PEACE AND RECONCILIATION: A PANACEA TO GUKURAHUNDI!!

The recent confession by Speaker of Parliament, Jacob Mudenda that he witnessed the torture and gruesome murder of more than 20 000 people in Matabeleland and parts of Midlands during the dark years of Gukurahundi in the early 1980s by soldiers from the 5 Brigade, but was powerless to stop it makes a sad but regrettable reading

Why Mudenda has chosen to speak after 27 years of silence is not known but what remains salient is the fact that there is no retreat from the ubiquitous challenge posed by the continued lack of political will on the need to create peace and dialogue on Gukurahundi.

Mudenda made these sensational claims during a three-day men’s fellowship conference organised by the Brethren –In-Christ church in Lobengula under the theme, “Peace and Justice” where he was guest speaker. He said though he witnessed it, he was too powerless to stop it.It boggles one’s mind why given the assumption that he has power today, why hasn’t he sought to seek redress on the matter.

President Mugabe soon after independence enunciated a policy of National Reconciliation in his famous speech where he said, “surely this is now the time to beat our swords into ploughshares so we can attend to the problems of developing our economy and our society. I urge you whether you are black or white, to join me in a new pledge to forget our grim past, forgive others and forget, join hands in a new amity, and together as Zimbabweans, trample upon racialism, tribalism and regionalism, and work hard to reconstruct and rehabilitate our society as we invigorate our economic machinery”.

Since then there is virtually no debate on this issue which remains sensitive till now. Every attempt to bring up this issue has been treated with cruel hostility and clampdown. Thousands of people who disappeared during Gukurahundi remain unaccounted for.

The Unity Accord of 1987 finally put to an end to this massacre but it didn’t address the process of healing and Reconciliation that the President had identified as a remedy to aggression. One hurdle that makes healing and reconciliation a herculean task is the fact that how does reconciliation where those who burnt other people’s houses, raped women and killed many don’t show remorse? For example it’s a public secret that Perence Shiri the current Air force chief was the commander of the 5th Brigade that carried out Gukurahundi in Matebeland and yet he has never been tried before any court but rather was actually rewarded with a top post.

The findings of the two probe committees established by Mugabe that is the Chihambakwe and Dumbutshena commissions were never made public and it remains unclear the recommendations they made. For a long time the ZANU PF government has successfully avoided direct discourse on the Gukurahundi atrocities but when you have a political figure like Mudenda confessing to the nation the barbaric ordeal of how innocent women, men and children were brutally killed by the 5th brigade it shows beyond doubt that Zimbabwe is nation that is in dire need of healing, reconciliation and peace.

The Parliamentary and Presidential elections in 2008 present yet another scenario that makes healing and reconciliation and national healing evitable. Violence, torture, murder, arbitrary detentions, disappearances, maiming of opposition supporters prompted Morgan Tsvangirai to withdraw from the election race. His supporters had limbs cut off and today these scars they still carry them while the perpetrators walk free. When the Government of National Unity was formed, the government responded by establishing the Organ on National Healing, Reconciliation and Integration (ONHRI).

The purpose and aim of the ONHRI was to establish a mechanism for national healing, cohesion and unity and laying the foundation for a society characterised by mutual respect, tolerance and development. The ONHRI was composed of members from political parties involved in skirmishes who themselves were not clean in terms of their utterances. One questions the wisdom of entrusting the process of national healing and reconciliation to partisan individuals. Of course this proved a futile exercise and the organ didn’t deliver its mandate till its mandate expired.

The truth is that the past should be revisited and confronted. Atrocities of the past have to be acknowledged and in some cases apologies made or even reparations where necessary since there is no healing without justice. Victims and perpetrators of conflict and violence have to be at the centre of reconciliation and healing activities. Reconciliation is an absolute necessity today. It is a guarantee that violence that happened in the past will never occur again. Victims of Gukurahundi aswell as the election periods especially the 2008 elections have not told their stories. They remain in the abyss of pain and neglect. The truth remains hidden or is being told from the perspective of those in power. The truth they tell is one-sided and therefore wounds remain open.

Mudenda is now speaker of Parliament and in his capacity as Speaker of Parliament; these are some of the debates that he should initiate by any means possible. He should now use that office to make past wrongs, right. Instead of giving a lame excuse to the few men at the fellowship that the government is sorry, he should initiate the healing process. The new constitution that is in place provides for the establishment of the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission(NPRC) which is not yet functional till now, albeit the herculean task that lies ahead. Whether it will deliver or not, remains a mystery. Only time will tell.

The writer, Rawlings Magede, is a rural political enthusiast who writes from Zimbabwe.rawedge699@gmail.com

ZANU PF: WHERE CORRUPTION EQUALS TO PROMOTION

The new political dimensions that we witnessed in the past weeks have been full of drama full swing. On the political front, cabinet ministers chose to abandon their duties to follow the first lady “meet the people” rallies where some ZANU PF cronies, drunk with partisan idiocy, paralysed with hero worship sought to revamp their waning uncertain political careers in the face of smearing retribution by the first lady on those she alleged were causing factionalism that were threatening the continued grip on power by her husband.

In all this hocus pocus, the public media notably; The Herald and ZBC led a full coverage of these rallies. I felt sorry for those paying licences to the “state” broadcaster who were “tortured” everyday by these rallies. Of course the state media must be commended for an “excellent” but lamentable propensity to make people of shallow intellect famous because of their proximity to the corridors of power. The functions of the whole government grounded to a halt as responsible authorities who were supposed to be running ministries were busy making slogans meant to gain Machiavellian mileage at their expense of government business. This is the orbit around which the country has been oscillating in the past weeks.
During one of these rallies the First Lady “Amai” Mugabe with an avenging sword single handedly chose to make shocking revelations in Mashonaland Central Province that there was “someone” not only trying to topple her husband but also engaged in a vast extortion enterprises.
Said Grace: “… that same person who goes around demanding 10 per cent shareholding in companies. If you go to any company now, the name of that person is mentioned.

“You lead factions, you extort companies and you are involved in illicit diamond deals, so you cannot say you are not corrupt. “These accusations many believe were targeted to vice president Joyce Mujuru. The gist of the matter is not so much who it was meant for, but how and why that person was still in government. Why that person has been given free course to do such unfair practices remains a scandal that will live to be told another day.

Despite the call by individuals, civic society and other pressure groups to call for an audit into how our diamonds from Chiadzwa were being appropriated, the ZANU PF government continued to nicodemously unaccounted for the vast revenue from diamonds. When the diamonds were discovered the government demagogically said that the proceeds from the diamonds were going to revamp our comatose economy but far from that, this individual whom Grace Mugabe meant was/is busy involved in illicit diamond dealings enriching her at the expense of the whole nation. Many people from Chiadzwa who were displaced when diamonds were discovered had to eke out an existence when promises made to them were never actualised.

This confession by Grace brings many things to mind.ZANU PF is a conference of lily livered opportunists united by money and greed, for you to remain on top you have to remain loyal to the vision of plunder of Zimbabwe’s natural resources and self-centeredness. Deviating from this set way, will result in expulsion. The economic haemorrhage and meltdown we have witnessed have not only been caused by sanctions as they say. This looting and plunder of resources and grabbing of other peoples businesses, has led to the collapse of our economy. The reality within ZANU PF at the moment is sickening; no drive to revive the ailing economy, no backbone to deal with corruption but just an expired swan song on sanctions.
Why President Mugabe doesn’t act on his cronies to stamp out corruption and greedy, remains a secret best known to him. His talk on sovereignty has proved a fiction used to limit humanitarian assistance to those who have been left on the peripheries of lack and poverty. He has used it so much to legitimise his power and coerce the weak into believing his fake gospel on the need to be sovereign as a nation.

How can we talk of sovereignty when one person and his accomplices extort minerals meant to benefit the country? Why does he continue to allow these corrupt individuals serve in his government? Has that proverbial statement that says birds of the same feathers flock together found its root within ZANU PF?Has ZANU PF factional fighting reduced him from being a national leader to something like a village head presiding over mundane unproductive cases? Time will not tell because he has failed to reign on those fingered in corrupt activities.
Rawlings Magede is rural political enthusiast who writes from Nkayi, Matebeleland North Province.rawedge699@gmail.com

STOP THE ROT MINISTER CHOMBO!

The song Mubikira by Leonard Zhakata best describes the plight or predicament that most hardworking home seekers find themselves in.In the song Zhakata laments the selective application of the law in a country ravaged by injustice and suppression. He describes those who oppress and wield political power as insincere to the attainment of justice and equality. “For how long shall people keep quiet? When the elephants fight, it is the grasses that suffer, “he sings.

In the year 2013 I penned a story that was informed by the investigations I had done in the city of Gweru involving one Smelly Dube who owns a real estate company called River valley Properties, who donated a house valued at US$ 50,000 to President Mugabe. The reason, as she puts it, was to honour and appreciate the president for the land reform programme and empowerment. The company also gave more than 1000 high and medium density stands to civil servants and offered to provide building materials on a monthly basis payment. Of course in the story I clearly said that the pledge by Ms Dube was celebrated in the public media of course to sell white lies to the citizens that she was advancing the causes of the general man while she infact was undermining them. And yes of course, Minister of Local Government Chombo was the guest at the handing ceremony.
In the article I gave several examples of people who were using treacherous political means to fleece innocent home seekers of their hard earned cash like musician-cum businessman Energy Mutodi etc. These people have been dragged before the courts time and again but our courts seem magnanimous to criminals. In the case of Rivervalley properties there have been several developments that I thought I should share a year after I penned that article.

From my investigations and findings it appears deliberate on the part of Smelly Dube who because of the current demolitions taking place in places such as Chitungwiza and Epworth, is trying by all means to fortify her “business empire” that is being funded by the dollars of innocent home seekers. Many desperate home seekers had to eke out an existence for the past years for them to achieve every man’s dream of owning property.

Some top politicians and top civil service commission officers, provincial heads of uniformed and general civil servants and a few in lower ranks in Gweru were given free stands. The majority of these have high salaries in the civil service with the capacity to pay for the stands. This was done to give a misleading impression that River valley properties is a philanthropic indigenous company there to assist the homeless in line with government policies, yet the truth is that this was a way of bribing the top officials to make them cast a blind eye to the rampant looting and robbery and corruption which is currently full swing.

The majority and paying civil servants were offered stands at a cost of $15 per square meter making a 1000sqm stand cost $15000 for servicing only. The servicing does not include sewerage. Paying at a rate of $100 (a 1/4 of the majority of civil servants' salaries) per month a beneficiary with that size of a stand will have to pay for the incomplete servicing for 12.5 years. Those who got bigger stands will have to pay for as long as 20yrs.

Desperate home seeking civil servants under River valley properties made an extravagant whim completing misleading agreement forms by the involvement of a River valley properties office operating in the public works offices headed by a “partly” River valley properties and “partly” government employee known as the projects manager Ms Matilda Manhambo.Why she is doubling as an employee of River valley or government employee, no one knows.

Phase 1 of a similar scheme which was done by Public works working with beneficiaries was completed in less than 10yrs and the servicing of stands even as big as 1800sqm cost less than $5000.This therefore shows that Rivervalley made its name by pretending to have given some civil servants, politicians and close associates free stands yet they made paying beneficiaries pay for all stands and also made sure the company would get a profit.The agreements of sales were so craftily designed and no one can withdraw from the scheme without substantially losing and refunds are not prompt.

Smelly Dube is building a mansion in the Kopje area while there is no significant servicing of the stands. The company also donates a lot of money in cash or kind to ZANU PF political events to maintain its “patriotic image" at the expense of beneficiaries. What still boggles is why all this rot has continued to go on unresolved while Minister Chombo continues to cast a blind eye. Minister Chombo has been a minister for a long time and over the years he appears to have an ear for sycophants and swindlers, those who run dubious and bogus land schemes or cooperatives have continued to take refuge under his fortress.

Property rights are enshrined in the new constitution and the Minister doesn’t appear moved. Even during the on-going demolitions that have taken place, he hasn't even bothered to do a land audit of how those home seekers got the land. What I know for a fact is that these home seekers just didn't start building houses from t nowhere but they got land from these people who are affiliated to the Minister. What is the Ministers mandate when he has failed monumentally to defend the rights of citizens? Now if the constitution guarantees property rights, who is Smelly Dube or Minister Chombo to bar citizens from exercising their constitutional rights?


Rawlings Magede is a rural political enthusiast who writes from Matebeland North Province. Email rawedge699@gmail.com

ITS CORRUPTION, NOT SANCTIONS!

Sometimes I have been viciously persecuted, because of my stand against corruption, at other times, I have had to wait for years, because some corrupt individual or individuals, were blocking our way. And always I prevailed, because, "faith abides" it never, ever, fails.(Strive Masiyiwa,Econet Wireless Founder).This startling confessing by Masiyiwa comes at a time when Zimbabwe is embroiled in serious acts of corruption that has remained the major Achilles of Zimbabwe’s ailing economy. It has become rare today in Zimbabwe to bump into the caliber of people such as Masiyiwa who because of their faith in God and principles continue to stand strong against this evil called corruption. Corruption has become institutionalized and many people have embraced it in schools, creches, colleges, passport offices, on roads, government, the list is endless.
Recently I attended a public meeting organized by Zimbabwe Democracy Institute (ZDI) that sought to unravel and discuss the contentious issue of corruption. As has become the norm with Zimbabwean public discussions, the panelists who included representatives from political parties such as ZANU-PF,MDC-T and MDC-99, had to digress from the subject of corruption to focus merely on outclassing each other through unwarranted wits and attacks and the moderator of the discussion had a hard task bringing them back to the subject at hand.

Nothing really progressive was discussed by the panelists except for continued denial of facts by all parties as the representatives from political parties sang for their super with gusto and passion in defending for their parties in the fight against corruption even against better empirical evidence. The subject of corruption is quite interesting in Zimbabwe in the sense that despite the cries by the public over how rampant and normal it has become, the government of the day doesn’t appear moved at all. In fact what we have witnessed so far is cheap mere talk about “so and so” allegedly accused of doing this or that and is never followed up by any form of trial or arrest of the perpetrators. The government of the day is actually magnanimous to criminals and has from time to time pardoned and offered fortress and refuge to known criminals.

Many serious crimes involving huge sums of money paid for bribes and kickbacks have all bombarded the media at one point in time and shocked many but they were swept under the carpet and forgotten. To date, we continue to hear the same hymn on how sanctions have caused untold suffering for the common man, but there has been somewhat surreal silence over the prejudice and damage corruption has caused to millions. Services and amenities that should have ameliorated the sufferings of many, suffered still birth because of corruption. Scandals of serious corruption that come to mind are the Willowvale scandal, The War Victims Compensation scandal(WVCF),diamond scandals, wealth accumulation by government officials, the VIP housing scandal, the National oil company scandal,ZISCO scandal,Kondozi estate scandal,ZUPCO scandal,Fertilizer scandal, constituency development fund (CDF)abuse, Harare airport scandal, interference with functions of judiciary etc.

All these cited examples typify a government that has turned itself into a conference of lily-levered opportunists united by money and greed. A cursory cross checking of facts reveal that these acts of corruption never saw the perpetrators facing any form of trial before courts or even if they did the cases were never concluded and many today continue to lead in various ministerial posts and other positions. The reality on the ground for all to see is that these acts of greed and corruption have caused serious economic hemorrhage and meltdown and yet we continue to hear the same swan song about sanctions having caused untold suffering on the people. Simple mathematics of all the huge sums paid in all these corruption scandals proves that our debts to IMF and World Bank would have been settled all at once and the remainder would have been used for something that betters the lives of many.

If our politicians would spend so much effort dealing with the high levels of corruption and stamping it out completely, we would have made some economic strides .Of course sanctions have played a role to crumble our economy but the biggest setback to economic development has been corruption especially at government level. Travelling on the roads have become so costly where it has become a law to always leave a “fine” regardless of whether or not you have proper documentation. The proceeds from roadblocks are usually used for self enrichment and aggrandizement.Shockingly, the government is not disturbed to at least launch even an investigation. What we have heard are stupid justifications on the need for many roadblocks to reduce road carnage.

Only a few individuals understand why revenue from diamond sales hasn't been fully remitted to treasury in the last few years or why the money from tollgates is not being used to develop our roads which have caused a lot of accidents that have killed many. If you go the passport office or VID the story of having to offer someone a bribe is the order of the day. Many working there have build businesses and houses from such ill-gotten wealth which they are very proud of. What kind of nation have we turned ourselves into? What precedence are we setting for the next generation?

The case involving Zimplasts and Brainworks is something that shows how rampant and arcane these deals of corruption have become. Immunity from prosecution and trial by a few individuals have expedited corruption to crisis levels for example ,In the deal involving Zimplasts and Brainworks, a whooping us$40million was paid to Brainworks for preparing an “agreement” of the indigenization arrangement between Zimplasts and a community ownership trust. It remains the only world record I am aware of where US$40million was paid for preparing a “simple agreement”.

Recently former ZMDC boss Goodwills Masimirembwa was convicted of a case involving bribery worth more than 6 million dollars and the hullabaloo around his conviction and sentence has suddenly died down even though President Mugabe exposed such serious acts of his corrupt deeds. This has become the norm in Zimbabwe and those in echelons of authority seem unmoved by such revelations.

That defunct and useless” thing “called Anti-Corruption Commission that was set up to deal with corruption, is even more toothless than the former Ministry of Reconciliation that even failed to “reconcile” a single person during its existence. When it was set up, it was so lively to the extent that at one point it ordered a search at the ZMDC offices, Ministry of Youths offices although they later bowed to political muscle and pressure and stopped the search.

Corruption has become celebrated, modest and stylish even in political parties as evidenced by lack of action against looters and abusers of constituency development funds. This has become the culture in Zimbabwe were politics has now become a lucrative “business” were even school drop outs and rank marshals sneak into to make rich pickings. The whole idea of even serving the people and developing communities has long been discarded.

As a way forward out of this quagmire, I recommend that government should adopt a zero tolerance policy on corruption, re-investigate all cases of corruption cases in Zimbabwe which have not been concluded. Government should also ensure that law enforcement agencies carry out their duties without fear, favour and impartiality. Public leaders or MP’s should declare their assets before taking office and all those ministers and government officials accused of corruption should be dismissed and investigated thoroughly. In conclusion, during President Obama’s inaugural visit to Ghana he said, “Africa does not need strong leaders, it needs strong institutions”. For sure this statement is becoming even truer in Zimbabwe especially in our long, tedious and onerous fight against corruption.

Rawlings Magede is the Director of Zimbabwe Youth Development Agency (ZYDA) and writes in his personal capacity.rawedge699@gmail.com

UNEMPLOYMENT AND POLITICAL VIOLENCE

By Rawlings Standgun Magede

On Sunday, 28 April 2013, i had the opportunity to watch a programme, on SABC1 called Sunday Live which was holding a debate on youth unemployment in South Africa. On the panel was Richard Ntjana, from the Youth Chamber of Commerce, Thulani Tshefula, president of the South African Youth council and Zwelinzima Vavi, the Secretary General of Congress of South African trade Union (COSATU).

What came out of the debate is that the South African youth council has since begun to take initiatives on youth unemployment by engaging government and has since started to work extensively with non-governmental organizations, youth groups, and are frequently holding road shows, where they engage youths on the contentious but serious issue of unemployment.

On the other hand the Youth Chamber of Commerce has followed suit in its mandate to equip youths by engaging youth entrepreneurs who would want to start businesses and equip them with skills and connect them to strategic partners and sponsors.Zwelinzima Vavi commended the move by government to realize the need to act on unemployment .

Also of interest was that the South African government together with non-governmental organizations, youth organizations and the private sector launched a multi- billion rand pact plan in the last few months known as Youth Employment Accord to help fight against youth unemployment, in which companies and public entities undertook to create jobs and training opportunities for inexperienced job seekers.

The package was contained in a Youth Employment Accord signed by government, labour, business and other civil society representatives in Soweto. Speaking at the signing ceremony, Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe, who presided at the launch, praised social partners for signing the deal after months of negotiations.

Mr Motlanthe said the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) would set aside R1bn of its ‘Gro-E’ funding scheme to provide low-interest rate loans to youth owned or youth-focused enterprises over the next three years. The IDC would also provide technical support to help young people get the funds.

The Motsepe Family Foundation, a charity organization, would avail R100m over the next three to five years for youth co-operatives and enterprises, and a further R100m for education, mainly to benefit the youth. This was in an attempt to bring young people into the economic mainstream, Mr Motlanthe said.

Professional services company KPMG a private sector Harambee programme pledged that it will place 3,000 young people in entry-level work by the middle of this year, with a target of 10,000 by the end of 2014. Business and union leaders, including Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) president Sdumo Dlamini, backed the plan..
As part of the new plan, government departments will have to increase their intake of interns so that they equal 5% of total employment. This is to help the youth get the experience often required for employment in the private and public sectors.

Meanwhile, back home the rate of youth unemployment has reached shocking levels and the inclusive government doesn’t look disturbed at all. In a recent report, the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Youth Development, Indigenization and Empowerment said youth unemployment in Zimbabwe is four times higher than that of adults.The committee said unemployment, currently estimated at 80 percent, needed to be addressed before it gets out of hand.


What is important to note is the difference of attitudes between the South African government and our own Zimbabwean government in their response to the scourge of youth unemployment. While the South African government takes the tasks head on, the Zimbabwean government is rather reluctant to act on the problem. For the youth in Zimbabwe it is indeed cold comfort that the serious problem does not seem to move the government of the day that is so much absorbed in elections,reforms,exit packages etc.This is a salient point, youth unemployment is today’s number one challenge for all youth across the political divide.

In unpacking this neglected but serious problem of youth unemployment, it is important that we start critically analyzing a statutory body that was created by an act of Parliament, which is the Zimbabwe Youth Council. Chapter 25:19 of the Zimbabwe Youth Council Act states “as amended in 1997,the overall administration of the act rests with the Ministry responsible for Youth, its functions is to co-ordinate, supervise and foster the activities of youth clubs, associations or organizations from grassroots to national level among others. It is also responsible for creating youth platforms to debate dialogue amongst youth and stakeholders in pursuit of youth empowerment. It also renders support to for Youth Associations.

The main problem with the youth council is its partisan nature since Minister Kasukuwere is the one who virtually controls it, hence it segregates and accommodates people based on political affiliations. A typical example is the way the Old Mutual Ukondla fund that was meant for youths was disbursed. The Youth council used the Old mutual youth fund as a kind of divine clothing which it wore like suit armour, yet a cursory cross checking of facts reveals and proves beyond reasonable doubt that only youth from the Minister of Youth’s party benefited only while the rest were left in the cold.

In all its activities it doesn’t attempt to take the youth ministry to task on the problem of youth unemployment or even engage all youths from the political divide on issues affecting them or let alone create dialogue around the subject. Youth unemployment is a national problem that across political circles.

Such a neglect of duty and responsibility leaves politicians with the leeway to manipulate and use this group of hungry and unemployed lot to achieve their own selfish ends. Zimbabwean unemployed youths might not take time to understand law or understand economics but one thing that they surely understand is when their stomachs are empty. This leaves them susceptible to politicians who will use money to lure them into settling political scores against their opponents during elections. So in a nutshell; election violence can never be eradicated if the chief problem of youth unemployment is unattended to. The last time I heard about the Zimbabwe Youth Council doing “something” was when it had a poorly attended referendum meeting at Africa unity square where it imposed the “yes ‘ vote to the few youths who had come, mostly, uniformed school kids.

It was a typical political meeting as ZANU PF youths stormed the place singing and mocking those advocating for a no vote.It was not a platform to debate the constitution, but a last desperate attempt by the council to mobilize for the “yes” vote which the minister of youth wanted. This, to me was one of the greatest betrayals of our time, which will live to be told on another day. Why did the council have to speak for the generality of youths from Zimbabwe? To me the independence of the youth council remains the sole problem that hinders the youth council from carrying out its mandate. This also proves beyond doubt that in carrying out its mandate, only certain youths from political parties will benefit.

The inclusive government also has failed dismally to come up with ways of reducing youth unemployment. The parties in the inclusive have even failed to provide employment even for their own loquacious supporters, many who only get to have a few “Obama” dollars during elections times. This has in a way shaken off lethargy from some of their loyal supporters who have and remain disappointed year after year, as they are dumped and forgotten as soon as they put ink to paper. This ,they now interpret as a move by a determined oppressor to dig deep claws into the flesh of a squirming victim who remain in the abyss of neglect and suffering, even after having sacrificed a lot, at times even one’s life. To them, they have understood the new law of “jungle politics” in Zimbabwe that states that for you to survive and see the light of day tomorrow; you must demean yourself even in the least of forms by drumming up support for a particular politician, even if it goes against your values, but for the sake of survival you have to do it, and have a lot of empty promises and a few dollars as a “reward”.

The Ministry of Youth led by Kasukuwere has been busy with glorifying the indigenization policy at the expense of its main duty which is to champion the issues that affect youth.Kasukuwere himself has been too busy on his personal diatribe against RBZ governor, Gono on the need to indigenize banks. So busy has been Kasukuwere that he has even confused and aptly misinterpreted his own indegenisation policy.

What’s important to note is that youth unemployment has been a long overdue and unaddressed time bomb way before the inclusive government came into effect. While ZANU PF has been harping on the tired and lame rhetoric of defending sovereignty, and independence gains, it has used such a vain but baseless statement to eschew the pending and real issue of unemployment. While they continue to preach from the same line of verse year after year, they have failed to honestly defend and promote the very gains of the independence that they purport to have brought .The acknowledgement even by parliament or even the president that unemployment is on the rise, is not enough to deal with this problem. The question is what is the government doing to ameliorate the general suffering that people including the youth continue to face including unemployment?

Despite having rich diamond deposits in Chiadzwa, the arcane dealings of the Ministry of Mines in as far as transparency of the diamond extraction and revenue collection are concerned have left many youths questioning whether Chiadzwa is within our borders. The Companies that are extracting diamonds there have never publicly offered any help to “genuine’ youth initiatives that are not politicized.The youth have nothing to point to as a sign that our country is rich in diamond deposits.
The unspoken but self evident fact is that government has failed to act on youth unemployment but the political parties in the inclusive government continue to tap from this hopeless “resource’ of unemployed youths for their survival.

The Peoples Charter section on youth adopted at the Peoples Convention, in Harare 2008 clearly states that;
“Believing that at all given times the youth, both female and male, represent the present and the future of our country and that all those in positions of leadership nationally and locally must remain true to the fact that our country shall be passed on from one generation to the next.

The People state that, in order for each generation to bequeath to the next a country that remains the epitome of hope, democracy and sustainable livelihoods, the following principles for the youth must be adhered to and respected:

The youth shall be guaranteed the right to education at all levels until they acquire their first tertiary qualification.

The youth shall be guaranteed an equal voice in decision-making processes that not only affect them but the country as a whole in all spheres of politics, the national economy and social welfare.

The youth shall be guaranteed access to the right to health.

The youth shall not be subject to political abuse through training regimes that connote political violence or any semblance of propaganda that will compromise their right to determine their future as both individuals and as a collective.

The youth have the right to associate and assemble and express themselves freely of their own prerogative.”

The problem of youth unemployment is a national problem that cuts across the political divide that calls for government and the generality of Zimbabwe to be honest and work to try and eradicate. No one in more Zimbabwean than the other.

In conclusion the great thinker of old Theodore Roosevelt once said,”Patriotism means to stand by the country. It doesn’t mean to stand by the president or any other public official. Zimbabwe is ours and let’s makes it better.

Rawlings Standgun Magede is a rural political enthusiast, who writes from Nkayi, Matebeleland North province and can be contacted via email gstandgun@gmail.com

OF BRIBERY,LOOTING AND CORRUPTION....

The story that appeared in the Herald of a real estate company, River Valley Properties owned by one Mrs Smelly Dube, who is described as a “grateful resettled farmer”, who build a house in Gweru for President Mugabe cannot go without probe.

The house is valued at US$50, 000, with a booster pump worth more than US$500,000 dollars with capacity to supply water to more than 4300 households both in Hertfordshire phase 1 and 2 which are currently being owned and developed by River valley properties. The reason for her building the house was to honour and appreciate the president for the land reform programme. The company also gave more than 1000 high and medium density stands to civil servants and offered to provide building materials on monthly basis payment.

For a company that doesn’t even have the sense to set up a website for its marketing and advertising, or even advertise on zimclassifieds, River Valley real estate must have so much money to splash. Minister Chombo was the guest at the handing ceremony..
The real estate industry has suffered terribly since the inception of the multicurrency system and this has made it even more difficult to own a property for the common man. Banks that were giving people loans, when the multicurrency started have stopped doing so. These banks that were giving people loans had preconditions for the loans. First they wanted a prospective loan applicant to have a certain substantial amount in their account and the property that they wanted was supposed to have deeds. Without deeds, they don’t tolerate you. Of course the loan grants differ depending on your salary.

One startling fact to note is that Hertfordshire phase 1 and 2 are not yet serviced hence there are no title deeds that have been granted as yet so what Mrs Dube has been doing is to approach low income earners such as civil servants to make monthly contributions towards the purchase of stands. Phase 1 and 2 do not have water and sewer reticulation and yet people have started staying in houses where service in not yet complete. And now donating a house worth 50,000 with a pump worth over 500,000 to the president when her company has actually defaulted in its promise of fully servicing phase 1 and 2 is day light robbery.

With the “blessing” of Minister Chombo she is invincible and there is nothing that the people there can do.It is not wrong to give or donate houses to the president but in this case Dube is doing so as to have the president’s blessing and have immunity from prosecution in milking peoples’ hard earned cash and continue defaulting in her promises. This is wrong and the responsible authorities, definately not Minister Chombo, should probe into such a scam where many prospective home-seekers have been duped by people who try to buy some treacherous political muscle by bribing their way to the top.

It seems everyone in politics is trying to catch a seat in the gravy train before it goes off its rail. I have a relative who owns a stand in Hertfordshire phase 1 who phoned me after seeing the story that she had donated the house to the president. He was arguing that Dube should have used the money to finish servicing the stands first before she thinks of even donating a house.Mrs Dube is not fresh to controversy. She is deemed untouchable because of her close connections to the first lady.

At one point she was sucked in Kwekwe Gold scam. She is a Gweru politician not a “grateful Gweru farmer” as the Herald reported. She is a close associate of Midlands Governor Jason Machaya.She once partnered ZANU PF Buhera North Mp William Mutomba to form Midkwe Minerals and attempted to grab Kwekwe based Chaka Gold Plant from its Australian owner Lee Jones.

The pledge by Mrs Dube is a fraud disguised as a token of appreciation to thank the president for the land reform. Minister Chombo seems to have ears only for sycophants.With the mushrooming of bogus land developers such as Energy Mutodi, the flamboyant musician, who have gone on the prowl fleecing many prospective home seekers of millions of dollars, many innocent people continue to lose their money. These land developers such as Dube and Mutodi demagogically pretend to be advancing the causes of potential home seekers while undermining and betraying them. Many of these home seekers have to eke out a living from meager salary while saving their money with the hope that one day they will purchase a stand.

Many have been arraigned to the courts but justice has not been prevailed because these land developers have the political muscle to make them immune from prosecution. Many dubious schemes in Harare are being run under the pretext of real estate. For example innocent home seekers have been swindled their hard earned cash in areas such as Crowhill, stoneridge,southlea park, snake park, belvedere west and budiriro 5 extension by land developers who purport to be friends with Minister Chombo.

For how long shall this injustice continue? Why are our courts magnanimous to such thieves? Do the responsible authorities have a chunk in the bounty? Why should cases of fraud be continually swept under the carpet? Why do people continue to loot and rob other people all in the name of patriotism and indigenization?

Why should politicians inflict suffering on the very people they purport to lead b y continually stealing from them.

Mrs Smelly Dube is a Politician who is stealing from people not just a "grateful farmer" as the Herald wants everyone to believe.

Rawlings Standgun Magede is a rural political enthusiast who writes from Nkayi Matebeleland North province.rawedge699@gmail.com

Political Idiocy and the aftermath of the “yes” vote

By Rawlings Standgun Magede

Recently, i was debating the recent referendum with COPAC co-chair, Paul Mangwana over the legitimacy of the yes vote. His argument was that Zimbabweans did well by grabbing this opportunity presented them and voted in favour of the document as this process had taken a lot of time and money.He went to argue that there is no constitution that can best meet the term “people driven” citing that even the American constitution was written by less than five people and yet it is ranked as one of the best constitutions in the world. To him the fact that only a “handful’ of people were consulted during the scandalous outreach programme, made the constitution “very’ people driven.

While there might be a grain of truth in his argument i reminded him that the United states of America and Zimbabwe are totally different countries at different socio-economic and political developments, hence those countries are worlds apart in terms of governance to say the least and cannot be compared. As far as Mangwana’s duty as a citizen is concerned, he thinks that his job was done because he claims that he delivered the constitution 33years years after independence. He wrongfully thinks history will absolve him for delivering such a careless, selfish and disastrous constitution to the people of Zimbabwe. I argued and told him that constitutions across the world are based on the country’s history hence the reason why the Lancaster constitution was amended so many times like that because it fell short in addressing arising issues. I later on jokingly concluded to him that if there was anywhere in the world where constitutions should not provide for an executive president, then it’s in Africa, the place where power is abused by incumbent presidents to unleash terror and mayhem against opponents.

The idiots of the 21st century are not those who oppose and question undemocratic decisions taken by politicians and labelled ‘nhinhi” at every turn, but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn from history. They are those who herd people like cattle into unprincipled terrains where the grass will not be greener for the future generations of Zimbabwe. The question should be: is the next generation going to be proud of decisions that we make for them? History in Africa has taught us that if too much power is given to one person, where he is the sole appointing authority of all key post, then there will be untold suffering on all those who dare question or oppose him.

While this writer feels pity for the two MDC formations in the inclusive government and some malleable civic society organisations for choosing against better advice to support the COPAC draft amid widespread approval of the draft as an elitist document by the people of Zimbabwe and some civic organisations such as NCA, they had no clue what the consequences of their decisions meant. For them no matter the contents of the draft,” progress” and not the content was important as long as we do away with the Lancaster constitution. They actually were hoodwinked into believing that ZANU PF was sincere in calling for unity and peace and the need to “move” the country forward by voting “yes”, little did they know that they were wrong. In the end ZANU PF managed to achieve what they had always wanted: writing a constitution that protects their interests. There is no name in the lexicon that can best describe such sell-out tendencies within the MDC’s and some CSO’s.

While some of us who we campaigning for a no vote were harangued and called all sorts of names and labelled retrogressive elements, events that began unfolding have led many people realize that the “yes vote was not about progress and moving the country forward but it was about settling a political score. Before the ink on the ballot papers could even dry, a top human rights defender, Beatrice Mtetwa was arrested under unclear and malicious circumstances.As if that was not enough, The Prime Minister of the republic of Zimbabwe, the right honourable Morgan Richard Tsvangirai’s staff were arrested. More arrest followed. The Prime Minister even tried to get them released but to no avail. What does it show to the people of Zimbabwe? He is the prime minister and hence should have influence on the police that is if at all he has any aorta of influence and power in government.

At one point i used to believe that Tsvangirai was the man who had felt the pulse of the people of Zimbabwe but when he endorsed such a draconian draft by whipping his supporters to support such a flawed document that creates an all powerful president changed my mind. He went on to tell green lies to the electorate that the COPAC draft will clip executive power.where? How?I still wonder and i am still looking in this “foolish” draft where executive power is trimmed till today. While many of his supporter see the world in binary terms i.e. MDC-T vs. ZANU PF, what they fail to understand however is that our politics transcend political parties. Whoever thought that the Nazi under Hitler would be exterminated from the face of German politics? Back during those days, it seemed a herculean task to ever imagine a Germany without Hitler. Today if you go to German and dare mention Hitler’s name, you might find yourself dead or wounded because the people there don’t want to be reminded of such a dark phase in their history. Coming back home we make our decisions without foresight of what the next 30years of our beloved country hold by voting for a document where the president remains the sole appointing authority of literally everyone.

I thought that most civic society groups who have witnessed unparalleled attack,imprisonment,killing and clampdown on their activities were going to at least question the issue of the attorney general who just like in the Lancaster constitution is appointed by the president. We have seen unwarranted arrests even after courts clear and order people to be released but still many continue to be detained. On this subject of attorney general there was surreal silence on who should appoint him from civic organizations. The evil agenda of the attorney general’s office against civic organizations is conspicuous to any functioning mind.
For these CSOs this draft constitution that they voted “ yes” for doesn’t change or seek to address the issue of the attorney general who has been a thorn in their flesh for the all these years. Many sold out their principles just because they wrongfully think that the MDC-T is always right and should never be questioned and is never wrong. They don’t realise that as far as their mandate as civic society that of being the watchdog of government is concerned, they lost the plot and will continue suffering huge, if not fatal setbacks in their pursuit of an “MDC –type” of a democratic society. While this shoot-from-the-hip approach by civic society to endorse a fraudulent constitution against better advice on the basis that the MDCs had endorsed it, unfortunately when the history of Zimbabwe is written, it will not be kind to such sell out elements.

Otherwise the selling out by some civic society groups and the two MDC’s in the inclusive government is a story yet to be told and it shall be told in the same way as the sun shall rise tomorrow.

Rawlings Standgun Magede is a rural political enthusiast who writes from Nkayi,Matebeleland north province .rawedge699@gmail.com