took

pictures with Trump at Mar-a-Lago

WHILE Inna Yashchyshyn the time she rolled into Mar- self-confessed grifter was a Yashchyshyn, 34, has Australia to $19,200 from an
visited Mar-a-Lago and a-Lago in May 2021, she had Ukrainian immigrant tangled bounced between Miami and investment broker in Hong
schmoozed with former Presi- dodged a series of messages up with Russian organized Quebec in the past few years. Kong, internal records ob-
dent Trump and his inner cir- that had grown angrier and crime, a joint investigation by She worked until recently with tained by OCCRP show.
cle, she was being pursued by a more threatening as they were the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette a Russian immigrant named
senior member of Russian or- ignored. and OCCRP has found. Valeriy Tarasenko, 45, who had United Hearts of Mercy is
ganized crime. investments in both places. also what links Yashchyshyn
“I will force you to respect OCCRP and the Post-Ga- and her associates to orga-
For months before she drove me. You have until Friday,” zette revealed in August how The two appear to have nized crime. Interviews and
a Mercedes SUV into Mar-a- said one text. Yashchyshyn gained access to worked together running newly obtained records show
Lago to masquerade as a mem- Mar-a-Lago without any back- a charity called the United the charity had been taking in
ber of the wealthy Rothschild Another included a photo of ground checks, making at least Hearts of Mercy which oper- money from Artak Mardoyan,
clan and take pictures with the condo building where she four trips to the estate in two ated out of Florida from 2015 a self-acknowledged “thief in
Donald Trump, Inna Yash- was living, sent to an associate days. The investigation and an to 2021, with Yashchyshyn law,” under a deal he said had
chyshyn was receiving threat- along with an ominous warn- FBI action that same month as its president. It also had a been struck with her in 2020.
ening texts and calls from a ing that read, “Wait bitches.” to retrieve documents from Canadian branch registered
man who warned he meant Mar-a-Lago renewed questions as a business under the name In a thick accent and using
business. The man was a vor Guests at former President about security at the private Les Coeurs Unis de la Miséri- colorful language, Mardoyan
v zakone, or “thief in law”: a Donald Trump’s South Flor- club that has hosted powerful corde. The charity claimed to told journalists Yashchyshyn
ranking member of a Russian ida resort recalled how Yash- U.S. and world leaders. be helping poor children, but had cheated his criminal group
organized crime group. chyshyn told of her wealthy OCCRP could find no public out of more than $150,000
European banking family and Those questions will only documentation of how it spent that was routed through the
Yashchyshyn apparently ig- growing up in Monaco. They grow with the new revelations the funds it took in. charity as “donations.” He had
nored the messages from the bought the story when she that the fake Rothschild was originally sent her a large sum
man who called himself Ar- mingled with Trump and for- being chased by a serious or- Instead, United Hearts of of money he said, which was
tak. She owed him more than mer Missouri Gov. Eric Greit- ganized crime figure as she Mercy reaped “donations” supposed to be split — 60 per-
$150,000, he said, and threat- ens. mingled with prominent club from fraudulent credit card cent for his group, 40 percent
ened to harm her and her fam- guests and the ex-president payments that ranged from for her. He did not explain the
ily if she didn’t pay up. By But she wasn’t a Rothschild, himself. $125 from a church group in origin of this money or why he
nor had she lived a life of lux-
ury in Europe. Instead, the

NewsHawks International Investigative Stories Page 27

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

had chosen to work with Yash-
chyshyn.
Mardoyan said his group
reached an agreement with
Yashchyshyn to move the mon-
ey through her charity by de-
positing it into United Hearts
of Mercy’s account with Stripe,
a major payment processing
company. He said the cash he
deposited was later withdrawn
and he never saw it again.
“That makes me really an-
gry,”’ he said. “That girl, she
just withdrew the money and
ghost[ed]. So we [have been]
looking for her for a long
time.”
“As said the great rapper
Tupac Shakur, ‘I’m not a killer
but don’t push me,’” Mardoy-
an added, quoting the rapper’s
song “Hail Mary.”
Mardoyan’s Instagram
posts show him bearing tat-
toos on each shoulder of the
eight-pointed star, a common
symbol associated with thieves
in law, criminal figures who
often serve as leaders of orga-
nized crime groups with roots
in Soviet-era Russia. Many of
these groups have operations
that spread across the former
Soviet republics and beyond
after the collapse of commu-
nism.
Mardoyan openly admitted
that he was part of a criminal
network, but said thieves in
law had positive qualities, like
being “clever” and standing up Yashchyshyn poses with a child on the United Hearts of Mercy Facebook page. Credit: Screenshot: United Hearts of Mercy/Facebook

for everyday people against the The charity’s accountant, Ta- to her native Russia and has to 2010. Some purport to raise for the authorities should they
tiana Verzilina, was also pulled declined interview requests. money for education, empow- want to talk to me about it.”
rich and powerful. into the fray: Dozens of texts ering orphans, coronavirus re-
“Remember the movie ‘Rob- were sent to warn her to return Mardoyan admitted to Yashchyshyn and her law-
in Hood’?” he asked. the money. “You think it’s hard threatening Verzilina by send- lief, restoration after the fire at yers declined to discuss Unit-
to find you? You’re already un- ing her personal information Paris’s Notre Dame Cathedral, ed Hearts of Mercy, or answer
“Robin Hood is the thieves der our control,” said one text about herself. He said the two and even victims of the deadly questions about what had
in law … For example, you on June 16, 2020. women had set up the Stripe happened to the large sums of
come to Russia and you make account through which the bridge collapse in 2018 in the money it had apparently taken
Messages arrived in Verzi- charity’s fake donations were Italian city of Genoa. in. But she has been living well
some business, and somebody lina’s phone that showed her being routed. Payment platform FundRa- in recent times.
lie to you … your [problem] home address, birth date, cred-
can only be solved by thieves it score, names of relatives, and Asked about Yashchyshyn’s zr, which booted the charity Yashchyshyn, like her
other personal information. alleged association with Mar- over suspect transactions, con- ex-business partner Tarasenko,
in law.” doyan, two lawyers represent- firmed it found stolen cards has claimed in court filings to
When a deal goes bad, gen- Verzilina, 37, a certified ing her declined to comment. be unemployed, but spoke in
erally someone doing business public accountant registered in from New Zealand, Japan and a court deposition of owning
Maryland, claimed she plead- Stripe confirmed remov- Hong Kong were used to make a Ford F250 truck and a Mer-
with a group has a protector, ed with Yashchyshyn to report ing United Hearts of Mercy attempted fraudulent dona- cedes G-Class SUV.
which Russian gangsters call the threats to law enforcement. from its platform in 2020 af-
a “krysha,” — literally, a roof But she claimed Yashchyshyn ter finding stolen credit cards tions. It was the latter vehicle that
told her not to say anything. from Hong Kong were being Documents show the charity she drove into Mar-a-Lago in
— with whom negotiations “She threatened me that all used to make “donations” to never declared revenues above 2021, mingling with Trump,
could be held to resolve the these threats will become real the charity, which was at that influential South Carolina
dispute. But Mardoyan said for me and there will be harm point running a seemingly fake $21,500. But an internal doc- Republican Senator Lindsey
for my family,” she wrote in a COVID-19 relief effort. ument obtained by OCCRP Graham, and Kimberly Guil-
Yashchyshyn had no “krysha,” statement. showed hundreds of thousands foyle, the girlfriend of Donald
and thus was courting danger One of those unsuspecting Trump, Jr.
by ducking him. Verzilina later wrote in a “donors” was Amaury du Puch, of dollars in “donations” from
statement turned over to the a Hong Kong-based financial stolen credit cards were routed “A woman pops up… and
Karen Greenaway, a former FBI that the charity had be- trader who was billed $19,200. through the charity. she is representing herself as
FBI agent who investigated come a money laundering mill someone she’s not, and she is
such groups before and af- planned by Yashchshyn as a “I didn’t make any dona- Documents obtained connected to the Thieves in
conduit for “financial crime tion,” du Puch said, adding through the Freedom of In- Law,” said Joseph Serio, an au-
ter the breakup of the Soviet in organization with other that he’d never heard of the formation Act show United thor and lecturer who has writ-
Union, described Mardoyan’s group[s] of people.” (The FBI charity and his credit card pro- ten about national security and
threats as consistent with how did not respond to a request vider reimbursed him for the Hearts of Mercy listed two Russian organized crime.
for comment.) fake charge. other directors. One was a Mi-
thieves in law operate. ami attorney, Tony Stabenow, “The whole thing stinks
“It’s their money and you After filing for a restraining Just how much money from the top to the bottom.”
don’t screw them over for their order against Yashchyshyn in moved through United Hearts whose spokesman said he had
Montreal, Verzilina returned of Mercy is unclear. Archived no knowledge of his involve- — Organised Crime and
money. It’s not even his money. web pages show supposed hu- ment with a charity. Another Corruption Reporting Project.
It’s the criminal organization’s manitarian efforts dating back
money,” Greenaway said. “So was a Colombian man, Gonza-
lo Rueda Castillo, who said he
she, like anybody who borrows had no knowledge of the char-
or takes from a criminal orga-
nization –– if you don’t pay it ity or its directors and that he
was “making myself available
back there are consequences.”

Page 28 International Investigative Stories NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Key plaintiff in landmark European
corporate transparency case owned
companies in notorious tax havens

A BUSINESS executive in Luxem- tify whose money is flowing into shell revelations from investigations into ly argued that Luxembourg’s public Luxembourg, a tiny tax haven in
bourg behind a successful effort to roll companies and other vehicles for cor- offshore finance by the International registry, established following a Euro- the heart of Europe, has long played
back corporate transparency in Eu- porate secrecy. Consortium of Investigative Journal- pean Union requirement for member an outsized role in corporate secrecy.
rope owned companies in high-profile ists. states to grant public access to com-
tax havens, leaked documents show. Transparency advocates, many of pany ownership information, exposed In 2014, ICIJ and media partners
whom have long pressed governments “The European Court of Justice’s company owners to risks of “fraud, revealed that Luxembourg had signed
Patrick Hansen, 50, was one of two to adopt public registries, immediate- decision ignores all the lessons learned kidnapping, blackmail, extortion, ha- secretive deals that allowed multina-
plaintiffs who last week persuaded the ly criticized the ruling. over the past decade from leaks like the rassment, violence or intimidation.” tional corporations to slash tax bills.
highest court in Europe to rule that Pandora Papers and Panama Papers,” Two years later, as part of the Pana-
making public the names of company “Access to beneficial ownership Moran Harari, a senior researcher at The British Virgin Islands and Be- ma Papers investigation, reporters
owners violates personal privacy and data is vital to identifying – and stop- Tax Justice Network, said in a state- lize have for years been criticized for revealed secretive offshore wealth and
the right to the protection of personal ping – corruption and dirty money,” ment, calling on governments to open their lack of transparency by anti-cor- deals of politicians around the world,
data. Maíra Martini, an anti-corruption a hearing on the judgment. ruption campaigners, tax inspectors including in Luxembourg.
expert at Transparency International, Lawsuit challenged transparency re- and law enforcement officials.
Records from the 2021 Pandora said in a statement. “The court’s deci- forms in tax haven “Public access to beneficial own-
Papers investigation show Hansen sion takes us back years.” The court issued the decision follow- Hansen did not respond to requests ership information can lead to more
owned a holding company in the Brit- ing a lawsuit brought by Sovim S.A. for comment. investigations by public authorities,”
ish Virgin Islands with activities in Following the ruling by the Court and an individual who went by the Transparency International said in
Luxembourg, Cyprus and Russia and of Justice of the European Union, initials W.M. The Luxembourg Times Filippo Noseda, an attorney who a recent brief submitted to the same
assets valued at more than $3 million. Luxembourg, the Netherlands, subsequently identified W.M. as Pat- helped lead the case against the public European court as part of a separate
Hansen also co-owned a company Austria and Belgium announced sus- rick Hansen, chief executive of private registry, said in a statement after the lawsuit, citing the Panama Papers in-
registered in the Central American tax pensions to websites that had hours jet company, Luxaviation. Hansen ruling that the judgment “represents vestigation.
haven of Belize, records show. earlier allowed members of the public co-founded the company in 2008 a victory for data protection and the
to identify the owners of companies alongside Nicolay Bogachev, a for- Rule of Law in an extremely politi- Governments have used revelations
The Nov. 22 ruling from the Court registered in those countries. mer Soviet KGB officer, according to cized context.” from the Panama Papers to identify
of Justice of the European Union media reports. Bogachev is no longer and prosecute citizens who owned
struck down a 2018 requirement The transparency rollback across involved with the company. Noseda’s firm, Mischon de Reya, secretive companies, recouping more
that member states establish and Europe came even as other regions has previously represented clients than $1.36 billion in unpaid taxes,
publish databases of company own- have embraced public databases of As part of the lawsuit in Europe, with a long track record of corporate fines and other penalties as of 2021.
ers. In recent years, those databases company owners. Governments in Hansen and Sovim S.A. successful- secrecy, including Dan Gertler, an Is-
have allowed journalists, lawyers and Latin America, Africa and Asia have raeli businessman sanctioned by the — International Consortium of Inves-
members of the public to better iden- in recent years introduced owner- U.S. Treasury Department for his al- tigative Journalists.
ship registries, in some cases citing leged involvement in corruption.

NewsHawks Editorial & Opinion Page 29

Issue 110, 2 December 2022 CARTOON

Bleak X-mas:
Joke is on us

WE are a funny lot, are we not? ANC battle lines drawn
When political elites and their corporate cronies are looting
Hawk Eye
money meant for sustainable power projects, we gleefully ap-
plaud the shameless wheeler-dealers. Dumisani
Muleya
In the warped logic of a society that has lost its moral compass,
criminals who pocket taxpayer funds are lionised as streetwise ge-
niuses — or "mbinga", as they are called in Zimbabwe's filth-rid-
den capital. The epithet is seen by many as a badge of honour.
These self-styled "tycoons" — ranging from corrupt political
fixers and backroom operators to attention-seeking crooks who
have perfected the art of plundering public funds — are a preda-
tory and parasitic lot who are firmly ensconced on the gravy train.

Not so long ago, Zimbabwe had a fairly competent Energy
minister, but he got fired under a cloud of controversy. The cur-
rent minister is nowhere to be seen.

Who is laughing now? The joke is on us. It takes a rolling series
of relentless 18-hour power cuts to remind Zimbabweans that the
responsibilities of citizenship must be taken very seriously.

In 1996, Zimbabwe hosted the World Solar Summit amid
much pomp and ceremony.

The event was marketed as a glorious endorsement of the
country’s solid commitment to green energy. Twenty-six years
later, Zimbabwe has not made serious progress towards devising
sustainable energy solutions.

A country which claims to be Africa's most educated society
is stuck in a time warp. In terms of infrastructure, Zimbabwe is
lagging its regional peers by a good 20 or even 30 years. Other
countries in the neighbourhood have been developing in leaps
and bounds while we got mired in Stone Age politics, primitive
accumulation and a primordial leadership ethos.

When you look at the country’s current fixation with the
Hwange Thermal Power Station, you realise just how big the
poverty of ideas is. Endlessly patching up an old coal-fired plant
was once a decent idea back in the day, but it is no longer a vi-
able proposition. New ideas, new thinking and new projects are
required.

There is really no need to re-invent the proverbial wheel. Zim-
babwe has an abundance of sunlight. The advantages of solar in-
clude mitigating the climate crisis, relatively lower energy costs
and cushioning the country from unpredictable prices of import-
ed electricity. It is only through significant investment in renew-
ables that we can build capacity for green, secure and affordable
energy.

Building resilience in energy supply takes foresight. For in-
stance, Zimbabwe is emerging as a leading producer of lithium
— a strategic mineral in the global shift to electric motoring and
innovative energy storage.

If the government continues handling lithium in a shoddy and
haphazard manner, the country will witness a recurrence of the
Chiadzwa diamond "resource curse". Foreigners will swarm in,
cut corrupt deals with sleazy officials, loot the lithium and leave
citizens wallowing in untold poverty.

In a world where countries are fiercely competing for investors
in the energy sector, Zimbabwe should get its act together.

Risk-averse investors will not sit idly while twiddling their
thumbs and waiting for the government to show policy consis-
tency. Business does not operate like that.

Comprehensive policies are needed for renewable infrastruc-
ture development. When private investors realise that the govern-
ment has skin in the game, they unlock the much-needed capital
and technical knowhow. Solar plants and wind farms need huge
financial outlays.

Investors will only commit to projects after they are convinced
of a reasonable return on investment.

Zimbabwe has all the ingredients for energy self-sufficiency:
plenty of sunlight, lots of land, a capable workforce, strategic
minerals and access to a vast African market. What is lacking —
as always — is competent and honest leadership.

Reaffirming the fundamental impor- The NewsHawks is published on different EDITORIAL STAFF: Marketing Officer: Voluntary Media
tance of freedom of expression and me- content platforms by the NewsHawks Digital Managing Editor: Dumisani Muleya Charmaine Phiri Council of Zimbabwe
dia freedom as the cornerstone of de- Media which is owned by Centre for Public Cell: +263 735666122
mocracy and as a means of upholding Interest Journalism Assistant Editor: Brezh Malaba [email protected] The NewsHawks newspaper subscribes to the
human rights and liberties in the con- No. 100 Nelson Mandela Avenue [email protected] Code of Conduct that promotes truthful, accurate,
stitution; our mission is to hold power Beverly Court, 6th floor News Editor: Owen Gagare
in its various forms and manifestations Harare, Zimbabwe Subscriptions & Distribution: fair and balanced news reporting. If we do not
to account by exposing abuse of power Digital Editor: Bernard Mpofu +263 735666122 meet these standards, register your complaint
and office, betrayals of public trust and Trustees/Directors: with the Voluntary Media Council of Zimbabwe
corruption to ensure good governance Beatrice Mtetwa, Raphael Khumalo, Reporters: at No.: 34, Colenbrander Rd, Milton Park, Harare.
and accountability in the public inter- Professor Wallace Chuma, Teldah Mawarire, Nyasha Chingono, Enoch Muchinjo, Moses Matenga,
est. Doug Coltart Jonathan Mbiriyamveka Telephone: 024-2778096 or 024-2778006,
Email: [email protected] 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

Page 30 New Perspectives NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Free employees
from oppressive
digital leash

FRANCE, Germany and Por- are often treated as slaves or ro- stand to incur fines as per the past still determines how we sence of disease.” It also defines
tugal have enacted laws barring bots at the beck and call of their laws enacted in those countries. treat each other, employers or "stress" as a situation which
businesses and offices from con- masters. It is a common practice In Germany, it is strictly pro- bosses under the hubris of of- arises when the demands on em-
tacting employees after working in our part of the world that em- hibited to dismiss employees ficialdom, or with superhuman ployees exceed their capacity to
hours in a move that is meant ployees are contacted even after if they fail to take phone calls powers vested by departmental cope with their responsibilities.
to safeguard the most import- office hours and called back for after work hours. Such policies hierarchy, behave like the Or- The calls from the office after
ant factor of production – la- some "missing" information. are needed in working hours and unexpected
bour.   Labour unions in Zim- countries like assignments disturb the work-
babwe and human resources They are tethered through ours to protect Econometrics life balance of employees who
consultants please take note. digital communication even employees, giv- then get taut nerves, further
on weekends, holidays and va- en the increas- HawksView depleting their energy, and they
No two individuals are the cations, without the slightest ing reports of end up feeling burnt-out. Some
same. Everyone has their view of consideration for their mental employee abuse employers however, do not see
thinking and learning. and physical health. In some and ill-treat- anything wrong in contacting
instances some companies even ment by em- Tinashe Kaduwo their employees anytime as
Human beings not only differ limit distance that their employ- ployers. they view it as part of their per-
from each other in their out- ees can travel on vacations or However, in sonnel management.
ward appearances but also their weekends without notification. Zimbabwe where the colonial wellian Big Brother, running
internal capacities and capabili- Clearly, such intrusions by the their offices as their "nanny Various critical studies on the
ties. Every individual is not only employers disrupt the employ- dynamics of corporate systems
unique in outward appearance ees’ work-life balance. indicate that assigning input
but also in intellect and imagina- and demanding output from
tion. Every individual has a skill It is becoming illegal now in employees after office hours ex-
set, intellectual ability, learning many countries to contact em- poses the lack of planning and
power, thinking capacity, grasp- ployees after office hours, with seriousness on the part of the
ing power, ability to recreate the exception of some actual management and administra-
knowledge, and an own way of and tangible emergency. Ac- tion sections of business firms. It
looking at the world. Similarly, cording to the United States is to cover up one’s own absence
hardly anyone can deny the fact Department of Labour, a work of commitment to the goals and
that no two individuals get the emergency is an unforeseen sit- targets of the company.
same environment. uation that threatens employ-
ees, customers or the public; Making inroads into employ-
For example, children going disrupts or shuts down opera- ees’ life beyond office hours al-
to the same school, employees tions; or causes physical or en- ways proves counterproductive
working at the same rank and vironmental damage. But here for business enterprises. Human
salary for a company. But, this in Zimbabwe, sadist employers resource professionals must keep
sameness hardly makes any dif- with their capitalist mindset de- that in mind to protect the most
ference as the overall environ- liberately keep their employees important factor of production.
ment in which they are born, on the digital leash after office
live, and grow up is different. hours, on weekends and even *About the writer: Ti-
The failure to appreciate this during vacations. nashe Kaduwo is a research-
very fact results in continuous er and economist. Contact:
frustration and deadlock among France, Germany and Portu- kaduwot@gmail. WhatsApp
employers and employees. Em- gal have enacted laws barring +263773376128
ployers continue to compare a businesses and offices from
certain employee with other em- contacting employees after
ployees and when they lag or do working hours. The freedom
not produce similar results, the to disconnect with the office
frustration continues and results after working hours has been
in mental trauma for both. acknowledged as employees’
fundamental right. The employ-
Human beings are not meant ers who dare trespass personal
to be the same; all professions boundaries of the employees
are not the same. Every indi-
vidual has their talent and field states", just because they can.
of work to showcase their skills. They forget the simple fact that
But, when one individual is employees under undue pressure
made to compete with others, and in a threatening atmosphere
it not only affects his personal- always underperform. They
ity but also diverts his attention must pay heed to what John
from what he is doing or is capa- Stuart Mill said: “A state which
ble of doing to what others do. dwarfs its men in order that they
The outcome of this unhealthy may be more docile instruments
competition is confusion, dis- in its hands, even for beneficial
satisfaction, and a state of com- purposes, will find that with
petition in a society where all small men no great thing can re-
are competing with all without ally be accomplished.”
taking into account what they The Occupational Safe-
have and what they can offer. ty and Health Administration
Skills, talents, and capabilities (OSHA), a part of the US De-
that make individuals unique partment of Labour, in its sec-
and helpful are spent on com- tion 15, enjoins employers to
peting rather than being utilised safeguard the safety, health and
for good. welfare of their employees. Its
guidelines say: “Health is a state
At workplaces, as a trend, em- of total physical, mental and so-
ployees are exploited and treated cial wellbeing, not only the ab-
unfairly and are considered per-
sonal assets of employers. They

NewsHawks

Issue 76, 15 April 2022
BusinessPage26
MATTERSNewsHawks

MARKETS CURRENCIES LAST CHANGE %CHANGE COMMODITIES LAST CHANGE %CHANGE
USD/JPY
GBP/USD 109.29 +0.38 +0.35 *OIL 63.47 -1.54 -2.37
USD/CAD
USD/CHF 1.38 -0.014 -0.997 *GOLD 1,769.5 +1.2 +0.068
AUD/USD
1.229 +0.001 +0.07 *SILVER 25.94 -0.145 -0.56

0.913 +0.005 +0.53 *PLATINUM 1,201.6 +4 +0.33

0.771 -0.006 -0.76 *COPPER 4.458 -0.029 -0.65

NATHAN GUMA Zim de-industrialises while
neighbours prosper: Report
INDUSTRIALISATION has been on a freefall
in Zimbabwe since 2010, with the country lag- AfDB says inadequate infrastructure has been the most key pressing constraint on the country’s industrialisation.
ging behind its regional neighbours, highlighting
the need for the country to ramp up exports and has been the most key pressing constraint on in- tion and damaged equipment. to 25 in Asia and 122 in Europe. Inadequate or
improve the business environment, a report has dustrialisation. Zimbabwe among other countries has been poorly maintained transport infrastructure makes
shown. it more expensive for firms to access raw materials
“Half of Africans currently have no access to reeling under power shortages with Kariba hy- and deliver their goods to consumers,” according
The country is ranked 31, with a score of energy and 30% lack access to clean water — es- dro-power station hampered by very low water to the AII.
0.4974, out of 52 countries on the African In- sential inputs for agro-processing and other in- levels. This has prompted the Zambezi River Au-
dustrialisation Index (AII) published by the Af- dustries. The average cost of electricity to manu- thority (ZRA) to recommend a shut down of the Overall, AfDB has estimated the continent’s
rican Development Bank (AfDB), to strengthen facturing firms in Africa is four times higher than power station until water levels have risen again. infrastructure needs at US$130–US$170 billion
knowledge around drivers of industrial develop- industrial rates elsewhere in the world, while poor per year, with a financing gap of US$68–US$108
ment. quality supply leads to idle workers, lost produc- “Africa’s paved road density is just two kilo- billion.
metres (km) per 100km2 of land area, compared
The index provides a picture of progress that
has been made in industrial development across
the continent for the period 2010 to 2019.

Its 19 indicators cover manufacturing perfor-
mance, capital, labour, business environment,
infrastructure, and macro-economic stability,
ranking African countries’ industrialisation across
three dimensions: performance, direct determi-
nants and indirect determinants.

Direct determinants include endowments such
as capital and labour, and how these are deployed
to drive industrial development, while indirect
determinants include enabling environmental
conditions such as macro-economic stability,
sound institutions and infrastructure.

Findings by the index show that Zimbabwe’s
score has been falling since 2010, from a ranking
of number 26 with a score of 0.4939, which has
seen the country drop from the middle- into the
lower-middle quintile.

Zimbabwe’s score falls below the 2021 average
of 0.5144.

In 2011 and 2012, the country was ranked
number 27 and 24 with index scores of 0.5044
and 0.5209, which has been falling since then.

2014 saw the country drop rank to 27, a trend
that continued in the next five years when the
country’s ranking fell to 29, 26, 33, 32 and 33
according to the AII.

South Africa, in the top-quintile has remained
consistent, maintaining first place in the period
under review.

Other Southern African Development Com-
munity countries in the top quintile are Mauri-
tius, Eswatini and Namibia, ranking fifth, sixth
and tenth respectively.

Botswana and Zambia are both in the up-
per-middle quintile, while Lesotho, Madagascar,
Mozambique and Seychelles are in the middle
quintile. The index has also shown several coun-
tries have been industrialising over the years, al-
though at a snail's pace.

“Overall, many countries have made signif-
icant gains in their industrial development over
the coverage period 2010–2021, with 37 of 52 re-
gional country members becoming industrialised.

“However, some countries recorded only a
marginal improvement, thereby falling in the
ranking as the score was not enough to boost it,
while others performed satisfactorily. Only 25
countries improved their rank and four remained
in the same position as in 2010,” read the index
report.

Countries in the bottom quintile recorded the
highest improvement over the coverage period,
with 9.7% gains, followed by the lower-middle
quintile 9.5%.

Despite the top quintile boasting the most in-
dustrialised countries, it recorded a decrease in its
score (- 0.9%), owing to a serious deterioration in
the direct determinant component.

According to AfDB, inadequate infrastructure

Page 32 Companies & Markets NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

IMF reviews SDR interest rate

BERNARD MPOFU unprecedented economic crisis worldwide, with re was ineligible to receive more financial support rican Development Bank.
disastrous social consequences. After 25 years of after its debt stock ballooned over the years. As first reported by The NewsHawks last year,
THE International Monetary Fund (IMF) in- continuous growth, Africa was severely hit and
terest rate charged on Special Drawing Rights suffered recession in 2020. The country defaulted on arrears payments at the world’s advanced economies parcelled out
(SDRs) allocated to Zimbabwe last year rose by the turn of the millennium, resulting in the fail- part of their IMF SDR to shore up developing
2.43 percentage points this year as the country’s Despite receiving a quota-based allocation of ure to access long-term funding from multilateral countries currently reeling from the impact of
Treasury turned to the holdings for its capital nearly US$1 billion from the IMF last year, Hara- lenders such as the World Bank, IMF and the Af- Covid-19.
projects and social spending following the out-
break of the Covid-19 pandemic, official figures
have shown.

Thse government, on 23 August 2021, received
SDRs under the general allocation amounting to
SDR677 436 012.00 (approximately US$958
million), from the

International Monetary Fund (IMF). The
SDR is an international reserve asset created
by the IMF in 1969 to supplement its member
countries’ official reserves.

On 2 August 2021, the board of governors of
the IMF approved a general allocation of SDRs
equivalent to US$650 billion (about SDR 456
billion) to boost global liquidity. This allocation
addresses the long-term global need for reserves,
helps build confidence, fosters the resilience and
stability of the global economy, and supports li-
quidity-constrained countries in addressing the
impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“The IMF charges interest on Zimbabwe’s net
SDR holding at the IMF, using the flexible SDR
interest rate. The rates have been increasing from
the rate of 0.05% in August 2021, to 2.48% in
October 2022, a new report on the allocation of
the SDR’s has shown.

“The allocation provided a huge stimulus to
the Zimbabwean economy, following the devas-
tating impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic and has
assisted Zimbabwe in its post Covid-19 recovery
path.”

Despite getting SDRs, Zimbabwe missed out
on a G7-backed multi-billion-dollar stimulus
package designed to help countries of the glob-
al South weather economic shocks caused by
Covid-19. The reason for the country’s exclusion
is the failure to pay arrears to international finan-
cial institutions (IFIs), Finance minister Mthuli
Ncube has said.

The Covid-19 pandemic has precipitated an

PRISCA TSHUMA Natfoods records sales uptick

ZIMBABWE’S largest food manufacturer, Na- prior year to ZW$14.74 billion, whilst PBT in- remained in a healthy position. This gave the dend to US$5.95 cents per share and ZW$1 103
tional Foods Holdings, has recorded 569 000 creased by 1 390% to ZW$20.4 billion. group adequate resources to fund the expansion cents per share, payable on 25 November 2022.
tonnes in sales volumes, an 8% increase com- phase it has embarked on.
pared to the previous year due to the commend- “This was driven by significantly increased in- The group said it was embarking on a period
able performance by its divisions led by the trad- terest costs in line with higher interest rates; as “The installation of the new mill at our Bula- of expansion with entry into a number of new
ed goods unit. well as a decline in equity accounted earnings of wayo site has commenced and the mill remains categories as it seeks to value add its portfolio of
41%, which was largely attributed to the dispos- on track for commissioning early in 2023. The basic products.
The unit had a 34% volume increase owing to al of Pure Oil during the period,” said the state- new mill will increase wheat milling capacity by
growth in the pasta category. The downpacked ment. around 2 000 tonnes per month,” Moyo said. “Many of these products will see the localised
unit, which primarily packs rice and salt, grew manufacture of products which had previously
by 31%, followed by the snacks division which The inflationary environment made the group The board declared a final dividend of been imported, reducing foreign currency re-
recorded a 24% increase while the stockfeed vol- focus on the management of the key aspects US$5.95 cents per share in respect of all ordinary quirements and increasing demand for locally
umes improved by 12% over the prior year. of the Statement of Financial Position, which shares of the company, bringing the total divi- grown produce,” added Moyo.

However, the increased flour prices and the
reduced availability of local wheat negatively af-
fected the volumes of the flour milling division
and the biscuits division. Volumes for the flour
unit decreased by 1.9% and biscuit volumes de-
clined by 3% compared to the same period last
year.

Whilst there was improved volume momen-
tum in the maize unit in the second half of the
year, volumes still closed 2.3% below last year,
largely due to last year’s excellent harvest.

Todd Moyo, the company's non-executive
chairperson, said the board had approved the
purchase of a new pasta line to cater for the rising
demand and the purchase of a new biscuit line,
which will allow Natfoods to extend its biscuit
portfolio beyond the current basic loose biscuit
proposition to more specialised biscuits such as
creams.

“This investment will also see the localisation
of pasta production, which traditionally has been
imported as a finished product. It is expected
that this project will commission late in 2023,”
he said in the annual report of the group.

Revenue for the year increased by 33% to
ZW$128.4 billion, driven by both volume
growth and inflation-driven price increases. Op-
erating profit increased by 301% compared to

NewsHawks Companies & Markets Page 33

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

TM Pick n Pay revenue up 36%

PRISCA TSHUMA will continue throughout 2023. “TM” while 25 stores are branded and trade as Meikles Limited chairperson John Moxon
TM Supermarkets is a chain of 56 stores across “Pick n Pay”. groceries and perishables, with store formats rang-
FOOD and grocery retail chain TM Pick n Pay ing from convenient small supermarkets to larger
has recorded a 36% revenue increase to ZW$66 Zimbabwe, 31 of which are branded and trade as The supermarket chain retails a wide range of shops.
billion attributable to the growth in sales volume
for the period ended 31 March 2022.

The subsidiary of Meikles Limited had growth
in sales due to an increase of 26% and 11% in
units and customer transactions respectively.

“The lifting of most of the Covid-19 trade re-
strictions and our tactical marketing campaigns
led to the growth in sales volume over prior year,”
said the chairperson of Meikles Limited, John
Moxon, in the annual report.

“Our ability to constantly replenish stocks
throughout all the branches demonstrated the
versatility of our supply chain and logistics net-
works,” he added

Moxon said the operating profit margin of the
retail brand firmed up to 4.3% from 3.8% in the
prior year. The operating profit for the year in-
creased by 54% to ZW$2.8 billion from ZW$1.9
billion in the previous year.

“The growth in operating profit was due to
strategic investment in stocks, margin control and
cost saving initiatives,” said Moxon

However, operating expenses for the year in-
creased. Moxon said their link to exchange rate
movement pricing led to a surge in costs over pri-
or year.

“Management constantly re-aligned strategies
to cushion the business from inflationary pres-
sures during the period,” he added.

Profit after tax was ZW$2.4 billion from
ZW$1.0 billion in prior year.

The supermarket’s liquidity remained strong
during the year and generated funds for refurbish-
ments and dividend payouts.

“The segment’s liquidity remained strong. It
generated sufficient cash flows from operating ac-
tivities to fund ZW$1.8 billion branch refurbish-
ments and ZW$900 million dividend payout to
the shareholders,” stated Moxon.

Moxon said the group refurbished three stores
during the year, namely at Newlands, Makoni
and Zengeza. In June this year, TM Pick n Pay
opened a new store in Highlands at Highland
Park shopping centre. It also renovated an exist-
ing supermarket. Going forward, the group trusts
that the growth in sales achieved during the year

Page 34 Companies & Markets NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Meikles sells 35% shares in Mentor

PRISCA TSHUMA

CONGLOMERATE, Meikles Limited has sold furbishment was at an advanced stage at the end was completed and handed over to the tenant in sufficient cashflows to fund its operations during
its 35 percent shares in Mentor for US$19.08 mil- of the reporting period. The refurbished rooms are December last year. the year. The segment benefits from expansion of
lion as a way to unlock the value of its investment scheduled to open for bookings by the end of Au- the supermarkets segment.
at an attractive price, the chairperson of the group gust 2022,” he added. “Works to develop shops for small businesses
has revealed. were at an advanced stage in Harare and Mutare. With the positive performance of the group,
Moxon said the planned development of group The space under development was fully subscribed the board declared a final dividend of 100 ZW
In the annual report, John Moxon confirmed properties commenced during the financial year by tenants. The refurbishment of the building cents and 0.1725 US$ cents per share, taking the
that the group sold their investment in Mentor under review and the development of the main along Robert Mugabe Road in Harare com- total dividend for the financial year to 280 ZW$
in March this year and the disposal contributed property in Mutare was at its final stages of com- menced after the reporting period. The anchor cents and 0.1725 US$ cents per share, inclusive of
highly to the total income recorded for the year. pletion by the end of the reporting period. He said tenant is TM Pick n Pay,” said Moxon. two interim dividends of 80 ZW cents and 100
the Paint Centre section, which is the first phase, ZW cents.
“The sale resulted in the investment being Meanwhile, Meikles Guard Services generated
uplifted from the previous carrying value to the
amount of the sale proceeds, which has largely
been included in the comprehensive income for
the year,” he said.

In inflation-adjusted terms, the total compre-
hensive income for the year under review increased
to ZW$5.8 billion from ZW$1.8 billion recorded
in the prior year, of which ZW$4.6 billion (79%)
is attributable to owners of Meikles and the re-
maining balance of ZW$1.2 billion (21%) to mi-
nority shareholders.

The group recorded a 34% increase in revenue
to ZW$66 billion from ZW$49.1 billion in 2021,
for the continuing operations.

“The growth in revenue was primarily driven
by the increase in sales units at the supermarket
segment,” said the statement.

Profit after tax for continuing operations ex-
cluding profit on distribution of subsidiary grew
by 461% to ZW$3.4 billion from ZW$599 mil-
lion the previous year. The hospitality business of
the group recorded growth in revenue and after-tax
profit in the year under review due to the increase
in room occupancy. Revenue increased to US$ 2.9
million from US$342 000 last year, while after-tax
profit improved to ZW$ 196 million from a loss
of ZW$212 million in the previous year.

“Room occupancy for the year grew to 16.77%
from 2.45% last year due to the easing of both
local and international Covid-19 stringent travel
restrictions during the second half of the financial
year,” said Moxon.

He said the group reduced its investment in
hospitality to a single operation. The statement
also revealed that the refurbishment of the five-star
Victoria Falls Hotel is almost complete.

“The first phase of The Victoria Falls Hotel re-

Nedbank first financial listing on VFEX

PRISCA TSHUMA

FINANCIAL services provider Nedbank Zim- years. Finance and Economic Development, Mthuli economic recovery and growth is well and truly
babwe Limited has officially listed on the Vic- The mining-dominated bourse had been Ncube emphasised how pleased he was with underway,” he said.
toria Falls Stock Exchange (VFEX) as the first the growth of the bourse. He said the listing
financial security on the bourse. trading with Seed Co International, which is demonstrated the recovery of the economy to More companies have announced their pros-
its first security, Bindura Nickel Corporation, the investors. “The listing of the Depository pects of listing on the waterfall bourse, with
The listing of its Zimbabwe Depository Padenga Holdings and Caledonia Mining Cor- Receipts demonstrates confidence in our capital Simbisa brands already suspended its trades on
Receipts (Nedbank ZDRs) became effective poration. markets and is an important signal to both lo- the Zimbabwe stock Exchange. Other compa-
on Tuesday this week following the statement cal and international investors that indeed our nies include National Foods Limited and Thari-
made by VFEX on Monday. Commenting on the official listing of Ned- sa Company.
bank Zimbabwe on VFEX, the Minister of
“The Victoria Falls Stock Exchange Limited
wishes to notify stakeholders that the Nedbank
Group Limited Zimbabwe Depository Receipts
(Nedbank ZDRs) will commence trading with
effect from 28 November 2022 with a market
price of US$13.6030 which is the prevailing ex-
change rate value from the Johannesburg Stock
Exchange (JSE) closing price on 25 November
2022,” said the statement.

“The trading in Nedbank Group Limited
ZDRs on VFEX will commence on 28 No-
vember 2022,” said the statement published by
VFEX.

Nedbank is a unit of the Johannesburg Secu-
rities Exchange-listed Nedbank Group offering
wholesale and retail banking services as well as
insurance, asset management, and wealth man-
agement.

Nedbank Group Limited ZDRs will trade
under the symbol: NED.VX and ISIN ZWVX
301 DR02 9. The Nedbank Group Limited
ZDRs became the fifth listing on VFEX after
the bourse traded with four listings for two

NewsHawks Companies & Markets Page 35

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Importance of reputation management
in the digital and social media era
THERE are those of you who media pages to show potential
were fascinated by one article in Protects your brand: Reputa- Enhances market share: A strong about your business online. Stay customers the great experiences
which we explained the role social tion management can help protect reputation can help your business up to date on your brand men- you provide. Show your appreci-
media plays in trade shows. your brand from negative publici- stand out from the competition tions across all social media chan- ation for positive comments and
ty or false information. and capture more market share. nels. reviews. Respond to any negative
They then made a request for a Enhance customer engagement: Respond quickly and appropri- comments in a professional and
more detailed article on how so- Enhances credibility: Building Reputation management helps ately: When you see something polite manner.
cial media can be useful in manag- a strong reputation helps to boost to boost customer engagement by negative about your business on-
ing an organisation’s reputation. the credibility of your business responding to customer feedback line, address it quickly and ap- Develop quality content: Use
and its products and services. and reviews in a timely manner. propriately. Respond to customer content marketing to create qual-
In the age of social media, rep- Reputation management helps This helps to show customers that complaints, negative reviews, or ity content that shows your busi-
utation management is more im- you to create a positive brand im- your business ness’s expertise. Stay active on
portant than ever. With unprece- age that reflects your business val- will listen and social media and other digital
dented speed and reach, it allows ues and mission. A good reputa- take action. Corporate platforms to ensure your busi-
for the spread of ideas, prod- tion will help you stand out from Monitor ness’s presence is seen.
ucts, services, and information. the competition and increase your competitors: Communications
It serves as an effective platform brand value. Reputation Support causes: Show your
for marketing, networking, and management company’s commitment to mak-
collaboration. It also allows peo- Encourages customer loyalty: helps to mon- ing a positive impact by sup-
ple to connect with one another, Customers who trust your busi- itor your com- Lenox Lizwi Mhlanga porting causes and issues your
share experiences, and learn from ness are more likely to stay loy- customers care about. Invest in
each other. al. With an excellent reputation, petitors and public relations to promote your
customers are more likely to trust gain insights into their strategies. other negative information in a business’s positive stories and ac-
It has become easier for people your brand and become loyal to This helps to give you an edge in timely manner. complishments.
to share their opinions, both pos- it. Good reputation management the market and can help you stay Ask for reviews: Ask customers
itive and negative, about a busi- can help create a strong relation- ahead of the competition. and clients to leave reviews on Take responsibility: Take re-
ness or brand. With platforms like ship with customers and increase Generate leads: Reputation your business’s website, social me- sponsibility for any negative ex-
Twitter and Instagram, your cus- their loyalty. management helps to generate dia pages, or other online review periences your business may have
tomers and potential customers leads by creating positive content sites. had and strive to make it. Develop
are constantly talking about your Improves brand visibility: Rep- about your business and building Use social media: Use social a plan for how you will handle any
brand. It is easy for a company’s utation management helps your relationships with potential cus- media to interact with customers, potential crises on social media.
reputation to be damaged with business to be seen in a more posi- tomers. This helps to create an showcase your business, and build
one wrong post or tweet. tive light. With proper reputation ever-growing base of customers relationships with customers. Be Use social media analytics to
management strategies, you can that are ready to invest in your active in the conversations around track your brand’s performance.
It is essential for PR profession- gain increased visibility and reach business. your brand, even if they don’t in- Monitor your competitors’ social
als to be proactive in their reputa- more potential customers. volve your business directly. Make media activity to stay one step
tion management in order to pro- Online strategies for reputation sure that all interactions on social ahead.
tect their clients and their brands It also improves search engine management media are professional.
from any potential damage. From visibility: Monitor your online presence. Highlight and acknowledge Benefits of social media in repu-
developing strategies to monitor Use tools to monitor your online positive reviews: Highlight posi- tation management
conversations, a successful repu- Search engines often feature re- reputation, such as Google Alerts, tive reviews and customer stories A positive presence on social me-
tation management strategy is es- views and ratings in their search to keep track of what is being said across your website and social dia can help to increase brand
sential in the digital world. result rankings. awareness and recognition. By
regularly engaging with your au-
Reputation management is the Increases sales: A positive repu- dience, you can create a memora-
practice of monitoring and in- tation increases the likelihood of ble and recognizable brand that
fluencing an individual’s or busi- customers making a purchase. 8. resonates with customers.
ness’s reputation. It is often used
to address or reduce negative Social media is a great way to
perceptions of a person or organ- build relationships with your cus-
isation. Reputation management tomers. By engaging with them
strategies can include responding regularly, you can create a two-
to customer complaints, using way dialogue that allows you to
public relations to promote posi- gain valuable customer insights
tive perceptions, and using search and feedback. A positive social
engine optimisation to influence media presence can help to drive
search results. It can help you stay more traffic to your website and
ahead of any potential crises and ultimately lead to more sales.
maintain a positive public image
in the long run. By optimising your content for
Benefits of reputation manage- search engines and engaging with
ment customers, you can increase your
It enhances customer trust: A online visibility and reach more
well-managed reputation can gen- potential customers. A positive
erate trust and loyalty among your social media presence can help to
customers and prospects. Reputa- protect your reputation and im-
tion management helps to build prove your customer service. By
trust and credibility for businesses responding to customer inquiries
by allowing them to control the and complaints quickly, you can
narrative about their brand. This show your commitment to cus-
helps to create a positive impres- tomer service and build trusting
sion for customers and potential relationships with your custom-
customers. ers.

Attracts new customers: A good *About the writer: Lenox Mh-
reputation attracts more custom- langa is a strategic communi-
ers and potential partners. Cus- cations consultant with over 20
tomers are more likely to purchase years’ experience. He has worked
your products or services. Repu- for the World Bank and several
tation management helps you blue chip and public organisa-
to build trust and attract more tions in Zimbabwe and region-
customers, resulting in increased ally. He can be contacted on
sales. mobile: +263 772 400 656 and
email: lenoxmhlanga@gmail.
com

Page 36 Stock Taking NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Zimbabwe Stock Exchange Pricelist

`

02 December, 2022

Market Cap ($mn) 1,664,386.78 0.39% Top 5 Gainers 4.35% Top 5 Losers -14.90% Value Leaders ($) 81,471,330 Top 5 Gainers YTD 589.58%
All Share Index 14,844.01 0.22% FML 2.42% Mash -6.67% Delta 37,161,200 Zeco 477.87%
Top 10 Index 8,705.40 1.18% OK Zimbabw e 2.40% Masimba -3.37% Innscor 7,379,190 Mash 282.60%
Value Traded ($) -99.20% CBZ 1.66% ZHL -3.16% Econet 7,253,175 CFI 272.53%
Interbank rate (USD/ZWL) 155,183,956.50 0.10% Delta 1.61% Ariston -0.83% OK Zimbabw e 7,175,995 NMB 269.79%
655.5619 Econet ZBFH EHZL African Sun
Market Cap (US$mn) 0.39%
YTD Movement (%) 2,538.8705 -79.18%

Bloom be r g Opening LTP Closing Price Previous Volume traded Value traded Shares In Market Cap Market Cap Price Change Price Change

Afdis Ticker (RTGSc) (RTGSc) (RTGSc) Change (%) Price (RTGSc) (shares) (RTGS$) Issue (mn's) (RTGS$ mn's) (US$ mn's) RTGS YTD (%) US$ YTD (%)
African Sun AFDIS: ZH 26,500.00 26,495.00 26,495.00 -0.02% 26,500.00 1,400.00 370,930.00 119.49 31,660.07 48.29 111.96% -64.87%
Ariston ASUN: ZH 2,375.00 2,375.00 2,375.00 - 2,375.00 1,000.00 23,750.00 33,808.53 51.57 269.79% -38.70%
Art ARISTON: ZH -3.16% 361.43 7,800.00 28,503.25 1,423.52 5,695.88 8.69 -5.97% -84.41%
Axia ARTD: ZH 361.43 350.00 350.00 - 1,540.00 1,627.40 6,729.45 10.27 47.37% -75.57%
Bridgerfort AXIA: ZH 1,540.00 - 1,540.00 0.71% 6,404.75 - - 35,613.69 54.33 114.64% -64.42%
Bridgerfort Class B MMDZ: ZH 6,404.75 6,450.00 - 800.00 56,100.00 3,597,540.00 436.98 24,318.12 37.10 -77.14% -96.21%
BAT 6,450.00 - 2,600.00 552.15 34.42 0.05 14.71% -80.99%
Border BAT: ZH 800.00 - 800.00 - 310,000.00 - - 3,039.76 63,963.90 97.57 -3.16% -83.95%
Cafca BRDR: ZH 2,600.00 - 2,600.00 - - - - 0.00 0.00 - -
CBZ CAFCA: ZH 310,000.00 - 310,000.00 - 20,005.00 - - 1.32 1,747.46 2.67 17.68% -80.49%
CFI CBZ: ZH SUSPENDED - 2.40% 12,500.00 - - 20.63 66,900.67 102.05 70.29% -71.77%
Delta CFI: ZH 20,005.00 - - - 35,800.00 - - 42.94 37,962.63 57.91 282.60% -36.58%
Dairibord DLTA: ZH 12,500.00 20,005.00 1.66% 24,100.82 22,100.00 2,829,850.00 8.74 319,523.03 487.40 50.74% -75.01%
Ecocash DZL: ZH 35,800.00 12,800.00 12,800.00 0.09% 3,996.56 - - 522.66 14,320.03 21.84 14.29% -81.06%
EHZL:ZH 24,100.82 - 35,800.00 1.27% 3,554.96 333,600.00 81,471,330.00 106.04 93,260.78 142.26 -11.45% -85.32%
Econet*** ECO: ZH 3,996.56 24,500.00 1.61% 7,204.18 100.00 4,000.00 1304.18 189,630.24 289.26 -13.88% -85.73%
EDGR: ZH 3,554.96 24,500.00 4,000.00 - 900.00 199,500.00 7,175,995.00 358.00 5,438.23 8.30 106.90% -65.70%
Edgars FBC: ZH 7,204.18 4,000.00 3,600.00 - 6,290.00 101,600.00 7,379,190.00 2590.58 42,265.65 64.47 85.80% -69.20%
FBC FIDL: ZH 3,600.00 7,320.00 - 2,265.00 1,600.00 14,400.00 2590.58 2,467.11 3.76 43.49% -76.22%
Fidelity Life FCB: ZH 900.00 7,320.00 0.74% 1,032.34 - - 604.25 22,462.08 34.26 201.10% -50.09%
FCB FMLH: ZH 6,290.00 900.00 4.35% 2,300.00 - - 671.95 16,563.43 25.27 20.00% -80.11%
First Mutual FMP: ZH 2,265.00 900.00 6,290.00 - 1,000.00 26,800.00 262,245.00 108.92 12,381.57 18.89 28.21% -78.75%
First Mutual Properties GBH: ZH 1,032.34 - 2,265.00 - 180.00 1,800.00 43,200.00 2159.81 965.86 1.47 -21.57% -87.00%
GB Holdings GBFS: ZH 2,300.00 - 1,040.00 - 1,900.00 218,400.00 2,184,000.00 690.14 22,099.25 33.71 216.67% -47.51%
GetBucks HIPO: ZH 1,000.00 2,400.00 -0.03% 20,005.50 - - 1,238.16 38,604.11 58.89 -28.57% -88.16%
Hippo INN: ZH 1,040.00 1,000.00 1.05% 34,636.21 - - 536.59 199,456.76 304.25 115.52% -64.28%
Innscor LACZ: ZH 180.00 2,400.00 - 12,500.00 7,100.00 1,420,330.00 1,163.12 10,000.00 15.25 56.25% -74.10%
Lafarge MASH: ZH 1,900.00 1,000.00 180.00 -14.90% 2,203.35 107,100.00 37,161,200.00 193.02 34,857.64 53.17 477.87% -4.21%
Mash MSHL: ZH 20,005.50 1,900.00 -6.67% 7,500.00 - - 569.88 16,915.76 25.80 27.27% -78.90%
M as im ba MEIK: ZH 34,636.21 - 20,000.00 - 10,104.03 148,100.00 3,124,680.00 80.00 25,527.44 38.94 -19.23% -86.61%
Meikles NPKZ: ZH 12,500.00 - 35,000.00 - 800.00 500.00 35,000.00 1,859.07 6,045.18 9.22 -28.30% -88.11%
Nam pak NTFD: ZH 2,203.35 20,000.00 12,500.00 - 110,343.57 - - 241.65 75,475.12 115.13 -19.73% -86.69%
Natfoods NMB: ZH 7,500.00 35,000.00 1,875.00 - 3,000.00 - - 252.65 12,125.15 18.50 272.53% -38.25%
NMB NTS: ZH 10,104.03 - 7,000.00 - 1,200.00 - - 755.65 3,046.47 4.65 90.48% -68.43%
NTS OKZ: ZH 1,875.00 10,104.03 2.42% 2,816.80 - - 68.40 37,097.76 56.59 5.11% -82.58%
OK Zimbabw e OMU: ZH 800.00 7,000.00 - 8,199.06 - - 404.17 5,425.19 8.28 0.00% -83.42%
Old Mutual PPC: ZH 110,343.57 - 800.00 - 795.00 253,200.00 7,253,175.00 253.87 294.84 0.45 0.00% -83.42%
PPC PROL: ZH - 110,343.57 - 2,500.00 - - 1,285.88 6,298.39 9.61 -13.79% -85.71%
Proplastics RTG: ZH 3,000.00 - - 792.00 - - 66.17 19,764.32 30.15 1.54% -83.17%
RTG SEED: ZH 1,200.00 - 3,000.00 - 7,305.08 - - 37.09 18,058.35 27.55 -30.80% -88.53%
Seedco SIM: ZH 2,816.80 - 1,200.00 - 0.00 4,400.00 34,874.00 251.94 0.00 0.00 -100.00% -100.00%
Sim bis a SACL: ZH 8,199.06 2,885.00 2,885.00 0.88% 141.75 - - 2,495.50 6,742.57 10.29 23.42% -79.54%
Star Africa TANG:ZH SUSP 8,199.06 - 8,111.59 - - 247.20 21,176.49 32.30 21.05% -83.19%
Tanganda TRUW: ZH 795.00 SUSP - 242.00 42,500.00 60,894.25 562.18 929.44 1.42 21.00% -79.94%
Truw orths TSL: ZH 2,500.00 - 795.00 - 4,020.00 - - 4,715.08 14,355.52 21.90 -42.71% -90.50%
TSL TURN: ZH 792.00 2,500.00 - 400.00 - - 261.06 1,972.16 3.01 -2.47% -83.83%
Turnall UNIF: ZH 792.00 - - 4,502.50 - - 384.07 4,794.00 7.31 50.25% -75.09%
Unifreight WILD: ZH 7,305.08 SUSP 792.00 - 195.25 - - 357.10 3,471.55 5.30 -36.91% -89.54%
Willdale ZBFH: ZH 143.00 7,305.08 -0.83% 11,395.00 - - 493.04 19,796.54 30.20 46.75% -75.67%
ZBFH ZECO: ZH - - - 3.31 - - 106.47 15.34 0.02 589.58% 14.31%
Zeco ZHL: ZH 141.75 - - -3.37% 445.00 5,000.00 565,000.00 1,778.00 7,818.34 11.93 14.34% -81.05%
ZHL ZIMP: ZH 8,111.59 - 143.00 - 280.00 - - 175.19 1,612.80 2.46 -3.78% -84.05%
Zim pape r s ZIMPLOW: ZH 242.00 - 8,111.59 0.28% 1,680.22 30,900.00 137,130.00 463.34 5,806.18 8.86 -28.60% -88.17%
Zimplow Holdings HCCL: ZH 4,020.00 - 242.00 - - - 1,818.22 7.14 0.01 - -
Hw ange RIOZ: ZH 400.00 - 4,020.00 - 14,000.00 400.00 6,740.00 576.00 17,084.13 26.06 250.00% -41.98%
RioZim 4,502.50 11,300.00 400.00 - - 344.58
Econet shares in issue include Class A Shares 195.25 - 4,502.50 - - 167.89
11,395.00 430.00 195.25 122.03
- 11,300.00
3.31 1,685.00
445.00 - 3.31
280.00 - 430.00
1,680.22 280.00
SUSPENDED 1,685.00
14,000.00
4.25
14,000.00

Exchange Traded Funds Opening LTP Closing Price Change Previous Price Volume traded Value traded Market Cap Market Cap Price Change Price Change
(RTGSc) (RTGSc) (RTGSc) (%) (RTGSc) (RTGS$) (RTGS$ mn's) (US$ mn's) RTGS YTD (%) US$ YTD (%)
Cass Saddle Agriculture ETF 200.00 175.00 181.25 200.00 400.00 725.00 9.73%
Datvest Modified Consumer Staples ETF 169.80 170.00 167.30 -9.38% 169.80 9,000.00 - - 81.25% -67.47%
Morgan&Co Made in Zimbabw e 138.00 138.00 -1.47% 138.00 15,056.67 113.81 0.17 67.30%
Morgan&Co Multi Sector 2,100.00 - 2,108.70 0.00% 2,100.00 - 38.00%
OM ZSE Top-10 ETF 558.73 2,200.00 571.32 0.41% 558.73 3,390.00 - 3,397.56 5.18 38.00% -65.05%
2.25% 114,775.00 71,485.00 2,655.44 4.05 110.87%
Real Estate Investment Trust Opening 595.00 Closing Previous Price -78.66%
(RTGSc) (RTGSc) Price Change (RTGSc) Volume traded 655,728.73 820.56 1.25 28.71%
Tigere REIT 2,800.00 LTP 3,350.00 (%) 2,800.00
(RTGSc) 7,000.00 Value traded Market Cap Market Cap Price Change Price Change
3,400.00 19.64% (RTGS$) (RTGS$ mn's) (US$ mn's) RTGS YTD (%) US$ YTD (%)

234,500.00 2,409,732.05 3,675.83 19.64% 19.53%

* The complete list of ZSE Indices can be obtained from the ZSE website: www.zse.co.zw

Victoria Falls Stock Exchange Pricelist

02 December, 2022

BNC Bloom be r g Opening LTP Closing Price Previous Volume traded Value traded Shares In Market Cap Market Cap Price Change Price Change
Caledonia Ticker (USc) (USc) (USc) Change (%) Price (USc) (shares) (US$) Issue (mn's) (US$ mn's) (RTGS$ mn's) US YTD (%) RTGS$ YTD (%)
NedBank Zim Depository Receipts BIND:ZH 3.00 2.95 2.95 3,100.00 91.45 -46.36%
Padenga CMCL:ZH -1.67% 3.00 - - 1,272.73 37.55 24,613.37 0.00% 223.58%
Seed Co Intl 1,300.00 - 1,300.00 0.00% 1,300.00 - - 0.62 8.06 5,283.83 -2.52% 503.28%
PHL:ZH 1,326.03 - 1,326.03 0.00% 1,326.03 - - 0.16 2.12 1,392.31 9.76% 488.08%
SCIL:ZH - 0.00% 354.00 123.93 81,246.12 10.34% 562.17%
23.05 30.95 23.05 -0.93% 23.05 109.73 537.67 74.97 49,150.03 565.65%
31.24 30.95 31.24 242.24

* The complete list of VFEX Indices can be obtained from the VFEX website: https://www.vfex.exchange/

NewsHawks News Analysis Page 37

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

BRENNA MATENDERE Patriotic Bill clauses in amended
legislation violates civil liberties
THE clauses from the Patriotic Bill
that were inserted into the Criminal Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs minister Ziyambi Ziyambi.
Law Amendment Bill approved by
cabinet on Tuesday and which will ously unhappy with the Patriotic so there is no issue of being deemed Analysts say it is unreasonable to the Logan Act in the United States
see police clamping down on citi- Bill. We are against actions that seek but they should deal with those who legislate patriotism. Clauses of the which outlaws negotiation by unau-
zens for purportedly campaigning to violate citizens’ freedoms of free break the law. Every Zimbabwean Criminal Law (Codification and Re- thorised American citizens with for-
against the country through private speech and association. It is some- should be responsible enough to form) Amendment Bill approved by eign governments having a dispute
correspondence with foreign gov- thing that needs to be corrected be- protect the interest of the country. cabinet on Tuesday will now be used with the superpower.
ernments will further shrink the cause citizens must enjoy all their Maybe no one will be prosecuted if as a weapon against ruling party op-
freedoms of Zimbabweans. freedoms,” he said. all citizens avoid harming the inter- ponents, they warn. However, that narrative by Zanu
est of our great country.” PF and government sympathisers
The development comes at a time However, in an interview with Following the announcement of falls away because only two people
the country is desperate to project The NewsHawks, Zanu PF chief Zanu PF argues that a Patriotic the approval of the Patriotic Bill have ever been indicted on charges
itself to the community of nations whip Pupurai Togarepi was unapol- Bill is necessary to rein in citizens clauses by cabinet on Tuesday, a of violating the Logan Act, one in
as a constitutional democracy. ogetic about the new law. who actively harm the national in- CCC senior leader, Tendai Biti, 1802 and the other in 1852. 
terest. said: “The so-called Patriotic Bill is
Again, the new amendments “This is a welcome development. no more than a predatory instru- In the two cases, both accused
come barely a week after the sec- This law was long overdue as some Ministers and Zanu PF officials ment to proscribe alternative views persons were acquitted after the US
retariat of the Commonwealth de- of our people were surviving on sell- have been making threats to crim- and values. Every true Zimbabwean courts failed to adduce solid evi-
parted Harare following a mission ing lies damaging the interest of our inalise criticism of the government will protect her country, but also dence against the two people.
to assess the country’s preparedness people,” he said. on foreign platforms. has a right to protest injustice and
to rejoin the bloc of mostly former abuse. We reject this unconstitu- Togarepi however still maintained
British colonies. The Gutu MP lashed out at critics They denounce it as unpatriotic tional, desperate, fascist law.” that the Patriotic Bill clauses should
of the law. conduct. The ruling party also ac- remain as they are in the new law
Fears are already rife that Pres- cuses the political opposition, in- He was speaking to online publi- so that the image of the country is
ident Emmerson Mnangagwa is “The guilty are always afraid. We dependent journalists and human cation ZimLive. protected.
determined to criminalise conduct have several laws, for example, that rights defenders of campaigning
deemed as undermining Zimba- deal with murder. How many peo- for Western sanctions against Zim- The government maintains that “It has been very expensive for
bwe’s “national interest” — yet it is ple are in jail who are not murder- babwe. there is nothing controversial about Zimbabweans, be it in business or
clear that there is a hidden agenda ers just because there is that law? criminalising conduct that “under- ordinary citizens, seeking interna-
to target critics of the regime and It is our duty as parliamentarians The controversial “patriotic” law mines” the national interest and tional support because of these peo-
opposition figures. that the text is clear enough when has however been fiercely opposed repeatedly draws comparisons with ple who are thriving on soiling the
it comes to Parliament for debate by the opposition and civil society. image of the country,” he said.
The Harare administration has
for long parroted the narrative that
the opposition is funded by Western
countries and is therefore geared to
close the alleged tap of resources.

On Tuesday, acting Informa-
tion minister Jenfan Muswere, who
stood in for Monica Mutsvangwa,
sent shivers down the spines of
opposition Citizens' Coalition for
Change (CCC) members when he
announced in a media briefing that
cabinet had approved the Criminal
Law (Codification and Reform)
Amendment Bill 2022 which incor-
porates the controversial clauses the
government previously teased out
as part of a forthcoming "Patriotic
Bill".

Justice, Legal and Parliamentary
Affairs minister Ziyambi Ziyambi,
who also chairs the cabinet com-
mittee on legislation, had earlier
on presented the draft law before
Mnangagwa who chaired the Tues-
day cabinet meeting.

“Cabinet considered and ap-
proved the Criminal Law (Codifica-
tion and Reform) Amendment Bill,
2022, which was presented by the
Minister of Justice, Legal and Par-
liamentary Affairs, Honourable Zi-
yambi Ziyambi, as Chairman of the
Cabinet Committee on Legislation,”
said Mutsvangwa is a speech read on
her behalf by Muswere, adding:

“The Criminal Law (Codifica-
tion and Reform) Amendment Bill,
2022 enhances the provisions of the
Criminal Law Code in matters re-
lating to the country’s sovereignty
through the criminalisation of con-
duct that undermines Zimbabwe’s
sovereignty, dignity, independence
and national interests.”

“The Bill also provides for a man-
datory sentence in rape and murder
cases. In addition, it expands the
definition of ‘dangerous drugs’ and
also amends the elements which
form the crime of abuse of public
office.”

Kucaca Phulu, the CCC's inter-
im secretary for legal affairs, MP for
Nkulumane and seasoned lawyer,
said the Patriotic Bill clauses are ret-
rogressive.

“As the opposition we are obvi-

Page 38 Reframing Issues NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Zim and South Africa’s intertwined history:
From Rhodes, referendum to work permits

TERERAI MAFUKIDZE surrendered at Doornkop, some 20 South Africa. desia (Zambia). as equals to white men. But the reso-
km west of Johannesburg at the west- The British monarch was given the This would be far much bigger lution still passed. This was because
THIS year much of the conversation ern edge of present-day Soweto. of the support of BSAC appointees
between Zimbabweans and South Af- power to admit into the union the ter- than the Union of South Africa in on the Legislative Council and that of
ricans has focussed on the decision of Some 30 bodies of the paramili- ritories administered by the BSAC on size. In 1909, there was a suggestion some elected representatives. However,
the South African government not to tary force lay dead before them. If the such terms and conditions as to repre- that Southern Rhodesia and Northern the resolution was never implemented.
renew the Special Exemption Permits Raid had succeeded, it is possible that sentation and otherwise in each case as Rhodesia should amalgamate to form
that were granted to thousands of the Transvaal — which stretches from the monarch expressed. “a great British community in the Meanwhile, General Louis Botha
Zimbabweans – about 200 000 - to present day Gauteng to the North- heart of Africa under its own govern- of South Africa had in 1913 proposed
live and work in South Africa. west, Mpumalanga and Limpopo — In 1910, the Union of South of ment”. that Northern Rhodesia and Southern
could have become part of Rhodes’ Africa brought together four colonies Rhodesia should join the Union of
Political parties in South Africa have “Rhodesia”. of Natal, Transvaal, Orange Free State In 1912, and again in 1913, the South Africa before October 1914.
made this a major electoral issue. Zim- and the Cape of Good Hope to create Colonial Office and the British High
babwe and South Africa have a unique The disastrous Raid had serious a “unified” South Africa. The union Commissioner reaffirmed their pref- The year 1914 was an important
history and it serves up fascinating consequences for Rhodes, Jameson, was considered to be the reconcilia- erence that Southern Rhodesia should for both the settlers and the BSAC. It
ironies. It is a hundred years since that Beit, Harris and others who were in- tion of Boers and Anglos after the An- join the Union of South Africa as this will be remembered that once Ndebele
1922 referendum in Southern Rhode- volved in the plot. Rhodes had to re- glo-Boer War. presented the cheapest option for Brit- King Lobengula, the de facto lead-
sia (Zimbabwe) on whether Southern sign as premier of the Cape. ain’s taxpayers. er of the territory, “signed” the Rudd
Rhodesia should become a province of Of course, the oppressed Africans Concession in 1888, Rhodes wasted
South Africa. Jameson was sentenced to death, did not see the union as any form of However, by 1914 it was clear that no time in seeking a Royal Charter to
though the sentence was later com- unification. this option was unpopular with the conquer the territory presently known
A hundred years later, the depen- muted to a short prison term. Rhodes settlers in Southern Rhodesia. They as Zimbabwe on behalf of the Crown.
dency of Zimbabwe and Zimbabwe- and others paid heavy fines. The Brit- Despite the British victory in the preferred self-government under the
ans on South Africa is a stark irony on ish South Africa Company paid £1 1899-1902 Anglo-Boer war, British crown to any union with South Africa. This Royal Charter was granted in
the inappropriately named “Responsi- million to the Transvaal government as dominance remained vulnerable to Af- 1889. It gave the BSAC 25 years to
ble Government” status that won the compensation. rikaner numbers in South Africa. In 1913, Jameson of the Jameson administer the territory on behalf of
referendum vote on the day. Raid, then President of the BSAC, the crown. Towards the expiry of the
The poet Rudyard Kipling was so In 1906, Winston Churchill, who was even more ambitious. He want- 25 year period in 1914, tensions had
A referendum on the status of enamoured of Jameson’s venture he was to play a crucial role in this, 15 ed a Rhodesia that stretched from already begun to build between set-
Southern Rhodesia was held on 27 wrote the famous poem “If” to cele- years later stated that: “Rhodesia with Mafikeng in the south to the Congo tlers and the BSAC. This tension arose
October 1922. Voters, almost all of brate the man’s courage and fidelity to its British population may ultimately in the north. from grievances regarding land rights.
them White, were given the options of the cause even after he was arrested. be the weight which swings the bal- BSAC favoured mining rights which
establishing responsible government The poem has been voted by the En- ance in South Africa decisively on the This desire to expand Rhodesian it granted to mining companies and
or joining the Union of South Africa.  glish the best poem ever written. side of the British Crown.” territory can be seen in the BSAC prospectors disregarding the rights of
1915 Report of the Directors. land owners.
The majority voted No. Jameson recovered from the disas- At that time, Churchill was the par-
That changed the course of history. ter and went on to serve, like Rhodes, liamentary under-secretary at the Co- In the report, the BSAC direc- As early as the 1912 Legislative
It prefaced the official granting of as premier of the Cape. His body lies lonial Office. The possible dominance tors stated that they would seek the Council elections, in anticipation of
responsible government on 1 October next to that of Rhodes at Matopos, 40 of South Africa by the Boers whom amalgamation of Northern Rhodesia the expiry of the 25 year royal charter,
1923. The referendum arose after the kilometres southwest of Bulawayo. the British (and their Rhodesian off- (Zambia) and Southern Rhodesia if there was a strong push by the settlers
Legislative Council election of 1920 The referendum shoots) considered inferior concerned the people of Rhodesia favoured the for Responsible Government which
resulted in a majority which favoured A hundred years ago, on 27 October many, including Kipling who is said to scheme. failed.
immediate moves towards establishing 1922, thousands of white Southern have commented thus to a journalist
"Responsible Government" within the Rhodesians lined up to cast a ballot in 1907: “The handing over of a higher The BSAC went to extent of pre- In 1914, the Legislative Council
colony. on whether Southern Rhodesia, now civilisation to a lower is a heart-break- paring a draft order-in-council which passed a resolution to refer the dispute
Immediately after the election the Zimbabwe, should become the fifth ing job.” it formally presented to the Legisla- between settlers and the BSAC on the
Legislative Council passed a resolu- province of South Africa by joining the tive Council of Southern Rhodesia in ownership of the unalienated land in
tion requesting the United Kingdom Union of South Africa or be granted In 1907, the British Secretary of 1917. The resolution was opposed by Southern Rhodesia to the crown for
government to inaugurate responsible the status of Crown colony enjoying State already saw Southern Rhodesia’s the majority of elected representatives. determination.
government, and Britain’s response ‘Responsible Government’. future lying in it becoming part of a
was establishing a Commission under “Federal South Africa”. There was a fear amongst some of the In turn, the crown referred the dis-
Earl Buxton, a former Liberal minister. There were about 60 black Africans elected representatives who opposed pute to the Privy Council for deter-
Cecil John Rhodes, who ruled who qualified to vote. In Southern Rhodesia, within the the resolution that an amalgamation mination. The outbreak of the First
South Africa’s Cape Colony before tak- settler dominated Legislative Council with Northern Rhodesia would add “a World War in 1914 changed things.
ing over Zimbabwe, dreamt of a Brit- When the Union of South Africa the elected representatives were against country full of black men on terms of The BSAC charter was extended in
ish colony in Southern Africa stretch- was created in 1910, the 1909 consti- a union with South Africa. Earlier, in equality with white people”. There was 1914 for another 10 years. The Privy
ing from the Cape of Good Hope to tutive legislation left space for South- 1909 and 1911, there had been some a fear that Northern Rhodesia would Council took ages to determine the
the Zambezi. ern Rhodesia to become a province of push for a union of Southern Rhode- bring in relatively large numbers of Af- dispute owing to the war.
In his will, he mentions the federa- sia, Nyasaland (Malawi), Bechuana- rican clerks and artisans from North-
tion of states of Southern Africa. land (Botswana) and Northern Rho- ern Zambia who would qualify to vote When the Privy Council in 1918
In 1895, Rhodes decided that it finally ruled that the unalienated land
was a good idea to invade the Trans- belonged to the crown, it was clear that
vaal which was under the leadership the days of BSAC rule were numbered.
of the Afrikaners, depose Paul Kruger, The only positive outcome of the Privy
a dominant political and military fig- Council decision for the BSAC was
ure in 19th-century South Africa, and the declaration that the BSAC was en-
President of the South African Repub- titled to be compensated for the short-
lic from 1883 to 1900, and make the fall in its administrative costs incurred
Transvaal a British Colony. in running Southern Rhodesia on be-
Once that was achieved, the half of the Crown.
Transvaal would join a federation of
British colonies in Southern Africa. The British government appointed a
The “Jameson Raid” — as it became commission under Lord Cave to deter-
known in history — was launched on mine the claims. In January 1921, the
29 December 1895 from Botswana Cave commission awarded the BSAC
(Bechuanaland) by a force of some 600 £4.4 million as compensation. This
men assembled in Southern Rhodesia was half of what the BSAC expected as
for the purpose under the command compensation.
of a medical doctor, Dr Leander Starr
Jameson. To be continued…
Disastrous planning and the failure
of a local revolt in the Transvaal meant *About the writer: Advocate Ter-
the Raid was a classic failure. Tired, erai Mafukidze is now a member of
lost and hungry, Jameson’s force was the Johannesburg Bar. He practises
overpowered, and on 2 January 1896 with Group One Sandown Cham-
bers in Sandton, Johannesburg. His
practice areas at the Bar are: gener-
al commercial law, competition law,
human rights, administrative and
constitutional law.

NewsHawks Reframing Issues Page 39

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Key conventions on women, children’s rights

MATTHEW MARE

A NUMBER of international trea- governments to work towards elimi- Cedaw deals with the issue of edu- bers to ensure that women and men free to choose their own religion,
ties whose aim is to advance human nating discrimination against wom- cation and training, where it advo- have equal rights to freely choose a thoughts, generate their own opin-
rights, especially those of vulner- en. This can be achieved through cates for women and girls to be af- partner to enter into marriage with. ions, as long it does not stop other
able groups like women and chil- the introduction of laws or policies forded equal opportunities like boys Women are also accorded similar people from enjoying their rights.
dren, have been adopted universally that change existing discriminatory in the education sector in order to rights to men within marriage and
(Sion, 2008). laws that sanction discrimination. reduce existing gender gaps. upon divorce. The United Nations The role of parents is limited to
Convention on the Rights of the guiding children so that when they
Two of these include the Con- Article 3 emphasises on actively Governments were encouraged Child is an agreement that was ad- grow up, they learn how to properly
vention on the Rights of the Child promoting women’s full develop- by Cedaw to ensure that all edu- opted in the year 2000 by countries enjoy their rights without violating
(CRC) and the Convention on the ment and advancement in order cation was free from stereotypical who promised to work towards the the rights of others. Relatedly, chil-
Elimination of All Forms of Dis- to facilitate them to enjoy human indoctrination on the roles of men protection and advancement of dren have the right to privacy, good
crimination against Women (Ce- rights and fundamental freedoms and women. At the same time, the children’s rights. healthcare and equal access to edu-
daw). without being restricted. issues of discrimination in employ- cation and decent living conditions.
ment were tackled in Article 11, The convention explains that
At the same time, the United Na- Meanwhile, Article 5 of Cedaw which required that states should children are any persons under the Governments are encouraged
tions Children’s Fund (Unicef ) pro- advocates for states to address social make sure that there was no dis- age of 18 regardless of gender. In to protect children from abuse,
motes the rights of girls and boys, and cultural patterns that promote crimination in employment in or- that respect, it notes that children violence and being neglected by
with special emphasis on protec- the stereotyping of women based on der to ensure that women also at- are also human beings and there- anyone who looks after them. The
tion, survival and development. traditional gender roles. At the same tain the right to do similar jobs as fore, their rights are connected to government also has an obligation
time, Article 6 encourages govern- men. any other human rights. Thus, the to protect children from sexual
Relatedly, the United Nations ments to deal comprehensively with rights of children are equally im- exploitation and sexual abuse, in-
Population Fund endeavours to cases of trafficking and exploitation The same article further requires portant as they cannot be taken cluding by people forcing children
promote the rights of women, men of females for prostitution. that states craft laws that forbid away. to have sex for money, or films or
and children alike so that they en- discrimination in the workplace on sexual pictures of them.
joy a life of health and equal oppor- In general, Cedaw seeks to ad- the basis of marital status, pregnan- All children are supposed to en-
tunities without discrimination. dress those issues prevalent in so- cy and maternity. Related to female joy these rights no matter where *About the writer: Matthew
ciety that lead to the exclusion of health issues is Article 12 on health, they live, who they are, what their Mare is a Zimbabwean academic
Liberal evidence has shown that women in key decision-making ar- which advocates for the end of dis- religion is, what they think, what who holds two bachelor’s degrees,
advancing the rights of women was eas and in public life. Thus, it ad- crimination against women in the language they speak, what they look five master’s qualifications and
not only the right thing to do, but vocates for women to stand in elec- field of health care including ad- like, their sex, whether they have a a PhD. He is also doing another
it also results in an optimum en- tions and to be actively involved vocacy for women to access family disability and no matter who their PhD and has 12 executive certif-
vironment conducive for boys and in the crafting of all domestic and planning. parents are. In that respect, the icates in different fields. Profes-
girls to flourish (Jennings, 2011). international laws as state and non- convention explains that children’s sionally, he is a civil servant and
state actors. Pertinent to note also is Article rights are indivisible. Children are also board member at the Nation-
The standards enunciated in the 16 of Cedaw, which requires mem- al Aids Council of Zimbabwe.
CRC and Cedaw are fundamental In that same vein, Article 10 of
to the work of the UN as a whole as
they reinforce human rights princi-
ples and values that are applicable
to all human beings.

The argument therefore is that
there should not be women and
children’s rights, but human rights
as children and women were hu-
man beings too just like men whose
rights are indivisible.

Thus, the CRC and Cedaw ad-
dress those aspects of social, cul-
tural, civil, economic and political
life, which requires more attention
if children and women are to enjoy
their rights wholly, including the
right to non-discrimination in all
aspects of their life.

A brief presentation on selected
conventions and treaties that guar-
antee and promote the rights of
women and children ensues.

Cedaw was adopted in 1979 by
the United Nations General Assem-
bly and it became operational on 3
September 1981.

It enshrines the principle of gen-
der equality, which entails how
women as human beings are en-
titled to the enjoyment of human
rights on an equal basis with their
male counterparts.

Cedaw deals with a variety of
rights that include the right to par-
ticipate in elections as voters or as
participants, and equal rights to
health and education. It also offers
protection from discrimination at
workplaces and advances for equali-
ty before the law.

This is why Cedaw is usually de-
scribed as an "international bill of
rights" for women (Australian Hu-
man Rights Commission, 2008).
Treasured within its 30 Articles are
key principles of equality as well as
an agenda for state action to end
discrimination against women.
Some of the key articles are present-
ed in the paragraphs that follow.

Article 2 of Cedaw encourages

Page 40 Reframing Issues NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Cyril Ramaphosa

should clear his

name before an

impeachment

inquiry — If he

has nothing to hide

PIERRE DE VOS president of Namibia to apprehend South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.
the suspects of the theft and to keep
The report of an independent panel the matter quiet.  Rhoode and not with the President, ia to do so as well, amounts to seri- authorised by the Constitution, the
on whether sufficient evidence exists who expected the general to report ous violations or misconduct. (But it report may well be reviewable. Given
to warrant a full inquiry by an ad hoc The panel also quoted from a the matter in “accordance with police would have strengthened the panel’s the weaknesses in the report, it is not
committee of the National Assembly confidential report of the Namibia procedures”. report if it had identified the applica- inconceivable that such a review may
into whether South African President Commissioner of the Criminal Inves- ble criminal provisions that may have be wholly or partially successful.
Cyril Ramaphosa committed serious tigation Department (dated 21 June Apart from the above, the major been breached.)
violations of the Constitution or the 2020) which stated that discussions weakness of the panel report is that ‘Other paid work’ Even if such a review is eventually
law, or is guilty of serious miscon- about the theft “are allegedly going it does not deal adequately with the But its failure to do so casts doubt on unsuccessful, it may delay the Presi-
duct, contains devastating ‘findings’ on between the country’s two Pres- question of whether any breaches of at least one of its other conclusions, dent’s day of reckoning for two or
against the President. While there are idents”, and noted that “due to the the Constitution or the law or any namely that the President may have three years, allowing his less princi-
significant leaps of logic in the report sensitivity of the matter and the en- misconduct were of a serious nature. committed a serious violation of the pled supporters to invoke a non-ex-
(arguably making it vulnerable to ju- visaged fallout it will create in South As the panel noted, “not every viola- Constitution by running the Phala istent version of the  sub judice  rule
dicial review), it does not necessarily Africa [the South African authorities] tion of the Constitution or the law, Phala game farm, because by doing to argue that the many grave ques-
mean that the President has no case requested that the matter is handled or misconduct constitutes a ground so he had undertaken “other paid tions about the President’s conduct
to answer. with discretion”. for impeachment and removal from work” in breach of section 96(2)(a) should only be discussed once the
office”. Only serious violations justify of the Constitution. The panel noted courts have finalised the matter. (Ja-
ARGUABLY the most damaging as- (It must be noted that the pan- impeachment. that the term “other paid work” is not cob Zuma and Busisiwe Mkhwebane
pect of the Phala Phala panel report el seemed to have accepted without defined in the Executive Ethics Code. have shown just how effective such a
is its conclusion that President Ra- question that the Namibian Report The rules of the National Assembly Nor have our courts provided a de- strategy can be.)
maphosa has a case to answer on the was genuine and that the claims made define serious misconduct as “unlaw- finitive definition of this term. The
origins of the foreign currency that in it were true, despite the fact that ful, dishonest or improper behaviour panel also held — correctly in my But none of this may matter much.
was stolen, as well as the underlying the report was furnished by the for- performed by the President in bad view — that the term should be inter- Even if the panel’s report is set aside,
transaction for it. mer head of the South African State faith”, and a serious violation of preted expansively to cover “all work the questions about where the for-
Security Agency, Mr Arthur Fraser, the Constitution or the law, as “be- for financial gain or reward whether eign currency came from, why it was
The President claimed that the sto- whose credibility is not beyond re- haviour by the President amounting as employees or self-employed”. stuffed in a couch and its theft kept
len money was the proceeds of the sale proach.) to an intentional or malicious viola- secret, and what President Ramapho-
of 20 buffaloes to Mr Mustafa Mo- Unpersuasive tion of the Constitution or the law President Ramaphosa argued that sa may or may not have asked his Na-
hamed Ibrahim Hazim, a citizen of On the other hand, I find the panel’s performed in bad faith”. he had declared his interest in Pha- mibian counterpart to do, will not go
Sudan, and furnished the panel with conclusion that there is prima facie la Phala and that he was not getting away. The only way to make the ques-
“an acknowledgement of receipt” as evidence that the President violated This means that the question of paid for his work, and that section tions go away is to provide a detailed
proof, but the panel concluded that section 34(1) read with section 34(2) whether the President had acted in 96(2)(a) therefore did not apply. and honest explanation, supported by
there was substantial doubt that this of the Prevention and Combating of bad faith and with the necessary in- While he may well be wrong about the evidence of others involved in the
was true. Corrupt Activities Act by not report- tention, is crucial in determining this, the fact that he declared this in- matter as well as any relevant docu-
ing the theft to a police official in the whether grounds for impeachment terest and that there is no definitive ments, something (as the panel not-
This conclusion is not surprising.  Directorate for Priority Crime nves- exist. Where the President acts in definition of the term, means that it ed) the President has not yet done.
As the panel pointed out, it is odd tigation (known as the Hawks), un- breach of the Constitution, where would be difficult to argue that there
that a foreign national would rock up persuasive. Section 34(1) required the the relevant provision of the Consti- is evidence that the President’s actions An impeachment inquiry by an
at Phala Phala without making pri- President, as a member of the Phala tution is reasonably open to different in this regard amount to an inten- ad hoc committee of the National
or arrangements to view the animals Phala closed corporation, to report interpretations. tional or malicious violation of the Assembly would be the perfect place
with more than US$500 000 in for- the theft, or “cause such knowledge Constitution or the law performed in to do so. Of course, such an inqui-
eign currency on hand, would be giv- or suspicion to be reported” to the The panel argued that “bad faith bad faith. ry would be disruptive and would
en an “acknowledgement of receipt” police official in the Directorate for can be inferred from the nature and Court review provide a platform for opposition
that contained no particulars of the Priority Crime Investigation.  the circumstances surrounding the If the President’s lawyers advise him parties to shout their indignation to
buyer “such as his physical address, violation of the Constitution or the that the report is not beyond re- the heavens. But if the President has
telephone numbers, business address, The panel held that it was “com- law and misconduct”. But it seemed proach, the President may be tempt- nothing to hide, he would be wise to
and other personal details such as his mon cause that the President reported to have accepted that what matters is ed to approach the courts to have the jump at the opportunity to clear his
passport number”, and would make the housebreaking and theft to Gen- whether the allegations are serious, panel report reviewed as set aside on name before such an ad hoc com-
no arrangements to collect the buffa- eral Rhoode” and that he “expected and that it was not necessary to con- the grounds of legality. As all exercises mittee. The obvious alternative is to
loes he had bought more than two- the General to process the report in sider whether the President had the of public power are, in principle, re- resign as President of the ANC and
and-a-half years ago. It is also odd accordance with police procedures”. intention to violate the Constitution viewable by our courts, and as the re- the country. 
that the money was not kept in a safe, The panel also noted that given “the or the law or commit misconduct. port was prepared in accordance with
but was rather stuffed in a sofa where high rank in the police hierarchy the rules of the National Assembly as — Daily Maverick.
it was kept for well over a month. that these senior police officers hold, Had it done so, it may well have
The second truly damaging con- we can assume they knew that theft concluded that receiving foreign cur- *About the writer: Pierre De Vos
clusion reached by the panel is that which involves such a huge amount rency from an unexplained source, is professor of constitutional law
president Ramaphosa exposed him- had to be reported to the police of- and using the position as Head of at the University of Cape Town in
self to a situation involving a conflict ficial in the Directorate for Priority State to keep the theft secret and to South Africa.
between his official responsibilities Crime Investigation”. persuade the government of Namib-
and his private interests, most no-
tably by seeking assistance from the On the panel’s own version of
events, the failure lies with General

NewsHawks Reframing Issues Page 41

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

JESSICA HABERER

WHILE the world has focused HIV prevention: New injection could
on the Covid-19 pandemic for
nearly three years, less and less at- boost the fight, but hurdles remain
tention is being paid to HIV.
safe. December 2021. The next was to give the injections. Clinics may Despite these challenges, inject-
However, HIV is still a global Another injectable drug — Zimbabwe in October 2022. not be set up to provide many in- able PrEP is a huge advantage
problem. In 2021, according to The necessary paperwork is being jections in a given day, and lim- for the HIV prevention toolbox.
the United Nations,  38.4 mil- lenacapavir — would only need processed in other countries in ited availability may mean peo- Choice is critical for most inter-
lion people were living with HIV, to be given once every six months, sub-Saharan Africa, but regulato- ple can’t get the shots when they ventions to work, and HIV pre-
over 650 000 died from Aids-re- and would be easier to inject be- ry processes are slow and access is need them. vention is no different. PrEP use
lated illnesses, and 1.5 million cause it only needs to go into the likely be to a challenge for some increases  when people are given
became newly infected. skin; but it is still in clinical trials. time. Finally, continuing to get in- effective options and can choose
jections over time is still likely what works best for them.
Nearly 70% of infections oc- In many ways, injectable PrEP Second, it’s expensive. CAB- to be a problem. The experience
cur in key groups: sex workers seems like a perfect solution. It’s LA is priced at over  US$22 000 with injectable contraception has PrEP needs to be easier for peo-
and their clients, men who have discreet, there’s no burden of fre- per person per year in the US. It taught us that up to half of peo- ple to take, for instance by mak-
sex with men, people who inject quent pill taking, and it can be could be covered to some extent ple who select that form of family ing it more convenient and less
drugs, and transgender people combined with other services and by health insurance companies, planning stop it within a year. In- medical. Programmes are starting
and their sexual partners. Ado- injections, like contraception for but not everyone has health in- jectable PrEP does not solve the to do this through community
lescent girls and young women women. People in the CAB-LA surance. The drug manufacturer other barriers people face, like delivery. That approach may be
in sub-Saharan Africa are another trials in many parts of the world, will lower the price for the mar- transport to clinic and prioritisa- more challenging with injections,
important group, with nearly 5 including sub-Saharan Africa, kets in low- and middle-income tion of HIV prevention. but it may get easier with time
000 getting HIV every week. South America, and the US, re- countries, but the exact cost is and with injections in the skin,
ally liked it. Although some pub- not yet known. Some estimates The lack of access raises import- like lenacapavir.
For many years, options for lic health officials and healthcare are around US$250 per person ant ethical concerns. Most of the
HIV prevention were quite lim- workers have worried about the per year. That’s still about five thousands of people in the CAB- Advocacy will be critical for
ited. Early campaigns consisted pain and any swelling due to the times as much as oral PrEP costs. LA trials live in countries without expediting the regulatory process
of the ABCs — abstinence, being injection itself, most people do The increased effectiveness may access to it, including Botswana, and negotiating with pharmaceu-
faithful, and condoms. In the ear- very well. be worth it for people at high risk Eswatini, Kenya, Malawi, South tical companies to license other
ly 2000s, male circumcision was Drawbacks of injectable PrEP of getting HIV, but getting it to Africa, Uganda, and Zimbabwe companies to produce more af-
added, but multiple attempts at Several issues, however, may get those people will be challenging among others. Processes to en- fordable generics.
developing a vaccine have been in the way of injectable PrEP rev- for ministries of health. able access are unacceptably slow,
disappointing. olutionising HIV prevention. although the drug is available in — The Conversation.
Third, logistical issues compli- the US (and just recently Zimba- *About the writer: Jessica Ha-
In 2012, however, much ex- First, most people  can’t get it. cate delivery of injectable PrEP, bwe). berer is professor of medicine at
citement surrounded the intro- The United States was the first including the need for refrigera- Where to go from here? Harvard Medical School in the
duction of HIV pre-exposure country to approve CAB-LA in tors to store the drug and nurses United States.
prophylaxis, or PrEP. The initial
form of PrEP was a combination
oral pill consisting of two medi-
cations used to treat HIV — em-
tricitabine and tenofovir. When
taken regularly, PrEP is highly ef-
fective  in preventing HIV infec-
tion and very safe. PrEP was seen
as a game-changer by enabling
people to take charge of their sex-
ual health, particularly for those
who could not necessarily control
when or how they had sex.

Oral PrEP has worked well for
many, particularly for men who
have sex with men in high income
settings and for serodifferent cou-
ples (couples in which one person
has HIV and the other does not).

For others — like young peo-
ple — it’s hard to take a pill con-
sistently during periods of risk
for getting HIV. The interest is
there, but lots of things get in the
way. Some relate to the person,
like forgetfulness, transport to a
clinic, and alternative priorities.
Other factors relate to stigma and
lack of support.

PrEP administered via a  vag-
inal ring  is another safe option
that has been developed. It’s not
yet clear how many people will
want to use it as it becomes more
widely available.

Access to PrEP has  been
slow  and mostly limited to high
income countries. Some coun-
tries, like Kenya, Uganda, South
Africa, Zambia, and Nigeria, have
been more proactive than others,
but it is still hard for many to get
PrEP.

Now that injectable PrEP is an
option, it’s poised to make a huge
difference in HIV prevention —
as long as some key issues can be
overcome.
Benefits of injectable PrEP
The latest version of PrEP is an
injection of another HIV drug
– cabotegravir (called CAB-LA
for cabotegravir-long acting). It
is given in the buttocks and lasts
for two months. It is even more
effective than  oral PrEP and it’s

Page 42 Reframing Issues NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

The East African Court of Justice:
What it is and what its powers are

TOMASZ MILEJ

MARTHA Karua, the running mate personal interest in the outcome of about flawed processes of election to co-accused in Uganda had been re- ruling, Kenya violated the right to
of Raila Odinga, the losing candidate the case – it can be filed in the public the East African Legislative Assem- arrested after being granted bail by access justice, and hence the princi-
in Kenya’s 2022 presidential election, interest. bly. The court agreed with the appli- their country’s court. The regional ple of the rule of law.
continues to dispute William Ru- cants. court denounced the rearrest as a vi-
to’s slim victory over him. According The court has encouraged individ- olation of the rule of law. Only as strong as its partners
to the politician and lawyer, the Ken- uals to use it through a generous ap- It was apparently inconceivable to The court holds great potential for
yan electoral commission and the proach to the litigation costs. There the national governments that the Other cases followed. For exam- justice in the region, but it is only as
country’s supreme court failed Ken- are no filing fees and even a losing court they had created would dare ple, the East African Court of Jus- strong as its partner states allow it to
ya’s democracy and infringed on the applicant does not have to pay any to oppose them. Politicians rushed tice has  ruled  against secretive de- be. The partner states are under trea-
human rights of Kenyans when they instruction fees to the state’s attorney to put the court in its place. They tention without trial of a Rwandan ty obligation (Article 38) to imple-
ratified President Ruto’s win. general. introduced the time frame for indi- army officer accused of committing ment the court’s judgements without
vidual references, making it harder to crimes against national security. And “undue delay”. If a state fails to do
This is why she  intends  to bring Moreover, the court has gone to approach the court. it ruled in favour of the Media Coun- so, the applicant can go back to the
the matter before the East African great lengths to be physically clos- What cases are most common? cil of Tanzania against legislation court, since the failure to implement
Court of Justice. er to the people. Even though it is Cross-border trade disputes make which granted a government minis- a judgement is in itself a rule of law
seated in Arusha, in northern Tanza- up only a few of the court’s cases. ter sweeping powers to "prohibit or violation, a violation of the treaty
As the judicial organ of the East nia, there is no need to travel there In one case, a private company won otherwise sanction a publication of and contempt of court.
African Community, the court was to file a case. The court operates an US$20 000 as compensation for Bu- any content that jeopardises national
set up in 2001 to ensure the adher- electronic filing system and is estab- rundi custom authorities unlawfully security or public safety." The enforcement of a judgement
ence to law in the interpretation and lishing sub-registries in all capitals of seizing a truck carrying perishable depends ultimately on the given
application of and compliance with the bloc. It’s also holding hearings in goods. But what is interesting in the con- state’s commitment to the rule of
the treaty that binds the regional bloc national judiciaries’ court stations text of the upcoming petition from law. And  as stated  by the former
of seven countries. These are Burun- across the region. Awarding of damages is, however, Kenya is an  earlier judgement  – in Kenyan chief justice, David Maraga,
di, the Democratic Republic of Con- a new practice. The majority of cases 2020 – in favour of Martha Karua. it is herein that the greatness of any
go, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, The court did not decide a single concern violation of the bloc’s val- After unsuccessfully contesting a nation lies. — The Conversation.
Tanzania and Uganda. case in the first couple of years of its ues, most notably the commitments gubernatorial seat in Kirinyaga, she
existence. As the cases finally started to the rule of law and human rights. filed an electoral petition with Ken- *About the writer: Tomasz Milej
For everybody concerned with the coming in the mid-2000s, the court A  groundbreaking judgement  was yan courts. It was dismissed on pro- is professor in the Department of
progress of regional integration, chal- experienced a backlash which limit- handed down in 2007 in the James cedural technicalities and she was Public Law at Kenyatta University
lenging Kenyan presidential elections ed its accessibility. In 2007, Kenyan Katabazi case. A group of treason never heard on the merits. According in Kenya.
in the regional court is good news. politician  Anyang’ Nyong’o and 10 to the  East African Court of Justice
It is not necessarily about what the other applicants  brought a petition
court will say about the quality of
the elections, but about the decision’s
long-term implications.

Every decision sheds light on the
regional bloc’s basic values.

Case law shows countries how
to live up to those values. And a
high-profile case creates awareness of
the court’s mandate and mission.

The regional court needs and de-
serves public attention.

Unlike most of the regional insti-
tutions in Africa, it has not been cap-
tured by political elites. It is a court
of the people with a broad jurisdic-
tion.

Initially, the regional court lim-
ited itself to  declarations of treaty
violations. With time, it moved to
order more robust remedies, such as
compensation for aggrieved parties.
It also started instructing govern-
ments to take certain actions to rem-
edy violations.

I have studied the development of
the East African Court of Justice over
the last few years. My view is that the
court has been a keen promoter of
the rule of law, democracy and hu-
man rights. It has also challenged the
elitist legacy of regional integration
in East Africa and shaken up the top-
down decision-making processes in
the East African Community. The
court did so by engaging with civil
society and national judiciaries, thus
bringing the regional bloc closer to
the people.
A court of the people
The East African Court of Justice is
a very accessible court. Any person
who is a resident of the bloc can file
a petition – the treaty calls it individ-
ual reference (Article 30). Anybody
can challenge treaty violations in the
court directly without first engaging
their national authorities or courts.
There is no need to demonstrate any

NewsHawks Reframing Issues Page 43

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Namibia pulls down German colonial statue
after protests — who was Curt von François?

HENNING MELBER

ANTI-COLONIAL activists in Na-
mibia – calling themselves  A Curt
Farewell  – have scored a victory af-
ter a statue of a colonial German
officer, Curt von François, was  re-
moved  from outside the Windhoek
City Council in the country’s capital.
Namibia was under German colonial
rule before being governed by apart-
heid South Africa, gaining  indepen-
dence  in 1990. We asked Namibian
political scientist Henning Melber
what all the fuss is about – and who
the officer was.

Why is the statue in the news?
The statue was erected in 1965 out-
side the Windhoek municipality’s
new headquarters at Kaiserstreet
(now Independence Avenue), the
main street in the capital city. It rec-
ognised a German officer and admin-
istrator of the 1890s, who played a
decisive local role in the early German
colonial occupation. Namibia was
declared a protectorate in 1884 and
occupied for 30 years. Between 1904
and 1908, Germany launched geno-
cidal warfare  against the local  Ova-
herero  and  Nama  communities
(decimating the Damara and San in
similar ways), who resisted colonial
expropriation.

The statue has been controversial
for some time as an uncritical com-
memoration of German colonisation.
It wrongly celebrated Von François as
founder of the city. It was finally re-
moved on 23 November 2022.

Who was Curt von François? A group calling itself A Curt Farewell pushed for the statue's removal
Von François  (1852-1931) was a
trained geographer who made a ca- Von François was replaced in 1894 location was a residence of commu- German soldiers (Schutztruppe) who concentration camp. The German
reer in the early years of imperial and left the country. During his nities before his arrival. It was stra- died during the colonial wars. extermination strategy has since then
Germany’s colonial expansions. In stay he had married princess Amalia tegically located on a high plateau in been recognised as the  first geno-
1889 he was dispatched to the terri- !Gwaxas from the local Damara com- the central region of Namibia at the After years of  discussions, it cide  of the 20th century. In contro-
tory in command of a small military munity, who died soon after. They intersection of areas controlled by the was  relocated  closer to the nearby versial bilateral  negotiations, which
unit, which was the core of the later left a daughter. The fourth generation Nama and Ovaherero. Alte Feste around 2009, to make way started in 2015, the German and
so-called Schutztruppe. descendants of the princess and Von for the new Independence Memorial Namibian governments are seeking
François were among those  trying An online petition demanding the Museum. It was finally removed and to address this dark chapter.
In 1890 he established an ad- to rescue  the statue from being re- statue’s removal was initiated in 2020 provisionally re-erected in the yard of
ministrative and military centre in moved. for “A Curt Farewell”. It had garnered the fortress (which serves as a muse- Von François would be a well-
Windhoek, a settlement found- Why do activists contest this his- almost 1,700 signatures. It argued: um) in 2013. placed companion to the equestrian
ed (but later abandoned) by the tory? monument in the yard of the fortress
Nama leader  Jonker Afrikaner  in Von François was an agent for Ger- While we cannot change our city’s More recently, a less pompous and in the shadow of the indepen-
the mid-1800s. The Nama were man colonialism who was willing to dark and violent history, we can monument with an unclear history dence museum. Both monuments
Khoisan-speaking people who during kill for the establishment of foreign change what we commemorate from in the coastal town of Henties Bay could – with adequate background
the early 1800s  migrated  into the rule, forcing local communities into that history. dubbed  the “Gallows”  was the sub- information – remain an attraction
territory. Von François initiated the what was euphemistically called pro- Is this part of a broader decolonisa- ject of much controversy. So are oth- for local and overseas visitors, offer-
construction of a fortress called Alte tection treaties. These forced local tion lobby? er remnants of the colonial past. But ing enlightenment concerning the
Feste  for his continued military op- communities to surrender power to There is no well organised decoloni- neither official policy nor civil soci- country’s dark colonial history.
erations. Von François was, in the the German colonial administration. sation lobby in Namibia. But pub- ety have so far formulated a plan for
flawed colonial perspective, labelled As importantly, he was wrongly cred- lic debates took place earlier over coming to terms with this past. — The Conversation.
the founder of Windhoek. ited (also by the statue’s inscription) an equestrian monument called the
as being the founder of Windhoek, Reiterdenkmal, one of Windhoek’s What do you think should happen *About the writer: Henning Mel-
Promoted to administrator of the a denial of indigenous history. The most prominent symbolic manifes- to the statue? ber is extraordinary professor in the
colony in 1891, Von François com- tations for more than a century. It The Alte Feste displays many arte- Department of Political Sciences at
manded an  attack on Hornkranz  in was erected in 1912 to honour the facts from the German colonial era. the University of Pretoria in South
1893. It was here where the Orlam Nearby, during the genocide, was a Africa.
Nama had retreated, under their
legendary leader  Hendrik Witbooi,
while resisting colonial rule. Some 80
Nama (mainly women and children)
were massacred and a similar number
wounded. Hornkranz remains a  fes-
tering wound  in Namibian history.
It was the prelude to a colonisation
based on brute, indiscriminate force.
The captured survivors were impris-
oned in a camp at the Alte Feste.

Page 44 Reframing Issues NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

The climate crisis is also a health crisis

SETH BERKLEY/ WERNER HOYER

THE interplay between climate main the most vulnerable to climate resenting roughly half of the world’s vation and investment in climate ly saving more lives.
change and the spread of dead- change, despite contributing the least population, would have struggled to solutions. Similarly, there is great po- Following Cop27, donor govern-
ly pathogens could herald an era of to creating the problem. That is why secure access otherwise. tential for mechanisms based on the
global devastation and disruption. To the international community must model of the International Finance ments and multilateral lenders must
avert another Covid-style catastro- take immediate steps to ensure that So far, more than 1.6 billion CO- Facility for Immunisation, which uses examine how existing financial mech-
phe, we must prepare our health impoverished, marginalized commu- VAX doses have been delivered to de- dedicated “vaccine bonds” to front- anisms could be adapted to the fight
systems for future crises, address out- nities have access to vaccines, treat- veloping countries, helping to ensure load long-term donor commitments against climate change to guarantee
break risks, and ensure equitable ac- ments, and diagnostics. Given the that 52% of their citizens are fully so that funds can be made available that funds are made available as soon
cess to vaccines and treatments. devastating impact that a single virus vaccinated, compared to a global av- immediately. as a threat emerges. Minimising the
has had on billions of lives, liveli- erage of 64%. This is a remarkable overall financial costs of climate-relat-
The latest  Lancet  Countdown re- hoods, and the global economy over achievement, particularly in the con- Multilateralism is essential to es- ed health risks involves not just pre-
port, which monitors the health con- the past three years, it is abundantly text of intense vaccine hoarding by tablishing these safety-net mecha- vention but also early action. These
sequences of climate change, high- clear that we must urgently take steps developed countries, the export re- nisms. Covax was possible only be- safety-net mechanisms should also be
lights the need to prepare for future to counter climate-related health strictions that some countries placed cause it united the financial firepower designed to protect the world’s most
calamities. Even as Covid-19 con- threats. on vaccines and the components and knowhow of more than  190 vulnerable people, wherever they live.
tinues to spread, a recent study sug- needed to produce them, and the governments, along with private-sec-
gests that the likelihood of another The global effort to ensure equita- actions of some manufacturers that tor partners, civil-society groups, But what matters most is that
pandemic increases by 2% each year. ble distribution of Covid-19 vaccines have seemingly prioritized profit over and international agencies, around a these steps are taken now. As  The
In the coming decades, the interplay provides a useful model. The Gavi fairness. common cause that benefited every- Lancet report warns, the countdown
between the climate crisis and public Covax Advance Market Commit- one. But if Covax had already existed to the next global health crisis has al-
health could create a perfect storm of ment, a financial  mechanism  fund- The Covax model’s success shows before the pandemic, equipped with ready begun.
global devastation and disruption. ed by donors and accelerated by the that there is scope for similar innova- at-risk contingency financing and
European Investment Bank, enabled tive financing solutions to climate-re- surge capacity, it could have mounted — Project Syndicate.
The good news is that if we take people in the world’s 92 poorest lated health risks. For example, sev- its response — the world’s largest and
immediate steps to transform our countries to obtain free vaccines. eral private-sector actors are currently most complex global deployment of *About the writers: Seth Berkley
health systems, we can avert another These lower-income countries, rep- exploring a Climate Advance Market vaccines ever — even faster, ultimate- is CEO of Gavi, the Vaccine Alli-
Covid-style catastrophe. As with the Commitment  to stimulate inno- ance. Werner Hoyer is President of
current pandemic, the obstacles to the European Investment Bank.
mitigating climate change are not just
scientific or technological, but also
rooted in geopolitics and market forc-
es. Self-interest can undermine public
health, particularly when it comes to
equitable access to resources. Even so,
the international community came
together to introduce innovative
mechanisms like the Covid-19 Vac-
cine Global Access facility (Covax),
which was designed to remove the
financial barriers that prevented low-
er-income countries from obtaining
vaccines.

The United Nations Climate
Change Conference (COP27) in
Egypt this past November under-
scored the fact that sustainability is
not just about decarbonisation, elec-
tric vehicles, or climate-adaptation
measures such as flood defenses. It is
also about pandemic preparedness.
More broadly, climate change is ex-
pected to shift the habitat range of
deadly pathogens, causing infectious,
mosquito-borne diseases like malar-
ia, yellow fever, and dengue fever to
spread as far as northern Europe and
Canada. At the same time, the cli-
mate crisis threatens to increase the
prevalence of malaria, cholera, and
schistosomiasis across the developing
world.

The world’s poorest countries re-

NewsHawks Africa News Page 45

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Biya has been Cameroon’s president
for 40 years – and he could win again

DAVID E. KIWUWA ty and underdevelopment. Yet the
proceeds are plundered through cor-
AT 89 years old, one of the oldest ruption and to maintain a clientelist
leaders in the world,  President Paul network.
Biya  of Cameroon, has marked  40
years as head of state. He assumed of- Politicians must show allegiance
fice in 1982. and loyalty to Biya. The alternative is
being out in the cold or in jail. Biya
He is the second longest serving has also filled senior positions in the
leader in Africa. The longest is Equa- administration, the military and se-
torial Guinea’s Teodoro Obiang Ngue- curity agencies and the civil service
ma, in power since 1979. with people from his southern ethnic
group. Most notably he has relied on
Cameroon experienced a long spell the  Rapid Intervention Battalion, a
of political stability under Biya’s iron highly trained military commando
hand. But this eventually unravelled unit, to ensure the regular army is un-
when an Anglophone rebellion broke able to move against him.
out in the south-west and north-west
and when  radical Islamists  entered The  Anglophone conflict  has also
from Nigeria.  Domestic pressure  for enabled Biya to deflect attention
Biya to accept a transition has also from his misrule. The violent conflict
been persistent. has left thousands dead in a civil war
against the secessionist English-speak-
But Biya remains  non-commit- ing regions of the country.
tal about relinquishing power in 2025,
which would be the end of his current Biya, relying on French and recent-
seventh term of office. ly  Russian  backers, used the conflict
to strengthen his domestic hand and
What explains Biya’s longevity in deflect international criticisms.
office and why is Cameroon unable to
marshal a transition? Another factor is the concentration
of power in Cameroon. Nothing sub-
I am a scholar of democratic studies stantive gets done without the sign-off
and regime types in Africa and a com- of the president. No arm of govern-
mentator on African political devel- ment or entity of the state has gone
opments. I am interested in why the unpoliced, including the judiciary:
continent is saddled with ageing pres- judges are nominated directly by the
idents who ought to be enjoying their president.
retirement when it desperately needs
young, agile and innovative leaders Simply put, there is no facet of pub-
equal to its challenges. lic life untouched by the Biya regime.

A bright start ing to political accommodation. ism, this has gradually been weakened. Cameroonian President Paul Biya Contemplating a post-Biya era
Biya succeeded  Ahmadou Ahidjo, First he purged Ahidjo’s faction There has been a failure of political consolidate majorities. The president’s mandate runs out in
Cameroon’s president from 1960 to 2025, at which time he will be 92.
1982, after his surprise  resignation. within the ruling party and eventually party institutionalisation. Hundreds Elections have become little more While he has shown no signs of ex-
Ahidjo had been struggling with an he locked out any meaningful chal- of small parties mushroomed -  300 than a procedural inconvenience, iting the stage, talk of a post Biya era
economic crisis and widespread cor- lenge to his leadership from within or to date, many allegedly secretly bank- where Biya runs with no possibility of is rising.
ruption. He had superintended a one outside the party. Ultimately though, rolled and controlled by Biya. losing.
party state and an exceptional central- under external pressure, he agreed to a Although the ruling party has not
isation of power in the presidency. multiparty dispensation in 1990. They provide a façade of demo- For instance, in 2004 Biya won held a party congress since 2011,
cratic competitiveness. In reality, they with  70.9%  of the vote. After the hence dampening the transition de-
When Biya became president in This has gradually and systemat- have weakened legitimate political op- 2008  constitutional revision  to re- bate, there is periodical internal par-
1982, he  promised  political liberali- ically been hollowed out, creating a position. move term limits, he was re-elected ty reorganisation. The president has
sation, including democracy, civil and monolithic system that entrenched with 78% of the vote in 2011. used it to reward and check potential
human rights and economic advance- Biya in office for the last 40 years. The absence of a united and con- threats to his supremacy.
ment in Cameroon. Biya’s staying power solidated opposition has enabled the In 2018, he got 71.28% against his
Cameroon’s politics has long been entrenchment of a dominant party challenger, opposition leader Maurice Biya’s stewardship has long run its
For a while, he worked to achieve dominated by Biya’s  Rassemblem- system. The ruling party has a  dom- Kamto. course. Its longevity relies on ruthless-
some of these goals. The country ent Démocratique du Peuple Cam- inant majority  in both the National ness and political astuteness.
achieved political stability and unity, erounaise, which rebranded from Assembly and the Senate (63 seats of Biya has created a rent seeking
and relative economic transformation the  Cameroon National Union  in 70). This erodes any chance of genu- political class that not only does his Sadly, the real cost is to the coun-
through his “new deal”. There was 1985. It had been the dominant party ine checks and balance. bidding but keeps him in power with try’s democracy, which has long suf-
even a momentary easing of the dra- since 1966. After a formal opening up minimum resistance. Cameroon is fered fissures that can only be healed
conian police state. of the political space to  multiparty- The party has also used electoral a leading exporter of timber in Africa by political renewal through a change
mechanics like redrawing boundaries and fifth largest cocoa producer in the of guard. And this change is one that
But in the late 1990s, there was for electoral advantage and in places world. even Biya can do little to forestall.
a gradual halt to political liberalisa- outright fraud to expand victories and
tion, fiscal discipline and government The country should have enough — The Conversation.
accountability. This happened after resources to reduce extreme pover-
the 1984 bloody coup attempt by the *About the writer: David E. Ki-
Republican Guards. wuwa is associate professor of inter-
national studies at the University of
Biya became increasingly unyield- Nottingham in Britain.

Page 46 Africa News NewsHawks

JOHANN KIRSTEN/ WANDILE SIHLOBO Issue 110, 2 December 2022

SOUTH Africa’s land reform pol- SA land reform: 5 myths
icy remains highly contested. But, about farming debunked
in our view, a number of persistent annually.
myths about farmland statistics and
the structure of commercial agri- Myth 4: All black farmers with
culture skew debates. This makes private title deeds acquired their
it difficult to reach some common land through the land reform pro-
understanding about the realities of gramme
land and agriculture in the country. Deeds records show that since 1994
black South Africans have privately
In 1994 when South Africa be- acquired a total of 1.78 million ha
came a democracy, white farmers of farmland through normal self-fi-
owned 77.58 million hectares of nanced market transactions.
farmland out of the total surface area
of 122 million hectares. The new Over the same period the gov-
government set a target of redistrib- ernment redistribution programme
uting 30% of this within five years. has assisted beneficiaries to acquire
This target date has been moved sev- a total of 7.2 million ha of farmland.
eral times and is now 2030. Thus, for every four hectares trans-
ferred by the State to black South
According to popular belief be- Africans, private transactions con-
tween 8% and 10% has been re- tributed another one hectare to the
distributed so far. But as we show process.
below this is incorrect as it omits a
number of key statistics. Fact: Black farmers have acquired
almost 2 million ha of farmland
Only  17% to 20% of the 77.58 (2.3% of total freehold farmland)
million ha is suitable for field crop, on their own without any assistance
irrigation and horticultural produc- from the state sponsored land redis-
tion. More than 55% of farmland is tribution programme.
only ideal for extensive grazing (land
that is poor and dry but animals can We estimate that white farmers over) of the farming enterprise. “race” of the operator. Myth 5: South Africa has only
roam widely, the Karoo being an ex- now own 61 million ha of freehold Land size is not a good indication Fact:  most white commercial redistributed 8% of farmland to
ample), and another 20% for inten- farmland. This follows the imple- black people
sive pastures and animal production mentation of redistribution and of the scale of the farming opera- farmers in South Africa are small- The debate on the expropriation of
(land, the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands restitution programmes and other tion. For example, a small irrigation scale and family-based operations. land is largely driven by the myth
being an example, that receives good transfers of land to the state and farm of 10 ha can deliver millions in Only a small minority (2 600) are that white farmers are hoarding land
rains and has good pastures for graz- black farmers. It still represents 78% turnover while a 10 000ha extensive large-scale operations. Most of these and are inflating prices, and there-
ing). of freehold farmland but covers only grazing farm is unlikely to exceed are owned by white farmers. fore, it is impossible to remove the
50% of the total surface area of R1 million in turnover per annum. Myth 3: Commercial farmers are racially skewed land ownership pat-
This shows that the potential of South Africa. hoarding land and not selling any terns in South Africa.
farm land being used to create full- If we unpack the census of com- farms
time sustainable livelihoods is limit- Fact:  white commercial farmers mercial agriculture, commercial It is often argued that white com- These arguments typically ignore
ed. This suggests that a careful and (around 44 000 farming units) own farming in South Africa consists mercial farmers are holding on to the statistics on the land market
measured approach needs to be ad- 61 million ha – 78% of the farm- largely of small-scale family-based their land and not offering it for sale and the fact that black South Afri-
opted in redistribution efforts. land that comes with private title operations. Almost  90% of all to potential buyers. cans have been acquiring farmland
deeds or 50% of all land in South VAT-registered commercial farming on their own. These arguments also
These realities are the basis for Africa. businesses can be classified as micro Deeds office records  provide in- conveniently ignore other factors,
our arguments against five standard Myth 2: Commercial agriculture is - or small-scale enterprises (turnover sights into the activity in the farm- such as bureaucratic inefficiences,
myths about agriculture and land characterised by large-scale white below R13.5 million). While this is land market. Between 2013 and patronage and corruption – that
in South Africa. That’s not to say farmers true, it’s also a fact that there are just 2021, the annual number of farm have slowed down land reform.
that there isn’t a great deal still to This myth results from a misinter- over 2 600 large farms with turnover transactions recorded varied be-
be done. But failure to recognise the pretation of the concept of “com- on average above R22.5 million per tween 2 000 and 4,000. In 2021 In addition, the incorrect presen-
gains that have been achieved means mercial” and “scale”. annum. These farms are responsible 2,585 farms were sold and registered tation of the progress with the land
that policies can’t be developed for 67% of all farm income and em- to new owners. Most (58%) of these reform process is also maliciously
based on what’s been achieved so far. Commercial agricultural produc- ploy more than half the agricultural were farms smaller than 300 hect- used to inflate the argument for ex-
Myth 1: 40 000 white farmers own tion indicates production beyond labour force. ares. propriation. If South Africans are
80% of all South Africa’s land subsistence needs, with some (or a true to themselves and correctly re-
First, let us turn to the number that major share) of the total production If we take account of the farms Between 2003 and August 2022, port the statistics, then they will be
is quoted about white farmers. sold to the market. This usually also that are not registered for VAT it is the state acquired 2.8 million ha much closer to the 30% target.
involves the purchase of production evident that 98% of all farming op- which brings the total area of farm
The number of 40 122 commer- inputs such as seeds and fertiliser. erations in South Africa are small- land acquired by the state since Based on numbers extracted from
cial farmers is widely quoted as the scale operations. 1994 to 3.12 million ha (or 4% of official sources, it is evident that
total number of farmers earning a But commercial production hap- freehold farmland). This suggests South Africa has made much more
commercial income from farming. pens at various levels or “scales of But, a mistaken leap is made to that the state is also active in the progress than what is been punted
production”. say that all white commercial farm- market. around.
The number comes from the 2017 ers are “large-scale” operations, and
census of commercial agriculture. The scale of farming is not deter- all black farmers are “small-scale”. Fact: The farmland market is ac- It is, therefore, disingenuous of
mined by land size. Instead it refers In the process, most writers on tive with around 2% of total farm- analysts and commentators not to
But the number is flawed. to the  gross farm income (or turn- South African agriculture confuse land with private title deeds traded take account of the real progress
Firstly, the census only considers the “scale of the operation” with the made here.
farmers who are registered for VAT
(for which the the threshold is a Fact:  Taking account of all the
turnover of R1 million a year (about pillars of the land reform pro-
US$59 000 today). gramme, it is estimated that 24% of
Adding in two other groups – the all farmland has been redistributed
number of  households involved in or land rights have been restored.
commercial farming  as their main This is close to the 30% target,
source of income and those that which could be reached by 2030.
practice farming as a secondary
source of income – the total number — The Conversation.
of households comes to 242 221.
It’s difficult to estimate the “race” *About the writers: Johann
of commercial farmers. But, us- Kirsten is director of the Bureau
ing different data sources includ- for Economic Research at Stellen-
ing the  2011 population census, bosch University in South Africa.
the  2017 agricultural census  and Wandile Sihlobo is senior fellow
the 2016 community survey we es- in the Department of Agricultural
timated that most commercial farm Economics at Stellenbosch Univer-
enterprises are black owned. And sity.
that only 18% of these households
are white.
Now to the 80% figure.
In 1994 white farmers owned
77.58 million ha of freehold land.

NewsHawks Africa News Page 47

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Conferences such as Cop27 are
nothing more than elite junkets

CHRISTOPHER RUTLEDGE play key roles as food producers both economic and thermody- The link between nature and so- at the local level have a significant
and caregivers, that ultimately face namic, as:  ciety manifests through the ways contribution to make towards the
AS expected, Cop27 was an exer- the reality of this crisis.  in which large corporations in the resolution of the global crisis. But
cise in avoidance and blame-shift- 1) A social debt to dispossessed minerals and energy sector have by the same token, decisions that
ing, where the world’s largest fossil Many depend on natural re- host communities; historically shaped (and continue are taken at a global level have con-
fuel polluters, the oil and gas in- sources for their livelihoods, so to shape) the politics and econom- sequences at the local level.
dustry, got away scot-free. extreme climate-related droughts, 2) A social debt to inadequately ics of modern South Africa. The
flooding and other disasters dis- paid workers; extraction of surplus value from Informing, educating and work-
THE venue of the 27th United proportionately affect women’s exploration, mining, processing, ing with people who are both
Nations Conference of the Parties health, food security and liveli- 2) A social debt to women fami- distributing, subsidising and con- marginalised and directly affected
(Cop27) on Climate Change, held hoods. ly caregivers; and  suming of energy is often priori- by climate change, are critical to
in the ultra-luxury Egyptian resort tised above the interests of margin- addressing the egregious structur-
of Sharm-el-Sheikh, points to at In places where mining and 3) An ecological debt drawn on alised people, leaving a legacy of al violence that continues to le-
least half of what is wrong with extractive industries produce nature. destruction and poverty wherever gitimise patterns of disadvantage,
such elite junkets. greenhouse gases and associated these activities are carried out. such as racial and gender inequal-
chemicals that cause severe envi- Proceeding from the under- ity.
As expected, Cop27 was an exer- ronmental problems, women often standing that we cannot solve our The interests of large corpora-
cise in avoidance and blame-shift- bear an unequal share of the social, problems with the same thinking tions are used to shape legislation Despite the high-level hoopla
ing, where the world’s largest fos- economic and environmental risk.  we used when we created them, it that dictates the way in which we about broad discussions on the
sil fuel polluters, the oil and gas is reasonable to suggest that ad- live, the way in which we are gov- Climate Change Bill and plans
industry, got away scot-free. The Contamination of farmland de- dressing these problems requires a erned and the way in which we or- for renewable energy projects, the
Egyptian government was openly stroys their livelihoods and forces new paradigm in which we toss out ganise our economy, including the reality is that the process is still
striking oil and gas deals on the many women into dependent re- the flawed bias towards economic way we produce and consume. essentially an elitist one, which is
sidelines of what is meant to be lationships, which exacerbate the imperatives of privatised profits biased towards private business in-
an anti-climate change conference. pandemic of gender-based vio- and socialising of costs in the ways An approach to the climate cri- terests and has failed to produce a
Other fossil fuel-dependent states lence and femicide. Mining pollu- we assess costs and benefits. sis that does not seek to reshape different set of economic metrics
did the same, each mounting spir- tion also threatens women’s repro- the way that societal priorities are through which the current crisis
ited defences of its own poison; ductive health, resulting in higher The climate debate should then identified and developed will inev- response could contribute towards
coal for India, oil for Saudi Arabia, rates of miscarriage and children at the very least lay a foundation itably lead to a continuation of the a more just society.
gas for Russia, and so on. born with abnormalities. to catalyse a genuine just transfor- same patterns of extracting surplus
mation of financing, extraction, value, which has devastated the Instead, it is clear that what is
This, essentially, is the problem Emerging from all these under- production, transport and distri- planet and subjected millions to on offer now is deeply corrupted
with elite conferencing as the pri- lying social pathologies is the real- bution, consumption, and disposal poverty. by the same old paradigms that, in
mary tool to address the problems isation that the climate crisis is a systems. South Africa, produced the most
caused by the behaviour of the direct consequence of the capitalist A critical focus of our plans to unequal society in the world.
elites themselves. political economy, which produces A corporate-led or corporate-bi- address the climate crisis in a just
at least four types of externalisa- ased, profit-oriented, renewable and equitable way must ensure — The Conversation.
As the elites of national govern- tion of costs, in a process which so- energy system (solar, aggro-fuel that global priorities and local
ments, business and civil society fly cialises the costs of doing business and large hydro), which does not realities are able to participate in *About the writer: Christopher
around the world to debate “The but privatises the profits. present a real alternative to tra- dialogues that recognises the im- Rutledge is executive director of
Climate Crisis”, it remains women ditional fossil-based energy, is al- portance of each. Decisions taken Mining Affected Communities
in rural and peri-urban areas, who The costs to society take the ready causing large-scale land dis- United in Action in South Africa.
form of extraction of surpluses, possession and exclusion.

The issue of climate change is
integrally linked to democracy.

Page 48 Africa News NewsHawks

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

Regional powers should drive diplomacy
in DRC as M23 rebels surround Goma

INTERNATIONAL CRISIS GROUP

FIGHTING in the eastern Hostilities between March 23 (M23) insurgents and Congo’s national army have also triggered a spike in tension between the DRC and Rwanda.
North Kivu province of the
Democratic Republic of Congo Great Lakes region. The group now claims that In the following days, the On coming to power in 2019,
(DRC) has worsened in recent Its main aim was to push it aims to pressure Kinshasa to army fought the insurgents Tshisekedi attempted a rap-
weeks, displacing tens of thou- abide by previous agreements, around Kibumba town, 27km prochement with Kigali, which
sands and bringing rebels to back plans to break up army which include amnesties for from the provincial capital. many Congolese partly blame
within 20km of the provincial units composed of former reb- fighters returning to the Con- But rather than advancing on for years of bloodletting, but
capital Goma. els based in the east and deploy go and, more generally, that it Goma, the M23 pushed into whose influence is needed to
their members in other areas. is defending Congolese Tutsi the Masisi territory to the west, bring stability to the country’s
Hostilities between March 23 That scheme threatened their interests. taking several towns like Tongo troubled east.
(M23) insurgents and Congo’s many illicit activities in the and Bambo.
national army have also trig- eastern DRC. It is also probably seeking As  Crisis Group has previ-
gered a spike in tension between reintegration into the national This manoeuvre has led many ously described, Tshisekedi’s ef-
the DRC and Rwanda, with the After taking over large ar- army, from where it perceives in Goma to fear that the M23 forts at mending relations with
former accusing the latter of eas of North Kivu, including, that it will be better placed to could encircle the city, which Rwanda were stymied in 2021,
supporting the M23. briefly, Goma in November defend its political and com- backs onto Lake Kivu to the when he drew closer to Uganda
2012, the M23 was defeated by mercial interests. The M23 is south and the Rwandan border to seek its support in fighting
Regional diplomacy aimed at a combination of regional di- well armed and organised. It to the east, cutting off its sup- the Allied Democratic Forces
de-escalating tensions between plomacy, including remonstra- poses a formidable threat to plies when it is already suffer- (ADF), a murderous, main-
Kinshasa and Kigali, notably a tions with its backers in Rwan- the national army — and to the ing steep food price rises. Some, ly Ugandan, militant group
Great Lakes summit snubbed da and Uganda, and military UN, which has not taken the including senior Congolese of- wreaking havoc in neighbour-
by Rwandan President Paul pressure from a UN contingent fight to the insurgents as it did ficials and their Kenyan coun- ing Ituri province.
Kagame on 23 November, has known as the Force Interven- in 2012. terparts, worry that the M23
so far yielded limited results. tion Brigade, mandated explic- might attempt to take over The move irked Kigali, which
On 25 November, a ceasefire itly to fight armed groups in the Fighting between the M23 Goma. saw itself being deprived of in-
that was supposed to come into DRC’s east.  and the DRC’s national army Regional tensions fluence in eastern DRC, where
effect was violated immediately, took a new turn on 12 No- The latest upheaval in North it has significant economic in-
as the M23 fought pro-govern- The brigade is still stationed vember, as the rebel group ex- Kivu has a significant region- terests and has long fought in-
ment groups.  in the provincial capital, al- panded its operations beyond al dimension, with enmity be- surgents of the National Liber-
though it has carried out few Rutshuru, displacing tens of tween Kinshasa and Kigali at its ation Front of Rwanda (known
Deft diplomatic manoeuvring offensive operations in recent thousands more Congolese. It centre. by the French acronym, FDLR),
will be needed to overcome the years. Most of the M23 mem- soon reached the Nyiragongo a remnant of the militia respon-
distrust between the two coun- bers retreated to camps in territory, closer to Goma. sible for the 1994 genocide.
tries. Kenya, which has good Rwanda and Uganda.
relations with both, and has
just started to deploy troops in
Goma as part of an East African
force, is well placed to coordi-
nate de-escalatory steps.

It should push Congolese
President Félix Tshisekedi to
dial down rhetoric criticising
Rwanda, while pressing Kigali
to use its probably considerable
influence over the M23 to push
for a ceasefire and a withdrawal
from recently taken towns.
The M23’s expansion
Dormant since 2013, the M23
re-emerged in November 2021,
to the surprise of many, and
has steadily advanced to occu-
py much of North Kivu since
then. It is active mostly in the
Rutshuru territory, about 70km
north of Goma, where it has
attacked roads and villages. In
June, it seized Bunagana town,
a key trading post on the Ugan-
dan border linking North Kivu
to the DRC’s neighbour.

The M23’s assault in North
Kivu bears striking resemblance
to its last campaign a decade
ago. The group was formed
from existing rebel movements
and former insurgents who had
been integrated into the nation-
al army. It largely comprised
— and still comprises — Con-
golese who are Tutsi, an ethnic
group present throughout the

NewsHawks Africa News Page 49

Issue 110, 2 December 2022

The FDLR predominantly East African intervention the eastern DRC, excluding for- see such sabre-rattling as neces- aimed at Kigali. In addition,
comprises Hutus — the ma- Regional tensions probably un- eigners such as the ADF, who sary to help bring the M23 to they might encourage him to
jority group in Rwanda — and derpinned Tshisekedi’s decision are probably too extreme in heel, but it is unlikely in itself continue his recent conciliato-
is vehemently opposed to the that the DRC join the East Af- their views to join talks in any to change facts on the ground ry meetings with North Kivu’s
Rwandan leadership headed rican Community (EAC) earli- case. without deeper resolution of re- Tutsi and Kinyarwanda-speak-
by Kagame. Rwanda was dou- er in 2022. That paved the way gional differences, including at ing minorities, who are under
bly angered when Burundian for the establishment of a force, In exchanges with Crisis least acknowledging Rwanda’s pressure, as some Congolese in
troops also entered the DRC, made up of Kenyan, Ugandan, Group, Congolese officials have concerns about the FDLR. the east see them as supportive
with Kinshasa’s tacit approval, Burundian and South Sudanese talked up progress made so far, of the M23. They might also
to tackle insurgents who aim to soldiers, to help the Congolese notably in better understand- Tshisekedi and Kagame have usefully raise the FDLR issue,
topple the government in Bu- army battle the various armed ing the diverse armed groups’ not met since July, and the Lu- urging the Congolese president
jumbura. groups in the country’s east. motivations. But only 18 of anda communique, while add- to clamp down on collabora-
the dozens of armed groups in ing welcome urgency, adds lit- tion between it and the national
The M23’s November ad- Like his predecessor Joseph eastern Congo — and not the tle new to repeated demands army.
vances led to heated exchanges. Kabila, who forged close ties most potent ones — turned up to insurgents to lay down arms
with Southern African coun- in Nairobi in April. and those with influence over In parallel, Kenya should
Kinshasa accuses Kigali of tries, Tshisekedi is seeking them to help. Already, the M23 continue urging Rwanda to rein
backing the M23, which it sees support from farther afield Most importantly, the M23 has reacted by saying it is not in the M23. Despite the deni-
as part of a wider Rwandan at- to buttress his position in ne- was expelled from the April bound by the agreement and re- als, Rwandan support probably
tempt to control the eastern gotiations with neighbouring talks due to its continued offen- peating demands to negotiate remains key to the M23’s ad-
Congo’s vast mineral resourc- Rwanda. When discussing what sive. The third round of talks, directly with Kinshasa. vance, as Kigali holds consid-
es. Kigali, in turn, accuses its shape the force would take, including community leaders erable influence over its leader-
neighbour of working with the Kinshasa firmly rejected con- from areas affected by armed While the group reiterated ship. Kenya should make clear
FDLR. Both governments deny tingents from Rwanda, though group activity, opened on 28 that it is open in principle to a to Kigali that failure to com-
supporting rebels. did accept Rwandan personnel November. But the M23 was ceasefire, it restarted hostilities promise could damage its posi-
in the operational headquarters.  not invited. in Rutshuru territory, fighting tion within the EAC, a crucial
But the evidence suggests Diplomatic drive one of several Congolese armed commercial platform for the
otherwise. the Congolese army’s The new EAC force faces Over recent weeks, mediators groups that have recently begun landlocked country, and possi-
collaboration with the FDLR challenges, but its deployment have worked hard, seeming- opposing it. The Congolese bly lead to diplomatic blowback
has been  repeatedly demon- could open up opportunities. ly improving the coordination public, and politicians from all from its key Western partners,
strated, and Rwandan support Uganda and Burundi are fold- between the Kenyan track — sides, are increasingly mobilis- the United States, the United
for the M23 is equally well doc- ing in the units they had already which brings together the Con- ing against the M23 and its per- Kingdom  and France.
umented, both historically and dispatched to the DRC, with golese government and armed ceived Rwandan backers.
during the present crisis. Tshisekedi’s permission, while groups — and the Angolan Steps to de-escalation If the M23 adheres to a cease-
the South Sudanese are expect- track involving regional diplo- The limited progress achieved fire and withdraws from recent-
Many Congolese, includ- ed to make a small deployment. mats. so far by regional diplomacy ly taken positions, Kinshasa
ing parliamentarians, also see Soldiers from all these countries is hardly surprising, given the should consider softening op-
Uganda’s hand behind the are operating near their own na- Notably, from 4 to 15 No- high level of distrust between position to the group eventu-
M23, and some diplomats rep- tional frontiers.  vember, Kenyatta visited Bu- Kinshasa and Kigali, but prog- ally rejoining the Nairobi talks,
resenting UN Security Council jumbura, Kinshasa and Goma ress toward a settlement is still the best available avenue for
members  appear to  share their In contrast, Kenyan troops and spoke by phone to Kag- within reach. Regional powers addressing its grievances. It will
concern. have the unenviable task of ame and UN Secretary Gener- need to follow up the Luanda be important for regional diplo-
confronting the M23 in North al António Guterres. Angolan summit with pressure on both mats to emphasise the need for
The UN reports that details Kivu, far from Kenyan territo- President João Lourenço was in capitals to avert further violence such reciprocal undertakings to
of cooperation between the in- ry. The Congolese public and Kigali on 11 November, while in North Kivu, which would break the cycles of recrimina-
surgents and Kigali do not men- army command clearly expect Kenya’s new president, Wil- spell a worsening humanitarian tion that underpin violence in
tion a Ugandan role, however, the Kenyans to take the fight to liam Ruto, flew to Kinshasa for disaster throughout the region. the region.
similar reports did so in 2012. the M23, which would be tac- meetings with Tshisekedi on 20
Nor has Tshisekedi criticised tically complex. The Kenyans November. Kenya, which has grabbed the The simmering challenge cre-
Kampala in the same terms — see the threat of such a move, spotlight with its deployment ated by the M23’s relaunch in
though possibly partly because an intent clearly signalled in the In a  striking communi- to North Kivu, is well placed 2021 has become a full-fledged
he is hoping Ugandan troops 23 November meeting commu- que  two days earlier, Kenyatta to lead diplomatic efforts. It security and humanitarian cri-
can flush out ADF insurgents. nique, as critical to pressuring reported points of agreement enjoys an open door in Kin- sis.
the M23 and reminding it of with Kagame, including that shasa, due not least to Kenyan
Several diplomatic initiatives the successful military opera- Kigali would “assist the [EAC forces’ role in protecting Goma, The UN has counted more
aim to defuse tensions among tions that led to its defeat some talks] facilitator [Kenyatta] to but also to Nairobi’s history of than 180 000 freshly displaced
the Great Lakes countries. years ago. urge the M23 to cease fire and cordiality with Tshisekedi, who people in the last month, many
What looks like the most viable withdraw from captured terri- Kenyatta strongly backed in his having to move out of and back
track, despite its lack of success But the Kenyans have also tory”. 2018 presidential bid.  into displacement camps as the
so far, is under the auspices of repeatedly underlined that they fighting ebbs and flows.
the International Conference would prefer to avoid fighting if Following this diplomacy, Further, Kenya has good re-
on the Great Lakes Region (IC- they can and if diplomatic pres- Lourenco convened a summit lations with all countries in the But the possible ramifica-
GLR).  sure — presumably on Rwan- in Luanda on 23 November, but region, including Rwanda. As tions of the current violence
dan — can bring about a cease- it seems to have been a missed it has no record of supporting go beyond North Kivu and
Angola, now joined by Ken- fire, their deployment might opportunity. Kagame, who did armed groups in the eastern risk pulling several regional
ya, is leading the ICGLR effort. be limited to Goma as well as not respond to Kenyatta’s com- DRC, others see it as a neutral countries into prolonged proxy
In July, it brokered the Luanda nearby roads and displacement munique, skipped the summit, arbiter. Nairobi also has grow- killings. Twelve months away
roadmap agreement  between camps. sending his foreign minister, ing commercial interests in the from critical elections in the
Tshisekedi and Kagame, which Vincent Biruta, instead. The fi- Great Lakes region. It has re- DRC, it is vital to advance on
appears to tacitly acknowledge Given the steep challenges nal communique underlines the peatedly stated that its objec- the diplomatic track to halt the
that Kigali and Kinshasa have on the ground, Crisis Group need for the M23 to withdraw tives are to push for stability M23’s advance, which at pres-
influence over the M23 and the has  previously argued  that the to previous positions, and the and reduce regional tensions in ent is stirring up other armed
FDLR, respectively, commit- EAC force should be seen pri- imperative of tackling “nega- order to increase trade. groups and leading to fighting
ting both sides to rein in their marily as a means of creating tive and terrorist forces in [the] that, even beyond the suffering
proxies. space for dialogue. eastern DRC”, terms President Kenya should continue to it entails, could make the forth-
Tshisekedi has previously used throw its weight behind the IC- coming electoral registration
The roadmap also lays out a Alongside the military de- to describe the M23. GLR process and try to broker near impossible and undercut
range of confidence-building ployment, the EAC has ini- reciprocal de-escalatory steps in the vote’s credibility.
measures. Yet while the talks tiated talks between armed The communiqué lays out a the hope of achieving a ceasefire
were welcome, the atmosphere groups and Congolese officials, tight timetable for other insur- around Goma and pushing the *About the writer: The In-
remained frosty, and in late the first and second rounds of gent groups to lay down their M23 to start withdrawing from ternational Crisis Group is
October, Tshisekedi expelled which were held in April and arms but makes scant mention its newly occupied positions. an independent organisa-
the Rwandan ambassador to May, with a third taking place of the FDLR. The focus remains tion  working to prevent wars
Kinshasa in protest of what he in Nairobi from 28 Novem- on the M23, against which the Kenyan emissaries could use and shape policies that will
perceived as Kigali’s continued ber. Headed by former Kenyan new EAC regional force will act their sway with Tshisekedi to build a more peaceful world.
support for the M23. A subse- President Uhuru Kenyatta, the “in case of non-compliance”.  urge him to tone down some Crisis Group sounds the alarm
quent meeting of foreign min- talks are, in principle, open to of his inflammatory rhetoric to prevent deadly conflict. 
isters in Luanda on 5 Novem- all Congolese armed groups in Nairobi and Kinshasa could
ber seemingly did little to quell
tensions.

Page 50 World News NewsHawks

IAN JOHNSON Xi versus the street Issue 110, 2 December 2022

OVER the past week, as more than a The protests in China could herald a turbulent new era. program, while embarking on a costly
dozen cities have been engulfed by large industrial policy aimed at making the
protests, China has seemed more unset- the government, the protests have raised population with more effective messen- Chinese President Xi Jinping. country less reliant on foreign technol-
tled than at any previous point in Xi Jin- far-reaching questions about how Xi’s ger RNA (mRNA) vaccines, protecting ogy.
ping’s 10-year reign. second decade in power will play out. vulnerable groups, and preparing the of most Chinese cities—and this was
population for the fact that the virus despite a housing slump. Meanwhile, Collectively, these problems have put
By 29 November, after a weekend in If Xi is weakened at home, is he like- could spread widely for a time and that China’s unemployment rate  for 16-to- a powerful drag on the economy, which
which people sometimes openly directed ly to embark on adventuresome policies some Covid deaths will occur. This pol- 24-year-olds has soared to more than 18 has increasingly stymied the upward
their ire at the country’s leadership, au- abroad or pull in his horns to face down icy shift would be challenging but not percent. mobility of many Chinese. Most of the
thorities had sent out a small army of po- domestic challengers? Will he be forced impossible for Beijing to  implement. A population probably doesn’t see it this
lice in Beijing, Shanghai, and other cities to backtrack not only on his signature path away from zero Covid exists, if Xi These challenges have grown dramati- way, however, because many of these
to restore order, arrest protesters, and try zero-Covid strategy but also on his wants it. cally since the pandemic began and wors- state-driven projects are embraced as part
to put the movement to rest. But as the state-driven economic model? And could ened further this year with China’s GDP of China claiming its rightful place in the
government reasserts control, it must factions even reemerge in China, perhaps But the trouble is that such a shift forecast for 2022 now revised downward world order. But people are directly af-
also now contend with the reality that coalescing around a younger leader seen would still leave China’s underlying social to a dismal 3.2%, versus the official tar- fected by these policies because they are
large swaths of the general public have as more pragmatic? These questions will and economic predicament unresolved. get of 5.5%. Beijing has blamed faltering slowing down the economy.
begun to question the wisdom not just be all the more pressing given that Beijing Conditioned for decades by Beijing it- growth on the pandemic and the global The turbulence to come
of local officials but of Xi’s leadership in now confronts other challenges, ranging self, the public has come to expect that economic slowdown. Chinese authorities Staring down the largest popular chal-
Beijing. That raises a once unimaginable from a rapidly aging population to a stag- China will grow continuously richer and are clearly aware that their lockdowns are lenge he has yet encountered, Xi has
question: Has Xi, newly installed for an nating economy. Judging China’s mood more developed. They want a return to significantly contributing to China’s eco- reached a crucial turning point. To truly
unprecedented third term in office, lost is always difficult, but it is beyond doubt this kind of ever-increasing prosperity. nomic woes. reverse China’s downward trajectory, his
the Chinese street? that a significant change has taken place That would be difficult even under the administration would likely have to em-
among usually apolitical people, one that most competent leadership but is espe- But they are wrong to think that this is bark on a new round of large-scale eco-
Right up until 2022, such a possibility may carry significant consequences for cially unlikely under Xi. the primary or only cause of the country’s nomic reforms, equivalent in scale to the
seemed implausible. After all, throughout China and the world. Lost youth sclerosis. The reality is that the slowdown ambitious measures launched in the late
Xi’s first decade in office, when he shut- Ill fares the land Popular anxieties about China’s future has exposed deeper-seated structural 1990s and the first decade of this century
tered independent film festivals, closed Based on  my  surveys of working-class began to take hold in the 2010s. For problems, the fixing of which will require by then party leader  Jiang Zemin, who
history journals, and generally made life people in Beijing between 2018 and much of that decade, China’s economic great vision and daring on the part of died on November 30, and his premier,
difficult for free-thinking people, observ- the present, as well as follow-up conver- growth remained respectable, but it lost China’s leaders. And both qualities are Zhu Rongji. Back then, this economic
ers usually had to concede that he could sations I have had  over the past week, the firepower it had maintained earlier in singularly lacking in the current admin- liberalisation kept China’s economic rise
count on the backing of ordinary Chi- many Chinese want a return to normal the century and was trending downward. istration. on course.
nese. Of course, such mainstream sup- life. And they seem to define normal as a For young people in particular, this has
port was impossible to prove, given the time when people traveled freely around translated into eroding economic secu- As Chinese and Western scholars have In many respects, the country has
lack of independent polling in China. the country and even overseas on vaca- rity. documented, for example, China is been living off those reforms ever since,
Yet many indications made clear that he tion, a time when passports were issued facing an acute education crisis that while using massive infrastructure spend-
was popular among the lower- and mid- automatically, foreigners were part of the Take the country’s housing stock. In a has left huge swaths of the population ing to keep its growth figures superficially
dle-income population. Many of these Chinese landscape, and China seemed to multiyear survey in the late 2010s for a inadequately prepared for the future. respectable. But that is no longer enough.
people were fed up with the widespread have close ties to the rest of the world. project on folk religious groups in Chi- Over half of China’s population comes Needed reforms include giving rural res-
corruption and growing inequality that Take the contrast between the 2008 na, many working-class families reported from rural areas where they are served by idents full rights to move to cities and
had taken hold during the administra- Olympics, which for many Chinese were that the days were gone when their chil- second-rate schools and largely preclud- to send their children to better schools.
tions of Xi’s immediate predecessors. a genuine outpouring of excitement and dren could find an apartment of their ed from pursuing a university education. The country also needs policies that favor
fun, and the  2022 Winter Olympics, own. Back in the 1990s, many of these And many of the unskilled jobs that these private enterprise and reformed equity
Xi, by contrast, was prepared to take which unfolded under extreme lock- families had benefited when the state people could once count on have been markets that send capital to worthy com-
on party corruption and the robber bar- down conditions and which few foreign privatised the housing stock, with some replaced by automation or outsourced to panies rather than state champions. And
ons who had profited from it. He had a visitors were able to attend. ending up with multiple apartments. But other countries. China probably needs to go through a
gravelly voice and a popular singer as a that was a one-off. new round of breaking up state monop-
wife, and pushed China’s interests vigor- In fact, lifting China’s formal travel Other structural problems in- olies to inject more competition into the
ously on the international stage. When restrictions is the easy part. The Com- Two decades later, it was hard for clude  debt-driven growth,  a  population economy.
the  Covid-19  lockdown began nearly munist Party could pivot away from its young people to imagine affording the that is aging even faster than had been
three years ago in Wuhan, a few protests zero-Covid strategy by revaccinating the astronomical sums that are required to assumed, and an increasingly state-con- Nothing in Xi’s biography, however,
erupted, but most people embraced Bei- own anything within the urban core trolled economy in which state enter- suggests that he will embrace such bold
jing’s stringent "zero Covid" lockdown prises suck up huge amounts of capital. measures. Instead, he is much more
policies as reasonable — especially as they Meanwhile, Beijing has made huge out- comfortable as a status quo policymaker
watched the United States and other de- lays on lavish defense systems and pres- who keeps the population under control
veloped countries that Chinese assumed tige projects, such as the Chinese  space through ever-growing surveillance mea-
were better run succumb to successive sures and ideology, especially nationalism
waves of overflowing hospitals and high and appeals to traditional Chinese values.
death counts.
As long as China was able to main-
But as the rest of the world seemed tain high growth rates and the country
to put the pandemic behind it, many appeared to be heading in the right direc-
Chinese began to bridle at these once tion, most people didn’t care about Xi’s
lauded  measures. For many Chinese, lack of reforms — no wonder, because
lockdowns and nearly daily swab tests reform usually involves painful chang-
became a kind of forever war that had no es. Instead, ordinary Chinese were ap-
end in sight. In October, when the Chi- peased by his crackdown on corruption,
nese Communist Party’s massive  20th his nationalistic foreign policy, and his
Party Congress came and went with no revival of traditional religions. But the
signs of easing of the policy, they took to mounting costs of zero-Covid lockdowns
the streets. seemed to have awakened a growing part
of the population to the larger challenges
Small-scale protests are not unusual the country faces and to their own di-
in China. But until now, nearly all have minishing expectations. In other words,
been limited to local issues such as pol- the tight pandemic controls have become
lution or unpaid wages. By contrast, the an easy way for people to explain why
protests that have gathered force over standards of living are stagnating.
the past year have been nationwide and
increasingly aimed at Xi himself. Public This is Xi’s conundrum. Even if he lifts
demonstrations against zero-Covid stric- the zero-Covid restrictions, the economy
tures began in late 2021  in Xi’an, then is likely to get only a temporary bounce.
spread to  Shanghai  during that city’s Barring a sudden conversion to reforms,
prolonged lockdown in the spring. And Xi is likely to find that his next five, ten,
they undergirded last week’s violent pro- or more years in power are plagued by
tests by tech employees at a gargantuan increased unease in the population and
iPhone factory in Zhengzhou, which had further outbursts of protest spurred by
recently imposed lockdown measures of other crises that will inevitably arise. Just
its own amid difficult working condi- last month, Xi seemed poised to rule
tions. unchallenged for years to come. But his
frittering away of his first decade in pow-
Finally, after ten people in the western er on control measures instead of for-
city of Urumqi were killed in a Novem- ward-looking reforms means that China’s
ber 24 fire — implying that authorities problems have become tangible for ordi-
were putting anti-Covid policies ahead nary people. This is the real meaning of
of human life — many had had enough. the Covid protests: they are not simply
Over the next few days, protests spread cries for personal freedom but signal the
to more than a dozen cities  across the start of a more turbulent era in Chinese
country. politics.

Of course, given Beijing’s powerful — Foreign Affairs.
tools of surveillance and control, it seems *About the writer: Ian Johnson is the
unlikely that these events pose a direct Stephen A. Schwarzman senior fellow
threat to the regime.  Xi  may well stay for China Studies at the Council on
in power another five or ten years, and Foreign Relations.
perhaps even longer. But in challenging