ZIMBABWE INDEPENDENT

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Mnangagwa seeks 

alliance with 

Gono/ Page 2 

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US$4bn 

Chinese 

bailout 

HERBERT MOYO/OWEN GAGARE 

Chinese ambassador to Zimbabwe Lin Lin 

Mugabe to visit China for package this month 

PRESIDENT Robert Mugabe will 

this month embark on a state visit 

to the People’s Republic of China 

as he desperately seeks a US$4 

billion rescue package to stabilise 

Zimbabwe’s worsening economic 

crisis characterised by a stubborn 

liquidity crunch, the Zimbabwe Independent 

has established. 

Zimbabwe has been angling 

for a US$10 billion package from 

China, but government sources 

revealed the current push was for 

US$4 billion. 

Mugabe’s visit, confirmed by 

China’s ambassador to Zimbabwe 

Lin Lin in an interview with the 

Independent at the Chinese embassy 

yesterday, comes hot on 

the heels of a similar recent visit 

by Finance minister Patrick Chinamasa, 

who led a 20-member 

inter-ministerial delegation to 

the Asian economic powerhouse 

last month. 

Chinamasa’s sojourn was officially 

described as a “10-day 

working visit to study the working 

of the Chinese economy”. 

He also visited China in January, 

but returned home empty-handed. 

Chinamasa is currently in 

Russia as he continues to press for 

financial assistance that is proving 

elusive. 

Mugabe last month appealed to 

a visiting China Communist Party 

delegation to assist by funding 

what he said was Zimbabwe’s 

“economic struggle that we 

shall be waging with our natural 

resources so we can produce 

the necessary wealth for our 

people”. 

In June the World Bank’s 

senior economist Nadia Piffaretti 

warned Zimbabwe 

against mortgaging its minerals 

for financial aid saying this 

jeopardises future generations’ 

welfare. She said it would be 

better if the country sought 

loans at concessionary rates instead 

of securitising minerals to 

secure loans. 

After being rebuffed by international 

financial organisations 

such as the International Monetary 

Fund, World Bank as well 

as investors with capacity to inject 

foreign direct investment, a 

desperate Mugabe has increasingly 

looked to “all-weather 

friend” China for assistance in 

reviving the moribund economy. 

Government sources revealed 

Mugabe’s visit was essentially a 

follow-up to Chinamasa’s visits, 

adding the president was 

expected to push for a rescue 

package. 

“The president will be leaving 

on the 21st and we are 

hoping that the visit will lead 

to the sealing of a US$4 billion 

To Page 2 

Grace shocker rattles Mujuru base 

FAITH ZABA 

THE surprise emergence of First Lady 

Grace Mugabe in Zanu PF politics has 

rocked Vice-President Joice Mujuru’s bid 

to control critical structures of the party 

ahead of its elective congress in December 

which were expected to boost her push to 

take over from President Robert Mugabe. 

While her faction has control of provincial 

structures crucial in the battle to 

succeed Mugabe after clinching support 

of the majority of the 10 provinces, it appears 

Mujuru has come unstuck as Grace 

emerged from nowhere to become the 

Women’s League preferred boss, ending 

Mujuru’s bid to have her ally, Olivia 

Muchena, take over from Oppah Muchinguri. 

Zanu PF insiders said Mujuru, whom 

Mugabe normally consults together with 

other members of the presidium, planned 

to influence the appointment of Muchena 

as Women’s League secretary, but things 

drastically changed with the arrival of 

Grace as a major political player. 

Although it appears Muchena is the 

biggest loser in Grace’s takeover of the 

women’s leadership, it is in fact Mujuru 

who has suffered a major setback given 

that the First Lady has emerged against 

a backdrop of women largely aligned to 

Mnangagwa. 

Muchinguri, who is current Women’s 

League boss, central committee member 

Monica Mutsvangwa and deputy speaker 

of the National Assembly Mabel Chinomona 

have played a major role in pushing 

for Grace’s elevation. 

Other women like Muchena, Flora Buka, 

Tsitsi Sekeramayi (wife of Defence minister 

Sydney) and Constance Shamu, who 

are aligned to Mujuru, are in a Catch-22 

situation because they are primarily loyal 

to Mugabe. 

The rise of Grace has given momentum 

to women aligned to Mnangagwa, who are 

now going around the country countering 

campaigns Mujuru held earlier this year. 

Mujuru and her allies, national chairperson 

Simon Khaya Moyo and secretary 

for administration Didymus Mutasa, have 

been going around the country in different 

guises to consolidate the camp’s support 

base. 

Mujuru held meetings with Women’s 

League structures; Mutasa met the youths 

while Khaya Moyo met provincial structures. 

To Page 2 

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2 

Zimbabwe independent august 1 to 7, 2014 

local news 

No EU funding for ZimAsset 

owen GaGare 

Mnangagwa seeks 

Gono alliance 

SUCCESSION manoeuvres in Zanu 

PF are intensifying ahead of the 

party’s congress in December as 

Justice minister Emmerson Mnangagwa 

moves to secure an alliance 

with former Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe 

governor Gideon Gono. 

Mnangagwa and Vice-President 

Joice Mujuru are reportedly leading 

the two main factions battling to 

succeed Mugabe, but have consistently 

denied this. 

The development comes amid a 

surprise political development in 

which Mugabe’s wife, Grace, is set 

to take over as Women’s League 

boss from veteran politician Oppah 

Muchinguri. 

Mnangagwa took a major step in 

bringing Gono closer by bestowing 

him an honorary life membership 

for the Midlands Show Society. 

This has widely been read to be an 

attempt by Mnangagwa to reinforce 

his camp by recruiting an influential 

player reported to be Mugabe’s 

personal banker and close advisor. 

Despite moving out of government 

after retiring as central bank 

governor, Gono remains closely 

connected to the Mugabe family. 

This appears to have spurred 

Mnangagwa to seek an alliance 

with him. 

In a letter dated May 30, Mnangagwa, 

who is the patron of the 

Midlands Show Society, wrote: 

“The patron, president, chairman 

and executive committee of the 

Midlands Show Society are pleased 

to inform you that you have been 

awarded honorary life membership 

of the Midlands Show Society. 

“You are therefore invited to receive 

the honour at our prestigious 

dinner reception to be held 

on the 1 st of August 2014 at Fairmile 

Hotel at 1800 hours. We thank 

you and hope you will accept this 

invitation.” 

A senior Zanu PF Midlands legislator, 

who preferred anonymity, 

said the invitation flies in the face 

of a perceived rift between Gono 

and Mnangagwa. 

“I think the ED (Mnanagagwa) 

camp has pulled the rug from under 

Mujuru’s camp as some of 

them viewed Gono as theirs,” he 

said. 

In a subsequent programme of 

events made available to the Zimbabwe 

Independent, Mnangagwa also 

invited Gono to present a lecture on 

“Indigenisation and the Way Forward” 

today at a business conference 

being held under the theme 

“Creating an Enabling Economic 

Environment”. 

Former RBZ governor Gideon Gono 

Gono has clashed with government 

ministers, including former 

Indigenisation minister Saviour 

Kasukuwere and Information minister 

Jonathan Moyo, over the empowerment 

law, arguing a “onesize-fits-all 

approach would not 

work in Zimbabwe. 

Finance minister Patrick Chinamasa 

was also scheduled to open 

the three-day business conference. 

Both Gono and Chinamasa were 

unlikely to attend as they are reported 

to be out of the country. 

Gono is reportedly on a study tour 

in South Asia and Chinamasa has 

taken the begging bowl to Russia, 

seeking funding for government 

economic blueprint ZimAsset. 

Gono was nominated by the 

Manicaland province to replace 

former Dare Rechimurenga, politburo 

and cabinet member Kumbirai 

Kangai, who died in August last 

year, and the nomination was endorsed 

by the politburo. 

His elevation to Manicaland Senator 

now appears imminent after 

parliament passed the Electoral 

Amendment Bill. 

The Bill was sent to Mugabe recently 

for his assent. — Staff Writer. 

THE European Union (EU) Head of Delegation 

to Zimbabwe, Ambassador Aldo 

Dell’Ariccia, whose term of office expires 

on August 19, has urged the Zimbabwean 

government to transform ZimAsset from a 

blueprint into a proper strategic development 

plan if it is to attract funding from 

international partners. 

Dell’Ariccia, who is leaving after four 

years of service in Zimbabwe, told the 

Zimbabwe Independent he is happy there has 

been positive evolution in the relationship 

between Zimbabwe and the EU during his 

tenure, as signified by the possibility of 

resumption of development cooperation 

between the country and the bloc at the 

beginning November. 

On ZimAsset, Dell’Ariccia said the ideas 

contained in the plan, in what Zanu PF 

says is the panacea to Zimbabwe’s economic 

problems, were valid although the 

operationalisation element was missing. 

“There is no clarity on funding, there is 

no risk assessment,” he said. 

“We consider now that effort should be 

put into supporting the government to go 

from the blueprint to a proper strategic 

development plan. ZimAsset is not yet a 

development plan.” 

The government requires US$27 billion 

to fund ZimAsset, but has been struggling 

to get the funds. 

Dell’Ariccia also said Zimbabwe needed 

to do more to attract elusive foreign direct 

investment saying the environment was 

not yet conducive. 

He said the recent farm invasions, including 

that of black-owned farms, are 

deplorable in the eyes of the international 

community. 

Dell’Ariccia also insisted that the EU 

would not give Zimbabwe direct budgetary 

support even if Article 96 of the Cotonou 

Agreement, which is currently suspended, 

is lifted in November as is widely 

expected. 

The EU feels “public finance management 

in Zimbabwe is not yet conducive” 

for direct budgetary support. 

Zimbabwe is saddled with reports of 

financial impropriety, especially in government 

agencies. 

The country was slapped with measures 

under the Cotonou Agreement in 2002 

after President Robert Mugabe’s government 

was accused of gross human rights 

violations. 

The lifting of measures enables Zimbabwe 

to benefit from the 11 th European Development 

Fund. 

Dell’Ariccia, however, said there has 

been a lot of improvement in the human 

rights situation in Zimbabwe, although 

there was still need for improvement. 

EU Ambassador to Zimbabwe Aldo Dell’Ariccia 

Grace shocker rattles Mujuru base 

US$4bn Chinese bailout 

From Page 1 

assistance package with the 

Chinese government,” said one 

senior government official. 

“When Chinamasa visited 

China in January he was told by 

that country’s government officials 

to come up with a fundable 

working plan to present to them 

instead of the ZimAsset document 

which they described as 

a mere policy pronouncement. 

“He had to go back to the 

drawing board to come up with 

an acceptable workplan and it 

is on that basis that Mugabe expects 

the Chinese to give him 

US$4 billion to help resuscitate 

the economy.” 

Zanu PF has come up with an 

economic blueprint, ZimAsset, 

which requires about US$27 billion 

to fully implement between 

2013 and 2018, but government 

has so far failed to mobilise the 

funds. 

Mugabe’s spokesperson 

George Charamba refused to 

comment on the visit or rescue 

package last week, referring 

questions to Chinamasa. 

Chinamasa also declined to 

comment. 

Although he did not give a 

specific date and details about 

the rescue package, Lin confirmed 

Mugabe would most 

likely return home with some 

funds. 

He, however, refused to disclose 

the structure of the deal, 

how much Zimbabwe wanted 

and how much Beijing was likely 

to part with, referring questions 

to Chinamasa. 

The government has been 

planning to securitise the 

country’s minerals in order to 

acquire desperately-needed 

funding for infrastructural projects 

and to fund ZimAsset, and 

it is believed this was contained 

in Chinamasa’s proposals to the 

Chinese. 

“This year President Mugabe 

From Page 1 

Mutasa even declared at a 

Women’s League inter-district 

meeting: “Those harbouring 

succession thoughts ahead of 

Mai Mujuru are daydreamers. 

May I remind them that our 

constitution says if the president 

decides to retire or otherwise, 

the second-in-command 

takes over? In this case, it is Mai 

Mujuru.” 

Zanu PF insiders say Muchinguri 

is set to meet provincial 

structures countrywide to 

counter — and reverse if possible 

— Mujuru’s gains. 

The insider said: “If anything, 

the First Lady’s emergence 

also confirmed President 

Mugabe is in control of 

the party. This move would 

not have been possible without 

Mugabe’s knowledge and 

you must also remember that 

the president never makes key 

has been invited to pay a state 

visit to China and this confirms 

the strong relations between 

China and Zimbabwe,” said Lin. 

“I cannot give you a date because 

the two sides are still in 

discussions about the details of 

this visit, but it will be in the 

near future. We are working on 

it.” 

Zimbabwe is an important 

partner of China, which 

is why President Mugabe 

has been invited to visit this 

year. There are many highlevel 

exchanges between 

these two countries ... 

He added: “Normally, during 

the head of state’s visit, my 

government will provide some 

development assistance. This 

is normal practice ,but I don’t 

know how much it will be this 

time. I can assure you that every 

year China will provide development 

assistance to friendly 

countries. 

“Minister Chinamasa visited 

China in January and put forward 

proposals for getting assistance 

to China Exim Bank, 

but it is not something very 

simple. It is not like you have 

US$5 and then you buy your T- 

shirt — this is a serious issue. It 

needs serious study from both 

sides and lots of discussions. 

However, China will do its best 

to help its friends.” 

While at the embassy, the 

Independent crew saw Mugabe’s 

close security aides leaving, 

decisions without involving 

Mnangagwa.” 

Although Grace, together 

with Muchinguri, was key in 

Mujuru leap-frogging to the 

number two spot in the presidium, 

there has been a fall-out 

between the two. 

Speculation on why they fell 

out suggests it was after reports 

Mujuru talked about taking 

over Grace’s farms in Mazowe 

when she succeeds Mugabe. 

suggesting preparations for the 

visit are in full swing. 

Lin said China had been assisting 

Zimbabwe for some 

time, adding the country had 

received amounts exceeding 

US$1 billion in preferential and 

concessionary loans to fund 

various projects, among them 

the National Defence College, 

Victoria Falls Airport upgrading 

and the Kariba South Power 

Station extension programme. 

“Since 2010, Zimbabwe has 

also been given more than 

US$100 million in grants and 

interest-free loans,” said Lin, 

adding this is more than any 

other African country has received 

“because we understand 

that Zimbabwe is faced with 

serious challenges and needs 

more help from its (Chinese) 

friend”. 

Lin also dispelled the notion 

China does consider Zimbabwe 

a serious economic partner — a 

view generated by the fact Zimbabwe 

was omitted from the 

itinerary of both Chinese Prime 

Minister Li Kequiang and President 

Xi Jinping when they visited 

African countries in 2012 

and 2013 respectively. 

“Zimbabwe is an important 

partner of China which is why 

President Mugabe has been invited 

to visit this year. In any 

case, there are many high-level 

exchanges between these two 

countries and every year we 

receive Zimbabwean cabinet 

ministers while senior Chinese 

officials also come to Zimbabwe, 

like the visit of the Vice- 

Premier Wang Yang in 2012.” 

Government sources also said 

Mugabe will again visit China 

sometime next year, but this 

time in his capacity as Zanu PF 

leader in reciprocation to the recent 

visit by the CCP delegation. 

• Full interview with Ambassador 

Lin Lin in next week’s 

issue

ZIMBABWE INDEPENDENT AUGUST 1 TO 7, 2014 3 

LOCAL NEWS 

I’m not sleeping, says Chinamasa 

Finance minister pleads for ideas on reviving economy 

ELIAS MAMBO 


IN a move that shows government has 

failed in its plans to turn around the economy, 


has called on captains of industry to bring 

forward concept papers on how to revive 

the economy. 

Addressing captains of industry at the 

just-ended Institute of Chartered Accountants 

of Zimbabwe (Icaz) winter school in 

Victoria Falls, Chinamasa said the state 

of the economy requires an inclusive approach 

where everyone brings forward 

ideas on how to turn around the economy. 

“I am inviting you to bring concept papers 

through your council because you 

have strong links with foreign investors 

who have capital which we do not have 

here,” Chinamasa said. 

“I am not sleeping because I am trying 

to come up with ideas that may help revive 

this economy. We have a challenge 

because wherever we go investors are saying 

there is need for policy clarity, especially 

on indigenisation. We are currently 

reviewing the policy so that it is clear because 

investment security is important for 

the economy to take off. 

“No one wants to lend Zimbabwe money 

anymore because we have defaulted in the 

past. Whether we go to Zambia or to Malawi, 

it’s the same thing because we are 

indebted to these countries. We are on our 

own and we have to be more innovative.” 

He also said he would continue re-engaging 

the international community to try 

and attract foreign direct investment. 

Since his appointment as Finance minister, 

Chinamasa has made many foreign 

trips and met potential investors as Zimbabwe 

seeks a loan to fund its ambitious 

Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio- 

Economic Transformation (ZimAsset), a 

policy document pitched as the panacea for 

economic revival by the Zanu PF government. 

ZimAsset requires about US$27 billion 

to implement. 

In his address, Chinamasa said he was 

shocked to discover that the Senegalese 

government was awarded a US$7 billion 

loan after they requested US$3 billion from 

the European Union. 

“Three weeks ago, I went to Senegal and 

discovered that they were offered a US$7 

billion loan from the EU after they requested 

US$3 billion. They were oversubscribed 

and imagine how that can help our economy 

if we were to get such an amount,” he 

said. 

A heightening financial squeeze is forcing 

Zimbabwe’s administration to broaden 

its options for an emergency bailout and 

the country has now turned to Russia. Chinamasa 

and Mines minister Walter Chidhakwa 

left for Moscow on Sunday to plead 

with various investors for cash injections. 

Apart from the liquidity constraints, 

Zimbabwe is also saddled with a US$10 billion 

debt. 

Economic analysts say with Zimbabwe’s 

poor debt payment record, it would be difficult 

for any international lender to extend 

credit lines to the country which is suffering 

from a severe liquidity crunch. 

Economist Godfrey Kanyenze, director of 

labour and economic development for Research 

Institute of Zimbabwe, said Zimbabwe 

is facing deeper structural challenges. 

“The country is experiencing a deeper 

structural malaise as companies close shop 

everyday resulting in a highly informalised 

economy,” Kanyenze said. “This results in 

shrinking liquidity as money is not getting 

into the banking sector. The economy 

cannot grow when 84% of all jobs are 

informal.” 

During heated debate in Victoria 

Falls, a Zambia-based Icaz member Elisha 

Tsindikidzo took Chinamasa to task 

over what government is doing to attract 

investors. 

“What is government doing with regards 

to boosting investor confidence because 

there are promises which do not materialise 

in the end?” Tsindikidzo asked. 

Chinamasa’s response centred on the 

controversial indigenisation policy. 

“As I have already indicated, cabinet and 

(the Zanu PF) politburo tasked Indigenisation 

minister Francis Nhema to review 

the policy so that there is clarity,” he said. 

“The one-size-fits-all has failed to entice 

investors. We are synchronising our policies 

and, besides, we have a problem with 

our wage bill which takes up a large chunk 

of our budget, 78%. That does not need an 

international economist to tell us that our 

wage bill is not sustainable.” 

However, Nhema has denied he is reviewing 

the indigenisation policy. 

Chinamasa’s call for help from captains 

of industry comes at a time when the country’s 

economy has underperformed in the 

first half of the year with the country’s 

gross domestic product growing by a mere 

1,8% in the first six months of the year amid 

indications the second half will be worse. 

Chinamasa’s plea to captains of industry 

appears to contradict recent statements 

by Mugabe that the economy was on the 

rebound. 

Addressing guests at the 2014 President’s 

Medal Shoot Competition prize-giving ceremony 

in Harare, Mugabe said the Zanu PF 

government had employed several strategies 

to get the economy out of the woods. 

“Let me assure our people that the country’s 

economy is on a recovery path. Government 

is going to employ several measures 

aimed at achieving desired results. 

Key among such strategies is ZimAsset,” he 

said.

4 


local nEWs 

Storm over ZPC solar tender 

hErbErt Moyo 

THE Zimbabwe Power Company (ZPC) 

tender for the construction of three solar 

power projects initially awarded to 

two Chinese companies and a local one 

owned by controversial Harare businessman, 

Wicknell Chivayo, has taken a new 

twist amid indications that the companies 

are pushing for an upward review of their 

winning bid of US$183 million to US$240 

million. 

This has serious financial implications 

for ZPC, which will now have to fork out 

US$720 million for the three projects. 

Initially, the tender was just for one solar 

power plant to generate 100 megawatts of 

electricity and it was won by China Jiangxi 

Corporation (CJC) in January with a bid of 

US$183 million. 

However ZPC later brought in two losing 

bidders, namely Intratrek Zimbabwe (Pvt) 

Ltd owned by Chivayo and ZTE Corporation 

to construct another two plants at the 

same cost of US$183 million. 

The three companies are now said to 

be demanding that the State Procurement 

Board (SPB) reviews their contracts 

upwards claiming that it is not feasible to 

implement the projects for US$183 million 

— a development SPB sources say has resulted 

in the board advising all three companies 

to re-tender, and only one of them 

will build all three projects. 

“The SPB has decided that the three companies 

re-tender and the one which will 

submit the lowest bid will win the right to 

build all three plants,” said an SPB source. 

The sources, however, questioned why 

only the three companies are being asked 

to tender instead of opening up the process 

to all companies as required by the law. 

The re-tender proposals are the latest in 

a series of controversies rocking the solar 

project. 

In May, government sources told the 

Zimbabwe Independent that due to political 

interference ZPC was forced to bring 

in Intratrek Zimbabwe (Pvt) Ltd and ZTE 

Corporation through the back door without 

re-advertising the tender as required 

at law. 

Intratrek and ZTE were among more 

than 100 companies who responded to 

ZPC’s tender for engineering, procurement 

and construction of a 100 megawatt solar 

plant in Gwanda or Plumtree in Matabeleland 

South province. Despite being shortlisted, 

the companies eventually lost out to 

CJC after the SPB adjudged on January 16 

that CJC had proposed a competitive bid. 

Intratrek’s bid was pegged at US$248 

million while ZTE’s was US$358 million. 

Sources say despite losing out in the tendering 

process, the two companies were 

given a second bite of the cherry on condition 

that they reduced their quotation to 

match the US$183 million put forward by 

CJC. 

Official documents seen by this newspaper 

revealed that “political interference 

bordering on corruption which saw ZTE 

and Intratrek also being awarded similar 

100MW solar power plant projects has created 

a huge nightmare for ZPC which is already 

confronted by serious financial challenges 

for project sponsorship”. 

ZPC spokesperson Fadzai Chisveto and 

SPB executive chairman Charles Kuwaza 

did not respond to questions emailed to 

them. 

Contacted for comment, Chivayo 

said “SPB regulations bind us to strict 

confidentiality”. 

He however advised this paper to “do 

further research from the relevant authorities 

in order to give a more accurate, credible 

version of events”. 

US extends elephant ban 

Wongai ZhangaZha 

THE United States government has 

extended its ban on the importation 

of sport-hunted elephant 

trophies from Zimbabwe to December 

2014, which could have a 

devastating impact on the viability 

of the safari industry. 

The extension of the ban comes 

after Safari Operators Association 

of Zimbabwe (Soaz) chairperson 

Emmanuel Fundira led a 

delegation to the United States in 

May to try and have the decision 

withdrawn. 

The delegation met various government 

officials including Secretary 

of State John Kerry. 

The delegation comprised Zimbabwe 

Parks and Wildlife Management 

Authority director-general 

Edson Chidziya, Campfire director 

Charles Jonga, Zimbabwean 

Professional Hunters and Guides 

Association chairman Louis Muller 

and wildlife consultant Rowan 

Martin. 

The United States Fish and Wildlife 

Service (USFWS) in April announced 

a suspension on imports 

of sport-hunted African elephant 

trophies from Tanzania and Zimbabwe, 

arguing that available data 

showed a significant decline in the 

elephant population. In an interview 

on Wednesday Fundira said 

Elias MaMbo/Wongai ZhangaZha 

PREPARATIONS for the 34th Sadc 

Summit to be held in Victoria Falls 

are at an advanced stage with the 

cash-strapped government banking 

on financial support from the 

private and corporate sectors. 

The Sadc summit will kick off 

on August 8-9 with a finance subcommittee 

meeting, followed by 

a standing committee meeting of 

senior officials including the finance 

committee on August 10- 

12, a council of ministers meeting 

on August 14-15, and finally 

the Summit of Heads of State and 

Governments on August 17 and 

18. 

Investigations by the Zimbabwe 

Independent revealed that the government 

is hiring a 30x60m airconditioned 

tent from a prominent 

event management company 

which specialises in rental 

equipment. 

Investigations suggested hiring 

the tent for three days costs 

US$86 000 and accommodation 

at the Elephant Hills resort has 

already been secured for 700 high 

the extension was shocking as it 

would seriously affect the tourism 

sector as well as employment in 

a country already burdened by a 

90% unemployment rate. 

He said: “The announcement of 

the extension of the ban to December 

came on Monday and is 

extremely depressing. For example 

the ban would affect 65% 

of the market which is in from 

the America including North and 

South America. That itself shows 

the collapse of the industry.” 

“The effect is also horrendous 

as 800 000 households under the 

Communal Areas Management 

Programme for Indigenous Resources 

(Campfire) are affected at 

a time employment levels in the 

country are poor.” 

In their petition lobbying for the 

lifting of the ban, the delegation 

questioned the benchmark used 

by USFWS to define the elephant 

decline. 

“Zimbabwe can support at most 

about 50 000 elephants on the 

land available in the country. The 

effects of exceeding the ecological 

carrying capacity for elephants 

are glaringly evident — habitats are 

being destroyed, carrying capacity 

for wildlife in general is being reduced 

and elephants are dying of 

poverty. An ecological disaster is 

imminent,” the delegation argued. 

“The statement by the USFWS 

that additional killing of elephants 

in these countries, even if legal, is 

not sustainable and is not currently 

supporting conservation efforts 

that contribute towards the recovery 

of the species demonstrates an 

ignorance of the biological impact 

of trophy hunting. Quotas for trophy 

hunting are negligible in biological 

terms and have no effect 

on the rate of increase of elephant 

populations.” 

Fundira said the there was lack 

of scientific information to convince 

USFWS that the country’s 

elephants are not threatened 

hence the best way forward for the 

organisation was to extend the ban 

until December. 

“We are however in the process 

of lobbying further and the minister 

responsible for this sector 

(Minister of Environment Saviour 

Kasukuwere) has called for an indaba 

on this new information,” he 

said. 

Defending the ban, the USFWS 

said they were concerned by anecdotal 

evidence, such as the widely 

publicised poisoning last year of 

300 elephants in Hwange National 

Park, suggesting that the country’s 

elephants are under siege. 

“Given the current situation on 

the ground in both Tanzania and 

Zimbabwe, the Service is unable to 

US$86 000 tent for Sadc summit 

level delegates expected to attend 

the Sadc Heads of State and Government 

Summit. 

A source at the Elephant Hills 

Resort last week said there were 

tensions between government 

and the hotel concerning the 

bookings as the state initially 

wanted the hotel to stop taking 

clients for August. 

“Government had said the hotel 

should not provide accommodation 

services for the month of August 

yet it has not even paid for its 

delegates,” said the source. 

“The hotel is now using only 

500 rooms because the other 

rooms are being renovated so 

some of the delegates have been 

booked in other hotels,” he said. 

A fortnight ago Foreign Affairs 

minister Simbarashe Mumbengegwi 

said government would 

seek funding from the corporate 

sector. 

“Everything is on course and 

the corporate sector has been 

very cooperative and supportive 

so far in the preparation,” he said. 

Meanwhile as President Robert 

Mugabe’s takeover of the chairship 

of Sadc nears, concerns 

have been raised on tensions between 

Botswana and Zimbabwe 

following Botswana’s attack on 

Mugabe’s presidential victory in 

last year’s elections. 

Botswana President Ian Khama, 

regarded as sympathetic to 

opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, 

said there was need for an 

independent audit of the elections 

following allegations of Zanu PF 

vote rigging. 

Botswana, which sent an 

80-member observer team led by 

the country’s former Vice-President 

Lieutenant General Mompati 

Merafhe, cited numerous incidents 

which discredited the polls. 

Botswana was the only Sadc 

country that gave a damning report 

on the elections. 

However deputy Minister of 

Foreign Affairs Chris Mutsvangwa, 

speaking on the sidelines of 

a tour of the Norton Special Economic 

Zones last week which he 

organised for ambassadors as 

Norton legislator said there were 

no tensions between Botswana 

and Zimbabwe. 

The USFWS says elephants are under siege 

make positive findings required 

under the Convention on International 

Trade in Endangered 

Species of Wild Fauna and Flora 

and the Endangered Species Act 

to allow import of elephant trophies 

from these countries,” read 

the statement. 

BATTLE lines have been drawn 

between a faction loyal to Vice- 

President Joice Mujuru and politburo 

member Saviour Kasukuwere 

ahead of the Mashonaland 

Central youth provincial congress 

to be held in Bindura over the 

weekend. 

The faction aligned to Kasukuwere 

received a boost ahead of 

the congress after the Zanu PF 

politburo on Wednesday recommended 

that former secretary 

for administration Kudakwashe 

Sintu, who was suspended in June 

by the Mashonaland Central provincial 

executive for indiscipline 

together with provincial chairperson 

Godfrey Tsenengamu, and 

youth executive member Caleb 

Karima, be allowed to contest 

elections for entry into the national 

youth executive. 

Sintu’s suspension meant that 

he missed the competitive district 

elections held on Wednesday. 

The highlight of the district 

elections saw Dugmore Chimukoko, 

who controversially lost 

“Additional killing of elephants 

in these countries, even 

if legal, is not sustainable and is 

not currently supporting conservation 

efforts that contribute 

towards the recovery of the 

species.” 

Zanu PF battle lines 

drawn in Mash Central 

the provincial youth chairperson 

elections last year after police 

undercounted his ballots, narrowly 

beat deputy minister Tabeth 

Kanengoni by 32 votes to 30 

in Mazowe. Chimukoko is reportedly 

aligned to Mujuru. There was 

also joy for Obert Mutasa in Guruve 

who beat Takawira Maluku 

by 26 votes to 19 while in Bindura 

Ratidza Marumahoko beat Helen 

Mashonganyika by 16 votes to 10. 

Three candidates were uncontested 

— Paulet Chekumanyara in 

Rushinga, Tongai Kasukuwere of 

Mt Darwin and Joseph Dendere in 

Muzarabani. 

An official in the Mashonaland 

Central provincial executive said 

by virtue of being the only woman 

elected at district level, Chekumanyara 

had made it into the 

national executive. 

Chimukoko, Mutasa, Marumahoko 

and Dendere who are said to 

be loyal to Mujuru, as well as Kasukuwere 

and Sintu, will battle it 

out for the remaining three slots. 

— Staff Writer.

ZIMBABWE INDEPENDENT AUGUST 1 TO 7, 2014 5

6 

ZIMBABWE INDEPENDENT AUGUST 1 TO 7, 2014 

LOCAL NEWS 

Workers defraud ZNFPC of US$100 000 

OWEN GAGARE 

THE Zimbabwe National Family Planning 

Council (ZNFPC), a parastatal under the 

Ministry of Health and Child Care, could 

have lost hundreds of thousands of dollars 

through fraud by its workers who were illegally 

selling drugs and pocketing the money 

dating back to 2012, an internal audit report 

has revealed. 

The audit carried out at ZNFPC-run Spilhaus 

Clinic at Harare Central hospital for 

the period December 24, 2013 to January 

3, 2014 revealed the clinic was open when 

it was supposed to be on annual shutdown, 

with staff members pocketing cash for services 

they provided during that period. 

During the period, the audit revealed that 

the clinic could have been prejudiced of 

US$92 368 in stock and cash. The auditors, 

however, noted that the scam had been going 

on for a long time. 

“Audit has no doubt that the stock scam 

and provision of services during annual 

shutdown could have started as far back as 

2012,” reads the audit’s conclusion. 

The audit was carried out after the clinic’s 

management noted that the clinic was providing 

services when it was supposed to be 

on annual shutdown. 

Auditors observed that for the year-end 

shutdown, there were no clock-in sheets 

which were completed while staff accessed 

council premises without authority letters 

from the human resources offices. The security 

officers did not have records of staff 

members who reported for duty. 

Staff flouted internal control regulations 

in what auditors believe was a well-calculated 

move to defraud the health institution. 

“There were no internal controls being 

observed on maintenance of the drug 

room as it was accessible to all members 

of the clinic staff. The dispensary of drugs 

was done from the sister-in-charge’s room 

and the drawer cabinets which housed the 

drugs had no keys for the better part of 

2013, posing a risk to pilferage,” reads the 

audit report. 

The auditors believe the reason why the 

drugs room keys were accessible was for 

staff to “share the blame” if the irregularities 

were noted by management. 

The audit also established that the movement 

of stock from central stores to the 

clinic’s drug room was not being properly 

recorded, a development the auditors believe 

was meant to frustrate audit trails. As a 

result, several drugs could not be accounted 

for. 

“At times drugs were recorded as issued 

from the drug room to the dispensary yet 

the dispensary did not receive the same 

quantities and vice-versa. 

Sister Tendai Murwira informed auditors 

that drugs, which were not on high 

demand, were donated to Harare Central 

Hospital, but the auditors noted that there 

were no documented authorisations of the 

donations. 

The auditors visited Harare Hospital to 

check if drugs had been donated and established 

that some of the drugs had not been 

received by the hospital. 

Records at Spilhaus Clinic also indicated 

that some drugs were transferred to Fife 

Avenue Clinic, among them about 400- 

metronidazole and 35 clotrimazole cream 

but the drugs were never received by the 

institution. 

The auditors expressed fear that the United 

Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef), which 

was donating drugs to the institution, could 

withdraw its support because of the abuse. 

“ZNFPC is one of the Unicef drug beneficiaries 

whose drugs are distributed through 

Natpham. It was noted that the drugs were 

received by the clinic’s sisters instead of the 

stores department and there was no documentation 

being kept by ZNFPC clinic staff 

on deliveries made during 2013,” reads the 

audit report. 

“The deliveries were made by National 

Pharmaceutical and the auditors’ visit to 

Staff at Spilhaus Clinic allegedly sold ZNFPC 

drugs and pocketed the money 

that organisation revealed that all deliveries 

which were done had accompanying delivery/receipt 

vouchers, and the ZNFPC clinic 

staff was given its own copies which they 

signed for to acknowledge receipt. 

However, Sister Murwira told auditors 

that there was no documentation on delivery 

while a nurse only referred to as Sister 

Nyahuye said the documents were lost and 

could not be replaced. 

The auditors noted that the missing quantities 

of drugs were so huge “that suspicions 

of a readily available market is in no doubt”. 

“Audit had no doubt that the reason why 

the guards were not invited to witness the 

receiving of drugs as per the norm in ZNFPC 

was to hide the stocks for personal benefit 

and defeat audit trail,” said the auditors. 

They managed to establish beyond any 

reasonable doubt that the clinic was open 

for business during annual shutdown after 

establishing that National Cytology assisted 

the clinic to offer Pap smear services. 

“On average one client was paying US$35 

to ZNFPC of which US$25 was for medication, 

US$5 for consultation and US$5 for 

procedure/management.” 

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Youth Fund defaulters 

face legal action 

ELIAS MAMBO 

HUNDREDS of Youth Development Fund beneficiaries 

face legal action after government 

told the banks which bankrolled the scheme 

to treat them as any other loan defaulters, 

the Zimbabwe Independent has learnt. 

“The banks handed over names of loan 

defaulters and as government we advised 

them to handle the cases as they would treat 

any other loan defaulter,” a senior government 

official said. “Government cannot pay 

for them because they were responsible for 

their actions and banks should use whatever 

methods they have to make them pay.” 

The official also said it is now up to the 

banks to attach property owned by defaulting 

youths. “The banks have their own mechanisms 

of recovering their money. It is up to 

them to attach and sell properties owned by 

the beneficiaries,” said the official. 

Indigenisation minister Nhema also said 

some of the youths had disappeared and 

changed their addresses and telephone 

numbers to avoid paying up. 

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Zimbabwe independent august 1 to 7, 2014 7 

fEaturE 

Tourist resorts price out locals 

Elias MaMbo 

ZIMBABWE’s once robust tourism sector 

has been recovering over the past few years 

and has the potential to be a major income 

generator, but this can only be enhanced 

through the promotion of local tourism 

which at the moment is at very low levels. 

While the country has immensely benefited 

from the resurgence of foreign tourists 

to the country’s various resorts, locals who 

could make a substantial contribution to the 

industry’s revenue generation sadly continue 

to be left out due to various factors, chief 

among them the high costs associated with 

travel, accommodation and even meals at 

resorts. 

A Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) 

survey revealed that domestic tourism is on 

the decline as hotels and other service providers 

are charging exorbitant fees at a time 

most Zimbabweans are struggling to make 

ends meet, with some now finding south 

Africa a cheaper destination. 

A number of local tourists in Victoria Falls 

last week expressed shock at the fees being 

charged by tourism service providers to 

locals. 

“Coming for holiday is very expensive, 

it’s like locals are not supposed to enjoy the 

tourism attractions around their own country,” 

said Luke sibanda of Masvingo. 

“Look at bungee jumping, it attracts a 

charge of Us$120 per jump, rafting Us$115, 

and a helicopter flight Us$150 for 12 minutes. 

There should be prices tailored for locals 

so that we also enjoy these attractions.” 

sibanda said locals were failing to raise 

money for accommodation at local hotels 

because the charges were way above what 

they spare from their meagre salaries. 

“Imagine a civil servant who earns 

Us$500 and is expected to pay Us$150 per 

night in a decent hotel. 

“They would want to visit with their families. 

What this means is that we cannot afford 

to visit our own resorts.” 

Closer to the capital, a day trip to Chengeta 

safari Lodge, situated at the foot of a granite 

kopje in selous, 75km west of Harare, costs 

Us$59 per person with children below 12 

years being charged Us$49. Chengeta also 

offers a package including transport to and 

from the city, which costs Us$89 per head. 

“This is a day trip that includes two activities, 

namely, a game drive and an afternoon 

boat cruise,” said an official from Chengeta. 

“Our event starts at 9am and ends at 4.30 in 

the afternoon,” he said, adding: “Lunch is 

also provided, but the Us$50 participants 

use their own transport to selous.” 

This means a family of six, with one child 

below 12, requires close to Us$500 for a day 

trip using the lodge’s transport. 

Accommodation is very expensive at 

tourist resorts in Zimbabwe as compared to 

other countries in the region. 

At Chengeta, accommodation ranges 

from Us$119 to Us$169 full board per night, 

while it costs Us$221 per night for a double 

room at the three-star Troutbeck Resort in 

Nyanga. 

A three-star hotel in Kariba, Caribbea Bay 

Hotel, is one of the cheapest in the country 

costing Us$52 per night for a double room. 

Kingdom Hotel, which is a four-star hotel, 

charges Us$1 827 for seven days while 

another four-star hotel in the same resort 

town, Rainbow, charges Us$1 069. In south 

Africa, Rockwell All suite Hotel in Cape 

Town, which is also four-star, costs at least 

R8 100 (Us$810), while in Durban Protea 

Hotel Edward charges Us$889 for the same 

number of days. 

In a move aimed at promoting domestic 

tourism, Tourism and Hospitality Industry 

minister Walter Mzembi is proposing a raft 

of policies that may boost local tourism. 

“The government is working on a plan 

in which the civil service will get holidays 

as part of their condition of service in a bid 

to grow domestic tourism,” Mzembi said 

recently, adding that “the proposal is now 

with the Public service Commission”. 

“We have products that can anchor that 

(plan). National Parks (and Wildlife Authority) 

has 700 beds that are empty. Rather 

than let those assets lie idle, I envisage collaboration 

between Tourism and Environment 

ministries to utilise that dead capacity. 

Prime resort ... The Elephant Hills Resort with the mighty Victoria Falls in the background. 

Helicopter rides are also available for those who can afford. 

“We have designed it. We have referred it 

to the employers to make it a condition of 

service,” he said. 

However, in separate interviews domestic 

tourists visiting the resort town of Victoria 

Falls accused the tourism industry of 

overpricing its products. 

They called on the sector to consider dual 

pricing in all areas to cater for locals and 

boost domestic tourism. 

The tourists said there should be prices for 

locals and foreigners for accommodation 

and other activities offered by the sector. 

Permanent secretary in the Tourism ministry 

Florence Nhekairo said the growth and 

development of domestic tourism has been 

hampered by exorbitant fees. 

“The government is concerned with fees 

charged by three-star hotels and below as 

they are higher than those of their counterparts 

in the region and we are looking into 

the various cost drivers.” 

A senior official in the Zimbabwe Council 

for Tourism who spoke on condition of 

anonymity said overpricing is a result of 

service providers who incur high costs in 

licence fees charged by sectors such as the 

Environmental Management Agency, the 

Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe 

Tourism Authority, Zimbabwe Revenue 

Authority, Zimbabwe National Water 

Authority and Zesa. 

“The tourism service providers end up increasing 

their costs because they are overburdened 

by licence fees and other operational 

costs which government has failed to 

control,” said the official. 

In an interview with the Zimbabwe Independent, 

ZTA head of public relations and 

corporate affairs sugar Chagonda said costs 

in local tourism are high so service providers 

can also maintain high standards. 

“It is true that Zimbabwe has a product 

which is on the expensive side when compared 

to other countries in the region,” 

Chagonda said. 

“The main reason is to keep high standards 

(in the sector) because there have been 

no revolving funds for the local players to 

borrow from to support their operations.” 

Chagonda also said the migration from 

the Zimbabwean dollar to the United states 

dollar also impacted on the costs of tourism 

because the sector’s charges remained very 

high as compared to south Africa and other 

countries in the region. 

He also said his organisation is busy coming 

up with a package that best suits the local 

people so that they can also enjoy touring 

all the tourism attractions.

8 

ZimbAbwE indEpEndEnt August 1 to 7, 2014 

editorial & opinion 

Zimbabwe 

independent 

HARARE, August 1 to 7, 2014 

Summit: Zim’s 

time to refocus 

THE theme for the Sadc Summit, which Zimbabwe is hosting 

in Victoria Falls this month, is forward-looking and expresses 

a keenness by the regional bloc to act on an issue 

that has remained unresolved since the end of colonialism 

more than 40 years ago. 

President Robert Mugabe who assumes the Sadc chair on a rotational 

basis is a man known to grab every opportunity to portray himself as a 

doyen of economic emancipation and an embodiment of social development. 

His officials have already started to build the nexus between 

this Mugabe fervour and the summit’s theme. 

“(The theme) Sadc Strategy For Economic Transformation: Leveraging 

the Region’s Diverse Resources For Sustainable Economic and 

Social Development Through Beneficiation and Value Addition, resonates 

with our national agenda,” Foreign Affairs minister Simbarashe 

Mumbengegwi told a media briefing recently. 

At the same briefing, the minister explained the ethos of the theme: 

“That’s the paradox. Why are we poor? Because we do not get the full 

benefit of our natural resources and this is the thrust we would want to 

champion not only during Mugabe’s chairmanship of Sadc ...” Mumbengegwi 

is right that Zimbabweans have not realised the full benefit 

of being endowed with natural resources. It is also true that Zimbabwe 

is a poor country. Mugabe will have to find a much more plausible 

explanation for this contradiction other than the now all too familiar 

neo-colonialism mantra. 

This tired line has now lost its lustre and Mugabe as new head of 

Sadc has to rise above this scapegoating and address fundamental issues 

which have stifled growth in a region that’s so rich in natural resources. 

Zimbabwe — which wants to advance the notion of economic 

emancipation through natural resource exploitation — has very little 

to show in this area. Mugabe may come unstuck in explaining to fellow 

heads how Zimbabwe has benefited from the exploitation of diamonds 

in Marange. 

Will he tell his colleagues that the Zimbabwe government and its 

military establishment has a shareholding in diamond mines but the 

Minister of Finance does not know what happened to revenues from 

the mining venture? What is evident though is how certain individuals 

in government and in parastatals suddenly became very rich when 

diamonds were discovered in Marange. 

But Zimbabwe will also hear of success stories from Botswana, Mozambique, 

Zambia and Angola, whose economies have shown sustained 

growth due to prudent natural resource exploitation. 

This summit should therefore be an opportunity for Mugabe to learn 

from his peers the tonic to attracting investment in natural resource 

exploitation and how to ensure that mineral wealth benefits the economy 

and not a few individuals. The summit will fail if Zimbabwe sees 

this as an opportunity to export its failed indigenisation project and 

retrogressive investment models, which has seen foreign capital skirting 

this country. 

Sadc heads should not fritter away the opportunity presented by the 

summit to discuss clear policies on natural resources, lest we remain 

forever poor. 

‘economy ain’t partying with you!’ 

PRESIDENT Robert 

Mugabe yesterday afternoon 

hosted a function 

at State House “to mark 

the first anniversary of 

Zanu PF’s resounding victory” in 

the July 31 general elections held 

last year, ending an acrimonious 

four-year coalition government. 

Invitees, according to Zanu PF 

spokesperson Rugare Gumbo, included 

politburo members, MPs, 

Harare leadership and captains of 

industry, with leading local musicians 

providing entertainment. 

A live blog showed pictures of 

who-is-who among the Zanu PF 

political elite, some in their finery. 

In his speech, Mugabe took 

potshots at the usual suspects 

including the opposition, the defunct 

unity government and the 

West. 

Zanu PF has much cause to 

celebrate given its remarkable 

comeback from its 2008 harmonised 

elections debacle in which 

it lost its parliamentary majority 

to the opposition, while MDC-T 

leader Morgan Tsvangirai defeated 

Mugabe, but fell shy of the requisite 

majority. 

Last year the party rebounded 

with an over two-thirds majority 

in parliament, while Mugabe 

triumphed after clinching 61% in 

the presidential vote. 

It is trite to point out the poll 

was marred by various glaring irregularities 

which however did 

not deter the region and continent 

at large from giving the poll a pass 

mark, while the West has been 

less charitable, insisting the poll 

Editor’s 

Memo 

stewart 

chabwinja 

schabwinja@zimind.co.zw 

lacked legitimacy. 

There is however general, in 

some quarters reluctant, consensus 

that the country must move 

on and rebuild after more than 

a decade in the economic doldrums 

that have condemned the 

majority to grinding poverty. But 

the post-election narrative has 

overwhelmingly been a tale of a 

resurgent economic crunch, putting 

paid to Zanu PF’s promises of 

economic revival. 

It is in the context of continued, 

some would say mounting, 

pauperisation of the majority that 

the wining, dining and dancing 

to local music at State House was 

never going to cascade beyond 

the property’s perimeter and onto 

the streets. 

Victory for victory’s sake is 

meaningless: Zimbabweans are 

more interested in the deliverables 

linked to the poll triumph 

and Zanu PF would be first to 

admit they have been too long in 

coming. 

While Zanu PF was celebrating 

the victory it claims “condemned 

MDC formations to the political 

dustbins”, more and more are literally 

living off dustbins as poverty 

deepens. 

Zanu PF’s victory has in fact 

erased some of the meagre 

gains recorded during the unity 

government. 

Despite lampooning the unity 

government as a three-headed 

creature weighed down by incoherence 

and disparate interests, 

Zanu PF has so far largely 

failed to deliver on sugar-coated 

promises because of self-same 

contradictions. 

Too often, there have been contradictory 

statements from ministers, 

especially on economic 

issues, suggesting not all cabinet 

hands are on deck. 

As once again stressed, this 

time by European Union head of 

delegation to Zimbabwe, Ambassador 

Aldo Dell’Ariccia, Zimbabwe 

needs to do more to attract 

elusive foreign direct investment 

as the environment is not yet 

conducive, but enough has been 

said on the matter, as is the case 

with endemic corruption. 

Until Zimbabweans’ livelihoods 

start improving, they are likely 

to take Mugabe’s recent claims 

that the economy is recovering 

with a large pinch of salt, to put it 

politely. 

So, as Zanu PF heavyweights 

made merry and raised their 

glasses to toast their elections 

victory, they would have done 

well to ponder the words of a 

Zimbabwean who tweeted: “Pity 

the economy ain’t partying with 

you!” 

Mugabe rhetoric haunts Chinamasa 

THESE are frantic times for Finance 

minister Patrick Chinamasa. 

As he goes from pillar to post in 

search of funding to breathe life 

into a deteriorating economy, he 

told delegates at the Institute of Chartered 

Accountants of Zimbabwe winter school in 

Victoria Falls last week that the economy 

was giving him sleepless nights. 

He appealed to captains of industry to 

help him with proposals to turn around the 

moribund economy. 

Chinamasa has engaged in constructive 

discussions with various financial institutions 

including the Bretton Woods institution, 

the International Monetary Fund. 

This comes as he has been told in no uncertain 

terms by President Robert Mugabe 

that he either raises money or is sacked. 

During his 90th birthday interview with 

Candid 

Comment 

kudzai kuwaza 

the state broadcaster, Mugabe said Chinamasa 

must raise money to pay civil servants 

a poverty datum line-linked salary. 

“And so we must have normal salaries ... 

Yes,we cannot have them from day one, but 

we must have them on paper for a start and 

work towards their being fulfilled in practice. 

And that Chinamasa is doing. At first 

he said we could not do it and I said well if 

you can’t do it tell me, I will get someone 

to do it.” 

Mugabe was not done. Last Saturday 

when he launched the US$3 million Capacity 

Development Programme jointly sponsored 

by Unicef and government, he took a 

swipe at Chinamasa. 

“When I said we should give 

US$600 000 to this programme, I saw Chinamasa 

looking down, but he could not 

say no, otherwise he would lose his job,” 

Mugabe said. 

Ironically, it is Mugabe’s rhetoric that 

threatens Chinamasa’s efforts to raise the 

funding he demands. He recently told 

Zanu PF supporters at Chipfundi Farm 

in Mhangura during the launch of the A1 

(small-scale commercial farm) permits 

that the remaining whites should not be allowed 

to own land in Zimbabwe. 

Several disruptive and occasionally violent 

farm invasions have been reported in 

the media since then. 

These utterances threaten to undo much 

of Chinamasa’s work searching for muchneeded 

funding. How does he engage and 

encourage investors when his boss is talking 

about kicking out all whites remaining 

on farms? 

Chinamasa has been forced to give frequent 

assurances that the Zimbabwe dollar 

will not return in the foreseeable future. 

The continued fretting over the return of 

the local currency can be attributed to remarks 

by Mugabe when he launched his 

party’s manifesto ahead of last year’s general 

elections. 

“We will get to a point that we shall say 

no, we need to get back our Zimbabwean 

dollar,” Mugabe said. This stark warning by 

Mugabe will ensure we have not heard the 

last assurance from the Finance minister 

on the issue of the Zimdollar.

ZIMbabwe IndePendent auguSt 1 to 7, 2014 9 

readerS’ Forum 

Match pitting MDC 

factions interesting 

MDC Renewal Team leader Tendai 

Biti 

• I understand morale is 

low following the end of the Fifa 

2014 World Cup that had kept 

us so entertained. don’t despair 

yet people, as we have our very 

own World Cup of sorts that is 

about to kick off — the MdC 

2014 World Cup pitting Morgan 

tsvangirai against tendai Biti 

Football Clubs. 

For those who may not have 

been following events on the 

political scene, FC tsvangirai 

and FC Biti were once one international 

club but FC Biti broke 

away to stand as an individual 

team following disagreements 

with the captain, tsvangirai. 

a quick look at the two teams: 

tsvangirai FC (Formation: 

4-4-2) 

Goalkeeper/Captain 

Morgan richard tsvangirai 

Defenders 

douglas Mwonzora 

Theresa Makone 

Job sikhala 

tapiwa Mashakada 

Midfielders 

Thokozani Khupe 

Lovemore Moyo 

Morgan Komichi 

eddie Cross 

Strikers 

Luke tamborinyoka 

nelson Chamisa 

tsvangirai FC on paper, looks 

to be the better team given its 

experience in the political premier 

league. However, their 

experience has failed to yield 

them any silverware, and 15 

years after its formation, the 

captain is yet to lift a single cup. 

some fans are starting to doubt 

his match fitness and ability to 

steer the team to greater heights 

as they feel he should retire. 

The captain is however adamant 

that even without silverware, 

he will lead the team until 

cows come home or donkeys 

have horns. 

The team’s strongest unit is its 

defence that has proved to be 

resilient in the face of spirited 

and goal-bound attacks from 

the opposing strikers. 

The old guard of Mwonzora, 

Mashakada and sikhala has so 

far managed to neutralise FC 

Biti strikers, drawing on their 

experience in the league. 

The trio has been with the 

captain since the formation of 

the team and is in sync with 

him. What the other defender, 

Makone lacks in experience and 

finesse, she makes up for it in 

enthusiasm. 

a point of worry is the captain 

tsvangirai, who has often betrayed 

his team through childish 

blunders in what should 

otherwise have been clear-cut 

saves. 

Often, it has been left to the 

defence and sometimes striker 

tamborinyoka to clear the ball 

from the goal line in a mad 

scramble. The goalkeeper’s ball 

distribution is also atrocious 

and his attempts at clearances 

often lands right in the path of 

marauding FC Biti strikers. 

The midfield is nothing to 

write home about as they appear 

tired and lack the energy 

to persevere for the entire 

game. The midfield quartet has 

often been guilty of needlessly 

losing the ball to the opponents. 

With regards to the strike 

force, the duo of Chamisa and 

tamborinyoka has remarkable 

speed and ability to launch 

quick forays into the opponent’s 

penalty area. 

sadly, the speed is not 

matched by accuracy and most 

of their efforts end in volleys 

way off target. Goals they have 

managed to score have so far 

been from set-pieces. 

Overall, the team appears to 

gel together but their collective 

effort is tired and predictable 

to the extent that opponents 

are able to counter their every 

move and take advantage of 

their weaknesses. 

FC Biti (Formation: 3-5-2) 

Goalkeeper/Captain 

tendai Biti 

Defenders 

samuel sipepa nkomo 

Last Maengahama 

Promise Mkwananzi 

Midfielders 

Gorden Moyo 

Paul Madzore 

solomon Madzore 

evelyn Masaiti 

reggie Moyo 

Strikers 

Jacob Mafume 

elton Mangoma 

FC Biti relies heavily on its 

youthful players who still have 

the zeal to take the game to the 

opponents. The team’s strongest 

point is its strike force that 

has proved to be lethal in front 

of goal, although not as pacey as 

their opponents. 

The FC Biti strike force of 

Mafume and Mangoma records 

more shots on target and accurately 

converts any mistakes 

by the opponents into scoring 

chances. The midfield, though 

still finding its feet, looks solid 

and highly mobile but needs 

to work more on their passing 

game to ensure smooth flow of 

play. 

as for the defenders, nkomo 

is the main anchor as he uses 

his experience to command the 

defence and there appears to be 

good coordination between him 

and the keeper. 

as for the captain and goalkeeper, 

Biti possesses calmness 

between the posts that his opposing 

number lacks and this 

enables him to effectively deal 

with shots fired by the FC tsvangirai 

strikers. 

Biti has also proved to be a 

better penalty stopper than his 

opposite number and this might 

come in handy if the game goes 

to the wire. He is also blessed 

with good ball distribution and 

often crafts moves that end in 

goals. 

For now, FC Biti appears to be 

yielding more results from long 

range shots, with Mangoma 

having acquired a reputation 

for firing blistering volleys into 

unsuspecting opponent’s nets. 

The club also has the advantage 

of being the moneybags 

and it is rumoured that they 

will soon acquire more topnotch 

players, even luring some 

from tsvangirai FC. 

now folks, don’t you think 

we are in for a good match? May 

the best team win. 

Nicole HoNdo. 

High Court did 

well to combat 

violence 

• tHe High Court of Zimbabwe 

did well by sentencing four Kadoma 

youths who committed manslaughter 

post the 2008 election 

run-off. The four Zanu PF youths 

namely nobert Muzhinji, Thabani 

Mashonganyika, sikhumbuzo 

Madhuveko and Mangisi Mutandavari, 

were on July 22 each sentenced 

to 15 years in jail for the 

murder of MdC-t supporter John 

Max in august 2008. The move by 

the court acts as a clear deterrent 

factor to would-be perpetrators 

of violence. It also goes to show 

that nobody is above the law thus 

cannot get away with grievous 

crimes of violence. 

cHeN cHikezHa. 

• The Independent last week reported 

the Ministry of Finance 

had arranged a us$1,4 million 

loan from the african development 

Bank which it will use to 

buy new luxury vehicles for its 

executives. There’s not much 

chance of the national debt being 

reduced when government is yet 

to learn that when you have dug 

yourself into a hole, the first thing 

to do is stop digging! 

Walt WHitemaN . 

• ZIMBaBWe lacks true political 

leadership. Those who are in 

power do not understand what 

the words “patriotism” and “nationlism” 

mean. The only words 

they understand quite well are 

“ego” and “greed”. until real 

leadership arises, there is no 

hope for recovery. also, the longer 

it is delayed, the harder it will 

be to fix. 

c Frizell. 

Chingoka’s 

departure was 

long overdue 

• Peter Chingoka’s departure 

from cricket was long overdue. 

This is the man who singlehandedly 

destroyed our cricket. 

Zimbabwe was a promising 

cricket nation but we lost the 

cream of our cricketers and ever 

since Zimbabwe has become a 

laughing stock. now countries 

like afghanistan can afford to 

beat Zimbabwe in consecutive 

matches. That is saddening. We 

need to take lessons from the 

time when there were more 

white people in the administration 

and when there were nine 

white players and two blacks, 

then we can start winning 

again. The cricket team we have 

is incompetent to represent 

Zimbabwe on the global stage. 

It’s a positive development that 

Chingoka is gone. 

cricket FaN. 

• We are a cursed generation. 

Pity those who are going to live 

long and tell their children the 

tragedy of the Zimbabwean political 

story. I wonder what questions 

these children will ask? 

Obviously they will laugh at the 

answers we are going to give. 

GeNeral SaiNt. 

• ZIMBaBWe’s economy is in 

turmoil. economic indicators 

point to an economy in steep 

decline. How can we speak of 

growth when companies are 

closing on a daily basis while the 

unemployment rate is surging? 

Perhaps Zimbabwe has its own 

way of calculating growth. 

tHula. 

Bring finality to land reform 

• Zanu PF government must bring the issue of land reform to finality. 

The recent farm invasions came after President robert Mugabe 

told his party supporters in Mhangura that the remaining whites 

should not be allowed to own land in Zimbabwe. With such utterances, 

most of us will do our best to oppose the leadership of Mugabe 

and Zanu PF. The party’s ideology is stuck in the colonial era, characterised 

by racism and hatred. Mugabe must realise that racial segregation 

has no place in the 21st century. What I saw during my recent 

visit to Zimbabwe is that its economy is running because whites had 

made remarkable strides in terms of development. so why should 

Zanu PF demonise whites? It’s sad I and my family were forced into 

exile, yet I ran the largest solar manufacturing business in southern 

africa. 

c Frizell. 

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10 


feature 

Things fall further apart in Chi-Town 

Wongai ZhangaZha 

DRIVING through one of Chitungwiza’s 

suburbs, Zengeza 3 Extension, 

the smell of raw sewage is 

sharp and the rancid stench hits 

you in the face just as you enter 

the suburb. 

Sewage flows from manholes 

onto the dusty streets creating 

streams, with swarms of flies hovering 

over the raw affluent which 

has become a common sight in 

many high-density suburbs. 

To make the situation more tolerable, 

concerned residents pushing 

wheel barrows of sand could 

be seen trying to temporarily cover 

the flowing sewage, but it is a 

losing battle. 

“This is the only way we can 

protect ourselves to a limited extent,” 

said an angry resident who 

identified himself as Munamato. 

“Since we started reporting these 

sewage leaks to council in February, 

there has been no improvement. 

Today (Wednesday) we 

have gone to report again at council’s 

works department and they 

said they will come to attend to 

the problem, but we know they 

will not.” 

Just close to the flowing raw 

sewage is a deserted borehole that 

used to service residents from as 

far as Zengeza 1 and 2. 

“We are afraid to fetch water 

from there as we believe it’s contaminated 

and not safe to drink. 

But who cares about how we live. 

We have been living like this for 

so many years and the strike by 

council workers has only worsened 

our woes,” adds Munamato. 

Chitungwiza, Harare’s teeming 

dormitory town, is a veritable 

health time bomb. Parts of Chitungwiza 

such as Unit K, P, G and 

Unit N have gone without running 

water for two weeks, while sections 

like Zengeza 1 and 2 have 

been receiving erratic supplies of 

water. Refuse has not been collected 

in some areas for more than 

a month, with huge garbage piles 

on street corners and choking 

potholed roads. 

In some parts of Seke as well as 

St Mary’s, raw sewage also flows 

on the streets as workers are not 

attending to burst pipes. 

Over a million residents in the 

town have lived with flowing raw 

sewage and water problems over 

a decade. During the 2008-2009 

cholera epidemic, which killed 

about 4 000 people, the town was 

one of the hardest hit. 

Residents also have to contend 

with piles of uncollected garbage, 

dilapidated infrastructure and frequent 

power cuts. 

What has compounded an already 

dire situation is the strike 

by council workers. The workers 

downed their tools a month 

ago demanding outstanding salaries 

and allowances amounting 

to US$11 million accrued over 13 

months. 

Although the workers have “resumed” 

work, they are on a goslow. 

During the strike, the workers 

turned away ratepayers claiming 

that if they paid their bills the 

money would be squandered by 

management. 

The Zimbabwe National Army 

had to be called in to help manage 

critical departments at Chitungwiza 

Town Council, particularly 

the health department whose 

clinics were unmanned after 

nursing staff downed tools leaving 

patients stranded. 

Despite Chitungwiza producing 

many prominent Zimbabweans 

including the finest musicians, 

evangelists and soccer players, the 

town has little to show for it. 

Health time bomb ... Raw sewage flows freely in Chitungwiza while a council truck approaches a garbage dump that threatens to cut off a street. 

Legendary musicians like the 

late John Chibadura and James 

Chimombe, System Tazvida, the 

Mahendere Brothers, Mechanic 

Manyeruke, Charles Charamba 

and his wife Olivia have all 

sprung from the dormitory town, 

famously known as Chi-Town, 25 

kilometres south of Harare. 

Chitungwiza has also produced 

soccer stars such as Alois Bunjira, 

Stewart Murisa, Lloyd Mutasa, 

Lloyd Chitembwe, Frank Nyamukuta, 

Farai Jere and Norman 

Mapeza and charismatic evangelists 

like Emmanuel Makandiwa 

of the United Family International 

Church and Walter Magaya of 

Prophetic Healing and Deliverance 

Ministries. 

The once thriving satellite town, 

established in the 1970s, is now a 

pale shadow of its past. 

So what has happened to Chitungwiza 

with such facilities as 

the Aquatic Complex, and the 

Town Centre which it once boasted 

of? Where is the satellite metropolitan 

and civic centre which 

were supposed to have been built 

in Seke and the railway line linking 

the town to Harare? 

Illegal residential settlements 

are mushrooming and crime is on 

the rise as unemployment reaches 

alarming levels in the town. 

The strike by council workers 

has made matters worse. 

A visit to Seke South council 

clinic in Unit L revealed a sorry 

state of affairs as council workers 

continued on a go-slow. 

A snaking queue of patients 

waiting to be served in the opportunistic 

infections department of 

the clinic was moving at a snail’s 

pace. 

A worker at the clinic who preferred 

anonymity told the Zimbabwe 

Independent that life was tough 

and they were anxiously awaiting 

the three months’ salary expected 

on July 31 as promised. 

“Morale is very low. Look at me. 

I am a nurse, but I am not even 

wearing my uniform to work and 

that says a lot. I am just coming 

to work because it’s better than 

staying at home. It’s by the grace 

of God that I am surviving,” said 

the council worker. “Most of my 

colleagues are surviving on selling 

odds and ends during working 

hours.” 

She said as health employees, 

they could not totally down their 

tools. 

“Some of these patients would 

have been booked already and 

turning them away would be cruel. 

The council should just give us 

our salaries so that we can work. 

We have shown a lot of commitment 

and patience despite the 

Workers are now reluctantly back at work after 

being threatened with a show cause order registered 

by the minister at the Labour Court, but the 

go-slow is obviously negatively affecting council 

operations and the delivery of essential services. 

tough times,” she said. 

Five babies were delivered by 

noon on Wednesday at the clinic. 

The Chitungwiza Progressive 

Residents Association programmes 

manager Admire Mutize 

this week said the collapse of 

service delivery in Chitungwiza 

accelerated just before last year’s 

harmonised polls when Local 

Government minister Ignatius 

Chombo gave a directive scrapping 

bills owed by residents. 

Said Mutize: “Workers are now 

reluctantly back at work after being 

threatened with a show cause 

order registered by the minister 

at the Labour Court, but the goslow 

is obviously negatively affecting 

council operations and the 

delivery of essential services.” 

He said before the strike municipal 

workers collected refuse 

on a weekly basis, but since resuming 

work, refuse collection 

has become erratic with some 

areas going for up to three weeks 

without service. 

On water supply, Mutize said 

some areas were receiving water 

once a week for only five hours 

and residents were now relying 

on untreated wells in their backyards, 

exposing themselves to 

water-borne diseases. 

Chitungwiza Town Clerk 

George Makunde on Wednesday 

said morale was still very low 

even though workers resumed 

work last week on Friday. 

Makunde said: “Workers are 

demoralised because they have 

not yet received their salaries. We 

are still working on the modalities 

and from where it’s coming from 

it is very possible that we will be 

able to pay them before the first of 

August.” 

He however denied that workers 

are on a go-slow. 

“They are just overwhelmed 

by the work backlog. You have to 

understand that these are people 

who missed six days of work. So 

reports of sewage blockages and 

bursts we have received are too 

many, not only in Zengeza Extension. 

Residents have to take 

cognisant of that though we are 

working flat out to solve the 

problems.” 

He said one of the reasons they 

could not pay the workers was 

because residents owed the town 

council US$28 million as from 

July 2013 after debts were written 

off on the orders of Chombo before 

elections last year.

ZiMbabwe independenT augusT 1 To 7, 2014 11 

column 

A 

Daily News heading on 

Monday read “Grace 

Mugabe: Mutasa speaks.” 

Actually it was more like Mutasa 

Squeaks. 

“If the women have nominated 

Amai (First Lady), this 

means it is what they want,” he 

concluded. 

Is it? Or are they all worms 

and weevils who do what they 

are told? 

Come on Didymus, show us 

some backbone. All you jongwes 

are pathetic instruments of 

somebody else’s ambitions. And 

contrary to your claims, this is 

factionalism writ large. 

Mutasa wants to know what 

factionalism has to do with it. 

Well, how about the way you all 

fell over each other to demonstrate 

your loyalty to the Gushungo 

throne, a partisan loyalty 

with no depth. 

Mutasa trotted out the old 

mantra: “In any case there is 

no vacancy in the office of the 

president. It is occupied by Cde 

Mugabe.” 

Unashamed 

Then we had Transport 

minister Obert Mpofu 

boasting of his self-made 

millions. Is it sensible to advertisement 

this way? 

But it was good to see parliament 

gearing up to deal with 

Mpofu’s creature, Godwills 

Masimirembwa. 

Mpofu looked genuinely 

shocked when MPs made clear 

they didn’t share his confidence 

in the aspiring Mabvuku MP. 

James Maridadi led the charge 

and in so-doing provided a great 

advertisement for live TV. 

This is a reform that we can all 

endorse. 

Decision to endorse Grace Mugabe to lead the Zanu PF’s Women’s League 

is set to widen factional rifts 

MUCKRAKER 

Twitter: @MuckrakerZim 

“Masvingo 

Provincial Affairs 

minister 

Kudakwashe 

Bhasikiti ... has 

called on 

government to 

construct a bigger 

hospital ... that 

victims can quickly 

access medical 

attention. 

Has it not occurred 

to him to campaign 

for better driving 

instead of bigger 

hospitals?” 

shoRt And swEEt ... 

Zanu PF entrenching Mugabe dictatorship 

The endorsement of Grace Mugabe to become 

Zanu PF Women’s League boss testifies that 

nothing new is emanating from the corridors 

of power. It is the norm that Mugabe sneezes and 

the ruling party catches cold. 

not even a single top official in the upper echelons 

of power can stand up to express dissent and President 

Robert Mugabe is aware of that. The choice of 

Grace is hardly the best Zanu PF has ever made in its 

political history — she does not possess the acumen 

required of an accomplished politician. even when 

Pathetic tools backing 

political ambition 

she addressed the Women’s League in Mazowe, her 

voice, contrasted with that of the outgoing secretary 

Oppah Muchinguri, was less convincing. 

Without doubt she is simply serving to entrench 

the ideology that Mugabe is Zanu PF and for one to 

survive within the circles of power, he/she must 

sing and dance for him. This exhibits dictatorship 

that has been part of Zimbabwe since Independence, 

where fellow cadres who differed with Mugabe were 

sacked. now the so-called political stalwarts are 

forced to comply in what they don’t believe! 

We wouldn’t however support 

the deputy speaker. She intervened 

too often and unecessarily. 

A Commonwealth journey 

to Australia and Westminster 

would show us how it’s done: 

Robust but even-handed. Actually 

the Australians in their 

house in Canberra are much 

ruder than anybody else. 

Feeling the heat 

SOuTh Africa is experiencing 

the consequences of the 

deranged Julius Malema in 

their Gauteng assembly. he has 

been booted out of the chamber 

for wearing — along with his followers 

— bright red overalls. 

he has not done justice to 

the chance he had at the opening 

session of the new Gauteng 

legislature to explain his party’s 

policies. 

his critics say it would have 

been better to ignore him than 

let him become a martyr to his 

boiler-suit cause! 

his followers have also been 

involved in riotous demonstrations. 

They broke into the chamber 

and ate the food supplied for 

MPs of all parties, not just Malema’s 

gang. 

Sunday Times columnist Sthembiso 

Msomi says the eFF’s gains 

in support over the past year 

EFF leader Julius Malema 

could be squandered if it continues 

the indefensible tactics it 

used to protest against the dress 

code. 

Incompatible 

TheRe are two other things 

that need our attention this 

week. It is a sign of a fawning 

society without intelligent 

direction that leads MPs and 

others to compare Grace Mugabe 

with Mother Theresa. 

We really don’t need their 

praise-singing. There is enough 

of that already. 

Mother Theresa in India was 

widely respected and liked. As a 

result she was listened to by ordinary 

Indians. Can the same be 

said of Zimbabwe’s politicians? 

Keep off 

One of those, Masvingo 

Provincial Affairs minister 

Kudakwashe Bhasikiti 

thinks there should be improvements 

along the Masvingo road. 

he has called on government 

to construct a bigger hospital 

near the Masvingo highway so 

that accident victims can quickly 

access medical attention. 

has it not occurred to him to 

campaign for better driving instead 

of bigger hospitals? Most of 

Zimbabwe’s accidents take place 

at night and involve poor driving 

skills. Many are head on. 

The Zimbabwe independent has 

called on the public not to drive 

at night. It is a suicide note to 

family and friends. Drivers are 

often competing with livestock 

for road space. 

Keep off the road at night. That 

is our message.

12 

ZIMBABWE INDEPENDENT AUGUST 1 TO 7, 2014 

COLUMN 

Mid-year budget review vital 


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FOR nearly two months, many in Zimbabwe 

have awaited with much concern the 

presentation by Finance minister Patrick 

Chinamasa of government’s 2014 midyear 

Budget Review. Traditionally, the 

minister submits to parliament (and hence 

to the population) his budgetary proposals 

and intents for the ensuing calendar year, 

usually in November of each year. However, 

in addition, in late June or July, the 

minister normally provides parliamentarians 

a detailed review of the state’s fiscal 

performance for the first half-year. Concurrently, 

he would table such fiscal policy 

changes as he perceives necessary for the 

remainder of the country’s fiscal year. 

The population’s mid-year budgetary 

concerns have been no less in 2014 than 

in previous years. The economy has enjoyed 

a marginal upturn in contrast to the 

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recurrent declines in preceding years, but 

the extent of the upturn has been far below 

that needed to alleviate government’s 

bankruptcy, and relatively insignificant as 

against the magnitude of revival needed to 

address the widespread poverty that prevails 

in Zimbabwe. 

Moreover, Zimbabwe’s economy continues 

to be grossly insufficient to fund the 

extensive needs for infrastructural maintenance, 

rehabilitation, and development. 

With almost all of the population vested 

with such legitimate concerns, a mid-year 

Budget review was anticipated, with pronounced 

hope and expectation that government 

would convincingly disclose the 

actions being taken to address the concerns. 

The Minister of Finance’s decision 

not to present a Mid-Year Budget review 

has driven most of the population to assume 

that, on the one hand government 

has failed to comply with its 2014 Budget in 

the first half-year or, on the other hand, has 

been unable to determine acceptable and 

effective remedial actions to be pursued in 

order to address the state’s fiscal crises. 

The over-riding thought of most Zimbabweans 

was that government may, at last, 

have recognised that fiscal policies could be 

a major trigger for a progressive economic 

upturn, notwithstanding that various other 

economic recovery triggers would also be 

necessary if a comprehensive recovery, 

and subsequent growth, are to be achieved. 

The key issues which Zimbabwe’s economically-oppressed 

businesses, their employees 

and most of the population anticipated 

could be addressed in the review include: 

A summation of government’s income 

and expenditure during the first half-year, 

and the extent that the fiscus has been able 

to fulfill its declared intents to curb governmental 

spending, containing such spending 

within the bounds of the period’s fiscal 

inflows. By so doing, government will not 

have had to resort to yet further borrowings, 

which will have further swelled up 

Zimbabwe’s huge national debt. 

In like context, the populace expected 

Chinamasa to provide credible and convincing 

details of the foreshadowed state 

income and expenditure during the second-half 

of 2014, and of the extent of fiscal 

revenues as are expected to exceed expenditures 

(if government’s declared intents 

that Zimbabwe cease to expend more than 

its revenues were genuine and credible). 

Measures to stimulate economic recovery, 

with concomitant significant increases 

in the numbers gainfully employed, progressively 

diminishing the massive extent of 

unemployment that currently results in the 

vast majority of the populace being grievously 

impoverished. Amongst these measures 

needs to be the introduction of meaningful 

export incentives, as was previously 

provided by government. Those incentives 

are key to manufacturers in Zimbabwe being 

able to be competitive in export markets, 

with products manufactured in other 

countries who accord their manufacturers 

immense export incentives. 

The reintroduction of substantive export 

incentives would be highly stimulating to 

the economy in general, and creative of 

increased employment in particular. The 

consequential economic growth would 

enhance fiscal inflows which would enable 

the state to fund the incentives without 

prejudice to its resources. 

Review of Zimbabwean import duties 

and allied charges, to provide that imports 

of manufacturing inputs should be free of 

such charges, whilst imports of goods in 

competition with locally manufactured 

should be subjected to duties to an extent 

that would result in equal selling prices of 

the locally manufactured products with the 

imported, resulting in consumers’ product 

selection being founded upon product 

quality, and upon domestic loyalty. 

Introduction of meaningful investment 

incentives, stimulatory of both domestic 

and foreign investment. Such incentives 

could include prescribed periods of “startup” 

tax holdings, wherein there would be 

no liability to income tax on projects attained 

during such prescribed periods. 

Other incentives could include waivers of 

liability to Value Added Tax (VAT) on initial 

imports, and concessional import duty 

rates. 

Tax incentives to employers who increase 

the numbers of Zimbabweans employed by 

them, on a continuing basis, coupled with 

incentives by way of enhanced deductibility 

of costs sustained in training employees. 

Support for the tourism sector, enabling 

hotels, lodges, tour operators, and other 

providers of services to tourists to be internationally 

price competitive, concurrently 

with enhancement of facilities and services.


analysis 

Grace factor rocks Mujuru camp 

Herbert Moyo 

FIRST Lady Grace Mugabe’s entrance into 

Zanu PF politics as the party’s Women’s 

League boss has shaken Vice-President 

Joice Mujuru’s camp, which seemed to have 

taken a lead in the race to succeed President 

Robert Mugabe. 

Mujuru seemed to have outmanoeuvred 

her arch-rival, Justice minister Emmerson 

Mnangagwa at district and provincial levels 

across the country ahead of the party’s 

youth and women’s leagues congresses this 

month, to be followed by an elective congress 

in December. 

Mujuru and her allies must have been 

shocked by sensational political developments 

last weekend when the Women’s 

League proposed Mugabe appoints her into 

the politburo as secretary for women’s affairs 

in December. 

The vice-president probably never saw it 

coming — especially at a time when it appeared 

that all her ducks were in a row to 

ensure she succeeds Mugabe at the helm of 

the party and government. 

Grace’s unexpected entrance into Zanu 

PF politics changes the succession matrix in 

the party, which had up to now mostly pitted 

Mujuru against Mnangagwa as the two 

leading contenders for the presidency. 

Mujuru’s strategic position in the party 

appeared to favour her ascension to the 

leadership of the party. 

Zanu PF recently announced rules and 

regulations for election, requiring a minimum 

of 15 years uninterrupted service to 

the party as prerequisites for candidates 

vying for the central committee and Women’s 

League, which disqualified many in 

Mnangagwa’s camp but fortified Mujuru’s 

hold on critical party structures. 

Those in Mnangagwa’s camp who stand 

disqualified include chairpersons who 

were suspended from the party in the aftermath 

of the 2004 Tsholotsho declaration 

which sought to elevate Mnangagwa to the 

vice-presidency. 

However, the advent of Grace, who celebrated 

her 49 th birthday last week, changes 

the dynamics of the succession matrix 

in Zanu PF, considering that the Women’s 

League has been powerful in influencing 

critical decisions in the party including elevating 

Mujuru to the vice presidency ahead 

of Mnangagwa who was a shoe-in after securing 

the support of six out of 10 provinces 

in 2004. 

Mujuru was absent when the party’s 

Women’s League from all provinces converged 

at Grace’s farm in Mazowe on Friday 

and unanimously resolved to endorse 

her to take over from Oppah Muchinguri as 

leader of the organ — a development which 

will also secure her ticket to the politburo 

if adopted by Mugabe. The official explanation 

was that Mujuru does not have to attend 

meetings of a party organ. 

Since the meeting in Mazowe was attended 

by women from both factions, could this 

mean that the so-called Mugabe faction was 

now coming out of its shell? 

What implications does this have on 

Mugabe’s successor considering what the 

president said in April when he revealed 

that the race was not just between Mujuru 

and Mnangagwa. 

Mugabe told a gathering of his Gushungo 

kinsmen in his rural Zvimba district on 

April 4: “In many provinces we hear of divisions 

along factional lines. It is said Mai Mujuru 

and Minister Mnangagwa are aspiring 

for the presidency. People will choose who 

they want. It is not just these two.” 

He repeated this later that month telling 

Ghanaian-born British film-maker 

Roy Agyemang, “I have people in mind 

who would want to be. But I have looked 

at them. I have not come to any conclusion 

as to which one, really, should be. I leave it 

to the choice of people. Perhaps when we 

get close to the election I will have some in 

mind.” 

At 49, Grace has age on her side and could 

well be preparing to succeed her husband 

who is 90 years and cannot go beyond 2023 

because of a two-term limit imposed by the 

new constitution. 

But it remains to be seen how she could 

possibly achieve this given her relative lack 

of political experience. 

First Lady Grace Mugabe’s entrance into politics changes the succession matrix in Zanu PF 

Vice-President Joice Mujuru’s camp has been shaken by the Zanu PF Women’s League’s unanimous resolution to elevate Grace 

However, even if she may not be aspiring 

for the highest office, Grace will certainly 

become an important power broker who 

has to be courted by whoever wants to succeed 

Mugabe. 

Political analyst Godwin Phiri said: “It is 

unlikely that she (Grace) will succeed her 

husband but given her marital status and 

the fact of leading the Women’s League she 

immediately becomes a key power broker.” 

“While others need meetings to influence 

the president she has uninterrupted 

access. The factions will have to engage her 

to improve their chances of succeeding the 

president.” 

Viewed from that perspective, it may be 

that the Mnangagwa faction has stolen a 

march on rivals given Muchinguri’s key role 

in Grace’s endorsement last week. 

Not only was Muchinguri present at the 

event, the nation was informed that she 

voluntarily gave up her position to accommodate 

Grace before proceeding to milk the 

event to the fullest to denigrate her faction’s 

rivals. 

“Vamwe vaivhoterwa mumabhawa vachitenga 

vanhu Mhai (Some were buying votes in bars, 

they looked for hecklers to denigrate genuine 

cadres),” Muchinguri said of the provincial 

elections that catapulted seven Mujuru 

loyalists to power. 

While it is tempting to think that because 

Muchinguri is a Mnangagwa loyalist therefore 

her actions are all premised on ensuring 

he sneaks in ahead of Mujuru, the Zanu 

PF internal politics is more complex than 

that and as suggested by another analyst 

Dumisani Nkomo, Muchinguri may well be 

nursing ambitions of her own. 

“The question to ask is whether Oppah is 

doing this not as a Mnangagwa but a Mugabe 

loyalist doing the president’s bidding, helping 

place the president’s wife in a strategic 

position in order to secure family interests 

after his departure,” said Nkomo. 

“Could it be that she is doing this with the 

understanding of the Mugabes that she and 

her co-workers will get their rewards from 

the old man if they deliver for his family? If 

so, this would seem a faster way for Oppah 

of accessing her desired political objective 

than working through Mnangagwa since in 

this instance she is dealing directly with the 

power broker in Zanu PF, Mugabe himself.” 

Nkomo may well be right given that allegiances 

have been shifting within Zanu PF 

on the basis of whom between Mujuru and 

Mnangagwa appears to have the upper hand 

at any particular time. 

Beyond the higher aspirations of succeeding 

to the national leadership, it may 

be that Grace’s entry into politics may have 

been motivated by the more mundane need 

for self-preservation. 

The First Family has extensive business 

interests in farming, dairy and possibly in 

the mining sector too — all of which may 

need to be protected from retribution which 

has been known to occur whenever there is 

a new political dispensation. 

In Zambia, former President Frederick 

Chiluba suffered the indignity of having his 

wealth investigated and appearing in court 

after Levy Mwanawasa took over as president. 

This may be something that Grace 

wants to prevent from happening to her and 

her family after Mugabe’s departure. 

“It is clear that Mugabe is looking to put in 

place structures and people that will protect 

his legacy and these are people he can trust 

— especially his wife,” said Brian Raftopolous, 

a political analyst. 

While Grace’s real motives are still under 

scrutiny, the reality is that her entry into 

the political arena will only serve up more 

twists and turns to the high drama of the 

Zanu PF succession.

14 

ZImbabwe INdepeNdeNt aUgUst 1 to 7, 2014 

opinion 

IRIN 

NEWLY introduced land permits for resettled 

smallholder farmers will bring little 

gain to the thousands of beneficiaries who 

are struggling to get loans from banks to finance 

their operations, say farmers’ organisations 

and analysts. 

President Robert Mugabe launched the 

new “A1” (small-holder) land permit at 

the beginning of July at a ceremony in rural 

Mashonaland East where he described 

the document as a reason for Zimbabwe to 

“celebrate the emancipation and empowerment 

of our people”. So far only 2 000 out of 

more than 200 000 resettled farmers have 

received the new document. 

The permit will replace the offer letters 

that the farmers received following the fasttrack 

land redistribution programme that 

started in 2000, eventually forcing more 

than 4 500 white commercial farmers off 

their plots to make way for landless blacks. 

The offer letters gave the resettled farmers 

99-year leases, but banks refused to accept 

them as collateral when approached for 

loans to buy farming inputs, grow livestock 

numbers, diversify crops and pay labourers. 

According to the Lands ministry, the new 

permits can be used as title deeds and will 

be issued to “indigenous” — meaning black 

according to the indigenisation law — Zimbabweans 

settled on a “properly planned 

and verified farm”. 

The permits can be inherited by family 

members and spouses while divorced 

spouses can still retain landholding rights. 

The old offer letters did not specify whether 

the resettled farms could be inherited, although 

surviving spouses and children often 

continued to live on and work the land, 

sometimes leading to ownership disputes. 

However, even under the new permits, 

ultimate ownership of the land continues 

to rest with the state which can repossess 

farms not being fully utilised. Current permit 

holders are expected to build decent 

homesteads on their plots, avoid sub-letting 

their properties and ensure that there 

are clean and safe water sources. 

According to the Lands ministry, farmers 

whose land is repossessed by the government 

will be able to claim compensation for 

any improvements made while they occupied 

it. 

The ministry initially said the new document 

would not only give farmers greater 

security of tenure, but could be used to borrow 

money from banks, encouraging investment 

on farms. However, farmers and 

economists have pointed out that banks will 

not accept the new permits as security due 

to the lack of guarantees that they would be 

able to recover their money. 

“The land remains state land and government 

has the final say on the farms. This 

makes banks powerless in the event that a 

farmer defaults as they don’t have authority 

to seize the property or auction it to recover 

their money,” said Wonder Chabikwa, 

president of the Zimbabwe Commercial 

Farmers Union. 

Financial assistance 

Eric Bloch, an independent economist, said 

financial assistance was “very critical” for 

the resettled smallholder farmers. 

“Most of the farmers are from low-income 

households; so, in order to grow their 

farming business, they need to borrow. The 

money is essential for inputs, to pay farm 

labourers and ensure there is adequate water 

for irrigation by sinking boreholes or 

wells. 

“Besides decongesting the land, one of 

the main purposes of resettling the people 

was to ensure that they boosted agricultural 

production. The farmers have to go beyond 

subsistence, but must be enabled to farm at 

a commercial level,” Bloch told IRIN. 

Zimbabwe has faced chronic weatherrelated 

food shortages in the past decade 

with a significant proportion of the country’s 

rural population needing food assistance 

from the UN World Food Programe 

and other aid agencies in recent years. 

Bloch said while some farmers had been 

enjoying good yields since resettlement, the 

majority were under-utilising their land 

because of poor access to finance, while 

Zimbabwe’s poorly performing economy 

had also taken a toll. 

After making some fragile gains under 

New permits offer little 

for resettled farmers 

Some of the resettled farmers who received new land permits in Mashonaland Central recently. 

the previous coalition government made 

up of President Robert Mugabe’s Zanu PF 

party and the two formations of the Movement 

for Democratic Change, the economy 

has been in crisis over the past year since 

Mugabe and Zanu PF won general elections 

in July last year. Company closures and 

downsizings have been on the increase, 

pushing up already high levels of unemployment 

and hitting household incomes. 

Farmers who relied on remittances from 

their children or relatives working in the 

towns and cities have seen those remittances 

dwindle, while a widespread shortage 

of inputs on the local market was pushing 

prices up and reducing the farmers’ 

capacity to buy enough fertiliser and seed, 

said Bloch. 

Sinodia Makwara (51) received an eightacre 

plot in Mazowe, some 60km northwest 

of Harare in Mashonaland Central Province 

10 years ago, but told IRIN she had not been 

able to fully utilise all of her land due to a 

lack of capital. 

“I need money to sink a well in order 

to irrigate my vegetables and other crops 

when the rains are poor and there is no 

water in the river. I also need to buy more 

cattle to increase my draught power and to 

pay those that provide tractors for tillage,” 

she said. 

With a US$5 000 loan, Makwara, a widower 

who lives with her three children and 

five grandchildren, believes she could buy 

more inputs, hire more labourers, increase 

her acreage and turn her farm into a profitmaking 

business. 

Failure to pay farmers 

Vince Musewe, an independent economist, 

said failure over the years by the government-controlled 

Grain Marketing Board 

(GMB) to pay resettled farmers for their 

grain had increased the need for them to 

access loans. 

“GMB has prejudiced farmers because 

of delayed payments for delivered grain or 

a complete failure to pay. As a result, the 

farmers have been struggling to mobilise 

inputs come the next farming season. They 

also need money for chemicals when crop 

or livestock diseases break out,” he told 

IRIN. 

It will be difficult for banks to use structures such 

as houses and other immovable properties acquired 

by the resettled farmers as collateral. 

Banks are afraid that the properties might fail to 

attract buyers since they are based in rural areas. 

Over the years, the government and 

NGOs have provided free inputs to smallholder 

farmers, but they were not sufficient, 

according to Musewe, and government 

recently announced that starting this 

year it would no longer be providing any 

free farming inputs. 

An ongoing research study by Ian 

Scoones, at the Institute of Development 

Studies at the University of Sussex in the 

UK, looking at the impacts of Zimbabwe’s 

land reform programme in Masvingo Province 

found that resettled farmers have 

tended to produce more than those farming 

communal land. 

Musewe said this was mainly because the 

land they were cultivating was generally 

larger and more fertile. He added, however, 

that both groups of farmers needed financing 

to boost production. 

No guarantees to loans 

Lands minister Douglas Mombeshora recently 

admitted to the government-controlled 

Sunday Mail newspaper that the permits 

would not in fact guarantee access to 

bank loans, but insisted they would give 

beneficiaries greater security of tenure. 

Chabikwa agreed that the new permits 

would increase farmers’ security by giving 

them permanent rights to the land allocated 

to them. Previously, resettled farmers 

have sometimes been arbitrarily evicted to 

make way for other more politically powerful 

individuals. As a result, the farmers 

were reluctant to make permanent improvements 

to their plots. Now, “they can 

go ahead and build permanent structures 

knowing that they will not be removed at 

will,” said Chabikwa. 

However, Musewe said improvements 

made to the farms would not have much 

value. 

“It will be difficult for banks to use structures 

such as houses and other immovable 

properties acquired by the resettled farmers 

as collateral. Banks are afraid that the 

properties might fail to attract buyers since 

they are based in rural areas.” 

He added, however, that resettled farmers 

would still lack security of tenure. 

“Government, or some individuals, can 

still evict the farmers on flimsy grounds if 

they feel that occupants of land are politically 

incorrect. They can use flimsy excuses 

like lack of productivity to victimise their 

enemies,” he said. 

Chabikwa said his organisation was considering 

other ways of providing security 

for loans, among them developing cattle 

banks and insurance certificates based on 

farmers’ possessions. 

A local financial institution, Steward 

Bank, has already introduced cattle banking, 

whereby farmers can use their livestock 

as collateral when they need loans 

and gain interest on the cattle. 

Borrowing farmers can get back their 

cattle, which are cared for and kept by the 

bank at designated places, after two years 

one can choose to leave them there for 

longer. 

IRIN is a United Nations news agency which concentrates 

on humanitarian news and analyses.


opinion 

Zim’s Letter of Intent to the IMF 

THE following article is an edited 

version of a Letter of Intent to the 

International Monetary Fund (IMF) 

co-signed by Finance minister Patrick 

Chinamasa and Reserve Bank of 

Zimbabwe (RBZ) governor John 

Mangudya. It describes the policies 

that the country is implementing in 

the framework of a Staff Monitored 

Programme (SMP) — an informal 

and flexible instrument for dialogue 

between IMF staff and a member on its 

economic policies. 

We would like to take this opportunity to 

inform you of our progress in implementing 

Zimbabwe’s SMP that was approved by 

the Fund’s management in June 2013. You 

will recall that this is Zimbabwe’s first programme 

engagement with IMF staff in more 

than a decade. The SMP focuses on putting 

our public finances on a sustainable course 

(while protecting infrastructure investment 

and priority social spending), strengthening 

public financial management, enhancing 

diamond revenue transparency, and reducing 

financial sector vulnerabilities, including 

by restructuring the balance sheet of the 

RBZ. To this end, the programme is based 

on ambitious quantitative targets and structural 

reform measures. 

The first review under the SMP could not 

be completed last year. Consequently, in 

December 2013 the Government of Zimbabwe 

requested, and you approved, a 

six-month extension of the SMP until June 

2014, as well as modified quantitative targets 

for end-December 2013. The additional 

six months allow us time to strengthen our 

policies and deliver on outstanding commitments 

under the programme. 

Following a constitutional referendum 

in March 2013, the July 2013 harmonised 

elections delivered a victory for President 

Robert Mugabe and Zanu PF, which secured 

a more than two-thirds majority in 

the National Assembly. Our new cabinet, 

which was appointed in September 2013, is 

a more cohesive body than its predecessor. 

We are confident that this cohesiveness will 

translate into strengthened policy formulation 

and implementation. This will enhance 

our ability to vigorously pursue our reform 

agenda. 

The government’s new economic blueprint 

for the next five years, the Zimbabwe 

Agenda for Sustainable Socio-Economic 

Transformation (ZimAsset) October 2013 

to December 2018, aims to achieve sustainable 

development and social equity, 

propelled by the judicious exploitation of 

the country’s abundant human and natural 

resources. As part of ZimAsset, we also 

intend to accelerate our re-engagement on 

debt resolution with international financial 

institutions (IFIs) and with other creditors. 

Zimbabwe urgently requires a substantial 

amount of inflows of fresh capital to help 

jump-start the recovery of the economy. 

Against the background of uncertainty 

typical of an election year, GDP growth 

in 2013 is estimated to have slowed down 

significantly to 3% from 10,6 % in 2012. In 

particular, we faced a disappointing maize 

harvest for the 2012/2013 agricultural season 

due to late, unevenly distributed and 

erratic rains. This poor 2012/2013 harvest 

threatened food security for an estimated 

2,2 million of our people during the lean 

period from January to March 2014, underscoring 

the need for us to come up 

with strategies for mitigating the effects of 

droughts and to support agriculture going 

forward. The electoral process also induced 

a wait-and-see attitude among many economic 

agents, further contributing to the 

economic slowdown. 

A baseline projection for real GDP growth 

for 2014 is 3,1%, reflecting, among other 

factors, continuing low business and investment 

confidence, scarce liquidity and 

subdued international prices for our major 

exports. However, the timely and full 

implementation of ZimAsset could accelerate 

growth to an average of 6% over the 

medium-term. 

Inflation continues to be very low and 

has recently dipped into negative territory, 

recording -0,3% year-on-year in April 


2014, reflecting weak domestic demand, 

tight liquidity conditions and the appreciation 

of the US dollar against the South African 

rand, the currency of our main trading 

partner. We anticipate that inflation will 

average around 0,8% in 2014. 

The SMP provided a useful anchor for the 

economy in an election year. However, the 

constitution-making and electoral processes 

created spending pressures and, together 

with the transition to a new government, 

slowed the pace of implementation of our 

structural reforms. 

The elections caused a more general delay 

in a variety of processes, including the 

preparation of the 2014 budget. That is why 

our performance on the end-June 2013 and 

the modified end-December 2013 quantitative 

targets and the structural benchmarks 

for the first and second reviews was 

not as strong as we would have liked. 

For the end-June 2013 test date, we met 

two of the six quantitative targets: the floor 

on protected social spending and the floor 

on payments to the Poverty Reduction and 

Growth Trust (PRGT). We nearly met the 

floor on the stock of usable international 

reserves. We missed the continuous ceiling 

on new non-concessional external 

debt by a small margin, due to the signing 

of a US$319 million loan with the Export- 

Import Bank of China in November 2013 to 

finance a critically important power generation 

project. We missed the target for the 

primary fiscal balance on a cash basis by 

about 1,3% of GDP, mostly due to spending 

overruns, some of which can be attributed 

to our efforts to advance the clearance of old 

domestic arrears. 

Although the continuous zero ceiling on 

new domestic arrears was missed, we believe 

that we made significant progress on 

this issue than envisioned under the SMP. 

In fact, although we accumulated some 

new domestic arrears in 2013, we also prioritised 

the clearance of pre-2013 arrears, 

and on balance, the overall stock of arrears 

declined by US$54 million (about 0,4% of 

GDP) in 2013, which compares favourably 

with the reduction of US$23 million envisaged 

under the original programme. 

For the end-December 2013 test date, 

we met three of the six revised quantitative 

targets: the floor on usable international reserves, 

the floor on payments to the PRGT, 

and the continuous ceiling on new nonconcessional 

borrowing. We missed the 

modified target for the cumulative primary 

fiscal balance on a cash basis by about 1,7% 

of GDP, mostly due to substantial weakness 

in tax revenues in the last two months of 

2013. Owing mostly to the weakness in revenue 

in Q4, we missed the floor on protected 

social spending by about 0,3% of GDP 

and our stock of domestic arrears overshot 

its ceiling by about 0,3% of GDP. 

We made progress on the structural reform 

front by attaining three of the five 

structural benchmarks for the first review 

and one of the five structural benchmarks 

for the second review. 

In particular: 

• we submitted the new Income Tax Bill 

to parliament in May 2013; 

• the time-bound action plan by the Civil 

Service Commission (formerly the Public 

Service Commission) on measures to modernise 

human resource and payroll systems 

was submitted to the Ministry of Finance 

and Economic Development (MoFED) in 

December 2013; 

• the new framework for contingency 

planning and systemic risk management 

was submitted to and approved by the RBZ 

board in October 2013; 

• finally, the RBZ Debt Assumption Bill 

(formerly the RBZ Debt Relief Bill) was approved 

by cabinet in November 2013 and 

submitted to parliament on April 10, 2014. 

Given the complexities of drafting a new 

Mines and Minerals Act, after some consideration 

the new government decided to 

accomplish its objectives through amendments 

to the Act. A series of workshops 

were held between March and May to discuss 

the amendments, involving the Ministry 

of Mines and Mining Development 

(MoMMD), MoFED, the Zimbabwe Revenue 

Authority (Zimra), the Attorney-General’s 

Office, the RBZ and mining companies. 

The principles of the mining legislation 

amendments (structural benchmark for the 

third review) were approved by cabinet on 

July 1, 2014. Given the importance of these 

proposed amendments, they are receiving 

priority from MoMMD. This will push back 

the completion of the work on the amendments 

to the Precious Stones Trade Act into 

the second half of 2014. 

The Statutory Instrument establishing a 

formula for calculating dividends from entities 

in which the government is a shareholder 

was not issued, owing to the absence 

of enabling legislation. However, we undertook 

other policy measures to attain the 

objective of mobilising diamond revenue. 

The Finance Act gazetted in April 2014 

gave legal effect to the tax measures pronounced 

in the 2014 budget statement, 

including the withholding by the Mineral 

Marketing Corporation of Zimbabwe 

(MMCZ) and the Zimbabwe Mining Development 

Corporation (ZMDC) of a special 

dividend equal to 15% of the gross proceeds 

of diamond sales and collecting depletion 

fees for direct payment to Treasury. The enforcement 

of this special dividend has been 

held in abeyance pending the completion of 

the review of the mining fiscal regime. 

More fundamentally, with technical support 

from the World Bank, we are in the 

process of reviewing the fiscal regime for 

the mining sector to ensure that Zimbabwe 

maximises its benefits from its mineral resources, 

while at the same time encouraging 

investment in the sector. 

Furthermore, we have constituted a joint 

task force composed of technical staff from 

MoFED, MoMMD and Zimra to forecast and 

monitor diamond-related revenue flows 

covering taxes, royalties, dividends, depletion 

fees and management fees. Finally, in 

December 2013, we dissolved the management 

boards of the three state-owned 

enterprises involved in the diamond sector: 

ZMDC, MMCZ and Marange Resources 

because of their failure to exercise proper 

oversight over the management of these 

public enterprises. 

More critically, we are undertaking a review 

of the structure of the diamond sector, 

with a view to streamlining the number of 

companies operating in the sector. 

Going forward, it is our intention that all 

diamond sales must take place in a competitive 

environment at international trading 

centres. In fact, our first two diamond 

tenders, undertaken as test runs, took place 

in Antwerp in December 2013 and February 

2014. In view of their positive outcome, we 

held another successful auction in Dubai in 

late March 2014, and additional auctions are 

planned in the coming months. 

The 2014 budget was submitted to parliament 

in December 2013 and approved in 

January 2014. It targeted a zero overall balance 

on a cash basis and was anchored on a 

revenue envelope of US$4,12 billion (30,6% 

of GDP). 

To enhance revenue, the government 

maintained the measures on excise duty 

introduced in early 2013 to help fund the 

constitutional referendum and harmonised 

elections. These measures had originally 

been slated to expire at end-2013. In addition, 

other tax policy measures were introduced, 

such as the removal of the deductibility 

of royalties for profit tax calculations 

by mining houses, and a new excise on 

ethanol. 

The 2014 budget provided for an 8% increase 

to the overall wage bill. Following the 

conclusion of negotiations in the National 

Joint Negotiating Council in January 2014, 

the overall wage bill is now projected to increase 

by 14% this year. The larger increase 

resulted from the need to make good on 

government’s election commitments. We 

have already identified cuts in non-wage 

non-interest spending, relative to the 2014 

national budget statement, in order to completely 

offset these wage increases. 

The wage increase significantly exceeds 

projected inflation for 2014. However, we 

remain committed to our objective of keeping 

the overall wage bill on a downward 

trend relative to government revenues and 

expenditures in the medium-term, while 

preserving the real value of salaries of the 

civil service. Like we did in 2013, we commit 

to granting only one salary adjustment 

in 2014. 

In addition, we will maintain the hiring 

freeze in government which started in July 

2012, while allowing some limited flexibility 

in filling critical vacancies that cannot be 

filled through internal mobility. 

Given the downward revision to the economic 

outlook for 2014, there are significant 

risks to the revenue side of the budget. 

In addition, our financing space is quite 

constrained, as we are facing large maturities 

on domestic Treasury bills and loans in 

2014. To address these challenges, the Finance 

minister presented a package of additional 

revenue and expenditure measures 

to cabinet in early June 2014. The package 

amounts to about US$933 million. 

In addition, we will refrain from making 

any draw-downs of our SDR holdings 

in 2014, as these constitute the core of our 

international reserves. We will avoid selective 

debt servicing as this would complicate 

reaching an agreement with creditors on a 

debt resolution strategy. However, we will 

continue to make repayments to creditors 

that are providing us with positive net new 

financing.

16 

Zimbabwe independent august 1 to 7, 2014

Zimbabwe independent aUGUSt 1 to 7, 2014 17 

column 

American spies have run out of control 

The question to bear in mind, when reading 

this whole sorry tale, is this: If Americans 

are, on average, no stupider than Germans, 

then why are their intelligence services 

so stupid? 

After the most recent revelations about 

American spying in Germany, there was 

considerable speculation among members 

of the Bundestag (parliament) that Germany 

might “get even” by inviting US whistleblower 

edward Snowden to leave his Moscow 

exile and come to Berlin instead. But 

last weekend Chancellor Angela Merkel, at 

her traditional pre-summer vacation press 

conference, rained all over that idea. 

“We learned things (from Snowden) that 

we didn’t know before, and that’s always 

interesting,” she said—but “granting asylum 

isn’t an act of gratitude.” Given that one of 

the things she learned from Snowden was 

that the US National Security Agency was 

bugging her mobile phone, this showed admirable 

restraint on her part, but even Merkel’s 

restraint only goes so far. 

Only a week before, her patience with 

persistent American spying, even after 

Snowden’s revelations, snapped quite dramatically: 

she ordered the US Central Intelligence 

Agency’s “chief of station” at the 

American embassy in Berlin to leave the 

country. German media reports stressed 

that such drastic action had only been taken 

previously when dealing with “pariah 

states like North Korea or Iran.” 

Clemens Binninger, the chair of the parliamentary 

committee that oversees the 

German intelligence service, explained 

that the action came in response to the US 

“failure to cooperate on resolving various 

allegations, starting with the NSA and up to 

the latest incidents.” The “latest incidents” 

were the arrest of two German citizens, ac- 

US whistleblower Edward Snowden 

cused of spying for the US — whose key 

contact was the CIA station chief in Berlin. 

The United States has never formally 

apologized for tapping Merkel’s phone. It 

refused to give her access to the NSA file on 

her before she visited Washington in April. 

And it went on paying a spy who worked for 

the Bundesnachrichtendienst (BND—Federal 

Intelligence Service) right down to this 

month. 

“One can only cry at the sight of so much 

stupidity,” said Finance Minister Wolfgang 

Schaeuble, insisting that the information 

given to the US by the spies was of no real 

value. That’s probably true—yet the American 

controllers paid their spy in the BND almost 

US$40 000 in cash for 218 secret German 

documents downloaded to computer 

memory sticks and handed over at secret 

locations in Austria. 

Some of those secret documents were 

even about the discussions of the German 

parliamentary committee that was investigating 

the earlier American spying efforts, 

including the bugging of Chancellor Merkel’s 

phone. The American spy agencies 

simply don’t know how to stop spying, even 

when they have been caught red-handed. 

They only got away with such brazen behaviour 

for so long because the Germans 

naively trusted them. The spy from the BND, 

for example, simply sent the US embassy an 

email asking if they were interested in “cooperation”. 

The German authorities didn’t 

pick up on it because they didn’t monitor 

even the uncoded communications of a 

“friendly” embassy. 

The spy was caught only when he got 

greedy and sent a similar email to the Russian 

embassy. Russian communications 

are monitored as a matter of course in all 

Western countries, so the German authorities 

put the spy under surveillance, and almost 

immediately they discovered that he 

was already selling his information to the 

Americans. 

“We must focus more strongly on our 

so-called allies,” said Stephan Mayer, a security 

spokesman of Chancellor Merkel’s 

Christian Democratic Party, and one of the 

first consequences will be the cancellation 

of Germany’s “no-spy” agreement with 

the United States. In future, US activities in 

Germany will be closely monitored by the 

German intelligence service. 

What is clear from all this is that the 

American intelligence agencies are completely 

out of control. They are so powerful 

that even after the revelations of massive 

abuse in the past year very few politicians 

in Washington dare to support radical cuts 

in their budgets or the scope of their operations. 

They collect preposterous amounts of 

World View 

GWYNNE DYER 

irrelevant information, alienating friends 

and allies and abusing the civil rights of 

their own citizens in the process. 

The German intelligence agency (there’s 

only one) doesn’t behave like that. It 

chooses its targets carefully, it operates 

within the law, and it doesn’t spy on allies. 

Why the big difference? 

It’s because the annual budget of the 

Bundesnachrichtendienst is just under $1 

billion, and it employs only 6 000 people. 

The United States has only five times as 

many people as Germany, but its “intelligence 

community” includes 17 agencies 

with a total budget of US$80 billion dollars. 

There are 854 000 Americans with top-secret 

security clearances. 

The American intelligence community 

grew fat and prospered through four decades 

of Cold War and two more decades 

of the “War on Terror”. It is now so big, 

so rich, so powerful that it can do practically 

anything it wants. And often it does 

stuff just because it can, even if it’s totally 

counter-productive. 

dyer is a London-based freelance journalist.

18 


africa news 

ANC and EFF’s war of words escalates 

EEF leader Julius Malema 

A SPeCIAL forces base in the Libyan city of 

Benghazi has been seized by militias, fighters 

and officials say. 

The site was captured by Islamist-led 

militias after days of fighting in the eastern 

city, officials said. 

Meanwhile, Italy has offered to help extinguish 

a huge blaze that has engulfed the 

biggest fuel depot in the Libyan capital, 

Tripoli. 

Libya has been gripped by instability 

since the 2011 uprising, with swathes of the 

country controlled by militias. 

“We have withdrawn from the [Benghazi] 

army base after heavy shelling," Special 

Forces officer Fadel al-hassi told reporters 

on Tuesday. 

The fighters also confirmed in a statement 

that they had taken control of the base. 

On Monday, officials said that at least 38 

people had been killed in clashes between 

troops loyal to the Libyan government and 

Islamist fighters in Benghazi. 

At least 97 people have also been killed in 

fighting between rival militias battling for 

control of Tripoli© s main airport in the past 

week. 

The government has blamed clashes between 

the armed groups for starting the 

fire at the Tripoli fuel depot, and preventing 

firefighters from putting out the blaze. 

The depot is about 10km (six miles) from 

Tripoli on the road to the international 

airport. 

The government has been unable to disarm 

the numerous armed groups controlling 

large parts of the country, which are 

behind Libya© s worst violence since the 

The war of words between the ANC and 

the economic Freedom Fighters escalated 

on Tuesday, with the governing party accusing 

the eFF of using the same “paramilitary” 

tactics as the German fascist dictator 

Adolf hitler to mobilise support. 

The ANC also accused the eFF of adopting 

the same cynical position as the DA to 

oppose any of its proposals as a way to delegitimise 

and weaken it and, ultimately, 

dislodge it from power. 

These propensities, the governing party 

said, were part of the “massive change” 

in Parliamentary politics it had witnessed 

since the May elections. 

“South Africa has also witnessed the entering 

of a fascist movement into our parliamentary 

politics. This movement used 

uniforms (of maids and miners) to mobilise 

in the same way that hitler used brown 

shirts in the 1930s,” ANC secretary-general 

Gwede Mantashe said on Tuesday, at the 

post-lekgotla media briefing in Joburg. 

eFF members clashed last week with 

the police in the Gauteng legislature when 

their protest march over the banning of 

their MPLs wearing red overalls with party 

Libya militias seize Benghazi special forces base 

2011 uprising that toppled Col Muammar 

Gaddafi. 

It has led some Western governments 

to urge their nationals to leave and withdraw 

foreign staff from their embassies in 

Tripoli. — BBC Online. 

France evacuates nationals from Libya 

FrANCe temporarily closed its embassy 

in Libya on Wednesday and is evacuating 

its nationals there due to the worsening 

security situation, the French Foreign 

Ministry said. 

“We have taken all necessary measures 

to allow those French nationals who so 

wish to leave the country temporarily,” 

the ministry said in a statement, not detailing 

the number of nationals involved. 

The French embassy in Tripoli has 

temporarily closed, it said, adding that 

diplomatic activities would continue to 

be conducted from Paris for now. 

A French diplomatic source said 40 

French nationals, including the ambassador, 

had been evacuated by ship along 

with seven British nationals. 

They are aboard a warship bound for 

the southern French port of Toulon, the 

French foreign ministry said. 

On Sunday, the US evacuated its embassy 

in Tripoli, citing a “real risk” because 

of the fighting. 

Together with France, Germany and 

the UK, it advised its nationals in Libya to 

leave immediately. 

The UN announced this week it was 

pulling its staff out. 

France and the UK played an important 

role in enforcing a no-fly zone in 

Libya in 2011, when rebels toppled longtime 

leader Muammar Gaddafi, who was 

captured and killed. 

France had on Sunday already called on 

all French nationals to leave Libya, which 

in the last two weeks has descended into 

its deadliest violence since the 2011 war 

that ousted Muammar Gaddafi. BBC Online 

— reuters. 

insignia turned violent. Dozens of eFF 

members, led by their commander, Julius 

Malema, stormed the legislature. 

Mantashe said this behaviour was part 

of a disturbing, growing trend. 

“The worrying factor in this regard is 

the eFF’s use of anarchy and destruction 

as their modus operandi. It fits into the paramilitary 

content of their strategy, which 

shows early signs of a rebel movement 

designed and calculated to undermine 

democracy and state institutions,” Mantashe 

said. 

Malema hit back, branding Mantashe “a 

joke” for comparing the eFF to the paramilitary, 

Nazi Germany of hitler. 

“We don’t take that (accusation) seriously, 

because whatever Mantashe says, 

he remains a joke. We won’t respond to 

him because there is no political basis 

in what he thinks is political analysis,” 

Malema responded. 

“When people can’t fault you on issues, 

they engage in character assassination. 

We are happy that they are not presenting 

any counter-arguments.” 

Mantashe had also suggested that the 

DA and the eFF were colluding to wantonly 

oppose the ANC without considering 

the governing party’s proposals. 

“Whether the proposal makes sense or 

not, both the DA and the eFF have taken 

a position of adamant and dogmatic opposition 

to any proposal of the ANC. Indeed, 

their interest is the same — that of 

delegitimising and weakening the ANC 

as a liberation movement — and with the 

intention of dislodging it,” Mantashe said. 

This tendency was part of a growing 

trend to undermine the ANC, he added. 

Malema denied that his party was in 

agreement with the DA. 

“It’s not true. That’s a lie. The DA agrees 

with them on the NDP (National Development 

Plan) and we disagree. 

“There is no single thing that the eFF 

and the DA agree on. It’s only the neoliberal 

policies that the ANC and DA agree. 

If there are any parties that go to bed together, 

it’s the ANC and the DA,” Malema 

said. 

Part of the DA’s strategy included taking 

every decision by the ANC to litigation 

to make it difficult for the legitimate government 

to govern. 

Mantashe said the ANC would, “in 

countering and dealing with these gutter 

politics”, not be stooping to these low 

levels. 

DA national spokesman Marius redelinghuys 

denied the ANC’s accusations. 

“We are a pragmatic opposition that 

opposes that which is not in the best interest 

of the society and celebrate that 

which is,” he said. — iol news. 

Rwanda seeks life 

for army officer 

accused of attack plots 

MILITAry prosecution lawyers in rwanda 

on Wednesday sought a life sentence for an 

ex-officer accused of plotting attacks on 

the state, who was extradited from Uganda 

despite being a refugee. 

Joel Mutabazi, a former member of the 

presidential guard protecting rwandan 

President Paul Kagame, fled the country 

in 2011 but was extradited by Ugandan authorities 

last year, despite criticism from 

rights groups. 

Mutabazi, whose trial opened in January, 

was indicted on charges of “terrorism, 

setting up an armed group, spreading 

rumours with the intention of inciting the 

public to rise up against the state, murder, 

crimes against the state and illegal possession 

of a firearm”. “All these are serious 

crimes, and for this we request a life sentence”, 

army prosecutor Faustin Nzakamwita 

told the military court in the capital 

Kigali. 

Mutabazi has pleaded not guilty, said 

his trial was illegal and that his life was in 

danger. he has refused to testify in court. 

Police have accused him and 15 other coaccused 

of being linked to a string of grenade 

attacks carried out in rwanda, as part 

of the dissident rwanda National Congress 

(rNC), in collaboration with the Democratic 

Forces for the Liberation of rwanda 

(FDLr). The rNC, based between South 

Africa and the United States, is headed by 

defectors from Kagame© s ruling party. 

The FDLr are the Democratic republic of 

the Congo-based descendants of the ethnic 

hutu militia who carried out rwanda’s 

1994 genocide. The UN refugee agency and 

human rights Watch strongly criticised 

Mutabazi’s transfer to rwanda. — The Star. 

Joel Mutabazi, a former member of the Rwandan presidential guard.


INTERNATIONAL 

Gaza-Israel 

Why this war? 

Israel and Palestinian militants in the 

Gaza strip are involved in some of the most 

intense violence for months. Militants are 

firing volleys of rockets into Israel and Gaza 

is being hit by waves of air strikes. Here is a 

look at what is going on. 

Why is there always fighting between Israel 

and Gaza? 

The Gaza strip, sandwiched between Israel 

and egypt, has been a recurring flashpoint 

in the Israel-Palestinian conflict for 

years. 

Israel occupied Gaza in the 1967 Middle 

east war and only pulled its troops and settlers 

out in 2005. Israel considered this the 

end of the occupation, but it still exercises 

control over most of Gaza’s borders, waters 

and airspace. egypt controls Gaza© s southern 

border. 

Israel has imposed tight restrictions on 

the movement of goods and people in and 

out of the Gaza strip, measures it says are 

vital for its own security. 

However, Palestinians in Gaza feel confined 

and are suffering socio-economic 

hardship. The dominant Islamist Palestinian 

movement Hamas and other militant 

groups say the restrictions are intolerable. 

Hamas© s charter is committed to Israel© s 

destruction but in recent years it has said 

it will consider a long-term truce with Israel. 

It cites Israel© s continued occupation 

of the West Bank and east Jerusalem as 

reasons for its attacks on the Jewish state 

before and after 2005. 

It says it is also acting in self-defence 

against Israeli air strikes, incursions and 

other military assaults.rocket fire and air 

strikes increased after the abduction and 

killing of three Israeli teenagers in June, 

which Israel blamed on Hamas and which 

led to a crackdown on the group in the 

West Bank. Hamas denied being behind 

the killings. Tensions rose further after the 

suspected revenge killing of a Palestinian 

teenager in Jerusalem on July 2, after 

which six suspects were arrested. 

On July 7, Hamas claimed responsibility 

for firing rockets for the first time in 20 

months, after a series of Israeli air strikes 

in which several members of its armed 

wing were killed. 

The next day, Israel launched Operation 

Protective edge, which it said was aimed 

at stopping rocket attacks and destroying 

Hamas’ capabilities. 

since then, there have been hundreds 

of air strikes and hundreds of rockets have 

been fired. analysts point to the fact that 

Hamas has become increasingly isolated 

in Gaza after losing the support of its former 

staunch ally syria and to a lesser extent 

Iran, and seeing the egyptian authorities 

crack down on smuggling tunnels 

following the overthrow of Islamist President 

Mohammed Morsi. attacking Israel, 

they say, may be a way for Hamas to try to 

Israeli soldiers 

boost its popularity and obtain concessions 

in any eventual ceasefire. 

Why is it so hard to get the sides to agree 

to a ceasefire? 

There have been multiple efforts to get 

both sides to agree to a ceasefire, but in the 

first three weeks truces were short-lived. 

The first truce plan was proposed by 

egypt after one week — Israel accepted it 

but Hamas said it was not consulted and 

later on rejected it as “a surrender”.— BBC 

Online. 

Obama dismisses new Cold War with Russia 

President Barack Obama 

PresIDenT Barack Obama escalated us 

economic sanctions against russia on 

Tuesday for its aggression against ukraine 

but dismissed suggestions the growing chill 

in us-russian relations marked the start of 

a new Cold War. 

The united states and the european union, 

in a carefully coordinated action, announced 

targeted new sanctions against 

russian banks, energy and defense firms. 

It was the West’s most serious response 

yet to what it calls russian instigation of 

and continuing support for the separatist 

uprising in the east and the shootdown of 

a Malaysian passenger jet on July 17 over 

eastern ukraine. 

Obama, speaking at the White House, 

said the sanctions would have a “greater 

impact on the russian economy than we’ve 

seen so far” in a drive to force Moscow to 

stop backing the separatists. 

until now, europe had stopped short of 

THe various euphemisms Chinese media 

have used to describe a once powerful 

domestic security tsar are no longer 

necessary, after the Communist Party announced 

that it had launched a corruption 

investigation into Zhou Yongkang. 

Confirmation of what was long known 

has proved a kind of catharsis for journalists, 

who have had to strike a balance 

between publishing thinly veiled reports 

about the sensational case and sticking to 

China’s censorship rules. 

although journalists have leeway to publish 

critical reports on crime, the environment 

and business practices, independent 

reporting on the activities of central government 

and Communist Party leaders is 

usually off limits. 

That did not stop the bolder Chinese 

Belarus to host Ukraine - Russia talks 

Belarus will host talks between ukraine, russia and the OsCe security and rights 

organisation on the crisis in eastern ukraine, President alexander lukashenko’s office 

said on Wednesday. 

It did not say when the talks would take place but ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko 

asked lukashenko to host them on Thursday and to focus on securing access 

to the site where a Malaysian airliner was brought down in east ukraine. 

There was no indication pro-russian separatists fighting ukraine’s army would attend 

the talks, although lukashenko’s office said “all interested sides” were invited. 

The talks are expected to involve russia’s ambassador to Kiev, Mikhail Zurabov, and 

former ukrainian President leonid Kuchma, who have met several times since the 

crisis in ukraine began but have failed to secure a breakthrough. 

The fighting in eastern ukraine prevented representatives of the Organisation for security 

and Cooperation in europe reaching the crash site on Tuesday for the third successive 

day. 

“Decisions are being made on a political level on ensuring safety on the site,” Michael 

Bociurkiw, a spokesman for the OsCe in ukraine said on Wednesday. “Today, as 

far as we know, we won’t be going there.” 

an OsCe convoy had earlier on Wednesday been stopped by rebels about 10 km outside 

the city of Donetsk because of fighting further along the route, but OsCe officials 

later denied it had been trying to reach the crash site. 

Poroshenko wants the talks in Minsk to also discuss the release of hostages Kiev says 

are being held by the rebels in east ukraine, the ukrainian presidency said in a statement 

on Facebook. 

He appears to have turned to Belarus for help because the former soviet republic is a 

Moscow ally but also has a solid relationship with ukraine. 

The regional authorities in Donetsk, one of the regions worst hit by the fighting in 

east ukraine, said on Wednesday morning that 19 people had been killed in the past 

24 hours. 

Kiev’s military offensive has forced the rebels out of some areas they held except 

their strongholds in and around the cities of Donetsk and luhansk, and fighting has intensified 

since the deaths of 298 people when the airliner was brought down on July 17. 

The West says the rebels probably shot the plane down by mistake and accuses russia 

of arming them. Moscow denies this. — reuters. 

Chinese media can 

finally name its prey 

newspapers and magazines from reporting 

in some detail on Zhou and his allies, while 

the censors, in many cases, were happy to 

look away. 

newspapers and those using social media 

often got around restrictions by calling 

Zhou “Master Kang” — a popular brand of 

instant noodles that shares a character with 

his given name. 

tougher steps against russia for fear of retaliation. Obama said the new sanctions were a 

sign of “the waning patience europe has with nice words from President (Vladimir) Putin 

that are not matched by actions”. 

senior us officials voiced growing alarm about a russian troop buildup on the border 

with eastern ukraine and a continued supply of heavy weaponry to the separatists. 

These are signs that, so far at least, the sanctions are not forcing Putin to back down 

despite the damage the sanctions are doing to the russian economy. 

“It’s not a new Cold War,” Obama told reporters. “What it is, is a very specific issue related 

to russia’s unwillingness to recognise 

that ukraine can chart its own path.” 

still, Obama did not seem inclined to 

provide lethal military aid to ukraine, saying 

the ukraine military was “better armed 

than the separatists” and the issue at hand 

was “how to prevent bloodshed in eastern 

ukraine”. 

But republican senator Marco rubio, 

while applauding the new sanctions, 

voiced hope that Obama, along with european 

allies, “will also significantly increase 

our assistance, including military support, 

to the ukrainian government.” 

“russia’s continued aggression against 

ukraine cannot go unanswered, and we 

need to do much more to make clear that 

we and the rest of the free world stand with 

the people of ukraine at this important 

moment,” rubio said in a statement. 

The new targets for sanctions included 

VTB, the Bank of Moscow, the russian agriculture 

Bank and the united shipbuilding 

Corp., the Treasury Department said. 

The sanctions on the three banks prohibit 

us citizens or companies from dealing with 

debt carrying maturities longer than 90 

days, or with new equity. 

Five of the six largest state-owned banks 

in russia are now under us sanctions. 

also targeted was united shipbuilding 

Corp, a shipbuilding company based on 

st Petersburg, in a move that freezes any 

assets it may hold in the united states and 

prohibits all us transactions with it. 

The Commerce Department classified 

united shipbuilding Corp as a defense 

technology company. 

The new sanctions block the exports 

of specific goods and technologies to the 

russian energy sector. The Commerce Department 

said it will deny any export, reexport 

or foreign transfer of items for use 

in russia’s energy sector that may be used 

for exploration or production of deepwater, 

arctic offshore or shale projects that have 

the potential to produce oil. — reuters. 

The “tiger” reference comes from President 

Xi Jinping, who has vowed to target 

lowly “flies” as well as high-ranking “tigers” 

in his sweeping anti-corruption campaign. 

such references are instantly recognisable 

to many readers in China, where 

internet users have proved adept at crafting 

their own nicknames and other shorthand 

to communicate what censors will not allow 

to be spelled out. 

Zhou is by far the highest-profile leader 

to be ensnared in Xi’s crackdown and the 

most senior Chinese official to be ousted in 

a graft scandal since the ruling Communist 

Party came to power in 1949. 

last seen at an alumni celebration at 

the China university of Petroleum on 

October 1, he could not be reached for comment. 

It was not clear if he has a lawyer. 

Dozens of Zhou allies have been implicated 

in the scandal in recent months, and 

several senior government officials were 

placed under formal investigation. 

In a country where journalists must tread 

carefully, two words uttered by a government 

spokesman in March opened the door 

to reporting more deeply on Zhou© s case. 

— reuters.

20 


motoring 

New Navara finally matches rivals 

Enhanced ... Keyless entry, push-start ignition, acoustic reversing sensors, Bluetooth and USB audio/phone 

connectivity, and dual-zone climate-control are also available on certain models, while there are “spinal support” 

front seats and contoured outboard rear seating on dual-cab variants. With dual front, front-side and front/rear 

curtain airbags fitted along with a driver’s knee airbag, the new Navara should also net a five-star safety rating for 

the first time. Unlike most of its rivals, the current Navara has a four-star ANCAP rating, leaving it off the shopping 

lists of major fleet buyers that require the maximum safety score. 

NissaN’s next-generation Navara 

ute (utility vehicle) will be offered 

with seven airbags, sUV-style 

five-link rear coil suspension and 

a host of other passenger-friendly 

features when it arrives in australia 

in early 2015. 

The all-new D23 Navara will also 

come with two new high-tech diesel 

engines and a hefty 3,5-tonne 

towing capacity, as well as new 

technology including a seven-inch 

touch-screen and rear-view camera 

on some models. 

However, top-shelf versions of 

the popular Navara workhorse, 

which was australia’s second 

biggest selling ute last year behind 

Toyota’s HiLux but currently 

languishes at fifth, will no longer 

be fitted with the grunty V6 diesel 

that allowed Nissan to claim 

“australia’s most powerful tradie” 

bragging rights. 

instead, two more efficient 

2,3-litre turbo-diesel engines 

will debut in the new Navara: a 

118kW/403Nm four-cylinder 

unit with single turbocharger and 

higher-output 140kW/450Nm 

twin-turbo version. also used in 

Renault’s Master van, Nissan says 

the newly developed Ys23 engine 

has the same power and torque 

as the current 2,5-litre Navara, 

but promises improved drivability, 

with peak torque arriving at a 

lower 1 500rpm. 

Both new downsized diesel engines 

are also more efficient than 

the outgoing 2,5, with the lowoutput 

2,3 claimed to reduce fuel 

consumption by 11% and the highoutput 

twin-turbo version said to 

use 19% less fuel. 

Thailand and other markets 

with less stringent emissions rules 

will still get updated versions of 

the current YD25 2,5-litre turbodiesel 

engine. 

Meantime, a 2,5-litre fourcylinder 

petrol engine delivering 

118kW/231Nm will be offered in 

australia in 4x2 models. 

although Nissan has dropped 

the current Navara’s Renaultsourced 

170kW/550Nm 3,0-litre 

V6, it says it is considering the 

introduction of a more powerful 

four-cylinder diesel engine in the 

future to replace it. 

as it stands, the departure of 

the Navara V6 means the 2,8-litre 

four-cylinder diesel in Holden’s 

Colorado will deliver the most 

torque (500Nm), followed by the 

470Nm 3,2-litre five-cylinder diesel 

engine in the Ford Ranger and 

Mazda BT-50. 

The Navara is currently the 

heaviest vehicle in its class, but 

the new ute is 70kg lighter thanks 

to weight reductions in the body 

and suspension. Nissan also claims 

improved aerodynamics with a 

0,37Cd drag co-efficient. 

The seven-speed automatic 

transmission from the outgoing 

Navara sT-X 550 replaces the fivespeed 

auto across the range, and 

there’s also a six-speed manual 

“box”. 

set to deliver a smoother ride, 

Nissan says the five-link rear suspension 

will be available on selected 

models, providing the same 

one-tonne payload as other variants 

offered with a more traditional 

leaf-sprung rear-end. 

To be built at a new Nissan plant 

in Thailand, the new Navara replaces 

the 17-year-old D22 and 

decade-old D40 Navara utes, and 

will be available in 4x2 and 4x4 

configurations, in single, extra 

(king) and dual-cab configuration 

with cab-chassis or pick-up 

bodies. 

While the Navara’s ladder frame 

chassis is largely unchanged, allnew 

sheet-metal and a redesigned 

interior serve to give the new Navara 

a “sporting, agile and dynamic 

appearance”. 

Exterior highlights on some 

models include Led projector 

headlights with daytime running 

lights, chromed side mirrors with 

Led repeater lamps, a Mitsubishi 

Triton-like sliding rear window 

and an ute-first sunroof. — Cars 

Guide. 

Good 

iF you’re well off, love fast cars, 

but still want to go green-ish, this 

is the supercar for you. 

BMW’s i8 electric hybrid has just 

gone on sale. it takes smugness to a 

new level, but also makes electric 

cars look and feel supercool. Batteries 

and a plug are included. 

as a boyish fan of the early 1970s 

Gerry anderson TV sci-fi series 

UFO, i wanted to drive around in 

futuristic gull-winged cars. Now 

i’ve fulfilled that ambition. Even a 

neighbour who spotted it called it 

“space-age”. 

Boy, does it get you noticed. Even 

white van man is impressed, judging 

by all the smartphones hanging 

out of passenger windows. 

Fantastic, streamlined, styling 

with cutting-edge technology 

inside a lightweight carbon-fibre 

and aluminium body on 20-inch 

alloy wheels. Beautifully put together. 

Plenty of cupholders and 

cubbyholes. The push-up, gullwinged 

doors look fantastic. Getting 

in and out is good exercise, 

though the less lean or athletic — 

or anyone in a skirt — may require 

some deportment tips. 

Easy to drive. Press the start 

button. slot it into six-speed automatic 

“drive” mode on the central 

gear toggle, and off you go. You can 

drive manually using the stick or 

F1-style paddles. 

Performance to match the 

looks. Goes from rest to 62mph 

(100km/h) in 4,4 seconds. Top 

speed limited to 155mph. 

Power comes from a frugal 1,5 

BMW i8 electric hybrid 

supercar goes on sale 

Sleek ... BMW i8 hybrid is easy to drive — just press the start button, slot it into six-speed automatic “drive” mode on 

the central gear toggle and off you go. 

litre, three-cylinder, 231bhp, 

twin-turbo, petrol engine over the 

rear axle linked to a 131bhp electric 

unit over the front axle. it’s a 

“plug-in” hybrid you can charge 

at home or at a charging station. 

it also generates electric power 

on the move from braking and 

deceleration. 

Pure electric mode gives you 

about 23 miles with a top speed of 

75mph. The “comfort” setting sees 

the petrol engine kick in at 37mph. 

sport mode gives top performance 

with the full engine growl, 

plus the faint, but discernable 

high-pitched whine of the electric 

motor. 

average fuel consumption of 

134,5mpg and CO2 emissions of 

49g/km claimed by BMW. But it 

depends how you drive it. i tended 

to go for zero-emissions electric 

power in town, city and village, 

then open it up in more gas-guzzling 

sport mode on the open road. 

The petrol engine “range extender” 

means you don’t suffer 

the range anxiety of an all-electric 

vehicle. 

Brilliant bird’s eye camera view 

of your car — as if from above — 

when negotiating a tight squeeze 

or through parked cars. 

Futuristic interior illuminated 

blue piping. Nice air conditioning, 

too. 

Bad 

Not for shrinking violets. You’ll be 

photographed behind the wheel 

more often than simon Cowell. 

Long wait: the first year run of 

750 is sold out. 

silent running. it is so quiet that 

in the depths of the countryside i 

slowed down and crept up on two 

people chatting. i was feet away 

before they noticed. Could lead to 

accidents. 

it stalled at some lights. 

Mild panic as i hit a few buttons 

to fire it up again. 

Forget the back seats for anything 

except luggage or emergencies. 

Hard suspension. Fine driving 

solo. More noticeable with passengers. 

— Mail Online.

Zimbabwe independent aUGUSt 1 tO 7, 2014 21 

sports news 

Kallis a standard-bearer for a nation 

There is always a certain sadness when 

exceptional sportsmen call time on their 

career. Our interest in them lies not just 

in the aesthetics but in both character 

and personality; in physical and mental 

strength; in the ability to win. 

Few are given every gift. In cricket, Sir 

Garfield Sobers has been the stand out. 

roger Federer, Diego Maradona and Severiano 

Ballesteros are three from other 

sports so blessed. 

Jacques Kallis wanted to play in the 

World Cup next year but he has run out of 

time. The reason for his retirement from 

Test cricket was simple enough; he didn’t 

have the mental energy for it anymore. 

The brain had rebelled against the demands 

of the contest. Test match innings 

are a triumph of the mind. Bowling is a talent 

wholly attached to discipline. Catching 

at slip is a matter of concentration. 

Kallis still had the legs but the heart and 

head had wandered elsewhere. he broke 

the news to Graeme Smith while the pair of 

them stood at slip during the series against 

India last Christmas. Smith was eager for 

him to hang on for the Australians but he 

said there was nothing left to give. Friends 

suggested he drop down the order and 

barely bowl. 

he told them they were missing the 

point. either you are up for it or you are 

not. hanging on is a betrayal. 

he thought he had a World Cup left in 

him. It grates, not just with Kallis but with 

every South African who has touched 

upon bat and ball, that World Cup failures 

are associated with the C word. 

Courage and commitment 

Some sportsmen lose, others choke. Or, as 

a well know golfer once said about a putt 

that went astray, “I threw up on myself.” It 

appears that the South Africa cricket team 

does much the same, which is odd given 

that South African people have both courage 

and commitment in the many challenges 

they face. 

Kallis is furious that his team should be 

the subject of such opinion and remains 

certain that the talent and attitude exists to 

win the tournament in Australia. Initially, 

he felt his experience and all-round skills 

would add value to the sum of the parts. 

But he has found out that being a part-time 

cricketer is a mug’s game. 

Thus, the career of an exceptional player 

has finally come to an end. After making 

13,289 runs and taking 292 wickets in Test 

match cricket along with 11,579 runs and 

273 wickets in one-day cricket, they will 

have to go and win the cup without him. 

The Kallis statistics broke no argument. 

They are exquisite. And remember that 

batting on South African pitches provides 

a sterner test than those in most other 

countries. 

In the early 1990’s, that shrewd old fox 

robin Jackman said that the next great 

South African batsmen was about to make 

his debut for Western Province. 

Unusual distinction 

Jackman was coaching in Cape Town and 

Jacques Kallis 

had first seen “the little oke” at Wynberg 

Boys high, alma mater of one Allan lamb. 

Jackman was struck by a pure technique 

and commanding presence, aspects of his 

game that were to remain at the core of his 

longevity and success. 

If figures are the go-to, only Sobers can 

compare. Sir Walter hammond shares 

with both of them the unusual distinction 

of a Test match batting average above 55 

that exceeds a bowling average by 20 or 

better. 

Only two men have batting averages 

above 40 and bowling averages below 33. 

Kallis is one but neither Sobers nor hammond 

are with him. (I’ll let you work out 

the other. It’s a good’un.) 

In an age of extravagance, Kallis played 

the game pragmatically. he preserved his 

wicket in the way of the great defenders 

and yet had a range of strokes that allowed 

him control of pretty much any attack. 

his hugely strong upper body brought 

immense physical strength to his bowling, 

as batsmen uniformly spoke of a “heavy 

ball” and the relentless application of a 

tactic. 

he possessed two of the jewels of the 

great game, a beautiful cover-drive from 

either foot and a perfect late outswinger. 

he held 200 Test match catches, most at 

slip. 

A quirky but revealing stat is that only 

Adam Gilchrist, with 107, has hit more Test 

match sixes. All this hardly seems fair. 

What he lacked was Sobers’ flair. There 

were times when Kallis appeared lost in 

his own world, strangely unable to alter the 

pattern of play through inspiration. 

he operated within a risk-averse strategy, 

while Sobers regarded a gamble as part 

of the daily routine. 

Highly regarded 

Because of this, Sobers was greatly loved 

while Kallis was highly regarded. Sobers 

emptied bars, Kallis guaranteed no change 

should you happen to drift off. Sobers had 

a fluent, animal grace; Kallis a latent power 

and foreboding sense of permanence. 

There have been five more unarguably 

great allrounders. each caught the eye for 

different reasons. Sir richard hadlee applied 

a surgical precision; Sir Ian Botham 

paraded an absence of self-doubt that won 

many an unpromising situation; 

Kapil Dev played with an athletically 

free spirit, Imran Khan with a lion’s sense 

of occasion and Keith Miller brought an 

unbridled pleasure to those lucky enough 

to witness either the man or his talent at 

first hand. Mike Procter may well have 

been among them had fate not turned 

against him. 

Kallis retires as another one of those truly 

great cricketers. Whether or not he is the 

finest all-round player ever is irrelevant 

and, anyway, comparisons can be odious 

and lead to contempt. What we know is 

that he adorned the game we love. 

he made South Africans proud and he 

made the rest of the world stand up and 

take notice. he played at the highest level 

for 18 years, which is a testament to desire 

and fitness every bit as much as it is to the 

skills that make him irreplaceable. 

he was the beating heart of many fine 

teams, the reference point for many an opponent 

and a standard-bearer for a sports 

loving nation through its period of extraordinary 

reconciliation and change. Bravo 

Jacques, the game will be poorer without 

you. — cricinfo. 

Nadal a doubt for US Open 

rAFAel Nadal’s US Open participation 

has been called into question 

by an injury that will force 

him to wear a cast on his right 

wrist for up to three weeks. 

The world No2 won the event 

in 2013, beating Novak Djokovic 

in the final for his 13th major title, 

to which he has since added this 

year’s French Open. 

While Nadal’s injury is to his 

right wrist, not his dominant 

hand, his two-handed backhand 

could still be badly affected. 

he faces a tight schedule to be 

fit for the tournament, which 

starts on August 25, after suffering 

an injury that will prevent 

him defending his rogers Cup 

and Western and Southern Open 

titles. 

A statement issued on behalf of 

Nadal said: “rafa won’t be able to 

compete and defend his titles in 

Canada and Cincinnati. The player 

felt some pain during practice 

in Mallorca. After some tests the 

doctors found a minor detachment 

of the posterior cubital tunnel 

of his right wrist. 

“The cubital tunnel houses the 

ulnar nerve, which runs from the 

elbow to the fingers and is colloquially 

known as the ‘funny 

bone’. 

“The player must remain for 

two or three weeks with an immobilisation 

cast on his right 

wrist. Depending on the evolution 

of the injury… it will be decided 

when to return to competition.” 

Wrist injuries have been common 

in tennis this season, with 

the world No8 Juan Martín del 

Potro undergoing surgery and 

laura robson falling to fourth in 

the British women’s rankings after 

a similar issue. — Guardian. 

Spain’s Rafael Nadal has had to pull out of two upcoming US tournaments 

after damaging his wrist in practice.

22 


sports news 

Van Gaal, Moyes: How they differ 

It is the beach trips that sum up 

the difference between Louis van 

Gaal and David Moyes. 

For Moyes, a training session 

this time last year on Sydney’s 

Bondi Beach midway through 

a week-long pre-season tour 

ended with Manchester United 

seeking refuge after word spread 

of United’s presence on one of the 

world’s most famous beaches. 

It became impossible for the 

session to continue. 

For his replacement Van Gaal, it 

was a means to an end, directing 

the team bus half an hour out of 

its way — towards Santa Monica 

instead of straight to the hotel 

— after a 12-hour flight from 

Manchester to Los Angeles. This, 

he reasoned, would get the lactic 

acid out of his players’ legs and 

ensure they were better prepared 

for the following day’s training. 

One seemed to underestimate 

the scale of interest in the club he 

had been appointed to manage, 

not thinking that the team’s 

presence would attract scores 

of onlookers. The other was 

clear in his vision - he set out to 

accomplish a task and did exactly 

that. 

Excessive travel 

It is obvious there are aspects of 

Manchester United’s pre-season 

tour of the United States that Van 

Gaal, vastly experienced at the 

highest level following stints in 

charge of Ajax, Barcelona, Bayern 

Munich and the Netherlands, 

would never have sanctioned had 

he been in place when they were 

arranged. 

“You have to travel distances, 

you have to fly a lot, you also have 

jetlag — that is not very positive 

for a good preparation,” he said. 

Assistant manager Ryan Giggs 

signed off the tour schedule, 

although the Welshman did not 

arrange it. 

Even the daily trip from their 

Beverly Hills hotel to the LA 

Galaxy training base 25 miles 

away in Carson took an hour. 

Once there, the facilities were 

excellent, but then so were the 

ones Real Madrid used at the 

University of California — and 

that was only a mile from Beverly 

Hills, where the European 

champions were also staying. 

Distances are important in Los 

Angeles, where traffic is so dense. 

The excessive travelling lay at 

the heart of Van Gaal’s criticism 

of the club’s touring schedule, 

which he voiced in public twice 

within a week of reporting for his 

first day as Manchester United 

manager on 16 July. 

On neither occasion did he 

inform the man responsible for 

appointing him, executive vicechairman 

Ed Woodward, or his 

commercial team that he was 

about to air his grievances in a 

forum that would ensure they 

were transmitted around the 

world. 

Moyes, who sometimes 

appeared ill at ease in front of the 

cameras, tended to confide in a 

select few. Van Gaal, knowing the 

likely impact, told everyone. 

Inner confidence 

No-one can be sure how the 

next 10 months will pan out for 

the 62-year-old, but there is a 

certainty about the Dutchman, an 

inner confidence which gives rise 

to renewed optimism among fans 

who have just witnessed United’s 

worst league campaign in 24 

years. 

“We need to have a strong 

manager to have a strong club,” 

said fan Paul Brane, from 

Stevenage — one of the hardy 

souls who, recognising there will 

be no European football at Old 

trafford in the coming campaign, 

travelled to Denver to see his 

team overcome AS Roma in the 

second match of the tour. 

“twelve months ago I was 

prepared to give David Moyes 

every chance. But, looking back, 

he should never have been 

appointed. 

“He is a decent man by all 

accounts, but as manager of 

Manchester United, he was 

clearly out of his depth.” 

Van Gaal is not. He has stated 

his opinion that Manchester 

United are the biggest club in the 

world. 

However, as he also points out, 

he has been in charge of “the 

number one side in Holland" - 

Ajax, “the number one side in 

Spain” — Barcelona, and “the 

number one side in Germany” 

— Bayern Munich. And that is 

without mentioning his two stints 

in charge of the Netherlands 

whom he led to third place at the 

2014 World Cup in Brazil. 

As is normal in such situations, 

the non-playing members of 

United’s squad did a running 

session after the 3-2 win over AS 

Roma. 

Under the watchful eye of 

fitness coach tony Strudwick, 

a group made up of Anders 

Lindegaard, Darren Fletcher, 

Javier Hernandez and Wilfried 

Zaha pushed themselves through 

a series of shuttle runs and 

sprints. 

Within half an hour, they were 

heading back to the changing 

rooms for a shower. A couple 

of minutes later they were out 

again, sent to the gym for more 

work that lasted an additional 15 

minutes. 

Those concerned were clearly 

surprised at this addition to their 

workload. At least one looked 

annoyed, but no-one challenged 

Van Gaal’s authority. 

“With my direct character, I 

say things as they are,” he said. 

“It can be good and it can also be 

worse.” 

Manager’s approach 

United’s players have already had 

an insight into their manager’s 

approach. Though a joviality 

is often present, he rounds on 

anyone not carrying out their 

duties to his satisfaction. 

In an open training session 

ahead of that first game in LA, 

Chris Smalling and Fletcher were 

among those singled out for the 

most forceful of demands - why, 

Van Gaal wanted to know, were 

they not looking at the ball when 

executing their shooting practice? 

And goalkeeper Ben Amos was 

unlikely to be feeling good about 

himself in the dressing room 

following the Roma game. 

He had just suffered the 

embarrassment of conceding a 

goal from 60 yards, struck by 

Miralem Pjanic, that went straight 

over his head and into the net 

without bouncing. 

If he was looking for a lift from 

his manager, he did not get it. 

“In four seconds I can run 50 

metres, so what do you think?” 

said Van Gaal when asked if Amos 

was at fault. 

That no-nonsense approach will 

help him in one aspect of the job - 

reducing the size of a squad that, 

by common consensus at United, 

was too big last season. 

There have been departures - 

Nemanja Vidic, Rio Ferdinand, 

Ryan Giggs and Patrice Evra 

among the most notable - but 

this year there are no midweek 

Champions League nights to offer 

Van Gaal scope to switch his team 

Former Man U manager David Moyes (left) and new manager Louis Van Gaal 

around. 

He has said he will spend a 

couple of weeks assessing his 

squad before deciding who 

he needs - and who can be 

jettisoned. 

It is evident he has too many 

forwards, and Shinji Kagawa and 

Javier Hernandez would seem 

most vulnerable. 

“We have four number 10s, so 

it is not balanced in my eyes,” he 

said last week. 

His midfield and central 

defence have been questioned. 

New signing Luke Shaw has been 

training on his own because Van 

Gaal thinks the 19-year-old is 

not fit enough. 

And what of Marouane Fellaini, 

Moyes’ only signing of last 

summer? A move to Napoli has 

been suggested for the Belgian, 

although United sources say 

there has been no contact. 

Van Gaal, who is unlikely 

to get his way over his dislike 

of long-distance travelling for 

tours because of the commercial 

benefits to the club, will be 

allowed to do it his way when it 

comes to the playing squad. 

One aspect of managing 

Manchester United which 

undermined Moyes towards the 

end of his time at Old trafford, 

was the fact his words tended to 

be dissected to highlight signs of 

weakness. 

Scorn from fans 

There was scorn from some 

fans when they heard the Scot 

admit old rivals Liverpool were 

favourites for a game at Old 

trafford. It was the kind of 

statement that might even be 

true, but saying it seemed to be a 

step too far for the supporters. 

By the end, they were sick of 

hearing United would “try their 

best” to win matches. “What 

was all that about?” said Brane. 

“Everton might try. Manchester 

United don© t try, they do it.” 

Van Gaal should have no such 

problems. If he suffers from 

insecurity, he does a pretty good 

job of disguising it. 

Before the World Cup, 

as speculation about his 

appointment grew, he called 

one English reporter “stupid” 

for asking what he felt was a 

ridiculous question. 

And in his first United news 

conference he cut down another 

Wayne Rooney 

in equally forthright manner 

for putting forward a question 

he believed had already been 

answered. 

“You know that, why do you 

ask?” came the reply. 

But perhaps the most telling 

difference between Van Gaal and 

Moyes was hidden away in the 

small print. 

A 16-minute interview he 

gave to a couple of members of 

the broadcast media ran to 1 180 

words. 

The word “try” was not used 

once. — BBCOnline.

Zimbabwe independent aUGUSt 1 tO 7, 2014 23 

sports news 

Mangongo’s 

mission 

impossible 

• Coach to be merciless on 

underperforming players 

Kevin Mapasure 

PATIENCE and perseverance finally paid 

off for Steve Mangongo as he landed the top 

cricket coaching job in the country, but he 

will exercise less tolerance for underperforming 

senior players in his tenure as national 

coach. 

After years of waiting in the wings, often 

overlooked in searches for the national 

team coach and at best given peripheral 

roles, Mangongo was finally given the mantle 

to run the affairs of the national team. 

The decision arrived at the same time with 

a new low for the team, which succumbed 

to Afghanistan in their fourth One-Day International 

to square the series. Mangongo 

is thus on a mission to lift the spirits and reinvent 

the team. 

For him there is only one way to look and 

it is up the rankings; he will not allow underperforming 

players to continue being a 

source of disappointment for the cricketcrazy 

multitude. 

“We have underperformed for a long 

time and the time has come for us to be 

bold and make the right decisions,” said 

Mangongo. “We will not hesitate to chop 

dead wood and we will not hesitate to unleash 

raw genuine talent if experience fails 

us.” 

What is particularly striking about Mangongo 

is his appetite for success at all costs, 

his will to win and the demand for extra 

work. 

After a dispiriting 2-all draw with Afghanistan 

which Mangongo said was a 

defeat for Zimbabwe, the former national 

team selector was excited about the challenge 

to restore lustre in the national team. 

“It’s a challenge for us to lift the team 

again, but it is one that I am looking forward 

to and excited about. I will demand 

a lot but I will also be pragmatic. Associate 

members we should thrash and we should 

surprise teams ranked above us. We have 

been too inconsistent and I have taken it 

upon myself to turn it all around. First the 

administration has to play its part and then 

the main actors, the players, have all the 

work to do.” 

The players might get a glimpse of what 

to expect from him when he took charge of 

the national team in their home tour against 

Bangladesh last year. 

“Each player will be held accountable 

for his roles, and the day you do not execute 

your role well I will look elsewhere. 

I would rather have young hungry talent 

learning than to have the experienced 

players continuously underperforming. The 

current group of players has played against 

all cricket nations in the world, but some of 

their performances do not show.” 

Opening batsman Vusi Sibanda has already 

learnt how tough it’s going to be after 

he was dropped from the Afghanistan series 

after failing to get runs in the first match. 

As South Africa beckons for a test match 

in Harare and an ODI series in Bulawayo 

starting next month, could Sibanda fall victim 

to Mangongo’s wrath? 

Mark Vermeulen responded to a Zim A 

recall by scoring a century in the first unofficial 

Test, adding pressure on Sibanda. If 

he gets runs again in the second match he 

could be on his way back into the national 

team. 

Mangongo and convener of selectors 

Givemore Makoni have been accused of 

bias towards players groomed at Takashinga, 

but the experienced coach said he will 

be judged by the results the national team 

produces. 

“We are on the same page with the selectors 

and we are also on the same page with 

the Zim A coach, so we want to widen the 

pool of talent to choose from. But the guys 

that have been playing regularly will be 

given a fair chance. What we want is to produce 

a winning team not a team that continues 

to disappoint its fans. Even when we 

play giants like South Africa and Australia, 

it should not be a foregone conclusion; they 

should know that when they come here 

they will play some tough cricket.” 

Zimbabwe will have a busy schedule until 

the World Cup next year with Australia 

set to join the hosts and South Africa for a 

triangular series in Harare before the team 

tours Bangladesh. There they will play three 

Tests and five ODIs, giving the team a rare 

opportunity for consistent cricket. 

“This is a good opportunity for us to play 

good cricket consistently and the players 

are all excited about it. When we win 

against Bangladesh no one cares but when 

we beat Pakistan the world took notice. So 

when we play Australia and South Africa 

it’s a rare opportunity for us to show the 

World that we can play cricket and prove 

our doubters wrong.” 

Zimbabwe cricket team coach Steve Mangongo 

Opening batsman Vusi Sibanda was dropped from the Afghanistan series after failing to get 

runs in the first match 

NZ impose terms for match-fixing 

Former New Zealand cricketer Lou Vincent 

NEW Zealand is to slap a seven-year jail 

term on anyone caught match-fixing under 

a new law due to take effect before it hosts 

the Cricket World Cup and Under-20 Fifa 

World Cup next year. 

The Match-Fixing Bill, introduced to parliament 

Thursday with unanimous political 

support, would apply the lengthy sentences 

to anyone caught trying to influence 

or benefit from the outcome of a match or 

race. 

“Match-fixing is a growing problem internationally 

and has been described as 

the No 1 threat to the integrity, value and 

growth of sport,” Sports Minister Murray 

McCully said. 

“As we have seen from recent events, 

New Zealand is not immune to this threat.” 

Former New Zealand cricketer Lou Vincent 

was recently banned for life from the 

sport after admitting to fixing, while Chris 

Cairns, who has denied match-fixing, remains 

under investigation. 

Opposition sports spokesman Trevor 

Mallard said the bill made an important 

change to existing laws to make it “very 

clear that match-fixing is a crime. This puts 

it beyond any doubt whatsoever”. 

An International Centre for Sport Security 

report released earlier this year estimated 

that more than US$140 billion is 

laundered annually through sport betting 

“and 80% of global sport betting is illegal.” 

— AFP.

24 

Zimbabwe independent august 1 tO 7, 2014 

Zimbabwe 

sport 

independent 

9 

ISSN 1564 - 0698 

7 7 1 5 6 4 0 6 9 0 0 0 

Soccer 

Van Gaal, Moyes: 

How they 

differ/ Page 22 

tenniS 

Nadal a 

doubt for US 

Open/ Page 21 

Zifa audit 

VICTORY. . . 

report 

raises stink 

Kevin Mapasure 

Dube sweats on property 

ZIFA president Cuthbert Dube is on the 

brink of losing one of his residential properties 

after the association failed to service 

a bank overdraft of 2011. 

According to the audit report compiled 

by baker Tilly Gwatidzo Chartered Accountants, 

the overdraft is now due and it had 

swelled to US$ 1 568 839 as at December 

2013. 

Zifa took out loans to help finance the 

association’s operations, particularly the 

Warriors’ continental commitments, and 

used one of Dube’s houses as collateral. 

But that move could backfire as the association 

grapples with a cash crisis which 

has hindered any efforts to settle the 

amount. 

Only recently Dube used another of his 

properties as collateral to secure accommodation 

for the Tanzanian national team 

which had been locked out of a Harare 

hotel. 

Zifa owe the hotel US$26 000. 

There are however three-star hotels in 

Harare where Zifa could have paid about 

half of what they were charged for the Tanzania 

booking. 

Zifa promised to pay up once they received 

their Fifa grant but it is the bank 

overdraft that is causing Dube sleepless 

nights with no prospects of Zifa securing 

enough cash to pay up. 

Councilors also took Dube to task over 

using his properties as collateral. 

To Dube’s credit, he might have saved 

the association demeaning consequences 

from Fifa. 

The Warriors might have attracted a Fifa 

ban by failing to fulfill a fixture as is the 

case with the national Under 17 and Under 

20 teams. — Staff Writer. 

Cuthbert Dube 

THE Zifa Assembly took the association’s 

board to task over the audit report which 

unearthed financial irregularities of close 

to US$1 million. 

The assembly met last week at Zifa Village 

but a council meeting before the strategic 

planning indaba, which is usually 

a rubber-stamping gathering, produced 

unexpected fireworks with councillors 

demanding answers on the organisation’s 

financial operations. 

The mother body’s audit was conducted 

by Baker Tilly Gwatidzo Chartered Accountants 

and the statements show that in 

the financial year ending December 2013, 

total liabilities exceeded assets by US$4 

792 748. 

The audit report also suggests that as at 

December last year Zifa owed board president 

Cuthbert Dube US$694 376. 

The report notes that there are no loan 

agreements between Zifa and Dube and 

there are no written terms and conditions. 

It is however the US$744 635 which the 

auditors noted was unaccounted for in 

the 2011 report which raised a stink at the 

weekend. 

The auditors unearthed expenditure 

without supporting documentation and 

concluded: “Included in the consolidated 

financial statements are direct match expenses 

amounting to US$1 291 636 and 

operating expenses amounting to US$ 

2375,33. However we were not able to obtain 

appropriate and sufficient supporting 

documentation or confirmations from 

third parties.” 

The auditors further report: “We were 

not able to obtain appropriate audit evidence 

in relation to the association’s recorded 

accounts payables amounting to 

US$744 635 of the US$781 588 recorded 

in the consolidated financial statements, 

over which there was no system of internal 

control on which we could rely for the 

purpose of audit. There were no other sat- 

Moeen Ali wheels away after dismissing Virat Kohli to set up England’s 266-run victory 

over India in the third Investec Test to square the series. Ali took 6-67 in the second innings 

as England ended a winless run of 10 Tests which began in August last year. 

isfactory audit procedures that we could 

adopt to satisfy ourselves that the recorded 

accounts payables were free from material 

misstatements.” 

The councillors demanded answers on 

what the money was used for and why 

there were no receipts, but they could not 

get them from the board or the secretariat. 

They resolved that they would go back 

and study the reports and then reconvene 

after three weeks to demand answers on 

the amount in question. 

Dube was warned not to hold the councillors 

to ransom because he has been 

pumping money into the association. 

The cash-strapped association paid a 

consultant US$15 000 to conduct the strategic 

meeting held over the weekend, but 

some within the association saw no value 

in the exercise. 

The 2012 statements show that Zifa had 

a bank overdraft with CBZ amounting to 

US$1,2 million which was secured by a 

residential property in Cuthbert Dube’s 

name. 

The association owed Sharif Mussa 

US$7 500 in addition to the US$672 596 

loan from Dube. 

In the period in question the association 

received almost US$2 million revenue 

from Fifa and Caf grants, player transfers, 

gate takings, subscriptions, appeal fees and 

registrations among other sources. 

The financial statements show that the 

association is US$4 194 674 in the red 

and some of the creditors had obtained 

court judgments to enable them to attach 

property. 

Last year Zifa collected US$1 million 

in revenue with the Fifa and Caf grants 

contributing US$309 978, while they got 

US$50 713 from donations. 

Player and transfer fees only brought 

in US$27 000, while the association 

made US$142 966 from registrations 

with the other significant amounts coming 

from match levies, and gate takings 

(US$174 978).

ZIMBABWE INDEPENDENT

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