National

Mwonzora-led MDC Alliance recalls Victoria Falls, Binga councillors

Published

2 years ago

October 17, 2022

BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI

The Douglas Mwonzora-led MDC Alliance has recalled eight councillors in Matabeleland North after accusing them of working with the Nelson Chamisa-led Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC).

According to MDC-T spokesperson Witness Dube, the eight councillors from Binga and Victoria Falls were fired last week for supporting CCC.

MDC-T leads the MDC Alliance, the opposition coalition that won parliamentary and council seats during the 2018 elections while still under the leadership of Chamisa before Mwonzora took over under controversial circumstances.

Mwonzora’s party has been wielding the axe against elected representatives who are still loyal to Chamisa and the latest recalls followed months of a lull in the removals.

Dube insisted in an interview with VicFallsLive that the recalls were being done to protect the interests of voters.

“When we do recalls as a party we do them in accordance with section 12K of the national constitution, which gives any party authority to recall any public official who would have ceased to be their member through whatever means and we have a right to recall them so as to protect the vote of the people,” he said.

“It is true that we have recalled councillors in Binga and Victoria Falls in line with the same constitutional provisions (because) they are now supporting other political parties while still serving our term.

“Councillors were elected in 2018 under the MDC Alliance banner, so for them to then turn around and support other political parties is illegal and it is a misrepresentation of the 2018 votes.

“In this case we even had a very awkward situation whereby people stopped belonging to MDC Alliance and started belonging to a newly formed political party which has no policy document, which has no constitution, which has no manifesto, which is even just following individuals and that is very unfair to the voting public in Zimbabwe.”

In Victoria Falls two councillors were recalled namely Thuso Moyo from ward seven and Joseph Dzangai from ward eight.

From the Binga Rural District Council the recalled councillors are Wilson Siampolomba from Kariangwe ward, Matheas Mudenda (Simatelele), Kingson Mpofu (Kalungwizi), Joseph Mwembe (Sikalenge), Chrispen Munkuli (Lubimbi) and John Sikabotu (Siachilaba).

Dube said the purge would leave the party with loyal members only.

“We want to pause and paint the problem that this creates,” he said.

Dube said when political parties go to elections they present their manifestos and the assumption was that once people were elected into public offices they would abide by the policies.

“This movement of public officials from one party to another during their term of office or during the exercise of their duties is not in line with the constitution because the voters would’ve voted for the policies of the party that they represent even in their manifestos,” he added.

Dube said the MDC intended to fill the vacancies created by the recalls once by-elections are hrld, but in the meantime the remaining councillors will have to cover wards that do not have representatives.

MDC Alliance has not contested in by-elections since it was humiliated by CCC in the March 26 by-elections.

National

Ranger killed by elephant in Kariba

Published

21 hours ago

March 14, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI

A 62-year-old ranger, Josphat Mandishara, was tragically killed by an elephant in Kariba yesterday.

Mandishara, who worked for the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks), was on patrol in the Gatche-gatche area with fellow rangers and police officers.

At around 10 pm, Mandishara returned to the harbor where their boat was docked, and that’s when he encountered the elephant. The elephant charged at him, causing fatal injuries. His colleagues were nearby, resupplying at the Gatche-gatche Irrigation Scheme.

Mandishara’s body was taken to Kariba District Hospital for a post-mortem, and the incident was reported to the police.

ZimParks has sent a team to manage the problem elephant and prevent similar incidents in the future.

The Director General of ZimParks, Prof. Edson Gandiwa, and his team have sent condolences to Mandishara’s family, friends, and colleagues. Mandishara will be remembered for his dedication to wildlife conservation in Zimbabwe.

National

ZIMRA customs officer appears in court for criminal abuse of office

Published

1 month ago

February 3, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY STAFF REPORTER

A Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA) customs officer, Phillip Kuvenga, has been accused of criminal abuse of office for allegedly assisting in the importation of banned motor vehicles.

Kuvenga, 28, who is stationed at Victoria Falls, allegedly received documents from clients, completed valuation sheets, and carried out the valuation process. However, he is accused of endorsing different chassis numbers to deceive his supervisors during the validation and approval process.

After obtaining approval, Kuvenga would capture the correct chassis numbers in the ASYCUDA World System. He would then alter or replace the documents submitted earlier to his supervisors.

The offense came to light when a motor vehicle that had not yet arrived in Zimbabwe was found to have been already registered. A thorough check by ZIMRA led to Kuvenga’s arrest.

Kuvenga appeared in court on February 1, where he was denied bail by Magistrate Gift Manyka. He is expected to appear in court again today for another bail hearing.

National

Retailers send Mnangagwa SOS as shops continue shutting down over operational woes

Published

2 months ago

January 27, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY ZIMLIVE

The Confederation of Zimbabwe Retailers (CZR) has implored President Emmerson Mnangagwa to intervene and save the sector which has seen various formal retail and wholesale businesses closing shop countrywide due to operational challenges.

In a statement on Sunday, CZR president Denford Mutashu said the continued closure of formal retail and wholesale businesses is a direct consequence of the tough economic environment that has consistently failed to support formalised sector players who face stiff competition from informal businesses and vendors the majority of whom have no tax obligations to deal with.

Mutashu said his association was concerned that authorities continue to downplay the crisis.

“The recent closure of several outlets under the N. Richards Group, coupled with Spar Zimbabwe’s painful decision to shut down Queensdale Spar, Choppies Zimbabwe’s exit from the market, and Mahommed Mussa’s significant reduction of shop space by 60%, highlights the growing crisis.

“As the representative association for these and other brands, CZR is alarmed that while formal businesses face enormous challenges, the authorities continue to present a different picture of the operating environment,” he said.

Given the situation, Mutashu said, only President Mnangagwa can rescue the troubled sector.

“CZR therefore calls for urgent intervention from His Excellency, President Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa, to rescue what remains of the formalized retail and wholesale sector,” said Mutashu.

He said the sector was in urgent need of rescue.

“While CZR acknowledges the continued support from the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, it is clear that the root causes of these challenges are fiscal and monetary in nature. These require urgent and decisive action to ensure the survival of formal businesses.

“CZR therefore appeals to the Presidium to prioritize interventions aimed at saving jobs and mitigating the ongoing wave of shop closures and retrenchments,” he said.