Opinions
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Public Health Lock-down Order: A Puzzling Relaxation of Lock-down
By Veritas In a new SI published yesterday ‒ SI 299A of 2020 [link] ‒ the Minister of Health and Child Care further relaxed the national lock-down. The SI is very short – it has only two clauses – but the amendment it makes may be far-reaching. The Position Prior to This Amendment Section 5(1) of the Lock-down…
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Deeper reform requires greater resolve
By Beaven Dhliwayo The National Development Strategy 1 (2021- 2025) (NSD1) replaced the Transitional Stabilisation Programme (TSP) which was implemented in October 2018 and ends December 2020. Both strategies are aimed towards achieving the Government’s overarching desire to transform Zimbabwe’s economy from a low income to an upper-middle-income economy by 2030. A low-income economy has…
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Ramaphosa is selling off South Africa’s iconic wildlife – and it needs to stop
By Jason Baker Should the president of South Africa be trading in protected species and pocketing huge sums of money from their deaths? PETA (www.PETA.org) released an undercover investigation (https://bit.ly/3oBOk6q) exposing Cyril Ramaphosa’s carefully concealed – but extensive – trophy hunting interests. At his Phala Phala game-breeding operation, Ramaphosa breeds and sells animals to be gunned down…
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What will it take for South Africa to prevent TB
By Ivy Apolisi and Dr Liesbet Ohler South Africa has good TB policies, an impressive achievement that comes through in Step Up for TB 2020, a report released this week by Stop TB Partnership and Doctors Without Borders (MSF), which assesses TB policy in 37 high TB-burden countries. For lives to be saved, though, policy must…
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The Power of Embracing A Positive Mental Attitude
By Timothy Mutizwa (Motivational Speaker and Leadership Coach) Life sometimes hits your face with hard rocks, swallowing all the hopes for your tomorrow. You get frustrated, discouraged, and depressed yet solving nothing but here is the tried and working formula for all these torrential problems – Positive Mental Attitudes. Exploring into my story, I would…
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In the shadow of Covid-19, silent killers re-emerge
Opinion by Nick Prince Deadly infectious diseases are threatening to regain a foothold in many countries, fueled by Covid-19 and the unprecedented effort to contain this ongoing global pandemic. Vaccinations are down across the Asia Pacific and in most areas of the world. Diseases such as polio, measles, and tuberculosis are at very real risk of re-emerging…
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Inclusive and holistic approach needed to address the national crisis
By National Association of Non-Governmental Organisations The National Association of Non-Governmental Organisations (NANGO) is concerned that our country continues to experience protracted national crisis. This crisis is characterized by continued intolerance, polarization, corruption, disregard for the rule of law, contravention of the constitution and marginalisation of vulnerable groups and communities, among other factors. NANGO notes…
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Assessing the right to bail
By Veritas The Right to Bail Bail is a way by which people who have been arrested for a criminal offence can be allowed to go free until they are tried for the offence. What happens is that after arresting a person the police must bring them to a court ‒ usually a magistrates court…
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Energy provision: An engineer will resolve crisis in Zimbabwe
By Engineer Jacob Kudzayi Mutisi Following the energy challenges that Zimbabwe has been going through, there were expectations that the next Minister of Energy was going to be a leading engineer and definitely not an accountant Cde Soba Zhemu who followed the lawyer Cde Fortune Chasi. The true definition of an Engineer is a creative…
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Could it be that they’re former child soldiers?
By Sandra Kudenga Zimbabwe’s problems with honouring citizens’ civil and political rights may just be down to its being ruled by former child soldiers who were never rehabilitated. And current political horrors – killings, abductions, tortures, sexual abuse, intimidation and the use of brute force or the threat of it to achieve political goals is…
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Stella Madzimbamuto: Rest In Power Forerunner of our Liberation Struggle
By Richard Mahomva Stella Madzimbamuto is no more. This warrior woman set the inaugural precedence to challenge the legality/illegitimacy of Smith’s UDI in a court of law. To this very minute, the Madzimbamuto versus Lardner Burke landmark judgment is a global point of reference in cases of sovereignty, territorial, and state conflict. To this end,…
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Setting the tone for National Convergence in Zimbabwe
By Dr. Tapiwa Mashakada Zimbabwean Opposition must unite and become more effective in order to influence national affairs and shape the direction of nation-building. Zanu PF alone cannot lead Zimbabwe and transform it into a democratic and prosperous country. Forty years of Zanu rule bears testimony to this fact of incapacity and cluelessness. Opposition Ruling…
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I can’t breathe, says Africa
By Million Belay (Ph.D.), General Coordinator for Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa Ever since I saw the video of the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on the 25th May, killed by a policeman who knelt on his neck for NINE MINUTES, while he was calling for his dead mother and for mercy, I have been…
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COVID-19 response must target African agriculture and the rural poor
By Olusegun Obasanjo and Hailemariam Desalegn Boshe Africa has so far escaped the worst health consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the continent looks like it could be the worst hit from the economic fallout of the crisis: 80 million Africans could be pushed into extreme poverty if action is not taken. And disruptions in…
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Great American fumble in Africa
By Raymond Chamba The vulturous and vampire grip of China on Africa did not come without active American assistance. Yes, suucessive American administrations have woefully missed the trade imperative and went on to major in minors by concentrating on warm fuzzy stuff and optics. Who eats that. It is US taxpayers money that was misused…
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Worker’s Day Solidarity Message: COVID-19 – Tribute to Frontline Health Workers
By Community Working Group on Health This year’s national Worker’s Day theme; “Stop Covid-19 Pandemic: Scale-up social protection and dialogue, save jobs and pay a living wage”, befits the current environment which emphasizes stopping the spread of the virus and urging employers to pay wages that sustain families, especially during this lockdown period. It is…
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Would you consider rap to be a ‘chant’ or a ‘rant’ or, indeed, something else?
By Nyasha Munashe Chiketsani Rap music, whether you like it or not, is the most influential genre of music today. According to The Independent, “Rap has surpassed rock to become the biggest music genre in the United States, according to the end-of-year report published by Nielsen Music in 2017. R&B/Rap represented 24.5 % of all…
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Give the 2011 Mavericks Their Credit
By Nyasha Chiketsani Picture this – you’re having a basketball discussion with a group of friends and someone brings up the 2011 NBA Finals. What’s the first thing you’re likely to think about, Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks’ incredible performance or LeBron James’ ‘complete meltdown’? Probably the latter. If so, I don’t blame you…
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It’s time to target those who stole public money to fight the Coronavirus
By Joseph Hove Everyone knows our country is in desperate economic and social dire straits. Zimbabwe’s food situation is worsening by the day as more than 4,3 million people will be food insecure by June this year a food crisis a recently released report has revealed. According to the Global Report on Food Crises for…
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How COVID19 has exposed limitations of colonial food systems in Africa
By Charles Dhewa The majority of developing countries are still to tear themselves away from the colonial set up where major food markets were located in cities or towns in order to provide food for low income people working in formal industries. Under that arrangement food had to travel from rural areas most of which…
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Independence Day: ZCTU demands minimum wage, mobilises for action
By Japhet Moyo (ZCTU Secretary-General) Today, 18 April 2020, the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) joins the rest of Zimbabweans in celebrating the country’s 40th Independence anniversary. We recognise and appreciate the significance of this great day to all Zimbabweans and in particular, the role played by freedom fighters and the masses to liberate…
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Zimbabwe at 40: Promised Land Remains a Distant Possibility
By Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition on Independence Day Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition (CiZC) joins the people of Zimbabwe, within or without her borders in commemorating the 40th anniversary (18 April 2020) of Zimbabwe’s independence. On this important national day; we pay tribute to the sons and daughters of Zimbabwe who sacrificed their lives for the…
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Africa: COVID-19 pandemic bolsters case for technology-based economic resilience
By Stefan Nalletamby As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a devastating impact globally, the African continent, while less affected, is preparing to undergo its own severe social and economic crisis. As of April 7, over 10,000 cases have been reported across 52 countries in Africa (less than 1% of cases globally). Yet despite the slow onset, Africa’s…
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Letter from Locked-Down Harare: Zimbabwe at 40, transfixed at a wonder
By Farai Chirimumimba The world is used to stare in wonder, yes transfixed at the jaw-dropping Zimbabwe’s Majestic Victoria Falls, the storm that thunders. One of the seven wonders of the world. The small land-locked country’s spectacular Zambezi river gorge and beautiful country side scenery has stunned the world and may continue to if one…
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COVID-19 and the magic bullet theory
By George Manyaya Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) have changed the face of communication worldwide. The fast-changing pace of digital transformation has brought about access to a highly diversified range of technologies and services. Globally, the fixed and mobile telecommunications sector has been growing exponentially over the years, leading scholars to argue that we now live…
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Didier Drogba, prominent Africans condemn plans to test COVID-19 vaccines on the continent
Eminent African personalities – World Health Organisation (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus; United Family International Church (UFIC) founder Emmanuel Makandiwa; prominent traditional healer Sekuru Kamwelo Banda; footballers Didier Drogba and Samuel Eto’o have scoffed at plans to test potential vaccines for COVID-19 in Africa The comments came after Dr Jean-Paul Mira, the head of intensive…
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Coronavirus: What We Do Today Will Define Tomorrow
By Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu After every cataclysmic event one tends to think that the world will never be the same. This time it is true that in certain ways the world must change. Global history is laden with such turning points almost all being painful. For years we have been warned that a pandemic could be…
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Need for a different political culture in Zimbabwe: Green Paper
By Rev Dr. Kenneth Mtata I am writing this as a GREEN PAPER to provoke debate. If you are allergic to debate, do not proceed beyond this point! Zimbabwe has been stuck in binary political conditioning where citizens are forced to think only in terms of black and white, good and bad, in or out.…
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Indigenous knowledge systems: Management of Harurwa
By Claude Maredza Part 1 “Whoever does not inform his children of his grandparents, has destroyed his child, marred his descendants, and injured his offspring the day he dies. Whoever does not make use of his ancestry has muddled his reason. Whoever is unconcerned with his lineage has lost his mind. Whoever neglects…
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Analysing controversial issue of gender re-assignment in Zimbabwe
By Rumbidzai Venge At a fundamental level, a person’s sex is determined by his or her genes. Human beings are born with 46 chromosomes in 23 pairs, the X and Y chromosomes determine a person’s sex. Women carry 46 XX and men carry 46XY chromosomes. Upon birth, sex determination is crucial in assigning gender to…
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Should The President stop making jokes?
By Nick Mangwana There is a question that is being discussed among President Mnangagwa’s legion of ardent supporters and loyalists; should the President abandon humour as a device for engaging his audience? Not everyone agrees with this sentiment. The opposite group feels those that subscribe to this thinking are yielding to the whims of an…
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Economic Freedom Fighters Zimbabwe cherish Robert Mugabe legacy
Zimbabwe Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF Zimbabwe) yesterday commemorated the National Youth Day on which they said they were proud to remember the legacy of former President of Zimbabwe Robert Gabriel Mugabe on the pan African ideas he espoused and promoted. “We are also enthusiastic to celebrate his legacy of land redistribution – taking back the…
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![Amending the Constitution [PART 1]](https://spikedmedia.paivepo.digital/wp-content/uploads/Mnangagagwa-conf.jpeg)
Amending the Constitution [PART 1]
By Veritas The Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment (No. 2) Bill was published in the Gazette on the 31st December 2019 and again on the 17th January 2020. It can be viewed on the Veritas website [link]. If the Bill is passed by Parliament it will make a large number of wide-ranging amendments to the Constitution, many of them minor but…
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Thumbs up to ZRP Mashonaland Central for arresting machete wielding terrorists
By Blessing Togarepi I wish to thank Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) from Mashonaland Central Province following the arrest of the 16 machete wielding terrorists who were in the habit of unleashing serious violence that is affecting genuine small scale Miners and the ordinary people at large in the area. The accused persons were part of…
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Most notable political performers of 2019
BY NICHOLAS NCUBE 2019 was an interesting political year for Zimbabwe. A lot of political pieces were moved, words exchanged and power moves made through out the year. 2019 politically belonged to ZANU PF who cemented their power and won most of the by elections they participated in. The year also saw a meterioric rise…
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Analysis Of Extension of Presidential Term Limit
By Veritas ZANU-PF’s secretary for administration is reported to have told a party rally that Parliament could extend the Presidential term-limit beyond the current two terms mandated by the Constitution. When the President addressed the rally he confirmed this, though he stopped short of saying he would be willing to serve more than two terms.…
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Tendai Biti’s dishonesty is becoming a big liability for the MDC
Opinion Piece By Gift Muroyiwa The Book of Galatians says that “If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves.” For many years, Vice President of the MDC Tendai Biti has spent a lot of time and energy to convince the public that he is a campaigner against wealth accumulation and…
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Trump and US Withdrawal from the Paris Agreement: A dangerous game in the time of climate change
By Lenin Tinashe Chisaira (Environmental Legal Correspondent) United States Secretary of State, Trump’s appointee Mike Pompeo announced on Monday 4 November 2019 that the United States had initiated a formal withdrawal process from the Paris Agreement climate treaty. The Paris Agreement’s Article 28 (2) provides for this mechanism when it states that ‘Any such withdrawal…
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Let’s talk about our reality: Are we failing our young people?
By Dr. Patricia Machawira The recent picture of a first year University of Zimbabwe student lying lifeless in a pool of blood, after trying to abort a pregnancy using a coat hanger brings a chill to one’s spine. If she made it to University, surely she should be knowledgeable about pregnancy and how to prevent…
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Zimbabwe should not repeat mistakes of the past
By Engineer Jacob Kudzai Mutisi It is our black government that was behind the death of Olivine, Willowvale, COTTCO, NRZ, Barbican, just to name a few. We do not want the same to happen to Sakunda and Croco Motors. The Minister of Finance and Governor Sirs, the problem is not externalization, it is survival.…
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Piracy threatening the arts sector
With piracy on the increase and determined efforts being made throughout the arts and entertainment world to eliminate the threat to its well-being by illegal operators and operations, a focus has fallen on people and organisations in support services whose role when legitimate is positive but destructive when based on illegitimacy. The scourge of piracy…
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Strive Masiyiwa clarifies Ecocash Agents debacle
Following the outcry over hiked percentages demanded by Ecocash Agents to those willing to access cash, Strive Masiyiwa, the Chairman of Econet absolved his company of the responsibility for the mess. He headlined his response as Talks On EcoCash Agents Selling Cash, “Whose Cash Are Agents Selling? Below is Mr. Masiyiwa’s response: The issue of…
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The End Does Not Justify The Means: Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops’ Conference
Introduction (1) On the morning of Friday 6 September 2019,we woke up to the sad news of the death of former President of Zimbabwe, Robert Gabriel Mugabe. We extend our condolences to his immediate and extended family, the government of Zimbabwe and all the bereaved. May his soul rest in eternal peace. The End Does…
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Mourning Robert Gabriel Mugabe – A mixed legacy
By Rev Dr. Kenneth Mtata (Secretary-General, Zimbabwe Council of Churches) People are mourning the death of one of the remnants of the rare generation of Pan-African and Frontline States leaders. Robert Gabriel Mugabe will be remembered for the great achievements in his earlier period and also the many challenges under his watch in the later…
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Spiritual leader Sekuru Banda weighs in on xenophobia
By Byron Mutingwende Celebrated traditional healer and spiritual leader Sekuru Banda has expressed disdain at the on-going xenophobic attacks in South Africa. Addressing journalists in the capital soon after touching down at the Robert Mugabe International Airport from Asia where he had gone for an international herbal conference in China and Japan, Sekuru Banda…