Chief Secretary salutes unity of purpose

Source: Chief Secretary salutes unity of purpose | Herald (Top Stories) Dr Misheck Sibanda Farirai Machivenyika Senior Reporter The unity of purpose between the Office of the President and Cabinet, the Public Service Commission and Treasury should drive the transformation of the country’s economic fortunes, Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet Dr Misheck Sibanda […]

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Source: Chief Secretary salutes unity of purpose | Herald (Top Stories)

Dr Misheck Sibanda

Farirai Machivenyika Senior Reporter
The unity of purpose between the Office of the President and Cabinet, the Public Service Commission and Treasury should drive the transformation of the country’s economic fortunes, Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet Dr Misheck Sibanda has said.

In his Independence Day congratulatory message at the weekend, Dr Sibanda called for increased support for President Mnangagwa in the country’s fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.

Dr Sibanda said the nation’s resolve should ensure victory in the fight against the virus.

The country celebrated its independence on Saturday.

“Without doubt, the tripartite that we have forged with the Public Service Commission and Treasury at the apex of the machinery of Government, will drive socio-economic transformation to new heights,” said Dr Sibanda.

“The global health emergency posed by the Covid-19 outbreak demands that we redouble our support for His Excellency the President’s clarion call for the unity of purpose and resourcefulness required for national survival.

“The pandemic might shake our foundations and threaten to reverse the gains of our hard-won Independence, but our resolve and collective response shall bring victory. That victory will enable our beloved motherland to commit more resources to innovation and development for the transformation of livelihoods.”

Dr Sibanda said Independence Day offered Zimbabweans an opportunity to pledge their loyalty and commitment to serving the nation under the visionary leadership of President Mnangagwa.

He said the 40 years of independence were a culmination of the sacrifices that the country’s heroes, both living and departed, undertook to have a free and democratic State.

“The advent of independence in 1980 marked the start of an era of empowerment for the people of our great nation, through a massive transformational programme of rapid expansion in the provision of education, primary healthcare, housing, water, energy, roads and other critical social amenities,” he said.

Dr Sibanda said the next decade required adoption of digital technologies.

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ZCTU SLAMS ED OVER LOCKDOWN EXTENTION

THE Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions and opposition MDC
led by Nelson Chamisa have berated President Emmerson Mnangagwa for extending
the national lockdown by a further two weeks without putting in place measures
to cushion ordinary citizens survivi…

THE Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions and opposition MDC led by Nelson Chamisa have berated President Emmerson Mnangagwa for extending the national lockdown by a further two weeks without putting in place measures to cushion ordinary citizens surviving on hand to mouth. Mnangagwa on Sunday announced an extension of his 21-day national lockdown, claiming the country has not met the bare

Opening of tobacco sales floors put on hold

Source: Opening of tobacco sales floors put on hold | Herald (Top Stories) Farirai Machivenyika Senior Reporter The 2020 tobacco marketing season which was scheduled to open yesterday has been postponed to allow stakeholders to devise mechanisms to sell the crop while ensuring minimum risks of spreading the Covid-19 pandemic. This was said by Lands, […]

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Source: Opening of tobacco sales floors put on hold | Herald (Top Stories)

Farirai Machivenyika Senior Reporter
The 2020 tobacco marketing season which was scheduled to open yesterday has been postponed to allow stakeholders to devise mechanisms to sell the crop while ensuring minimum risks of spreading the Covid-19 pandemic.

This was said by Lands, Agriculture, Water, Climate and Rural Resettlement Deputy Minister Douglas Karoro while addressing stakeholders in the tobacco sector at an online mock sale of the crop.

The sale was conducted at Northern Tobacco Auction Floors to showcase to stakeholders an online mechanism to sell the crop without farmers being physically present at the floors.

“I know the people out there want to know the exact date of the start of the marketing season. This is part of the assessments that we have done and we are going to inform our colleagues and the minister so that he also prepares a statement for onward transmission to the President and I am sure if we are happy here with these preparations, then the minister and the President will also be happy and they will guide us accordingly on the final date,” said Deputy Minister Karoro.

Announcing the extension of the lockdown on Sunday, President Mnangagwa called for the decentralisation of tobacco auction floors.

He said decentralisation would allow the enforcement of social distancing measures adopted to curb the spread of the virus.

The demonstration yesterday was led by Northern Tobacco chief executive Mr Glen Youngs and will see farmers sending their tobacco to the floors through a representative that would interact with potential buyers online in real time.

Co-Deputy Minister in the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Water, Climate and Rural Resettlement, Vangelis Haritatos said farmers should consider selling their crop online.

“We had read about the mock sale and the issue of a virtual sale in our research but certainly we have never seen it first hand and I think it’s a wonderful thing and there is greater transparency in the system. I think every farmer out there should go the virtual way if they can.

“I also liked the issue of having a grower representative on the floor. It shows they know the system and they can be trusted. I think we need to look at that now and going into the future there is no need to congest tobacco floors,” he said.

Mr Youngs said while the issue of decentralising was welcome, it would be difficult to implement this marketing season because of limited space in other areas outside of Harare.

“The idea of decentralisation makes perfect sense to me and as we speak, some competitors are also sharing floors but what might be a problem is that the physical space may not be enough. The square metres may not be enough to cater for huge number of farmers,” Mr Youngs said.

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CORONAVIRUS : ITS A TICKING TIME BOMB FOR ZIM, SAYS DOCS

OVER 30 000 plus frontline health workers in the country
are vulnerable to coronavirus after government reportedly ignored a court order
to provide them with personal protective equipment (PPE), with healthcare
providers warning that this was a ticki…

OVER 30 000 plus frontline health workers in the country are vulnerable to coronavirus after government reportedly ignored a court order to provide them with personal protective equipment (PPE), with healthcare providers warning that this was a ticking time bomb. Already, two heath workers in Bulawayo, identified as case numbers 15 and 19 last week tested positive for the novel virus but

Man remanded in custody for circulating fake news

Source: Man remanded in custody for circulating fake news | Herald (Top Stories) Tendai Rupapa Senior Reporter A Chitungwiza man who allegedly authored and circulated a fake statement bearing President Mnangagwa’s signature announcing the extension of the lockdown period was arrested on Saturday. The fake statement was circulated on social media platforms nearly two weeks […]

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Source: Man remanded in custody for circulating fake news | Herald (Top Stories)

Tendai Rupapa Senior Reporter
A Chitungwiza man who allegedly authored and circulated a fake statement bearing President Mnangagwa’s signature announcing the extension of the lockdown period was arrested on Saturday.

The fake statement was circulated on social media platforms nearly two weeks ago when the country was still in the initial 21-day lockdown period.

Lovemore Zvokusekwa (36) of House Number 7094 Unit J, Chitungwiza, appeared in court yesterday before Harare magistrate Mrs Judith Taruvinga charged with publishing or communicating false statements prejudicial to the State.

He was remanded in custody to May 13 with instructions to apply for bail at the High Court.

According to the court papers, Zvokusekwa is employed by High Range Resources (Pvt) Ltd.

Prosecuting, Mr Lawrence Gangarahwe alleged that sometime this month Zvokusekwa published a false Press statement purporting to have been issued and signed by the President.

It is the State’s case that the document was headlined, “Extension of lockdown period by 13 days only”.

The document was circulated on different WhatsApp platforms by Zvokusekwa using his Hauwei cellphone with an Econet line.

According to the State, President Mnangagwa did not originate or sign the said fake statement.

Spreading fake news on social media and mainstream media about coronavirus (Covid-19) has been categorised as a Level 14 offence, the highest in the country and people convicted of the crime face up to 20 years in jail.

Recently, President Mnangagwa warned peddlers of falsehoods regarding coronavirus (Covid-19) issues saying they faced a 20-year jail term if convicted.

He said this at his Precabe Farm in Sherwood, Kwekwe, last week after returning from a tour of Mkoba and Senga suburbs in Gweru to assess residents’ levels of compliance to regulations of the previous 21-day lockdown.

The President dismissed as nonsensical, social media reports then claiming that he had extended the initial lockdown when no such decision had been made.

He then ordered an investigation into the origins of such messages circulating on social media.

“I have never made such a statement and that social media statement is absolute nonsense. We now have a law which punishes those who produce fake news and I have ordered an investigation into those behind the fake statement and if found, we want that person to be an example by getting up to 20 years in prison. It’s bad to peddle falsehoods, especially about a President,” President Mnangagwa said then.

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