Preparations for the interdenominational choral group Zimpraise International Gospel’s annual festival are at an advanced stage with organisers releasing the full programme and list of performers.
ZimPraise
The event, which will be held on Saturday in the Harare Gardens, will be free of charge and will run under the theme “One God, One Love” to promote love, peace and harmony.
The concert will see some of the local gospel greats who include Mathias Mhere and Janet Manyowa supporting Zimpraise choir.
In an interview with The Herald, Zimpraise boss Joseph Madziyire said preparations were at advanced stage for the show.
“We are so happy that rehearsals are underway and we have some local acts who will be supporting us. They have been with us at most of our shows. We have decided to do the event for free.
“Since we started this concept it was our idea to make them free of charge but financial constraints were limiting us.
“We are proud that in the past years we have never missed an edition. This year it is all about the people, giving back to the community,” he said.
Madziyire said they chose the theme with the aim of encouraging unity.
“We should not fight and suffer at the same time. We are one family of God. We dedicate the event to the people of Zimbabwe. Apart from music and dance, the event will also have braai and I urge everyone to come and worship the Lord through music and dance,” he said.
Just like their norm, Madziyire said they will also take the opportunity to record the live DVD at the event, which will be released weeks later.
He said he was also confident that the show will go well because he got support in terms of partnership with life assurance company First Mutual Life and CAPS Pharmaceuticals to fulfil his dream.
Last year’s edition of the festival saw United States influential preacher and senior pastor of the Potter’s House in Dallas, Texas, Thomas Dexter Jakes — popularly known as TD Jakes — alongside Bishop John Francis United Kingdom attending. The Herald
A Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company (ZETDC) worker has been fined $600 for illegally connecting electricity to 11 households in Chitungwiza while pretending to be on official duty.
ZESA Megawatt HQ in Harare
Notion Charakupa (49), who is employed as a revenue assurance assistant, pleaded not guilty to abuse of office charges, but was convicted after a full trial by Chitungwiza resident magistrate Mrs Yeukai Chigodora.
Charakupa was ordered to pay the fine or risk spending six months in prison.
His two accomplices Maxwell Chadambura and Alfred Zakaria, who were responsible for connecting electricity to the 11 homes will be sentenced tomorrow.
Prosecutor Mr Norman Koropi proved that from January to April this year, Charakupa together with Chadambura and Zakaria bought electrical cables, a ladder, electricity meters and boxes and proceeded to Garikai houses in Unit L, Seke, where they illegally connected electricity to 11 houses.
Mr Koropi said the three lied that they were ZETDC employees and were on official duty since they were all wearing the company’s overalls and using the company’s vehicle, which was being driven by Charakupa.
The matter came to light when another ZETDC worker Shepherd Marunga received an anonymous tip off that the trio was connecting electricity to houses using the old fixed system instead of the prepaid system leading to their arrest.
The illegal connection prejudiced ZETDC of a lot of revenue as the connections bypassed the charging meters. The Herald
TelOne has voiced concern over increased network vandalism and copper cable thefts countrywide. This was revealed during the Mutasa North Constituency road map strategy stakeholders meeting in Honde Valley recently.
TelOne
TelOne Manicaland area manager Mr John Chipurura said there was an increase in thefts and vandalism of the firm’s infrastructure, mostly in Sakubva and Dangamvura.
In an interview with The Herald, Mr Chipurura attributed the rise in copper cable thefts to the high value of copper, which the market is offering.
He said Mutasa North Constituency Member of Parliament Cde Chido Madiwa would this week receive TelOne internet connection in her office to ease communication problems.
In a statement, corporate communications and client experience head Ms Melody Harry said TelOne had been a victim of vandalism.
She said security alarms had been installed on the copper infrastructure in order to trigger alarms.
“I can confirm that TelOne has been a victim of increased network vandalism and copper cable thefts,” said Ms Harry. Since January, at least 33 cases have been recorded affecting hundreds of clients.
However, in response, TelOne has stepped up its efforts to curb these thefts and network vandalism by installing security alarms on the copper cable infrastructure, which silently trigger the alarm in the event that someone tampers with the copper cables.
This has resulted in arrests, with at least 60 criminals having been arrested.
Ms Harry said TelOne had also partnered with the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA) and the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) to step up patrols at the country’s borders to control smuggling of copper stolen from the TelOne network.
She sympathised with clients who lost their TelOne copper cables stating that these acts of vandalism had affected TelOne and its clients in a negative way in terms of service delivery.
“The biggest loss from vandalism is the impact on the TelOne reputation and the experiences of our clients as this may mean prolonged periods of disservice for the clients,” she said.
“Through such downtime, our clients also tend to lose business as both voice and broadband are affected.”
On top of that, TelOne has increased physical security patrols in high risk areas.
The company is also conducting massive anti-vandalism campaigns during which they are engaging communities, educating them on the ills of the thefts scourge and the consequences coming either directly or indirectly.
“Through the campaigns, we appeal to the public to report any suspicious activities relating to telecommunications equipment thefts or trade while offering exciting rewards for valuable information that leads to arrests of any such thieves,” said Ms Harry. The Herald
Security guards at Eldorado Mine sustained serious injuries following an attack by machete-wielding artisanal miners who were trying to force their way into the mine.
FILE PICTURE of men armed with machetes making their way to street clashes with police in Durban, South Africa (Tebogo Letsie / AP Photo)
The guards fired a warning shot before they were disarmed by the miners who attacked them with machetes and knives.
More than 40 armed men descended on the mine in the early hours of Sunday morning demanding to be allowed entry into the mine, which was closed recently following the collapse of a shaft that led to the death of about 14 people.
Mashonaland West acting provincial police spokesperson Assistant Inspector Ian Kohwera said the armed men attacked four security guards who were guarding the mine’s head gear.
“Four security guards were on duty guarding the head gear when a mob of about 40 men attacked them while threatening to kill them if they denied them entry into the mineshaft,’’ he said.
“Taking advantage of the defenceless security guards some of the robbers entered the mine while others remained outside. The group later exited the mine and smashed the window of a Toyota Hilux, which was parked in the garage.”
They stole car parts and disappeared from the scene leaving the injured security guards helpless.
The injured were later taken to Chinhoyi Provincial Hospital for treatment by well-wishers.
Insp Kohwera appealed to the community to come forward with information that could lead to the arrest of the accused persons before calling on owners of Eldorado Mine to tighten security to avoid illegal entrance into the mineshaft.
At least 14 illegal gold miners were trapped at Eldorado Mine after a mineshaft collapsed before it was sealed off but reports indicate that artisanal miners were still continuing with mining activities. The Herald
It will be an exciting family day when man-of-the-moment Baba Harare shares the stage with Juntal at Tanza Centre in Chitungwiza on Sunday.
Baba Harare
It will be Baba Harare’s first big family show since his song “The Reason Why” – popularly known as “Heti Dzemurara” – became a hit.
He will go for the big show joining hands with Juntal who is slowly making his way up the ladder of music popularity with his contemporary beat that is spiced with rhumba vibes. Popularly known for the song “Mutupo”, Juntal released his new album titled “Kwatakabva” a few weeks ago.
He will be taking the new release to fans to music lovers to expand his fan base.
But it is Baba Harare’s “Heti Dzemurara” that will obviously be the song of the day. The song has also proved popular with children because of its sing-along chorus. The afternoon show will give families a time to have fun together.
Baba Harare’s manageress Filda Muchabaiwa said they want to entertain families with many good songs besides “Heti Dzemurara”.
“We have many good songs that will give families a good time. Many people just know ‘Heti Dzemurara’, but we have other tracks that have left lasting impressions at shows. We urge people to come in their numbers and enjoy the best of music from Baba Harare. Of course, ‘Heti Dzemurara’ is likely to be the song of the day and we will do it in a special way,” said Muchabaiwa.
Tanza Centre has hosted big shows and its spacious area has made it popular with many music lovers. The Herald
Dynamos executive chairman Isaiah Mupfurutsa has urged the Glamour Boys family to pull in one direction following disturbances that saw four players getting suspended this week over disciplinary issues.
Isaiah Mupfurutsa
There is growing tension in the Harare soccer giants’ camp following the decision by the leadership to suspend four key players — Marshal Machazane, Kingston Nkhata, Peace Makaha and Obey Mwerahari — in a move that has not gone down well with most of the club’s supporters.
The quartet has been accused of inciting mutiny among the players and were identified as the ring leaders in the plot to boycott camp ahead of the Chibuku Super Cup 1-2 defeat to Triangle at the weekend.
The DeMbare executive have stood their ground in their efforts to instil discipline and professionalism in the club, which has been fighting for survival for most of the 2018 campaign.
The suspended players are expected to appear before a disciplinary hearing in the next two weeks. Mupfurutsa said the club should not lose vision of their need to survive relegation as they need one more win from the last three outings to be sure of survival.
“In soccer you can have good times and bad times and this year we were going through bad times. I am sure our supporters understand this. To the Dynamos family, I would like to say let us run together in this last lap.
“We have three games remaining and our hope is that we are going to collect all the points and move up the ladder, probably finish in the top eight.
“At the same time we are saying we are very sorry to our supporters for the poor performances throughout this whole year and we are very sorry for the loss to Triangle which took us out of the Chibuku Super Cup.
“We were also pinning our hopes on pushing and probably lifting that cup and enjoy the rewards and the prestige that comes with winning that cup.
“Yes, we are not yet completely safe, mathematical the next team likely to be relegated after the three that have gone already, also has an outside chance of surviving if the other teams stumble.
“But I can say for now we have high hopes and we feel that we are quite comfortable. Given the spirit and the self-belief that is now in the team, we have got high chances of collecting more points. I think we have confidence in the current technical team and in the energy that we are now seeing in our players,” said Mupfurutsa.
Dynamos are scheduled to face Triangle again this Sunday at Rufaro as they resume their battle for survival. The Glamour Boys were completely outplayed by Taurayi Mangwiro’s men in last week’s cup match.
Interim coach Lloyd Chigowe is bracing for a tough encounter. DeMbare were handed a heavy 0-3 defeat in the reverse fixture at Gibbo earlier this year with Chigowe as caretaker coach after then head coach Lloyd Mutasa had gone out of the country on national team duties.
The suspended players are likely to miss the rest of the season. They have since been told to stop attending training or coming into contact with the team.
DeMbare are almost safe from relegation after going seven points clear of the drop zone with three games remaining. The club is now hoping to survive the chop this year and then start rebuilding next year.
“Next year we hope to do better. We have to go back to the drawing board and do proper planning so that we start on a good note and also fight to the end and be the champions again. I think Dynamos should be in a position to take the championship next year.
“We cannot go for more years again without winning it. It has been four years now and without realising it will be 10 years, and we are saying we don’t want that. This is what we are trying to work towards achieving,” said Mupfurutsa.
“Whilst we were focusing on how we can survive for this season we are also looking at the next season, meaning that now, just like any other serious club, it means business.
“We are already working on plans for next season. Just like any other team, we also have players whose contracts are set to expire at the end of the season and all those things need to be sorted out.
“A contract is between two parties and what it means now it will also depend on whether those players are still willing to be with Dynamos or that Dynamos is still willing to work with those players. So engagements have to start right now.
“There is also need for us to be beefing up the team because you could see that here and there we were getting depleted easily. If we have two or three injuries, you will find that the technical team is actually struggling to come up with a good 18-member squad.
“We also need to get more good players to come in. We are not saying what we have are bad but teams everywhere are always beefing up.
“We are trying to look for more talent and new players with different abilities because when a team is competing you can actually see some areas of weakness. Our coaches will recommend and we will work towards getting those players,” said Mupfurutsa.
DeMbare cheerleader Chris “Romario” Musekiwa also urged for unity.
“Currently we are sitting in a delicate position on the log standings. So this is definitely not the time to see quarrels. Unity is needed more than ever and it is our hope that these guys will be able to find one another and we move on as a club,” said Musekiwa. The Herald
It’s almost not even worth pointing out that Jamie Vardy has had the career that all non-league soccer players in England dream of.
Macauley Bonne celebrates scoring for Leyton Orient (pic: Simon O’Connor for East London Advertiser).
In fact, it’s been the career that almost any man or woman dreams of.
From being plucked from non-league football to winning the English Premier League with Leicester City and representing England, it couldn’t get much better and Vardy’s story is something that everyone can get behind.
Which is why it may seem a little bit spoilt and unrealistic to feel that we’re already due another Jamie Vardy story, but everyone does think that, and dreaming is the whole point anyway.
Besides, it seems we’ve got a pretty good contender in Leyton Orient’s Macauley Bonne.
At only 22-years-old, the young man is showing a lot of promise and has plenty of time yet for a meteoric Vardy-like rise from non-league football.
Born in England to Zimbabwean parents, Bonne is eligible to represent both England and Zimbabwe national teams at international level.
He’s a prolific striker and is loved by his club’s supporters. He has also performed better than ever since arriving at Leyton from Colchester United in 2017.
And still he continues to please, playing a key role for his club, in what has so far been an incredibly successful season.
This is only his second season at Leyton and his first saw him score an enviable total of 25 goals in 52 matches. That was the first time in his career that he went into double figure scoring in a single season. This season he’s already scored an impressive nine goals in 13 matches, in what looks to be something of a statement of intent from a hungry young player.
And hungry he will have to be to follow in Vardy’s footsteps. Vardy (31) made the move to Leicester — then a championship side — back in 2012, for £1 million. Since then he’s achieved more than anyone would have dreamed.
From being promoted to the Premiership, to winning the Premiership, to playing in both the Euros and World Cup for his national side. In fact, he’s now even following David Cameron’s lead by speaking at the Oxford Student Union this month.
Amazingly, over the summer he was also rumoured to be linked with Spanish outfit, Atletico Madrid. That move would have seen him go from non-league football to a strong Spanish side who are expected to do well in the Champions League previews (10-1 to win!) in the space of six years.
It’s an unbelievable accomplishment — what he has accomplished in such a short period of time and what he has done for the profile of non-league football.
But that does not mean we are not ready for another similar story and fans will be watching with bated breath to see whether young Bonne can follow in his footsteps.
It already looks as though this season he may outdo his sensational performance at Leyton last year, in which case he surely makes himself a prime contender for a higher league team.
If there’s one thing managers simply can’t afford to ignore, it’s goals, and Bonne is slotting enough of them to grab the headlines. Hopefully, we will see another Vardy-like rise sooner than we expected.
Bonne’s exploits have not escaped the attention of Warriors coach Sunday Chidzambwa and national team manager Wellington Mpandare.
Chidzambwa wants Bonne to be part of the Warriors outfit that he wants to take with him to next year’s African Cup of Nations finals in Cameroon.
Zimbabwe just need a point from their remaining two qualifiers against Liberia in Monrovia and Congo at the National Sports Stadium to seal their qualification for the continental soccer show-piece.
Chidzambwa has since unleashed Mpandare to ensure that such players like Kelvin Lunga, Tristan Nydem, Kundai Benyu, Adam Chicksen, Tendayi Darikwa, Alec Mudimu and Bonne, who were born of Zimbabwean parents but staying abroad come to play for their fatherland.
Mpandare has already succeed with getting the defensive of Darikwa and Mudimu to play for the Warriors with the senior team manager still optimistic of getting more of the “British Brigade’’ to come home and play for Zimbabwe.
“I have been in constant touch with Boone, Lunga and the other players. We are now targeting to have their documents in place in time for the game against Congo,’’ Mpandare said.
Mpandare is also expected to travel to England next month to assist the players in regularising their documents and secure Zimbabwean passports. — The Non-Leaguepaper/Sports Reporter.
Diversified Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE) listed miner, RioZim Limited, has suspended production at three of its gold mines citing shortage of foreign currency needed to import critical consumables and spare parts.
RioZim said in a letter to Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Governor Dr John Mangudya, signed by board chair Lovemore Chihota, that it had stopped operations at Cam and Motor in Kadoma, Renco Mine in Masvingo and Dalny Mine in Chegutu over crippling shortage of foreign currency.
Mr Chihota said RioZim had received only 14 percent of its gold delivery proceeds in the last 30 months instead of the RBZ directive of 50 percent direct access to its nostro (forex) funds and 50 percent by application.
He said RioZim had not received any foreign currency in the nine weeks preceding the suspension of production, which started with Dalny Mine on October 19, then Cam and Motor and Renco three days later.
“As you will agree, this disruption is very harmful to us all that is; our employees, our creditors, the Government of Zimbabwe along with all other stakeholders.
“However, we very much hope that this stopping of production is temporary and that we will resolve the issues currently facing us as we continue to engage yourselves and hope that at the end of it we shall come out stronger to the benefit of all stakeholders,” Mr Chihota said.
This comes after Zimbabwe’s biggest gold miner, Metallon Gold, also recently closed shop at one of its major gold mines – Mazowe – amid foreign currency constraints and mounting debts.
Government, after meeting South African owner and business mogul, Mzi Kumalo, pledged all critical facilitation to avoid the firm going down on its knees. The central bank withholds part of gold miners’ export proceeds to support critical national needs such as fuel imports.
The equivalent of foreign exchange component withheld, as Zimbabwe battles forex shortage amidst extensive competing critical needs, is paid in bond notes – a local legal tender – or real time gross settlement (RTGS).
The gold miner has since appealed for intervention by the RBZ chief to be allowed 100 percent retention of proceeds in the first bullion after restart to claw back ground lost in the last nine weeks and restock critical spares.
RioZim has also asked to be allowed to retain 60 percent of delivery proceeds every week thereafter to support operations, after the bank agreed to 50 percent retention prior to its midterm monetary policy review, while the 10 percent balance would be channelled towards capital programmes.
The company also implored RBZ to facilitate access to foreign currency for what it calls “mission critical growth projects through Letter of Credit”.
“To date we have invested more than $30 million at Cam and Motor. In order to sustain and indeed further increase production, we now need to invest an additional $15 million for Biox, without which Cam and Motor has no life going forward and production there will collapse to zero as you are already aware,” Mr Chihota said yesterday.
RioZim said if Government extended the support it has requested; it would be back to producing 165 kilogrammes per month (Cam and Motor 60kgs, Renco Mine 60kgs, Dalny 45kgs) from zero production.
Thereafter, Mr Chihota said, RioZim could expand production to 300kgs per month (Cam and Motor 180kgs, Renco 75kgs and Dalny 45kg) after two years when it would have commissioned Biox and Renco Mine expansions.
RioZim said it was committed to preserving around 2 600 jobs at the group, creating new employment, supporting larger local communities, generating more foreign currency and contributing to the fiscus.
The company was incorporated on August 29, 1956 as Rio Tinto Southern Rhodesia Ltd. It was set up initially to develop and mine the Empress Nickel deposit in the Midlands and was the first mining operation to be set up outside Europe by Rio Tinto plc.
RioZim separated from Rio Tinto plc in 2004 and became a wholly owned Zimbabwean company that produces gold, coal, toll refines nickel and copper. The Herald
Zanu PF's Chegutu West legislator Dexter Nduna (left)
ZANU-PF Chegutu West legislator Dexter Nduna has moved a motion to have any Zimbabwean who calls for sanctions on the country to be sentenced to death.
Zanu PF’s Chegutu West legislator Dexter Nduna (left)
Nduna said people who call for sanctions that bring untold suffering to the general populace should be killed by a firing squad.
The legislator was contributing to debate on the need to promote ratification and implementation of the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) and implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1540 in the National Assembly on Tuesday.
“. . . Mr Speaker Sir, it has been seen and noted that unilateral sanctions are imposed on innocent, unsuspecting small nations such as Zimbabwe by big power houses who themselves are endowed with ubiquitous amounts of chemical weapons and other dangerous chemicals of mass destruction.
“I therefore, call upon the powers of this nation and Parliament of Zimbabwe to ratify a motion that says anybody who calls upon any nation to impose sanctions on this country and is a citizen of Zimbabwe should be sentenced to death,” said Nduna.
He said the individual should be sentenced to death and killed by a firing squad.
Nduna said as long as the country is under sanctions that speak about the imposition of weapons and military weaponry purchase into this country, it will never get to know which weapons are supposed to be banned.
“I therefore call upon those countries that have imposed weaponry, military and unilateral sanctions on Zimbabwe that are of an economic nature to repeal and to remove them so that we can conduct our business in an unimpeded manner, in an effective and efficient manner that is going to see us adhere to the values of the motion before us.
“I say in the absence of all this, the ratification can certainly be stopped in its tracks because we are throwing our arrows into the dark and we do not know what it is that we are stopping,” he said.
The opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) has meanwhile slammed the remarks by Nduna saying they were “unfortunate, disgusting and exposes his party for what it represents.”
“Nduna must know that he is a beneficiary of daylight robbery, benefiting from incompetence on the part of the electoral commission and suspicious adjudication of the dispute.
“He must at least redeem himself by using the stolen privilege to push for progressive legislation not spew his dreams of firing squads.
“The man probably wants to use parliament to make up for the time he should have been using toy guns as a young boy. Everyone missed something in their childhood, national institutions cannot therefore be used to compensate for such misfortunes.
“His utterances expose his misunderstanding of the supremacy of the constitution. A parliamentarian who pushes for legislation which is inconsistent with the constitution is not fit for purpose.
“Section 48 of the constitution is clear on the imposition of the death penalty, “A law may permit the death penalty to be imposed only on a person convicted of murder committed in aggravating circumstances.”
“We therefore condemn his attempt to scare Zimbabweans especially dissenting voices through a threat to bring an unconstitutional penalty especially for those who call for honest re-engagement which must be supported by reforms back at home,” the opposition party said in its statement.
Prophetic Healing and Deliverance (PHD) Ministries leader prophet Walter Magaya is considering taking his Aguma herbal supplement — which he claims can cure HIV, Aids and cancer — outside Zimbabwe
By Nyemudzai Kakore
Prophetic Healing and Deliverance (PHD) Ministries leader prophet Walter Magaya is considering taking his Aguma herbal supplement — which he claims can cure HIV, Aids and cancer — outside Zimbabwe in the wake of the backlash he received following his announcement last Sunday that he had found a cure for HIV, Aids and cancer.
Prophetic Healing and Deliverance (PHD) Ministries leader prophet Walter Magaya is considering taking his Aguma herbal supplement — which he claims can cure HIV, Aids and cancer — outside Zimbabwe
This followed a raid on PHD Ministries offices by police last night to collect samples of the Aguma capsules.
A highly-placed source at PHD, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Magaya was planning on launching Aguma outside Zimbabwe.
‘‘Just say a close source says Magaya is planning to go and launch from outside where many countries seem to be offering a good deal and ease of doing business,’’ the source said before cutting the phone.
National police spokesperson Chief Superintended Paul Nyathi confirmed the raid.
He said ZRP was acting within its law enforcement mandate.
“I can confirm that Magaya is assisting police with investigations in connection with enquiries the ZRP is currently conducting,” he said.
“It is the duty of the police to detect, investigate and prevent crime and this is precisely what we are doing.”
Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Deputy Minister Energy Mutodi announced the raid on his Twitter handle saying it marked the beginning of an investigation into the matter.
Health experts, he said, had said there was no cure for HIV and Aids yet.
“I can confirm police this evening raided Prophet Walter Magaya offices to recover samples of his Aguma medicine, which he claims cures HIV. The raid marks the start of an investigation into this matter. Health experts say there is no cure yet,” Dep Minister Mutodi said.
Government on Monday dismissed the PHD leader’s claims saying prophet Magaya had not submitted Aguma for assessment as a herbal supplement and people should not buy medicines from unapproved and unlicensed persons.
Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Monica Mutsvangwa said Government was concerned with these claims as there were processes and procedures in Zimbabwe that medicines go through before they are recognised as effective and safe for use by patients.
“The ministry strongly urges all clients on treatment for HIV and Aids to continue on their prescribed medication. Any form of discontinuation or switch made without the guidance of medical professionals may lead to adverse consequences on their health status,” said Minister Mutsvangwa.
Prophet Magaya had similarly urged people on ART to continue their medication till Government certified his Aguma. The Herald
