Category: zimbabwe

Source: Nine die in car accident -Newsday Zimbabwe

Nine people have died in a head-on collision along the Harare-Bindura road near Mazowe Citrus Estate.

Two Honda fit vehicles collided head-on before bursting into flames.

The accident  victims were burnt beyond recognition.

Another fatal accident occurred along Harare-Bulawayo road also last week Friday.Six people died on the spot while 10 others were injured.

Last week the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP), Vehicle Inspectorate Department (VID) and the Traffic Safety Council of Zimbabwe launched the festive season traffic blitz to minimise road accidents.

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Source: Bogus lawyer nabbed -Newsday Zimbabwe

A SUSPECTED bogus lawyer appeared before magistrate Dennis Mangosi facing allegations of practising as legal  counsel without authorisation.

Vongai Sithole (47) was remanded in custody to tomorrow for bail application.

The complainant in the matter is Emilla Shana (42).

State prosecutor Grace Mugocheki alleged that on December 1, Shana’s brother-in-law Langton Chidziva was remanded in custody on a rape charge.

The following day, Shana received a call from  Chidziva’s father informing her that Sithole wanted to represent him and had charged US$1 500 him for bail application.

On December 15, Shana met Sithole in the central business district of Harare and was given US$200 with a promise to have the balance paid later

The court heard that Sithole went to Chitungwiza Magistrates Court and entered many offices pretending  to be processing papers for Chidziva’s bail application, while Shana was waiting outside.

Shana became suspicious and was later told by one of the prisoners that Sithole was not a lawyer.

Mugocheki alleged that Shana requested  Sithole  to produce his practising certificate and he failed, leading to his arrest.

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Source: Rustlers give Silobela villagers sleepless nights – The Southern Eye

Chief Malisa also complained about rising stocktheft cases.

VILLAGERS in Silobela, Midlands province, have expressed concern over rising cases of stocktheft in the area amid reports that over 100 donkeys and several cattle were stolen in a month.

Donsa ward 29 councillor Willard Moyo said they were losing their sources of livelihood to rustlers.

“The situation has gotten out of hand,” Moyo said.

“We have lost more than 100 donkeys and several cattle.

“Last week, 15 villagers decided to make a follow-up to other villages and found seven donkeys in Ntingwe.”

Moyo said the villagers were living in fear of the rustlers.

“We are now living in fear, they use slings, spears and other dangerous weapons,” he said.

“Last year, a villager was seriously wounded while they were trying to rescue their livestock from the same suspects. He is now permanently disabled.”

Chief Malisa also complained about rising stocktheft cases.

“We are now tired. We have gone as far as reporting these issues as they happen to the responsible authorities, but they are swept under the carpet,” Chief Malisa.

“We request the long arm of the law to bring justice and restore sanity here.”

Midlands police spokesperson Inspector Emmanuel Mahoko said he needed to investigate the matter when contacted for comment.

“We are looking for the names of the victims so that we can investigate the matter,’’ Mahoko said.

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Source: Armed robbers terrorise Beitbridge residents – The Southern Eye

POLICE have admitted challenges in fighting cases of armed robbery that have rocked Beitbridge over the past fortnight.

This is despite a new crop of officers in the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) mainstream having been deployed between May and June in the border town.

The robbers target well-to-do residents, with particular interest in cross-border transporters and money changers living in the affluent SDP area, named after its spatial development programme.

Residents in the suburb are having sleepless nights, apprehensive that robbers can break in anytime.

“We have a challenge in that area. It is not lit because it is a new suburb. We are working on it,” national police spokesman Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi said in an interview.

“We are planning to establish a police base in that area and we are appealing to residents to work with us and we will bring these culprits to book.”

He denied claims that police were incapacitated to deal with the vice.

Residents are, however, convinced that police patrols are few and far apart.

They also allege mainstream CID concentration is inside the Beitbridge Border Post, where police officers allegedly line their pockets through corrupt activities and by extorting money from travellers.

“We are in trouble because no one is patrolling our suburb. There is little police visibility and we are at the mercy of the robbers. Every night, there has been an incident in the last two weeks,” residents’ representative Abel Hindi said.

A victim, Livison Ncube, said he lost US$3 000 and R87 000 and all his electrical gadgets to armed robbers recently.

“Only one wore a mask. They never gave me a chance to look at them and (they) hit me with a bar when I attempted to,” he said.

Sources at Beitbridge police said the newly-deployed CID officers were corrupt.

“They are a group of people deployed here because they paid their way. Most of them are officers who came to Beitbridge on ‘Operation No To Cross Border Crime’ and realised there was financial activity,” one of the sources said.

Recently, Nyathi said police were investigating their human resources officer after it emerged that some of the new deployments paid between US$400 and US$600 to be moved to Beitbridge.

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Source: Zapu celebrates 62nd birthday – The Southern Eye

ZAPU yesterday marked 62 years of existence, but a former senior member said the party had suffered stunted growth since its revival in 2008 because of leadership failure.

The party was formed on December 17, 1961 with the late Father Zimbabwe Joshua Mqabulo Nyongolo Nkomo as the founding president.

Nkomo was deputised by Samuel Parirenyatwa, with Ndabaningi Sithole as chairperson and Jason Moyo as treasurer, while the late former President Robert Mugabe was the information secretary.

PF Zapu merged with Zanu in 1987 after the signing of the Unity Accord to end the Gukurahundi massacres of 1983 to 1987 in Matabeleland and Midlands regions.

Over 20 000 civilians, mainly Zapu supporters, were killed during the mass genocide, according to the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace in Zimbabwe.

In 2008, the late Zapu leader Dumiso Dabengwa led a number of former Zapu members like the late Thenjiwe Lesabe in a break-away from Zanu PF to revive Zapu.

Dabengwa led the party until he passed away in May 2019.

According to former Zapu spokesperson Mso Ndlovu, the party’s growth since its revival in 2008 has been bogged down by leadership failure.

“The next phase of our revival required political consolidation through the establishment of political structures and building a coherent identity based on strategic alignment and messaging,” Ndlovu said.

“We failed dismally on both, as our revered former President, Dumiso Dabengwa, failed the populist test and ran the party as a closed group or secret society.”

Zapu is currently being led by Nkomo’s son, Sibangilizwe.

The party won a council seat during the August elections.

It was the first time the opposition party won a seat since its revival in 2008.

“At the last congress, it was important to usher in a leadership whose principal mandate was to win back the party from a few individuals and take it back to the people in the villages and townships,” Ndlovu said

“As a collective, we have failed to build an organisation worth investing in as evidenced by a poor balance sheet. We have failed to take advantage of the turmoil in our rivals’ camps.”

He said Zapu had failed to build structures across the country.

“We have failed in providing thought leadership as a tool to compete in the political marketplace,” Ndlovu said.

“Desperately needed are fresh ideas on how to capacitate the party through resources.

“Failure to recalibrate and refocus is a sure recipe to disintegration and oblivion. Most liberation movements are facing this real threat. We should reform or perish.”

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