Poetry Corner Title: Can't Breathe Poet: Professor Ngugi waMkirii The night dies prematurely, And the day has a stillbirth. The stars and the moon drool, As they mourn the death of the day. The universe gathers to pontificate, And say eulogies of the goodness of the still born. Together we marched, Drilled by the aggressor, And oriented towards being a sangfroid. We toiled for miserly pittance, To keep body and soul together. We were drilled and grilled, And our sheer determination and resolve broken, So we will never rise again. Like puppies on a leash, We were fed with milk so that we loathe to hunt. We spend days at the dairy, Waiting for cudded milk For our next meal. Living on rations, We became blind, Like military men who reside in camp residence, They bask in comfort, And forget that one day the system will spit them, And in no time replace them, And out there it's cold, And when no nest was built, All will be vanity. Who am I? I am a teacher and I can't breathe. I am a police officer I can't breathe. I am a soldier I can't breathe. The system suffocates me to my grave, And I die a pauper. ***************************************************** Title: Snakes Of Africa. Poet: Patrick Hwande With tremendous bliss, Shady deals they kiss, At whistle-blowers they hiss, Snakes of Africa. Despite age, They never leave the stage, Dare them and enjoy their rage, Snakes of Africa. Heads buried in sand, The dangerous band, Gloss over bleeding land, Snakes of Africa. Poisonous, insidious, Pompous, Snakes of Africa. ***************************************************** Title: The Tot Of Freedom Poetess: Placcedes Mahanise We were soldiers, Clad in the booted canvas of our courage, And our backs strapped with determination. We trudged the terrain armed with crocodile's jaws, And the alligator’s paws With a resolve to bask in freedom. We bled. We sweated. We toiled and died, Interred into open pits, Buried without honour like trash, And yet we travailed and prevailed. The tot of our freedom, The fat upon which we are grilled. Poverty stricken, And still raising the emblem of this struggle, We keep struggling, To acquire this tot, To imbibe the liberties, And yet still we are disenfranchised, From the principles of universal suffrage, Because we were soldiers ************************************************ Title: The Year Of A Storm! Poet: Obey Chiyangwa The year looked like an ordinary year, An innocent year. Until a hitherto brewing storm rose. The new storm struck an older one a heavy blow. A fatal blow! This new wind was wild, With all the guile and cunning of the old. He had the shrewdness of the doomed wind. Yet he was an adept at the game of treachery, Possessing the vile mind of witchery, And the sleek tongue of flattery. In his eyes glittered the very image of death. Carnage loitered and patrolled the corridors of his astute mind. A storm that was afflicted by the hunger and anger of many years of second fiddle existence. A storm ready to pounce! To avenge the indignities of decades on end. The rains needed to set the stage alight with a deluge, A torrential down-pour! *********************************************** Title: To the powers that be Poet: Blessing M. Dube To the divine powers that be We appeal for even momentary glee In this, our concourse dogged by dread Where we are bereaved of dear breath We hereby ask you to render us less forlorn In this overly hijacked sojourn Where slaughters are lawful trademarks Engineered by cruel ballot box sharks. We are roses left to grow in dark concrete gardens Deprived of the nourishing tender hands of the sun By protagonists devoting their time to binges in taverns Totally bereft of any rousing compatriot benefiting plan. ************************************************ Title: The Poor Worker's Wealth Poet: Patrick Hwande For a couple of decades, I've been in the trenches, Trying to build my beloved nation. Here's the wealth l've accrued: A pair of shoes that has seen better days, A single white trousers that leaves very little to imagination, A creaking single bed that betrays my romantic evening. Should l die today. Kill my limping goat, And feed the mourners. Sweet talk the well-wishers to pool resources and pay a sea of my debts. *********************************************** Title: Deflowered Poet: Samuel Chuma The night came And found us seated Holding hands Conversing in silence Lying on the bed Of our unmade dreams Just us two. When morning came He had a grin and a glow And she sat by his side With thread and needle Valiantly trying to repair Dreams of perfect weddings And proud hymens On honeymoon nights *********************************************** NewsHawks Page 51 Issue 121, 3 March 2023
Page 52 In the spotlight... Zim gold baron Macmillan People & Places NewsHawks Issue 121, 3 March 2023
heights. These are the people we started with, and everybody recognises that part of the team. In addition to the team, we have an extraordinary, an experienced businessman from Tunisia, a man of principle, and a man who will bring a lot of respect to the Ex-Co board, Aref Belkhira. In addition to Aref, we have Marcel (Joseph Rakotomalala), from Madagascar. From the forgotten part of Africa, but how can you forget, one of the best rugby nations, certainly a nation that has more attendances, more loyalty in terms of supporters to the game and we saw their ladies making their maiden appearance at the World Cup Sevens. We will be working together strongly. THE annual general meeting (AGM) of Africa Rugby is here, 18 March. I’m a candidate, I have submitted my nomination. And it’s one thing to submit your nomination and another thing to have a team. I’m pleased to announce that following the Accra Accord and following the Abidjan Accord, the members of my team would be as follows: my vice-president Elvis (Tano Oi Tano Elvis Marcel Modeste), president of Ivorian rugby, a gentleman who is full of enthusiasm and who I have great confidence in. We have with us as well, treasurer, Herman (Mbonyo Lihumba) from the Democratic Republic of Congo, also known as a politician, someone who is keen on the minor detail – a Pan-Africanist, Africa for Africans, now and always. We are also blessed to have on the team, Adama (Bakhoum of Senegal). He stands tall. Adama is somebody whom everybody knows. He will bring a change when you look at competitions, when you look at planning and communicating with all the countries that want to play rugby, that haven’t been playing rugby, countries that demand competitions as a way forward. Also as part of the team, we have two ladies, and as you know constitutionally we must. We have Paula (Lanco from Burundi), who we have a long relationship with, on the board of Ex-Co. Again, somebody whose attention to detail is well renowned. And we have Rolande (Boro), who has taken Burkina Faso Rugby to new lengths and to new Sport Page 53 We're looking at restructuring and decentralising — Herbert Mensah Rugby is considered to be the world and Africa's fastest-growing team sport. And my old friend Sean (Irish), put up his hand early. Botswana may not be as big as some of the huge countries around, but they provide something with a difference, and that’s a thing that has always been critical in the way we go. We have been dealing with Kenya, it’s one of the countries we have been associated with, and we are glad. And there has been a number of chances as we move across the time. And we shouldn’t forget that constitutionally we deal with South Africa and that is in this case Jurie Roux, who is the general secretary of Africa Rugby, an extraordinary gentleman. And I hope he stays with us for quite some time. Very much so. We have quite for a long period been speaking to a number of people, and I think we have Uganda on the fringes. We as a team are looking at restructuring, decentralising. We are looking at regional presidents that will bring about change. In the committees we have set up, we haven’t forgotten the smaller nations; the Burundis of this world will not be excluded. Hopefully, this is a team that will form the basis for where we go. Hopefully, we will be voted in on March the 18th. *Guest columnist Ghana’s Herbert Mensah is running for the presidency of Africa Rugby at an elective AGM in Cape Town on 18 March. This column is a verbatim transcript sent to us. We have extended a similar invitation to the other candidates to appear on this column ahead of the elective AGM. ‘I knew I wasn’t going to play for Zim again’ From page 52 His place in the side cemented under the previous coaching regime, and having the admiration of no less a bowling icon than Ntini on his side, Muzarabani visualised himself in the revered whites of Test cricket for the first time in his career. “When Heath Streak came in, Sri Lanka was supposed to tour Zimbabwe for Test matches,” Muzarabani, who has retired from all forms of cricket at the age of 35, tells The NewsHawks this week. “We went to Borrowdale Racecourse for a day out with the team. They announced the final 15 [man squad], and I was in. But Streak and Taibu removed my name the next day at training. When I asked what was happening, no one gave me a solid response. Afghanistan then came beginning of 2017 for a white-ball tour, and I was also initially in the squad. But same issue happened, just a different date. So I knew I wasn’t going to play for Zimbabwe again under Streak and Taibu.” Yes indeed, Muzarabani never got to play during the time of the two former Zimbabwe captains’ reign, and even much as he tried to force his way into the side beyond the duo’s sacking in 2018, those eight ODIs and nine T20s would remain the only appearances he made for the Chevrons. He retires without ever having played Test cricket. “I believe I should have played more matches for Zimbabwe because I had the tools of a fast bowler,” says Muzarabani. “It was proven when I played, but we kept on chopping and changing coaches. Every coach likes to hunt with his own dogs.” Given his background — growing up and playing alongside a number of contemporaries who burst onto the international scene much earlier than him — Muzarabani can be considered to a rather late bloomer. He was already 27 when he made his international debut in 2015 after a long wait, at a time his age mates from the High-Glen area and Churchill School supply chain were already household names in Zimbabwean cricket. Muzarabani reckons he got a raw deal on that front, that he should not have been left on the sidelines when his colleagues where piling on the caps. “I felt I was let down a bit by the system on many occasions,” says Muzarabani. “I was with the Zimbabwe ‘A’ side for so many years, touring different countries, and performing well. But my chance wasn’t coming, and I was getting old. Many people think that my peak was between 2015 and 2017, but it was in fact between 2008 and 2011. That time I should have been given a chance. So the system killed me in so many ways.” Muzarabani dismisses the notion that he could have fallen behind the bowling pecking order after the Whatmore era when a new crop of better-equipped seamers emerged. “I don’t feel like I had any competitor,” comments Muzarabani. “I had my own style of bowling. That is why I made my debut in T20s before other formats. I had an impact in a short space of time, I deserved more games in international cricket. My economy rate was under five in ODIs and not as bad in T20s. But I was locked outside.” He reckons that had former South Africa fast bowler Ntini stayed longer as Zimbabwe’s bowling coach, things would probably have been different for him. “Makhaya always had my back,” Muzarabani says. “Because he knew the kind of player I was. But he got done by the system.” The desire to play for Zimbabwe always came at great personal sacrifice during the time of Muzarabani, who was injury-prone in his shortened international career. “Sometimes you force yourself to play with an injury, you pay your own doctor, but you remain silent about it because you do not want to upset some powerful people in the system,” he says. Uncle of Zimbabwe pace spearhead Blessing Muzarabani, the former Takashinga striker bowler announced his retirement from all forms of the game following a stint with Ferntree Gully Footballers Cricket Club, who feature in the premier league of the Melbourne area in Australia. “My club career was good,” he says. “I played in various countries: Scotland, Ireland, England, and others. I feel I was treated better in foreign lands than by my own people back home in Zimbabwe. Australia has been very good to me, very good. I received three awards last season. This season I was injured, so I didn’t play many games, and that contributed to my retirement.” So, what next after cricket, for the jolly good fellow commonly known as Zhyk back home in Zimbabwe? “Making millions of money, like [legendary Malian multi-billionaire] Mansa Musa,” laughs Muzarabani. “I was always a businessperson during my playing days. Something huge is coming up, watch this space!” We will definitely be watching, Zhyk. Herbert Mensah HawkZone NewsHawks Issue 121, 3 March 2023
ENOCK MUCHINJO IT was October 2016, and in less than a month’s time, it looked like the moment had finally arrived for Taurai Muzarabani to make his long-awaited Test debut, at the ripe age of 29. In his combined 17 limited-overs caps for Zimbabwe, the right-arm pace bowler had not bowled worse than anybody in a seam attack that did not have particularly outstanding bowlers. But discount that white-ball performance in the red colours of Zimbabwe. Muzarabani’s domestic first-class record, which dated back to his teenage years, had yielded 167 wickets from 70 matches, worth a chance like everyone else at that time. In all his eight ODIs and nine T20Is for Zimbabwe – between July 2015 and June 2016 – Muzarabani played under the tutelage of head coach Dav Whatmore and bowling coach Makhaya Ntini, both admirers of the rangy paceman from Harare's Highfield suburb. Australian Whatmore was fired mid-2016 following a string of poor results, briefly replaced by Proteas legend Ntini, who in the interim guided Zimbabwe in a white-ball series at home immediately after the Aussie’s sacking. And then in a major revamp of structures — from coaching, captaincy to selection — former captain Heath Streak was appointed Zimbabwe’s head coach in October 2016, weeks before Sri Lanka’s tour for two end-of-year Tests in Harare. Another ex-national skipper, Tatenda Taibu, was made chief selector, with spin bowler Graeme Cremer taking over as captain across all formats. Continued on Page 51 50c PRICE SPORT Zim Cricket launches Premier League NEWS $60 Covid tariff for visitors & tourists CULTURE Community radio regulations under review @NewsHawksLive TheNewsHawks www.thenewshawks.com [email protected] Thursday 1 October 2020 WHAT’S INSIDE ALSO INSIDE Finance Ministy wipes out $3.2 Billion depositors funds Zim's latest land controversy has left Ruwa farmer stranded Story on Page 3 Story on Page 8 Story on Page 16 Chamisa reaches out to Khupe Unofficial president calls for emergency meeting +263 772 293 486 Friday 3 March 2023 ‘We as a team are looking at restructuring and decentralising’ ALSO INSIDE Sports Mandela’s grandson in African football political row at Chan opener Pull up your socks, it’s no more business as usual ‘I knew I wasn’t going to play for Zimbabwe again under Streak and Taibu’ Taurai Muzarabani bowls for Zimbabwe against India in June 2016 in Harare.