HARARE - Fixed telecommunications services operator, TelOne,  has unveiled new home broadband packages which are technology neutral and offer flexible packages from as low as $1 in response to the feedback and needs of the clients,.

Being technology neutral means the new packages are applicable to both clients using the ADSL and fibre technologies.

The new packages now come with two uncapped packages at $89 and $120 offering speeds of up to 5Mbps and 20Mbps respectively.

This means depending on the speed needs, clients have an option to select from these packages.

The changes in packages have also seen a 33 percent data cap increase for clients that were formerly on the $23 FTTH package. This package has now been replaced by Home Plus which costs $25.

Exciting and affordable one-day and seven-day packages have also been introduced. They recharge vouchers are available through the TelOne Self Service Portal and through electronic vouchers at TelOne Client Service Centre.

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HARARE - Mr Ugly director David “Apama Styles” Machowa’s has revealed plans to stop repeat-winner William Masvinu from contesting in future pageants.

“We are going to stop Masvinu as we cannot continue running with the same face representing the pageant. We need to give others a chance.

“He will contest in bigger pageants such as Mr Ugly Africa. Locally, Masvinu has proved that he has no competition,” Apama said.

Mr Ugly - William Masvinu

“After some consultations with key stakeholders, we have learnt that Masvinu is scaring other contestants to compete in the pageant, hence the idea to retire him. We want the pageant to grow,” Machowa told the Daily News.

The plan did not go down well with Masvinu.

“There is no way I can simply stand aside and look. The only way they can hound me out of the pageant is the emergence of another champion who is uglier than me, otherwise I am not going anywhere,” Masvinu said.

In 2012, there were five contestants and these were Masvinu (the winner), Freddy Mwando (first runner-up), Chinotimba Admire, Derek Chavhi and Yolum Banda.

In 2013, Masvinu effortlessly defended his title, beating other seven contestants the likes of Fungai Mapangire, Billy Kuvheya, Bright Marikopo, Farai Sithole, Innocent Mavhima, Timothy Makari and Chakunuka Matiza.

In 2014, the pageant was not held due to lack of sponsorship but it only returned the following year (2015) with seven contestants Mison Sere (winner), Masvinu (first runner-up), Givemore Sambana (second runner-up) Vincent Piroro, Patrick Mupereki, Doctor Chikaura and Gumisai Makonese walking up the romp.

In 2017, the number of contestants fell again to just five and on the list were Masvinu, Fanuel Musekiwa, Sere, Clayton Anderson and Dennis Sunday.

Over the years, the pageant was affected greatly by the issue of prize money for winners.

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“Of late, we are happy that winners are getting something meaningful out of their ugliness. The overall winner is getting $500 which is a big deal in Zimbabwe especially for those unemployed.

“Previously, the winner would get about a $100 but we have since increased the prize money in order to incentivise contestants,” he said.

In 2015, the Mr Ugly pageant finals got uglier as Masvinu threw curse-laden tantrums after losing the contest and his anger was arguably fuelled by the love of winning the prize of $500.

“Previously, I contested with the winner and he was on the fourth position and I won the title. So what has changed now?” questioned Masvinu.

“He simply won because of his tooth gaps, so does that define ugliness? Do you want me to remove some of my teeth to reclaim my position,” said Masvinu then.

“To me the pageant has not yet started, this was just a dubious event hence there is no way I can accept the outcome.

“Organisers should quickly set the dates for a re-run otherwise I am not going to surrender the title.

“Apart from this, I want to deal with adjudicators and the winner for stealing the pageant results,” Masvinu who had benefited fairly from corporate endorsements during his reign as Mr Ugly said then.

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HARARE - Listed mining concern, Bindura Nickel Corporation (BNC), has posted a $2,23 million profit after tax in the half year to September representing a 46,8 percent increase from $1,18 million reported in the comparable period last year.

In a statement accompanying the results, BNC chairperson Muchadeyi Masunda said the increase in profits was due to some cost cutting measures.

“The increase was partly due to savings realised through various cost management initiatives,” he said.

The company reported increased profits despite suffering a significant decrease in gross profit of 2,3 percent owing to the increased cost of sales. Gross profit was $7,95 million down from $8,14 million. Cost of sales were $16,2 million up from $14,3 million.

“Gross profit decreased by 2,3 percent year on year in line with the increase in the cost of sales,” Masunda said.

The nickel producer did not declare a dividend for the period under review, the chairperson said that “it is not feasible to declare a dividend”.

The mining company enjoyed a stellar safety performance during the period under review recording one million fatality free shifts. The chairperson said the company takes safety very seriously and has no tolerance to accidents.

“The board and management take safety very seriously, given the inherently hazardous nature of mining. We have a zero tolerance to accidents,” he said.

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HARARE - Property firm Mashonaland Holdings (Mash Holdings) says its revenues went down by 14 percent to $4,7 million in the full year to September 2017 due to company closures resulting in increased voids. 

The group’s chairperson Ron Mutandagayi said property expenses at $1,1 million for the year under review were 27 percent below comparative period.

“The reduction was mainly as a result of lower movement in the provision for credit losses compared to prior year. This was a result of increased recoveries in the current year,” he said.

He also noted that void related costs and property management expenses constituted the major portion of the expenses.

Mash Holdings posted an operating profit of $2,5 million up from $1,9 million in the 12 months to September 2016, resulting in the operating profit ration improving by 50 percent.

“The profit for the year was $1,6 million against a loss of $5,9 million in 2016,” Mutandagayi said.

The group’s property portfolio declined by four percent to $90 million, according to independent valuers Knight Frank Zimbabwe, largely driven the office sector where voids are high and rental levels are declining.

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Mutandagayi said occupancy levels were down to 72 percent in the period under review from 74 percent last year.

“The marginal decline, however, masks sectoral and locational differences with the greater portion of the movement taking place in the CBD offices sector.

“The decline in occupancy, together with the rent reviews aimed at minimising vacancies, impacted negatively on the revenues,” he said.

Mash Holdings’ average annualised portfolio yield remained at six percent, while arrears went down to $1,8 million from $1,9 million last year.

Mutandagayi said the listed property firm will soon embark on a development of 24 medium density stands in Old Windsor Park, Ruwa.

“Despite the current economic challenges, your group will continue to pursue its growth strategies. In the long run the real estate sector will yield higher returns in spite of the short term setbacks that are currently being experienced.

“Meanwhile, value preservation will be the main focus as the group prepares for the uplift once the current economic challenges are overcome,” he said.

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HARARE - At the beginning of 2017, in the Daily News annual Cabinet review for 2016, we voted Finance minister Patrick Anthony Chinamasa as the best performer.

We also included the new President Emmerson Mnangagwa who was the vice president then, among a short list of top performers in deposed president Robert Mugabe’s government.

This had people talking.

Most of the people — including our readers — felt that Chinamasa and Mnangagwa deserved to be rated highly because of the manner in which they had handled the re-engagement assignments with the West and foreign investors.

Of course Mugabe scuppered this and appeared keen on reversing the notable gains by humiliating Chinamasa through policy reversals and later, demoting him to head the Cyber ministry.

On Thursday both Mnangagwa and Chinamasa gave sneak peeks into what life is likely to be for ordinary Zimbabweans and the corporate world if Zanu PF and the 75-year-old successfully negotiate the 2018 national elections.

Chinamasa on Thursday presented his national budget for 2018 which is consistent with Mnangagwa’s inauguration speech as it shows a huge shift from Mugabe’s moribund policies blamed for sinking the economy.

In his presentation, Chinamasa made a raft of changes that speak to austerity, pragmatism and keen on wooing international investors.

Chinamasa has proposed to cut Zimbabwe’s embassies from 46 to a reasonable figure consistent with the political and economic ties that the country enjoys with those countries.

Crucially, as he valiantly attempted to haul Zimbabwe back from the abyss, the Treasury chief announced retirement of all public servants who would have reached the mandatory 65 years, cut international trips, allowances, number of delegations, reduced vehicles allocated to senior servants and introduced a loan scheme for other civil servants as opposed to buying them vehicles.

For a long time, economic analysts and ordinary people have complained about many useless foreign trips which gobbled millions of dollars without bringing tangible benefits to the economy.

The many foreign trips which were either undertaken by Mugabe or various ministers will now be scrutinised with embassy officials in foreign missions actively representing government.

Chinamasa’s budget has certain echoes to his mid-term fiscal policy review statement that he made in September 2016 where he had introduced a number of austerity measures that included retrenching tens of thousands of civil servants and the cutting of salaries of senior government officials.

We all know that Mugabe reversed these and humiliated Chinamasa by announcing that this had all been a cheap publicity stunt.

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There, is therefore every reason to feel that Mnangagwa’s government is alive to what needs to be done to resuscitate the economy and there are a lot of  bright spots in Chinamasa’s budget.

Since Mnangagwa took office and went on to announce his Cabinet which drew mixed feelings from the general public, there wasn’t a real indicator of what his vision is for the country.

His Cabinet was meant, as I have written elsewhere in this paper, to unite his fractious party ahead of the elections.

The budget was always going to be a real test for Mnangagwa and his policies for Zimbabwe.

In keeping with the demands to make Zimbabwe investor-friendly Chinamasa signalled a radical shift from the Mugabe era by making changes to the controversial Indigenisation Act which kept investors away due to its opaque clauses and loopholes which made it open to abuse.

The law has been relaxed in all other sectors of the economy limiting the 51 percent local shareholding requirement to platinum and diamond industries only.

This is really a major shift.

What remains to be seen however, is the implementation.

There has been a tendency in the past by successive Zanu PF governments to promise too much but delivering too little in the end.

If Mnangagwa and his government can follow on Chinamasa’s budget proposals with implementation, then Zimbabweans can surely dare to believe, again!

What is clear is that Mnangagwa has a plan and is not likely to let anyone spoil it for him, especially those that he has entrusted with making Zimbabwe tick again.

Time, as it has always done, will tell whether Zimbabweans can trust their future in him or can still pursue an alternative as was the plan before the fall of Mugabe.

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HARARE - Devine Assignments is mulling whether or not to file a civil lawsuit against Zodwa Wabantu because they felt short-changed by her no-show at a scheduled show in Harare and Bulawayo this week even though she was paid.

Zodwa’s latest no-show has prompted a furious reaction from expectant fans. Devine Assignments is entitled to a refund.

Zodwa has of late become well-known for not showing up at gigs — but her lowest point was this week where the promoter sent her money and even sent a chaperone to pick her up in Durban and she pulled a fast one, disappearing from the scene.

In an agonising statement, Devine Assignments said it regrets to announce the cancellation of Zodwa Wabantu’s scheduled tour of Zimbabwe which was supposed to start on Thursday December 7 in Harare and in Bulawayo on December 8.

“As we had paid her for, we are treating this unfortunate incident of bad faith, unprofessionalism and outright deceit as fraud and will be advised by our partners on the way forward. We deeply regret this turn of events for the fans who were anticipating the show,” reads a statement from Devine Assignments director Biggie Chinoperekwei.

Last month, she was booked for three shows in Bulawayo (Club Connect), Harare (Private Lounge) and Mutare (Club 263) but she chose not to fulfill the assignment claiming she feared the former president Robert Mugabe despite the fact that she had accepted advance payment.

After the resignation of Mugabe, Zodwa agreed to fulfil the shows on December 7 and 8 in Harare and Bulawayo respectively.

However, she was nowhere to be found at the last minute.

Zodwa is not the first artist to make the headlines for failing to pitch up or keeping fans waiting, so promoters need to start asserting their rights when an artist turns up late, or fails to do so at all.

For starters, Zimbabwe needs a Society of Ticket Agents and Retailers, which should really outline the code of practice to deal with people like Zodwa.

We need a code that is legally enforceable, with clear terms and conditions.

Promoters must have a right to a refund in all circumstances.

It must also protect show-goers against event promoters that make changes to the contracted event without valid reason.

This cannot be allowed to go on any longer.

HARARE - Government is backtracking on the promised devolution of power which partially found expression in the new Constitution.

In his national budget on Thursday Finance minister Patrick Chinamasa said the idea was not sustainable.

The new Constitution created eight provincial councils with 10 councillors each, envisaged to be elected through proportional representation.

There are also two metropolitan provincial councils — Harare and Bulawayo — that will spearhead development in these respective cities.

Under the proposed arrangement, mayors of Harare and Bulawayo will chair the Harare and Bulawayo metropolitan provinces respectively.

“Funding of the Provincial and Metropolitan structures, as set out in Chapter 14, Section 264 of the Constitution, is not sustainable and political parties represented in Parliament should in the future give consideration to amending the Constitution to lessen the burden on the fiscus,” Chinamasa said in his national budget speech.

Centre for Community Development Zimbabwe director Phillip Pasirayi told the Daily News that there is no political will to implement devolution and the issue of budgetary constraints is just a scapegoat.

He said there is real fear in government that devolution will give the opposition a foothold in rural areas which have traditionally been under Zanu PF control.

“It is not so much about lack of funding for the Provincial and Metropolitan Councils but the ruling party’s unwillingness to share power with the opposition in rural areas which it considers as its strongholds.

“The new administration should immediately establish the Provincial and Metropolitan Councils to show its commitment to upholding the Constitution and respecting the wishes of the people who overwhelmingly voted for the charter,” Pasirayi said.

“If this is truly a new political dispensation as we are being told, then it should be one premised on respect for the Constitution and the rule of law.

“There is no need for political parties to further discuss devolution as suggested by Chinamasa.

“What we are expecting is for the responsible ministry to present a draft bill to Parliament on devolution for debate before enactment into law,” he said.

Local government expert Mfundo Mlilo said Chinamasa’s remarks on devolution were just a political statement with no basis because he cannot go against a constitutional obligation which provides for the provincial and metropolitan councils to be established by government.

“We know that Zanu PF has always been against devolution and using the issue of finances as a scapegoat will not work. How does he know that a policy is not sustainable without trying it out? Where is the cost benefit analysis?

“He has not done any feasibility study or Commission of Inquiry into the benefits of these councils. All this needs to be done before dismissing devolution.

“We need those inquiries to validate whether these councils will succeed or not. Countries such as Kenya and Ghana are examples which Zimbabwe can look to,” he said.

Analyst Kenndy Kennedy Kaitano said when Zanu PF was preparing for the motion to impeach ousted autocrat Robert Mugabe, one of the reasons they raised for the proposed action was that the teetotaller had disregarded the constitutional provision to set up provincial councils.

“One would have expected constitutionally conscious Mnangagwa to do what his boss failed to do,” Kaitano said.

“However, Mnangagwa, a lawyer by training who should have understood the Constitution better than aged Mugabe, ignored this important constitutional provision to create Provincial Councils, and instead, unconstitutionally appointed resident ministers.

“In a country where we have both rural and urban councils and a minister of Local Government who oversees these councils, what really is the purpose of burdening the taxpayer with provincial resident ministers? How many body guards and secretaries, private assistants are assigned to each resident minister?”

The Constitution states that “the President appoints ministers and assigns functions to them, including the administration of any Act of Parliament or of any ministry or department."

“Could Mnangagwa or his special advisor Chris Mutsvangwa tell the nation which Act of Parliament, ministry or government department resident ministers are supposed to look after?

“This was just the same way of giving jobs to Zanu PF boys and girls by president Mnangagwa, just as his mentor Mugabe has done in the past.”

Mnangagwa has said if the people speak, he will listen.

“I am speaking, and I hope others will join me in speaking, and he should fire the resident ministers, or else resign himself for failing to read the Constitution of Zimbabwe,” Kaitano said.
 

HARARE - Economists have said Finance minister Patrick Chinamasa made the right calls on some key elements of fiscal policy on one of the harshest budgets in a generation on Thursday, slashing spending, re-engaging with international lenders and attracting foreign investors.

Bond markets rallied and rating agencies gave it a cautious welcome. But analysts questioned whether Chinamasa’s budget would shore up the economy in the short-term given the scale of the squeeze which lets virtually nobody off the hook.

Years of economic mismanagement have led to a collapse in domestic demand in combination with a struggling manufacturing industry and agricultural sector, devastating the Zimbabwean economy.

It is the first budget to be presented since former President Robert Mugabe resigned after 37 years in power.

Zimbabwe-watchers IHS Markit and NKC African Economics were eager to see the budget to gauge whether Chinamasa and President Emmerson Mnangagwa are determined to make policy changes that will reverse the economic decline of the past two decades.

The national budget was presented under the banner: “Towards a New Economic Order” and acknowledges that a decline in domestic and foreign investor confidence has led to a disappointing economic performance over recent years.

Chinamasa talked of a paradigm shift in the way Zimbabwe does business and manage the economy, public enterprises and finances, and said the aim of the budget is “getting the economy speedily back on track.”

Patrick Chinamasa

Even though some policy changes will have to wait until the executive has obtained the mandate of the ruling Zanu PF party at its extraordinary conference in Harare next week, some bold pronouncements did indicate that the new president and his Finance minister have correctly identified some priority areas for policy change and covered some of the areas where future regulations will boost revenue and cut spending.

Some of the key policy changes include: the progressive reduction of the share of employment costs to initially 70 percent in 2018, 65 percent in 2019, and below 60 percent of total revenue by 2020.

But the big move was on the Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Act of 2009, which required all companies operating in Zimbabwe to be 51 percent or more owned by black Zimbabweans.

Chinamasa said the indigenisation policy will henceforth apply only to diamond and platinum mining.

Alisa Strobel, senior economist Sub-Saharan Africa at IHS Markit said amending and relaxing the Indigenisation and Empowerment Act is one of the key policies that is structured to re-attract foreign investments.

“Furthermore, the proposed amendments will confine the 51/49 Indigenisation threshold to only two minerals, namely diamonds and platinum in the extractive sector. The 51/49 threshold will not apply to the rest of the extractive sector or any other sector in the economy — suggesting openness to any investor, regardless of nationality,” Strobel said.

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IHS Markit said it welcomed the government’s aim to address the high country risk perception among existing and prospective investors, by abiding by the terms of Bilateral Investment Protection and Promotion Agreements Zimbabwe.

Chinamasa also said a planned export tax on processed platinum would be deferred to 2019.

On the expenditure side, the focus was on ruthless cuts and austerity to try to reverse the ruinous deficits that the government has been running.

“We forecast that the budget deficit will run to $1,47bn in 2017 (8,7 percent of GDP); it was $1,45bn (8,9 percent of GDP) in 2016,” NKC analyst François Conradie said.

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Chinamasa stated that: “At the heart of the economy’s fundamental economic challenges is an unsustainable budget deficit, whose financing through issuance of Treasury Bills and recourse to the overdraft with the Reserve Bank is untenable.”

An expenditure ceiling was introduced in the form of explicit targets: a deficit in 2018 of below 4 percent of GDP, and 3 percent of GDP in subsequent years. Expenditure is budgeted at $5,743bn.

Former Finance minister Tendai Biti said the government is saddled with a lot of demands and pressures that will make it impossible to achieve the desired target growth.

IHS Markit said it welcomed the government’s expressed efforts in servicing and re-scheduling of domestic and external public debt obligations that are consistent with agreements with lenders and creditors.

However, critically proposed government employment costs are still too high to address the country’s fiscal imbalances.

There were cheers in the National Assembly when Chinamasa announced plans to fire 3 400 ‘‘youth officers’’ who were essentially intimidators on behalf of Mugabe.

The Finance minister said all civil servants older than 65 will have to take retirement, and a freeze on civil service recruitment will be kept in place.

Conradie said somewhat inexplicably, he does not intend to touch bonuses for civil servants next year, for which he has budgeted $176m.

Lawmakers were less impressed by expenditure on defence ($420m) and healthcare ($408m). Some $132m has been budgeted for the elections set to be held in August next year; Mnangagwa has said that election will be “democratic”, but many expressed doubt.

Spending cuts will also include the closure of a number of diplomatic missions and more stringent rules will be imposed on official travel: smaller delegations and greater use of economy class flights.

Chinamasa also said the funding of local government “provincial and metropolitan structures” is “unsustainable” and urged Parliament to reconsider the Constitution on this; this is a difficult debate given the necessity of local government for good governance.

On the revenue side, the presentation contained the good news that cumulative tax and non-tax revenue collections for the period January to September 2017 exceeded the target ($2,812bn compared to a target of $2,741bn).

Chinamasa said government was considering the privatisation of some publicly-owned firms, giving the statistic that 70 percent of the 93 State-owned enterprises (SOEs) are technically insolvent, but did not elaborate.

Conradie said Chinamasa made the right calls on some key elements of fiscal policy, “and we hope next week’s Zanu PF conference will contain more measures to attract investment.”

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HARARE - Zimbabwe’s largest trade union federation yesterday said the national budget presented by the Finance minister Patrick Chinamasa had nothing for the working people to celebrate.

The Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) said the budget was pro-capital and workers should brace for hard times as the government pursues austerity measures and free market polices.

“In particular, civil servants are in for hard times as the government tries to cut its expenditure,” Japhet Moyo, the ZCTU secretary-general said.

“We are also worried that the government will also be targeting conditions of services in its quest to cut its wage bill. Conditions of services are negotiated for and should not be removed without the consent of all parties”.

ZCTU said there was no need for the ministry of Defence to get a huge chunk of the budget, in fact much more than the Health ministry.

“Zimbabwe is not at war and there is need to reallocate much of the resources to critical areas. The allocation to the Health ministry falls far short of the Abuja declaration of 15 percent of the National Budget,” Moyo said.

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HARARE - The ongoing voter registration mobilisation campaign by the Zimbabwe Human Rights Association (ZimRights) and the Election Resource Centre (ERC) has moved a notch up as minibuses have been ferrying prospective registrants to nearby registration centres.

During the door-to-door campaigns and road shows held in Kuwadzana and Dzivaresekwa in Harare on November 7, the vehicles spent the day ferrying those who wanted to be registered as voters to the nearest registration centres.

Most of those, who benefitted from the free transport had also been battling with the issue of proof of residence, but were lucky to be assisted by commissioners of oaths at the one-stop service roadshows.

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Since the beginning of the voter mobilisation, ZimRights has assisted 9 732 people with affidavits for proof of residence.

The BVR process will last for 72 days and will be held in four phases. The first phase ended on October 25, with the next chapter opening on October 29 — till November 13. The third phase started on November 16 running to December 1 and the fourth and last phase commenced on December 4 and ends on December 19.

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HARARE - Zimbabwean police are setting up safety cameras in high risk locations in Harare where smash and grabs from vehicles have been rife.

Offenders will be snapped at selected intersections, with the CCTV system already installed at a hotspot around Avondale.

“We are live and rolling out cameras at strategic points/intersections in Avondale,” the ZRP said in a statement.

“This particular one we are still tweaking so we get a good view and we can identify perpetrators menacing the public through smash and grabs amongst other things...”

Crossing roads legally can be a hair-raising battle of nerves at the junction with oncoming cars disinclined to give way to pedestrians.

“We have embraced technology in our crime-fighting initiatives although behind, we are catching up and at speed. We would like to thank all the individuals and companies that have partnered the police to fight crime, particular mention to this local Avondale company that has donated and launched this project with us making use of the powerful night vision, Dahua IP Cameras.”
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HARARE - American journalist Martha O’Donovan, facing charges of subversion and insulting former president Robert Mugabe on social media, yesterday slammed the State for infringing on her rights by seeking continuous postponements.

O’Donovan’s lawyer Obey Shava sought refusal of further remand yesterday after prosecutor Tatenda Murindagomo failed to fulfil her undertaking to furnish the Magamba Network Trust Employee with a trial date.

Murindagomo said the State was yet to complete investigations.

“On the previous court hearing, State made an undertaking that if not ready it would remove accused person from remand if not ready with a trial date.

“However, the postponement sought today is on the basis of the same grounds upon which the State sought further remand on the previous attendance,” Shava said.

“The reason that has been cited for further remand is for investigation on something that the State has already done and assured the court of.”

Harare magistrate Josephine Sande ordered that if the State fails to provide a trial date on January 4, O’Donovan would be removed from remand.

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The 25-year-old is accused of attempting to subvert a constitutionally-elected government.

She faces a further charge of insulting Mugabe, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in jail.

The State alleged that O’Donovan systematically sought to incite political unrest through the expansion and use of sophisticated network on social media platforms as well as running Magamba Network Trust.

She is also being accused of being the face behind accounts on microblogging site Twitter under usernames @matigari and @openparlyzw.

Using username @matigari, O’Donovan is also accused of posting a message which read: “We are being led by a selfish and sick man.”

The message was accompanied by a photo showing that Mugabe is surviving on a catheter, the charge sheet reads.

O’Donovan was granted $1 000 bail by High Court judge Clement Phiri who noted that there were no compelling reasons justifying her denial to freedom by the lower courts.

As part of the bail conditions, O’Donovan was ordered to report to the police twice a week, surrender her passport, not to interfere with witnesses and to reside at the address that she provided to the court, until the finalisation of the case.

Phiri noted that the tweets and the website that O’Donovan is accused of running is continuously churning out information despite the American national having been incarcerated and her laptop and cellphone having been confiscated by the State.

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HARARE - The MDC Alliance, a coalition of seven opposition political parties, has said the national budget presented by Finance minister Patrick Chinamasa on Thursday is not feasible, adding that the projected four percent growth is pie in the sky.

MDC Alliance policy committee chairperson Tendai Biti told a press conference at Harvest House that Chinamasa’s $5,1 billion budget failed to capture how the government intends to deal with the country’s economic crisis in terms of addressing problems bedevilling ordinary Zimbabweans, adding that there is a serious budget deficit that will make it difficult for the Finance minister to meet the projected targets.

“In our view, we think that there are critical drivers of the budget deficit that will make attaining budget cap of four percent not possible and these are the drivers of the budget deficit in 2018.

“Number one, 2018 is an election year, the sum of $132 million was set aside for the election, but you and I know that the election will cost much more than that,” Biti, a former Finance minister said.

The election vote is a far-cry from $274 million demanded by Zec.

“Number two we have a new creature on the scene, this is the enhanced Command Agriculture that now includes livestock and other crops including soya beans.

“We have no doubt in our mind that enhanced Command Agriculture on its own will consume the sum of $1,5 billion. We know for a fact that between June and September of 2017, more than a billion dollars was spent on Command Agriculture, so in 2018, in the context of an election, the enhanced Command Agriculture will be a major driver of the budget deficit,” Biti said.

Chinamasa presented his budget on Thursday, which courted mixed feelings from the industry and various economic players, who said he had tried to minimise government costs, which will work for the positive growth of the country.

During his budget presentation, Chinamasa said that the country’s Gross Domestic Product growth is projected at 4,5 percent in 2018.

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But Biti said the government is saddled with a lot of demands and pressures that will make it impossible to achieve the desired target growth.

“Zanu PF has to monetise their election promises, we have got 2013 promises, the building and the creation of 2,2 million jobs, the building of 500 primary schools. Some of these election promises have to be monetised and again they put pressure on the budget.

“And then Zanu PF indiscipline, Zanu PF is not capable of living within its means. They have to monetise the peace, by that I am talking about huge payouts that have to be met; including $10 million which we know will be paid to (former) president Robert Mugabe. So monetising the peace will involve the making of huge payouts inside the system so that the new order can be accepted by the old order.

“In our own view, the budget deficit in 2018 will be much worse than the 15 percent of 2017 and in our view we calculate that the budget deficit will be $3 billion or at least 18 percent of GDP. And if we maintain the budget deficit in the same unacceptable levels as existing now it means the same distortions that are currently playing out will continue evolving in 2018.

Biti said the projected revenue of $5,7 billion is also not achievable considering that most of the country’s industries are closed.

He said the government is only capable of achieving its expenditure, further describing the reforms in the budget as ‘normative lipstick reforms’.”

He said the removal of at least 3 000 youth officers will not assist in any way, claiming there are about 200 000 ghost workers in government.

Biti said as MDC Alliance, they have 10 suggestions that they hope will assist in turning around the country’s economy.

He said there is need to resolve the country’s political crisis, work on the micro-economic stability, reform the financial sector, pursue regional integration, pursue industrialisation, reduce the wage bill, liquidate useless parastatals, monetise democracy and improve international relations.

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HARARE - Former Finance minister Ignatius Chombo yesterday formally paid $5 000 bail before he was finally released from Chikurubi Maximum Prison where he had been on remand for nearly two weeks.

Chombo was ordered to pay $5 000 bail by the High Court on Thursday to end his hell in remand prison after he was initially denied his freedom by the Harare Magistrates' Court on November 27.

Yesterday he surrendered his title deeds and paid the $5 000 to pave way for release from Chikurubi Maximum Prison where he was being held together with former Zanu PF youth leader, Kudzanai Chipanga.

As part of his stringent bail conditions, Chombo will be reporting thrice a day at Marlborough Police Station.

Chombo’s lawyer Lovemore Madhuku, who is also representing Chipanga, said the former Zanu PF heavyweight was relieved to finally head home.

“They are now just sorting bail issues before he is cleared and leaves for his home. This is quite a relief for him because you know that these people have not known freedom since November 15 when they were taken from their homes,” Madhuku said of the duo.

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Yesterday Chombo arrived at the magistrates' court for his routine remand under heavy military guard.

He was in the same suit he was wearing when he first appeared in court last month after spending weeks in detention following a raid on his house by the military at the crack of dawn on November 15.

Chombo appeared before Harare magistrate Josephine Sande together with ex-Zanu youth leaders Chipanga and Munyaradzi Hamandishe. He was remanded to January 8.

The former Zanu PF secretary for administration is facing a slew of charges which could potentially earn him a combined 55 years in prison if convicted on all the three counts he is facing.

Chombo has been charged with criminal abuse of office, contravening the Prevention of Corruption Act and fraud with the State saying his alleged activities prejudiced it of $3, 6 million.

The maximum sentences on fraud are 35 years, criminal abuse of office, 15 years and contravening Prevention of Corruption Act, 5 years.

Chombo, 66, was seized by the military in the early hours of November 15 in an operation which led to former president Robert Mugabe being placed under house arrest and later led to his resignation.

He was released into the custody of the police on November 23 and was rushed to hospital for treatment on injuries he claimed were sustained during the time he was in military detention.

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HARARE - President Emmerson Mnangagwa last night began the re-configuration of the security sector when he appointed Zimbabwe Ambassador to South Africa and Lesotho Isaac Moyo as the new director-general of the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO).

Moyo replaces Happyton Bonyongwe who had been appointed Justice minister by former president Robert Mugabe in his last Cabinet reshuffle in October.

Bonyongwe was cut loose by Mnangagwa when he announced his first Cabinet last week.

Moyo was appointed Ambassador to South Africa and Lesotho in 2014.

Before his appointment he had been executive secretary of the African Union Committee of Intelligence and Security Service in Africa in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

The new CIO boss was in August a target of the former first lady Grace Mugabe – who was accused of severely assaulting a South African model she had found in the company of her wayward sons -  who had expressed her displeasure at the Zimbabwean Embassy ‘‘failure’’ to protect her during the attempts to have her deported.

Grace was accused of assaulting Gabriella Engels with an extension cable at a Sandton Hotel in August and narrowly escaped arrest when her husband negotiated for her to be granted diplomatic immunity.

The charges are still hanging over her head.

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Her Generation 40 (G40) cabal had accused Moyo of being a Mnangagwa sympathiser and was further angered, according to sources, by Moyo’s vigilance during the time Mnangagwa was receiving treatment in South Africa for alleged poisoning by his rivals in Zanu PF.

CIO deputy director-general Daniel Tonde Nhepera had been acting ever since Bonyongwe was first made minister and later dropped from government.

Mnangagwa is set to shake up the security sector with new appointments, retiring long serving security chiefs and filling voids left by those he appointed into his government  such as former Air Marshal Perrance Shiri and Major General Sibusiso Busi Moyo.

On Wednesday Mnangagwa appointed Shebba Shumbayaonda as acting boss of the Air Force.

Meanwhile, Mnangagwa last night rang changes to several ministries by reassigning and cutting loose those he deemed were not worth retaining in their previous portfolios.

Below is the full list of new permanent secretaries.

.  Joey Bimha-Foreign Affairs and International Trade

·  Virginia Mabiza-Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs

·  Ngoni Masoka-Labour and Social Welfare

·  Desire Sibanda-Higher Education, Science and Technology Development

·  Sylvia Utete-Masango-Primary and Secondary Education

·  George Magosvongwe-Local Government, Public Works and National Housing

·  Abigail Shonhiwa-Industry,  Commerce and Enterprise Development

·  Munesu Munodawafa-Mines and Mining Development

·  Thokozile Chitepo-Tourism and Hospitality Industry

·  Sibusisiwe Zembe-Women and Youth Affairs

·  George Charamba-Information, Media and Broadcasting Services

·  Gerald Gwinji-Health and Child Care

·  Prince Mupazviriho-Sport, Arts and Recreation

·  Sam Kundishora-Information Communication Technology and Cyber Security

·  Grace Mutandiro-Environment, Water and Climate

·  Judith Kateera-Presidential Affairs, Monitoring and Implementation of Government Programmes

·  George Mlilo-Transport and Infrastructural Development

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HARARE - The shock resignation by Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) chairperson Rita Makarau — a mere eight months before the country holds its make-or-break national elections next year — has cast a huge shadow on the eagerly-awaited polls, which a fearful opposition want to be monitored by international observers.

Makarau — also a respected Supreme Court judge and the secretary of the Judicial Services Commission (JSC) — stunned the country on Friday when she abruptly resigned from her post without giving any reasons, amid a plethora of political conspiracies.

Rita Makarau

Well-placed sources at the Zec who spoke to the Daily News on Sunday yesterday also said Makarau’s unexpected departure had left a of lot of questions unanswered, as days before she quit she had been in jovial mood in meetings with stakeholders at the national elections management body.

"It appears as if she may have been pushed. Her email signalling her intention to resign came as a complete shock to us. It came after we had just had an important meeting with one of our stakeholders during the week, and there was no sign whatsoever that she was on her way out.

“In fact she was as calm and as cheerful as she always is. So, you can imagine our surprise when we received that email. It definitely suggested that she may have been pushed before she jumped.

"We are all trying to put the pieces together and make sense of everything, as her email never stated her reasons for that very sudden move,” one of the sources said.

New Justice minister Ziyambi Ziyambi confirmed Makarau’s resignation at the weekend and also said the Supreme Court judge had not given reasons for leaving the post.

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In the meantime, her sudden departure has elicited myriad conspiracy theories, with the opposition and political analysts also warning that it is now “mandatory” that the international community watches over the 2018 polls which must be held by August next year.

It has also emerged that one of the opposition’s charges is that Makarau’s alleged forced resignation from Zec is meant to allow the current dominant faction in Zanu PF to “manipulate the vote” in its favour next year.

During the heights of the ugly factional brawling in the ruling party — which pitted the Generation 40 (G40) faction against the Team Lacoste camp, which was rooting for new President Emmerson Mnangagwa — Makarau was viewed favourably by the G40 group which wanted her to become the country’s chief justice after the late Godfrey Chidyausiku.

Matters came to a head during the interviews for that position when the two major Zanu PF factions fought ugly and open battles to have their preferred candidates take over from Chidyausiku.

In the end, Makarau came second to the country’s new CJ, Luke Malaba, while George Chiweshe — who was preferred by Team Lacoste pulled out of the selection process after it was challenged in the High Court.

Former deputy prime minister in Zimbabwe’s short-lived inclusive government, Arthur Mutambara, was among those who have claimed that Makarau may have been forced to resign from Zec due to factional interests in the ruling party.

“The electoral agenda should be to enable and facilitate free, fair and credible elections, and not settle Zanu PF factional disputes. The regime must reach out to civic society and the opposition parties and establish a clear and inclusive roadmap to free, fair and credible elections in 2018,” Mutambara said.

According to the Constitution, the head of Zec must be either a judge or a former judge, or a person who qualifies for appointment as a judge.

Professor of World Politics, Stephen Chan, said yesterday that the position of chairperson of Zec was pivotal, and required an appointment of the highest calibre and integrity.

“The international community will be looking to the elections as the clinching signal that Zimbabwe is climbing its way upwards to probity and transparency.

“If Zimbabwe wants to rejoin the Commonwealth and attract wider investment, there will have to be a Commonwealth Observer Group and, ideally, a European Observer Group, and they will scrutinise the Zec and its chair with attention to minute detail.

“The shortcomings of observer groups were exposed in Kenya, so they will arrive in Zimbabwe having upped their own game,” Chan told the Daily News On Sunday.

The country’s main opposition party, the MDC, said while it welcomed Makarau’s resignation, its suddenness was both a surprise and a concern.

“Rita Makarau’s resignation opens a can of worms. Why is she resigning just a few months before Election 2018?

“Has she been forced to resign? Was she pushing a factional agenda during her term of office as ZEC chairperson? Is she really her own person?” MDC spokesperson Obert Gutu queried.

Makarau’s resignation came as Zec, as well as local election observer groups, are intensifying their efforts to have millions of prospective voters register in the ongoing biometric voter registration (BVR) exercise, which is now approaching its final phase.

Zimbabwe is using the BVR system for registration for next year’s elections for the first time.

Zec is targeting seven million voters for the current BVR registration exercise — ahead of the much-awaited 2018 polls, which could see Mnangagwa facing a grand coalition of opposition parties in that plebiscite.

The opposition and civic groups have also been agitating for sweeping electoral reforms ahead of the crunch elections which they say must be held in an environment which doesn’t promote disputes like what happened during the 2008 and 2013 polls.

In the hotly-disputed 2008 elections, opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai beat former president Robert Mugabe hands down.

However, the results of those polls were withheld for six long weeks by stunned authorities, amid widespread allegations of ballot tampering and fraud which were later revealed by former bigwigs of the ruling party.

Mugabe’s defeat was widely blamed on an internal rebellion which was said to have been led by officials loyal to former vice president Joice Mujuru and her late husband Solomon — a plot that came to be known as Bhora Musango.

In the ensuing sham presidential run-off, which authorities claimed was needed to determine the winner, Zanu PF apparatchiks engaged in a murderous orgy of violence in which hundreds of Tsvangirai's supporters were killed in cold blood, forcing the former prime minister in the inclusive government to withdraw from the discredited race altogether.

Mugabe went on to stand in a widely-condemned one-man race in which he declared himself the winner.

However, Sadc and the rest of the international community would have none of it, forcing the nonagenarian to share power with Tsvangirai for five years, to prevent the country from imploding completely.

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HARARE - Last week, we learnt of the refreshing news that the now-defunct Arcadia United has taken huge steps towards their “resurrection” from the dead after the famous football club folded in the late 90s.

A couple of vital lessons were learnt according to former striker Sean Charters and chief among them is the prioritisation of the players’ welfare so that when they call time on their careers they will not fall destitute as is the case with a number of his former teammates.

The club has set up skeletal structures with iconic stars such as Charlie Jones and Carlos Max among others spearheading the campaign to resurrect the club with the establishment of junior age group teams in the U12, U14, U16 and U19.

The hope is to register a team in the division two next year to kick-start a journey they have termed Vision 2020 where they are targeting to bounce back into the Premier Soccer League by the year 2020.

“The plea we have is that we need corporates to sponsor some of these teams...we need to put up structures in order to improve the livelihoods of these young players. The trend in Zimbabwe is that the star player plays for Dynamos, he lasts for 10 to 15 years...after that he’s no longer the star player, a new star arrives on the show and the former player is left destitute because all he knew was football,” Charters tells the Daily News on Sunday.

“So with the Vision 2020 we also want to try and give the players all the skills because not everybody makes it in football, we’ll try to teach these youngsters how to live beyond football.

“After 15 or 20 years of playing topflight football that is if they get the chance they will need to fall back on something. We find a lot of guys that I played with, it’s sad they are destitute. We are fortunate we are still managing to live but 80 percent of footballers are living bad lives and that is because the structures in the beginning did not look after these players.

“We only worry about a player when he is a star player. We use his skill when his skill is finished, a new boy is born and the trend continues we forget about them so I believe let’s get these youngsters early, teach them a culture even if it comes to educating them; so after football there’s an education they fall back onto because when football ends what do they fall back on?”

Danny Bismack Sports Club has suddenly become home to some entertaining football again and the man who founded and popularised the stadium Danny Bismack recently made a courtesy visit much to the appreciation of the coloured community.

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“We play every weekend, every Saturday to be precise and we learnt a lot this past weekend with the help of former player Alan Johnson. We now want to embark on some more tournaments against the top academy sides in Harare next season and maybe take it further into Bulawayo and other centres,” Charters adds.

“The biggest challenge in hosting tournaments like these is they cost a lot. We would like corporates to come in and sponsor tournaments of this nature, put money into the youths as the youth are the future without them there’s no football in Zimbabwe...we will never go to the World Cup unless we fix these structures at the bottom.

“In building a house you cannot start building the roof, you start with the foundation and then the roof. So let’s start on the foundation and the foundation is the youth, let’s put structures instil discipline; discipline them young. To discipline a 25-year-old is difficult than to teach a 12-year-old that in football you need to live a certain type of life.

“It’s much easier when he now reaches U20 level or national team level you then now have a disciplined player who’s focussed on football because football today is the fastest growing business in the world.

“It’s a multi-million dollar industry if we don’t go that way with the youths there’s no future, I certainly don’t believe so.”

He says that most of the former club stars such as George Rollo, Hamid Dana, Majid Dana and Bethel Silas came through a sound developmental programme which when it was neglected the empire crumbled and the club died.

“The community were very happy to see youths running on the Danny Bismarck Sports Club again in the tournament and I think given time we will put correct structures in, don’t rush we not in a hurry to be back in the premier league that’s why we saying 2020. Let’s build the foundation, a good foundation your house will not fall down,” he says.

“We lost it at one time, our house fell down and I came through the structures, the junior development programmes were very good. Most of the players the likes of George Rollo, Hamid Dana, Majid Dana, Bethel Silas they all came through the youth development when that died Arcadia United died.

“It was very difficult (seeing the club fold), Arcadia United is a brand. I recall Motor Action being born and everybody called Motor Action, Arcadia United and even today if you mention the name Arcadia United I know and I’m confident they are many Arcadia United fans all over the show and I’m sure hoping that this will come full circle and will find Arcadia United back in the Premier League.

“People are happy but a lot of teething problems at the moment which we will get over. A lot of structures still need to be put in place and slowly people will come. We were fortunate on Sunday to have the presence of Danny Bismarck, the man who founded the field, walked through the gate which was amazing for everybody.

“He had not been to the place in I don’t know how long. So just his presence lifted a lot of people and a lot of people are now believing that this thing can happen...so let’s work together as a community everybody can play a part it’s not about Charlie Jones, Carlos Max, Sean Charters and Simon Finch it’s about the community.

“The community have to come on board to get this project forward. We are looking joining at least a junior league next season. It’s not long now Arcadia United will be back, 2020 is close by.”

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HARARE - FC Platinum coach Norman Mapeza was an elated man after being named Coach of the Year to cap a fine season in which the platinum miners won their maiden championship.

“I think for me as an individual it’s a massive achievement. I am more than happy because we also managed to have a Soccer Star of the Year and the first runner-up from the team. It shows the amount of effort that we have been putting the whole season,” Mapeza said.

“I am really happy. This is one award that keeps you motivated; it shows I am moving in the right direction and I just need to keep working hard. Football is an evolving sport and it’s important for me to keep on reading and move with times.”

Following years of near misses, Mapeza finally led FC Platinum to their maiden championship in an intriguing race which involved Dynamos who had to settle for second-place.

Mapeza etched his name in the books of history as FC Platinum’s triumph meant they became the first team outside Harare and Bulawayo to win the title since independence. Only teams from the capital and Bulawayo have been crowned Zimbabwe champions since 1980.

And during that period, the Glamour Boys have won the title on 16 occasions followed by Highlanders on seven while CAPS United have won it four times.

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The other teams to have won the title since 1980 are Black Rhinos (twice), Black Aces, Zimbabwe Saints, Amazulu, Motor Action, Monomotapa, Gunners and Chicken Inn.

Mapeza wants his team to maintain the same standards going forward.

“I think this will also challenge us to maintain the standards that we have set for ourselves. I think those that will come to our club the message will be the same to work hard. And if you want to excel in this field you need to be disciplined as well as dedicated,” said Mapeza.

Mapeza also lauded some of his coaching colleagues whom he feels also did well this season.

“Lloyd Mutasa did well, Tonderai Ndiraya did well. I also thought even Takesure Chiragwi did well and for him to save Shabanie Mine from relegation with the resources they had for me I think it was a success story,” said Mapeza.

“It’s unfortunate we don’t know how the voting system works in the country but if it was in England, Chiragwi could have won this award. But all the same I am really happy.”

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HARARE - Dynamos coach Lloyd Mutasa says he has no hard feelings after missing out on the Coach of the Year Award won by championship-winning  FC Platinum coach Norman Mapeza at a ceremony held Friday night in the capital.

The Glamour Boys coach had appeared as a dark horse to land the award following his incredible work which saw them challenge for the title right to the last day of the season.

Mutasa helped DeMbare launch a serious title challenge which they narrowly missed out right on the last day of the season.

Despite missing out on the award to Mapeza, Mutasa felt the FC Platinum coach was the most deserving after leading the platinum miners to their maiden title.

“No hard feelings at all. Of course as a coach you would want to win something for example the league title, you would want to win the championship more than an individual accolade,” Mutasa said.

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“I think Mapeza was more deserving, he won the championship, yeah it’s really justified. They worked for everything that they got. For me and the club, I think it’s important to look forward and probably continue with our project and see how we fare next season.

“It’s important to stay focused and come back probably stronger next season. I think we proved that we can fight with the best. We will take a little rest before we can start our preparations for next season.”

Mutasa also lauded skipper Ocean Mushure, who was voted the second runner-up behind FC Platinum’s pair of Rodwell Chinyengetere and Kelvin Moyo.

“I am happy for him. He was one of our senior players in the team and he indeed led by example. It was also good to see that ...Ntouba made it to the calendar in his first season with us,” Mutasa said.

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HARARE - Despite the disappointment of missing out on the Castle Lager Premiership title, Dynamos midfielder Tichaona Chipunza is pleased with the mettle shown by the Glamour Boys in the just-ended 2017 season.

DeMbare started the pre-season by releasing a number of their senior players from the 2016 season.

This saw the likes of Roderick Mutuma, Stephen Alimenda, Sydney Linyama and Jacob Muzokomba all exiting the club.

Brett Amidu (FC Platinum), Godknows Murwura, Dominic Mukandi (Ngezi Platinum Stars) decided to look for greener pastures elsewhere.

With such a high turnover of players that had been key to the side, many people expected the Glamour Boys to struggle.  

Coach Lloyd Mutasa, to his credit, assembled a young side made up of mainly unknown upstarts that somehow punched above their weight to push for the league title that they narrowly lost to FC Platinum on the very last day of the season.

Skipper Ocean Mushure and Cameroonian import Christian Ntouba, provided the experience as DeMbare went on to finish the season in second-place just two points behind champions FC Platinum.

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While Ntouba and Mushure grabbed all the headlines, it was Chipunza, who was the unsung hero who did all the donkey work in midfield.

The former Triangle man was a regular feature in the Dynamos line-up and missed only just one game through suspension.

When Dynamos were in possession, he was the one tasked to turn defence into attack by combing the midfield with the attackers.

“I must admit that this was my best season ever. I played 33 matches which I think is a record in the history of local football,” Chipunza told the Daily News on Sunday.

“It was really a season to remember especially for me, I enjoyed my game like never before. We were a relatively new team when the season started. Very few gave us a chance to do well but we surprised them.

“We had a slow start but once we found our groove, we went on to fight for the title. Overall, it was a good season; I think we did our best.

“We even had a chance to win the championship but we let ourselves down in some few matches especially towards the end of the season.

“But of course we are not mourning about it. We want to come back stronger next season. If we can continue from where we left this season I don’t see anyone stopping us from winning the title next season.”

Despite being one of the standout performers in the 2017 season, Chipunza was sadly not among the best XI players on the Soccer Star of the Year calendar.

The midfielder is hoping to use the omission to inspire him to perform even better next season.

“Of course as a player you always want to be among those recognised as the best but it was not the case with me this season,” Chipunza said.

“I have since challenged myself to work even harder next season so that probably I can earn a place on the calendar. In fact I’m actually happy for my teammates Ocean and Ntouba they deserved a place there.

“They have been leading by example throughout, scoring some important goals for us which carried us all the way.”

Chipunza also took time to praise his coach Mutasa who he feels is one of the best in the Premiership.

“Father (Mutasa) for me is one of the best coaches I have ever worked with. He allows players to express themselves freely,” he said.

“He brought in so many things that enabled us to win matches. He instils confidence in players. Working with Father is one easy thing and we enjoyed it a lot. I am sure he will take the club to the next level in the seasons to come.”

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