Makumbe sued for US$100k

UNIVERSITY of Zimbabwe political science lecturer Professor John Makumbe is being sued for US$100 000 for allegedly defaming Norton Town Council chief executive Mr Winslow Muyambi in an article he wrote for the Zimbabwean newspaper last month.

Harare lawyer Maxwell Mavhunga of Mavhunga and Sigauke law firm issued the summons on behalf of Muyambi in which Prof Makumbe is cited as the only defendant.

In the summons, filed on August 3 in the High Court, Muyambi said he was defamed by the article that was published in the United Kingdom-based newspaper’s issue for July 9-15 under the headline "Norton Town Council struggles to clean up". 

Mavhunga submitted that his client was a well-known figure in his capacity as town chief executive and that statements published in the paper were bent on tarnishing his image. Herald

MDC-M MPs to challenge ejection from parliament in Supreme Court

Three legislators from the MDC faction led by Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara, who were this week officially expelled from parliament, are set to challenge the move in the Supreme Court.

The expelled MPs, Norman Mpofu (Bulilima East), Abednico Bhebhe (Nkayi South) and Njabuliso Mguni (Lupane East) were found guilty of misconduct after they appeared before a party disciplinary committee last month. They were expelled from the party and had since been trying to fight the expulsion from parliament through legal means. But the legal battle was thrown out of the High Court last week.
On Tuesday, clerk of parliament Austin Zvoma, announced in a press conference that the Speaker, Lovemore Moyo, had notified Robert Mugabe and the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission of the new MP vacancies, confirming the trio’s expulsion from the House. The group’s lawyer is now set to file papers with the Supreme Court, challenging the move. SW Radio

Tsvangirai gives in to NCA pressure

HARARE – Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai has finally given in to relentless pressure from major civic society groups leading a defiance campaign against the current constitution-making process driven by Parliament.

The groups, led by the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA), want the inclusive government to surrender control of the constitution-making process to independent organisations.

The NCA and two other dissenting organisations are said to have convinced the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader at a no-holds-barred meeting held last weekend he should go back to his colleagues in government and push for the amendment of Article 6 of the Global Political Agreement (GPA), as a condition to their participation.

The controversial clause gives the inclusive government the authority to lead the constitution-making process. Zimbabwe Times

Kimberley Process team in Zimbabwe

MUTARE – A four-member team from the Kimberly Process Certification Scheme (KPSC) is touring Zimbabwe’s Chiadzwa diamond field where the army and state security agencies have been accused of committing gross human rights violations and other illegal activities.

The visit by the Windhoek-based KPCS secretariat team headed by its chairman and Namibia’s Deputy Mines Minister Bernhard Esau follows another visit by the KPSC last month to probe reports by human rights groups that the country’s military used brutal force to control access to Marange and to take over unlicenced diamond mining and trading following discovery of the gemstones there in June 2006.

The team that was headed by Liberian deputy mines minister Kpandel Fiya issued a damning report at the end of its visit calling for a temporary ban on trade in diamonds from Zimbabwe’s Marange fields until effective security, internal control measures and resources were in place in a manner that indicates that Zimbabwe has control and authority of the fields. Zimonline

Dzinotyiwei Honoured

Harare — Science and Technology Development Minister Heneri Dzinotyiwei has been reco-gnised as a Companion of the Common-wealth Partnership for Technology Management.

The recognition was announced at the Smart Partnership Dialogue held at Munyo-nyo in Uganda recently. He will formally receive the award in London in December.

Minister Dzinotyiwei has been involved with the partnership right from its formative stages and said he was delighted to receive the honour.

"It is a great honour and recognition of the extent of how Zimbabweans have been involved in the development of the concept of smart partnership; more so for me being a Minister of Science and Technology. It gives an image of our general thrust of science and technology," he said. - Herald

Bulawayo Council set to battle army barracks

The Bulawayo City Council is battling to recover over US$500 000 owed by several government departments and has threatened to cut off water supplies, including those at the Imbizo military barracks. Bulawayo Mayor Patrick Thaba Moyo told Newsreel on Wednesday that their council had passed a resolution to cut water supplies to any individual or organization that was 3 months behind their payments and that this was their last resort.

But several councilors in the city, who spoke to our correspondent Lionel Saungweme, expressed reservations that the council would be able to carry out its threat to cut supplies at the army barracks. Many times before central government has intervened and put pressure on the council. The country’s inclusive government is struggling to raise money to finance its recovery programme with analysts blaming unresolved political issues for scaring potential investors and donors. - SW Radio

 SW Radio Africa wins Station of the Year award

SW Radio Africa has won the 2009 Radio Station of the Year Award at an event organised by the Southern Africa Achievers Awards (SAAA), last Saturday. The SAAA awards, hosted in London, recognise the talent and community contribution of individuals, groups and corporations working to better the lives of Southern Africans living in the UK. For the past few months the general public was invited to vote for their favourites in different categories. The public vote was conducted via the organisers’ website www.sa-abroad.com.

The organisers said SW Radio Africa won because of its widespread coverage on the unfolding events in the Zimbabwe crisis.

Zimbabwean broadcaster Ezra “Tshisa” Sibanda walked away with two awards - the 2009 Radio Presenter of the Year and Promoter of the year. Sibanda is a part-time presenter at SW Radio Africa, co-presenting the station’s Callback programme as well as the popular ‘Tshisa Style’ musical programme.

Other winners at the SAAA awards ceremony included David Mwanaka, the first known African farmer to create a successful farming business in the UK. The Zimbabwean farmer walked away with the Business of the Year Award. Zambian Rosemary Chileshe and Zimbabwe’s Owen Muganda shared the Community Champion Award.

The Sports Personality award went to Portsmouth footballer and South African Bafana Bafana Captain, Aaron Mokoena, who has also started a foundation to help the less fortunate in South Africa.

ZIMFEST was voted the Most Popular Event, while community worker and business woman Jestina Mutale of Zambia was voted the Female Personality of the Year.
For his role in campaigning for the South Africans in the diaspora to have a political voice and a right to vote, South Africa’s Benson Xolani Xala was credited with the Personality of the Year award.
The organisers said it was important to award those who had ‘pushed the limits’ in serving their communities, and they promise that next years event will be even bigger and better. -SW RADIO

Tichafa Matambanadzo's warrant of arrest cancelled

Harare — Radio and television personality Tichafa Matambanadzo, who is accused of defrauding the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, had a warrant of arrest issued against him last week cancelled yesterday.

The warrant had been issued after Matambanadzo failed to surrender his passport to the clerk of court.

Matambanadzo, who is on bail, last month successfully applied to be temporarily given back his passport because he wanted to travel outside the country on business. - Herald

ZANU PF propaganda machinery goes into overdrive - accuse MDC of dishonesty

Zimbabwe's long-ruling ZANU-PF and the former opposition Movement for Democratic Change are trading charges and countercharges in the run-up to mediation later this month by South African President and Southern African Development Community Chairman Jacob Zuma, who has been called upon to try to resolve lingering troublesome issues.

Political sources said hardliners in both parties are driving the discussion, complicating matters. ZANU-PF through the state-controlled Herald newspaper on Thursday accused the MDC of trying to use the Global Political Agreement - signed in September 2008 and the basis of the power-sharing government - to oust President Robert Mugabe. - VOA

Selected Zimbabwe Media Commissoners endorsed

ZIMBABWE – HARARE – THE Standing Rules and Orders Committee has endorsed the 12 persons selected by its “team of experts” to sit on the Zimbabwe Media Commission, Clerk of Parliament Mr Austin Zvoma said yesterday.

The SROC endorsed the list compiled by the “experts” on Monday despite continuing controversy about the entire interview process.

The “team of experts” has been accused of showing a bias against candidates perceived to have ties to Zanu-PF while favouring those believed to be aligned to MDC-T and MDC-M.

Addressing a Press conference at Parliament building yesterday, Mr Zvoma said the 12-name list had been submitted to Robert Mugabe,  for his consid-eration before formal appointment to the ZMC.

The SROC has also submitted a six-person list for consideration for appointment to sit on the Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe. - Zimnet

Nurses join national health strike

Nurses at Harare Hospital today joined resident doctors in Zimbabwean state hospitals on strike demanding increased salaries and allowances. Nurses at Harare's Parirenyatwa Hospital and the two main hospitals in Bulawayo were said to have initiated a slowdown action.

The walkout by Harare Hospital nurses obliged the institution to close down its casualty and outpatient departments, and senior doctors attended only to emergency cases.

Patients continued to be turned away from all state hospitals. Experts have expressed fear that the widening strike could hinder the country’s ability to respond to the H1N1 influenza pandemic which has spread in South Africa, or to a new cholera epidemic. - VOA.

Zimbabwean scoops top farming award in UK

Zimbabweam Farmer Mr David Mwanaka scopped a top award in the first ever Southern African Achievers Awards (SAAA) ceremony held in London's Stratford.

And, former Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation radio presenter Ezra Tshisa Sibanda scooped two awards in the same ceremony when he was recognised for being Radio Presenter of the Year and Music Promoter of the year, last Saturday in the British capital.

Mr Mwanaka who was distinguished for his examplary farming activities in the United Kingdom has for the past few years been a successful farmer in Britain. - ZimDiaspora

Matombo wins International award

Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Union (ZCTU) president Lovemore Matombo has won an international award recognising “his courage to defend the rights of impoverished workers” despite the arrests, beatings and torture he has faced at the hands of the police.

Matombo was last week named winner of the 2009 Courage Award by the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Worker Group.

The ZCTU leader has previously been arrested, beaten and tortured by the country’s police for leading protests over low pay and the worsening poverty faced by the majority of the workers because of inadequate monthly wages. - Zimonline

By Staff reporter and agencies